1 - What is Meditation

Question 1

Meditation is present in..

Answer 1

All(?) religions & cultures

Question 2

How many people have meditated in last 12 months?

Answer 2

12 million: 1ce in last 12 months (2007)

Question 3

How long have people meditated?

Answer 3

As long as we have records, since beginning of recorded history

Question 4

What do different meditation traditions each treat differently?

Answer 4

-Use of mental images-Focusing on sensations or withdrawal from them-Meditate while doing action or sitting still-Silent or non-silent

Question 5

What is meditation not?

Answer 5

i. Thinking-not same thingii. Day dreaming/ spacing outiii. Repeating affirmations-no “my life is amazing” BSiv. Self-hypnosis-not gradually relaxing body more and morev. Sleep-EEG waves fundamentally differentvi. Prayer-Not petitionary prayer, but similar to contemplative?vii. Religion-Don’t need to be religiousviii. Contemplation-meditation investigates, contemplation wonders

Question 6

What are some common misconceptions?

Answer 6

• Special skills or background-a working mind, that’s it!• Renounce goals &/or passions-nope• Big chunk of your time-15/20m every day for benefit• Stop thinking-that’s impossible. watch them arise and float away• Navel gazing-active intelligent effortful process• Eliminate sadness from your life-it definitely won’t do that!

Question 7

What does Naranjo mean by saying meditation is developing a presence?

Answer 7

.It’s a process across many situations, not just formally.it’s transformative, something about those who have done it for a long time.how is more important than the what. HOW do you relate to what you’re doing, even if you’re angry.it’s a process vs just content, not something you achieve and then you can just relax, it’s ongoing dynamic and fluid

Question 8

what is meditation according to Bodian?

Answer 8

Bodian (1999): the practice and processof paying attention and focusing yourawareness.

Question 9

what is meditation according to Salzberg?

Answer 9

Salzberg (2011): training our attention sothat we can become more aware.

Question 10

What is the significance of William James quote? William James (1890): “My experience iswhat I attend to. Basically, attention iswhat we allow ourselves to notice.”

Answer 10

Because by training our attention, we can train to be MORE aware, aware of MORE. attention is what we allow ourselves to notice, and we can notice more through training it

Question 11

Problem of the Homunculus?

Answer 11

A problem of infinite regress. There must be something processing all my sensory info. Who processes that info. And then that info?

Question 12

According to Shear, what are the 3 categories meditation can be described by?

Answer 12

i. Mental faculties-are you working on attention, reasoning, perception, sensation?ii. How they use them-are you doing something active? or effortless?iii. Objects of meditation-what are you meditating on? thought, concept, image, internal energy, god?

Question 13

What 3 skills according to Salzberg does meditation cultivate?

Answer 13

i. Concentration-a focus of your attention like a laser beamii. Mindfulness-take that same beam and make it huge, part of your every day experienceiii. Lovingkindness-kindness and gentleness towards yourself and others

Question 14

What does it mean to say meditation is “both path and goal?”

Answer 14

Goal: Be more attentive to what’s around usPath: The training of trying to be more attentive, the meditating

Question 15

Summarize Shambhala: The Sacred Path of the Warrior by Chogyam Trungpa

Answer 15

woops? read if have time

Question 16

Summarize: Turning Your Mind Into An Ally by Saying Mipham

Answer 16

“Most of us are slaves to our minds”-We are run by our underlying behavioral patterns and habitual reactions to thingsShamatha-It’s concentration meditationExplain flower/rock analogy-Rock represents the untrained mind, fixated, closed mind-Flower is what emerges after you break it down, compassion, fearlessness, confidence, dignity, these things emerge out of mindfulness

Question 17

What forms of meditation are there?

Answer 17

• Trance dancing-oh lol, it’s when you go to a rave and dance for hours• Sufi dancing-start off with a prayer and slowly spin for an hour or more• Drumming-big in aboriginal cultures, rhythm allows you to focus attention and mind• Ritual walks- in nature• Yoga• Transcendental meditation-foused-based practice• Vipassana-insight meditation or clear seing. focus your attention then move to subtler sensations• Shamatha-peaceful abiding, concentration meditation?• Zen-mindful experience, absorption, but this word has been bastardized• Quaker worship-service, formal sitting, everyone is quiet for long periods of time, but people can spontaneously talk for short period of time• Visualization-christians might try to visualize jesus on the cross• Sand mandalas-intricate art created and destroyed upon completion, symbolize impermanence• Mantras• Body scans• Mindfulness-based stress reduction

Question 18

According to Sedlmeier, why do people meditate?

