meditation as a way to calm trading angsts

[wally_]

Quote from man:


Someone mentioned TM and levitation. I think there are even contests being taken in discipline called yogic flying, which is kind of very unusual jumps done by people in lotus posture. Surf for Maharishi, yogic flying, deepak chopra if you are interested in that.

much peace to all of you

I am beginning to wonder if too much meditation does not cause brainwashing. Do you really believe in everytyhing you read including levitation, just because it has something to do with things as esoteric to most people as TM? Where is any evidence to support it?

I think that meditation is a very good and useful thing, but the whole industry created around it seems to be a different thing.

 

[Girlpower]

Quote from wally_:




I think that meditation is a very good and useful thing, but the whole industry created around it seems to be a different thing.

I did an internet search over the weekend and there are lots of people willing to sell all sorts of goods and services associated with meditation.

Amazing! It's almost as big as the slimming industry!

Natalie:eek:

 

[vanilla2]

Two good friends of mine live in a bhuddist center (Diamond Way) in Brooklyn. They're serious Bhuddists, and every once in a while I meditate with them. At first it seemed totally hokey to me, but after several tries I can tell there are obvious benefits to clearning your mind and training yourself to accept emotions, let them go unevaluated and accept mental noise for what it is. They're exceptionally mature people for their age, and I think their regular practice has a lot to do with it. I believe meditation can lead to significant increases in emotional intelligence.

As to levitation, my guess would be that demonstrations, contests and accepting money for it would be in utter violation of the principles that practitioners of this level hold most fervently. Or maybe nobody can do it. Either way, I don't think anyone who could do this would be likely to prove it to the world for any sum.

 

[amg]

from Girlpower: Amazing! It's almost as big as the slimming industry!

These two industries have something else in common: their real secrets are hidden right out in the open, for free!

To lose weight, eat less and move more.

To meditate, watch and do with awareness & caring

 

[OPTIONAL777]

Quote from amg:

Those that experience moments of balance, equanimity, and poise through meditation know they can, through persistence and focus, bring those qualities into their trading.

For those that need proof meditation isn't just a mind game, scientists have shown that indeed meditative brains are different.

Traders talk about keeping their emotions in check, being unflustered, and curbing their fear and anger. Meditators know from experience this can be acheived. Recently, scientists have (once again) proved it: <blockquote>The scanning studies by scientists at the University of Wisconsin at Madison showed activity in the left prefrontal lobes of experienced Buddhist practitioners. The area is linked to positive emotions, self-control and temperament.

Other research by Paul Ekman, of the University of California San Francisco Medical Center, suggests that meditation and mindfulness can tame the amygdala, an area of the brain which is the hub of fear memory.

Entire article: Buddhists really are happy, calm and serene people</blockquote>

While the article focussed on "Buddhists", one needn't consider a change of religion to practice meditation. Perhaps one of the simplest introductions to "meditation" is Thich Nhat Hanh's "Miracle of Mindfulness". Hanh was nominated by Martin Luther King for a Nobel Peace prize and writes clearly and practically. One simply breathes quietly. That is it, no mantras, no visualizing gods or mandalas.

Perceptive readers of Mark Douglas' "Trading in the Zone" who also meditate no doubt recognize the parallels he draws with "the Now moment" and basic tenets of buddhist theory.

One needn't be "religious" to recognize that a well conditioned mind can only help one make better, more effective, decisions in a livelihood that is inherently fraught with emotional perils.

The point being, if you are at your wits end, swinging hither and yon with your trading, rather than more fierce mental stimulation, perhaps personal quiet time to still your mind is what might work.

Lovely to see you on the board Ana.

I hope you stick it out here, people will come to realize how much you have to share.

777

 

[OPTIONAL777]

There is an old Indian Proverb:

"You become what you meditate on."

 

[amg]

Hi there, O777--

I has been a long time, eh? My lurkings here saw your name every now and then but an urge to purge via posting only came upon me lately. I still post charts and occasional comments at stockcharts.com and my soapbox webblog, but otherwise remain moleish.

