Buddhist meditation – The path toward liberation

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The path toward liberation

Buddhists pursue meditation as part of the path toward liberation from defilements (kleshas) and clinging and craving (upādāna), also called awakening, which results in the attainment of Nirvana, and includes a variety of meditation techniques such as:

• asubha bhavana (“reflections on repulsiveness”)
• reflection on pratityasamutpada (dependent origination)
• sati (mindfulness) and anussati (recollections), including anapanasati (breath meditation)
• dhyana (developing an alert and luminous mind)
• the Brahma-viharas (loving-kindness and compassion)

These techniques aim to develop equanimity and sati (mindfulness), samadhi (concentration), samatha (tranquility) and vipassanā (insight).

These meditation techniques are preceded by and combined with practices which aid this development, such as moral restraint and right effort to develop wholesome states of mind.

The diversity of techniques

While these techniques are used across Buddhist schools, there is also significant diversity.

In the Theravada tradition, reflecting developments in early Buddhism, meditation techniques are classified as either samatha (calming the mind) and vipassana (gaining insight).

Chinese and Japanese Buddhism preserved a wide range of meditation techniques, which go back to early Buddhism, most notably Sarvastivada.

In Tibetan Buddhism, deity yoga includes visualisations, which precede the realization of sunyata (“emptiness”)

People, concepts & teachings

This is a list of people, concepts and teachings related to the practice of meditation in the context of Buddhism.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the psychological process of bringing one’s attention to experiences occurring in the present moment, which can be developed through the practice of meditation and other training.

Mindfulness derives from sati, a significant element of Buddhist traditions, and is based on Zen, Vipassanā, and Tibetan meditation techniques.

Mandala

A mandala is a spiritual and ritual symbol in Hinduism and Buddhism, representing the universe. In common use, “mandala” has become a generic term for any diagram, chart or geometric pattern that represents the cosmos metaphysically or symbolically; a microcosm of the universe.

Samadhi

Samādhi, also called samāpatti, in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools refers to a state of meditative consciousness.

In the Yogic traditions, and the Buddhist commentarial tradition on which the Burmese Vipassana movement and the Thai Forest tradition rely, it is a meditative absorption or trance, attained by the practice of dhyāna.

In the oldest Buddhist suttas, on which several contemporary western Theravada teachers rely, it refers to the development of a luminous mind which is equanimous and mindful.

Lamdre

Lamdré is a meditative system in Tibetan Buddhism rooted in the view that the result of its practice is contained within the path. The name “lamdré” means the “path” with its fruit Wylie: ‘bras ). In Tibet, the lamdré teachings are considered the summum bonum of the Sakya school.

Walking meditation

Walking meditation, also known as kinhin is the walking meditation that is practiced between long periods of the sitting meditation known as zazen. The practice is common in Zen, Chan Buddhism, Korean Seon and Vietnamese Thiền.

Noble Eightfold Path

The Noble Eightfold Path is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.

Dream yoga

Dream Yoga or Milam —the Yoga of the Dream State—is a suite of advanced tantric sadhana of the entwined Mantrayana lineages of Dzogchen. Dream Yoga are tantric processes and techniques within the trance Bardos of Dream and Sleep Six Yogas of Naropa. In the tradition of the tantra, Dream Yoga method is usually passed on by a qualified teacher to his/her students after necessary initiation. Various Tibetan lamas are unanimous that it is more of a passing of an enlightened experience rather than any textual information.

Yogachara

Yogachara is an influential tradition of Buddhist philosophy and psychology emphasizing the study of cognition, perception, and consciousness through the interior lens of meditative and yogic practices. It is also variously termed Vijñānavāda, Vijñaptivāda or Vijñaptimātratā-vāda, which is also the name given to its major epistemic theory. There are several interpretations of this main theory, some scholars see it as a kind of Idealism while others argue that it is closer to a kind of phenomenology or representationalism.

