Ask HN: Do you meditate?

60 点作者 mattbettinson大约 10 年前

Why? What benefits has it brought to your work and life?

27 条评论

For those considering trying meditation, yes it's great for stress reduction but there are also benefits that are not obvious until you try it:- If you sit long enough you'll not just be relaxed, but also feel another mode of consciousness as the waves of your thinking quiet down. It's nothing mystical but it's pretty unique to meditation. For me it takes about 15 minutes to get that point.- Just like regular excercise actual changes your body, regular meditation actually changes your mind over time. So there are really two levels of benefit. Extending the analogy, If someone starts jogging for a week they might say "I already feel great", which is true but is actually only the start of the benefits that come with months more of training. It sounds strange but it's pretty easy to try and find out.

Red_Tarsius大约 10 年前

I don't know if it's proper meditation, but right after waking up I sit on the floor and repeat for 20 minutes:“Watch your thoughts, they become words; watch your words, they become actions; watch your actions, they become habits; watch your habits, they become character; watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.”It's like a mantra. I'm not even sure about the original source of this quote. It may sound a crazy thing to do, but it helps me focus throughout the day.

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milesf大约 10 年前

I pray for the same reason the late C.S. Lewis prayed:<pre><code> "I pray because I can’t help myself. I pray because I’m helpless. I pray because the need flows out of me all the time, waking and sleeping. It doesn’t change God, it changes me." - CS Lewis </code></pre> I know it might tick some people off that I mention prayer in a thread about meditation, but I respect a person's right to believe whatever they want. All I ask is they respect my right to believe whatever I want.

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machinshin_大约 10 年前

Yes. I do a lot of different ways of it though, whatever strikes my mood. Much of it is the many variations in chinese martial arts:(either no music, or mild music, like rain patter, nothing w/ lyrics)I find meditation is a lot about your breath, so you can do all of these either with normal breathing or these variations:1) n/n*2/x breathing. (i'm only at n=3 atm) 2) full lung & empty lung variations (this link does a decent job explaining : <a href="http://www.yogaindailylife.org/esystem/yoga/en/020200/exercise-levels/the-full-yoga-breath/" rel="nofollow">http://www.yogaindailylife.org/esystem/yoga/en/020200/exerci...</a> )The different types of mediation i do are:1) moving: Tai Chi2) standing: holding ball (from tai chi)3) sitting : Grand Circle of Heaven (found this link which explains it well : <a href="http://ymaa.com/articles/martial-grand-circulation" rel="nofollow">http://ymaa.com/articles/martial-grand-circulation</a>) (imagine the energy flow in a circle though your body as you breath)4)(This one i think i made up on my own) : any of the above while having having pink noise playing: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXtimhT-ff4" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXtimhT-ff4</a>

fierycatnet大约 10 年前

Yes. I used to do Zazen with not much luck until I switched to Anapanasati meditation, completely blew my mind. Most of the Buddhist texts started to make more sense. Jhanic states and so on. With proper meditation technique I went from 15 minutes to sitting for an hour, easy, effortlessly. Mediation was pretty life changing for me.

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__xtrimsky大约 10 年前

Yes, it changed the way I view the world.Sometime during my teenage years, I started not caring about the world around me, and just tried to improving myself. Think faster, go faster, multitask, get things done. Although improving these abilities are cool, they focused my life on getting more money, getting promoted. Not really focusing on what really matters: being a better person, being happy, enjoying life.Meditation changed my view. I try to spend more time with family. When I take out the trash I enjoy the path I am walking on, the stars in the skies, the wind.All this sounds a bit "hippie", but I am more happy now than I was before.I highly recommend meditation to anyone. I am meditation using the iphone/android app "headspace". It is really helpful for anyone that is beginning with meditation. It guides you through all the process.

moubarak大约 10 年前

i do non secular meditation. each session takes around 10-15 minutes at regular time intervals; dawn, noon, afternoon, sunset, and night, which also serves as a tiny yoga exercise. i'm also obligated to eat something (a date or full meal) at each interval. these are what people refer to today as muslim prayers.since i started doing this everyday, i became less addicted to work. after each exercise i look forward to the second, and my work is now divided into the time slots in between, rather than one shift of 8 to 5. the biggest psychological impact this had on me was that material matters don't matter to me anymore, and it made sort of a minimalist.

