Meditation Subjects Research Articles

Loving Attention: Buddhaghosa, Katsuki Sekida, and Iris Murdoch on Meditation and Moral Development

Abstract: According to Iris Murdoch, one of our central moral capacities is to direct our attention in a way that is just and loving. In Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals , Murdoch explores the prospects for strengthening this capacity through engaging in Zen Buddhist practices, particularly zazen meditation as Katsuki Sekida describes it in Zen Training: Methods and Philosophy . Murdoch has a mixed view of whether zazen could really contribute to our moral development, expressing both some optimism and some reservations. I argue that a stronger version of Murdoch's project, by her own lights, would have looked to the Theravāda Buddhist philosopher Buddhaghosa's instructions for taking up loving-kindness, compassion, gladness, and equanimity as meditation subjects.

Loving Attention: Buddhaghosa, Katsuki Sekida, and Iris Murdoch on Meditation and Moral Development

According to Iris Murdoch, one of our central moral capacities is the capacity to direct our attention in a way that is just and loving. In Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals , Murdoch explores the prospects for strengthening this capacity through engaging in Zen Buddhist practices, particularly zazen meditation as Katsuki Sekida describes it in Zen Training: Methods and Philosophy . Murdoch has a mixed view of whether zazen could really contribute to our moral development, expressing both some optimism and some reservations. I argue that a stronger version of Murdoch’s project, by her own lights, would have looked to the Theravāda Buddhist philosopher Buddhaghosa’s instructions for taking up loving-kindness, compassion, gladness, and equanimity as meditation subjects.

Effect of Nada Yoga on Hypertension & Anxiety Level

In Nada yoga the sound speed of an object vibrates (as well as its size, however infinitesimal) contributes to its particular sound. Different tone and frequencies contains the subject of meditation in Nada Yoga, which also takes into consideration the musical intervals used in music and in the musical recitation of mantras, is brought together with meditation techniques and certain Hatha Yoga practices that are conducive to sonic exploration. Recently a study conducted on anxiety and hypertension level in Raigarh entitled as “The effect of Nada Yoga on Hypertension and anxiety level”. The outcome of the study shows that Nada Yoga significantly reduces Anxiety as well as Hypertension. Results founds were surprisingly shows a significant difference between the two means, at .01 level of significance. It shows how Nada Yoga can effectively help to reduce anxiety and hypertension as well as many improves in health also.

MEDITATION AND ITS SUBJECTS: TRACING KAMMAṬṬHĀNA FROM THE EARLY CANON TO THE BORAN KAMMATHAN TRADITIONS OF SOUTHEAST ASIA

ABSTRACTThis article examines the term kammaṭṭhāna in three contexts. It begins by looking at the rare usage in the Pali canon where it denotes secular work, but is extended to include the work of the ascetic. It then looks at its usage in the commentarial period to denote the meditation subjects for samatha meditation, and where extensions of this to include vipassanā also occur. Finally, the article looks at kammaṭṭhāna in early modern Southeast Asia (primarily Siam) in the context of a variety of pre-modern meditation, boran kammathan, where the number of meditation subjects is increased, the patterns of their usage has changed with a new emphasis on experiencing nimitta, and kammathan is employed as a general term for meditation per se. The article also considers some ancillary features of boran kammathan texts, offering suggestions to enhance the search for new boran kammathan texts in manuscript archives and libraries.

Anapanasati: (mindfulness of breathing) an access to insight.

