Satipaṭṭhāna Meditation: a Practice Guide

Praise for Satipaṭṭhāna Meditation: A Practice Guide This is a pearl of a book. On reading it, and comparing it to the author’s previous two studies of satipaṭṭhāna, the impression is that of having left the university lecture theatre and entered the meditation hall, where the wise and experienced teacher is offering Dhamma reflections, illuminating the practice of satipaṭṭhāna with a fertile and colourful lucidity, free of footnotes and arcane cross-references. This book is a treasure-house of practical teachings, rendered accessible with a clear and simple eloquence. The author states that his motivation has been to enrich the practice of satipaṭṭhāna rather than to compete with other approaches – he has succeeded admirably in this, I feel, and with praiseworthy skill and grace. – Ajahn Amaro This breathtaking practice guide is brief, and profound! It offers a detailed, engaging, and flexible approach to satipaṭṭhāna meditation that can be easily applied both in meditation and in day-to-day activities. The inspired practice suggestions and joyful enquiry that pervade each chapter will draw students, gradually but surely, towards deep liberating insight. Satipaṭṭhāna Meditation: A Practice Guide is destined to become an invaluable resource for meditators! – Shaila Catherine, author of Focused and Fearless: A Meditator’s Guide to States of Deep Joy, Calm, and Clarity Once more Bhikkhu Anālayo has written a masterpiece that holds within it an accessible and clear guide to developing and applying the teachings held within the Satipaṭṭhāna-sutta. Within this book Anālayo explores the subtle nuances of developing mindfulness and how that dedicated cultivation leads to the awakening pointed to in the discourse. This is an indispensable meditative guide for anyone truly seeking to understand and know for themselves the liberating insights offered in the four ways of establishing mindfulness. – Christina Feldman, author of The Boundless Heart Bhikkhu Anālayo presents the Buddha’s practical teaching of the path to Nibbāna in one comprehensive whole: the wheel of satipaṭṭhāna. He writes for practitioners, and his own practice shines through like a beacon. It makes this a very exciting guide for meditators – the truth of it leaps out at you. Each reader can map out for themselves Bhikkhu Anālayo’s clear mandala that draws together the entire body of satipaṭṭhāna practice. In his simplification the lines of Dharma principle are clear, yet none of the richness and potential is lost. Indeed, as you take in what he is saying, more and more significance dawns. – Kamalashila, author of Buddhist Meditation: Tranquillity, Imagination and Insight SATIPAṬṬHĀNA MEDITATION: A PRACTICE GUIDE Also by Anālayo Satipaṭṭhāna, The Direct Path to Realization The Genesis of the Bodhisattva Ideal A Comparative Study of the Majjhima-nikāya Excursions into the Thought-world of the Pāli Discourses Madhyama-āgama Studies Perspectives on Satipaṭṭhāna The Dawn of Abhidharma Compassion and Emptiness in Early Buddhist Meditation Saṃyukta-āgama Studies Ekottarika-āgama Studies The Foundation History of the Nuns’ Order Mindfully Facing Disease and Death Buddhapada and the Bodhisattva Path Early Buddhist Meditation Studies Dīrgha-āgama Studies Vinaya Studies A Meditator’s Life of the Buddha Rebirth in Early Buddhism and Current Research SATIPAṬṬHĀNA MEDITATION: A PRACTICE GUIDE Anālayo Windhorse Publications 17e Sturton Street. Cambridge CB1 2SN UK [email protected] windhorsepublications.com © Anālayo, 2018 Electronic edition 2018 The right of Anālayo to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988. As an act of Dhammadāna, Anālayo has waived royalty payments for this book. Drawings by Anna Oneglia (www.annaoneglia.com) Cover design by Dhammarati British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data: A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library. ISBN: 978-1-911407-10-2 ebook ISBN: 978-1-911407-11-9 Limit of Liability: While the publisher and author have used their best efforts in preparing this book so as to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered, the advice and practices contained in it may not be suitable for your situation. You should consult with a professional where appropriate. Neither the publisher nor the author shall be liable for any damage. Windhorse Publications would be pleased to hear about your reading experiences with this eBook at: [email protected] References to Internet web sites (URLs) were accurate at the time of writing. Neither the author nor Windhorse Publications is responsible for URLs that may have expired or changed since the manuscript was prepared CONTENTS About the author Acknowledgement and dedication Publisher’s acknowledgements Foreword by Joseph Goldstein INTRODUCTION Chapter