Guest guest Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Hi Bill, I'm under no illusions regarding meditation. I don't expect it to cure me. It does however give me a space - to literally 'sit' with myself, and watch the play of the mind. I can then more easily see how my mind works on a day to day basis. I have experienced the loss of my physical body - as if I have merged with everything- and there is a nano second of bliss. But I'm not looking for bliss either - although I rather like it! I'm just trying to take the road less travelled - and see where it takes me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 It appears that Bill is responding to a message from Simone at the adrianandboo account in one case and from the metta.freedom account (sometimes signed as Merlin) in the other case. But that appears to be obvious, so I'm not sure why you are asking ... H RE: Re: Balance Meditation Hi Bill, I'm under no illusions regarding meditation. I don't expect it to cure me. It does however give me a space - to literally 'sit' with myself, and watch the play of the mind. I can then more easily see how my mind works on a day to day basis. I have experienced the loss of my physical body - as if I have merged with everything- and there is a nano second of bliss. But I'm not looking for bliss either - although I rather like it! I'm just trying to take the road less travelled - and see where it takes me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 1, 2011 Report Share Posted June 1, 2011 Right. Sorry for any confusion. BillSent via DROID on Verizon Wireless Re: Re: Balance MeditationIt appears that Bill is responding to a message from Simone at the adrianandboo account in one case and from the metta.freedom account (sometimes signed as Merlin) in the other case. But that appears to be obvious, so I'm not sure why you are asking ... H Balance Meditation> > To: ACT_for_the_Public > > Date: Sunday, 29 May, 2011, 5:18> > > > > >  > > > > > > > > (Feedback Welcomed)> > > > The great meditation teacher Shinzen Young beautifully expressed a fundamental truth about human suffering in the following equation, which we might humorously call Young's Modulus:> > > > Young's Modulus: Suffering = Pain X Resistance> > > > Let's look closer at this equation. It tells us that the suffering that we experience in any given life situation is equal to the painâ€"psychological or physicalâ€"that we experience multiplied by the extent to which we resist that pain. Taken literally, the equation tells us two important things. First, where there is little resistance, large amounts of pain can be accommodated without much suffering . Second, where there is a lot of resistance, even small amounts of pain can lead to enormous amounts of suffering. The clinical psychologist Joe Ferguson eloquently elaborates, > > > > "The dramatic leverage that resistance can apply to a given pain is apparent in the anxiety, whimpering and screaming of the toddler who fears the inoculation he cannot avoid. In fact, the pain that the needle actually inflicts is insignificant compared to the pain involved in the continuous stream of collisions, falls, and abrasions that he happily absorbs at play. It is the toddler's extreme resistance to the idea of the needle that causes his suffering in one situation, and his total surrender to the flow of play that precludes it in the other."> > > > The practical message of Young's Modulus is simple: do not resist, then you will not suffer. The application, of course, is more nuanced. > > > > Attempts to "not resist" often play out as: > > > > (1) Some pain or unpleasant event occurs, followed by a set of automatic reactions to the pain or unpleasant event. Dislike, Aversion, Felt yuckiness, and so on. > > > > (2) In the interest of "not resisting", we make an effort not to have those reactions. We try to replace them with more appropriate reactionsâ€"peace, love, compassion, acceptance. > > > > (3) The effort backfires, the pain gets more intense, and so a new set of reactions occur. Frustration, Anger, Judgment, Fear, and so on. > > > > (4) In the interest of "not resisting", we make an effort not to have those reactions. We try to replace them with more appropriate reactionsâ€"peace, love, compassion, acceptance. > > > > (5) The effort backfires again, the pain gets more intense, and the loop continues.> > > > > > In trying to "not resist", then, we end up in a tangled web of resistance.> > > > To avoid this hangup, we need to distinguish between two types of resistance: natural resistance, the type of resistance that arises automatically, on its own, through its own forces, and active resistance, the type of resistance that we ourselves voluntarily introduce into a situation, the type that we can consciously control. > > > > As human beings, a certain amount of resistance is hardwired into our biology. In response to painful and unpleasant stimuli, we are designed to experience reactions of tension, dislike, aversion, frustration, anger, fear, and so on. This is natural resistance. > > > > At the same time, we also have the ability to voluntarily introduce resistance into our experience. We can actively "feed the fire." We can "get behind" our reactive emotions, start them up, fuel them, fuse with them, support them, nourish them. We can dive deep into thoughts about our situation, about how shitty, how wrong, how unfair it all is. This is active resistance. > > > > Natural resistance is when you experience a sharp feeling of tension, aversion, fear, or sadness in