The Inescapable Present Moment | Ajahn Jayasāro

[Music] be still which you can learn study explore how to find this balance between effort and relaxation this is one of the first and most valuable life skills that we can learn in the meditation practice the meditation practice is not something to be seen as completely removed from and separate from practice in everyday life the distinctive character of formal meditation is provided by our efforts to minimize obstructive conditions and maximize supportive conditions so we sit we sit together in a quiet space put down and turn off all our devices the atmosphere is not too hot not too cold microphone's not too loud not too soft we hav't got the goal of meditation goal of Buddhist education Buddhist training is to see things the way they are and the beginning from the very first unsteady step of meditation is the effort to see things the way they are application of the meditation technique is very effective means of encountering your mind so much of Modern Life allows encourages us to turn away from The Real World of our experience meditation is ground ing ourselves in real life what's really going on what's really going on just the physical body feeling tone Pleasant unpleasant neutral perceptions thoughts emotions sense Consciousness this is the real world so we are learning how to extend the time in which we are comfortable alert aware in the real world of our experience we place our mind on our meditation object for example breath as someone who is facing challenge the challenge is how can we create a relationship between the mind and the object such that the Mind prefers the object to any other mental object you can discover that contentment and sober alert gentle contentment with your meditation object the mind is so much less likely to slip into memory and imag ination we talk a lot about present moment awareness in fact you have no choice but to dwell in the present moment there's nothing else the past is a presently appearing memory it rises and passes away in the present moment rises in the present passes away in the present the future is a thought it arises in the present passes away in the present you don't have to fight with the past and the present create a fence or a wall to prevent the mind going on a journey into the past and the present because the past and present are just the names we use to refer to presently occurring phenomenon memory and Imagination mind on a breath breath is a very good object because it's bland done interesting it doesn't hold us to it it doesn't doesn't interest us so the only way that you can stay with the breath is through considered intelligent effort now one of the important mental factors which will help us to find this interest commitment contentment with the breath patience to stay with the breath is having a big picture understanding of why it's so important to do this what role formal meditation plays in our life what value it has what are the drawbacks what is the suffering inherent in a lack of mindfulness so before we begin the meditation we need to review just check the raw material that we will be working with in this session of meditation is there a flexibility is there a energy interest enthusiasm those that does the Mind feel a little bit heavy resistant are there certain worries and concerns that are swirling around in the mind so we have to very um carefully deal with those those issues before we can apply ourselves to the meditation object so we should all recommend that you find a collection we call it like a database of inspiring thoughts images Reflections that you can bring to mind immediately in order to prepare the mind for meditation you might call to mind the image of a great teacher someone who has practiced well someone who embodies his qualities of wisdom and compassion and Purity and a desire to follow in their footsteps to emulate them arises in the mind we might remind ourselves that defilements which are the cause of suffering never Disappear by themselves there are no flukes there's no Heavenly intervention defilements will disappear from our mind only through practice of the eight-fold path and the most intense focused complete practice of the Eightfold Path is in formal meditation so if we're sincere in our faith in Buddha dhama SAR and the value of with is training and this is the time for us to show that by the sincerity of our attention on the in breath and the [Music] out e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e e the [Music]

Channel: Clear Mountain Monastery Project

Views: 2,465

Keywords: buddhism, buddha, meditation, concentration, samadhi, vipassana, insight, dhamma, dharma, sati, mindfulness, monastic, monk, bhikkhu, nisabho, clear mountain monastery, cascade hermitage, monastery, thai forest, ajahn chah

Id: xBZYNC0Giqs

Length: 24min 8sec (1448 seconds)

Published: Sun May 05 2024