Howdy, Stranger!

It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!

Sign In Register
Examples: Monday, today, last week, Mar 26, 3/26/04
Welcome home! Please contact lincoln@icrontic.com if you have any difficulty logging in or using the site. New registrations must be manually approved which may take several days. Can't log in? Try clearing your browser's cookies.

Sharing my experience

betaboybetaboy Veteran
edited June 2011 in Meditation
Namaste,

I did a ten-minute meditation, that of watching the breath. My experience is as follows: As I was watching the breath, thoughts were also floating around. That's all. This went on for about ten minutes, after which I discontinued.

What else must I do?

BB

Comments

  • aMattaMatt Veteran
    Do it again.
  • genkakugenkaku Northampton, Mass. U.S.A. Veteran
    As far as I know, there are only two useful rules in Buddhist practice: Begin and continue. If watching your breath is the practice, then watch and watch and watch some more. And when you have finished watching, watch some more. When there is no more breath to watch ... watch anyway.
  • andyZandyZ
    edited June 2011
    In the process of working with the breath, the thoughts that come up, for the most part, will be just noise, just random thoughts. Sometimes, however, when you're in a crisis or involved in something important in your life, you'll find that the thought, when you let it go, will recur. You let it go again but it comes back, you let it go and it still comes back. Sometimes that needs to happen. Don't treat that as a failure; treat it as another way of practicing. This is the time to let the thought happen, engage it, let it run its full course. But watch it, be aware of it. Allow it to do what it's got to do, let it exhaust itself. Then release it, let it go. Come back again to the breath. Start at one and continue the process. Don't use zazen to suppress thoughts or issues that need to come up.
    .....
    It is also important to be patient and persistent, to not be constantly thinking of a goal, of how the sitting practice may help us. We just put ourselves into it and let go of our thoughts, opinions, positions - everything our minds hold onto. The human mind is basically free, not clinging. In zazen we learn to uncover that mind, to see who we really are.
    http://www.mro.org/zmm/teachings/meditation.php
  • federicafederica Seeker of the clear blue sky... Its better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than to speak out and remove all doubt Moderator
    Moved to the 'Meditation' Forum.
    Simply because you now have to choose the option of where to post a new discussion, it would help if people didn't simply opt for the first one at the top of the list.
    This is clearly about meditation.
    So it would have been far more logical to choose the Meditation forum.

    Wouldn't it....? :rolleyes:
  • santhisouksanthisouk Veteran
    Build on awareness. Let awareness see dukkha in everything, let awareness see the cause of dukkha is craving, and let awareness see into reducing craving to avoid dukkha. One without craving is free from defilement, greed, hatred, and delusions.
  • betaboybetaboy Veteran
    Moved to the 'Meditation' Forum.
    Simply because you now have to choose the option of where to post a new discussion, it would help if people didn't simply opt for the first one at the top of the list.
    This is clearly about meditation.
    So it would have been far more logical to choose the Meditation forum.

    Wouldn't it....? :rolleyes:
    Is this a koan?
  • betaboybetaboy Veteran
    edited June 2011
    Andy,

    That makes sense. Most of the time, they're just random thoughts and normally I'd get 'involved' in them. But when I am watchng the breath, I simply observe them in a detached manner. Guess I have to continue doing this, eh?

    BB
  • personperson Don't believe everything you think The liminal space Veteran
    @betaboy Its about becoming familiar with your mind so you can work with it. Like any skill it takes repetition and practice. Keep at it. :)
  • DhammaDhatuDhammaDhatu Veteran
    edited June 2011
    Keeping practising. Do it again :)
  • AmeliaAmelia Veteran
    Do it again.

    :clap:

  • shoelshoel
    What kind of Meditation are you doing? there are numbers of Meditation in Buddhism.....if you're just breathing in and out..its Samatha meditation
  • TheswingisyellowTheswingisyellow Trying to be open to existence Samsara Veteran
    Your learning to focus and concentrate your mind on the breath. As with anything new, to become proficient, you must practice. You watch the breath, your mind drifts off into thought (that's the minds job, to think thoughts, it's like a dog barking, that's its job) when you notice that, gently return your focus to your breathing. Repeat.
    All the best to your practice,
    Todd :)
Sign In or Register to comment.