CONTACT CAROLINE
facebook
rss
tumblr
twitter
goodreads
youtube

  • Home
  • Write Away Blog
  • Books
    • Books
    • Trompe l’Oeil
    • Heart Land
    • Gothic Spring
    • Ballet Noir
    • Book Excerpts
  • Video Interviews
  • Press
    • News
    • Print Interviews
    • Plays
    • Ballet Noir in the Press
    • Trompe l’Oeil In The Press
    • Gothic Spring In The Press
    • Heart Land Reviews
  • Contact
  • About
  • Resources
    • Writer Resources
    • Favorite Blogs
    • Favorite Artists



Meditation On A Monastery Garden

May 07, 2015
by Caroline Miller
Barbara Ehrenreich, enlightenment, meditation, Mind Your Own Business, silence and focus
4 Comments

Barbara Ehrenreich’s recent article about mindfulness gave me a laugh.  “…in the Bay Area, I learned that rich locals liked to unwind at Buddhist monasteries in the hills, where, for a few thousand dollars, they could spend a weekend doing manual labor for the monks.” (“Mind Your Own Business,” Barbara Ehrenreich, The Babbler #27, pg. 70.)

 Though far from rich, for two weeks in the 1980s, I was one of those who toiled in the fields of a Buddhist monastery in the Bay area.   I did kitchen work, cutting up vegetables for soup, or I dug weeds in the garden with a rusty implement.  What’s more, I rose at 6 a.m. each morning  to meditate before heading downstairs to eat a bowl of bland porridge.  The repetitive routine was itself a form of meditation meant to clear my mind. 

I wasn’t surprised to learn from Ehrenreich’s article that meditation as a stress reliever is  “no more effective in doing so than other interventions, such as muscle relaxation, medication or psychotherapy.” (Ibid pg. 73.)

 It’s true.  For me a few hours of daily writing is a meditation because it focuses my mind.  To focus is to allow a mind/brain connection and silence is the river that permits ideas to flow to either shore. 

 When these two states are conjoined, the conscious and unconscious, insight is possible.   No single map points the way to enlightenment, not civil laws or religious cannons. What matters is silence and focus.   

 And what is it we should look for in this state?  What wisdom do we seek?  After digging countless holes in monastery gardens, my answer is, we seek connection.  Friends and family come first, of course.  But ultimately, as sentient beings,  we want to know how we connect to the universe and how it connects to us.  Scientists ask this question with every study, as do philosophers with their arguments and artists with their passion.    

 Ehrenreich’s image of the rich digging holes in a monastery garden brings a smile to my lips, it’s true.  “What fools these mortals be,” I think.  (A Midsummer Nights Dream, lII,ii)   And yet… and yet….   Didn’t  Shakespeare show us the wisdom of fools?

monastery garden

Courtesy of www.flickr.com

 

 

 

 

Social Share
4 Comments
  1. Judy Farrell May 7, 2015 at 8:47 am Reply
    Sometimes, when all is calm and quiet, I find that special place while sewing, cooking and gardening. Two books currently by my chair: The Art of Stillness, Adventures in Going Nowhere by Picco Iyer, and 10% Happier by Dan Harris. Recent introductions to mindfulness and meditation hold promise for anxiety reduction, so far, so good. Connection, that's it...to others and the universe. At 80, the feel of connection often elusive......so when I am out in the world of errands, I make a point of eye contact and opportunities for casual conversation which occasionally reveals a glimpse into another's soul. Your entry today is wonderful, Caroline....thank you.
    • Caroline Miller May 7, 2015 at 10:25 am Reply
      Judy, why does it take us so long to get a glimpse of how life should be lived? Like you, I'm happy for the glimpse, at least. Thanks for the book recommendations. They sound like winners.
  2. Christine Webb October 21, 2016 at 6:11 pm Reply
    Have been reading, today, in preparation to write a paper on the science of Mindfulness. While doing so, I recalled reading this blog last year and remember thinking at the time how lovely it must have been to toil in the peace and quiet, to accomplish the task at hand with a minimum of distractions or interruptions. During the first five years of the 80's I had delivered 4 babies, including a set of twins. I would have probably sold my husband for pennies on the dollar just to have a few moments alone in anyone's kitchen. But today, it's not the recalled experience of mindful meditations in the monastery that caught my eye, but instead, Ehrenreich's premise that mediation is no more affective at relieving stress than other types of intervention. Gratefully, studies show quite the opposite to be true. Researchers at the University of Mexico have discovered that, in fact, participants in their Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction course decreased their anxiety levels and incidents of binge eating. Office workers who practiced MBSR for twenty minutes a day reported 11% reduction in perceived stress. Fifth grade girls who completed a ten-week MBSR program were more satisfied with their bodies and less preoccupied with their weight and, a mix of cancer patients who tried MSBR showed significant improvement in mood and a decrease in levels of stress. The good news is that these results were maintained at a check-up six months later. Perhaps the benefit for all practicing mindfulness lies in the ability to separate the "narrative chatter" we listen to constantly in our minds from the ongoing flow of feelings experienced quietly and in the moment. For some, knowing exactly how all this works scientifically isn't the critical part. Perhaps it's sufficient just knowing something has changed for the good and that one simply feels better practicing mindfulness. Really have enjoyed your blog, Caroline...
    • Caroline Miller October 21, 2016 at 9:23 pm Reply
      Thank you for this interesting look back in time.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

*
*

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Contact Caroline at

carolinemiller11@yahoo.com

Portland, Oregon author Caroline Miller had distinguished careers as an educator, union president, elected official and artist/advocate.

Her play, Woman on the Scarlet Beast, was performed at the Post5 Theatre, Portland, OR, January/February 2015

Caroline published a serialized novelette, Marie Eau-Claire, on the website, The Colored Lens.  She also published the story Gustav Pavel,  a parable about ordinary lives, choice and alternate potential, on the website Fixional.co.

Caroline has published four novels

  • Ballet Noir
  • Trompe l’Oeil
  • Gothic Spring
  • Heart Land

Subscribe to Caroline’s Blog


 

Archives

Categories

YouTube-logo-inline2 To access and subscribe to my videos on YouTube, Click Here and click the Subscribe button.

Banner art “The Receptive” by Charlie White of Charlie White Studio

Web Admin: ThinPATH Systems, Inc
support@tp-sys.com

Subscribe to Caroline's Blog


 

Contact Caroline at

carolinemiller11@yahoo.com

Sitemap | Privacy Notice

AUDIO & VIDEO VAULT

View archives of Caroline’s audio and videos interviews.


Copyright © Books by Caroline Miller