Mindfulness: practical applications of the satipatthana sutta

[Gem]

In Buddhism, the practice of mindfullness is taken from the satipathhana sutta, so please google that for reference during this conversation.


The thread has two purposes: 1) To encourage familiarity with Buddha's teaching and; 2) To refine mindfulness practice.


It is my intention is that the following conversation be beneficial, to me, to you, and that our respective benefit goes on to benefit all those around us.

The practice of meditation has a purpose which was stated by Buddha as: "This is the way, for the purification of beings, for the overcoming of sorrow and lamentation, for the destruction of suffering and grief, for reaching the right path, for the attainment of Nibbana."

If you refer to the 'satipatthana sutta', you will see that it starts with the breath awareness meditation. This is also explained in the anapanna sati sutta which literally means 'breath awareness discourse', so you might want to look that up even though it is somewhat repeated in the satipatthana sutta.

I wish to proceed in an orderly way without jumping about, but the 'four pillars of mindfulness' (body, feelings, consciousness, mental contents) are intrinsically interwoven, so these four aspects, being facets of the same thing rather than distinctly separate phenomena, need to be discussed contextually rather than in progressive steps.

Thank you for reading my introduction. I will return later to begin a conversation about some basic Buddhist foundations before talking about the opening passages on breath meditation. Until then, I wish you every happiness.

[Gem]

Hello again


The foundation of virtue



The practice is based in self-awareness, without which the foundations that support practice can not be established. The foundations are virtues which revolve around truthfulness and good-will. In Buddhism there are codes of moral conduct called 'sila' (you might want to google that if you're interested) which are predicated on truthfulness and the ethical principle of benefit/no harm.

It is living a moral life, so the usual transgressions of lying, stealing and harming are given as basic guidelines, but in a deeper sense it regards a pure intent. Hence one not only has to obey the code of conduct like any well-trained and obedient dog could do, but also be aware of the nature of intent. An attentive person notices that the craving and ill-will they generate manifests their own suffering, recognises the pointless futility of such volitions, and in the interests of their own happiness, ceases generating them.

Such a reduction in mental agitations creates the conditions for productive meditation. Generating agitations is counter productive. Hence, living a moral life is foundational to mindful meditation. If you lay a 'good' foundation you can sit solid upon it.

[Gem]

Hi, welcome back.

In this post I will outline the foundations of knowledge to illustrate the how Buddhist philosophy and practice are unified.

The foundations of knowledge

The Buddhist ontology consists of 3 'truths': 1) the truth of the word and; 2) the truth of intellectual understanding and; 3) the direct experience of the truth.

The truth of the word

As I suggest you refer to the formal texts of the satipatthana sutta, the anapanasati sutta, and literature on sila morality, and supposing you accept these are the words of an enlightened one, you have then heard the word and accept it as true on the authority of the speaker.

Fanatical Buddhists, and fanatics of other religions, place tremendous importance in the word, develop strong attachments to it - recite it, repeat it and dogmatically pore over it - while never really understanding what it means. These few are hindered by their attachment to the word and do not approach understanding because they do not think for themselves. They tend to become docile and obedient and usually pompously righteous. They tend to preach the gospel, but remain mean, aggressive and unforgiving, as we clearly see in cases of the fanatically religious.

Most people, however, hear the word, trust they are words of an enlightened one, and find that something about it 'rings true'. They are properly inspired by the word, see it is logically consistent, and make sense of it so as to articulate it for themselves as an intellectual understanding.

The truth of intellectual understanding

The person becomes familiar with the word and starts to join the dots, they see it fits together, the logic is consistent, and it makes sense. They and see its implications or make inferences from it. Such people become fascinated by the implications and wish to explore them for themselves.

The direct experience of truth

It goes without saying that a person explores and finds out for themselves via direct experience what the word actually pertains to. Such people are not grossly attached to the word, have developed a reasonable understanding, and proceed to 'see' what it all about.

The unified structure of Buddhist philosophy

Buddhist philosophy unifies the above three truths.

The truth of the word is an initial guide. You hear it and it sounds compelling, but you don't really understand what means.

The truth of intellectual understanding is an inspiration. You see how the word fits together and makes sense, and are inspired to explore it yourself .

The direct experience of truth is one's own exploration. You gain insight into the truth and recognise that 'this' is what the word is talking about.

