Andrew Furst's Blog, page 41
October 17, 2016
Counting Or Following Your Breath? – Dialectic Two Step
Estimated reading time: 10 minute(s)
Question: Is There a Difference Between Counting Your Breath and Following Your Breath? If yes, then what’s the difference?
Response: All the difference in the world! Counting your breath is a conscious activity. You’re keeping track, you’re directing your attention. There is a certain subtle energy and tension in the activity.
Following your breath is a letting go, a subtle release of control.
Early in my meditation practice, I recited my mantras and directed my attention towards objects of meditation. This is important work as it provided the first step inward. Meditation was a stepping out of the cacophony of life into a place of peace. The work was shifting my senses inward.
Over the years, directing my attention has become easier. I’m able to shift my attention inward and consciously relax my body and mind. This has also improved my ability to discipline my attention outwardly.
The art of following your breath is an entirely different thing. It’s an exercise in pure being; in non-judgmental awareness. Not only are we letting go of keeping track. We giving up leading our body, and letting it lead us.
The art of following your breath is ... giving up leading our body, and letting it lead us.
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If you’ve ever done pranayama, you’re familiar with using breath control. These are wonderful techniques that offer many physical and mental benefits. Non-judgmental awareness of your breath might be described as an anti-pranayama or at least a different class. It’s a whole different ballgame.
Let’s learn by doing.
Basic Pranayama
Let’s try a basic breathing technique. I think you’ll find it rejuvenating.
Find a comfortable seat. Inhaling through the nose, take a deep cleansing breath. Notice the air as it enters the nostrils, moves into the sinuses, the throat, and finally into your lungs. Let the air fully expand your ribcage. Notice the diaphragm pressing on the belly and making it rise. Once the lungs are full, reverse the process. Collapse the diaphragm, the rib cage and the sternum. Expel the air audibly through your throat and mouth.
Do this three of four times.
As each breath is completed, notice how you feel. Maybe a little more physically and mentally relaxed. A little clearer in the senses.
Following the Breath
Continue to scan your body, noticing how you feel. Enjoy the sensations of relaxation. After about 10-20 seconds, let your awareness settle on your heart.
Now imagine your awareness, fueled by the energy of your heart, radiating outward. Let your awareness expand throughout your entire body. Shift away from directing your attention, to just resting in a gentle awareness. Let yourself be gently available to whatever sensation comes next.
The most prominent sensation is the patient gentle breathing of your body. The inhale comes, rises, and pauses. Then there is a space of transition. You may feel the urge to press forward to the exhale, don’t. Simply wait for the body to it.
On the exhale, it’s the same story, follow it to the space at the bottom. If you feel the urge, let it go. Let the body breathe itself.
Allow the breathing to continue. If you have a mantra, let the inhale tell you when to begin. If not, nn noticing the inhale, silently chant “Namo”. On noticing the exhale, “Amitofo”. Follow as long as you’d like. When you do take the urge to breathe, let it go, and return to letting the body be breathed.
I first understood taking refuge in the Buddha when I learned to follow my breath.
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Following the breath is where I found what surrender meant. Following the breath is where I learned entrusting. Following the breath reminds me that I’m not in control. I first understood taking refuge in the Buddha when I learned to follow my breath.
Dialectic Two-Step is an ongoing series of my thoughts on questions that come my way.
Wisdom lies neither in fixity nor in change, but in the dialectic between the two. - Octavio
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October 15, 2016
Precept Madness – Say What?
Say What? is an ongoing series of laconic exchanges on Buddhism in the format of a comic strip.
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October 14, 2016
Is It Possible To Attain Psychic Ability Through Meditation? – Modern Koans
Of course you should never have had to ask this question. All the psychic meditators out there would have answered it before you had to expend the effort to ask the question. Unless of course they are just a very impolite group of people.
Sarcasm aside, if being psychic was the ability to read the thoughts of others, I would have great pity upon anyone with that ability. It is likely that they would go insane.
Consider this little koan:
How would you distinguish the thoughts of others from your own?
When we meditate, we sit and watch thoughts arise, pass through, and dissipate across the sky of mind.
What exactly is it about these thoughts that make them yours? Are they yours because they are in a certain voice? Or because they passed through the patch of sky that you just happen to be watching?
Here's a koan: If you were psychic, how would you distinguish the thoughts of others from your own?
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What if you could experimentally demonstrate the same thought passing through someone else’s mind? Would that mean one or both of you was psychic? Neither of you could tell. So what difference would it make?
Is psychic ability real? Why do the Buddhist teachings even mention clairvoyance? Is it bunk or is there something to it?
I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
Modern Koans is an ongoing series that recognizes that good questions are often more important than their answers.
The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man. ― G.K. Chesterton
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October 13, 2016
Senters Falls – A Two Minute Meditation
Senters Falls is a little off the beaten path in Lyndeborough, NH. You can view the falls from a loop trail at the Alan and Edgar Rice Natural Area. This little preserve is beautifully maintained by the Piscataquog Land Conservancy. The loop also includes some nice little observations. Be sure to write a note in the notebook found at the trail head sign. This area is a beautiful little gem and I highly recommend it. The trail leads up a steep drumlin (steeper and higher than any drumlin I’ve seen before), so wear good shoes and be careful.
