Buddhism
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On Sati-Sampajanna
So if I am mindful of let's say a sensation or I am just mindful of a specific body part should I label that "event", e.g.: thinking, thinking, touching, touching, seeing, seeing? I am asking because the buddha also said that one should use sati in tandem with comprehension and therefore one should...
So if I am mindful of let's say a sensation or I am just mindful of a specific body part should I label that "event", e.g.: thinking, thinking, touching, touching, seeing, seeing?
I am asking because the buddha also said that one should use sati in tandem with comprehension and therefore one should constantly remind oneself of the three characteristics. So first the labeling and then a short contemplation of the 3 characteristics? How are you guys doing mindfulness in buddhist terms?
Thanks in advance
With metta
Val
(2570 rep)
Jul 14, 2017, 08:30 AM
• Last activity: Jul 15, 2017, 02:09 AM
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Resources for Sutta study/discussion for beginners
What texts would you recommend for sutta discussion sessions, where a majority of the participants will be new to discussing suttas? with metta
What texts would you recommend for sutta discussion sessions, where a majority of the participants will be new to discussing suttas?
with metta
Kaveenga Wijayasekara
(1663 rep)
Jul 14, 2017, 06:29 AM
• Last activity: Jul 15, 2017, 12:09 AM
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What Buddha taught by his knowledge about human life?
Buddha taught that everything is ephemeral and everything is grief. What a seeker should do in the above circumstances?
Buddha taught that everything is ephemeral and everything is grief. What a seeker should do in the above circumstances?
Sambasivan Nagarajan
(21 rep)
Jul 14, 2017, 08:16 AM
• Last activity: Jul 14, 2017, 10:42 AM
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Where to concentrate exactly during meditation?
In a chance I had read 'Mindfulness in Plain English' by the Buddhist monk Venerable H.Gunaratana Mahathera. - It says "After joining inhaling with exhaling,fix your mind on the point where you feel your inhaling and exhaling breath touching.Inhale and exhale as one single breath moving in and out t...
In a chance I had read 'Mindfulness in Plain English' by the Buddhist monk Venerable H.Gunaratana Mahathera.
- It says "After joining inhaling with exhaling,fix your mind on the point where you feel your inhaling and exhaling breath touching.Inhale and exhale as one single breath moving in and out touching or rubbing the rims of your nostrills."
- I have heard about different meditation practices and I doubt that there is no such a point is drawn in Chakra Meditation.
Then,
- What is the purpose of concentrating on the rims of the nostrils ?
- Where I have to concentrate during meditation as a beginner?
- And could you explain the point , "rims of nostrills" ?
Michel
(123 rep)
Jul 14, 2017, 03:30 AM
• Last activity: Jul 14, 2017, 10:23 AM
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Dogen writings on reality and death
What is meant by body mind and the world is born simultaneously ...Buddha nature will never break apart. Do we die or is life eternal.
What is meant by body mind and the world is born simultaneously ...Buddha nature will never break apart. Do we die or is life eternal.
Dedette Gee
(21 rep)
Jul 13, 2017, 12:42 PM
• Last activity: Jul 13, 2017, 09:36 PM
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Why is Metta Practice so Hard?
I find it very difficult to practice metta. I feel completely agitated when I sit to do metta even for a short period of time.is this normal? First I can't feel any metta being generated and I feel like I'm just repeating empty words to people I'm really not quite fond of to be honest.metta practice...
I find it very difficult to practice metta. I feel completely agitated when I sit to do metta even for a short period of time.is this normal? First I can't feel any metta being generated and I feel like I'm just repeating empty words to people I'm really not quite fond of to be honest.metta practice is unbearable i feel the urge to rub my face on sand paper when I do it.I use to think metta was an easy meditation to do as I hear people do it before their main meditation but how can this be,when it so difficult..I don't buy it. Also i found out metta means friendliness and i think this is the problem as I may not be born with this quality.My question is Is metta supposed to be hard? If yes then why is it hard?
Orion
(3162 rep)
Mar 18, 2015, 04:16 AM
• Last activity: Jul 13, 2017, 02:47 PM
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Dhamma riddle? What does it mean?
