The Experience of Samadhi


Book Description

Dharma practice comprises a wide range of wise instructions and skillful means. As a result, meditators may be exposed to a diversity of approaches to the core teachings and the meditative path—and that can be confusing at times. In this clear and accessible exploration, Dharma teacher and longtime meditator Richard Shankman unravels the mix of differing, sometimes conflicting, views and traditional teachings on how samadhi (concentration) is understood and taught. In part one, Richard Shankman explores the range of teachings and views about samadhi in the Theravada Pali tradition, examines different approaches, and considers how they can inform and enrich our meditation practice. Part two consists of a series of interviews with prominent contemporary Theravada and Vipassana (Insight) Buddhist teachers. These discussions focus on the practical experience of samadhi, bringing the theoretical to life and offering a range of applications of the different meditation techniques.




Samādhi


Book Description

The key to self-development, says Mike Sayama, is the experience of Samadhi, a state of relaxed concentration in which the individual neither freezes out of fear nor clings due to desire. Simply stated, samadhi is the free flow of vital energy within the body and between the body and the universe. Moving effortlessly across traditions and techniques, Sayama discovers that sages throughout history—Greek philosophers, German mystics, Indian seers, and our own Albert Einstein among others—have taught that this experience of transcendental oneness lies at the heart of full self-realization. The first part of the book studies self-realization in Zen Buddhism. The author pinpoints its essence in Buddha's enlightenment. The development of Zen is then traced, continuing down to living masters who in very recent times have transplanted their lineages from Japan to the United States. Sayama notes that we must choose as masters those to whom the authentic teaching has been transmitted through generations, and he examines in loving detail the sometimes strange and astonishing behaviors of those whose very presence communicates the state of samadhi. The second part of the book presents Zen therapy, a way of self-development emphasizing the cultivation of samadhi through psychophysical training. Sayama compares the effects of Rolfing, Feldenkrais, and Zen therapy on the human body and mind. He includes easy-to-follow directions for creating the inner state he describes. He tells vivid stories of extraordinary cases treated from the point of view that the best therapy is nothing less than the removal of all dualism. Four main practices are presented: zazen (meditation), hara development, circulation of the vital energy, and communication.




The Experience of Samādhi


Book Description

This book offers an in-depth look at the foundational aspect of Buddhist meditation known as samadhi, or concentration: the ability of the mind to remain calm and settled without distraction. In part one of the book, Richard Shankman looks at the range of views and understandings about the experience of samadhi and offers a comprehensive examination of it using teachings attributed to the Buddha as well as later commentaries. He compares the diverse descriptions and presentations of samadhi in order to present a broad understanding of it and its place in meditation practice. He examines different, often conflicting, views and how these various views are related.In part two, he presents a series of interviews with prominent contemporary Buddhist teachers, including Jack Kornfield, Sharon Salzberg, and Christina Feldman, that focus on the practical experience of samadhi. This section of the book brings the theoretical to life, offering a range of approaches to and applications of the different meditation techniques.




Samādhi


Book Description




Samadhi


Book Description

Samadhi is the goal and the peak of meditation. According to classical and contemporary interpreters of yoga and meditation, samadhi denotes the unity of the subject and the object, the inner and the outer world, our Self and Absolute. In other words, enlightenment. Here, this unity is described simply as the unity of consciousness and existence. In this book you will find much more details about this unity, it will be revealed in a completely new way, you will comprehend that unity of the conscious and the existence in a man is gradually achieved at all levels of consciousness and being, on which a man exists and works, in all dimensions, and which are expressed in chakras, psycho-energetic centers in a man. Each chakra represents a blend of consciousness and existence. This blend is also manifested through the human culture of life and civilization. Understanding the chakra is connected to the historical development of the man and the events in the world, not only to the personal states of consciousness. It is an old and universal story of understanding the meaning of existence. In fact, the entire cosmos and life represent a spectrum of merging and expressing of consciousness and existence. Consciousness is expressed as existence and existence is fundamentally conscious. Moreover, consciousness is here explained in the light of an understanding of the consciousness of a man's soul as well, which through intelligent design, thanks to the quantum field creates the whole reality and existence. This can be because the soul of the man comes from the same divine consciousness that allows the whole existence. A complete connection and the realization of both consciousness and existence occurs only in a man who reaches Samadhi through meditation. The whole other nature, all of the cosmos and all of our lives, are just a scenography in which the drama of this merging is occurring. Though, paradoxically, Samadhi always already happens as a mere existence. The only question is whether a person participates in it all the time, whether he/she is aware of it. This book will help you to see the existence in such a way.




