the absorbing mind

7/27/2019 The Absorbing Mind

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The Absorbing Mind

Meditation has helped to open my eyes, to open my ears, and to open my heart. When I find myself listeningto Mozarts Piano Concerto No. 21, or toJohann Christian Bachs Symphony for Double Orchestra, nowI can really feel what the composers were trying to say. I can experience what they were feeling. I can heartheir thoughts. The music is alive and I am alive with it. Each note rings clear. I can truly taste [their]brilliance. (Quote from the interview transcript of a senior manager who participated in a recentrandomized controlled trial that we conducted examining the effects of meditation on work-related

wellbeing and job performance.)

More and more countries are making it a legal requirement for cigarette packets todisplay a health warning. The warnings usually contain words to the effect thatSmoking can seriously damage your health. People are becoming increasingly aware thatour health is directly influenced by the types of food and non-food substances that

we inhale or ingest. The idea behind placing warnings on cigarette packets, andbehind including detailed nutritional information on the labels of food packaging, isto help consumers make a health-informed decision about what products they buy.If there is reliable evidence that certain products can have a beneficial or adverseeffect on a persons health, then without taking things too far, it makes sense that

people should be able to access this information at the point of sale.

Interestingly, however, similar types of warnings and/or nutritional informationare not currently displayed on the vast majority of magazines, newspapers, books,television shows, films, and computer games that are readily available for purchasefrom big-name supermarkets, high street stores, and online retailers. We would arguethat when (for example) people read a magazine, watch a television show, or play acomputer game, they are effectivelyingesting these products into their system.

When we mentally consume such products, and subject to how much intelligence

we apply when so doing, we are basically allowing the newspaper journalist or thefilm maker to pour a part of their mind into ours. Depending upon that writers


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intentions and on their levels of spiritual awareness, this may or may not be a goodthing.

When guiding a specific form of meditation, we sometimes ask people to visualizethemselves as a body made of rainbow light, and to then see themselves seated at

the centre of all universes. As the meditation progresses, we invite people to visualizeand experience this rainbow body as being connected by golden threads to allsentient beings. One of the reasons for suggesting that people make this practice, isto try and help them appreciate just how connected we are with all other sentientbeings, and how each and every one of our thoughts, words, and actions influencesthose beings. It might be difficult to comprehend or accept that every single one ofour thoughts, words, and deeds directly touches every single life form andphenomenon throughout the entire multidimensional multiverse. However, even ifthis is difficult to accept, most people dont have any difficulty in understanding thatthe words they utter can directly affect the behaviour and wellbeing of others. Forexample, in our post entitled Forgive them Father, we discussed how just a few

venomous whispers by some of the high priests was all it took for the people towork themselves into a state of anger and rage and consent to the public crucifixionof Jesus Christ.

As each second goes by, an unimaginable variety of stimuli and phenomena,including the thoughts, words, and intentions of others, are constantly bombardingand being absorbed by our minds. Given the extent to which these ingestible

products can influence our wellbeing, we wonder how people in (for example) thenewspaper industry would react if it became a legal requirement for certainnewspapers to print the following statement on their front page: Warning: Readingthis can Seriously Damage your Health. Perhaps then, people might be more selectiveabout the type of materials they read, and perhaps the newspapers would take greatercare not to use words that water the seeds of fear, hatred, and ignorance in peopleshearts and minds.

It seems fairly obvious that other peoples written and spoken words can directlyaffect our mood and wellbeing, and there is plenty of evidence from clinical andneuroimaging studies that supports this view. However, there is also evidenceindicating that our state of wellbeing is also influenced by more subtle factors suchas the passive ambient rhythm or energy of the environment in which we findourselves. A good example of this relates to a research project that our team iscurrently planning where we will be exploring the relationship between meditationand nature (we are joined in this project by Professor Carol Morris of NottinghamUniversity who is a Human Geographer and an expert in how human beings interact

with their physical environment). Research conducted in this study area (generallyreferred to as the study of Ecopsychology), indicates that certain natural and/orman-made environments are much more conducive to wellbeing than others. This


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accords well with the Buddhist view that the mind has the capacity to absorb itsexternal physical and social environment. Although we personally feel thatpsychology still has a lot of progress to make in order to fully appreciate the strengthof the connection between mind and environment, it seems that a growing number

of psychologists would agree that our general levels of wellbeing are heavilyinfluenced not only by psychosocial factors, but also by the physical environmentthat we are exposed to.

