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Meditation:
Meditation FAQ
by Sakyong Mipham, Rinpoche
What is Meditation?
The human mind is by nature joyous, calm and
very clear. In shamatha meditation we aren't
creating a peaceful state--we're letting our
mind be as it is to begin with. Meditation is
a way to make the mind more stable and clear.
From this point of view, meditation is not purely
a Buddhist practice; it's a practice that anyone
can do. It doesn't tie in with a particular
spiritual tradition. If we want to undo confusion,
we're going to have to be responsible for learning
what our own mind is and how it works, no matter
what beliefs we hold.
The word for meditation in Sanskrit is "shamatha"
in Sanskrit (Tibetan: shi-ne), which means "peacefully
abiding." Peacefully abiding describes
the mind as it naturally is. The word "peace"
tells the whole story. The human mind is by
nature joyous, calm and very clear. In shamatha
meditation we aren't creating a peaceful state--we're
letting our mind be as it is to begin with.
This doesn't mean that we're peacefully ignoring
things. It means that the mind is able to be
present, without constantly leaving.
In meditation, what we're doing is looking at
our experience and at the world intelligently.
The Buddha said that this is how we learn to
look at any situation and understand its truth.
This is what a Buddha does--and we are all capable
of being Buddhas, whether or not we are Buddhists.
We all have the ability to realize our naturally
peaceful minds where there is no confusion.
We can use the natural clarity of our mind to
focus on anything we want. But first we have
to tame our minds through shamatha meditation.
Perhaps we associate meditation with spirituality
because when we experience a moment of peacefully
abiding, it seems so far-out. Our mind is no
longer drifting, thinking about a million things.
The sun comes up or a beautiful breeze comes
along--and all of a sudden we feel the breeze
and we are completely in tune. We think, "That's
a very spiritual experience! It's a religious
experience! At least worth a poem, or a letter
home." Yet all that's happening is that
for a moment we are in tune with our mind. Our
mind is present and harmonious. Before, we were
so busy and bewildered that we didn't even notice
the breeze. Our mind couldn't even stay put
long enough to watch the sun to come up, which
takes two-and-a-half minutes. Now we can keep
it in one place long enough to acknowledge and
appreciate our surroundings. Now we are really
here. In fact, this is ordinary.
This is the not just the point of being Buddhist,
it's the point of being human.
Why Meditate?
Meditation is based on the premise that the
natural state of the mind is calm and clear.
It provides a way to train our mind to settle
into this state. Our first reason for meditating
might be that we want some freedom from our
agitated mind. We want to discover the basic
goodness of our natural mind.
To do this requires us first to slow down and
experience our mind as it is. In the process,
we get to know how our mind works. We see that
wherever the mind is abiding--in anger, in desire,
in jealousy, or in peace--that is where we also
are abiding. We begin to see that we have a
choice in the matter: we do not have to act
at the whim of every thought. We can abide peacefully.
Meditation is a way to slow down and see how
our mind works.
The untrained mind is like a wild horse. It
runs away when we try to find it, shies when
we try to approach it. If we find a way to ride
it, it takes off with the bit in its teeth and
finally throws us right into the mud. There
is potential for communication and rapport between
horse and rider, between mind and self, but
the horse needs to be trained to be a willing
participant in that relationship.
We train our minds with shamatha practice, the
most simple form of sitting meditation. Shamatha
is a Sanskrit word that means "peacefully
abiding." Like all types of meditation,
it rests upon two basic principles, known in
Tibetan as ngotro and gom. Ngotro refers to
"being introduced" to the object of
meditation, while gom is "becoming familiar."
In shamatha practice, we are introduced to and
become familiar with the simple act of breathing.
This is our object of concentration, the place
we return to again and again when the mind has
run off and we find ourselves clutching the
horse's neck, hoping we won't end up too far
from home.
The untrained mind is weak and inflexible. It
lives in a zone of comfort. When the boundaries
of that zone are challenged, it reacts by becoming
more rigid. In contrast, the trained mind is
strong, flexible, and workable. Because it can
stretch beyond where it feels comfortable, it's
responsive--not reactive--to challenges. Through
shamatha we can train our mind to be flexible
and tuned in to what's happening now. We can
apply this workable mind in all aspects of our
lives, including our livelihood, our relationships,
and our spiritual path. So another reason to
meditate is to develop a strong, supple mind
that we can put to work.
How to Get Started
The basic premise of shamatha meditation is
"not too tight, not too loose." This
holds true in every aspect of the practice--finding
the right environment, preparing our body and
mind to meditate, holding our posture, noticing
thoughts and emotions, and bringing our minds
back to the breath. The instructions are very
clear and we should follow them as precisely
as possible. Gentleness is also necessary, or
else meditation becomes a way in which we're
trying to measure up against a hopeless ideal.
It's important not to expect perfection or get
hooked on the finer points of the instruction.
The practice takes consistent effort, and it
can also be joyful.
One of the simple things that we can do is to
create a good environment for practice--a place
that is comfortable, quiet, and clean. A corner
of your room that feels uplifted and spacious
and private is a good enough place. It's unproductive
to get caught up in chasing your idea of the
perfect place to meditate. Some people from
the city will go into the mountains to meditate
in peace and find that the crickets and the
birds won't shut up!
Timing is also important. Decide on a regular
time to practice each day and try to stick with
it. A ten-minute period in the morning is a
good place to begin. The more consistent you
can be in keeping to the routine, the better.
Planning is another element. It's better not
to just sit down and hope for the best. If you
plop down on your seat straight from the office
or right after an argument, you may spend the
whole session trying to slow down enough even
to remember that you're meditating. If you're
agitated, a slow walk might be in order. If
you're drowsy, a cool shower before beginning
the session might help. It can be inspiring
to read a little about meditation first as a
reminder of why you're practicing. Working with
ourselves in ways like this is intelligent and
honest and can create the proper mind and body
for good practice. But remember, preparation
is not meditation, it is just preparation.
