[lodonyo]

Asking for clarity – on sati-patthana

Context and gratitude: its been hard to go anywhere else for advice without somenkind of hatred or vitriol in the form of “debate”.  I present ideas based on the assumption that they’re basically foolish but what else am i supposed to do until im awakened to the true nature?  So I just want to give many thanks to Lal and the waharaka / hela dhamma or pure dhamma Sangha ??????

Synopsis/point:
I want clarity on / inspiration for what to do with this mind faculty 24/7.  Is it a good idea to start all “refocusing” in the day with Brahma vihara?

Context:
I just got done reading the bhava meditation section.  I was looking for the appropriate way/motivation to meditate and it turns out my hunch was correct…meditation is a 24/7 process and “sleep” may be actually a kind of hindrance.

What i got from reading is this:

1. A pre-requisite of “getting the mind focused properly” is basically the correct Brahma vihara.  Which is -> generating loving kindness by virtue of thoughts focusing on self/other currently not being in a hell realm and envisioning “us” all being sotapanna and free from hell. -> generating compassionate energy from focusing on all the suffering self/other is currently generating Along along with our ignorant state -> generating joyous energy from focusing on the infinite merit beings are creating for “their”/the eventual nibbana including all the anagamis -> generating equinimity focusing on tathagata and the manasan stage, the “state” of an arahant/nibbana

2.  And the actual bhavana actual starts at the end of Brahma vihara it seems yes? From my notes:
“2. Replacing ugly energy/movement with beautiful energy/movement.

3. Observe internal and external phenomena(5 indriyas, 5 kkanda, 11 mental impressions) arising and passing within all mannerisms and do #2.

4. In all modes of life, work to comprehend the right and wrong way of going about things.  basically act with wisdom of path to nibbana/dhamma

5. Contemplate on the body constituents (internal external)

6. Contemplate the 4 elements in all bodies; solidness(solidarity or oneness of multiples); binding, heat/Agni, vayu/wind.

7.  Contemplate the decay process of all bodies, internal/external.  Including stages of death for consciousness and maranan stage of continuum.  ”

End question:
Do I have any of this right? I’ve tried doing the sati-patthana bhavana before but it falls into place now since adding Brahma vihara I never lose “the point” of my concentration

[Lal]

There are many ways to go about “meditating,” lodonyo.

You seem to have developed a routine on your own way. That is fine. But you may want to think about the following fundamentals.

The key idea is to reduce greed, anger, and ignorance from the mind, and cultivate the opposites: non-greed (giving), non-hate (compassion), and become knowledgeable about the true nature of this world.
– That final one (getting rid of ignorance) means learning about bad kamma lead to bad vipaka, and that really bad kamma lead to rebirth in realms that can bring much suffering.
– That also includes learning about the Four Noble Truths, Noble Eightfold Path, etc. That is also part of “meditation.”

Therefore, meditation should not be restricted to “sitting down” sessions. One can act mindfully all day, any time, anywhere. And one can learn by reading and listening (and discussing) whenever possible.

I highly recommend going through the posts in the recent topic, “Examples of doing Anapana in sankappa, vaca, and kammanta“

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