Meditating on Words

General discussion of issues related to Theravada Meditation, e.g. meditation postures, developing a regular sitting practice, skillfully relating to difficulties and hindrances, etc.
User avatar
Ngawang Drolma.
Posts: 805
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 2008 7:38 pm

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Ngawang Drolma. »

clw_uk wrote:Thanks for the link Gabriel

Drolma, just out of interest and if you dont mind me asking, what tradition do you belong to, i only ask because im interested in what tradition teaches that?


Metta

Craig
Hi Craig :)

I'm a Sakyapa but when I started out and first learned how to meditate, I was with a Karma Kagyu group led by Garchen Rinpoche. I think this meditation is common to all schools of vajrayana.

I really want to emphasize that I'm not trying to steer you away from your own tradition, I just thought it was neat that you discovered this practice on your own! And I wanted to validate that in my tradition it's widely practiced and taught. And I personally experienced nice benefits from it so far :bow:

The best way I can explain it is like your mind is a sponge with a lot of little pores in it. When you do this kind of single-pointed meditation (say for example, the four thoughts that turn the mind to dharma, or emptiness or impermanence) it's like the concentration you cultivate in meditation allows for these teachings to slowly absorb into the pores of the mind-sponge over time without you necessarily being aware of it. It's a process, and I have a lot of confidence in it.

Kindly,
Drolma

ps. If you do this your gaze should be focused about one arm's length from your face, pointed downward.
User avatar
Ceisiwr
Posts: 22391
Joined: Sun Jan 11, 2009 2:36 am
Location: Wales

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Ceisiwr »

I really want to emphasize that I'm not trying to steer you away from your own tradition
I know your not :smile: besides i asked, thanks for sharing that, it is interesting meditation when i go into it


:namaste:
“Knowing that this body is just like foam,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.”
User avatar
Prasadachitta
Posts: 974
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 6:52 am
Location: San Francisco (The Mission) Ca USA
Contact:

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Prasadachitta »

Hello Gabriel,

gabrielbranbury said: Nothing wrong with FWBO in my experience.


There is a great deal wrong with FWBO and no-one ought to be steered towards them.
The FWBO Files
http://www.ex-cult.org/fwbo/fwbofiles.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

metta
Chris
Hello Chris,

I only refer to my experience. I have been practicing with them for over five years. I have read the FWBO files and they appear to me to be the work of a very imbalanced person. There is a very balanced and extensive response from FWBO to be found here.
http://response.fwbo.org/fwbo-files/response.html
If you have your own reasons for claiming that the FWBO is fit for no-one then you should state that yourself.

Metta

Gabriel
"Beautifully taught is the Lord's Dhamma, immediately apparent, timeless, of the nature of a personal invitation, progressive, to be attained by the wise, each for himself." Anguttara Nikaya V.332
User avatar
Cittasanto
Posts: 6646
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:31 pm
Location: Ellan Vannin
Contact:

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Cittasanto »

gabrielbranbury wrote:
Hello Gabriel,

gabrielbranbury said: Nothing wrong with FWBO in my experience.


There is a great deal wrong with FWBO and no-one ought to be steered towards them.
The FWBO Files
http://www.ex-cult.org/fwbo/fwbofiles.htm" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

metta
Chris
Hello Chris,

I only refer to my experience. I have been practicing with them for over five years. I have read the FWBO files and they appear to me to be the work of a very imbalanced person. There is a very balanced and extensive response from FWBO to be found here.
http://response.fwbo.org/fwbo-files/response.html
If you have your own reasons for claiming that the FWBO is fit for no-one then you should state that yourself.

Metta

Gabriel
Hi All,
I have been going to an FWBO group for about 6months and have seen nothing untoward there!
the files are interesting and hold allot of information which is or can be disturbing, but the FWBO is more than the handful of individuals the files are concerned with.
it is also interesting that the files although vast do not hold many links of supporting evidence independent from the site
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
User avatar
Cittasanto
Posts: 6646
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:31 pm
Location: Ellan Vannin
Contact:

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Cittasanto »

clw_uk wrote:Hi mike

My nearest place is Amaravati but i cant afford to travel or give dana at the moment so i cant get to it, neither do i drive so i cant afford to go for a day

I am planning to go this year though just as soon as my money situation gets better

Thanks for the advice though :smile:
I thought you were in Wales? there are closer centres to you than Amaravati, such as Forest hermitage, which I go to and their is another further south but don't know the name
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
User avatar
Ceisiwr
Posts: 22391
Joined: Sun Jan 11, 2009 2:36 am
Location: Wales

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Ceisiwr »

Strange ive never come accross it, what tradition is it? do you have a website or anything i can look at?


:namaste:
“Knowing that this body is just like foam,
understanding it has the nature of a mirage,
cutting off Māra’s flower-tipped arrows,
one should go beyond the King of Death’s sight.”
User avatar
mikenz66
Posts: 19941
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:37 am
Location: Aotearoa, New Zealand

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by mikenz66 »

HI Craig,

The directory http://www.buddhanet.info/wbd/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; might also be useful...

I think that it might be useful to reflect on why you feel the need to be able to give money if you go on a retreat. For a start, there are other ways of giving (by volunteering to help out on future retreats, for example).

Also, I think that there is a huge psychological difference between feeling that you're paying for a service and realising that you are receiving a gift. If you feel that Ajahn X is instructing you because he is anticipating a donation, that's not really conducive to a good relationship. Furthermore, it would be very unhelpful to get to a difficult point in a retreat and be feeling that Ajahn X should be treating you better because, after all, you're actually paying for this.

Metta
Mike
User avatar
mikenz66
Posts: 19941
Joined: Sat Jan 10, 2009 7:37 am
Location: Aotearoa, New Zealand

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by mikenz66 »

clw_uk wrote:Strange ive never come accross it, what tradition is it? do you have a website or anything i can look at?
Is this it? It's in the Buddhanet directory...
http://www.angulimala.org.uk/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Mike
User avatar
Cittasanto
Posts: 6646
Joined: Tue Dec 30, 2008 10:31 pm
Location: Ellan Vannin
Contact:

Re: Meditating on Words

Post by Cittasanto »

clw_uk wrote:Strange ive never come accross it, what tradition is it? do you have a website or anything i can look at?


:namaste:
I'll presume you are talking to my responce?
yes Anguilimala is part of the monestery but the actual retreat centre is http://www.foresthermitage.org.uk/bhava ... index.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
and the monestery is http://www.users.zetnet.co.uk/phrakhem/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

here are some photoes of my retreats last year http://manapa.multiply.com/photos/album ... reats_2008" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
and if you look through the blogs there are one or two inspired from them.
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
Post Reply