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Go Back   Spiritual Forums > Spirituality & Beliefs > Meditation

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  #11  
Old 23-10-2019, 09:02 PM
Molearner Molearner is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn
Fascinating..maybe even ingenius.

Miss Hepburn,

Thanks for your generous response. It is with great hesitation that I will proceed to elaborate. In short, I will give a glimpse of the manner in which my meditation effort unfolded. I am hesitant for a new beginner might assume that my experience is typical and new beginners can easily become discouraged if they do not experience similar experiences. So I will simply state that the experience of each individual can be quite different and, nevertheless, completely valid.

A caveat at the beginning for me is that my experience comes thru the lens or the filter of being a lifelong Christian. When I began my meditation effort
I had the goal of meditating for a period of 20 minutes a day....twice a day...before work and after work. The beginning was difficult seeming almost like a Herculean task that at first could seem almost pointless or without reward. Fortunately for me, not too long into the practice, I began experiencing visions. These were basically visions of pastoral or scenes of nature accompanied by beautifully colored skies, etc. In retrospect I believed these visions to be a grace of God to inspire me to continue in my endeavors to look forward to the time I was investing. Perhaps God recognized my weakness and lack of discipline to continue without compensation....:) Others might not be burdened by any such weakness.

After a while......perhaps a period of 6 weeks....I became determined to not anticipate or look forward to these visions. I knew...from everything that I had read or understood...that I was to let these visions pass without becoming attached to them in any way. Eventually this happened and there came a cessation of these visions. I was gratified attributing both the appearance and the disappearance to the hand of God.

My goal eventually was to no longer have any experience of time. By this time I had increased my meditation time to 2 sittings of 30 minutes each....which I remain comfortable with to this day. IMO this experience of no time means that one has stepped into eternity.....where time does not exist. This is the domain of God. In His domain, God, in my mind, becomes the Great Physician. Previously I have compared this to going under anesthesia and allowing the doctor(or dentist) do the work that is necessary to repair or heal someone. His work can be done without any interference or thought on my part. This is solely His time and, essentially, I am putting my faith and trust and hope in Him just like I do when I allow a doctor to his work. By the way, silent prayer is a similar thing. We keep quiet and present ourselves as listeners. God already knows all that we have and all that we might desire. His answer can come in a form and way that is quite different from what one might expect. Allow the Spirit to work in its divine way.

Another suggestion for those beginning a meditation practice. The results you experience might not be the results you expect and it is very unlikely they will occur with any immediacy. It is more likely to be a gradual experience that is life-changing and can best be realized in retrospect. Please remember my caveats......my experience is not presented as being universal......
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  #12  
Old 23-10-2019, 09:23 PM
Miss Hepburn Miss Hepburn is offline
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"This is the domain of God."
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*I'll text in Navy Blue when I'm speaking as a Mod. :)


Prepare yourself for the coming astral journey of death by daily riding in the balloon of God-perception.
Through delusion you are perceiving yourself as a bundle of flesh and bones, which at best is a nest of troubles.
Meditate unceasingly, that you may quickly behold yourself as the Infinite Essence, free from every form of misery. ~Paramahansa's Guru's Guru
.


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  #13  
Old 23-10-2019, 09:41 PM
JustASimpleGuy
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Molearner
A caveat at the beginning for me is that my experience comes thru the lens or the filter of being a lifelong Christian.

Just curious but have you come across any of John Butler's videos?
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  #14  
Old 23-10-2019, 09:47 PM
Molearner Molearner is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JustASimpleGuy
Just curious but have you come across any of John Butler's videos?

Sorry....not familiar with him. Is this relevant in some way to what I have posted?
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  #15  
Old 23-10-2019, 09:54 PM
JustASimpleGuy
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Molearner
Sorry....not familiar with him. Is this relevant in some way to what I have posted?

More or less. The first video appeared in my YouTube recommended videos a couple of weeks back and after watching I perused his channel and found the second. It's his experience with meditation in a Christian context.

