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100-733: Prior to 1965, there were two attempts to establish a library system in Palm Beach County. One early effort was in 1943, when the Palm Beach County Library Association, a group of local librarians, tried to "align community library services and promote resource sharing." However, this attempt failed within a few years. Following this, unincorporated Palm Beach County residents requested the Palm Beach County Board of County Commissioners to "undertake an improvement of library service in

200-435: A mantra , a combination of core letters or words on deity or themes. Jain followers practice mantra regularly by chanting loudly or silently in mind. The meditation technique of contemplation includes agnya vichāya , in which one contemplates on seven facts – life and non-life, the inflow, bondage, stoppage and removal of karmas , and the final accomplishment of liberation. In apaya vichāya , one contemplates on

300-419: A mantra ) for the purpose of reaching a heightened level of spiritual awareness." In modern psychological research, meditation has been defined and characterized in various ways. Many of these emphasize the role of attention and characterize the practice of meditation as attempts to detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking," not judging the meditation-process itself ("logical relaxation"), to achieve

400-774: A Communist by Joseph McCarthy and president Percy Maxim Lee testified before Congress against Senator Joseph McCarthy's abuse of congressional investigative powers. In 1960, the League supported the Resources and Conservation Act of 1960 (S. 2549), beginning a long history of environmental engagement. The league ultimately supported the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Voting Rights Act of 1965, but their efforts came too late to have major impact. After first refusing to oppose discrimination in housing in 1966,

500-517: A Seed Library, featuring vegetable and flower seeds available free to anyone who visits the library. Five small packets a month can be selected that contain enough seeds to grow a few plants. The seeds are kept by the patron; there is nothing to return to the library. On October 1, 2019, the Palm Beach County Library System stopped charging late fees. The Palm Beach County Library System is one of many library systems in

600-532: A Speakers Bureau, where library staff will visit civic organizations, homeowners associations and volunteer groups to give presentations on the services and opportunities available at the library. Each library offers many different forms of media such as books, comics, DVDs , CDs , magazines , newspapers, digital eBooks, audiobooks and many other options. Electronic and digital items can be located and downloaded from associated programs such as CloudLibrary and hoopla . The Palm Beach County Library System provides

700-595: A book "The untold story of women of color in the League of Women Voters" documenting the history of the League and women of color. The League fought for the 1982 Amendments to the Voting Rights Act and in the 1990s was important in the passage of National Voter Registration Act of 1993 , popularly known as the Motor Voter Act. The act requires states to offer voter registration at all driver's license agencies, at social service agencies, and through

800-556: A budget of $ 21 million for the expansion and renovation of the system. As a result, in 1987 and 1988, new branches were announced in order to meet increasing community needs. The following year, 1989, saw the Palm Beach County Library system add an electronic card catalog called Data Research to facilitate material retrieval for patrons and was among the first public libraries in the state of Florida to adapt an electronic system. The Palm Beach County System also added

900-474: A deeper, more devout, or more relaxed state. Bond et al. (2009) identified criteria for defining a practice as meditation "for use in a comprehensive systematic review of the therapeutic use of meditation", using "a 5-round Delphi study with a panel of 7 experts in meditation research" who were also trained in diverse but empirically highly studied (Eastern-derived or clinical) forms of meditation : three main criteria ... as essential to any meditation practice:

1000-454: A devotee to desire to begin to meditate. Nām japnā involves focusing one's attention on the names or great attributes of God. Taoist meditation has developed techniques including concentration, visualization, qi cultivation, contemplation , and mindfulness meditations in its long history. Traditional Daoist meditative practices influenced Buddhism creating the unique meditative practices of Chinese Buddhism that then spread through

1100-888: A form of focused attention, calms down the mind; this calmed mind can then investigate the nature of reality, by monitoring the fleeting and ever-changing constituents of experience, by reflective investigation, or by "turning back the radiance," focusing awareness on awareness itself and discerning the true nature of mind as awareness itself. Matko and Sedlmeier (2019) "call into question the common division into 'focused attention' and 'open-monitoring' practices." They argue for "two orthogonal dimensions along which meditation techniques could be classified," namely "activation" and "amount of body orientation," proposing seven clusters of techniques: "mindful observation, body-centered meditation, visual concentration, contemplation, affect-centered meditation, mantra meditation, and meditation with movement." Jonathan Shear argues that transcendental meditation

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1200-605: A meticulous screening process by a committee from the Library Advisory Board. Cecil Beach, then the Broward County Library Director and a former Florida State Librarian, also played a crucial role in evaluating the applicants.. After rigorous interviews and consideration, Jerry W. Brownlee was recommended for the position of library director. Brownlee officially assumed his role as library director on October 15, 1979, poised to embark on