your body in response to some physical pain or some unpleasant thought. This type of resistance is a simple instance of cause and effectâ€"we do not have any control over it. Rather than "resist" this type of resistanceâ€"and entangle ourselves in an entirely new dilemmaâ€"we want to get out of its the way. We want to let it unfold out of its own accord, without either opposing it or supporting it. It is a part of the flow of nature and is not ours to interfere with. > > > > Active resistance, on the other hand, is when you consciously choose to get inside of your conversation with the pain or the thought, to argue with it, protest against it, sink into an active push-and-pull. Active resistance is when you willfully squeeze the pain, grasp at the thought, fight. You are feeding the fire, fanning the flame. You have the ability to consciously step away from this process, to drop it and let it go. That is what you want to do. Drop it, let it go, say nothing more, move on. > > > > Any other approachâ€"an approach where we try to actively replace the tension with calmness, or the aversion with liking, or the fear with confidence, or the sadness with joy, or whatever with whateverâ€"is just another type of artificial resistance. It will make things worse. > > > > Now, the million dollar question is: when we find ourselves facing a difficult experience or situation, how exactly do we allow our natural resistance to unfold, while at the same time dropping our active resistance? What must we do? Must we constantly perform "checks" to see which is which? Must we engage in some kind of sophisticated mental technique that will accomodate one kind of resistance and eliminate the other. The answer is no, not at all. > > > > To skillfully work with resistanceâ€"of whatever kindâ€"all we have to do is look for it. The act of stepping back and looking dispassionately for resistance creates a silence in which the active type of resistance drops away and the natural type of resistance shows itself and unfolds. > > > > As a general rule, detached awarenessâ€"a state in which we look, we watch, we Listen in Silenceâ€"dissolves resistance, melts it away. When caught in a struggle, then, all we need to do is relax, step back and take that stance. > > > > Suppose that I experience a sharp pain in my collar bone connected to a chronic health condition that I am struggling with. Rather than frantically try to figure out what to "do", how to "not resist" this sharp pain, I step back and Listen in Silence. I watch. I look for the reactions. I look for the resistance. > > > > Do I see resistance to the pain? > > > > Yes, I see Dislike. Aversion. Yuckiness. I bring my awareness to them. I relax into them. I let them show themselves. They are OK. > > > > Do I see any resistance to that resistance? > > > > Yes, I see Frustration and Guilt at the fact that I am fighting this and making things worse. OK, I bring my awareness to that. I relax into it. I let it show itself. > > > > Do I see any resistance to that resistance? No, the frustration and guilt are just there, nothing is erupting on top of them. So I let them be. > > > > I am not looking for resistance in the way that a police officer might look for a suspect. Nor am I looking for resistance in the way that a doctor might look for a cure. I am just looking, just watching, just listening, letting things show themselves. There is no agenda, nowhere to get to, no goal, no pressure to find anything in specific. If I can't find the resistance that I am looking for, then I have found acceptance. I have found equanimity. Is that such a bad thing to find? > > > > The theme of the balance meditation is to simply look for resistance in our experience. We divide resistance into two main formsâ€"desire and aversionâ€"and we try to detect each form as it arises. > > > > The meditation can be practiced in two different waysâ€"without labels and with labels. The reader is encouraged to experiment with each method and find out which works best. > > > > Steps â€" Without Labeling> > > > (1) Let go and open your awareness to whatever is arising. > > > > (2) When a mental event such as a thought, image, feeling, or sensation arises, briefly notice it. Then, look inward at the way that your mind reacts to it. > > > > (3) If you don't see a reaction, if there's nothing, no preference for or against, no pushing, no pulling, then what you have is equanimity, i.e., acceptance. Rest in that equanimity until it gives rise to something else (this should not take very long). > > > > (4) If you do see a reaction, step back, relax, and take a look at it. Observe it. > > > > (5) Is the reaction a kind of aversion, i.e., a dislike, displeasure, revulsion, pushing away, intensification, eek, "yuck, get away"? If so, notice the aversion and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > (5) Is it some kind of desire, liking, wanting, attraction, pulling towards? If so, notice the desire and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > (6) At times, you may get caught up in an intellectual struggle over what type of reaction you are observing. Is this neutrality, is this aversion, is this desire, what is this? If that happens, no problem. Just drop the reaction and move on. > > > > If a reaction arises that's mysterious or that doesn't sufficiently clarify itself to you as aversion or desire or neither, then just forget about it, pretend it never happened, and open up to whatever comes next. Remember that, at all times, it is the responsibility of the reactions