:: meanders ::

:: Meditation vs. Visualization
I recently met a couple of bona fide "new age seekers", whose conversation was quite interesting and completely foreign to me. They traded the names of recent guru-types that have ranches or retreat centers in places like Ashland, Oregon, La Jolla, California and Sedona, Arizona. What was curious to me was the types of "spirit work" these people were involved in and which was being called meditation techniques. My intent isn't to diminish these practices per se. However, I do believe these gurus are on a side road, a detour from the path to liberation. The unconscious as a source of inspriation is a rich source for artists in any medium. But it is, in the end, a man-made construct, a mind field of the four dimensional world we inhabit. If one believes there are other dimensions, one must move beyond visualization techniques to true meditation. The older (ie, Buddhist, Sufi, or Christian) forms are not looking to tap into the unconscious for inspiration or understanding. Rather, they tend to see the unconscious as a limitless sea of possibilities, which one's life is but a small manifestation, a mere drop in that sea. Another metaphor is the karmic wheel, our life-- or string of lives to those who believe in reincarnation-- being spokes on that ever spinningm multi-colored, glittering wheel. For a meditator, the unconscious is not something one dives into, but rather learns to recognize as non-reality, detached and no longer related to the present moment. Only the present moment is real. Visualization can enhance our life and certainly make us feel good, but only meditation puts us in touch with the wisdom of living in the now moment, the knowledge that all phenomenon rise and fall, flourish and decay. This is likely important only to one who is concerned with "getting off the wheel of karma".

:: Meditation Shown to Light Up Brains of Buddhists
Those that experience moments of balance, equanimity, and poise through meditation know they can, through persistence and focus, bring those qualities into their trading. For those that need proof meditation isn't just a mind game, scientists have shown that indeed meditative brains are different. Traders talk about keeping their emotions in check, being unflustered, and curbing their fear and anger. Meditators know from experience this can be acheived. Recently, scientists have (once again) proved it:

The scanning studies by scientists at the University of Wisconsin at Madison showed activity in the left prefrontal lobes of experienced Buddhist practitioners. The area is linked to positive emotions, self-control and temperament. Other research by Paul Ekman, of the University of California San Francisco Medical Center, suggests that meditation and mindfulness can tame the amygdala, an area of the brain which is the hub of fear memory. Entire article: Buddhists really are happy, calm and serene people

While the article focussed on "Buddhists", one needn't consider a change of religion to practice meditation. Perhaps one of the simplest introductions to "meditation" is Thich Nhat Hanh's "Miracle of Mindfulness". Hanh was nominated by Martin Luther King for a Nobel Peace prize and writes clearly and practically. One simply breathes quietly. That is it, no mantras, no visualizing gods or mandalas. Perceptive readers of Mark Douglas' "Trading in the Zone" who also meditate no doubt recognize the parallels he draws with "the Now moment" and basic tenets of buddhist theory. One needn't be "religious" to recognize that a well conditioned mind can only help one make better, more effective, decisions in a livelihood that is inherently fraught with emotional perils. The point being, if you are at your wits end, swinging hither and yon with your trading, rather than more fierce mental stimulation, perhaps personal quiet time to still your mind is what might work.

:: Overheard on the web - Millionnaire Vs Billionnaire
This comment from a post at EliteTrader.com puts $1M vs. $1B in perspective:

The difference between a millionaire and a billionaire can be calculated in seconds of a day. A million seconds is 11 and a half days. A billion seconds is 31.7 years. You are the MAN Mr. Gates.

I don't know if I agree with the part about Mr. Gates being the man. Nothing against amassing wealth, but surely his creativity and wealth can be more abundantly spent on ideas, "things", and movements that will change the world to a more cooperative place, rather than the overly-competitive or despairing place it already is for so many people. My hope is that he, like Andrew Carnegie of the last Golden Age at the turn of a century, will leave his direct family adequately provided for and leave the rest to something wonderful, like the matching-grant libraries that bear Carnegies name across the United States.