
Meditation Becomes Beneficial Surprisingly Fast - dhimes
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/The-Surprising-Speed-of-Om/25093/?sid=pm&utm_source=pm&utm_medium=en
======
johnohara
I used meditation in college as a student-athlete mainly to learn how to relax
during 800 and 1500m races. Many people believe that in order to run fast you
have tense your muscles and push harder but the opposite is true. When you
relax and concentrate on your form and breathing the speed flows right through
you.

Haven't used it in quite a while but when I did it brought a nice balance to
things. Good focus, a gentle calm, better stress management, etc. Nothing
mystical. Just healthy benefits.

------
markbao
| _For the study, participants were taught to meditate by focusing on the
sensation of their breathing, acknowledging and dismissing any stray thoughts
that popped into their heads._

For those who do practice meditation, what are other techniques that are
effective to you?

~~~
wheels
It's worth spending a bit of time reading on, as I find the descriptions here
to be overly superficial, perhaps largely because meditation is more defined
by what you do not do, than what you do. It's also worth noting that there are
many types of meditation. Years ago I read "Buddhism without Beliefs" (on
"agnostic Buddhism"). Bullshitty as the title may sound, the major thing that
I came away with was a decent meditation practice that I stuck to for a few
months.

Sadly, I've found even for those convinced of meditation's benefits, like
exercise, knowing you should do it doesn't mean you do.

[http://monkeymindonline.blogspot.com/2008/04/critical-
analys...](http://monkeymindonline.blogspot.com/2008/04/critical-analysis-of-
buddhism-without.html)

As a side note, the all time best quote on meditation, from Tom Robbins'
Fierce Invalids Home from Hot Climates:

"Meditation hasn't got a damn thing to do with anything, 'cause all it has to
do with is nothing. Nothingness. Okay? It doesn't develop the mind, it
dissolves the mind. Self-improvement? Forget it, baby. It erases the self.
Throws the ego out on its big brittle ass. What good is it? Good for nothing.
Excellent for nothing. Yes, Lord, but when you get down to nothing, you get
down to ultimate reality. It's then and exactly then that you're sensing the
true nature of the universe, you're linked up with the absolute Absolute, son,
and unless you're content with blowing smoke up your butt all your life, that
there's the only place to be."

~~~
cianestro
I highly suggest "The Tibetan Book of The Dead" and "The Power of Silence."
Try to find the TBOTD version translated by W.Y. Evans-Wentz if you're not one
for happy meal, watered-down philosophy. Take these texts with a grain of salt
at first only because they will be thoroughly alien to your mind; once
absorbed use wisely.

"...that which clingth not no fall can come. Where no fall cometh, there is
rest, and where rest is, there is no keen desire. Where keen desire is not,
naught cometh or goeth; and where naught cometh or goeth there is no death, no
birth." -GB, _TBOTD_

"Cutting our chains is marvelous, but also very undesirable, for nobody wants
to be free." -CC, _The Power of Silence_

EDIT: btw yogic flying is for idiots. Those who've practiced meditation for
years and those fewer who've reached Nirvana have accessed and gained control
enough to manipulate what they call the _dharmakaya_ which is connected to the
right temporal lobe I believe (also referred to as the _silent mind_ ). Those
with this degree of mastery have OOB experiences with great maneuverability.

<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dharmakāya>

~~~
justsee
I had a great experience with a very simple practice called Vipassana. I wrote
about it straight after doing a 10-day course of meditation - 9 days of no
speaking was an event in itself:
[http://weblog.squareapple.net/archives/2004/11/26/art_of_liv...](http://weblog.squareapple.net/archives/2004/11/26/art_of_living.html)

A book I've really appreciated on the practice is called "The Art of Living:
Vipassana Meditation" - [http://www.amazon.com/Art-Living-Vipassana-
Meditation/dp/006...](http://www.amazon.com/Art-Living-Vipassana-
Meditation/dp/0060637242)

Both the practice and the book are honest and simple in approach. I used to
hunt for complex, cerebral stuff, dismissing anything else, but have slowly
realised the error of my ways.

