Hapiness
-
I've been thinking about starting to meditate recently, but have not really done it, yet. I may try it out tonight. Is there anything beyond finding a quiet place that I'd want to consider? Seems like an odd question, but maybe there are sitting positions or something that are better than others, etc. BW
"I never forget a face, but in your case I'll be glad to make an exception."-- Groucho Marx
Make sure you sit in a comfortable position. Straight back, but not too straight; don't lean forward, and not backwards. Make sure the lower back is "curved". I'm sorry I can't express myself better, but I think you get the idea with "curved" lower back. You should sit on something soft, like a thin matress. It helps if you have a pillow or cushion to sit on, as it helps you to find a relaxing position. Sitting in a lotus position can be quite demanding on the knees, as well as the balance. The whole point of the exercise is lost if one has to concentrate on staying upright. When you've sat down, place your hands together. The backside of one hand in the palm of the other, thumbside forward. Make sure the thumbs touches eachother as your hands rest in eachother. It was recommended that we'd do this, as it would "enhance" the experience. I first thought "bull!", but I tried both variants, and I must say the experiences were different. It felt like I shifted the center of my body down into the stumach. In Shorinji Kempo, we are taught to recognize the stumach as the center of the body. It's the pivot point when rotating the body, which is central to almost all body movement techniques. It is also the point from which we direct the force in almost all punches and kicks, and it is also from where we "breathe". So to me it felt "natural" to shift the center of the body down to the stumach. Experiment! :) There are basically two techniques one can use when meditating. You can meditate on a specific thought, or on nothing at all. Both are equally hard, because the mind is has a life of its own. The session I attended used the "thoughtless" (no pun intended) technique. We meditated by just breathing slowly, and focusing on a distant point beyond the horizon. Took me perhaps 5 minutes (hard to say as you lose track of time), to find myself in nothingness (but yet I felt the presence of everything around me). I must admit that I slid in and out of that state a couple of times. It's easy and hard at the same time, and requires a very focused but at the same time absent mind, as strange as it may sound. It was my longest meditation session ever, but those 40 minutes felt like 10 minutes. The last 20 minutes just flew by. And afterwards I felt pretty alert, as if I just woke up after a good night's sleep. As I believe that the body and mind must live in harmony, I think a good massage afterwards would be the icing on the cake. Since the Shorinji Kempo martial arts include both meditation and massage/bone correct
-
Make sure you sit in a comfortable position. Straight back, but not too straight; don't lean forward, and not backwards. Make sure the lower back is "curved". I'm sorry I can't express myself better, but I think you get the idea with "curved" lower back. You should sit on something soft, like a thin matress. It helps if you have a pillow or cushion to sit on, as it helps you to find a relaxing position. Sitting in a lotus position can be quite demanding on the knees, as well as the balance. The whole point of the exercise is lost if one has to concentrate on staying upright. When you've sat down, place your hands together. The backside of one hand in the palm of the other, thumbside forward. Make sure the thumbs touches eachother as your hands rest in eachother. It was recommended that we'd do this, as it would "enhance" the experience. I first thought "bull!", but I tried both variants, and I must say the experiences were different. It felt like I shifted the center of my body down into the stumach. In Shorinji Kempo, we are taught to recognize the stumach as the center of the body. It's the pivot point when rotating the body, which is central to almost all body movement techniques. It is also the point from which we direct the force in almost all punches and kicks, and it is also from where we "breathe". So to me it felt "natural" to shift the center of the body down to the stumach. Experiment! :) There are basically two techniques one can use when meditating. You can meditate on a specific thought, or on nothing at all. Both are equally hard, because the mind is has a life of its own. The session I attended used the "thoughtless" (no pun intended) technique. We meditated by just breathing slowly, and focusing on a distant point beyond the horizon. Took me perhaps 5 minutes (hard to say as you lose track of time), to find myself in nothingness (but yet I felt the presence of everything around me). I must admit that I slid in and out of that state a couple of times. It's easy and hard at the same time, and requires a very focused but at the same time absent mind, as strange as it may sound. It was my longest meditation session ever, but those 40 minutes felt like 10 minutes. The last 20 minutes just flew by. And afterwards I felt pretty alert, as if I just woke up after a good night's sleep. As I believe that the body and mind must live in harmony, I think a good massage afterwards would be the icing on the cake. Since the Shorinji Kempo martial arts include both meditation and massage/bone correct
