My practice - please correct me on how you think is better

[purple planet]

I am very confused right now about my practice so this is what i do (except from keeping the precepts) :

my back hurts so i do mainly walking meditation and noting in daily life

I think i follow ven.yuttadhammo way of meditating by labeling everything - and because i dont understand how to label when doing some actions like listening i will focus on what i do at the time with no labeling

Now I am trying to figure out a way to be more confident i am doing this "correctly" - that im doing things right

If i will label and allways try to note more and more steps than i cant go wrong ? like if i will try to note more and more "moments" of life and not them - "label" them then i am moving in the right way ?

[bodom]

Whether practicing under the guidance of a teacher or not, practicing this technique/method or that, there is only one sure fire way to know whether or not you are practicing the Dhamma correctly: there is the lessening and or complete removal of all suffering and stress from your life.

[Cittasanto]

Apart from Bodoms excelent advise!
if you are trying to follow Ven Yuttadhammos Teachings it would be ideal to try to speak with him.
he is quite active online, and am sure easily contactable.
if you are not sure how to contact him he is giving a live broadcast tomorrow which I believe is a Q&A session so you could ask a question then.

but this is a path of mistakes, and if we were perfect straight away we would not need guidance.

[Alobha]

my back hurts so i do mainly walking meditation and noting in daily life

Did you try sitting meditation with a chair or a meditation bench yet? I suggest you give it a try.

Now I am trying to figure out a way to be more confident i am doing this "correctly" - that im doing things right

It is as bodom says. Give the method you use some time to unfold its results (say, at least a month of earnest practice) and see what it leads to. If the method you use leads to calming down the mind, to peace and to more mindfulness, you're on a good way! Ultimatively, the confidence needs to come from your own experience, from seeing the results for yourself. Of course, if you don't know whether you understood the method correctly in the first place, it's best to ask the teacher for clarification.

If i will label and allways try to note more and more steps than i cant go wrong ? like if i will try to note more and more "moments" of life and not[sic!] them - "label" them then i am moving in the right way ?

As far as I can tell, there is nothing wrong with this method itself, but it may not be suitable for everbody. Give it some time and see whether this method works for you. Are there any specific difficulties with the method that make you doubt that you are doing it right?

[purple planet]

Did you try sitting meditation with a chair or a meditation bench yet? I suggest you give it a try.

yes a chair hurts but exactly today i was reading this :

http://dharma.ncf.ca/introduction/instr ... tions.html

and so in the end theres an image of a meditation bench (i think thats what you ment- "stool" ) i would like to try

Are there any specific difficulties with the method that make you doubt that you are doing it right?

Yes what i asked here : viewtopic.php?f=44&t=14356 i just would like to know how it sits with the "labeling" technique and i couldnt understand from what i read from yuttadhammo way on how to listen in his way -

so if i should be all day like this as i want to do - i can be mindful when i do chors,walk ect ... but on some stuff like listening i dont not what to do while using labeling so thats the problem - and if whenever i reach this moments i need to stop labeling and to switch to just noting then it makes me dobut that maybe i should change the method - but i do think its a good way im using it for quite a while now and it would be a shame to change it - so i hope i can understand it

but if not then i wanted to find a new way and that why i have asked this question

[reflection]

When you listen, you listen. If you label things while listening, you aren't listening anymore. It's the same with all other labeling, not to say it's not useful, but it's another thing from being fully mindful. I personally don't see the use of labelling everything all day. It can be a tool probably for those who have a hard time concentrating or getting the mind empty, but certainly it is not the goal to be able to label everything.

So if you can label more and more doesn't mean you are moving in the right direction. You are going in the right direction if you are more peaceful, happy and harmless in general. Labeling can be a tool useful for some, but it's just a technique. Use it wisely, so determine if it works for you. But again, you shouldn't have to do it all the time. When meditating you can get to very easeful places where there is nothing to label anyway; and as soon as you do you disturb the peace. For that reason I personally don't note at all - I don't find it useful.

