A personal blog by a graying (mostly Anglo with light African-American roots) gay left leaning liberal progressive married college-educated Buddhist Baha'i BBC/NPR-listening Professor Emeritus now following the Dharma in Minas Gerais, Brasil.
Sunday, January 28, 2024
Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Mindfulness and Concentration: Establishing Mindfulness of Body and the First Jhāna
RIGHT MINDFULNESS Establishing Mindfulness of Body
A person goes to the forest
or to the root of a tree or to an empty place and sits down. Having
crossed the legs, one sets the body erect. One establishes the presence
of mindfulness. (MN 10) One is aware: "Ardent, fully aware, mindful, I
am content." (SN 47.10)
Breathing in and out, experiencing the whole body …one is just
aware, just mindful: "There is body." And one abides not clinging to
anything in the world. (MN 10)
Reflection
As you sit in
formal practice your breath becomes an anchoring object of awareness.
Other objects—sounds, thoughts—will intrude on your attention, but the
breath is a baseline to which you can return. Notice the texture of the
entire breath, from the beginning of the in-breath to the last moment of
the out-breath, with steadiness and no interruption. When the mind is
attentive like this it is naturally content.
Daily Practice
See if you can
experience contentment while breathing. This means not wanting anything
to be different than it is, not having anywhere else to go, not moving
your mind beyond the moment but simply meeting each movement of the
breath with mindful equanimity. You can feel the experience of the
breath permeating your whole body and simply abide without clinging to
anything whatsoever.
RIGHT CONCENTRATION Approaching and Abiding in the First Phase of Absorption (1st Jhāna)
Having abandoned the five
hindrances, imperfections of the mind that weaken wisdom, quite secluded
from sensual pleasures, secluded from unwholesome states, one enters
and abides in the first phase of absorption, which is accompanied by
applied thought and sustained thought, with joy and the pleasure born of
seclusion. (MN 4)
Reflection
Jhāna practice
is not for everyone. Some take to it easily, some find it inaccessible.
This is not something for you to succeed or fail at. If you are
seriously interested in undertaking these concentration practices, then
you should find a qualified teacher and practice in a protected space.
Jhāna practice can contribute greatly to your understanding of the
teachings, but is not a universal prerequisite. Lots of Buddhists don’t
practice jhāna.
Daily Practice
Without
striving for any kind of accomplishment, sit quietly at a dedicated time
and place and allow the mind to gradually settle down, sinking through
increasing layers of relaxation and calm. When one of the five
hindrances arises, just gently let go of it and move the mind away from
it. Whenever the mind is able to temporarily free itself of the
hindrances, it naturally drops into the absorption of jhāna.
Tomorrow: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering One week from today: Establishing Mindfulness of Feeling and Abiding in the Second Jhāna
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