Buddhism has all the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion

"Buddhism has all the characteristics of what would be expected in a cosmic religion for the future: it transcends a personal God, avoids dogma and theology; it covers both the natural and spiritual, and it is based on a religious sense aspiring from the experience of all things, natural and spiritual, as a meaningful unity."
-- Albert Einstein --

The State sacrifices the present for the future

The State sacrifices the present for the future, ever safeguarding itself for the future; it regards the future as all-important, and not the present. But to the intelligent man, the present is of the highest importance, the now and not the tomorrow.

Prolonged meditative practice with happiness and compassion as its objects will breed evermore happiness and compassion

Prolonged meditative practice with happiness and compassion as its objects will breed evermore happiness and compassion, and through this we may find the necessary escape from the Buddha's "three poisons." Meditative practice that trains the mind of the comtemplative towards ever greater compassion and happiness, due to the brain's plasticity, therefore breeds a repetitive and positive cycle leading towards enlightenment, just as the Buddha taught 2,500 years ago.

One of the enduring changes in the brain of those who routinely meditate,is that the brain becomes thicker.

"One of the enduring changes in the brain of those who routinely meditate,is that the brain becomes thicker. In other words, those who routinely meditate build synapses, synaptic networks, and layers of capillaries (the tiny blood vessels that bring metabolic supplies such as glucose or oxygen to busy regions), which an MRI shows is measurably thicker in two major regions of the brain. One is in the pre-frontal cortex, located right behind the forehead. It’s involved in the executive control of attention – of deliberately paying attention to something. This change makes sense because that’s what you're doing when you meditate or engage in a contemplative activity."
"The second brain area that gets bigger," he further notes, "is a very important part called the insula. The insula tracks both the interior state of the body and the feelings of other people, which is fundamental to empathy. So, people who routinely tune into their own bodies – through some kind of mindfulness practice – make their insula thicker, which helps them become more self-aware and empathic. This is a good illustration of neuroplasticity, which is the idea that as the mind changes, the brain changes, or as Canadian psychologist Donald Hebb put it, neurons that fire together wire together."

You are, in fact, connected not just by Facebook and by the Internet, you are actually quite literally connected by your neurons

Wayne Dyer's "There Is a Spiritual Solution to Every Problem," Dr. Dyer describes an experiment in which an act of kindness was performed for one group of individuals, the act was witnessed by another group and a third group acted as a control. Serotonin levels of all individuals were recorded both before and after the experiment, and not surprisingly the serotonin levels in the group that received the act of kindness went up markedly. (Serotonin is one of the "feel good" neurotransmitters in our brains that tells us all is well with us and the world.) More interestingly, serotonin levels also jumped in the witnessing group but not in the control group.
The experiment made sense to me. After all, who doesn't feel good when they witness a spontaneous act of kindness? It is why we make saints of the Mother Theresas of the world.

Now, however, in a riveting Ted.com lecture delivered by renowned neuroscientist V.S. Ramachadran, Director of the Centre for Brain and Cognition at the University of California, San Diego, Ramachadran gives a satisfactorily plausible explanation of these phenomena. In describing how "mirror neurons" in the human neo-cortex work, Ramachadran accounts not only for how human civilisations and culture has been able to 'evolve' in the astoundingly short evolutionary time-frame they have, but also how humans have developed their capacity for empathy.



Further, and perhaps most interestingly, Ramachadran relates these latest findings in neuroanatomny back to what ancientEastern wisdom teachings and psychologies have expounded for thousands of years. It is possible, he says, "to absolve the barrier between you and other human beings."
"There is no real independent self aloof from other beings, inspecting the world and inspecting other people," he observes. "You are, in fact, connected not just by Facebook and by the Internet, you are actually quite literally connected by your neurons, and there are whole chains of neurons connected around this room talking to each other. And, there is no real distinctiveness of your consciousness from somebody else's consciousness."
"And this is not just mumbo-jumbo philosophy, it emerges from our basic understanding of neuroscience," Ramanatha points out.

