#attention

See tagged statuses in the local BookWyrm community

quoted Mindfulness in Plain English by Henepola Gunaratana

Henepola Gunaratana: Mindfulness in Plain English (AudiobookFormat, 2016, Audible Studios)

With over a quarter of a million copies sold, Mindfulness in Plain English is one …

Meditating your way through the ups and downs of daily life is the whole point of vipassana. This kind of practice is extremely rigorous and demanding, but it engenders a state of mental flexibility that is beyond comparison. A meditator keeps his mind open every second. He is constantly investigating life, inspecting his own experience, viewing existence in a detached and inquisitive way. Thus, he is constantly open to truth in any form, from any source, and at any time. This is the state of mind you need for liberation.

It is said that one may attain enlightenment at any moment if the mind is kept in a state of meditative readiness. The tiniest, most ordinary perception can be the stimulus: a view of the moon, the cry of a bird, the sound of the wind in the trees. It’s not so important what is perceived as the way in which you attend to that perception. That state of open readiness is essential. It could happen to you right now if you are ready. The tactile sensation of this book in your fingers could be the cue. The sound of these words in your head might be enough. You could attain enlightenment right now, if you are ready.

— Mindfulness in Plain English by 

What a wake-up call!

#mindfulness #enlightenment #awakening #awareness #meditation #Buddhism #vipassana #perception #attention

"The of doesn’t ask what you think; it asks how fast you can say it, how loud, and how often. And if you play long enough, you stop making anything for the people you care about and you start making it for the feed. The result is a race to the bottom with a machine that needs to be fed even if it’s chewing up your integrity.
So I stopped… I switched from social performance to . I started writing slower. Longer. Weirder. Truer."
https://www.joanwestenberg.com/notes-from-the-exit-why-i-left-the-attention-economy/

Another very good essay by @Daojoan:

»The economy of attention doesn’t ask what you think; it asks how fast you can say it, how loud, and how often.«

»And here’s the irony: when I stopped chasing eyeballs, I started building trust. When I ditched the algorithm, I found an audience. Not a crowd—an audience. People who don’t just scroll past, but actually stop. Read. Think. Reply.«

Certainly worth your attention 🖖🏻

https://www.joanwestenberg.com/notes-from-the-exit-why-i-left-the-attention-economy/

Popped Up on Drivers’ Screens. There May Be More on the Way

When owners complained ads were appearing while , the carmaker said it was a . But as consider connected car opportunities, in-vehicle selling might be too tempting to ignore.

> should I interpret this action as they’re willing to put their customers lives at risk for a potential few extra pennies ?

https://www.wired.com/story/ads-popped-up-on-drivers-screens-there-may-be-more-on-the-way/

Just finished Stolen Focus, by Johann Hari. It's an excellent read.

It covers why attention spans have degraded over the decades, a huge chunk of which is due to corporate social media. It covers a lot of ground, includes a lot of research, and has an excellent systemic analysis (instead of the usual individualistic focus of self-help books).

If you care about your mental health, or global geopolitics, or climate change, I'd strongly recommend giving it a read.

Picture of Stolen Focus, by Johann Hari