The virtues of solitude
Beyond the restoration of stability, meditative practice also opens a private interior space, where thoughts and feelings can arrive, abide, and run their course, unhindered by judgment or repression. As Elizabeth Mattis-Namgyel, a practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism, puts it, meditative space "doesn't do—it allows." It "allows objects to come into being, to function, to expand, to contract, to move around, and to disappear without interference." For those unaccustomed to prolonged sitting, one of those "objects" might be the impulse to do something—anything—beside sit still: to "tweet" or "text" a friend, or otherwise reconnect with the outer world. Within the openness of meditative space, however, that impulse can be allowed to announce itself, make its case, and gradually dissipate, precipitating no immediate action. Later on, having gained some insight into our mental activities, we can indeed reconnect with other people, perhaps at a deeper level than we would have, had we merely obeyed a passing impulse or indulged a habit of connectivity.
- Ben Howard in The virtues of solitude
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