In Alignment

We close our eyes when we meditate because the problem—the big problem in our lives—is not outside. It’s inside. So you want to be able to see inside more clearly. So for the time being, block out other sensations coming in from outside. Of course, you can’t help but hear the birds and crows, but don’t let that bother you. Those are minimal noises. The big noise right now is your mind’s chattering to itself. So try to bring the chatter under control.

When they talk about directed thought and evaluation in the first jhana, it’s nothing else but this: the mind’s tendency to talk to itself. So you want to train it to talk to itself in the right way. Focus on the breath; focus on the mind. See how you can bring the two of them together. You want them to be in alignment. Otherwise, it’s like a tire that’s out of alignment. Things get worn a little bit too much on one side and not enough on the other. Things get out of balance. If you hit the brakes suddenly, who knows which direction your car would go?

So bring the mind and the body into alignment right here, right now. Comfortable together. Don’t put too much pressure on the body, but don’t let things wander around, either. We’re not here just to follow the mind wherever it’s going to go. The mind has work to do. It has to stay right here.

Then if you want to talk to yourself about the breath, you can talk about how comfortable it is or how uncomfortable it is… If it’s uncomfortable, you don’t just sit there with uncomfortable breaths. You can change.

It’s like going to the kitchen and finding raw potatoes in the hamper. It doesn’t mean you have to eat raw potatoes. You know how to cook them. So use your skills in adjusting the breath, making it just right for right now. When the mind is interested in the breath and the breath responds well, that’s when they’re in alignment.

Then see how long you can keep them that way, not only while you’re sitting here with your eyes closed, but also as you chant, get up, go out, eat, clean up, go back to where you’re going to rest, where you’re going to meditate. Try to see how well they can stay together throughout that period.

Ajaan Fuang’s first lessons in walking meditation were that with each passage on the walking path, from this end to that end, make sure you stay right here. You don’t have to think about what you’re going to do after that. Just stay right here, right now, each step along the way. And when you get to the other end, turn around and, make sure you’re going to stay with the breath from that end of the path to this end. Keep the mind focused.

Don’t think about the long term; don’t think about the fact that’s it’s going to be a long day, it’s going to be a hot day. All you have right now is right now. And you can handle that. Don’t pile other things on unnecessarily. Otherwise, you’ll get the mind and the body out of alignment again.

So stay right here. And as you’re dealing with other people, just have lots and lots of goodwill and equanimity. In that way, you can maintain your alignment from this meditation session to the next, to the next, to the next, all the way throughout the day.