| | Thanks Trent, that's really useful for me. Particularly:
"Personally, I feel attainment of the samatha jhanas is absolutely crucial to progressing with insight."
Perhaps you could elaborate a bit?
As for my practice, I'm trying to do a few things:
(a) In sitting practice, I'm working with Ajahn Brahm's first few stages. These are (1) present-moment awareness, (2) silent present-moment awareness, (3) silent present-moment awareness of the breath, and (4) full sustained attention on the breath. I'm just trying to work with the mind, see what it's capable of, and find the states he's referring to (with all the characteristics he describes). I've had lots of interesting experiences here. So, my goal here is to master these stages, and also learn more about what leads to what in meditation. (If I try to do x, then y happens, etc.)
(b) Mindfulness outside of sitting meditation. This includes paying attention to sensations in as much detail as possible (mindfulness of the body, I guess), and sometimes paying very close attention to things in the mind (thought, feeling, intention, craving, etc., and looking for cause-and-effect). Basically, trying to see what the reality of experience really is, with as much detail and clarity as I can. I don't have any short-term goals here; I'm just trying to present the mind with a clearer picture of reality.
(c) In the past I've had very good results through analytic thinking. That is, studying philosophy, analyzing things on my own, etc. If one seeks only objective truth, this can really cut through delusions & craving and allow the mind to think logically, and with equanimity (I like to call it "logical equanimity" -- it's a very distinct frame of mind in my experience). I haven't been doing this much lately, but am planning to spend some time with it.
Cheers! |