It's said that the Buddha achieved enlightenment during a deep meditation under the Bodhi tree.
Seeking enlightenment through meditation is a deeply rooted practice in many Eastern cultures
and it actually predates the Buddha.
Initially, the Silk Road helped the practice travel around Asia and, eventually, it began
its journey towards the West where, in recent decades, it has really taken off as a mainstream
phenomenon.
Improved focus, greater emotional control, improved immunity, reduced suffering, weight
loss, and improved sleep are just some of the benefits that are often sold to Westerners.
*In short, you can become a better you*.
Is this true?
What does the science actually say about meditation?
For starters, the science of meditation is very preliminary.
Most of the studies we have are of low quality.
To rigorously examine the benefits of meditation, we need many more carefully controlled longitudinal
studies that follow people over a long period of time before and after beginning meditation.
Furthermore, a lot of the really impressive feats of meditation are found in yogis, monks,
and other experts who spend their lives meditating.
Not only is this unrealistic for the average person, it's difficult to understand how many
of these amazing traits they have are a product of meditation.
Monks and yogis live in completely different cultures, with likeminded people who support
their practice.
On top of that, they often hold strong religious beliefs that undergird these practices.
How do you separate the effects of these deeply rooted cultural influences from the practice
of meditation?
Although the science so far isn't all that great, there's no reason to doubt that meditation
has at least some utility.
For thousands of years, the idea has continued to be passed down and practiced for generations:
there must be a reason.
That said, let's take a look at what seems to be the primary benefit.
Specifically, let's take a look at mindfulness meditation.
Mindfulness is the act of focusing on the present moment.
It's all about *pure awareness*.
Your brain has a default mode network (DMN) that comes online when you're not concentrating
on anything.
It's thought that the DMN helps us retrieve memories, think about the future, and understand
the thought processes of other.
It's that narrator in your head: the one that always ruminates.
It's constantly constructing narratives about the past, other people, and generating potential
solutions to future problems.
When you practice being mindful of the present, such as when you focus on your breath, the
DMN quiets down.
Naturally, you become more focused and attentive to what's going on in the present moment.
Studies show that with greater mindfulness practice, an individual can gain greater control
of the DMN and get better at keeping it quiet and thus be more attentive in the present
moment.
I think it follows quite easily that if you can gain greater control over that narrator
in your head, you can ruminate less, think less about the past and the future, be in
the present and that might explain a lot of the other reported benefits such as lowered
stress, greater compassion, and more focus.
But, there seems to be a perverse love for constantly being in the present growing in
the West.
There are times where being present is great.
But, there are also times where it's more enjoyable to allow your mind to wander and
to be somewhere else.
In fact, some studies show that a wandering mind is important for creativity.
Furthermore, one could argue that it's our ability to mentally time travel and retrieve
important lessons from our past, and project ourselves into a multitude of potential futures
that makes us so powerful as a species.
With that said, let's just drop the labels such as mindfulness, and let's just consider
two states: one where you're attentive to what's going on right now, and one where you're
preoccupied with the past and the future.
Let's call these the *experiential-self* and the *narrative-self*, respectively.
Both states are useful and necessary.
But, if mindfulness is pure awareness of the present moment, you can practice it at anytime.
You don't need a special ritual but, more importantly, this capacity for presence was
always available to you.
My question to you is why aren't you already present in the moments you may be seeking
to be?
Whether it's your job, your relationships, and so on, there may be more fundamental issues
underlying your lack of presence which a mindfulness practice is not going to fix.
If you're not already present, the only thing that's going to change that is a change in
belief or a change in environment.
In the West, mindfulness has been commodified and in order to sell it to the individual,
we place the problem on them.
"*You're distracted, and stressed because you're not mindful.*"
But, this statement is more true in the reverse: you're not mindful because you're stressed
and distracted.
Change your environment to one that pulls you into the present and you'll naturally
be more mindful.
But, if a change in environment isn't possible or desirable, you need a change in belief;
you need a reason to be present.There are an infinite amount of beliefs that you could
adopt to make yourself believe that being more present is valuable, but I want to share
one with you and it brings me back to the origins of meditation.
This idea of what mediation can do *for me*, is very Western.
In the East, meditation wasn't developed to improve productivity, or to cure illness.
Originally, it was meant to be used as a pathway to selflessness, compassion, and enlightenment.
What if you didn't meditate for yourself?
Instead, what if you did it so that you could be present for the people around you?
How much better could you make that moment *for them* by being completely attentive,
present, and giving them your most honest reaction?
Now, imagine if you did that for everyone around you?
How much happier could they all be as a result of these repeated interactions?
How would this affect their interactions with others?
How big could this chain of events get and how much of an impact could you have by simply
being present?
Realize that these people make up your environment.
If that compassion radiates out from you to them, and they're all around you, how could
it not find its way back to you?
Maybe meditation is something you do for others, and not for yourself.
So, mindfulness is just being in the present and yes, it does work.
Naturally, there are benefits to being attentive to the present moment, and as you practice
being present more, you may find yourself having an easier time doing it.
However, if you're not already present you may need a change in environment or belief.
But, there are also benefits to being in the past, the future, and just letting your mind
wander in general.
It's really up to you to decide, in each moment, which time
you want to live in.