Anapanasati 11: Impermanence And Non-attachment

This recording is our last pause before moving from awareness of the mind to gladdening the mind. The guided meditation focuses on impermanence and nonattachment as it moves through the first nine of the sixteen contemplative steps in Anapanasati meditation.

Transcript

So I was thinking today that I just want to go through this whole scheme with as few words as possible. All right and then I want to talk just a little bit about Sam, We're still kind of hovering on that ninth step, Awareness of the mind, And just say a few things about that, Mostly repeating myself a little bit. But um, So moving through the body contemplations and the feelings contemplations and into that first contemplation of the mind which is where we are. We're breathing in, Breathing out, Aware the breath without holding, Without shaping it, That word sati, Bare awareness, Moving into bodily awareness, Linkage the breath and the body, Developing that sense of contentment in the moment, Happiness, Even joy. Remember to be rooted in the breath, Then we move into that awareness of feelings, Practice non-attachment based on our understanding of the impermanence of those feelings, Calm the feelings. So as I was saying last week, What we're really doing is in these steps is we're rooting ourselves and we're sweeping out the clutter because it's when you get into contemplations of the mind that you know this work of self-inquiry really begins. So in that ninth contemplation, Breathing in, I'm aware of the mind, Breathing out, Aware of the mind, Remember the challenge really is to experience the mind thoroughly, Just as it is, With whatever level of clarity we've been able to attain through the first two contemplations. And we just look at the nature of the mind, Its nature when harmful thoughts are present, And then to be with each thought for as long as it's there to have the whole experience of the thought from beginning to end, Staying rooted in the breath with an understanding that all things are subject to change without attaching to the thought. And then when you do, You can witness the impermanence of these harmful thoughts, These things that come from greed and hatred and delusion. They really do pass if we've let them. I've had some real success with this recently and you know, Seeing something come up in my mind and just being with it, Seeing it, And suddenly just watching it fade, It's kind of astonishing really to see something like anger or shame or fear just play itself out, You know, And fade. And the nice thing is, And something that we haven't really talked about but we should because it's really the point in a way, Is that we also get to experience times when our mind is without these kinds of thoughts, You know, Times in which, You know, The in between these thoughts which become more frequent as we learn to hold our minds open without attachment, Our minds in a state of simple, Clear calmness. You know, In my experience, I've been doing this meditation a lot in the last few weeks, You know, The thoughts come, I let them fade, Another one comes up pretty quickly, It's not like I'm dwelling in this, You know, Nirvana state all the time, But you know, I have caught a sense of in between these thoughts and it's very relieving. So find your comfortable meditation position. As normal, We'll do a guided meditation, We'll do a little walking meditation, And then we'll do some quiet meditation. I heard these words of the Buddha one time when he was staying in Savatthi. The senior practitioners in the community were instructing those who were new to the practice, Some instructing 10, Some 20, Some 30, And in this way those new to the practice gradually made great progress. That night the moon was full, The Buddha, The awakened one, Was sitting in the open air and his disciples were gathered around him, And after looking over the assembly, He began to speak. Friends, Our community is pure and good. Such a community is rare and any pilgrim who seeks it, No matter how far she must travel, Will find it worthy. Friends, The full awareness of breathing, If developed and practiced continuously, Will be rewarding and bring great advantage. And what is the way to develop and practice continuously the method of full awareness of breathing? It is like this. The practitioner goes into the forest or to the foot of a tree or to any quiet place, Sits stably holding his or her body straight and practices like this, Breathing in. I know I'm breathing in. Breathing out. I know I'm breathing out. Take a few good deep breaths. Root yourself into your seated posture. You're erect but not rigid. Let your shoulders relax. The muscles in your face, Your jaw, The root of your tongue. Deep breath. I invite you to let a sense of mindfulness develop. It's not really something that you do, It's something that we let happen. As you breathe, Let mindfulness rise, Let it billow up. So delicate. Can't be grasped, But it can be welcomed and invited to stay like an old friend. Consider the space around you, The sense of protection, Sense of enclosure that it brings you a space to practice this afternoon. A place