AYYA KHEMA RETREAT GERMANY 1995 Summaries Part 1 & 2
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
AYYA KHEMA RETREAT GERMANY 1995 Summaries Part 1 & 2 Edited by Shawn Comrie © with friendly permission by JhanaVerlag at Buddha-Haus www.buddha-haus.de Not for Financial Gain Table of Contents MEDITATION - AN OVERALL EXPLANATION.....................................................4 Paths to Practice..................................................................................4 Supports to Practice.............................................................................4 Hindrances to Practice..........................................................................4 Heart and Mind....................................................................................5 Meditation Methods.................................................................................5 1. Mind Calming Meditation...................................................................5 2. Insight Meditation............................................................................6 The Steps of the Mind ..........................................................................7 Pain in Meditation................................................................................8 Joy and Meditation...............................................................................8 PATH OF PURIFICATION.............................................................................10 Contemplation ..................................................................................10 The Path to Peace..............................................................................10 Enormous Responsibility......................................................................10 Happiness - Conventional & Pure.............................................................11 Conventional Happiness......................................................................11 'Pure' Happiness................................................................................11 Love - Conventional & Pure.....................................................................12 Conventional Love..............................................................................12 Pure Love.........................................................................................13 The Supreme Emotions..........................................................................13 1.Loving Kindness ............................................................................13 Enmity Without and Within..................................................................13 To Protect my own Happiness...............................................................14 Difficult People...................................................................................14 Loving Kindness Meditation..................................................................15 2. Compassion...................................................................................17 Compassion versus Pity......................................................................17 Establishing Compassion.....................................................................17 Applying Compassion..........................................................................18 The “Marketplace”..............................................................................18 The Value of Dukkha...........................................................................19 3. Joy with Others.............................................................................19 THE FIVE DAILY RECOLLECTIONS - DEATH...................................................21 2 Death a Law of Nature...........................................................................21 Good Kamma....................................................................................22 How do we make this 'Good Kamma?'...................................................22 Day/Night Rebirth Analogy..................................................................22 Boundaries of Fear.............................................................................23 Nothing to Fear..................................................................................23 Our Strongest Craving........................................................................23 A Temporary Act................................................................................24 The Eternal Fearless Moment ..............................................................25 Death Contemplation Meditation...........................................................26 QUESTIONS & ANSWERS...........................................................................27 Buddhism hostile to Women?...............................................................27 Starting Practice when Older................................................................27 Non Self or Reduction of Karmic Resultants?..........................................28 Mindfulness and its Relationship to Conciousness?..................................28 Craving and appreciating Beauty?.........................................................28 Speed of Movements on Retreat...........................................................28 Thangka use for Meditation?................................................................29 Use of Sound for Meditation?...............................................................29 Love. Different qualities of...................................................................29 Fantasising in Meditation.....................................................................29 Bowing, what for?..............................................................................29 Repetitious Thoughts..........................................................................30 Types of Joy......................................................................................30 Self Perception..................................................................................30 Anger, how to cope?...........................................................................31 Supreme Emotions. Their effect...........................................................31 Analytical Dangers.............................................................................31 Joy in Meditation................................................................................32 Getting Balanced Complete Teachings...................................................32 Fear of Death and Ego Resistance.........................................................32 Dukkha. How to be Free of it...............................................................32 Disrespectful Mind..............................................................................33 Metta. Does it get to it's Target?...........................................................33 Anxiety and Fear in relation to Disease..................................................33 Grieving...........................................................................................34 Ayya Khema - Quotes of Value...................................................................35 3 MEDITATION - AN OVERALL EXPLANATION From Talk 01a Paths to Practice Inner anxiety draws us to Meditation whether we know it or not. Everyone who is unenlightened has this 'inner anxiety.' We don't always know we have it until something triggers it off, and we then tend to blame 'external forces.' Our Spiritual path starts when we know that it is ourselves that are causing our own internal misery. We must learn to ignore the 'trigger's which are innumerable, ever changing and difficult to control. However we are quite capable of learning to control and change ourselves. This does not mean self suppression and blame, but learning to look inside for the causes, without judgement, and to then do something about them. (“Recognition, No-Blame, Change”) When Practice is done wholeheartedly, our horizons widen and our perspectives deepen. As we see the world in a totally different light, anxiety, and many associated problems start to fall away. Supports to Practice Of importance and value in getting full benefit from the Buddhist teachings are: Willpower, Determination, and a Resolve to practice consistently all the time. It is not something you do now and then, only if and when you have the time, or feel the need. Joy and Gratitude should be brought into the meditation to help 'Open up the Heart.' We need to learn to love what we do when we practice. Meditation itself should also bring joy, but should also be approached with a sense of joy. Having gratitude for the opportunity to practice this 2500 year old tradition and for other good things in our lives, helps generate this joy. Noble Silence gives us the ability to figure out what is going on within ourselves, without having to contend with the additional distraction of the incessant chatter and opinions of ourselves and others. Being in The Moment is most supportive. It is devoid of the problems and distractions that 'time based' thinking brings. (The 'Now' contains no, expectation, resistance, comfort seeking, etc.) Hindrances to Practice Difficulties, often common to early stages of Practice include: Doubt and Uncertainty about our ability to meditate, which can be extremely damaging to practice. Try not to think that way and realise that anybody can meditate adequately. Anyone who wants to know can 'know.' It is just a matter of time, effort, application, and a 'growing of the Heart.' Comparison of ones Practice to that of others also creates distraction and envy. 4 We really just do