Cultivating Sufficient Concentration for Insight
As we continue to focus on the breath, it is inevitable that our mind will be attracted by experiences that it finds more interesting. There are basically three objects to which the mind may turn. It can become attracted to a sense experience (e.g., a sound, smell, etc.), to sensations in the body (either pleasant or unpleasant), or to cognitive processes such as thoughts and emotions. When the mind becomes attracted to any of these experiences it will often move away from present moment awareness and our awareness rests on the distracting experience. There will come a moment when we realize that this has occurred. This moment is the manifestation of our inherent clear, luminous awareness. Now comes one of the most important aspects of meditation; how we return to the breath. And we do this by simply ignoring the objects to which the mind has turned, and go back to following the breath. We do this without any internal discussion or commentary. That’s just more distraction from the present moment.
Sometimes, however, we may be so attracted (or repelled) by an experience or become so identified with some phenomena that we get caught up in the experience and completely lose our focus. These distractions are referred to as hindrances. That is, they are hindrances or obstacles to our concentration. There are basically five hindrances: sense desire, aversion, , fatigue of the body and mind, restlessness and remorse and doubt.
What determines whether we have enough concentration to begin insight meditation (at this point using the breath as the main object), is not whether we become distracted by the hindrances, but whether we can dispel them immediately after they have arisen. This is accomplished by observing the hindrances with mindfulness.
For example, when we are focused on the breath and aversion arises, we merely turn our mindful attention to the aversion. If after a short duration (moments) of noticing the hindrance in this manner it dissipates and we are able to refocus on the breath, then we know that we have sufficient concentration for insight practice.
Another way of recognizing that we have sufficient concentration for insight practice is the arising of a “counterpart” sign or nimitta (pali). As our breathing calms down and the more subtle breaths become clear, a mental or physical phenomenon may appear. A mental image such as a bright light, a clear or colored disk, or a cluster of stars may arise in the mind. Alternately, we may experience a physical sensation such as pressure at the tip of the nose, a feeling of air circulating and blowing against the nose even though there is no fan or air conditioner working, or a facial feeling of having walked through a spider web. These types of experiences indicate a stage of concentration where the hindrances are suppressed or being held in abeyance. Not everyone experiences (or realizes that they are experiencing) the counterpart sign. In addition, the way in which these “signs” manifests varies greatly from person to person.
If we repeatedly get lost in the hindrances for several minutes at a time, we still need to work on our concentration. However, it is important not to become obsessed with having “perfect” concentration prior to moving on to insight practice. Even if our concentration is not ideal, through the practice of insight meditation our concentration will improve.
The Five Hindrances
As we just discussed, the first approach to working with the hindrances is to allow them to naturally disappear from consciousness as we observe them with mindfulness. However, this approach is not always possible due to the strength of the hindrance and correspondingly our mindfulness not being strong enough to have the hindrances dissipate. The following discussion describes each hindrance and offers brief suggestions for working with them. We will be addressing the hindrances in more depth when we cover the fourth foundation of mindfulness. The hindrances are one of the aspects of the Fourth Foundation.
Sense Desire – the particular type of wanting that seeks for happiness through the six senses of sight, sound, smell, taste, touch and thinking. It also includes the desire to replace unpleasant sense experiences with pleasant ones.
It manifests as being distracted by a pleasant experiences while meditating. It can be a pleasant fantasy, a memory of some wonderful music we have heard, a thought of love towards someone, or even a physical sensation of bliss that comes from meditation.
If the source of the desire is physical forms (other people’s bodies), we can reflect on the various parts of the internal body recognizing that if they were exposed rather than the skin that covers them, our attraction would cease. This is the classic method of dealing with sense desire but in our culture it appears to be a bit extreme. What I have found more helpful is noting the unpleasant sensation of craving; the object of desire may be pleasant but the nature of craving is physically unpleasant. Another way is to just “drop” the thought. If it returns drop it again- over and over again. The mind will soon tire of chasing this. If it is a sense experience other than the body that we are grasping at, we can reflect on the fact that any pleasure one experiences will likely result in the unpleasantness of separation, loss or feelings of emptiness which follow when the pleasure is gone.
Ill will – the desire to push away, hurt or destroy. It can manifest as anger, resentment, hatred, antagonism, fear, anxiety, tension or boredom. It typically appears justified and it easily distorts our ability to make sound judgments. It also includes ill will towards oneself and feelings of guilt. It can appear as dislike towards the meditation object itself, rejecting it so that one’s attention is forced to wander elsewhere.
Ill will can be overcome by applying loving kindness. When it is ill will towards a person, loving-kindness opens the heart and helps us look with compassion on the other. Similarly, if it is ill will towards oneself, loving-kindness finds the courage to forgive ourselves. If it is ill will towards the meditation object loving-kindness embraces the meditation object with care and delight. Just as a mother has natural love towards her child, so a meditator can look on his or her breath with the very same quality of caring attention.
