Dale S. Wright
- Published in print:
- 2009
- Published Online:
- February 2010
- ISBN:
- 9780195382013
- eISBN:
- 9780199870332
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195382013.003.0006
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
Chapter 5 is divided into two sections. The first section presents an overview of the Mahayana Buddhist teachings on the perfection of meditation, dhyānapāramitā. The second section inquires into ...
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Chapter 5 is divided into two sections. The first section presents an overview of the Mahayana Buddhist teachings on the perfection of meditation, dhyānapāramitā. The second section inquires into various ways to conceive of contemplative practice in the contemporary, global world. It analyzes meditation at three levels of human consciousness—immediate experience, reflective experience, and reflexivity, or self‐awareness. The chapter reflects on the relations between meditation and philosophy.Less
Chapter 5 is divided into two sections. The first section presents an overview of the Mahayana Buddhist teachings on the perfection of meditation, dhyānapāramitā. The second section inquires into various ways to conceive of contemplative practice in the contemporary, global world. It analyzes meditation at three levels of human consciousness—immediate experience, reflective experience, and reflexivity, or self‐awareness. The chapter reflects on the relations between meditation and philosophy.
Ann Gleig
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780300215809
- eISBN:
- 9780300245042
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300215809.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
The past couple of decades have witnessed Buddhist communities both continuing the modernization of Buddhism and questioning some of its limitations. This fascinating portrait of a rapidly changing ...
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The past couple of decades have witnessed Buddhist communities both continuing the modernization of Buddhism and questioning some of its limitations. This fascinating portrait of a rapidly changing religious landscape illuminates the aspirations and struggles of younger North American Buddhists during a period that the book identifies as a distinct stage in the assimilation of Buddhism to the West. The author observes both the emergence of new innovative forms of deinstitutionalized Buddhism that blur the boundaries between the religious and secular, and a revalorization of traditional elements of Buddhism such as ethics and community that were discarded in the modernization process. Based on extensive ethnographic and textual research, the book ranges from mindfulness debates in the Vipassana network to the sex scandals in American Zen, while exploring issues around racial diversity and social justice, the impact of new technologies, and generational differences between baby boomer, Gen X, and millennial teachers.Less
The past couple of decades have witnessed Buddhist communities both continuing the modernization of Buddhism and questioning some of its limitations. This fascinating portrait of a rapidly changing religious landscape illuminates the aspirations and struggles of younger North American Buddhists during a period that the book identifies as a distinct stage in the assimilation of Buddhism to the West. The author observes both the emergence of new innovative forms of deinstitutionalized Buddhism that blur the boundaries between the religious and secular, and a revalorization of traditional elements of Buddhism such as ethics and community that were discarded in the modernization process. Based on extensive ethnographic and textual research, the book ranges from mindfulness debates in the Vipassana network to the sex scandals in American Zen, while exploring issues around racial diversity and social justice, the impact of new technologies, and generational differences between baby boomer, Gen X, and millennial teachers.
J. L. Cassaniti
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781501707995
- eISBN:
- 9781501714177
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501707995.001.0001
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
Remembering the Present examines the contemporary meanings, practices, and purposes of mindfulness in the countries of Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar (Burma), which together make up a large part of ...