The Buddhist philosophy integrates these 3 aspects of knowledge. Hearing. Understanding. Knowing. Thus, the philosophy and the practice are unified as one.

[Gem]

Hello.

The last foundation I want to talk about is surrender.

Foundation of surrender

What I termed 'surrender' is known as 'taking refuge' in Buddhist tradition. You can google it if you want some detail on that, because I don't want to bore everyone with lots of Buddhism.

There are 3 things to surrender to which will aid mindful meditation practice: 1) the dhamma and; 2) the buddha and; 3) the sangha.

The 'refuge', as it is called in Buddhism, implies that it is safe, and it requires your trust rather than your faith.

The Dhamma

The dhamma has two basic meanings which are: 1) the universal law and; 2) the teachings of the universal law.

In regards to the former, you surrender to the ways of nature. In regards to the latter, you accept that Buddha teachings about universal law have merit, and give them the benefit of the doubt.

The implication here is that the truth is universal and accessible to you; not some sort of sectarian religious propaganda.

The Buddha

The Buddhist icon is Siddhārtha Gautama, but one does not surrender to this person.

Buddha means the quality of enlightenment, which is within you, and it also means 'enlightened one', who's teachings you trust (trust upon their merit and not their authority).

Surrender to the enlightenment in yourself, the truth of yourself, and accept that the enlightened one speaks truthfully for your benefit.

The Sangha

Sangha means the spiritual community. You are now part of the community. This surrender within community imbues each of us with the responsibility of being trustworthy and kind, because we have to create safe conditions that are worthy of trust. Of course if this community has malicious intent within it, then the risk of being hurt is such that it is unsafe, unworthy of trust, and it would be unwise to surrender yourself to such conditions. It's up to you and me to ensure the integrity of the sangha, and this is our responsibility.

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Summary

There are foundations to consider before forging ahead, so that your mindful practice is firmly grounded and most fruitful. These are: virtuous morality; the three 'layers' of knowledge/insight and; surrender or 'refuge'.

Please give these your consideration. They are not entirely separate things, and you will see the ways they are connected. For example, morality is basis for the integrity of our community. The 3 truths pertain to surrender in dhamma. Surrender can only be within trust based on merit and integrity.

These preliminaries are not blind following for mere preservation of tradition. They are sensible and practical, and together create the optimum conditions for productive mindfulness practice. If, having taken these things to heart, you may feel a sense of preparedness and readiness to begin.

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Last note: I have merely glanced over these preliminaries, so if you wish to be far better informed, just google anything I've mentioned and read up at your leisure.

[sky]

Originally Posted by Gem

Hello.

The last foundation I want to talk about is surrender.

Foundation of surrender

What I termed 'surrender' is known as 'taking refuge' in Buddhist tradition. You can google it if you want some detail on that, because I don't want to bore everyone with lots of Buddhism.

There are 3 things to surrender to which will aid mindful meditation practice: 1) the dhamma and; 2) the buddha and; 3) the sangha.

The 'refuge', as it is called in Buddhism, implies that it is safe, and it requires your trust rather than your faith.

The Dhamma

The dhamma has two basic meanings which are: 1) the universal law and; 2) the teachings of the universal law.

In regards to the former, you surrender to the ways of nature. In regards to the latter, you accept that Buddha teachings about universal law have merit, and give them the benefit of the doubt.

The implication here is that the truth is universal and accessible to you; not some sort of sectarian religious propaganda.

The Buddha

The Buddhist icon is Siddhārtha Gautama, but one does not surrender to this person.

Buddha means the quality of enlightenment, which is within you, and it also means 'enlightened one', who's teachings you trust (trust upon their merit and not their authority).

Surrender to the enlightenment in yourself, the truth of yourself, and accept that the enlightened one speaks truthfully for your benefit.

The Sangha

Sangha means the spiritual community. You are now part of the community. This surrender within community imbues each of us with the responsibility of being trustworthy and kind, because we have to create safe conditions that are worthy of trust. Of course if this community has malicious intent within it, then the risk of being hurt is such that it is unsafe, unworthy of trust, and it would be unwise to surrender yourself to such conditions. It's up to you and me to ensure the integrity of the sangha, and this is our responsibility.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary

There are foundations to consider before forging ahead, so that your mindful practice is firmly grounded and most fruitful. These are: virtuous morality; the three 'layers' of knowledge/insight and; surrender or 'refuge'.

