Essays on Meditation

Despite the fact, that both meditation and prayer are the methods of obtaining the religious experience. However, those are not the same despite the fact that many scholars and mystics claim that meditation and prayer are of the same matter.
The word "Meditation" (Meditatio) is of a Latin origin. It didn`t come from pagan religions, but from the Christian West. It correlates with the verb "meditor" or "to meditate", ponder and means the deep concentration associated with a detachment from external objects and individual inner experiences. The Christian West gave it two meanings. On the one hand, it Continue reading...

Descartes’ skepticism and confusions about self-believe, truth and knowledge are expressed in his First Meditation. He is confused by the nature of his sensory beliefs because most of the times they tend to mislead him. His distrust for his senses does not mean that he distrusts all of them. He only happens to distrust some of them when the conditions for trusting such senses are poor. He will trust his senses when the conditions are such that they are favorable and conducive to be trusted.
The other thing that makes Descartes skeptic about life and self-belief is in the Continue reading...

Hinduism, the dominant religion of India and Nepal, consists of several different traditions. With teachings on daily morality and traditions referred to as Shaktism, Shaivism, and many others, the culture surrounding Hinduism is rich and vibrant. In order to understand it better, I sought to have a religious experience involving Hinduism. On March 19, 2014, I attended the Malibu Hidden Temple, located at 1600 Las Virgenes Canyon Road, Calabasas, California, 91302. It was my hope to have a religious experience that would enlighten me to the ways of the Hindu culture.
Upon first arriving at the Malibu Hidden Temple, Continue reading...

For five months, I have been practicing meditation almost on a daily basis. I started my meditation practice last year in October, driven by the fact that I was experiencing sleeping disorders, which made me feel unbalanced, cranky and tired. My first meditation sessions started out with mixed feelings. I was determined to do something about my sleeping problems, and I did not want to become a slave of medication. A friend of mine advised me to practice meditation to calm myself, indicating that this might have effective results for making me feel more relaxed and for losing my Continue reading...

Introduction

Among the numerous relaxation techniques, mindfulness meditation is applied when an individual is trying to achieve a mind that is calm and stable. Mindfulness meditation allows people to discover that harmony and calmness is actually a natural mind aspect. It is believed that, with the practice of mindfulness meditation, individuals strengthen and develop their mind, before they reach mind peace, and be able to stay in that peaceful state of mind without putting too much effort in it. Unlike what some people may thing, in mindful meditation the individual that applies it is perfectly aware of everything going on Continue reading...

Visual arts are forms of art that are visual in nature. They include ceramics, drawings, sculptures, photography and even paintings. These forms of art are used to exhibit different things that are part and parcel of human life. There are times when works of visual art exhibit some kind of spiritual practice. Religions such as Buddhism use a lot of visual art in their worship to such an extent it has a wide range of sculptures which serve as their Gods. In the art gallery there are various sculptures, paintings and drawings that prove this fact. Many of these Continue reading...

McDonald's book is one that helps one get back on the track of life organization of life especially after the chaos experienced during the holidays. Chapters twelve and thirteen are especially important in tackling the issues and challenges of everyday life. Other than the bible, this is one of the most direct books that provide guidance on how to handle issues of everyday life. One of the most important advices evident in the book is especially important for people who have a tendency to procrastinate and overload their calendars. Apparently, this is how people lose sight of the structure Continue reading...

In Buddhism, Karma denotes those actions that are deliberately done and would result in future consequences (Kessler, Gary, 20). The action has to be intentional and if forged through the body, mind and speech of an individual. Karma in Buddhism is completely defined by intention and lives in an individual’s subconscious mind for a long time until the consequences are manifested. Buddhists believe that rebirth is the cycle of life and death. It is fostered by things such as hatred, lack of knowledge and human desires. Karma is what determines the state and cycle of rebirth of a Continue reading...

