[saturnne]

I am a firm believer of things like yoga, meditation, and even Buddhism being a way of life, rather than a religious practice like some people believe. Meditation for me is a way of life. Does anyone practice meditation on a regular basis or interested in Buddhism? Buddhism is known for being a religion that appeals to the rational, and it certainly appeals to me. I try to practice meditation everyday on a regular basis because it brings me back to earth and opens my heart. My mom opposes me practicing any kind of mind-cleansing activity, so I tend to do it by myself...

Since INTPs are one of the most "rational" types, I was wondering if anyone else practices meditation or is passionate about Buddhism. How did you get into it and how do you practice it?

 

[xezene]

Since INTPs are one of the most "rational" types, I was wondering if anyone else practices meditation or is passionate about Buddhism. How did you get into it and how do you practice it?

I'm not an INTP, but I'd like to think my T is developed enough, so I hope it's okay that I answer! :wink:

I also practice meditation as you do and have been much interested in Buddhism for the past few years. It has certainly changed my life, in a positive way. I got into it gradually -- I had a World Religions class that barely touched on Buddhism in my sophomore year of high school, so that was interesting, but I didn't follow it further than that. Soon after I purchased a, little did I know, life-changing book called "The Dharma of Star Wars," as I was a Star Wars fan and wanted to hear more about wise Yoda sayings. But I didn't get that, I got something much better, which was an explanation of Buddhism through Star Wars, and after I read that, things were never the same! It made so much sense, more than all the other philosophies I'd heard, and it didn't ask for dogma. What a new experience life was! :happy:

The best part of my own story is that I met a Zen teacher/master the next year, and over the next 2 years I had him to consult to with questions and so on. He was very helpful to me as a person. I soon after listened to Alan Watts speak on Buddhism, as his lectures are all over Youtube, and that was an incredible help.

I practice it pretty regular I suppose, basically the different meditations. I do zazen, I do laying meditation, I do standing meditation, occasionally I do walking meditation. I should be better at this -- I used to do them a lot more. I also do a meditation called presence meditation, and that is very relaxing and helps me tremendously day-to-day if I do it. Who knew how much relaxing the facial tension relaxes the rest of the body so fully!

 

[rayman9102]

I am highly into Taoism if you know what that means, thats what i personally believe in, its more of a philosophy rather then religion. I like meditation as well, but my household is just far too active for me to even try. I tried it once, but i think far too much to the point every time i become relaxed i snap right out of it or i think about my heart rate.

Idk about other INTPs but i am really calm and patient, and peaceful, n a lot of people think i meditate but i dont.

 

[periculosa]

I suppose I also have to give the disclaimer; I am an INFP/INTP with T and F nearly equally divided...but yes, I also try to make Taoism/Buddhism/Zen a way of life for me. I've never studied these things in any formal way, and I'm not looking for a teacher, but I do what I can to be out in nature and work with meditation as a way to still my mind. I also read the Tao Te Ching and have read many of the books of Alan Watts. Yes, I know, purists do not have much use for Watts, who popularized Zen in the 60s, but the last book I read by him (Nature, Man, and Woman) was by far his most intellectually rigorous and did the most to persuade me of the wisdom of Lao Tzu.

LOL, I once posted "Stop thinking, and end your problems" (Tao Te Ching 20) on Facebook and I could not believe the responses. I received a rant that people nowadays don't think enough, and what was I doing advising them to stop thinking?!

 

[Critix]

Used to meditate daily, very helpful and clarifying. Also Yoga helps as well and when combined with vigorous exercise anxiety and any form of stress becomes a thing of the past

 

[Psilocin]

There is no meditation.

WoOoOoOO-leeeee-OoOoOoO...

 

[Just_Some_Guy]

I'm an advocate of "the Buddha Way" rather than any doctrinal assumptions called some sort of "-ism." I find it self evident that our society knows exactly jack and shit about what it means to be conscious because we do not have the vocabulary to engage the nature of our own subjectivity. Absolute subjectivity, when you get down to the bottom of it, is incapable of self-reference. To talk about what it means to be, you have to talk about this experience and I find that the teachings of Siddhartha Gautama and Dogen best illuminate this issue. To me, this is simply a matter of shifting the mind away from a reliance on words and symbols and towards the actual experience of dynamic temporal conditions. To talk about what it means to be human, we need to address both of these perspectives. If not, we're only telling half the story. The "Enlightenment" that our society is currently under cannot express this other half, which is why the Romantic Movement arose. This shadow is also what is paradoxically fueling our silly religions. Something is missing, but we don't have any way to talk about it. Unless, of course, we can start talking about lived experience (Look, look!!!) without resorting to theories, symbols and ideas.

