Buddhist Meditation

Hi,

Welcome to Learn to Meditate. The course runs over four classes and is delivered via email. In that email will be an introduction article, a meditation in text and a link to a guided meditation recorded on MP3 for you to download and use later. Below is class one for you to get a feel for course. If you would like to receive the entire course please fill out the form below:

If you have any questions at anytime, please do not hesitate to email me.

I hope you enjoy this course.

Warm regards,
Loden Jinpa

Day One Guided Meditation on MP3
The guided meditation are recorded meditations for you to download for personal use.
1: Watching the breath right click to save as…

Buddhist Meditation Class One

Introduction
Everyone has an innate wish, the wish for greater happiness, it is not a selfish wish, however, we often use erroneous methods in our endeavors to find it. Many people believing that happiness can be found through physical stimuli or financial security spend their entire lives chasing after money, power and fame only to be exhausted by their efforts. Although external conditions, such as, money or a nice car do play a role in a good life, they are not the real causes of happiness. You don’t need to look too far to find people who are materially well off, yet experience problems such as depression, stress, anxiety and so on. This does not mean we should not have material things or work towards providing for our families. Owning a nice car, a big house or having a highly paid career is not the issue. The issue is how we relate to these things. The real source of life’s problems and their solutions can be found within our own
mind.

“All beings want happiness and wish to avoid suffering.”

We have the fundamental capacity to expand mind and through this, develop our experiences of happiness. Not the kind of happiness that is generated by forcing yourself to laugh or the kind of happiness that is sometimes jokingly described as happy-happy-joy-joy. The happiness that is referred to here is a genuine feeling of happiness that naturally arises due to the cultivation of functional states of mind. It is a feeling of contentment with yourself, your life and the things and events that you encounter. It is not a passive experience. It makes you want to embrace life and the people you encounter through it. So the statement, all beings want happiness and wish to avoid suffering, is not merely an observation but rather a supremely optimistic statement. This statement hints at our current situation. Like it or not, most people experience unwanted problems. Be they big or small, they are problems nonetheless and they are unwanted. No one wakes up in the morning and thinks; today I hope nothing but problems come my way. In fact the opposite is often the case. We wake up thinking about all the good things that might happen. We plan our day, thinking of the things we need to get done. Yet unexpected problems do arise. We can find ourselves experiencing the tension of a strained relationship, the stress of deadlines, or even the boredom of work. I point this out as a means of motivating us to begin our journey. Don’t live in denial. Face up to the fact that we do, even if just occasionally, experience these problems yet, understand there is something you can do about it. You have the power to change your life; no one else can do it for you.

“You are your own protector,
Who else will be this protector?”

This is great news, you can change your life and it is not that difficult. However, it is a journey, and like all good journeys, it starts with making the decision to go. It is possible to experience real and lasting happiness that transcends any experience of happiness or bliss that is generated from physical stimuli, and that the methods, which enable this, can be found within our own mind.

This is where meditation comes in. Meditation is the tool used in this process. It is both a diagnostic and therapeutic tool in this endeavour. Meditation introduces you to the world of your mind. A world, which, for many has remained hidden, until now. Meditation brings the world of your mind to the forefront of life. Making it work for you rather than letting it enslave you. All feelings of happiness or sadness come from the mind. They are mental states and by replacing the dysfunctional states of mind for functional ones with meditation, you can make real and lasting changes in your life. Clearly everything is dependent on mind.

“Knowing that happiness can be found from within the mind, we have a real chance, right now, right here, to begin softening our mind to include the actual causes of happiness.”

The Causes of Happiness

1. Compassion
2. Friendliness
3. Patience
4. Wisdom

All these minds can be cultivated. And developed so that they become a part of who we are. It is possible through practice to increase compassion for both oneself and others. Compassion starts with being compassionate towards yourself. Do you really think it is possible to have real compassion for others yet, not for yourself? By having compassion for oneself we are able to have faults yet not let these faults become overwhelming and all consuming. If this were to happen these so-called faults become obstacles not only to meditation but to your life as well. We can start to identify with them. I am a terrible person. I have this problem or I have that problem. If this pattern of behavior goes on for an extended period of time, it can lead to bigger problems like depression, anxiety and other issues. It can even begin to manifest in physical problems. But these faults can also be our teacher. They can show us what we need to work on. They can guide us through to a better place.