1300-667: A natural development from the sense-restraint and moral constrictions prescribed by the Buddhist tradition. The Buddha identified two paramount mental qualities that arise from wholesome meditative practice or bhavana , namely samatha ("calm," "serenity" "tranquility") and vipassana (insight). As the developing tradition started to emphasize the value of liberating insight, and dhyana came to be understood as concentration, samatha and vipassana were understood as two distinct meditative techniques. In this understanding, samatha steadies, composes, unifies and concentrates

1400-568: A new chapter in the library's history. Also In 1979, the Palm Beach County Library System began looking into acquiring a "computerized circulation system." ALIS, or "Automated Library Information System" was the first computerized circulation system used by the Palm Beach County Library System and it was launched in February 1983. This was also the same time period in which the system began its Mail-a-Book program, which expanded to include more northern county residents in 1984. In 1985, plans to expand

1500-541: A new league that would be the successor to the NAWSA. Even though continuing as the NCWV might have made sense because the goals were essentially those that Catt proposed for the new organization, Catt was concerned that DeVoe's alignment with the more radical Alice Paul might discourage conservative women from joining it and thus proposed the formation of a new league. In founding the League of Women Voters, Catt sought to create

1600-487: A nonpartisan organization, an important part of its role in American politics has been to register and inform voters, but it also lobbies for issues of importance to its members, which are selected at its biennial conventions. Its effectiveness has been attributed to its policy of careful study and documentation of an issue before taking a position. Its bylaws do not allow it to endorse candidates or political parties. In

1700-474: A number contemporary scholars and scholar-practitioners, it is actually a description of the development of perfected equanimity and mindfulness, apparently induced by satipatthana, an open monitoring of the breath, without trying to regulate it. The same description, in a different formula, can be found in the bojjhanga , the "seven factors of awakening," and may therefore refer to the core program of early Buddhist bhavana . According to Vetter, dhyana seems to be

1800-862: A number of special services, of which include: Passports, Government Research Service, Genealogy Research Service, Consumer Health Information Service and CreationStations. Government Research Services entails research, information, and document delivery services to government clients, staff, and elected officials in Palm Beach County. The GRS Collection includes legal documents, government serials, professional journals, and local and state collections. The Genealogy Research Service provides access to family history sources including biographical books, genealogy Internet links, genealogy programs, how-to book listings, local city directories, local historical sites, newspapers, and journals. The Consumer Health Information Service offers health and medical information to residents of Palm Beach County. The Jupiter Branch Library recently opened

1900-413: A political process that was rational and issue-oriented, dominated by citizens, not politicians. She feared that alliance with political parties would reduce the independence of these organizations and swallow up their concerns in more partisan concerns. In addition, by endorsing one candidate the organization would inevitably lose the support of the opposing candidate. As fifteen states had already ratified

2000-459: A practice of only 8 minutes per day. Research shows improvement in meditation time with simple oral and video training. Some meditators practice for much longer, particularly when on a course or retreat . Some meditators find practice best in the hours before dawn . Some religions have traditions of using prayer beads as tools in devotional meditation. Most prayer beads and Christian rosaries consist of pearls or beads linked together by

2100-432: A repurposed old office building, helping the branch increase services, programs, and materials for patrons. Budget conflicts continued into 1986, with further calls for expanded hours, children's areas, more space for books and activities, and increased staffing included in increasingly louder calls from both Brownlee and other library advocates. The same year, as a result of a referendum, citizens of Palm Beach County approved

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2200-406: A second language with informal conversation sessions. Project members encourage community participation in the program, including educational materials, sponsors, tutors, student workshops and cultural events. The Palm Beach County Library System provides on and off-site story time service to local child centers, as well as workshops to assist teachers in storytelling techniques. The libraries within

2300-406: A special committee of the national League of Women Voters picked twelve women as the "greatest living American women." They were Jane Addams , Cecilia Beaux , Annie Jump Cannon , Carrie Chapman Catt , Anna Botsford Comstock , Minnie Maddern Fiske , Louise Homer , Julia Lathrop , Florence Rena Sabin , M. Carey Thomas , Martha Van Rensselaer , and Edith Wharton . At the 1926 convention of

2400-501: A thread. The Roman Catholic rosary is a string of beads containing five sets with ten small beads. Eastern and Oriental Orthodox have traditions of using prayer ropes called Comboschini or Meqetaria as an aid to prayerful meditation. The Hindu japa mala has 108 beads. The figure 108 in itself having spiritual significance as the energy of the sounds equivalates to Om , as well as those used in Gaudiya Vaishnavism ,

2500-407: A voting machine at League headquarters to demonstrate how to vote. The League members explained literacy tests and requirements and hours for registration. A frequent question involved the status of an American woman married to an immigrant. The League also presented a series of pre-election talks, including a talk on "National and State Legislators," "The Judiciary," and "Machinery of Elections." At