"For the longest time, " Ramachnadra concludes, "people have regarded sciences and the humanities as being distinct. C. P. Snow spoke of the 'two cultures' - sciences on the one hand and humanities on the other - and never the twain shall meet. So I'm saying that the mirror neuron system lies at the interface, allowing you to think about issues like consciousness, representation of self, what separates you from other human beings, what allows you to empathize with other human beings, and also even things like the emergence of civilisation and culture, which is unique to human beings."

contemplative's sequential ascent through the eight different stages of this focused meditation

Meditation on the "eight jhanas," while prominent in the Buddha's time, is now largely restricted to the Theravadan tradition centred in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia. The contemplative states reached by meditators in the different levels of the jhanas are variously described by the researchers as follows:

"The first jhana is described as intense physical energy and emotional joy, often accompanied by muscle tension, twitching, tears, hair standing on end, etc. The second jhana is more sedate, with physical relaxation, a strong sense of joy coming in waves and only a minor sense of physical energy. The third jhana is energetically quiet, but with strong contentment and happiness. In the fourth jhana the pleasure turns to neutrality, described as equanimity."

"In the fifth jhana one senses an infinite space all around. In the sixth jhana one senses that one’s consciousness has become infinite. In the seventh jhana there is a deep sense of nothingness, an absence of form. The eighth jhana is named “neither perception nor non-perception” because the mind does not even categorize the experience."

Put together, the "eight jhana" meditation sounds like an ascent to nirvana, as do the powerful changes the meditation seems to effect in the brains of the contemplatives - at least based on these results.

Utilising an EEG connected to the scalp to monitor the contemplative's brain wave functions, the researchers were able to follow the contemplative's sequential ascent through the eight different stages of this focused meditation, and his subsequent descent. And the results, while technical, were impressive.




The researchers predicted that simple changes in the brain regions responsible for each of the five principal experiential features of jhana state would show that: (1) internal verbalizations fade, (2) external awareness dims, (3) the sense of personal boundaries is altered, (4) the experience of evaluations, goals, and “shoulds” diminishes, and (5) attention is highly focused on the object of meditation.

The data confirmed the researchers' predictions in four of the five categories with mind 'chatter' and external awareness dimming and the sense of personal boundaries expanding. Yet while, the subject's attention was indeed shown to become highly focused, only some of his "shoulds" diminished. One wonders how the subject would have done were he not required to communicate with the researchers via a clicking a mouse as he passed through the phases and peak phases of the jhana meditation. But I guess that, alas, even such a well-designed experiment could not wholly eliminate all the "shoulds" that we each encounter everyday. Thank goodness that in our own meditations we don't have to deal with such distractions, we just need to sit.

The First Mindfulness Training

"The First Mindfulness Training:Reverence for LifeAware of the suffering caused by the destruction of life, I vow to cultivate compassion and learn ways to protect the lives of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I am determined not to kill, not to let others kill, and not to condone any act of killing in the world, in my thinking, or in my way of life.The Second Mindfulness Training:GenerosityAware of the suffering caused by exploitation, social injustice, stealing, and oppression, I vow to cultivate loving-kindness and learn ways to work for the well-being of people, animals, plants, and minerals. I vow to practice generosity by sharing my time, energy, and material resources with those who are in real need. I am determined not to steal and not to possess anything that should belong to others. I will respect the property of others, but I will prevent others from profiting from human suffering or the suffering of other species on earth.The Third Mindfulness Training:Sexual ResponsibilityAware of the suffering caused by sexual misconduct, I vow to cultivate responsibility and learn ways to protect the safety and integrity of individuals, couples, families, and society. I am determined not to engage in sexual relations without love and a long-term commitment. To preserve the happiness of myself and others, I am determined to respect my commitments and the commitments of others. I will do everything in my power to protect children from sexual abuse and to protect couples and families from being broken by sexual misconduct.The Fourth Mindfulness Training:Deep Listening and Loving SpeechAware of the suffering caused by unmindful speech and the inability to listen to others, I vow to cultivate loving speech and deep listening in order to bring joy and happiness to others and relieve others of their suffering. Knowing that words can create happiness or suffering, I vow to learn to speak truthfully with words that inspire self-confidence, joy, and hope. I am determined not to spread news that I do not know to be certain and not to criticize or condemn things of which I am not sure. I will refrain from uttering words that can cause division or discord, or that can cause the family or the community to break. I will make all efforts to reconcile and resolve all conflicts, however small.The Fifth Mindfulness Training:Mindful Consumption Aware of the suffering caused by unmindful consumption, I vow to cultivate good health, both physical and mental, for myself, my family, and my society by practicing mindful eating, drinking, and consuming. I vow to ingest only items that preserve peace, well-being, and joy in my body, in my consciousness, and in the collective body and consciousness of my family and society. I am determined not to use alcohol or any other intoxicant or to ingest food or other items that contain toxins, such as certain TV programs, magazines, books, films, and conversations. I am aware that to damage my body or my consciousness with these poisons is to betray my ancestors, my parents, my society, and future generations. I will work to transform violence, fear, anger, and confusion in myself and in society by practicing a diet for myself and for society. I understand that a proper diet is crucial for self-transformation and for the transformation of society."

