Meditation changes physiological responses

Mindfulness Meditation
#6

[QUOTE=FlexPenguin;50492]Like what? How many jobs are out there for monks who know how to soak sheets in cold water? I guess they could alternate with warm water and open a laundry.

Or, if we can learn from this to enable scientists to endure the rigors of the poles or space by meditation techniques. The simple factory worker who has lost his livelihood to cheap offshore deals becomes enabled through meditation to discover new beginnings and opportunities.

You may say that I’m a dreamer, but…[/QUOTE]

For one who lives out of a meditative consciousness, such a one is capable of becoming a teacher to both the emperor and the beggar alike.

Whatsoever one’s field of activity in the world, it does not matter. You may be an artist, a musician, a scientist, a politician, a businessman, a farmer, or a garbage man, it all comes to the same. You still have to use the instruments of your mind and body. Depending on how well you use these instruments, that is going to determine how effective you are in the world. If one is to function effectively in the world, what is absolutely necessary is to come to a certain state of balance and penetrating clarity which is in communion with things as they are.

#7

Hi everybody ,
I m a guy from greece (so excuse my bad enlish) and the last days I have had some strange experiences coming out of meditation. There have been 3 months that I meditate on my breath according to the vipassana Osho describes in the Orange book. The last week I tried to focus to the third eye. The first time i lost the sense of my body and this scared me. In the past (5 years ago) I used to meditate and I had reached the void without any fear or problem. These days i used to smoke weed every day and at some time extremely fast hartbeats made me quit meditating. I thought that it was a symptom of meditation . How stupid eh? Anyway…in the present the void scared me I suppose because I have been far more attached to common reality through all these years…
When I was 13-15 years old I had some other strange experiences such as numbness in the head and the feeling that I was seeing my self from above while playin basketball or in the class…these days I described the fact to my mother and see said we had to visit a doctor. The doctor said that there was not enough blood to the brain and every time this strange feeling was on its onset, i should put my head below the level of my heart so that blood will flow there. And so I did. Strange excperiences never again occured until the last week.
I tried to focus to the third eye and after 2 hours my brain started to be in the same kind of numbness…I visualised that I am slipping out of my head and something like a whirlpool in the top of my head started to suck all the energy that was accumulated in my head…Then I remembered this state and get scared again in the potential of a similar excperience(what a chicken#@!). The next day I tried it again and the heartbeat got out of control.
Now I read about oboe everywhere and I have a feeling of numbness again all day long in the back lower part of my head. It seems that with every exhale this part of the head gets more and more energy. When I try to do vipassana all the energy goes there unwillingly. I have to put strong effort to drive the energy to a different point of my body… Is there any possibility this energy to cause damage to my physical body? Why is thing accumulating in the head?
Thanks you for your attention.

#8

Meditation has been proven to decrease cortisol levels. That is enough benefit for me.

I"m not huge into meditation, but I do allow for 15 mins or so at the end of my practice. Just laying there in corpse pose.

I don’t know any of the fancy names LOL
I do know however that shivasana is supine, and tadasana is mountain.:slight_smile:

#9

Blind Guy,

Lying down in corpse pose is not meditation. And if one had even a glimpse into meditation, it would be impossible to dismiss it as something superficial.

#10

I’ve meditated in savasana. Was I imagining things?

#11

[QUOTE=AmirMourad;51061]Blind Guy,

Lying down in corpse pose is not meditation. And if one had even a glimpse into meditation, it would be impossible to dismiss it as something superficial.[/QUOTE]

Why not? You lay there with a clear mind and focus on your breath. What difference does it make what position your body is in?

Sitting on a frozen lake staring down a hole in the ice in hopes I catch a fish is meditation, sitting in the woods at sunrise next to a tree is meditation. Who’s to say what is and what isn’t?

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/meditation

heres the definition of the word. Pretty self explanatory don’t cha think?

#12

I’ve meditated, concentrated, and contemplated all while lying down.

the reply should be marvelous. I’m betting it will entail something about awakening or whatever . . .

#13

The Blind Guy,

It makes no difference whatsoever regarding the posture. Whether sitting, standing, lying down, walking, everything can arise as a by product of a meditative consciousness. You can lie down and be meditative, but you cannot meditate and lie down.

