Meditation History

Meditation is very difficult to describe and can only truly be explained once experienced. It is the practice of mental concentration leading ultimately through a sequence of stages to the final goal of spiritual freedom, nirvana. The purpose of Buddhist meditation is to free ourselves from the delusion and thereby put an end to both ignorance and craving. The Buddhists describe the culminating trance-like state as transient; final Nirvana requires the insight of wisdom. The exercises that are meant to develop wisdom involve meditation on the true nature of reality or the conditioned and unconditioned elements that make up all phenomena. The goal of meditation is to develop a concept in the mind.

In meditation the Buddhist trains the mind to better understand oneself. By constant practice and meditation the more wisdom is gained. As wisdom is gained obstacles preventing enlightenment vanish to the point that the Buddhist can enter a trance like state or altered state of consciousness.

Furthermore of all the dissimilarities in meditation, Hinduism and Buddhism have many things in common too. In Hinduism and Buddhism the aim of this ritual is to follow the path towards nirvana or moksha, which are the liberation from the eternal life cycle. As both religions have almost the same purposes for practicing meditation, the way in which it is done is very related: the meditator is concentrating to free their mind for desire and to enter into a peaceful state, in the meantime the person must be reciting mantras, chants, or in the case of Buddhism, the three jewels. In brief, meditation allows people to feel more connected with their community, and to identify themselves as a member of each religion.

Meditation has always been seen as a way to keep the mind and soul healthy. Mediation dates back to 1500 BCE originating in Ancient India. The practice soon started to expand and adapt to other cultures around the world. Some of the earliest references to meditation are found in the Hindu scriptures and it was around the 6th to 5th centuries that other forms of meditation developed into Confucian, Taoist China, and Buddhist India (Taham). This spiritual and religious practice has been around for thousands of years, benefiting many people. However, in the year 2017 mediation no longer feels like a spiritual practice but rather like

Meditation has a long history that stretches back thousands of years. Nobody knows exactly where and when meditation began but scientists have evidence to believe that it began somwehere around 5,000 years ago. This was a time far before religious figures such as Jesus and Buddha are said to have existed. 5,000 years ago, much of the civilized world was nothing like it is today. It was mostly hunter gatherers with few villages in the open landscapes. Meditation is said by scientists to have most likely began with hunter gatherers who would pass on their enthusiasm for such an introspective practice to their children.

Zen, also known as Ch’an Buddhism in China, is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that was established in China about 1500 years ago. Zen is a form of religious practice of mainly concentrating the mind to a single point in which then results in self-realization and/or enlightenment. Zen philosophy is interpreted that all humans are capable of reaching enlightenment, which is generally blocked by ignorance. The idea emphasizes enlightened masters over forms of scriptures, and is the least “academic” of all the Buddhist schools.

Main practice throughout Buddhism is Meditation, the practice of possessing inner peace through finding in ones self. Most types of meditation depend mostly on the local cultural traditions.

Meditation is a huge aspect of the Buddhist way of life because meditation allows one to become connected with their inner self. It was believed that Buddha had become awakened through his meditation and realization of what causes his suffering and happiness which led to what is known as the Four Noble Truths. The meditation sessions take place on Saturdays and does not consist of one class where everything is learned, but instead several different classes where things are learned over a period of time. He had said that the first session was just to get to clear your mind and learn the way you think. This is a significant part of the buddhist beliefs because Buddhist adherents believe happiness comes from within, and in order to release all negativity, one must first connect with their innermost thoughts and

The Fifth Meditation opens with Descartes claiming that he can distinctly imagine extension, size, shape, position, and local motion, in relationship with duration. Thus, Descartes postulates that there are non-corporeal intangible geometrical objects that still exist, such as triangles. Since, triangles have a determinate essence dependent on Descartes mind, his knowledge of the nature of triangles is not dependent on the senses. Descartes can imagine shapes he has never seen but can still perceive their properties clearly and distinctly, thus properties must be true. Concludes that a triangle must carry all ascribed properties as the triangle exists as an idea in which he can clearly and distinctly perceive its properties. Even if the property

primarily on the art of meditation, which is pursued after achieving the first five aspects

Zen meditation originates from Buddhism, so in the old days almost every devoted buddhists practiced zen meditation and saw it as a way of communicating with Buddha. The history of Buddhism spans the 6th century BC to the present which makes it one of the oldest religions practiced today. But the history of zen meditation is rather short.

The question I will be answering first is the first question on the question guide. The ritual that I will be talking about comes from the Buddhist religious movement. One thing that I found very interesting is the practices of meditation that the Buddhist people use to help find peace within themselves. On buddhanet.net, I found probably the simplest yet most accurate answer to the question What is Meditation? That is “Meditation is a conscious effort to change how the mind works. The Pali word for meditation is 'bhavana' which means 'to make grow' or 'to develop' (buddhanet.net)”. A Buddhist meditates for a couple of different reasons. One is to find enlightenment; another is to create more mindfulness for someone to help better there mindset. I personally enjoyed learning about this topic and now use my own form of it to help me with different problems that I encounter. However, instead of using meditation “to develop” I use it more of short-term method of relaxation.

To clarify what I mean I will define meditation. It is the process of turning your attention to a single point of reference; it involves focusing on the present moment. (Moore et al 2009) Despite there being countless forms of meditation, it falls into the following general categories: practice of mindfulness,

Mindfulness meditation can be very well described as the discipline which has the best of both areas, yoga and meditation. Adopting theses practices in your routine life can not only help you in attaining peace of mind and soul; you can also feel a positive energy surging inside you. They also lead you to a state of self realization, where your mind is away from the anxieties of the past and the anticipations about the future. And when you experience such perfection and balance of the mind and body, life becomes one beautiful journey and you set on an incredible ride with it.

Anyone can be practiced meditation. It's easy and cheap and does not require any special equipment.