Don’t treat meditation as just another step in your workout regimen

The word ideology is grossly misused in everyday American conversation. Rather than answer why we think the ways that we do and who that thinking benefits, it’s used as a synonym for opinion.

A much more powerful definition is that it’s a set of ideas shaped by the material conditions surrounding the person doing the thinking. Ironically, it’s that which appears as truth but is really just an opinion.

Take karma for example. In many Buddhist countries, it’s interpreted as a godlike force that follows one over lifetimes of rebirth. Humans have little control over it — unless they’re a monk who can fully commit to spiritual practice.

So it makes sense then that normal, “lay” people are expected to focus on giving monks money, food, and other resources. This is how they build up enough good karma to be reborn as a monk in the next lifetime, giving them a shot at reaching enlightenment and ending the ups and downs of karma altogether.

It’s not difficult to see how such an ideology supports the material conditions of those with power: the monks. This view of karma may be more or less true, but at the end of the day it keeps the monks fed and sheltered. And like most ideologies, it justifies injustice. For example, women are often barred from being monks and therefore trapped in a cycle of subservience.

What does this mean for us, lay people meditating in the U.S.? That we need to investigate why we’re meditating in the first place. That we must shine a light on our relationships with those we meditate with. That we can’t pretend that this practice is just for making our lives less stressful and more productive. That something is up if large corporations like Google are encouraging their employees to meditate. This is especially so given the increasing number of meditation teachers being outed for taking advantage of their institutional power.

We must ask: when meditation is like going to the gym, just another box to check for our personal “wellness,” who does it really benefit?

Until we live in a classless society that has no need for racism and sexism, we must remain skeptical.

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