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Remembering the Present examines the contemporary meanings, practices, and purposes of mindfulness in the countries of Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar (Burma), which together make up a large part of what is known as the “Pali imaginaire” that spawned today’s global mindfulness movement. Drawing from the experiences of over 600 monks, psychiatrists, students, and villagers in the Buddhist monasteries, hospitals, markets, and homes in the region, Remembering the Present shows how an attention to memory informs how people live today, and how mindfulness, as understood through its Buddhist Pāli-language term of sati, is intimately tied to local constructions of time, affect, power, emotion, and selfhood. With a focus on lived experience and the practical matters of people for whom mindfulness is a central part of everyday life, the book offers an engaged ethnographic investigation of what it means to ‘remember the present’ in the meditative practices, interpersonal worlds, and psychiatric hospitals for people in a region strongly influenced by Buddhist thought. The book will speak to an increasingly global network of psychological scientists, anthropologists, Buddhist studies scholars, and religious practitioners interested in contemporary Buddhist thought and the cultural phenomenology of religious experience.Less
Remembering the Present examines the contemporary meanings, practices, and purposes of mindfulness in the countries of Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar (Burma), which together make up a large part of what is known as the “Pali imaginaire” that spawned today’s global mindfulness movement. Drawing from the experiences of over 600 monks, psychiatrists, students, and villagers in the Buddhist monasteries, hospitals, markets, and homes in the region, Remembering the Present shows how an attention to memory informs how people live today, and how mindfulness, as understood through its Buddhist Pāli-language term of sati, is intimately tied to local constructions of time, affect, power, emotion, and selfhood. With a focus on lived experience and the practical matters of people for whom mindfulness is a central part of everyday life, the book offers an engaged ethnographic investigation of what it means to ‘remember the present’ in the meditative practices, interpersonal worlds, and psychiatric hospitals for people in a region strongly influenced by Buddhist thought. The book will speak to an increasingly global network of psychological scientists, anthropologists, Buddhist studies scholars, and religious practitioners interested in contemporary Buddhist thought and the cultural phenomenology of religious experience.
Joseph Cheah
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199756285
- eISBN:
- 9780199918874
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199756285.003.0003
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter began with the contextualization of the historical circumstances in Burma and the United States that brought about the interactions between these two groups; namely, Burmese Buddhist ...
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This chapter began with the contextualization of the historical circumstances in Burma and the United States that brought about the interactions between these two groups; namely, Burmese Buddhist specialists (monks and lay meditation teachers) and the American vipassana practitioners. It argues for a more comprehensive understanding of what “modern Buddhism” means for various constituents by investigating the ways in which some of the key figures of both Asian Buddhist modernists (e.g., Mahasi Sayadaw, U Ba Khin, Ajahn Cha) and the pioneers of American vipassana movement (e.g., Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzburg) converged with respect to the dissemination of vipassana meditation. It examines modernist approaches of these central figures of both East and West in the adaptation of vipassana meditation.Less
This chapter began with the contextualization of the historical circumstances in Burma and the United States that brought about the interactions between these two groups; namely, Burmese Buddhist specialists (monks and lay meditation teachers) and the American vipassana practitioners. It argues for a more comprehensive understanding of what “modern Buddhism” means for various constituents by investigating the ways in which some of the key figures of both Asian Buddhist modernists (e.g., Mahasi Sayadaw, U Ba Khin, Ajahn Cha) and the pioneers of American vipassana movement (e.g., Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein, Sharon Salzburg) converged with respect to the dissemination of vipassana meditation. It examines modernist approaches of these central figures of both East and West in the adaptation of vipassana meditation.
James-William Coleman
- Published in print:
- 2002
- Published Online:
- October 2011
- ISBN:
- 9780195152418
- eISBN:
- 9780199849314
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195152418.003.0004
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
This chapter discusses the differences among the three major branches of Western Buddhism and then turns to the common ground they share. These include Zen, Vajrayana, and Vipassana Buddhism. Zen was ...
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This chapter discusses the differences among the three major branches of Western Buddhism and then turns to the common ground they share. These include Zen, Vajrayana, and Vipassana Buddhism. Zen was the first style of Asian Buddhism to take root in North America and, not surprisingly, it is has the largest influence there. Vajrayana groups practice many complex and intricate rituals, but in contrast to the formality of most Zen practice their approach seems far more casual. The Vipassana movement's roots are in the Theravada Buddhism of Southern Asia, which is by far the world's most conservative branch of Buddhism—in both its steadfast adherence to the Buddha's original teachings and its strong emphasis on the importance of celibate monasticism. Yet Vipassana is more westernized and less traditional than either Zen or Vajrayana.Less
This chapter discusses the differences among the three major branches of Western Buddhism and then turns to the common ground they share. These include Zen, Vajrayana, and Vipassana Buddhism. Zen was the first style of Asian Buddhism to take root in North America and, not surprisingly, it is has the largest influence there. Vajrayana groups practice many complex and intricate rituals, but in contrast to the formality of most Zen practice their approach seems far more casual. The Vipassana movement's roots are in the Theravada Buddhism of Southern Asia, which is by far the world's most conservative branch of Buddhism—in both its steadfast adherence to the Buddha's original teachings and its strong emphasis on the importance of celibate monasticism. Yet Vipassana is more westernized and less traditional than either Zen or Vajrayana.
