buddhism-meditation

Freedom - From Ourselves by E. Raymond Rock

"The True Value of a human being can be found in the degree to which he has attained liberation from the self." - Albert Einstein.
This theory is as difficult to comprehend, as is his theory of relativity, but perhaps more so because just as a knife cannot cut itself, the self cannot see itself. Therefore, the self remains ever an enigma.
Einstein mentions the true value of a human being - an excellent measure of our worth, for if we merely measure our wealth, power, or fame, we lose touch with the truth, and scientists such as Einstein lived for the truth; truth is a scientist's passion.
A scientist's truth begins with observation, not an observation that is skewed toward a desired resolution, but an unbiased, impartial, disinterested examination. A scientist will do blind studies, where neither the evaluator nor the subject knows which items are controls, and will perform extensive testing to make certain the results are irrefutable. Therefore, when Einstein says that liberation from the self is the true value of a human being, rest assured that his scientific mind has observed human nature very closely, and that he has come to an unbiased conclusion.
Can we do what Einstein did to come to his conclusion? Can we set aside our beliefs and prejudices and simply observe life? If we can do this, how could we not come to the same conclusions? The fact is; we can't observe life in the manner that a scientist does because we simply are too enmeshed in our opinions and beliefs - all resulting from our conditioning. We don't have the capacity to step back with a grand overview and see life exactly as it is. We tend to see life as we wish it to be, and when life doesn't live up to our expectations, we become entrapped and not at all liberated as Einstein theorized we could be.
What keeps us imprisoned? Einstein, joining many great thinkers and spiritual figures down through the ages, said that the self is what separates us from our freedom. We would be hard pressed to find a popular religion that addresses this certain remedy for our bondage, and the reason for this is that uncovering the self requires the greatest courage, because the revealing of self involves pain; pain in proportion to the power of the self-illusion that we have bought into, which is usually substantial. And frankly, churches that inflict pain don't last, only happy churches last, even though necessary pain is the only thing that will free us.
If scientists merely believed what someone told them, or what they had read in a book, the world would still be flat - it took the Catholic Church 300 years to forgive Galileo for that one! The fact is; science embarrasses religion regularly. The only religion that has kept up with science has been Buddhism, probably because one of the tenets of the Buddha was that his monks should believe nothing they couldn't prove true for themselves.
Einstein said, "The religion of the future will be a cosmic religion. It should transcend a personal god and avoid dogmas and theology. Covering both natural and spiritual, it should be based on a religious sense arising from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual and a meaningful unity. Buddhism answers this description. If there is any religion that would cope with modern scientific needs, it would be Buddhism."
There is one more thing that the Buddha hinted at; if you want to find truth for yourself . . . meditate. If you simply believe what someone tells you, suffering will follow like tracks from an ox cart follows the wheels. Look at your life, honestly, like a scientist does, Happiness? Suffering and worry?
You make the objective call.
E. Raymond Rock of Fort Myers, Florida is cofounder and principal teacher at the Southwest Florida Insight Center, www.SouthwestFloridaInsightCenter.com His twenty-eight years of meditation experience has taken him across four continents, including two stopovers in Thailand where he practiced in the remote northeast forests as an ordained Theravada Buddhist monk. His book, A Year to Enlightenment (Career Press/New Page Books) is now available at major bookstores and online retailers. Visit www.AYearToEnlightenment.com
About the Author
E. Raymond Rock of Fort Myers, Florida is cofounder and principal teacher at the Southwest Florida Insight Center, www.SouthwestFloridaInsightCenter.com. His book, A Year to Enlightenment (Career Press/New Page Books) is now available at major bookstores and online retailers. Visit www.AYearToEnlightenment.com


