Session
2 - Mindfulness of Breathing (cont'd), Postures of the Body, Mindfulness
with Clear Comprehension
1)Beginning
Meditation (5-8 minutes): Guided, bringing minds into the present, settling
into our bodies, finding the breath and following it, returning to the
breath when the mind wanders, short/long breath, entire breath body.
2)Brief
Review of Last Week's Talk
3)Questions/Discussion
from Last Week
4)Mindfulness
of Breathing (cont'd)
a)"Calming
the gross in-breath [literally, body-conditioned object], I shall breathe
in," thus he makes effort; "calming the gross out-breath, I shall breathe
out," thus he makes effort.
i)Not
to deliberately calm down, inhibit, and still the breath
ii)When
the breath becomes very subtle, one must try hard, pay attention,
and apply more effort to discern it.
(1)Unlike
other objects, the breath becomes more subtle and difficult to
perceive as the mind becomes concentrated.
(2)The
thought may arise, "My breath has disappeared".Attend
to that place where the touch sensation is noticed, as one would look for
a lost contact in the sink -- with full attention directed at the object
(or where it last appeared).
iii)Simile
of the lathe operater - long turn (large
drum) and short turn (ivory needles).
b)Thus
he dwells contemplating the body in the body internally, or he dwells contemplating
the body in the body externally, or he dwells contemplating the body in
the body both internally and externally.
i)One
is mindful of their own in-breaths and out-breaths
ii)At
times, one is also mindful of the breaths of others
(1)Not
to dilberately direct one's attention to
others, but when the thought of others breathing arises, noting "Just as
my breaths have a beginning, a middle and an end, so too do the breaths
of other people".
c)He
dwells contemplating the origination factors in the breath-body, or he
dwells contemplating the dissolution factors in the breath-body, or he
dwells contemplating both the origination and dissolution factors in the
breath-body.
i)"Origination
factors" are those factors which bring about the breath.
(1)Blacksmith
simile: blacksmith (effort), the bellows (physical body) and the spout
(nasal aperture).
(a)Dependent
on these three things, breath is produced; without any of them, it is not
produced.
ii)"Dissolution
factors" mean the opposite: breaking up of the body, destruction of the
nasal aperture, and cessation of the mind to function.
iii)One
does not deliberately search for these factors, but when the thought of
these factors arises one should recognize the origination and dissolution
of the breath.
iv)The
arising and disappearing of each breath-body is also meant: closely observing
the arising of each breath-body, bit by bit, at every moment -- and the
same for the disappearing of each breath-body. (MahasiSayadaw)
d)Or
his mindfulness is established as "there is breath-body only."
i)When
one's attention is on the breath, you see nothing else but breath -- no
person, no being, no man, no woman, no I, nothing pertaining to I, no soul,
nothing pertaining to the soul, etc.
ii)There
is only breath, but no one who is regulating the breath -- just the breath.
iii)In
this way, mindfulness is established.
e)And
that mindfulness is established to the extent necessary to further knowledge
and mindfulness.
i)Mindfulness
is established to help one go on to higher stages of insight knowledge
and concentration.
ii)Without
seeing only the breath, the necessary degree of concentration will not
be developed to support the arising of insight knowledge.
f)Not
depending on (or attached to) anything by way of craving and wrong view,
he dwells.
i)When
one keeps the mind on the breath, watching it, seeing it coming and going
moment to moment, one cannot see anything to be attached to.
ii)The
breath comes and goes.It's just
breath.Nothing to be attached to.
iii)As
one reaches the higher stages of insight knowledge, one sees the arising
and disappearing of all phenomena -- both physical and mental.
g)Nor
does he cling to anything in the world of the five aggregates of clinging.
i)The
five aggregates that are objects of clinging: form, feeling, perception,
mental formations, and consciousness.
ii)One
realizes that there is no thing to cling to, since everything is
constantly in a state of becoming something other than it was just a moment
ago.
h)Thus
too bhikkhus, a bhikkhu
dwells contemplating the body in the body.
i)This
ends the Buddha's teaching on breathing meditation.
ii)Breathing
meditation can take two forms: samatha (breath
only) and vipassana (whatever presents itself,
then return to the primary object)
iii)The
emphasis in this Sutta is vipassana,
e.g., contemplation of arising and dissolution factors.In
it's early stages it can be samatha meditation.
