Put the body into a comfortable and alert position, align with gravity. Begin to feel the whole body all at once and relax and soften anything that stands out. Over time the body will soften and quiet. As the body quiets, expand to feel the whole experience all at once, mental and physical. Notice thoughts,…

Thus, one can work with an empty mind — free of ‘me’ and ‘mine,’of profit and loss, of success and failure — a mind most sharp, profound, and penetrating. Such a mind is just like having eyes of fire that instantly incinerate whatever one sets them upon. The empty mind sees through everything… Work with…

Take a walk at comfortable pace. Relax anything in the body that can be relaxed. Relax any sense of doing. Relax anything that can be relaxed. What is left when there is no doing?

In this second post I would like to explore the relationship between the descent through dependent co-arising and Chan silent illumination, or Theravada animitta (signless) samādhi. In part 1, I gave the following example of directly contemplating hearing, moving through the first half of the steps of dependent co-arising; Contact Sounds happening within hearing and…

Simply set down any disturbances, don’t pick up any new, and like a ball of bubbles, they will pop and evaporate…What remains? A sunbeam can be seen because of where it lands. If there is no landing…What remains? When body is relaxed, physical borders fade and merge into the background. When mind is relaxed, mental…

“They should develop a mind which does not abide in anything” – The Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Sutra

For many meditation practitioners, (particularly if they do not come from a cultural background that sits on the floor) posture is sort of a tough subject to get to the bottom of.  I will share my perspectives on what I have learned and experienced, and perhaps what works best will manifest through experimentation. There is…

Set the body in a comfortable, alert position aligned with gravity. Select and set the mind on to a task of continual experiencing of some sensory phenomena that you find some interest in. Relaxing tension within the body, feeling the arches of the feet, noticing length of breath, etc. are all suitable practices. What is…

The brahmaviharas as presented here are a series of four practices that cultivate and radiate beautiful and rejuvenating mental states. They can be done by choosing to cultivate a specific one of the four practices, or by starting at the first and flowing through all four. Once the feel for one is developed, it can…

Within Buddhism there are some practices that are described as “turning the lamp inwards”. What is the meaning of this phrase? How can it be practiced? I have been revisiting the Shurangama Sutra recently and inspiration arose to share some of my own explorations in this area of Dharma In the Shurangama Sutra there is…