Buddhist meditation

src: upload.wikimedia.org

Buddhist Meditation is a meditation practice in Buddhism and Buddhist philosophy. These include different types of meditation.

The technique of core meditation has been preserved in ancient Buddhist texts and has mushroomed and varied through teacher-student transmissions. Buddhists pursue meditation as part of the path to Enlightenment and Nirvana. The closest words to meditation in the classical language of Buddhism are bh? Van? and jh? Na/dhy? Na . The techniques of Buddhist meditation have become increasingly popular in the wider world, with many non-Buddhists taking it for various reasons.

Buddhist meditation includes various meditation techniques aimed at developing sati (attention), samadhi (concentration), abhijÃÆ' Â ±? (supra-worldly powers), samatha (tranquility), and vipassan? (insight). Certain Buddhist meditation techniques have also been used to eliminate useless qualities that are considered to be a barrier to spiritual liberation, the kindness of such love to exclude evil intentions, hatred, and anger, the inner balance of mental attachment, and patikulamanasikara (meditation on body parts) and mara? asati (meditation on death and corpse) to dispel sensual desire for the body and cultivate impermanence ( anicca ). Given the multitude and diversity of traditional Buddhist meditation practices, this article primarily identifies an authoritative contextual framework - both contemporary and canonical - for a variety of practices. For those seeking school-specific meditation information, it may be more appropriate to see only the articles listed in the "See also" section below.

Video Buddhist meditation

Main Terms

Maps Buddhist meditation

Meditation in Buddhist tradition

Although there are several similar meditation practices - such as respiratory meditation and various contemplation ( anussati ) - used in Buddhist schools, there is also a significant diversity. In the Theravada tradition itself, there are more than fifty methods to develop consciousness and forty to develop concentration, while in Tibetan Buddhism, there are thousands of visualization meditations. Most classical and contemporary Buddhist meditation guides are special schools. Only a few teachers attempt to synthesize, crystallize and categorize practices from different Buddhist traditions.

In the early tradition

The early tradition of Buddhist practice is preserved in the nik? Yes/? Gamas, and obeyed by the flow of Theravada. It is also the focus of other early extinct Buddhist streams, and has been incorporated to a greater and lesser extent into the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and many of the Mahayana traditions of East Asia.

Meditation type

In the case of early traditions such as those found in the vast Pili Canon and the gamas, meditation can be contextualized as part of the Noble Eightfold Path, explicitly related to:

• Right Attention ( samma sati ) - exemplified by the Four Bases of the Buddha's Attention (see Satipatthana Sutta ).
• Right Concentration ( samma samadhi ) - culminates in the absorption of jhhan through the meditative development of samatha .

And implicitly related to:

• Right View ( samma ditthi ) - embodies the wisdom traditionally achieved through the meditative development of vipassana established at samatha .

The classical texts in the Pali literature that mention meditative subjects include Satipatthana Sutta (MN 10) and Part II Visuddhimagga, "Concentration" ( Samadhi ).

Four foundations for attention

In the Satipatthana Sutta, the Buddha identifies four grounds for attention: body, feeling, state of mind and mental object. He further mentions the following objects as the basis for the development of a meditative consciousness:

• Body ( k? y? ): Inhale (see n? p? nasati Sutta ), Posture, Obvious Understanding, Reflections on the Repulsiveness of the Body, Material Reflection Elements, Understanding Firs
• Feelings ( vedan? ), whether fun, disagreeable, or neutral
• Thoughts/awareness ( citt? )
• Mental Contents ( dhamm? ): Obstacles, Aggregates, Sense-Bases, Enlightenment Factors, and Four Noble Truths.

Meditation on these subjects develops insight.

Tranquility and insight

The Buddha is said to have identified two of the most important mental qualities that arise from healthy meditation practice:

• "tranquility" or "tranquility" (Pali: samatha ) that moves, composes, unites, and centers the mind;
• "insight" (Pali: vipassan? ) that allows one to see, explore, and discover "formation" (conditioned phenomena based on the five aggregates).

Through the development of meditative calm, one is able to suppress obscure obstacles; and, with the suppression of the hindrances, it is through the meditative development of the insight that one obtains liberating wisdom. In addition, the Buddha is said to have praised tranquility and insight as a channel for attaining Nibbana (Pali, Skt: Nirvana), an unconditioned state as in "Kimsuka Tree Sutta" (SN 35.245), where The Buddha gives an elaborate metaphor where tranquility and insight are "fast-paced messengers" that convey the message of Nibbana through the Noble Eightfold Path.

