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Mindfulness movement and dangers
Jeffrey
Veteran
in Meditation
This article talks about difficulties in learning mindfulness or rather problems with the popularity of the mindfulness movement.
http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/aug/25/mental-health-meditation
0
Comments
meditation = concentration the mind, can be done by any one
meditation = mindfulness meditation, need the respect to Buddha (faith in Buddha's Teaching) who is/was the founder of the technique
what we can expect when we do anything without respect ?
I think many people who attend this kind of mindfulness class will either do so in a very half-hearted fashion and so gain little benefit, and for others it will be like the latest craze; the mental equivalent of Zumba classes - and will be forgotten about as soon as the next fad arrives.
However, for some it will be a wonderful introduction to other teachings that Buddhism has to offer, and that has got to be a great thing as it really does have the potential to change lives.
Alas, as the article points out, there could easily be traumatic experiences along the way and that needs professional help. If that help is not available then that is rather worrying.
With the right resources and the right teachers I think mindfulness training has got to be a wonderful thing that can help thousands of people who are suffering in so many ways.
Probably difficult to distinguish between "mindfulness" directly causing mental health problems and "activating" pre-existing mental health conditions?
I think any activity that requires introspection and soul-searching can be potentially threatening for people who are mentally-disabled, or simply not strong enough to cope with potential deep-seated issues that might be triggered by the practice.
We discussed this point on a past thread and conclusions at the time were multifarious, to say the least.
@Jeffrey, you mentioned at the time that the practice of meditation had helped you positively with your particular patology.
I commented on the case of a bipolar friend of mine, who was instead cautioned to stay away from meditation practice by her psychiatrist.
And @Citta, being a psychiatrist himself, had said that he'd be happy if some of his patients decided to give meditation a try.
On another thread, @Chaz pasted the link of an interesting magazine called "Mindful."
This magazine has some interesting articles on the practice of mindfulness and general psychology, and I find both subjects are treated with due respect and seriousness.
But once again, I suppose it boils down to how ready we are to deal with the mental garbage dredged up by our conscious effort of staring at it in the face with undivided attention through the practice of mindfulness meditation.
The practice of mindfulness meditation is to completely clear the mind, & be left with only our senses in an effort to eventually realise our real self..There should never be any mental dialogue going on during mindfulness training, & whenever you find your aware that you are thinking you have to distract your thoughts..The thoughts will of course come back quite quickly, but it's just months of daily practice until you get the gist of how to clear you mind & keep it cleared.. :-)
@Daveadams, observing the mental dialogue arising and ceasing is part of insight training, rejecting anything that arises is trying to control the sensory input and is not part of any Buddhist training I've seen. Sure in samatha practice the thoughts are temporarily suppressed but samatha alone won't free you from your defilements.
@DhammaDragon personally I find if difficult thoughts arise I just observe them and let them pass, had some dodgy ones appear this morning but I just let them go. Of course I do have a layer of emotional suppression due to my medication.
My community mental health team are very supportive of my meditation practice and have attributed it to my current stability, medication only goes so far they have told me.
I wouldn't say meditation is about suppressing anything. Allowing the mind to settle so that things can be seen more clearly is how I'd put it.
@SpinyNorman, yeah you have a point, I was still a bit dozy and didn't express myself well.