December 13, 2014

Meditation is for everyone

Sam Harris, a prominent Atheist writer, writes the following about the Vipassana Meditation:

 For beginners, I always recommend a technique called vipassana (Pali, “insight”), which comes from the oldest tradition of Buddhism, the Theravada. The advantage of vipassana is that it can be taught in an entirely secular way. Experts in this practice generally acquire their training in a Buddhist context, of course—and most retreat centers in the U.S. and Europe still teach its associated Buddhist philosophy. Nevertheless, this method of introspection can be brought within any secular or scientific context without embarrassment. The same cannot be said for most other forms of “spiritual” instruction.
The quality of mind cultivated in vipassana is generally referred to as “mindfulness” (the Pali word is sati), and there is a quickly growing literature on its psychological benefits. Mindfulness is simply a state of open, nonjudgmental, and nondiscursive attention to the contents of consciousness, whether pleasant or unpleasant. Cultivating this quality of mind has been shown to modulate pain, mitigate anxiety and depression, improve cognitive function, and even producechanges in gray matter density in regions of the brain related to learning and memory, emotional regulation, and self awareness.
So, please give meditation a try, no matter what your faith is. You don't need to believe in Buddha, or for that matter, any God to practice and derive the benefits of meditation practice. It's all about being in the present moment.

(Link: Sam Harris: How to meditate)

7 comments:

Satyendra said...

100% right. You just need to believe that you have a 'mind'....
and that you need to know it, work with it...

Satyendra said...

Another article with a similar slant -
http://stammer.in/articles/39-cat-general-2/73-sen-art-stuttering.html

Satyendra said...

This book is also relevant...
http://stammer.in/component/content/article/46-cat-books/493-relief-from-stuttering.html

TK said...

Thanks :). The Silverman book is next on my to-buy list.

Ravi said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Ravi said...

absolutely correct
infact I have been doing meditation for quite a few time and it really gives me a feeling of self awareness.

Rajesh, Hyderabad said...

Wow so nice...