5)The
Postures of the Body
a)Posture
means the four deportments of the body: going or walking, standing, sitting,
and lying down.
b)And
again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu
knows, "I am going," when he is going; he knows, "I am standing," when
he is standing; he knows, "I am sitting," when he is sitting; he knows,
"I am lying down," when he is lying down, or just as his body is disposed
so he knows it.
i)Not
just a superficial knowledge -- a deep knowledge of what is going on.
ii)Each
second, it is said that hundreds of mind moments come and go.
(1)Four
elements: earth, water, fire and air.
(a)The
desire to move (mental) causes the air element to arise in those parts
of the body that are going to move (physical).
(b)The
air element causes those parts to move.
(c)There's
only the intention and the going -- nothing more.There
is no person going.
iii)Walking
Meditation Instructions
- concentration (coordinating the movement with the breath) and insight
practice (observing the intention and the going).
c)Thus
he dwells contemplating the body in the body internally, or he dwells
contemplating the body in the body externally, or he dwells contemplatingthe
body in the body both internally and externally.
i)The
same practice as with the breath meditation.
d)He
dwells contemplating the origination factors in the body, or he
dwells contemplating the dissolution factors in the body, or he
dwells contemplating both the origination and dissolution factors
in the body.
i)Ignorance,
Craving, Volitional Actions, Food
e)Or
his mindfulness is established as "there is the body only." And that mindfulness
is established to the extent necessary to further knowledge and mindfulness.
i)The
same practice as with the breath meditation.
f)Not
depending on (or attached to) anything by way of craving and wrong view,
he dwells. Nor does he cling to anything in the world of the five aggregates
of clinging.
i)The
same practice as with the breath meditation.
6)Mindfulness
with Clear Comprehension
a)Several
meanings
i)Knowing
or understanding correctly, rightly, accurately.
ii)Understanding
comprehensively, from different angles, the way the object or activity
really is from many points of view so that a clear picture of it is possible.
iii)Understanding
evenly, in a balanced way, with the mind in a balanced state.
b)There
are five mental faculties: faith, wisdom, mindfulness, energy and concentration.When
these are all in balance, one has clear comprehension.
c)Four
types of clear comprehension in one's practice and daily life:
i)Clear
Comprehension of Purpose
(1)The
purpose for which one is engaging in that activity.
(a)By
stopping and not rushing into an activity, but arousing awareness or mindfulness
of one's intentions before proceeding.
(i)Is
it rooted in generosity, loving-kindness/compassion, or wisdom?
(b)Mindfulness
creates that space in which inquiry can be made.
(2)Clear
Comprehension of Suitability
(a)Whether
it's suitable by reference to time, place, and so on, to act.
(3)Clear
Comprehension of the Domain of Meditation
(a)Constantly
keeping one's mind engaged with the meditation subject whenever one is
involved in any activity. If one becomes involved in something else, one drops
the meditation subject and picks up the other subject as the object of
one's attention and continues on.
(b)For
example, when one goes to the bathroom to brush one's teeth: walking, stopping,
turning, looking, opening, looking, reaching, grasping tooth brush, etc.
The same method can be applied to eating and every other activity.
(4)Clear
Comprehension of Non-Delusion
(a)When
engaged in or considering any activity, one comprehends it from the standpoint
of non-self (anatta). For example, when one
walks someplace, one thinks "I am going." But when one is practicing by
clear comprehension, one contemplates these actions as merely empty phenomena,
phenomena occurring without any self or ego controlling them.It's
just a series of mental commands (intentions) and physical action.
7)Questions
8)Practice
- Walking Meditation (Questions?)
9)Homework
a)Sitting
and Walking Meditation - daily (afterwards, note your experiences in your
journal)
b)Read
the Sutra (through The Nine Cemetery Contemplations) and Sutra
Notes
c)Practice
Exercises (below)
a)The
Benefits of Walking Meditation
b)Practice
Exercises for Clear Comprehension
11)Closing
Meditation