Dynamics of Mindfulness Practice Groups, Sense of Community, Belonging, Social Capital, Sangha

     Folks who sit with a group, even for the very first time, notice the positive influence of the group on their sitting. A "sense of community" * or "community-belonging" is part of the explanation. Another, more subtle explanation may be the high level of "social capital" *** associated with belonging to a group committed to mining the depths of each member's being in order to uncover and share what is discovered with the greater community.

     "the odds of daily smoking were higher among female primary care givers of children who reported high levels of community-belonging in locations characterised by relatively low levels of social capital. Similarly, (another study) found that, in deprived areas, children of mothers who reported knowing many (vs few) of their neighbours had worse mental health outcomes, while in wealthier areas, children of mothers who reported knowing many (vs few) of their neighbours had better mental health outcomes. Thus, these findings suggest that the influence of community-belonging on health should depend on context."

       Hystad P, Carpiano RM. Sense of community-belonging and health-behaviour change in Canada. J Epidemiol Community Health 2012; 66(3): 277-83.

     * sense of community “a feeling that members have of belonging and being important to each other, and a shared faith that members’ needs will be met by the commitment to be together.” McMillan DW (1976) quoted in:
       Chipuer HM, Pretty GMH. A review of the Sense of Community Index: Current uses, factor structure, reliability, and further development. Journal of Community Psychology 1999; 27(6): 643-658.

See also: http://healthyhealers.blogspot.ca/2013/01/sense-of-workplace-community-belonging.html 

 

     *** "In sociology, social capital is the expected collective or economic benefits derived from the preferential treatment and cooperation between individuals and groups. Although different social sciences emphasize different aspects of social capital, they tend to share the core idea "that social networks have value". Just as a screwdriver (physical capital) or a university education (cultural capital or human capital) can increase productivity (both individual and collective), so do social contacts affect the productivity of individuals and groups." http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_capital

 

Spiritual Bypass / Spiritual Bypassing

     "spiritual bypass refers to the unhealthy misuse of the spiritual life to avoid dealing with psychological difficulties. ... serves an avoidance function; it allows the individual to avoid the often painful and difficult psychological work of healing old wounds.... As such, the person in spiritual bypass actually might be best conceptualized as in a state of developmental arrest, which may result in increased psychological symptoms. 

     Spiritual bypass has been hypothesized to manifest in a number of ways, such as extreme external locus of control and abdication of personal responsibility, spiritual obsession, and the repression of emotions, as well as spiritual narcissism — an 'I'm enlightened and you're not' syndrome. The genuine spiritual path involves awareness and acceptance of present moment circumstances. In contrast, spiritual bypass involves a denial of at least some aspects of this experience.

     Because spiritual bypass is a phenomenon that takes place largely outside an individual's conscious awareness, paper-and-pencil measures of spirituality are unlikely to fully capture the function of spiritual practices in the lives of persons experiencing spiritual bypass.

     ... many people may not mature into their personal and genuine spiritual life until after their college years."
 

       Cashwell CS, Glosoff HL, Hammond C. Spiritual bypass: A preliminary investigation. Counseling and Values 2010; 54(2): 162-174.  

 

Photo: Noah Genda   www.dpreview.com

 

Shine the Light of Awareness, Embrace & Process

     "the essential common ground between Western psychology and Buddhism ... (is) their understanding that suffering comes from the parts of our being that are not recognized and embraced in the light of awareness. 'What the two traditions share ... is shining a light on the rejected, unprocessed parts of the psyche.'"        Tara Brach

Shambhala Sun March 2013

Photo: microsurgeon   www.dpreview.com

Who am I? What is this? How do I fit in? What to do?

     “Be attentive to the wordless teachings of Nature. Sense your place in the great Web of Life. Reach out with your spirit to the living world that sustains you. Transcend your separate identity and allow a ‘knowing’ of the ‘Whole’. As Black Elk says:

     ‘Peace comes within the souls of men when they realize their relationship, their oneness, with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize that at the centre of the Universe dwells Wakan Tanka, and that this centre is really everywhere, it is within each of us.’

     Open your heart to the Great Mystery of life that may be appreciated, but never solved.”

        Freke T, Wa’na’nee’che’. “Thorsons Principles of Native American Spirituality.” HarperCollins, San Francisco, 1996. 

Photo: tourist-at-home   www.dpreview.com

Continuous Ceaseless Practice

     “the problem of suffering still remains in the world and will remain in the world so long as greed, anger, and delusion on both the individual and collective level remain.
 
     In the long run if you want to really have an effect on the world’s anguish, learn to work ceaselessly on yourself even as you continue to strive, on a daily basis, to do the best you can for others.”
 
       Young-Eisendrath P, Martin R, eds. “Awakening to Zen. The teachings of Roshi Philip Kapleau.” Shambhala, Boston, 1997.

Friend by Kristiina Lehtonen   http://www.kristiinalehtonen.fi/index_en.php

Pain, Growth, Maturity, Liberation & Joy

     “when one is in the wholehearted pursuit of an ideal, pain is not resented; it can provide an unparalleled opportunity for growth and maturity. Pain is the fire in which the dross of our personality – the loathings, desires, doubting, and fears – is burned away and the mind tempered and strengthened, not unlike brittle metal annealed into steel. Moreover, when pain, which the Buddha proclaimed as a condition of existence, is courageously accepted, it is a means to liberation in that it releases our natural sympathies and compassion and thus enables us to experience pleasure and joy with new depth and purity.”

       Young-Eisendrath P, Martin R, eds. “Awakening to Zen. The teachings of Roshi Philip Kapleau.” Shambhala, Boston, 1997.

Star Forest by Kristiina Lehtonen   http://www.kristiinalehtonen.fi/index_en.php

Diet, Health & Spiritual Life

     “In the profoundest sense, health is more than a matter of eating the right kind and quantity of food. We are nourished or depleted just as much by our thoughts as by proper quantities of proteins, calories, and vitamins. A mind feeding on lust or greed or revenge or despair or anger will poison the most nutritious food, leaving the body-mind vulnerable to disease. In the end, without zen, which purifies the heart, clarifies thought, and invigorates the body, macrobiotic diets, sattvic diets, all diets, are deficient.”

       Young-Eisendrath P, Martin R, eds. “Awakening to Zen. The teachings of Roshi Philip Kapleau.” Shambhala, Boston, 1997.

Winter Apples by Kristiina Lehtonen   http://www.kristiinalehtonen.fi/index_en.php