~~~
cianestro
Your problem is that you thought understanding could guide you in meditation.
It can't. But it's still necessary for advanced techniques. Anything
worthwhile takes time and discipline--don't give up. Real meditation isn't a
weekend retreat. Sorry yuppies. :(

------
Estragon
An equally valid interpretation is that Tolkien rots your brain. This is
shoddy science, because their "control" experiment is little more than a fig
leaf.

~~~
GiraffeNecktie
It seems unlikely that Tolkien rots your brain, but I agree that it would have
been more useful to compare meditation to just sitting quietly or taking a nap
(and to reading Tolkien). I recall some previous studies on meditation found
that it didn't make much difference if you were doing specific meditation or
just spending some quiet time.

------
mannicken
I used to meditate but no longer do since I'm starting to trip (audial/visual
hallucinations) very fast and the trip is usually not a good one. It is a very
powerful natural psychedelic experience, comparable to third plateau of DXM at
least... but controllable, unlike DXM.

~~~
gojomo
Some people react poorly to meditation -- even having hallucinations. See this
story for more examples:

<http://www.sfweekly.com/2002-08-28/news/bad-vibes/>

So sure, try it, but if it doesn't feel right, don't force it.

~~~
xavoy
If you're forcing anything in meditation, you're doing it wrong.

And of course some people will 'react poorly'. For most people it's the first
time in their lives they've actually sat down and looked at themselves. This
can be shocking.

Ignoring the problem doesn't make it go away though. That's just 'treating'
the symptoms and ignoring the causes, just like we do with modern medicine.

~~~
gojomo
I can't tell if you read the article -- but anxiety attacks, hallucinations,
and seizures are reported in some percentage of people who engage in
meditation.

There are an amazing variety of human brains, and if you accept the results
that meditation causes measurable _physical_ changes in brain structure, you
should also be open to the idea that for some brains, those changes might
interact badly with other preexisting (and quite possibly inherent) brain
tendencies.

People should know that if they have bad reactions, it's not necessarily a
matter of 'doing it wrong', or just fighting to get over an initial
challenging hump. Stopping might be the right thing for their brain health.

------
brihas
Check out Vipassana meditation: <http://www.dhamma.org>. They offer 10-day
residential courses for no charge at centres worldwide.

~~~
kalmar
Be aware that there are some reports of these Goenka retreats being cult-like
and involving some aspects of brain-washing. Additionally they may force a
particular style and experience of meditation.

[http://melissamaples.com/how-not-to-do-a-goenka-vipassana-
re...](http://melissamaples.com/how-not-to-do-a-goenka-vipassana-retreat-
in-15000-words-or-less/)

<http://www.greatwesternvehicle.org/criticism/goenka.htm>

(I do not wish to start an argument, I am just pointing this out so that
readers might be better informed. I have considered going, and did some
research online looking for accounts of the experience. I am not decided yet,
but time-wise it is not possible for me at the moment.)

~~~
delackner
Since you say yourself that you are not speaking from personal experience,
perhaps it would help to have the words of someone who _is_ speaking from
experience.

The meditation retreat is difficult and uncomfortable because of its
unfamiliar rules: no interaction with other students, no talking, very strict
schedule of waking, meditation, food, and breaks. All of these are tools to
eliminate distraction from the reason you are there: to develop a basic
capacity to perform the meditation technique properly.

The course materials and instructions repeatedly stress that nothing they say
is important; there is no philosophy you have to accept, no ideas you have to
believe. As someone who is very logical minded and anti-all-"isms" and
beliefs, I would have left after the first day if they didn't stress that you
can ignore 100% of everything and anything they say if you just do the
meditation technique.

The entire benefit of the experience is derived within you, in the same sense
that no matter how many books you read about how touching a flame "burns," the
experience of touching a burning stove is how you actually learn "ah, fire
_BURNS_ ".

Ten days seems a long time to devote to learning "how to meditate", but it
simply isn't possible to do in any shorter length of time, nor would it work
if you simply did several 1-day sessions.