themselves to clarify themselves to you. If they don't clarify themselves to you, if they don't make themselves clear to you, such that you can't tell what kind of reactions they are, then forget about them and move on to whatever comes next. You don't need to expend any intellectual energy trying to figure anything out. Things will be clear, if they aren't, just drop them as if they had never happened. > > > > (7) If, at any point in the meditation, a reaction becomes its own sticky object in your mind, something that doesn't want to pass, that doesn't want to go away, then go up one level and look for the ways in which your mind reacts to the presence of that reaction. What do you see? Does your mind not like the fact that the reaction is there? That's aversion. Notice it, let it be. Repeat the process in this way, continually moving to higher levels of reactions as appropriate.> > > > Steps â€" With Labeling> > > > (1) Let go and open your awareness to whatever is arising. > > > > (2) When a mental event such as a thought, image, feeling, or sensation arises, briefly notice it. Then, look inward at the way that your mind reacts to it. > > > > (3) If you don't see a reaction, if there's nothing, no preference for or against, no pushing, no pulling, then what you have is equanimity, i.e., acceptance. Label that "equanimity" and rest in it until it gives rise to something else (this should not take very long). > > > > (4) If you do see a reaction, step back, relax, and take a look at it. Observe it. > > > > (5) Is the reaction a kind of aversion, i.e., a dislike, displeasure, revulsion, pushing away, intensification, eek, "yuck, get away"? If so, notice the aversion, label it "aversion", and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > (5) Is it some kind of desire, liking, wanting, attraction, pulling towards? If so, notice the desire, label it "desire", and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pulls on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > The same points (6) and (7) from the meditation without labeling apply to the meditation with labeling.> >> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 from what I read, the goal isn't to attain a state, but to be at peace with any state who is not satisfied? You or thinking? just notice it, no need to fight it what I am finding more and more though anxiety is that, the key isn't to fix or to change, but to let be and accept... even the anxiety and fear reactions themselves fixing, changing, or wanting to be a former self, even if it was a minute ago, are all forms of resistance and as always, easier said than done > > > > > > > > > > > > From: rato_branco@ > > <rato_branco@> > > > > Subject: Balance Meditation > > > > To: ACT_for_the_Public > > > > Date: Sunday, 29 May, 2011, 5:18 > > > > > > > > > > > >  > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > (Feedback Welcomed) > > > > > > > > The great meditation teacher Shinzen Young beautifully expressed a fundamental truth about human suffering in the following equation, which we might humorously call Young's Modulus: > > > > > > > > Young's Modulus: Suffering = Pain X Resistance > > > > > > > > Let's look closer at this equation. It tells us that the suffering that we experience in any given life situation is equal to the pain†" psychological or > > physical†" that we experience multiplied by the extent to which we resist that pain. Taken literally, the equation tells us two important things. First, where there is little resistance, large amounts of pain can be accommodated without much suffering . Second, where there is a lot of resistance, even small amounts of pain can lead to enormous amounts of suffering. The clinical psychologist Joe Ferguson eloquently elaborates, > > > > > > > > " The dramatic leverage that resistance can apply to a given pain is apparent in the anxiety, whimpering and screaming of the toddler who fears the inoculation he cannot avoid. In fact, the pain that the needle actually inflicts is insignificant compared to the pain involved in the continuous stream of collisions, falls, and abrasions that he happily absorbs at play. It is the toddler's extreme resistance to the idea of the needle that causes his suffering in one situation, and his total > > surrender to the flow of play that precludes it in the other. " > > > > > > > > The practical message of Young's Modulus is simple: do not resist, then you will not suffer. The application, of course, is more nuanced. > > > > > > > > Attempts to " not resist " often play out as: > > > > > > > > (1) Some pain or unpleasant event occurs, followed by a set of automatic reactions to the pain or unpleasant event. Dislike, Aversion, Felt yuckiness, and so on. > > > > > > > > (2) In the interest of " not resisting " , we make an effort not to have those reactions. We try to replace them with more appropriate reactions†" peace, love, compassion, acceptance. > > > > > > > > (3) The effort backfires, the pain gets more intense, and so a new set of reactions occur. Frustration, Anger, Judgment, Fear, and so on. > > > > > > > > (4) In the interest of " not resisting " , we make an effort not to > > have those reactions. We try to replace them with more appropriate reactions†" peace, love, compassion, acceptance. > > > > > > > > (5) The effort backfires again, the pain gets more intense, and the loop continues. > > > > > > > > > > > > In trying to " not resist " , then, we end up in a tangled web of resistance. > > > > > > > > To avoid this hangup, we need to distinguish