Samatha Bhavana, but not with one pointed narrow mind

[xun2x]

When mind, know, feeling and thought just as feeling and thought, calm and peace also arise.
This state almost there everytime, in any postures of body. The mind know the danger when I involve(go in) in feeling and thought, so it's become spontaneous.

Any comments ?

[SarathW]

With one pointedness you attain Jhana.
Samatha is the prior state to Jhana.

[Sam Vara]

I'm currently being taught to develop samatha by means of a concentration on one point, but with a broader background mindfulness. For example, focusing on counting, or the touch of the breath at one point, or a nimitta, but being mindful to control the length of the breath.

[Goofaholix]

In my experience attempting one pointedness causes tension and more problems than it solves, better to cultivate a mind that is stable and content to be aware of whatever arises.

[sunnat]

When one trains to be aware of breath, just as it is in the present moment, a time comes when there is stillness, calm. In that calm stillness the awareness is directed to the touch of the breath, just as it is.

This is cultivating a one pointedness.

From there a widening awareness of body and mind spreads.


There is no deliberately created extra process, like a mantra or visualisation added. Just the natural processes, just as they are. (not as they were or might be, or as one thinks they should be or wants them to be or wants them not to be)

It’s possible to use something like noting ‘inhale’ ‘exhale’ etc in the beginning but it is quickly abandoned when there is focus.

[xun2x]

Any knowledge arise on one pointed concentration ?

Body as body, feeling as feeling, mind as mind is not one pointed concentration. The anapanasati sutta. By doing what the sutta say, knowledge come.

How about jhana ? Does mind see illusion and reality in that state ?