Descartes by invoking Cogito in the second meditation was able to control metaphysical doubts supervening on his initial conquest that was based on conscious will. However, the Cogito has refuted the mathematical and physical hypothesis of a deceiving God only momentarily in regard of ascertaining of our self-esteem. The understanding of conscious will is a feeling that one is doing things (Cunning, 2010). This feeling occurs in almost everything we do, implying time and time again we consciously cause actions. But the feeling may not be an accurate expression of what is happening in our bodies as our actions Continue reading...

The Meditation on the Passion

Jesus is seated on a throne in ruins engraved with Hebrew graffiti on the back, two hermits on his side are in a nearly symmetrical position. Since Renaissance this picture was considered as work of Andrea Mantegna because there was a readable signature of this painter. Only in 1945 (thanks to Murray Pease) it was finally cleared the identity of the author: under the signature of Mantegna it was possible to read, thanks to infrared analysis, the signature of Vit Carpaccio. The circumstances of the order and the original location of the work are still unknown. The date of Continue reading...

Descartes

In his Meditation Descartes provides two arguments for the existence of God. One argument is a causal argument while the other one is an ontological argument for the existence of God.  The ontological argument for the existence of God that he proposed in fifth Meditation is a straightforward one. Descartes claims that our idea of God is the idea of a perfect being. Perfection entails lack of nothing so, if something is perfect, then it must exist because something that does not exist cannot be perfect. But, God is perfect; therefore, he has to exist. The perfection of God Continue reading...

Interview and Report about Buddhism

A. I was born Buddhist and been practicing the religion all my life. My family is Buddhist and for as long as I can remember I have always prayed at home or gone to the temple for worship.

Q. Are you a serious practitioner of your faith or are you just a nominal believer in your religion?

A. Yes I am a serious practitioner and strong believer of my faith. I do all that pertains to my religion and partake of its traditions whenever I can.

Q. What are your main beliefs and practices that are important to you?

A. I believe in the powers of the deities and prayer through meditation. I meditate almost daily at home or sometimes outside my home.
Q. What misunderstandings do you think others around Continue reading...

Memory

Memory is defined as a series of processes that encode sensory information, store it, and retrieve it. There are several types of memory, but the most common types discussed include working memory, procedural memory, semantic memory, and episodic memory.

Effects of Meditation on Memory

Meditation was found to decrease mind wandering, which resulted in the improvement of working memory capacity and overall cognitive performance (Mrazek, Franklin, Phillips, Baird, & Schooler, 2013). Cerebral blood flow, verbal fluency, and logic memory improved in patients with memory loss after 8 weeks of meditation training (Newberg, Wintering, Khalsa, Roggenkamp, & Waldman, 2010). Because of the increases of cerebral blood flow Continue reading...

Rene Descartes had a philosophical treatise published in 1647 called the meditations on the first philosophy (Statile et al. 2010, pp.548). His book has six different meditations that include meditation of the things called doubt, meditation of the nature of the human mind, meditation of the existence of God, meditation that concerns true and false, meditation that concerns the importance of the material things, and the meditation that concerns the differences between mind and body.

First Meditation: Doubtful Things

This mediation called skeptical doubts starts as the mediator makes a reflection on some of the beliefs during his lifetime that now he attest Continue reading...

Diverse Faiths

In this paperwork, I am going to perform an intensive research on three diverse faiths, namely the Sikh, the Buddhism, and the Jehovah’s Witness. The paperwork requires me to compare the philosophy of providing health care from the perspective of each of these three faiths with that of the Christian perspective and giving my own personal perspective. Comparing and contrasting the different belief systems will also be included in the paper.
It is of significant essence for the health care providers to let go of their faith and integrate the beliefs of the patients in medical care. The Continue reading...

Introduction

In our day to day lives, we encounter numerous stressors. Some people tend to be more susceptible to stress than others, however, everyone experiences stress at some time in their lives. If stress isn’t well handled it could lead to serious health conditions such as depression, poor health and in severe cases suicide (Greenberg, 2011). The following report is on the use of meditation as a relaxation technique for stress management.