Depression let’s talk- WHO is leading a one-year global campaign on depression. Depression comes under psychiatric disorders. According to WHO healthy person definition is health is complete state of physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Vipassana meditation technique is very useful for balancing of mind. Ānāpānasati breathing technique is first step of Vipassana. Ānāpānasati, the meditation is in-and-out breathing, is the first subject of meditation expounded by the Lord Buddha in the Maha Satipatthana Sutta, the Great Discourse on the Foundations of Mindfulness. Ānāpānasati is a natural object of Samadhi in which a person’s observes his/her breathing as it is for the concentration of mind. This mental aspect is addressed effectively using Ānāpānasati. Moral education and Ānāpānasati are the foundation of Vipassana meditation technique. As per Maharashtra government rule (G.R) 2012 Ānāpānasati meditation practice should be conducted in every school. This path of sīla, samādhi, paññā, and nibbāna (morality, concentration, wisdom, and liberation) is absolutely universal, and acceptable to all nationalities. Meditation has been beneficial to large number of adults, while researchers have not focused on studying the impact of meditation on children or adolescents.
 Objectives-
 Literature review of Ānāpānasati (mindfulness of breathing) first step of vipassana meditation.
 Methods
 The available Classical Pālī literature Buddhist Literature Vimuttimagga and Visuddhi Magga, Concepts of meditation in Āyuvedic literature. Modern research papers regarding Ānāpānasati Literature are reviewed.
 Conclusions
 Experimental studies using Ānāpānasati meditation was very much needed for further studies in adolescents.
 Key words: Ānāpānasati, meditation, Vipassana, Depression, Vimuttimagga, Mind, Breathing technique.

Los espectros de los desaparecidos: pasajes entre compromiso pol\xedtico y visi\xf3n literaria en los \xfaltimos cuentos de Cort\xe1zar

The uneasy relationship between literary conception and political commitment is a recurrent subject of meditation in Julio Cortázar’s writings and amongst his critics. The debate revolves around two main considerations: firstly, to what extent and how (if so) Cortázar managed to reconcile his aesthetic ideas with his ethical views; secondly, whether this reconciliation attempt meant a paradigm change in his poetics or not. These deliberations reached a culmination point and appeared in its most illuminating form in Cortázar’s last three short story compilations; particularly in those stories where the need for political and ethical engagement articulates with the fantastic, one of the predominant narrative modes in his poetics. This article examines four of these short stories as prime examples of Cortázar’s attempt to reconcile the individual metaphysical search typical of his early writings with his later political pledges. The hypothesis is that these stories actually represent an excellent instance of how he was able to achieve a harmonic symbiosis between his poetics and his politics in the last years of his life.

Influence of brain-derived neurotrophic factor and catechol O-methyl transferase polymorphisms on effects of meditation on plasma catecholamines and stress

Meditation may show differential effects on stress and plasma catecholamines based on genetic polymorphisms in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and catechol O-methyl transferase (COMT). Eighty adults (40 men, 40 women; mean age 26 years) who practiced meditation regularly and 57 healthy control adults (35 men, 22 women; mean age 26 years) participated. Plasma catecholamines (norepinephrine (NE), epinephrine (E), and dopamine (DA)) concentrations were measured, and a modified form of the Stress Response Inventory was administered. The results were analyzed using two-way analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) with control and meditation subjects, gene polymorphism as factors, and meditation duration as the covariate. Two-way ANCOVA showed a significant interaction between control and meditation subjects, and BDNF Val66Met polymorphism on DA/NE+DA/E (p = 0.042) and NE/E+NE/DA (p = 0.046) ratios. A significant interaction was found for control and meditation subjects with COMT Val158Met polymorphism and plasma NE concentrations (p = 0.009). Post hoc ANCOVA in the meditation group, adjusted for meditation duration, showed significantly higher plasma NE concentrations for COMT Met carriers than COMT Val/Val subjects (p = 0.025). Significant differences of stress levels were found between the control and meditation subjects in BDNF Val/Met (p < 0.001) and BDNF Met/Met (p = 0.003), whereas stress levels in the BDNF Val/Val genotype did not differ between the control and meditation groups. This is the first evidence that meditation produces different effects on plasma catecholamines according to BDNF or COMT polymorphisms.

