Chapter 38 Chapter 36 The Way of Nirvana - Concentration

One way leads to worldly benefits, and the other side leads to Nirvana; Buddhist disciples, monks, should understand this; don’t be greedy for worldly benefits, and focus on staying away. —— Dhamma Sutra Samadhi Having laid a solid moral foundation, the seeker begins a higher level of meditation practice, controlling and training his own consciousness, which is the second stage of the path of purity. Samadhi is one place to control the mind, the consciousness is highly concentrated on one thing, and everything else is completely cut off. According to Buddhism, there are forty-three modhi karmas in total due to the different natures of individuals.they are:

1. Ten kasinas (kasinas) (1) Earth kasina, water kasina, fire kasina, wind kasina, blue kasina, yellow kasina, red kasina, white kasina, emptiness kasina, light kasina. 2. Ten uncleannesses (asubha) are the ten phases of corpses (2): swelling phase (uddhumataka), green stasis phase (vinilaka), pus and rot phase (vipubbaka), broken phase (vicchiddaka), food residue phase (vikkhayitaka) ), Scattered Phase (vikkhittaka), Scattered Phase (hatavikkhittaka), Blood Smear Phase (ohitaka), Worm Gathering Phase (pulavaka), Skeletal Phase (atthika). 3. Ten Remembrances (anussati) Buddha Remembrances (buddhanussati), Dharma Remembrances (dhammanussati), Monk Remembrances (sanghanussati), Precepts Remembrances (silanussati), Retirement Remembrances (caganussati), Heaven Remembrances (devatanussati), Mindfulness of stillness (upasamanussati), mindfulness of death (marananussati), mindfulness of body (kayagatasati), and Anapanasati (mindfulness of in-and-out breathing).

4.The four immeasurable or four Brahma dwellings (brahmavihara) are compassion (metta), compassion (karuna), joy (mudita), and equanimity (upekkha). 5.One thought and one food aversion to thought (ahare patikkulasanna). 6.The four differences (catudhatuvavatthana) are the four major differences of earth (pathavi), water (apo), fire (tejo), and wind (vayo). 7.The four formless jhanas are: the base of boundless emptiness (akasanncayatana), the base of boundless consciousness (vinnanancayatana), the base of nothingness (akincannayatana), and the base of neither perception nor non-perception (n'evasannan'asannayatana).

Corresponding Zen methods for people with different roots According to the scriptures, the ten defilements and mindfulness of the body (such as the thirty-two parts) are suitable practices for those who are greedy, because these tend to generate aversion to the body, which in turn counteracts the fascination with the senses. The vast majority of sentient beings are suitable for practicing the four immeasurables and the four material dharmas. Remembrance of Buddha and other beings suitable for pious believers.Thoughts of stillness and death, thoughts of food and anorexia, the four major differences are suitable for the practice of rational sentient beings.The rest of the methods mainly include Buddha Remembrance, Loving Contemplation, Ultimate Body Remembrance and Death Remembrance, which are applicable to all sentient beings, regardless of their root nature.

There are six roots (row carita).They are: 1.Greedy ragacarita. 2.Anger dosacarita. 3.Crazy mohacarita. 4.Belief saddhacarita. 5.Awareness buddhicarita. 6.Scattered sex vitakkacarita. Sex refers to the inner nature of the individual.It was revealed without any preconceptions.Due to the variety of karma of all beings, people's roots are different.Habitual behavior constitutes people's special nature. Some people are greedy, while others are dominated by anger and anger.The vast majority of people fall into these two categories.There are also people who lack wisdom and are somewhat ignorant.Those who are similar to ignorance are those whose minds are restless and unable to focus on one place.Some people are very religious by nature, while some people have profound wisdom.

If one of them is combined with any other, then there are thirty-six rooted people.Adding the suspicious person (ditthicarita), there are sixty-four kinds. These meditations are adopted or practiced in various forms by beings of different capacities and kinds. Before practicing samadhi, a qualified ascetic should first carefully consider the method of meditation.In ancient times, disciples generally received guidance from their teachers and chose Dharma doors according to their individual talents.However, if a competent teacher cannot be found now, students must make their own judgments and choose a method that they think is most suitable for their own nature.

