Daily Practice

A discussion on all aspects of Theravāda Buddhism
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Beautiful Breath
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Daily Practice

Post by Beautiful Breath »

Hi all,

At the moment I tend to just sit, recite the refuge Prayers (in English) and then begin to meditate. Is there a general practice that I can do or a sutra to recite? What do other do as a practice?
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appicchato
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by appicchato »

Beautiful Breath wrote:What do other do as a practice?
Cultivate the skillful, avoid the unskillful, and purify the mind...
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Cittasanto
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Cittasanto »

Beautiful Breath wrote: What do other do as a practice?
Practice practice practice

if you wanted to recite a sutta why not chose one which is relevant to the practice you are doing at the time, ie metta sutta when practising metta etc
I listen to a sutta reading or a talk sometimes during my sits, I tend to chose one which will be about 20 mins or less to cover half the sit
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
John Stuart Mill
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pink_trike
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by pink_trike »

Reflecting on the 4 Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path may be useful.
Vision is Mind
Mind is Empty
Emptiness is Clear Light
Clear Light is Union
Union is Great Bliss

- Dawa Gyaltsen

---

Disclaimer: I'm a non-religious practitioner of Theravada, Mahayana/Vajrayana, and Tibetan Bon Dzogchen mind-training.
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Beautiful Breath
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Beautiful Breath »

if you wanted to recite a sutta why not chose one which is relevant to the practice you are doing at the time,
I love the Heart Sutra... I'm new to Theravada, would this be a problem?

BB
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Cittasanto
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Cittasanto »

Beautiful Breath wrote:
if you wanted to recite a sutta why not chose one which is relevant to the practice you are doing at the time,
I love the Heart Sutra... I'm new to Theravada, would this be a problem?

BB
well it is up to you!
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
John Stuart Mill
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Beautiful Breath
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Beautiful Breath »

well it is up to you!
I meant is there any reason why I couldn't?

Not Theravadin?

:namaste:
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Cittasanto
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Cittasanto »

Beautiful Breath wrote:
well it is up to you!
I meant is there any reason why I couldn't?

Not Theravadin?

:namaste:
not that I can think of, if you find the sutra useful to reflect on, why not? would be a better question!

I find the song Affirmation useful for several reasons it couldn't really be called buddhist at all, I also used the 8 verses for training the mind as a reflection tool.
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
John Stuart Mill
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Beautiful Breath
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Beautiful Breath »

song Affirmation
Whas Da? :thinking:
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genkaku
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by genkaku »

Beautiful Breath wrote:
well it is up to you!
I meant is there any reason why I couldn't?

Not Theravadin?

:namaste:
For my money, the Heart Sutra addresses suffering. Since Theravadins suffer and Mahayanists suffer and even people who aren't Buddhists suffer, the Heart Sutra, if it's to your taste, is a useful tool.
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Cittasanto
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Re: Daily Practice

Post by Cittasanto »

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Beautiful Breath wrote:
song Affirmation
Whas Da? :thinking:
Blog, Suttas, Aj Chah, Facebook.

He who knows only his own side of the case knows little of that. His reasons may be good, and no one may have been able to refute them.
But if he is equally unable to refute the reasons on the opposite side, if he does not so much as know what they are, he has no ground for preferring either opinion …
...
He must be able to hear them from persons who actually believe them … he must know them in their most plausible and persuasive form.
John Stuart Mill
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