between two types of resistance: natural resistance, the type of resistance that arises automatically, on its own, through its own forces, and active resistance, the type of resistance that we ourselves voluntarily introduce into a situation, the type that we can consciously control. > > > > > > > > As human beings, a certain amount of resistance is hardwired into our biology. In response to painful and unpleasant stimuli, we are designed to experience reactions of tension, dislike, aversion, frustration, anger, fear, and so > > on. This is natural resistance. > > > > > > > > At the same time, we also have the ability to voluntarily introduce resistance into our experience. We can actively " feed the fire. " We can " get behind " our reactive emotions, start them up, fuel them, fuse with them, support them, nourish them. We can dive deep into thoughts about our situation, about how shitty, how wrong, how unfair it all is. This is active resistance. > > > > > > > > Natural resistance is when you experience a sharp feeling of tension, aversion, fear, or sadness in your body in response to some physical pain or some unpleasant thought. This type of resistance is a simple instance of cause and effect†" we do not have any control over it. Rather than " resist " this type of resistance†" and entangle ourselves in an entirely new dilemma†" we want to get out of its the way. We want to let it unfold out of its own accord, without either > > opposing it or supporting it. It is a part of the flow of nature and is not ours to interfere with. > > > > > > > > Active resistance, on the other hand, is when you consciously choose to get inside of your conversation with the pain or the thought, to argue with it, protest against it, sink into an active push-and-pull. Active resistance is when you willfully squeeze the pain, grasp at the thought, fight. You are feeding the fire, fanning the flame. You have the ability to consciously step away from this process, to drop it and let it go. That is what you want to do. Drop it, let it go, say nothing more, move on. > > > > > > > > Any other approach†" an approach where we try to actively replace the tension with calmness, or the aversion with liking, or the fear with confidence, or the sadness with joy, or whatever with whatever†" is just another type of artificial resistance. It will make things worse. > > > > > > > > > > Now, the million dollar question is: when we find ourselves facing a difficult experience or situation, how exactly do we allow our natural resistance to unfold, while at the same time dropping our active resistance? What must we do? Must we constantly perform " checks " to see which is which? Must we engage in some kind of sophisticated mental technique that will accomodate one kind of resistance and eliminate the other. The answer is no, not at all. > > > > > > > > To skillfully work with resistance†" of whatever kind†" all we have to do is look for it. The act of stepping back and looking dispassionately for resistance creates a silence in which the active type of resistance drops away and the natural type of resistance shows itself and unfolds. > > > > > > > > As a general rule, detached awareness†" a state in which we look, we watch, we Listen in Silence†" dissolves > > resistance, melts it away. When caught in a struggle, then, all we need to do is relax, step back and take that stance. > > > > > > > > Suppose that I experience a sharp pain in my collar bone connected to a chronic health condition that I am struggling with. Rather than frantically try to figure out what to " do " , how to " not resist " this sharp pain, I step back and Listen in Silence. I watch. I look for the reactions. I look for the resistance. > > > > > > > > Do I see resistance to the pain? > > > > > > > > Yes, I see Dislike. Aversion. Yuckiness. I bring my awareness to them. I relax into them. I let them show themselves. They are OK. > > > > > > > > Do I see any resistance to that resistance? > > > > > > > > Yes, I see Frustration and Guilt at the fact that I am fighting this and making things worse. OK, I bring my awareness to that. I relax into it. I let it show itself. > > > > > > > > > > Do I see any resistance to that resistance? No, the frustration and guilt are just there, nothing is erupting on top of them. So I let them be. > > > > > > > > I am not looking for resistance in the way that a police officer might look for a suspect. Nor am I looking for resistance in the way that a doctor might look for a cure. I am just looking, just watching, just listening, letting things show themselves. There is no agenda, nowhere to get to, no goal, no pressure to find anything in specific. If I can't find the resistance that I am looking for, then I have found acceptance. I have found equanimity. Is that such a bad thing to find? > > > > > > > > The theme of the balance meditation is to simply look for resistance in our experience. We divide resistance into two main forms†" desire and aversion†" and we try to detect each form as it arises. > > > > > > > > The meditation can be > > practiced in two different ways†" without labels and with labels. The reader is encouraged to experiment with each method and find out which works best. > > > > > > > > Steps †" Without Labeling > > > > > > > > (1) Let go and open your awareness to whatever is arising. > > > > > > > > (2) When a mental event such as a thought, image, feeling, or sensation arises, briefly notice it. Then, look inward at the way that your mind reacts to it. > > > > > > > > (3) If you