About Vipassana Meditation

Lord Buddha learnt Samatha meditation from his teachers and was able to attain the highest mystic state of his mind.  But the mystic state experienced with Samatha meditation was short lived and impermanent.  What Lord Buddha wanted was something that would enable him to realize the ultimate truth, absolute and permanent.  

With Samatha meditation we attain a perfect balance of mind with highest level of equanimity.  But when we leave the place of meditation and get back to normal life, the ordinary mind is back again with all impurities intact.  Lord Buddha had faced the same dilemma.  This made Lord Buddha to search something of which the result is permanent.

Lord Buddha was concerned with the ultimate truth, the truth on its own, not based on concepts.  The truth based on concept is relative.  It differs from person to person based on concepts by which we interpret our experience.  But ultimate truth is the same for all in the absolute sense and it is universal. 

With his intense quest Lord Buddha discovered Vipassana Bhavana, the Vipassana meditation, also referred as Vipasjnana or Vidarsana Bhavana, the insight meditation.  It was exactly what Lord Buddha was looking for.  Actually Lord Buddha rediscovered the Vipassana Bhavana for the fact that there were many Buddhas before him and it was with them, but with time it was lost in its perfection.

The discourse on meditation ever given by Lord Buddha is in the Mahasmritipratisthana or Mahastipatthana Sutra and Satipatthana-Sutra –the Sutra on mindfulness.

Vipassana meditation enables us to destroy the impurities created by mind.  It is called insight meditation because it provides deep understanding on human suffering. 

Vipassana meditation is mindfulness meditation as it makes us attentive and conscious about what is being done.  It liberates us from the pursuit of pleasure and passion that makes us prisoners either of the past or the future. 

Being successful in life by living in our action, the action in the present moment with total destruction of Ego is the purpose of Vipassana meditation. 

Vipassana meditation is mind training for living a virtuous way of life.  It enables us to dissolve the self, the 'I' in us, completely in what is being done and just be aware and mindful of the present action.  Because the moment we think of I and generate the thought 'I am doing this', we do not live in action, but in the idea 'I am', and consequently we remain un-successful in our action. 

Vipassana meditation is a way to refine the quality of our thoughts by carefully concentrating on our way of life.  With Vipassana meditation we cultivate our mind for wholesome thoughts and ethical behaviour.  We cultivate virtues and generate commitment to live a wholesome life.  It enables us to overcome obstacles of our life. 

With Vipassana meditation we try to know the nature of our mind rather than trying to control or settle it down.  And we try to rightly understand the true nature of the object of meditation. 

Vipassana meditation is an analytical and contemplative meditation.  It enables us to be aware and mindful with our thought and action. 

With Vipassana meditation we look at our thoughts and emotions as if we are looking our face in a mirror.  The true nature of our mind, on its own, is empty and inactive but it has a potential to think, analyze, interpret, generate thoughts and frame concepts. 

Being in the clutch of Ego, our mind incessantly generates thoughts and emotions.  When our mind is free from the clutch of Ego, it is resting in its true nature, dispassionate and irresponsive to Ego.  At its true nature, our mind is responsive only to inner consciousness and generates thought and emotion when it is directed and in a way it has been directed.  It is on this truth, the Vipassana meditation is grounded.

Vipassana meditation enables us to know why there is a feeling of un-satisfactoriness, unhappiness, worry, or sorrow.  We examine them, as if we are observing them from outside, as an observer.  When we know the true nature of our being and our emotion, our mind grows dispassionate towards such feelings of un-satisfactoriness, and become detached and free from sorrows and unhappiness. 

Vipassana meditation enables us not to be unhappy about unhappy feeling and worried about worries.  It transforms the unhappy feelings and worries into positive emotion resulting in happiness. 

Vipassana meditation is the Arupa Dhyana -the meditation without form, in contrast of Samatha meditation, which is Rupa Dhyana -the meditation with form. 

With Vipassana meditation Lord Buddha progressed from fifth Dhyana through to eighth Dhyana and beyond focussing on three realities of phenomenal existence: (i) Anicca –impermanence, (ii) Anatta –not self, and (iii) Dukkha -suffering. 

Lord Buddha says; the phenomenal existence has two components: Nama and Rupa.  Nama is mind, and it has two aspects: (i) inner consciousness, and (ii) outer consciousness.  Rupa is matter or form. 

