Did you meditate today? Meditation is a good way to counter the

No meditation brahs here?

>>42346110
As a practicing buddhist seeing a thread like this always lifts my day. Just knowing someone out there might get some quality reflection time from this reminder is always a great thing.

>>42346234
We're gonna make it to Nirvana brah

>>42346110
I used to mediate back in high school and it helped with my memory, concentration, and sleep. Coupled that with exercising and eating healthy, I was doing pretty well for myself. It's been a year and I have gotten back to my bad habits.

Where is the meditation sticky?

>>42346110
ive meditated so much that im actually in a constant state of meditation throughout my day

I've been trying to meditate 2x a day. I feel like it's helped me become more chill, and present in the moment. I also find I'm not as anxious as I once was, which is a super good thing.
Also, glad there are other anons practicing this, keep it up guys.

>>42346110
Anyone with OCD see results meditating?

>>42346110
I've seen your pic in multiple threads today alone, are you attempting to garner some sort of fame, or just recognition?

I've been meaning to meditate and am half way through a book on it, but I keep forgetting and then when I'm stressed about the same shit on my.kind that always drags me down I remember i need to meditate. Hopefully I'll finally start to actually do it tomorrow and then daily after.

I will meditate when I get back home. I never can before class, it starts too early. Thanks for the reminder : )

About to meditate once these mushrooms kick in. 5 dried grams on an empty stomach (24 hour fast) want to do a non-redditfag AMA? I'll go as long as I can manage to type.

placebo as fuck

>>42346394
Let's get back to a good place together breh

>>42346572
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=a7pzAxRa2Ok

Tips for a beginner?

How do I meditate. My mind just runs wild with thoughts and scenarios

My mom taught me breathing retention to help with anxiety and I do that sometimes.
Recently I saw a video about Wim Hof and he does something similar to what I was taught. My mom didn't know other people do that, she said she just started doing it out of nowhere. A lot of ppl on Youtube comments were shitting on Wim Hof for it, what's your opinion /fit/? Is it just buddhists butthurt because it went mainstream?

>>42346667
if you googled "how to mediate" just once you would have your answer, jesus

>>42346667
Ever hear that high pitched tone when you're in a quiet room after a noisy day? Focus everything you are on that sound and nothing else for as long as you can. Focus on its modulations or variations. Maintain this for as long as you can.

>>42346667
just don't attach yourself to the thoughts and scenarios

bring your attention back to your breath when you get yourself lost in thought

it gets easier as you practice and your mind calms down

it's not about not thinking, it's about not hanging on to the thoughts that appears in your mind

>>42346667
Meditation is basically training your brain to become present and empty of thoughts.

As you become better at meditation it will become easier to get into this state of emptiness and calm.

It just takes consistency and patience.

>>42346614
Alright dude. Same thing happening to you ?

Meditate for 20 min a day , think I want to get up to 45. I used to do 90 min a day and really felt the benefits but I don't have that kind of time. Life is getting in the way of my enlightment

File: Joan_don.jpg (68KB, 790x535px) Image search: [Google]

68KB, 790x535px

>>42346110
Isn't meditation just relaxing?
Can't I do that just watching Netflix? I'm currently in the 3rd season of Mad Men, pretty good, although everyone in the 60s was DYEL apparently.

>>42346110
Meditation brah here. I'm starting to get more and more into it. I don't think I really have a specific style but I mainly focus on my breath or just general emptiness.

>>42346667
You're doing it, allow the thoughts to come and go, try your best to not react or entertain the thoughts. Anytime you find yourself about to always go back to focusing on your breathing. The thoughts don't mean you're failing, so don't worry. Just keep at it and as you get more practiced they start to come less and less.

>>42346796
No, meditation is a state of concentration on something whether it be your breath, a mantra, or nothingness. With Netflix you are engaged, and constantly taking in information, meditation is a state of concentrating on training your mind on searching inward. Or that's how I see it.

>>42346796
No is the short answer.

Don't get me wrong, I can get into TV series like a junkie and binge watch certain things on youtube for hours, and while you may think you are relaxing, your brain is being bombarded with stimuli every minute you watch that show. You may feel physically relaxed but your brain still isn't getting a break.

Just try meditation, it feels really good and I would've called myself an idiot a few years ago for "believing" in meditation. Sit your ass down on a cushion, do a half lotus and just focus on a point that you see while keeping a neutral spine. Focus on breathing and acknowledge the stream of thoughts entering your head, breathe and push them back out.

Shit's relaxing bro, give it a try for 5 minutes tomorrow morning and I guarantee you'll feel good.

>>42346882
>>42346899
Thanks, I'll give it a try tomorrow morning.

Is it better to do multiple different ways of meditation during one day or just to pick one method and stick with it?

I want to do zen, mindfulness, visualizations, and experiment with more. I just don't know if I'll get long-term benefits if I'm mixing methods.

