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Compiled by Jayaram V
According to the Milindapatha, the Buddha
considered the following subjects to be the objects of meditation.
1. The idea of impermanence.
2. The non existence of a permanent self.
3. The impurity and wretchedness of life.
4. The idea of ridding oneself of all evil
tendencies.
5. The idea of passionless ness.
6. The idea of stopping the influx of evil
tendencies.
7. The idea of dissatisfaction with all the things
of the world.
8. The idea of the impermanence of all conditioned
things.
9. The idea of the mindful control of breath.
10. The idea of corpse in a state of
disintegration.
11. The idea of execution of criminals with all its
unpleasantness.
12. The idea of friendliness.
13. The idea of compassion.
14. the idea of joy.
15. The idea of equanimity.
15. The thought of death.
16. Mindfulness of the body.
Whoever wishes to become free from age and death,
should practice meditation on any of these subjects, so that he can
become free from passion, dullness and hatred, from pride and false
views. With such meditation, he overcomes death, desire, the various
impurities of the mind, and destroys all the evil within him. He
becomes stainless and undefiled, pure and white, unaging, deathless,
secure, calm and happy. He attains Nirvana.
***by Bhikkhu Khantipalo
40 Meditation Exercises
as listed in the Path of Purification
If one has no meditation teacher from whom one may request a
meditation subject, then one has to rely upon one's knowledge of one's
character in order to prescribe for oneself a suitable meditation.
There are forty meditation exercises (kammatthana) noted by the
great teacher Buddhaghosa as being suited to certain types of
character. For the purposes of meditation, he considers six
characters: faithful, intelligent, and speculative (in which the
skillful roots of non-greed, non-hatred and non-delusion are variously
dominant); and greedy, hating, and deluded (in which greed, hatred and
delusion, the unskillful roots, are dominant). The trouble here is
twofold: firstly, very few "pure" types can be found, most
people being mixtures of two or more of them — and moreover
ever-changing mixtures; and secondly, it is rather difficult to judge
which class one's character belongs to since one's own delusion and
pride are apt to blur one's judgments. This is but one small matter in
which the value of the meditation teacher may be discerned very
easily. One may learn much about oneself, however, by being mindful at
the time when some unexpected event takes place. At that time
one can spot one's reaction and the stains which are present in the
mind. Later judgments are not worth very much, since by that time the
mind has got round to self-justifications, and other kinds of
distortions of the original event.
Below is given the list of the forty meditation exercises with some
notes upon their practice, the characters which are benefited, and the
types of stains combated by them. The most widely used meditation
exercises are starred (*).
Ten Kasinas (spheres, lit: totalities)
1. earth
2. water
3. fire
4. air
5. blue
6. yellow
7. red
8. white
9. light *
10. limited space
5-8 recommended for the practice of hate characters because
of their pure, pleasing colors.
Apart from the possible exception of 5-8, no special moral stain is
counteracted by these ten kasinas. As they are to be developed through
the eye, they will not be very suitable for anyone with weak sight
(according to Buddhaghosa).
The only one of the ten kasinas which seems to be practiced much
these days is that of light, which some people find arises quite
naturally when they begin to concentrate the mind. While Acariya
Buddhaghosa's explanations in Path of Purification tend to
stress the importance of using exterior supports for practice (the
making of the earth kasina is very minutely described), whenever the
writer has heard of them being employed (in Thailand), they are always
in the nature of visions (nimitta) arising internally and being
developed from this basis. It appears that contemplations of an
exterior earth, etc. kasina is unknown in Thailand.
Ten Kinds of Foulness (asubha)
11. the bloated (corpse) counteracting delight in beauty of
proportions
12. the livid... beauty of complexion
13. the festering... scents and perfumes
14. the cut-up... wholeness or compactness
15. the gnawed... well-fleshed body
16. the scattered... grace of limbs
17. the hacked and scattered... grace of body as a whole
18. the bleeding... ornaments and jewelry
19. the worm-infested... ownership of the body
20. the skeleton... having fine bones and teeth
11-20 recommended for greed characters.
These and similar lists in the Satipatthana Sutta reflect the time
when disposal of corpses upon charnel-grounds was common. Now,
however, even in Buddhist lands they are difficult to find, let alone
in Western countries. Teachers in Thailand at the present time stress
that one's own body is to be seen in these ways as a vision (nimitta)
arising in the course of mind-development. As these can be fearful,
one should have the instruction of a skilled teacher for dealing with
such visions, when they can be of great advantage. It may be stressed
here that there is nothing morbid in contemplating such sights,
interior or exterior, as these. The body's decay is just something
natural, but normally it is not seen because people do not like to
admit this. Instead of facing bodily decay and bringing it out into
the open, dead bodies are even made to look attractive by embalmers
and cosmeticians; and where this cannot be done, they are stowed away
in beautiful coffins with bright flowers, etc. Buddhist training makes
one look squarely at those aspects of life which normally (that is,
with craving) are not considered "nice," and makes one
calmly face them in respect of one's own mind and body.
