Meditation - 3/4 - Third Monk

Jul 11, 2013Jun 17, 2016

David Lynch – Consciousness, Creativity and the Brain, Transcendental Meditation (Video)

David Lynch (Mulholland Drive, The Elephant Man) explains his understanding about consciousness, creativity and the brain. Transcendental Meditation played a crucial role in developing his consciousness and boosting his creativity.

One lady in the audience says: I teach film, I make films. I would like to know what does meditation or how does meditation connect to your creative process or to how it might help the creativity of my students.

If you have a golf ball sized consciousness, when you read a book you’ll have a golf ball sized understanding, when you look out a golf ball sized awareness and when you wake up in the morning a golf ball sized wakefulness.

But if you could expand that consciousness then you would read the book with more understanding and when you look out more awareness and when you wake up more wakefulness – it’s consciousness. – David Lynch, Film Director

David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness Based Education
Introduction to Transcendental Meditation

Jun 24, 2013Jun 17, 2016

Psychedelics Provide Wisdom for Personal Growth

The following selected excerpts are from Tripping as a Tool for Self-Realization, originally published on The Psychedelic Frontier.
Psychedelics have a variety of uses, dependent on the user’s attitude. If you use them as intoxicants, you will become intoxicated. If you want to see pretty shapes and colors and “trip out” to music, then they will act as sensory enhancers. If you want a new mode of consciousness that leads you to experience life in a novel way, they will satisfy that urge.

These psychedelics can go much deeper than recreation. Those who never choose to explore psychedelics more seriously than as intoxicants or sense-enhancers will miss out on their greatest potential. Why stop at pretty sounds and colors when these medicines can catalyze deep epiphanies and lasting change?

Psychedelics Breaks Down Mental Conditioning to Reveal the Self

Psychedelics can show you your true self, dragging your insecurities and internal conflicts into the light for examination. Or mediate a conversation, even a partnership, with the subconscious. They unseat your deepest assumptions and lead you to question the most rigid of habits and biases.

Psychedelics are molecular battering rams, crumbling the castle called Ego and raising from the rubble a profound feeling of pure love and unity. Your real self is revealed, defenses down, moat drained, drawbridge lowered. A trip may be the first time you have a free reign in your own mental kingdom. A molecule may be the truest mirror you ever held up to yourself.

Going Beyond Recreational Use of Psychedelics

Myron Stolaroff, a researcher and advocate of psychedelic psychotherapy, describes how recreational use tends to taper off naturally:

The use of psychedelics is self-regulating in most cases. Their true purpose is to enhance growth and interior development. Used only for pleasure, or abused, the Inner Self is thwarted, which leads to unpleasant experiences and depression. Though everyone who pursues the use of psychedelics for personal growth must be prepared for the “dark night of the soul” experiences, those who seek only entertainment will lose interest in these substances.

“Tripping with intent” is not an alternative method so much as a complementary one. People use psychedelics for all sorts of reasons—to improve sex, deepen their connection with nature and other people, explore their internal emotional landscape, and so on. A focus on self-improvement, with proper preparation, method, and post-trip integration, will help bring more meaning to all of these activities.

For the whole article “Tripping as a Tool for Self-Realization”, please visit The Psychedelic Frontier.

May 3, 2013Jun 17, 2016

When to Choose Sativa Vs Indica Cannabis Strains (Guide)

Sativa and Indica are two main types of cannabis plants that have different effects on the body and mind resulting in a wide range of medicinal benefits. Stoners in marijuana friendly states like Denver and California have benefited from the extensive selection of cannabis options.

Identifying Sativa and Indica Buds

Sativa plants typically grow tall and thin compared to Indica plants which grow short and wide.

Indica plants are better suited for indoor growing because of their short growth and sativa plants are better suited for outdoor growing because some strains can reach over 25 ft. in height.

Cannabis Sativa plants are known to be extremely pungent smelling, with aromas ranging from sweet and fruity, to earthy with undertones of diesel fuel.