Suppose you went to the gym every single day, but you only did 1 pushup and 1
crunch every day. You might complain that this whole exercise thing is
pointless. This would be a great loss.

Feel free email if anyone has questions. I'd be happy to discuss but the topic
would overflow many pages so I'll just leave it for now.

------
akaalias
I started daily zazen meditation about 6 weeks ago, having tried it on and off
before. The effects are subtle but powerful, providing me with patience and a
hightened state of relaxed alertness. Combined with Yoga ever other day, it
feels great!

If anyone is interested, I built this webapp for myself to keep track of my
progress. My meditation training can be found at
[http://stepset.com/habits/efac7b8e-6446-11df-
ab99-7f306a906e...](http://stepset.com/habits/efac7b8e-6446-11df-
ab99-7f306a906e78)

------
10ren
it's 4 x 20 minutes, according to these articles about the paper:
[http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100414184220.ht...](http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100414184220.htm)
[http://living-
mindfullyblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/cognition-a...](http://living-
mindfullyblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/cognition-accelerated-by-just-4-x-20.html)

This one claims to have the fulltext, but their webpage is broken for me:
[http://www.researchgate.net/publication/42975499_Mindfulness...](http://www.researchgate.net/publication/42975499_Mindfulness_meditation_improves_cognition_Evidence_of_brief_mental_training)

------
tome
I once went to a lecture given by a psychoanalyst who was also a Buddhist. His
main point was that Buddhism and analysis were very similar means of self-
introspection.

Does anyone here have a perspective on both to share?

~~~
michael_dorfman
Well, oddly enough, I'm midway through an M.A. in Buddhist Studies, and did my
undergraduate thesis on psychoanalysis, so, yes, I have a perspective.

I'd argue that the differences between the disciplines outweighs the
superficial similarities. If one is so inclined, one can definitely make lists
of similarities, and can stretch the interpretation of the doctrines of one
field to fit the other, but what would be the point, really?

~~~
andrewbadera
The point from the Dalai Lama's perspective? To defend his culture in the face
of modern science.

The point from the perspective of the rest of us? Analogies and recognizing
analogous forms are a good way to expand one's mind. Gaining respect for
introspection as well perhaps. What's the point of asking what's the point,
except to come off sounding like a conceited ass? (And I'll be the first to
admit here, it takes one to know one.)

~~~
michael_dorfman
I think you're trivializing a whole list of things here.

The Dalai Lama may think that he is defending his culture in the face of
modern science, but reducing Buddhism to a branch of psychoanalysis is not an
effective way to do so in the long run.

By the same token, reducing psychoanalysis to a modern manifestation of
Buddhism isn't doing psychoanalysis any favors, either.

In cross-disciplinary studies, it's important to resist the urge to reduce the
strange to the familiar, as it is only in doing so that one is able to fully
appreciate the richness of the traditions being compared.

In other words: analogies are useful, when starting out, to help one get a
vague impression of a new territory, but (unconsciously) clinging to these
analogies serves only to mask one from actually expanding one's mind.

Asking "what's the point?" may have the unintended side-effect of making me
sound like a conceited ass, but the intention was more philosophical.

------
minus1
For anyone interested in trying meditation, I found this podcast useful:
<http://www.audiodharma.org/series/1/talk/1762/>

------
yewweitan
Mattheiu Ricard on Meditation - <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iZwnXj0Ck1k>

------
c1sc0
I'm working on a startup/iPhone app that is tangentially related to
meditation. I've been meditating off and on for fifteen years now and as part
of the app development I took it up again, as a kind of dogfooding approach.
I've successfully used meditation in challenging sport situations
(mountaineering, skydiving, swimming) but I've also had moments where
everything in my life was going wrong except the meditation. Meditation can
help you stay healthy, focussed and relaxed but anyone claiming it will fix
your life is a charlatan.

------
kymmx
For me as a one who lives in Eastern country and practiced breathing, I can
really say that it helps your body and mind. It is far old tradition to
practice some kind of breathing(or zen you say, or yoga for more physical).
After a few months of daily practice, I myself experienced amazing response of
my body. But never attend classes that has some kind of religious color or ask
you to buy some products. They might not be a hoax but some were reported as
hoax and made some news in here.

------
moolave
I can say it's true that meditation does help with insomnia. In my case, it
has made me sleep easily. Give it some time to relax and breathe, next thing
you know you are feeling groggy. I know some serious meditators avoid falling
asleep if they want to do these for hours, but it can be a challenge achieving
that.