Lotus position

Padmasana or lotus position is a cross-legged sitting asana originating in meditative practices of ancient India, in which each foot is placed on the opposite thigh. It is an ancient asana, predating hatha yoga, and is commonly used for meditation, in the Yoga, Hindu, Tantra, Jain, and Buddhist contemplative traditions.

Six Dharmas of Naropa

The Six Dharmas of Nāropa, also called the Six Yogas of Nāropa, are a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practices and a meditation sādhanā compiled in and around the time of the Indian monk and mystic Nāropa and conveyed to his student Marpa Lotsawa.

The six dharmas were intended in part to help in the attainment of Buddhahood in an accelerated manner.

Samatha

Samatha (Pāli) or śamatha is a quality of mind which is developed in tandem with vipassana (insight) by calming the mind and its ‘formations’. This is done by practicing single-pointed meditation, most commonly through mindfulness of breathing. Samatha is common to many Buddhist traditions.

Zazen

Zazen is a meditative discipline that is typically the primary practice of the Zen Buddhist tradition. The precise meaning and method of zazen varies from school to school, but in general it can be regarded as a means of insight into the nature of existence. In the Japanese Rinzai school, zazen is usually associated with the study of koans. The Sōtō School of Japan, on the other hand, only rarely incorporates koans into zazen, preferring an approach where the mind has no object at all, known as shikantaza.

Sukhasana

Sukhasana, easy pose, is a simple cross-legged sitting asana in hatha yoga, sometimes used for meditation in both Buddhism and Hinduism.

Satipatthana

Satipaṭṭhāna is the establishment or arousing of mindfulness, as part of the Buddhist practices leading to detachment and liberation.

Korean Seon

Seon or Sŏn Buddhism is the Korean name for Chan Buddhism, a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism commonly known in English as Zen Buddhism. Seon is the Sino-Korean pronunciation of Chan an abbreviation of 禪那 (chánnà), which is a Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word of dhyāna (“meditation”). Seon Buddhism, represented chiefly by the Jogye and Taego orders, is the most common type of Buddhism found in Korea.

Five hindrances

In the Buddhist tradition, the five hindrances are identified as mental factors that hinder progress in meditation and in our daily lives. In the Theravada tradition, these factors are identified specifically as obstacles to the jhānas within meditation practice. Within the Mahayana tradition, the five hindrances are identified as obstacles to samatha (tranquility) meditation. Contemporary Insight Meditation teachers identify the five hindrances as obstacles to mindfulness meditation.

Vipassanā

Vipassana in the Buddhist tradition means insight into the true nature of reality. In the Theravada tradition this specifically refers to insight into the three marks of existence.

Bhavana

Bhāvanā literally means “development” or “cultivating” or “producing” in the sense of “calling into existence.” It is an important concept in Buddhist praxis (Patipatti). The word bhavana normally appears in conjunction with another word forming a compound phrase such as citta-bhavana or metta-bhavana. When used on its own bhavana signifies contemplation and ‘spiritual cultivation’ generally.

Bardo yoga

Bardo yoga deals with navigating the bardo state in between death and rebirth.

It is one of the Six Dharmas of Naropa, a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practices compiled by the Indian mahasiddhas Tilopa and Nāropa and passed on to the Tibetan translator-yogi Marpa Lotsawa.

Seongcheol

Seongcheol is the dharma name of a Korean Seon (Zen) Master. He was a key figure in modern Korean Buddhism, being responsible for significant changes to it from the 1950s to 1990s.

Standing bell

A standing bell or resting bell is an inverted bell, supported from below with the rim uppermost.

Such bells are normally bowl-shaped, and exist in a wide range of sizes, from a few centimetres to a metre in diameter.

They are often played by striking, but some—known as singing bowls—may also be played by rotating a mallet around the outside rim to produce a sustained musical note.

Nianfo

Nianfo is a term commonly seen in Pure Land Buddhism. In the context of Pure Land practice, it generally refers to the repetition of the name of Amitābha. It is a translation of Sanskrit buddhānusmṛti.

