On Apr 13, 2007, at 11:14 AM, Kenny H wrote:
--- In [EMAIL PROTECTED], Vaj <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
>
> Rather interesting, since one of the welcome side-benefits of
> effective meditation *should* be decrease in negative emotions,
their
> intensity and their duration.
>
Where is it said that this is the case?
My understanding of meditation is that it is for the development of
consciousness which is an entity unto itself. And in the long run,
because of it's activation/enlivenment (whatever you call it), the
person still has their personality, with the difference that though
they may have their personality and the way they are in life, the
good-the bad-the ugly, their consciousness is increasingly fully
developed so they are no longer attached to their actions and I don't
mean that in a moodmaking sort of way.
It may be for most if not at least the many, that over the years of
meditation the tendency to get angry diminishes but is it a rule?
Does that mean that meditation is not effective for that person if 30
years later they still get angry? Would it say anything about their
consciousness, per se, if they still got angry?
After all these years I have come to doubt that is the case. I think
people are who they are, and if they are making it a point not to
strain to behave in ways that are not suitable for them ("I'm a
meditator, therefore I don't get angry") maybe they still will get
angry. And we cannot know if their meditation is effective or not,
just because they still get angry.
Ken
Hi Ken:
It is a natural side-effect of certain forms of meditation, but not
all forms of meditation. Different forms of meditation give different
results. That's not to imply that some forms of meditation are better
than others because of this, but simply that they're different and
therefore provide different results.
IME TM style meditation, which exists in numerous traditions, not
just Hinduism, does not in general work with diminishing negative or
destructive emotions but provides other benefits in other areas of
life. For example in some traditions of practice one would do a TM
style of mantra meditation for a certain benefit but another style of
meditation for emotional balance and purification.
I think we should be careful about using the word "meditation" too
loosely as if all meditation methods provided the same results.
They're simply different and that's ok.
One of the hallmarks I've noticed of an effective meditation practice
is that the people doing it change noticeably over time. In some
cases the whole presence that person "puts out" changes. It's really
rather encouraging to see and increases one's own sense of
positivity, as if the inter-connectedness we all have somehow
"shared" the change.
Thanks for the sensitive question!
