Mindfulness goes further than you think

[A human Being]

Originally Posted by JustASimpleGuy

It's an odd place where time, space and mind don't seem to exist in the way we normally experience them and I'm always surprised when the timer goes off because it seems like I just started though I "know" I was sitting in that space for some time.

I've heard others on the forum talking about this sort of thing and it always sounds intriguing, but without having had the experience myself I tend to be left wondering what the value of it is, exactly. That's not to try to imply that it doesn't have value, I'm just curious.

Originally Posted by A human Being

I've heard others on the forum talking about this sort of thing and it always sounds intriguing, but without having had the experience myself I tend to be left wondering what the value of it is, exactly. That's not to try to imply that it doesn't have value, I'm just curious.

As far as I can determine that is the entry to Samadhi, and the more often one sits in that state while practicing the more of that state is present while not practicing. Same with basic mindfulness. The more one practices the more mindful one is outside of practice.

What's the value of it? I suppose it depends but one value is it's the non-dual state of awareness. In essence it is the end-goal of meditation and that's Enlightenment. That's always been the ultimate purpose of meditative practices. Liberation from suffering.

If one wishes to hit a 95 MPH fastball one has to practice enough so it's second-nature and without thinking. Flow state.

Just from the mindfulness perspective there's an amazing difference in quality of life when one practices daily vs. taking several months off. I know because I've been through that cycle several times. I think the Buddhist equivalent to Samadhi might be the Jhanas? In any case both are profound states of consciousness and do transcend time, space, body and mind. Transcend suffering.

I would also say it's a continuum. It's not an instant transition from suffering to no suffering but a lessening of reactive suffering over time. That seems like a good motivation.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by JustASimpleGuy

I don't know because aside from what I read I have no first-hand experience with the Yoga Sutras.

To be honest I don't even pay much mind to seeing things just as they are. I just practice technique as best as I can and sometimes find myself in that place where everything seems to drop out. It's an odd place where time, space and mind don't seem to exist in the way we normally experience them and I'm always surprised when the timer goes off because it seems like I just started though I "know" I was sitting in that space for some time.

Me too, I don't know anything about Yoga Sutras and I'm not curious enough to find out. Sometimes I'm surprised when the timer goes off (seems so quick), and sometimes an hour takes sooooo long.

[A human Being]

Thanks for elaborating, JASG.

Originally Posted by Gem

Me too, I don't know anything about Yoga Sutras and I'm not curious enough to find out. Sometimes I'm surprised when the timer goes off (seems so quick), and sometimes an hour takes sooooo long.

Yeah, sometimes it seems like the timer should have gone off hours ago even though I generally don't sit for more than 45 minutes. LOL!

And sometimes it's a mixed bag with periods of timelessness mixed in with periods where I'm aware of time.

There's something very interesting during those particularly fruitful sittings when it's effortless almost from start to finish. Even though the timer seems to go off just after I start that's not how it "feels" while sitting. It doesn't seem short or long if you know what I mean. It's a different awareness and the only way I can think back on it is everything drops out. Time, space, body and mind but there's still awareness undisturbed. Supremely content or serene. This is true whether it's a mindfulness or effortless sitting and why I conclude different techniques can bring one to that very same "space".

[ayar415]

Originally Posted by Gem

Mindfulness concerns the truth, and it has nothing to do with what anyone wants/doesn't want.

The truth of what?
I am mindful of my place in the world. What has it got to do with truth?

[Gem]

Originally Posted by ayar415

The truth of what?
I am mindful of my place in the world. What has it got to do with truth?

It's very philosophical, truth, but 'this is how it is' is the immediate known.

[wstein]

Originally Posted by Gem

G'day

The reason mindfulness is simple is it takes things away and strips everything down until there is only present awareness of your experience as it is.
...

[advanced]
The following is not to detract from the benefits of removing distractions and fantasies; most notably that of ego, emotions, and mind.

Note that 'mindfulness practice' is a doing whereas being present is a 'being' state. I believe that is the intended end goal of mindful practice but I have never seen it explicitly stated.

The limitation of mindfulness is that it traps you in 'experience'. It is heavily based in sensory input from physical (manifest) reality. As a 'spirit' most extend beyond the physical but this ignored in most mindfulness techniques.

[Gem]

Originally Posted by wstein

[advanced]
The following is not to detract from the benefits of removing distractions and fantasies; most notably that of ego, emotions, and mind.

Note that 'mindfulness practice' is a doing whereas being present is a 'being' state. I believe that is the intended end goal of mindful practice but I have never seen it explicitly stated.

The limitation of mindfulness is that it traps you in 'experience'. It is heavily based in sensory input from physical (manifest) reality. As a 'spirit' most extend beyond the physical but this ignored in most mindfulness techniques.

Since people are generally in a perpetual state of volition or reactivity, mindfulness has been formalised into meditation practices such as breath awareness or other non-volitional observations as a means of coming back to where you really exist.
People always want a mystical experience, but in reality, 'this' experience may or may not be mystical in nature. Either way, experience is passing, changing, and therefore inconsequential. It seems consequential, so the tendency is adverse reactions to mundane and discomfort and craving for special or pleasurable experiences, which incites the volition that 'feeds' ego. The essential aim is the cessation of reactivity, and thereby the volition that regenerates ego from moment to moment.
The method is quite simple because it is the cessation of doings as opposed to more doing, but 'we know not what we do', which makes it more complex.

Since I practice both mindfulness and an effortless technique (Shikantaza, Do Nothing, Choiceless Awareness, Resting in Awareness) I don't see it as an either/or proposition. In fact I think they are enormously complimentary.

https://deconstructingyourself.com/n...ndfulness.html