By not identifying and grasping onto our faults as being inherently “me” we can place space between the problem and ourselves. We simply recognize faults as faults and, we endeavour to remove them from our minds. This is done in meditation, and this is how meditation is a diagnostic and therapeutic tool. We use meditation to see what it is that is causing us problems. We then use meditation to removal these dysfunctional states of mind by cultivating their opposites. Love for hatred, compassion for self-centeredness and so on. Meditation is not just something you do in order to lower your blood pressure, or remove stress. It is also a tool used to develop positive minds like compassion, love and wisdom. This is why Buddhist monks meditate and it is also the object of their meditations. They meditate in order to develop their minds and to remove neurotic states of consciousness. You can experience infinite love, compassion and wisdom. It is the final experience of a fully developed mind. It is something that you and I can achieve. However, by developing these minds, you also get the benefits of low blood pressure, no stress. If you meditate to lower your blood pressure it is a little like shooting for the ceiling, when you could just as easily shoot for the stars. It sounds like a cliché I know but it really is the case here. Don’t sell yourself short, why not garner the most qualities you can from your time during this course?

The Meditation Session

The meditation session begins by adopting a physical posture that is stable yet relaxed. You can sit in a chair or sit with crossed legs on the floor; it is simply up to you and what you prefer. The main point is that you are comfortable and relaxed. But not too relaxed, if you try to meditate in the same chair you often have an afternoon nap in, you will probably find your meditation quickly turning into sleep, and meditation is not sleep.

Rest your hands in your lap, right hand on top of your left, with the points of your two thumbs slightly touching. Have your eyes half-closed. Do not fully close your eyes as this can result in tiredness manifesting. Don’t have them too open, as you will find it difficult to maintain focus on your object of mindfulness whether that is the breath or the mind or a particular emotion like friendliness.

Your back should be straight like a stack of coins, one on top of the other; this will encourage mindfulness and concentration. Do not strain your body in any way as this will result in tension of body and mind. Make sure your shoulders are set at their normal height. Don’t brace them into a position that is not normal.

Don’t have expectation of how well you will be at meditation. If you go into a meditation session with an expectation of what may happen or what you would like to happen, this will result in subtle yet powerful obstacles being setup. You can have goals but engage your meditation session without expecting anything in return.

Don’t rush: If you are impatient to get results it won’t be long before you start to get bored. Boredom at some point will arise, and this is quite natural. However, if you are focused on the results of meditation at the expense of the practice itself, the results will not come. This is an important point. Too often we focus almost exclusively on the result of our actions rather than the actions. The problem with this is, by doing so, we then don’t execute the practice completely. We take short-cuts and then blame the practice rather than our implementation of the practice, for not producing the results that we expect. So don’t rush.

Don’t cling to anything and don’t reject anything: Whatever comes up in your meditation is part of the process of purifying your mind. There maybe sessions where your mind seems to be more agitated or depressed them normal. You may fall into the trap of thinking that meditation is making things worse. It is not, it only seems that way. The reason for this is, these problems have always been there. As you begin to meditate your attention begins to become aware with greater clarity the contents of your mind. You begin to see all the good bits and all the bad bits. This is all part of the process, and is a necessary phase that everyone must go through. However, it can be uncomfortable for some people, so have patience and courage, accepting everything that arises during your process of purification. As these issues arise, investigate them. See for yourself their real nature.

View all problems as challenges:
However, don’t spend too much time worrying about what cannot be understood at this point in time. Give it your best shot to understand why something is happening, and if you find you cannot clearly understand it after say 30 minutes, stop thinking about it, as continuing to think about it will only cause mental tension to increase.

Over the next four days we will cover four meditations: mindfulness of the breath, feelings, thoughts and meditation of friendliness. I start each with a small introduction, outline the benefits but I don’t go into detail on purpose. What I want you to do is keep either a mental record or even a journal of your journey. Write down a small note or make a mental note of your progress. The reason for this is editation has an accumulative affect. Over the preceding months I want you to have a method to look back at how well you have done.

