Showing posts with label Mindfulness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mindfulness. Show all posts

Recently I wrote, “ John tan sits/meditates two hours a day nowadays 


So anyone without his level of wisdom and insight think we need to sit less than that is seriously deluded lol


Although it is true that post anatta the equipoise and post equipoise is mixed and meditation goes beyond sitting sessions and buddha nature is authenticated in any encounters


This is definitely not an excuse not to sit tho”

Also

Told someone who realised anatta:

https://plumvillage.org/library/sutras/discourse-on-the-full-awareness-of-breathing/


Its impt to get posture etc right too

Go sit at a zen or dharma center if u can

Impt to read and practice this everyday


"Anapanasati (Mindfulness of Breathing) is good. After your insight, master a form of technique that can bring you to the state of anatta without going through a thought process." - John Tan, 2013


“A state of freedom is always a natural state, that is a state of mind free from self/Self. You should familiarize yourself with the taste first. Like doing breathing meditation until there is no-self and left with the inhaling and exhaling... then understand what is meant by releasing.” - John Tan, 2013


“When we practice zazen our mind always follows our breathing. When we inhale, the air comes into the inner world. When we exhale, the air goes out to the outer world. The inner world is limitless, and the outer world is also limitless. We say “inner world” or “outer world,” but actually there is just one whole world. In this limitless world, our throat is like a swinging door. The air comes in and goes out like someone passing through a swinging door. If you think, “I breathe,” the “I” is extra. There is no you to say “I.” What we call “I” is just a swinging door which moves when we inhale and when we exhale. It just moves; that is all. When your mind is pure and calm enough to follow this movement, there is nothing: no “I,” no world, no mind nor body; just a swinging door.” - Zen Master Shunryu Suzuki


http://www.awakeningtoreality.com/2018/10/when-we-practice-zazen-our-mind-always.html


“Even up till longchen's (Sim Pern Chong's) stage [having realised non-duality], meditation is still very important except it should not be form and technique bound. So still sit and meditate. :) Spend quality hours in being naked... and let this continue till you experienced clearly what is the meaning of 'emptiness is form'. it can take 20-30 years. :P You must make it a habit, then you can progress fast. Even after experiencing non-dual, you must still work hard till it stabilizes. One should work harder after non-dual. :P So spend quality minutes in meditations. Don't just talk and ask for knowledge." - John Tan, 2007


Its important to have quality time everyday meditating



John Tan:


“When you are luminous and transparent, don't think of dependent origination or emptiness, that is [the contemplative practice for] post-equipoise. When hearing sound, like the sound of flowing water and chirping bird, it is as if you are there. It should be non-conceptual, no sense of body or me, transparent, as if the sensations stand out. You must always have some quality time into this state of anatta. Means you cannot keep losing yourself in verbal thoughts, you got to have quality hours dedicated to relaxation and experience fully without self, without reservation." - John Tan, 2018


JT:


"After this insight, one must also be clear of the way of anatta and the path of practice. Many wrongly conclude that because there is no-self, there is nothing to do and nothing to practice.  This is precisely using "self view" to understand "anatta" despite having the insight.  


It does not mean because there is no-self, there is nothing to practice; rather it is because there is no self, there is only ignorance and the chain of afflicted activities. Practice therefore is about overcoming ignorance and these chain of afflictive activities.  There is no agent but there is attention. Therefore practice is about wisdom, vipassana, mindfulness and concentration. If there is no mastery over these practices, there is no liberation. So one should not bullshit and psycho ourselves into the wrong path of no-practice and waste the invaluable insight of anatta.  That said, there is the passive mode of practice of choiceless awareness, but one should not misunderstand it as the "default way" and such practice can hardly be considered "mastery" of anything, much less liberation."


“Excerpt from 2012 transcript with Thusness:

Jui asks: (? Question about samadhi)


John: actually what is more important is that background is completely gone. Then when the background is completely gone, you do not have a behind, only the sound. Then your experience becomes most direct, cannot be more direct. Then when you hear the basketball sound, bum bum bum.. only. You understand what I mean? Initially even if you have seen through, there will always be a tendency – you and the basketball. I ever went through a period where I thought that I will not have that problem anymore. After about three months later, it comes back. Then I wondered why does it come back after I have seen through? Then after that, the tendency (comes back?). for yours (me/Soh) it is quite clear, because lucid dream until one can control the three states, it is quite deep already. After the initial insight one needs 4-5 years to have that kind of calibre, you see? So some people are different. So it is sufficiently deep into the mind body tendency. For me, three months after (?) it has a dual sensation, then after still a period (?) after.


