Category Archives: Mindfulness

Posture in Meditation (Old)

October 25, 2018 – 7:03 AM
Reference: A Scientific Approach to Meditation

Zen Buddhism goes into incredible detail about how to sit in meditation 1. It provides the size and shape of cushions to sit on, and the kinds of clothes that should be worn. It specifies how to place legs and knees on the mat, and hands and fingers in the lap. It dictates how ears should be lined up with the shoulders, and nose with the navel. It even directs the position of tip of the tongue, and the angle of the gaze.

If you give importance to such niceties you can waste much time worrying about the correct posture during meditation. The essential points of correct posture are explained below.

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Buddha’s Instructions

In the Satipatthana Sutta 2 Buddha instructs:

Herein, monks, a monk, having gone to the forest, to the foot of a tree or to an empty place, sits down with his legs crossed, keeps his body erect and his mindfulness alert.

The ancient statues of Buddha show him sitting in this posture.

Buddha in meditation

In the Yoga Sutra 3, Patanjali describes this asana as a “steady and comfortable posture.” So, a meditative posture, besides being stable must also be natural and comfortable.

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The Essential Points

Crossing of legs and locking them in full-lotus position stabilizes the body. The body thus maintains its posture even during deep meditation. In the ancient culture people were used to sitting with their legs crossed. This posture was natural and comfortable to them.

The meditative posture must stably maintain itself besides being natural and comfortable.

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Sitting in a Chair

These days many people are used to sitting on a chair, and they cannot sit comfortably in a lotus position for a long time. From a scientific viewpoint it is okay to meditate sitting in a chair if that is more natural and comfortable, as long as the body can stably be maintained in an erect posture. This may be achieved by sitting in a straight-backed chair with knees parallel to the shoulders and feet flat on the ground. Cushions may be used to ensure the immobility of the body under deep meditation.

Let the body attain a naturally relaxed posture. The arms may rest in the lap. The hands, fingers and tongue may assume their natural positions. The eyes may open, half open or close according to their natural tendency. The attention may focus or not focus on anything in particular. The gaze may become narrow or wide (like in peripheral vision). These variations may occur naturally during meditation.

When the meditative posture is natural and comfortable, the body is well-balanced. There is no strain on body parts. An erect posture imparts alertness. The primary requirement is mindfulness.

It is important that the body be stably erect, and the mind alert in the mindfulness mode.

When you start to meditate the body relaxes, many physical reactions occur, and long suppressed thoughts start to emerge. Let it all happen without interference.

Meditation is being there, and seeing things as they are.

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1 Three Pillars of Zen, by Philip Kapleau, See Yasutani-Roshi’s Introductory Lecture 1.
2 See the text of Satipatthana Sutta.
3 See the Wikipedia article on Asana.

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By vinaire | Also posted in Meditation | Comments (0)

Continuity, Harmony and Consistency

March 20, 2018 – 8:20 AM

Mutual Dependency

Reference: Mindfulness Approach

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The Heart Sutra of Buddhism also states that there are no separate self-entities, such as, sense organs, sense objects, consciousness, ill-being, causes of ill-being, the path, insight and attainment. Everything in this universe is connected with everything else as an integrated system.

In other words, this universe is a continuum of infinite dimensions; and all things physical, metaphysical, mental and spiritual, etc., are continuous, harmonious and consistent with each other.

The UNIVERSE is intrinsically continuous, harmonious and consistent.

Thus any discontinuity, disharmony and inconsistency shall pose an anomaly underlying which would be found a more basic truth.

The criteria of continuity, harmony and consistency forms the basis of all logic.

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By vinaire | Comments (0)

The Energy of Awareness

October 12, 2017 – 7:03 AM

Alertness

Reference: Mindfulness Approach

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Being a disturbance, the awareness that fills the emptiness is full of ACTIVITY. This activity is expressed as continual oscillations between two states—perception and consciousness. We may refer to this continual activity as the energy of awareness. This may translate as ALERTNESS.

These oscillations repeat themselves interminably. Each repetition is a CYCLE. The rate of repetition is referred to as the FREQUENCY of oscillations.

It is postulated that, like the field, awareness also consists of “constant energy per cycle”. So the alertness to frequency ratio is constant based on similarity of awareness to the field.

At this moment we lack the methods to measure either the alertness or the frequency of awareness numerically; but it is easy to verify that under situations that require increased alertness, one would be consulting one’s perceptions at a faster rate to obtain higher consciousness of the situation.

