Welcome back
First, we’re going to talk about your Stoic exercises. Then we’re going to move on to talk about Buddhist practices. We’ll explore two very traditional Buddhist practices of mind-training, and the context in which they take place.
Checking in
Let’s take a few minutes to check in, and to talk about your Stoic exercises. We’ll feed back after the class.
A Bit of Background
We’re going to start with the Dhammapada, one of the most concise summations of Buddhist teachings. The Dhammapada famously starts with the following claims:
- Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with an impure mind a person speaks or acts, suffering follows him like the wheel that follows the foot of the ox.
- Mind precedes all mental states. Mind is their chief; they are all mind-wrought. If with a pure mind a person speaks or acts, happiness follows him like his never-departing shadow.
The central idea here is that mind and mental events have the power to build our future well-being, or its opposite. Here, there are some kinds of cross-over with Stoicism, although the context is different. Ancient Buddhism took place within a philosophical framework where it was assumed that this life is only one in an unending series of lives. And, for the Buddhists, rather than this being a great thing, it was seen as a terrible thing. We constantly cycle round, suffering through endless lives. And the purpose is to get off the wheel!
The central problem, then, is that of suffering. And one of the major innovations of early Buddhism was not just a subtle philosophy of mental events, and how they arise, but a set of practices that claimed to help us end our suffering—and perhaps liberate us from it for good. In other words, Buddhism was—as philosophers these days say—interested in phenomenology, meaning “how things appear”, or how we experience the world.
Buddhist Thought and Practice for Beginners
We’re not going to get to explore too much in a few sessions. But today and during the next session, we’re going to explore a couple of practices. The first is what is traditionally called Ānāpānasati, or “mindfulness of breathing”, and which seeks to develop a deeper sensitivity to one’s internal experience: body, heart and mind. The second is what is known as mettā-bhāvanā, or “the cultivation of loving-kindness”. And this is about more actively cultivating positive mental states.
We’re going to try both of these. To some extent, we’re going to explore these outside of their religious context. So you don’t need to sign up to any particular beliefs to try out these practices. As the Buddha himself allegedly said (in the Kālāma sutta, one of the best-known Buddhist texts), it’s up to us to try things out, and to see how they work, rather than relying on authority. And so you shouldn’t treat this any differently from any of the other practices—Stoic, Epicurean and so on.
Writing exercise
- Do you meditate? If so, how do you meditate? What does meditation mean to you?
We’ll discuss this in the main group.
Mindfulness of Breathing
Now let’s look at the Ānāpānasati Sutta, which is where the Buddha sets out the practice. If you are Burmese, and you are familiar with this text, or similar practices, I’d encourage you to pay particular attention. Because what the text says is a little different from what is taught in many Buddhist contexts today in Myanmar.
We’ll read the text together.
Trying the Practice
I’ll lead you through the practice. The whole thing should take no more than 20 minutes.
Writing
Now a chance to reflect!
- Did you discover anything new through this practice?
- What was difficult?
- What was enjoyable, or pleasurable?
- Do you feel different from how you felt before you started? If so, how?
We’ll discuss this together.
Homework
Read “mindfulness mania” by philosopher and cognitive scientist Evan Thompson (from his book “Why I am Not a Buddhist”, and come ready to discuss it next time. If you want to try more Ānāpānasati meditation, please do. Leave your thoughts, as usual, on the discussion board.