The Art and Skill of Buddhist Meditation


Book Description

The Art and Skill of Buddhist Meditation offers a practical guide to building a strong meditation practice by unifying mindfulness, concentration, and insight into a single, integrated approach. Mindfulness and insight—clearly knowing what is happening in one’s present moment experience—and concentration—the ability of the mind to remain steady and undistracted—are foundational elements of meditation, yet people are often confused about how these aspects of the practice fit together. Should they be doing insight meditation or concentration practices? How does concentration fit into insight meditation? To help, The Art and Skill of Buddhist Meditation offers specific guidance for cultivating both insight and concentration in meditation. This book will be of interest to both beginning and experienced meditation practitioners who wish to familiarize themselves with, deepen their understanding of, and increase their practical skills in mindfulness, concentration, and insight meditation. New meditators who want hands-on skills they can easily put into practice will find the step-by-step instructions accessible and easy to understand. Experienced practitioners will find a complete and useful guide for deepening insight and cultivating the deeper stages of concentration known as jhana. This book also discusses the most common experiences that can arise as the meditation process unfolds, and will help you find the approaches and techniques that work best for you.




Practicing the Jhanas


Book Description

Two experienced American meditators explain the stages and techniques of concentration meditation, as taught by the Buddhist master Pa Auk Sayadaw This is a clear and in-depth presentation of the traditional Theravadin concentration meditation known as jhāna practice, from two authors who have practiced the jhānas in retreat under the guidance of one of the great living meditation masters, Pa Auk Sayadaw. The authors describe the techniques and their results, based on their own experience.




Samadhi


Book Description

While in states of bliss, or Samadhi, Mirabai Devi experiences oneness with the Divine, which she terms Unity Consciousness. She has captured the insights and truths that have come to her during these enlightenment experiences in the form of short texts designed to by-pass the busy lower mind and awaken our deeper inner knowing. They are best pondered as meditations, allowing the truths to radiate within and take root.




Focused and Fearless


Book Description

Now ordinary meditators (and non-meditators) can understand how to attain non-ordinary states with relative ease. Blended with contemporary examples, pragmatic exercises, and ''how to'' instructions that anyone can try, Focused and Fearless provides a wealth of tools to cultivate non-distracted attention in daily life and on retreat. Shaila Catherine has a friendly, wise approach to the meditative states (jhanas) that lead to liberating insight. Focused and Fearless is about much more than merely meditation or concentration. It offers a complete path towards bliss, fearlessness, and true awakening.




The Mind Illuminated


Book Description

The Mind Illuminated is a comprehensive, accessible and - above all - effective book on meditation, providing a nuts-and-bolts stage-based system that helps all levels of meditators establish and deepen their practice. Providing step-by-step guidance for every stage of the meditation path, this uniquely comprehensive guide for a Western audience combines the wisdom from the teachings of the Buddha with the latest research in cognitive psychology and neuroscience. Clear and friendly, this in-depth practice manual builds on the nine-stage model of meditation originally articulated by the ancient Indian sage Asanga, crystallizing the entire meditative journey into 10 clearly-defined stages. The book also introduces a new and fascinating model of how the mind works, and uses illustrations and charts to help the reader work through each stage. This manual is an essential read for the beginner to the seasoned veteran of meditation.