Buddhists and Intrigued Non-Buddhist Laymen, CONVERGE HERE

Yay! While I know Buddhism is far from the only religion that does it, I'm kind of intrigued by meditation, and it's actually something I'd like to try. This question may be a bit vague but... how does it work? Is there any particular way I'm supposed to do it?

One of my acquaintences practices Zen Buddhism and (paraphrasing him) It's more or less "Overload the rationality centers with things that make sense only if you throw out rationality until you understand that it's the trying to understand that is keeping you from understanding. Pretty much Enlightenment through surrender to that fact that it doesn't make sense."

Psst, Aondeug... Sorry if this is a silly question, but... are there any rituals in Buddhism for exorcism, spiritual purification, etc.?

randomtropeloser: Oh you have asked what I feel is the one question that really bugs people. Both those in the religion because it can be a bitch to answer and those outside of it because answers conflict and such... As for what meditation is...Meditation is a practice done to increase the individual's abilities of concentration and to search for insight for Enlightenment. The latter is called Vipasana and I honestly have no idea what exactly it entails. I've asked. I've read. I have like three books based around it. I still have no idea. I am sure I will in the future though. Just got to work towards it! OH YEAH!!

Now the other type I know about and practice it. It's called samaha or samatha (I misspell my name now a lot because of that...). The most simple form is sitting meditation. You can sit more or less however you want though many teachers will tell you that lotus or half lotus are the preferable positions. Just find a position you can sit in for like an hour. Or five. Now. You can do a multitude of things from here on out...Some people close their eyes. Others don't. Some people focus on individual body parts and move their concentration around their body. Others count breaths.

My personal recommendation? Just sit however the fuck you want, close your eyes, and start counting breaths in this fashion: Inhale, exhale, 1 and so on all the way up to 10. Then count back down to 1. Just keep doing that. This seems to be the most simple method of the few I've tried.

But what to do if you get distracted? I mean that happens to people. And it will happen to you. It's no biggie. You'll likely go "Did I feed the dog?" or "My eyebrow itches" or any number of things. You just acknowledge the thought and continue with your meditation (unless it's something vital like "I smell something burning" of course). Just let it pass. You will learn to conquer the monkey mind.

Are the benefits to this? Well yes...I wrote a paper about that...Helps with stress and can have a positive effect on people with illnesses like cancer. And concentration. Even if you aren't Buddhist it can be a helpful thing.

Maddy: Really? That's interesting. Hmm.

Mellon: Yes. The actual practices vary from sect to sect. It's not something I specifically asked about though. Tibetan Buddhism being the thing that it is likely has something specifically about that. What I got from the other wiki: In Buddhism, exorcism exists depending on the Buddhist sect. Each differs from the others: "...some view it as metaphorical, some esoteric, and some even literal. Some Tibetan Buddhists view exorcism as being nothing more than a metaphor for expelling negative thoughts and transforming them into enlightened mind.

Certain Buddhists believe in blessings rather than exorcisms to rid themselves or property of negative thoughts and/or negative spirits."

edited 6th Feb '11 6:20:13 PM by Aondeug

@Aon: Wow, thanks! I'll make sure and give it a try. Heck, I may even report my findings back here (as if this thread isn't already cluttered enough with my posts).

Reporting findings would be nice!

Okay! I tried it... for about 8 minutes. (Un)fortunately I'm with friends right now and would feel rude if I spent too little time with them. I guess I didn't really do it for long enough to get the full experience, but it was pretty awesome. I typically have a lot of random crap cluttering up my brain, like emotional residue from whatever's happened during the week and some crappy song I heard. I suppose it could be said I "cheated" a bit, because I used the hum of the PC to drown out the miscellaneous sounds in my head. It's hard to describe the feeling, having my mind be totally blank, and I counted my breaths as you recommended. Opening my eyes felt like waking up from a dream. Do you think I did it right?

Thanks Aon! I shall investigate further.

It's not really cheating to focus on something like the humming of a computer or music. I've done that before. I just found the breath counting method easiest when first starting out.

From what you've described yeah you seem to be doing it right. I wouldn't worry too much about how long you can do it or how distracted you get or the fact that you can't sit in full lotus or any number of things. Don't worry about doing it "right". That just makes meditation all the more difficult.

mellon: Sure thing. Sorry I couldn't give you much of anything more substantial.

I see. Thanks for all your help! As a minor addition to what I said before, the time before and after I meditated sort of felt separate, so to speak, kind of how two days feel separate from each other.

Sure thing. As for feelings...I always feel very floaty when I meditate. I reach a very nice calm and feel detached from my body. Like I could stand up and leave it behind. When I stop meditating I feel like I've been brought back down. I'm still wonderfully calm, but I am attached to reality once more.

Interesting. Has it always been that way for you? For me, my body felt kind of like a shell, as if it were merely housing my "true" self which had no physical form.

Yeah pretty much. I've gotten similar stories from others and some like yours.

So I did it right, then. I'm so proud of myself right now. Thanks again Aon, you're the best mentor ever!

I am? Huh. Well thank you.

No problem! Hmm, so is that it, then? I'd hate to see this thread die so soon...

Yes it is a bit sad isn't it. You'd think there would be at least a few curious people...

Sorry, there's kind of an Archive Panic when it comes to thousands-year-old religions. And I don't even have the second volume of Buddha yet. I think the archer gets killed.

D:

WELL FINE.

-glares bitterly at the Christian coven-

In the name of Buddha I will steal your laymen...BUDDHIST CRUSADES!!!

Obviously, you should recruit tropers from... India? Thailand? Where are most Buddhists anyway?

Most don't live in India. India's largely Hindu and Muslim. Buddhism has its hold throughout the rest of South Asia and most of East Asia. Some have their own religions like Japan with Shinto, but Buddhism rules the east. RULES.

Well, you've always got me as a recruit! And apparently Tzetze is sort of interested as well.

Tzetze is Tzetze.

That's true, Tze is pretty much omni-present and can be expected to turn up in any thread if it exists for long enough.

edited 10th Feb '11 2:13:22 PM by randomtropeloser

Not really saying much, I'd quite like to know everything, but eh.

So... how bout this weirdo?