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Vipassana Meditation

kukinekukine
edited November 2010 in Meditation
I just wanted to start a new thread about vipassana meditation in general, so I'd like to begin with a question.
I have been doing this practice along with zazen for a few months now, but I am finding a problem with using the breath as an anchor. Whenever a thought appears I find myself going directly to the breath automatically. It's almost as if the thought is buried quickly by a black fog and I feel like I'm "spacing out" in the breath.
So my question is, is it possible to 'let go' of the breath as an anchor and instead stay mindful of thinking/mind states/the body exclusively, being mindful of the clinging of the mind when it is wild instead of just going back to the breath?

Thanks in advance guys :D

Comments

  • GlowGlow Veteran
    edited July 2010
    Yes, you can definitely shift awareness away from the breath to other aspects of your experience, including thoughts, feelings and body sensations. Here is a chapter from Gil Fronsdal's book The Issue At Hand on mindfulness of thoughts: http://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/books-articles/the-issue-at-hand/chapter15/
  • kukinekukine
    edited July 2010
    Wow, thanks! That was a big help! How long have you been doing the practice? Are you exclusively vipassana or doing a little of this and that?
  • GlowGlow Veteran
    edited July 2010
    Hi kukine. Glad it helped. :) I've been practicing for about fifteen years now. I do a bit of everything but focus primarily on mindfulness/vipassana meditation (on the breath, body, feelings, and thoughts -- observing each helps to discover more about how the mind/body complex works) and metta (lovingkindness) meditation. Sometimes I throw in a death meditation. I've done zazen in the past, but I found the more explicit instruction I got from the insight meditation teachers a bit easier to understand.
  • DaltheJigsawDaltheJigsaw Mountain View Veteran
    edited November 2010
    What exactly is a death meditation Glow?
    Thanks!
  • coolbird_1coolbird_1
    edited November 2010
    Glow, your story is definitely inspiring because fifteen years is a long time to continue the wonderful journey of meditation. I am now starting to do meditation on a daily basis as I am now more focused on continuity then anything. The question I have for you is how long should I stick to one meditation practice before switching to another one. Like I want to practice vippassana, but I am have not been able to attain stillness from my anapanasati. Is there a time limit or should I continue until I have attained stillness? By stillness, I mean, samatha, deep concentration. I have been meditating off and on for 3 years now, but I am now changing my approach to meditating continuously. Thanks for any help you may give.
  • BrandonBrandon
    edited November 2010
    i love gil fronsdale's teachings! Him and Hyon gak sunim

    heres the sutta that explains mindfulness

    http://www.pdf-searcher.com/Satipatthana-Vipassana.html#
  • GlowGlow Veteran
    edited November 2010
    LeonBasin wrote: »
    What exactly is a death meditation Glow?
    Thanks!
    Death meditation (mindfulness of dying - "maranassati" in Pali) is simply establishing mindfulness of the inevitability of one's own death. The simplest way I've seen it taught was by Pema Chodron. She had her students reflect on this sentence: "If death is life's only certainty, but the time of death is uncertain, what is the most important thing right now?" Alternatively, there is the Buddha's instruction in the suttas to cultivate a palpable sense of one's death during the act of breathing.
    coolbird_1 wrote: »
    Glow, your story is definitely inspiring because fifteen years is a long time to continue the wonderful journey of meditation. I am now starting to do meditation on a daily basis as I am now more focused on continuity then anything. The question I have for you is how long should I stick to one meditation practice before switching to another one. Like I want to practice vippassana, but I am have not been able to attain stillness from my anapanasati. Is there a time limit or should I continue until I have attained stillness? By stillness, I mean, samatha, deep concentration. I have been meditating off and on for 3 years now, but I am now changing my approach to meditating continuously. Thanks for any help you may give.
    It really depends on what is holding you back. When I first started, I tried various schools of meditation. The insight meditation teachers just happened to be the ones that made the most sense to me. In your case, I would see if there some sort of confusion preventing your progress. I think focusing too much on attaining samatha might be hindering you. See this teaching by Ajahn Brahmavamso. It might help to hear/read the meditation instructions articulated by different teachers. Some will make sense to you while others may be more cryptic.
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