Benefits of the technique

The technique I used for stress management involved meditating for 10-15 minutes every morning. Meditation is beneficial in that;
- It increases once focus. Meditation involves an Continue reading...

ID Number

Information about the Athlete

Derrick Rose is one of the bankable players in NBA. Derrick was born in Chicago, Illinois on the 4th of October 1988. Derrick’s brothers influenced him to play at the court. They helped him learn about passing, dribbling, and shooting. Further, Derrick looks up to Michael Jordan as his role model. Being the youngest, Derrick was well-protected by his brothers and mother.
During high school, Derrick enrolled in a vocation school called Simeon Career Acadehis where he was able to exhibit his skills in basketball. Derrick led the team during the championship in the city. Toward Continue reading...

1. Where would you go for resources to help you deal with your own grief?
I use some basic resources to deal with my own grief like sharing them with someone; deep breathing exercises or staying active help me kick out grief. Spirituality and practices of meditation also helped me in healing grief.
2. Why would you choose that source?
Feelings and emotions affect our energy. Spiritual practices like meditation, deep breathing exercises or sharing my emotions with someone give me a feeling of relaxation and relieve mental stresses. A good combination of medication and practices of spiritualities like Continue reading...

Wonderbar University

There is an old saying: Everybody needs a hobby. I began mine when I was quite young—around 5 or 6 years old. My mother gave me a handful of tumbled gemstones. I cherished all of them, especially my clear quartz. Many years later, I rediscovered my passion for gemstone collecting because I learnt of their “metaphysical properties.” I believe gemstone collecting augments spiritual practices such as meditation. I love to look through my vast collection of natural glass, rocks, and crystals to pick out which two I would like to hold for meditating today. This afternoon, I chose Continue reading...

Meditation is always based on the philosophy. In most cases, this is not stated but the fact is that the meditation practices drive its concepts through philosophy. Meditation refers to the underlying understanding of the nature of body and mind, as well as general nature of life. Meditation entails training the mind in a process that sustains attention. In fact, meditation is a process that pacifies the imagination, body, intellect, as well as emotions in order to develop alertness and tranquility. Philosophers assert that meditation is a sustained form of thinking on one of many issues. The main attention Continue reading...

07, 04, 2014

Executive summary
The Chinese meditation pools are some of the ancient designs that still make sense in the modern times. The design and construction of such a facility requires a lot of keenness from the designer to ensure the designed pool meets the requirements of the client. Anciently, these pools were designed together with a meditation platform because of their complementary use. This project involves the design and construction of a meditation pool and the corresponding platform for meditation. The major challenge in this project is the sensitivity of the final product to the client, which needs to be Continue reading...

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Until his death in 1650, Descartes published philosophical ideologies and concepts with emphasis on the functioning of the universe as one. His second meditation dubbed the “Wax Argument” finds its basis in the perceptions of reality as opposed to those of an illusion. This is due to the fact that as a person, one is not only capable of thinking and has a will but has the ability to imagine and use senses to perceive reality. These senses are in turn connected by one mind that is the center of thought. According to Continue reading...

Zen Buddhism refers to a religious practice that largely incorporates meditation as the key pillar that supports its existence. It is further defined as a means that is used to obtain enlightenment through application of thoughts. Zen Buddhism is often considered as an offshoot of Pure land Buddhism. This paper seeks to explore the beliefs and practices of Zen Buddhism. Consequently, it seeks to explore the similarities and any differences between Zen Buddhism and Pure land Buddhism. In addition, it will also explore the difference between Zen Buddhism and other religions.
The character and the nature of Buddhism are Continue reading...