So in short, how effective a particular method is and how well you are applying it can be seen from the resulting peace. If you want to know what to do, that's the thing to check.

[ignobleone]

I am very confused right now about my practice so this is what i do (except from keeping the precepts) :

my back hurts so i do mainly walking meditation and noting in daily life

The practice is not limited to sitting posture. You're right to practice it in all daily activities.

I think i follow ven.yuttadhammo way of meditating by labeling everything - and because i dont understand how to label when doing some actions like listening i will focus on what i do at the time with no labeling

Now I am trying to figure out a way to be more confident i am doing this "correctly" - that im doing things right

If i will label and allways try to note more and more steps than i cant go wrong ? like if i will try to note more and more "moments" of life and not them - "label" them then i am moving in the right way ?

The actual instruction is to know the arising and passing away of all phenomena pertaining to body, feeling, mind(citta), mental quality/object(dhamma). Simply instructing to label things is a vague, not quite clear instruction.

[mikenz66]

Hi Purple Planet,

I think i follow ven.yuttadhammo way of meditating by labeling everything - and because i dont understand how to label when doing some actions like listening i will focus on what i do at the time with no labeling

Are you using the instructions on his videos and this book?
viewtopic.php?f=17&t=3772
http://yuttadhammo.sirimangalo.org/arti ... -meditate/

As Cittasanto says, if you are using his instructions you would find it useful to contact him. As well as the above web site he is on Google+ here:
https://plus.google.com/118014954414967440482/posts
And this seems to be a place to ask questions:
http://ask.sirimangalo.org/questions



Mike

[retrofuturist]

Greetings Purple Planet,

I am very confused right now about my practice so this is what i do (except from keeping the precepts)

In addition to the precepts, which are negative formulations... i.e. do not do this

... also try to adhere to the Noble Eightfold Path.... i.e. do this.

That answers your question about what to do.

Whether you follow the "ven.yuttadhammo way of meditating" or follow someone else's guidance, it should all just be different flavours of the Noble Eightfold Path. It is the doing of the Noble Eightfold Path that leads to release.

Metta,
Retro.

[pegembara]

I find this instruction very helpful: I am inclined to title it Watching The Passing Show

As you meditate, pleasant and unpleasant emotions will arise. How should you observe anger, happiness, anxiety and other emotions? By looking at them as if they were actors. But don't become an actor. Don't get involved with them. Don't get onstage. Just watch the play. Sometimes the actors show excitement or happiness. Sometimes they show anger, frustration, fear or sadness.

Say to yourself, "They're not me," and only watch them to see how long they last. If you don't get involved with them, if you don't cling to them, if you don't think that they belong to you, you won't suffer at all. Only know them, see them, watch them, like watching actors on T.V. When they finish their duty to show this or that thing they leave. Then another actor comes, another feeling or another object. But they aren't real. In the ultimate sense, what they show isn't true - it's just an appearance. And these actors - these feelings and emotions - change all the time.

[Patr]

There are maore than one meditation method, just as there are many temperaments within the human race. If this doesnt suit you, then try a different one. I myself have tried a few before accepting a method that feels right.

On the other hand, remember the story about the guitar strings, drawn too tight or too lose will not give a good result.

Take the middle path, let go if it doesnt feel right, think you're trying too hard. Just be mindfull, without noting/labelling everything. If your mind wanders, just observe, pull it back. This will happen many many times, eventually it will settle for extended periods. Even experienced meditators sometimes have difficulty settling their mind, we all have our off days, then just pack up and do it another time.

Seriously, take it easy, thats the middle path, not too tight, not too slack.

Hope this helps.

[purple planet]

ok now what i do at the moment is live at my parents - so i try to live like in a monastry so i take the 8 precepts - no food after lunch and stoped killing mosquitoes -

as far as i understand until this point - is the goal is to get rid of the kilesas ? - and everything comes from this - all the practice is aimed at this ? being mindful is just a tool to get rid of the kilesas ? -