Questions tagged [meditation-samatha]
The Buddhist practice of calming the mind and the mental formations. This is done through practices such as body awareness and mindfulness of breathing. This contrast to vipassana or insight meditation.
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Former hedonist started with Samatha, worried about dukkha nanas
I really need your help as I'm, in some sort of conflict about my path. I'll try to keep things short but i need to include some info about my life experience so far.
Now I'm 25 years old and all my ...
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How to maintain a Buddhist practice through dark times?
Buddhism has slowly entered my life since the last 25 years. Though born a Hindu in India, I have always been open to practices that would help me answer my fundamental question about the meaning of ...
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Is Dhamma-thinking considered wise attention?
According to AN 5.73 (translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu):
"Then there is the case where a monk takes the Dhamma as he has heard
& studied it and thinks about it, evaluates it, and examines it ...
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Samatha while studying
I heard about the practice of concentration. But I work 13 hours per day doing coding. How can I meditate while studying, thinking really deep?
I can focus on one static object, but not reading (...
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Scattered mind while doing Body Scanning in Vipassana
I have been practicing Vipassana under the tradition of S.N Goenka for the last 2 and half year. When I scan my body and observe different sensations, I find that my mind is not clear and It's not ...
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Is samatha meditation more suited to lay people than vipassana?
Does the Piti Sutta imply that it is better for lay people to start with cultivation of jhana through samatha meditation, instead of starting with vipassana meditation?
Also, the use of the term "...
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I was wondering about deep meditation and out of body experiences
I am very sick and as such I have tried meditating a lot, and reading about the heart mantra, as far as studying meditation. When I was meditating I was going into a trance like state for about 3-4 ...
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Ajahn Brahm versus others
I am practicing samadhi meditation using the breath as an object. Most teachers say to watch the breath at the tip of the nose. However, Ajahn Brahm says not to locate the breath anywhere. I find ...
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Effects of samatha
Are there any negative effects of samatha that were mentioned in the Pali Canon (Tripitaka), the commentaries, or just from your experience?
I have heard on an occasion that someone who might ...
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Vipassana meditation comes naturally; Samatha meditation incredibly hard.
Let me start off by saying that I can do Vipassana meditation for about 20 minutes at present. Accepting thoughts as they arise, noticing sensations without judging is relatively easy, compared to ...
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Is it possible to see the counterpart sign (nimitta) with eyes open?
As a beginner, I practice two forms of meditation: one focusing on the breath (typically with eyes closed), and one focusing on a colored disc (kasina), obviously with eyes open (unless cultivating ...
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Sleep and meditation
I'm a spiritual and somewhat crazy person, and have been taught both zen and samatha meditation, though I rarely practice either.
I just underwent a series of short micros sleeps, which were ...
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Shamata and vipassana - loss of willpower
I've been meditating (somewhat regularly) about one or two years back. Mainly shamata, and vipassana lately. Today I feel that my willpower is considerably lower than before.
I mean, I used to be ...
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What is "stillness" or samatha?
Is a "still" mind: a mind without any thoughts; or a mind without a certain style of thoughts; or a mind which has lost a certain way of connecting to thoughts?
I assumed it was a lessening of ...
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Stabilizing the counterpart sign
Stabilizing the counterpart sign (nimitta) isn't easy. Is there a 'technique' that leads to stabilize it? I.c. is there a 'technique' to develop/cultivate intensively the absorption factors (jhanangas)...
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Does samatha practice always come before vipassana practice?
In my tradition (Triratna) there is a big emphasis of a lot of samatha practice before any vipassana practice. This has always made sense to me. However is this universal in all Buddhist schools? Are ...
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Pagoda's symbolism of yogi's progress to Nirvana
This page shows each feature of a pagoda symbolizing the steps to Nirvana.
In Discourses on Satipatthana Sutta, S. N. Goenka mentions a similar symbolism on how the pagoda relates to the Maha ...
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What are all the bhawana (meditation) methods in Buddhism?
There are two types of meditations described as "Samatha" and "Vipassana"
I have heard that there are several types of samatha bhawana (40 kamatahan). Can you please elaborate this based on Theravada ...
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Is Anapanasati considered Samatha?
I'm new to Buddhism, and I have some trouble understanding some core aspects on meditation. Is Anapanasati considered Samatha or Vipassana?
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How is Recollection of peace (upasamānussati) practiced?
Out of the 10 recollections in the 40 Kammaṭṭhāna how is upasamānussati practiced to the level of Jhana?
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Details for Kasina Meditation
I've searched through the web and also Wikipedia regarding Kasina meditation and could not find detailed information. Can the meditation object be anything? (Say anything green or blue for those ...
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Why is it hard to breathe naturally when meditating?
For me it is rather hard to breathe naturally while doing Samatha meditation. It makes it harder to concentrate because I'm always controlling my breath.
Do you have any suggestion how to overcome ...
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In meditation, should one pursue tranquility first, prior to looking for insight?
On the one hand this question has been asked to death on the internet (and yuttadhammo's videos even try to handle it). On the other hand, I personally still don't feel I have a clear answer (and I ...
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Is it possible to "over-train" in samatha meditation?
Every morning I set aside one hour for meditation -- primarily just counting breaths, but occasionally abdominal noting. My overall aim is to achieve some kind of basic tranquility so I can then ...
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