I have a side project that occupies many hours of my summer, but I’ve noticed an interesting phenomenon that happens while I do it.
I’ve been breeding garlic, where I take a tiny pair of tweezers and remove 50+ seed like things from around 50+ tiny flowers without damaging the flowers. It is a fairly difficult, yet mindless task.
I’ve noticed that when I do this, my mind goes into a meditative state all on it’s own. It feels like my subconscious mind is occupied on the task, leaving my consciousness to think without being distracted by my subconscious.
It’s similar to what they call “flow” or “being in the zone”.
Has anyone else experience this phenomenon, or is there any mention in the EBTs of meditating while doing a difficult/mindless activity?
Meditation is not about sitting on a lotus position.
Meditation is about being able to observe your mind, like sitting in your room observing events outside your window like birds flying past, clouds moving slowly, rain coming suddenly. Over time, you will realise consciousness is consciousness, mind is mind. The mind conjures objects on its own without needing the witness’ participation.
That said, to many, lotus position does make it easier to meditate.
To your question, do you see different changing mental objects while doing your said activity?
I find it much easier to view my thoughts as thoughts and not myself. It feels like my level of concentration is supercharged. I do not seem to get lost in a train of thought, as I tend to do while on the cushion.
While meditating on the cushion, sometimes my mind will wander for over a minute before I even notice that it has wandered. This doesn’t happen while doing an activity. It’s as if the part of my mind which generates random thoughts and clings to them is occupied, and doesn’t bother me as much. It’s hard to explain, it just feels different, but in a good way.
