The Wandering Mind
What Medieval Monks Tell Us About Distraction
5 of 6 copies available
But although we think of early monks as master concentrators, a life of mindfulness did not, in fact, come to them easily. As historian Jamie Kreiner demonstrates in The Wandering Mind, their attempts to stretch the mind out to God—to continuously contemplate the divine order and its ethical requirements—were all-consuming, and their battles against distraction were never-ending. Delving into the experiences of early Christian monks, Kreiner shows that these men and women were obsessed with distraction in ways that seem remarkably modern.
Drawing on a trove of sources that the monks left behind, Kreiner reconstructs the techniques they devised in their lifelong quest to master their minds. She captures the fleeting moments of pure attentiveness that some monks managed to grasp, and the many times when monks struggled and failed and went back to the drawing board. Blending history and psychology, The Wandering Mind is a witty, illuminating account of human fallibility and ingenuity that bridges a distant era and our own.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
March 28, 2023 -
Formats
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OverDrive Listen audiobook
- ISBN: 9781663726377
- File size: 159206 KB
- Duration: 05:31:40
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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November 28, 2022
University of Georgia history professor Kreiner (Legions of Pigs in the Early Medieval West) examines how medieval Christian monks dealt with distraction in this fascinating history. Kreiner proposes that monks, like members of modern society, also struggled with boredom, overstimulation, and intrusive thoughts. While today’s sufferers may no longer believe “the urge to take a nap might be a demon’s doing,” Kreiner shows how other monastic suspicions—for example, that it is “impossible to make progress... among the multiplicities which drag the soul about” (in other words, one can’t focus on two things at once)—have been borne out by modern neuroscience (which has shown the brain unable to multitask when performing complex, decision-making work). Though readers may associate distraction with today’s fast-paced, technological culture, monks too saw distraction as a “structural feature of their societies” (citing “family, friends, property, work, and daily routines” and more) that only a “return to god” would fix. Kreiner interprets this to mean that, at some level, “distraction is inherent in the experience of being human,” even if the content of those distractions is culturally specific. Meticulously detailed and surprisingly accessible, this lends new insight into one of the oldest human preoccupations. Readers will be enlightened.
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