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Buddhism & Yoga

Buddhism & Yoga

SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018 & : Integrating the Traditions Sean Feit Oakes, PhD | Spirit Rock & Yoga Program 2018

Parallel vocabulary & concepts between some Hindu & Buddhist Yoga systems

Path Aspect Hindu Buddhist Yogas

Ethics & Discipline (Outer Disciplines) sīla (Precepts) (Inner Disciplines) (Monastic Discipline) [sīla] saṃnyāsa (Renunciate/Monastic) /-nī (Renunciate/Monastic)

Steadiness & Energy Classical Yoga (Patañjali 200 CE) (Theravāda 100 BCE) āsana (Posture) kayagatasati ( of Body) [samādhi] prāṇāyāma (Breath Regulation) anāpānasati (Mindfulness of Breathing) pratyāhāra (Withdrawal of the Senses) (Tranquillity/Concentration) dhāraṇā (Concentration/Focus) (Mindfulness/Focus) dhyana (Meditative Absorption) jhāna (Absorption) samādhi (Integration) samādhi (Integration)

abhyāsa (Cultivation, Practice) (Cultivation, Practice) vairāgya (Non-reactivity) upekkhā (Equanimity)

Haṭha Yoga (Hindu/Śaiva) Yantra Yoga/Trulkhor (Tibetan) mudrā (Esoteric Gesture/Seal) mudrā (Esoteric Gesture/Seal) (Esoteric Bond) bandha (Esoteric Bond) kriya (Esoteric Movement/Shape) yantra (Esoteric Movement/Shape)

prāṇa (Breath/Energy) (Breath/Energy) kuṇḍalinī (The Coiled One/Goddess) (Inner Fire), pīti (Rapture)

(Subtle Powers) iddhi/siddhi (Subtle Powers)

Inquiry & Liberation saṃyama (Perfect Discipline) 4th jhāna (Perfection of Mindfulness) (Discriminating Insight) vipassanā (Clear Seeing/Insight) [pañña] vidya (Knowledge) pañña/prajña (Wisdom)

mokṣa/mukti (Liberation [Vedānta]) nibbāna/nirvāṇa (Unbound/Cooled) (Independence [Yoga])

jivanmukta (Liberated Being) arahant (Liberated Being) (Semi-divine Sage) (Semi-divine Sage)

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Death as Guru (The Kaṭha Upaniṣad) (500-300 BCE)

1 Uśan, the son of Vājaśravas, once gave away all his possessions. He had a son named Naciketas. 2 Young as he was, faith took hold of him while the cows presented as sacrificial gifts were being led away, and he reflected: 3 “They’ve drunk all their water, eaten all their fodder, They have been milked dry, they are totally barren — ‘Joyless’ are those worlds called, to which a man goes who gives them as gifts.” 4 So he asked his father: “Father, to whom will you give me?” He repeated it for a second time, and again for a third time. His father yelled at him: “I’ll give you to Death!” 5 I go as the very first of many. I go as the middlemost of many. What’s it that Yama must do, That he will do with me today? 6 Look ahead! See how they have gone, those who have gone before us! Look back! So will they go, those who will come after us. A mortal man ripens like grain, And like grain he is born again. ... 9 Three nights, O , you stayed in my house, a guest worthy of homage, without any food; Three wishes, therefore, deign to make in return. So homage to you, O Brahmin! And may I fare well! Naciketas’s 3 Wishes

1. His father’s good will when he returns [relational healing] 2. Explanation of “the fire-altar that leads to heaven” [formal study & internalization of the ritual] 3. The answer to the question of existence after death [existential knowledge & liberating insight]

Adhyātma Yoga (taught by Death to Naciketas, Kaṭha U.)