In the "Four Ways to Arahatship Sutta" (AN 4.170), Ven. Ananda reports that people attain Keriahattaan using tranquility and insight in one of three ways:

1. they develop tranquility and then insight (Pali: samatha-pubbangamam vipassanam )
2. they develop insight and then serenity (Pali: vipassana-pubbangamam samatham ) {{While the Nikaya identify that the pursuit of vipassana may precede the pursuit of samatha, fruitful vipassana-oriented practices must remain based on the achievement of stabilization " access "(Pali: samadhi ceremony ).}}
3. they develop equanimity and insight together (Pali: samatha-vipassanam yuganaddham ) as in, for example, obtaining the first jhāna, and then see in the aggregate relating three signs of existence, before proceeding to the second jhāna.

In the Pali canon, the Buddha never mentions an independent practice of samatha and vipassana meditation; on the contrary, samatha and vipassana are two minds developed through meditation. Nevertheless, some meditation practices (such as the contemplation of the kasina object) support the development of samatha, others are conducive to the development of vipassana (such as the contemplation of the elements of life), while others (such as mindfulness of breathing) are classically used to develop both mental qualities.

Theravada Tradition

The oldest material of the Theravada tradition of meditation can be found in the Pali Nikaya and in texts such as Patisambhidamagga which comment on the meditation suttas such as the Anapanasati sutta. The earliest Theravada meditation manual is the Vimuttimagga ('Freedom Line', first or second century). However, the most influential presentation is the 5th century Buddhagho Buddhagho's Visuddhimagga ('Purification Path')? A, which describes forty meditation subjects. Almost everything is explained in the early texts. Buddhagho? A also seems to be influenced by Vimuttimagga earlier in his presentation.

Buddhagho? Suggest that, for the purpose of developing concentration and consciousness, one must "understand from among forty meditative subjects according to his own temperament" with the suggestion of a "good friend" ( kaly ?? a-mittat? ) knowledgeable in different meditation subjects (Ch III, Ã,§ 28). Buddhagho? Further describes the following forty meditation subjects (Chapter III, Ã, §104, Chapter IV-XI):

• ten kasina: earth, water, fire, air, blue, yellow, red, white, light, and "limited space".
• Ten kinds of defilements: "the bloated, the pale, festering, cutting, gnawing, scattered, hacked and scattered, bleeding, full worms, and skeletons".
• ten contemplation: Buddha? nussati, Dhamma, Sangha, virtue, mercy, virtue of god, death (see Upajjhatthana Sutta), body, breath (see anapanasati), and peace (see Nibbana).
• the four shrines: mett ?, karu ??, mudita, and upekkha.
• the four immaterial states: unlimited space, infinite perception, nothingness, and neither perception nor non-perception.
• one perception (about "repulsiveness in nutriment")
• one "defines" (that is, four elements)

When one coats the Buddhaghosa meditation class of 40 for the development of concentration on the basis of Buddhist consciousness, three practices are found to have similarities: respiratory meditation, depraved meditation (similar to Sattipatthana Sutta burial graves, and for contemplation of bodily aversion), and contemplation of four elements. According to the Pali comment, breathing meditation can lead a person to a balanced fourth jhana absorption. Contemplation of evil can lead to the attainment of the first jhana, and the contemplation of the four elements culminates in the concentration of pre-jhanas access.

In the Contemporary Theravada

The most influential of the 20th century onwards is the "New Burmese Method" or "Vipassan" Schools approach for samatha and vipassan? developed by Mingun Sayadaw and the United Nations? Rada and popularized by Mahasi Sayadaw. Here samatha is considered an optional but unnecessary component of the practice - vipassan? is possible without it. Another method of Burma, derived from Ledi Sayadaw through Ba Khin and S. N. Goenka, takes the same approach. Other Burmese traditions popularized in the west, especially from Pa Auk Sayadaw, uphold the emphasis on samatha explicitly in the commentary tradition of Visuddhimagga . These Burmese traditions have great influence on the Western Vipassana movement (also called "Insight meditation"), which includes American Buddhist teachers such as Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzberg, and Jack Kornfield.

There are also other less well known methods of Burmese meditation, such as the system developed by U Vimala, which focuses on the knowledge of dependent origination and cittanupassana (mindfulness). Likewise, Sayadaw U Tejaniya's method also focuses on mind awareness.

Also influential is the Thai Forest Tradition originating from Mun Bhuridatta and popularized by Ajahn Chah, which, on the other hand, emphasizes the indivisibility of two practices, and the essential need of both practices. Other practitioners listed in this tradition include Ajahn Thate and Ajahn Maha Bua, among others. There are other forms of Buddhist Thai meditation associated with certain teachers, including the Buddhadasa Bhikkhu presentation of anapanasati, Ajahn Lee's breathing meditation method (which influenced his American students Thanissaro) and Luangpor Teean Cittasubho's "dynamic meditation".

