Meditate on...

intothedreaming

I keep reading things that say to "meditate on Impermanence", or "meditate on Death." How do you meditate on something? I thought the point of meditating was to clear your mind and follow your breath. If I were to meditate on impermanence, I would just feel like I am thinking about impermanence, and not necessarily meditating on anything.

How do you do it without thinking about it?

NomaDBuddha

My guess is that you bring the subject, be it death or impermanence, in front of your mind, and you concentrate on that thing, until your mind is free and clear. That's how I see it, and that's what I experience during meditation.

still_learning

As I understand it, meditation isn't about clearing your mind of EVERYTHING, just clear your mind of random useless impulsive thoughts.

So that you can meditate clearly and truthfully on the topic you want.

Anybody, feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

jinzang

Meditation does not have to be free of thinking. (If it does, I and most meditators are in a lot of trouble!) In the case of meditation on impermanence, there is a list of points to consider, traditionally ten. At best, you memorize the list. If not, read it. Think about each of the points and see if it is true. Think how it applies to you and notice your reaction to it. Continue the practice until you are firmly convinced everything is momentary and contingent on causes and conditions.

Incidentally, meditation on impermanence was the first kind of meditation I tried to do, based on the explanation in Edward Conze's book, Buddhist Meditation.

patbb

jinzang wrote: »

Meditation does not have to be free of thinking. In the case of meditation on impermanence, there is a list of points to consider, traditionally ten. At best, you memorize the list. If not, read it. Think about each of the points and see if it is true. Think how it applies to you and notice your reaction to it. Continue the practice until you are firmly convinced everything is momentary and contingent on causes and conditions.

Incidentally, meditation on impermanence was the first kind of meditation I tried to do, based on the explanation in Edward Conze's book, Buddhist Meditation.

that should be called: "reflecting on a subject while in a state of enhanced stillness", not meditation.

meditation is free of mental chatting, but eventually you realize that you do not need that talking chatting box in your head to think clearly; in fact, that chatting box is detrimental for seeing clearly and understanding.

RichardH

Meditating on something is like using training wheels. It is a helpful hook to hang your mind on, as are such helpful conceptual reflections as "this is how it feels right now, this is how it is". Eventually all these training wheels , these places to set your mind, fall away. Then there is meditation without a subject or object. This is more a Zazen approach, others may do things differently. With this approach, the totality of the present experiencing , at once, is the "object". "Object" here is in quotes because everything called "me" and "I" is included in the single sense of how it is right now. Just this.

This subjectless, objectless practice just goes on. There is no progress, just a gradual natural clarifying.

intothedreaming

Wow...this is really deep stuff. Thanks for the replies, everyone.

jinzang, what is the list of ten points?

pegembara

intothedreaming wrote: »

I keep reading things that say to "meditate on Impermanence", or "meditate on Death." How do you meditate on something? I thought the point of meditating was to clear your mind and follow your breath. If I were to meditate on impermanence, I would just feel like I am thinking about impermanence, and not necessarily meditating on anything.

How do you do it without thinking about it?

Impermanence is just directly observed wordlessly as the coming and going of thoughts, feelings, perception and sensations, in fact all conditioned phenomena.

Death meditation or maranasati is a contemplation of one's own death or impermanence.

A Meditation on Death


Like the flame blown out by the wind,
This life of ours is headed for destruction.
Seeing the cycle of birth and death in all things
Mindfulness of death is a skill we need to use.

Just as people who have achieved great wealth and fame
Must surely fall in death.
This thing called death will not leave me behind;
Death is always beckoning me to follow.

Death is the true companion of birth
And never far behind,
Searching for an opening
Like a samurai in battle.

It's course cannot be changed
This life we call our own,
Is rushing to its end
Like the sun moving form east to west.

Death takes those from us who are great in strength and wisdom,
No need to speak of one like me.
Because this life of mine lacks in so many ways
I die in every moment with little chance of a good rebirth.

Our life is filled with so much uncertainty
Its length cannot be known.
It is difficult just to stay alive, each day
Filled with the fear and anguish of the death about to come.

There is no chance that life shall not end in death.
Having reached old age what can be next,
Death is part of our true nature.
As the nature of fruit is to fall when ripe.

Just as a potters jar must break and turn to dust
So to these bones of ours will one day break and end the same way.
The young, the old, the foolish and the wise,
The hand of death is always open;
The end is known for sure.

Impermanent is all conditioned things,
All things rise and fall away,
Conditions give us birth,
Conditions give us death.

This body and mind of ours, will soon be lying on the ground
Like a useless piece of drift wood, washed upon the shore.
Our consciousness will vanish, the mind will not be there,
Just like a bubble bursting on the water, turning into air.

We came into this world without an invitation, and
We don't need to ask permission when its time for us to leave.
We rise to birth that always ends in death;
we come just as we go.

Does the candle shed a tear when the flame goes out?
Don't be sad, be mindful.

DairyLama

intothedreaming wrote: »

If I were to meditate on impermanence, I would just feel like I am thinking about impermanence, and not necessarily meditating on anything.

There are 2 main approaches. Either reflect on impermanence as others have described, or observe impermanence by watching the mind. In both cases it's really useful if you can first calm the mind, eg by doing some mindfulness of breathing.

P