~~~
mike463
I learned to relax many years ago using one of these that a friend had:

<http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000E22DFE>

It's a galvanic skin response gadget. There are others (I got one from radio
shack too). Search for GSR.

It basically lowers a tone when you relax. It takes almost no time at all to
learn to relax with the immediate feedback the device offers.

When you lower the tone very low, you have basically relaxed your whole body
and can easily fall asleep.

I have no idea if this is like meditation or not, since I don't know how to
meditate. It could be, because you concentrate on the tone the device makes.

~~~
moolave
It's almost like it, and that is an awesome gadget. You basically lower your
body's frequencies - more like into a theta state. And that's when you can
easily get into superlearning mode and/or eventually fall asleep.

------
Tawheed
I learned Transcendental Meditation about a year ago, and it has had a
seriously profound effect on my life.

~~~
anemecek
I tried to look up more info about it but it seems like to learn anything, one
has to take some $1500 course. Can you summarize how it differs from the
standard meditation (i.e. zen meditation)?

~~~
silentbicycle
Zen meditation isn't really "the standard meditation", American culture just
has an infatuation with Zen because the Beats and Hippies drew a lot of
attention to the San Francisco Zen Center at the right time, while otherwise
Buddhism and Hinduism have mostly stayed in immigrant communities. (I don't
know enough about the Hare Krishnas to say anything either way.)

~~~
FraaJad
AFAIK, Hare krishnas do not practice "raja yoga" the Hindu school of
philosophy that deals with "Yoga" and "meditation" as people know of it
popularly. Hare krishnas practice the "Bhakti" (devotional) school of
philosophy.

Zen meditation is a japanese adaptation of the chinese adapation of the Raja
Yoga techniques of Hinduism/Buddhism.

see <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raja_Yoga>

------
ufomuffin
Focusing on breathing is great, I was thought that at meditation class, with
more details of course. But it's really important to keep your eyes almost
closed, not open nor closed, almost closed. You have to be aware of the world,
meditating is not about shutting yourself from the world

~~~
Estragon

      It's so dope when I focus on my breath
      'Cos I floss all the time and I chew Big Red!
    

<http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4gCU5uplB4A>

------
djshah
I posted this question to HN a few weeks back - also related to meditation in
a way. Some useful information posted by HNers...
<http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=1398844>

------
obinine
A plug for a meditation resource that I help maintain:

<http://diydharma.org>

including a comprehensive howto guide:

<http://diydharma.org/how-meditate>

------
mark_l_watson
Carl Jung said that it was scientifically provable that yoga and meditation
help physical and mental health - he probably made that comment 60 years ago,
but it is still true today.

~~~
Dirt_McGirt
Carl Jung and science do not belong in the same sentence.

------
mattmaroon
Should be "Surprisingly Quickly". Just saying.

------
c00p3r
This is a temporary, not lasting effect, just a glimpse that 'it works'..
After a short time the state of dullness will return.

It's a very common phenomena, when people were achieved temporary insight and
thought they were got enlightenment or some high state.

Actually it is not even a the first step. It is just a temporary result of the
effort, while true meditative state is effortless and natural, like breathing
itself.

------
mkramlich
Meditation stripped to it's core is good. All the religious hokum that often
seems to surround it I find a bit nauseating.

------
mkramlich
I learned to meditate as a child. Independently discovered it you might say. I
had no fancy terminology for it, no official system. I just did it. But I
agree, it's very very helpful and healthy.

