Mind over matter!!! Does it work ?

[Anatta]

Kia Ora

Mind over matter!!!  Does it work ?

I'd say yes and in more ways than one...For example transitioning...If we see matter as ones physical body[which it is] and gender as ones mind[which it is], for those of us who have transitioned [whether it be with or without surgery] in a sense it was the power of the mind that  transformed the body...
However there's even more to the "mind over matter" debate...

Émile Coué de Châtaigneraie was a French psychologist and pharmacist who introduced a method of psychotherapy and self-improvement based on optimistic autosuggestion.

See link for more info  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89mile_Cou%C3%A9 

A lot of Eastern philosophical thought relates to "mind over matter".. For another example Buddhist monks high in the Himalayas who can dry out wet cloths wrapped over their naked shoulders whilst in sub zero temperatures when in meditation...

So what's your "thoughts" on "mind over matter" ? Have you personally had any interesting experiences ? Some trans-people have reported things happening to their bodies without being on  HRT ...

Or perhaps it's just a load of "wishful thinking"..

Happy Mindfulness  
Metta Zenda  

[Sephirah]

Not entirely convinced about this, but I've read of an experiment done where women supposedly increased their bust size using nothing more than hypnotic suggestion. My instinct tells me it's possible, but I think I'll reserve judgement.

[Padma]

There's evidence that visualising bodybuilding training (as opposed to actually doing it) can build almost as much body. Of course, you have to put a lot of effort into the visualisation .

To me, it's a false dichotomy anyway, as the body and mind are just names for aspects of something we start by assuming is two separate things, and then we're so surprised when changing one affects the other (because it works both ways - for example posture changes mood, mood changes posture) etc.

[kate durcal]

I love you girl! but in this one we stand apart, no way the mind over matter BS.

Kate D

[Amazon D]

HEY NO MIND IT DOESN'T MATTER 

YEA SURE I BELIEVE IN ANYTHING  i know the power of the mind

[Princess of Hearts]

Kia Ora Zenda

Have you read anything by Serge Kahilli King?

[Anatta]

Kia Ora,

Some might find this interesting...It's about a Tibetan Buddhist who recently die here in Aotearoa [NZ] and his body has the scientists baffled
the actual programme will be on this Sunday TVNZ's Sunday programme...

http://tvnz.co.nz/sunday-news

Metta Zenda

[Anatta]

Kia Ora Zenda

Have you read anything by Serge Kahilli King?

Kia Ora Princess,

No I haven't read any of his books, he's a Shaman isn't he?

Metta Zenda

[Anatta]

I love you girl! but in this one we stand apart, no way the mind over matter BS.

Kate D

Kia Ora Kate.

I don't "mind" what you think about this, because your opinion doesn't really  "matter" much anyway !

Metta Zenda

[Anatta]

There's evidence that visualising bodybuilding training (as opposed to actually doing it) can build almost as much body. Of course, you have to put a lot of effort into the visualisation .

To me, it's a false dichotomy anyway, as the body and mind are just names for aspects of something we start by assuming is two separate things, and then we're so surprised when changing one affects the other (because it works both ways - for example posture changes mood, mood changes posture) etc.

Kia Ora Padma,

True...A simple  smile upon ones face can change ones mood 

Metta Zenda

[justmeinoz]

I attended meditation classes run by the local Buddhist monastery here, for palliative care cancer patients.  I was suffering severe chronic pain from a spinal injury, so my Dr. suggested I join their class.

By learning the breath control techniques they taught I was able to achieve a meditative state, with the body completely relaxed, but the mind fully alert. From there we moved on to tackling the pain by visualisation .  There is nothing mystical or magical about it.  It is simply using controlled breathing to change your brainwaves, and so alter the way you deal with received sensations.
Over 50 years ago a Japanese psychiatrist observed patients brainwaves while they meditated, and found that previously untrained people could quite quickly be taught to reach the same level as Zen monks who had practiced for many years.

Eventually I was able to visualise the pain as a physical shape and decrease it, by shrinking it to nothing.  Several months later I was also able to use this technique to totally cut off pain sensations when I cut my thumb to the bone, and had to drive 20 km for assistance. 

It works, if you are trained, and practice regularly, and are able to maintain the meditative state you have reached.

Karen.

[Amazon D]

Kia Ora,

Some might find this interesting...It's about a Tibetan Buddhist who recently die here in Aotearoa [NZ] and his body has the scientists baffled
the actual programme will be on this Sunday TVNZ's Sunday programme...

http://tvnz.co.nz/sunday-news

Metta Zenda

Thats cool. I know i have used my mind to resolve many physical ailments. I work very very hard and my muscles get tight but i am able to concentrate on the internal fibers and let them relax. Its been something i have been able to do all my life but i could never work a regular job at any company. I do need time in between my hard work to regain my bodies balanc. I can also deal with pain unlike most people.

[Julie Marie]

I once read a story in a golf book about the power of the mind.  It told of a man who was a POW in Viet Nam for over 7 years.  To keep his sanity he would do mind exercises every day.  One of the things he did was visualize playing golf at his home course.  Each day he would begin his mental round by driving to the course, paying his green fees, step up to the first tee and walk 18 holes.

