MEDITATION
Value of Silence
By Ed Winchester
WHY USE THE THE NAME OF GOD TO ENTER INTO DEEP SILENCE???
Several projects were launched to discover whether there could be a technology and scientific basis for enlightenment hidden in this simple formula. Those investigations led to the conclusion that calling on God's name (repeating, and/or silent prayer and meditation) clears the mind and strengthens your personal biofield thereby bringing an invisible "Light, a Shield of Protection." This is also essential for gaining inner peace and for eliminating harmful effects of stress. Enter your an inner sanctuary the "secret hiding place of the Most High," where communion takes place, and where one develops an ongoing personal relationship with God.
1 . HEALTH BENEFITS AND RESOLVING CONFLICTS (Fruits of Silence)
Silence is important for everyone -- Americans, Russians, Israelis, Palestinians, Chinese, Koreans, Japanese -- people of every nation, race, creed, and culture. This is important first of all because studies show that there are implications for physical and mental well-being. The silence of meditation also provides rest. Meditators report having more peace and more calmness about them. The nervous system becomes stronger and more integrated, strengthening the mind-body connection. Being in silence is important for everyone, because it is a "Common Ground" shared with everyone else. Accessing the "Common Ground" activates a technology for resolving conflicts and solving problems.
This technology works on any scale of human activity, from individuals to nations. Spiritual Defense Initiatives © undertaken by the Pentagon Meditation Club demonstrated that calling on the Name of God (name for God in your own language and religious tradition) is an effective application of unified field theory, and a powerful way to center yourself in the silence. (See also Psalm)
BEST WAY TO PRAY AND MEDITATE?
Entering into this peaceful state of consciousness brings more love into our world. Does it make a difference which form or method of meditation and prayer you use? In reality it is highly beneficial to include both modes; active (“horizontal”) thinking and quieting the mind (“vertical”) thinking (See Modes of Thinking). We find that quieting the mind using the Names of God in fact compliments and strengthens active thinking while being engaged in normal activities. Studies show that the process of quieting the mind produces distinctly different physiological, psychological, and metabolic responses than does vocalizing out loud. The experience of sitting quietly or lying down simply thinking does not produce the same results as does quieting one's mind in meditation. One example of a change that results is that alpha, beta, and theta electrical frequencies are evoked in the brain while meditating on God’s Name. The quieting process by no means implies emptying the mind or thinking blank thought.
You are the knower. In other words, you are not who you think you are. Your image of yourself is in itself a mental creation or construct. You are not your thoughts, but you are the thinker and knower who generates images and thoughts of the "I am . . . "Your essence is at the level of being with nothing else added - not even thoughts.
MEDITATION EXPERIENCES
As awareness becomes more firmly established at the deeper levels of silence over an extended period of time through meditation, ordinary thinking during the day becomes more creative and activities become more productive. Nevertheless, Mode 2 thinking can at times be disconcerting, uncomfortable, or alarming. Those experiences sometimes cause people to avoid or be reluctant to experience the depths of silence in meditation. Are there hidden dangers and pitfalls?
What might you experience as you begin to quiet your mind? Probing the depths of silence is not always a blissful experience or a smooth ride. Meditation is characterized as a stress management technique. The mechanisms by which different kinds of dis-stress are discharged during meditation are not at all obvious, and can be easily misinterpreted. What is really going on?
1. RELAXATION Usually the process of quieting the mind is peaceful, relaxing, and invigorating. You may feel more energetic waves of thought, experience clearer communication, and more empowerment and more ease in everything you do.
2. STRESSORS Practitioners of meditation report that sometimes during meditation they become fearful, extremely bored, or angry, or upset, nervous, or anxious. Sometimes because of fear of the unknown, or of devils and demons they see things, images, shapes, and colors, or hear a voice. That is not to say that one should stop meditating, or that the process is not working, or that it is dangerous.
3. RELEASING MENTAL DIS-STRESS Past experiences in each person's life are stored below the surface of the conscious mind. Often unpleasant memories and feelings can begin to surface during meditation. It is constructive to look at them and to take corrective action, if it seems appropriate. This is a process of releasing old forms of dis-stress and part of the healing process.
4. RELEASING PHYSICAL DIS-STRESS As metabolic activity changes in meditation old physical injuries, even pain, may be noticed. The body may release old forms of dis-stress. If physical discomfort becomes too great to bear, one should stop their meditation for a time, but return to the silence again after the discomfort subsides or disappears entirely.
5. LUCID DREAMING The human brain shifts automatically from a beta frequency to alpha, to theta during eyes closed processes. In the normal wakeful state you are not consciously aware of electrical frequencies being emitted by the brain, so you won't consciously experience changes in frequencies during meditation. However, the dream state of consciousness is generally associated with the theta frequency, and delta is associated with the sleep state. Therefore, one might logically expect to experience lucid dreams during meditation. The content of daydreams can be as pleasant or as disconcerting as dreams during normal sleep periods. If you see images, forms, shapes, etc. during meditation do not be alarmed, particularly when you are using the name of God. You have entered the theta or dream state and are not being besieged by devils or demons! Those experiences may seem as real as do nightmares and other encounters while dreaming in the sleep state. Take time to analyze dream experiences after meditation. Do not disregard them or write them off, or even worse stop meditating because you suspect these are demonic influences.
6. "MEDITATION DOES NOT WORK FOR ME" The meditation is working for you, even if you think it is not. It is not uncommon to hear someone say meditation does not work for them, because they fall asleep. Something is amiss with the way it is being practiced. Perhaps falling asleep seems to be the problem. Underestimating the body's need for rest is a common pitfall. Rest is essential for eliminating the harmful effects of fatigue. Fatigue is another form of physical dis-stress. Meditation often provides exactly what the body needs, more rest. The solution is to avoid sleep deprivation and provide the body with more rest. Perhaps there is some resistance to dealing with stress release, or there is an attempt to control and put the lid on the free flow of thoughts that arise during meditation. The prescription is to allow the dis-stress to surface and release it. Let go of being a controller. Surrender and allow the healing process to unfold naturally. It would be a mistake to abandon meditation altogether.
7. NEW INSIGHTS AND CREATIVE THINKING A frequent experience during meditation is the discovery of new insights, creative solutions to problems, and bright ideas, and spontaneously organizing your day. But thinking “outside the box” is different than being outside the box. Being outside the box implies going beyond mental constructs and thoughts to experience the thinker, the source from which thoughts arise. Thinking is a creative act, making something from nothing. When such thoughts arise, it is important to avoid temptations to stop meditation to analyze or write down those ideas. Do this when the meditation is over. Otherwise, you will be distracted and side tracked. When challenged to be creative, “To think outside the box,” go inside the box of your mind. Listen in silence to your mind’s inner voice for intuitions and answers and fresh insights. Remember, thinking implies being in the box of the mind." So, thinking outside the box" is in reality just being in a bigger box of the mind.
* For those of you who have asked what kind of meditation practice Ed and Loretta does on a regular basis., we do "centering meditation" or the "Prayer of the Heart" also known as the "Jesus Prayer". See "The Prayer of the Heart", A Daily Centering Meditation.
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