Term Paper on "Concentration, Contemplation Forms of Meditation Mysticism"

Term Paper 20 pages (6294 words) Sources: 17 Style: APA

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Concentration, Contemplation

Forms of meditation

Mysticism and meditation. Finding God within.

Tibetan Buddhist meditation and transcendental meditation

The differences between yoga and Christianity

Finding God within:

From Dream sleep to Awakening

From Illusion to realization

From Darkness to Enlightenment

From Imprisonment to Liberation

From Fragmentation to Wholeness

From Separation to Oneness

From Being on a Journey to Arriving at the Destination

From Being in Exile to Coming Home

From Seed to Flowering Plant or Fruitful Tree

From Death to Rebirth

It appears that every spiritual leader used a similar approach to the realm of transcendence. They all suggested that the key is found within oneself. Buddha, Christ, the Muslims and the Judeo-Christian Scriptures make reference to a process of introspection that leads to communion with God. Mystics from different religions have put forth their inner spiritual experiences. Such experiences contrast the physical world to spiritual realms that can be found in solitude and silence. Time and space become relative in such realms and the only real thing becomes the feeling of peace and happiness. The way spiritual realms can be reached is by a process of meditation.

The purpose of this paper is to highlight the essence of meditation practices and to discuss the particular forms in which God is revealed through meditation, or how meditation leads to the discovery of the God within. Therefore, references are made to the religious traditions in which meditation is encountered, to the particular forms of meditation and decisive elements common to all forms of meditation. Another part of this paper is concerned with the discussion of the relationship between mysticism and meditation and the manifestation of God through meditation. This undertaking will highlight as well the differences and similarities of meditation in different spiritual traditions, mainly in Christianity, Hinduism and Buddhism.

Certain cultures such as those in South Asian countries like India and Tibet, are still promoting a perpetuating long-term meditation as the way to achieve the highest goal of human life or 'enlightenment'. Enlightenment is also used to describe a certain state of equilibrium attained by the higher states of functioning of the human psychophysiology (Alexander CN, Langer EJ., 1990). The progressive development towards such states may be achieved by practicing meditation.

Many spiritual teachers believe that as a result of meditation the awareness of God's presence in every person is gained. Such awareness experienced as light and love generalizes the feeling of love, peace and understanding among people, as the belief that we all are the children of our father becomes prominent.

According to Herbert Benson although a great variety of meditation techniques do exist they seem to share certain elements. For instance meditation is usually performed in a quiet environment free of any distractions. A comfortable position should be assumed, and usually it is the upright sitting. The complete relaxation is followed by an alteration of the state of consciousness through a variety of mental devices: the mental repetition of certain words, sounds, or tones, mind focus is attained by visualizing certain objects etc. No matter the device, Benson recognizes as a key element the passive attitude in which the person who meditates quietly observes the activity of the mind but does not intervene upon it. Thoughts are eliminated while a simple state of awareness is developed.

Since meditation is an ancient practice, traced more than 2000 years ago, many forms of meditation exist nowadays. Daniel Goleman reviewed the major forms of meditation. Buddhist practice a form of meditation known also as vipassana, or insight meditation. The technique involves developing the ability to concentrate by mentally focusing on any of 40 prescribed objects, including one's breath, a light, or a wheel of color. As soon as concentration skills have been developed insight meditators focus on their awareness, by passively observing thoughts, emotions, and feelings. Such passive observation allows them to gain insights into the nature of their own thoughts and of reality, regarded by Buddhists as fleeting and perennial. Once this belief is experienced, meditators will become mainly interested in achieving total inner silence, known as nirvana. As soon as the state of nirvana is accessed meditators will become totally disinterested in their own mental life. The awareness empty of content leads to a new experience of one's life and emotions. Negative emotions for instance such as anger will fade away. This stage overcome the meditator is ready to be ranked as an arahant, a Buddhist saint.

Goleman also makes reference to another form of meditation known as zazen, and practiced in Japanese Zen Buddhism. Although there are many forms of Buddhism, the common trait is their focus on meditators mind in what concerns his task of solving various riddles (questions, or a koan, for example "What is the sound of one hand clapping?," cited by Goleman, D.) that cannot be solved by rational thought, but by contemplation. The student is forced to spend therefore the entire day in deepest reflection, until his mind becomes exhausted of all thoughts and enters a transcendental state known as satori. Similar to nirvana, satori refers to a state of awareness secured from, ordinary thought. The koan is the pretext that teaches students to gain and master heightened awareness. Successful Zen meditators are thought to experience life with enhanced clarity and insight.

Other forms of meditation stem from the various disciplines of yoga. Goleman maintains that the Yoga Sutras, an ancient Hindu source on yoga is the foundation of this type of meditation. The element emphasized here is the act of emptying the mind of any distracting thoughts as these were considered to impede the union between man and God.

The yogi are also characterized by their adherence to a strict code of moral behavior and by their practicing of a set of physical exercises called asanas and breath control methods called pranayama. O distinct type of yoga is kundalini, focused on unlocking the reserve of spiritual energy that is thought to reside at the base of the spine. The released energy reverberates in the seven chakras or bodily centers which capture emotions and mental states. The energy, kundalini, has to be moved from the lower chakras - dominated by inferior emotions to more elevated chakras, located at the top of the head. Only when these chakras are activated the yogi experiences transcendental states. The modern version of kundalini yoga is siddha yoga in which meditation, breath control and different positions are associated.

The Moslem sect known as Sufism practice a form of meditation known as zikr, an Arabic word meaning "remembrance." The devotees are subdued to the remembrance of God through the constant mental repetition of His name and this act will lead the Sufi to a complete purification of heart and mind, facilitating the encounter with God. The ability to empty their mind of thoughts leads to a state called fana, meaning "lost in truth."

Within the Judaic tradition, mysticism and meditation are to be found as well. The writings of the Kabbalah, first put together in the thirteenth century, include meditation by making use of the name of God. This form of meditation had the same purpose - that of inducing a new and altered state of consciousness.

Meditation represents the process of observing the mind and body in a well defined moment in time. States of mind, thoughts or emotions are traced and observed with a certain distance, the experience is observed with a certain detachment. This approach to meditation is called mindfulness.

Another principle that guides the meditation is equanimity meaning that it is desirable not to block the flow of the mind-body process. The tendency in everyday life is to block the on-going process of consciousness and this leads to a sense of limitation and suffering.

A third approach to meditation is defined in terms of realization suggesting that the results of heightened awareness about the life of body and mind will result in important transformations that encompass acceptance and a pervasive sense of freedom and fulfillment independent of external or internal circumstances.

The key to meditation lies in the learning to let free the flow of consciousness, or to unlearn blocking it. The steady observation of processes - thoughts, emotions, perceptions - produces as a consequence the de-blocking of the flow and the gain of new, enriched awareness, of enlightenment. This state has been termed by many thinkers as an encounter with the God within.

The phases of meditation. Attention, concentration, contemplation

These are the three facets of the same process or degrees of the same process. Focusing the mind on a certain object or idea involves the exclusion of everything else. Attention involves eliminating all distracters, while concentration represents the mental focusing on an object or state of mind. The field of attention slowly narrows, the concentration becomes more intense and meditation is favored. However many believe that, in order to attain the most deepest state that leads to an encounter with the God within, this divine state should be desired. The words of… READ MORE

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