File: giphy[1].gif (2MB, 400x280px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 400x280px

>>42346796

>>42346605
You do know that there are multiple studies showing the results of meditation on the brain? I mean yeah it could still be construed as placebo but why wouldn't you want to trick your mind into being better in every way regardless.

>>42347078
Just stick with zen and mindfulness.

File: 1500875351683.png (523KB, 798x599px) Image search: [Google]

523KB, 798x599px

>>42346234
>buddhist
Did you grow up Buddhist or adopt it later in life?

The meditation aspects of Buddhism intrigue about the religion, but I am an atheist and don't think I can ever believe in a god.

>inb4 fedora-- force fed Catholicism all my life and organized religion just doesn't sit right with me

>>42346110
Lifting doesn't give me stress, it reduces my stress and makes me more well balanced

Before the modern bullshit buddhism trend we used to call meditation relaxation.

File: 1499105417363.png (663KB, 881x612px) Image search: [Google]

663KB, 881x612px

>>42346526
Fellow OCD bro here, looking for answers as well

>>42347546
>lifting doesn't stress your muscles, your mental, joints

You're not lifting heavy enough

>>42346605
Ever heard of NLP and Meta-thinking?

Well me neither, but meditation is still pretty cool I guess

>>42347614
Muscles yes but not my mind. The gym is my relaxation time.

>>42347665
Attempting a PR or grinding a rep doesn't strain your mind?

>>42347678
No? Dude it's physical. You can either do it or can't do it, there's no worries.

>>42347758
>doesn't get worried that if you fail a bench press, you'll injure yourself and make a scene in the gym

>>42347767
You shouldn't solo bench an amount you're unsure you can lift to begin with.

File: 1500414678432.jpg (2MB, 518x3648px) Image search: [Google]

2MB, 518x3648px

Let's achieve new heights together.

>>42348316
Walking meditation is where it's at

>>42346673
Any good videos by wim hof about his breathing?

>>42346234
meditation is great. have a nice day bro

>>42346667
Its all pretty simple. The easy and straightforward way to do it would be to simply sit down, close your eyes and concentrate on your breathing. You shouldn't try to forcibly supress your thoughts, just let them fly by and breathe. Do it for 15 minutes twice a day. You can also try to visualise something inside your head and concentrate on it or use a mantra or whatever. Ultimately it all works the same way, don't make it more complex than it needs to be

File: 1490190027511.jpg (70KB, 720x960px) Image search: [Google]

70KB, 720x960px

>>42346666
nice quads
practice
try headspace it's a good app

>>42347513
not that guy but i adopted buddhism after being atheist for a number of years. I don't believe in a god but do believe in some universal connection and follow the teaching of Buddha

>hey come sit for hours to "clear your mind"
>no, we don't have any scientific evidence to back up our claims you just have to trust the process bro
>just sit for 7 hours a day eating only crackers and lemon juice
Get the fuck out you buddhist gains goblins.

>>42346526
>>42347607
pure O ocd reporting in

have you guys read 'the power of now'?

started reading it last night and i already have more of a positive outlook about life.

dont fucking call it meditating
people will think you're some tree hugging hippy who doesn't wear deoderant
you can literally lie down and just relax and maybe even fall asleep from it, thats still meditating
you don't have to be the shitskin in the OP and sit like a faggot and close your eyes like you're some smug fuck

>>42348885
Oh shit, I'm pure O too. How are you holding up anon?

>>42346572
yes please

>>42348316
(You) good content

>>42346746

Not >>42346614 here
but yeah, in similar spot here. Gotta go back to meditation, let's do it, we know it's good for us!

>>42346110
I think this dude was in my physics 2 class...

>>42348881

> we don't have any scientific evidence

my sides

>>42346667
youtube.com/watch?v=sAKdFBg40pk

You wont get it the first time, but you will find, see and feel new meanings over the years as you develope.

>>42346526
Bump for interest! OCD has gotten really bad lately I'm honestly scared for my future. Feels bad man.

>>42346526
No, but lifting to failure foes work

>>42346605
You are much wiser than this post shows

>>42346684
Applies to 90% of the posts on this board

>>42348885
>>42349107
Never heard of Pure O. Looked it up. Holy shit I think this is what I have. Recently developed it this year. Always had regular OCD but newer shit developed that I couldn't explain and drives me crazy.

>>42346684
>anon asks a meditation related question
>on a post about meditation
>durr hurr google it
fuck off mate

>>42348899
Sounds like you need meditation brother

>>42348899
You have issues mate.
Literally how can something as simple as people talking about meditation get you this upset.
Seek help bruv

>>42347513
Buddhism has no god

>>42346605

Is this placebo?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wusYZFXpPas

>>42349727
This focus meditation is some intense shit.
Meditating to the point where your focus is unparalleled with anything else on this planet is incredible.
Meditation for relaxing might be placebo, as it's pretty much similar to sleeping, just while sitting, but meditating to increase focus and resistance to pain is very real.
I'm not knowledgeable enough on the topic to discuss it any further, but when I meditate to increase my physical and mental resistance to pain, I've felt much stronger, and resistant.
There's just a type of "off switch" that I can trigger in my brain now during intense periods of focus that allow me to withstand incredible pressures and pains.
It's truly incredible what focus meditation can do for you.

