MA 05 Meditation On Wisdom For Life

Meditation from the Thai Theravada tradition following a modernized interpretation of Boran Kammatthana. This track is the Dharma-lite version of a guided meditation that advocates believing in your ability to succeed in meditation. No end sound.

Transcript

So start by finding a comfortable position for yourself in meditation.

You might sit cross-legged on a meditation mat with your right leg on your left leg.

Or you can sit on a straight back chair.

In either case your right hand should rest on your left hand.

And the index finger of your right hand should touch against the thumb of your left hand.

With your hands resting palm upwards on your lap.

Close your eyes very gently.

Just as if you were only half closing your eyes.

Similar to the way you might close your eyes just before going to sleep.

Never squeeze your eyes closed and make sure there's no pressure around your eyes.

If your eyes are completely relaxed,

Your body will relax too.

And allow your mind to fill with happiness and joy.

So that your mind feels refreshed and pure,

Clear and bright.

Free of any sort of worries whatsoever.

No matter what sort of worries might invade your mind,

Let go of them all completely.

Forget about all the things of the world,

Allowing your mind to be completely still.

And imagine that inside your body is free of any organs or tissues,

Any muscles or bones.

As if inside your body is just an empty space,

A hollow cavity inside yourself.

Rather like a crystal tunnel or a diamond tube.

Start by resting your mind at the point which for you feels like the point of greatest contentment.

Without worrying too much about the precise position of the centre of the body.

Put your mind at the point that feels the most comfortable and easy for you.

And you'll find that the happiness from meditation will gradually become apparent to you.

You'll start to feel the solidity of your body melting away into the atmosphere around you.

Dissolving into a feeling of lightness.

Or as if you were alone in empty space.

You may feel as if your body has disappeared altogether.

Or as if all that's left is your feeling of awareness.

Some people don't know what to do next when they reach this point in their meditation,

Where their body seems to have disappeared.

But all one needs to do is rest the attention at whatever point feels the most comfortable for us.

Starting off with our mind there.

Once the body and mind come into balance,

You'll start to realise that the mind is automatically realigning itself with the actual centre of the body.

Some people find it helpful to imagine a bright,

Clear object about the size of a pinpoint or like a star in the sky.

As if that image appears at the point where the mind has come to a standstill.

We should keep such an image in mind,

Gazing at it continuously and softly,

But never attempting to stare at it.

Almost as if you were looking at it out of the corner of your eye.

Almost unintentionally.

If we can observe it gently in this way,

Without using too little or too much effort,

Before long the image will become clearer on its own.

However if we use too much force,

Then it will disappear.

If we use too little effort,

Allowing ourself to become distracted,

Then we'll find that the image will also disappear.

So either way,

Too much effort or too little,

It will disappear.

And finding the optimum effort by which we can see the object the whole time,

This is the real skill which we have to build up and work on in our meditation.

All we have to do is simply allow our mind to remain free of thought at the centre of the body.

Free of thought means without letting any questions or doubts arise in our mind.

As if we were just an inanimate piece of putty unable to think,

Like an object which has never had any thoughts on its mind before.

Such freedom from thought is invaluable to our meditation progress.

If you are unable to think anymore,

Then this will stand you in good stead all the way from the beginning of meditation to the more advanced stages.

Because inner experience arising from meditation is from beyond the realm of conceptual thinking.

It is knowledge that arises when the mind is free of thought.

It is pure,

Bright knowledge.

We learn merely by what we see,

Acquiring the knowledge directly.

It is rather different from the modes of learning we are used to,

Where you have to study and memorize,

Read and write to increase your knowledge.

The sort of knowledge we are talking about is wisdom which comes independent of thought.

It can arise only in a mind which is free of thought,

A mind that is at a standstill.

The special wisdom arising from a still mind comes when the meditation gives rise to inner brightness in the mind.

Through the brightness we are able to see more than before,

And by seeing more than before we can grasp hidden truths about the reality of life in the world.

This process runs counter to the conventional educational processes in the outside world.

Meditation allows us to access knowledge from the inside,

So it will be more of a hindrance than a help to apply conventional study skills to our meditation.

All we require in our meditation is to allow our mind to become free of thought,

And the starting point for us to focus our attention can be anywhere in the body,

In the initial stages of meditation.

Later when your mind becomes settled,

It will make its way to the actual center of the body by itself.

As the mind approximates more closely to the center,

It will give us the feeling of being alive and awake inside.

It will be a feeling that is completely different from feelings encountered in the mundane run of events in our life.