Jui: I always hear people say when you see one object you are like the object… but in my experience…


John: In your experience now, your self at the behind will be gone. But you are unable to reach completely mind to object (one pointedness). But your behind disappears. But to zhuan zhu yi ge (be absorbed in one [object]) you are unable to reach, that requires Samadhi state. That is, that behind is gone, but you are one pointed into one object, then with view you will experience maha experience, total exertion. He (me/Soh) is also the same, the behind is gone, no more self, only the sound but there is no self, there is just this, there is just that. That is because the insight has arisen but concentration (?) my way is different. Before insight of anatta I had decades of practicing meditation, then I AM, then meditation, then I AM. My practice is like that. (?) but for you guys, you see clearly first, the behind is gone and your experience becomes very clear and vivid and yet you are unable to concentrate. So you must understand that concentration is different. Peacefulness and releasing is (different), clear vivid awareness is also different. It requires different insights and practice. You still have to meditate, it is impossible that (?) you should be in this stage, you are very clear, the click click sound is felt to be very vivid, then one day you will have total exertion feeling, but you must practice releasing and concentration. When the mind is discursive and wandering, you need practice. your mindfulness/thought needs to be practiced. You need to have a stillness/Samadhi. (to me/Soh) Your stillness is still not enough. Your mind is still having thought after thought, you are unable to have stillness. But your insight is able to reach no self. You are still unable to reach stillness and releasing. It is not a matter of saying then you can reach it, it requires practice.


(Comments by Soh: before my realization of anatta I would do samatha and enter into jhanic bliss [samadhi bliss but not resting in nature of mind], afterwards it is more towards the bliss of no-self luminosity, yet samadhi is still vital)


Me: best way is to practice vipasssana?


John: Vipassana … when it becomes non conceptual and non dual, it is even more difficult like for you, your insight is there, there is no self, yet when you sit you are unable to reach it. Because you need to focus. You need to focus your breath, (otherwise?) unable to reach it. For normal people they are able to reach it even easier. For you it is somewhat more difficult. So I always tell you, for example, for you and him the way of entering is by clear luminosity… feel as clear as possible. For example when you breathe, feel your breathe entirely. So you feel very very clear, just this breath you know. Then you feel the vividness. It is easier to enter this way.


Me: so you are advising Anapanasati?


John: yes of course, then you do many times. But when you do many times you are not counting. Don’t count. Just feel the entire sensation of the breath. You are just that sensation of your breath. Then you are so clear with your entire breath. That whole aircon that touches your nostrils, then going into your lungs. It is just this sensation. This is what we call breath. So you keep on doing. You are very aware of it. Actually it is not you are very aware of lah. This is what I call awareness and the whole thing is awareness, there is no somebody awaring. It is just breath. Then slowly you will have this (Samadhi?), you need to keep doing.”


“Total exertion is shamatha and vipassana into one. It is total focus and involvement of the entire body-mind, of everything. However that requires post-anatta insight.” - John Tan, 2019


Update: John Tan wrote, “[12/2/19, 12:07:49 AM] John Tan: This part is not exactly correct (about the statement made above on total exertion)

[12/2/19, 12:09:53 AM] John Tan: Can be said to be effortless yet whole-hearted involvement. But more importantly is like anatta, a perception shift.”


“The best way to still your mind is to observe your breath. To calm yourself you must learn to first follow your breath. Then be mindful genuinely of how the breath flow and how abdominal breathing helps. Don't listen to people, experience with your own mindfulness and test... Feel how chest breathing is hindering your breath. You must experiment yourself..” - John Tan, 2019

 

