Acem School of Meditation (or just Acem) is an international non-profit organisation known for its break with the widespread utopianism of the 1960s meditation movement[1], its development of a non-religious psychology of meditation[2], and its emphasis on scientific research on meditation [Lit 1] (see notes 13-14 below). The organisation teaches Acem Meditation, yoga, group psychology and other methods for stress management and personal development. Acem (pronounced ['a:kem]) is not an acronym, and has no semantic meaning.
History
editAcem was founded by Dr. Are Holen in Oslo, Norway, in 1966. In the beginning, the organisation collaborated with the Indian-inspired TM (Transcendental Meditation) movement, but differences in approach led to a final break in 1972. Acem now developed further its own teaching methods and its psychology of meditation.[3] Rituals and ceremonies were removed from the courses, mantras were supplanted by neutral meditation sounds developed in Acem, course formats based on group-dynamic interaction were introduced, and a yearlong programme for the basic education of Acem Meditation instructors was established. Starting in the late 1970s, the organisation set up centres in a number of countries across the world, including Sweden, Denmark, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, Germany, Spain, India, Taiwan, the United States, Canada, and the Dominican Republic. [4]
In Scandinavia, Acem is also an active participant in cultural debates. Over the years, the organisation has arranged a number of large-scale cultural activities, such as meetings with Nobel Peace Prize laureates Dalai Lama (1973, 1988 and 1989) and Andrei Sakharov (1988), recipient of the Nobel Prize of Literature Isaac Bashevis Singer (1985), Indian author Salman Rushdie (1983), German author Siegfried Lenz (1986), and Chinese dissident Wei Jingsheng (1998). In Norway, Acem publishes a cultural magazine and runs a radio station.
Teachings
editSince the beginning, Acem has been active in developing a psychological understanding of meditative processes,[Lit 2] stimulated by the parallel development of communication groups and other group-psychological activities. This has been partly done in opposition to so-called magico-mythological approaches to meditation, which Acem has criticised for unrealistic promises and the tendency to encourage fantasising rather than reality orientation.[5]
The notion of a free mental attitude stands at the centre of Acem's psychology of meditation and is considered crucial to the long-term effects of meditation.[Lit 3] In Acem Meditation, the free mental attitude describes the gentle and effortless way in which the meditation sound is repeated in the mind, without concentration or the use of force.
As part of the emphasis on a free mental attitude, a positive evaluation of spontaneous thoughts distinguishes Acem from many other meditation groups. Acem stresses the value of letting spontaneous thoughts come and go freely during meditation. This is believed to help release energy and creativity, to enhance the mind's inherent capacity for mental processing, and to bring unconscious impulses closer to the threshold of consciousness.[6]
According to Acem, one's way of meditating is a manifestation of a person's typical patterns of perception and behaviour. At times, meditators will deviate from the free mental attitude in ways that reflect their personality. For instance, a tense person may repeat the meditation sound too forcefully, while an evasive person may tend to be more passive in his or her meditation. Adjusting one's meditative practice is seen as a means to overcome limitations set by one's personality, both in meditation and in everyday life.
Research
editSince the mid-1990s, Acem has taken an increased interest in scientific research on meditation, and a number of scientific studies on Acem Meditation have been conducted.[7] In 2004, Erik Solberg, MD PhD, published his PhD thesis on the psychobiological effects of meditation,[8] indicating that Acem Meditation may provide relaxation, improved performance under stress, lower blood pressure, reduced lactate deposits during training, and possibly a reduction in the negative effects of stress on the immune system. This is in line with other studies both of Acem Meditation and other relaxation techniques. The studies of Dr Solberg and other researchers suggest that non-directed meditation techniques, in which thoughts are allowed to come and go freely, have more pronounced physiological effects than directed techniques like progressive relaxation.
References
edit- ^ On the contrast between Acem and the more utopian approach of the TM movement, see Geralda Kuhn Lindseth: "Meditation: TM und Acem in Vergleich", in H.-W. Baumann et al.: "Jugendsekten" und neue Religiosität: Notwendige Anmerkungen, Gelsenkirchen-Buer 1982, pp. 116-124, ISBN 978-3922863359.
- ^ See Joachim Wohlwill: "Structural models of developmental theory in psychology", in Paul van Geert, Leendert P. Moos, William J. Baker (eds.): Annals of Theoretical Psychology vol. 10, New York: Plenum Press 1991, pp. 139-160, ISBN: 978-0-306-44891-1; Simmy Richman's interview with Are Holen in the Independent October 24, 2004; Ingrid Fredriksson: Free from Dangerous Stress, BookSurge Publishing, 2007, p. 9, ISBN: 978-1419658136
- ^ On Acem Meditation as an alternative to TM, see also Torben Larsen: Neuropsychology of Economists, Lulu.com 2006, p. 38, ISBN: 978-1-4116-8808-7.
- ^ On Acem's history, see Tor Hersoug: Acem før 2000. Oslo: Dyade forlag 2000. On Acem Meditation in India, see Clifford Sawhney: Strange but True Facts, Delhi: Pustak Mahal 2004, p. 78, ISBN: 81-223-0839-2.
- ^ See http://acem.com/newsletter/battle_for_realism.shtml.
- ^ See http://acem.com/newsletter/empty_mind.shtml.
- ^ Scientific studies of Acem Meditation include:
- Erik E. Solberg, Øivind Ekeberg, Are Holen, Frank Ingjer, Leiv Sandvik, Per A. Standal and Agneta Vikman: Hemodynamic Changes During Long Meditation, Applied Psychophysiology and Biofeedback Vol 29 (2004) No 3 pp. 213-221
- Erik Solberg, Are Holen, Øivind Ekeberg, Bjarne Østerud, Ragnhild Halvorsen, Leiv Sandvik: The effects of long meditation on plasma melatonin and blood serotonin, Medical Science Monitor 2004; 10(3):CR96-101
- E E Solberg, F Ingjer, A Holen, J Sundgot-Borgen, S Nilsson, I Holme: Stress reactivity to and recovery from a standardised exercise bout: a study of 31 runners practising relaxation techniques, British Journal of Sports Medicine, Aug 2000; 34: 268 - 272.
- Solberg EE, Halvorsen R, Holen A.: Effect of meditation on immune cells, Stress Medicine 2000; 16:185-190.
- EE Solberg, KA Berglund, O Engen, O Ekeberg, M Loeb: The effect of meditation on shooting performance, British Journal of Sports Medicine, Dec 1996; 30: 342 - 346.
- EE Solberg, R Halvorsen, J Sundgot-Borgen, F Ingjer, A Holen: Meditation: a modulator of the immune response to physical stress? A brief report, British Journal of Sports Medicine, Dec 1995; 29: 255 - 257.
See also Ospina et al.: Meditation Practices for Health: State of the Research. - ^ Erik Ekker Solberg: Psychobiological effects of meditation. University of Oslo PhD thesis, 2004.
Literature
edit- ^ Svend Davanger, Halvor Eifring & Anne Grete Hersoug (eds.): Fighting Stress: Reviews of Meditation Research, Oslo: Acem Publishing 2008, ISBN: 978-82-91-40516-2.
- ^ Cf. Are Holen & Halvor Eifring: Acem Meditation: An Introductory Companion, Oslo: Acem Publishing 2007, ISBN: 82-91405-13-1.
- ^ Cf. Are Holen: Inner Strength: The Free Mental Attitude in Acem Meditation. 2nd edition. Oslo: Acem Publishing 2007, ISBN: 82-91405-09-3.