Meditation- The Art of Silence

Topic: Religion

Sources:
Anthro, Robbins, R
"The Cultural Construction of Identity" (pgs 132-137)

“History of Meditation”

http://www.project-meditation.org/wim/history_of_meditation.html

“Meditation: History”

http://iml.jou.ufl.edu/projects/spring05/luft/history.htm

Relation:

In our reading we have been going over identity and how it constructs each person and in turn how that helps construct a culture. I feel that religion has a large part to play in a person’s identity, and whether they are religious or not, they are making a statement about it. Meditation is a part of some religious and non-religious practices, and I am examining the effects it has on people, and the benefits of it.

Discussion:

Since I was a young girl I have been drawn to and interested in religion and religious practices. People’s love and devotion to the unknown fascinated me, and even though I had never been particularly religious myself, I wanted to explore it in my own way. I took books out of the library on religion at as young as nine, and at ten I found a book on meditation, and I have loved it ever since. At ten I started meditating, and I joined a Unitarian Universalist meditation group all through middle school, and a little through high school, and in my senior year of high school I found an ashram, and there I learned a very deep appreciation for meditation and what it can do for a person.

Often when I first think of meditation and how others may view it I imagine a solitary monk in Tibet, or some new age woman wearing white in the lotus position, but it is so much more than that. One of the most iconic symbols and teachers of meditation is the Buddha. The Buddha decided that his princely life as Siddartha Guatama was not for him, and he needed to find something more. He left the life he knew and went on a long and challenging spiritual journey, where in the end he attained nirvana and enlightenment. The word enlightenment means ‘The Wisdom of Emptiness,’ and understanding that everything is empty of independent existence and ‘that all things are interconnected and interdependent.’ Nirvana means ‘The end of suffering, in this lifetime and future lifetimes.’ In achieving nirvana you leave the cycle of samsara (the cycle of being born and reborn again), and you become a part of nirvana.

There are many people around the world that practice meditation, and many religions use it as a regular practice. I remember when I was able to go to the Ashram regularly I went and practiced meditation with the others that lived there, and we practiced both silent and chanting meditation. When the chanting was over, we would drink tea together, and as I biked home I could not contain the overwhelming happiness I felt. It was truly amazing.
Meditation is a very old and challenging art. The art of silencing your mind. It takes discipline and practice to get good at it, but when you do the benefits are immense. The benefits stretch far beyond spiritual enlightenment to many physical, mental and emotional benefits as well. ‘It wasn’t until the mid 20^th century when it finally gained popularity In the west,’ and when it did researchers began testing the benefits of it and learned that it can help to treat depression, anxiety and stress, by allowing the person to become more clear-headed. It can help people break hard and harmful habits such as addictions to drugs and alcohol, and it can help to ‘lower ones heart-rate and blood pressure.’ It also has documented positive effects on people who suffer from mental health problems such as ADD and ADHD.

I feel that meditation is a practice that anyone can benefit from, even if you aren’t religious. Also, with its growing population in contemporary culture the resources to help one understand it are immense. The initial start may be a challenge, but in the end it can only help one rather than harm them.