2600-477: A wide range of dissimilar practices in different traditions and cultures. In popular usage, the word "meditation" and the phrase "meditative practice" are often used imprecisely to designate practices found across many cultures. These can include almost anything that is claimed to train the attention of mind or to teach calmness or compassion. There remains no definition of necessary and sufficient criteria for meditation that has achieved widespread acceptance within

2700-522: Is $ 96,337,654. The majority of the budget is funded by ad valorem revenue raised through the County Library District. The library also receives an annual Florida State Aid to Public Libraries grant. As in the past, alternative revenue sources are sought to supplement ad valorem funding. The following revenue sources are sought on an ongoing basis: Universal Service Fund (E-Rate) discount program, Impact Fees, grant opportunities, Friends of

2800-409: Is also sometimes done while walking, known as kinhin , while doing a simple task mindfully, known as samu , or while lying down, known as shavasana . The Transcendental Meditation technique recommends practice of 20 minutes twice per day. Some techniques suggest less time, especially when starting meditation, and Richard Davidson has quoted research saying benefits can be achieved with

2900-426: Is an "automatic self-transcending" technique, different from focused attention and open monitoring. In this kind of practice, "there is no attempt to sustain any particular condition at all. Practices of this kind, once started, are reported to automatically 'transcend' their own activity and disappear, to be started up again later if appropriate." Yet, Shear also states that "automatic self-transcending" also applies to

3000-554: Is believed to be pure consciousness, beyond any attachment or aversion. The practitioner strives to be just a knower-seer ( gyata-drashta ). Jain meditation can be broadly categorized into Dharma dhyana and Shukla dhyana . Dharma dhyana is discriminating knowledge (bheda-vijñāna) of the tattvas (truths or fundamental principles), while shukla dhyana is meditation proper. Jainism uses meditation techniques such as pindāstha-dhyāna, padāstha-dhyāna, rūpāstha-dhyāna, rūpātita-dhyāna, and savīrya-dhyāna . In padāstha dhyāna, one focuses on

3100-736: Is best thought of as a natural category of techniques best captured by ' family resemblances ' ... or by the related 'prototype' model of concepts ." Several other definitions of meditation have been used by influential modern reviews of research on meditation across multiple traditions: In the West, meditation techniques have often been classified in two broad categories, which in actual practice are often combined: focused (or concentrative) meditation and open monitoring (or mindfulness) meditation: Direction of mental attention... A practitioner can focus intensively on one particular object (so-called concentrative meditation ), on all mental events that enter

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3200-424: Is designed to meet the needs of local citizens within their area. The library also offers Books-By-Mail, a Deaf Resource Center, and Talking Books services to those in special populations. Book Club in a Bag is another service offered which facilitates the selection of titles (English and Spanish) for local book club meetings. Multiple copies of the title and discussion notes are included. The library system also offers

3300-539: Is practiced in numerous religious traditions, though it is also practised independently from any religious or spiritual influences for its health benefits. The earliest records of meditation ( dhyana ) are found in the Upanishads , and meditation plays a salient role in the contemplative repertoire of Jainism , Buddhism and Hinduism . Meditation-like techniques are also known in Judaism, Christianity and Islam, in

3400-434: Is through the release of the hindrances and ending of craving through the meditative development of insight that one gains liberation. In Sikhism , simran (meditation) and good deeds are both necessary to achieve the devotee's spiritual goals; without good deeds meditation is futile. When Sikhs meditate, they aim to feel God's presence and emerge in the divine light. It is only God's divine will or order that allows

3500-634: The Satipatthana Sutta and the Dhyana sutras , and through oral teacher-student transmissions. These ancient practices are supplemented with various distinct interpretations of, and developments in, these practices. The Theravāda tradition stresses the development of samatha and vipassana , postulating over fifty methods for developing mindfulness based on the Satipatthana Sutta , and forty for developing concentration based on

3600-474: The 19th Amendment , the women wanted to move forward with a plan to educate women on the voting process and shepherd their participation. A motion was made at the 1919 NAWSA convention to merge the two organizations into a successor, the National League of Women Voters. Although not all members of either organization were in favor of a merger, the merger was officially completed on January 6, 1920. For

3700-599: The Hare Krishna tradition , and Jainism . Buddhist prayer beads also have 108 beads, but hold a different meaning. In Buddhism, there are 108 human passions that impede enlightenment. Each bead is counted once as a person recites a mantra until the person has gone all the way around the mala. The Muslim misbaha has 99 beads. There is also quite a variance when it comes to materials used for beads. Beads made from seeds of rudraksha trees are considered sacred by devotees of Shiva , while followers of Vishnu revere