The mental position and status of an individual or group determines many issues in terms of the way individuals or the groups behaves and acts towards realizing certain objective and goals. The mental position is critical in the sense that it can lead one to succeed or fail in confronting various challenges, since it also determines and controls the body. Meditation is an act that everybody in the world undergoes either subconsciously or consciously in life on a daily basis. It is described as a practice of concentrated focus upon something in order to increase awareness of the current Continue reading...

The article titled “Mediation Has Power to Influence Your Gene” by Christopher Bergland gives a summary of the findings of two researchers conducted to investigate the relationship between meditation and pain. The first research explored by the article was conducted by a group of Scientist from Spain and France. According to Christopher, it was the first study to establish that there was an alteration of gene expressions in individuals practicing mindfulness mediation. The article reported that the comparison of gene alterations was done between experienced mediators who had undergone intensive mediation and untrained control participants who were involved in Continue reading...

Discuss the meaning of the life and death of Socrates based on the texts you have read this semester

According to Plato’s apology, he regarded Socrates as gadfly because he was stinging the Athenians culture and politics. This is because Socrates was a critic of the politics and the social life in Athens. This made him have so many enemies in Athens because they believed that he was corrupting the youth. The term gadfly as was used to represent the life of Socrates was first mentioned when one of his friends named as Chaerephone. This was when he went to the oracle of Delphi and asked them if they knew anyone who was wiser than Socrates was. Continue reading...

Introduction

The first and the second meditation are found the book called the meditation of the first philosophy written by René Descartes. The book talks about the existence of God and the distinction of the soul from the body. The people who want to pursue careers in philosophy are recommended to read this book. The first meditation people are aware that with doubt then that means it does not exist. The second meditation talks about how the mind, which brings about thinking is said without a doubt that it exist thus ideas are able to be formulated.

The first meditation: concerning those things that can be called into doubt

He starts by Continue reading...

Anxiety is described as the fear of an imagined situation or a condition that may not actually happen in a real life situation. The history of anxiety dates back to the days of Mark Twain who once remarked that he experienced a lot of troubles in his entire life (Ebert et al., 210). These troubles originated from the act of the reactions of imagined situations of which most of them never happened. Anxiety installs one with a condition that when somebody fails to, or by any means fails to achieve or perform to a particular extent as expected, they Continue reading...

Introduction

Complementary medicine is a group of therapies or diagnostic approaches that are outside the institutions of the conventional healthcare. There have been several names given to this group of therapies. These include alternative and integrative medicine. It can also be refer to as the group of therapies or treatment a patient use in addition to the doctor’s standard care.
In recent times, there has been an issue with stress and this has been affecting the health status of people. In a bid to manage the stress, some of the approaches used involved the complementary medicine. These techniques help Continue reading...

The main purpose of this article is to investigate the potential effects of mindfulness meditation (MM) intervention, originating in Buddhist vipassana or “insight”, as opposed to somatic relaxation (SR) training that is based on body awareness, for a one month period, of randomly selected one hundred and four students and compare the findings with a control group.
The most important information in this article relates to a direct comparison of both mentioned interventions that aim at reducing stress in students currently involved in health and medical studies. The data show that MM and SR groups successfully overcame psychological distress. Continue reading...

The mind of every individual consists of various issues. The mind needs amicable environment. The article is all about management of stress and essence of forgiveness which help in the proper functioning of the mind among the college students. Furthermore the authors’ views of the various methods used to make analysis about the effectiveness of stress management methods and the results of the research undertaken in the 8 weeks, MBSR.
Stress affects most the college students in their studies. It is evident in their outcome of their performance in their academics. The article provides strategies that help in implementing Continue reading...

Li Bai happens to be one of the most outstanding poets of all times in the Chinese history of poetry. He wrote poems that have been acclaimed this day and that are acknowledged and studied all over the world. He embraced different themes in the poems and thus employed many poetic devices as seen through all his poems. One poem in particular which stands out is Zazen on Ching-t’ing Mountain. This particular poem is very short with only two stanzas that contain two lines each, which makes a total of four lines. It is incredible that with only Continue reading...