Answer 18

• Sedlmeier et al. (2012):i. Overcome psychological or emotionalproblemsii. Better understanding of life

Question 19

Why don’t people meditate?

Answer 19

• Bodian (1999):-Boring, esoteric, ascetic, unproductive,difficult, wimpy-But actually, it’s interesting, familiar, sensual, extremely productive, natural, and very powerful

Question 20

c) Should I meditate?

Answer 20

-Excessive consumerism all for sensory gratification, Blaine showed us a disgusting video that exemplified this-pain, anxiety, and depression• Concentration, clearer thinking• Enjoy senses, if mindful!• Physical benefits, health, blood pressure, immune system• Creativity, early studies suggest more creative• Meaning/purpose in life

Question 21

Why study meditation?

Answer 21

• Lots people do it, and psychology studies what people DO• We don’t know how mind works!• Promise of physical changes in body, want to understand them• Promise of psychological changes, reductions in anxiety, want to understand taht• To answer questions, like what is consciousness?

Question 22

In Taking the Leap, what does it mean to choose to go further toward clarity or confusion?

Answer 22

.each moment is a new moment to decide which “wolf” to feed, with awareness

Question 23

In Taking the Leap, what is “the leap?”

Answer 23

.leap into the unknown, of breaking old habits and trying something new, doing something different. can be scary, but something incredible might happen. taht’s what life is all about.

Question 24

In Taking the Leap, what is the first step in taking the leap?

Answer 24

.Being honest with ourselves, and acknowledging both “wolves”

Question 25

In Taking the Leap, what 3 qualities does meditation cultivate, and why does the word “natural” precede each of them?

Answer 25

Intelligence. Not meaning doing well on an exam! Meaning, the natural ability to know what we need, what will help and what will not. Warmth. Shared capacity to love, appreciate, have a sense of humorOpenness. A flexibility, spaciousness, curiosity of the mind. Kids minds are like this naturally. Not conditioned yet by the fear of rejection. Why does “natural” precede these three things? Because these are all innate, they are qualities already within us, we must simply access them, slow down and recognize them.

Question 26

In Taking the Leap, what is the solution for self-absorption? And how can we inject a pause into our life?

Answer 26

Vii) what is the solution for self-absorption? Slowing down, recognizing itVii) how can we inject a pause into your life? Three deep breaths. Don’t need to take an hour everyday to meditate, just simple.

Question 27

What are the Five reasons to meditate from the reading?

Answer 27

.steadfastness, clear seeing, courage, attention, no big deal.steadfastness, staying with your experience, respecting your current experience no matter what it is, opening to it, allowing yourself to experience it, a willingness.clear seeing, working on developing a nonjudgmental clarity, nonjudgmental being important.courage, to face and sit with your emotions no matter how bad it might be, also a courage to have a less self-centred view of the world.attention, ability to become awake in our lives.no big deal, of your both your triumphs and tribulations,

Question 28

How do we begin to examine the history of meditation?

Answer 28

Look at the brain. First time spiritual experiences can happen at least since the mammalian brain with neocortex.Reptilian brain, basic life and physiological function, no emotionsPre hominid, emotions now, cingulate cortex, etcMammalian, now neocortex, problem solving, inhibit responses, decison makingPotential to meditate has been around for thousands of years

Question 29

What is Ethnobotany?