I found a dhamma riddle below. What do we think it means? [![enter image description here][1]][1] [1]: https://i.sstatic.net/NHWKu.jpg
I found a dhamma riddle below.
What do we think it means?
Paraloka Dhamma Dhatu
(48153 rep)
Jul 11, 2017, 04:02 AM
• Last activity: Jul 11, 2017, 09:33 PM
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Why is mentally reproducing music so hard to control? How can it be counteracted?
I started decreasing the amount of music I listened to before and especially after I started meditating so that I had to cope less with replaying music passages and enjoy a clearer and more silent mind. Even though now I do not actively listen any more music, sometimes I happen to hear some passages...
I started decreasing the amount of music I listened to before and especially after I started meditating so that I had to cope less with replaying music passages and enjoy a clearer and more silent mind. Even though now I do not actively listen any more music, sometimes I happen to hear some passages from a TV, a radio or randomly on the Internet, and on certain occasions, while sitting or doing some work, it happens that a certain "mental process" starts reproducing music fragments that I've been exposed to, or that for some reason - for example, through a synesthetic "link" - I've recollected from the past.
I would like to receive some suggestions, and even some observations based on what fields like neurology, psychology etc. offer when relevant, on how to silence my mind when it tries to reproduce fragments of music automatically.
This question originates from a personal need, but I think that it could apply more generally even to other circumstances and for other people. When several months ago I was trying to weaken this automatic habit of reproducing music in my head, I remember I had to apply myself with perseverance for several days, and that the kind of noise from music seemed unusually stronger than any other I had experienced before.
Acsor
(397 rep)
Oct 30, 2016, 02:20 PM
• Last activity: Jul 11, 2017, 03:24 PM
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What buddhist topics cover the arise of meaning?
I'm convinced that I give meaning to whatever I perceive. Which either can make me suffer or happy. So I have seen that I create my own suffering. That state is reflected in my body (or bodies?). Objective reality holds no meaning it itself. The meaning arises the moment I interpret information. Thi...
I'm convinced that I give meaning to whatever I perceive. Which either can make me suffer or happy. So I have seen that I create my own suffering. That state is reflected in my body (or bodies?). Objective reality holds no meaning it itself. The meaning arises the moment I interpret information. This insight came to me after meditation where I saw things arising from nothing. I could choose to stay in the nothingness by not interpreting, or observe, interpret and meaning arose.
What buddhist topics are related to this phenomenon?
Mike de Klerk
(388 rep)
Jul 11, 2017, 11:42 AM
• Last activity: Jul 11, 2017, 12:37 PM
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Does chanting have a practical and exclusive benefit?
Other chanting answers tend to explain tradition, but this question only concerns practicality. Are the benefits of chanting exclusive, or can your practice easily be full and productive using other techniques? For example, I don't sit lotus for any special reason. Simply to maximize stability and l...
Other chanting answers tend to explain tradition, but this question only concerns practicality.
Are the benefits of chanting exclusive, or can your practice easily be full and productive using other techniques?
For example, I don't sit lotus for any special reason. Simply to maximize stability and lessen distraction while meditating. Could someone develop a great practice sitting in a chair instead? I would guess they could, without necessarily missing something important.
On the contrary, if someone wanted to understand and fully benefit from Buddhism by becoming a master scholar, yet without putting in serious time meditating, I can't see how they'd even really achieve understanding let alone full benefit.
So which is it in this case? Is chanting just one of many paths of practice that is good, but not the only way? Or is it something fundamental such that omitting it is necessarily a detriment?
(if it matters, I most often study metta meditation personally, but often sit with diverse groups where chanting is done)
Lee Whitney III
(143 rep)
Jul 10, 2017, 05:04 PM
• Last activity: Jul 11, 2017, 03:13 AM
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What does "Namaste" mean in Buddhism context and why is it even associated with Buddhism?
A commenter on the [NewBuddhist blog][1] claimed that one should not say Namaste in a Tibetan Buddhist event (in this context). > I remember one time saying "Namaste" while at a Tibetan Buddhist event, and someone quickly pulled me aside and said, "Oh, no-- do not say 'Namaste!' Say, 'Tashi Delek!'"...