I also noticed from the notebook that the site has a steady but small following. Except for a small army of mosquitos, I had the place to myself (it was a weekday) and this added to the joy of the experience.
Senters Falls in Lyndeborough, NH
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Minute Meditations is an ongoing series of short videos, poems, and commentary intended as a meditation. Offered as an opportunity to step back from your cyber routine and settle into a more natural rhythm, if only for a minute.
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These videos are produced for those of us who spend an inordinately large amount of time in the cyber-world. They are not a substitute for unplugging from your devices and taking a stroll near trees, water, or a patch of unkempt grass. Getting out into the world - touching, smelling, hearing, and seeing nature is the best way to reconnect with our prime purpose.
What is our prime purpose? We are feeling and sensing machines. We are the universe looking back on itself. We are witness to the wonders and dangers of living in this corner of the cosmos. We are the seekers looking for connection a little further beyond yesterday's borders and boundaries.
But sitting and staring at the screen robs us of the sustenance that we rely upon for wonder and sanity. These videos are an opportunity to bring the sensations of nature to you, while you're in the cyber-world. Its an opportunity to relax your gaze, resettle your posture, and regain some depth in your breath. Listen and watch the video and allow your self to open up and recharge.
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October 12, 2016
Water – Tiny Drops (Photography)
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Conch
Droplet
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October 11, 2016
Grief Calls Us to the Things of This World by Sherman Alexie – Compass Songs
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by Sherman Alexie
The eyes open to a blue telephone
In the bathroom of this five-star hotel.
I wonder whom I should call? A plumber,
Proctologist, urologist, or priest?
Who is blessed among us and most deserves
The first call? I choose my father because
He’s astounded by bathroom telephones.
I dial home. My mother answers. “Hey, Ma,”
I say, “Can I talk to Poppa?” She gasps,
And then I remember that my father
Has been dead for nearly a year. “Shit, Mom,”
I say. “I forgot he’s dead. I’m sorry—
How did I forget?” “It’s okay,” she says.
“I made him a cup of instant coffee
This morning and left it on the table—
Like I have for, what, twenty-seven years—
And I didn’t realize my mistake
Until this afternoon.” My mother laughs
At the angels who wait for us to pause
During the most ordinary of days
And sing our praise to forgetfulness
Before they slap our souls with their cold wings.
Those angels burden and unbalance us.
Those fucking angels ride us piggyback.
Those angels, forever falling, snare us
And haul us, prey and praying, into dust.
Compass Songs is an ongoing series of works by poets that I enjoy. Poetry, as the Zen Masters have said, is like a finger pointing to the moon. It speaks the unspeakable.
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October 10, 2016
The Whole Enchilada – Dialectic Two Step
Estimated reading time: 13 minute(s)
Om Ah Amitabha Hung
As part of the opening ceremony at my meditation group I recite a light mantra. It’s adapted from the Shingon tradition and refocused onto Buddha Amitabha, the Buddha of the Pure Land tradition. The mantra ends with the line quoted above. Om Ah Amitabha Hung is the whole enchilada. It can be interpreted to mean:
In body, speech, and mind, I am Amitabha Buddha
Most weeks, one or two newcomers will arrive at our Monday evening meditation group. I welcome them and ask a few questions, the first of which is, “What brings you here?”
The answers help me introduce them to the practice of meditation. Recently, I’ve gotten an interesting answer. “My therapist recommended I try meditation”
Having been in therapy myself, I have an appreciation for their situation and a certain interest in trying to give them something to walk away with.
On one of those weeks, I was sitting on my cushion waiting for everyone to arrive and idly reading over our prayer sheet. The light mantra appears at the head of the sheet. My eyes settled on the final line quoted above. I knew immediately how to begin.
Feelings are often amplified by the relentlessness way in which the mind can perseverate on them.
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Many of us come to our weekly meditation group to find some peace. We struggle through our days with stress, anxiety, and strong emotions. We may feel a longing, or we might struggle with a sense of disappointment with out lives. This can lead us to anger, anxiety, and sadness. These feelings are often amplified by the relentlessness way in which the mind can perseverate on them . We float on a stormy sea of thoughts, one after another. Each thought a new battle in a war that lasts a lifetime.
Are You Game?
How do we stand in the face of such a challenge?
One way is to put some clear boundaries on the problem and the solution. I think one of the reasons we become so overwhelmed, is that all we see is a steady stream of life coming at us and we are not sure how we’re going to deal with the next thing or some bigger problem that could pop up in the future. If we had a clear set of rules for playing the game, then it would collapse the problem down to size quite nicely. Of course, it’s not that simple, but if we could move in that direction, things might improve.
The Rules
Here’s how Om Ah Amitabha Hung might help. Consider a three step process for finding peace that could work most of the time. Let’s try it first as a meditation.