After choosing a practice, he should retreat to a quiet place with as little disturbance as possible.Forests, caves, or any remote and remote places are most suitable.For it is in these places that one is least disturbed in the course of one's practice. It should be understood that silence comes from within us.Even a quiet forest is not our ideal place if our hearts are not settled.However, if our hearts are at peace, even the bustling downtown is a pleasant place.The environment we are in is a condition that helps us calm our consciousness. Next, the aspirant decides the most suitable time, so that he and the external environment will be in the best state of practice.

Generally speaking, the best time to meditate is before waking up in the morning when your mind is refreshed and active, or if you are not exhausted, before going to bed.But whatever time you choose, it would be wise to stick to that time each day.In this way, our mind will enter the practice state. The meditation posture is also a powerful aid to concentration of consciousness. Orientals usually sit in lotus position with their bodies upright, their right foot on their left leg, and their left foot on their right leg.This is perfect sitting.If this is difficult, as I am sure many will, a single-disc approach can be adopted, which simply places the right foot on the left leg, or the left foot on the right leg.

When sitting in this triangle posture, the whole body is well balanced. The right hand should be placed on top of the left, the neck should be straight, the nose and navel should be on the same vertical line, and the tongue should be attached to the roof of the mouth.Some people like to close their eyes and not see all unnecessary lights and outside world. Closing your eyes has some benefits, but it's not recommended.Because it is easy to make people dizzy, lose control of consciousness, and seek outside without purpose.When the mind was distracted, the body lost its straightness, and unconsciously, it opened its mouth, the saliva flowed down, and it couldn't stop pitching back and forth.

When the Buddha sat in meditation, he usually closed his eyes slightly, looked at the tip of his nose, and closed his eyes at a distance of two or four feet. If someone finds it difficult to sit with their legs crossed, he can sit comfortably on a chair or something, as long as it is high enough to place his feet on the ground. The posture of the seeker in meditation is not very important, as long as the body is comfortable and relaxed. Sophisticated and dedicated to one place.Efforts should be made to stop unwholesome thoughts from the very beginning. The Jingjin Sutra in the "Jingji" said that he may be attacked by the ten armies of the demon king.They are: lust (kama), timidity (arati), hunger (khuppipasa), attachment (tanha), dullness (thinamiddha), fear (bhaya), doubt (vicikiccha), distraction (makkha, thambha), acquisition, admiration , honor, false names (labja, siloka, sakkara, micchayasa), and flaunting one's self and damaging others (attuamsanaparavambhana).