Ansuman Biswas
- Published in print:
- 2011
- Published Online:
- January 2012
- ISBN:
- 9780199553792
- eISBN:
- 9780191728617
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199553792.003.0040
- Subject:
- Psychology, Music Psychology, Cognitive Psychology
A significant lacuna in academic and scientific studies of consciousness is a description of how it actually feels to be here. The study of consciousness has proved to be extremely elusive when using ...
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A significant lacuna in academic and scientific studies of consciousness is a description of how it actually feels to be here. The study of consciousness has proved to be extremely elusive when using the traditional third-person methodology of science. Any description of qualia — by definition lived, subjective experience — seems to necessitate the admission of first-person data, which has hitherto been the province of the arts. If the problem of consciousness is nothing more than the attempt to capture the mechanism and experience of being a person, then each of us can appeal to only one authority for an answer. This chapter speaks from the personal perspective of a multidisciplinary artist-researcher, drawing on the experience of a praxis that inhabits a space between art, science, and religion. It offers a richly personal account of music and consciousness that is at every stage informed by the practice and principles of vipassana meditation.Less
A significant lacuna in academic and scientific studies of consciousness is a description of how it actually feels to be here. The study of consciousness has proved to be extremely elusive when using the traditional third-person methodology of science. Any description of qualia — by definition lived, subjective experience — seems to necessitate the admission of first-person data, which has hitherto been the province of the arts. If the problem of consciousness is nothing more than the attempt to capture the mechanism and experience of being a person, then each of us can appeal to only one authority for an answer. This chapter speaks from the personal perspective of a multidisciplinary artist-researcher, drawing on the experience of a praxis that inhabits a space between art, science, and religion. It offers a richly personal account of music and consciousness that is at every stage informed by the practice and principles of vipassana meditation.
Michal Pagis
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- January 2013
- ISBN:
- 9780199938629
- eISBN:
- 9780199980758
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199938629.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter promotes an understanding of religious self-constitution as a relational and embodied process. The aim is to de-center the emphasis on belief in the commonly used category of the ...
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This chapter promotes an understanding of religious self-constitution as a relational and embodied process. The aim is to de-center the emphasis on belief in the commonly used category of the religious self and re-center it on an approach that studies the self as an embodied process contextualized in ongoing social relations. The chapter explores three dimensions of the embodied space in which religious selves develop: the importance of collective practice, the relation to the body, and the engagement with the material environment. Examples are provided from ethnographic research on the practice of Vipassana meditation, a Theravada Buddhist meditation of mindfulness. These examples are further supported by references to ethnographic studies that explore other religious practices such as Muslim fasting or Christian prayer.Less
This chapter promotes an understanding of religious self-constitution as a relational and embodied process. The aim is to de-center the emphasis on belief in the commonly used category of the religious self and re-center it on an approach that studies the self as an embodied process contextualized in ongoing social relations. The chapter explores three dimensions of the embodied space in which religious selves develop: the importance of collective practice, the relation to the body, and the engagement with the material environment. Examples are provided from ethnographic research on the practice of Vipassana meditation, a Theravada Buddhist meditation of mindfulness. These examples are further supported by references to ethnographic studies that explore other religious practices such as Muslim fasting or Christian prayer.
Erik Braun
- Published in print:
- 2013
- Published Online:
- May 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780226000800
- eISBN:
- 9780226000947
- Item type:
- book
- Publisher:
- University of Chicago Press
- DOI:
- 10.7208/chicago/9780226000947.001.0001
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
This book explores the rise of insight meditation (vipassanā) as a widespread lay movement in Burma during British colonial rule. It does this through a study of one of its key architects, the ...
