Meditating in a church

Bunks

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

vinlyn

I have on occasion.

DaftChris

When I went to my parents old church, while everyone was doing the silent prayer, I would cross my legs and "meditate".

This was long before I even considered Buddhism as a path.

genkaku

In a noisy life, it's nice to find a quiet place. A good starting point. Keep after it.

BhanteLucky

Bunks said:

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

Yes, often when I am in the city. We are so lucky to have these beautiful, quiet, mostly empty buildings to meditate in, even though they are Christian.
I don't like it when they play recorded choral or ecclesiastical music to make the place sound busy, but that probably wouldn't disturb a Christian praying.
Once, in New Zealand I went to a big cathedral and there was music everywhere, and tour guides and some sort of exhibition, and noise noise noise. I asked one of the guides if there was a quiet space, and he pointed to a large doorway which had been glassed off into a sort of a box, and that 6-foot wide doorway was the only place for silent contemplation in the whole cathedral.

lobster

Yes. My local Catholic Church has a back entrance when the front is locked, for the faithful and interested heretics like me . . .
New priests and more devotional congregation makes it very conducive to silent meditation . . . Very quiet, often empty. Good vibe.

ThailandTom

In the book 'Mindfulness In Plain English' it talks about how even prayer, chanting or singing can be forms of meditation to an extent that exist in other religions. They are not what you may think of when you talk about meditation but in fact they are.

I have only been in a Church a few times and I must agree with you @Bunks that they often are very peaceful and serene. I could imagine that they would be pleasant to meditate in. However is there no Buddhist temple close by? It would make sense to simply go to a temple and see what's what there.

Bunks

ThailandTom said:

In the book 'Mindfulness In Plain English' it talks about how even prayer, chanting or singing can be forms of meditation to an extent that exist in other religions. They are not what you may think of when you talk about meditation but in fact they are.

I have only been in a Church a few times and I must agree with you @Bunks that they often are very peaceful and serene. I could imagine that they would be pleasant to meditate in. However is there no Buddhist temple close by? It would make sense to simply go to a temple and see what's what there.

Plenty of temples out in the 'burbs @ThailandTom but none in the city I'm afraid.

Daozen

I haven't - but I wish I had.

Last year I visited Barcelona and went to see La Sagrada Familia - the most impressive building I have ever sat foot inside. There was one section you could only enter if you wanted to pray. Feeling like a charlatan, I decided not to enter the area. But i realised later I could have just gone in and meditated, and now I regret I didn't. Ce la vie.

So I say "good on you" for making the most of a beautiful, serene, sacred space.

Invincible_summer

Daozen said:

I haven't - but I wish I had.

Last year I visited Barcelona and went to see La Sagrada Familia - the most impressive building I have ever sat foot inside. There was one section you could only enter if you wanted to pray. Feeling like a charlatan, I decided not to enter the area. But i realised later I could have just gone in and meditated, and now I regret I didn't. Ce la vie.

So I say "good on you" for making the most of a beautiful, serene, sacred space.

As my agnostic friend said when we visited La Sagrada Familia - "I'd go Christian for this Church."

I have a feeling that it's primarily Anglican/Catholic churches that tend to be open to the public to come in and pray. Reason being, my parents attend a Baptist church and I'm pretty sure it's only open when the church is having a service/event.

But yeah, there's definitely nothing wrong with meditating in a church. Sometimes the "spiritual energy" is refreshing for someone who might just meditate at home or something.

Beej

i work at a church/school- not only is the sanctuary the best place to meditate, its the best place to read, draw pictures, and take a nap. the christians dont use it very much, apart from their sunday traditional worship service. all that emptiness is profound.

BhikkhuJayasara

any quiet place is a wonderful place to start meditation in.. just don't get too attached to the quiet. Noise and action going on around you should be observed as well. If you have to find a place where half your senses have no contact just to "be at peace" then such places will be harder and harder to find and places you initially loved for quiet will become noisy. Tis the nature of phenomenon.

It was in the meditation hall at Bhavana Society that the phrase by Ajahn Chah " is the noise disturbing you, or are you disturbing the noise" made sense to me. A normally quiet place became alive with the sound of crickets. I became angered at the noise and realized that I was bothering it with my negativity and aversion. Since then noise has become part of my observation

my favorite place to meditate is in the middle of the woods.. you'd think that is a quiet place, but it is alive with phenomenon that contact all the senses.

