WHAT MEDITATION IS (NOT)

REFLECTIONS ON THE PROBLEMS OF MEDITATION IN THE WEST

Abstract

Meditation has become widespread in the field of mental health in recent decades. Originally, it emerged as a spiritual praxis, in the East, to free the illusions of the senses and mind, leading the individual to live Reality. It was later spread in the West, where it took opposite paths, being sold as a resource for fantastic gains and instant conquests. Therefore, the objective of this work is to understand what meditation is and the main confusion generated around it in the West. Methodologically, this is qualitative research, of the bibliographic review type, using Initiatory Psychoanalysis as its theoretical reference, which integrates knowledge from the West and the East. The results demonstrate that Lacan was interested in Eastern culture and spirituality and was influenced by Taoism and Zen Buddhism in the production of his work, notably when formulating the concepts of Real, Symbolic and Imaginary. Initiatory Psychoanalysis deepens the look at meditation and, rescuing its original meaning, adopts it in its clinical practice, as a condition for liberation from identification with the Ego and its compulsions, generally arising from traumatic experiences. It was concluded that properly understanding what meditation is and the therapeutic power it exerts on the psyche can significantly contribute to the practice of mental health professionals, especially when its philosophical roots are respected, in the process of transculturation to practice in the West.