for your own development and growth and the support we bring each other in this small sangha assembled. And set an intention to practice now in this place and this time, Breath by breath, Moment by moment. Bring your mindfulness to your breath. The inhalations, The exhalations. Your breath is your closest friend, The one thing that goes with you wherever you go. The one thing you can always turn to. Feel its nature. And find a sense of impermanence right here within this scheme, Right in this moment. Your breath is always changing, Just like everything. Short or long, Rough or smooth, Inhaling, Exhaling. All things subject to change. This truth, This close. Breathing in, Breathing out. With sati, Bare awareness. And as you breathe, Bring a sense of awareness to your body. An inclusive, Yet suffused energy. Bringing awareness to the body as a whole. Bringing awareness to the body as a whole. Breath still present. Rooted in the body. Here in this moment. Allow yourself to be content. We have so much to be grateful for. Not the least of which is just the simple purity of this moment. Our breath, Our presence. Just be content. Allow your body to calm. Bring attention again to your posture. Consider the places where you often hold tension. Just relax. Present in the body. Aware of the breath. Calm content. You may find at times, A sense of joy begins to build. Such a precious thing. To be in the moment. To be relaxed and calm. Such a gift we bring to ourselves. Such a thing to share with others. Hold yourself open to joy. If your experiences want to joy, Practice gratitude for that. If joy is hard to find, Rely on the contentment of the moment. Perhaps it just becomes a sense of happiness. Consider your contentment, Your happiness, As a platform from which to view the feelings. Feelings of these things that flash into us in response to the things that our senses perceive. Remembering that one of the senses the Buddha identified is the mind itself. Feelings of quick interest, Irritation, Attachment, Aversion. These we don't need to follow. We don't need to really look at their causes, Their roots. They're not important. And when we don't follow them, They pass. Like all things, They are impermanent. We don't need to attach to these. These are the little things. Clutter in the mind. Feelings rise, Feelings pass. No problem. No problem. The more we practice this important skill in meditation, The easier it becomes to do in moments when we're off of our meditation cushion. Taking the practice into life. Where our reactions can be so many. So frequent we get swirled away in the small things. We chase them and we dwell in them. But we practice letting them go. We practice not following them, Not dissecting them. They rise, They fall. And we let them go. Gradually, Our feelings begin to call. We disciples, Fraser Reverse, Stass the Take a moment and find your breath. Know that you're breathing in and out. Find that awareness of your body. These are the roots of the practice, Not to be lost as we move through the steps. And with these in peripheral awareness, Mindfulness of the feelings. Impermanence, Not attachment. And with these in peripheral awareness, Mindfulness of the feelings. Feelings are like wind that cause ripples on the surface of our mind. They make it hard to see our mind, They make it hard for us to contemplate the mind. But as the feelings calm, Those breezes die. And as blue water is revealed, Still and calm, So too is our mind, Open before us. Our minds are often troubled. The Buddha identified the three poisons, Greed and attachment, Aversion pushing things away, Caught in what we don't want. And the spiritual confusion, Delusion, Finding contentment in the wrong things, Finding a sense of normalcy and suffering. It's just the way life is. But it's not. Thoughts arise in the mind. Perhaps happiness, That's wonderful. It's real. Perhaps sorrow, Also real. Anger, Disappointment, Grasping, Wanting, Not wanting. When we cling to these things, We suffer. When we try to push these things away, We suffer. Let these thoughts, Let these emotions come, They will regardless. Be with them. Bring a sense of compassion to them. Don't try to hold them, Though sometimes that seems attractive. Don't try to push them away, Though sometimes that seems necessary. Just let them be, See them as they rise, And as they unfold. Let them play themselves out. Like all things, They are impermanent. And if we don't engage them too closely, They'll change, They'll pass. So freeing to know that we don't have to be subject to these things, We don't have to be enslaved by them. Not that we can make them stop. In fact, In this practice, Awareness of the mind, We turn toward them, We turn toward our suffering. Let it rise, Watch it be, Watch it die. The next one comes, The same process. But in between, And with practice. We find those spaces in our mind where our mind is clear and shining brightly. To be held as a goal, But to be seen as a fortunate result. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die. Let it rise, Watch it die.

Reviews

Thank you again for these lovely practices. Much to be learned much to be gained. ☮️💖🙏