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Humanist Meditation Meetings
Next meetings at 7:00pm, May 10 and 31, at 355 E. Lorain St in Oberlin
No meeting as previously advertised on May 24
Is it possible to be spiritual without being religious?
We've begun to gather occasionally to practice a bit of meditation, as an experiment, if you will, in training our minds to be, well, more mindful. We'll follow our meditation with a discussion, currently using the book by Sam Harris, The Moral Landscape: How Science Can Determine Human Values. Come for either or both, whatever suits your fancy.
As we begin our meditation practice, we're using a series from Aro Meditation as a guide. Aro meditaiton is Buddhist, but it is a handy framework for starting a non-religious meditation practice with a little modification. This is an experiment in progress, and we're just beginning. Would you like to play along?
From their site:
Why meditate?
Some benefits of meditation are:
- increased creativity and spontaneity
- greater self-acceptance, self-understanding, and self-confidence
- mindfulness: better focus, concentration, and patience
- the ability to recognize counter-productive habitual patterns of thought and to let go of them
- reduced tension (mental and physical), anxiety, stress, emotional conflict and turmoil
- clarity of purpose and a sense of meaning; the ability to see what is important versus what is urgent but superficial
- greater empathy, connection, harmony, and intimacy in relationships
- health benefits, including lower blood pressure, lower cholesterol, and improved sleep
- a sense of lightness, ease, peace, wholeness, relaxation, and well-being
- spiritual insight; understanding of one’s relationship with the vastness of existence
- passion for life, enjoyment, verve, and appreciation.
We don't think any of these benefits are incompatible with Humanist philosophy!
You're welcome to come and join us!