Half of the challenge of meditation is simply
getting to your seat. At the beginning of a
session you may suddenly discover that you have
more important things to do--housework or phonecalls
to make or e-mails to write. One way to work
with this kind of procrastination is to build
a routine around preliminary stretching or walking
before your session. This gives you a way to
ease into it by softening your body and mind
before you begin meditating. The more regularly
you practice the better you'll get at working
with the strategies that the untrained mind
cooks up to keep you from making it to your
seat.
Technique of Meditation
Our minds usually jump wildly from thought to
thought. We replay the past; we fantasize about
the future. In meditation we take an upright
posture, place our mind on an object, and keep
it there. In shamatha meditation, the object
is the simple act of breathing. The breath represents
being alive in the immediacy of the moment.
When you sit down, take a balanced, grounded
posture to allow the energy in the center of
your body to move freely. If you're on a cushion,
sit with your legs loosely crossed. If you're
in a chair, keep your legs uncrossed and your
feet flat on the floor. Imagine that a string
attached to the top of your head is pulling
you upright. Let your body settle around your
erect spine.
Place your hands on your thighs, in a place
not so far forward that it begins to pull your
shoulders down, nor so far back that the shoulders
contract and pinch the spine. The fingers are
close and relaxed--not spread out in a grip,
as if you can't let yourself go.
Tuck your chin in and relax your jaw.
The tongue is also relaxed, resting against
your upper teeth. Your mouth is ever so slightly
open.
Your gaze is downward, with the eyelids almost
half shut. The eyes aren't looking; the eyes
just see. It is the same with sound--we aren't
listening, but we do hear. In other words, we're
not focusing with our senses.
The basic technique is that we begin to notice
our breath. The breath is what we're using as
the basis of our mindfulness technique; it brings
us back to the moment, back to the present situation.
The breath is something that is constant--otherwise
it's too late.
Using the breathing as the object of meditation
is especially good for calming a busy mind.
The steady flow of the breath soothes the mind
and allows for steadiness and relaxation. This
is ordinary breathing; nothing is exaggerated.
One simple technique is to count the in-and
out-cycles of breathing from one to twenty-one.
We breathe in, and then out--one. In and then
out--two. Place your mind on the breathing and
count each cycle of breath. You can drop the
counting when your mind is settled.
When your focus is wavering, check your posture.
Bring yourself back to the upright position.
Imagine the string pulling your spine up straight
and relax your body around it. Slouching impairs
your breathing, which directly affects the mind.
If you slump, you'll be struggling with your
body at the same time that you're trying to
train your mind. What you want to be doing is
the opposite: synchronizing your body and mind.
As you focus on the breath, you'll notice that
various thoughts and emotions arise. When this
happens, acknowledge that you are thinking and
return your focus to the breath. In focusing
you are bringing yourself back to attention.
You are centering yourself in your mind and
placing that mind on the breath. You are slowly
settling. You're gradually slowing the mind.
When you first begin to meditate, the movement
of thoughts may feel like a rushing waterfall.
But as you continue to apply the technique of
recognizing thoughts and returning your focus
to the breath, the torrent slows down to a river,
then to a meandering stream, which eventually
flows into a deep, calm ocean.
Gathering the Mind
How we tame the mind is by using the technique
of mindfulness. Quite simply, mindfulness is
complete attention to detail. We are completely
absorbed in the fabric of life, the fabric of
the moment. We realize that our life is made
of these moments and that we cannot deal with
more than one moment at a time. Even though
we have memories of the past and ideas about
the future, it is the present situation that
we are experiencing.
The practice of mindfulness is the practice
of being alive. When we talk about the techniques
of meditation, these are techniques of life.
Meditation is not about something that is separate
from us. We are not trying to get into some
kind of higher state of mind. The present situation
is completely available, spontaneous and unbiased,
and that we can see it that way through the
practice of mindfulness.
When we begin to meditate, the first thing we
realize is how wild things are-how wild our
mind is, how wild our life is. But once we begin
to have the quality of being tamed, when we
can sit with ourselves, we realize there's a
vast wealth of possibility that lies in front
of us. Meditation is looking at our own backyard,
you could say, looking at what we really have
and discovering the richness that already exists.
Discovering that richness is a moment-to-moment
process, and as we continue to practice our
awareness becomes sharper and sharper.
This mindfulness actually envelopes our whole
life. It is the best way to appreciate our world,
to appreciate the sacredness of everything.
We add mindfulness and all of a sudden, the
whole situation becomes alive. This practice
soaks into everything that we do; there's nothing
left out. Mindfulness pervades sound and space.
It is a complete experience.
For the movement of the mind to slow down like
this takes long, consistent practice. A good
practice is one that we keep doing ten minutes
a day, year after year. Through ups and through
downs, slowly we become familiar with the natural
stability, strength, and clarity of the mind.
It becomes natural to return to that place.
We let go of our conceptual ideas about it.
We can relax there and enjoy it. We begin to
let this natural state of basic goodness infuse
our entire life. Having a mind that is at peace
with itself, a mind that is clear and joyous,
is the basis of happiness and compassion.
Meditation practice predates Buddhism and all
of the world religions. It has lasted through
the centuries because it is direct, potent,
and effective. If meditation becomes part of
your life, please consider seeking further instruction
from an experienced meditator. It might also
be helpful to become part of a community of
practitioners.
--
To listen to an audio clip of Sakyong Mipham
Rinpoche giving meditation instruction click
here. There are a variety of other video and
audio resources at shambhala.org/meditation
and shambhala.org/teachings.
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