A commenter on the NewBuddhist blog claimed that one should not say Namaste in a Tibetan Buddhist event (in this context).
> I remember one time saying "Namaste" while at a Tibetan Buddhist event, and someone quickly pulled me aside and said, "Oh, no-- do not say 'Namaste!' Say, 'Tashi Delek!'"
>
> I'm not entirely sure why I brought that up... perhaps because I'm still confused as to why it was wrong to say Namaste.
>
> -- SillyPutty
I'd like to make a disclaimer that I am not from a Buddhist country so I'm confused. I never even read from anywhere that The Buddha even says this, or is the phrase really Buddhist -- you can imagine my confusion.
Is this a modern phrase? What is its connection to Buddhism?
Bwrites
(215 rep)
Jul 10, 2017, 02:34 AM
• Last activity: Jul 10, 2017, 03:35 PM
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Can a person with harmful thoughts still meditate?
If a person has enemies and wants to take revenge, then can he meditate? Will those thoughts stop the person from meditating even if he doesn't think those things while meditating?
If a person has enemies and wants to take revenge, then can he meditate? Will those thoughts stop the person from meditating even if he doesn't think those things while meditating?
user10568
Jul 9, 2017, 02:51 PM
• Last activity: Jul 10, 2017, 05:03 AM
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6
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What is the true nature of karma?
The more I study and meditate upon karma the more I am convinced that it is a physical thing and not a moral one. The universe is a massive interweaving assemblage of gears and wheels and shafts and cogs. By doing this simple action (we'll call it "X") you create a rippling of reactions as a direct...
The more I study and meditate upon karma the more I am convinced that it is a physical thing and not a moral one.
The universe is a massive interweaving assemblage of gears and wheels and shafts and cogs. By doing this simple action (we'll call it "X") you create a rippling of reactions as a direct result. These are the primary reactions then secondary then tertiary and so on.
Thus the momentum imparted from the original action resulted in countless other effects. And the momentum or propensity of the actions to continue in that general direction is in my opinion the true nature of karma.
Not some altruistic ideology that frowns upon immoral actions and exacts a eventual penalty just for that reason. Now, granted, the ill effects on others from those type of negative actions may create its own karmic momentum. But so many see karma as some sort of cosmic police force and that just isnt the case. At least not as I see it.
Would someone agree or set me straight?
Kauvasara
(942 rep)
Jul 8, 2017, 09:02 PM
• Last activity: Jul 10, 2017, 03:20 AM
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Replacing the hindrances with it's opposite?
> Similarly, wise consideration of the mental liberation of loving kindness (mettā- cetovimutti) counteracts ill will; wise consideration of the elements of effort (ārambhadhātu), exertion (nikkamadhātu), and striving (parakkamadhātu) counteracts sloth and torpor; wise consideration of tranquility (...
> Similarly, wise consideration of the mental liberation of loving kindness (mettā-
cetovimutti) counteracts ill will; wise consideration of the elements of effort
(ārambhadhātu), exertion (nikkamadhātu), and striving (parakkamadhātu) counteracts
sloth and torpor; wise consideration of tranquility (cetaso vūpasama) counteracts
restlessness and worry; and wise consideration of wholesome and unwholesome states
(kusalākusaladhammā) counteracts doubt.6
So lets say i am having ill will thoughts. Do i just replace those thoughts with loving kindness instead?
Or if I am experiencing sloth and torpor, do i just replace and abandon those thoughts with exertion and striving?
Is that how you apply this passage in the real world, by abandoning those thoughts and having one pointed focus on their antidotes?
DeusIIXII
(1012 rep)
Jul 7, 2017, 10:02 PM
• Last activity: Jul 10, 2017, 02:34 AM
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What makes someone enlightened?
Some years ago I somehow managed to stay almost the whole day without any thought, and for several months I used to be in that state of consciousness. I had the breathtaking feeling of emptiness and freedom, there were no ups and downs anymore, I was completely balanced and a profound happiness had...
