Staying mindful for a longer time

Supertramp

Greetings,

I have a problem - both when meditating and when not meditating - to stay mindful on something. I supposed this is normal for beginners like me but I seem to be stuck in a never ending cycle.

For example I see something which triggers an emotion (jealousy, greed, anger, etc) I am pretty quick to be mindful about this experience. However, this mindfulness never lasts long because after a while I start categorizing that experience as good or bad. Then, when I realise I'm categorizing this experience as good or bad, I am mindful about the fact that I'm doing that. But even that doesn't last long because rather quickly I categorize the fact that I categorize this experience as something bad, as something bad. And so on, and so on.

The same happens when meditating, only during meditation it's easier to go back to paying attention to my breathing instead of getting stuck in that circle for a longer time.

Does anybody have any advice for this?


Thanks in advance

ps. I posted this in the beginner section rather than in the meditation section because my main concern is when it happens outside meditation. I realise that during meditation I should focus on my breathing (or atleast, I think that's what I have to do. )
ps2. I tried to search for a topic related to this using the search function (because I realise I'm not the first person to run into this problem so it probably has already been asked here), but I couldn't find anything in the first x results since it searches posts and not threads.

Cloud

Observe your in- and out- breathing throughout all of your waking moments, experiencing each breath fully while you go about your daily tasks. This is a Samatha-Vipassana technique that is popular in the Thai Forest Tradition. It develops calm as well as detaching mind and mind-objects, which results in greater mindfulness and clarity.

Jeffrey

I think the discomfort is because you are pressuring yourself. The nature of mind is to diffuse and focus. Even if you were a buddha that would be true.

What you have to learn is to expect such things. Rejoice when you DO come back to mindfulness.

But the suffering you experience is caused by pressuring yourself and the expectation (thinking) to be 'better' 'more enlightened' 'more mindful' 'more advanced'.

Don't think that you are having the wrong experience.

buddhajunkie

You aren't doing anything wrong. Just stay mindful of the categorization process.

"Mindfulness of feelings" is about noticing how your mind categorizes things as either good, bad or neutral. This is important to do and goes all the way back to the Satipattana Sutta (Part II), the primary meditation teaching of the Buddha.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.010.nysa.html

Jeffrey

I also sense that you have a 'watcher' idea. Notice that this is just thinking. Your experience is as it is and the construct of a watcher is just additional thinking. The feeling that something is amiss is worth noticing. By relaxing and opening to that feeling. Getting curious about it and noticing it. Rather than thinking that you have done something wrong. From that space is mindfulness. And by noticing what is there you will naturally see the connections of why you feel that way. It is like a chrysillis and a butterfly will eventually emerge. But monkey mind is telling you that a chrysillis should open now.

Just let the beans soak in the water for awhile. They will get tender. There is a method to the madness.