    When I first start to learn meditation, with the goal of awakening, my teacher gave me only 2 books to read
    1) satipathanna by bikkhu analayo
    2) seeing that frees by Rob Burbea.
    .
    I re look at satipathanna Sutta again today.
    the Buddha says.
    “In this way he remains focused internally on the body in and of itself . . . This is how a monk remains focused on the body in and of itself.”
    “ In and of itself. “
    Wow. The secret is already there in the sutta. Some translations are not that clear..
    .
    The Buddha meant -
    One should practise knowing the body from the perspective of “the body knowing the body”,
    Not from “you” knowing the body.
    And the whole sutta is worded like that.
    In short——- > The body knows
    The sound knows
    The sight sees
    The touch knows
    This is made clear in master thich nhat hant translation and commentary , others not so much, they overlook this part a lot.
    Everyone serious about awakening should take a look at thich nhat hant’s commentary.
    .
    .
    .
    The satipathanna sutta is pretty much the enlightened state of the Buddha.
    There is no mention of a self.
    It is irrelevant.
    Just these aggregates knowing itself in itself by itself.
    Freely.
    .
    .
    .
    And at the end of the sutta
    A bold promise is made-
    With this practise one could get enlightenment as fast as 7 days.
    Just like the bold statement Mahasi Sayadaw made in his treatise.
    Don’t read all the 1000 plus sutra.
    Read and fully practise this one and you will have the realisation of the Buddha.
    If you need one whole life to actualise this sutta, do it. Don’t divert . It is enlightenment.
    Actualise it.
    Buddha didn’t teach anything for you to memorise and debate.
    He wanted to wake you up.
    It was a manual and instruction.
    Homage to the Blessed one.
    Who taught so clearly and so directly.
    Homage to master Thich nhat hant,
    Who fully present to us the Buddha’s intent
    ❤️

    9 Comments


    Jachym Jerie
    Are you recommending the Analayo version or the one by tnh? If the latter what's the title?


    Yin Ling
    Jachym Jerie analayo one is very dry, it’s a scholars perspective, less experential, it was tough reading.
    Thich nhat hant one is the best , he always teaches experentially, even though he is such an eminent scholar , he is also a great practitioner.
    If you are a practitioner you would want to read thict NH
    I have thich nhat hant awakening of the heart which he comments on a few landmark sutra and satipatthana is one of them,
    Not sure if he has a specific one for this sutta.
    I am so grateful for master thich nhat hant 🙂


  • Lee Shi Han
    Can you awaken without reading anything?


    Yin Ling
    Good Q hahah. Depends also on level of awakening.
    There are cases of ppl like eckhart tolle and Byron Katie who seems to wake up suddenly due to intense depression
    But their accoutn of awakening is not the enlightenment taught by the Buddha. It is midway perhaps
    For me imo it is v hard. I haven’t hear of anyone who come to the truth without gruelling work bec the truth is too radical and the conditioning too deep.
    Then again i also cannot say a blanket impossible it is just super rare


  • Sam Roff
    Have you read Joseph Goldstein's 'Mindfulness: a practical guide to Awakening' Yin? I believe A recommends it. Found it to be a wonderful commentary on the Sattipathanna. Although I might revisit it because I read it in a phase of very much intellectualising. Or Thich Nhat Hahns book.
    Is this the one you're talking about btw? https://www.amazon.com/Transformation.../dp/1888375620
    Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness
    AMAZON.COM
    Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness
    Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness


    Yin Ling
    I had the “awakening of the heart”, this looks good as well will download . All TNH BOOKS are good hehe.
    Yup A made me study Joseph Goldstein book mainly the awakening factors part, I forgot about satipathanna inside haha I will revise thanks for that reminder 🙂 🙂


  • Sam Roff
    You're very welcome!


  • Ng Xin Zhao
    Read this last year. Now it made sense and gels with what you kept on saying, don't have subject and object.
    SUTTACENTRAL.NET
    suttacentral.net | 502: Bad gateway
    suttacentral.net | 502: Bad gateway


    Yin Ling
    Ng Xin Zhao yeah I think the Buddha is talking about the split of subject object here.
    There’s no split just dependent arising. Each sensation just dependently arise from many conditions being eye consciousness, eye, object, light, sun, karma etc etc
    The 12 ayatanas and 18 dhatus teaching talked about this - many conditions brought to arising of one “thing/ sensation” and hence becusse it dependent arise like that the “thing” does not even exist out there.
    Super radical once understsnd 😂
    It is a shocking teaching from the Buddha and I’m not sure if ppl gets what he is getting at.

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