[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Marty,

It sounds like you are on the right track. More mindfulness is always a good thing, and in fact it is the only one of the five faculties of which you can never have to much. You are developing the skills you will need for Stage 6. You can do stage 6 practice using walking meditation. I recommend looking at Stages 6 through 10 in Appendix A.

Good luck with your practice.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Authorized Teacher

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Lemmefly,

I like the following advice from MasticatingBeast’s
“Where I’m at now is being ok if I’m perceiving pauses as “pauses” or “no sensations.” Because I take the sensation of no sensation to still be sensation.”

In this practice you don’t necessarily need a continuous stream of sensations. For the most part, as your clarity improves, you will notice a somewhat continuous group of sensations during the inhale and the exhale. During the pause, you can just know that you are feeling no sensations at the nostril, and attention is still where you intend for it to be. Directing and sustaining attention is the goal at this stage.

Please don’t strain to feel any sensation. A lack of sensation is OK. If you keep your attention at the nostrils, and just wait for the next inhale or exhale that is perfectly OK. If your attention moves to the lips, just gently redirect it to the nostrils, and notice if you are frustrated because attention moved.

However you may find that you do start feeling some sensation at the nostril during the pause. As an exercise just close your eyes and feel your hand. What sort of sensations do you feel, that make you think that you have a hand. There are probably fairly subtle vibratory type sensations. Your nostrils will have the same sort of sensations, although they may be more subtle.

Once again if you don’t notice any sensation that is fine.

Blake – Authorized Dharma Treasure Teacher

• This reply was modified 8 years, 9 months ago by  Blake Barton.

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Chris,

The breath sensations can get more faint during a meditation session. However, in this system, the goal is to continue to observe breath sensations even when they are faint or “non-existent”.

Perhaps you are slipping into subtle dullness which causes you to lose clarity with the breath sensations. Are you doing the “following the breath” practice describe on page 85, and 98 of TMI?

Are you maintaining peripheral awareness while focusing the breath? This can energize the mind?

Have you tried the connecting practice described on page 100?

You could also try the body scanning technique described in stage 5. These are techniques that can sharpen perception. Stage 5 also describes subtle dullness in detail.

If you are following the breath sensations at the nostrils, and you are not feeling anything, then you can try just leaving attention there just seeing what you notice. Some times we have expectations of the way the breath should feel, and when the sensations get more subtle we don’t think we are feeling the breath sensations. If you feel one little tingle or flowing sensation at the nostrils or upper lip you are feeling breath sensations.

The illumination and strange body sensations are signs that your attention is stabilizing. You can read more about this in the sixth interlude of TMI.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi GA,

When I focus on the breath before sleep it tends to bring up excess energy making it more difficult to fall asleep. In the past I have done this on retreat and gotten sleep deprived.

I now use mindfulness of the body, and it seems to help me go to sleep without issues. I just let my attention move freely from one body sensation to another. I also find that it helps to read about the Dharma before going to sleep. This tends to relax and tire the mind sufficiently for sleep.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Blaz,

I think it would be hard to do walking meditation without having at least some peripheral awareness, particularly if you eyes are open. However, you may not necessarily have introspective peripheral awareness unless you intend to.

In Ajahn Brahm’s book Mindfulness Bliss and Beyond, he talks about being so absorbed in walking meditation that he did not hear another monk yelling his name. In this case he must not have had much peripheral awareness.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Blaz,

I have not practiced the nine-part walking meditation very much, because I generally prefer a simpler type of walking meditation. However, I will attempt to answer your questions.

1. If you can identify all nine parts then you must be noticing different sensations in each part. If not, you would not be able to identity the nine parts. If we know something is happening there must be some sensations associated with it. It can also be a change in sensation. The sensations you notice may be different than what I notice.

During the first part of the lifting, I notice a pulling sensation in the skin of my heel, because I am barefooted on a laminate (plastic) floor, and a slight amount of suction was created. I then notice a lack of pressure, and a muscular pulling force inside my foot.

When the ball of my foot comes off the ground I notice the suction force again. I then notice a tingling sensation on the bottom of my foot in the same area. I then start to notice a pressure in my toes, because more of my weight is supported by the toes.

I hope this gives you an idea of what you could notice. However, it is important to examine your actual experience without expectations of what you “should” be feeling. There may also be portions of the step where you cannot identify a specific sensation, but you will probably start to notice more as you continue this practice.

2. You know you have lost peripheral awareness, when you are not noticing anything other than the sensations of walking. If you are walking with your eyes open, you will probably at least have some awareness of the visual field. Are you also noticing sounds, etc.?
You do want to have the intention to be peripherally aware, and you will know this is happening because you are aware of things besides your meditation object.

3. Yes, this detailed investigation should help to counter act dullness. It takes a pretty sharp attention to notice this level of detail.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training.

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi GA,

I would refer you to page 264 in Mind Illuminated to the section entitled Diligence, Vigilance and Effort.

I feel that “effort” is constantly renewing intention to direct attention to the meditation object, and to correct for potential distractions and dullness. When Stage 7 is mastered the intention is set at the beginning of the sit and it does not need to be constantly renewed. This is effortlessness.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi GC,

For additional information, I refer you to Culadasa’s recent post on this topic, which now appears at the top of this forum.

http://dharmatreasurecommunity.org/forums/topic/questions-and-clarifications-about-peripheral-awareness

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training.

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Amitm02,

I wouldn’t say that peripheral awareness is “subconscious”, because there is a consciousness although things are not clear until your attention actually moves to it. Think about peripheral vision. When your vision is focused on something, are you conscious of anything else in your visual field?