File: 1496267176154.png (698KB, 580x849px) Image search: [Google]

698KB, 580x849px

>>42346110
I am about to try out some buddhist meditation,

There are some classes in my city, but desu I do not have time atm to attend them (busy month at work)

can any anons here guilde me to some internet materials so I can try it out at my place?

Or is it something that has to be learned and learning it by myslef will be a waste of time?

File: Captura de pantalla_2017-07-28_23-13-05.png (361KB, 328x514px) Image search: [Google]

361KB, 328x514px

>>42349912
I got into it years ago with the Diamond Way centers, where they offer guided meditation like twice or thrice per week. You should check in their website if you have one nearby and join one session, they usually hand out these blue booklets you can be using for years.

http://promienie.net/images/dharma/books/16th-karmapa_meditation.pdf
https://wikileaks.org/wiki/Ole_Nydahl_Diamond_Way_Buddhist_books

Of course I linked you to a pdf but only so you can get a look at it, you should try to get a physical copy to use for meditation.

lifting heavy is the stress relief

File: 1494588862423.jpg (35KB, 222x152px) Image search: [Google]

35KB, 222x152px

>>42349956
ok, I am probably am retarded and I don't know shit. Is this somekind of mantra to read during meditation? Is there is nothing more? I guess I'll wait till I have some time to attend classes...

>>42350054
Straining, also known as putting stress on something, is what you do to muscles. Cannot be stress relief if you strain to do it.

>>42350105
Nothing is the point

>>42347513
Hey anon, just got back from uni so this is a late af response but I'll answer it cause why not.

I adopted it. It's like a "born again" type thing, I just woke up one day and knew I was reincarnated from a buddhist and got my shit together, became a much better person very quickly from reading the book of flowers.
Classic religious bs I know, but it's the way of it.

There aren't specific gods so much as there are sects which mingle with each other, mahayana sect has a lot of indian lore and shit in it like Vishnu and Mara, book of fire is that one. Though I don't believe in gods so much as I do the soul, karma, and reaching nibbana.

It humbles me to know that my iteration will never reach nibbana, but with my wisdom, one day, a soul thousands to millions of years from now will come to understand, and my good work is simply another step of their journey.

Funny thing about buddhism is that you'll simply know if you are one. You might already be catholic, muslim or protestant. It doesn't matter. Buddhism is the only spiritual philosophy where its teachings can be employed by anyone of religious persuasion. Atheist buddhists exist anon, do some research if your interested, you'll be fascinated by it.

>>42350105
It's just a text with instructions for the guided meditation. You can do without it as well, in fact that's what I do nowadays, only that for starters is one of the best things to do since it introduces many of the attitudes useful fro meditation.
>>42350138
>It humbles me to know that my iteration will never reach nibbana,
why so many buddhists out there have that attitude? Every one I meet thinks that although it is a great thing they won't achieve it in their life, that somehow it is out of their reach.

The word "enlightenment" sounds like a superhuman feat but I don't think it is so, even if it happens very rarely. I think it is just "paying attention". Even Gautama taught it was the most natural of things.

Just b urself bro.

>>42349107
fine right now desu

i actually had a few really good days last week where i basically felt totally normal, but then my intrusive thoughts came back. it gave me hope though. this shit isn't permanent, you just have to accept it and let it pass. i also had it when i was 15 and i can't remember how long it lasted, but it did go away eventually.

also there is a supplement called inositol which you should try.

good luck brother. if you have a burner email and would like to talk or anything put it in the field and i'll email you.

>>42346110
The stress is what cause an adaptation, aka muscle growth.
And meditation is NOT shown to relieve exercise induced stress.

>>42348885
That is one really good book, anon. It really gave me a direction on how meditation can be practiced for best results and a good explanation on what all religions are based on, which also gives you a new point of view on history in general, or at least that was for me. I never got out so much of meditation before reading this book, and many people experienced something similar to an ego death just by reading it or reading and practicing what the book says.

This is a book one should keep and study several times throughout his life, I've read it twice or thrice and I can assure you the more you read it the more you get out of it.

No wonder it became such a huge best seller with almost no publicity except the mouth to mouth during the first few years.

>>42350618
yeah it's wild, i have only read the first chapter but already i feel like i completely understand what the book is about

>>42349832
I've been meditating for a few years and this seems to go against the general idea I've learned from meditating. As I understand you're not building up a resistance to pain - that's considered a form of aversion. The idea is that you give up all resistance to the pain itself - and by doing so the pain is completely gone. The physical pain may still be present but their will be no mental pain.

