Mindfulness Meditation

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Robert Burns
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Mindfulness Meditation

Post by Robert Burns » Mon Aug 15, 2022 9:18 pm

It is tragic that the term "meditation" is so commonly associated with Eastern superstition and New Age nonsense, because not all meditation is like that. Specifically, mindfulness meditation is not like that. Mindfulness in its purest form is not about aligning chakras, astral projection, communicating with spooks, or even about transcending ordinary states of mind. No, mindfulness is just that: being mindful. Paying attention. Taking in reality without attaching judgements or labels to it. Mindfulness is not subjective, it is empirical.

In scientific literature, two forms of mindfulness are officially recognized: Focused Attention Meditation (FAM) and Open Monitoring Meditation (OMM). They are both forms of mindfulness, but FAM is the more ordinary sort where you pick a specific aspect of consciousness to focus on, usually the sensations of the breath. The breath doesn't actually have to be the object of meditation, but the reason it is ideal is because breathing is a constant in any situation, and there's a rhythm to it. OMM is similar in that you are still being mindful of the present moment, but instead of focusing on the breath specifically for an extended period, you are sitting in a relaxed state of open awareness, watching all of experience flow around you like a waterfall.

Many practitioners recommend starting with FAM, and I do as well. OMM is a fair bit more difficult because, without a specific object of focus, it is much easier to get lost in thought and forget that you are supposed to be meditating. That happens with FAM too, but FAM is simple, and the instructions are easy to follow: pay attention to the sensations of your breath. If you notice you are lost in thought, let the thought pass on its own and return to the breath. That's it. The general recommendation is to do this twice a day in 10-minute or 15-minute sessions: one first thing in the morning, and one in the evening. Many even recommend doing an extended retreat early on, where you spend 7 or even 10 days doing this all day to really get a solid foundation. I do think this is often ideal, but it's a big commitment and it just isn't feasible for everyone. It isn't absolutely necessary though. Either way, when you have gotten better with FAM, you are generally a lot more prepared to approach OMM, particularly non-dual OMM, which is what I really want to talk about.

Something critical to understand with non-dual OMM, and the thing that makes it so counterintuitive sometimes, is that, in addition to there being no particular object of meditation, there is no subject, either, meaning that there is no "I" doing the meditating. To the uninitiated this might sound ridiculous, but to put it in a way that is probably a little less confusing, the feeling of being an individual self is just that, a feeling, another part of experience, not fundamentally different from something like the sound of a bird chirping. There is not a true subject at the center or the edge of consciousness, experiencing consciousness as a separate entity. There is only experience, only consciousness, only one reality.

Think of it like waves on the ocean. We often describe waves as if they are something distinct from the ocean itself, but they are in fact a manifestation of the whole ocean, not things that exist apart. Ocean waves are simply the ocean waving, and so too are we the Cosmos waving, as are all things. Consciousness is an endless, cascading flow of vibration that fundamentally defies all categorization, and the labels we put on things, including ourselves, are simply a consequence of language. Language creates a virtual layer which we project over top of pure experience, and ultimately, it too is another inseparable part of the whole of experience, not a reality in itself. This is not to say that language is problematic, though. Like math, it allows us to interact with reality and communicate with each other in powerful ways that would be impossible for our limited brains to do otherwise. But despite its usefulness, language is still ultimately a mental construct, and it is important to be able to take a step back from it and see it for what it really is.

Even though it can (though it does not always) take a fair amount of time and personal instruction to experience this, I feel it is important to point out that the non-duality of consciousness is not something that is hiding from view which must be uncovered. There's no special state of mind you have to reach to see it. It is the very nature of consciousness and it literally requires no effort to manifest. Effort is in fact what often gets in the way of seeing it, and this is part of why it is often best to start with FAM and later progress to non-dual OMM. There can be many benefits to FAM alone.

That said, it is possible for one to understand all this intellectually without fully experiencing non-duality in this way. Given that Dr. Pierce never spoke of any purely experiential basis for Cosmotheism, I am inclined to believe that he falls more into that category. He was a scientist, after all, and science does support this conclusion on its own. I also understood the intellectual context before I saw it for myself through extensive meditation, and I actually believe that is the correct order of steps to take. The reason for that is that it is actually possible to notice the non-dual nature of reality outside of any particular context just by pure chance, and then not understand the profundity of it at all. Like I said, it's not a special state of mind, it's just reality as it always is, so one can be forgiven for dismissing it as a mere oddity of life without any real implication. It is also possible to recognize it in a more problematic context, like within some kind of cult, and then to draw all sorts of wrong conclusions about the supposed wisdom of the particular teacher who guided you, and the supposed truthfulness of the superstitious teachings they added to the mix. There are countless examples of this occurring in both traditional and New Age schools, and it is often why highly rational people tend to dismiss the practice outright.

Cosmotheism, on the other hand, provides the proper context without any superstitious baggage, and in turn, the observable non-dual nature of consciousness is the empirical proof of our theology. The beauty of it is that there is no blind faith required here. Cosmotheists don't have to swear fealty to some spook and pray for some arbitrary sign to understand what it's really all about. The truth of Cosmotheism is right here and now, always. It just needs a bit of pointing out.

The sort of meditation I'm describing here is integral to my own belief in Cosmotheism. I'm not a Cosmotheist merely because I admire Dr. Pierce or because it makes a lot more sense than any other existing religion. I'm a Cosmotheist because I feel the truth of it. Without meditation, I may have still arrived here with a purely intellectual understanding, but I doubt I would have the same level of conviction. This is why I feel it is important to share.

It would be silly of me to try to push anyone into this practice, but I do hope that what I've said here will at least start a conversation and inspire people to set aside preconceived notions and give meditation a closer look. I believe meditation belongs with Cosmotheism, and I envision it one day being an integral ritual for all members of our Community.

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Grimork
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Re: Mindfulness Meditation

Post by Grimork » Tue Aug 16, 2022 7:11 am

Perhaps in general Whites shouldn't be so quick to discount Eastern religions out of hand because of their takeover and claims by non-White indigenous people. According to this book and other sources Aryans were the source of Buddhism and other Eastern religions:
The first great world religions which addressed their appeal' to all men irrespective of race or nationality, Buddhism and Zoroastrianism, were the works of Aryans, propagated in Aryan, speech.
https://archive.org/details/TheAryansAS ... 1/mode/2up pg. 4-5

I believe this is the case for the Hindu Vedas as well.

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WolfHammer
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Re: Mindfulness Meditation

Post by WolfHammer » Tue Sep 06, 2022 11:39 am

I can agree that meditation techniques can be helpful.
Occasionally practice meditation focused only on breathing, without any visualization or metaphysics.
It a shame that I dont meditate every day.
He loves truth, and he hates falsehood.
He loves beauty, and he hates ugliness.
He loves nobility in all things, and he hates baseness. - The Path, Cosmotheism Triology

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