In the example that you gave, if I asked you if you were aware of the crowd before a familiar face popped out, you would probably say yes. You were aware of the crowd even though attention is not on any particular person.

If you try to check in to see if you are peripherally aware, then it does cause a shift of attention. However, if you are following the breath, and I asked you if you were aware of anything else two seconds ago. you might notice that indeed you were aware of some other things.

Culadasa attempted to clarify this topic a couple of weeks ago, and I have made it a sticky topic at the top of the forum, so it will be easily accessible to everyone. I suggest taking a look at his post if you have not done so already.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Bobby,

Ringing in the ears is a fairly well known side effect of meditation. It comes up from time to time in my meditation, and I can tune into it at any time, but luckily I can ignore it when I want to. You might want to read about Pacification of the Auditory Sense on page 245 of TMI.

Culadasa says that pain (or in this case unpleasant sensation) is inevitable and suffering is optional. Try to separate the ringing sound from your mind’s reaction to the sound. I would guess that your mind is resisting the sensation. I recommend having as much equanimity as you can muster around it. This is actually a great opportunity for insight.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Moln1,

I recommend trying to find a meditation practice that you enjoy. Even if this means not precisely following the practice strategies in The Mind Illuminated. In all likely hood this will mean being more relaxed and trying to let go of judgments and expectations. Have fun and be happy.

One option would be to try a very simple practice like just observing the breath and being aware of anything pleasant that comes up. It is also helpful to know if your attention is on the breath or somewhere else.

We all have differing abilities to stabilize attention. If your mind wanders 1000 times during a session, and you bring it back, then you are developing meditation skills. Please don’t forget to give yourself positive feedback when you remember to come back, and notice if there is any negativity around forgetting.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Charles,

Mastering the pleasure Jhana’s will habituate the mind to effortlessness, and make is easier to master Stage 7 when going back to the breath. However, it may not automatically propel your practice to Stage 8. You may also need to learn to let go of effort when practicing with the breath.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Moln1,

I have one minor correction to Jon’s excellent post. I am indeed part of the first Dharma Treasure teacher training program, but it is still ongoing, hence my title of Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training.

When attention alternates it can be either a gross or subtle distraction depending how long the attention stays there. When less time is spent on the distraction, and the meditation object remains the primary focus of attention then it is a subtle distraction. If a distraction takes center stage, occupying attention most of the time, and causes the meditation object to slip to the background then it is a gross distraction.

In the case of the hard rain, I think it was probably a gross distraction. My attention moved pretty strongly for maybe 1/4 of the inhale, and I don’t recall having any awareness of the breath during that time.

In teacher training class we had a discussion with Culadasa about people being confused about attention and peripheral awareness. He is planning a post to help clarify this issue. But in the meantime he gave some advice that may be helpful. He said until Stage 6 it does not really matter if you are aware of things in the periphery through alternating attention or peripheral awareness.

The important point is to be aware of things other than the meditation object (breath) while meditating. If you are, then you are doing the practice correctly. For example, if your attention alternates to a thought and you recognize this then you can immediately direct your attention back to the breath. The distinction between alternating attention and peripheral awareness will tend to clarify over time.

One way that this might happen is when your attention alternates to something else, and you realize that you had been peripherally aware of the object, before it became an object of attention.

Checking on peripheral awareness is like trying to catch a bubble. As soon as you check in with peripheral awareness then it causes attention to move. However, you can recall after a breath if you were peripherally aware of anything during that breath using short term memory.

I recommend that you seriously investigate your motives for wanting to stop meditation practice. Is it caused by frustration, expectations, judging etc? If so, I recommend trying to enjoy the practice. Tune into anything pleasant that arises, and try softer instead of harder.

It may also help to reflect on the positive benefits that you have received from meditation over the years. Sometimes it helps to ask a close friend or partner if they have seen any change.

Good Luck,

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Charles,

I am sorry to hear that you are unable to get the book. However, some of the ideas that you heard do not match what is in the book. The three practices are designed to be done when you have mastered Stage 6 and you are regularly practicing in Stage 7.

The Book has the following to say: “There are three additional practices you can do to add variety to your meditation and to help you through the dry periods … These practices are all very rewarding in themselves, while still unifying and training the mind in stable attention and mindfulness.” The pleasure Jhanas practice is the main one that can help you achieve effortlessness.

While you can probably do these practices in stage 6, they will not produce optimal results until you are consistently in stage 7.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training

[Blake BartonKeymaster]

Hi Moln1,

Please remember that the book is merely a map to help us understand our experience. The actual terrain must be investigated for oneself. I understand trying to do the practice exactly right. I have fallen into this trap many times myself.

However, it seems that this desire to understand is causing you suffering. I recommend lowering the bar a little bit, to help you explore and understand for yourself. If you are aware of anything other than the breath while you are meditating then you are doing it “right”.

This being aware may be in the form of alternating attention, and this is fine. If you try to see if you have peripheral awareness, then it usually causes an alternation of attention.

Another way to experiment is to follow the breath closely for a few breaths, and then briefly stop and ask yourself if you were aware of anything else while your attention was centered on the breath. At first it may be easier to notice peripheral awareness slightly after the fact through reflection.

The other night I was meditating and it started raining. I still very much had my attention centered on the breath, but there was also an awareness that it was raining. A few times when it started raining harder, I noticed my attention alternating to the rain. You might notice moments like this in your own practice in an exploratory way.

I hope you won’t give up on the practice. I recommend reading about the hindrance of doubt in the Mind Illuminated, and trying to let go of judgment as best you are able.

Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher in Training.

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