3.3 Know the self as a rider in a chariot, and the body, as simply the chariot. Know the intellect as the charioteer, and the mind, as simply the reins. 4 The senses, they say, are the horses, and sense objects are the paths around them; He who is linked to the body, senses, and mind, the wise proclaim as the one who enjoys. 5 When a man lacks understanding, and his mind is never controlled; His senses do not obey him, as bad horses, a charioteer. 6 But when a man has understanding, and his mind is ever controlled; His senses do obey him, as good horses, a charioteer. 7 When a man lacks understanding, is unmindful and always impure; He does not reach that final step, but gets on the round of . 8 But when a man has understanding, is mindful and always pure; He does reach that final step, from which he is not reborn again. ...6.10 When the five perceptions are stilled, together with the mind, And not even reason bestirs itself; they call it the highest state. 11 When senses are firmly reined in, that is Yoga, so people think. From distractions a man is then free, for Yoga is the coming-into-being, as well as the ceasing-to-be. 2 SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018

25 (elements/qualities)

1. puruṣa — individual consciousness, knowing subject, witness, seer, pure awareness: , jīva, kṣetrajña 2. prakṛti — power, nature, the substance of the universe, matter/energy, manifests as all lower tattva: the 3 inner instruments (antaḥkaraṇa) 3. Intelligence (buddhi) — reason, imagination, awakeness, knowing, intelligence; like a mirror 4. Sense of Self (ahaṅkāra) — the I AM sense, identity, the felt sense of self 5. Mind () — thought, attention, perception, preferences, memory (past) & fantasy/fear (future)

Instruments of Knowing (jñānendriya) Instruments of Action (karmendriya)

6. ears (śrotra): hearing 11. mouth (vāk): speech 7. skin (tvak): contact 12. hands (pāni): manipulation 8. eyes (cakṣus): sight 13. feet (pāda): locomotion 9. tongue (rasanā): taste 14. genitals (upastha): procreation 10. nose (ghrāṇa): smell 15. bowels (pāyu): elimination

Physical Senses (tanmātra) Great Elements (mahā-bhūta)

16. sound (śabda) 21. space (ākāśa) bīja: HAM 17. touch (sparśa) 22. air (vāyu) bīja: YAM 18. form (rūpa) 23. fire (tejas / ) bīja: RAM 19. taste (rasa) 24. water (āpaḥ) bīja: VAM 20. smell (gandha) 25. earth (prthvī) bīja: LAM

Practice

Inquiry: Bring awareness to contact each tattva individually, in reverse order (gross to subtle). Sensing each quality or activity, notice its qualities, and notice the awareness of it.

Is this quality or activity stable? ...permanent? ...pleasant or unpleasant? Is it me, or my self, or a “part” of me, or “external” to me? Am I attached to this quality or activity being a certain way? ...continuing/ceasing? ...existing?

Meditation: Withdrawal of the Senses (pratyāhāra) Observing sense activity, aware of +/- charge Non-engagement with sense activity: presence without preference

Reflection: What conditions support you to not get hooked by sensory experiences? When you notice you’re hooked, how do you recover your presence? What’s it like when you’re not hooked?

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Gotama’s renunciation

“, before my enlightenment, while I was still only an unenlightened Bodhisatta, I too, being myself subject to birth, sought what was also subject to birth; being myself subject to aging, sickness, death, sorrow, and defilement, I sought what was also subject to aging, sickness, death, sorrow, and defilement. Then I considered thus: ‘Why, being myself subject to birth, do I seek what is also subject to birth? Why, being myself subject to aging, sickness, death, sorrow, and defilement, do I seek what is also subject to aging, sickness, death, sorrow, and defilement? Suppose that, being myself subject to birth, having understood the danger in what is subject to birth, I seek the unborn supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna. Suppose that, being myself subject to aging, sickness, death, sorrow, and defilement, having understood the danger in what is subject to aging, sickness, death, sorrow, and defilement, I seek the unaging, unailing, deathless, sorrowless, and undefiled supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna.’

