While searching some Buddhist inspired pictures of Naraka I often found hell guards torturing others... Question is where are they on the rebirth cycle. Are they ausras? And if they are created to hurt people how can they ever find a good rebirth.

I think the question is clear so no further explanation is needed.

In Buddhism, we believe in rebirth and karma. But was there a time when it was our first time in any of the 31 Planes of Existence? If that is the case, how would we be reborn anywhere since we did not have any karma to pay off? If that is not the case, how were we just infinitely here?

During meditation sessions, morning 4 to 5, I have started watching myself everywhere. I didn't experienced it before. The garden where I am used to take a morning walk after meditation, there I saw my duplicates, same me in different-2 attire, casual-formal-pyjamas-with friends-cycling. There was a moment in real world when I thought that if I could see everyone as me then I can percieve real peace. I think that thought merged into meditation and showed me the same but it was very different. I was so attached to myself when no one other was present as a special appearance. I want to know 'was that of my thought was wrong or right ?

I observe very strong sensations even post meditation. They are strong at some time and some time subtle. I am alternating between apanana and vipasana. I would like to understand why they are so strong at times.

I saw a question about rapid eye movement when meditating, which from what I know is similar to REM sleep and the experience I had is a little bit different. As the title says I get the eye movement with in a few seconds and the only difference is the top of both my eyes hurt a little and can be distracting sometimes. Is it good that I can get this so fast? Does it mean some kind of raise in consciousness or even more concentration may come soon? I have only recently noticed this this week and I meditate about 20 minutes.

In Karma-Chagme's book, "A Spacious Path to Freedom", he emphasizes the importance of correct posture in directing the vital energies to the central channel. In particular, he mentions (1) the tongue pressed against the pallet, (2) the teeth lightly touching, & (3) gaze directed 4 finger lengths beyond the tip of the nose. I find that when I try to incorporate these three elements of posture into my practice I quickly store up tension in my jaw and throughout my face in general. Additionally, keeping the gaze correctly placed is a full-time task that tends to excite the vital energies rather than relax the body. How can I balance keeping a correct posture while maintaining a relaxed attitude of effortless non-striving?

This [Life of the Buddha](http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/buddhism/lifebuddha/2lbud.htm) (also mentioned among Wikipedia's [Miracles of Gautama Buddha](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracles_of_Gautama_Buddha)) says, > According to the legends about this birth, the baby began to walk seven steps forward and at each step a lotus flower appeared on the ground. Then, at the seventh stride, he stopped and with a noble voice shouted: > > > "I am chief of the world, Eldest am I in the world, Foremost am I in the world. This is the last birth. There is now no more coming to be." However I feel like the legend is far-fetched from the truth. Any comments or alternative views are very welcome.

I have read that anxiety/worry is unwholesome. Is this because it is a form of aversion, one of the three unwholesome roots, or something else?

I am looking for a proper translation of the Tikapatthana into English which might be available online as a PDF. Is it possible to point me to such reference. I am looking for the complete set.

I struggle tremendously with ADHD despite years of exploring traditional and nontraditional treatments. There are certainly many different kinds of meditation one can practice, so I was wondering what kind of meditation works best for creating lasting focus and a higher attention span in the mind.

Two slightly related questions: Is it considered against standard Buddhist doctrine to meditate with music? In particular, "meditation music" - where it's calm, relaxing, peaceful, etc. I'm fairly new to all this; my meditation practice is hardly a year old, although getting stronger and more consistent; I don't have an overwhelming urge to meditate to music, but wondered what light could be shed on the subject from the perspective of the teachings. I am committed to undertaking this path as purely as possible, as it was laid out by the Buddha himself. But I enjoy music and find it draws me into certain mental states that could be useful to cultivate. What should I do when the inevitable song pops up in my thoughts? This is something I've noted for years (I'm quite musically inclined)...I always seem to have some sort of tune running through my head. Now, when I sit, it becomes much more noticeable than when I'm doing something more secular...say, standing in line at the store, or performing some task at work. I suppose that the tune could become the focus of some mindfulness meditation and help develop concentration. OTOH I can see how it would be considered yet-another-thought, and one that should be avoided dwelling on (unless it happened to be the focus of the meditation). I don't know how useful it would be for insight meditation however. Is there an official stance in the teachings on this? I hope this is not considered a useless question.

What exactly is the theory of jhana, how does it come about and how does it relate to the buddhist practice and everyday life? feel free to answer in depth.

There is the much talked about example of "zen sickness". But I wondered can any buddhist theory or practice can ever be harmful to a human? I'm looking for an answer from anyone, not necessarily a Buddhist perspective. Though, of course, I'd be dismissive of anything unreasonable.

As we know fourth precept is the one precept that the Bodhisatta has never said to have broken since he started cultivating Paramita. When I need to prevent a Buddhist person form lying, I state the above statement. And that is the reason that I was also prevented by telling lies. But if we need to prevent a non-Buddhist person from telling lies or going against fourth precept, how can we do. How can we motivate him/her not to lie?

I started meditating recently formally, after a while of non-formal meditation, and I'm realizing that the objects I meditate on, either the breath or an image, are extremely faint. In the case of the breath, I barely can tell whether I'm on the breath or some other object, and it is hard for me to switch my attention to the sensations at the nostrils. In the case of an image, it is extremely faint and hard to distinguish. My questions are as follows: 1) Should I continue with the breath, hoping it will become clearer despite not knowing if I'm truly focused upon it, or should I switch to a visual imagined object? 2) Should I keep meditating despite the faintness of these objects of focus or is there a way to dispel this dullness outside of formal meditation? Are there any tips or techniques to do so? Thank you in advance.

I'm having a certain trouble in meditation being aware of both my feelings and emotions. The feelings, as in vedana, aren't so inaccessible to me but my emotions are particularly hard to discern. I'm wondering whether the practice of mindfulness of vedana will help me discern my emotions more, or whether emotions are a different thing alltogether.

In most religions forgiving each other or by God is very common but is in Buddhism forgiving something wiht any value? If so what does it really mean, what does it effect and how is it done?

I've found that it is pleasant and exciting to work towards a goal, for example: wanting to run a 21km race, imagining the crowds, imagining the personal accomplishment. This requires a certain amount of dissatisfaction with your current situation (I can only run 5km, I need to train more). However, what I understand from Buddhism is that this attachment to an end result in the future causes suffering. Does one live with some attachment and accept it, or is it something to be avoided entirely?

I am meditating on a daily basis since a couple of months. I noticed having ups and downs in my meditation, probably mostly caused by the amount of sati or (on the other side) stress I had during the day. But I am also experiencing sittings, where I am just overwhelmed by the hindrances and not even able to recognize them properly. What is the best way to deal with these extreme states of mind (in meditation)?