In today’s world of hustle and bustle, those with an interest in Zen choose to balance their body and mind by meditation.
An endless stream of meditation organizations have emerged to meet the demand, and even music created specifically for meditation makes it more appealing.
However, before starting meditation, are you ready?
Problems as below may arise for those having experienced meditation:
Why is it difficult to enter meditation?
What will happen after entering it?
Will you become a vicious madman but with superpowers?
The meditation mentioned by the Buddha in the Mahayana and Theravada Buddhism,
As it says in volume 55 of the Madhyama Agama of the Theravada Buddhism:
“Layman! Awareness should arise first, then followed by observation of the breath, inner peace and single-mindedness, without awareness and observation, joy and happiness. In that way you will experience second stage of meditation successfully! (CBETA, T01, no. 26, p. 775a20-22)
Meanwhile in the Shurangama Sutra of the Mahayana teachings, Samadhi has been mentioned from Volume 6 to 10, and Four Dhyanas referred to Volume 9, etc.
We know meditation intellectually in the realm of theories, but we have not yet started practicing it.
Our Kind Mentor has warned us that if our foundation is not well established, it will be difficult to enter meditation.
Even if we do enter the meditation, we will surely become vicious madmen with superpowers.
In the following, we try to focus on discussing the potential problems and solutions on practicing meditation.
1) Why is it difficult to enter meditation?
a. Delusion
When you have nothing to do but sit quietly, what kind of thoughts usually crash into your mind, please?
Delicious food or sensual pleasures?
Without having them, the thoughts of anger, attack or revenge will arise?
Do you image with delusions how great you are, how beautiful the days are, and how promising the future is?
Can you handle these flying delusions (greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, doubt and other Intoxicants?
If you cannot handle them successfully, but you insist on cultivating meditation, then it will be the biggest deception, namely To Tell Lies.
b. Drowsiness
How long can we usually sit still?
Is there drowsiness coming?
How to break through drowsiness?
Therefore, the first step to practicing meditation is to open up a path from the jungle of Intoxicants (delusions, drowsiness, etc.).
As mentioned above in the Madhyama Agama, the route for meditation from entering to the second stage, the first step is to be aware.
Most people can’t get through to the second stage with the reason that it’s impossible for them to focus on liberating themselves from their own entanglements. Only by liberating themselves from those entanglements can they move forward unimpededly and leisurely.
Regarding “Liberating”, in the Mahaparinirvana Sutra, Buddha praised Kashyapa: ‘Well done, well done. Good man! The true liberating is to get rid of all entanglements. (https://tripitaka.cbeta.org/T12n0375_005)
2) What will happen after entering Meditation?
Why will you become a vicious madman with superpowers?
If someone has the karma to enter the meditation, they may encounter the devil states and devil deeds, which has been warned by the Buddha in details in Vol. 9 (50 Demons) of the Shurangama Sutra.
According to the question from Ananda in Vol. 6 of the Shurangama Sutra:
Those living beings will gradually drift away from the Buddha, and there will be as many preachers of deviant views propounding their methods as grains of sand in the Ganges.
Enabling those beings to collect their thoughts and enter samadhi, how can we cause them to establish themselves peacefully, far from the attractions of demons, and be irreversible in their resolve for Bodhi?”
The Buddha addressed in Vol. 7 of the Shurangama Sutra:
Those who seek the Bodhisattva Way must firstly keep these four precepts extremely purely -not to kill, not steal, not to commit sexual misconduct and not to tell lies. In that way, after being removed the false views, there would be no false actions. Then the three evils of the mind and the four of the mouth will have no way to come forth.
“Ananda, if one does not neglect these four matters, naturally one will not go to pursue forms, fragrances, tastes, or touch, then how can any demon deeds arise?
Thus, the second step to practicing meditation is to keep precepts- not to kill, not steal, not to commit sexual misconduct and not to tell lies, to preserve the Ten Wholesome Deeds and to keep the Three Primal Precepts for Bodhisattvas.
Starting from holding the body still to the point where the mind does not rise, one is to be assured that they will not fall into demon states in meditation and will not become a vicious madman but with superpowers.
If we are founded on these, practicing meditation becomes simple to us, as well as to everybody.
And then all the away ahead, one can develop all the inherent wisdom and superpowers.”
As stated in Vol. 51 of the Avatamsaka Sutra:
“Again, Son of the Buddha, the wisdom of the Tathagata exists everywhere. Why? There is no sentient being who does not possess the wisdom of the Tathagata, but due to delusion and attachment, they do not attain it; if they are free from delusion, All Wisdom, Natural Wisdom and Unobstructed Wisdom will be achieved.” (CBETA, T10, no. 279, p. 272c4-7)
May you remove the three obstacles completely!
May you soon enter into deep meditation to attain Natural Wisdom and discover the Superpowers!