don't see a reaction, if there's nothing, no preference for or against, no pushing, no pulling, then what you have is equanimity, i.e., acceptance. Rest in that equanimity until it gives rise to something else (this should not take very long). > > > > > > > > (4) If you do see a reaction, step back, relax, and take a look at it. Observe it. > > > > > > > > (5) Is the reaction a kind of aversion, i.e., a > > dislike, displeasure, revulsion, pushing away, intensification, eek, " yuck, get away " ? If so, notice the aversion and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > (5) Is it some kind of desire, liking, wanting, attraction, pulling towards? If so, notice the desire and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > (6) At times, you may get caught up in an intellectual struggle over what type of reaction you are observing. Is this neutrality, is this aversion, is this desire, what is this? If that happens, no problem. Just drop the reaction and move on. > > > > > > > > If a reaction arises that's mysterious or that doesn't sufficiently clarify itself to you as aversion or desire or neither, then just forget about it, > > pretend it never happened, and open up to whatever comes next. Remember that, at all times, it is the responsibility of the reactions themselves to clarify themselves to you. If they don't clarify themselves to you, if they don't make themselves clear to you, such that you can't tell what kind of reactions they are, then forget about them and move on to whatever comes next. You don't need to expend any intellectual energy trying to figure anything out. Things will be clear, if they aren't, just drop them as if they had never happened. > > > > > > > > (7) If, at any point in the meditation, a reaction becomes its own sticky object in your mind, something that doesn't want to pass, that doesn't want to go away, then go up one level and look for the ways in which your mind reacts to the presence of that reaction. What do you see? Does your mind not like the fact that the reaction is there? That's aversion. Notice it, let it be. Repeat the > > process in this way, continually moving to higher levels of reactions as appropriate. > > > > > > > > Steps †" With Labeling > > > > > > > > (1) Let go and open your awareness to whatever is arising. > > > > > > > > (2) When a mental event such as a thought, image, feeling, or sensation arises, briefly notice it. Then, look inward at the way that your mind reacts to it. > > > > > > > > (3) If you don't see a reaction, if there's nothing, no preference for or against, no pushing, no pulling, then what you have is equanimity, i.e., acceptance. Label that " equanimity " and rest in it until it gives rise to something else (this should not take very long). > > > > > > > > (4) If you do see a reaction, step back, relax, and take a look at it. Observe it. > > > > > > > > (5) Is the reaction a kind of aversion, i.e., a dislike, displeasure, revulsion, pushing away, intensification, > > eek, " yuck, get away " ? If so, notice the aversion, label it " aversion " , and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > (5) Is it some kind of desire, liking, wanting, attraction, pulling towards? If so, notice the desire, label it " desire " , and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pulls on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > The same points (6) and (7) from the meditation without labeling apply to the meditation with labeling. > > > > > > > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 The research on pain relief with meditation was pretty good, they actually induced pain in subjects to measure the amount pain relief obtained. But obviously they couldn't put people in excessive pain, but they noticed with brain scans that the pain processing part of the brain had been completely switched off. The training showed them how to concentrate on their breathing and let go of distracting thoughts and emotions. They also underwent a series of brain scans, as a heated probe was pressed against their leg, gradually raising the skin temperature to a painful 32C (120F). Meditation greatly reduced the amount of pain they said they were in and its unpleasantness, the Journal of Neuroscience reports. The scans taken after meditation training showed a calming of brain regions involved in creating the feeling of where and how intense a painful stimulus is. And during meditation, this important pain-processing region appeared to be switched off completely. Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-1374037/Meditation-better-morphine-easing-pain.html#ixzz1O8dYCx19 Les Fehmi has also written a new book called Disolving Pain. Here's a small extract: is a lawyer who had her right knee replaced with an artificial one. In her hospital room the first night after surgery, her knee throbbed painfully, to the point that she could no longer bear it. The doctors prescribed OxyContin, a powerful opiate for pain relief, but after she took it, her knee still throbbed. Moreover, the medication nauseated her and she couldn't sleep. In her hospital bed that night, took out a compact disc player and listened to an Open Focus excercise that guided her in dissolving her physical pain. A few minutes after that she began the exercise, the pain in her throbbing knee had began to subside. Twenty minutes later her pain was gone. A pretty big claim to make, but Ainsle Meares said very much the same thing, and I beleive them. One day I will find out how true these claims actually are, not that I