As far as you are concerned, I know very well that you have not entered into meditation, otherwise your attitude towards it would have been entirely different. It would have been an incentive to go even deeper into your own being, because whatever glimpse that one has is just scratching the surface of the experience.

As far as savasana is concerned, it is a good posture simply to relax the nervous system, but the problem for most people is that it tends to relax you too much, that you simply fall asleep. And in meditation one is both relaxed and yet tremendously alert.

“You lay there with a clear mind and focus on your breath.”

Concentration upon the breath is not meditation, it is concentration. Meditation is not something which arises as an effort of the mind.

“heres the definition of the word. Pretty self explanatory don’t cha think?”

It is impossible to contain what meditation is through a dictionary definition, which was not written by those who have come to their enlightenment or who have any direct experience of meditation. But yes, that is what meditation means in English. But what is meant by meditation in the East is a totally different phenomenon. The word for it is dhyana. There is no precise translation for the word in English, the closest comes meditation although that is also dimensions apart from what it is. Because in English, meditation means to contemplate or to consider, both of which require an effort of the mind. Hence, the Christians have spoken of “meditations on Christ”, or the scientist may speak of “meditation on quantum physics”, and they will be very much correct in using the word. The whole work of the philosopher is meditation, because he is contemplating, thinking about a certain subject. But as far as the yogic sciences is concerned, dhyana is something totally different.

#14

[QUOTE=FlexPenguin;51081]I’ve meditated in savasana. Was I imagining things?[/QUOTE]

I don’t know. But it is rare that one enters into meditation through shavasana. What often happens because of the way the posture works on your system is either a deep pratyahara (sensory withdrawal) or an entry into sleep. And it is very easy to mistake either as meditation. But, certainly it is possible for one to be in shavasana and remain in a meditative consciousness, but it is likely that one would have already integrated meditation from moment to moment in daily living. Then, regardless of the posture, regardless of one’s environment, everything can be included as part of one’s meditation, to be meditative becomes one’s very nature, one’s very fragrance.

#15

Amir is right. Meditation is not the same as contemplation, rather it is the opposite of contemplation, where a state is created which is absent of all thought. If one is thinking during meditation they are not meditating. This is why meditation is often described as a listening or watching activity. You listen and watch what is going on in your mind without thinking about it.

It is possible to meditate in shavasana, but difficult. Most yoga instructers advise one not to meditate in shavasana because the posture can induce sleep quite easily. This posture is deliberaly used in another Yogic practice called Yoga Nidra(Yogic sleep) to deeply relax the body. The aim of meditation is not to relax your body completely, but rather to remain alert and watchful of what is happening in your mind. Thus they serve different functions.

#16

you’re right Amir, I’m not real big on the meditation stuff. Reaching Nirvana is not a goal of mine. I have noticed changes in my persona from asana practice. But again, thats not a goal, my goal upon getting into asana was to correct or minimize muscle imbalances, and tightness. Basically I do asana for its fitness benefits.

By the way, I’m not going to fall asleep in savasana when I’m cranking music loud enough to shake the neighbors house.:smiley:

#17

yall two just keep diggin your hole deeper and deeper and deeper

#18

[QUOTE=The Scales;51190]yall two just keep diggin your hole deeper and deeper and deeper[/QUOTE]

LOL
no shit.

I just don’t like it when someone tells me their way is the only way.

#19

[QUOTE=The Blind Guy;51200]LOL
no shit.

I just don’t like it when someone tells me their way is the only way.[/QUOTE]

Same here.

Because I know ‘my way’ is the only way!

joke…

#20

[QUOTE=Surya Deva;51167]Amir is right. Meditation is not the same as contemplation, rather it is the opposite of contemplation, where a state is created which is absent of all thought. If one is thinking during meditation they are not meditating. This is why meditation is often described as a listening or watching activity. You listen and watch what is going on in your mind without thinking about it.

It is possible to meditate in shavasana, but difficult. Most yoga instructers advise one not to meditate in shavasana because the posture can induce sleep quite easily. This posture is deliberaly used in another Yogic practice called Yoga Nidra(Yogic sleep) to deeply relax the body. The aim of meditation is not to relax your body completely, but rather to remain alert and watchful of what is happening in your mind. Thus they serve different functions.[/QUOTE]

Yoga meditation is concentration on God. Putting the body to sleep while keeping the mind awake is just about the only way I know of to enter in into Pratyahara. Even then you can still hear, but the sounds are muted. Once you are in this state your concentration isn’t nearly as easily broken. When that concentration is focused solley on God, or Om, or any aspect of God it becomes meditation. All the fancy semantics are silly.

