American Buddhist Net

August 3, 2008

...Although I am a nervous sort, constantly stressed out and worried, and most certainly could benefit from regular bouts of meditation, none of it took. I find sitting and trying to empty my mind, breathing and relaxing to be tedious. I'd much rather be watching television.

None of it took, that is, until I regularly started mowing my lawn with my engine-less reel mower.

Using this simple and basic tool, I walk slowly back and forth, allowing the reel to cut off the blades of grass likes scissors. The reel spins hypnotically and makes a soothing rhythmic clicking/cutting sound. I feel my breath coming slowly and deeply. I am one with the nature of my backyard, and worries slip away. It reminds me of the moving meditation exercise we had in class, in which we all went out in the hallway and shuffled along slowly while trying not to think.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

July 30, 2008
Thomas Adcock

When they come back down from the hills, lawyers undergoing "mindful meditation" during a special gathering in the Catskills of New York this September will have spent four days living like monks in hopes of becoming more skillful counselors.

They will dine together, wordlessly, three times daily. (Conversation is restricted to intensely programmatic moments.) They will examine their respective hearts, souls and consciences. They will consider ancient religious precepts as philosophical tools for modern life.

They will exist without cell phones, BlackBerrys, e-mail, television, radio, iPods, books or newspapers.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Sunday, July 27, 2008

Meditation may slow the worsening of AIDS in just a few weeks, perhaps by affecting the immune system, US researchers reported.

If the findings are borne out in larger studies, it could offer a cheap and pleasant way to help people battle the incurable and often fatal condition, the team at the University of California Los Angeles said on Thursday.

They tested a stress-lowering program called mindfulness meditation, defined as practicing an open and receptive awareness of the present moment, avoiding thinking of the past or worrying about the future. The more often the volunteers meditated, the higher their CD4 T-cell counts - a standard measure of how well the immune system is fighting the AIDS virus. The CD4 counts were measured before and after the two-month programme.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

A gap year student describes how learning meditation during a stint in a Buddhist monastery in Bangkok changed her life

July 26, 2008
Clara Tait

I don't know what I expected to happen while I was in Thailand on my gap year, apart from some kind of weight loss from dysentery. The year didn't start well: I'd suffered from anorexia during sixth form and my recovery had included a humiliating cycle of bingeing and starving.

By the time I arrived in Thailand in February of this year, the bingeing had won out and I was heavier than I had ever been. Aged 18, I covered up in frumpy kaftans, feeling fat and middle-aged. My hope was that I would get a nice tan and return home triumphant, skinny, gorgeous and happy.

In reality, I found myself with no money, no friends and a large dose of homesickness, and ended up staying in a Buddhist monastery in Bangkok for six weeks. I lived with the monks, meditating for eight hours a day. And, to my surprise, this turned out to be the best thing that had ever happened to me.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Monastery offers classes for free

Karen Jonas, Correspondent
07/21/2008 09:19:25 PM PDT

POMONA - A bell rings. The voices of four nuns fill the air.

They kneel and rise again. After they have finished their chant, they fold blankets over their legs and begin meditation.

Such is a typical scene at the Middle Land Chan Monastery.

The Buddhist monastery opened in April and offers free meditation classes in English every Tuesday night and in Chinese on Thursday nights. The monastery also will offer free Mandarin classes on Saturday afternoons starting this weekend.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

American Buddhist meditation teacher France Roy will present Peace at last, an introduction to meditation from the Kadampa Buddhist tradition from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Monday at Angel Heart New Age Gift, 3401 Henderson Blvd. Suggested donations are $9 per person or $5 for students and people with limited income. Call (727) 797-9770.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

A Preliminary Study Shows Meditating Turns off Stress-Related Genes

By LAUREN COX
ABC News Medical Unit
July 2, 2008

It turns out peaceful thoughts really can influence our bodies, right down to the instructions we receive from our DNA, according to a new study.

Researchers for the study, published in the Public Library of Science, took blood samples from a group of 19 people who habitually meditated or prayed for years, and 19 others who never meditated.

The researchers ran genomic analyses of the blood and found that the meditating group suppressed more than twice the number of stress-related genes -- about 1,000 of them -- than the nonmeditating group.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

June 30, 2008 10:20 AM, by Chris Chatham

Attention training through meditation can reduce the duration of the "attentional blink" - in which detection of a first rare target causes people to be unaware of a second target presented soon after the first - according to research by Slagter et al from PLoSBiology.