intend to purposely put myself in a state of pain. But come to think of it, Ainsle Meares did. Kv > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > From: rato_branco@> > > <rato_branco@>> > > > > Subject: Balance Meditation> > > > > To: ACT_for_the_Public > > > > > Date: Sunday, 29 May, 2011, 5:18> > > > > > > > > > > > > > >  > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > (Feedback Welcomed)> > > > > > > > > > The great meditation teacher Shinzen Young beautifully expressed a fundamental truth about human suffering in the following equation, which we might humorously call Young's Modulus:> > > > > > > > > > Young's Modulus: Suffering = Pain X Resistance> > > > > > > > > > Let's look closer at this equation. It tells us that the suffering that we experience in any given life situation is equal to the painâ€"psychological or> > > physicalâ€"that we experience multiplied by the extent to which we resist that pain. Taken literally, the equation tells us two important things. First, where there is little resistance, large amounts of pain can be accommodated without much suffering . Second, where there is a lot of resistance, even small amounts of pain can lead to enormous amounts of suffering. The clinical psychologist Joe Ferguson eloquently elaborates, > > > > > > > > > > "The dramatic leverage that resistance can apply to a given pain is apparent in the anxiety, whimpering and screaming of the toddler who fears the inoculation he cannot avoid. In fact, the pain that the needle actually inflicts is insignificant compared to the pain involved in the continuous stream of collisions, falls, and abrasions that he happily absorbs at play. It is the toddler's extreme resistance to the idea of the needle that causes his suffering in one situation, and his total> > > surrender to the flow of play that precludes it in the other."> > > > > > > > > > The practical message of Young's Modulus is simple: do not resist, then you will not suffer. The application, of course, is more nuanced. > > > > > > > > > > Attempts to "not resist" often play out as: > > > > > > > > > > (1) Some pain or unpleasant event occurs, followed by a set of automatic reactions to the pain or unpleasant event. Dislike, Aversion, Felt yuckiness, and so on. > > > > > > > > > > (2) In the interest of "not resisting", we make an effort not to have those reactions. We try to replace them with more appropriate reactionsâ€"peace, love, compassion, acceptance. > > > > > > > > > > (3) The effort backfires, the pain gets more intense, and so a new set of reactions occur. Frustration, Anger, Judgment, Fear, and so on. > > > > > > > > > > (4) In the interest of "not resisting", we make an effort not to> > > have those reactions. We try to replace them with more appropriate reactionsâ€"peace, love, compassion, acceptance. > > > > > > > > > > (5) The effort backfires again, the pain gets more intense, and the loop continues.> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > In trying to "not resist", then, we end up in a tangled web of resistance.> > > > > > > > > > To avoid this hangup, we need to distinguish between two types of resistance: natural resistance, the type of resistance that arises automatically, on its own, through its own forces, and active resistance, the type of resistance that we ourselves voluntarily introduce into a situation, the type that we can consciously control. > > > > > > > > > > As human beings, a certain amount of resistance is hardwired into our biology. In response to painful and unpleasant stimuli, we are designed to experience reactions of tension, dislike, aversion, frustration, anger, fear, and so> > > on. This is natural resistance. > > > > > > > > > > At the same time, we also have the ability to voluntarily introduce resistance into our experience. We can actively "feed the fire." We can "get behind" our reactive emotions, start them up, fuel them, fuse with them, support them, nourish them. We can dive deep into thoughts about our situation, about how shitty, how wrong, how unfair it all is. This is active resistance. > > > > > > > > > > Natural resistance is when you experience a sharp feeling of tension, aversion, fear, or sadness in your body in response to some physical pain or some unpleasant thought. This type of resistance is a simple instance of cause and effectâ€"we do not have any control over it. Rather than "resist" this type of resistanceâ€"and entangle ourselves in an entirely new dilemmaâ€"we want to get out of its the way. We want to let it unfold out of its own accord, without either> > > opposing it or supporting it. It is a part of the flow of nature and is not ours to interfere with. > > > > > > > > > > Active resistance, on the other hand, is when you consciously choose to get inside of your conversation with the pain or the thought, to argue with it, protest against it, sink into an active push-and-pull. Active resistance is when you willfully squeeze the pain, grasp at the thought, fight. You are feeding the fire, fanning the flame. You have the ability to consciously step away from this process, to drop it and let it go. That is what you want to do. Drop it, let it go, say nothing more, move on. > > > > > > > > > > Any other approachâ€"an approach where we try to actively replace the tension with calmness, or the aversion with liking, or the fear with confidence, or the sadness with joy, or whatever with whateverâ€"is just another type of artificial resistance. It will make things worse. > > > >> > > > > > > > > Now, the million dollar question