en don't act as if I believe
in karma". Personally, this is the kind of stuff that makes me more
sensitive and aware about my state of mind, and it stimulates to
meditate more on the subjects of philosophy and psychology.
For the complete text of "Mindfulness In Plain
English", a well-loved 'how-to meditate' book on Vipassana
by Venerable Gunaratana, click here
page of realization.org.
According to the Buddha and the many great masters
following in his footsteps, we need to practice both single-pointed
concentration and special insight. Slightly edited from http://geocities.com/dhammapada2all/:
"In the Anguttara Nikaya Sutta (4.170):
Venerable Ananda (one of the main disciples of the Buddha) says
that monks and nuns who informed him that they had attained arahantship
all declared that they did so by one of the four categories, i.e.
there are only these four ways to arahantship (liberation):
o Samatha followed by vipassana - after which the path is born
o Vipassana followed by samatha - after which the path is born
o Samatha and vipassana together, simultaneously - after which
the path is born in him/her, and
o The mind stands fixed internally (i.e. on the cognizant consciousness
or 'self') until it becomes one-pointed - after which the path
is born in him/her.
... Charity (dana) and morality (sila) are the
positive and negative aspects of doing good (actively doing good
and refraining from doing bad actions.). Likewise, samatha and
vipassana can be said to be the positive and negative aspects
of meditation. Samatha is the positive aspect which brings one
closer to Nibbana. Vipassana is the negative aspect, because one
sees everything in the world as it is with proper wisdom thus:
'This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self' -- as a
result, one will naturally withdraw from and let go of the sensory
world. In other words, samatha meditation pulls one towards Nibbana,
in contrast to vipassana meditation, which pushes one away from
Or, as found in text from the Ming Dynasty by an unknown
master; Taoist Meditation – Methods for Cultivation a
Healthy Mind and Body, translated by Thomas Cleary :
"When you see reality, no illusions can confuse
when you develop stability, things cannot shake it or take it
If you have a few minutes, do have a look at this nice video on meditation by Ringu Tulku Rinpoche.
Teachings on Shamatha
by Tranghu Rinpoche
His Holiness the
Dalai Lama's advice on meditation
Theravada texts on Vipassana: The
Progress of Insight by Mahasi Sayadaw, also the Satipathana
Sutra and Commentary
I think it would be totally inappropriate for me to even contemplate
what I am thinking about.
Don Mazankowski , former Candian Minister of Finance
Life is hard.
It's breathe, breathe, breathe, all the time.
Never miss a good chance to shut up.
Out of my mind.
Back in five minutes.
June 22, 2013