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392c91e8165b大约 10 年前

I meditate, but only for 2 to 5 minutes at a time. When I do it much longer than that, vaguely-bad things happen. (It would take a long time to explain. Suffice to say that I am chronically ill, and if I were healthier, I could probably meditate longer without these vague negative consequences.)Usually I set a timer (about which more below) for 2 minutes, then right after that, 2 minutes more. If I ever "flunk" a meditation session, I take that as a strong sign that my mind is not working as well as it should be, and I try to fix that. It is also a sign that more meditation is needed on that day."Flunking" a meditation session means I got distracted and forgot that I was supposed to be meditating. For example, recently, some of my neighbors were having an animated conversation in the courtyard of my apartment building, and I was feeling lonely, so I went out there to participate. When I returned to my computer (I meditate in front of my computer) there was a some text on my screen put there by my meditation timer (which I wrote, in Emacs Lisp) which is how I became aware that I had flunked a meditation session.More detail: at the scheduled end of a meditation session, an Emacs timer inserts "Timer finished: meditation " into an Emacs buffer visiting a file that serves as a record of my meditation sessions. (Emacs also automatically inserts the time and duration of every session into this file.) Since at the end of a meditation session, I am in the habit of adding the letter "s" (for "success") to the text, the presence of an instance of "Timer finished: meditation " not followed by "s" was a sure sign that I had flunked the session.I've been doing these short meditation sessions with my "timer" written in Emacs Lisp since Jan 2008. I do not do them regularly -- only when I remember to do so, which (a quick look at my files reveals) was on 7 of the last 30 days.I do not have unequivocal evidence that meditation does me any good. The main reasons I keep at it is that so many other people report good effects and the my understanding of some studies on "mindfulness-based stress reduction" (which BTW found effects from very short meditation sessions).

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fny大约 10 年前

For five years now, I've struggled against torrents of thought and anxiety. I meditated and prayed begging for some relief to no avail. About four months ago, I found Ashtanga yoga, and to say that it has changed my life is an understatement. Mentally, I have reawakened. I now think patiently and deliberately with a discipline and focus I've never experienced. A child-like enthusiasm about the world, despite its suffering and strife, relit within me: hope and faith abounds. Occasionally, of course, I still do struggle, but I struggle in peace and with confidence. The physical changes have been equally striking. I've always had poor posture, mild scoliosis, and a hip imbalance. Now, that's all gone: my posture is remarkable and effortless, and I carry a sense of self with every step. I also kick way more ass at CrossFit than ever. ;) Unlike most other yoga, Ashtanga intensely focuses on the breath as well, which has increased my aerobic capacity dramatically.I'm of the opinion that meditation alone lacks the mind-body dynamic of Ashtanga yoga. Ashtanga trains you to stay focused, keep calm, and breathe deeply despite the intense (and sometimes painful) physical practice. The physical aspect is also a beautiful reminder that mental and physical transformation takes patience and time. Struggles with strength, endurance, and flexibility serve as a tangible marker of one's progress and the work that remains. Gauging the progress of one's mind is insidiously difficult, particularly because you're using the very thing your trying to fix to measure it! Also, if you're restless like me, the postures will keep just enough of your mind occupied to allow yourself to explore yoga's meditative aspects.Ashtanga is my answer to David Foster Wallace's remarkable speech, "This Is Water".[0] The mind is indeed an "excellent servant", and I can proudly say that I am its master.Fun fact: When Sri Pattabhi Jois, a great Ashtanga guru, was asked by a student asked him why he would not teach him "meditation", he is said to have replied: "mad-attention".[0]: <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhhC_N6Bm_s" rel="nofollow">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PhhC_N6Bm_s</a>, <a href="http://www.metastatic.org/text/This%20is%20Water.pdf" rel="nofollow">http://www.metastatic.org/text/This%20is%20Water.pdf</a>

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obulpathi大约 10 年前

I am doing meditation for a year regularly (almost every day) and did another 2 years (once or twice a week). Keeps me calm and focused. Next month, I am going to this 10-day course Vipassana Meditation: <a href="https://www.dhamma.org/en/about/vipassana" rel="nofollow">https://www.dhamma.org/en/about/vipassana</a>. Looking forward to it.

daenney大约 10 年前

Yes I do, usually twice a day, 15-20m. Before I leave home and when I get back from work. If it gets especially crazy at work I lock myself up in a room and mediate there for a bit too.It's mostly a way of dealing with stress and all the inputs that you get on a day. It's a lot, of thoughts, of things, stimuli and I find that dealing with them while meditating helps me clear my mind.It brings me greater focus since my mind isn't constantly off on twenty side-quests and helps me sleep better at night.I tend to use the same breathing exercises in moments when I'd normally get annoyed, like a super slow moving queue at a supermarket. Helps me keep my "sunny" disposition, keeps me happier.

ponyous大约 10 年前

I did meditate a lot when I was in college and I had only shower but no bath. When I had bath I was in it for 30-60mins few times a week. It helped me to clear my mind, I guess its similar to writing blog posts for some people.

deanotron大约 10 年前

Yes, simply because I like the experience. "It feels good, man".There is a lecture by Alan Watts where he denounces the idea of "meditating on an idea" as well as meditating for personal gain - ie benefits to work / life.I think it's very similar to orgasm (in form and function). Yes, there are health benefits and stress benefits as a side-effect, but the experience itself should be the main draw.[edit] Alan Watts @11:38: <a href="https://youtu.be/26971uJuQuk?t=11m38s" rel="nofollow">https://youtu.be/26971uJuQuk?t=11m38s</a>

joelberman大约 10 年前

I learned to meditate in my late teens (I'm 68 now), to fight depression and low self esteem. It was very hard for me to meditate, and I still sometimes have trouble getting into a meditative state. But I usually spend 20-30 minutes meditating during the day, or before bed. It helps me clear any depression I feel. No idea how or why it works, but for me it is very helpful.