He envisioned every step, every practice swing, every shot, and every outcome.  Every "round" would take him about four hours.  During these rounds he was locked in a small cage, barely large enough to stand it.

After he was released, he went home and took the first opportunity to play a round of golf.  He shot a 75, the best round of his life.

Anyone who has read about meditation or has done it themselves knows it can elevate your physical performance, as well as other things.  Mental preparation is known to improve your performance in any endeavor just as "stinkin' thinkin' will hurt you.

And then there's the story of a sailor on a Navy ship.  A 500 pound bomb had landed on the deck but didn't explode.  His crewmates said he ran over to it and lifted it and dumped it in the ocean.  He said he didn't remember much, just that he was scared to death the thing would explode and they would all die.  He did say, however, that he was sore as hell later on.  And no, he wasn't a weightlifter or a circus strongman.  He was said to be an average-sized guy.

When the mind is singularly focused, we can do amazing things.

[tekla]

His crewmates said he ran over to it and lifted it and dumped it in the ocean.
That a pretty well documented occurrence and though it might well have a high mental component to it, it's pretty much an adrenaline rush that does it.

It is simply using controlled breathing to change your brainwaves, and so alter the way you deal with received sensations.
Right, and that is much more of mind over mind really, than mind over matter.  That a combination of mental and physical actions can change other physical outcomes in your own body is more electro-chemical than mystical.

Mind over matter would have to entail some sort of actual projection of mental power without physical assistance to accomplish moving mass through space - specifically, the conversion of thought to energy, and no, I've never seen that. 

[Julie Marie]

Mind over matter would have to entail some sort of actual projection of mental power without physical assistance to accomplish moving mass through space - specifically, the conversion of thought to energy, and no, I've never seen that.

What about when a preacher tells the masses gays & lesbians are trying to get married and creates mass hysteria?

[Padma]

What about when a preacher tells the masses gays & lesbians are trying to get married and creates mass hysteria?

There's a distinct absence of mind in that example .

[tekla]

What about when a preacher tells the masses gays & lesbians are trying to get married and creates mass hysteria?

Getting closer I think, that's the power of stupid people in large groups, and powerful it is, and never doubt it.  It's killed millions and millions if not billions of people over the centuries of human interaction.  And for sure it's the power that religion has effectively used.  One could argue that in and of itself it's the very heart of the religious experience.  It's having everyone on the same page.  What exactly that power is that is generated is not understood, but anyone who's been around it knows it exists.  It's doesn't move matter as much as it creates reality, some very primitive borg/pack animal linkage among humans.  I've felt it in the religious sense, but I've also felt it in some pretty secular settings like Dead shows and other art deals, and in some work situations.  It's suggested by the Heisenberg Uncertainty Principal: that thought changes reality.

What about when a preacher tells the masses gays & lesbians are trying to get married black population that they are equal and creates mass hysteria?
I mean, you'll find lots of the same elements in both preachings.  Certainly there was a very powerful deal created when you have situations like Selma {Note: really, when a bunch of little old ladies link arms together and all believe that god is moving forward with them, really, really... get out of their way!} when that everyone on the same page, everyone thinking the same thoughts, that could be said to change reality. 

[Padma]

When the sum is greater than the parts, but people maintain their individuality, then it's a force for good. When the sum engulfs the parts, and no-one is allowed to have individuality (or want to have individuality, and the personal responsibility that goes with it), that always leads to more suffering.

[Anatta]

That a pretty well documented occurrence and though it might well have a high mental component to it, it's pretty much an adrenaline rush that does it.

Kia Ora Tekla,

In a sense it's still "mind over Matter!"

Metta Zenda

[Anatta]

I attended meditation classes run by the local Buddhist monastery here, for palliative care cancer patients.  I was suffering severe chronic pain from a spinal injury, so my Dr. suggested I join their class.

By learning the breath control techniques they taught I was able to achieve a meditative state, with the body completely relaxed, but the mind fully alert. From there we moved on to tackling the pain by visualisation .  There is nothing mystical or magical about it.  It is simply using controlled breathing to change your brainwaves, and so alter the way you deal with received sensations.
Over 50 years ago a Japanese psychiatrist observed patients brainwaves while they meditated, and found that previously untrained people could quite quickly be taught to reach the same level as Zen monks who had practiced for many years.

Eventually I was able to visualise the pain as a physical shape and decrease it, by shrinking it to nothing.  Several months later I was also able to use this technique to totally cut off pain sensations when I cut my thumb to the bone, and had to drive 20 km for assistance. 

It works, if you are trained, and practice regularly, and are able to maintain the meditative state you have reached.

Karen.

Kia Ora Karen,
In Buddhism there are two kinds of "knowledge"  1) Knowing "directly" and 2) Knowing "about" and those who practice meditation [Inner science] fit into the former...
Have you checked out the "Mind and Life Institute" which was set up by the Dalai Lama and a group of scientists? 
http://www.mindandlife.org/

Metta Zenda