It's when you begin to see that the most quiet place is in your own mind regardless of whats going on in the world around you, that you are getting somewhere.

ThailandTom

Jayantha said:

any quiet place is a wonderful place to start meditation in.. just don't get too attached to the quiet. Noise and action going on around you should be observed as well. If you have to find a place where half your senses have no contact just to "be at peace" then such places will be harder and harder to find and places you initially loved for quiet will become noisy. Tis the nature of phenomenon.

It was in the meditation hall at Bhavana Society that the phrase by Ajahn Chah " is the noise disturbing you, or are you disturbing the noise" made sense to me. A normally quiet place became alive with the sound of crickets. I became angered at the noise and realized that I was bothering it with my negativity and aversion. Since then noise has become part of my observation

my favorite place to meditate is in the middle of the woods.. you'd think that is a quiet place, but it is alive with phenomenon that contact all the senses.

Agreed. I think meditation should mirror life and in life we should not be trying to escape or run away from things. Some of the most productive sessions I have experienced have been where there are 'distractions'. It may have been construction noises, people, cars, insects whatever. If you strive to find a totally quiet place to meditate in time after time then you are attaching yourself to a setup environment and wrapping yourself up in a silk blanket. However, when you are starting out I think it is key to find a quiet place but we should find a balance and not search for one extreme or the other long term.

BhikkhuJayasara

ThailandTom said:

Jayantha said:

any quiet place is a wonderful place to start meditation in.. just don't get too attached to the quiet. Noise and action going on around you should be observed as well. If you have to find a place where half your senses have no contact just to "be at peace" then such places will be harder and harder to find and places you initially loved for quiet will become noisy. Tis the nature of phenomenon.

It was in the meditation hall at Bhavana Society that the phrase by Ajahn Chah " is the noise disturbing you, or are you disturbing the noise" made sense to me. A normally quiet place became alive with the sound of crickets. I became angered at the noise and realized that I was bothering it with my negativity and aversion. Since then noise has become part of my observation

my favorite place to meditate is in the middle of the woods.. you'd think that is a quiet place, but it is alive with phenomenon that contact all the senses.

Agreed. I think meditation should mirror life and in life we should not be trying to escape or run away from things. Some of the most productive sessions I have experienced have been where there are 'distractions'. It may have been construction noises, people, cars, insects whatever. If you strive to find a totally quiet place to meditate in time after time then you are attaching yourself to a setup environment and wrapping yourself up in a silk blanket. However, when you are starting out I think it is key to find a quiet place but we should find a balance and not search for one extreme or the other long term.

agreed, when starting out it is important. I think naturally as your practice progresses you just accept these things and they just don't bother you, in fact you welcome them as chances for observation. This could really frustrate someone who is FORCING themselves to do that though.

ZenBadger

I am a tour guide at a small historic church with a grisly past of sectarian violence (back in the late medieval era I hasten to add). My fellow guide is a Christian and we often just sit together when visitors are few (most of the time), I meditate and she prays and we both reflect upon the dark history of the place in our own ways. Even though it is a place where men were hung, drawn and quartered for their beliefs we manage to find some common ground and give thanks for the relatively peaceful society we now live in.

DairyLama

Bunks said:

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

Yes, on occasion, and it makes sense because churches have a certain atmosphere resulting from spiritual practice over a long period of time ( sometimes extending back before the building of the church ).

Though as an ex Roman Catholic meditating in church makes me feel a bit guilty.

ZenBadger

PedanticPorpoise said:

Though as an ex Roman Catholic meditating in church makes me feel a bit guilty.

I know what you mean. I wouldn't meditate in the local RC church - I still flinch when I see a nun with a ruler...

vinlyn

Jayantha said:

any quiet place is a wonderful place to start meditation in.

THat's very true. I like to travel, and when I find a particularly beautiful spot, I usually take a few minutes and...well, it's not quite as deep as meditation, but practice deep, focused thinking, usually about how thankful I am for the beauty in my life.

Bunks

PedanticPorpoise said:

Bunks said:

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

Yes, on occasion, and it makes sense because churches have a certain atmosphere resulting from spiritual practice over a long period of time ( sometimes extending back before the building of the church ).

Though as an ex Roman Catholic meditating in church makes me feel a bit guilty.

That's an interesting point. I specifically mentioned in my initial post that I grew up in a non religious environment to see if anyone would reply with some aversion to a certain church or churches in general due to their upbringing.