Some years ago I somehow managed to stay almost the whole day without any thought, and for several months I used to be in that state of consciousness. I had the breathtaking feeling of emptiness and freedom, there were no ups and downs anymore, I was completely balanced and a profound happiness had taken me. I thought I had become a Buddha, but the thoughts started to come in and this state of consciousness faded. What makes someone enlightened?
I read that if you stay 45 minutes without even the subtlest thought crossing your mind you'll be enlightened. Well, I think that is very challenging.
hidekiEduardo
(69 rep)
Mar 2, 2015, 02:27 AM
• Last activity: Jul 9, 2017, 05:51 PM
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Can you do labeling and tai chi?
Im doing mahasi style meditaiton with labeling - is it possible to do thai-chi and this type of noting ? should it be just "moving moving moving" non stop ? also to save me some time - when people usually do thai chi what are they thinking about exactly (if they are good practitioners of thai chi) ?...
Im doing mahasi style meditaiton with labeling - is it possible to do thai-chi and this type of noting ? should it be just "moving moving moving" non stop ?
also to save me some time - when people usually do thai chi what are they thinking about exactly (if they are good practitioners of thai chi) ? cause i tried to find out online and couldnt
why i practice thai chi ? manly as a positive way to pass the time and but also i really want to get some cool out of the norm experiences to help strength my believe in not "normal" scientific stuff
i wanted to gain cool out of the ordinary experiences in meditation to increase my faith and by that my will to meditate more - but i hope maybe thai chi can do it more easily - cause my vipassana practice is just boring no cool nimmitias just good old worries doubts and expectations etc
breath
(1454 rep)
Jul 8, 2017, 08:31 PM
• Last activity: Jul 9, 2017, 06:43 AM
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Karma and the creation of the earth
I believe I've heard that the earth, after periodical destruction, comes into being because because beings with unexpiated karma exist - some of them will need to be born as humans, some as animals. The earth therefore is necessary, and appears. Does anyone recognize this description? References wil...
I believe I've heard that the earth, after periodical destruction, comes into being because because beings with unexpiated karma exist - some of them will need to be born as humans, some as animals. The earth therefore is necessary, and appears.
Does anyone recognize this description? References will be greatly appreciated.
Please note that my question is not about any absolute beginning of being or the universe (that issue firmly remaining unanswered I believe?)
Ishan
(151 rep)
Jul 9, 2017, 12:02 AM
• Last activity: Jul 9, 2017, 02:11 AM
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Difference between Sampajanna and Vipassana
If Sampajanna is clear comprehension and Vipassana is clearly seeing how or are they distinguishable?
If Sampajanna is clear comprehension and Vipassana is clearly seeing how or are they distinguishable?
m2015
(1344 rep)
Jul 7, 2017, 07:34 AM
• Last activity: Jul 8, 2017, 06:55 AM
1
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Is it recommended in Buddhism to know people from other nations and learn their languages
In Islamic quran, we Muslims are asked to know people from other nations and following other religions, we are recommended to learn their languages. Allah said: "O Mankind, We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and tribes that you may know one another." Is there any...
In Islamic quran, we Muslims are asked to know people from other nations and following other religions, we are recommended to learn their languages. Allah said: "O Mankind, We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and tribes that you may know one another." Is there any recommendations in the Buddhism that tells the same? especially for languages learning?
Yazid Erman
(111 rep)
Jul 8, 2017, 04:52 AM
• Last activity: Jul 8, 2017, 05:40 AM
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Impermanence (Anicca) and Mindfulness in general
1. Did the Buddha meant to be attentive all the time or is that just an ideal to strive for? 2. If we are attentive and feel sensations do we always see the impermanence in them? So first to recognize what is going on in- or outside and then seeing the impermanence and potentially the unsatisfactori...
1. Did the Buddha meant to be attentive all the time or is that just an ideal to strive for?
2. If we are attentive and feel sensations do we always see the impermanence in them? So first to recognize what is going on in- or outside and then seeing the impermanence and potentially the unsatisfactoriness in them, right? But wouldn't that decrease pleasures in certain activities/objects?
Val
(2570 rep)
Jul 6, 2017, 09:57 AM
• Last activity: Jul 8, 2017, 05:18 AM
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