is: when we find ourselves facing a difficult experience or situation, how exactly do we allow our natural resistance to unfold, while at the same time dropping our active resistance? What must we do? Must we constantly perform "checks" to see which is which? Must we engage in some kind of sophisticated mental technique that will accomodate one kind of resistance and eliminate the other. The answer is no, not at all. > > > > > > > > > > To skillfully work with resistanceâ€"of whatever kindâ€"all we have to do is look for it. The act of stepping back and looking dispassionately for resistance creates a silence in which the active type of resistance drops away and the natural type of resistance shows itself and unfolds. > > > > > > > > > > As a general rule, detached awarenessâ€"a state in which we look, we watch, we Listen in Silenceâ€"dissolves> > > resistance, melts it away. When caught in a struggle, then, all we need to do is relax, step back and take that stance. > > > > > > > > > > Suppose that I experience a sharp pain in my collar bone connected to a chronic health condition that I am struggling with. Rather than frantically try to figure out what to "do", how to "not resist" this sharp pain, I step back and Listen in Silence. I watch. I look for the reactions. I look for the resistance. > > > > > > > > > > Do I see resistance to the pain? > > > > > > > > > > Yes, I see Dislike. Aversion. Yuckiness. I bring my awareness to them. I relax into them. I let them show themselves. They are OK. > > > > > > > > > > Do I see any resistance to that resistance? > > > > > > > > > > Yes, I see Frustration and Guilt at the fact that I am fighting this and making things worse. OK, I bring my awareness to that. I relax into it. I let it show itself. > > > > >> > > > > > > > Do I see any resistance to that resistance? No, the frustration and guilt are just there, nothing is erupting on top of them. So I let them be. > > > > > > > > > > I am not looking for resistance in the way that a police officer might look for a suspect. Nor am I looking for resistance in the way that a doctor might look for a cure. I am just looking, just watching, just listening, letting things show themselves. There is no agenda, nowhere to get to, no goal, no pressure to find anything in specific. If I can't find the resistance that I am looking for, then I have found acceptance. I have found equanimity. Is that such a bad thing to find? > > > > > > > > > > The theme of the balance meditation is to simply look for resistance in our experience. We divide resistance into two main formsâ€"desire and aversionâ€"and we try to detect each form as it arises. > > > > > > > > > > The meditation can be> > > practiced in two different waysâ€"without labels and with labels. The reader is encouraged to experiment with each method and find out which works best. > > > > > > > > > > Steps â€" Without Labeling> > > > > > > > > > (1) Let go and open your awareness to whatever is arising. > > > > > > > > > > (2) When a mental event such as a thought, image, feeling, or sensation arises, briefly notice it. Then, look inward at the way that your mind reacts to it. > > > > > > > > > > (3) If you don't see a reaction, if there's nothing, no preference for or against, no pushing, no pulling, then what you have is equanimity, i.e., acceptance. Rest in that equanimity until it gives rise to something else (this should not take very long). > > > > > > > > > > (4) If you do see a reaction, step back, relax, and take a look at it. Observe it. > > > > > > > > > > (5) Is the reaction a kind of aversion, i.e., a> > > dislike, displeasure, revulsion, pushing away, intensification, eek, "yuck, get away"? If so, notice the aversion and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > > > (5) Is it some kind of desire, liking, wanting, attraction, pulling towards? If so, notice the desire and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > > > (6) At times, you may get caught up in an intellectual struggle over what type of reaction you are observing. Is this neutrality, is this aversion, is this desire, what is this? If that happens, no problem. Just drop the reaction and move on. > > > > > > > > > > If a reaction arises that's mysterious or that doesn't sufficiently clarify itself to you as aversion or desire or neither, then just forget about it,> > > pretend it never happened, and open up to whatever comes next. Remember that, at all times, it is the responsibility of the reactions themselves to clarify themselves to you. If they don't clarify themselves to you, if they don't make themselves clear to you, such that you can't tell what kind of reactions they are, then forget about them and move on to whatever comes next. You don't need to expend any intellectual energy trying to figure anything out. Things will be clear, if they aren't, just drop them as if they had never happened. > > > > > > > > > > (7) If, at any point in the meditation, a reaction becomes its own sticky object in your mind, something that doesn't want to pass, that doesn't want to go away, then go up one level and look for the ways in which your mind reacts to the presence of that reaction. What do you see? Does your mind not like the fact that the reaction is there? That's aversion. Notice it, let it be. Repeat the> > > process in this way, continually moving to higher levels of reactions as appropriate.