The flavors and smells of Cannabis Indica include; pungent skunk, earth, hash, pine, or a sweet and sugary fruit flavor.

When to Choose Sativa Buds

Sativa cannabis strains tend to provide an uplifting, energetic and “cerebral” high that sparks creativity. These strains also can make you pause and analyze your perceptions. The creative and mind expanding benefits of Cannabis Sativa makes it very popular among philosophers, artists and musicians.

Choose Cannabis Sativa For These Benefits:

1. Uplifting and Cerebral thoughts

2. Stimulation and Energy

3. Increased focus and Creativity

Popular Sativa Strains: Sour Diesel, Blue Dream, Jack Herer, Purple Haze, and Strawberry Cough

When to Choose Indica Buds

The high produced from Indica cannabis strains is a strong physical body high that will put you in a deep state of relaxation. Indica is perfect for stress and pain relief, giving it a wide audience from patients with disabilities to athletes who use it for muscle recovery.

Choose Cannabis Indica For These Benefits:

1. Body Pain Relief and Recovery

2. Reduction in Stress and Anxiety

3. Deep Relaxation, Sleep

Popular Indica Strains: Granddaddy Purp, OG Kush, Nothern Lights, Afghani, and Purple Urkel

When to Choose Hybrid Buds

Growers mixed Sativa and Indica strains to provide patients with a combination of effects.

Sativa Dominant Hybrids

Hybrids with more sativa provides a cerebral high with a relaxing body effect. Useful for physical and mental relief. Sativa Dominant Hybrid strains include Headband and Purple Trainwreck.

Balanced Hybrids

50% Sativa, 50% Indica even hybrids are for people seeking a perfect balance of head and body. Balanced hybrid strains include White Widow and Super Silver Haze.

Indica Dominant Hybrids

Indica heavy hybrid strains provide a full-body pain relief, with a relaxing head high. Recommended for nighttime use to go to sleep, or daytime relief from minor pain. Indica Dominant Hybrid strains include Skywalker OG and Blackberry Kush.

Apr 18, 2013Jun 17, 2016

Neuroplasticity, Meditation and Happiness – Willoughby Britton Ted Talk (Video)

Neuroplasticity: The brain’s ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections throughout life. Neuroplasticity allows the neurons (nerve cells) in the brain to compensate for injury and disease and to adjust their activities in response to new situations or to changes in their environment.

In this Ted Talk, Willoughby Britton focuses on neuroplasticity and mindful meditation through the scope of happiness.

The practice of meditation builds stronger and healthier neural pathways that lead to better habits.

Willoughby Britton – Neuroplasticity, Meditation and Happiness Notable Excerpts

If we get everything we want and get rid of everything we don’t want; we’ll be happy. It makes sense. Totally logical. Totally wrong. That’s just not the way the data has turned out to be. We’re one of the richest countries on the planet but we’re not really one of the happiest. And the people that are the richest in our country are not necessarily happier than the poorest people in our country.

Getting what we want doesn’t necessarily equal happiness.

Another thing that we know about happiness…it seems to be inextricably linked to the faculty of attention, or more specifically; our pervasive tendency or habit to not pay attention.

A wandering mind is an unhappy mind.

Our brain changes with experience and we get good at what we practice…if you exercise your physical body certain muscle groups get stronger, certain movements get easier and they become effortless and automatic. The brain is no different. The neural networks that you exercise becomes stronger and the thought patterns and mental habits that are represented by those neural networks get stronger and become effortless and automatic…

The most powerful way to change your brain is not medication, it is behavior.

Apr 18, 2013Jun 17, 2016

Homer and Lisa Simpson Visit the Isolation Tank (Video)

Each person enjoys a different experience when they float in an isolation tank for the first time. The Simpsons offers a satirical take on isolation tanks when Homer Simpson gets to experience being in one for the first time in the episode “Make Room For Lisa.”

The experiences of Lisa and Homer in their respective isolation tanks are as different as night and day.

