Repetition, meditation, and labor

[RobertU]

Automation and, to some extent, AI, supposedly liberate humans from mind-numbing repetitive tasks and free us to do more creative and challenging work. But we may be losing something when we lose repetition.

Repetition in the form of mantras or prayer beads can be a pathway to meditation. For thousands of years, humans have been engaged in repetitive labor, whether in agriculture, crafts or even the modern assembly line. One of the oldest forms of manufacturing, weaving, is an exercise in repetition. Perhaps such repetition creates a meditative state that calms the soul.

People deprived of repetitive labor may seek it in their leisure time. One of the most popular forms of gambling, the slot machine, is a cycle of repetition; the gambler is paying to attain the meditative high that comes with the “mindless” repetition of pulling on the slot machine arm and watching the wheels turn.

True, there are probably people at the far end of the extrovert scale who are miserable if forced into any form of focused, repetitive work. But for others, repetitive tasks may help them “find their groove.”

 

[The Stars Tremble]

What you call "meditation" I call "grinding." It's OK for a while, but who the hell grinds for 8 hours straight, let alone longer hours?

To answer my own question: only someone who is being paid to do it.

 

[Napoleon]

The human brain loves patterns so much that it even tricks us into seeing them where they don’t really exist. Repetitious behaviors are a product of this. As a creature, we are not oriented towards chaos.

 

[Mycroft]

Automation and, to some extent, AI, supposedly liberate humans from mind-numbing repetitive tasks and free us to do more creative and challenging work. But we may be losing something when we lose repetition.

Repetition in the form of mantras or prayer beads can be a pathway to meditation. For thousands of years, humans have been engaged in repetitive labor, whether in agriculture, crafts or even the modern assembly line. One of the oldest forms of manufacturing, weaving, is an exercise in repetition. Perhaps such repetition creates a meditative state that calms the soul.

People deprived of repetitive labor may seek it in their leisure time. One of the most popular forms of gambling, the slot machine, is a cycle of repetition; the gambler is paying to attain the meditative high that comes with the “mindless” repetition of pulling on the slot machine arm and watching the wheels turn.

True, there are probably people at the far end of the extrovert scale who are miserable if forced into any form of focused, repetitive work. But for others, repetitive tasks may help them “find their groove.”

What you call "meditation", I call "daydreams".

 

[Grand Mal]

What you call "meditation" I call "grinding." It's OK for a while, but who the hell grinds for 8 hours straight, let alone longer hours?

To answer my own question: only someone who is being paid to do it.

"Grinding" is the cause of lots of industrial accidents, maybe most. It was often my job to make the workplace as safe as possible by building guards and handrails and screens in sawmills. I was told many times that the people working there were sleep-walking half the time and anything that could happen sooner or later would.