Answer 29

Ethnobotany, scientific study of the traditional knowledge of plants and its medicinal valueHow traditional cultures have used plants, as medicine, for religious experiencesLooks like archaic humans have had a very good knowledge of plantsWhat they could eat, couldn’t, what to use for medicine, and which plants had psychoactive substancesLooks like from archaeological digs, these plants were set aside in storage, were special

Question 30

Describe:• Indo-Aryan & Indo-Iranians: soma• Huni-Kui of upper Amazon

Answer 30

Indo-Aryan & Indo-Iranians: SomaSoma meaning mind altering plantsHuni-Kui of upper AmazonTake psychoactive plants and go on vision questConsume a plant, has great meaning for them, and focus on psychoactive effects with attentionCould make potions to take to see into the future, or to acquire special kinds of knowledgeFrom drug-induced ecstasy to ecstasy (without drugs)

Question 31

Why might hunting be an early origin of meditation?

Answer 31

Hunting: quiet and identificationHad to be stealthy and quiet, had to have patience, had to be focusedMaybe out of that came the necessary skills for meditation?The good hunter can “put himself in the mind” of their prey, identify with their preyRemoving yourself from yourself and acquiring a different perspective

Question 32

Why might fighting be an early origin of meditation?Sex?

Answer 32

FightingRequires discipline and a focused mind, must be open and aware A precursor to meditation?SexReaching climax, thoughts all melt away, you lose yourself, and lose a sense of separateness, a non-duality

Question 33

Why might Trauma be an early origin of meditation?

Answer 33

Physical, if you broke a bone thousands of years ago, you were fucked. Long time to heal couldn’t do anything. How do you deal with that intense pain? Maybe “remove” yourself from your bodyPeople in near death experiences report similar things, leaving the body, or even ecstasy

Question 34

Why might the domestication of fire contribute to the early origins of meditation?

Answer 34

00k year ago, domestication of fireWe gathered around the fire because it was warm and safe and nice, felt protected, together all focusing on it, the fire can be hypnotizing, there is a fluidity to it

Question 35

Who were the Kung San and what was !kia and n/um?

Answer 35

!Kung San (Kalahari): !kia & n/umUp until recently they lived as if in Stone Age in Africa, like twenty years agoThey had dance practices, a specific one called !kia, a form of ecstasyIt releases n/um, which is a power or energy, which comes form the danceWhen you dive into that, you can experience that ecstasy or !kiaHealers go into this dance to gain knowledge to help otherseDance will often go from dusk till dawn, women will sit around fire singing and slapping thighs, providing rhythm, the men dance around them all night longGradually, people enter into a trance or state, and that’s when interesting stuff happensWhat’s really interesting, is that we can enter into this without drugs, through this specific methodology they have cultivated over timeThese types of cultures are called… shamanistic: initiation, death, rebirthTo be a shaman, you must symbolically “die” and be reborn, which is associated with feelings of ecstasy

Question 36

What was Eleusis? Why was Eleusis considered an early origin of meditation?

Answer 36

Greece: EleusisPeople in Ancient Greece were supposed to make a pilgrimage to Eleusis at least once in their life, with help of something like LSD, People who didn’t have these experiences, were treated like zombiesChristianity put an end to this thoughStill, in some cultures with this type of tradition, people are considered powerless until having gone through this type of journeyMoses did this, went on a vision quest of sorts, was a shaman, talked to inanimate objects, saw god in in them

Question 37

What are is yoga and what are its early origins, and how do they contribute to early origins of meditation?

Answer 37

Yoga, oldest word we know of that refers to meditation, means “to yoke” or to harness your “horse” to a chariot, meaning self-discipline, and means union with divineSomeone who practices yoga is a yoginIndia-Aryans harnessed their horses to battle with chariots, had to have great skill and sophisticated equipment to do this, where the word yoga came fromOriginally, yoga also referred to words like war, conquest, warrior, and skillSo yoga is training a skill, involving harnessing previously uncontrolled forces, being your horse, like mental forces

Question 38

What happened to Yoga in 400 BCE?

Answer 38

400 BCE, start to get the word yoga being metaphorically, priests harnessing their minds for sacred thoughts, to better praise godsBefore Indo-Aryan invasion, we find artifacts with pictures of people maybe sitting in lotus position, maybe meaning they practiced meditation, not for sure though

Question 39

Who was Chuang Tzu? What did he come up with and when?

Answer 39

Daoist philosopher from 300 BCE!!Came up with “Basic Writings” which was a document with instructions in how to meditate, to train the untrained mind