3800-643: The Hatha Yoga Pradipika , the development of Bhakti yoga as a major form of meditation, and Tantra . Another important Hindu yoga text is the Yoga Yajnavalkya , which makes use of Hatha Yoga and Vedanta Philosophy. The Bhagavata Purana emphasizes that mantra meditation is a key practice for achieving liberation; practitioners can achieve a direct vision of the divine. The text integrates both Vedic and tantric elements, where mantras are not only seen as sacred sounds but as embodiment of

3900-515: The Trump era, the strong response by the league to political polarization and core issues such as voting rights has weakened support for it on the right . VOTE411.org is a nonpartisan bilingual website in English and Spanish that allows voters to input their address and get candidate and election information tailored to their location. Candidate survey responses to three questions specific to

4000-547: The United States presidential debates in 1976 , 1980 and 1984 . On October 2, 1988, the LWV's 14 trustees voted unanimously to pull out of the debates, and on October 3 they issued a press release condemning the demands of the major candidates' campaigns. LWV President Nancy Neuman said that the debate format would "perpetrate a fraud on the American voter" and that the organization did not intend to "become an accessory to

4100-610: The Vipassana movement , with many non-Buddhists taking-up meditative practices. The modernized concept of mindfulness (based on the Buddhist term sati ) and related meditative practices have in turn led to mindfulness based therapies . Dhyana , while often presented as a form of focused attention or concentration, as in Buddhagosa's Theravada classic the Visuddhimagga ("Path of purification", 5th c. CE), according to

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4200-680: The Visuddhimagga . The Tibetan tradition incorporated Sarvastivada and Tantric practices, wedded with Madhyamaka philosophy, and developed thousands of visualization meditations. Via the Dhyana sutras, which are based on the Sarvastivada-tradition, the Zen-tradition incorporated mindfulness and breath-meditation. Downplaying the "petty complexities" of satipatthana and the body-recollections (but maintaining

4300-483: The effects of meditation on health ( psychological , neurological , and cardiovascular ) and other areas. The English meditation is derived from Old French meditacioun , in turn from Latin meditatio from a verb meditari , meaning "to think, contemplate, devise, ponder". In the Catholic tradition, the use of the term meditatio as part of a formal, stepwise process of meditation goes back to at least

4400-487: The "outer limbs," include ethical discipline ( yamas ), rules ( niyamas ), physical postures ( āsanas ), and breath control ( prāṇāyama ). The fifth, withdrawal from the senses ( pratyāhāra ), transitions into the "inner limbs" that are one-pointedness of mind ( dhāraṇā ), meditation ( dhyāna ), and finally samādhi . Later developments in Hindu meditation include the compilation of Hatha Yoga (forceful yoga) compendiums like

4500-594: The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay reinstating the restrictive law. After the United States Capitol attack of January 6, 2021, the league's board called Trump a "tyrannical despot" and advocated his removal by legal means. This, among other positions such as around transgender rights and police accountability, have led more Republicans to criticize the league and not respond to VOTE411 candidate surveys. Some Republican-led states have been making voter registration more difficult, prompting

4600-761: The 12th-century monk Guigo II , before which the Greek word theoria was used for the same purpose. Apart from its historical usage, the term meditation was introduced as a translation for Eastern spiritual practices , referred to as dhyāna in Hinduism , Buddhism , and Jainism , which comes from the Sanskrit root dhyai , meaning to contemplate or meditate. The term "meditation" in English may also refer to practices from Islamic Sufism , or other traditions such as Jewish Kabbalah and Christian Hesychasm . Meditation has proven difficult to define as it covers

4700-496: The 1920s, the League of Women Voters of New York sent an annual questionnaire to candidates for local office, and published the answers in the publication "Information for Voters." In 1929, the questionnaire covered maintaining the 5 cent subway fare, creation of a permanent city planning board, immediate action on a sewage and waste disposal plant, unlimited building heights in certain districts, and reclassification of civil service employees to provide automatic salary increases. In

4800-469: The 1929 convention of the League of Women Voters of New York, the members voted for a New York State prohibition enforcement act. They also voted to favor old age pensions and ask the Legislature to give women the right to do jury service, to permit physicians to give contraceptive information to married persons, and to extend the benefits of workmen's compensation for all occupational diseases. During

4900-704: The 1930s, the League was supportive of New Deal programs such as Social Security and the Food and Drug Acts. In 1945, the League advocated for the United Nations, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund , and was recognized by the UN as a permanent observer, giving it access to most meetings and relevant documentation. In the 1950s, League member Dorothy Kenyon was attacked as

5000-652: The 1968 program included opposition to discrimination in housing and support for presidential suffrage for citizens of Washington, DC. In 1969, the League was one of the first organizations in the United States calling for normalizing relations with China. In the 1970s, after years of opposition to the Equal Rights Amendment as proposed by the National Women's Party , the League offered support to an Equal Rights Amendment. In 1974,

