Mindfulness Meditation - Find Your Center | After Socrates Ecology of Practices #1

Рет қаралды 4,957

Жыл бұрын

Mindfulness Meditation is about finding your center and is critical to the pursuit of the Socratic path as it helps you recognize how you function, how your mind and body are connected (or potentially disconnected), and keep pulling you towards "knowing thyself".
In this exercise from his KZbin series, "After Socrates", Dr. John Vervaeke describes the form and function of the basics of mindfulness and teaches a practice called "finding your center".

Пікірлер: 40

@MTheory333 6 ай бұрын

“That is meditation” - thank you. I’ve tried and tried meditating and listening to talks and everything but that one statement changed my entire perspective.

@mcnallyaar Жыл бұрын

I am so happy that you are publishing the ecologies of practices!!!!!!!! I often listen to the lectures while walking, and so often fail to properly take notes. So I know I need to go back to videos to spend more time with the practices, which kind of becomes a thing. This helps so much. THANK YOU!!!!!!

@GetUnlabeled Жыл бұрын

I am beyond grateful for you and your teachings. I only regret not knowing this the last 30+ years 😉

@janthonycologero9206 Жыл бұрын

Thank you John. Your work is helping to constantly break my old frame of that 2 world mythos I grew up in that was so traumatizing. The insight you're helping to illuminate has opened up a new path that is closer to nature than I ever thought possible. Your "Transjective Neoplatonism" seems to catch all of the mystery and the connectedness and open-endedness I knew was possible but had never had anyone lay it out so thoughtfully and carefully. Thank you thank you

@TheVeganVicar Жыл бұрын

I don’t really care what any particular person BELIEVES. You may believe that there is an old man with a white beard perched in the clouds, that the Ultimate Reality is a young blackish-blue Indian guy, that the universe is eternal, that Mother Mary was a certifiable virgin, or that gross physical matter is the foundation of existence. The ONLY thing that really matters is your meta-ethics, not your meta-physics. Do you consider any form of non-monarchical governance (such as democracy or socialism) to be beneficial? Do you unnecessarily destroy the lives of poor, innocent animals and gorge on their bloody carcasses? Do you believe homosexuality and transvestism is moral? Do you consider feminist ideology to be righteous? If so, then you are objectively immoral and your so-called “enlightened/awakened” state is immaterial, since it does not benefit society in any way.

@lifearttimes Жыл бұрын

🙌🏽❤️🙏🏽

@missh1774 Жыл бұрын

Thank you John 💛.

@_ARCATEC_ Жыл бұрын

💓

@fernandobaetajr Жыл бұрын

Great teaching! Thanks

@motiveinmotivation383 Жыл бұрын

YESSSS!!!!!!!

@dalibofurnell Жыл бұрын

Kind of you to post this in addition, you didn't have to , but you did. Appreciated.

@ZafarKhan-nt7uc Жыл бұрын

Will be practicing this need to do more take time out . Thanks John ❤

@OmriC Жыл бұрын

Finally🥲 Thank you!!!!!

@TheVeganVicar Жыл бұрын

SHABBAT SHALOM! 🕎 HAPPY SABBATH! ✡️

@ClassPunkOnRumbleAndSubstack Жыл бұрын

Here's some other things related to meditation to explore: Each syllable in mental chatter is like a beat in a rhythm. If you can slow the rhythm down by relaxing more and/or imagine mental chatter slowing down, and successfully slow it down, you raise the potential for gaps in your mental chatter. When you are in one of these mental chatter gaps, no matter how brief, you are aware but your mind is silent; and your present awareness is existing primarily in relationship to light (inner, outer, or both), which is putting your awareness more into the present moment and any experiences that come with that. In the context of meditative practice, practicing replacing the belief in "linear time" with "mysterious infinite presence", and trying to perceive the latter as more like your home than the former, is also something that will enhance your practice; because the deep conditioning that not believing in linear time is scary and bad.. cuts off possible positive experiences from meditation, through the present absence of such experience combined with the belief in linear time, creating the illusion that these positive experiences are out of reach because of linear time. And linear time is embedded in mental chatter, since every sentence has a beginning, middle, and end which imposes one's personal sense of linear time as absolute reality, which might not be true, since we have brief moments throughout life where there is not a sense of linear time; so while mental chatter does help with meditative practice and is needed by instructing awareness, mental chatter is also highly deceptive, by implicitly imposing the belief in linear time which can potentially reduce all forms of positive experiences from meditation.

