Meditation:
Is it still what its been cracked up to be? By David Peden Ancient scriptures have proclaimed meditation nothing short of a direct means to enlightenment. Over the years, books have claimed it to be a remedy to everything from cancer, high blood pressure, stress, self-doubt, loneliness, and a host of other things. In a modern world of instant cures, wonder drugs, and life altering technology, does meditation still live up to its promises? In our fast-pace world do we have time for something that is gradual, and whose effects are not measured in terms of what is financially profitable? First, let’s take a look at the past, and ask what technology has afforded us? Today in our world, we travel at light speed over air waves, through telephone lines, and by satellite. Nowadays you can sit on the beach in Tahiti and receive a fax, or make a phone call to a relative in Kansas City. Some say that our modern world has brought us closer together. That’s a good thing, isn’t it? As good as technology can be, can it help us to find inner peace? Can it assist us to know who we are? Does it encourage our own self-trust and self-reliance? Does knowledge of who we are even fit in to our picture of the 90’s? Or, has the media encouraged us to be what others tell us we should be? Perhaps the question, Who am I ? went out with the 70’s. The eighties seem to have been a time of the yuppie, and an emphasis on economics. The 90’s so far seem to be the age of information. Do you feel your life consist of more than just information and economics? And, what about Self reliance? Do we still trust in ourselves enough, to relay on ourselves for answers. Or, have fast paced information systems caused us to question whether we are inadequate in comparison? Is a computer going to decide if I act in my own best interest, or the best interest of my fellows? And, is that any longer as important to us? Or, is that an over rated consideration left over from the 60’s? How exactly does technology and humanism fit together in our lives? Maybe technology has become a vehicle for our intentions? Perhaps it can allow our humanity to move more quickly, and more broadly impact our world around us. I suppose I can impact my world quickly, in a negative way, or in a creatively generous way. Or, perhaps in a way that leaves the world a more hospitable place to be. Meditation will allow you to eventually see who we are, on a deeper creative level. For those who feel a desire for a means toward peaceful self-illumination, meditation still holds a key.    
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