Lisa undergoes a spiritual and mystical journey typical of what some people who float regularly report when they come out of a floatation tank. She sees an assortment of images and experiences life from the point of view of her cat Snowball and then Homer. Lisa learns to forgive his behavior and appreciate his efforts to bond with her by doing activities he doesn’t always enjoy.

Homer, however, seems only concerned on whether he can pee in the tank before starting his floating session. Once inside, his isolation tank is seized by repo men and falls out of the back of their truck on a sharp turn. It is found on the road by Ned Flanders and he mistakes it for a coffin. Ned buries the isolation tank and it breaks through the top of an underground water pipe. The isolation tank washes ashore on a local beach and is returned to the new age store. Homer leaves the tank feeling impressed by his “journey.”

Both experiences — one spiritual and the other comical — have positive effects on the relationship between Homer and Lisa. The same is true with others who float. They feel better about themselves and their loved ones.

> The Simpsons and Isolation Tanks | Isolation Tank Plans

Mar 27, 2013Jun 17, 2016

Methods of Meditation for the Busy or Impatient (Guide)

If you are struggling with fitting meditation into your daily routine, this guide will help you ease into the practice.

Change Your Mindset About Meditation

Lower your expectations of meditation. Often the reason we are impatient about meditation is we want instant gratification. Replace that expectation with a desire to experience a “slow melt” of your stress.

Be open to non-traditional meditation. Meditation doesn’t have to be done in a seated position. Any activity in which you can slow down your mind, become more inwardly focused and more rooted in the present moment will pass the test for meditation.

Be kind to yourself. Don’t berate yourself for not being “good” at meditating. If you make the effort to meditate, then by default, you are good at it. It’s more a “do or not do” thing versus a “good or bad.”

Commit to slow down your mind for 10 minutes each day. You can obviously do this for longer if you want, but just take your time in building this habit by starting with 10 minutes per day.

How to easily incorporate meditation into your day. Transform some of the things you are already doing each day into mindful meditation:

Exercise Meditation

Any continuous physical activity over a period of time can work. Some great choices are walking, jogging, or yoga. Chores can work too such as sweeping, folding laundry, stacking wood, and washing windows.

The way to transform any of these activities into meditation is to first focus on your breath. Observe it. Modify it. Try long inhalations, holding periods, and slow exhalations if you can. Observe how each part of your body feels. When you start to feel the exercise endorphins kick in, you might also want to express those good feelings with a big smile, a raising of the arms and/or a deep “Ahhhh” sound. Silly? Maybe. Feels good? Definitely.

Bathing Meditation

The next time you shower or take a bath, create your own spa experience simply by flipping the switch in your mind. Let go of any limits. No time limits, no temperature limits. Breathe deeply. Close your eyes. Feel the water. Feel the sensations it gives your body. Allow the water to heal you by transforming your bathing time into a meditation. Focus on your breath and how your body feels. If thoughts involving the past or future come into your mind, observe them and send them packing by returning to your observations of your breath and body. What do you see, feel, smell, and hear?

Let go of words and labels by expressing your good feelings through meaningless sounds such as “aum,” “mmmm,” or “ahhhhh.”

Music Meditation

Listening to music naturally brings us into the present moment. It can also bring us to good memories or daydreams of the future. You can bring more meditative elements to your music experience by noticing how you feel while you listen, play or sing. Add full diaphragmatic breathing and some cannabis too.

Some other music ideas are to pick up that instrument you haven’t played in a while. Don’t worry if you play well or not. The point is simply to become immersed in it and to enjoy it. You also may want to try singing or playing percussion along with your favorite music. Don’t have a drum? Make one. Any object can be a percussion instrument. Just start tapping! Lastly, consider going to a music based event and enjoy. You will be engaged in meditation without any effort at all. No wonder we like music so much!

Hobby Meditation

Similar to the exercise, bathing, and music, immerse yourself in any project that you enjoy such as model building, knitting, car restoration, drawing, painting, crafts, etc. As you enjoy your hobby, add the elements of deep breathing, awareness of sensation, and focus on the current moment and you’ll be meditating. And in the end you’ll have a physical manifestation of that mediation.