5100-414: The English language, stress, Meditation , Yoga , crocheting , poetry, music and movie viewing. Some of these classes are focused on professional tasks such as taxes, résumé updates, new computer skills, online learning, and Medicare. The Palm Beach County Library System offers an Ask-a-Librarian service, where individuals can receive live reference service without entering a library building. Each class

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5200-570: The LWV works with partners for specific campaigns including support for campaign finance reform , women's rights , health care reform and gun control . The League was founded as the successor to the National American Woman Suffrage Association , which had led the nationwide fight for women's suffrage . The initial goals of the League were to educate women to take part in the political process and to push forward legislation of interest to women. As

5300-454: The League began to admit men. In 1975, a bill entitled "The Indian Law Enforcement Improvement Act" was introduced in the Senate and supported by the League of Women Voters of Nebraska, saying "We support self determination and therefore self government of all citizens, in this case Native Americans." After two days of hearings, the bill was not reported out of committee. The LWV sponsored

5400-594: The League of Women Voters of Florida partnered with VoteRiders to get word out to eligible voters about the changes made due to Floria Senate Bill 90, signed into law in May 2021. The Florida League also partnered with the Black Voters Matter Fund and the Florida Alliance for Retired Americans to file lawsuits against the changes. The trial court struck down multiple provisions of the law but

5500-584: The League of Women Voters supported Native Americans in seeking to remove restrictions on ballot delivery from reservations. The Native American voting rights group Four Directions filed a suit on behalf of six voters from the Navajo Nation asking the court to extend the deadline for Arizona counties to receive the ballots of voters, because of "lack of home mail delivery, the need for language translation, lack of access to public transportation and lack of access to any vehicle." The court declined to extend

5600-700: The League pushed for the adoption of the National Voter Registration Act of 1993 , which requires states to offer voter registration at all driver's license agencies, at social service agencies, and through the mail. The League works with the non-partisan VoteRiders organization to spread state-specific information on voter ID requirements. In 2002, the League endorsed passage of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act , which banned soft money in federal elections and made other reforms in campaign finance laws. It

5700-656: The Library fundraising projects and the U.S. Passport processing program at the Main Library. <ref> 26°39′46″N 80°05′55″W  /  26.6627131°N 80.0986233°W  / 26.6627131; -80.0986233 League of Women Voters The League of Women Voters ( LWV ) is a nonpartisan American nonprofit political organization. Founded in 1920, its ongoing major activities include registering voters , providing voter information, boosting voter turnout and advocating for voting rights . In addition,

5800-563: The Loula V. York Memorial Library Branch in Pahokee, Florida, to its system in the same year, with citizens of Pahokee voting to transfer its ownership and management to the county from its previous status as a municipal library. Into the present day, Palm Beach County Libraries have continued to develop technological offerings for patrons, such as the installation of self-check terminals at various branches beginning in 2009. The latest branch of

5900-528: The Palm Beach County Library System also offer a social gathering venue and educational and craft programs for children and teens of various ages. The education-based programs are also meant to offer new skills, tutoring opportunities and teach safety skills. They also offer many online and technology-related classes for all ages. All the classes are focused on specific age groups. Adults are also offered an array of programs for socializing, education, and entertaining. These classes focus on subjects such as practice of

6000-500: The Palm Beach County Library System budget also received backlash from library officials, as the proposed $ 300,000 to be added to the budget would have been, according to library officials, too meager to open any new branches or to take care of needed maintenance, including leaking buildings and book shortages. In spite of these financial limitations, assistance from the community saw the Royal Pam Beach Branch reopen in

6100-572: The Palm Beach County Library System opened its first branch in Tequesta, Florida . Its first bookmobile was opened five days later. In April of 1979, following the insightful recommendations of the Waters' report, the quest to appoint a permanent library director was initiated. By the deadline of June 15, 1979, an impressive pool of fifty-two applications had been received from librarians across seventeen states. This diverse group of candidates underwent

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6200-549: The Palm Beach County Library System, Canyon Branch Library, is set to open in 2024 and will be the county's 18th branch. As of May 2024, Palm Beach County Libraries announced that they will be working toward budget approval to replace the older Main Branch Library building with a new, larger space by 2030, pending County Commissioners' decision. The Palm Beach County Library System provides services to area patrons. The Adult Literacy Project provides those learning English as

6300-418: The United States to remove fines as research showed that fines have discouraged people to return to the library which often disproportionally affects low-income families. In 2023 the library system transitioned into using BiblioCommons for their online platform. Members can participate in the literary community by leaving book reviews and offering valuable insights and recommendations for others. Additionally,

