Meditation to Kill and Be Killed By
Brian Victoria
The Oxford Handbook of Meditation July 9, 2020 DOI: 10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198808640.013.42 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Meditation |
| Key points | Argues that meditation-induced samādhi and its associated power were used within Imperial Japan (1868–1945), and that this history shows how easily meditation can be directed toward destruction rather than the enrichment of life. |
Abstract
Abstract: Can meditation kill? This chapter claims that meditation-induced samādhi, and the power associated with it, were used in Imperial Japan (1868–1945). The Zen school is founded on samādhi and the power associated with it. Without samādhi, “Zen,” (Sankrit Dhyāna; English meditation) would become just another “mental health” practice, rather than the basis for a profound realization of the true nature of the self. However, despite the long-acknowledged mental power intrinsic to samādhi, there is the ever-present danger of its misuse or abuse by both self and others. In modern times, this abuse was most clearly visible during the period of Japan’s military aggression, beginning with the Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895 and extending through Japan’s ultimate defeat in August 1945. This chapter examines the use of samādhi power within Imperial Japan and warns how easily meditation can be directed towards the destruction, and not the enrichment, of life.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mindfulness: A proposed operational definition. | 2004 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mechanisms of mindfulness | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How Does Mindfulness Meditation Work? Proposing Mechanisms of Action From a Conceptual and Neural Perspective | 2011 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for depression | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Self-awareness, self-regulation, and self-transcendence (S-ART): a framework for understanding the neurobiological mechanisms of mindfulness | 2012 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |