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Video 2. Q. Did the Buddha actually ever describe walking meditation?
Q. All those words seem very noisy. Would Anapanasati be acceptable instead while walking?
Q Are you eating enough?
Q. Did the Buddha actually ever describe walking meditation?
Yes, "gacchanto vaa gacchaamiiti pajaanaati" – when walking, he knows fully, "I am walking."
and
"Puna caparaṃ, bhikkhave, bhikkhu abhikkante paṭikkante sampajānakārī hoti" – and again, furthermore o Bhikkhus, a Bhikkhu, when walking up and down, is one who makes himself possessed of full knowledge.
The Buddha even placed guidelines on building walking paths.
Q. All those words seem very noisy. Would Anapanasati be acceptable instead while walking?
No, as anapanasati should be practiced cross-legged. If there arises the thought that clear and full awareness of the true nature of the phenomenon is "noisy", you should replace that thought with the clear and full awareness of the true nature of the phenomenon as "thinking, thinking, thinking".
Q Are you eating enough?
Enough for what?
2) well said. But by "noisy" I meant all the words used for noting,noting, noting.I dont consider words to be "clear and full awareness", but rather thought constructs that separate you from reality, or make you think that the word is more than merely a label.
3) enough to have more than zero bodyfat. Its not healthy, and your students wish you to be around to teach them.
As the Buddha said, it is important to consider carefully… mantra meditation was around in India long before the Buddha and, in truth, has the effect of fixing the mind with the object, whether it be reality or otherwise. In Vipassana meditation, the object is reality; the mantra is for the purpose of fixing the mind on that reality, creating a much clearer and full awareness than the alternative mind fraught with views, conceit and craving.
As for body fat:
'kāmaṃ taco ca nahāru ca aṭṭhi ca avasissatu, sarīre upasussatu maṃsalohitaṃ, yaṃ taṃ purisathāmena purisavīriyena purisaparakkamena pattabbaṃ na taṃ apāpuṇitvā vīriyassa saṇṭhānaṃ bhavissati"
Gladly, may only my skin, tendons and bones remain, may the flesh and blood in this body dry up; having not attained that which may be attained by such human strength, human effort, human exertion, that will be the physique of one who puts out effort.
AN 2.1.5
paṃsukūladharaṃ jantuṃ, kisaṃ dhamanisanthataṃ.
ekaṃ vanasmiṃ jhāyantaṃ, tamahaṃ brūmi brāhmaṇaṃ.
Wearing discarded cloth, the lean creature covered in veins;
alone, meditating in the forest – him I call a holy one.
– Dhp. 395
thanks.
your first quote would appear to be in the Brahmin tradition of shutting down thought, which is only temporary. What about the space between thoughts?
When jack Kornfield asked for advice from HH Dalai Lama, he said"eat more, you look too skinny" (or something like that)Was the quote above from the Buddha before or after the bowl of milk?
>your first quote would appear to be in the Brahmin tradition of shutting down thought, which is only temporary.
I am not sure which quote you are referring to, but vipassana concentration is indeed only momentary. It lasts only long enough to see the impermanent, unsatisfying, uncontrollable nature of the reality on which it fixes (and which lasts only a moment as well).
>What about the space between thoughts?
What about it?
>When jack Kornfield asked for advice from HH Dalai Lama, he said"eat more, you look too skinny" (or something like that)
I'm sorry, I don't follow either of those teachers.
>Was the quote above from the Buddha before or after the bowl of milk?
Well after. It is the same vow He made on the night of his enlightenment, though. It highlights the intrinsic difference between enduring physical hardship and inflicting it upon oneself for no other purpose.
Please consider that this is not meant to be a debate forum, but a weblog. If you would like to continue this dialogue, please send me an email using the contact form I have set up (if I post my email address, it invites spam).
Hi
Thanks for your videos. They look clear and helpful. I think though that you may have a simplified understanding of some forms of mental illness, including depression and insomnia. There are biological forms of depression. They do not originate in the mind, they are primarily neuro-chemical states that result in physical depression: extreme fatigue, slowing of motor and thinking functions, significant changes in sleep and eating patterns. Eventually these abnormalities will distort thinking and emotional states and can disable a person from their normal life. Just as we wouldn't suggest to a diabetic that he meditate to cure his diabetes, we should be careful about suggesting that depression can be 'cured' with meditation. If the depression stems from attitudes, self-identity or other existential roots, then, yes, meditation may be an effective treatment. But some people really need their medications and to suggest that they should go off them and use meditation instead, may bring great harm to them.