Dhamma Letter No. 96
Dhamma Letter No. 96
Satipatthana 20 : Kayanupassana 11, The posture 2 : Sitting posture2 (Vipassana)
In Vipassana meditation (Sati practice), the most important thing is to separate the mind from the objects and try to observe each object objectively. (Dhamma letter No. 82)
If you look at this body from head to toe while sitting, you will find parts that are moving on their own. This is the movement of the abdomen (or chest) by breathing. When you inhale, your abdomen rises, and when you exhale, your abdomen goes in. It is also important to constantly observe the feelings that appear in the process of movement.
Naming 'rising' and 'disappearing' with the mind is a way to easily drive the mind while moving the abdomen so that the mind stays on the object. If the naming gets in the way, you can observe the feeling by moving the abdomen without giving it a name.
Gaze at the belly is observing the breath, but also looking into in detail the various phenomena that occur in the moving abdomen due to breathing. It is important to see exactly how the movement or feeling changes as the belly rises and disappears, and the process of that change. You can see the change in detail only when your mind is closely attached to the object.
If you observe the movement of the abdomen, many other phenomena such as ‘pain’, ‘itching’, and ‘numbness’ occur in different parts of the body. When these phenomena occur, the meditator shifts their attention to the most prominent one among them. The object of meditation changes depending on where the mind is focused.
If you keep looking closely at a phenomenon in this way, you will see the state and change processes of the phenomenon, and you will see the phenomenon disappear.
If you observe the phenomenon of the abdomen, you will find yourself wandering in idle thoughts or delusions. Not only the movement of the abdomen, pain, itching, etc. that appear in the body, but also the mind is the subject of attention.
Observe clearly that the mind of idle thoughts or delusions arises, and when the delusion disappears, it returns to the rising and disappearing of the abdomen. Still, if the distractions or delusions do not go away, strengthen the mind again and repeat this process, and the idle thoughts and delusions will also decrease gradually. Also, even if a certain thought arises, and that thought is helpful to meditation and is a very important thought in life, in Vipassana (insight meditation) the thought itself is only an object of attention. In other words, it is just a phenomenon that appears as an object of attention. Therefore, no matter what thoughts arise, you should recognize the 'knowing the thinking mind' itself, not the content of the thoughts. If you follow the content of your thoughts, it will not stop. When you see it, it disappears! (Dhamma letter No. 73)
The meditator only needs to breathe naturally and look at the phenomena that occur with a balanced mind, relaxed and free from tension. Guessing or expecting something doesn't help.
To be continued...
May you cultivate your Sati continuously (Samma-Viriya)!
May you achieve the Samma-Sati through Satipatthāna (vipassana meditation)!
May all practice well and reach to Magga (道, the path of enlightenment) and Phala(果, the fruit of enlightenment)!
With Metta,
Ayyā Kosallā
Edited by Euna Bonovich
If you have any questions related to dhamma & meditation, please feel free to ask. You can reach Ayya Kosalla directly at Bhikkhuni.Kosalla@gmail.com .
법에 대한 질문이 있으신 분은 위의 이메일 주소로 질문을 남겨주세요.
위빠사나명상의 마음관찰에 대한 논문을 한글 원본으로 읽고 싶으신 분은 클릭해서 다운로드 받을 수 있습니다. (네이버에 PDF 첨부)
The Korean Dhamma Letter is here 담마레터.
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Buddha Sāsanaṁ Ciraṁ Tiṭṭhatu!
May the Buddha’s teachings last a long time!
Bhavatu Sabba Sotiṁ ca Maṅgalaṁ ca!!
May everyone be led on the path of peace and blessing!!
Sādhu Sādhu Sādhu !