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: And afterwards I felt pretty alert, as if I just woke up after a good night's sleep. I've heard that. Some people actually find that after meditating regularly they sleep less at night. While some of this time is no doubt made up during meditation, the impression I got was that overall you may not only be more aware, but also be physically awake longer. That would be a great additional benefit if it were true. Thanks for the tips. I've got an empty room in my house and spare comforter to sit on. :) I imagine, like anything else, my experience will improve with practice. BW
"I never forget a face, but in your case I'll be glad to make an exception."-- Groucho Marx
-
I've just come home from an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. :) Anyway, it started with 2 x 20 minute meditation sessions in the Karlstad cathedral. Odd place for meditation it seemed. But it turned out that the church has had regular meditations for quite some time. I was surprised that the meditation sessions are inspired by Zen-buddhism. After the meditation, which was quite stress relieving(!), we went across the street to another of the church's buildings, where the Lama (Geshe Pema Dorjee[^]), talked to and with us about topics such as love, compassion and meditation for about 1.5 hours. We also had tea and sandwhiches, and a generally gemütlich (what's the proper english word...?) time. What I took with me from that was not christ, buddha, or anything else in that magnitude. What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. *drum roll* A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. Merely the presence of such a person, makes you happy. It's as if it's a highly contagious disease. And right now, I feel like I've gotten a really bad infection with this disease, because I feel great. I can only hope I'll carry the disease tomorrow, so that I can spread it around. -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
I don't want to be cynical, but the Billy Graham crusades have the same effect on people, and it passes just as quickly. Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++
-
I've just come home from an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. :) Anyway, it started with 2 x 20 minute meditation sessions in the Karlstad cathedral. Odd place for meditation it seemed. But it turned out that the church has had regular meditations for quite some time. I was surprised that the meditation sessions are inspired by Zen-buddhism. After the meditation, which was quite stress relieving(!), we went across the street to another of the church's buildings, where the Lama (Geshe Pema Dorjee[^]), talked to and with us about topics such as love, compassion and meditation for about 1.5 hours. We also had tea and sandwhiches, and a generally gemütlich (what's the proper english word...?) time. What I took with me from that was not christ, buddha, or anything else in that magnitude. What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. *drum roll* A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. Merely the presence of such a person, makes you happy. It's as if it's a highly contagious disease. And right now, I feel like I've gotten a really bad infection with this disease, because I feel great. I can only hope I'll carry the disease tomorrow, so that I can spread it around. -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. So, when did you get psychic? Surely an enlightened religion should rely even less on the personality of its leaders than a revealed one. Ryan
O fools, awake! The rites you sacred hold Are but a cheat contrived by men of old, Who lusted after wealth and gained their lust And died in baseness—and their law is dust. al-Ma'arri (973-1057)
-
I've just come home from an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. :) Anyway, it started with 2 x 20 minute meditation sessions in the Karlstad cathedral. Odd place for meditation it seemed. But it turned out that the church has had regular meditations for quite some time. I was surprised that the meditation sessions are inspired by Zen-buddhism. After the meditation, which was quite stress relieving(!), we went across the street to another of the church's buildings, where the Lama (Geshe Pema Dorjee[^]), talked to and with us about topics such as love, compassion and meditation for about 1.5 hours. We also had tea and sandwhiches, and a generally gemütlich (what's the proper english word...?) time. What I took with me from that was not christ, buddha, or anything else in that magnitude. What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. *drum roll* A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. Merely the presence of such a person, makes you happy. It's as if it's a highly contagious disease. And right now, I feel like I've gotten a really bad infection with this disease, because I feel great. I can only hope I'll carry the disease tomorrow, so that I can spread it around. -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. And now you know why Buddhism is often combined with other religions without problems. :) Meditation is an absolute necessity at times, and in some cases can do more than a good night's sleep. congradulations, sounds like a wonderful time, I hope eventually to do the same. _________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
-
I don't want to be cynical, but the Billy Graham crusades have the same effect on people, and it passes just as quickly. Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++
Whoever takes you there, it's your job to make it stay.
