meditation 101: what does it all mean??
The Bodhi Tree, Bodh Gaya, Bihar, India
Later this week I am bringing you “beginner’s mind, beginner’s meditation” - a workshop in which we capitalize on the bonus (leap) day of 2020. We get an extra day! This is the perfect opportunity to learn something new. Here’s a study guide to help orient you to what we’ll be discussing during the workshop.
What even is meditation? YogaInternational.com defines meditation as “a precise technique for resting the mind and attaining a state of consciousness that is totally different from the normal waking state. It is the means for fathoming all the levels of ourselves and finally experiencing the center of consciousness within”.
Yes. Meditation is all of those things. It’s also a lot less than all of that. Simply put, it is a practice that helps us become more aware. It wakes us up ~ which seems kind of odd when we realize that it looks like stillness and resting.
The kind of meditation I practice, and teach, is mindfulness meditation. One of my favorite aspects of this tradition of meditation is that it does not require me to “clear my mind”, a common misconception to what meditation is. In fact, mindfulness just teaches me to be aware of what my thoughts are saying or doing. They are allowed to exist (I am an overthinker; my thoughts will ALWAYS exist), but through mindfulness, I am not dragged down the current with them. I am able to stand in the stream as they float by.
In the Buddhist teachings, mindfulness is also called sati. The style of teaching I am trained in is called vipassana.
What does meditation have to do with awakening? In Buddhist tradition, awakening is aligned with enlightenment. The Buddha taught meditation to his followers as a means toward awakening - waking up to what is happening within and around us. Tied closely to enlightenment in Buddhist tradition are the interconnected ideas of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path.
Dukkha, or suffering (sometimes defined as unpleasantness or unsatisfactoriness of life) is a part of existence;
We suffer because we crave or we reject. Our suffering comes from our rejection of unpleasantness of life or through clinging to what we think is pleasant;
All things are impermanent and as such we can be released from suffering. By accepting suffering, we can let go of it;
The way we can end suffering is through awareness.
The Eightfold Path is part of the awareness that will release us from suffering
Right understanding;
Right thought;
Right speech;
Right action;
Right livelihood;
Right effort;
Right mindfulness;
Right concentration.
I don’t have enough space here to fully go into these concepts, but I highly recommend Advice Not Given by Mark Epstein and Mindfulness in Plain English by Bhante Henepola Gunaratana as excellent texts on these ideas.
Another idea in the Buddhist teachings that truly resonate with me is are the Four Immeasurables or Brahmaviharas. Through cultivation of these mindstates, we are better equipped to meet the eightfold path and four noble truths:
Metta (lovingkindness)
Karuna (compassion)
Mudita (vicarious joy - being happy for someone else’s good fortune)
Upekkha (equanimity or balance)
I have stated previously that it’s not required that one identify as Buddhist in order to meditate. This is a practice open to anyone seeking change in their life. Meditation in the Buddhist tradition is a way toward enlightenment, but there are loads of additional benefits that are important to many a 21st century citizen of the world.
Early in my explorations of meditation I heard it described as “Buddhism isn’t a thing to believe, it’s a thing to do.” I’m paraphrasing and I wish I could appropriately attribute this quote but I will tell you, it resonated deeply with my agnostic self.
Before wrapping up, there are just a few other terms I’d love to share for new or curious meditators.
Meditation “accessories” - Though these are not requirements for meditation practice (your mind and your breath are the only requirements, in truth), you may see practitioners using mala (prayer) beads, singing bowls, and prayer shawls among other items. Some meditators use apps (I prefer Insight Timer) or sound recordings.
Most meditators want something to support their body during practice. If you don’t have a meditation cushion, it’s also perfectly fine to use a chair, a yoga mat, or a rolled up blanket. When I am asked about “what is the right way” to meditate, I always say, whatever is right for you and your body. Part of meditation is overcoming our rejection of discomfort or the grasping of comfort, we’re also far less likely to pursue this practice if it’s miserable. If sitting in a chair is the difference between you meditating or not, I’d say sit in the chair.
The Buddha - Contrary to theistic traditions, the Buddha is not a god. He is a man, born a prince named Siddhartha Gautama on the Indian subcontinent approximately 2500 years ago. His family attempted to shield him from all suffering (including sickness and death), but when he accidentally encountered it, he set on a quest to confront it. He achieved enlightenment under the Bodhi tree and spread the word of how he did this with his followers.
Dharma - I’ve encountered many meanings of this term: truth, universal truth, right way of living, moral law, and others. But understanding of this word, based on my studies, the truth of a thing being what it is. Water is water because it is wet.
Sigh. For someone that struggled so much with self-acceptance, the idea of dharma feels like liberation.
Mantra - A repeated word or sound, used for concentration during meditation. The Chopra Center defines it as a “vehicle that helps access heightened levels of awareness”.
I personally don’t meditate with mantra, though I have been known to incorporate this practice in my running. I first learned “Om namah shivaya” from a yoga teacher who would exclaim it when we were engaged in particularly challenging poses and postures. This five syllable mantra, om namah shivaya is loosely translated to the most sacred divinity resides within our very souls. Love!
Pali and Sanskrit - Ancient languages of the Indian subcontinent and the original languages of Buddhist teachings.
Samsara - The recurring cycle of life and death. A part of this, in Buddhist tradition, is the idea of reincarnation.
An aspect of reincarnation that just absolutely tickles me pink is the teaching by the Buddha which suggests that due to samsara, everyone we meet may have one time been our relative. I absolutely love that, and how it relates to the four immeasurables.
Sangha - A Buddhist community, assembled for the purpose of studying the teachings together.
Sankalpa - Simply defined as “intention”. Sankalpa is often set at the beginning of a meditation session and is a point of focus for the practice. In some practices, the sankalpa is an affirmative statement, in the present tense, and repeated silently three times.
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This is just a tiny bit of primer on, based on my studies and interpretation of, the Buddhist tradition and our subsequent practice of mindfulness. I hope this information finds you where you need it.
I am also curious to what you’re curious about - what questions do you have about meditation? What words have you heard that you don’t know the meaning or fully understand? What challenges have you encountered in your meditation practice that you’d like to see addressed here, or at the upcoming workshop?
I’d love to hear from you!