> > > > > > > > > > Steps â€" With Labeling> > > > > > > > > > (1) Let go and open your awareness to whatever is arising. > > > > > > > > > > (2) When a mental event such as a thought, image, feeling, or sensation arises, briefly notice it. Then, look inward at the way that your mind reacts to it. > > > > > > > > > > (3) If you don't see a reaction, if there's nothing, no preference for or against, no pushing, no pulling, then what you have is equanimity, i.e., acceptance. Label that "equanimity" and rest in it until it gives rise to something else (this should not take very long). > > > > > > > > > > (4) If you do see a reaction, step back, relax, and take a look at it. Observe it. > > > > > > > > > > (5) Is the reaction a kind of aversion, i.e., a dislike, displeasure, revulsion, pushing away, intensification,> > > eek, "yuck, get away"? If so, notice the aversion, label it "aversion", and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pushes on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > > > (5) Is it some kind of desire, liking, wanting, attraction, pulling towards? If so, notice the desire, label it "desire", and let it be there. Relax into it. Rest in it. Gently observe it as it pulls on you. Then, let go and open up to whatever comes next. > > > > > > > > > > The same points (6) and (7) from the meditation without labeling apply to the meditation with labeling.> > > > >> > > >> > >> >> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 this thread is interesting and helpful, as well as demoralizing, for me. i do suffer from chronic pain due to a genetic disease, and it has forced me into early retirement, and has taken over my life. i also have a bizarre but very stressful interstitial lung disease, so all the guided meditations that focus on breathing bring tears to my eyes, as my baseline at rest respiratory rate is >30breaths/mn, not the common 14-16/mn. i have actually gleamed an interesting and unexpected amount of body-mindfulness thru my physical therapy, which is feldenkrais PT (= the only PT that has ever helped, it is non-repetitive and about awareness and "ease of movement", so really tunes you into each component of each move you make in space during the day).i only throw this out since some of us out here cannot breathe! and so much meditation is based on focusing/ following/ controlling ones breath... there has to be other ways to achieve the same goal! merci!niki‎"We are not always what we seem and hardly ever what we dream." (Schmendrick the Magician)all information is confidential. if you received this email in error, please send it back to me and then delete it and my email address; thank you! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted June 2, 2011 Report Share Posted June 2, 2011 , Thank you very much for introducing me to Shinzen Young. I googled him this morning and discovered his website (http://www.shinzen.org). It's treasure-trove of useful information about practicing mindfulness, some of which I will be putting into practice. As long as I don't let my mind run riot with too much intellectual analysis of what he says, it should be very helpful. I'm especially interested in what he says about dealing with urges. I have three addictions, all of which give me grief to varying degrees: smoking, gambling (poker/slot machines mainly), and drinking. The idea of observing moment by moment what's happening inside me sounds like it could be useful. Re the criticisms I've read about the length of your posts, I think it might have something to do with the nature of reading long slabs of text on a computer screen. For instance, reading a novel in paper form or on a Kindle is easier than reading an ebook version on a laptop or an iPad. I've noticed that, when reading an ebook on my iPad, my eyes can feel tired and watery after a while, and it's a strain to keep going. On a practical level, one thing that might help all of us when writing long posts is to make the paragraphs as short as possible (six or seven lines maybe) and separate them with a blank line. This should help reduce the discomfort experienced when reading long posts on a computer screen. BTW, I really appreciate the more personal comments you've made in your recent posts. They help me see you as a human being as well as a fine teacher. Cheers, and thanks again, Stan > > > > this thread is interesting and helpful, as well as demoralizing, for me. i do suffer from chronic pain due to a genetic disease, and it has forced me into early retirement, and has taken over my life. i also have a bizarre but very stressful interstitial lung disease, so all the guided meditations that focus on breathing bring tears to my eyes, as my baseline at rest respiratory rate is >30breaths/mn, not the common 14-16/mn. i have actually gleamed an interesting and unexpected amount of body-mindfulness thru my physical therapy, which is feldenkrais PT (= the only PT that has ever helped, it is non-repetitive and about awareness and " ease of movement " , so really tunes you into each component of each move you make in space during the day). > > > > i only throw this out since some of us out here cannot breathe! and so much meditation is based on focusing/ following/ controlling ones breath... there has to be other ways to achieve the same goal! > > > > > > merci! > > niki > > > > ‎ " We are not always what we seem and hardly ever what we dream. " (Schmendrick the Magician) > > > > all information is confidential. if you received this email in error, please send it back to me and then delete it and my email address; thank you! > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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