Buddhist meditation: an anthology of texts from the Pali canon

Meditative practice lies at the heart of the Buddhist tradition. This introductory anthology gives a representative sample of the various kinds of meditations described in the earliest body of Buddhist scripture, the Pali canon. It provides a broad introduction to their traditional context and practice and supplies explanation, context and doctrinal background to the subject of meditation. The main themes of the book are the diversity and flexibility of the way that the Buddha teaches meditation from the evidence of the canon. Covering fundamental features of Buddhist practice such as posture, lay meditation, and meditative technique it provides comments both from the principal early commentators on Buddhist practice, Upatissa and Buddhaghosa, and from reputable modern meditation teachers in a number of Theravadin traditions. This is the first book on Pali Buddhism which introduces the reader to the wide range of the canon. It demonstrates that the Buddha's meditative tradition still offers a path of practice as mysterious, awe-inspiring yet as freshly accessible as it was centuries ago, and will be of interest to students and scholars of Buddhism as well as Buddhist practitioners.

Effects of Transcendental Meditation on self‐identity indices and personality

Transcendental Meditation (TM) is an increasingly popular mental technique producing relaxation. To assess specific personal effects, a role construct repertory grid and an Eysenck Personality Questionnaire (EPQ) were completed by subjects, once before and twice after starting the regular practice of TM. Comparison subjects did not learn TM and were assessed in the same ways at the same times. Initially the two groups differed only in that meditation subjects tended to judge other people to be more unlike their ideal selves than did comparison subjects. This difference was maintained.With meditation subjects the grid results showed a systematic pattern of significant changes over the three tests. These indicate that meditators came to perceive their actual‐selves as being increasingly similar to their ideal‐ and social‐selves and that they developed a more strongly defined concept of their actual‐selves. The strength of definition of self concepts was indicated by the newly defined index ‘Self Defining Polarization’ (SDP). EPQ results showed increased extraversion in meditators. Comparison subjects did not show consistent or significant changes between tests on any measure.Subjects practising Transcendental Meditation appear to have experienced consistent and definable changes of a generally beneficial nature. The value of TM as a therapeutic tool is thereby suggested.

Strategies of arousal control: biofeedback, meditation, and motivation.

A series of four experiments assessed the effects of instructions to lower heart rate on heart rate change and general arousal reduction. Various conditions of biofeedback, cognitive load, incentive, knowledge of results, and the experimenter-subject relationship were tested. Experiment 1 compared physiological responses to the delivery of direct organ feedback (i.e., heart rate) with responses to electromyographic biofeedback from the frontalis muscle area and with responses to a nonfeedback tracking task. The results suggest that neither heart rate nor muscle tension feedback is an especially powerful method for achieving sustained reductions in heart rate. Furthermore, although some specificity of physiologic pattern is apparent, biofeedback is no more effective in lowering general activation level than simple instructions to relax accompanied by a general knowledge of results. The second experiment was designed to assess the role of cognitive load in arousal reduction. Heart rate biofeedback was compared with a procedure involving minimal external information processing--the secular meditation exercise of Wallace and Benson. The results indicated a clear superiority for the meditation strategy in effecting reductions in cardiac rate and lowering activation. However, in a third experiment, meditation subjects lowered heart rate much less than observed in the previous study, and this time the reduction did not exceed that achieved by feedback subjects. Subsequent analysis suggested that the quality of the subject-experimenter relationship (active-supportive vs. formal-distant) was a significant variable in accounting for outcome differences. The above hypothesis was supported by a fourth experiment. Under conditions of high subject-experimenter involvement, the superior meditation performance of Experiment 2 was reproduced; under low-involvement conditions the Experiment 3 result of no difference between training groups was obtained. The findings suggest that the effectiveness of any method for achieving relaxation (or physiological control) rests on a complex interaction between informational and motivational imperatives of the stimulus context and definable aspects of the interpersonal exchange between subject and experimenter. This research raises serious questions about the effectiveness of the usual biofeedback paradigm as an aid to arousal reduction and the cost efficiency of its applications in the clinical situation. Furthermore, these results demonstrate the great power in relaxation experiments of psychosocial and other moderator variables, and signal the practical difficulty of their control when these variables appear to be as potent in changing physiology as the primary training methods.