Those who have taken my “Basics of Buddhism” class know that my first experience with meditation was back in the 1970’s when I read the book “The Relaxation Response” by Dr. Herbert Benson. In this seminal text, Dr. Benson a Harvard researcher, studied the physiological effects of meditation on the body. Thirty years ago his findings were revolutionary. What he found was that meditation lowered: heart rate, blood pressure, respiration, galvanic skin response and smoothed out brain waves. Why this was so revolutionary is that up until this time science did not know that we were capable of controlling our autonomic nervous system. Of course the Buddha knew the benefits of meditation 2,500 years earlier! 
 
About this same time Jon Kabot-Zin a PhD psychologist founded the stress reduction clinic at Massachusetts General hospital in Worcester, MA. There he taught mindfulness meditation to patients with a variety of ailments and problems. Over the years he has published dozens of professional articles about how meditation helped those with: chronic pain, insomnia, panic disorder, addiction and other chronic ailments.  
 
While these psychological and physiological benefits are all valid, and without a doubt can improve one’s life, from the Buddhist perspective we meditate for much different reasons. The Buddha encouraged his followers to meditate because he knew that this was the path to ending suffering. He knew that through meditation we not only can begin to cut the clinging and grasping of our mind – that leads to suffering, but that we can begin to also cultivate compassion and wisdom for all beings 
 
Meditation is a way to help us “wake up” up to the present moment. Pema Chodron the well known Buddhist teacher and author said: 
 
“Breathing in, breathing out, feeling resentful, feeling happy, being able to drop it, not being able to drop it, eating our food, brushing our teeth, walking, sitting – whatever we’re doing could be done with one intention. That intention is that we want to wake up, we want to ripen our compassion, and we want to ripen our ability to let go, we want to realize our connection with all beings. Everything in our lives has the potential to wake us up or to put us to sleep. Allowing it to awaken us - is up to us.” 
 
So, how does meditation work? Meditation works by stopping the incessant discursive thoughts that plague all of us – most of the time. Meditation is way of training the mind to be in the present moment. Meditation is not about “doing” but rather it is simply about “being” – being in the present moment.  
 
Perhaps a more important question than “how does meditation work” is “what is the nature of mind?” From the Buddhist perspective “mind” is luminous and knowing. Mind is considered to be without beginning and without end. Each moment of awareness is preceded by a previous moment of awareness. 
 
His Holiness the Dalai Lama instructs us that: 
 
“Without a preceding mind a later mind cannot be produced...there is no beginning to consciousness, and in the same way there is no end to the continuum of a person's consciousness.” 
 
Meditation, then is a way of understanding the nature of mind. Once we begin to see our mind as being without a beginning, without an end and non-dualistic, then we begin to see ourselves and others in the same way.  
 
In Herman Melville’s book Moby Dick there is a chapter entitled “Monkey Rope.” In this chapter, Ishmael and Queequeg are tired together with a long rope. Ishmael stands on the deck of the whaling ship and Queequeg stands far below on the back of the whale, stripping off the whale blubber. Queequeg’s job is hazardous, and he runs the risk of slipping or being tossed into the sea. And if Queegueg goes, Ishamel goes with him. 
 
In an ultimate sense aren’t all of us like Ishamel and Queequeg? Ishamel later contemplates this and realizes that all beings are intricately and perilously connected. From the Buddhist perspective we believe that we are like Ishamel and Queequeg. All of us are connected through a vast web of karmic interconnectedness. It is through meditation that we can begin to sense and feel this interconnectedness. And once we understand this interconnectedness then we will begin to let go of self-cherishing and see how working for the benefit of others is, in an ultimate sense, also helping ourselves – and is where we find real happiness. 
 
So, if you have a daily practice, then I encourage you to continue it. If you don’t have a daily practice I encourage to start one.  
 
Remember all of the Buddha's teachings can be summarized in three short simple lines: 
 
1. Do as much good as possible; 
2. Do as little harm as possible; 
3. Train and Tame the Mind. 
 
We train and tame the mind through the practice of meditation. And by training and taming the mind – it then becomes easier to actualize the first two – of doing as much good as possible and doing as little harm as possible. Some say you should practice meditation like your hair is on fire. Remember: meditate, meditate, meditate.