The Body – let your eyelids relax down partially over your eyes and with that movement allow the eyes to rest in their sockets, let the roof of your mouth soften, and relax the forehead, temples, and jaw. Let your awareness come fully into your body. Step by step let it move down to your throat, your shoulder blades and arms, heart, solar plexus, abdomen, lower back, hips, thighs, the back of your knees, shins, ankles, your feet all the way to where they touch the ground. Do this gradually taking a few breaths to stop at each point. Allow the breath and the awareness to relax each part of the body. Notice how you feel and how different it is from when you started.
The Mind – our thoughts and senses are centered in our heads. We are constantly processing the steady stream of ideas the flow like clouds across the sky of our minds. First, relax the mind by letting the thoughts flow without intervention or action on your part. I call the nonjudgemental awareness. For the time being, just be an observer. let the observer sink into the body, flowing down the body, just as we did before, but let it settle in your lower abdomen. Notice how you feel and how different it is from when you started.
Speech – A quick observation on the term speech. For our purposes we can treat this to mean our actions. As you’ve transitioned to a state of deeper relaxation and non judgemental awareness, you are prone to a new type of reaction to the world around you. Often times, in this state, we are much less likely to respond from a place of anger, anxiety, or disappointment. We may even be ready to respond from a place of love, joy, compassion, and equanimity? Imagine that.
Playing the Game
So what did we learn here? Do we need to stop and meditate every time we are in a stressful situation? No, not really. But we can approach the challenges of life with this understanding: Regardless of the situation, our response to it will be in the context of our bodies and minds. If we are able to come from a place of an open mind and open body, we will be much more capable of handling the firehose of life. All that we are is body, speech, and mind. If we can know how to apply these three things, we have everything we need to deal with life.
Body, speech, and mind are the Whole Enchilada.
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Body, speech, and mind are the Whole Enchilada.
In body, speech, and mind I am Buddha Amitabha.
Dialectic Two-Step is an ongoing series of my thoughts on questions that come my way.
Wisdom lies neither in fixity nor in change, but in the dialectic between the two. - Octavio
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October 9, 2016
Henry Rollins on October and November – Quotes
Quotes -The path to right view is an arduous walk through fields of manure.
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Henry Rollins on October and November
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October 8, 2016
I Doubt It – Say What?
Say What? is an ongoing series of laconic exchanges on Buddhism in the format of a comic strip.
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October 7, 2016
Are the Laws of Physics Empty of Inherent Existence? – Modern Koans
Question: Are space, time and the “rules and laws” of physics conditioned like regular phenomena (as the buddha taught) or do they exist inherently? If they do exist inherently, would that mean they don’t need a cause? Doesn’t seem right…
Response: Really great question. I don’t have the answer, but here are my thoughts.
This puzzle draws out the urge to say, “Well, the laws of physics are over there on the ‘reality’ side of things. So they’re different”
But, if philosophy has taught us anything, it’s that we have a tenuous relationship with “reality”. Kurt Gödel’s incompleteness theorem closed the book on this in the early 20th century.
If philosophy has taught us anything, it’s that we have a tenuous relationship with “reality”
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Gödel’s theorem gives us a clear sense that there is boundary between the human mind (theory) and the thing we call “reality”. It’s also true that the scope of that disparity need not be dramatic. Our best theories meet some pretty high bars for accuracy, including explaining past phenomenon and predicting new ones.
But I do see a couple of ways you could argue the laws of physics are conditioned phenomenon (empty of existence, impermanent, and the result of some cause)
Theories have change over time. Since thinkers like Bacon, William of Ockham, and Descartes established the groundwork for the modern scientific method, our understanding of the world has improved dramatically. Improvement is change. So, it’s not unreasonable to say that improvement will continue.
Input Constraints – Our view of the universe is conditioned by the range and type of sensory input we’re capable of detecting and processing. Before we had instruments to detect infrared light or stars in adjacent galaxies, we either had no clue that some phenomenon existed or had very limited data with which to construct adequate theories. While we’ve significantly expanded the reach of the human mind, but there are some phenomena that remain beyond our reach (e.g. dark matter). It’s likely that there are some surprises out there.
I think this latter point is a common sense example of how the laws are an object of mind. All objects of mind are by definition impermanent, arise from a cause, and are therefore empty of inherent existence.
I would also suggest that cosmologists generally agree that the laws of physics could be different given a different set of causes. It intuitively feels hard to prove this, but I think it’s because we have no view to the other side of the Big Bang.
I’m very interested in some of the quantum theory predictions that imply that the big bang may not be time zero. It seems possible, because all the points in time from now back to just after the big bang, 100% of them flowed from a past. What an odd exception to say that for one particular moment 14 billion years ago there wasn’t a past.
What an odd exception to say that for one particular moment 14 billion years ago there wasn’t a past.
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Do physics and Buddhism mix? Or are mysticism and science incompatible? Is this just nerd speak?
I'd love to hear your thoughts in the comments below.
Modern Koans is an ongoing series that recognizes that good questions are often more important than their answers.
The riddles of God are more satisfying than the solutions of man. ― G.K. Chesterton
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