6400-423: The awareness of immanent death), the early Chan-tradition developed the notions or practices of wu nian ("no thought, no fixation on thought, such as one's own views, experiences, and knowledge") and fēi sīliàng (非思量, Japanese: hishiryō , "nonthinking"); and kanxin ("observing the mind") and shou-i pu i (守一不移, "maintaining the one without wavering," turning the attention from the objects of experience, to

6500-451: The benefit of others". Studies suggest the potential of psychedelics , such as psilocybin and DMT , to enhance meditative training. The history of meditation is intimately bound up with the religious context within which it was practiced. Rossano suggested that the emergence of the capacity for focused attention, an element of many methods of meditation, may have contributed to the latest phases of human biological evolution. Some of

6600-523: The codified rules and live together in monasteries in specific cultural settings that go along with their meditative practices. Dictionaries give both the original Latin meaning of "think[ing] deeply about (something)", as well as the popular usages of "focusing one's mind for a period of time", "the act of giving your attention to only one thing, either as a religious activity or as a way of becoming calm and relaxed", and "to engage in mental exercise (such as concentrating on one's breathing or repetition of

6700-693: The committee recommended a library system be formed and overseen by Palm Beach County. The Palm Beach County Library System was formally established in 1967, with a special act creating the Palm Beach County Library Taxing District. In 1968, Florence Biller of the State Library in Tallahassee was appointed as the library director of the fledgling Palm Beach County Library System and the first female Palm Beach County department director. On September 25, 1969,

6800-405: The context of remembrance of and prayer and devotion to God. Asian meditative techniques have spread to other cultures where they have found application in non-spiritual contexts, such as business and health. Meditation may significantly reduce stress, fear, anxiety, depression, and pain, and enhance peace, perception , self-concept , and well-being . Research is ongoing to better understand

6900-477: The core practices of body contemplations ( repulsiveness and cemetery contemplations ) and anapanasati ( mindfulness of in-and-out breathing) culminating in jhāna / dhyāna or samādhi . While most classical and contemporary Buddhist meditation guides are school-specific, the root meditative practices of various body recollections and breath meditation have been preserved and transmitted in almost all Buddhist traditions , through Buddhist texts like

7000-681: The county." This was not successful either. However in the spring of 1965, the League of Women Voters attended a public hearing, where with approximately 200 people in attendance, they gave a presentation. This presentation was successful in getting the Board of County Commissioners to appoint a fifteen-membered committee to study the feasibility of a county library system. The committee's report found that "there were fourteen municipal libraries serving about 217,000 people, leaving about 107,000 individuals without easy access to library services." Subsequently,

7100-675: The deadline due to lack of standing of the plaintiffs. The League of Women Voters of Arizona filed an amicus curiae, saying that Most Arizonans take access to mail receipt and delivery as a given. By contrast, the District Court recognized the painful reality that "several variables make voting by mail difficult” for Native American voters. More specifically, “[m]ost Navajo Nation residents do not have access to standard mail service,” including home delivery, and must travel “lengthy distance[s]” to access postal services – a burden compounded by “socioeconomic factors.” In 2021,

7200-656: The deity. This approach reflects a shift from the impersonal meditation on the sound-form of Brahman ( Om ) in the Upanishads to a personal, devotional focus on Krishna in the Bhagavata Purana. Jainism has three elements called the Ratnatraya ("Three Jewels"): right perception and faith, right knowledge and right conduct. Meditation in Jainism aims to reach and to remain in the pure state of soul which

7300-448: The development of insight and wisdom ( Prajñā ) which is the quality of mind that can "clearly see" ( vi-passana ) the nature of phenomena. What exactly is to be seen varies within the Buddhist traditions. In Theravada, all phenomena are to be seen as impermanent , suffering , not-self and empty . When this happens, one develops dispassion ( viraga ) for all phenomena, including all negative qualities and hindrances and lets them go. It

7400-599: The earliest references to meditation, as well as proto- Samkhya , are found in the Upanishads of India. According to Wynne, the earliest clear references to meditation are in the middle Upanishads and the Mahabharata (including the Bhagavad Gita ). According to Gavin Flood , the earlier Brihadaranyaka Upanishad is describing meditation when it states that "Having become calm and concentrated, one perceives

7500-711: The field of awareness (so-called mindfulness meditation ), or both specific focal points and the field of awareness. Focused methods include paying attention to the breath , to an idea or feeling (such as mettā – loving-kindness), to a kōan , or to a mantra (such as in transcendental meditation ), and single point meditation. Open monitoring methods include mindfulness , shikantaza and other awareness states. Another typology divides meditation approaches into concentrative, generative, receptive and reflective practices: The Buddhist tradition often divides meditative practice into samatha , or calm abiding, and vipassana , insight. Mindfulness of breathing ,