There are other less common forms of Theravada meditation practiced in Thailand which include the vijja dhammakÄ meditation developed by Luang Pu Sodh Candasaro and the meditation of former supreme patriarch Suk Kai Thuean (1733-1822). Newell notes that these two forms of modern meditation of Thailand have certain features similar to those of tantra such as the use of visualization and the centrality of body maps.

The less common type of meditation is performed in Cambodia and Laos by the followers of the Bor'n kamma tradition? h? Na ('ancient practice'). This form of meditation includes the use of mantras and visualizations.

In Mah? y? na Buddhism

MahÄ yÄ Buddha includes many schools of practice, each of which uses various Buddhas, philosophical treatises, and comments. Thus, each school has its own method of meditation for the purpose of developing sam? Dhi and prajÃÆ' Â ±?, With the aim of attaining enlightenment. However, each has its own emphasis, mode of expression, and philosophical outlook. In his classic book on meditation on Chinese Buddhist traditions, Charles Luk writes, "Buddha Dharma is useless if not put into actual practice, for if we have no personal experience, then it will be unfamiliar to us and we will never realize it regardless learning of our book. "Nan Huaijin voiced similar sentiments about the importance of meditation by commenting," Intellectual reasoning is only the spinning of the sixth consciousness, while the meditation practice is a true entry into the Dharma. "

Meditation at Pure Land School

Mindfulness of Amit? bha Buddha

In Pure Land Buddhism, repeating the name Amit? Bha is traditionally a form of Buddhist attention (Skt. buddh? Nusm? Ti ). This term is translated into Chinese as nianfo (Chinese: ?? ), known in English. This exercise is described as calling buddhas to mind by repeating its name, to enable the practitioner to bring all his attention to the buddha ( sam? Dhi ). This can be done verbally or mentally, and with or without the use of Buddhist beads. Those who practice this method often commit to a fixed set of repetitions per day, often from 50,000 to over 500,000. Traditionally, the second patriarch of the Holy Land school, Shandao, is said to have practiced this day and night without interruption, each time emitting light from his mouth. Therefore, he was awarded with the title of "Great Master of Light" (????) by Emperor Gaozong of Tang (??).

In addition, in Chinese Buddhism there is a related practice called "ChÃÆ'¡n double track and Pure Land cultivation", which is also called "the dual path of emptiness and existence." As taught by His Highness Nan Huaijin, the name Amit? The Buddha Buddha is pronounced slowly, and the mind is emptied after each repetition. When the empty mind appears, the phrase is repeated again to clean it up. With constant practice, the mind is able to remain peaceful in the void, culminating in the achievement of samà ¢ â,‰ "¢ dhi.

Rebirth of Pure Land Dh? ra ??

Repeating the Rebirth of Pure Land dh? Ra ?? is another method in Pure Land Buddhism. Similar to the practice of consciousness repeating the name Amit? Bha Buddha, this is dh? Ra ?? is another method of meditation and recitation in Pure Land Buddhism. Repeat this dh? Ra ?? It is said to be very popular among traditional Chinese Buddhists. Traditionally preserved in Sanskrit, and it is said that when a worshiper succeeds in realizing the smoothness of the mind by repeating the mantra, the true and deep meaning will be revealed clearly.

namo amit? bh? yes tath? gat? ya tadyath?

am? tabhave am? tasa? bhave

am? tavikr? nte am? tavikr? ntag? mini

gagana k? rt? chare sv? h?

Visualization method

Other practices found in Pure Land Buddhism are meditative reflection and visualization of Amithaha, his accompanying bodhisattvas, and Pure Land. The basis of this is found in Amit? Yurdhy? Na S? Tra ("Amit? Bha Meditation S? Tra"), where the Buddha explained to Queen Vaidehi the practice of thirteen progressive visualization methods, in accordance with the achievement of various levels of rebirth in the Holy Land. Visualization Practices for Amit? Bha is popular among esoteric Buddhist sects, such as Shingon Japanese Buddhism.

Meditation at school ChÃÆ'¡n/Zen

Pointing to mind properties

In the early tradition of Zen, it is said that there is no formal meditation method. Instead, the teacher will use a variety of didactic methods to show the true nature of the mind, also known as the Buddha-nature . This method is referred to as the "Dharma Mind", and is exemplified in the Buddhist story of kyamuni holding flowers secretly, and Mah? K ?? yapa smile as she understands. The traditional formula of this is, "ChÃÆ'¡n points directly to the human mind, to enable people to see their true nature and become buddhas." In the early era of ChÃÆ'¡n school, there was no fixed method or a good formula for teaching meditation, and all instruction was just a heuristic method; Therefore the ChÃÆ'¡n school is called "Gateless Gate."

