[Buddha-l] neuroscience: neural plasticity

[S.A. Feite]

On May 30, 2007, at 2:52 PM, Joy Vriens wrote:

> Well that is the point, I have studied compassion and learned to  
> visualise my mother (poor thing, if only she knew what I did to  
> her) undergoing all sorts of hardships, walking barefoot in the  
> snow and other Dickensian visions, going to the hell realms because  
> of things she did for my sake etc. Then we were supposed to  
> meditate on that to develop compassion. Some people would have  
> tears running donw their cheeks. The end result was supposed to be  
> a strong resolution to achieve awakening for the sake of all  
> beings. So I don't know what the monk with the 100 sensors on his  
> head did to end up feeling great joy, but he or me must have been  
> doing something wrong.


You were performing compassion with reference points. The study we  
are talking of was with people meditating "on" non-referential  
compassion--non-dual compassion. These are remarkably different  
styles of practice.

The effect is one can become, for all intents and purposes,  
relatively free of afflictive emotions and radiate this possibility  
for others.

Steve