Meditation: Mindfulness of Breathing

Mindfulness of the breath is a simple yet powerful technique used to calm the mind. When someone’s mind is agitated his or her breath pattern is quicker and somewhat irregular. As the body and mind are linked, focusing on the breath will have a direct result in bringing the mind into a position that is more pliable
and conducive to developing functional states of mind. It is also an easy method to develop the ability to concentrate. This ability to remain focused on a single subject for a period of time is foundational in the process of becoming healthy. Don’t underestimate the power of this meditation.

Meditation Session:

Preparation: Adopt your preferred sitting position with the 5-Point meditation posture.

1. Straight back/spine
2. Hands in lap with the points of the two thumbs slightly touching. Right resting on top of the left.
3. Eyes half-closed
4. Shoulders at their normal position
5. Head titled slightly forward

Make sure you are comfortable and in a position to meditate for 15-20 minutes.

Now begin meditating: settling your mind by focusing it on just the breath. Consciously relax away from your involvement in the world of the senses, the external world that dominates most of our waking experience. The world of sights, sounds, smells, tastes and tangible things, the phenomenal world, the material world, the external world. Instead focus your inner awareness on a single object, the natural rising and falling of the breath. Allow your awareness to settle by simply observing the breath as we breathe naturally. Watch the ebb and flow of the breath. As you observe the breath, let go of all other thoughts and concerns - all discursive thought. Release yourself from the past; from thoughts of the past, thoughts of last year, last week, last day, last hour, or the last instant. Every thought dwelling in the past is a mere memory, never to return again. Release yourself from thoughts of the past and allow yourself to be fully present, simply observing the breath. And likewise, we release ourselves from thoughts of the future, thoughts of next year, plans of next week, of the next day, or the next instant. All thoughts into the future are mere speculation on what may come to be. We release ourselves from speculation, to be fully present, simply observing the breath. Allow the mind to completely settle, to relax, as a silent witness watching the breath without discursive thought or comment.

Stage One:

Counting the out breath will help the process of relaxation. Imagine as you breathe, that you breathe out all negative thoughts, negative emotions, all problems and difficulties. Do this while counting the natural out-breath. Count to three, five, ten or twenty-one. Then start again. Counting the breath will help you remain focused on the object of meditation and stop the mind from wondering to objects of the past or future.

Continue to meditate like this for a few minutes (4 or 5 minutes).

Stage Two:

Next do the same but for the in-breath. This time imagine you are breathing in fresh, pure, clean air with a medicinal healing property. Imagine that this air comes into your body and pervades your entire body, turning it into the nature of white light - a body made entirely of white light. This light body is free from any sickness, tension or difficulties. It has no weight like cotton wool and it has no obscurations of any kind. It is pure white light and it is blissful. Continue to count to three, five, ten or twenty-one on the in-breath. Then start again.

Continue to meditate like this for a few minutes (4 or 5 minutes).

Stage Three:

Next feel the natural rising and falling of the breath. At this point you can stop counting the breath and simply set your focus on the natural process of breathing. Imagine like before that your body is made of pure white light. Visualize that as you breathe in you can see the pure air come into your body, and as you breathe out do the same. This increases your experience of bliss and joy. Notice this joy as your breathe in and out.

Continue to meditate like this for a few minutes (4 or 5 minutes).

Stage Four:

Next we refine our focus by bring our attention more closely to the place in your body where you most feel the air making contact with your body. This will probably be near the tip of the nostrils or upper lip, though the exact location does not matter. Let your vivid attention stay focused yet relaxed on this location, and experience the subtle sensations of the pure air passing over this point. This will increase your power of concentration. If you become distracted, simply start over. Continue to meditate like this for a few minutes (4 or 5 minutes).

Conclusion: Gently and slowly release your concentration and finish the meditation.

Day One Guided Meditation on MP3
The guided meditation are recorded meditations for you to download for personal use.
1: Watching the breath right click to save as…