When we visit a Buddhist monastery or a meditation practice centre, it is really easyto tell how diligently people are practicing. If people are practicing well, then almostimmediately upon entering and before even meeting anybody, one is engulfed by anair of awareness, deep calm, and gentleness. However, where monasteries or practicecentres exist just for making money or where they have forgotten about theBuddhadharma, then all you encounter is a stale smell of mindlessness andselfishness. Have you ever wondered what type of atmosphere and subtle ambientrhythm is present in your own home? Is it an environment that is conducive tospiritual growth? Are people considerate and are they gentle with one another? Dothe people who live there think before they speak? Do they avoid petty bickeringand forcing their opinions onto each other? Do they move through the house withjoy and awareness? Are things sensibly orderly and is there a good level of basiccleanliness? Have you created a living environment where you can be happy?

Fortunately, although we are continuously exposed to other peoples minds, and to

the background energy of any given environment, there are strategies that we canuse to help buffer and regulate how these stimuli affect us. One of the best strategiesthat we know of is to cultivate mindfulness. We definitely shouldnt becomecomplacent and have the view that because we are mindfulness practitioners, itdoesnt matter what type of materials we read, who we spend our time with, or that

we are above having to keep our home environment clean and tidy. However,cultivating mindfulness means that we become increasingly more aware of the

various different products that we are continuously mentally (and physically)ingesting. Although we cant (and shouldnt try to) block certain stimuli from

entering our field of awareness, what we can do is make an assessment of theirnutritional value. By being fully aware of what we consume with our minds, weessentially empower ourselves to make a choice as to which words and products weallow to penetrate and nourish our being, and which stimuli should be allowed tosimply pass us by. As we discussed in our post titled Do we really exist?, this meansthat relative to the normal person who does not practice awareness, the meditationpractitioner is somebody who is fully in control of their spiritual development andthe self that they are creating.

From the meditation practitioners perspective, its not just with respect to incomingwords and stimuli where we need to apply awareness, but also with respect to the


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type of products and stimuli that we send in other peoples direction. Indeed, giventhe extent to which our thoughts, words, and actions can influence other peoplesminds and wellbeing, it is important that we ensure our speech, writing, and generalbehaviour is infused with wisdom and awareness. In this respect, it is useful to

remember that the human being is a creator. The difference between the everydayperson and the realized being is that the latter is fully aware of their inherent creativepotency. The realized being is like a master artist who uses the tools of insight,compassion, and skilful means to create a dynamic masterpiece of interwoven mindand matter upon the canvas of all-pervasive emptiness.

Each of our thoughts, words, and actions dictate who we are now and who we willbe in the future. Those same thoughts, words, and deeds also influence who others

will be in the future. Therefore, the next time you write something or create aproduct for other peoples minds, perhaps you might like to consider how yourmental foodwill affect the wellbeing of the consumers. It should be reasonablyeasy to tell where somebody is writing with awareness because their words shouldbe easily absorbed and should be alive with wisdom. Such words should effortlesslyfly off the page and talk to you directly. Reading mindful words should leave usfeeling spiritually nourished, calmer, and with a clearer perspective. Mindful wordsshould help us to stop and be, to let go a little, and to feel bathed and refreshed bythat persons compassion and awareness. Mindful words should help us toremember that we were born, that we are currently living, but that in the future we

will die. Upon reading words written in awareness, we should, if we really want to,be able to just unwind, take a few conscious breaths in and out, and start to allowthe mind to relax into its natural state. Perhaps we could say that words written withmindfulness provide us with all five of our spiritual five a day.

Ven Edo Shonin & Ven William Van Gordon

Further Reading

Howell, A.J., Dopko, R.L, Passmore, H., & Buro, K. (2011). Natureconnectedness: associations with well-being and mindfulness. Personality andIndividual differences, 51, 166-171.

Louv, R. (2008). Last Child in the Woods: Saving our Children from Nature-deficit disorder.Algonquin Books.

Ross, C.A. (Ed.). (2012). Words for Wellbeing. Penrith, UK: Cumbria Partnership NHSFoundation Trust.
http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01918869http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01918869http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01918869http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/journal/01918869


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Segal, S. (Ed). 2003. Encountering Buddhism: Western Psychology and Buddhist Teachings.New York: State University of New York Press.

Shonin, E., Van Gordon, W., & Griffiths, M.D. (2013). Mindfulness-based

therapy: A tool for Spiritual Growth? Thresholds. Summer Issue, 14-18.Voigt, C., Brown, G., & Howat, G. (2011). Wellness tourists: in search oftransformation. Tourism Review, 66, 16-30.

Wolsko, C., & Lindberg, K. (2013). Experiencing connection with nature: Thematrix of psychological well-being, mindfulness, and outdoor recreation.

Ecopsychology, 5, 80-91.

the absorbing mind

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