Is There a Secular Meditation?

www.huffingtonpost.com/swami-bv-tripurar...edita_b_2373484.html

I think he raises some interesting points. Comments?

I think this is his conclusion, but I don't think it's grounded in historical fact. (I can't speak to it personally)

"there have been no Buddhists adepts to date who, upon attaining the Buddhist goal of enlightenment, have taught us that the ego death experience itself dies with biological death. Meanwhile, from the nonsecular quarters every adept to date has described his or her experience of enlightenment as one of transcending death as well as religion. "

Seems like he's arguing that buddhist adepts advocate eternalism?

This --

"Talk of secular meditation is one thing, but we are still waiting for the first secular mystic to arrive, one who upon attaining ego death makes no metaphysical claims about the nature of the experience. Even though Zen Buddhism and Vipassana are sometimes thought to be forms of meditation that one can engage in without attaching any metaphysical beliefs to the process, there have been no Buddhists adepts to date who, upon attaining the Buddhist goal of enlightenment, have taught us that the ego death experience itself dies with biological death. Meanwhile, from the nonsecular quarters every adept to date has described his or her experience of enlightenment as one of transcending death as well as religion."

Is silly because in order to make these claims one must die and report back from the other side. Since that ain't gonna happen, I take the entire paragraph with a grain of salt, and would ask why the question "Is there secular mediation?" even matters - which is actually what the article's author is addressing.

As to the general term of secular meditation, MBSR and others come to mind, although I guess we don't yet have a widely accepted hardcore version.

I have wished at times that there was a name for pragmatic dharma that didn't include that old Buddhist associated word. Like pragmatic contemplation or some such. But I guess Buddhism is kind of where it's at, if you were limited to one "technology."

quote:
"we are still waiting for the first secular mystic to arrive, one who upon attaining ego death makes no metaphysical claims about the nature of the experience"
It seems like this community is chock full of such people.

"
...I take the entire paragraph with a grain of salt, and would ask why the question "Is there secular mediation?" even matters - which is actually what the article's author is addressing.

"

Yes, upon further reflection I came to a similar conclusion: that the question is in one sense meaningless. I suppose that if asked this question myself I might respond, "I don't know, why don't you try it and see". Certainly there are any number of meditation/dharma books which at least imply a secular approach.