Concentration and Meditation
Concentration and Meditation
One of the key components to living mindfully – is learning how to tame the unruly mind and cultivate attentional balance. In other words, we must learn how to direct our attention where we want it and hold it there. Ultimately, this is the only way to establish free will in our lives.
It is a common myth that we have such free will and use it daily. Most of our choices and reactions are triggered by an unruly mind; they are not conscious choices based in reality. If we are to have free will in our lives, we need to be present in the current moment with clarity and wisdom. Instead of having the mind drag us around from one thought or feeling to the next, we need to train the mind to serve us in the healthiest way possible.
If we observe the mind, we will notice that it tends to be either very active – ruminating, planning, reminiscing (often referred to as monkey mind) – or tired, such as when we can’t muster the energy to pay attention. These two states are often described as excitation and laxity – the mind tends to be either too excited or too lax. Rarely is it relaxed, stable and attentive. This dual tendency – excitation and laxity – is a common one that has been noted in many wisdom traditions throughout time. It is so common, in fact, that people just get used to it and accept is as a normal state of mind. While this acceptance is a pervasive human experience, in truth it is not our natural state of mind. The natural state of the mind is blissful, luminous and non-conceptual.
Unfortunately, the obsessive, compulsive and delusional activities of the mind obscure its true natural state. This state is verifiable – consistently replicated by meditators over thousands of years – yet it eludes us. When we are able to cultivate attentional balance, avoid getting caught up in excitation or laxity, and develop the ability to rest our awareness in a relaxed, stable and clear way, only then will we discover this natural, blissful state of mind.
The method of cultivating attentional balance that has been refined over thousands of years is available to us in concentration meditation otherwise known as shamatha (calm abiding). This specific practice is the antidote to the most detrimental mental affliction we have: the obsessive and compulsive mind. Before unveiling this method further, let us say a few words about meditation.
First, the form of meditation we are suggesting is very simple and can be done by anyone. You do not need to climb a mountain, sit in full lotus position, or learn any complicated visualizations. It is as simple as learning to relax your body, breathe naturally and pay attention.
Second, there are many different types of meditation, and all of them are designed with a specific purpose in mind. The great teachers of all traditions will emphasize that it does not matter so much that we sit this way or that way, do this meditation or that meditation; what matters is whether our meditation counteracts our mental afflictions. This is a very important point, and one that is overlooked far too frequently. So often we hear studies indicating that meditation has all sorts of wonderful benefits. Nice posters state that, if we all meditated, the world would be a peaceful place. Unfortunately, these claims are often out of context and not entirely true. Meditation can have a beneficial, non-beneficial, or neutral effect on us. We can use meditation to escape the responsibilities and challenges of life – or to face them. We can use meditation to concentrate all our energy on selfish means – or on helping others. We can do elaborate meditations working with energy and, without proper guidance, actually damage our bodies. We can also use certain meditations – understanding their specific purpose and with guidance from a qualified teacher – that enable us to alleviate, if not eliminate, mental and physical afflictions, thus improving our quality of life.
So remember that when learning to meditate it is very important for us to understand the purpose of the meditation, the directions of the meditation and how it addresses our afflictions. The concentration meditation that used in MLP is very safe, easy to learn and can be extremely effective in cultivating attentional balance.
Because many of us do not have a great deal of freedom and time to participate in hours of training, practice and meditation, it is also important to use what little time we do have to meditate in the most effective way. Most people are fortunate if they have 30 minutes a day to dedicate to formal meditation practice. We lead very busy lives, and it can be challenging to break old habits and create the time for a meditation practice. So, if you are able to meditate for only 10, 20 or 30 minutes, why not choose the meditation that directly counteracts our biggest obstacle, the unruly mind? That is the very specific purpose of concentration meditation practice.
Meditation practices are divided into two categories: concentration and contemplative/analytical. Concentration meditation such as shamatha is a concentration practice designed to develop attentional balance. The unique feature of this meditation is that we focus all of our awareness on one object to the exclusion of all else. In this way, we are able to train the mind to attend to what we choose, rather than have it drag our attention around. This meditation practice is also very healthy for our bodies. It allows us to rest body and mind in their natural states, which, in itself, is very healing. An added bonus to all of these benefits is that this meditation is a simple and straightforward practice that all of us can learn. It has three stages of development: relaxation, stability and vividness. It is often explained using a tree as a metaphor.
The roots of the tree represent relaxation. For us to truly progress in this practice, we need to be able to relax the body while keeping the mind alert. As simple as this sounds, we find that it is a skill to be cultivated. Rarely is the body physically relaxed while the mind is clear and mentally alert. We notice that when we relax, we have a tendency to feel very tired, or even fall asleep. Most of the time, the nervous system is quite active and ramped up. So, initially, our practice is simply learning how to relax our bodies without falling asleep. This is the root of our tree.
As we develop in our practice and are able to be alert while relaxed, what will become the trunk of our tree – stability – begins to sprout. Stability occurs when we are able to maintain our attention on our chosen object of meditation. If we have a consistent practice, even if it is only a short time daily, we will learn to have a relaxed body and an alert mind that is eventually able to remain focused on what we have chosen to attend to. This is a gradual process; trying to hurry does not help.
At first, the mind will wander many times, challenging us to maintain stability. At this point, many people struggle and begin to believe that they are not capable of meditating. However, this is when we are actually making progress! If the mind wanders 10 times during meditation and we bring it back 10 times, we have just had 10 mindful moments that we would not have had otherwise. Every time we notice that the mind has wandered, we become mindful and are able to direct it back consciously. This is the process of training the mind.
Most the time, when the mind wanders, we are not aware of it; it just takes us along for the ride. But gradually, with consistent practice, the trunk of stability will develop, and we will be able to rest our awareness on our chosen object for longer periods of time. Eventually, this will lead to a high degree of clarity and a vividness; these are the leaves of our tree. There is a sequence: First relaxation, then stability and, finally, vividness. Of course, in our goal-oriented modern Western world, we often try to reach for the leaves first, before we have developed healthy roots and a strong trunk. Rather than being beneficial, this actually hinders our progress.
There are two primary reasons people struggle to develop a consistent meditation practice. First, we don’t really know why we are meditating. We have a vague idea that it is good for us, we have read about its benefits and we believe that it will bring us inner peace. Then we try different meditations with hope that we will find . . . something. However, because we don’t know the specific qualities of the meditation we’re doing and how it is targeted to specific afflictions, it is difficult for us to see any progress, and our practice fades away.
Establishing any new habit is challenging; to be successful, we have to have a clear, realistic goal and a measurable path by which to arrive at that goal. As we prepare to meditate, we like to remind people to take a little time to remember why we are meditating – to call to mind that this is an opportunity to develop ourselves fully and cultivate a meaningful life with attention and intention. By choosing to meditate, we are developing the ability to direct the mind and attention where we choose, to no longer live unconsciously, to stop falling victim to every thought, feeling, worry or desire that pops into our heads. We give ourselves permission to relax and nourish ourselves, allowing body and mind to heal and become resources we can draw upon.
The second reason we struggle with meditation is that we try to do too much too soon. It is much better to start with short meditations of good quality than long meditations of poor quality. Quality is much more important than quantity with meditation. When we begin a meditation practice, it is best to choose a short one and learn to do it well. Venerable Thubten Chodron states that the best meditation practice occurs when we finish and feel as if we could have done a bit more. This encourages us to look forward to our next session rather than seeing it as a chore, which we might do after a painfully long session.
© 2015 Mindful Life Program Inc