 

[Critix]

Absolute subjectivity, when you get down to the bottom of it, is incapable of self-reference.

Perhaps too much subjectivity only leads to too much self-referencing. I am referring to some if the ideas expressed within postmodernism and relativism which have lead to claims of all language being self-referential symbolism. We are an Enlightenment society, absolutely and the its a creed that expresses rationalization and utility and its invasion of philosophy and the way we can consider our subjective lives is what has lead to the dead end ideas of Derrida (all language is a set of Binary oppositions etc). By using 'rational' processes to describe subjective experience especially in a highly structured format (such as writing) we can only describe the way that those structures work and the way our thought and being is expressed through them, but not the essence of that being itself. The system can't do anything investigate the system, not what passes through that system (if that helps at all).

There's an Idea in my head somewhere trying to get out, but its not co-operating. I agree that we need a new language or communicative strategy to investigate the phenomena of 'being' that has thrown aside.

 

[Just_Some_Guy]

Perhaps too much subjectivity only leads to too much self-referencing. I am referring to some if the ideas expressed within postmodernism and relativism which have lead to claims of all language being self-referential symbolism. We are an Enlightenment society, absolutely and the its a creed that expresses rationalization and utility and its invasion of philosophy and the way we can consider our subjective lives is what has lead to the dead end ideas of Derrida (all language is a set of Binary oppositions etc). By using 'rational' processes to describe subjective experience especially in a highly structured format (such as writing) we can only describe the way that those structures work and the way our thought and being is expressed through them, but not the essence of that being itself. The system can't do anything investigate the system, not what passes through that system (if that helps at all).

There's an Idea in my head somewhere trying to get out, but its not co-operating. I agree that we need a new language or communicative strategy to investigate the phenomena of 'being' that has thrown aside.

I am entirely deficient in post-modern philosophy. I really need to look into it.

The "absolute subjectivity" I had in mind is the antithesis of self-reference as it moves beyond the constraints of discriminatory consciousness. If you apply discriminatory consciousness towards absolute subjectivity, it is then an objectification of subjectivity, and thus not absolute.

Language is probably mostly self-referential symbolism. From an evolutionary biology perspective, it seems to make sense. Again, I don't have the background to go much further here. Maybe I should do some research...


"The system can't do anything investigate the system, not what passes through that system."

Who advocates this position? I find it fascinating.

 

[killerB]

I consider myself to be on the path. I do meditate, and I actually stumbled onto it because I needed a way to focus and quiet my mind secondary to my Fe being so darn strong.

 

[Critix]

No that's just my quote from what I understand the problem to be. I am not an expert in po-mo philosophy, or any sort of philosophy at that but from what little study I have conducted this seems to be about it. What I took from it and mean is that all systems are eventually 'closed'. A word that denotes a tree, 'tree' is just that a four letter word nothing more. It may describe an aspect of physical reality but it isn't actually it. Therefore if you use language as an interrogative tool you end up interrogating language itself, you continually reference what your studying with what you are studying. The essence then of what you are investigating then, reality/being/yadda yadda, can't be captured by such rational and systemic tools.

What I think Buddhism and Good Art/Literature does is too attempt to bypass these structures. Take a great novel you may have read, the effect on you it has can never be described adequately, it can be hinted at but not fully encompassed in words. The creation of the art is the same (this is Personal Opinion of course), there is an underlying theme that simply can't be explained straight forwardly and so metaphor and imagery is used in an an attempt to subvert the language system and get to the bottom of things as it were.

As for your conception of absolute subjectivity I think this is exactly what I am getting at. Language is an objective tool and the purely subjective can't thus be described with it. Would this be correct (you call it absolute subjectivity, I call it 'being' perhaps?)

Is this OT?
If so, sorry.

 

[Just_Some_Guy]

As for your conception of absolute subjectivity I think this is exactly what I am getting at. Language is an objective tool and the purely subjective can't thus be described with it. Would this be correct (you call it absolute subjectivity, I call it 'being' perhaps?)

I'm not sure where the term "absolute subjectivity" comes from, but maybe it's not the best as it can still be contrasted with "objectivity." Like you I also use the phrase "the lived experience of being" which is being qua verb (dynamic, impermanent, interconnected/interdependent) as opposed to being qua noun (stagnant, atemporal). Buddhism just calls it "Buddha-nature" but that brings up its own heap of baggage if you're not already familiar with how the terms are contextualized.

 

[Tranceman80]

I'm inline with everything you said in your post. I try to meditate every day, I read about Zen and Buddhism, and have practiced yoga, although now I'm being lazy about it.