In these situations, the following practice methods taught by the Buddha will be helpful to everyone. 1.Contrary to the thoughts of harm, always have kind thoughts, that is: always think of kindness in the midst of anger and hatred. 2.Constantly think about the bad consequences that may arise from this, namely: anger sometimes ends in murder. 3.Indifferently ignore, pay no attention to. 4.Seek the cause of the arising of unwholesome dharmas.In this process of introspection, gradually forget them. 5.Direct use of physical power. Just as a strong person subdues a weak and sickly person, so a person should overcome unwholesome thoughts with physical strength. "Grit your teeth, keep the tip of your tongue close to the roof of your mouth," the Buddha taught us. "A monk should use his best efforts to suppress and subdue his consciousness. In this way, the teeth are clenched, the root of the tongue is tensed, and the thoughts are in one place, and those sinful and unhealthy thoughts will disappear. Sweep it all away. When these thoughts are eliminated, the consciousness is settled, and the mind is not disturbed." (3) When a qualified Dharma seeker completes all the preparatory work, he will retreat to a quiet place, establish self-confidence, firmly believe that he will achieve success, and practice meditation diligently. Material objects such as the ten kamikasas are merely aids to meditation.But such a virtue as loving-kindness has special advantages in establishing a particular quality in a person. In the process of meditation, one can sensibly repeat any of the formulas and principles, because they act as a condition to induce the belief they represent. However, no matter how dedicated the practitioner is to meditation, he will not be able to escape the inevitable difficulties of the beginner at the beginning. "The mind is distracted, and external thoughts are running around in his mind. Due to the slow progress of meditation, he becomes restless and restless, and the result is to relax and work hard." Difficulties, pressing his goal, never letting go easily at any moment. ten times If a meditator uses the ground kasina as his way of practicing meditation. The surface of the one-foot-diameter circle is coated with a layer of soil to make it slippery and non-marking. Use this concentric circle as the first method.He himself sat at a distance of four or five feet from this circle, and concentrating his thoughts, he said: earth kasina, earth kasina (pathavi).Put your heart and soul into it.In this way, all accidental thoughts are automatically far away from one's consciousness. When a person has practiced so many times, or a week, or a month, or a year, he can close his eyes and remember.On top of this mental representation, he meditated deeply until he practiced conceptualizing visual objects. According to Visuddhimagga, the difference between the first-visited form (appreciation) and the second-visited form (similarity) is that the former presents the illusion of being in (kasina) an object, while the latter appears as A round mirror just taken out of the bag, or a shining conch, or a bright moon that is about to break through the dark clouds. A conceptualized object has no color or shape, it is just a form of expression arising from sensation. When he continues to concentrate on this abstract concept, he is considered to have the state of access meditation (upacara-samadhi), and the five hindrances (nivarana) that hinder spiritual practice, namely greed (kamacchanda) and hatred (vyapada). , sleepiness (thinamiddha), regret (Uddhaccakukkucca), doubt (vicikiccha), mindfulness (ekaggata), interest (piti), service (vitakka), joy (sukha) and continuous effects (vicara), etc. be curbed. Finally, he attains appanasamadhi and goes fully into trance, enjoying the peace and tranquility of undisturbed mind. This state of restraining the mind in one place is obtained by restraining the five hindrances, and is called the purification of the mind (cittavi-suddhi).This is the second stage on the path of purification. Those who practice the kasina of water can fill a basin full of colorless water, preferably rainwater, put their minds on the water, and say: water, water (apo, apo) until they realize that the mind is undisturbed. Those who practice the fire, build a fire in front of themselves, then take a mat or a piece of leather or cloth, and put a small hole in it, one hand or four fingers, and watch the hole to focus on the fire. Those who want to practice wind pervading, pay attention to the wind passing through the window or wall gap, and say: wind, wind. Those who want to practice color kasina can make a mandala of a certain size, or blue, or yellow, or red or white, and think about it, just like the ground kasina, and repeat the name of the color. He can also mentally visualize blue, yellow, red, and white flowers. Those who practice the kasina of light can contemplate the moon, unshakable wicks, or sunlight or moonlight shining through cracks and holes on the ground or walls, and chant: light, light. Those who practice the emptiness of emptiness should make a hole with a diameter the size of one hand or four fingers in a densely built pavilion, or in any leather or mat, observe the space, and chant: emptiness, emptiness. Unclean view In the cemeteries of ancient India, where dead bodies were buried or cremated, predators abounded.People see the ten kinds of impurities of the body here.However, it is now impossible to discover these things. Random thoughts The Buddha's recitation is to recall the Buddha's merits and virtues in this way: the World Honored One is an Arhat, the one who is rightly enlightened, the knowledge and conduct are perfect, the passing away, the understanding of the world, the supreme teacher, the master of the master, the