“Later, while still young, a black-haired young man endowed with the blessing of youth, in the prime of life, though my mother and father wished otherwise and wept with tearful faces, I shaved off my hair and beard, put on the yellow robe, and went forth from the home life into homelessness.”1

Gotama’s practice of yoga (samādhi)

“Having gone forth, bhikkhus, in search of what is wholesome, seeking the supreme state of sublime peace, I went to Āḷāra Kālāma and said to him: ‘Friend Kālāma, I want to lead the holy life in this Dhamma and Discipline.’ Āḷāra Kālāma replied: ‘The venerable one may stay here. This Dhamma is such that a wise man can soon enter upon and abide in it, realising for himself through direct knowledge his own teacher’s doctrine.’ I soon quickly learned that Dhamma. As far as mere lip-reciting and rehearsal of his teaching went, I could speak with knowledge and assurance, and I claimed, ‘I know and see’—and there were others who did likewise.

“I considered: ‘It is not through mere faith alone that Āḷāra Kālāma declares: “By realising for myself with direct knowledge, I enter upon and abide in this Dhamma.” Certainly Āḷāra Kālāma abides knowing and seeing this Dhamma.’ Then I went to Āḷāra Kālāma and asked him: ‘Friend Kālāma, in what way do you declare that by realising for yourself with direct knowledge you enter upon and abide in this Dhamma?’ In reply he declared the base of nothingness.

“I considered: ‘Not only Āḷāra Kālāma has faith, energy, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom. I too have faith, energy, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom. Suppose I endeavor to realize the Dhamma that Āḷāra Kālāma declares he enters upon and abides in by realising for himself with direct knowledge?’

“I soon quickly entered upon and abided in that Dhamma by realising for myself with direct knowledge. Then I went to Āḷāra Kālāma and asked him: ‘Friend Kālāma, is it in this way that you declare that you enter upon and abide in this Dhamma by realising for yourself with direct knowledge?’—‘That is the way, friend.’—‘It is in this way, friend, that I also enter upon and abide in this Dhamma by realising for myself

1 MN 26: Ariyapariyesanā Sutta (“The Noble Search”). https://suttacentral.net/en/mn26 4 SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018

with direct knowledge.’ … ‘So you know the Dhamma that I know and I know the Dhamma that you know. As I am, so are you; as you are, so am I. Come, friend, let us now lead this community together.’

“Thus Āḷāra Kālāma, my teacher, placed me, his pupil, on an equal footing with himself and awarded me the highest honor. But it occurred to me: ‘This Dhamma does not lead to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to peace, to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to Nibbāna, but only to reappearance in the base of nothingness. Not being satisfied with that Dhamma, disappointed with it, I left.’”2

Gotama’s practice of Austerities ()

“Such was my asceticism, Sāriputta, that I went naked, rejecting conventions, licking my hands, not coming when asked, not stopping when asked; ... I accepted no fish or meat, I drank no liquor, wine, or fermented brew. … I took food once a day, once every two days…once every seven days; thus even up to once every fortnight, I dwelt pursuing the practice of taking food at stated intervals. I was an eater of greens or millet or wild rice or hide-parings or moss or ricebran or rice-scum or sesamum flour or grass or cow dung. I lived on forest roots and fruits; I fed on fallen fruits. I clothed myself in hemp, in hemp- mixed cloth, in shrouds, in refuse rags, in tree bark, in antelope hide, in strips of antelope hide, in kusa grass fabric, in bark fabric, in wood-shavings fabric, in head-hair wool, in animal wool, in owls’ wings. I was one who pulled out hair and beard, pursuing the practice of pulling out hair and beard. I was one who stood continuously, rejecting seats. I was one who squatted continuously, devoted to maintaining the squatting position. I was one who used a mattress of spikes; I made a mattress of spikes my bed. I dwelt pursuing the practice of bathing in water three times daily including the evening. Thus in such a variety of ways I dwelt pursuing the practice of tormenting and mortifying the body. Such was my asceticism.

...“Sāriputta, there are certain recluses and whose doctrine and is this: ‘Purification comes about through food.’ They say: ‘Let us live on kola-fruits,’ and they eat kola-fruits, they eat kola-fruit powder, they drink kola-fruit water, and they make many kinds of kola-fruit concoctions. Now I recall having eaten a single kola-fruit a day. Sāriputta, you may think that the kola-fruit was bigger at that time, yet you should not regard it so: the kola-fruit was then at most the same size as now. Through feeding on a single kola-fruit a day, my body reached a state of extreme emaciation. Because of eating so little my limbs became like the jointed segments of vine stems or bamboo stems. Because of eating so little my backside became like a camel’s hoof. Because of eating so little the projections on my spine stood forth like corded beads. Because of eating so little my ribs jutted out as gaunt as the crazy rafters of an old roof- less barn. Because of eating so little the gleam of my eyes sank far down in their sockets, looking like a gleam of water that has sunk far down in a deep well. ...“Yet, Sāriputta, by such conduct, by such practice, by such performance of austerities, I did not attain any superhuman states, any distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones. Why was that? Because I did not attain that noble wisdom which when attained is noble and emancipating and leads the one who practices in accordance with it to the complete destruction of suffering.”3

2 Ibid. [Gotama repeats with teacher Uddaka Rāmaputta and the “base of neither-perception-nor-non-perception.”]

3 MN 12: Mahāsīhanāda Sutta (“The Greater Discourse on the Lion’s Roar”). https://suttacentral.net/en/mn12/ 5 SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018

Early Buddhist Yoga: Mindfulness of Breathing & The Divine Abidings

1. Bring your attention to sensing your body: Feel/imagine these body parts: hair, skin, flesh, bones, organs, fluids, reflecting on each as not sexually attractive, as impermanent, as “not me.”

2. Bring your attention, as you move, to sensing your body moving: Feel the sensations of the various postures you take through the day, expanding to include all activity.

3. Bring your attention to the movement of breath in your whole body:

And how, monastics, does a monastic meditate by observing an aspect of the body? Here, a monastic has gone to a wilderness, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty building. They sit down in the posture, with their body erect, and focus their mindfulness right there. Mindful, they breath in; mindful, they breath out.

Breathing in deep they clearly know ‘I am breathing in deep’; breathing out deep they clearly know ‘I am breathing out deep’. Breathing in shallow they clearly know ‘I am breathing in shallow’; breathing out shallow they clearly know ‘I am breathing out shallow’.

They practice like this: ‘I will breathe in experiencing the whole breath’; they practice like this: ‘I will breathe out experiencing the whole breath’. They practice like this: ‘I will breathe in stilling the breath- energies’; they practice like this: ‘I will breathe out stilling the breath-energies’.4

4. Notice the pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral charge (vedanā) that accompanies every sense experience.

5. When you notice yourself thinking, connect with the emotional quality or charge in the body: Feeling body without continuing thought, watch the charge and story fade and cease.

6. When the mind is able to settle on the breath or body without constantly flickering away: Connect with one area of sensation and sustain attention there for as long as possible, relaxing and settling into the pleasure of stillness and stability.

The 4 Divine Abodes (brahmavihāra): Loving-kindness, , Appreciation, Equanimity

“Here a [practitioner] abides pervading one quarter [direction] with a mind imbued with loving-kindness … compassion … appreciative joy … equanimity, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; so above, below, around, and everywhere, and to all as to [herself, she] abides pervading the all encompassing world with a mind imbued loving-kindness … compassion … appreciative joy … equanimity, abundant, exalted, immeasurable, without hostility and without ill will.”5

4 Ibid.

5 MN 127: Sutta. Bodhi, The Middle Length Discourses of the (Boston, Wisdom), 1003. 6 SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018

Practice: Meditation based on the Yoga-Sūtra of Patañjali

5 yama (ethical precepts): “the great vow of yoga” (YS 2.30-39)

The precepts (yama) may be read in silence, spoken, or chanted:

Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I undertake the training of ahimsā, not causing harm. Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I undertake the training of , truthfulness. Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I undertake the training of asteya, not taking that which is not offered. Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I undertake the training of , impeccable conduct. Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I undertake the training of aparigrahā, not accumulating possessions.

