garryageez's Journal

Jan 2007
4:01 PM GMT

Meditation has always enjoyed a central place within Buddhism. The Buddha himself was said to have achieved enlightenment while meditating under a Bodhi tree. Most forms of Buddhism distinguish between shamatha and vipassana meditation, both of which are necessary for enlightenment. The former consists of learning to focus the attention single-pointedly; the latter involves seeing the true nature of reality. Theravada Buddhism emphasizes vipassana meditation directed towards anapana, mettā bhāvanā, or 38 other traditional topics (see: Kammatthana). In Japanese Mahayana schools, Tendai (Tien-tai), concentration is cultivated through highly structured ritual. Especially in the Chinese Chan Buddhism school (which branched out into the Japanese Zen, and Korean Seon schools), ts'o ch'an meditation and koan meditation practices are extremely important, allowing a practitioner to directly experience the true nature of reality (each of the names of these schools derives from the sanskrit dhyana, and translates into "meditation" in their respective languages). The esoteric Shingon sect shares many features with Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism emphasizes tantra for its senior practitioners; hence its alternate name of Vajrayana Buddhism. However, visitors to Tibetan monasteries are often surprised to discover that many monks go through their day without "meditating" in a recognizable form, but are more likely to chant or participate in group liturgy. "The point of Buddhist meditation is not to stop thinking, for cultivation of insight clearly requires intelligent use of thought and discrimination. What needs to be stopped is conceptualisation that is compulsive, mechanical and unintelligent, that is, activity that is always fatiguing, usually pointless, and at times seriously harmful" Allan Wallace.: GARRYS VIEW: Meditation isnt about some transandental experience, although if you are lucky enough to experience this, all well and good. Meditation is first and foremost about learning to control and realize the workings of the mind. Our Mind is the vehicle that guides us through life and also death. If we have little control of the mind ,like many of us, We could be likened to a ship without a rudder, being tossed to and frow in the Tempest of life. As a start may I suggest a simple Meditation exercise: First of all find yourself a quiet tidy place where you can relax undisturbed for a few moments. 5 or 10 minutes are quite enough to begin with. Now sit cross legged on a cusion on the floor or sit upright in a comfortable staight backed chair . Sit with your back comfortably straight and relax.Then with your eyes just slightly open and looking down toward the end of your nose, breath gently in through your nostrils (Gently not hard) and then on the out breath count one Then again and on the outbreath count two, continue this exercise to the count of ten and then begin from one again. All the time keep your mind focused on your breath and the number of breaths. Remain relaxed at all times and continue for as long as you feel comfortable, but keep your mind alert as it is very easy to fall asleep. At first you will more than likely find yourself loosing count of your breaths, but dont be discouraged it is perfectly normal and serves a great purpose in showing us how little control we actually have over our mind, the mind wanders naturally, so just bring your attention back to the breath and begin to count from one again. Not only does this exercise help us to learn better mind control it is also a very good way of releiving stress, anxiety, and the tentions built up during the day and it also fairs well to begin each day relaxed and with a possitive state of mind. So first thing in the Morning and before we retire at night are the besttimes to practice. remember this is meant to be a pleasurable experience and true deep meditation takes years of training so just relax and take it gently, but it is recommended to meditate at the same times each day, although this can sometimes be difficult. Please try this as I am possitive you will enjoy and feel much better in your daily life. With Metta Garry D. If you would like to learn more click on this link to a good Meditation site. http://buddhism.kalachakranet.org/Meditations/index.html

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Username: garryageez

Gender / Age: Male, 61

Location: United Kingdom