It will be as if something wonderful is stirring within us,

With a quality completely different from our waking experience.

Therefore bringing the mind inside to the 7th base of the mind takes only very gentle attention.

Like an intention on the off chance,

It will bring our mind to the center of the body.

Once our mind has a taste of being at a standstill in the center,

It will be easier to return to this point and stay there next time round.

Always maintain a feeling of ease in your meditation.

If you ever notice that you are struggling to meditate or trying to force it,

Remind yourself that to continue is counter productive.

Meditation brings no benefit to body or mind in our meditation.

If you feel tension inside,

You need to relax yourself further,

Particularly your nervous system and your muscles,

Before you continue with your meditation.

Once your body is relaxed,

Your mind will relax as well.

Your mind will find it easier to become relaxed and still.

Once body and mind become fully relaxed,

A bright clear inner sphere becomes much more readily attainable.

Even with our eyes closed it will not be dark inside for us anymore.

We'll be able to maintain our awareness inwardly,

Stopping it from wandering anywhere else,

Whether while meditating or while conducting other activities.

Entering the mind within the body will bring us a feeling of expansion on the inside.

With such a feeling of expansion we will have the sense that we are being drawn inwards,

As if we are being attracted through into a new dimension by a giant magnet deep inside us.

At this point some meditators may respond to the new experience with surprise or even anxiety,

Because it's something they have never encountered before.

However all we need to do is to follow wherever the center leads us.

Rather than resisting the experiences,

It's better just to let them be.

Rather than struggling against them or even reacting to them,

Remaining unswayed by the inner experience.

We will see that the study of inner knowledge like this is all the outcome of finding a perfect equilibrium at the center of our body.

If we can do this before long,

We'll be able to keep the mind centered both inside and outside of our meditation.

In the beginning it's important that we have confidence in our own ability to meditate.

We have to keep alive the hope that we are capable of making progress in our meditation,

And that success depends merely on getting the methodology right.

Simply relaxing body and mind effectively will allow us to make progress.

Some people dwell on regrets from their past thinking their demons are holding them back.

Others think the clouded mind they've been used to for so long will be too difficult to change.

A more positive approach to meditation is that we just need to fake it until we make it.

Being calm until the real calm emerges.

By proceeding with confidence we can make a success of anything.

The fact that even with our eyes shut we can spoon food into our mouths or point directly to the tip of our nose should dispel any doubts we have about finding the center of our body.

Especially with all the well known advice on meditation at your disposal.

Practice meditation in every spare moment you have,

With a passion,

Because this is the knowledge that is the most important knowledge in life.

Even if you are academically accomplished,

Scholarly knowledge can only ever help you to further your career,

Win acceptance in the eyes of society or bolster your reputation.

Once you come to the point where you are dying,

Even the best of academic knowledge cannot help you to avoid fear of death.

The knowledge originating from the still mind is the most important of all,

Indispensable to our lives.

You can train the mind towards inner knowledge anytime and any place.

When you are sitting with your eyes closed,

You can call it meditation.

When you are combining inner focus with other activities in your life,

You can call it mindfulness.

To this end we are often recommended to practice 10 types of meditation homework,

Right from the time we wake up in the morning to when we go to bed at night.

Immediately after we wake up we need to reconnect our attention with the center of the body.

Often before getting out of bed we need to take a minute to reunite our mind with the mental object at the center of our body and recollect how lucky we are still to be alive,

While spreading loving kindness to all living beings in the world.

Throughout the day you need to feel united with the mental object at the center of the body the whole of the time,

Or at least for one minute of every hour.

We need to recollect the mental object at the center of the body while conducting other activities throughout the day,

Whether it be while showering,

Washing up,

Sweeping the garden or mopping the floor,

Standing,

Walking,

Sitting or lying down.

We need to make the world a nicer place to live in by smiling and speaking in an endearing way.

We need to make the effort to see the virtues in ourselves and others.

It is also helpful to keep daily notes of your meditation experience in a diary.

Before going to sleep you need to recollect the good deeds you have done throughout the day and before falling asleep we need to center our mind inside the body.

If we train ourselves in mindfulness in these 10 ways,

When it comes to time for meditation,

Even just thinking about the center of the body and we'll already find our mind making its way to that point,

Two finger breaths above the belly button,

And with further practice that the mind will go automatically through the center of the body.

So there are none of the finer points of meditation that you haven't already heard about.

You can imagine a visual object at your center if you wish or simply rest the mind at the center while observing whatever arises there spontaneously.