Comprehensive Guide to the Art of Meditation by Anmol Mehta

There are as many types of meditation techniques as there are wonderful flavors of ice cream. This allow each person to find a flavor that is delicious to them. In this article series I will provide an overview of many of the different meditation techniques that exist and hopefully this will help you find the style that is sweetest to you.
Some meditation styles suit those of an intellectual disposition, while others are more attractive to those who prefer the path of love and surrender. Still others, with an active approach to life, may like the meditation techniques involving movement, while those with a strong mind would enjoy the approach of visualization and concentration. Overall, there are several broad categories under which we can capture most of these various meditation practices and in Part 1 I will explore Insight Meditation Techniques and Sound (Mantra) and Intention Meditation Techniques.
1. Insight Meditation Techniques: These are the meditations of choice for the Gyan Yogis or those drawn to the intellectual path. It incorporates the advanced meditation techniques from the Zen school of Buddhism, the Advaita Vedanta school of Hinduism, certain schools of Western Religions among others.
A. WHO AM I Meditation Technique: This techniques comes from the school of Advaita Vedanta (Non-Dualism / End of Knowledge). The meditation was popularized by Shri Ramana Maharishi and is based on negation of the false self in order to realize one's True Nature. Here is an example of my experience with WHO AM I Meditation Practice.
B. Koan Meditation Technique: These meditations come from the Zen school of Buddhism and are designed to break down the ordinary pattern of conceptual, dualistic thinking. By breaking down the interference created by the thinking mechanism the practitioner is brought to confront the non-dual reality of "what is" directly and thus Awaken.
C. Contemplation Meditation Technique: These meditations utilize introspection, self-study, reflection, self-dialogue and contemplation to cut through the layers of false conditioning and false understanding that deludes the mind. These meditations have their roots in many Western Religions and are also a part of Eastern philosophies.
D. Silent Mind Meditation Technique: This meditation technique is my contribution to this category and it involves directly perceiving the fact of what is by acute observation of the thinking process. This is the flavor that I enjoy best and I have explained it in detail in the The Silent Mind Meditations, which are part of the Silent Mind Meditation Program. These meditations are an extension of the teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti.
2. Sound (Mantra) & Intention Meditation Techniques: The meditations that fall under this category use the science of sound and thought vibrations (Naad Yoga), along with rhythm and music (Laya Yoga) to purify the heart and mind. These meditations have a wide range of applications, from bestowing Enlightenment, to improving health, wealth, happiness, peace etc...
A. Mantra Japa Meditation Technique: This meditation method uses the repetition of a mantra (a particular sound, word or phrase) verbally or mentally to create the necessary conditions for purification, refinement or expansion to take place. Mantras are essentially keys which allow one to tune into the individual energy field or tune into the Universal Energy field to produce certain desired results. Here is an example of using OM Mantra to activate the Third Eye Chakra.
B. Rhythm Meditation Technique: This form of meditation uses the combination of rhythm, chanting, music and breath to calibrate and perfect the system. The excellent Three Step Rhythmic Breathing (3srb) meditation technique of Sage Pantanjali and many Kundalini Yoga meditations fall under this category, among others.
C. Meditation via Song: Most of the meditations from the path of Devotion (Bhakti Yoga) and Love, designed to dissolve the ego belong in this category. This is a path most dear to those who are emotional in nature and feel a deep love for the divine. Christianity, Gospel, Sufi Meditations, Hare Krishna Meditations, Kirtans and Bhajans are some examples of techniques in this category.
D. Meditation via Prayer & Intention: All religions have meditations involving prayer and worship. The meditations that also use the power of intention to manifest desires fall under this category.
So you can see from above, these is a rich diversity to the Art of Meditation and certainly something for everybody. If one of the styles above does not catch your fancy, not to worry, I will be serving up more tasty flavors in part 2 of this series.
About the Author
Anmol Mehta is a Kundalini Yoga Teacher and Zen Expert. Visit Mastery of Meditation, Chakra Yoga and Zen for FREE Online Meditation & Yoga Programs. You will also find a wealth of insightful articles at Mastery of Meditation, Kundalini Yoga and Zen Blog.


www.learningmeditation.com/
www.meditation.com/
www.meditationcenter.com/
www.tm.org/
www.dhamma.org/
www.1stholistic.com/Meditation/hol_meditation.htm