Search results for: "Mindfulness"

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  2. A Real Education
     … One of the first skills you have to learn is that not everything coming into the mind is worthy of attention. And things are not going to be perfectly quiet right from the start. So no matter what the mind is thinking about in the background, keep it in the background. As the texts say, you bring mindfulness to the fore. “Mindfulness” here means … 
  3. Respect
     … Among those skillful qualities, two really important ones are alertness and mindfulness. Mindfulness is the ability to keep something in mind. For instance, we’re going to keep the breath in mind. But keeping the breath in mind encompasses the other frames of reference as well. As you’re focusing on the breath, you want to pay attention to how the feelings in the … 
  4. Adjust the Flame
    The mind’s like a fire, with flames shooting out, thoughts shooting out, in all directions. When we meditate, we’re trying to adjust the flame so that it’s steady, focused on one thing: the breath here in the present moment. Try to stay with it consistently. Start with a small flame. Find one spot in the body that’s sensitive to the … 
  5. Standing Where the Buddha Stood
     … Get the mind centered. In the course of centering the mind, you develop good qualities: mindfulness, alertness, the ability to keep the mind with one frame of reference, without slipping off to other frames of reference. That’s why mindfulness practice is such an important build-up to concentration practice. The Buddha also says that you have to develop tranquility and powers of insight … 
  6. Samvega First
    It’s a common pattern that when you clear out some time to meditate, sit down, make up your mind you’re going to stay with the breath, there’s a part of the mind that sees this time as an opportunity to think about all kinds of other things. So you’ve got to nip that tendency in the bud. That’s one … 
  7. Inner Wealth
     … So start feeding the mind well with a sense of well-being, but also with your intention to do something good. You’re training the mind here to be more alert, more mindful, to put its heart into doing something good and doing it well. “Mindful” means able to keep something in mind. It’s not just simply a matter of noticing what’s … 
  8. Ugly Body, Happy Mind
    Ugly Body, Happy Mind March 20, 2023 Gladdening the mind is an important part of meditation. It’s listed as one of the steps in breath meditation, and there are many places where the Buddha talks about how creating a sense of gladness, a sense of well-being, is an important prelude to getting the mind to settle down. He also talks about two … 
  9. The Four Biases
     … These things have no power over their minds.” When we look at the way the world has power over our minds, it’s because of these four qualities within the mind. So these are things we have to work to get rid of. In English, they’re often translated as four forms of bias, four forms of prejudice. I think bias is probably the … 
  10. Part V : Finding a Teacher
     … Thoughts come into the mind and it’s hard for us to tell, “Is this a good thought or a bad thought?” Even if part of the mind recognizes that it may be a bad thought, another part says, “Well, no, maybe it’s got its good side after all.” After all, there are so many different opinions out there, and our minds have … 
  11. Your Main Foundation
     … Then you’ve got mind states, such as a mind that’s impassioned, a mind that’s not impassioned, a mind that’s aversive or not. This analysis of mind states works its way up to more subtle things, like a mind that’s concentrated or not, or a mind that has reached a state beyond which it has ever been before or not … 
  12. On Human Nature
     … Ajaan Mun comforted him, “Well, it’s in the Satipatthana Sutta that being aware of the distracted mind as a distracted mind is part of right mindfulness. At least you’re aware.” Ajaan Suwat took the advice well. He didn’t say to himself, “Gee, all I need to do is to be aware of my distracted mind as a distracted mind and that … 
  13. Creating a World of Concentration
     … We’re trying to bring into being a state of concentration to begin with, and it requires two qualities of mind—one is serenity and the other is insight—to try to calm the body down, calm the mind down. There are basically two ways of doing this. One is just to give the mind something to focus on that it likes, and it … 
  14. We All Start with an Impure Heart
     … You’re right here where the mind and the body meet. The fact that the mind can make the body move has to go through the breath. The fact that things happening in the body can get into the mind has to go through the breath. So you’re right at the crossroads, looking at your body, looking at your mind, and to see … 
  15. Speech for the Sake of Stillness
     … These were things that he would allow his mind to think. But even then, he noticed that he could think about these things all day and they wouldn’t lead to any unskillful actions but they would tire the mind. So he inclined his mind into concentration. That thoughts inclining his mind into concentration were a kind of internal speech, but speech leading in … 
  16. Making a Difference
     … Then just breathe in good and deep in a way that feels really gratifying to the body, and that will re-establish your mindfulness. So these are the qualities you bring to the breath: mindfulness, keeping the breath in mind; alertness, being alert and sensitive to the breathing; and ardency, trying to make that sensitivity even more refined, more continuous. So, as we focus … 
  17. Hunting & Foraging
     … Ajaan Suwat would talk about having a sense of confidence, a sense of pleasure being here: “You’re here to do a good thing, training the mind, nourishing the mind.” So if you come with the right mood, you establish one of the necessary steps in gaining insight into the mind. Of course, one of the first things you’ll see is how quickly … 
  18. Responsible for Your Goodness
     … Which means that one thing we can do now for the people who will be around us when we die is to develop skill in nourishing the state of our mind. So this is your number one responsibility, the shape of your mind right now. And the goodness of the mind is something that doesn’t need to be decorated. It doesn’t have … 
  19. Beyond Inter-eating
     … We’ve got to keep this point in mind: that as long as the mind needs to feed, it’s causing suffering. And the greatest act of kindness both to yourself and other people is to put it in a position where it doesn’t need to feed. We tend to forget this. We think that sitting here meditating, trying to get the mind … 
  20. A Heart Set on Goodwill
    The mind is very changeable. In fact, the Buddha said it’s so quick to reverse itself that there’s no adequate image to illustrate how quick and how reversible it is. You’re heading in one direction and then suddenly you turn around and you’re heading in the other direction. Now, if the mind is heading in a bad direction, that’s … 
  21. Breath Meditation: The Second Tetrad
     … These are images or words you hold in mind for recognizing things. They’re not full sentences. They’re just basic concepts or little pictures by which the mind communicates with itself and communicates with the body. Those perceptions will have an impact on both body and mind. They’re mental fabrication as well. Look into your perception of the breathing: Is it getting … 
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