MEDITATION

Different people think of "meditation" in different ways. To some it's sitting cross legged focusing on an inner center of peace, while I, for instance, speak of the organism-identification/ looking-up-the-name/ digesting-the-information/ writing-about-it process that occupies most of my time as a meditation. So, what's "meditation"?

The New Oxford American Dictionary installed on my Kindle reader defines meditation as "The action or practice of meditating." So, what does the word "meditate" mean? Oxford says:

"think deeply or focus one's mind for a period of time, in silence or with the aid of chanting, for religious or spiritual purposes or as a method of relaxation."

That covers a lot of ground. My identification/ looking-up/ writing process qualifies because it focus my mind on specific parts of Nature, and I do it not only as an innocent way to kill time as I approach my end, but also for spiritual purposes.

The reason I'm bringing up "meditation" here is that lately letters from people I know in the US and Europe have been expressing more and more disquiet, even desperation and rage, at the course their respective societies are taking. Thing is, being upset hurts the one feeling upset, and accomplishes nothing. Those who say that being upset has a value in that it provokes us to take action against what's upsetting, should remember that it's best to fight when you have a clear, focused, well informed mind, not in a discombobulated mental state. Therefore: Meditation.

In the entire Universe, for humans on Earth, there's nothing more appropriate to meditate on than the Earth's Natural processes and things. When you meditate -- calmly pay close attention to -- the plants, animals and ecology around you, eventually, somehow, you gain a perspective from which even the most saddening events can be endured. I can't say how this happens or why, only that it's been my experience that it does.

Another reason for meditating on Nature is that all our thoughts and feelings are profoundly affected by our hormonal states, our brains' ever-changing electrochemical environment, the brain neuron connections we've inherited, etc. In contrast, the things of Nature have evolved refining themselves for millions and billions of years, their evolution taking into consideration such matters as the hostility and rapacity of certain other beings, of all the tricks a mind can play, and the effects of reality's chance events. What better to meditate on -- to anchor our thoughts on -- than something that has survived for so long, and something that, when we pay attention, strikes us as beautiful and good?

Of course, meditation won't undo processes at work in the world right now that will make things worse for future citizens, and it won't keep Life on Earth in a state that in the future we might recognize or find appealing. It merely calms the spirit and focuses the mind, which is needed when, among other things, one wishes to mount a defense against an enemy.