7600-577: The first year the league operated as a committee of the NAWSA. The formal organization of the League was drafted at the 1920 Convention held in Chicago. In her presidential address on March 24, 1919, at the above-mentioned NAWSA convention, Catt had said: Let us raise up a League of Women Voters—the name and form of organization to be determined by the voters themselves; a League that shall be non-partisan and non-sectarian in character and that shall be consecrated to three chief aims: Carrie Chapman Catt

7700-433: The hall monitor or given little taps if they requested to be hit. Nobody asked about the 'meaning' of the stick, nobody explained, and nobody ever complained about its use. Neuroscientist and long-time meditator Richard Davidson has expressed the view that having a narrative can help the maintenance of daily practice. For instance, he himself prostrates to the teachings, and meditates "not primarily for my benefit, but for

7800-523: The hoodwinking of the American public." All presidential debates from 1988 until 2020 were sponsored by the Commission on Presidential Debates , a bipartisan organization run by the two major parties that some argue has established rules with the intent to exclude airing candidates associated with other parties. In 1998, the League elected its first African-American president, Carolyn Jefferson-Jenkins . She served two terms, until 2002, and wrote

7900-459: The incorrect insights one indulges, which eventually develops right insight. In vipaka vichāya , one reflects on the eight causes or basic types of karma . In sansathan vichāya , one thinks about the vastness of the universe and the loneliness of the soul. Buddhists pursue meditation as part of the path toward awakening and nirvana . The closest words for meditation in the classical languages of Buddhism are bhāvanā ("development"), and

8000-659: The increasing influence of women in politics, the league has evolved a more inclusive mission, to "protect and expand voting rights and ensure everyone is represented in our democracy." The issues of primary concern to the League in the 1920s were extending the Sheppard-Towner Act first passed in 1921, a Child Labor Amendment to the Constitution, and voter education. The Sheppard-Towner Act , first passed in 1921, provided federal subsidies to those states that provided education in maternity and infant care. It

8100-462: The league to stop registering voters in Kansas, for example, for fear of its members facing prosecution. Richard Hasen argues that it would be tough to be seen as neutral when voting rights, a foundational issue for the league, have become a seemingly partisan issue. The League lobbies for legislation at the national, state, and local levels. Positions on national issues are determined by decisions at

8200-652: The mail. In 2002, the League supported the Help America Vote Act (with some reservations about the final compromise) and the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act . In 2014, the League sponsored voter guides including Smart Voter and Voter's Edge in collaboration with MapLight . In 2018, the league took an extraordinary step in opposing Brett Kavanaugh's confirmation due in part to his sexual assault allegations and fears around judicial independence. In 2020,

8300-531: The mind, while vipassana enables one to see, explore and discern "formations" (conditioned phenomena based on the five aggregates ). According to this understanding, which is central to Theravada orthodoxy but also plays a role in Tibetan Buddhism , through the meditative development of serenity, one is able to weaken the obscuring hindrances and bring the mind to a collected, pliant, and still state ( samadhi ). This quality of mind then supports

8400-631: The modern scientific community . Some of the difficulty in precisely defining meditation has been in recognizing the particularities of the many various traditions ; and theories and practice can differ within a tradition. Taylor noted that even within a faith such as "Hindu" or "Buddhist", schools and individual teachers may teach distinct types of meditation. Ornstein noted that "Most techniques of meditation do not exist as solitary practices but are only artificially separable from an entire system of practice and belief." For instance, while monks meditate as part of their everyday lives, they also engage in

8500-476: The most recent national convention. Members of state and local leagues determine their leagues' positions on state and local issues, consistent with the national positions. The League was founded by suffragists fighting for the right of women to vote and has always been concerned with issues around voting and representative government. Other issue areas in which the League currently advocates are international relations, natural resources, and social policy. In 1993,

8600-568: The national League, Belle Sherwin , the League president, emphasized education in politics as the right road toward true democracy. Whether it is possible to develop in this country an education which will qualify citizens to be partners in government is a question to face squarely. For many, education today is either remote and limited to a brief period or is highly specialized for vocational purposes. Education for active citizenship has hardly been tried. She went on to mention "the modest attempts of schools here and there to teach critical reading of

8700-505: The nature of mind, the perceiving subject itself, which is equated with Buddha-nature . The Silk Road transmission of Buddhism introduced Buddhist meditation to other Asian countries, reaching China in the 2nd century CE, and Japan in the 6th century CE. In the modern era, Buddhist meditation techniques have become popular in the wider world, due to the influence of Buddhist modernism on Asian Buddhism, and western lay interest in Zen and

8800-458: The newspapers and other means of avoiding mob-mindedness." Prohibition and birth control were hot issues that year, but were not included in the subjects for study and legislation during the ensuing year. In 1926, The New York League together with the Women's National Republican Club established information booths in seven department stores, explaining to women how to register to vote, and installed