Contemplating meditation case

It is said traditionally that when people's minds in society become more complicated and when they can not make progress easily, the ChÃÆ'¡n school rulers are forced to change their methods. It involves certain words and phrases, screams, roar of laughter, sighs, cues, or blows from a staff member. This is all meant to awaken the student to the ultimate truth of the mind, and then called g? Ng'ÃÆ' n (??), or k? An in Japan. This didactic phrase and method should be contemplated, and the example of such a tool is a phrase that reverses the practice of attention: "Who is conscious of the Buddha?" Teachers all instruct their students to create feelings of gentle hesitation at all times while practicing, thus stripping the mind of seeing, hearing, feeling, and knowing, and ensuring constant rest and uninterrupted conditions. Charles Luk explains the important function of contemplating such meditation cases with doubt:

Since the student can not stop all his thoughts on one blow, he is taught to use this poison-to-poison tool to manifest a mind-set, which is essentially wrong but will be lost when it becomes unused, and gives way to singletons of thought, which is a prerequisite from the realization of the self-mind to the perception of self-nature and the attainment of Bodhi.

Meditation at Tiantai school

Tiantai? amatha-vipa? yan?

In China it is traditionally held that the method of meditation used by Tiantai school is the most systematic and comprehensive. In addition to the doctrinal basis in Indian Buddhist text, Tiantai schools also emphasize the use of their own meditation texts that emphasize the principles of "amatha and vipa" Yan. "From these texts, Zhiyi Brief? Amathavipa? Yan? > ( Mohe Zhiguan (????, Sanskrit Mah? amathavipa? Yan? ), and Six Subtle Dharma Gates > (????) is the most widely read in China Rujun Wu identifies the work of Mah? -? Amatha-vipa? Yan? from Zhiyi as the seminal meditation text of the Tiantai school. and vipa? Yan? in meditation, Zhiyi wrote in his work Concise? amatha-vipa? yan? :

Achievement Nirv ?? can be realized with many methods whose essence does not go beyond practice? Amatha and vipa? Yan ?. ? Amatha is the first step to release all bonds and vpa? yan? very important to get rid of the delusion. ? Amatha provides food for the preservation of the knowing mind, and vipa? yan? is the art of skillfully promoting spiritual understanding. ? Amatha is the unrivaled cause of sam? dhi, while vipa? yan? give birth to wisdom.

Tiantai School also put great emphasis on "n" â € žnasm? Ti, or attention to the breathing, in accordance with the principles of "amatha and vipa? Yan". Zhiyi classified breathing into four main categories: panting (?), Breathlessness (?), Breathing deep and quiet (?), And silence or rest (?). Zhiyi argues that the first three types of breathing are wrong, while the fourth is true, and breathing must reach calm and rest. Zhiyi also describes the four kinds of samadhi in his book Mohe Zhiguan , and ten modes of practicing vipa? Yan ?.

Esoteric practices in Japan

One adaptation by Tendai Japan school is the introduction of Mikky? (Esoteric Practice) into Buddhism, later named Enimin by Taimitsu. Finally, according to the Tendai Taimitsu doctrine, esoteric rituals are regarded as equally important as the exoteric teachings of the Lotus Sutra. Therefore, by chanting mantras, maintaining mudras, or performing certain meditations, one can see that the sensory experience is the Buddha's teaching, having the conviction that one is inherently an enlightened being, and one can attain enlightenment in this body. The origins of Taimitsu are found in China, similar to the lineage Kai Kai met during his visit to Tang China and Saich's disciples were encouraged to study under Kuiai.

Meditation in Vajrayana Buddhism

Vajrayana Buddhism encompasses all the traditional forms of Mahayana meditation and also some unique forms. The main form of Vajrayana meditation is the God of Yoga ( devatayoga ). This involves reading the mantras, prayers and visualizations of yidam or god along with the related mandalas of the Holy Land of the gods. The Advanced Yoga God involves visualizing yourself as a god.

Other forms of meditation in Vajrayana include the teachings of Mahamudra and Dzogchen, each taught by the Kagyu and Nyingma schools of Tibetan Buddhism respectively. The goal is to familiarize yourself with the underlying nature of the mind of all existence, Dharmak? Yes. There are also other practices such as Yoga Dream, Tummo, yoga from the middle state (at death) or Bardo, sexual yoga and ChÃÆ'¶d.