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is an initiative in medicine that falls under the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM, 2013). The role of NCCAM is to identify complementary and alternative medicine practices using laborious scientific approaches and develop an evidence base that outlines the safety and effectiveness of such practices (Lubkin, 2012).

Alternative Medicine

According to the NCCAM website (2013), alternative medicine refers to medicine, which has been developed using a non-mainstream approach instead of using conventional medicine. For instance, the use of special diets to treat cancer, as opposed to going through chemotherapy or surgery is a Continue reading...

Imagine that you are at the end of your life – your body begins to shut down, your organs start to fail you, and the fear of losing who you are forever. However, a magical company comes along with the ability to transplant your mind into someone else’s body. Who would you be if that came to be? There are many different philosophical nuances to navigate when exploring this question, as it relates closely to the dilemma of the nature of self – whether you are the sum of your thoughts, or whether or not your body actually constitutes an Continue reading...

A museum is a place where objects related to art, Science, Geography and History are placed for studies .The Birmingham Museum of Art is among largest great art museums with finest collection of art in the world. It attracts many visitors a year almost over 1million.It has over a collection of 450,000 works of art, which makes it one of the most comprehensive collections within Europe. Buddhist art is among one of the most important exhibitions within the museum. I visited the museum to learn more about Buddhist art, specifically the image of Buddha.
The Buddha image is Continue reading...

Key terms

Meditation- a thought processes intended to understand abstract ideas by Rene Descartes
Chimeras- By this Descartes intends to mean that all what he thought about his existence is mythical and not true, in fact, it does not even exist.

Conclusion/central argument

Even though Descartes presumes that all what he knew about his existence was a creation of his deceptive mind and actually false and not just doubtful, at least one belief much be true. And this is the truth that as long as he is thinking, as long as he is being deceived, then he must exist, at least to allow Continue reading...

Living in Radical Doubt

1. How Will You Feel In Your New State of Mind?
According to Descartes Meditation I, radical and methodical doubt is necessary to remind myself about the habit of accepting beliefs without any logical support. Thus, Descartes says that that it is important to dismiss all judgements on the basis of beliefs that are doubtful and do not have any solid support. In the new state of mind, where I doubt everything at least I would be content to know that I am not being misled into falsehood by some evil demon. The new state of mind would make Continue reading...

Introduction

Rhetoric refers to the study of how speakers and writers use words in their presentations and writings to influence their influence. Therefore, a rhetoric analysis refers to an essay that splits a work of non-fiction into different parts and then elucidates how the different parts work jointly to create a certain impact. These impacts could be entertaining, persuasive, or informative. Rhetorical analysis can also be conducted of a primarily visual arguments such as an advertisement or a cartoon, or even a speech that has orally been performed. A person who writes these primary sources can be referred to as Continue reading...

Does Descartes prove it rationally?

Does Descartes prove it rationally?

Introduction

The famous philosophical discourse by Rene Descartes which comprises six mediations gives a deep insight into nature of human mind, difference between truth and false and perceptions of reality and doubts (Skirry, 2008). Defining the basics of doubt and reality to steadily move towards the rational proof of existence of God, Descartes has elucidated an in-depth analysis of how man perceives the world around and how he should perceive it for better. The six meditations are worth a detailed analysis to comprehend the question of existence of God and nature of human mind. However, Continue reading...

Rene Descartes had various meditations on issues that becomes the basis of various philosophies. The meditation 1 is entitled what can be called into doubt , which opens with mediator reflecting on falsehoods that he has believed in life as well as the faultiness of body of knowledge. As a matter of fact, the mediation 1 is a clear indication of how things through individuals common sense is always open to doubt. In the meditation, Descartes uses various arguments to demonstrate the peoples knowledge on doubt. The arguments include the deceiving God argument, the dream argument, as well as the Continue reading...