Nama and Rupa serve two functions: (i) the function of knowing, and (ii) the function of being known.

The faculty that knows is Nama, the mind.  It is the knower.  It is aware but it is impersonal.  It is Anatta –not self, not an independent self existing entity.

Rupa is an object; an entity being known.  It is not knower, and by its virtue it lacks awareness.  Nama knows but it is impersonal.  It is aware but that awareness is impersonal awareness. 

Our mind is the knower.  It is a subject knowing about an object.  Based on this truth, in doing Vipassana meditation we have to give to our mind an object to focus on.

Lord Buddha speaks of four fields for cultivating insight: (1) Kaya -body, (2) Vedana -feelings and sensations, (3) Citta -mind, and (4) Dharma -moral and intellectual subjects.  These fields are called the four foundations of mindfulness. 

Describing the four foundations of mindfulness, Lord Buddha says: “Hear O Bhikkhus! A Bhikhu abides contemplating the body as body, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. 

He abides contemplating the feelings as feelings, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. 

He abides contemplating mind as mind, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. 

He abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects, ardent, fully aware and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world.”

Whichever is the field of Vipassana meditation, the ultimate objective is to develop awareness, being aware of both outer and inner world.  And within that expanse of awareness, we should remain mindful of our action and not let our thought and action get polluted.

Body as an object of Vipassana meditation refers to Rupa -form including five Skandhas, the five great elements, and also rhythms of breathing and heart beat, comprehension of daily activities, and so on but related physical and physiological aspects of the body. 

Feeling as an object of Vipassana meditation refers to Vedana -the sensations of pain and pleasures, or neutrality. 

Mind as an object of Vipassana meditation refers to Sanjna -the ideas and perception, and Sankhara -the mental formation or volition, the thoughts and the metal factors both negative such as greed, anger, hatred, attachment, delusions, and ignorance, and positive such as feeling of prosperity, harmony and happiness, loving kindness and compassion.

Mind objects refers to Dharma objects such as Four Noble Truths, Noble Eightfold Path, Paramitas, Panca Sila –the five precepts, Three Universal Truths, Sunyata, and other positive inspiring Dharma objects. 

The distinctive nature of Vipassana meditation is that it can be practiced any moment and form, and exert on positive attitude and behaviour. 

The beginners should go through step-by-step process but the ones who have gained experience may practice spontaneously. 

Vipassana meditation has three stages: (1) readiness, (2) actual practice and (3) closing. 

The readiness stage begins with practicing Samatha meditation which delivers mental readiness to switch on to Vipassana meditation. 

Calming the mind and reaching a mental state of equanimity with Samatha meditation is the first step for practicing Vipassana meditation.

For calming the mind, Sila Vissudhi -purification of moral conduct in thought and action, is pre-requisite.  Unless Sila is purified, the mind cannot become wholesome and steady, which is inevitable for Vipassana meditation. 

With Vipassana meditation we go into the contents of the object of meditation and purify all defilement and ignorance at the deepest level of outer and inner consciousness, and ensure the purification is irreversible. 

We should begin Vipassana meditation with contemplation that we are in-charge of our thought and action.  It is our thought and action from moment to moment determine our state of being, either happiness or suffering.  We are responsible for our both happiness and suffering. 

Toward becoming a Bodhisattva, Vasubandhu (380 to 460 AD) elaborated four broad fields of contemplation:

1...Five contemplations on all Buddhas

2...Five contemplations on all Tathagatas

3...Five contemplations on body as suffering

4...Five contemplations on compassion for all sentient beings

Five contemplations on all Buddhas:

     1...Contemplate all Buddhas in all ten directions.  Realize that initially their minds were defiled just as ours.

     2...Contemplate all Buddhas and commit to generate an intrepid mind like theirs.

     3...Contemplate all Buddhas with boundless luminous wisdom and purifying action.  Through their own effort they purified all defilements and transcended the three realms: (i) Kama Dhatu -the world of desires, (ii) Rupa Dhatu -the world of materials, and (iii) Arupa Dhatu -the immaterial formless world.  Commit yourself to follow their examples.

    4...Contemplate all Buddhas who crossed the ocean of suffering.  Consider yourself a human being just like them, and capable of following their examples.