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This book explores the rise of insight meditation (vipassanā) as a widespread lay movement in Burma during British colonial rule. It does this through a study of one of its key architects, the Burmese monk Ledi Sayadaw (1846-1923). His life and work shows that mass meditation emerged out of the relationship between two spheres of action, the study of Buddhist doctrine and the effort to protect the Buddhist religion. In terms of doctrinal study, Ledi empowered a wide range of people to participate in the longstanding elite practice of in-depth study, focusing particularly on the Buddhist philosophical texts, the Abhidhamma. He tied this study to the second sphere, protective efforts, by arguing that such study empowered a person to safeguard Buddhism. He then presented meditation as another way to insure Buddhism’s safety— not to mention as a means to spiritual attainments— and he standardized and simplified meditation methods for lay people using the Abhidhamma. By allying insight practice in this way to study and protection, he set in train the collectivization of practice and the acceptability of lay control of its teaching, now hallmarks of modern Buddhism across the world. This analysis challenges the common assumption that colonialism forced the Burmese to entirely reconceive their traditions, for it shows that Ledi and other Burmese responded to the pressures of colonialism on pre-colonial terms. Thus, in explaining why mass meditation started in Burma, the book also extends into the pre-colonial past our understanding of sources for a form of Buddhist modernity.Less
This book explores the rise of insight meditation (vipassanā) as a widespread lay movement in Burma during British colonial rule. It does this through a study of one of its key architects, the Burmese monk Ledi Sayadaw (1846-1923). His life and work shows that mass meditation emerged out of the relationship between two spheres of action, the study of Buddhist doctrine and the effort to protect the Buddhist religion. In terms of doctrinal study, Ledi empowered a wide range of people to participate in the longstanding elite practice of in-depth study, focusing particularly on the Buddhist philosophical texts, the Abhidhamma. He tied this study to the second sphere, protective efforts, by arguing that such study empowered a person to safeguard Buddhism. He then presented meditation as another way to insure Buddhism’s safety— not to mention as a means to spiritual attainments— and he standardized and simplified meditation methods for lay people using the Abhidhamma. By allying insight practice in this way to study and protection, he set in train the collectivization of practice and the acceptability of lay control of its teaching, now hallmarks of modern Buddhism across the world. This analysis challenges the common assumption that colonialism forced the Burmese to entirely reconceive their traditions, for it shows that Ledi and other Burmese responded to the pressures of colonialism on pre-colonial terms. Thus, in explaining why mass meditation started in Burma, the book also extends into the pre-colonial past our understanding of sources for a form of Buddhist modernity.
J. L. Cassaniti
- Published in print:
- 2018
- Published Online:
- September 2018
- ISBN:
- 9781501707995
- eISBN:
- 9781501714177
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Cornell University Press
- DOI:
- 10.7591/cornell/9781501707995.003.0003
- Subject:
- Anthropology, Asian Cultural Anthropology
This chapter investigates some of the main meditative techniques practiced in Thailand, as well as what it feels like to practice them and improve over time. It begins with an ethnographic encounter ...
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This chapter investigates some of the main meditative techniques practiced in Thailand, as well as what it feels like to practice them and improve over time. It begins with an ethnographic encounter with a man who has just spent a month in meditation at Wat Rampoeng in Chiang Mai, and then follows the author’s personal experience at five different meditation retreats to learn about mindfulness in meditation. These meditative retreats include the training in mindfulness of sensations and saṅkhāras at S.N. Goenka’s vipassana-based courses in India and Phitsanulok, the mindfulness of breathing (ānāpānasati) at Buddhadhasa Bhikkhu’s monastery of Wat Suan Mokkh in Southern Thailand, and the mindfulness of walking (yup naw phong naw) at the rural cave monastery of Wat Tham Thong near Chiang Mai. Together these close descriptive examples of the phenomenological experience of meditation show how mindfulness is trained in the body and mind in Thailand.Less
This chapter investigates some of the main meditative techniques practiced in Thailand, as well as what it feels like to practice them and improve over time. It begins with an ethnographic encounter with a man who has just spent a month in meditation at Wat Rampoeng in Chiang Mai, and then follows the author’s personal experience at five different meditation retreats to learn about mindfulness in meditation. These meditative retreats include the training in mindfulness of sensations and saṅkhāras at S.N. Goenka’s vipassana-based courses in India and Phitsanulok, the mindfulness of breathing (ānāpānasati) at Buddhadhasa Bhikkhu’s monastery of Wat Suan Mokkh in Southern Thailand, and the mindfulness of walking (yup naw phong naw) at the rural cave monastery of Wat Tham Thong near Chiang Mai. Together these close descriptive examples of the phenomenological experience of meditation show how mindfulness is trained in the body and mind in Thailand.