Anapanasati

Ānāpānasati, meaning “mindfulness of breathing”, is a form of Buddhist meditation originally taught by Gautama Buddha in several suttas including the Ānāpānasati Sutta.

Insight dialogue

Insight Dialogue is an interpersonal meditation practice that brings together meditative awareness, the wisdom teachings of the Buddha, and dialogue to support insight into the nature, causes, and release of human suffering. Six meditation instructions, or guidelines, form the core of the practice.

Dhyana in Buddhism

In the oldest texts of Buddhism, dhyāna (Sanskrit) or jhāna (Pali) is the training of the mind, commonly translated as meditation, to withdraw the mind from the automatic responses to sense-impressions, and leading to a “state of perfect equanimity and awareness (upekkhā-sati-parisuddhi).” Dhyana may have been the core practice of pre-sectarian Buddhism, in combination with several related practices which together lead to perfected mindfulness and detachment, and are fully realized with the practice of dhyana.

Four Foundations of Mindfulness

Satipaṭṭhāna is the establishment or arousing of mindfulness, as part of the Buddhist practices leading to detachment and liberation.

Shikantaza

Shikantaza (只管打坐) is a Japanese translation of a Chinese term for zazen introduced by Rujing, a monk of the Caodong school of Zen Buddhism, to refer to a practice called “Silent Illumination”, or “Serene Reflection”, by previous Caodong masters. In Japan, it is associated with the Soto school. Unlike many other forms of meditation, shikantaza does not require focused attention on a specific object ; instead, practitioners “just sit” in a state of conscious awareness.

Ganana

Gaṇanā is the technique of breath counting in Buddhist meditation. It focuses on drawing mental attention to breathing by counting numerically inhalation and exhalation. It is part of the six stages of anapanasati described by Vasubandhu and Zhiyi, composed by counting breath (ganana), following the motions of the air flow (anugama), stilling thought in the body, observing the elements of air (upalakshana), transformation of the mind focused on the air (vivarthana) and entering the path of vision (parisuddhi). Those stages are increasingly subtle and lead to control of mind, producing samadhi in order to achieve vipassana.

Buddhānusmṛti

Buddhānusmṛti, meaning “Buddha-mindfulness”, is a common Buddhist practice in all Buddhist traditions which involves meditating on the virtues of the Buddha, mainly Gautama Buddha as the meditation or contemplation subject. Later Mahayana sects like Pureland Buddhism focused on Amida Buddha instead, mainly to pray for rebirth in the Western Pure Land.

Passaddhi

Passaddhi is a Pali noun that has been translated as “calmness,” “tranquillity,” “repose” and “serenity.” The associated verb is passambhati.

Sampajañña

Sampajañña is a term of central importance for meditative practice in all Buddhist traditions. It refers to “The mental process by which one continuously monitors one’s own body and mind. In the practice of śamatha, its principal function is to note the occurrence of laxity and excitation.” It is very often found in the pair ‘mindfulness and introspection’ or ‘mindfulness and clear comprehension).

Tenzo

Tenzo is a title given to the chef at a Buddhist monastery. The word tenzo is Japanese for “seat of ceremony”, similar to the english term “master of ceremonies.”

Sati (Buddhism)

Sati is mindfulness or awareness, a spiritual or psychological faculty (indriya) that forms an essential part of Buddhist practice. It is the first factor of the Seven Factors of Enlightenment. “Correct” or “right” mindfulness is the seventh element of the Noble Eightfold Path.

Nibbāna: The Mind Stilled

Nibbāna: The Mind Stilled is the translation of a series of 33 sermons delivered in Sinhala by Venerable Bhikkhu Katukurunde Ñāṇananda during the late 1980s & early 1990s. The main focus of the sermons was on the psychological import of the term nibbāna and the deeper philosophical implications underlying this much-vexed term. The first volume of the 7-volume series was published in 2003.

