When you read books about meditation, or often when meditation is
is presented by different groups, much of the emphasis falls on the techniques.
In the West, people tend to be very interested in the "technology" of
meditation. However, by far the most important feature of meditation is not
technique, but the way of being, the spirit, which is called the
"posture", a posture which is not so much physical, but more to do
with spirit or attitude.
It is well to recognize that when you
start on a meditation practice, you are entering a totally different dimension
of reality. Normally in life we put a great deal of effort into achieving
things, and there is a lot of struggle involved, whereas meditation is just the
opposite, it is a break from how we normally operate.
Meditation is simply a question of being,
of melting, like a piece of butter left in the sun. It has nothing to do with
whether or not you "know" anything about it, in fact, each time you
practice meditation it should be fresh, as if it were happening for the very
first time. You just quietly sit, your body still, your speech silent, your
mind at ease, and allow thoughts to come and go, without letting them play
havoc on you. If you need something to do, then watch the breathing. This is a
very simple process. When you are breathing out, know that you are breathing
out. When you breath in, know that you are breathing in, without supplying any
kind of extra commentary or internalized mental gossip, but just identifying
with the breath. That very simple process of mindfulness processes your
thoughts and emotions, and then, like an old skin being shed, something is
peeled off and freed.
Usually people tend to relax the body by
concentrating on different parts. Real relaxation comes when you relax from
within, for then everything else will ease itself out quite naturally.
When you begin to practice, you center
yourself, in touch with your "soft spot", and just remain there. You
need not focus on anything in particular to begin with. Just be spacious, and
allow thoughts and emotions to settle. If you do so, then later, when you use a
method such as watching the breath, your attention will more easily be on your
breathing. There is no particular point on the breath on which you need to
focus, it is simply the process of breathing. Twenty-five percent of your
attention is on the breath, and seventy-five percent is relaxed. Try to
actually identify with the breathing, rather than just watching it. You may
choose an object, like a flower, for example, to focus upon.
Sometimes you are
taught to visualize a light on the forehead, or in the heart. Sometimes a sound
or a mantra can be used. But at the beginning it is best to simply be spacious,
like the sky. Think of yourself as the sky, holding the whole universe.
When you sit, let things settle and allow
all your discordant self with its ungenuineness and unnaturalness to disolve,
out of that rises your real being. You experience an aspect of yourself which
is more genuine and more authentic-the "real" you. As you go deeper,
you begin to discover and connect with your fundamental goodness.
The whole point of meditation is to get
used to the that aspect which you have forgotten. In Tibetan
"meditation" means "getting used to". Getting used to what?
to your true nature, your Buddha nature. This is why, in the highest teaching
of Buddhism, Dzogchen, you are told to "rest in the nature of mind".
You just quietly sit and let all thoughts and concepts dissolve. It is like
when the clouds dissolve or the mist evaporates, to reveal the clear sky and
the sun shining down. When everything dissolves like this, you begin to
experience your true nature, to "live". Then you know it, and at that
moment, you feel really good. It is unlike any other feeling of well being that
you might have experienced. This is a real and genuine goodness, in which you
feel a deep sense of peace, contentment and confidence about yourself.
It is good to meditate when you feel
inspired. Early mornings can bring that inspiration, as the best moments of the
mind are early in the day, when the mind is calmer and fresher (the time
traditionally recommended is before dawn). It is more appropriate to sit when
you are inspired, for not only is it easier then as you are in a better frame
of mind for meditation, but you will also be more encouraged by the very
practice that you do. This in turn will bring more confidence in the practice,
and later on you will be able to practice when you are not inspired. There is
no need to meditate for a long time: just remain quietly until you are a little
open and able to connect with your heart essence. That is the main point.
After that, some integration, or
meditation in action. Once your mindfulness has been awakened by your
meditation, your mind is calm and your perception a little more coherent. Then,
whatever you do, you are present, right there. As in the famous Zen master's
saying: "When I eat, I eat; when I sleep, I sleep". Whatever you do,
you are fully present in the act. Even washing dishes, if it is done
one-pointedly, can be very energizing, freeing, cleansing. You are more
peaceful, so you are more "you". You assume the "Universal
You".
One of the fundamental points of the
spiritual journey is to persevere along the path. Though one's meditation may
be good one day and and not so good the next, like changes in scenery,
essentially it is not the experiences, good or bad which count so much, but
rather that when you persevere, the real practice rubs off on you and comes
through both good and bad. Good and bad are simply apparations, just as there
may be good or bad weather, yet the sky is always unchanging.
If you persevere
and have that sky like attitude of spaciousness, without being perturbed by
emotions and experiences, you will develop stability and the real profoundness
of meditation will take effect. You will find that gradually and almost
unnoticed, your attitude begins to change. You do not hold on to things as
solidly as before, or grasp at them so strongly, and though crisis will still
happen, you can handle them a bit better with more humor and ease. You will
even be able to laugh at difficulties a little, since there is more space
between you and them, and you are freer of yourself. Things become less solid,
slightly ridiculous, and you become more lighthearted.
No comments:
Post a Comment