Technical question: Individual sensation

Front Page Forums Meditation Technical question: Individual sensation

This topic contains 3 replies, has 4 voices, and was last updated by  Anonymous 6 years, 7 months ago.

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  • #2121

    Malte Malm
    Member

    Hello everybody,

    I don’t have the opportunity to follow the forum discussions and contribute to it as much as I’d someday like to, but I try to maintain a regular sit. We have a small child (almost one year now) so following a routine is a challenge but we work together to make it work, me and my wife.

    Anyhow, to my question:

    Currently I’m hovering stage 3-4. Regarding the technique “following”, Culadasa states in Stage 3 chapter: ”

    “Next, you’ll practice recognizing the individual sensations that make up each in- and out-breath. First, carefully observe the sensations between the beginning and end of the in-breath until you can recognize three or four distinct sensations every time. Continue to observe the rest of the breath cycle just as clearly as before. When you can consistently recognize several sensations with every in-breath, do the same with the out-breath.”

    So, the thing is, and this goes for walking meditation too, I cant get a fix on any individual sensations, and I’ve had this question in my mind for more than half a year; what is it to discern 1 or 3-4 “individual sensations”? For me, the sense I get from observing my breath, is that there’s 40-100 different sensations making up each out and inbreath, and I cant get a fix on any single one of them.

    Yesterday, a thought crossed my mind to perhaps zoom in on an even smaller place, see if this might help. (for example, by big toe during walking meditation).

    What’s your thought’s and opinions about this? What is, or how do you guys experience, “a single sensation” or “a distinct sensation”?

    I’ve been meditating more and more seriously for the past three-four years, so it feels a bit strange for me to pose this basic question, but I am nonetheless very, very curious as to your answers and opinions.

    #2126

    Blake Barton
    Keymaster

    Hi Malte,

    As you have probably noticed when you try to “fix” an individual sensation, your attention is isolating it. While your attention isolates it, you miss the other sensations that are occurring.

    In order to get in touch with this, periodically, after an inhale, stop and reflect on how many distinct or different sensations that you noticed during the inhale. After awhile you will not need to stop and reflect, you will just know that you were aware of several different sensations.

    If you are knowing 40-100 different sensations during the inhale and exhale you are exceeding the instructions, and you have plenty of clarity.

    Blake – Dharma Treasure Teacher

    #2128

    Robin C
    Member

    Hi Malte,

    I wonder if you have already accomplished what this practice is meant to accomplish and have enough stability of attention to let go of attempting to find individual sensations at this point. I am curious what happens if you simply keep the attention on the breath and maintain peripheral awareness without having to “do” to keep the attention on the breath (close following, etc). Is there stable attention while maintaining peripheral awareness? If yes, great! Resting in that.

    Warmly,
    Robin, TMI teacher in training

    #2147

    Anonymous

    I am not a teacher and TMI only mentions in passing what happens soon for you, so I am definitely “talking out of school”.

    The breath sensation has a physical component and a mental component. Your nerves feel the air passing and your subconscious mind continuously tracks that activity to regulate the breathing in and out. Your breath should be very light and rather slow at the current stage you are describing. Body and mind very relaxed, with sharp attention (sampajana). Feels nice. Your attention will eventually discriminate the physical from the mental component of your breath, and the physical will fade from attention enough that you will think that your breathing has ceased, leaving you with an exquisite experience of a calm and quiet mind. You want to avoid dullness and getting surprised by this experience and then gasping for breath. Relocate your breath sensation and try to keep it slow and shallow. Your breath is still moving but it is temporarily beyond your attentional notice. Sampajana. Awareness of what you are experiencing. Dig the peripheral awareness.

    Once you experience the clarity of sampajana, it is a major step, because it is then easy to find and keep away any dullness.

    Sounds really neat, but there is a caveat within. If get surprised by this experience because you are having dullness, then the fear reaction of “not breathing” is profound and it will inhibit you from deep states until you abolish dullness and acquire sampajana. Read ahead a few chapters in TMI concerning “Dullness”, and examine your practice. If this happens to you, you may feel the impulse to cease meditating for a few days. Don’t stop, but continue and keep it light for a while and emphasize continuity of awareness over deep states for a while.

    If TMI had “everything” in it, it would be a thousand pages long. This is a common experience in all methods of meditation. Congratulations, you are getting there.
    When you apply the knife of intention to your mind, you must remember that it cuts both ways. Good Luck.

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