Iacchus,

You mentioned that you were doing a meditation similar to the one that the FHU uses. Is it a variation of the FHU meditation or does it originate from somewhere else? I've been doing it twice a day but sometimes I wonder if I'm really doing it correctly because it seems that at times I'm not really thinking about anything during meditation anyway. My mind is almost a blank at times while I'm doing it.

I know that Roy Masters says that you're supposed to let the thoughts come--just not to get caught up in them. I've heard him telling one caller that it's like looking at a picture through a porthole--just notice the thoughts and let them pass. I don't completely understand him at times. He has his own jargon.

One caller said recently that you're supposed to think about your hand. Roy said, "No, don't think about your hand, just be conscious of it. There's a difference." I'm not always able to hear his program. If I did, I would probably learn a lot more about the meditation and how and why it works. I just get bits and pieces from time to time.

As for the meditation, it's basically derived from what Roy teaches and, if I were to refer anyone I would probably refer them to Roy's technique, at least initially. Did you read my page on About the Cover? which speaks of the yellow rings and violet background? This is one of the effects which is achieved when done properly. While here I created an animated gif illustrating this which I use for my avatar here at Dionysus Forums. As you can plainly see. (The color is a little too pronounced though and it's sped up a little.)

One of the techniques that I found worked best for me was to lay prone on my back or, with my back propped up (you're less likely to fall asleep), with my hands placed on my lap, palms open but relaxed (fingers somewhat curled), thumbs facing up, with my fingertips about a half inch to one inch apart (whatever's most comfortable). And I would begin to focus my attention on the warmth of my hands. And sure enough I would start thinking about something else or get caught up in a daydream and I would say, Oh that's nice, and begin to focus on the warmth of my hands again.

And after awhile you'll notice that your hands begin to get pretty warm -- which, helps to maintain your focus on the meditation -- at which point I start to relax my whole body and extend the warmth of my hands throughout my body. And you know what? It works! While it's also about this time that I begin to notice the effect of the yellow rings in mind.

Well there's still more that can be said about it but, I'll have to get back to it, Okay? Thanks!

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So when the body dies, and consciousness departs, where do "we" go? ... Off to define another "reality" perhaps?

Iacchus,

How often do you meditate? I meditate twice a day (sometimes three if I can manage it). I meditate in the morning before going to work and again before I go to bed. On weekends, I try to meditate more often and usually for longer periods of time. I seem to notice the yellow rings you speak of when I meditate for longer periods of time. I usually meditate about 20 minutes in the morning and a little longer at night. I'm pressed for time in the morning. I light a candle (just for atmosphere and to set the mood) not that it matters much because my eyes are closed anyway when I'm meditating.

If you want to call what I do meditation, then yes, I typically do this when I first wake up or, right before I go to bed. When I do it at night, typically it's a matter of trying to let go so I can relax and fall asleep. When I do it when I first wake up, it usually involves collecting my thoughts and elevating my thinking above that which I had been dreaming about before I woke up. Why? Because I almost always dream when I'm asleep. And yes, it quite often entails the sensation with the yellow rings. I don't know, does that help?

Anyway, I'm not real strict about it, or formal, as I used to be when listening to Roy Masters.

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So when the body dies, and consciousness departs, where do "we" go? ... Off to define another "reality" perhaps?

Do you know what Roy meant in his book, "How Your Mind Can Keep You Well" and the accompanying meditation tape when he speaks of old illnesses returning when you have used the meditation technique for awhile? He goes on to say something like, "Don't worry. It only appears that way." Did you ever experience anything like this when you were heavily indoctrinated into his teachings? Did you notice any symptoms of former illnesses or any unexplained aches or pains? This seems very odd to me.

Well, the meditation is supposed to be like a cathartic experience, especially when you have a lot of buried resentment which needs to come to the surface and be re-examined. Along with this is a whole lifestyle of trama and associated aches and pains which tends to come boiling to the surface as well, more of a conditioned reflex type of thing, which ultimately needs to be re-evaluated before you can set your house back in its proper order so to speak.

This is how it was for me anyway, although there weren't many aches and pains associated with it (I was still young), however, I did have a pretty bad sinus condition, where my nose was stopped up most of the time, as well as a severe case of acne, both of which cleared up within the next couple of years, once I learned how to deal with my emotions that is, and not let them run amok. So, that's pretty much all I have to say about it I guess? ...

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So when the body dies, and consciousness departs, where do "we" go? ... Off to define another "reality" perhaps?

Occasionally while I'm meditating, I feel strange sensations in the area of my scalp and near the temples (it's kind of a twitching sensation). It's rather difficult to describe the feeling except that I do feel something. I know meditation stimulates the pineal gland which is supposed to be known as the "seat of the soul." I've researched this on the internet but I found myself looking at websites about chakras and kundalini and I just don't want to delve into all that. My life is complicated enough as it is.

How long have you been meditating? If you don't feel comfortable doing it I wouldn't do it just because someone charismatic like Roy Masters tells you it's imperative to do so, because it's not. If there's one thing I've learned over the last 15 or 20 years is that Roy Masters does not know everything, believe me. So, if he starts to preach about the end of the world and how important it is to prepare yourself in the way he and his followers have prepared themselves, don't believe it, because it's a crock. You're just wasting your time.

If, on the other hand, you've been meditating and find it to be beneficial, and a lot of people do, then it's entirely up to you to decide if you wish to continue or not. However, the last thing you want to do is coerce yourself into doing it which, seems to be the type of methodology Roy Masters advocates.