File: Thus+Spoke+Zarathustra.jpg (289KB, 958x1500px) Image search: [Google]

289KB, 958x1500px

>>42349912

I have hard enough time getting through the day with meditation without being reminded of the time i watched Army Dog, sometimes when I am sitting out on the sand dunes at sunset doing my yogic breathing I start to hear the screaming all over again and can't shut it out

>>42350623
Well, Nietzsche said once something along the lines "you could summarize every single book in existence to one phrase and still not lose its essence", and this is very well the case of this book too, only for this one it is even more obvious because it is closer to truth.

Truth is always simple. The book can be summarized in "YOU ARE NOT YOUR MIND", and like most books it only gets to have some length because it deals with the limitless applications that simple yet true principle can have in many facets of life. I have found this principle to exist whenever I found anything that I came to consider true.

>>42349832
>>42350711
> As I understand you're not building up a resistance to pain - that's considered a form of aversion.
>The idea is that you give up all resistance to the pain itself - and by doing so the pain is completely gone.
>The physical pain may still be present but their will be no mental pain.

That is my experience with meditation for focus too. If you have enough will to stop thinking about how bad physical pain is and how much you'd like not to be experiencing it, to be somewhere else, then you have removed the majority of it. It has to do with acceptance, being in the present moment, where is the only place you can be in, even if it is one of pain, is better than pretending or wishing to be somewhere else.

As they say: Pain is inevitable, suffering is optional.

The good thing here is that that mental resilience is with you in many other things in life, all the time. You are more calm and collected because you accept the moment you are in, you or your mind don't feel the need to flee somewhere else and acknowledge it's pointless to wish you were somewhere or someone else. It's like the allegory of the cave, you can choose to live in the real world that is in front of your eyes or pass your entire life daydreaming.

>>42350623
You reading the online PDF? I was the anon who posted that.

Very happy to see you are enjoying it. It changed my life in a big way. You understand what it's about because it is fundamentally logical; it's not hokey new-age bullshit (despite what the title would suggest).

Eckhart is also incredibly relaxing to watch. He has plenty of videos on youtube from retreats he does.

>>42350816
how to focus meditation then?

File: zenmaster.png (514KB, 1500x1024px) Image search: [Google]

514KB, 1500x1024px

>>42351604
Find some external object to place in front of you, something "positive", one meter or so from you on the ground and focus on that.

You could also try self-denial. If you don't exist, and only the external world does, you have no problems of your own to think about and only the present moment exists.

Another thing that works is cosmic awareness, try to imagine how huge the universe is and how small you are by comparison and your everyday problems will look like nothing, allowing you to stop thinking about them and concentrate better.

I don't know, there are many, many tricks out there that work for returning to present moment awareness, depending on the type of person you are. You must try and keep using the ones that work for you.

>>42351803
>Find some external object to place in front of you, something "positive", one meter or so from you on the ground and focus on that.

Congrats, now you have to look autistically at the ground to find peace in your every day life. At least train yourself to look straight ahead, not down.

>You could also try self-denial. If you don't exist, and only the external world does, you have no problems of your own to think about and only the present moment exists.

This is literally a classified mental illness. Good luck unfucking your shit after you meme yourself into developing a mental illness on purpose.

>cosmic awareness, try to imagine how huge the universe is and how small you are by comparison

This is okay since it's not a distortion of reality (you do exist, pretending otherwise is retarded) and is accessible at all times (unlike staring at something), the world really is vast, no harm in reminding yourself of this fact.

>>42351993
Okay, okay, I get it, you have lots of strong opinions on these things. But have you tried them?

How about you stop peddling what works on paper but doesn't in practice and start trying things that may work regardless what the theory says.

>such and such is classified as mental illness
Psychiatry is a pseudo science. Only the gullible would take counsel from a psychiatrist. No amount of drugging yourself or paying someone to pretend to be your friend will fix your problems.

You are 100% responsible for your mind and no "diagnostic" will relieve that responsibility from you.

>>42351993
lmao meditation is so gay smoke some pot and read a book if you're really such a deep guy

>>42347513
Buddhism is not a religion. They don't believe in god. I am an atheist and I'm also intrigued by big parts of Buddhist way of life. You should read about it and incorporate the positive points in your life. The general outlook on causing no harm to yourself or others, the discipline of meditation and the unconditional love towards others helps you live a fulfilling and happy life as a member of society.

>>42346110
that's some bad posture

>>42348693
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EWHRumILOOk
This video explains the method, it's something like 30 short breaths followed by holding your breath for a minute then filling your lung with air and holding your breath for again for a shorter period of time.

>>42348693
>>42352251
I linked the wrong vid lmao, this is the right one: https://youtu.be/OpTG02x6w5o?t=81 (starts at 1:21).

File: 1500161928252.jpg (79KB, 750x1000px) Image search: [Google]

79KB, 750x1000px

>>42348899

>you can literally lie down and just relax and maybe even fall asleep from it, thats still meditating

>sleeping is meditating

Meditation is basically the mental equivalent of clearing off a crowded desk.
You just 10-20min to just concentrate on something, a mantra, your breathing, your neighbors farting in the wind next door. Doesn't matter, just has to be something consistent.
Your brain goes through the day jumping from one thought to the next. If you drink caffeine this only increases the problem.

