A technique for using video games as a spiritual practice

[EternalForest]

I know, I know, the title is pretty out there, but hear me out.

Leo has said in the past that art is a sort of "pseudo-spirituality", and I agree in the sense that a piece of art allows you to see the beauty of a certain aspect of the infinite. For the sake of this post let's assume video games are art, which I personally believe, but I know some take issue with.

When I think about the concept of an engrossing, high quality open world game it gives me the same sense of wonder and openness that meditating or camping and spending time in nature does. That natural sense of exploration and awareness of your surroundings is emulated well by the best games. Examples of games that give me this feeling are Skyrim, Minecraft, Super Mario 64, Final Fantasy X, Breath of the Wild, Ocarina of Time, Ratchet and Clank, Kingdom Hearts 2 and The Witcher 3. Now I know art is subjective and everyone probably has their own list but these games are definitely on the more open world/artistic side and bring out that "feeling" for me. When playing these types of games consciously (not from point A to point B, but fully taking in the surroundings and the experience), I see a lot of potential for them being used as a tool for spirituality.

These games can also give us insight on how we get "lost" in our everyday life when in many ways it is no different than getting lost in the game! In the sense that it too is an illusion. Here is an interesting technique by Michael Highland which expands on this point and shows the potential of using video game play as a spiritual practice.

 

QUOTE (source: http://www.awaken.com/2013/08/using-video-games-as-spiritual-practice/ )

I wanted to provide a simple guide to those of you interested in actually trying this out.

First I think I should clarify what I mean by ‘spiritual practice’. I want to relieve you of any fear that that this exercise has anything to do with religion or god. It does not, at least not inherently. When I say spiritual practice, what I have in mind is a any activity that, through repetition, brings an individual greater objectivity, equanimity, and love. Countless such practices have been formalized by spiritual teachers for thousands of years. Shinzen Young is a meditation teacher whose recordings I highly recommend. He makes this important distinction about spiritual/meditative practice:

“Formal sitting is to meditation as playing scales is to music. Even great musicians still play scales, but scales are not the purpose of music. In the same way, even experienced meditators still do formal sitting practice, but formal sitting practice is not the goal of meditation. The concert is the goal of music practice; living one’s life fully is the goal of the meditation practice.”

I believe this should be true of any spiritual practice – the goal is simple to live as fully as possible. Simple enough.

Background

I’m basing this experimental practice on my relatively superficial knowledge of meditation techniques (yogic and zen) as well as some first hand experience with dream yoga (lucid dreaming practice) as it’s approached in Bon Buddhism. This is the beta version for lack of better terminology.

This practice is intended for gamers – if you’re new to video games, it’d be especially challenging because much of your mental energy will be dedicated to processing and controlling the game. You should be past the point of checking which is the ‘X’ button, and ideally choose a game you have some familiarity with.

The primary goal of the practice is to maintain a heightened awareness of two things, the idea that the game is an illusion, and of yourself the feelings you are experiencing while playing.

Let’s discuss each in a little more detail.

Awareness of Game as Illusion 

The first awareness is a purely mental recognition of the game as purely an illusion. Imagine being in a dream, and then recognizing, for whatever reason that you are dreaming. It’s an ‘Ah ha’ moment, a mental understanding. You can reinforce this idea through an internal dialog, something like “This is a game, it is an illusion”. It will be challenging to hold only this thought in your mind while playing. Don’t punish yourself if you realize you’ve become distracted. Rather, take a moment, breath deeply, and refocus your mind on that recognition. In fact, each time you lose touch with the awareness it is an opportunity to experience how easily we lose ourselves in the virtual world.

Awareness of Your Thoughts and Feelings 

The second awareness is a a sense of what feelings (physical and emotional) and thoughts are arising in your body. You should play in a comfortable position, but try to let the awareness of your physical body promote an energized rather than sleepy feeling in the body. If you’re too tired to hold yourself up, try the practice when you have more energy. As you play take notice if your body tenses or reacts to events in the game. Notice if you experience any internal dialog or thoughts. Notice what emotions arise. This part of the practice is simply an exercise in observation, you should not try to control or limit how you react to the game physically, mentally, or emotionally. Rather just observe and continue playing.

The Practice

Find a comfortable place to play, ideally somewhere without any other distractions. Turn off background music, lower the lights. Attempt to make the game as immersive as possible. Plan on playing for at least 30 minutes.

 Choose a game that you know well, that you can play ‘on auto pilot’. I’ve been using MF2 multiplayer in my own practice and it seems like a good choice. Likely though, any game could work.

Before you start playing, try to gain some somatic (bodily) awareness. Take a few deep breaths through your nose, feeling your torso expand and contract. Roll your shoulders and neck. Shake out your arms and hands. Take a few moments to simply observe how your body feels.

