11
votes
Accepted
How to disambiguate between various meditation practices?
It appears unclear to you because you have not comprehended the essence of the Buddha's teachings.
The Buddha did not teach any 'techniques'. The Buddha taught to abandon craving & other ...
- 40.5k
11
votes
How to disambiguate between various meditation practices?
I agree with Dhammadhatu in that the different meditations seem confusing when you don't know what it is all about.
When you know the underlying principle, you know how these different meditations ...
- 58.3k
9
votes
Is there some technique to surpass noises when meditating?
This sounds like perfect opportunity to practice insight meditation! If you watch your mind when these noises happen, you can notice how you become unhappy due to the mismatch between "is" and "should"...
- 58.3k
8
votes
Accepted
Is there some technique to surpass noises when meditating?
You should watch this Youtube video, in which Ajahn Brahm speaks about his experiences with mosquitoes in Thailand, when he first became a monk. As a monk, he is not allowed to kill them and his ...
- 37.4k
7
votes
What can be done when one is having difficulties establishing a regular practice?
This happens when you have a mistaken idea that practice is something separate from your normal life. But meditation is only 1/3rd of the practice, the top of the wedding cake (shila-prajna-samadhi). ...
- 58.3k
7
votes
When is it time to meditate and when is it time to act?
In my opinion... in Buddhism this kind of worry is called "udacca-kukucca" :) -- "Am I not doing enough of what I should be doing? I am doing this but shouldn't I be doing that instead?"
Instead, ...
- 58.3k
7
votes
Accepted
Software programming/Art and Buddhist Practice - Pursuing creative activity
Yes it's a problem.
To some extent an impossible problem, in the sense that ...
The Difficult We Do Immediately. The Impossible Takes a Little Longer.
Quote Investigator also gives that as,
"...
- 46.3k
7
votes
Accepted
Can Buddhism help me find my passion?
The "passion" you talk about sounds like a craving for something which you haven't defined. Your question seems to be asking, "I crave something (I crave something to feel passionate about), but I don'...
- 46.3k
7
votes
Accepted
Which is the easiest of the four paths for a novice lay practitioner?
The sutta was spoken by Ananda. It is not the words of the Buddha. The Buddha taught samatha & vipassana are developed in tandem (MN 149; Dhp 372); as demonstrated in MN 118 (when it is properly ...
- 40.5k
7
votes
How to disambiguate between various meditation practices?
OP: S.N. Goenka says if you practice Vipassana, you must not practice any other technique (but, even more confusingly, he also teaches Anapana and Metta)
What is said by Goenka is that you should ...
6
votes
Meditating with chronic illness
Giri-m-Ananda Sutta has details of how to overcome illness. At a superficial level you can start as following and go deeper as in the Sutta. Also there is a book Meditation on Perception: Ten Healing ...
6
votes
What are we supposed to do while meditating?
There are many kinds of meditation, and as many ways of explaining them as there are people. After years of study and practice, here is a meditation I recommend. I call this "the coming to one's ...
- 58.3k
6
votes
How to overcome the suffering of attachement to the body's continued existence (in Western modernity)?
In preparation for death you should:
accept the fact everyone must die and let go of the fear of death
not procrastinate meditation to develop wisdom
make your mind equanimous as possible to handle ...
6
votes
I am confused with my life. In most of the time I fill that, My husband don't love me don't care of myself
The Buddha taught to maintain a good marriage, the husband & wife must speak to each other with loving gentle words and also have the same goals for life. Please read this in the Samajivina Sutta.
...
- 40.5k
6
votes
Im making no progress on meditation
RE: "I don't even know what I'm supposed to do during meditation" & "what's causing the bliss?" - Congrats, you are very clear about what it is that you're not clear about. That's an awesome first ...
- 58.3k
5
votes
Software programming/Art and Buddhist Practice - Pursuing creative activity
I get frustrated when something doesn't work ... the cause being I am not mindful ... which may lead to emotions.
Frustration is a good example of Dukkha (the painful feeling of wrongness). It is ...
- 58.3k
5
votes
Reasons against practicing insight meditation as a main (sitting) practice for medical or other recondite-subject majoring students?
I did my first longer vipassana retreat while I was a postdoc researcher (applied math and numerics), and did many more since then. I found it beneficial to have days/weeks dedicated for intense ...
- 951
5
votes
Accepted
Advice on leading sitting group
It is good to start a sitting group. My suggestions are:
Make the group as informal & self-reliant as possible. 'Self-reliant' means making it clear that meditation is an activity of self-...
- 40.5k
5
votes
Meditation technique to reduce/control pain/sorrow/loss
Each technique a type of character or mental biase.
Greedy: the ten foulness meditations; or, body contemplation.
Hating: the four brahma-viharas; or, the four color kasinas.
Deluded: ...
5
votes
How Lord Buddha's Way Make Me Out Of This Depression!
What you describe is suffering. Intense mental suffering. I am very sorry you are going through this and will try my best to help as I once went through something very similar and it was extremely ...
- 4,706
4
votes
How does one cultivate uplifted energy (paggaha)?
I think something is lost in translation here. It has been mentioned before that Thanissaro Bhikkhu sometimes is off the mark in his translations. If we look at some other translations of the Nimitta ...
- 1,830
4
votes
Meditating with chronic illness
I'm sorry you feel uncomfortable, and afraid and alone.
Some of the answers to the question, "Experiencing physical pain", might be helpful.
The article "Using Meditation to Deal with Pain, Illness &...
- 46.3k
4
votes
Exercise for meditation sitting
Sorry for being something of a jerk , man. I just had one of those days :p
so to actually answer your question, it does depend on which tradition we're talking about.
I know some (all?) traditions ...
- 814
4
votes
Is it possible to use meditation to gain Self control?
Self control of gained through mastery over the mind, i.e., developing Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration in the Noble Eightfold Path.
The lack of mastery over the mind would ...
4
votes
Is it possible to use meditation to gain Self control?
No. Don't expect anything from meditation. The moment you start expecting some results like self control or universe control, you're lost. You will keep thinking of result that you desire (that is ...
- 2,234
4
votes
Are there meditation practices that improve logical problem solving skills?
I am not aware of any meditation practices that improve logical problem solving skills. However (although I am not an academic), I have found, in my experience, the more clear & calm the mind is, ...
- 40.5k
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