teacher of heaven and man, the Buddha, the World Honored One. Dharma random thinking means remembering the nature of dharma in this way: this dharma is well taught by the world-honored one, self-seeing, without time and fruit, good to see, leading to nirvana, and wise men realize their own knowledge. Sangha Remembrance is to recall the merits and virtues of the Sangha Brahmans in this way: the Shravaka disciples of the World Honored One are good walkers, the Shravaka disciples of the World Honored One are upright walkers of the Way, the Shravaka disciples of the World Honored One are truth walkers, and the Shravaka disciples of the World Honored One are Those who are doing the right thing, these four pairs include eight generations of people.The Shravakas of the World Honored One are those who can be supported, those who can be offered, those who can be given, those who can be respected, and they are the supreme field of blessings in the world. Remembrance of precepts is just like remembering the perfect achievement of one's virtuous deeds. Reminiscence of equanimity is the remembrance of one's own generosity of generosity. The gods recite, "Because of their righteous faith and other virtues, gods and humans were born in such a noble realm. I also have such merits." If you repeatedly recall your righteous faith and other virtues, you will make gods and humans testify for yourself.This is Tian Suiannian. Stillness and remembrance is the remembrance of the nature of nirvana, such as the cessation of suffering. Remembrance of death is the remembrance of the end of this physical life. Meditation on death enables one to understand the impermanent nature of life.When a person understands that life is uncertain and death is certain, he will not completely indulge in materialistic enjoyment, but strive to improve himself and achieve others.Contemplating death for a long time does not make a person pessimistic and reclusive, on the contrary, it makes people more active and energetic.In addition, it can make people face death calmly and calmly. When one contemplates death, one associates life as a flame, or that so-called sentient beings are but fleeting manifestations of invisible karma.One can use various metaphors to remember the impermanence of life and the certainty of death.Mindfulness of the body is to recall the thirty-two unclean parts of the body: hairy claws and teeth, dirt and flesh, bones and tendons, heart, gallbladder, liver and lungs, large and small intestines, raw and hot storage, intestines and stomach, spleen and kidneys, pus and blood and cooked phlegm, fat and grease Marrow, meninges, saliva, tears, sweat and excrement. Such visualization of bodily impurity leads one to desire and hopelessness.In the Buddha's time, many monks achieved Arhatship through this kind of impure visualization.If a person does not know much about these thirty-two places, he can visualize one, such as flesh and blood, or skin. Inside this body is the bone road, and the bone road is filled with skin-wrapped flesh.Beauty is only as deep as the skin (beauty is nothing but the outside).If one contemplates the impurities of one's body in this way, the attachment to the body will gradually disappear. People who are not erotic may not adopt this method of visualization.They may visualize the creativity inherent in the complex machine that is the human body. Ana Aponana Nian (in and out breath) is the in and out of vigilant breathing. (Ana means holding the breath in, and Apona means holding the breath out). In some scriptures, these two orders are interpreted in reverse. The concept of holding breath keeps the mind in one place, and finally develops the inner wisdom of Arhat. This is one of the best meditation methods that everyone can practice equally.Before enlightenment, the Buddha also practiced this concept of holding breath. In the "Mindfulness Sutra" and "Visuddhimagga", we can see a detailed explanation of this method. For the benefit of the general reader, here are some possible approaches. Sit in a comfortable and convenient posture, exhale a mouthful of stale air, and close your mouth.Breathe through the nostrils freely, slightly and naturally without force.First breathe in, remember to silently count to one, then exhale, remember to silently count to two, put your mind on the whole breathing process, count to ten like this, and concentrate on breathing for a long time.Before counting to ten, the mind may be distracted.However, don't be disappointed by this, so continue until you succeed.Gradually, you can also increase the number of counting times, such as counting five times and ten times. After that, he can focus on breathing without counting.Some people like to count breaths because it helps them to rest their minds.And some people think that it is better not to count, the important thing is to focus on one place, not the secondary counting.When people practice this concept of holding breath, their body and mind will be relaxed and happy, and they will be peaceful.He may feel as if he is floating in the air.After practicing this kind of meditation for a certain period of time, one day, he will realize that this so-called physical body is only based on breathing.When the breath stops, the body disappears with it, so there is instant awareness of impermanence.Without change, there cannot be an eternal entity or an immortal soul. In this way, the wisdom of reality can be developed and Arhatship can be realized. It can be understood from this that this concept of holding breath can not only achieve undisturbed mind, but also improve wisdom and view in order to obtain liberation. Everyone can practice this simple method without hindrance.For details, readers are referred to Visuddhimagga. According to the Sutra of Mindfulness, the concept