user157: It strikes me that it is very fortunate that meditation can be pleasurable. If there was no fairly immediate rewards then surely hardly anyone would make any kind of progress towards enlightenment. It almost like it is designed to have little pleasant staging posts where the practitioner can rest before continuing onward with the journey.
But why is meditation pleasurable? Could it be insightful but barren or is there something inherent in the practice that is pleasant and the pleasant quality of meditation is a necessary quality? What do the texts say about the pleasant qualities of meditation? Is there any accounts about why it is pleasant perhaps mythic accounts or explanations?

user-1: When the mind becomes still and rests in the present it gradually becomes more and more free of hindrances and conditioned phenomena. Naturally it moves closer to Nibbana and begins to experience the bliss of freedom from samsaric winds.
I have tried to make a drawing of it. You might have to zoom in to see it. 
What it shows is Nibbana in the bottom. Nibbana is perfect peace, bliss and happiness. As we move further away from Nibbana, i.e. towards the top we move through the different realms of existence. Next stop from Nibbana we have Arupa-Loka (the formless realms) which holds the "next-best" peace, bliss and happiness. As we move towards Rupa-Loka (fine-material world), Kama-loka (sensuous plane) and Apaya (deprivation realms) the mind will experience less and less peace, bliss and happiness. 
The arrow on the right side shows the degree of peace, bliss and happiness that the mind experiences when moving through the different planes of existence.
When moving away from complexity and towards greater and greater simplicity the mind becomes more and more quiet and less disturbance will be experienced. That naturally results in a more peaceful and blissful mind.
Another way to explain it is that the mind becomes less and less scattered when moving towards unity, i.e. Liberation.
Hope this helps. If you have any questions to the drawing let me know.


user220: When I took the course Buddhism and Modern Psychology, the lecture delved into the neurobiology behind meditation. Material was presented that breaks up the conscious mind into 8 centers competing to be at the forefront of awareness. When meditating, the Default Mode Network(DMN) in the mind shows less activity in fMRI scans in studies led by Judson Brewer who himself used meditation as a coping mechanism during medical school.
The DMN is the center of the mind thought to be responsible for daydreaming. The exact mechanism between meditation and pleasure in the mind is not known, but I speculate that a sort of rhythm develops between these competing centers and other parts of the brain that leads to decreased levels of cortisol and increase in pleasure neurotransmitters such as dopamine.
A point to note: Suzuki Roshi mentions in Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind, that the purpose of meditation is not too feel good or become a better person rather the purpose of meditation is to meditate.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Default_mode_network
https://www.coursera.org/course/psychbuddhism
http://www.yalescientific.org/2012/05/the-healing-art-of-meditation/

157: <p>It strikes me that it is very fortunate that meditation can be pleasurable. If there was no fairly immediate rewards then surely hardly anyone would make any kind of progress towards enlightenment. It almost like it is designed to have little pleasant staging posts where the practitioner can rest before continuing onward with the journey.</p>

<p>But why is meditation pleasurable? Could it be insightful but barren or is there something inherent in the practice that is pleasant and the pleasant quality of meditation is a necessary quality? What do the texts say about the pleasant qualities of meditation? Is there any accounts about why it is pleasant perhaps mythic accounts or explanations?</p>
 -1: <p>When the mind becomes still and rests in the present it gradually becomes more and more free of hindrances and conditioned phenomena. Naturally it moves closer to Nibbana and begins to experience the bliss of freedom from samsaric winds.</p>

<p>I have tried to make a drawing of it. You might have to zoom in to see it. </p>

<p>What it shows is Nibbana in the bottom. <em>Nibbana</em> is perfect peace, bliss and happiness. As we move further away from Nibbana, i.e. towards the top we move through the different realms of existence. Next stop from Nibbana we have <em>Arupa-Loka</em> (the formless realms) which holds the "next-best" peace, bliss and happiness. As we move towards <em>Rupa-Loka</em> (fine-material world), <em>Kama-loka</em> (sensuous plane) and <em>Apaya</em> (deprivation realms) the mind will experience less and less peace, bliss and happiness. </p>

<p>The arrow on the right side shows the degree of peace, bliss and happiness that the mind experiences when moving through the different planes of existence.</p>

<p>When moving away from complexity and towards greater and greater simplicity the mind becomes more and more quiet and less disturbance will be experienced. That naturally results in a more peaceful and blissful mind.</p>

<p>Another way to explain it is that the mind becomes less and less scattered when moving towards unity, i.e. Liberation.</p>

<p>Hope this helps. If you have any questions to the drawing let me know.</p>

<p><img src="https://i.stack.imgur.com/TFZzp.jpg" alt="enter image description here"></p>
 220: <p>When I took the course Buddhism and Modern Psychology, the lecture delved into the neurobiology behind meditation. Material was presented that breaks up the conscious mind into 8 centers competing to be at the forefront of awareness. When meditating, the Default Mode Network(DMN) in the mind shows less activity in fMRI scans in studies led by Judson Brewer who himself used meditation as a coping mechanism during medical school.</p>

<p>The DMN is the center of the mind thought to be responsible for daydreaming. The exact mechanism between meditation and pleasure in the mind is not known, but I speculate that a sort of rhythm develops between these competing centers and other parts of the brain that leads to decreased levels of cortisol and increase in pleasure neurotransmitters such as dopamine.</p>

<p>A point to note: Suzuki Roshi mentions in <em>Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind</em>, that the purpose of meditation is not too feel good or become a better person rather the purpose of meditation is to meditate.</p>

<p><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Default_mode_network" rel="nofollow">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Default_mode_network</a></p>

<p><a href="https://www.coursera.org/course/psychbuddhism" rel="nofollow">https://www.coursera.org/course/psychbuddhism</a></p>

<p><a href="http://www.yalescientific.org/2012/05/the-healing-art-of-meditation/" rel="nofollow">http://www.yalescientific.org/2012/05/the-healing-art-of-meditation/</a></p>