 

[sky604]

I love meditating it is calming and clenzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzing. I do not talk about it with most because most would not understand. I tried to explain it to my special needs son's Principal and he just stared at my third eye and treated me as if I were a freak yet was in dire need of reducing his stress and anal tendencies by means of meditating. He will probably stoke out in a couple of years but atleast I tried LOL

 

[Kilgore Trout]

As Robert Anton Wilson said, "Yoga is the science of the east where as science is the Yoga of the west."

I am not a Buddhist but the tenets have always intrigued me philosophically, historically, scientifically and spiritually. I have learned more from the Buddhist doctrine than from any religion.

Noble Eight-Fold Path:

1.) Pursue Wisdom/mental development
2.) Right View (learn the four noble truths)
3.) Right Intentions
4.) Develop Compassion, resist anger, be harmless
5.) Pursue ethical conduct
6.) Have the right speech (Ex. Speak in a friendly manner but tell the truth)
7.) Right action (do not steal or cause harm)
8.) Right livelihood (do not cause harm to others or oneself)

The Four Noble Truths:

1.) Life means suffering.
2.) The origin of suffering is attachment.
3.) The cessation of suffering is attainable.
4.) The path to the cessation of suffering.

Gautama Buddha once said, “Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who has said it, not even if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense.”

This is the beautiful philosophical teaching of not relying on the existing consensus, but rather, forming ones own opinions through critical thinking. We must not willfully delude ourselves or accept everything as truth but instead, learn to seek development, wisdom, peace, tranquility, and a clearer consciousness.

Meditation seems to be one method for clearer consciousness. According to many recent SPECT scan studies, monks have higher amounts of alpha waves than the average person. Alpha waves associate with a meditative state, when a person mentally creates or daydreams. People exhibiting predominant alpha waves experience mild euphoria and are often highly intuitive. This is a state of relaxation and awareness. Monks, musicians, and artists usually have high alpha wave levels.

Here are a few links to research and information about meditation:

The Benefits of Meditation | Psychology Today
100 Benefits of Meditation
Brain scans show meditation changes minds, increases attention (June 25, 2007)
Neurological Research on Meditation

 

[JoetheBull]

I do meditate. should do it more often though.

 

[Midera]

Hi,

I meditate for 15 minutes each morning, it does make the difference since I can be quite neurotic. Soon I want to extend that to 25 minutes since studies have shown that that is the most optimal time for balancing the right and left hemispheres. I am not passionate about meditation, buddhism, tao or zen. I think that would be too strong a word, I don't see it as a mental accesoiry or toy. I see it as a big part of my model of reality, from all of the religions, ideas, and philosophies; eastern philosophies come closest to truth, because it is highly "objective" e.g. most things are constructs of the human-animal like morality. Which is true. It is a form of existentialism, whether you go about to kill your neighbores, becoming filthy rich, or sitting in your mom's basement philosophizing all day, in the end, it doesn't matter, since most of these things are illusions. My point is, it isn't bad or good to do x or y, you decide for yourself. I like that about it, kinda reminds me of some of Nietzsche's ideas. I think there is quite a lot of appeal to ideas similar to zen for INTPs. I wouldn't be surprised if Lao Tze was an INTP himself. And people like Robert Pirsig and Douglass Hofdstadr arguably INTPs also like Zen. But, I don't feel like writing an essay on why it is appealing for INTPs, I think most of them will already underestand anyway if it is the case that they have studied Zen in-depth or the Tao, it doesn't matter, they are all basically the same just with different decorations.

 

[BenjiMac]

I don't medidate nor do I do Yoga.

I can't seem to get beyond viewng Yoga as somehow (apologies in advance, I don't wish to offend any practitioners, genuinely).. ridiculous. Rolling around on the floor, bendy, hippy nonsense.

I've also tried to meditate but I've found that so far, I'm incapable. I can't seem to switch my mind off and any prolonged attempt causes a feeling of wasting my time - sometimes I even smile or laugh at myself for being so ridiculous.

All this said - I'm aware quite keenly that these are my hang-ups an dnot a true reflection on meditation or yoga.

There is something attractive to me about spirituality, even religion - but I can't commit to them. The latter in particular is a matter of faith and I simply have none - I have only what meagre knowledge I've managed to scrape together in my life and I have no wish to abandon it, nor can I seem to make myself.

 

[DoIHavetohaveaUserName]

Used to do asanas,some difficult ones too and meditation as it was a part of the school curriculum.I have stopped But For some reason Reading articles online and books is more relaxing and a good distraction and bonus is you get more to think on your own rather than copying something that's already exisiting.