Ljudje kupujejo iPhone, da bi bili univerzalno povezani in imeli na dosegu roke kopico kul funkcij in lastnosti. Toda kot je nekoč dejal modri menih Heng Sure , vse, kar ustvarimo iz silicija, že obstaja v ogljiku. Dodal bi, da je silicijeva tehnologija v najboljšem primeru slaba kopija.
Kako torej natančno izkoristiti čudovito ogljikovo tehnologijo, ki jo ves čas nosite s seboj? Meditacija je fenomenalno orodje za prav to. Tukaj je pet področij, kjer meditacija prekaša iPhone.
1. Povezljivost
Resnica je, da se ne moreš zares povezati z nikomer drugim, če nisi v stiku s samim seboj. iPhone te omogoča in spodbuja, da si le delno prisoten, ko si fizično odsoten, in le delno odsoten, ko si fizično prisoten.
Meditacija vas spet poveže s samim seboj in vam pomaga, da ste prisotni. Pika. Včasih so meditatorji tako prisotni, da so prisotni celo, ko so odsotni! In to njihovo sposobnost povezovanja močno presega tisto, kar iPhone omogoča.
2. Družbena omrežja
Bodimo iskreni: Twitter je pogosto le skupek naključnih nepomembnih misli, ki jim bežno sledite od ljudi, ki jih ne poznate vedno. Dejstvo, da uporabniška baza Facebooka presega populacijo večine držav in da ga 50 % uporabnikov obišče vsak dan, kaže na to, da je v nebrzdani uporabi nekaj zasvojljivega in faustovskega, saj več kot 800 milijonov ljudi tekmuje, kdo se bo najbolj zabaval, medtem ko si pridobiva vedno več »prijateljev«.
Za njihovo priljubljenostjo se skriva mit, da količina nadomesti kakovost.
Koliko svojih prijateljev na Facebooku bi lahko poklicali na pogovor ob 3. uri zjutraj? Koliko tvitov bi lahko premislili dlje kot 160 znakov dolg razpon pozornosti?
Resnica je, da je kakovost tisto, kar šteje, in meditacija lajša bolezen naključnega uma, da doda večjo kakovost in relevantnost »miselnim tvitom«. Naključne misli se počasi reciklirajo v miselno zemljo in gnojijo misli, vredne negovanja, medtem ko se pozornost stabilizira in stopnjuje. Naraščajoče olajšanje, ki ga občutite zaradi vsega kaosa, ki se vam vali v glavi, začne graditi sočutje do težav drugih ljudi. Sami začnete postajati oseba, ki je pripravljena priskočiti na pomoč ob 3. uri zjutraj ali pa preprosto pomagati, da so ljudje okoli vas malo srečnejši, in to vam začne prinašati globlje prijatelje, ki so pripravljeni odgovoriti enako.
Nenadoma se resnično zabavaš, kjerkoli že si, brez časa za tvitovanje o tem, fotografiranje za Facebook ali pasivno zalezovanje v življenja drugih ljudi. Ptice istega perja se zberejo skupaj, zato si kmalu obkrožen s podobno mislečimi ljudmi, kar utira pot naključnim povezavam , ki ti naježijo polt na načine, kot jih povezovanje z najboljšim prijateljem iz drugega razreda ali neuslišanim skrivnim ljubimcem z maturantskega plesa na Fbooku nikoli ne more.
3. Značilnosti in funkcionalnost
Vam 5-megapikselna kamera iPhona ni dovolj? Kaj pa 324-megapikselni ekvivalent človeškega očesa? Ni dovolj prostora na vašem iPhonu za takšne slike? Nihče ne pozna dobrega načina za izračun prostora v človeških možganih, vendar verodostojne domneve pravijo, da lahko shranijo od 1 do 1000 terabajtov informacij. Se ne spomnite toliko, pravite? Meditacija izboljša spomin , obrne izgubo spomina ter odloži ali prepreči Alzheimerjevo bolezen in demenco. Kaj pa GPS? Meditacija vas resnično prizemlji in vam pomaga ugotoviti, kje ste in kam greste. Kaj pa aplikacije in igre? Meditacija začne odklepati igre, ki jih igrate najraje, in vam odpre dostop do bolj produktivnih aplikacij.
4. Okolje
Ko vas dohiti načrtovana zastarelost, se vaš iPhone bliža temu, da postane elektronski odpadek, poln strupenih kemikalij , ki jih Kalifornija šteje za nevarne odpadke. Ko končate z igranjem, ga reciklirajte in opomnite tudi druge, naj storijo enako.
Medtem meditacija ne poveča vašega vpliva na planet, ampak ga lahko le omili. O tem ni veliko raziskav, obstaja pa veliko anekdotičnih dokazov, ki kažejo, da boste začeli čutiti potrebo po manj materialnih stvareh. In to je odlično za planet!
5. Stroški
Po vseh vaših fensi paketih podatkov in minutah lahko za svoj iPhone porabite 5 dolarjev ali več na dan. Meditacija je brezplačna, razen tistega, kar plačate za učenje ali obiskovanje tečaja (in obstajajo nekatere, kot je Vipassana , kjer so vaši stroški že pokriti in jih plačate naprej le, če želite). In če jemljete meditacijo resno, se vam bo meditacija začela izplačevati, saj vas vsa ta osredotočenost naredi bolj produktivne, ustvarjalne, pronicljive in energične. To bi označil za fantastično naložbo v vsakem gospodarskem okolju. :)
Skratka, meditacija je neprimerljiva tehnologija, ki daleč presega iPhone. Pošteno povedano, vsaka tehnologija preprosto okrepi voljo, ki jo polagate zanjo, in mogoče je uporabljati stvari, kot so iPhone, Twitter in Facebook, hkrati pa zmanjšati njihove slabosti, tako kot je mogoče zlorabiti meditacijo.