You can imagine an image like a bright sun,

A full moon,

A star or a diamond.

You can even think of something simple like a flower.

Any image can serve as a point of reference to anchor the mind at the center.

When imagining the object use only the gentlest of effort.

If you haven't struck the right balance when focusing,

Using too much or too little effort your body will tell you about it.

Too much effort and you'll end up with tension at your eyebrows or across your shoulders.

You may end up with a headache as well.

If you find that your fingers are curling up or your abdomen is tense then you're trying too hard.

However if you succumb to boredom or you find yourself looking at the clock,

Again these are signs that you haven't struck the right balance.

Don't struggle on if you have these sorts of symptoms but be quick to readjust your technique.

Relax yourself and find a sense of ease in your meditation.

Once you are back on the right track the telltale sign will be a sensation of bodily lightness and of expansion inside yourself.

And your mind will feel light,

Pliable and easy to work with.

You'll feel that time passes by more quickly than it really does.

And you'll feel that you don't want the meditation to come to an end,

As if you'd like to extend the length of your meditation,

As if you've been glued to your meditation mat.

When your meditation is going well your body will automatically set itself up in a position of poise,

Where the body seems to inflate itself into the most elegant and upright of postures.

You will feel that you are content with your meditation,

With a smile on your face.

These are all indications that we are on the right track with our meditation technique.

On the contrary,

If we feel the more we sit for meditation the more upset or depressed we feel,

This would show that we have not done the right adjustments on our mind.

If you feel meditation is causing you to age prematurely,

Then you need to recalibrate your meditation technique.

So don't lose confidence of success in meditation,

And train yourself continuously while being observant of all the things which aid or obstruct your progress.

Once you have found the right balance,

Body and mind will be clear and bright.

Simply putting our mind at the centre of the body will cause the sphere there to expand,

And we will fall through the centre to find the pure elements on the inside.

Because all forms of inner experience already await us inside the body.

So all we need to do is train ourselves continuously,

And avoid putting off getting down to meditation in earnest.

And when you feel your meditation is going well,

Don't give up immediately,

But always give it a little while longer than usual.

Rather than thinking,

Today I've had a good meditation but now I need to go to bed,

I guess I'll be able to sit for an even better meditation tomorrow,

Remind yourself that the opportunity for meditation to go well happens only very rarely.

All the effort we've invested in our meditation is made worthwhile by the days when our meditation goes well,

So don't waste it.

Don't worry about missing out on your beauty sleep,

Because you've already spent a third of your life asleep.

Pulling an all-nighter once in a while won't harm you,

So give due importance to the meditation.

If your meditation is going well,

You should continue with it.

Your body will indicate by itself when it needs to rest,

And that will be the right time to sleep.

You ought to go to bed because your body needs it,

Not because you're worried about lack of sleep.

Don't give in to complacency in your mind,

Because the opportunity of your mind coming into equilibrium is rarer in anyone's lifetime than winning first prize on the lottery.

So if you find your meditation is going well,

Then make time to continue for meditation longer than usual,

And this will help you to extend your experience.

Because the results of making even a one-time breakthrough in your meditation will stay with you for the rest of your life.

However,

If you give up on your meditation just as it's going well,

Even though you come back to your meditation at a later time,

It may mean that you never recover those good experiences.

It may take us many more years to get back to the same point in our meditation again.

So don't be ashamed to cherish your meditation experiences,

And rather than remembering the experience you had on a particular day,

You should try to remember the methodology you used to reach the experience on that day,

Because there's a temptation to remember just the experiences while forgetting how you got there.

So take care to commit to memory all the finer points of meditation technique I've mentioned today,

Because one day it will allow you to attain the pure inner elements,

With happiness from the moment you attain them,

Giving you solace even in the final moments of your life,

Allowing you to study about the reality of life and the world.

It will allow your mind to be radiant the whole of the time.

So if you feel sleepy,

Fatigued or tense in your meditation,

Just allow yourself to fall asleep at the centre as you sit,

And continue with the meditation when you wake up.

If you feel aches and pains,

Just change posture.

If your stream of thoughts is never ending,

Open your eyes and close them again.

If you keep up your meditation,

Making it a habitual part of your daily routine,

You will soon make a breakthrough and before long be able to touch upon the transformative inner experiences which lie within.

So now each their own meditation practice in silence for a few more moments now,

Until we come to the appropriate time.

Reviews

I wish there was a bell at the end or the mention that there will be no bell. Thank you!