The attention blink effect is "attentional" because it only occurs when subjects actually detect the first target, and therefore reflects some kind of a refractory period for attentional orienting: consider it the duration of the "blink" of the mind's eye. You can try it here.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Suggestion: Two areas researchers might want to take studies on meditation are lucid sleep and hypnotic states. Then compare the three. I would be interested to know what, if any, differences there are between the deep meditative states of an experienced meditator and the deep lucid sleep states of someone experienced in that. Same for hypnotic states, though experience with them would not be necessary. ABN
_____________

June 27, 2008 12:44 PM, by Chris Chatham

As discussed earlier this week, meditation may be an alternative form of brain training - or "brain untraining" - that shows transfer to tasks requiring cognitive control. There have been a few updates to this fascinating line of research, not least of which is a fascinating paper by Amishi Jha and colleagues from the University of Pennsylvania. They showed that relative to a control group, meditation influences particular components of attention in ways that are compatible with beliefs long held in the meditation community.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Has some interesting detail about hypnotism near the end. ABN
______________

June 25, 2008 4:05 PM, by Chris Chatham

In a fascinating review of the cognitive neuroscience of attention, authors Raz and Buhle note that most research on attention focuses on defining situations in which it is no longer required to perform a task - in other words, the automatization of thought and behavior. Yet relatively few studies focus on whether thought and behavior can be de-automatized - or, as I might call it if I were asking for trouble, deprogrammed.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Good, short piece, worth reading. ABN
______________

by Rajah Kuruppu

Man comprises of mind and body. Modern medical science is now according an important place to the mind, but the Buddha over 2,500 years ago emphasised the invaluable role of the mind. In fact the opening lines of the Dhammapada, a collection of important sayings of the Buddha, state that the mind is the forerunner of all states of being, mind is supreme, mind made are they. Accordingly, Bhavana commonly translated to English as meditation, is assigned a crucial role in the practice of the Dhamma. Bhavana means the culture or the development of the mind and perhaps the English word meditation does not adequately describe Bhavana but it may be used for convenience provided the true meaning of the term Bhavana is understood.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Friday 06 June 2008

The Auvergne is a popular tourist destination, famed for its volcanoes. But there’s another attraction drawing dozens of Buddhists from across Europe. Three years ago, a group of Buddhists embarked on a long spiritual retreat and are just about to return to the world after 1,190 days of meditation.

The retreat is a unique experience of a particularly austere form of voluntary isolation, complete with a severe daily regime, including 12 hours of meditation per day. They returned to the world last month.

It was in the Auvergne, in these majestic environs, that the community of Dhagpo Kunfrun decided to set up its hermitages and its meditation centers in 1984.

On the eve of their exit, the entire community is present and preparing for their departure. One of the Buddhist, Bruno, talks about his decision to make the retreat. “For me, it’s a gift, a life experience. People who do not know might be afraid. We are there to reassure them, to show to them that we are really happy for them. That it really comes from us, from our souls.”

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Dana Clark Felty | Saturday, May 31, 2008

A form of silent meditation with roots in Buddhism has come to southeast Georgia.

The Southeast Vipassana Center will hold an open house Sunday at its new training center on Rogers Break Road just south of Jesup in rural Wayne County.

The center opened earlier this year to provide free 10-day courses on Vipassana meditation, a form of silent meditation similar to some practiced in Buddhism.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

A one-day workshop teaches how to make a Thai delicacy and cultivate mindfulness at the same time

May 24, 2008
VASANA CHINVARAKORN

For a moment, my heart raced with anxiety. This business of scraping coconut meat from its shell was not at all simple. The monk-teacher's demonstration seemed effortless; he held the half-cut coconut and rotated it gently around a metal blade attached to a wooden bench called kratai kood maprao (coconut scraper), and slowly but steadily, soft, whitish fibre dropped into a bowl underneath. To try to imitate him, though, was a different story. I found my hands refusing to coordinate. The scraped coconut looked pitifully rough and came out in big chunks. At one stage, I even almost fell off the so-called "scraper rabbit". Hmm ... that would have been laughable - to fail the class when it had barely begun.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

May 24, 2008

Meditation classes under Buddhist Nun Kelsang Chundzen will begin in Stroudsburg on June 5 under the theme "Discovering the Path to Happiness."

...Classes will be held at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of the Poconos at 940A Ann St. in Stroudsburg on Thursday evenings beginning June 5 and continuing to July 17 from 7 to 9 p.m. The fee is $8 per class.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Some of the things you should know before taking a course in vipassana meditation

May 23, 2008

Are you one of those who can't help feeling surprised - and maybe suspicious - when you hear of people deciding to go on a vipassana meditation course? Do you, perhaps, think it's just because it's a trend? Or do you think more charitably that these people must be suffering and in need of a temporary retreat from this cruel world?

For overseas visitors, its attraction is that the classes are easily available here and that this form of meditation is non-denominational - you don't have to be Buddhist to appreciate it, even though the teachers may be Buddhist monks. They generally seem to be rather proud of welcoming people of all faiths, or none.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

By Tom Keogh
Special to The Seattle Times

"The Dhamma Brothers," a documentary written and directed by Jenny Phillips, Andrew Kukura and Anne Marie Stein. 76 minutes. Not rated, suitable for teens and up. Grand Illusion.

The question of how convicted criminals should spend their time while incarcerated is one of those evergreen issues on talk radio or in the stump speeches of get-tough politicians. Prison is punishment, some people argue, and therefore prisoners shouldn't expect to feel hopeful about their situation.

