What is and what is not meditation?

Discussion of meditation in the Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions.
master of puppets
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Re: What is and what is not meditation?

Post by master of puppets »

Jokingfish wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 4:55 am Qq, im quite curious about what you think is best for me, could you say?
I understand you. you are zenish.
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Jokingfish
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Re: What is and what is not meditation?

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master of puppets wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 6:58 am
Jokingfish wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 4:55 am Qq, im quite curious about what you think is best for me, could you say?
I understand you. you are zenish.
:twisted:

What is zenish, though, someone who has zen qualities, that are..? (edit :why is it me?)

Edit : johnny: only worth making such an attempt with actual instructions and a plan, in my opinion

Can you give an example of how this plan would sound, do?
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Queequeg
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Re: What is and what is not meditation?

Post by Queequeg »

kirtu wrote: Thu Sep 08, 2022 10:42 pm Uh, sometimes they are (unthinking automatons)... can be more like 1% attention (or less) and 99+% distraction ...
Good point. Most of our bodily functions, and many of our thinking functions, are unthinking. All the more reason to cultivate discipline in what we can.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
master of puppets
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Re: What is and what is not meditation?

Post by master of puppets »

Jokingfish wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 8:29 am
master of puppets wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 6:58 am
Jokingfish wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 4:55 am Qq, im quite curious about what you think is best for me, could you say?
I understand you. you are zenish.
:twisted:

What is zenish, though, someone who has zen qualities, that are..? (edit :why is it me?)

Edit : johnny: only worth making such an attempt with actual instructions and a plan, in my opinion

Can you give an example of how this plan would sound, do?
you're free in speaking. and that's good.
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Jokingfish
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Re: What is and what is not meditation?

Post by Jokingfish »

Johnny Dangerous wrote: Thu Sep 08, 2022 9:37 pm Jokingfish: I don’t think our ancestors were all spiritual. Probably a lot of them were interested in the same stuff humanity has always been into, food, sex, fun, drama. In fact, we know this is true because it’s there in the very story of The Buddha, and so is just heading out to the forest to practice.

Far as being “in nature”, if you think about it our situation is quite strange, we are always in nature, only we have built up this edifice of civilization where now we see nature as an object outside ourselves that we have to “go to”. Being directly in the elements has a calming effect as our bodies are made up of them, in a way it helps to dissolve a bit of the constant over thinking that characterizes daily life.

But yeah, I think for almost anyone temporarily removing the rails of civilization promotes meditation…though it’s really only worth making such an attempt with actual instructions and a plan, in my opinion.

There is actually some good evidence that living more rurally is just better for people’s minds in general. I can say from my own experience that being busy and around all kinds of bustle can make establishing a practice tough.

Everyone is different though, we have to take the advice of teachers and really figure out what is working for us and what is not.
Not sure if you missed my question in a different post, but id be interested to know, why would you need a plan, instructions, how would it help, what kind of plan could it be, if one would go to a retreat?

Also, im not knowledgeable on Buddhism much, and you mentioned there's a story about forest from buddha, could you say something about that?
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Johnny Dangerous
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Re: What is and what is not meditation?

Post by Johnny Dangerous »

Jokingfish wrote: Fri Sep 09, 2022 6:41 pm
Johnny Dangerous wrote: Thu Sep 08, 2022 9:37 pm Jokingfish: I don’t think our ancestors were all spiritual. Probably a lot of them were interested in the same stuff humanity has always been into, food, sex, fun, drama. In fact, we know this is true because it’s there in the very story of The Buddha, and so is just heading out to the forest to practice.

Far as being “in nature”, if you think about it our situation is quite strange, we are always in nature, only we have built up this edifice of civilization where now we see nature as an object outside ourselves that we have to “go to”. Being directly in the elements has a calming effect as our bodies are made up of them, in a way it helps to dissolve a bit of the constant over thinking that characterizes daily life.

But yeah, I think for almost anyone temporarily removing the rails of civilization promotes meditation…though it’s really only worth making such an attempt with actual instructions and a plan, in my opinion.

There is actually some good evidence that living more rurally is just better for people’s minds in general. I can say from my own experience that being busy and around all kinds of bustle can make establishing a practice tough.

Everyone is different though, we have to take the advice of teachers and really figure out what is working for us and what is not.
Not sure if you missed my question in a different post, but id be interested to know, why would you need a plan, instructions, how would it help, what kind of plan could it be, if one would go to a retreat?
Meditation is a skill like any other, it requires instruction and guidance. Even more so for an intensive period of practice like a retreat.
Also, im not knowledgeable on Buddhism much, and you mentioned there's a story about forest from buddha, could you say something about that?
Just look up a narrative of the Buddha’s life, he literally abandoned home to go do ascetic practices outside of civilization, usually in what we would call “ natural” environments, attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree.
Meditate upon Bodhicitta when afflicted by disease

Meditate upon Bodhicitta when sad

Meditate upon Bodhicitta when suffering occurs

Meditate upon Bodhicitta when you are scared

-Khunu Lama
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