Releasing the Buddha Within

There are numerous different schools, or techniques, of Meditation that are being taught. Anyone interested in improving themselves spiritually will usually go through quite an extensive search; until they find a style which suits their personality type,or belief system.

All of them will in some way be about gaining back control of your mental activity.

Without any form of Meditation practice the mind will be constantly in motion: flitting form one thought to another, like a random number generator without an off switch.

Just gaining back control over this madcap mind is extremely beneficial, and will lead to great improvements in your life. It is however only part of what the Meditation process should be about.

Meditation should also be about eradicating all the mental impurities that we carry around with us.

I have tried a few different techniques and am not about to compare them. Interested people will find their correct path if they look hard enough.  

True Spiritual knowledge is not a business enterprise

 There are a lot of people and organisations who try to turn it in to one.

Be wary of groups or courses that have high costs or ongoing course fees.

This is not to say that everything should be totally free. Developing generosity is one of the steps along the spiritual path. Providing for the basic needs of your teacher or guru is simply one of the ways of developing this. A persons inability to do this though should not prevent them from starting on their spiritual journey.

The meditation technique that I have practiced for approximately 20 years is the form of Vipassana taught by S.N.Goenka at many Meditation Centres throughout the world.

This is a Buddhist based technique; but is taught in a totally non-sectarian manner. There is no need to accept this philosophy,it will be just as beneficial,no matter what your spiritual beliefs may be.

Information about these courses can be found at

http://www.dhamma.org 

 To gain real benefits from Meditation requires commitment to the practice, and perseverance.

Expecting an instant fix, or treating it as a casual pastime, will gain you very little of value.

Benefits will be there right from the start; but the onset of any real insights, or advances requires persistent effort.

In today’s world; where instant gratification seems to be all most people are after, this is obviously not a popular concept.

People are also often trapped in a frantic life; where they can find very little spare time to devote to anything they see as nebulous as meditation.

 Is it not better to spend what free time you have in learning how to be contented with your life; rather than the usual practice of finding some way to blot out its unsatisfactoriness?

TV, drugs,alcohol, are just a few of the things we use to switch off from life; and also avoid spending time with ourselves.

 Meditation will not remove the problems from your life. There will always be continual hassles in one form or another. What it does do is enable you to cope with them in a manner which is far less harmful to both yourself, and all around you.

By gradually reducing all the impurities such as anger,greed,envy,jealousy etc, you are able to interact with others in a manner which no longer has these same impurities being redirected back at you.

This means that your everyday life becomes more stress free; and your general sense of contentment increases, no matter what your situation may be.

A man worthwhile, is a man with a smile, when everything goes dead wrong.

S.N.Goenka quote

The Vipassana technique itself is extremely simple;the effects though are profound.

Explaining what happens to someone who has never tried the technique is impossible. It is like trying to describe a rainbow to someone who has been blind from birth.

I qualify this by telling them they will probably find it’s the hardest thing they have done in their lives; but also the most beneficial.

Many meditation courses describe states of bliss and deep relaxation. This is not what Vipassana is about. The long term aim is to relieve yourself of all the miseries of life; and get out of the life / death cycle. This is a very long road, and although attaining states of bliss will happen on the journey; they are not the object of the exercise.

Every single person will have a totally different experience.

The initial stages of purification are usually not very pleasant at all. As strange as it may seem there are very few people who go through this experience who do not immediately understand its beneficial effects.

A FEW CAUTIONS

 Although Vipassana can be practiced by anyone and I consider it to be the most beneficial in the long term it may not be advisable for some people to undertake, or start, with this practice.

 Understandably everyone wants to relieve whatever suffering they have in their life. As simple as it is; Vipassana is an extremely powerful technique.

The process of purification requires a person to actually re-visit buried traumas and emotions. It is difficult to really explain; as this is often in an abstract sort of way. You may not even realise what particular trauma you are dealing with but the intensity of the experience can be very extreme; and cause considerable emotional distress if you are not well grounded.

This is all part of the cleansing process; but you need to be able to remain detached and objective throughout. If the wounds are too fresh, or substantial, to do this it could cause you problems.

 If you suffer from any form of mental condition that requires treatment you should not attempt Vipassana until you have been able to get by without treatment for at least 18 months.

 I would also advise that if you have been through any recent major emotional trauma that you delay attempting it. Leave it until such time as the event has become less immediate in your thoughts. It may then seem not quite so overwhelming if it comes to the surface during your meditation practice.

 If you suffered intense early childhood traumas which you still struggle to deal with; then it would be advisable that you tried to resolve these through therapy or counseling first.

People who suffer severe panic attacks should also try and resolve these first.

 In these cases other forms of Meditation, or even just different relaxation techniques would be the best place to start getting some degree of solace.

 We live in a world that is ruled by selfishness,greed,violence and every other ignoble emotion the human animal is capable of.

No one can alter this fact. What we can alter though is our ability to live happily, harmoniously,and tolerantly within the general madness. Developing this ability leads one to become more active in helping others.

How contented are you with the way you live your life?

Would the ability to let go of past hurts and injustices make your life happier?

Is there a hole in your heart which nothing in the material world seems to have been able to fill?