Ann Gleig
- Published in print:
- 2019
- Published Online:
- September 2019
- ISBN:
- 9780300215809
- eISBN:
- 9780300245042
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Yale University Press
- DOI:
- 10.12987/yale/9780300215809.003.0005
- Subject:
- Religion, Buddhism
Certain patterns have developed around meditation and enlightenment, or awakening, as many prefer to call it, in the American Insight network. Network here is defined as a loose affiliation of ...
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Certain patterns have developed around meditation and enlightenment, or awakening, as many prefer to call it, in the American Insight network. Network here is defined as a loose affiliation of individuals and communities that prioritize Vipassana meditation as their central practice and trace their immediate Buddhist roots to Burmese and Thai Theravadin lineages. One current network emphasizes a more relational and integrative orientation toward meditation and draws significantly on psychotherapeutic discourse. The other stresses a more systematic and goal-oriented approach to awakening and relies heavily on traditional Buddhist canonical and commentarial literature. This chapter traces these currents, across both first- and second-generation convert teachers, highlighting the orientation toward meditation, the preferred style of practice, the gendering of meditation, the understanding of enlightenment, and the strategies of legitimation advanced within each before reflecting on their significance for the unfolding of Buddhist modernism in the United States.Less
Certain patterns have developed around meditation and enlightenment, or awakening, as many prefer to call it, in the American Insight network. Network here is defined as a loose affiliation of individuals and communities that prioritize Vipassana meditation as their central practice and trace their immediate Buddhist roots to Burmese and Thai Theravadin lineages. One current network emphasizes a more relational and integrative orientation toward meditation and draws significantly on psychotherapeutic discourse. The other stresses a more systematic and goal-oriented approach to awakening and relies heavily on traditional Buddhist canonical and commentarial literature. This chapter traces these currents, across both first- and second-generation convert teachers, highlighting the orientation toward meditation, the preferred style of practice, the gendering of meditation, the understanding of enlightenment, and the strategies of legitimation advanced within each before reflecting on their significance for the unfolding of Buddhist modernism in the United States.
Jeff Wilson
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- July 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780807835456
- eISBN:
- 9781469601816
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/9780807869970_wilson.4
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
The Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond, the “Temple of the Gift of Light” located in Richmond's Museum District in Virginia, houses five distinct groups practicing in separate lineages of Buddhism: ...
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The Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond, the “Temple of the Gift of Light” located in Richmond's Museum District in Virginia, houses five distinct groups practicing in separate lineages of Buddhism: Pure Land, Soto Zen, Kagyu (Tibetan), and Vipassana, and the Meditative Inquiry group. This book discusses the exceptional degree of pluralism at Ekoji and the ways in which regionalism may manifest in relation to Buddhism in America. Using the Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond as the primary case study, the chapter shows how bodily practices serve as paths through the shared space of Ekoji and the streets of Richmond and reveals more about identity formation and expression.Less
The Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond, the “Temple of the Gift of Light” located in Richmond's Museum District in Virginia, houses five distinct groups practicing in separate lineages of Buddhism: Pure Land, Soto Zen, Kagyu (Tibetan), and Vipassana, and the Meditative Inquiry group. This book discusses the exceptional degree of pluralism at Ekoji and the ways in which regionalism may manifest in relation to Buddhism in America. Using the Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond as the primary case study, the chapter shows how bodily practices serve as paths through the shared space of Ekoji and the streets of Richmond and reveals more about identity formation and expression.
Jeff Wilson
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- July 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780807835456
- eISBN:
- 9781469601816
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of North Carolina Press
- DOI:
- 10.5149/9780807869970_wilson.7
- Subject:
- Religion, Religious Studies
Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond is the only temple in the country that shelters five diverse groups practicing in distinct lineages—Pure Land, Zen, Tibetan, Vipassana, and the Meditative Inquiry ...