@JuliaHelen777 Жыл бұрын

It was a wel weighted decision to wait & compile all the best of knowledge & experiences in these end (yet constantly evolving) manifestation serie. I appreciate your persistance and very much thank you for all the efforts! May it reach us in their depths!

@psychnstatstutor Жыл бұрын

Am enjoying the series even though I'm not keeping up with the most recent episodes and am way behind on the readings. I've started practicing Somatic Circling (TIAMAT crew inspired) to enhance embodied listening (between note taking). Also, there is an ancient traditional meditation practice that was not uncommon amongst First Nations Australians; perhaps lost now, The anthropology texts write of it in ways similar to mindfulness or sophroson. I'm going to explore that overlap more, given unis (and high schools in Oz) are keen for students to practice mindfulness, and to incorporate FNA knoweldges, the similarities of practices could contribute to those of us using a both-ways pedagogical model ( _garma_ [Yolŋu] estuary)

@arono9304 Жыл бұрын

Thanks John! Another KZbin channel, The Meditating Philosopher, has also uploaded all the practices, put them in a "After Socrates Practices" playlist, and added a useful description (see below, copied from his video): Basics of Mindfulness Meditation Context: There are 3 dimensions to finding your center. This practice aims at improving the relationship between mind and body - more fluid and fluent. At each step, create a felt memory so you can find your way back again. Centering your Posture - cultivating a feeling of your center, not calculating your center. Shift forward and back from your torso slowly until you come to a centered feeling. Repeat the shifting action from left to right from your torso shrinking your movements until you come to a centered feeling. Now from your neck, shift your head forward and back until you come to a centered feeling Repeat the process from your neck shifting your head right and left until you come to a centered feeling Relax your chest, let it open; shoulders are down, not up. Relax your abdomen, let it go. This affords baby breathing. Relax your legs, make sure your feet aren’t crossed, that they are touching the floor. Relax your face; sinking down, syncing, dropping into the posture. Try to notice what it feels like (tastes like) to be centered. What effect does it have on yourself, how you notice the world? Centering your Attention - concentration Stepping back and looking at the normally transparent way you’re looking at the world. Analogy: what are you normally looking through? Your sensations. You don’t look at them, you look through them. We’re trying to look at them. Which sensations? The sensation of the breath. Gently say “in” to track and follow the sensations of the breath. Gently say “out” when you breath out, looking at the sensations. Pretty fast your mind will leap away, planning, remembering, listening, etc. Step back, label the distracting process, not involving with the content but labeling with an “ing” word. Return to following the sensation of the breath, noticing and being absorbed into following the breath. Centering your Attitude We all have a “monkey mind” that goes from thought to thought. We’re trying to get that “monkey” to stay still. Not angrily or fighting (will train it to fear/fight you), nor just letting things be or go with the flow (will just feed it’s misbehavior/indulging it). Centered between these. “Trying to befriend yourself”

@TheVeganVicar Жыл бұрын

@arono9304 Жыл бұрын

1. That's not meta-ethics, that's ethics. 2. Don't assume my political or ethical ideals, such vast unnuanced generalizations don't apply to me. 3. Also, elevating utilitarian ethics to divine praise as you're doing might not have the effect you're hoping for Have a good day!

@TheVeganVicar Жыл бұрын

@@arono9304, that is rather PRESUMPTUOUS of you, wouldn’t you agree, Slave? Presumption is evil, because when one is PRESUMPTUOUS, one makes a judgement about a matter, despite having insufficient facts to support one’s position. Incidentally, good and bad are RELATIVE. 😉

@arono9304 Жыл бұрын

@@TheVeganVicar "Slave" "good and bad are RELATIVE" Oh wonderful, someone who read Nietzsche for the first time? ;)

@TheVeganVicar Жыл бұрын

@@arono9304, I regret to inform you, Slave, that your response is INCORRECT. ❌ The CORRECT answer is “Yes, Master”. ✅ Bless You Always, TYPICAL Arrogant Westerner! 😇

@Simar2222 Жыл бұрын

Please also contribute your lectures in the Walking Up app with Sam Harris!

@asselm2983 Жыл бұрын

Thanks a lot for this video! Please could you discuss differences between dual and non-dual meditation techniques. I am confused: Sam Harris always says that vipassana type focused meditation takes you nowhere and it’s better to go with non-dual meditation. This is very confusing whether we better focus on our breath or should we sort of free our attention and accept that shifts of attention are inevitable and “witness” these shifts. If this is true then I don’t get what is this observing agent/instance as I always thought that the observer is the conscious attention.

