--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, turquoiseb wrote: > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Buck" dhamiltony2k5@ wrote: > > > > It's very important the environment that we keep. Group > > meditations are really important. In group meditations > > you get the advantage of the energy of the other person, > > and the devotion of the other person, and the perseverance, > > and the will of the other person, and you are absolutely > > inspired. So, group meditations, seek them out! > > Can't argue with Buck's logic here, if what you > want in a spiritual movement and out of life is > (to reference the Bertrand Russell quote on the > FFL Home Page) to cultivate the "will to believe," > as opposed to the "wish to find out." > > By all means, if the most important thing to you > is to think the way the people around you think, > believe the things they believe, and act the way > they act, file into the Domes twice a day and > immerse yourself in these other people's "energy" > and "devotion." > > After all, we all know that "coherence," as the > term is used in physics, involves lots of electrons > lining up and marching in lock-step together, not > one of them acting as if they had any individuality > or personality or worth on their own. The only > important thing is that they all do exactly what > the other electrons are doing. > > So it is with "coherence" in the social/sociological > setting of the Domes. If your highest goal in life > is to be just like everybody else around you, you > simply MUST meditate in groups with them every day. > Skip a day, and you risk having ideas of > your own, or doing things that might be considered > by your Betters as Off The Program. Can't have that... > > More seriously, although almost everyone (even me) > might admit that there is a perceptible value in > meditating with a group, it might be of interest to > some here that some spiritual teachers in traditions > other than TM *discourage* participating in group > meds more often than, say, once or twice a month. > > The reason is that they have found over time that > those who do it more often become "lazy" about their > own meditations, and rarely make any progress in > being able to have deep meditations when *not* in > a group. They "ride the energy" that they pick up > from the group, and "coast" with it, rather than > doing what might be necessary to have just as deep > and profound a meditation on their own. I don't buy that. You're either having a deep meditation or you're not at whatever time you're having it. Those riding the energy of a group aren't going to get "lazy" in their ability to have deep meditations on their own. Maybe in the case of riding a bike and drafting behind some truck you could say this. You don't and can't build meditation muscles especially with TM where it is purportedly effortless anyway. Lazy or not lazy is not a factor, fit or not fit, alone or in a group is not going to enable or disable anyone from transcending. Isn't it as easy as falling off a cliff? (And while on the subject of "herds", a nod to Alfred Jacob Miller.)
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