Now set an intention to remain fully present and aware while playing. Say it to yourself: “I will remain present and aware of myself and of the illusion of the game”

If you are new to the practice it can be helpful to use a timer to remind yourself to refocus. You can vary the delay but I recommend 5 minutes. If you are using a timer, set it.

Begin playing, first maintaining only an awareness of your body, thoughts, and emotions.

As your mind begins to shift from the thoughts and stress of the day into the game world, keep a gentle awareness on the recognition of the game as a game.

When the timer goes off check yourself, did you get lost in the game? If so, observe that, and re-establish both the awareness of your self and of the game. 

You can continue to reset the timer for 5-10 minutes if you find it helpful. Otherwise simply self monitor. Take note of how challenging it is to hold the first awareness in your mind. 

It’s helpful to set a stop time – 30 minutes is good to start. If I don’t use a timer, I have a tendancy to play to a point where I am mentally fatigued and the practice is no longer effective. It’s much better to end the practice while you are still sharp and then go back to playing like normal if you still want more later.

When the stop timer goes off, quickly shut down, or pause the game. If you can lie down on the floor, or in a comfortable seated position with your eyes closed. One last time observe how your body feels, what your mind is focused on. Lie still and let your mind relax. There is nothing to focus on now, no effort. 

Stay in that relaxed place for 5 or 10 minutes, letting the effects of your practice settle. 

When you feel ready slowly wake your body up and return to the ‘real’ world.

Try the practice everyday for a week, and take note if you experience any change in your day to day experience.

Goals

The practice is certainly an end in itself. And because I am still initially experimenting with it, it’s hard to say what the long term effects will be. My hope would be a general increase in awareness of one’s feelings and thoughts, and potentially a greater sense of objectivity – the ability to look at all things as separate and virtual in a way. Philosophically, I personally resonate with the idea of looking at real world as a game that is designed by me to challenge and reward myself. A game that I am choosing to take part in, similarly to playing a video game.

And please keep me posted if you’re trying this out!

Source: GamerThink.Com

[Peo]

Thanks for sharing this technique, i wil give it a try. Now i don't have to feel guilty of playing video games, when i should do other stuff. 

[peanutspathtotruth]

15 minutes ago, Peo said:

Now i don't have to feel guilty of playing video games, when i should do other stuff. 

That's exactly NOT what this technique is there for. I'm not implying there's anything wrong with what you do. But the way you're putting it sounds like a justification for not being responsible for getting your shit together and indulging in destructive behaviour - gaming can be destructive when it takes the place of things you should do instead. 

Just a kind push <3 

[Hellspeed]

Is all flashy what you say, but at the end of the day the spectrum color and energy in Nature are just superior in every way. 

If one cannot see yet the beauty of nature is because of the dormant state. 

[TheAvatarState]

@EternalForest I definitely resonate with what you're saying, as I've had some amazing, almost spiritual, experiences with Minecraft (shaders really help). However, my consciousness today is at a point where video games just end up making me feel empty inside. I resonate more with what @Hellspeed said. Nature is where it's at... nature heals your soul and raises your consciousness. Even if they make a virtual reality game that mimics the real world almost perfectly, it still won't be the same. There is a force, a healing energy that comes from nature and connection to oneself that should not be denied. Video games will never provide that.  

[Aakash]

@EternalForest i resonate with what @TheAvatarState is saying; alot of things i used to do make me feel empty inside now. Im not even inclined to watch tv or movies these days because it feels so hollow. However, if your starting out or using this method as begginner level practice. Then i don't see why not your method won't help you along your journey. The trick for me has been to use multiple methods. 

On the other hand, it is not sustainable as a life time practice. and therefore won't get you as far as you would like to go. 

Nonetheless, feel free to give any new spritual practice a shot, the more there are in the world , the more adaptiable it is for future generations. Such is the beauty of consciousness

[TheAvatarState]

3 minutes ago, Aakash said:

feel free to give any new spritual practice a shot, the more there are in the world , the more adaptiable it is for future generations. Such is the beauty of consciousness

Yes, this is a wonderful point. Imagine what a stage Yellow or Turquoise video game would be like! I can see immersive VR as potentially a tool for raising consciousness, but at the same time, noticing gaming's current trajectory, I see VR becoming a more consuming and destructive force. If you're passionate about video games, then I could see this as a potential avenue for amazing benefits for society. To help steer us away from our current path... 

[Aakash]

That would be amazing 

DO you let go ? 

YES OR NO! pick you have 10 seconds :')

LOOOL! 

