Vipassana

On the cultivation of insight/wisdom
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kantilal
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Vipassana

Post by kantilal »

How are the four contemplations of Vipassana along with anapana are practiced.Are the breath, body, sensations, mind and mind phenomena observed simultaneously or one at a time or in combinations during meditation session and while doing day to day work.
Nobodyisspecial
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Re: Vipassana

Post by Nobodyisspecial »

Wow! What a question! There might be a few books you would want to read on the four foundations of mindfulness. Google that with pdf at the end or check out Amazon.com for some paper to buy. And of course accesstoinisight.org you will find plenty of material on the four foundations of mindfulness.

My attempt to answer your question is, well it's a technical question with a technical answer. Some teachings are just technical. You learn them and get sophisticated from technical teaching. That is what this teaching is. It's about a spirituality, don't let it give you a head ache from confusion. Don't let it bother you. If it makes sense keep learning it. If you can't understand it try easier teachings. I am not a guru of the four foundations of mindfulness and I don't really remember the teaching. But it was very worth studying, I remember that.
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JamesTheGiant
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Re: Vipassana

Post by JamesTheGiant »

kantilal wrote: Mon Aug 02, 2021 4:57 pm ....Are the breath, body, sensations, mind and mind phenomena observed simultaneously or one at a time or in combinations during meditation session and while doing day to day work.
One at a time. You can move between the 4 contemplations from second to second as they arise, but combinations can become confusing and stressful to notice.
I have noticed it is best for me, to start a session with an intent for observation of one only. For example I often start with good old vedananusati, but as the session goes on, if my mind is sharp, it may naturally switch to cittanusati or dhammanusati.


kayanusati
vedananusati,
cittanusati,
dhammanusati.
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mikenz66
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Re: Vipassana

Post by mikenz66 »

Hi kantilal,
kantilal wrote: Mon Aug 02, 2021 4:57 pm How are the four contemplations of Vipassana along with anapana are practiced.Are the breath, body, sensations, mind and mind phenomena observed simultaneously or one at a time or in combinations during meditation session and while doing day to day work.
There are a variety of ways of approaching these. The suttas give the general principles, but as you've observed, you have to make up your own mind, or take advice on various details. For example, you can work actively through the categories in the four areas of mindfulness, or you can have a more open practice where you pay attention to what arises. However, the latter is a bit tricky until you have some practice.

I'd advise picking an approach that appeals to you and becoming thoroughly familiar with it (try it out for a few months) rather than trying to combine a lot of advice from different places, which can rapidly become confusing.

One possible place to start would be Bhikkhu Analayo's books and guided meditations, which are available here:
https://www.buddhistinquiry.org/resourc ... s-analayo/
The guided meditations on Satipaṭṭhāna Meditation are discussed in the book Satipaṭṭhāna Meditation: A Practice Guide, which can be downloaded from the link on the Publications list. Similarly, the Mindfulness of Breathing exercises go along with the book Mindfulness of Breathing: A Practice Guide and Translations (not yet available for free, but the book is not expensive), and the Brahmavihāra and Emptiness meditations are discussed in Compassion and Emptiness in Early Buddhist Meditation (free download).

If those don't appeal, there may be other approaches that suit you. For example, Patrick Kearney https://patrickkearney.net/audio/ publishes recordings of his retreats that include detailed instruction and discussion.

:heart:
Mike
thomaslaw
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Re: Vipassana

Post by thomaslaw »

kantilal wrote: Mon Aug 02, 2021 4:57 pm How are the four contemplations of Vipassana along with anapana are practiced.Are the breath, body, sensations, mind and mind phenomena observed simultaneously or one at a time or in combinations during meditation session and while doing day to day work.
The four stations of mindfulness (cattaro satipatthana), and mindfulness by in- and out-breathing (anapanasati), are not the practice of vipassana (insight meditation). They are the practice of mindfulness (sati) for the development of calm (samadha) and concentration (samadhi).

Regarding how to practice the sati, I think it is better to just follow closely the SN/SA sutta teachings, e.g. SN 47.2 (= SA 622) (cattaro satipatthana) and SN 54.1 (= SA 803) (anapanasati), which indicate clearly body and mind phenomena are closely connected in the practice of sati.

For the practice of vipassana, this is about 'right view' (sammaditthi) for the development of wisdom (panna), leading to the cessation of dukkha 'suffering'. See viewtopic.php?f=24&p=642008#p642008
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