Meditation's Effect on Strong Attachment I have a straightforwards question: does meditation decrease attachments -- e.g. to alcohol or social media -- by increasing willpower, or by other mechanisms? I would think shamatha increases willpower in the long-term, but does it produce some other effects that decrease attachments?

Thank you.
Meditation can result in samatha (tranquility &amp; joy) and vipassana (insight). 

On a very basic or crude level, meditation can provide an intimate insight into how addictions &amp; habits disturb, trouble &amp; enslave the mind, which can help the mind develop a distaste or dispassion towards these more coarse/gross addictions &amp; habits. 

As for samatha, if well developed, it provides an alternate, more healthy &amp; free source of pleasure. 

All minds require 'pleasure' however some sources of pleasure are more healthy than others.