(Alternate 5th precept from Buddhism): Knowing how deeply our lives intertwine, I undertake the training of abstaining from intoxicants that cloud the mind & cause heedlessness.

meditation with the breath as focus (YS 2.46-3.3)

āsana: Sit in a posture that embodies steadiness (sthira) & ease (). Relax the body as deeply as you can. Connect with the breath as a whole body experience. prānāyāma: Breathe in a way that is comfortable. Relax into natural breathing, letting go of all effort. Allow the sense of the body & breath to merge, soften, & expand. pratyāhāra: Sensations, thoughts & feelings will arise & pass in the background. dharanā: Maintain attention on the breath. If very distracted, work with one of the “practices to subdue distraction” (YS 1.33-39): radiating friendliness, compassion, delight, & equanimity toward all things pausing after breath flows in or out steadily observing as new sensations materialize experiencing thoughts that are luminous and free of sorrow focusing on things that do not inspire attachment reflecting on insights culled from sleep and dreaming meditative absorption in any desired object

Sit as long as your schedule allows. If pain is distracting, mindfully change position.

As the mind settles, body & breath may become very pleasurable. Allow pleasure to deepen & spread. Learn to delight in stillness.

As the mind becomes stable, allow the impulse toward stillness to deepen into profound spaciousness. See that the quality of observation (puruṣa) and the things observed (prakṛti) are distinct phenomena. Rest in pristine awareness as all phenomena come & go, “grounded in pure seeing.”

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Śaiva : (from the Tantrāloka)

The subtle breath which rises up from the heart of the master, and which is like the moon or a crystal, or a very fine thread, is composed of sound, which serenely travels along the series of centers until it comes to rest at last in the dvādaśānta. The dvādaśānta is the terminal point where the suṣumnā comes to an end. The suṣumnā is the central pathway of the three paths. At this point, after having caused his heart to overflow, the teacher must recite the mantra, which then blazes brightly like a submarine fire and bursts forth from his eye sockets and skin pores, until filling the tranquil top knot, in which are melted the streams of clarified butter, which has been propitiated and satisfied by the streams of clarified butter. The mantra then reaches the disciple’s heart. In this way give liberation when they are awakened and completely purified.6

Buddhist Tantra: The Abbreviated Quintessence of Yeshé Tsogyal

Ho! In the Guru Wisdom , I take ; I arouse the mind of awakening for the benefit of all beings. Instantaneously, I am perfectly and completely aware of myself As the wisdom form of Tsogyal Vajra . From the visualized heart center life force syllable and mantra-garland, Rays of light radiate forth and gather back, performing the two benefits. Within dharmata, the true nature of phenomena, ordinary forms and sounds as deities and mantras, Coalesce as the single bindu of great bliss. I awaken to the emptiness of the manifest aspect of the visualization. The natural expressivity of emptiness arises as the deity. To all beings, I dedicate the of striving in this practice. May the auspiciousness of the spontaneously accomplished two benefits be present.7

Earliest definition of Haṭha Yoga (from the [Buddhist] Kālacakra Tantra commentary)

In this system [Haṭha Yoga], when the the undying moment does not arise because the breath is unrestrained [even] when the image is seen by means of withdrawal (pratyāhāra) and the other [Limbs of Yoga], then, having forcefully (haṭhena) made the breath flow in the central channel through the practice of nāda, which is about to be explained, [the ] should attain the undying moment by restraining the bindu of the [i.e.~semen] in the vajra [i.e.~penis] when it is in the lotus of wisdom [i.e.~vagina].8

6 Abhinava Gupta, Tantrāloka (10th c.), in Paul Muller-Ortega, The Triadic Heart of Śiva (Albany: SUNY Press, 1989), 167-8.

