by Andrew P. Smith
Introduction
lWhat is meditation?
lWhat is the goal of meditation?
lThe validation problem
lThe war of the selves
lHigher consciousness is not our birthright
lThe struggle with desires
lRishful thinking
lMeditation acts in opposition to natural processes in the body
lMeditation is a process of acquiring energy
lEverything we do in the world alters both the level and the quality of our awareness
lThe relationships between activity, energy and awareness
lOur awareness increases more rapidly when we return to a previously-realized level
lAny activity or interaction in the world generates new thoughts
lThe challenges and benefits of meditation during ordinary life
lMeditation is a form of energy consumption
lMeditation involves at least three energy processing steps
lFull awakening requires many decades of meditative efforts
lBreathing techniques
lPrayers/mantras
lVisualization and other concentrative techniques
lA meditator must always pay attention to the consequences of his acts
lHow meditation defines success
lMeditation and a worldly existence are always in conflict over the use of energy
lMeditation and stress
lThe evidence for psychic powers
lThe initial meditative experience
lTwo kinds of perception
lThe meditator is caught between two worlds
lTowards a consensus on the effects of meditation
lThe four strands of knowledge
lKnowledge acquisition is a universal process
lThe fundamental unity of the universal processes of growth
References