Massage Meditation

Schedule a massage for yourself. As you enjoy the physical sensation, be aware of your breath. You may want to focus on one word such as Peace, Calm, Love, Ease, or perhaps a sound with no meaning such as Aum. As everyday thoughts enter your mind, pour them out with the simple mantra “empty the mind.”

> Meditation Techniques for the Busy or Impatient | Dumb Little Man

Feb 14, 2013Jun 17, 2016

A Visit to the Largest Floatation, Isolation Tank Center (Video)

Brian Rose & Nic Gabriel of London Real go Floating in an isolation tank for one hour @Floatworks, the largest floatation tank centre in the world. Watch as we enter into a weightless, soundproof, and completely dark chamber to induce theta brainwaves and a meditative state.

A very informative introduction to Floating for newbies. The video covers all the prep before going into the tank and the awesome benefits you get after your session is done.

Jan 26, 2013Jun 17, 2016

Magic Mushrooms Mimics Effects of Meditation – Dr. Roland Griffiths (Video)

Dr. Roland R. Griffiths, Professor of Behavioral Biology Professor of Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins, discusses how psilocybin mushrooms can mirror and enhance the effects of meditation.

Meditation has similar affects physiologically in various humans who practice. But the actual practice of meditation is best left to each practitioner so they may construct a method that is best suited for the individual.

Jan 25, 2013Jun 17, 2016

Three Ways to Combine Marijuana and Meditation

Cannabis and other psychedelics are wonderful tools to use in conjunction with meditation. The key is to know how you wish to incorporate these tools within your practice and methods. The possibilities are only limited by your own imagination. Marijuana and meditation both bring states of relaxation, clarity and euphoria, combining them seems natural in this world.

1. Wake, Bake, Meditate

Lots of stoners wake and bake as a ritual to start their day. Pour a glass of water along with your morning toke then when you feel the relaxation of being high come over your body and mind find a comfortable place to rest outside on your porch, by a tree or in the morning sun and set your mind free for a couple of minutes.

The timing works well because you don’t have a full day of happenings to contemplate yet. Often times my days go smoother because I visualize how my day will go during this meditation and I set priorities without stress or tension clouding my judgment. Make sure you set aside a good chunk of time so you don’t feel rushed.

Marijuana’s ability to “distort” time makes it easier to sit for longer stretches of time, so light up on your path to enlightenment and enjoy the moment.

2. For The People Who Get Paranoia, Flip The Script

If marijuana makes you paranoid and brings up the doubting/judgmental voice in your head then this is the perfect time to sit and meditate. Many times when we meditate we have to go through the swirling thoughts that arise before we can reach that tranquil state full of knowing, love and acceptance.

If cannabis brings a certain paranoia or thought patterns, sit and listen. Your own consciousnesses is communicating with you giving you insights into who you are, who you believe you are and who you want to be. Embrace yourself, you are the sum of all your thoughts, feelings and actions.

3. End The Silence With A Bong Rip

Sometimes after a workout or a stretching routine I’ll sit comfortably for a meditation session. I enjoy meditation after physical activity because when you close your eyes or fix your gaze on a spot the blood flow within your body is apparent and it brings the feeling of being inside of yourself.

When I feel my consciousness return to this earthly experience and away from my meditative state I leisurely grind herb and pack my bong. I make sure to have all my utensils around me so I don’t have to go far from where I meditate. I inhale deeply and allow the weightlessness to come over my tired body, soothing my previously active muscles.

This bong rip to the dome brings, an at ease state of mind, into an euphoric existence. This helps extend and ground the meditative state I feel beyond the time of the session into my next activities and tasks.

Nov 14, 2012Jun 17, 2016

Meditation Basics – Breathing and Focus Points (Guide)

Meditation will help you realize just how far, and how fast, your mind can wander from what you’re supposed to be doing at the moment. In an age of multitasking, hyper-scheduling, and instant internet distraction, that alone can be a huge help.

Beyond just anecdotes, it’s also been suggested that meditation can actually exercise your brain’s “muscles” to increase focus, and has been shown to lower stress and increase forgiveness among college students who take up the practice.