7 The Abbreviated Quintessence Sadhana of Yeshé Tsogyal Composed by Jñana (Dudjom Rinpoché, Jigdral Yeshé Dorjé).

8 Jason Birch, "The Meaning of Hatha in Early Hathayoga," Journal of the American Oriental Society 131, no. 4 (2011): 537. 8 SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018

Buddhist Haṭha Yoga: The 6 Yogas of Naropa9

Preliminary : on the transience of life; the defects of saṁsāra; the precious human birth; renunciation; universal kindness & compassion; bodhicitta: the vow to bring all beings to liberation

Tantric preliminaries (ngöndro): 4 initiations of Demchog/Cakrasaṁvara; attain stability in Arising Yoga; meditation on death (to conquer laziness); pray to Buddhas & arouse bodhicitta (to overcome hindrances); give alms & make maṇḍala offerings; mantra (to purify unskillful ); Guru Yoga (to attain blessings)

Yoga 1: Inner Fire (Tummo/Dumo), intro

1. Visualize the body as hollow Posture of : cross legs, hands in lap, straight spine, tuck chin, tongue to roof, nosetip gaze Visualize body as the body of the Buddha, but hollow; different sizes, till image is clear

2. Visualize the 3 nāḍī & 4 cakra Central Channel: eyebrow center to crown, then down to pelvic center. Red inside, white outside (or blue). Left: white, width of arrow shaft Right: red, width of arrow shaft

Navel (“transformation”) cakra: 64 nāḍī arching upward Heart (“dharma”) cakra: 8 nāḍī arching downward Throat (“enjoyment”) cakra: 16 nāḍī arching upward Head (“great joy”) cakra: 32 nāḍī arching downward

3. Breath of 9 Blowings (purification) & Vase-breathing Seal L nostril, long EX R, IN both, short EX R, IN both, long EX R. Repeat other side, then both

Inhaling: Long IN, pressing breath down to navel, swallow Filling: Engage mūla [pelvic floor], hold breath at navel cakra Dissolving: When hold reaches limit, short IN, roll belly 3x, hold longer Shooting: Release when ready

4. Manipulating the bindu Visualize white drop (bindu/tigle) at brow center, as the essence of your mind IN bindu up to crown, HOLD, EX bindu back to brow center

Long IN, pressing breath down to navel, swallow Drop bindu down central column to navel center, HOLD EX bindu back up to crown center

Visualize bindu at various cakra: head, throat, heart, navel (drops there during IN, rises to crown on EX) Do Vase Breath 5-7x at each cakra

9 Garma C.C. Chang, Teachings of Tibetan Yoga (1963), see also Yeshe, Bliss of Inner Fire, and Norbu, Yantra Yoga. 9 SeanFeitOakes.com | 2018

Haṭha Yoga Sadhana: The Subtle Dance (intro) Developed by Dr. Sean Feit Oakes | SeanFeitOakes.com

Arrive in the body

Constructive Rest Lying on back with knees up, feet flat, begin to observe. Natural Breath Track breath movement in torso without intervention. Coming to Senses Orient body to environment via sight, sound, touch.

Assess & shape embodied state

Energy Spectrum: high (anxious/restless) to low (dull/sleepy) Cultivation: toward balance Method: invoke the opposite Charge Spectrum: pleasant (with grasping) to painful (with fear/anger) Cultivation: toward ease Method: notice/rest with pleasant Focus Spectrum: continuous (focused) to fragmented (distracted) Cultivation: toward continuity Method: relaxation & curiosity

Awaken into movement (āsana)

Warming Up Move in any way that feels like it opens the body. Move all joints through their range of motion. Engage & release muscle groups. 6 Directions Move spine with breath through the 3 planes: coronal (front-back), sagittal (sides), & transverse (twisting). Healing āsana Hold or flow through postures that unbind constriction in the body, relieve discomfort, & bring energy to numb/frozen places. Joyful āsana Hold or flow through postures that brighten energy, express wholesome states, & amplify feelings of vitality, intimacy, & ease. Final āsana Establish a stable & comfortable seat for meditation. Balance central column to allow easy spinal flexion & extension.

Amplify breath energy (prānāyāma) nāḍi śodhana (channel cleansing): (L R | R L) kapālabhati (skull shining): short, rhythmic EX from low belly ujjayi (victorious): resonate long breath between heart & throat bhastrikā 1 (bellows): deep, fast breaths opening side ribs bhastrikā 2 (bellows): IN root to heart, EX heart to crown śakti calana (circulating energy): IN down front, EX up back

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