Thomas Merton - What Is Contemplation?

Merton's vision of the Contemplative Life. A Catholic Trappist Monk, his mystical spirituality was informed by the mystics of the Western and Eastern Religious Traditions.

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• мистика
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[jezkn]

'In the very act of indicating what it knows -the contemplative mind takes back what it has said and denies what it has affirmed -an awakening to the real in all that is real'.

Many are not even aware of the 'question' or that there is a question to be answered.. But that's 'do-able' - and to become aware even of that is a gift. Far more problematic is that many have answered the wrong question -and that's much harder to 'undo'. Thus - the athiest is nearer God than the fundamentalist Christian.

[dadasopher]

@jezkn Amen to that, jezkn!

[fntime]

This sounds like meditation.

[dadasopher]

@fntime A meditation on contemplation? hahahahaha

[williamcanatsey]

New Seeds is a great read. It was written just before, "No Man is an Island." He takes you into the stratosphere of mysticism.

[dadasopher]

@williamcanatsey Absolutely. It was New Seeds that changed the way I see the world. A glimpse into the world of the contemplative, the hint of a glimpse. I used to want to have Beatific Visions, but now I am content to have the occasional intimation. It is a gift.

[Pythagoras211]

Confused... but who's in a position to distinguish between meditation and contemplation anyways? ;)

[fntime]

@psychomystic21 Could you elaborate. How do you distinguish

meditation from contemplation.

Do you contemplate?

Do you meditate?

[psychomystic21]

@fntime Meditation is not at all mystical like contemplation is. Contemplation is the end road of meditation.

[doutorfuad]

LISTEN TO THE MUSIC OF URBANO MEDEIROS (BRAZIL) spiritual son of Thomas Merton !!

[jezkn]

@fntime .... Just listened again to Dadasphers upload of Merton's wonderfully evocative, terse poem: 'The solitary Life'. Merton says in that .... 'I don't talk about all that ....' and when he describes 'Contemplation' here in an 'apothatic' (not apathetic!) way - the same applies : ... he's still not.... 'talking about all that ...'

[jezkn]

@fntime You do raise a vital point - what are we all doing here - if Merton's experience is private?Well it must be private -none of can enter into it -otherwise it wouldnt be 'his' and we would be voyeurs. But all i can say is for years I thought that prayer had only to do with words, petition, intercession etc. So to encounter Merton's defenition of 'Contemplation' as something 'other than that' was a revelation and incredibly liberating but of course that doesnt answer the question of 'how'

[jezkn]

@fntime Therefore meditation is confused with Contemplation. Merton would not have accepted this.But then changeof meaning took place post Merton. How did Merton 'Contemplate' ? Nowhere does he tell us. Some Christians use a mantra to 'still the mind' and clear the way or 'Prayer of the Heart' as in Hesychasm (Bede Griffith used this) But as regards 'Method' it's not clear what Merton did or even whether he needed to. So for me to say whether I 'meditate' wouldn't tell you a lot. But yes I do!

[jezkn]

@fntime ooh-how much space will Dadospher allow us? Just taking Christianity alone- modern interpretation of meditation' as 'imageless, wordless, non-mental prayer' is in stark contrast with older meaning of meditating 'on something' (scripture,sacred texts and 'mind pictures' of bible stories-as if you were there- as in Ignatian tradition). Modern Christian definition of meditation is influenced by other religions (Buddhism/Hinduism) But even there, there is wide variation and inconsistency >

[fntime]

@jezkn I'm probably missing your point, but could you elaborate a little

more. Are you a meditator?

And the title of the video is "What is Contemplation?" If his experience

is private, then why the video and what are we all doing here?

I'm sure it's my misunderstanding of your comment. I realise there

limitations in commenting, but I'd like to hear more of your

viewpoint. Thanks!!!

[jezkn]

@fntime Actually N0 - because ... ONE: there is no single definition of meditation (even within Christianity never mind between religions) - infact there are atleast two contradictory definitions so to which do you refer? TWO - nobody knows 'how' Thomas Merton 'Contemplated'. And that is exactly the way he intended it to be. So none of us could possibly enter into his experience (or 'method'), Indeed we couldn't do that for anybody could we?