Siddhasana

Siddhasana or Accomplished Pose, is an ancient seated asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise suitable for meditation. When performed by women it is also called Siddha Yoni Asana. The name Muktasana is sometimes given to the same pose, sometimes to an easier variant.

Anussati

Anussati means “recollection,” “contemplation,” “remembrance,” “meditation”, and “mindfulness”. It refers to specific Buddhist meditational or devotional practices, such as recollecting the sublime qualities of the Buddha, which lead to mental tranquillity and abiding joy. In various contexts, the Pali literature and Sanskrit Mahayana sutras emphasise and identify different enumerations of recollections.

Mental noting

Mental noting is a mindfulness meditation technique which aims to label experiences as they arise. In practice, this means using a single word to describe what one is experiencing in the current moment, for example “warmth”, “excitement”, “resisting”, etc. These experiences can be sensory, emotional, or cognitive.

Maitrī

Maitrī means benevolence, loving-kindness, friendliness, amity, good will, and active interest in others. It is the first of the four sublime states (Brahmaviharas) and one of the ten pāramīs of the Theravāda school of Buddhism.

Sādhanā

Sādhana, literally “a means of accomplishing something”, is a generic term coming from the yogic tradition and it refers to any spiritual exercise that is aimed at progressing the sādhaka towards the very ultimate expression of his or her life in this reality. It includes a variety of disciplines in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Sikh traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives.

Chuang Yen Monastery

Chuang Yen Monastery is a Buddhist temple situated on 225 acres (91 ha) in Kent, Putnam County, New York, in the United States. The temple is home to the largest indoor statue of a Buddha (Vairocana) in the Western Hemisphere. The name “Chuang Yen” means “Majestically Adorned”.

Vedanā

Vedanā is a Buddhist term traditionally translated as either “feeling” or “sensation.” In general, vedanā refers to the pleasant, unpleasant and neutral sensations that occur when our internal sense organs come into contact with external sense objects and the associated consciousness. Vedanā is identified as valence or “hedonic tone” in neurology.

Luangphor Viriyang Sirintharo

Somdet Phra Ñāṇavajirottama, also known as Luang Phor Viriyang Sirindharo, was a Thai monk, Meditation Master and Patriarch of the Dhammayuttika Nikaya Order in Canada. He was born in Saraburi, Thailand.

Chekawa Yeshe Dorje

Geshe Chekhawa (1102–1176) was a prolific Kadampa Buddhist meditation master who was the author of the celebrated root text Training the Mind in Seven Points, which is an explanation of Buddha’s instructions on training the mind or Lojong in Tibetan. These teachings reveal how sincere Buddhist practitioners can transform adverse conditions into the path to enlightenment, principally, by developing their own compassion. Before Chekhawa Yeshe Dorje’s root text this special set of teachings given by Buddha were secret teachings only given to faithful disciples.

Virasana

Virasana or Hero Pose is a kneeling asana in modern yoga as exercise. Medieval hatha yoga texts describe a cross-legged meditation asana under the same name.

Gomukhasana

Gomukhasana or Cow Face Pose is a seated asana in hatha yoga and modern yoga as exercise, sometimes used for meditation.

Visuddhimagga

The Visuddhimagga, is the ‘great treatise’ on Buddhist practice and Theravāda Abhidhamma written by Buddhaghosa approximately in the 5th Century in Sri Lanka. It is a manual condensing and systematizing the 5th century understanding and interpretation of the Buddhist path as maintained by the elders of the Mahavihara Monastery in Anuradhapura, Sri Lanka.

Kuji-in

The kuji-in also known as Nine Hand Seals refers to a system of mudras and associated mantras that consist of nine syllables. The mantras are referred to as kuji (九字), which literally translates as nine characters The syllables used in kuji are numerous, especially within Japanese esoteric Mikkyō.

Southern Esoteric Buddhism

Southern Esoteric Buddhism and Borān kammaṭṭhāna are terms used to refer to certain esoteric practices, views and texts within Theravada Buddhism. It is sometimes referred to as Tantric Theravada due to its parallel with tantric traditions ; or as Traditional Theravada Meditation.