Pandoras Gift #44: Hope. The one that keeps you on suffering.
aber.. "Wie gesagt, der Scheiss is' Therapie"
boost your code || Fold With Us! || sighist | doxygen -
Whoever takes you there, it's your job to make it stay.
Pandoras Gift #44: Hope. The one that keeps you on suffering.
aber.. "Wie gesagt, der Scheiss is' Therapie"
boost your code || Fold With Us! || sighist | doxygenSure - in the absence of an external force, internal motivation needs to be maintained manually, that stands to reason. Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++
-
I've just come home from an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. :) Anyway, it started with 2 x 20 minute meditation sessions in the Karlstad cathedral. Odd place for meditation it seemed. But it turned out that the church has had regular meditations for quite some time. I was surprised that the meditation sessions are inspired by Zen-buddhism. After the meditation, which was quite stress relieving(!), we went across the street to another of the church's buildings, where the Lama (Geshe Pema Dorjee[^]), talked to and with us about topics such as love, compassion and meditation for about 1.5 hours. We also had tea and sandwhiches, and a generally gemütlich (what's the proper english word...?) time. What I took with me from that was not christ, buddha, or anything else in that magnitude. What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. *drum roll* A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. Merely the presence of such a person, makes you happy. It's as if it's a highly contagious disease. And right now, I feel like I've gotten a really bad infection with this disease, because I feel great. I can only hope I'll carry the disease tomorrow, so that I can spread it around. -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. I met a lama once, the furry and spitting kind. It sort of fell in love with me, and followed me everywhere I went (it was a large children's petting zoo). We spend a couple hours together, me and that lama. I talked to it about all sorts of topics, and it listened very attentively, all the time looking at me with adoring eyes. It's so rare to find such unconditional love, even for an animal. To this day, I can picture that beautiful furry face, it so affected me. But I sure hope it didn't give me any diseases! :-D Marc My website
Latest Articles: Undo/Redo Buffer Memento Design Pattern -
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. I met a lama once, the furry and spitting kind. It sort of fell in love with me, and followed me everywhere I went (it was a large children's petting zoo). We spend a couple hours together, me and that lama. I talked to it about all sorts of topics, and it listened very attentively, all the time looking at me with adoring eyes. It's so rare to find such unconditional love, even for an animal. To this day, I can picture that beautiful furry face, it so affected me. But I sure hope it didn't give me any diseases! :-D Marc My website
Latest Articles: Undo/Redo Buffer Memento Design Patternhmmm, I'm considering getting some Alpaccas soon. (small relative of the llamas) From the little research I have done they don't appear to carry any real bad diseases. Regardz Colin J Davies The most LinkedIn CPian (that I know of anyhow) :-)
-
hmmm, I'm considering getting some Alpaccas soon. (small relative of the llamas) From the little research I have done they don't appear to carry any real bad diseases. Regardz Colin J Davies The most LinkedIn CPian (that I know of anyhow) :-)
-
Now I hope you're going to take this in the spirit Colin... :) Why would you be worried about diseases? *innocent look*
Dammit - I did that post without being logged in - the peril of using a laptop. Rob Manderson I'm working on a version for Visual Lisp++ My blog http://blogs.wdevs.com/ultramaroon/[^]
-
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. So, when did you get psychic? Surely an enlightened religion should rely even less on the personality of its leaders than a revealed one. Ryan
O fools, awake! The rites you sacred hold Are but a cheat contrived by men of old, Who lusted after wealth and gained their lust And died in baseness—and their law is dust. al-Ma'arri (973-1057)