Meditation just allows your mind to reset and calm down. A good analogy is someone that's trying to see through a glass full of muddy water. You won't get anywhere if you just try and shake it. Instead, if you just let it remain still for awhile, the sediment will sink to the bottom, allowing you to see clearly through the glass.
In this analogy your mind is the glass.

>>42352175
Weed makes you stupid. If you think otherwise it's because weed has made you stupid. If you're lucky it's temporary.

Reading can make you smarter. That is, if you read non-fiction. Reading is so damn overrated, it's actually the bigger emperor's new clothes when compared with weed! So many idiots think they're smart for reading when all they're "learning" is what other people fantasize about. Reading fiction is mental masturbation, no better than watching movies or playing video games. An entertainment medium being older doesn't magically grant it brain-expanding powers.

>>42352152
>have you tried them?

Sure, that's why I get triggered when you recommend them.

Looking down is a bad idea since it's inferior posture and you would have to look down to find focus in every day life. A man's default direction is straight ahead, not down.

And I'm the first to laugh at the pseudo-science of psychiatry but they're not wrong about every last thing. Believing you don't exist is so retarded, even psychiatrists can correctly identify it as a disorder. To put it as generally as possible, it's just common sense that there's no use in pretending. Meditation shouldn't be about pretending. You're adding to your mental baggage rather than relieving yourself of it.

File: 345735673.png (112KB, 462x255px) Image search: [Google]

112KB, 462x255px

>>42352388
Self denial is a useful practice not because you don't actually exist but because by practicing it you forget about your problems, which cause you to have bad thoughts, and make yourself to pay attention to the external world, the world that is in front of your eyes.

I don't get what's so controversial about it, it's just one little trick among the many there are to stop the involuntary mental chatter. Self denial is just a form of mental exercise or practice that helps you concentrate in the present, you're not supposed to indoctrinate yourself into actually believing you don't exist.

>>42352466
but what about pain resistance and that super sharp incredible focus

>>42352466
>by practicing it you forget about your problems

That's not a good thing. You should deal with your problems, not forget about them.

File: zane.jpg (162KB, 700x1030px) Image search: [Google]

162KB, 700x1030px

>>42346234
We're all gonna make it brah

File: TH - Self Enlightenment 012.jpg (459KB, 1280x1835px) Image search: [Google]

459KB, 1280x1835px

>>42352504
Focus in the present moment. That's all there is to it. Whomever makes it more complicated is either telling you a long list of little tricks on how to achieve that or bullshitting you.

>>42352511
There is no use for thinking about problems you cannot solve at that exact moment. You should deal with your problems at the time you can, and don't waste time obsessing about them when you can't.

You can only deal with your problems in the present. By meditating you train yourself to remain in the present, where problems can be solved.

Mental chatter is always either wallowing sadly about the past (which you can't change) or obsessing anxiously about the future (which doesn't exist [yet] and is entirely imagined). If you pay attention to the present you can take better decisions that will put you in a better position which will give you even less temptation to cry about the past later or obsess about the lack of future.

Obsessing about stuff you can't change is not "dealing with your problems".

>>42349601
Buddhism needs no god

>>42352504

I vow to affirm what is:
If there’s cost, I choose to pay.
If there’s need, I choose to give.
If there’s pain, I choose to feel.
If there’s sorrow, I choose to grieve.
When burning, I choose heat.
When calm, I choose peace.
When starving, I choose hunger.
When happy, I choose joy.
Whom I encounter, I choose to meet.
What I shoulder, I choose to bear.
When it’s my birth, I choose to live.
When it’s my death, I choose to die.
Where this takes me, I choose to go.
Being with what is, I respond to what is

Will focus meditation will have a significant impact on concentration and memory in a learning environment such as studying ?
Is focus meditation more efficient than other forms of meditations ?

>>42352608
>>42352652
thanks
still didnt get how the monk was able to not move or scream on the fire since the present moment would be his neurons firing his pain receptors
i mean, mental chatter is just hallucination but how come pain also be?

>>42352608
>There is no use for thinking about problems you cannot solve at that exact moment

Even if you can't "solve" a problem at that moment you can usually still take a step towards solving it. You can do something to put your mind at ease, such as putting the solution down in your calendar (now you can be sure you won't forget) or just reminding yourself that you've dealt with similar problems in the past. Too many people put off solving their problems entirely, and hide behind meditation / Zen / "the future is an illusion, bro" as an excuse. The esoteric scene is filled with people doing nothing but running from their problems.

>By meditating you train yourself to remain in the present, where problems can be solved.

True but I don't buy it when you say it since your idea of meditation is to pretend you don't exist and therefore your problems don't exist. Seems like your way of meditation would allow you to ignore a problem even when you can solve it.