But at the exceptionally dangerous Donaldson Correctional Facility in Bessemer, Ala., where assaults are described in the documentary "The Dhamma Brothers" as a near-daily occurrence, hope appears to be a viable remedy for ceaseless violence. At least, that is, for a small group of inmates who participated in an unlikely 2002 experiment with Vipassana meditation.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

May 02, 2008
By Anne Calos

Alisa Parlette was just a child when she realized she had a special “gift.”

“I saw people who had ‘crossed over’ when I was little. My mother didn’t want to hear about it, but I knew it was special, so I just developed it over the years,” Parlette said.

Since then, Parlette worked as a psychic medium, doing readings at homes and office parties and teaching meditation at the former Mother Earth at the Old Post Office. A very personal experience, though, brought her to offer a meditation class geared specifically to children with mental health disabilities and their parents.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

By GLENN GAMBOA

NEW YORK — David Lynch doesn't want to be the spokesman for anything.

The Oscar-nominated director still prefers to let his movies — such as "Eraserhead," "The Elephant Man," "Blue Velvet," "Mulholland Drive" and the recent "Inland Empire" — speak for themselves.

But, in recent years, as he learned more about increasingly stressed-out children and violent schools, Lynch felt he might be able to help by bringing Transcendental Meditation, which he has practiced for 34 years, to schools.

"Schools have tried many, many, many things and nothing on the surface is working," Lynch said from his office in Los Angeles.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

In December 2007 I started meditating. A friend of mine had lent me some books about Buddhism. After reading them I was very eager to learn more. What attracted me most to Buddhism: 1) it is not a religion, it’s ‘merely’ a set of guidelines that help you in your search for happiness, 2) you learn by experience, it’s a way of living. Here are 10 things that I learned through 5 months of meditation.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

April 29, 2008
Laurie Desjardins

Empathy and compassion are two emotions that make us human. It's the ability to identify with another person, to place ourselves in another's shoes, which allow us to have a greater connection with our fellow man.

Unfortunately, with the stress and general busy-ness of life, it becomes harder for us to place ourselves in the lives of others, as we're too busy worried about our own lives and our own families. Though it is easy for us to empathize with those close to us, it's a lot harder to summon compassion for people we've never met.

However, it's possible to learn compassion and empathy through meditation techniques.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

By Keleigh Friedrich

“You have to use your mind to lose your mind,” an irreverent guru once told me. In other words, the only way to still acrobatic thoughts, or what Buddhists call “taming the monkey mind,” is by using the mind as a tool of observation. Hence, the practice of meditation.

I’ve meditated on and off for years but never stuck with it. The very idea of spending 40 minutes “doing nothing” brings on a mild panic—so all the more reason to spend a Sunday evening with the Sacramento Buddhist Meditation Group, where, as a matter of pride, I intended to hold out for longer than five minutes.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

April 18, 2008
By Tom Moran

For almost 20 years, Matthieu Ricard has served as the French translator for the Dalai Lama. Ricard, a bestselling author, award-winning photographer, doctor of cellular genetics and Buddhist monk, will speak at Northrop Auditorium today about cultivating one's inner conditions for genuine happiness.

On Thursday, he spoke with The Minnesota Daily to discuss his philosophies and the controversies surrounding Tibet.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Apr 11, 2008
By Anne Harding

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Practicing a particular type of meditation twice a day can significantly reduce blood pressure, according to an analysis of existing research on the technique.

The blood pressure reductions associated with regular practice of transcendental meditation, or TM, would translate to a 12-15 percent reduced risk of dying from cardiovascular causes and a 15-20 percent lower risk of stroke, Dr. James W. Anderson, the study's lead author, told Reuters Health.

LINK TO ORIGINAL

Friday, April 11, 2008
By Andrew O’Hehir

Donaldson Correctional Facility, a maximum-security prison in Bessemer, Ala., that houses the worst offenders in America's direst state prison system, does not seem a likely venue for a Buddhist meditation retreat. It's a dank-looking brick structure right out of "The Shawshank Redemption," wrapped in barbed wire and electrical fencing and set in the pine woods along the red-clay banks of the Black Warrior River. Many of its inmates will never see the outside world again. Maybe the point of Jenny Phillips, Andy Kukura and Anne Marie Stein's documentary "The Dhamma Brothers" is to argue that there could be no place where 10 days of solitary and silent introspection are so valuable and so necessary.

...You don't have to buy much of the Vipassana ideology to understand why the men who made it through the retreat felt a tremendous sense of brotherhood and accomplishment. (Most have maintained their meditation practice, and most returned for a second retreat a few years later.) These men have been incarcerated and abandoned, perhaps for understandable reasons, and locked up to die in a place of total hopelessness and nihilism. Suddenly people arrive who propose to treat them like adult human beings capable of a difficult emotional process of self-examination and self-discipline.

LINK TO ORIGINAL