Ryan Roberts wrote: So, when did you get psychic? You don't need to be. A guy like that Lama is always happy, because he doesn't know to how dislike anybody. Since they believe in reincarnation, and that has happened many many times, anybody could be their mother from another life. Since he loves his current mother, then why not love his former mothers? And why should he not love others, who may be their aunts, or uncles? Anyway, a person with such an attitude has a charisma that you don't find in everybody. And it does affect you, because you are empathic (unless you're a sociopath). Psychic skills not needed. :) -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
-
I don't want to be cynical, but the Billy Graham crusades have the same effect on people, and it passes just as quickly. Christian Graus - Microsoft MVP - C++
Christian Graus wrote: I don't want to be cynical, but the Billy Graham crusades have the same effect on people, and it passes just as quickly. I'm sure you're right. :( Jorgen's post reminded me of a television show I had seen a while back. Penn and Teller have a show called "Bullsh*t" ( Link[^] ) where they look at all kinds of claims (horoscopes, psychics, etc) -- admittedly, they have their own axe to grind. In one episode, they were talking about self-help groups. There was one scene involving fire-walking where (just after fire-walking) this woman says something to the effect of "I feel like a new person! Like all my troubles have just vanished!" Turns out that she has been going to these sorts of self-help groups for a long time. It became clear that it was a sort of cycle, and these groups provided only a temporary sensation of overcoming her problems. Though, I'd like to think there's a little more permanence to at least some of these things. (I have to admit, that I certainly don't look to any of these things for feelings of enlightenment, but I would like to think that it works for some people -- assuming that it doesn't lead to dogmatic "I know what's right because I had an experience that made me feel good".) Although, I think attitude does affect one's happiness, if you can train yourself to have the right attitude. ----------------------------------------------------- Empires Of Steel[^]
-
I've just come home from an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. :) Anyway, it started with 2 x 20 minute meditation sessions in the Karlstad cathedral. Odd place for meditation it seemed. But it turned out that the church has had regular meditations for quite some time. I was surprised that the meditation sessions are inspired by Zen-buddhism. After the meditation, which was quite stress relieving(!), we went across the street to another of the church's buildings, where the Lama (Geshe Pema Dorjee[^]), talked to and with us about topics such as love, compassion and meditation for about 1.5 hours. We also had tea and sandwhiches, and a generally gemütlich (what's the proper english word...?) time. What I took with me from that was not christ, buddha, or anything else in that magnitude. What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. *drum roll* A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. Merely the presence of such a person, makes you happy. It's as if it's a highly contagious disease. And right now, I feel like I've gotten a really bad infection with this disease, because I feel great. I can only hope I'll carry the disease tomorrow, so that I can spread it around. -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
*Elaine sneezes* That didn't take long :love: The tigress is here :-D
-
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. And now you know why Buddhism is often combined with other religions without problems. :) Meditation is an absolute necessity at times, and in some cases can do more than a good night's sleep. congradulations, sounds like a wonderful time, I hope eventually to do the same. _________________________ Asu no koto o ieba, tenjo de nezumi ga warau. Talk about things of tomorrow and the mice in the ceiling laugh. (Japanese Proverb)
Buddhism is more a philosphy than a religion by western labels. I just try to be someone I would like to know. Elaine :rose: The tigress is here :-D
-
Dammit - I did that post without being logged in - the peril of using a laptop. Rob Manderson I'm working on a version for Visual Lisp++ My blog http://blogs.wdevs.com/ultramaroon/[^]
And you were silly enough to post another message admitting it was you ? :laugh: The tigress is here :-D
-
hmmm, I'm considering getting some Alpaccas soon. (small relative of the llamas) From the little research I have done they don't appear to carry any real bad diseases. Regardz Colin J Davies The most LinkedIn CPian (that I know of anyhow) :-)
