“the intent of this blog is to incrementally build a body of thought that works toward integrating various topics, yoga, fitness, and the arts – it’s a process…”

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[ Updated Sept 08, 2019 ]

meditation: “am i doing it yet?” part 1 – who defines meditation?

meditation: “am i doing it yet?” part 2 – definitions mechanisms comparisons

meditation: “am i doing it yet?” part 3 – yes! maybe, sometimes 😉

The Yoga Bowl, a Short Story

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Part 2

straight off, gonna say the best  working definition i have of meditation right now, that fits with my experiences outlined in part 1 yesterday, is from lex gillan

i recently experienced an immersion he hosted, and his simple clean approach, the depths of the studies he described he’d undertook, and the breadth of the range of meditation approaches he’s studied, all gave me confidence of where he was coming from

quite simply, he feels meditation is a means of keeping oneself in the present

that meditation is one of two modes: concentration, or visualization; the latter being usually guided, but apparently best if concentration has already been highly developed

lex also felt that those of a right brain leaning, might benefit more from concentration, while those of a left brain slant, would benefit by expanding imaginative visualization

remember, the goal is to remain attentive, conscious, and aware of being in one’s body, in the present, yet also either concentrating or using visualization (question: is there a way to do visualization, still be present in one’s body, and not be concentrating?)

so, there’s a con-joining of experiencing (a process) and awareness (being)

lex also felt that reaching true samadhi (bliss), was only possible for nano moments – being true to being in our bodies restrained the amount of time possible in total immersion with oneness

ie, my take: we’re grounded earthlings, like it or not

now, before anyone goes off calling lex and saying, “what!!!!” – the above is my remembrance – my interpretation – and my application [1] of what lex spoke of and led us through, during a daring array of breathings chants and eye-to-eye guided visualizations, many of them powerful indeed  😉

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definitions

i like zipping down a google search and, preferably, finding what i need quickly

so one of the things i’ve noticed over years of looking up stuff is, a homogeneous blend of search answers usually means a high degree of confidence, and agreement

in my part 2 post on asanas, “do i HAVE to do the pose this way, no, but…” i used RPE (Rate of Perceived Exertion) to make a few points; my google reference to my RPE definition search was pretty uniform, reflecting my RPE definition experience with AFAA, SilverSneakers, and Zumba

thus, one of the things i noticed in my google search for the definition of “meditation is” was a possible high degree of disparity, relative to other searches i do

the following are, as far as i can tell, highly credible worthwhile sites; each offering insights i found worth pondering, worth trying to merge…

one definition, says meditation is “Whatever you do with awareness is meditation.”

sounds good – but the article goes on to say this does not include worship, prayer, gardening, jogging, music, or art, “creating confusion or misunderstanding”

yes, i’m confused

if worship or prayer or gardening or jogging or music or art is done with awareness, where’s the definitional problem? [2]

and i’ll admit right now, i’m inexperienced enough i might just not be catching it

and to be fair, other portions of the article seem really on target to me, “But yoga is not something eastern or western as it is universal in its approach and application.”

another definiton, describes how learning to concentrate, on “love” for example, is fraught with distractions, such as the thought, “I love candy” which understandably leads to feelings of wanting to head to the store

definitely sounds like a distraction 😉 esp if it’s dark chocolate!

yet, if i proceed as planned for each pilgrim, after conquering concentration [3], passing into meditation, and evolving into contemplation, i should realize that “Everything in the universe that love is connected to will come to you. Every feeling of love, every sensation, every thought…” and  “…everything in the universe is relative to everything else, ultimately your meditation on ‘love’ will connect you to everything”

hmmm, every sensation? what about that candy bar?

yet, how can i argue with this article‘s conclusion? – “It is our birthright and destiny to know this exquisite state first hand and enjoy the Truth, Consciousness, and Bliss that is our eternal true nature.”

maybe i’m just asking to be confused?

maybe i’m just not grasping and grappling with the gap between the lines, creating the synapse needed to snap to the truth

and according to “yinsights” by bernie clark (i’m still working through this, kinda like small bites from a deep rich chocolate) synapses might be a viable concept on more than one plane of being

i’ll do one more search, which right off, i’m hoping will help me nail down a definitive definition of meditation:

“‘concentration, receptive awareness, contemplation, and cultivation’ — constitute the major uses of awareness throughout the world’s great meditative traditions. ‘Meditation techniques are just different paths up the same mountain.'”

this is the stuff of which i like, variety equalling “just different paths”

but wait, what’s this? uh oh, “Unmask meditation poseurs…Thinking…Daydreaming…Repeating affirmations…Praying…”

but wait, there’s more, “Of course, every activity can become a meditation if you do it with awareness or concentration” – that’s it, back to my original feeling

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thank goodness  😉

now i’m getting some definitional confirmation, from a third party source, that experiences like that of jogging, in “cross country,” and of loving, in “heart beats,” did cross into an awareness worthy of being meditations

so, it seems, this is an article willing to take loose straws, and, making the effort, weaves those thin strands of inquiry, those crinkly threads of thought, into a quality rope to hang onto –

can i really ask for much more? or just let it lay…

if i want to truly answer the question, for myself: “meditation, am i doing it yet?”…

i suppose i should 😉

bottomline, i should ask, “so, what do i think? what can i honestly say or convey to anyone about what i now think about meditation?”

it may well be that the mind is a terrible task master of illusion, but it’s along for the ride, and wants its fair share of input and realization…so…

honestly, i’m gonna have to think about that…

…and contemplate a taste of truth….

cont’d:

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footnotes:

[1] i want to emphasis that these are my own conclusions of what was presented in class, and my enjoyment and agreement with these thoughts may well be because it aligns so closely with what i’ve thought for many a year anyway 😉 but i’ve tried to present what seemed to me the clarity of how lex presented these ideas

[2] mysticism is something i not only can accept, but can revel in, but i tend to like to know that’s what i’m doing: whether in imagining / being in a state of consciousness, painting with pigments, playing with poetry, or just sitting absorbing the view of tiny birds hopping grazing on the lawn beyond me

definitions are statements of definition-like descriptions, well, i tend to take them apart to see if they fit me, or i can fit into them

[3] is the term “conquering” anti-yogic? hmm, what with warrior poses, and, supposedly, from what i’ve heard, martial arts is a split of from whatever it was yoga and martial arts once were, as one, my vote is no, definitely not anti-yogic

i think i’m digging a larger hole than i need for my bulbs 😉 but, do i even get a “vote?” –

well, in this culture, where i’m rooted, yes…

regardless of lineages; that’s one of the double -edged experiences of a democracy: a ruling dictate, from whomever, won’t do; so barring a revelation or re-assessment that changes my mind, i get a vote, applied for me by me

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Related Posts

meditation: “am i doing it yet?” part 1 – who defines meditation?

meditation: “am i doing it yet?” part 2 – definitions mechanisms comparisons

meditation: “am i doing it yet?” part 3 – yes! maybe, sometimes 😉

How Meditation Eases Psychiatric Disorders (huffingtonpost.com)

The Yoga Bowl, a Short Story

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[ Updated Sept 08, 2019 ]

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