Concentration

Verses 2 and 3 Review Prostration and Buddha-Nature We have been discussing the first verse of Bodhisattva’s Garland of Gems, which has to do with how to meditate in general and, more specifically, how to meditate on bodhichitta. The topic was introduced by the prostration or...

Why We Need to Develop Balanced Sensitivity? We’ve seen that “Developing Balanced Sensitivity” is a training program concerned about how to develop balance with our attentiveness: how we pay attention to situations and to the effect of our behavior on others and ourselves,...

Overview We are looking at the three trainings and how they can help us in daily life, through practicing the eightfold path. The three trainings are in: Ethical self-discipline Concentration Discriminating awareness. We implement right speech, action, behavior and...

Discerning Meditation In general, meditation has two stages: discerning meditation and stabilizing meditation. In discerning meditation, we work through either progressive steps or a line of reasoning, as we did in the thinking process, to build up to a state of mind that...

Engaging in Enlightening Conduct  Once we take the bodhisattva vows, which are the essence of developing this engaged level of bodhichitta, we need to actually practice what’s called “enlightening conduct,” bodhisattva conduct. This is actually what bodhisattva vows shape;...

(1) Having increased my zestful vigor like that, I shall set my mind in absorbed concentration; since a person having a distracted mind is set between the fangs of disturbing emotions. (2) Through dissociating (both my) body and mind, there'll be no occurrence of any...

[The recording of the initial part of this session is missing] Meditation on Voidness Builds up a Network of Deep Awareness  Let’s analyze the relation between a whole and its parts in terms of the example of a year and twelve months. A year is made up of twelve months. If...

Tsongkhapa explains the factors required for effective meditation in both sutra and tantra practice and how both practices are necessary for cognizing voidness (emptiness) with a joined state of shamatha and vipashyana.

An overview of the terminology concerning different levels and types of concentration.

An analysis of how to remain focused – what are the conducive conditions and deterrents of shamatha meditation.