The joint preliminary practice of Tibetan Buddhism is called ngÃÆ'¶ndro, which involves visualization, mantra recitation, and much sujud.

src: i.ytimg.com

Use of therapeutic meditation

For a long time people have practiced meditation, based on the principles of Buddhist meditation, to produce worldly and worldly benefits. Thus, awareness and other techniques of Buddhist meditation are being advocated in the West by innovative psychologists and Buddhist meditation teachers like ThÃÆ'ch Nh? TH? Nh, Pema ChÃÆ'¶drÃÆ'¶n, Clive Sherlock, Mya Thwin, SN Goenka, Jon Kabat-Zinn, Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Tara Brach, Alan Clements, and Sharon Salzberg, who have been widely associated with playing an important role in integrating the healing aspects of Buddhist meditation practice with the concept of psychological awareness, healing, and also-being. Although mindfulness meditation has received the most attention of research, the meditation of love (metta) and inner balance (upekkha) began to be used in various studies in the field of psychology and neuroscience.

The accounts of meditative states in Buddhist texts are in some ways free from dogma, so much so that Buddhist schemes have been adopted by Western psychologists trying to portray the phenomenon of meditation in general. However, it is very common to confront the Buddha who describes a state of meditation involving the attainment of such magical powers (Sanskrit Ddhi , Pali iddhi ) as the ability to multiply one's body into many and into one another, appearing and disappearing at will, passing through solid objects as if space, rising and drowning in the ground as if in water, walking on water as if the earth, flying through the sky, touching anything at any distance (even the moon or sun), and travel to other worlds (such as the Brahma world) with or without the body, among others, and for this reason the entire Buddhist tradition may not adapt to the secular context unless this magic of power is seen as a metaphorical representation of a strong internal state that conceptual descriptions can not do justice.

src: i.ytimg.com

See also

Theravada Buddhist meditation practice:

• Anapanasati - focus on the breath
• Satipatthana - Awareness of body, sensation, mind and mental phenomena
• Four Immeasurable - including the compassionate and compassionate car of Metta
• Kamma ?? h? na
• Samatha - quietly obedient
• Vipassana - insights
• Mahasati Meditation
• Dhammakaya Meditation

Zen Buddhist meditation practice:

• Shikantaza - just sit
• kinhin
• Zazen
• Koan
• Hua Tou
• Suizen (historically practiced by Fuke sects)

Buddhist meditation center:

• Insight Meditation Society - Insight meditation, Barre, Massachusetts, USA
• Dharma Drum Retreat Center - Ch'an/Zen Buddhist meditation center in Pine Bush, New York, USA
• Padmaloka Buddhist Center Triratna Center for men in Norfolk, England
• Buddhist Chapin Mill Zen Buddhist meditation center in Rochester, New York, USA
• Zen Mountain Furnace Buddhist meditation center in Kentucky, United States
• San Francisco Zen Center

Vajrayana and Tibetan Buddhist meditation practice:

• The yoga god
• Ngondro - an early practice
• Tonglen - give and receive
• Phowa - transfer of consciousness at death
• ChÃÆ'¶d - cuts fear by confronting it
• Mahamudra - Kagyu's version of 'entering Dharmadatu covering everything', 'nondual state', or 'absorption condition'
• Dzogchen - natural state, Nyingma version of Mahamudra
• Four Immeasurable, Metta Tantric techniques

Related Buddhist Practices:

• Caution - awareness in the present
• Attention (psychology) - Western application of Buddhist ideas
• Satipatthana
• chants and spells

Sitting position and propping up the right floor while meditating:

• Floor sitting: cross-legged (full lotus, half lotus, Burmese) or seiza
• Pillow: zafu, zabuton

Traditional Buddhist texts on meditation:

• Anapanasati Sutta
• Satipatthana Sutta
• Visuddhimagga Buddhaghosa - "Purification Path", used in Theravada Buddhism
• Kamalashila's Bh? van? krama - 'Stages of meditation', used in Tibetan Buddhism
• Great Concentration and Insight Zhiyi (Mohe Zhiguan) - used in Tiantai Chinese school
• Seventeen tantra - Major Tibetan Text Dzogchen
• "Ocean of Definitive Meaning" by Wangchuk Dorje, the main text on Mahamudra meditation.
• Dakpo Tashi Namgyal's "Mahamudra: The Moonlight - Quintessence of Mind and Meditation"
• Fukan-zazengi - By Dogen, used in Japanese Soto Zen school

Traditional early practice for Buddhist meditation:

• prostrate (also see Ngondro)
• take shelter at Three Gems
• Five Please

Source of the article : Wikipedia