Ten Reflections (anussati)
21. upon the Buddha *
22. " the Dhamma
23. " the Sangha
24. " virtue (sila) .... {counteracts the stain (kilesa)
of bad conduct (duccarita)}
25. " generosity .... {counteracts meanness (macchariya)}
26. " celestials .... {counteracts scepticism (vicikiccha)}
27. " death .... {counteracts laziness}
28. " body * .... {counteracts lust & sensuality (kama-raga)}
29. " breathing * .... {counteracts delusion, worry}
30. " peace .... {counteracts disturbance}
21-26 recommended for faith characters
27 " " intelligent characters
28 " " greedy characters
29 " " deluded/speculative characters
30 " " intelligent characters
This group of ten has a more miscellaneous character than the
previous two groups. In practicing the first three recollections
(21-23) one recited the lists of qualities of each one of these.6
Or if the mind does not become concentrated in this way, one chooses
one particular quality and recites that silently and continuously
(such as "Buddho" or "Araham"). Rosaries are used
in some places in connection with practice of this sort. The
recollections on virtue and generosity are specially good to cultivate
in one's old age. One reviews all the meritorious deeds (puñña)
made by one in the course of life, and recollecting them the mind
becomes tranquil and happy, and having such a mental state at the time
of death, one is sure to be reborn in very favorable surroundings. One
cannot recollect the celestials (deva) except by hearsay unless
one has seen them. This practice is suitable for those who have
increased the range of their minds and so have made contact with other
more subtle beings. Death may be recollected by intelligent
characters since they will not be frightened at the prospects which
this practice opens up. It is a great incentive to practice now
when one does not know whether even one second from hence, one will be
alive. The twenty-eighth recollection — on the body — is for greedy
characters, who need to develop dispassion regarding the body. This is
achieved by the analysis of the body into thirty-two unbeautiful
parts, and then by selecting one or more of these and examining it.
However, this practice comes to perfection when with insight the body
is illuminated and its various components are clearly seen and their
nature understood. The mindfulness of breathing is recommended for
calming and clearing the mind, and a person of almost any temperament
may practice it with benefit, though great care is needed in the
subtler ranges of this exercise. The breathing is never forced but
observed constantly with mindfulness, the point of concentration being
usually the nose-tip or nostrils. However, teachers vary in their
practice of it. The recollection of peace, says the great Acariya, is
only of certain benefit to those who have already experienced Nibbana,
such as stream-enterers; but others can gain some calm from
contemplation of peacefulness. The peace spoken of here is really
Nibbana, and as one cannot recollect what one has not known, if a
worldling (puthujjana), this is a practice for the Noble Ones (ariya).
Four Divine Abidings (Brahma-vihara)
31. friendliness * .... {counteracts the stain of hatred,
dislike}
32. compassion .... {counteracts callous indifference}
33. gladness (with others) .... {counteracts envy}
34. equanimity .... {counteracts worry}
31 recommended for hate characters
Four States of Formlessness (arupa-bhava)
35. sphere of infinite space
36. " " infinite consciousness
37. " " nothingness
38. " " neither-perception-nor-non-perception
These formless absorptions cannot be developed unless one has
already perfected the four ordinary absorptions of form. It is said
that this group of four may be explored on the basis of the fourth
absorption (jhana). As few people are likely to have
experienced this, we pass on to:
Perception of the Loathsomeness of Food
39. While it is essential for the bhikkhu who has to rely upon
collected food (which is sometimes good and sometimes not), lay people
can also benefit from this practice, which Acariya Buddhaghosa notes
is for intelligent characters, and is designed to lessen, and
lead to the destruction of, greed and gluttony.
One Defining of the Four Great Elements
40. These are earth (solidity), water (cohesion), fire
(temperature), and air (movement), all of which characterize our
physical bodies. These elements may be perceived by an analysis based
upon the use of mindfulness.7
This practice is also said to be particularly fitted for the intelligent
character.
Those practices not mentioned in connection with character are
suited to anyone. As all of these practices are aimed at the lessening
and eventual destruction of the stains (kilesa), one may
appreciate how important they are thought in Buddhist training. Where
the stains are present, there the darkness of unknowing holds sway;
but where they are not found, there shines forth the wisdom and
compassion of Enlightenment.
***Excerpted from "Practical
Advice for Meditators by Bhikkhu Khantipalo" (Copyright © 1986
Buddhist Publication Society).
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