Exploring the interface between Buddhist teachings, meditation techniques, academic Buddhist Studies, and the practical application of them into our lives as lay Buddhists
Last week I touched on the subject of techniques that help us to develop equanimity and there are many techniques of a similar kind that help us to loosen the grip of self-view, to see through our mistaken sense of permanence, and to understand dukkha. The Thai Forest lineage of Ajahn Chah is particularly rich … Continue reading Perhaps Perhaps Perhaps
Awareness is a very common word in meditation, but if you read my blog often then you’ll have noticed that I rarely use some of the more common phrases attached to modern meditation practice, like rest in awareness, non-judgemental awareness, and others of this sort. Some people prefer this kind of language, finding the Pāli … Continue reading Trust in Awareness
Last week’s fascinating exploration of the role of imagination and creativity in Buddhist practice left me with a niggling question about papañca (the process whereby the mind gets lost in its own thoughts and ideas) and its connection to imagination, as the process of papañca seems to often be described as using imagination. Papañca is … Continue reading Imagination or Just Papañca?
Last week I was exploring the possibility that many of us may inadvertently self-therapize in our meditation sessions by not realising that we are focusing on the contents of our thoughts instead of treating thoughts as merely another phenomenon in our sensory experience. This week I continue exploring the theme that this opens up, this … Continue reading The Mind in the Mirror
Everybody knows what it means to think, and what it means to think too much. Many people come to meditation with the idea that they ‘think too much to ever be good at it’, but this is a misunderstanding of what meditation is about, Buddhist meditation at least. The ability to think too much could … Continue reading Thinking about Thinking Too Much
We all have times when we wish we could find that magic 'off' switch that would instantly make our minds to go silent. Embodied practices of the kinds I've been talking about in previous weeks are not the silver bullet that we sometimes hope they could be; just trying to put all of your attention … Continue reading Four Types of Thoughts
You might not automatically think of Buddhism and quantum physics at the same time, but reading the book Wholeness and the Implicate Order by David Bohm had me doing just that. While the book seems to mostly be aiming to encourage science to use the evidence it already has about the interconnected and constantly changing … Continue reading Thought and Not Thought
After writing last week's blog post I decided to do a little research into Seung Sahn, the Zen teacher who I quoted a conversation between himself and a student. He certainly seemed to have a few unusual elements in his biography, such as spending five years in the army after his ordination (even monks were … Continue reading Uncovering the Cancel Mind
In the UK of late, the news headlines have often been filled with stories and pictures of those appearing to not be complying with the lockdown rules, covidiots as the press brand them, and the actions of some have created a storm of much wrath and heated debate. In the face of an overwhelming crisis … Continue reading Opinions Without Anger
It might seem like a strange time to suggest we go looking for Nibbana; you might wonder just how likely anyone is to notice it amongst the chaos of our current situation. But I’m not talking about trying to achieve enlightenment, the nibbana I am talking about are those occasional moments of peace that we … Continue reading Noticing Nibbana
Kalyana Mitta 