It's good to put issues at rest *for now* but only if you have some plan as to how they will reliably go away in the future. Denying the future entirely is typical new age bullshit. It sounds deep but it's not. There is nothing smart about denying time or causality. Peace is not found in denial but in ACCEPTANCE. Accept that you exist. Accept that you (will) have problems to deal with.

>>42352724
Physical pain does not equal mental pain. One cannot choose to feel physical pain, but one can choose to feel mental pain. This is why meditation has shown to help those suffering from chronic pain that cannot be solved. With given enough practice you can dissociate physical pain with mental pain and you will no longer suffer.

>>42352900
I think you've misunderstood what he's saying.

Meditation is about accepting what is, as well as being in the present. It gives you the strength to resolve problems you have now or in the future but accept the ones you can not resolve. There is no denying in meditation, but you simply abandon the anxiety-driven notions of the past or future. It doesn't mean I don't have the wherewithal to plan my next meal or how to solve that problem of getting a raise.

>>42352724
He likely entered into 8th Jhana or beyond, where you are totally removed from any awareness of your bodily experience. In vipassana, meditation is divided into jhãnic (concentration) and nãna (insight) practices - the former being those practices which develop the skill of concentration, the latter being those practices that lead to fundamental insights about the nature of life (enlightenment). Each of those are divided into onion-like strata that you eventually learn to attain, explore, and master.

Most of what is taught as "meditation" is basic Jhana practice, which makes people generally feel good and relaxed, which many people mistake for enlightenment or something related to it. It isn't. Not that you shouldn't do it, but it isn't a complete practice in itself. There is a well written guide available freely on the internet called Mastering the Core Teachings of the Buddha by Daniel Ingram. It's easy to find on Google.

>>42352900

wrong on all counts

most thinking and brain activity is done in the subconscious. you dont solve any problem, pretty much ever, by thinking explicitly about it. it similar to "sleeping on it" or having some creative idea come to you in the shower.

no one is saying you can't plan and organize stuff.

no one is saying indifference or aversion or nihilism is the buddhist path. is the actual oppoisite. you are in the radical now, not being anxious about the uncertain future, the things you can't control (borrows from stocism)) nor are regretful or ruminating on the past because THOSE things don't exist. the "you" that doesn't exist that is taught in buddhism is that there is no permanent self, since things always change, are in a constant flux, and since there is no "executor" YOU sitting in some module of your brain that controls everything. you are a set of biological processes.

denying time? lol. denying causality? causality is the literal definition of karma. seems you have some reading up to do before being so negative towards others on the interwebs.

Cont.

I think a lot more people would benefit not from so-called meditation, but contemplation. Meditation in this day and age is typically taken to mean the mild trance brought on by breathing or yoga practices. It used to mean something different, i.e. to meditate on something.

Contemplation is a more suitable term. You should take time to sit down and think about your life, basically. Think about who you are and who you want to be, what your day routine is like and how you can improve it, etc. Journaling is excellent for this. Ultimately, by sorting out your life and solving the problems most relevant to you, you will experience a great deal more happiness, peace, and joy that many people seek to get through "meditation."

>>42353017
Go back and read his posts about denying your own existence, thereby making your problems vanish. He literally referred to this as "self-denial". Clearly not everyone is on the same page as to what meditation is or means.

>>42353110
Note: This was not continued from the post above it, but two posts above it.

>>42353017
u m8, i like you.

>>42353109
exactly this. you don't actually solve problems on a conscious level.

>>42350573
Yep I got a junk email, [email protected]. I'd be down to chat sometime!

>>42346110
Ho to meditate in a fucking noisy city?

>>42353049
where can i learn more about this

File: Screen Shot 2017-08-01 at 17.31.15.png (271KB, 1210x1124px) Image search: [Google]

271KB, 1210x1124px

Daily reminder to leave the house.

Have any of you guys heard of the Wim Hof method? I do his breathing exercise which is very similar to meditation except you dont have to sit still for a long time. Imo it feels amazing to do it and you guys should check it out

>>42353318
yeah I like it too m8

>>42346526
ONLY meditation has worked.

well, a combination of identifying when/where i am getting stuck in loops, then thinking uplifting/motivational thoughts, then visualizing breaking the loop/not engaging in the loop at all until the thought of not doing it doesn't make me anxious

>>42353347
can you give an example?

>>42353109
>most thinking and brain activity is done in the subconscious. you dont solve any problem

Semantics about the meaning of the word "you". It's easy to talk down to your opposition if you assume they cling to the idealistic concept of consciousness being the true you. I couldn't be further from this. For the sake of discussion let me define "I" or "you" as the whole body. It doesn't matter if a part of my brain solved a problem or if my gut bacteria did. I solved the problem. I digested the food. Moving on...

>you dont solve any problem, pretty much ever, by thinking explicitly about it.