Meditation also means to sit and watch you breath. It also means to sit and observe your thoughts. It also mean sit focus on the space around you.

Arguing over this would be like Organic Chemists trying to reclaim the word organic.

Meditation has a lot of meanings today, but in yoga meditation means perfect concentration on God. IMHO. Thus the the word Yoga which means Union.

But hey keep worrying about all the details… instead of focusing on the only thing that matters…figuring out what you are.

#21

[QUOTE=The Blind Guy;51200]LOL
no shit.

I just don’t like it when someone tells me their way is the only way.[/QUOTE]

This is why you don’t learn :wink:

You have no problem when somebody tells you that H20 is water, the battle of hastings was in 1066, and such and such area of your brain corresponds to such and such function, but you have a problem when somebody tells you meditation is the act of thoughtless awareness and that lying down whilst mediatating is likely to induce sleep because of the effect this posture has on the nervous system.

You are your own enemy when it comes to expanding your mind and growing in knowledge.

#22

Yoga meditation is concentration on God. Putting the body to sleep while keeping the mind awake is just about the only way I know of to enter in into Pratyahara. Even then you can still hear, but the sounds are muted. Once you are in this state your concentration isn’t nearly as easily broken. When that concentration is focused solley on God, or Om, or any aspect of God it becomes meditation. All the fancy semantics are silly.

I hear you.

Although I would argue about the semantics of what you mean by Yoga is meditation on god? Patanjali does mention meditation on god as being one of the highest types of meditation, but he certainly does not limit meditation to meditation on god. He also describes meditations on breath, inner-space, subtle centres etc. You can pretty much choose any object for your meditation.

#23

[QUOTE=Surya Deva;51351]This is why you don’t learn :wink:

You have no problem when somebody tells you that H20 is water, the battle of hastings was in 1066, and such and such area of your brain corresponds to such and such function, but you have a problem when somebody tells you meditation is the act of thoughtless awareness and that lying down whilst mediatating is likely to induce sleep because of the effect this posture has on the nervous system.

You are your own enemy when it comes to expanding your mind and growing in knowledge.[/QUOTE]

LOL
no I don’t learn. I don’t need to, I already know everything.:stuck_out_tongue:

Usually the ones who say there is only one path to a destination are religous zealots, and tyrannical dicators.

Perhaps you should try my method of meditation. Sitting in the woods, by a tree with a gun in your hand. Or sitting in a boat on a quiet morning with a fishing rod in your hand.

You’re right I can’t see well enough to shoot anymore, but the experience is what counts.

#24

Sitting in the woods, by a tree with a gun in your hand. Or sitting in a boat on a quiet morning with a fishing rod in your hand

They are not meditations. Meditation is a formal activity where you enter into thoughtless awareness by the means of focussing your mind one something and maintaining that focus and watching your mind. Then gradually, your consciousness begins to shift inwards and you enter into altered states. If you maintain the focus long enough you can go into very deep states of consciousness leading to radical shifts in the perception of reality.

Usually the ones who say there is only one path to a destination are religous zealots, and tyrannical dicators.

Again, you do not say this to your history teacher who told you the Battle of Hastings was in 1066 or your chemistry teacher who tells you H20 is water, or your biology teacher who teaches you about the anatomy of the brain and the functions of various lobes. You are only saying this to the Yoga teacher who is telling you that certain bodily postures will elicit certain effects(such as lying down will induce sleep) and certain mental techniques will produce certain results.

Listen to your Yoga teachers and to experienced yogis. They know more about Yoga than you do. If you don’t listen, well like I said, you are your own enemy when it comes to expanding in knowledge. If I had that attitude when I was at school I would have learned nothing.

#25

The difference here is you are comparing scientific fact to theology.

Lets compare apples to apples. Thats akin to saying anyone who isn’t Catholic is going to hell.

Lets face it, yoga and its spiritual mumbo jumbo is in fact theology.

You are in fact correct about yoga teachers and experienced yogis know more about yoga than me. We can agree on that. LOL

I’m not dismissing your belief by any means. However you are dismissing mine as it does not correspond with yours.