    5...Contemplate all Buddhas who abandoned mundane concerns and attained un-fathomable wisdom.  Determine yourself to follow their examples.

Five Contemplations on Tathagatas:

     1...Contemplate all Tathagatas having impeccable morality and control over illusive thoughts, and boundless wisdom.  Commit that you want to learn and practice.

     2...Contemplate on all Tathagatas having boundless compassion.  Commit that you want to learn and practice.

     3...Contemplate on all Tathagatas; who forgive, commiserate and protect all sentient beings, and correct their delusion with their wisdom.  Commit that you want to learn and practice.

     4...Contemplate on all Tathagatas having distinctive virtues.  Commit that you want to learn and practice.

     5...Contemplate on all Tathagatas, on their Dharmakaya, forever perfect, stainless and free from defilements.  Commit that you want to learn and practice.

Five contemplations on Body as suffering:

     1...Contemplate that your body is made up of five Skandhas.: (i). Rupa -form, (ii). Vedana -feeling and sensation, (iii). Sanjna -idea and perception, (iv). Sankhara -mental formation or volition and (v). Vijnana -Consciousness.  

     2...Contemplate that your body is as a bubble, as froth, of birth and death. 

     3...Contemplate that your body contains impurities and cause outflow of the same.  Commit yourself to cultivate revulsion.   

     4...Contemplate that your body contains greed, angers, hatred, ignorance and attachment, and countless defilements.  Commit yourself to abandon them all.

     5...Contemplate that your body, being imbued with ignorance, generating immeasurable evil Karmas and turning on the wheel of life with no benefits whatsoever.  Commit yourself to abandon all defilements and dedicate for the welfare of all sentient beings.

Five Contemplations on Compassion for Sentient Being:

     1...Contemplate that all sentient beings are in illusion due to ignorance and attachment, and endure great suffering.  Ignoring the true Dharma, they stray in heterodox path and drown in the sea of defilement.

     2...Contemplate that all sentient beings are hamstringed by suffering, the dread of birth, disease, old age and death.  Oblivious of path of liberation, they perpetuate evil Karma, bringing about more evil to them and to this world.

     3...Contemplate that all sentient being are committing evil Karma due their countless desires.  Although they may have reached an understanding that desires are the cause of sufferings, they cannot relinquish the desires. 

     4...Contemplate that all sentient beings generate egoistic views and their actions are self-serving and their actions are laden with evils.

5...Contemplate that all sentient beings, due to their evil Karma in past life, are unable to revere Buddha, hear Dharma and walk on the path of Dharma.  They overlooked the right path then and they overlook now. 

Finally, culminate the Vipassana meditation session with commitment to share the merit with all sentient beings with an expression: “I share the benefits of my Vipassana meditation.  May all beings in Samsara be free from physical and mental suffering.”  And close the session again with an inspirational prayer. 

Most practitioners are entangles in making commitments and inspirational prayers only, and not on actual practice, which must be avoided. 

The continuum of Samatha and Vipassana meditation teaches us to be in the present moment and be aware of being in present moment and be mindful of every moment passing by. 

Happiness is in being in present moment, aware and mindful. 

Lord Buddha says:

“If you wish to have happiness in both this and future life, exert yourself in virtuous actions.

If you wish to engage your mind in Dharma, persevere in your practice in hardship and misery.

If you wish to act in harmony with everyone, do not falter in your efforts to benefit others.

If you wish to cross over Samsara, search for unexcelled enlightenment within your own mind.”

When one attains the highest level of meditation one also attains the psychic power as a by-product. 

Once a layman approached Lord Buddha and said; “Lord! You should campaign for your teaching by displaying psychic power demonstrating miracles to the peoples.”  Lord Buddha refused to the layman’s idea of getting more followers.  Three times the layman repeated his request and three times Lord Buddha refused. 

Finally Lord Buddha said, “Listen; there are three types of psychic powers.  One is the power to fly in the air and dive into the earth, and similar other superhuman feats.  The second is the power to read other people’s mind with which people can be very impressed with you.  But there is the third psychic power, the power of instruction, whereby one can tell others on Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path.  This psychic power when used to guide others on the right path is Dharma and the rest are delusion, which stops you from being enlightened and attaining Nirvana.”