Actually conscious thinking is a very productive activity, it's where those subconscious processes come to their conclusion. Conscious thought is a tool and a very important one. This is the blind spot of Eastern teachings. Where the West has this delusion about basically being your thoughts trapped in a heap of flesh, the East has this delusion about having to suppress your thoughts and anything else that makes you an individual. It only fits that Westerners, through the sum of their individual achievements, produced all relevant science/technology in centuries but are often in crisis spiritually/culturally, while Easterners feel so content with being mediocre collectively, billions of them accomplish fuck all. Inb4 Japan or South Korea (among others) - these Asian societies have turned their back on Eastern philosophy and are imitating the West. And what do you know, they successfully produce technology and they suffer culturally. They adopted the good with the bad.

Westerners who idolize Eastern laziness, writing off conscious thought as unimportant, are jumping from one unhealthy extreme to another.

>>42352900
>Even if you can't "solve" a problem at that moment you can usually still take a step towards solving it.
And when is that "step towards solving it" done? In the present.

Planification is an action that happens in the present.

>>42353452
You make way too many blanket statements.

File: 972f57c6ab75f2f2a3ae0e3e06371f50.jpg (16KB, 300x250px) Image search: [Google]

16KB, 300x250px

>>42353252
soundproof earbuds w white noise?

>>42353372
sure.

anon once noticed a blemish on a utensil, ever since then he has been rewashing dishes before using them. because of that justification, he thinks rewashing dishes is simply a precaution, but following that train of though he starts taking more 'precautions' until it finally clicks that this isn't normal.

there's no correct way in meditating to fix it, but there are a lot that are effective, i'd recommend the heuristic 'do what has worked before'

i said getting motivated/uplifted, but the truth is that is an abstraction from what i did. i didn't think 'i must think motivational thoughts' i thought 'normal people wouldnt do this' which motivated me.

as for visualizing, again there's really no wrong way, doing it at all will help. i'd recommend reading up on cbt a bit to gain confidence in using visualization to overcome it, and for more information for how to do it. typically though, think of a strong, recent, or the first memory of this instance of ocd, then visualize not doing it/starting to do it then stopping it. or you might visualize overcoming an imagined worst case scenario. eg you select a utensil that has tar on it, but use it anyways.

but for pure-o types visualizing might not be too effective, i imagine overcoming the justification for the obsessive thoughts would be effective though. eg, anon is simply worries that every dish he selects has some blemish somewhere on it, but realizes that the dish has been through hot soapy water so even if there is something on it, it's still 'clean enough'

>>42353534
Empty banalities. Yes, everything happens in the present. So deep.

The point that you either missed or chose to ignore was, it's way better to take concrete steps that make you feel better about a problem than to distract yourself with "meditation" and put off dealing with it. If there is anything at all you can DO about it then DO, don't sit idle waiting for enlightenment. People tend to abuse meditation as a distraction, as escapism. You wouldn't need to focus your eyes on an object while denying your own existence just to fight off the nagging thought of DOING SOMETHING if you had simply done what needed to be done. The point is that elaborate, LARPy techniques like that betray someone abusing meditation as escapism. If you can't meditate by simply sitting down and accepting what is then there's something else wrong with you and meditating *harder* won't fix it.

>>42353252
By stopping being angry about the honk honks and bark barks of a city and accepting them as normal.

File: 1501504750075.jpg (50KB, 631x796px) Image search: [Google]

50KB, 631x796px

>>42353745
Stop being so angry brah.

Jus b in the present bro.

>>42346110
I've been in meditation for a good 3 years now.
Still not a daily practice but almost daily.
It's hard to get into I used to absolutely dread it.
It gets better and the benefits are real.
Pro tip: for increased effect you can try vibration.
>>42346446
this

>>42350854
I want to read it. is this the pdf?
http://www.orgone.ro/doc/The-Power-of-Now.pdf

>>42353452
Consciously thinking about it doesn't really solve the problems. A strongly held INTENTION is what makes the biggest impact for subconscious conditioning to change or occur.
>>42353745
Again meditation is about polar-opposite to escapism as I can imagine. You've obviously never had a serious meditation practice to understand this. Meditation has taught me to deal with my problems in a healthy, non-judgemental way. By intuitively changing my understanding of certain behaviour patterns it has caused the old subconscious conditioning that used to keep it there simply vanish.

>>42353914
>Consciously thinking about it doesn't really solve the problems.

Try solving a math problem with "strongly held intention". Someone using conscious thought will beat you to the punch every time. Maybe the problems you deal with are not solvable with conscious thought or maybe your conscious thought is just not qualified to solve them.

>You've obviously never had a serious meditation practice

Internet mind reading man strikes again.

>non-judgemental

Pussy. Judgment is awesome.

>>42354211
not anon you responded to but i see somehow you're missing the point. i will make this as simple as possible.

>worry about whole issue now?
no, you cannot tackle this all at once. no sense in worrying on something that will take time to fix.
>live in moment, contemplate what you can do?
yes. instead of stressing yourself out over your issue, you focus on the present and what you can do right now to start fixing whatever your issue is.

"escape" is the exact opposite of what mindfulness meditation sets out to do. there are many different forms of meditation. go study.