Fatigue of Body and Mind – an experience of heaviness in the body and dullness in the mind which can lead to feeling tired, to a lack of energy, and eventually to sleep. It is sometimes brought on by aversion to mindfully observing the workings of the mind. The Buddha compared it to being imprisoned in a cramped, dark cell, unable to move freely in the bright sunshine outside.
If the other hindrances are not recognized as soon as they arise in meditation, we can still identify them at some later point. The difficulty with fatigue of the body and mind (sometimes referred to as sloth and torpor), is that the mind gets progressively duller and drowsier until we fall asleep and are, therefore, unable to recognize the presence of this hindrance. As a consequence, it is essential to recognize this hindrance as soon as it begins to manifest.
Fatigue can be overcome by rousing energy. A young child has a natural interest, and consequent energy, because its world is so new. Thus, if one can learn to look at one’s meditation object with a “beginner’s mind”, one can always observe new things which keeps the body and mind alive and energetic. Other suggestions include opening your eyes, taking a few deep breaths, standing if one is sitting, doing walking meditation, washing our face with cold water, rubbing the limbs vigorously, or pinching your ear lobes( maybe Buddha knew acupuncture). If all else fails, we can take a short nap with the intention to begin meditating immediately upon awakening.
Restlessness and remorse – these two hindrances are linked because they are both agitated states of mind. Restlessness is an unsettled state of mind which is unable to remain on the meditation object. It is sometimes referred to as a “monkey mind.” It arises when we dwell on something that causes us to feel stress, anxiety, or inner turmoil. It is also caused by the fault-finding state of mind which cannot be satisfied with things as they are, and is therefore constantly searching for something better. Remorse is experienced as a feeling of guilt or worry concerning something we did in the past or something we believe we should have done but did not do.
When the mind becomes very restless and it is difficult to concentrate, counting the breaths can assist us in calming the mind down. The counting is done in our mind without vocalizing the numbers. With the sensation of our first in-breath we notice the touch sensation of breath, On the out breath we count “one.” Then take the next in and out breath and count “two”. Keep counting in this manner until 9 breaths are counted. However, only count those breaths for which the tactile sensation has at least partially been discerned. When the mind becomes distracted and we lose complete track of any breath, we simply go back to number one and begin again. Immediately after counting the ninth breath, begin counting backwards to one. If you reach one begin a new sequence of counting. When the mind calms down, we drop the counting and return to mindfully observing the sensation associated with the rising and falling of the in-breaths and out-breaths. It is essential that we do not judge the mind for not being concentrated, since this will cause more agitation.
Another method of calming the mind is to give our thoughts more space to express themselves. It is similar to placing a horse in a corral when it becomes agitated while in a small stall. We give the horse more room but it is still bound by the fence which surrounds the corral. As a result, the horse will calm down. Similarly, when we give our thoughts more space to express themselves, while still being bound by mindfulness, the mind will quiet down.
Another method is to notice the physical sensation of restlessness and worry. Is it pleasant or unpleasant? Where in the body do you notice restlessness and worry? Once we have placed our awareness away from the content of the thoughts we pay attention to the physicality of the thought. When we do this we notice the impermanence of the physical nature thoughts, restlessness and worry.
Restlessness can also be worked with by developing contentment. During the process of meditation restlessness often reflects the impatience to move on quickly to the next stage of practice. The quickest progress is typically made by those who are content with whatever practice they are currently doing.
Aside from cleaning up the issues from our past and forgiving ourselves for past misdeeds, we can work with remorse by purifying our virtue, becoming kind and gentle in our speech and actions. A very useful practice is to memorize the Buddha’s teaching on Loving-kindness ‘The Metta Sutta”
Doubt – this refers to skeptical questioning regarding the Buddha, practice, and our own ability. Questions can take the form of “Was there really a Buddha?” “Did he really attain enlightenment?” “Is this path and practice the best one for me?” “Am I working with the best teacher?” “Do I have the capacity to realize truth?”
Doubt can be overcome by receiving clear instructions, asking questions from those who have direct experience with the teachings, and by working with a teacher who can guide our practice. There is no need for blind faith in Buddhism. As the Buddha has said many times, “Come and see for yourself.” This is the balance of “faith” (from the results we have experienced in the practice) and discernment (the quality that asks questions in the pursuit of clarity)
Continue with the previous meditation instructions applying the antidotes to the hindrances whenever the hindrances arise. If you are so inclined try memorizing the Metta Sutta. It’s quite beautiful and comes in quite handy at times when aversion arises.
