THE ART OF MEDITATION
(SPRING 2013 CLASS)
CLLC L100, Class 21062
Spring 2013 (First Eight
Weeks Only)
T/R 6:50p - 8:30p / Ed
Basement Classroom
2 credit hours
Instructor: Doug Hanvey
In this course you will
learn and practice meditation as taught in the Zen tradition of Buddhism. In addition
to meditating, you will read, discuss and write about several core concerns of
Zen, including the nature of consciousness, reality, time, self, and the
ultimate goal of Buddhism – awakening. We will broadly compare Eastern and
Western approaches to psychological and spiritual development, asking how
Western traditions that aim to strengthen the ego can be reconciled with
Eastern traditions that aspire to transcend it. This will not be an “easy
activity” class (or in this case “non-activity class”). While we will meditate
regularly and intensively, the reading/discussion component of this class will
be equally emphasized. In fact, you may discover that meditation is more
rigorous than you thought it would be, and the philosophical ideas you will learn
about may turn your world upside down and inside out (which is also the fun of
it). You may be challenged at the deepest levels of your being –
intellectually, emotionally, spiritually, perhaps even physically. But as a
saying goes, “Challenge is a dragon with a gift in its mouth. Tame the dragon
and the gift is yours.”
