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, August 25, 2024
Via Dhamma Wheel | Right Mindfulness and Concentration: Establishing Mindfulness of Mind and the Third Jhāna
RIGHT MINDFULNESS Establishing Mindfulness of Mind
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)
When the mind is composed, one is aware: “The mind is composed”. . .
One is just aware, just mindful: “There is mind.” And one abides not
clinging to anything in the world. (MN 10)
Reflection
A composed mind
is unified, peaceful, steady, and clear. We can access such states of
mind when engaged in the practice of meditation, and mindfulness of mind
is established when you are aware of what a composed mind feels like
and you are able to sustain it over time. The mind becomes like a
mirror, reflecting itself.
Daily Practice
Sit quietly,
relaxing the body while gently holding it erect, and allow the mind to
gradually become more and more composed. With every outbreath, sink
deeper and more comfortably into the serenity of the moment. It is like
untangling knots, one after another, until the mind becomes smooth.
Allow yourself to feel the composed mind, aware simply that awareness is
aware of itself, without clinging to anything in the world.
RIGHT CONCENTRATION Approaching and Abiding in the Third Phase of Absorption (3rd Jhāna)
With the fading away of joy, one
abides in equanimity; mindful and fully aware, still feeling pleasure
with the body, one enters upon and abides in the third phase of
absorption, on account of which noble ones announce: “One has a pleasant
abiding who has equanimity and is mindful.” (MN 4)
One practices: “I shall breathe in contemplating cessation";
one practices: “I shall breathe out contemplating cessation.”
This is how concentration by mindfulness of breathing is developed and cultivated
so that it is of great fruit and great benefit. (A 54.8)
Tomorrow: Understanding the Noble Truth of the Way to the Cessation of Suffering One week from today: Establishing Mindfulness of Mental Objects and the Fourth Jhāna
Share your thoughts and join the conversation on social media #DhammaWheel
No comments:
Post a Comment