mind and body relation

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greeneggsandsam
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mind and body relation

Post by greeneggsandsam »

Hi all,

I have been following some methods outlined by Thanissaro Bhikku - namely, body contemplation...


Question: When I contemplate parts of the body i.e. the right lower side of abdomen, I first locate where it is in my 'mind' - Thanissaro recommended this in one of his talks - but when I do, for some reason the particular body part is located in the mind relative to the position in the body.

ie. right side abdomen, feels like it is 'located' in the 'right' side of the mind.

I don't know if anyone has experienced this but I am curious as to why this so?

Metta,
Sam
If you think nibbana is better than samsara, then you've missed the point - Ajahn Sumedho
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lyndon taylor
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by lyndon taylor »

Actually modern science says the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, and vice versa, works that way when you have a stroke, too, I believe.
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greeneggsandsam
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by greeneggsandsam »

lyndon taylor wrote:Actually modern science says the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, and vice versa, works that way when you have a stroke, too, I believe.

interesting, maybe its just my mind playing tricks on me then.

If anyone has experience with this method of body contemplation, I would ask what should be your focus in smaller sitting sessions?
Should I focus on the body in individual sections but perhaps not in sub-sections?

Im finding it way to long to be able to comprehensibly scan the whole body with each little section, so I always end up only getting through a small area as I can't sit for longer then 30 mins.

Any tips would be much appreciated, thanks.
If you think nibbana is better than samsara, then you've missed the point - Ajahn Sumedho
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Kasina
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by Kasina »

greeneggsandsam wrote:
lyndon taylor wrote:Actually modern science says the left side of the brain controls the right side of the body, and vice versa, works that way when you have a stroke, too, I believe.

interesting, maybe its just my mind playing tricks on me then.

If anyone has experience with this method of body contemplation, I would ask what should be your focus in smaller sitting sessions?
Should I focus on the body in individual sections but perhaps not in sub-sections?

Im finding it way to long to be able to comprehensibly scan the whole body with each little section, so I always end up only getting through a small area as I can't sit for longer then 30 mins.

Any tips would be much appreciated, thanks.
Whenever I do this meditation, the same happens... I tend to focus on those parts until I'm really comfortable "in" them, then move on to another part, in my chosen order. After a few sessions I can usually go through them quicker and generate a better whole body awareness. Although, sometimes going through all of them quickly over and over has the same effect... And depends on my tension levels in each part respectfully.

Metta, J.
"This world completely lacks essence;
It trembles in all directions.
I longed to find myself a place
Unscathed — but I could not see it."


Sn 4.15 PTS: Sn 935-951 "Attadanda Sutta: Arming Oneself"

"You will be required to do wrong no matter where you go... This is the curse at work, the curse that feeds on all life..."

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culaavuso
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by culaavuso »

greeneggsandsam wrote: ie. right side abdomen, feels like it is 'located' in the 'right' side of the mind.

I don't know if anyone has experienced this but I am curious as to why this so?
A location in the mind is a perception. It's a way of labeling and organizing experience in order to make sense of it. It's quite natural to create these labels in a way that the field of experiences in the body agree with how the body itself is oriented in perception. There's nothing wrong with that. One of the benefits of identifying where places of the body are located in the mind is because it makes it easier to see the nature of another common perception in Western culture, i.e. the perception that the mind is in the body. Developing the perception of the body as being in the mind makes it easier to see that either mode is just a difference of perception.
greeneggsandsam
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by greeneggsandsam »

culaavuso wrote:
greeneggsandsam wrote: ie. right side abdomen, feels like it is 'located' in the 'right' side of the mind.

I don't know if anyone has experienced this but I am curious as to why this so?
A location in the mind is a perception. It's a way of labeling and organizing experience in order to make sense of it. It's quite natural to create these labels in a way that the field of experiences in the body agree with how the body itself is oriented in perception. There's nothing wrong with that. One of the benefits of identifying where places of the body are located in the mind is because it makes it easier to see the nature of another common perception in Western culture, i.e. the perception that the mind is in the body. Developing the perception of the body as being in the mind makes it easier to see that either mode is just a difference of perception.
:goodpost:
If you think nibbana is better than samsara, then you've missed the point - Ajahn Sumedho
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Goofaholix
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by Goofaholix »

Perhaps you could post the passage you are referring to as I think you might be interpreting it too literally.

My guess though is he probably wants you to see the difference between the conceptual picture of the body that the mind has (and that distorts our preceptions of it) and the real felt bodily sensations. Either way it's probably a way of playing with your perceptions to see if it yields another view rather than something that should be taken too seriously.
Pronouns (no self / not self)
“Peace is within oneself to be found in the same place as agitation and suffering. It is not found in a forest or on a hilltop, nor is it given by a teacher. Where you experience suffering, you can also find freedom from suffering. Trying to run away from suffering is actually to run toward it.”
― Ajahn Chah
greeneggsandsam
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Re: mind and body relation

Post by greeneggsandsam »

Goofaholix wrote:Perhaps you could post the passage you are referring to as I think you might be interpreting it too literally.

My guess though is he probably wants you to see the difference between the conceptual picture of the body that the mind has (and that distorts our preceptions of it) and the real felt bodily sensations. Either way it's probably a way of playing with your perceptions to see if it yields another view rather than something that should be taken too seriously.
Perhaps I could be. It was from a video on youtube so I don't have the text available.
If you think nibbana is better than samsara, then you've missed the point - Ajahn Sumedho
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