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So when the body dies, and consciousness departs, where do "we" go? ... Off to define another "reality" perhaps?

I've been meditating about a year but it bothers me that I feel guilty if I don't meditate. If I'm running late in the morning and I don't have time to meditate, I feel as though I've done something wrong.

Well, what do you get out of it besides that? Do you feel there are benefits to it? Like I said, I really don't meditate in the formal sense myself, however, I usually take the time out to collect myself in the morning, and to some extent reflect on things (and letting go) before I go to bed at night. But this is something you need to decide what to do for yourself though.

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So when the body dies, and consciousness departs, where do "we" go? ... Off to define another "reality" perhaps?

Roy Masters mentions in one chapter in his book, "How Your Mind Can Keep You Well" that there is a danger if the meditation is used with a wrong intent. He said that there is a correct way of meditating. He has said that one should meditate to seek that which is good and a right way of thinking. I can't remember his exact words without turning to his book. He said that we shouldn't meditate just to seek relief because that adds a selfish twist to the purpose of meditation. He has said that the meditation causes you to be less caught up in "thought and dream stuff" and you don't have so many trivial things floating around in your head. It's supposed to give you the ability to be more aware of your emotions so that you have a chance in a fraction of a second (so to speak) to not react to people and events in the same way you would have if you had not recognized or been aware of anger and resentment rising to the surface. I have listened to him explain the meditation more in depth on occasion because I often feel that I'm overlooking an important part of the meditation. I read in one part of his book that you can meditate yourself into oblivion. He says that you should look at or observe your thoughts and the minute you find yourself lost or caught up in them, then you should concentrate on the hand again. There are times when I'm not thinking about anything while meditating. Maybe that's what he means by meditating into oblivion. I just feel that there is some little thing that I'm overlooking that is taking away from the benefits of the meditation. I edited this post because I thought the word "dangerous" was a little too strong. I went back to the book trying to find where he used that word and I couldn't seem to find it other than a reference to there being a danger in getting caught up with his voice on the tape. Perhaps someone else referred to the meditation as dangerous. Anyway, I don't want to be too hard on the poor fellow. After all, he's almost 77 years old. He has more medical problems that I hadn't been aware of before. His diabetes went undiagnosed for many years and apparently there has been damage as a result of it not having been treated although it appears that he is treating it on his own. I thought he said once that he had cured his own diabetes but evidently some of the damage that had already been done is difficult to reverse although he seems to be very positive about it and says that he will wait as long as it takes. He says that he watches his diet very carefully and eats very sparingly. He mentioned that he sometimes has berries and cream for breakfast. He mentioned it on one of his recent programs while he was talking to one of his callers. His family (children and grandchildren) and his program mean everything to him.

I listened to Roy Masters very early this morning and I heard the voice of his son, David, for the first time. It was a recorded message advertising two of Roy's books, "How Your Mind Can Keep You Well" and "How to Conquer Negative Emotions" which are perhaps his two most popular books.

I don't know much about meditation and diabetes, so here is my question:
As well as reducing the carbohydrate intake, could meditation help against diabetes? Or have I misunderstood?

It seems you know much about this, so I thought to ask.

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The Heavenly Afterlife exist.

I don't really know that much about it although I have been very interested in looking up zillions of websites in the past about health and nutritional supplements on the internet. I don't really understand how the meditation could help other than dealing with the emotional aspect of dealing with diabetes. Perhaps meditation helps you to be more disciplined with respect to taking more responsibility for handling the disease by getting enough exercise and eating properly. I imagine there is probably more to it than that. I'm sure Roy Masters would have more to say on the subject. He might even have a tape. All his tapes are listed at his website: www.fhu.com

Note: It appears that you were asking if the meditation could prevent the disease which is a little different than how I first read your question.

Human,

Do you meditate? I've been meditating for well over a year--early in the morning before I go to work and again at night before I go to sleep. The meditation "Be Still and Know" is on CD and cassette. If you're interested in trying it or listening to it, it can also be downloaded from the FHU website for free (on the homepage). I have the meditation on cassette. Once you get used to meditating on your own, it is no longer necessary to use the tape. I use it once in awhile when I want to take a little "refresher" course.

I have not meditated before, but I think I will give meditation a try.
I have many things I want to do, so I only need much time. So hopefully, I will have time to try meditation soon.

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The Heavenly Afterlife exist.

I have a colleague who is very interested in the brain chemistry of meditation. He is a neuropsychologist, and his take on it is "if there are real effects, and I think there are, they happen at the level of the synapse in particular brain structures, and that would be a fascinating thing to study!" He also wants to study the neurology of Reiki (he thinks the feelings are very real, but he has very different feelings about where the action takes place).

I listened to Roy Masters program early this morning. I very seldom hear him quote verses from the Bible (one or two occasionally) but he read a rather long passage from one of the apocryphal books, Hermas, as the subject of anger is dealt with extensively in this book. Anyone that's listened to his radio program knows that anger is a topic that Roy talks about on a regular basis.

There are some interesting reviews that disclose some of the details of Roy Masters book, Finding God in Physics. This has been moved to the Roy Masters Related Resources thread. You'll find the links to Amazon and Barnes & Noble there. I posted it here without thinking and realized my mistake afterwards.

Iacchus,

Having read a sampling of your posts from at least four discussion forums (including your own), I can't help but wonder why you have so much insight. It seems to be an endless stream of thought. How do you keep up the pace? I would be so exhausted. Don't you ever get tired? Do you think the many years of using the meditation contributed to this insight? Do you feel that the effects of the meditation stay with you even though you're not really meditating now?