>>42352218
How so?

>>42354211
Obviously I wasn't talking about a math problem or a puzzle. Why did you come to this thread if you're just going to be a troll anyways? Too bad - someone like you could really benefit from meditation!

>>42354211
>>>42350573
anon. not all our problems have logical or rational solutions but still seem to inflict anguish on our psyche.

Similar to a control treatment in a lab experiment, meditation aims to show you your baseline. When one focuses on only the breath, one can observe the trends or assumptions they jump to or operate with.

>>42354264
I understand all of this and the only conceivable reason why you pretend that I don't is that you're looking for an angle to feel superior. Ultimately you confirm that suspicion with

>go study.

Self-important douche.

>"escape" is the exact opposite of what mindfulness meditation sets out to do.

Did I claim otherwise? I said people misuse it that way. I said people like to flee from their problems and into "meditation" and when confronted about this they start listing off entry-level platitudes like "only muh present exists" and "you're not even real, bro, you're totally your subconscious". There's a shitload of pathetic failures in the spiritual community who are obsessed with "meditating" themselves silly instead of taking charge in their lives and fixing their shit. They all brag about how they're so advanced at meditating (read: they're definitely not advanced at anything else) and will act subtly condescending with a fake smile and fake politeness. Holier than thou, you will also find these types in any organized religion. If you're not one of these people and you don't want to become one of them then be careful whom you associate with because you're showing early symptoms.

>>42354408
Exposing pseudo-philosophical mumbo jumbo is not "trolling", it's badly needed.

>>42353789
>for increased effect you can try vibration
what do you mean?

>>42354850
You've failed to grasp on every level I can conceive for what meditation is.

You call is "pseudo-philosophical jumbo jumbo" and all you've given to us so far is your shitty opinion. You haven't provided any factual evidence to support your opinions at all.

You're not fooling anyone here mate. Nobody cares about your half-cocked opinion with no facts to back it up.

>>42353789
>for increased effect you can try vibration.
I really noticed this recently. The OM mantra produces vibration in a specific part (the forehead), the AH in another (throat) and the HUNG one in the body. It's weird I didn't notice these are supposed to produce vibration in different "chakra" places.

Don't even know what "chakras" are supposed to be or what it means, but I noticed that these sounds produce vibration exactly in the place these are supposed to be and that it really improves my perception when I do these vibrations.

>>42355010
>still trying to show off how much he "gets" meditation

that's what I'm talking about. originally the discussion was about whether certain techniques are a good idea. I critisized certain techniques but things went nowhere fast as noone was willing to defend those techniques, rather people started repeatedly describing what they think meditation is all about. over and over. it's like a clone army that can only perform one task, talk about what meditation means to them. all the while they think they are "discussing" something. it's eery.

>>42348316
Good post

>>42354850
whoops forgot about this thread, sorry for late response
>I don't is that you're looking for an angle to feel superior
I mean I do think I understand something fairly simple that you seemed to be having a hard time grasping, yeah. I don't know much about all that other shit you're saying or what that has to do with my point, I just do base level mindfulness meditation. If someone is trying to "escape" their issues through meditation then they aren't doing it correctly. Have a nice day.

>>42355150
You said you didn't like certain concepts of certain techniques. Anytime anyone has tried to explain you didn't even try to listen.

Not all techniques work for everyone - find one that works for you. Or don't... I don't care. I don't see the point in criticizing what works for others, especially when they're not asking for your help.

Nobody gives a shit if you think it's bullshit or not. Because it works for me and it works for others. Why are you taking your frustration out on others because you can't find something that will work for your obviously ego-driven angst?

>>42353280
What happened to Meca?

>>42350138
>Buddhism doesn't believe in the soul, dumbass

if you're having trouble or you're a beginner, guided meditation is a lot easier to start with than just sitting at home and trying to start on your own

>>42346110
>Meditation is a good way to counter the stress from heavy lifting
Stress...From heavy lifting ?
Heavy lifting is literally how i meditate...
The mind clears, Man stands alone before his limit. You stopped counting reps a long time ago because by now you know instinctively.
The weight falls familiar on the shoulder, then you lift, easily at first.
The pain comes and you can tell you are flirting with your ceiling. The reps after become pure fire as the ceiling presses on you harder as you get higher up against it.
Last set : Who will crack first, your will or the wall. My mind becomes a binary.
"Can you make it ? ... or....?"
Some days you win, most days you win. Some days your sweat mixes with tears of failure but noone realizes and there's always next time.

I cannot imagine someone being stressed from this deep 'muscle alone' experience.,,

>>42358420
It's talking about physical stress lol not mental

>>42353877
>http://www.orgone.ro/doc/The-Power-of-Now.pdf

There's another version with highlighted text and better formatting,
>www.baytallaah.com/bookspdf/51.pdf
but yes, that's the book.

>>42352344
Thanks man

>>42353333
quads of peace

I do both, Wim Hof and meditation