Brahmavihara

The brahmavihārās are a series of four Buddhist virtues and the meditation practices made to cultivate them. They are also known as the four immeasurables. The Brahma-viharas are:loving-kindness or benevolence (metta) compassion (karuna) empathetic joy (mudita) equanimity (upekkha)

Balasana

Bālāsana, Child’s Pose, or Child’s Resting Pose is a kneeling asana in modern yoga as exercise. Balasana is a counter asana for various asanas and is usually practiced before and after Sirsasana.

Prison Mindfulness Institute

The Prison Mindfulness Institute is a non-profit organization founded in 1989 with the mission of supporting prisoners and prison volunteers in transformation through meditation and contemplative spirituality in prisons. The organization provides books and resources through their “Books Behind Bars” program, publishes books on prison dharma through their Prison Dharma Press, organizes a pen pal program between prisoners and meditation volunteers, and offers an apprenticeship program for prison volunteers called “Path of Freedom”. The organization supports prisoners in the study and practice of contemplative traditions as well as mindfulness awareness practices. It is an affiliate of the Buddhist Peace Fellowship as well as the Peacemaker Community USA.

Spirit Rock Meditation Center

Spirit Rock Meditation Center, commonly called Spirit Rock, is a meditation center in Woodacre, California. It focuses on the teachings of the Buddha as presented in the vipassana, or Insight Meditation, tradition. It was founded in 1985 as Insight Meditation West, and is visited by an estimated 40,000 people a year. The San Francisco Chronicle has called it one of “the Bay Area’s best-known centers for Buddhist meditation.”

Buddhist Retreat Centre

The Buddhist Retreat Centre is an inclusive resort and meditation centre located near Ixopo, in Kwazulu-Natal Province, South Africa. Since opening in 1980, the BRC has provided a tranquil space amid 300 acres of rolling hills and supported the development of the Buddhist community throughout the country. The BRC hosts regular retreats and welcomes independent visitors who want to visits its facilities, without promoting one form of Buddhism over others. The BRC has received recognition for the quality of its vegetarian cuisine, which it has recorded through four popular cookbooks.

Jeonghyegyeolsa

Jeonghyegyeolsa was a Buddhism movement. It was dedicated to the pursuing of Samadhi. It was moved by Jinul who established a new tradition of the Korean Buddhism.

Stopping thought

Stopping thought is a term in Zen referring to the achievement of the mental state of samādhi, where the normal mental chatter slows and then stops for brief or longer periods, allowing the practitioner to experience the peace of liberation. This is normally first done during zazen meditation, but should ideally be mastered, so that it can be done regularly.

Buddhadharma: The Practitioner’s Quarterly

Buddhadharma: The Practitioner’s Quarterly is a small magazine presenting articles on Buddhist teachings and practice, with contributions from all Buddhist meditative traditions.

Tatramajjhattatā

Tatramajjhattatā (Pali) is a Buddhist term that is translated as “equanimity”, “neutrality of mind”, etc. In the Theravada tradition, it is defined as a mental attitude of balance, detachment, and impartiality.

Threefold Training

The Buddha identified the threefold training as training in:higher virtue higher mind higher wisdom

Ujukatā

Ujukatā (Pali) is a Buddhist term translated as “rectitude”, and it is the basis for the following pair of mental factors within the Theravada Abhidharma teachings:Kāya-ujukatā – rectitude of mental body Citta-ujukatā – rectitude of consciousness

Buddha For You

Buddha For You is an antique Buddhist statuary store and gift shop in San Diego, California. The store offers a collection of existing and custom Buddhist statuary items and has been operating free meditation classes since 2009. The gift shop is best known for its role in the development of the first Buddhist college fraternity in the United States, Delta Beta Tau, at San Diego State University (SDSU).

Vitakkasanthana Sutta

The Vitakkasanthana Sutta is a discourse contained within the Pali Canon of Theravada Buddhism.

