Cohesion Through Quiet Intention

       The history of the east, specifically Asia, has always looked at things differently than the Western or European mind. Speaking as an American, I recently found out, through various tests, that I think in a somewhat specific way, much different from my partners across the sea. For example, when looking at an image of an animal, I tend to only focus on the specifics of that animal, such as the pattern of stripes on a tiger or the jowls of an Orangutan. If it’s a plant in the photo, I look at the stem for thickness, quantity of petals, or the leaf pattern to see whether they are serrated or smooth. What I don’t commonly do is look at the back ground to see how it is integrated as a whole with what I feel is the primary icon to look at. I mean, I notice the tiger is in a jungle, but I don’t try to relate that world with how the great cat must feel or appreciate its routine area. When I take a photo of a friend, I tend to focus them in just right, and include a small portion, if any, of the surroundings. 

But for Asians this is typically much different. You will find their photos encompass a much greater area of the scene around the person, and not just a waist up shot or passport photo. They may say the tiger is most likely sad due to reduced vegetation around it for hiding, or that the tree limbs amidst the Orangutan are not there normal thickness, showing that civilization is encroaching upon the ape, creating a poor sense of home. The Asians see everything as inter-related, where the Western mind tends to focus on the self, not the bigger picture which is affected by all. 

So this brings me to a present project. At the moment I am working as the logistics coordinator for an event scheduled for September 2015. It is called MedAcrossAmerica. Which is shortened for meditation across America. We are gathering roughly 7 million Americans to span a literal line across America, coast to coast, to meditate at one time. 

My lead in was rather lengthy to this blog, but it partially showed a point that Americans tend to focus on singularity. Many people do meditate regularly, but the vast majority don’t understand the point of it, especially when it comes to increasing the mind’s plasticity, and better allowing it to interrelate with another person. It is based on a principle that we are all one people, one world, one life, one existence. Many Americans aren't too keen to display this need of  inter-dependency and tend to act as a solitary unit. So, if this event can be pulled off, it may very well tip the balance of a way in thinking which has been ingrained in the Western psyche. There will be many iconic people attending, Oprah, as well as many other celebrities, the young, old, wealthy, poor, congressmen, athletes, etc. 

At this present point in time we are in the midst of an electronic society. Instead of being a hater of various electronic communication elements, which have indeed separated people's intimacy  this will be using technology to bring them together. For example, there is a smart phone app being developed by which each person can “ping” in to show their GPS location at the time of their meditation, allowing onlookers the opportunity to feel connected if they too are about to use the app. Viewers can also visit an online URL, via Google Maps/Earth, to see where these meditators are located and who they are as individuals. At the time of commencement, there will be a literal line of GPS locations spanning coast to coast. The entire gathering of 7 million people can be done through paper, pen and pony express, but indeed the power of unity through the internet and personal smart devices, which send notices and information at lightning fast speeds across the globe, is helping us reach people like never before. 

So in conclusion, although the act of meditation is a sort of an individual thing, it is done with unity of all in mind, not just those partaking, but each person that breaths life on this planet. Through the power of social networking, future relations and a deeper sense of self and community might find new grounds to dwell.