Following Your Breath

Following and steadying the breath is the most universal of meditation techniques.

In The Miracle of Mindfulness, a classic text that introduces the thinking and practice behind meditation, Thich Nhat Hanh lays out a thoughtful case for how the breath is connected to the mind, which controls the body. By actively watching one’s breath, and evening it out, one can bring their entire being to what some call the still point.

The instant you sit down to meditate, begin watching your breath. At first breathe normally, gradually letting your breathing slow down until it is quiet, even, and the lengths of the breaths are fairly long. From the moment you sit down to the moment your breathing has become deep and silent, be conscious of everything that is happening in yourself. – Thich Nhat Hanh

For some of us, that’s easier said than done. You start focusing on your breath, and after a brief victory, in comes the growing wave of random brain chatter—What should I eat for lunch today? Did Marissa say she would drop the bike off this weekend or the next?.

Hanh offers the simple, straight-ahead counter to distractions of the mind:

If following the breath seems hard at first, you can substitute the method of counting your breath.

As you breathe in, count 1 in your mind, and as you breathe out, count 1.

Breathe in, count 2. Breathe out, count 2.

Continue through 10, then return to 1 again.

This counting is like a string which attaches your mindfulness to your breath. This exercise is the beginning point in the process of becoming continuously conscious of your breath.

Without mindfulness, however, you will quickly lose count. When the count is lost, simply return to 1 and keep trying until you can keep the count correctly.

Hanh goes on to suggest that controlling the breath is useful in many situations beyond the quiet moments of meditation.

Focus Points for Meditation

Seek inspiration: If you are inspired by Eastern spiritual traditions, you might reflect upon an image or icon of the Buddha. You can also use the flower of life, a crystal, or other object that has meaning for you. Lightly allow your attention to sit there, quietly and peacefully.

Recite a mantra: A mantra literally means “that which protects the mind.” So reciting a mantra protects you with spiritual power. It is also said that when you chant a mantra, you are charging your breath and energy with the energy of the mantra. Again, choose something with meaning for you within your spiritual tradition. Tibetan Buddhists use a mantra for peace, healing, transformation and healing.

Do a Guided Meditation: Guided meditation is akin to guided imagery, a powerful technique that focuses and directs the imagination toward a conscious goal. (Think of a diver imagining a “perfect dive” before he leaves the platform.)

> A Guide to Meditation for the Rest of Us | LifeHacker

Oct 25, 2012Jun 17, 2016

Shortcut to Astral Projection With a Candle (Video)

Astral projection is an out-of-body experience where your consciousness travels to another dimension. A spiritual stoner with “I Got 5 on It” playing in the background breaks it down in a way that anyone can understand.

The shortcut method involves focusing on the outer glow around the flame of a candle. His description of the astral projection experience is highly detailed and will be of interest to people who are into lucid dreaming and psychedelics.

Shortcut to Astral Projection With a Candle – Part 1

Shortcut to Astral Projection With a Candle – Part 2

Shortcut to Astral Projection With a Candle – Part 3

Oct 4, 2012Jun 17, 2016

How to Find the Right Style of Yoga for Your Body and Mind (Guide)

Yoga offers a host of health benefits, including stress relief and mental clarity, but many people don’t think it’s for them. There are, however, so many approaches to yoga—Ashtanga is a fast-paced flowing style while Kripalu combines gentle movements with a philosophy of compassion and mindfulness—that if you are interested, you should be able to find a yoga style that fits your needs and reap these great benefits. Here’s how to get started (or continue) on your individual yoga path.

Getting Started

One way to find which type of yoga is right for you is to think of why you might have been interested in yoga in the first place—or, perhaps, what you didn’t like about past yoga experiences. Consider whether you want a lot of physical intensity (do you like to sweat?) or gentle poses, if you’re recovering from an injury, want heightened spiritual awareness, and so on. Your preferences may also change from day to day or with the seasons (during the winter, some are drawn to heated yoga practices).