"The 'common sense' guide to meditation"

"The 'common sense' guide to meditation - Part 2"
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  #16  
Old 23-10-2019, 09:59 PM
Molearner Molearner is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Miss Hepburn
"This is the domain of God."

Miss Hepburn,

I sincerely wish it were so. Jesus, however, said...My kingdom is not of this world. People constantly agonize over bad things that happen and blame God. If God ruled we would be without free will. The rule of God exists in a parallel universe....IMO...
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  #17  
Old 23-10-2019, 10:00 PM
Molearner Molearner is online now
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Quote:
Originally Posted by JustASimpleGuy
More or less. The first video appeared in my YouTube recommended videos a couple of weeks back and after watching I perused his channel and found the second. It's his experience with meditation in a Christian context.

"The 'common sense' guide to meditation"

"The 'common sense' guide to meditation - Part 2"

Thanks for the info....
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  #18  
Old 24-10-2019, 03:56 PM
Still_Waters Still_Waters is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Molearner
JRL09,

Years ago when I began a meditation practice I used a very simple technique. I counted to 4(in my mind) over and over again. The purpose was to establish rhythmic breathing. As you say the number in your mind breathe out....then breathe in as you say 'and'. i.e. 1 and 2 and 3 and 4.....then start over. Too many numbers and one becomes forced to remember the next number. Also all of those numbers are one-syllable numbers....it helps establish a consistent rhythm. The only variable becomes how deeply one breathes. One can increase the depth of breath until it feels appropriate. It(meditation) simply becomes an exercise in breathing.....the essence of life. At some point after developing the automatic rhythm of breathing one can then cease the counting of the numbers. You will discover at first that this simple counting helps to prevent any extraneous thoughts....from this experience you realize that thoughts can be overcome. Hope this might be of value to you....:)

That is a very good technique. In the yoga practice of alternate nostril breathing, counting during the inhalation-hold-exhalation stages is incorporated into the practice. The counting does indeed facilitate concentration and thwarting distractions, as you duly noted. I hadn't thought about that in that manner until you mentioned it.

Thanks for sharing.

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  #19  
Old 24-10-2019, 04:20 PM
JustASimpleGuy
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Still_Waters
That is a very good technique. In the yoga practice of alternate nostril breathing, counting during the inhalation-hold-exhalation stages is incorporated into the practice. The counting does indeed facilitate concentration and thwarting distractions, as you duly noted. I hadn't thought about that in that manner until you mentioned it.

Thanks for sharing.


Same for the calm abiding instructions I originally practiced, however it was suggested to drop the counting after one became more comfortable with the technique and not so easily hijacked into following thought trains.

Likewise it was also instructed when noticing anything other than the focus of attention to silently label it before returning to sensations of breathe. That too was suggested to be dropped once one became more proficient with the practice.
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  #20  
Old 24-10-2019, 06:20 PM
Miss Hepburn Miss Hepburn is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Molearner
Miss Hepburn,
I sincerely wish it were so. Jesus, however, said...My kingdom is not of this world.
People constantly agonize over bad things that happen and blame God.
If God ruled we would be without free will. The rule of God exists in a parallel universe....IMO...

Let me be clearer - you said some profound stuff!
More in context:

"IMO this experience of no time means that one has stepped into eternity.....where time does not exist.
This is the domain of God.

In His domain, God, in my mind, becomes the Great Physician."

Yes, in silence is where we find God - and where does He dwell?
That's right - fill in the blank, guys!




__________________

.
*I'll text in Navy Blue when I'm speaking as a Mod. :)


Prepare yourself for the coming astral journey of death by daily riding in the balloon of God-perception.
Through delusion you are perceiving yourself as a bundle of flesh and bones, which at best is a nest of troubles.
Meditate unceasingly, that you may quickly behold yourself as the Infinite Essence, free from every form of misery. ~Paramahansa's Guru's Guru
.


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