Yogāvacara’s manual

The Yogāvacara’s manual is a Theravada Buddhist meditation manual with unique and unorthodox features such as the use of mental images of the elements, the mantra “A-RA-HAN”, and the use of a candle for meditation. It has been loosely dated from the 16th to the 17th century.

Trāṭaka

Trataka is a yogic purification and a tantric method of meditation that involves staring at a single point such as a small object, black dot or candle flame. It is said to bring energy to the “third eye” and promote various psychic abilities.

Dhammakaya meditation

Dhammakaya meditation is a method of Buddhist meditation developed and taught by the Thai meditation teacher Luang Pu Sodh Candasaro (1885–1959). In Thailand, it is known as vijjā dhammakāya, which translates as ‘knowledge of the dhamma-body’. The Dhammakaya meditation method is popular in Thailand and some parts of Southeast Asia, and has been described as a revival of samatha (tranquility) meditation in Thailand.

Shōichi-kokushi Hōgo

Shōichi-kokushi Hōgo (聖一国師法語) is Japanese Buddhist work.

Mahasati meditation

Also known as Dynamic Meditation, Mahasati Meditation is a form of mindfulness meditation. It is a technique developed by Thai Buddhist reformist Luangpor Teean Cittasubho. Mahasati Meditation uses movement of the body to generate self-awareness and is a powerful tool for self-realization. Practiced throughout Asia and in the United States, this method of meditation is appropriate for anyone regardless of religion or nationality.

Kammaññatā

Kammaññatā (Pali) is a Buddhist term translated as “wieldiness”, and it is the basis for the following pair of mental factors within the Theravada Abhidharma teachings:Kāya-kammaññatā – wieldiness of mental body Citta-kammaññatā – wieldiness of consciousness

Kammaṭṭhāna

In Buddhism, kammaṭṭhāna is a Pali word which literally means the place of work. Its original meaning was someone’s occupation. It has several distinct but related usages, all having to do with Buddhist meditation.

Kannon Do Zen Meditation Center

Kannon Do Zen Meditation Center provides Sōtō Zen practice in the San Francisco Peninsula and the South Bay. Named after Kannon, the Buddhist personification of compassion, the center provides a supportive environment in which Americans can experience traditional Zen teaching.

Jakugo

Jakugo , or agyo (下語) of a kōan is a proof of solution of the case riddle, but not the solution itself. In Zen Buddhism, kōan is used both as a meditation device and as an expression of Enlightenment – a radical experiential insight into the nature of things and the self alike. A capping phrase is supposedly an articulation of such enlightening experience, most of the time in verse. According to Victor Sōgen Hori the use of jakugo dates to the Song dynasty and was developed from classical Chinese “literary games”.

Lahutā

Lahutā (Pali) is a Buddhist term translated as “lightness”, and it is the basis for the following pair of mental factors within the Theravada Abhidharma teachings:Kāyalahutā – lightness of mental body Cittalahutā – lightness of consciousness

Luang Por Dhammajayo

Luang Por Dhammajayo, also known by the lay name Chaiyabun Suddhipol, is a Thai Buddhist monk. He was the abbot of the Buddhist temple Wat Phra Dhammakaya, the post he held until 1999 and again from 2006 to December 2011. In December 2016, he was given the post of honorary abbot of the temple. He is a student of the nun (maechi) Chandra Khonnokyoong, and is the most well-known teacher of Dhammakaya meditation. He has been subject to criticism and government response. However, he continues to be a spiritual leader that has significant influence in Thai society. Luang Por Dhammajayo’s approach to Buddhism seeks to combine the ascetic and meditative life with modern personal ethics and social prosperity.

Luang Pu Waen Suciṇṇo

Luang Pho Waen Suciṇṇo (Thai: หลวงปู่แหวน สุจิณโณ, RTGS: Luang Pu Waen Su-Chin-No, also Phra Ajahn Waen Sujinno and Luang Pho Waen meaning Venerable Grandfather was a Buddhist monk in Thailand, and part of the Thai Forest Tradition.