You did cross my mind when I post this thread as I recall you mentioned a number of years ago that you'd looked into the personal growth movement some time ago... and rightly come to some damaging conclusions about much of it. It still goes on, just new names, or old names with new snake oil.

I find Osho's stuff interesting and from personal experience, very effective. I learned most of the meditations described at that site from one of his students. At that time, the methods were so secretive- guarded, I had to jot hasty notes when I got home, suspecting much got garbled in the fog of memory. And now it's right there, out in the open for any one with a browser. I'm not sure it's appropriate or right for everyone, one can do serious harm with self-guided over-zealous practice. While the practices can be done as a stand alones, the effect would surely be different than if in context.

Come to think of it, just like in trading, isn't it? Having Tradestation and learning to program EasyLanguage does not make a successful trader. Even adding the rudiments of a system and discipline aren't a guarantee.

Thanks for the welcome and greeting and best to you, Ana Maria

 

[Zuizo]

Active meditations are very effective. I began the journey with the foundation of Dynamic and Kundalini meditations.

I would like to say, if you enter meditation with an open heart, with sincerity, and courage... then you will find your own way, do not fear.

If you feel the need for a guide, allow it to come naturally, perhaps along the way you will meet an individual who you will befriend, a relationship of connectedness may form and a sharing of meditation may naturally occur.

BUT PLEASE... do *not* pay for a guide. It is a dysfunctional desperate relationship.

Meditation IS the first and last freedom... Dependence on a guide or group defeats the very essence of meditation.

With that said, to meditate with others is quite beautiful, and very powerful.

As ever,

--Z

 

[amg]

Quote from Zuizo: I would like to say, if you enter meditation with an open heart, with sincerity, and courage... then you will find your own way, do not fear.

Very well said, from a place of experience it sounds. I was speaking to a friend today who wants desperately to change the life she & her husband lead, and has made many steps towards doing so, but each step is fraught with anxiety when a piece of the puzzle doesn't quite fit the way it "should". Fear will be there, but watching it and seeing its positive intention, as Seykota's method might posit, moves one towards the leap into the unknown. I need to remind myself of your words often.

BUT PLEASE... do *not* pay for a guide. It is a dysfunctional desperate relationship.

This I too found be true through personal experience. There is much good to be gained, but as my awareness sharpened through my own work and growing confidence, the darker side of "the situation" became more and more oppressive until I was forced to acknowledge what I had been pushing out of sight. I had walked into a gilded cage of my own making.

Meditation IS the first and last freedom... Dependence on a guide or group defeats the very essence of meditation.(emphasis amg's)

And therein lies the secret-- to be one's own guide-- be it in meditation or trading-- means to develop and trust in our own experience. A guide or group can serve as a catalyst, but like a crutch once a sprain has healed, should be set aside.

One thing a group can help in is to be a touchstone for the ego. Ego interjects slyly, and ever more slyly, as awarenessand proper use of the mind is sharpened. So easy to fool ourselves with only our own self in the mirror, without others to reflect our projections. I am intrigued by Seykota's Trading Tribe Process as a possible way to work on this. I've done a similar process before, but on the interpersonal level, and it was awful, simply awful. Much of the "mirroring" was instead simply projections of other's crud, compounding a messy mess even further (lol). But it has promise if done well.

If you feel the need for a guide, allow it to come naturally, perhaps along the way you will meet an individual who you will befriend, a relationship of connectedness may form and a sharing of meditation may naturally occur.

Hope is a four letter word whose use I don't often allow, but for this I will make an exception!

Ana Maria

You know this already, but I hope others see how everything we've touched on relates not only to meditation but to trading.

 

[marketsurfer]

Quote from amg:

These two industries have something else in common: their real secrets are hidden right out in the open, for free!

ana,

it is VERY nice to see you here ! it has always been my contention that people will pay you to tell them what they already know.

your old old friend,

surfer