Vendar je odkrivanje osupljivega potenciala naše prirojene ogljikove tehnologije neskončno bolj fascinantno kot igranje s silicijevim tehnologijo, in to me bo še leta vračalo k svojemu vzglavniku.
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Good Job, excellent article, i loved it the way that you explained about Meditation
I love this article. This is very well written. You have truly enriched me with some excellent knowledge about Meditation
This article is very good. I like it. Interesting post. Thanks for posting this about meditation .
Sometimes tecnology and meditation could live together in an App http://itunes.apple.com/us/... :)
What's your favorite mediation app?
Kind of ironic that there is a share to Facebook on this article.
nice Birju ! same here :) Cheers for the extraordinary people that can till use the phone and technology and have the balance too !
So true! I certainly need to meditate more. Thanks for the reminder!
The funny part is at the end, where we can click on buttons to share this article on FB, Twitter, or send it by email to someone's iPhone :)
Fantastic!!!! Like others, I’ve added this to my google reader. Mariette
So insightful, thanks!
MBJYou raise a good point in your usual delightful, insightful way.As a recipient of so much proselytizing chatter for both the iPhone and meditation, I’m sure it would be a relief to silence the buzz around either. My post was aimed at muzzling at least half our common harassers in a light-hearted way more than anything else. Even the comparison I make establishes a false choice between the options, especially when considering how many iPhone-using meditators commented on the post.As for shilling meditation on the attention-deficited internet, its a little bit like putting a helmet on a narcoleptic: its bound to be awkward, doesn’t really solve the problem, but might just stop a head crackin’. While I wasn’t really trying to be much of a serious meditation monger, I’m not that uncomfortable with the legitimate clunky-ness of it all I do agree that serious conversations about meditation are best kept private, but if anything around this post could be considered to have turned into viral advocacy and promotion, its something on the scale of a cold sore on a smallpox patient. Its public only in the way that a conversation in the corner of a room at a loud party is: virtually private because so few people care to quiet down and listen!
[Hide Full Comment]Rahul:This is a smart, clever, interesting comparison of two enabling tools currently undergoing a run of hip, faddish acceptance in the popular imagination. (Meditation, it must be said, has enjoyed a several-millennium longer run than the iPhone. Its persistence and longevity is itself strong evidence in favor of your thesis. Still, one suspects that it went through periods where, as with the second generation Macs, the only users were esoteric freaks who could only find “software” — to piggyback on your extended technology metaphor — at the spiritual equivalent of garage sales.)Like so many things, meditation and iPhones are useful tools in the hands of skilled, purposeful people. Hospital physicians, for example, are able to carry comprehensive pharmaceutical reference material in their pockets with the iPhone as they visit patient bedsides; and thoughtful practitioners of self-exploration are able to dig deeper with meditation. And yet, both are supremely annoying in the hands of poseurs.The nice thing about both meditation and the iPhone is that both are genuinely good tools; it’s hard to really criticize either. They generally work as advertised, have real utility, and create a nice user experience. Even with this appreciation, I have never found either to be so compelling as to harbor any desire to incorporate them into my life. Unfortunately, this doesn’t insulate me from having to endure endless proselytizing chatter from fans of both at just about any social occasion. Frankly, it’s getting to the point that I like to imagine a world where neither meditation or iPhones existed. It seems a shame when the excellence and fascination of a thing are overwhelmed by the ubiquity and banality of the hype.In our consumer society, it seems impossible to have a product without constant advertising. Where commercialism establishes both our memes and the tropes, way to much private conversation has transformed into viral advocacy and promotion. Steve Jobs will, of course, be thrilled that his customers have turned into his advertisers. But are serious devotees of meditation really comfortable having their treasured practice shilled like this? Seems so.MBJ
[Hide Full Comment]Lol. so true, so true. thanks for the entry.
Birju: hilarious.Rahul: wise! kosher. will share on our wednesdays in dc meditation board!
Awesome post Rahul! Thanks for distilling your thoughts in this clear and compelling article. Time to hit the cushion
BAAM! hermano Rahul! Following Birju’s path, I just twitted it and posted it on my FB status… AND, I’m going to read Vinoba and sit for a while… being in receptive silence is the DNA of the kindness (r)evlution.See you on the cushion!
Good stuff!* This article was read from an iPhone
Phenomenal post! You remain ensconced in my happy memories and warm inspiring moments shared. Love to Asha
Rahul, so true!!! Thank you for this! Very well written!!!!
Being an Apple passionista and having consulted to many IT companies, I can honestly say that this article rocks! Thank you.
"From the Mayan point of view, high
technology is not a sign of an advanced civilization; it is a sign of a
civilization about to be advanced. What good is technology to a people,
if they discover that the human body and human consciousness is capable
of doing everything that technology is now doing, and far, far more?...
This is what we are about to understand, according to the Maya." —
Drunvalo Melchizedek
"The divine currents, like the ethereal
waves of a radio, are spread out in the atmosphere in all the
directions, giving out delectable strains of music. We, however, cannot
catch the ethereal vibrations and listen to the divine melody until we
get in tune with the Infinite by adjusting our mental apparatus.
Therefore we become etherealized more and more as we come in tune with
the heavenly music." -Sant Kirpal Singh
Rahul, this is excellent. One thought on environment...meditation also helps deal with our personal unplanned obsolescence allowing us to age more gracefully without letting pain create toxic ripples of suffering around us.
Amazing article...
makes me remember this quote:
"It's not technology, it's what you do with it"
(Thanks for sharing the article)