Mindfulness in Plain English: 20th Anniversary Edition
Once we have completely calmed the mind—stopped thinking and reacting—then we can step over the threshold into our inner being, where everybody really belongs. What we experience at that moment of entry is utter delight. That is an indication that we are in the first jhana. Immediately after feeling this utter delight, the first reaction of the min... See more
Wes Nisker • Biting Into The Mango: Doing Jhana Practice With Ayya Khema - Inquiring Mind
Three Wisdom Tools To take this journey inward, we’re going to engage the three prajnas, or “wisdom tools,” of hearing, contemplating, and meditating.6 Hearing, or reading, about something leads to contemplating upon it, which leads to meditating on it. By reading and thinking about this material, you will be engaging the first two wisdom tools. In
... See moreAndrew Holecek • Dream Yoga: Illuminating Your Life Through Lucid Dreaming and the Tibetan Yogas of Sleep
True meditation is nothing but the cultivation of our capacity to deeply listen in this way.** Through listening—not with the ears but with our whole being—we arrive at a quiet inner knowing of what is right for us, which is not obtainable through any amount of thinking or discussing with others (though those activities can sometimes be valuable as
... See moreChristopher D. Wallis • Near Enemies of the Truth: Avoid the Pitfalls of the Spiritual Life and Become Radically Free
The Buddha teaches that change requires insight, and insight cannot begin until we stop and focus our attention on what is happening right in front of us. This stopping, or shamatha, allows us to rest the body and the mind.