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Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond is the only temple in the country that shelters five diverse groups practicing in distinct lineages—Pure Land, Zen, Tibetan, Vipassana, and the Meditative Inquiry group. This chapter defines each group's lineage and practices, including how and why their practices evolved over the years. Each of Ekoji's five groups is officially aligned with a specific form of Buddhist practice and doctrine. The chapter explores the differentiation among groups by looking at how they use space, objects, and bodies to carve out their own Buddhist identity.Less
Ekoji Buddhist Sangha of Richmond is the only temple in the country that shelters five diverse groups practicing in distinct lineages—Pure Land, Zen, Tibetan, Vipassana, and the Meditative Inquiry group. This chapter defines each group's lineage and practices, including how and why their practices evolved over the years. Each of Ekoji's five groups is officially aligned with a specific form of Buddhist practice and doctrine. The chapter explores the differentiation among groups by looking at how they use space, objects, and bodies to carve out their own Buddhist identity.
Halvor Eifring
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780824855680
- eISBN:
- 9780824873028
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Hawai'i Press
- DOI:
- 10.21313/hawaii/9780824855680.003.0002
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Asian Studies
This essay distinguishes between directive meditation, which seeks to bring about inner transformation by means of outside-in processes, and non-directive meditation, which builds on inside-out ...
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This essay distinguishes between directive meditation, which seeks to bring about inner transformation by means of outside-in processes, and non-directive meditation, which builds on inside-out processes. The two types differ in terms of their meditation object (thematic vs. technical), mental attitude (concentrative vs. non-concentrative), and the context surrounding the practice (suggestive vs. non-suggestive). Most meditation practices include both directive and non-directive elements, but differ widely in their emphases, as illustrated by references to modern studies as well as traditional works on meditation. The suggested distinction differs from the widespread Buddhist-inspired contrast between “concentrative” meditation (or “focused attention”) and “insight” meditation (or “open monitoring”), which is shown to be problematic, especially when applied to non-Buddhist forms of meditation. The social constructivism that has long dominated cultural history tends to give preference to explanations based on directive working mechanisms and to disregard the equally important processes associated with non-directive meditation.Less
This essay distinguishes between directive meditation, which seeks to bring about inner transformation by means of outside-in processes, and non-directive meditation, which builds on inside-out processes. The two types differ in terms of their meditation object (thematic vs. technical), mental attitude (concentrative vs. non-concentrative), and the context surrounding the practice (suggestive vs. non-suggestive). Most meditation practices include both directive and non-directive elements, but differ widely in their emphases, as illustrated by references to modern studies as well as traditional works on meditation. The suggested distinction differs from the widespread Buddhist-inspired contrast between “concentrative” meditation (or “focused attention”) and “insight” meditation (or “open monitoring”), which is shown to be problematic, especially when applied to non-Buddhist forms of meditation. The social constructivism that has long dominated cultural history tends to give preference to explanations based on directive working mechanisms and to disregard the equally important processes associated with non-directive meditation.
Sarah Shaw
- Published in print:
- 2016
- Published Online:
- May 2017
- ISBN:
- 9780824855680
- eISBN:
- 9780824873028
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- University of Hawai'i Press
- DOI:
- 10.21313/hawaii/9780824855680.003.0007
- Subject:
- Society and Culture, Asian Studies
What makes a meditation object? This essay explores early Pāli accounts of objects still used in modern practice, especially in Southern Buddhism. Their very variety reflects this tradition’s stress ...
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What makes a meditation object? This essay explores early Pāli accounts of objects still used in modern practice, especially in Southern Buddhism. Their very variety reflects this tradition’s stress on a graduated path, where different stages and individuals require different teaching approaches, at different times. Usually, in practice, objects inducing “calm” and various states known as jhāna, are recommended, before those producing “insight”. Some objects produce both calm and insight; others balance, ensuring health of mind. So, early Pāli literature describes many meditative routes: variety and skillful combinations for individuals are considered key. What is essential, however, is how objects are given and used. Dhammapada narratives in particular, describing a gradual path, a movement between internal and external, “shocks” in chance occurrences in the world, and skilled interventions by friends or teachers, demonstrate a pedagogy striking for its stress on individual need rather than rigid imposition and structure.Less
What makes a meditation object? This essay explores early Pāli accounts of objects still used in modern practice, especially in Southern Buddhism. Their very variety reflects this tradition’s stress on a graduated path, where different stages and individuals require different teaching approaches, at different times. Usually, in practice, objects inducing “calm” and various states known as jhāna, are recommended, before those producing “insight”. Some objects produce both calm and insight; others balance, ensuring health of mind. So, early Pāli literature describes many meditative routes: variety and skillful combinations for individuals are considered key. What is essential, however, is how objects are given and used. Dhammapada narratives in particular, describing a gradual path, a movement between internal and external, “shocks” in chance occurrences in the world, and skilled interventions by friends or teachers, demonstrate a pedagogy striking for its stress on individual need rather than rigid imposition and structure.