omgbear大约 10 年前

Yes -- I try to do tai chi style standing meditation, focusing on posture and breathing every morning after the gym. I can feel my thoughts slowing and becoming more focused, rather than the rapid jumping from idea to idea that sometimes happens otherwise.Whenever I'm stressed, I'll close my eyes and focus thoughts inward, just to clear my head and reset my thought patterns.

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rboyd大约 10 年前

15-20 minutes of meditation before an important meeting or negotiation does wonders for me. I've experimented with an iOS app "Headspace" which was pretty decent, but the patter became a bit repetitive before my trial was over so didn't extend. I do like the Oprah/Deepak 21 day challenge guided meditation series.

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andersthue大约 10 年前

I started after reading the book "10% happier", it gives me happines, calmness and makes it easier to tackle everyday stuff. I have gotten a small window of opportunity from when something happens until I react that makes it possible for me to react more true to myself.

coderholic大约 10 年前

If you're interested in trying it out but don't know where to start then you might want to take a look at <a href="http://calm.com" rel="nofollow">http://calm.com</a> (I work there), or our mobile apps on android and ios (both called "calm").

bane大约 10 年前

To control stage fright before a presentation, build up courage, etc. I sometimes repeat the Litany Against Fear.I find it does an amazing job of getting my mind to focus on the fear like it's an emotional cancer and excises it pretty effectively.

codecondo大约 10 年前

Yes, meditation is great, but I urge you not to fall for the utter crap that is called "meditation apps" -- find a cushion, or a blanket, sit your ass down and simply breathe.

daocuong大约 10 年前

Keep me calm, focus, fearless, creative, more love to people around me. Im struggling to make free mobile app for helping people to do meditation by themselves or together. Any ideas?

bfe大约 10 年前

Yes, brief sitting meditation and running meditation every day. There's evidence of physical and mental health benefits. It seems to help bring calmness, focus, and new ideas.

pvaldes大约 10 年前

Not. Not in this sense.

TACIXAT大约 10 年前

I attribute a lot of my ability to think clearly to meditation. I attribute a lot of my willpower to qigong. I should really do it more often.

staunch大约 10 年前

I tend to meditate for 4+ hours per day, while writing code. I start feeling mentally scattered if I miss more than a day or two.

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dennisrthatcj大约 10 年前

No, it's a waste or time

westoncb大约 10 年前

Yes. It's a reminder that there's a non-conceptual aspect to life—a way to be that doesn't involve categorizing or evaluating, just acting and experiencing. 'Body scan' meditation and breath watching are both great for this. It's like some deeper, unseen part of mind chooses at any given point whether to exist as that voice in your head, or your physical body. For me, exercising ambition and over-focusing on intellectual pursuits for too long made it so that I was pretty much exclusively identifying with the 'voice in my head.' It sounds like I'm describing some inexact fluffy sort of thing, but I have something very definite in mind with this description: my subjective experience is starkly different based on whether I'm in the physical or mental 'mode.' And this is not a special insight of my own; their are plenty of ancient and modern treatments of the problem of thinking you are your thoughts.And, I'm pretty sure that understanding how to move between these modes is a key aspect to cultivating 'flow' in programming (or other activities).I'm still relatively new to meditation (about 1.5 months regularly; over a year reading about it and doing it occasionally), but I've reaped definite benefits from the time I've put in. It feels like the descriptions in 'Flatland' of discovering there's a new dimension that you can move in: without meditating it was like I was constrained to endlessly following up whatever thoughts I started up, and now I'm getting better at simply stepping aside when I can see it's no longer productive.This has been especially important for me since I'd had an injury related to using mouse/keyboard so that it became impossible to 'get out of my head' while using the computer—was in the polar opposite of 'flow' whenever on the computer. I spent a couple years like that, in one sense relieved since I understood rationally that I wasn't damaging myself at the computer anymore—but still having a terrible time at the computer because of past experiences with it. There were a number of things that went into improving this, but things didn't start reaallly getting good again until I started meditating. The feeling is like learning an instrument though: I can see myself slowly becoming capable of making music—but it takes time.I don't think I'm really all that much of a special case though. People are in their heads in an unpleasant way while coding because any number of things causes them anxiety: anything from finding yet another bug in your code to general unease from a built up habit of assessing your supposedly innate capacity as a programmer. If you have no concerns, you just act: it's just the code and the problem you're working on, everything else disappears, time disappears. If you can do it with the breath, you can do it with code.edit: for typos, expanded a couple parts.

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