Antero's practice journal 4

The purpose of all the mental gymnastics involving states like jhanas, no-self, non-duality, witness, being-one-with-everything or whatever we do to alter the experience however subtly, is to finally realize how unnecessary it is. When we have done enough of that, the mind just don't want to take it anymore and it feels painful.

Techniques and methods have served their purpose and it is time to discover what does not hurt.

And rest.

And rest.

Being aware when there is even the slightest deviation from This.

And back to resting.

That sounds very right to me, though i'm not far enough to really know. I think of it in a slightly different way, though.
Life before starting a practice is full of constant attempts to alter experience, though they are perhaps less skilled and definitely less conscious.
Thus, one might say that the point of techniques is to make the habit of manipulating experience into something conscious and understood and fully seen.
One can then see (i think), that it was always painful to manipulate experience.
And since the manipulating has become conscious and understood and fully seen, it becomes possible to stop doing it.

And rest.

I like, really like, Antero's description. It rings dead on for me. If not his version, how about we use the he word tension, or unsatisfactoriness? It's one of the three characteristics but the usual name applied to this one is "suffering."

If it was my you were replying to: sure.
The thing i was trying to say was: Before i had the any experience with meditation, i did not simply rest without the slightest deviation from This. Something was going on that caused me to not simply rest. This could also also be called altering experience.

note: really, i was not reacting to what antero was saying, but to a certain way of describing the practice which says that there is nothing to be done, ever. I think it is most common in some advaita circles. Will try to notice better when i'm not actually responding to what is being said, but instead to something remembered.

I think, Villum, that you are in a place where things just seem complicated, where the simpler answer isn't sufficient, where it all gets jumbled and hard to track. That's part of the ride, my friend. It happens to all of us

From Ken McLeod's site Unfettered Mind, Tilopa's advice:

"Don't recall.
Don't imagine.
Don't think.
Don't examine.
Don't control.
Rest.

This advice consists of only six words in Tibetan. The above translation was developed to capture its brevity and directness. Some years ago, I also developed the translation shown below, which some people prefer:

Let go of what has passed.
Let go of what may come.
Let go of what is happening now.
Don't try to figure anything out.
Don't try to make anything happen.
Relax, right now, and rest. "

Sums it up pretty well. So simple, but often, so difficult.
B.

"From Ken McLeod's site Unfettered Mind, Tilopa's advice:

"Don't recall.
Don't imagine.
Don't think.
Don't examine.
Don't control.
Rest."


@B.Rice

Perfect.
Thank you B for this quote!


@Villum and cmarti

Thank you guys for sharing your views on the issue!

Principle of Least Effort

'In physics, the path of least resistance is always taken by objects moving through a system. For example, water flowing downhill follows the path of least resistance as it is pulled downward by gravity.'

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Path_of_least_resistance


The development in meditation seems to follow this rule. Once the mind is sufficiently accustomed to resting at the point of least effort, it will continue to dwell there regardless of the outer conditions. The amount movement needed to regain that position, if it is momentarily lost, becomes smaller.

Yesterday I sat with the group at work and the injury at my back gave me some pain. Instead of shifting the position I looked at those unpleasant sensations closely. The closer I looked, the harder it was to say if the sensations were pleasant, neutral or unpleasant.

To my surprise this resulted in a state of absorption which deepened and developed into eight different states that felt very similar to each other. They had some features that I knew. Then came a state of brightness and tranquility.


To be continued:

kennethfolkdharma.wetpaint.com/thread/49...s+practice+journal+5