Luangpor Thong

Commonly referred to as Luangpor Thong, Luangpor Thong Abhakaro is a Buddhist monk and teacher of Mahasati Meditation —a meditation method developed by his teacher, Luangpor Teean Jittasubho. The title Luangpor is used in Thailand to express respect for senior Buddhist monks and it means ‘venerable father’.

Ekaggata

Ekaggatā is a Pali Buddhist term, defined as tranquillity of mind; onepointedness. (Source): BuddhaSasana: Concise Pali-English Dictionary

Shambhala Training

Shambhala Training is a secular approach to meditation developed by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chogyam Trungpa and his students. It is based on what Trungpa calls Shambhala Vision, which sees enlightened society as not purely mythical, but as realizable by people of all faiths through practices of mindfulness/awareness, non-aggression, and sacred outlook. He writes:

Nissarana Vanaya

Nissarana Vanaya is a renowned meditation monastery in Sri Lanka. It is located in Mitirigala in the Western province close to the town of Kirindiwela.

Nissarana Vanaya Meditation System

The Nissarana Vanaya Meditation System was developed by Matara Sri Ñāṇārāma Mahathera, a highly respected senior meditation master of Sri Lanka and the first Upajjhaya of Sri Kalyani Yogasrama Samstha. This Buddhist meditation system uses samatha and vipassanā techniques in combination to allow what it claims are more intense insight results than ‘dry insight’ meditation. It was refined over decades by the head monks of the Nissarana Vanaya.

Other-centred therapy

Other-centred therapy is a particular approach used in psychotherapy and other therapeutic fields which is grounded in Buddhist psychology principles. the approach addresses the relationship between the self and the world through an investigation of perception; its conditioned nature and the possibility for change.

Pāguññatā

Pāguññatā (Pali) is a Buddhist term translated as “proficiency”, and it is the basis for the following pair of mental factors within the Theravada Abhidharma teachings:Kāya-pāguññatā – proficiency of mental body Citta-pāguññatā – proficiency of consciousness

Patikulamanasikara

Paṭikkūlamanasikāra is a Pāli term that is generally translated as “reflections on repulsiveness”. It refers to a traditional Buddhist meditation whereby thirty-one parts of the body are contemplated in a variety of ways. In addition to developing sati (mindfulness) and samādhi (concentration), this form of meditation is considered conducive to overcoming desire and lust. Along with cemetery contemplations, this type of meditation is one of the two meditations on “the foul”/unattractiveness.

John Earl Coleman

John Earl Coleman was a teacher of vipassana (insight) meditation, a kind of meditation of Theravada Buddhism. He was born in Tresckow, a mining town in Pennsylvania. After attending his studies, he entered the US Army in the 1950s and served in Korea during the war. Afterwards he joined the newly formed Central Intelligence Agency, and was stationed in Thailand in the late 1950s and early 1960s. He worked officially for the Southeast Asia (SEA) Supply Corporation, advisers to the government of Thailand, as a specialist in criminology.

Dhamma Joti

Dhamma Joti is one of the first Vipassana meditation centres in Myanmar, founded by S.N Goenka in the tradition of Sayargyi U Ba Kin in accordance with the teaching of Ledi Sayadaw. The centre is situated on an area about 12 acres contributed by the venerable Bhaddanta Sobhita of Wingabar Yele Monastery. It has been conducting Vipassana meditation courses since October 1993. The courses include 10 days for new students, and 3 days, 7 days and Sunday group sitting for old students.

Sesshin

A sesshin is a period of intensive meditation (zazen) in a Zen monastery.

Mudutā

Madutā (Pali) is a Buddhist term translated as “malleability”, and it is the basis for the following pair of mental factors within the Theravada Abhidharma teachings:Kāyamadutā – malleability of mental body Cittamadutā – malleability of consciousness