Nice post. Thank you all.
From my experience, I think anapanasati and satipatthana is enough. I got anxiety in 2021. When that anxiety attack me, I can feel it in a whole body. I don't know how to say whether it is tought, feeling, perception or body. All of them take part. Everytime it attack me, I try to sit meditate focus on breath to calm down. Counting method work for me to calm down.
I try mahasi method but never have opportunity go to retreat. I also think Goenka method is good also. Finally I just try what sutta say based on my interpretation.
1-3 tetred for calm down mind and body. And than I take this (sutta) :
On whatever occasion, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu trains himself: 'perceiving citta, I will breathe in', trains himself: 'perceiving citta, I will breathe out', trains himself: 'gladdening citta, I will breathe in', trains himself: 'gladdening citta, I will breathe out', trains himself: 'concentrating citta, I will breathe in', trains himself: 'concentrating citta, I will breathe out', trains himself: 'releasing citta, I will breathe in', trains himself: 'releasing citta, I will breathe out', on that occasion, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu dwells observing citta in citta, ātāpī sampajāno, satimā, having given up abhijjhā-domanassa towards the world.
I do not speak, bhikkhus, of ānāpānassati for one who looses sati, for one who is not sampajāna. Therefore, bhikkhus, on that occasion, a bhikkhu dwells observing citta in citta, ātāpī sampajāno, satimā, having given up abhijjhā-domanassa towards the world.
a body in body, a feeling in feeling and a mind in mind. At first I try to see the whole thing as annicca, but nothing happend. I keep watch my tought in daily activity, because it reduce anxiety, but the mind does not find the root problem.
It takes 1 year and more, until a moment when the mind suddenly know, thought just a thought, there is no different, no taste, it just a thought, can not harm anyone. That moment change the mind process and it happend when I was in daily activity. Because I keep watch my mind and try to investigate what's wrong.
Attention to breath in-out and toughts is enough for me. Direct knowledge from that process bring insights. So I don't know what you call it, samatha or vipassana ?
Labelling help in the beginning, but I slow me down. Focus on nostril make mind become narrow, sometimes breath rhythm lock the mind. To look thought as it is, I need a calm state, no conceptual mind, no imagination mind, no motif etc. Once the mind know the problem, I feel free, no burden.
Attention to thought, bring a free sense of I, as long as mind does not go in the content. Attention always late compare arise thought, but how to deal that thought is matter. I think this process help to purify the mind. It also change the mind process, so it become habit.
I don't know whether it is a right process or not. This mind still not fully operate on full awareness. Chattering mind still happen, but short, sometimes mind still immerse in concept/imagination/projection but more shorter, maybe solitary life is needed
What your experience ?