Sound strange? Good! Keep reading...
There
are a growing number of innovators studying cognitive science and the effects
of meditation on the brain, a discipline called Contemplative Neuroscience.
There
is a ton to read on the subject, but to give you a small flavor, let paraphrase
my favorite thinker on this topic Jiddu Krishnamurti. He said that as human
beings grow, we become conditioned to the world around us and we draw conclusions
about the world, ourselves, and others. It's human nature to be assimilated by
our environment, but sometimes we become so stubborn in our convictions that we
distort reality through a clouded lens. Instead of confusing our feelings as
absolute truth, we should investigate our external world as well as the inner
self—to attain awareness.
To
me, 'awareness' means reaching deep inside and opening the senses to the beauty
all around. Here's my proposal for an interesting 2012 resolution. It starts
now. Devote time to explore the inner self and question long held beliefs or
doubts. And
maybe even devote some time to learning more about how the brain works. You can
start by checking out these enlightening videos from my brilliant friend.
Called "A tour of awareness" Aditya Prasad's series explains how our brains may be distracting us from living an authentic, happy life. But hope is not lost! By training our brains to tune in via a simple technique called a “ping,” we can stop daydreaming our lives away and appreciate the moment for what it is.
And Video 4 is currently in development!
About
Aditya Prasad: This Google Engineer and psychology geek is blazing the trail
for compassion science, studying neuroscience and meditation's relationship
with empathy. He spent a summer living in a monastery and co-authored a
paper on emotion regulation while volunteering at Stanford. He's an
amazing person who inspires me with his intellect and compassion.
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