of holding breath: Hold the breath in with mindfulness, and keep the breath out with mindfulness (when you breathe in, you should be mindful of the inhalation, and when you breathe out, you should be mindful of the breath). Knowing that the in-breath is short and the out-breath is short, knowing that the out-breath is short, remember the whole breathing process (beginning, middle, and stop), and understand each one clearly. This is how I practice myself: I will keep breathing in; remember the whole breathing process , such is self-practice: I will continue to breathe out. To calm the breath, so I train myself: I will keep the breath in; to calm the breath, so I train myself: I will keep the breath out. Sanctuary Here, Brahma means noble and noble, just like Brahmacariya; vihara means behavior pattern or state, or way of life.They are also called the four immeasurable minds or the four infinite minds (appamana), because these minds illuminate all beings without limitation or hindrance. Metta (Sanskrit: maitri) love, kindness, kindness, can warm and soften people's hearts.This is not physical love, nor is it human love.Affection directly counters anger, malice, and disgust (kodha); indirectly, it deals with love (pema) between people. Affection embraces all living beings without exception.The consummation of loving kindness is the unity of human beings and self (sabbattata), which is the wishing heart for all sentient beings, virtues and happiness. Its main feature is kindness, which eliminates all evil intentions and malice. Sad Karuna.When others suffer, compassion can make the heart of a virtuous person tremble, thereby relieving the suffering of others. Its main characteristic is the desire to remove the suffering of others, directly against evil (himsa) and indirectly against lust (domanassa) ).Compassion embraces all sentient beings suffering from pain and abandons cruelty. Hi Mudita.Not only sympathy, but also sympathy, or admiration, which directly counteracts envy and indirectly counteracts excitement, whose main characteristic is to rejoice in the wealth and success of others.The heart of joy tolerates all rich people and melts the heart of disgust. It is a gesture of congratulations. She Upekkha, the original meaning is the view of non-discrimination, that is, neither attachment nor disengagement.It is not a kind of hedonic indifference, but a complete peace of mind and psychological balance. It is to maintain a stable state of mind in the ups and downs of life full of praise, joy and sorrow, profit and loss, and praise and praise, and directly treat attachment (raga ), indirect treatment of cruelty.Therefore, equanimity removes greed and evil, and its main characteristic is equality. Here, equanimity does not just refer to the mediocre feeling, but means a kind of standard goodness.The tranquility of the mind and the balance of the spirit are the closest solutions. Equanimity embraces all good and evil, love and non-love, pleasure and non-pleasure. "Pure Path" explains in detail the method of practicing burning and dwelling in order to achieve meditation. When a yogi succeeds in attaining jhana, he can easily practice the five supernatural powers (abhinna), namely: divine eye (dibbacakkhu), divine ear (dibbsota), destiny (pubbenivasanussatinana), other mind (paracittavijanana), Divine foot power (iddhividha). It is to be pointed out here that samadhi and these miraculous powers are not very important for the attainment of ahantship, although they are certainly an asset to the possessor.For example, some arhats with poor views, without the help of jhana, directly attain arhatship by practicing truth-knowledge.In the Buddha's time, many men and women did not practice jhana and became arhats. Only those who have reached the fifth jhana can acquire the five supernatural powers. Celestial eye, that is, the eye of heaven and man or the eye of God, can also be called the all-seeing eye. It can make people see things that cannot be seen by naked eyes in the sky and on earth, no matter how far or near. The knowledge of death and rebirth (cutupapatanana) is similar to this divine eye, and the knowledge of the future (anagatamsanana) and the knowledge of reincarnation based on the good and bad karma of living beings are two other perceptions in the same category. Tianertong, also known as Shengertong, or extraordinary hearing, can make people hear subtle or rough sounds, no matter how far or near. Fate penetration is the ability to recall one's own or others' past lives.For this one perception, the Buddha's power is infinite, while others are limited. He knows the thoughts of others. Shenzutong can fly in the air, walk on water, hide in the soil, change body shape, etc. [Note] (1) Over and over. Kasina, here means all, all, completely.The reason for saying this is that the rays of light emanating from the conceptual phenomena of matter can reach everywhere without hindrance. In the kasina, one can make a circle the size of a finger-pitch and the diameter of four fingers, and cover it with morning-colored clay to make it clean.If the morning light clay is not enough, you can put some other clay in it.This concentric circle is the earth-kasina mandala. The other times should also be understood in the same way.For details, see The Visuddhidharma.It may be mentioned that the empty pass and bright pass are not found in the classics.They are excluded, so there are thirty-eight kinds in total. (2) These ten kinds of dead bodies can be found in ancient tombs and places where the bones are placed, where the bodies are not buried or cremated, but eaten by carnivorous beasts and birds.Today, it is no longer possible to find such bones for meditation practice. (3) "Central".The first product, the twentieth classic, "Zengshang Heart Sutra".p.120.