ColinDavies wrote: From the little research I have done they don't appear to carry any real bad diseases. Rhode Island was in the national news again--what is it with this tiny little state, anyways? An organ donor had some nasty virus that she caught from her pet hamster. Her organs infected and killed four other people. Healthy people never even notice if they have the virus, apparently, but organ recipients, with immune suppression drugs, weren't as well off. Marc My website
Latest Articles: Undo/Redo Buffer Memento Design Pattern -
Ryan Roberts wrote: So, when did you get psychic? You don't need to be. A guy like that Lama is always happy, because he doesn't know to how dislike anybody. Since they believe in reincarnation, and that has happened many many times, anybody could be their mother from another life. Since he loves his current mother, then why not love his former mothers? And why should he not love others, who may be their aunts, or uncles? Anyway, a person with such an attitude has a charisma that you don't find in everybody. And it does affect you, because you are empathic (unless you're a sociopath). Psychic skills not needed. :) -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: And it does affect you, because you are empathic (unless you're a sociopath) Its a possibility, I'm the kind of guy who would suspect Yoda of having an alterior motive. Cultivating that kind of reaction in people is whats kept them in saffron and gold statues for 2,500 years. Ryan
O fools, awake! The rites you sacred hold Are but a cheat contrived by men of old, Who lusted after wealth and gained their lust And died in baseness—and their law is dust. al-Ma'arri (973-1057)
-
Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. I met a lama once, the furry and spitting kind. It sort of fell in love with me, and followed me everywhere I went (it was a large children's petting zoo). We spend a couple hours together, me and that lama. I talked to it about all sorts of topics, and it listened very attentively, all the time looking at me with adoring eyes. It's so rare to find such unconditional love, even for an animal. To this day, I can picture that beautiful furry face, it so affected me. But I sure hope it didn't give me any diseases! :-D Marc My website
Latest Articles: Undo/Redo Buffer Memento Design PatternMarc Clifton wrote: met a lama once, the furry and spitting kind How about a 2 el lama. Or is that a big fire in Boston? ;P Chris Meech I am Canadian. [heard in a local bar] Remember that in Texas, Gun Control is hitting what you aim at. [Richard Stringer] Nice sig! [Tim Deveaux on Matt Newman's sig with a quote from me]
-
I've just come home from an evening of meditation and a meeting with a Tibetan Lama. To clarify: I met a buddhist monk, and not the furry and spitting animal. :) Anyway, it started with 2 x 20 minute meditation sessions in the Karlstad cathedral. Odd place for meditation it seemed. But it turned out that the church has had regular meditations for quite some time. I was surprised that the meditation sessions are inspired by Zen-buddhism. After the meditation, which was quite stress relieving(!), we went across the street to another of the church's buildings, where the Lama (Geshe Pema Dorjee[^]), talked to and with us about topics such as love, compassion and meditation for about 1.5 hours. We also had tea and sandwhiches, and a generally gemütlich (what's the proper english word...?) time. What I took with me from that was not christ, buddha, or anything else in that magnitude. What I took with me, was a very valuable lesson. It transcends religion. The simplicity of it is so elegant and beautiful, that anybody can do it. *drum roll* A genuinely good person, without hidden agendas, and nothing but unconditional love for everyone, changes people. Merely the presence of such a person, makes you happy. It's as if it's a highly contagious disease. And right now, I feel like I've gotten a really bad infection with this disease, because I feel great. I can only hope I'll carry the disease tomorrow, so that I can spread it around. -- An eye for an eye will only make the world blind.
Hippies.They're everywhere. They wanna save the earth, but all they do is smoke pot and smell bad[^] Jörgen Sigvardsson wrote: Karlstadtm Warn your mayor that use of my name without my express written permission is prohibited. Please contact my legal team immediatly of you will face either nuclear retaliation or annexation by Norway.
Fold with us!
All murderers are punished unless they kill in large numbers and to the sound of trumpets - Voltaire, 1694-1778