Barbara E. Reed
- Published in print:
- 2014
- Published Online:
- June 2014
- ISBN:
- 9780199341047
- eISBN:
- 9780199374724
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199341047.003.0008
- Subject:
- Religion, Religion and Society
This chapter discusses the teaching of Buddhism in a liberal arts college as a means to encourage students of any or no religious tradition to reflect on the meaning of their lives in a religiously ...
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This chapter discusses the teaching of Buddhism in a liberal arts college as a means to encourage students of any or no religious tradition to reflect on the meaning of their lives in a religiously pluralistic society. Although it recognizes that Buddhism has no equivalent of the Christian theological term “vocation,” it recognizes that Buddhism similarly struggles with issues of meaning and value using terms such as “right livelihood.” The chapter considers the value of encountering a moral tradition, in this case one which teaches distinctively Buddhist ways of thinking about meaningful lives: the five precepts of Buddhist morality, the ideal of the Bodhisattva, the development of emotional virtues, and the practice of vipassana and metta meditation. Finally, it suggests that any moral tradition may function as a mirror in which students may clearly see their own lives and values in relationship to a global society.Less
This chapter discusses the teaching of Buddhism in a liberal arts college as a means to encourage students of any or no religious tradition to reflect on the meaning of their lives in a religiously pluralistic society. Although it recognizes that Buddhism has no equivalent of the Christian theological term “vocation,” it recognizes that Buddhism similarly struggles with issues of meaning and value using terms such as “right livelihood.” The chapter considers the value of encountering a moral tradition, in this case one which teaches distinctively Buddhist ways of thinking about meaningful lives: the five precepts of Buddhist morality, the ideal of the Bodhisattva, the development of emotional virtues, and the practice of vipassana and metta meditation. Finally, it suggests that any moral tradition may function as a mirror in which students may clearly see their own lives and values in relationship to a global society.
Susan J. Stabile
- Published in print:
- 2012
- Published Online:
- March 2015
- ISBN:
- 9780199862627
- eISBN:
- 9780190258337
- Item type:
- chapter
- Publisher:
- Oxford University Press
- DOI:
- 10.1093/acprof:osobl/9780199862627.003.0021
- Subject:
- Religion, Philosophy of Religion
This chapter presents some basic instructions in shamatha and vipassana meditation along with some suggestions for how a Christian might make use of them in her prayer. Shamatha is frequently ...
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This chapter presents some basic instructions in shamatha and vipassana meditation along with some suggestions for how a Christian might make use of them in her prayer. Shamatha is frequently practiced by Tibetan Buddhists as a means of stabilizing the mind, and vipassana is a practice of the Theravadan Buddhist tradition. Either can be used at the beginning of any prayer period to develop a state of greater concentration and mindfulness; taking the time to do this will make your subsequent meditation more effective. Both shamatha and vipassana use the breath as a focus of concentration. Breath also is an important image in Christian tradition, and it makes sense that Christians would make use of the breath in their prayer. The deepest purpose of the Christian practice of mindfulness of breathing is to make us aware of the dynamic presence of God within our own being.Less
This chapter presents some basic instructions in shamatha and vipassana meditation along with some suggestions for how a Christian might make use of them in her prayer. Shamatha is frequently practiced by Tibetan Buddhists as a means of stabilizing the mind, and vipassana is a practice of the Theravadan Buddhist tradition. Either can be used at the beginning of any prayer period to develop a state of greater concentration and mindfulness; taking the time to do this will make your subsequent meditation more effective. Both shamatha and vipassana use the breath as a focus of concentration. Breath also is an important image in Christian tradition, and it makes sense that Christians would make use of the breath in their prayer. The deepest purpose of the Christian practice of mindfulness of breathing is to make us aware of the dynamic presence of God within our own being.
