On those rare occasions when I'm in London and on the tube, I'm too busy pretending to be foreign by talking to people - and doing the unthinkable by not leaving a space between occupied seats. Cry havoc...

Quote from: Padma on September 23, 2012, 01:50:16 PM
I've had to find very new ways to meditate since my PTSD became acute, for exactly this reason.

I find that cranking up the distortion and playing in a heavy rock/metal fashion helps, as opposed to just diddling around in a bluesy jazzy fashion.
Both work, but just slamming the piss out of my guitar and amp is a very satisfying way of coping with PTSD symptoms that are persistent.
Guitar playing is my meditation, I seldom think about anything in particular when playing.
I just wish I knew how to actually play...
(kidding).

Ativan

I drum. And sing. And dance in the dark. And I walk. Sitting still is the thing least likely to make me calm . Took me a long stretch of unnecessary self-torture to figure that out. I wanted it to work like it used to, so I was resistant to finding out how it works now. For me, anything that doesn't involve keeping it company ends in trouble.

Sometimes, in idle moments, I wonder how much taller I would be than the Buddha.

Quote from: Padma on September 23, 2012, 08:54:32 PM
Sometimes, in idle moments, I wonder how much taller I would be than the Buddha.

OK, seriously laughed out loud...
(OMG, now I'm wondering...)
Ativan

Well, you know, over 2500 years ago. I like to think of him as little and amazing. I get fed up with him being portrayed like a golden giant. Plus, well, I'm a bloody tall woman. I wouldn't have wanted to put a crick in his neck.

Quote from: Padma on September 23, 2012, 09:25:40 PM
Well, you know, over 2500 years ago. I like to think of him as little and amazing. I get fed up with him being portrayed like a golden giant. Plus, well, I'm a bloody tall woman. I wouldn't have wanted to put a crick in his neck.

OMB, you got me thinking, if the Buddha is portrayed as a golden giant in the golden triangle of SE asia, how would he be portrayed in the Pacific Northwest? As a green giant. Then it clicked: "Ho ho ho, Green Giant pada om."

Then I looked at Jolly Green Giant images to post one here, and I realized,
OMGG, the J-G Giant is Trans! and Buddha? Cool!!

The Buddha transcends gender identity - see OP

or... what

Aren't we all .

I don't really meditate much, because I have kind of lost patience with it... but different things will change the pattern of my thoughts and calm or inspire me.

Deep listening to music is one, and that includes when I'm making it.

Some kinds of not-too-challenging, not too fast puzzle games will do it.

Driving with the windows down and loud music playing.  And often yelling along with it or just grinning like an idiot.

Walking in nature.

Walking at night.

Campfires.

Really good food, particularly Indian or Vietnamese for whatever reason.

People-watching, if it's not peoples' attitudes that are bothering me at the time.

Reading something new but interesting -- really out there bizarre science fiction, or well-written non-fiction about subjects I only know a little about.

I meditate sometimes, but usually have a "loving-kindness" thing going so it's something to focus on.

Like everybody else on this thread, playing music puts me into a trance. My college band director turned the basketball band into this classic rock/latin group. Which is awesome. So when I play that, I'm just focused on making swagalicious (now a word) sound and blending with the group. When we're done, I can't really judge the group (same with marching band) cause I was in the zone for like eight minutes. 

I dunno, I'm of the opinion that a consensus reality cannot exist, and I think that's kind of cool. We each perceive "reality" in our own entirely unique way based on our own biases and experiences, and to each person their perception is reality. And really, why can't all realities be true simultaneously? I think that kind of thing is awesome


As to the whole music-and-trance thread within the thread, I love to meditate and/or slip into a meditative state whilst making music. It's so powerful, especially in ritualistic settings.

I wonder how much taller I would be than the Buddha

How would you ever know, Buddha is always sitting down.

And the title reminds me of the old hymn In Christ There Is No East or West.  That there are levels on which things like east and west, male and female matter, and lots of levels where they don't.

Quote from: tekla on October 08, 2012, 08:51:52 PM
How would you ever know, Buddha is always sitting down.

Nah, I've got a long torso - in any case, there are plenty of walking Buddhas.