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By vinaire | Comments (0)

Emptiness & Awareness

October 12, 2017 – 3:24 AM
Namibia_025
Reference: Mindfulness Approach

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The physical field that fills the Emptiness as a disturbance, is aware of itself. The concept of field is well explored with scientific precision in physics. We may now explore the concept of awareness with equal precision in Buddhism and Scientology.

Whereas the electromagnetic field is the physical (MEST) aspect of the disturbance, the field of awareness is the spiritual (THETA) aspect of the same disturbance.

Thus, we have a categorization of reality into physical (MEST) and spiritual (THETA) characteristics.

The electromagnetic field is continually oscillating between electrical and magnetic characteristics. This continual alter-is-ness is necessary to separate the electromagnetic field from emptiness. The field of awareness must also oscillate continually for the same reason. It is postulated that awareness (field of theta) oscillates between perception and understanding.

Oscillations give substance not only to the physical energy field of electromagnetism, but also to the spiritual energy field of theta (awareness).

Perception starts out in the form of physical senses, but as it gets assimilated in the mental matrix it produces understanding. The degree of understanding, in turn, influences what the mind perceives. This interchange between perception and understanding becomes obvious in the natural tendency in people to seek out what agrees with them.

All substance has inertia. The characteristic of inertia is to maintain a certain status quo. Electromagnetic field has inertia in the sense that it maintains its frequency. Theta field of awareness also has inertia in the sense that it also maintains its frequency of specific awareness.

A theta field of awareness is also substantial with the property of INERTIA.

As the frequency increases, the oscillations become denser, and the cycles of oscillation shrink in wavelength. The increased “density” of oscillations shows up as increased inertia. The increase in inertia tends to make awareness more “solid” in the sense that it becomes increasingly fixated. This is represented in Scientology by the viewpoint moving down the Know-to-Mystery scale.

Increase in frequency makes the theta field of awareness more fixated.

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By vinaire | Comments (1)

The Discipline of Mindfulness

February 25, 2017 – 9:38 PM

Please see The 12 Aspects of Mindfulness.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is attentiveness. Mindfulness brings clarity to what one perceives. The basic approach is:

Observe things as they are, with full awareness of one’s assumptions.

When you look at the profile of a stranger you see only one ear, but you assume another ear because “all man have two ears.” The chances are slim but this stranger may have only one ear. Most people make such assumptions automatically, but some are aware.

Those who are aware of their assumptions are mindful.

When there are doubts and perplexities, one should look at them closely with mindfulness. In other words, one should consider them non-judgmentally without assuming anything. All ideas, beliefs, assumptions, viewpoints, and feelings related to observed anomaly, are subject to critical examination.

No past ideas and learning in the area of doubt and perplexity are sacrosanct (meaning so “sacred” that you cannot question them).

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The 12 Aspects of Mindfulness
(with Exercises)

The discipline of mindfulness is manifested in the following ways.

  1. Observe without Desires
  2. Observe without Assuming
  3. Observe what is Missing
  4. Observe the Incomprehensible
  5. Observe all Senses
  6. Let the Mind Un-stack
  7. Experience Fully
  8. Do not suppress
  9. Associate Data freely
  10. Observe beyond Name and Form
  11. Contemplate thoughtfully
  12. Let it be effortless

Mindfulness is fundamental to all scientific observations, meditation, prayers, and all forms of spiritual practice.

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The Law of Non-Interference

When contemplating deeply and meditating, one does not avoid, resist, suppress or deny any thoughts, emotions, and sensations. In short, one does not interfere with the activities of the mind.

CAUTION: Things may go dangerously awry when one anxiously digs into the mind for answers.

The Law of Non-interference lets the mind unwind safely during deep thinking, prayer and meditation.

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The 3 Factors of Mindfulness

The Discipline of Mindfulness warns you against digging into the mind. It lets the mind unwind and settle down naturally.

Creativity grows out of the natural activity of the mind as it perceives situations objectively.

The following factors are fundamental to the discipline of mindfulness.

1.    ATTENTION—Let attention be totally free. Fully discern where the attention goes naturally. This forms the ground of mindfulness.

2.    FREE ASSOCIATION—Let all associations occur freely in the mind. Fully discern the associations without influencing them.

3.    UNIVERSALITY—Let the viewpoint expand freely without fixation. Fully discern all observations in a universal context.

Once the discipline of mindfulness is established discernment occurs in leaps and bounds.

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By vinaire | Also posted in Education, Self-Improvement | Comments (3)