College is a unique time where people balance education, work, extracurriculars and everything in between. The fast-paced nature of college life is enough to overwhelm some, and many College students have reported struggling with burnout, depression and anxiety. One way some Vols have tried to combat this is to turn to ways of thinking and thinking – to cultivate a more relaxed life.
Meditation and mindfulness training are rooted in South and East Asian religions and have been practiced for several thousand years. However, this style of living has continued to grow in popularity throughout the world and across all demographics, including having an impact on the student population at the University of Tennessee.
Do not brainstorming sessions held at TREClearn its history and the Think and think together For students, Rocky Top is a good shock, due to the increase in mental activity – which strives not only to clear the head but to understand what is happening inside.
Megan Bryson, associate professor and associate head of religious studies, regularly teaches a component called “Mindfulness.” Teachers Andria Yates in psychology and David Patterson (now emeritus) in social work have also given classes on psychology.
Bryson’s class Explore the history of meditation in Buddhist meditation and its gradual evolution from the 19th in the 21stSt centuries as Buddhism spread throughout the world.
“We’re thinking about different ways of thinking in the United States, about medicine, commodification, corporatization and politics,” Bryson said.
The course provides students with the opportunity and freedom to explore in depth specific philosophical traditions and a variety of secular and religious practices – a unique perspective in its focus on religious studies. Bryson saw firsthand how meditation can affect life and his students.
“One student, who is currently in physical therapy school, developed a program for putting the mind into the physical body,” Bryson said. “One student developed a creative thinking course for elementary school students. Other students completed three-week brainstorming projects to decide if it was something they wanted to pursue.
Bryson noted the rise in popularity of culture and religion, a trend he felt related to the current unstable state of society.
“I think new stresses like cancer, economic uncertainty – especially for young people – and climate change, (and) more recent stresses, like along with systemic oppression, has encouraged people to find new ways of complaining,” said Bryson. “There are a lot of creative ideas that are accessible and inexpensive, making it an interesting tool.”
A group of students at UT found peace in practicing meditation as part of a community.
Meredith Froehlich, an adult studying mindfulness, currently serves as president of the Mindfulness and Meditation Club. A member of the team since his freshman year, his journey into meditation began in high school after reading a book on meditation when a therapist introduced him to some techniques. .
A group meeting usually begins with a check-in, a time of reflection to review how their day, week and each moment is going. Then, they will introduce the meditation for the week, providing an explanation and teaching.
Then comes the imagination. In about 15-20 minutes, the students will practice what they have learned, and then they will think about the concept of thinking – the ideas or thoughts that have arisen.
“I found that it helped me understand my anxiety and my thinking and cope better with the symptoms I faced due to my anxiety,” Froehlich according to. “It improved my whole view of the world, and I found myself … seeing nature and its beauty.”
However, despite taking the practices of cultures long before them, at the Meditation and Mindfulness Club, they do not forget the purpose of their practices.
“Our company is committed to always respecting culture, not justice,” Froehlich according to. “We understand where meditation and meditation come from… We connect to these roots by constantly discussing the origin of each meditation we study, where the religion, customs and traditions of these minds.”
Bryson describes the history of how these practices began to spread, and how they continued to Westernize, considering how they were removed from the original cultural and religious context, to adapted to suit Western tastes.
He has seen this done by Western practitioners in various ways, such as saying that Buddhism is not really a religion, but meditation, or by saying that meditation is the basic Buddhist practice. and thinking is the basic form of thinking.
“This is not a problem in and of itself – the history of Buddhism is a history of cultural change – but I think it is a problem when Western intellectuals ignore other Buddhist practices or insist to the sole responsibility to define Buddhism. ,” said Bryson.
Bryson’s advice for students interested in trying meditation is to understand that there are many ways to meditate, and sometimes it’s best to seek help along the way.
“For students with PTSD or other mental health issues, I recommend working with a therapist or other mental health professional to develop a mental health plan before testing. think for themselves,” said Bryson. “We often associate thinking and thinking with silence, but being alone with someone else’s thoughts can be very powerful.”