Please give these your consideration. They are not entirely separate things, and you will see the ways they are connected. For example, morality is basis for the integrity of our community. The 3 truths pertain to surrender in dhamma. Surrender can only be within trust based on merit and integrity.

These preliminaries are not blind following for mere preservation of tradition. They are sensible and practical, and together create the optimum conditions for productive mindfulness practice. If, having taken these things to heart, you may feel a sense of preparedness and readiness to begin.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Last note: I have merely glanced over these preliminaries, so if you wish to be far better informed, just google anything I've mentioned and read up at your leisure.

'You can google it if you want some detail on that, because I don't want to bore everyone with lots of Buddhism.'


If people come to read a Buddhist Thread it's because they are interested in Buddha's Teachings and Buddhism so I would tend to think that they wouldn't be bored with Buddhism. If you find it boring or think it would bore others then Buddhism is not for you.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by sky123

'You can google it if you want some detail on that, because I don't want to bore everyone with lots of Buddhism.'


If people come to read a Buddhist Thread it's because they are interested in Buddha's Teachings and Buddhism so I would tend to think that they wouldn't be bored with Buddhism. If you find it boring or think it would bore others then Buddhism is not for you.

People can google as easily as I can, and I advocate that they do with the understanding of the 3 levels of knowledge I just spoke about.

On your second point: I found that comment personally discouraging and it seemed a little ill-intended. I don't think it is beneficial in any way, and I think it is possible to take greater care, while also understanding the dhamma is universal - true for everyone - and there is no person who dhamma is not for.

[sky]

Originally Posted by Gem

People can google as easily as I can, and I advocate that they do with the understanding of the 3 levels of knowledge I just spoke about.

On your second point: I found that comment personally discouraging and it seemed a little ill-intended. I don't think it is beneficial in any way, and I think it is possible to take greater care, while also understanding the dhamma is universal - true for everyone - and there is no person who dhamma is not for.

' Bore you with Buddhism ' on a Thread for Buddhism I find is very rude and a little discouraging. I would never go to my Local Buddhists Sangha and tell other members that I wouldn't bore them with Buddhism when discussing Buddha's Teachings.....

[jonesboy]

Originally Posted by Gem

I wish to proceed in an orderly way without jumping about, but the 'four pillars of mindfulness' (body, feelings, consciousness, mental contents) are intrinsically interwoven, so these four aspects, being facets of the same thing rather than distinctly separate phenomena, need to be discussed contextually rather than in progressive steps.

These are taught as a progressive steps and are not considered the same thing.

Here is a great example and a meditation I highly recommend.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OEjEeki_Ms

[sky]

Originally Posted by jonesboy

These are taught as a progressive steps and are not considered the same thing.

Here is a great example and a meditation I highly recommend.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8OEjEeki_Ms

It is a good Meditation Teaching, thanks. I love his Mantra ' everything will be ok ' and his chuckles remind me of HHDL

[sky]

The Buddha's most detailed teaching on mindfulness is to be found in the Satipatthana Sutta [Pali]. Sati means ‘mindfulness’ and patthana means ‘application’ or ‘foundation’. There are four of these ‘Applications or Foundations of Mindfulness.’

Training in the four applications or foundations of mindfulness enjoys a special place in the Theravadin tradition. But, the Four Foundations of Mindfulness also form part of the thirty-seven factors of enlightenment on the Mahayana path.

If one practises these four applications of mindfulness according to the basic vehicle, one meditates on:

the impurity of the body,
on the feelings of suffering,
on the impermanence of consciousness, and
on the fact that mental objects are ‘ownerless’ (there is no self to which they belong).
If one practises according to the mahayana, during the meditation session one meditates on the same things as being spacelike, beyond all conceptual constructs. In the post-meditation period one considers them as illusory and dreamlike.

Between the basic yana and the Mahayana approach to this meditation, we may observe a threefold distinction:

1. In the basic yana, the focus is on our own body, feelings, and so forth, while in the mahayana, the focus is also on the bodies, feelings, and so forth, of others.
2. Again, in the basic yana, the focus is on the impurity aspect and so on, while in the mahayana the meditator concentrates on emptiness.
3. Finally, with regard to the purpose of this meditation, in the basic yana the practice is performed with a view to liberation from the impure body and so on, while in the mahayana this meditation is performed in order to attain complete enlightenment.


Note the differences between Theravada and Mahayana....