[EternalForest]

@TheAvatarState Oh sure, nature is more fulfilling, ultimately, @Hellspeed is correct. I was just mentioning that I've had experiences with certain video games that are similar to experiences I've had with nature, but of course not in the same league. 

[TheAvatarState]

@EternalForest As long as you understand how those won't fulfill you, then that's all I wanted to get across. I'm not denying that video games can provide a sense of wonder or excitement, and I can even see them as tools of the future for raising consciousness. But 99% of video games today do not provide any of that. They are easily abused, and ultimately pull you into yet another hallucination, disconnecting you from yourself. Disconnect is the root of the video game fantasy. Appreciate that for what it is. Appreciate what game you're fundamentally playing here...

[Hellspeed]

But on the other hand, I still play, overwatch per example. 

How do I approach this? Have you guys noticed that one can use psychic sensibility with the players in online gaming? What the hell I'm talking about?

Influence the opposite player in-game to a certain vibrational level, as a stage mentalist, similar techniques I do, same as RL and it works. I've been doing this more than a year, is a way for me to have fun, I do it also RL  

So yeah, when all the noobs come and target me with all the hatred, I cripple them projecting my loving heart, and guess what? They lose hahahaha.

I'm not joking on this, is for real. I can also demo this to anyone interested, in-game or RL. Whatever, not important.

 

Best of luck

 

[TheAvatarState]

@Hellspeed I believe you, that's actually fascinating and I've been wondering about this. People say that social media or internet isn't a true connection to people, but I believe it is. This example doesn't make sense that you experience the connection THROUGH the video game, I think it points to the connection that separate partitions of consciousness are focused on the same experience. Really think about the mechanics of this. Picture 10 guys in a room focused on a crystal ball in the center. All 10 minds are the same, just separate "partitions," and they're all connected. When all 10 focus on the same experience, a certain gateway perhaps opens up, and any one of the people can influence how the rest of the people experience the ball. Now back to the video game example, it's obvious that distance is not a factor. All 10 people are having essentially the same experience. Infinite consciousness recognizes that, and "syncs" up the 10 players. It's not what you do in the game, it's the fact you're having the same experience and influencing others directly. Wild...

[Hellspeed]

@TheAvatarState Yes, I've been doing it first RL more than 2 years ago. But the last year I've experienced the same flawlessly, on video games and even live TV, which is more close to RL than games. So yeah, now is like a walk in the park for me, I shared so many things here on the forum, but the majority have not experienced this kind of shit in their lives, so is difficult to be understood  

But those who play overwatch add me, same nickname. hahahaha

Edited December 31, 2018 by Hellspeed

[Joseph Maynor]

Video games are an art-form like anything else.  If you like video games and don't want to quit them cold-turkey, consider Compartmentalizing them in your Daily Routine/ Schedule.  This means that you only play video games during a specified window in your day and you fully honor that.  If 100% cessation is necessary, only you know that.  If so, cut it out.  But Compartmentalization is another option.  Put playing video games into a box in your Daily Routine/ Schedule.  That means you only do it in that box and you gotta enforce this on yourself.  Video games and a lot of things have a tendency to bleed out of their own box and take over your whole Schedule.  This is what Compartmentalization solves.  For example, me with alcohol.  I couldn't Compartmentalize alcohol, so I had to quit it 100%.  But before I quit alcohol, I tried to Compartmentalize it, and that just didn't work.  So, if Compartmentalizing video games isn't working, you gotta take that next step.

Edited December 31, 2018 by Joseph Maynor

[Aakash]

@Hellspeed my guy you play overwatch- best game in the world ... you sending them low frequency hp reducing shockwaves out as your passives yeah 

[TheAvatarState]

10 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

I couldn't Compartmentalize alcohol, so I had to quit it.  But before I quit alcohol I tried to Compartmentalize it, and that just didn't work.

Yes, there are some things that just don't line up with this type of work. Alcohol and other hard drugs being among them. I'm happy you found the strength to quit.

[Joseph Maynor]

Just now, TheAvatarState said:

Yes, there are some things that just don't line up with this type of work. Alcohol and other hard drugs being among them. I'm happy you found the strength to quit.

Yeah I did.  It was my Change #1 a couple weeks ago in my Journal.  The first 3 days were very hard and then it gets way easier after that.

[TheAvatarState]

Just curious, were you an addict? Was it a huge lifestyle change?

[TheAvatarState]

@Hellspeed Yeah, I've had glimpses of this stuff, and I'm past being a believer. I know this shit that's bordering on "psychic" abilities is the real deal.

[TheAvatarState]

22 minutes ago, Joseph Maynor said:

I'm addicted to being lazy and in my comfort-zone all the time too.

Ah, the zone of mediocrity. Aren't we all smitten?