8900-426: The office are included on the site. The League of Women Voters, including state and local leagues, runs the site which received a 2020 Webby Award . In 2012, LWV created National Voter Registration Day , a day when volunteers work to register voters and increase participation. State and local leagues host candidate debates to provide candidates' positions at all levels of government. The League of Women Voters

9000-609: The omnipresent and non-dual Ātman - Brahman . In the dualistic Yoga school and Samkhya , the Self is called Purusha , a pure consciousness undisturbed by Prakriti , 'nature'. Depending on the tradition, the liberative event is named moksha , vimukti or kaivalya . One of the most influential texts of classical Hindu Yoga is Patañjali 's Yoga sutras (c. 400 CE), a text associated with Yoga and Samkhya and influenced by Buddhism, which outlines eight limbs leading to kaivalya ("aloneness") or inner awareness. The first four, known as

9100-620: The platform allows users to curate personalized book lists, making it easier to track reading goals and discover new titles. The change also streamlines the process of signing up for various library activities, from workshops to classes. The library system has 20 locations throughout Palm Beach County: The Palm Beach County Bookmobile offers a selection of books. Including fiction and nonfiction in regular and large-print. Bookmobile staff help patrons with finding books and research questions. The Bookmobile stops at various Palm Beach County locations each week. The library’s proposed budget for FY2024

9200-478: The self ( Ātman ) within oneself" (BU 4.4.23). There are many schools and styles of meditation within Hinduism . In pre-modern and traditional Hinduism , Yoga and Dhyana are practised to recognize 'pure awareness', or 'pure consciousness', undisturbed by the workings of the mind, as one's eternal self. In Advaita Vedanta jivatman , individual self, is recognized as illusory, and in Reality identical with

9300-405: The use of a defined technique, logic relaxation, and a self-induced state/mode. Other criteria deemed important [but not essential] involve a state of psychophysical relaxation, the use of a self-focus skill or anchor, the presence of a state of suspension of logical thought processes, a religious/spiritual/philosophical context, or a state of mental silence. ... It is plausible that meditation

9400-528: The way other techniques such as from Zen and Qigong are practiced by experienced meditators "once they had become effortless and automatic through years of practice." Asanas or body postures such as padmasana (full-lotus , half-lotus ), cross-legged sitting, seiza , and kneeling positions are popular meditative postures in Hinduism, Buddhism and Jainism , although other postures such as sitting, supine (lying), and standing are also used. Meditation

9500-652: The wood that comes from the Tulsi plant, also known as Holy Basil. The Buddhist literature has many stories of Enlightenment being attained through disciples being struck by their masters. T. Griffith Foulk recounts how the encouragement stick was an integral part of the Zen practice when he trained: In the Rinzai monastery where I trained in the mid-1970s, according to an unspoken etiquette, monks who were sitting earnestly and well were shown respect by being hit vigorously and often; those known as laggards were ignored by

9600-623: Was also a major proponent of the Help America Vote Act . Meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking," achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditation process itself. Techniques are broadly classified into focused (or concentrative) and open monitoring methods. Focused methods involve attention to specific objects like breath or mantras , while open monitoring includes mindfulness and awareness of mental events. Meditation

9700-551: Was created in 1920 as the merger of two existing organizations, the long-established National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) and the National Council of Women Voters (NCWV). The founding goals of the National League of Women Voters were to educate women on election processes and lobby for favorable legislation on women's issues. These were the same as the goals of the NCWV, which had been founded by Emma Smith DeVoe after her proposal for such an organization

9800-566: Was initially slated for five years, and was twice extended in the 1920s, but finally failed to pass in 1929. On October 17, 1929, Belle Sherwin, the president of the League of Women Voters, and Ruth Morgan of New York City headed a delegation to ask President Herbert Hoover to support the renewal of Federal aid to the States in maternity and infancy work. It Was later revived as part of the Social Security Act of 1935. In 1923,

9900-572: Was named honorary chairman of the League instead of president because she insisted that it was for younger and fresher women to lead the new work. As time passed, women's political organizations did find that political parties redefined issues of concern to them as "women's issues" and pushed them aside. Throughout the first part of its history, the League of Women Voters was not welcoming to women of color and its predecessor NAWSA ignored issues involving race due to fears that it would reduce support for equal suffrage. In subsequent years, due to

10000-606: Was rebuffed at the 1909 National American Woman Suffrage Association (NAWSA) convention in Seattle . When her proposal was ignored, DeVoe founded the National Council of Women Voters in 1911. She recruited western suffragists and organizations to join the NCWV. Ten years later, prior to the 1919 Convention of the NAWSA (in St. Louis, Missouri ), Carrie Chapman Catt began negotiating with DeVoe to merge her organization with

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