TL;DR:
Q1. Can focusing on the sensations in my head lead to Jhana?
Q2. Does noting sensations in one spot contradict the Satipatthana teachings?
*
At my first Goenka retreat fifteen years ago, I went overboard exploring the sensations in my head and ignored the rest of my body.
I was quite content staying in this region and could maintain my concentration without getting distracted. As a result, I didn't get the most out of the experience.
I gradually realized that I needed to pay more attention to the rest of my body in order to progress. This was a difficult task, as the sensations of pressure in my head ( just behind my nose) had compounded in strength.
Over the next eight (to ten) retreats, I struggled to progress with the body scan. I was always embarrassed that I couldn't body scan like everyone else. I assumed it was because I was lazy or incompetent, so I never mentioned it to the assistant teachers.
Giving up on insight practice, I went to Pa-Auk Monastery in Burma to work on Jhanas. However, the sensations in my head were so strong that I wasn’t able to stick my attention to the point of breath.
I asked the teacher this time, but the advice didn’t resonate. A monk who was at my QA session later said that he struggled a lot with headaches in the beginning because he was “trying too hard”.
I found this helpful- and took the sensations of pressure as a manifestation of my effort. I might have also generated a negative feedback loop due to time spent in aversion to these sensations.
I eventually cut my Pa-Auk retreat short after a month.
*
It has been a decade since I’ve given up on my meditation practice altogether.
I've recently read about the Mahasi method & this has renewed my hope. I imagine this practice to have less roadblocks and plan to explore this in a retreat setting. Focusing on the belly breath seems to reduce the pressure sensations on my face. And even when they do come up, I enjoy noting them and spotting the suffering and impermanence in the experience.
Which brings me to my questions:
Q1. Can focusing on the sensations in my head lead to Jhana?
Q2. Does noting sensations in one spot contradict the Satipatthana teachings?
Ignored instructions; head stuck in door :(
Discussion of meditation in the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions.
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