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Tools and Practices for Mindfulness Development

Tools and Practices for Mindfulness Development
Recognize the sleep of unawareness. These things keep us asleep:
Being unaware that we are asleep.
Being unaware that we can choose to be awake.
Not choosing it.
Presuming that we are already fully aware.
Believing that we are already good.
Negative emotions and our attachment to them.
Justifying our negative emotions.
Automatic habits.
Constant inner talking.
Fear of change.
Spiritual laziness.
Allowing ourselves to be swept up in the current of our responses to life.
Fearful emotions:
insecurity,
embarrassment,
impatience,
self-pity,
dread, anxiety, worry, nervousness,
criticizing,
hopelessness,
depression, despair, and jealousy.
Discipline your mind to be aware.
Stop and silence negative thoughts and negative emotions.
Silence justifications. Never accept your justifications for your negative emotions.
Don't believe fear. Fear opposes faith.
Don't consent to anger. Angry emotions have violence in them.
Remember why you are choosing to overcome your anger.
It is unhealthy physically, mentally and spiritually.
It wastes your energy and life force.
It never produces goodness.
To not allow yourself to be under the dominion of changing circumstances.
To choose to act, not just react to life.
To become more than only the result of what has done to you.
Practice not criticizing, not objecting, not exerting or expressing your opinions and attitudes.
Silence negative inner talking.
Think of scale and relativity, your universal significance and what is really important.
For a moment, stand outside of the stream of events and your responses.
Sense your real self above them and outside them.
Become aware of your unique individuality and become aware of your relative insignificance.
Become aware of your connectedness with all things.
Quiet your mind by thinking about what is good and worthy and beautiful.
Stop thinking about yourself and how you feel, and what you like and what you don't like, and whether you approve or not of every person and event.
Consciously give your attention and time to whatever good things inspire you.
Realize and accept that you alone are responsible for all of your actions and their consequences in the world.
Accept not being understood.
Accept injustice, judgment, condemnation, slander, gossip, and your insufficiency . . . and return good for evil, forgiveness for offense.
Stop complaining. It is noisy and there is no "Thy will be done" in it.
Stop taking offense. Humility is not offendable.
Release your requirements that other people be how you think they should be.
Release your expectations of life and circumstances and your need to be satisfied by them.
Live the fruits of the spirit whether you are satisfied or not.
Stop thinking that you deserve better. No one deserves anything.
Give up having to have the last word.
Don't worry about the impression you make on others.
Sacrifice your need to be right.
Don't speak negatively about any other person.
Refuse to listen to, believe, or participate in gossip.
Give up being impatient. It is the vanity of wanting your will now over God's timing.
Stop thinking about what other people are thinking about you.
Refuse to accept your justifications for acting badly.
Practice being scrupulously honest with yourself and other people.
Whatever you do, do it to please God. Who else do you have to impress?
Strive for purity of heart.
In purity you will find peace and humility.
In humility you will find freedom, authenticity, and serenity.
Process for Spiritual Development
Aim: Loving God, goodness, purity, servanthood.
Acquire knowledge to know what you must do to live out your aim.
Know thyself and know what to do about thyself.
Direct your attention to become aware of what is going on inside you, in your thoughts and emotions.
Observe yourself with:
scathing honesty,
perseverance,
integrity and patience.
Use discernment to recognize how and when you are outside God's will which is always good.
Practice STOP toward your negative thoughts and feelings.
Practice silence toward them one at a time.
Create a separation between your authentic self and your automatic habits of thoughts, feelings, attitudes and opinions.
Choose what you consent to think, feel and do.
Choose goodness before gratification -- what you know to be good rather than what feels good.
Sacrifice, give up, your negative emotions. Don't condemn yourself for them. Change them.
Do not allow yourself to express negative emotions out loud.
Make yourself passive to your automatic reactions.
Make your internal responses quiet so that you can act with intentionality.
Release your requirements of life, people and circumstances.
Release your desire for satisfaction.
Willingly bear your necessary suffering, including all the efforts you must make to develop spiritual maturity and obedience.
Remember that Mindfulness nature is one thing and that is perfect Goodness.