I've been reading a lot of positive psychology, which is the study of how to be happy, optimistic, confident, etc. And there's research that shows meditation can literally transform your brain to make you more likely to be content and happy.
Happiest Man in the World
Quick 2min video about meditation
The first link is an article about a monk who undergoes brain scans and shows happiness levels that are completely off the charts. The second is a western psychologist who's done lots of research on eastern meditation techniques and effects.
The first point I'd like to get across is that your brain is constantly changing and continues to develop, change, grow or decay throughout your lifetime. This is phenomenal!! We're constantly changing our ideas, viewpoints and opinions, but we can also change our fundamental outlook on the world. Neural connections can be created very quickly if we allow our mind to continue to expand. As children, we're constantly confronting new feelings, emotions and ideas but it doesn't change as adults. There are fewer new experiences for adults, which results and fewer neural connections created.
The second point is that meditation or mindfulness training can help us change our brains. We all know the placebo effect is real, and that a $2 hotdog tastes better than a 25c hotdog, or a $2 aspirin is more effective than a 25c aspirin. Our mind changes how we perceive and happiness is a function of our perception.
One of the ways that the mind changes through meditation is that we become more aware. There are many lies being told in our society that are perpetuated and become truth to many people. Awareness and mindfulness development over time will reveal many truths because it removes you from the current state and see the world from a different point of view. I personally dislike the phrase, "I don't know why anyone would do that." It's a very ignorant phrase which is used too often and basically translates into, "I only understand the way I think."
There's also the conventional arguments of stress relief, anger reduction, better sleep or whatnot, but you all have heard that before.
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