flowing like a sine wave

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C4 Chaos, modified 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 6:50 AM
Created 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 6:50 AM

flowing like a sine wave

Posts: 0 Join Date: 7/26/09 Recent Posts
Forum: Practical Dharma

hi everyone,

just want to check in with my experience during my meditation this morning... maybe some of you could give me some pointers and "tricks" emoticon

i did my usual morning sitting meditation on the bed. again, my technique is Vipassana (Shinzen Young style. see http://bit.ly/sxsPN ). the first part of the meditation is noting the breath sensations, and then i shift to awareness of vibrations (if and when it arise. no effort is made to make this happen though).

i usually meditate for 1 hour and 15 minutes every sitting. this morning, i spent the latter half of the meditation lying down. a few minutes after lying down i became aware of a strong sense of pleasant vibrations. it's the strongest i've felt so far. it's as if my body was a thin sheet of paper and flowing like a "sine" wave, undulating, up and down, up and down. big pleasant waves. then a mental sensation got in the way. i thought i heard the TV in the other room, as if some stranger entered the room and turned on the TV. so i lost concentration and shifted out of the vibratory awareness. gah. (good news: no stranger in the house emoticon)

anyway, any suggestions on how to stay in that vibratory sensations and be able to continue with Vipassana? any suggestions on how to go beyond or break through the vibratory sensations? if and when i break through the vibrations, what's the next "experience" to be aware of?

thanks!

~C
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Jackson Wilshire, modified 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 8:34 AM
Created 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 8:34 AM

RE: flowing like a sine wave

Posts: 443 Join Date: 5/6/09 Recent Posts
I've had similar experiences, but not identical. There have been times where I'm really digging on vibrations and I suddenly get spooked by either an external noise or an internal energetic release. Sometimes I tense up when that happens, and I lose the wide and expansive awareness for a bit. It's like the "fight or flight" response kicks in, causing consciousness to constrict in order to quickly act in a seemingly dangerous situation.

As far as what to do if you get back in to that wave pattern, ride it out. Stay on them with just enough focus, so that you're not too agitated or too lax. Notice cessations, and note everything that arises and distracts you from the waves.

If you get spooked again and you lose it, it's no problem. Go back to working with what you have. It's hard to say what comes next. Let us know when you find out.
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C4 Chaos, modified 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 9:33 AM
Created 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 9:33 AM

RE: flowing like a sine wave

Posts: 0 Join Date: 7/26/09 Recent Posts
yes, the experience you described is very similar to mine. whenever i'm riding the vibrations or just in a relaxed or peaceful state, the slightest external sound would spook me out and get my heart pounding. "fight or flight" is a good description. mentally, i know that i am safe, but the body is in panic mode.

my conjecture is that, the "reptillian" part of our brain kicks in, especially when the conceptual part of our brain is still. i guess the more reason to continue doing Vipassana so as to see more "clearly" and get the "reptilian" part of our brain to loosen up emoticon

~C
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Jackson Wilshire, modified 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 9:43 AM
Created 15 Years ago at 3/18/09 9:43 AM

RE: flowing like a sine wave

Posts: 443 Join Date: 5/6/09 Recent Posts
What's interesting is that I don't get startled by noises at all when doing samatha practice. It's a completely different animal. There's something about vipassana, especially in the equanimity nana, that is really super sensative to the slightest movements or subtlest sounds.

The "getting spooked" has mostly subsided for me now, but it was a bit of a problem for me prior to first path. I think it just loses it's ability to scare you as you continue to let yourself be exposed to it. It's sort of like the kind of exposure therapy they do for people with phobias. Just a thought.

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