Simonthepilgrim

When I was in Dharamsala (2001), one of my young Tibetan friends, recently out of the army after his military service and recently married, also a 'devout' and practising Buddhist, told me that he used the small Anglican church as a meditation space. When I walked down the hill to see the church in question, St John in the Wilderness, I found a typical English church among Himalayan deodars, a wonderful, peaceful place that I, too, used often during my stay. Much quieter than the temples in town.

TheEccentric

Surely the Christians would think it would be a bit odd if you randomly just started meditating in a chart and its a bit ironic you have to admitt, it's like playing football/soccer in a cricket field.

Jeffrey

Many Christian nuns meditate, but their form of practice is to be with Jesus during the meditation.

Simonthepilgrim

Not just nuns. Contemplative prayer, which is what this type of meditation is called in Christian terms (Christian meditation is more discursive), is an integral part of the monastic tradition and is widely practised in both Catholic and Anglican parishes as well. Silent meditation is not exclusive to Buddhism, indeed I can find examples of it, and of the use of mantras or similar, in all faith families, including Islam.

As for what the meditator aims for, as far as I can see, in most cases it is the abandonment of 'self' which dissolves in silence. This, at least, sets it apart from petitionary prayer, be that for success, health, passing exams or loving kindness. It is silence without any objective but itself.

Thus there is no irony in using a dedicated space to meditate than in sitting under a tree or in an echoing temple. As for dual use of a cricket pitch, the home of cricket, Lord's, hosted the archery at the London Olympics. 'nuff said, I think.

footiam

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

It beats meditating under a tree.

vinlyn

footiam said:

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

It beats meditating under a tree.

Why do you say that? It worked pretty well for Siddhartha.

footiam

vinlyn said:

footiam said:

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

It beats meditating under a tree.

Why do you say that? It worked pretty well for Siddhartha.

I mean it is more comfortable. I would say that it is not important where one meditates. It is the meditation that counts. In a modern world like ours, we can't go round looking for trees to practice our meditation. Some people would think that's cuckoo.

vinlyn

As I recall, some thought Siddhartha was cuckoo.

footiam

That's just an opinion. What do you think? Is Siddhartha a cuckoo? I should start a thread on this.

Bunks

footiam said:

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

It beats meditating under a tree.

Oh, I thought that was a joke!

footiam

Bunks said:

footiam said:

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

It beats meditating under a tree.

Oh, I thought that was a joke!

It can be a joke. Why not? It's how you see it.

Bunks

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

I just finished meditating in the church mentioned above and noticed they had a prayer book in which you could write down prayers.

I wrote "Namo tassa bhagavato arahato samma-sambuddhassa" (Homage to the Blessed One, the Worthy One, the Rightly Self-awakened One).

Am I going to hell?????

how

I would keep in mind that meditation practiced in a variety external conditions may better prepare your practice to meet the world you live in. Unless you live in a church.

lobster

I used to meditate a lot in libraries often with my teacher. All you need is a book, which you can read if you like . . .

Yesterday in my local reference section, the kids next door in the children's library were chanting the Zen Koan/mantra, 'Old McDonald had a farm EE AH EEHA HO'. A potential Boddhisattva arrived, emptying all his books, techno attachments and announcing to the world 'he had forgotten his laptop', then his phone which seemed to include a 'mindfulness bell' was answered for everyone to practice non attachment to . . .
With arisings like this to practice amongst, a Church or Temple would seem a little . . . peace contrivance . . .

'Church' is a state of mind in the temple between ones ears . . .

Bunks

lobster said:

Yesterday in my local reference section, the kids next door in the children's library were chanting the Zen Koan/mantra, 'Old McDonald had a farm EE AH EEHA HO'. A potential Boddhisattva arrived, emptying all his books, techno attachments and announcing to the world 'he had forgotten his laptop', then his phone which seemed to include a 'mindfulness bell' was answered for everyone to practice non attachment to . . .

Bravo.......



:clap:

Neither

Bunks said:

I've found the quietest place (and for me most peaceful) to meditate in the Melbourne CBD at lunch time is an Anglican Cathedral.

It's such a beautiful building and I've always felt a sense of serenity and peace when I've entered a church (I grew up in a non-religious environment and have never been to any sort of formal church service).

Anyone else meditate in a church or have any thoughts about it?

I meditate in a christian church when i can. It is nice to feel that enlightened vibe somwhere other than the quote unquote "Shanga". It makes me feel like we're all on the same plane. Fellow travelers.