I: MINDFULNESS Mindfulness and memory Cultivating mindfulness Mindfulness and concepts Mindfulness and receptivity Mindfulness of bodily postures Mindfulness of bodily activities Benefits of mindfulness of the body Summary Chapter II: SATIPAṬṬHĀNA Four satipaṭṭhānas Contemplation of the body Contemplation of dharmas Seven contemplations Mindfulness in daily life The definition and the refrain Internal and external The nature of arising and passing away Just being mindful Dwelling independently Summary Chapter III: ANATOMY The nature of the body Sensuality The simile A practical simplification A detailed approach Keeping an eye on balance From scanning to open practice Summary Chapter IV: ELEMENTS The elements as qualities A practical approach The simile The empty nature of matter The elements and mental balance The element space Open practice Summary Chapter V: DEATH Recollection of death A practical approach The breath and impermanence Facing mortality The elements and death Open practice Summary Chapter VI: FEELING Feeling and reactivity A practical approach The push of feelings The body and pain The mind and joy Right view Worldly and unworldly Feelings impermanence Open practice Summary Chapter VII: MIND Lust, anger, and delusion The absence of defilements Contracted and distracted Higher states of mind Opening of the heart Skilful use of labels Open practice Impermanence The four noble truths The distorted perceptions Summary Chapter VIII: HINDRANCES Conditionality Facing a hindrance Sensual desire Anger Sloth-and-torpor Restlessness-and-worry Doubt The absence of the hindrances Open practice Summary Chapter IX: AWAKENING Mindfulness Investigation Energy Joy Tranquillity Concentration Equipoise Balancing the awakening factors Cultivating individual awakening factors Inclining the mind towards awakening Open practice Summary CONCLUSION Balance Gradual progression Insight Daily-life practice Adjusting the practice Key aspects Cultivating tranquillity Dwelling independently Summary QUOTATIONS ABBREVIATIONS REFERENCES ABOUT THE AUTHOR Born in 1962 in Germany, Bhikkhu Anālayo was ordained in 1995 in Sri Lanka, and completed a PhD on the Satipaṭṭhāna-sutta at the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, in 2000 – published in 2003 by Windhorse Publications under the title Satipaṭṭhāna, The Direct Path to Realization. Anālayo is a professor of Buddhist Studies; his main research area is early Buddhism and in particular the topics of the Chinese Āgamas, meditation, and women in Buddhism. Besides his academic pursuits, he regularly teaches meditation. He presently resides at the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies in Massachusetts, where he spends most of his time in silent retreat. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND DEDICATION I am indebted to Irene Bumbacher, Shaila Catherine, Bhikkhunī Dhammadinnā, Ann Dillon, Linda Grace, Robert Grosch, Hedwig Kren, Yuka Nakamura, and Matt Weingast for commenting on a draft version of this book, and to the staff and supporters of the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies for providing me with the facilities needed to do my practice and writing. I would like to dedicate this book to the memory of Bhikkhu Katukurunde Ñāṇananda (1940–2018) in gratitude for guidance and inspiration in exploring deep passages among the early discourses from a practice-related perspective. PUBLISHER’S ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Windhorse Publications wishes to gratefully acknowledge a grant from the Triratna European Chairs’ Assembly Fund and the Future Dharma Fund towards the production of this book. We also wish to acknowledge and thank the individual donors who gave to the book’s production via our “Sponsor-a-book” campaign. FOREWORD BY JOSEPH GOLDSTEIN Bhikkhu Anālayo’s first book, Satipaṭṭhāna, The Direct Path to Realization, was a seminal work, bridging the divide between rigorous scholarship and meditative understanding and practice. Following in the tradition of great scholar-practitioners, Anālayo illuminated the profound details of the Satipaṭṭhāna-sutta, which inspired my own interest in further exploring this pivotal discourse. Meeting Anālayo in person, and later teaching a retreat with him at the Insight Meditation Society, confirmed my initial enthusiasm for what he was offering to Western Dharma practitioners. His remarkable breadth of knowledge and depth of practice have elucidated with great clarity the liberation teachings of the Buddha. In this current volume, Satipaṭṭhāna Meditation: A Practice Guide, Anālayo moves from a more scholarly approach to an eminently pragmatic discussion of how to put these teachings into practice. Although his comparative study of both the Pāli and the

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