Posts by burninglights

DON: I'm starting this thread as a place for people to share their experiences in trying to learn the ancient languages and to share their go-to resources (print, online, in person). This will also be a place for people to ask questions about where to start, what worked, what didn't, etc. We'll deal with actual translation issues in their appropriate textual threads, but this can be a nuts and bolts "how-to" thread.

[Cassius' Admin Edit: This thread was branched off from the lengthy "gods" thread as it is a new and important topic, and that's why this first post comes from Burninglights, as it was requested there. ]

Don, by the way, reading your various comments here and your translation of the Menoeceus letter where you proudly proclaimed yourself an amateur inspired me to take a first leap into ancient Greek today. I'm not sure how far I will go with it, but thank you for the inspiration all the same!

A mindfulness meditation exercise I've really come to enjoy is to take in a slow, deep breath from as low in my abdomen as I can, let my stomach fill up 360 degrees, and then release and let my stomach deflate effortlessly (as opposed to a controlled release).

Sometimes I just focus on my breath, or sometimes I couple this with a visualization, such as a small stream that ran near my house when I was a kid.

I find the stream to be a good visualization of the mental 'thought stream' and I find that image particularly helpful for placing the thought into its proper context as part of an endless stream, which I can let go of and watch drift away.

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