Nine Styles of Hatha Yoga

Here are nine internationally recognized styles of Hatha Yoga, ranging in intensity.

1. Ashtanga Vinyasa Yoga

Helps build strength, flexibility, and mental focus through a sequence of movements. Vinyasa is a flowing style of yoga which links the movements or asanas with breath work. Ashtanga yoga is a series of poses done in a quick-paced Vinyasa flow.

2. Jivamukti Yoga

Combines the physical style of Ashtanga with meditation and spiritual teachings. Think chanting and readings combined with standing poses and backbends. Developed in 1984 by David Life and Sharon Gannon, this style is described by the Jivamukti Yoga School as “a vigorously physical and intellectually stimulating practice leading to spiritual awareness.” The school claims that the average Jivamukti student knows more about the philosophy of yoga than most yoga teachers because of the emphasis on traditional teachings.

3. Bikram Yoga

Practiced in rooms heated to 105 degrees to help you sweat out toxins and keep flexible. If you like it hot, you’ll like Bikram. The 26 yoga postures developed by Bikram Choudhury, according to Bikram’s Yoga College of India , are designed to give every component of your body what it needs for maximum health and functioning.

4. Integral Yoga

A gentle, holistic practice meant to be incorporated at work, school, and everyday life. The Integral Yoga Institute of New York City says Integral yoga’s use of traditional postures can help develop “an easeful body, a peaceful mind, and a useful life.”

5. Iyengar Yoga

Focuses on experiencing each pose and proper alignment. Postures are held longer in Iyengar than they are in other yoga styles, and props like blocks, straps, and cushions are also encouraged. It’s one of the most popular styles of yoga in the US and was developed over seventy years ago by B.K.S. Iyengar.

6. Kripalu Yoga

Focuses on meditation and breathwork while promoting physical healing. Psychological and spiritual growth are big components of this school, and there’s a great emphasis on approaching yourself and others with compassion and kindness.

If you consider yoga as meditation in motion and are interested in transforming your life, Kripalu, “the yoga of life” may be for you. A variation called Kripalu Yoga Dance blends dance and yoga.

7. Kundalini Yoga

A branch of tantric yoga that emphasizes the wordless experience of yoga and heightened awareness. Kundalini was once a closely guarded secret, until Yogi Bhajan brought the practice to the West in 1969. Described by Bhajan’s 3HO foundation, the practice “combines breath, mudra [postures, usually of the hands], eye-focus, mantra, body locks, and postures in a precise, conscious manner to affect body, mind, and soul.”

Kundalini may be the school to explore if you’re interested in a philosophy of living or finding your true path in life, as well as physical benefits of yoga.

8. Sivananda Yoga

A slow-paced practice built around a series of 12 basic postures in tandem with “proper” habits and thinking. According to the International Sivananda Yoga Vedanta Centres, founded by a disciple of the Swami Sivananda, Sivananda teaches 5 principles of yoga: the basic postures for flexibility and strength, proper breathing, relaxation, a healthy vegetarian diet, and positive thinking and meditations.

9. Viniyoga Yoga

A customized yoga practice, where the poses and breath are synchronized according to the individual’s needs and interests. This adaptive approach to yoga is also holistic—incorporating breathwork, postures, sound, meditation, and readings. The American Viniyoga Institute says viniyoga is different from other yoga practices with its focus on repetition, holding of postures, and adaptation of the postures, breath, and sequences for different results.

There are several other types of yoga not mentioned here, offshoots and variations of the above as well. Yoga Journal’s Not All Yoga Is Created Equal is a great guide to some other styles not covered. You can also find a quiz there that may help you match your personality and body type to a yoga style.

> How to Find the Right Style of Yoga for You | LifeHacker

If you have a golf ball sized consciousness, when you read a book you’ll have a golf ball sized understanding, when you look out a golf ball sized awareness and when you wake up in the morning a golf ball sized wakefulness.

But if you could expand that consciousness then you would read the book with more understanding and when you look out more awareness and when you wake up more wakefulness – it’s consciousness. – David Lynch, Film Director