@asselm2983 Жыл бұрын

I mean, I always though that “attention” is where all of our “I’s” are “located”, which means attention does all the cognition. But as told my Sam H. attention itself is random and “watching” instance is something else. Thus I don’t understand what is this watching witness if it’s not attention.

@legorockfan9 11 ай бұрын

I generated a basic "practice guide" using ChatGPT and the video transcript so I can refesh myself. I hope its useful to you guys. Preparation: Find a quiet and comfortable space where you won't be disturbed. Set a timer for the duration you want to meditate (start with a reasonable time like 10-20 minutes). Sit comfortably in a relaxed posture with your back straight but not stiff. Close your eyes if it feels comfortable, otherwise, you can keep them slightly open. Centering Posture: Start by becoming aware of your body and posture. Find your center by slowly moving forward and backward, side to side, and also your head front to back and side to side. Relax your chest, abdomen, legs, and face to create a sense of stability and openness. Centering Attention: Shift your focus to your breath. Track the sensations of your breath as you inhale and exhale. If your mind wanders, gently and non-judgmentally label the distraction (e.g., imagining, complaining, planning). Bring your attention back to the sensations of your breath. Centering Attitude: Befriend yourself and be patient with your wandering mind. Avoid fighting or feeding your distractions; instead, gently guide your focus back to the breath. Understand that distractions are normal, and the act of bringing your focus back is the core of the practice. Practice Time: Continue following your breath and mindfully noticing distractions throughout the duration set on the timer. Whenever your mind wanders, use the same process of labeling and returning to the breath. Don't worry about getting it perfect; it's about building the habit of mindfulness. Post-Practice Integration: When the timer goes off, slowly open your eyes. Notice how it feels to come back to your everyday consciousness and the world around you. Try to integrate the sense of centeredness and mindfulness you cultivated in the practice with your daily life. Practice Frequency: Schedule regular meditation sessions, preferably in the morning and evening, to build the habit effectively. Practice at the same time and place to establish consistency and deepen your practice. Considerations: Avoid practicing right after a stimulating or heavy activity. If you encounter strong emotional reactions or trauma during meditation, seek professional therapeutic help. Be patient and kind with yourself as you cultivate this new skill.

@ruthyroo 9 ай бұрын

After meditating my head and body feel like they are made from fluffy white clouds, I'll go through the day feeling like life is soft and gentle, everything seems smooth, peaceful. Little thing's that would usually bother me don't. I've found myself eating slower, I can taste food better. I can smell things, I hear clearer😮 is this normal?

@derekwarren1548 Жыл бұрын

(Defining Truth in the Underworld) At a distance of 1 meter the Shadow Boxer is exactly 1 nanosecond ahead of the shadow. If you insert the Shadow Boxer into Plato's " Allegory of the Cave", the Shadow Boxer will remain true, and hostile, on the surface, or subterranean. Beneath the axis of the eclipse the Shadow Boxer is victorious. By defeating darkness, the Shadow Boxer engages the stars in a universal battle of natural selection for light. By decreasing load and growing time. -DW master of shadow boxing

@onepartyroule Жыл бұрын

For anyone else who doesn’t do ads in meditations (I mean, come on), there are 3 within the first 15 minutes. I didn’t watch beyond that. No Adblock for phone app unfortunately.

@johnvervaeke Жыл бұрын

This was an error and had been fixed. Our sincerest apologies!!

@Science-bi8dp Жыл бұрын

Me centre is in the middle My form is formless My consciousness is a fickle turncoat, he always has a foot in each camp (good and evil) passing me information; though he is loyal to no side except himself. The greatest spy

@derekwarren1548 Жыл бұрын

Put your mind out to pasture. Let your thoughts graze on muse. Drink from the spring of conception, as the conscious herd drifts through stimulating hues. ‐DW master of shadow boxing Focus is cheetah, thoughts fleeting gazelle. The mind can race, some thoughts bigger, faster. Ambush predator, camouflage.

@geoffreydawson5430 Жыл бұрын

Yip, don't follow an Eastern tradition without a social support network. Hence a sangha or community of practice. Hence why most Buddhist of origin suggest Western people practise their religions of origin (i.e Christianity of multiple faiths all very similar). If you like to bring a plate of food then Buddhism is great.

@Science-bi8dp Жыл бұрын