29 Mar 2012

Samadhi and how it works


Previously posts have covered how to use the breath as an object of meditation and how to deal with distractions so you can kick butt on the cushion and in daily life.  On to more stuff.

What is the process/point of this meditation?  
You calm your mind and train it to see how awareness operates.  When you understand how awareness operates, you stop being confused.  You stop having uncontrolled and unwanted thought after thought, annoying feeling after feeling, reaction to this, reaction to that.  Simply, suffering stops.  You stop being pulled this way and that.  When you stop imagining impersonal processes can be controlled, you in effect gain total control – it’s a fun paradox.  To become imperturbable, you must let it all go.

An object of meditation is necessary to see exactly how your mind works so you can stop being duped by it.  Without an object of meditation, it is possible to stabilize in what seems like a calm, still place but not be able to see all sorts of activity that is still happening under the surface.  Even if the activity is invisible, it will generate thoughts and reactions if you don’t see it.  You need a reference point to go deep, and that is what a meditation object provides.  You know what your meditation object is; you know what isn’t your object.  You let go of what isn't your object. 

On to Samadhi.

Ah, ever so tasty Samadhi.  Its as mysterious and temping as sex to a young teenage boy, but fortunately far more attainable.  Where does this fit in with the goal of seeing how the mind works?

First, WHAT is Samadhi?  Well, Samadhi is a word that the Buddha made up to describe the kind of meditation he developed.  It’s a compound word.  Sama – calm or even and Dhi- wisdom or intellect/awareness.  Calm wisdom, calm awareness.  That’s what it means.  Now, there, despite a single source for this concept (the Buddha), there are multiple Buddhist meditation traditions and multiple interpretation of what constitutes Samadhi.  Even better, non-Buddhist meditation traditions have adopted the word to describe meditative states that are very different then the original intention.  Without going into the amazingly complex and perhaps fascinating details, just know that there are multiple types of Buddhist Samadhi that are frequently taught.  The type of Samadhi that I am going to talk about is one where the mind is unified and sharpened, and one retains the ability to know what is happening with awareness.  Concentration/Unification and Insight yoked.  Samatha Vipassana.  This technique is described in the oldest written records of Buddhist training, the Pali suttas. 

Samadhi arises quite naturally as mind calms, and one gets less enmeshed with experience.  The more you let go, the more open and joyful mind naturally reveals itself to be.  Furthermore, when mind is calm and collected, it gets to be very smart, fast, and deeply perceptive.  Creative, spontaneous, unlimited.  This is why it is useful to develop some collectedness/concentration, so you can see how everything works with a nice, shiny, supercharged awareness.  Plus, it feels really good – a big relief. 

There are about 8 distinct stages of Samadhi with this meditation technique.  Lets call them Jhanas, or stages of meditation.  The first Jhana happens when you finally let go deeply of a serious distraction.  You let it go, over and over, and finally it doesn’t come up, or you simply are done with it and don’t fall for it anymore.  At that moment, mind stills.  You feel a relief, like a weight off your shoulders, and you start to feel happiness and pleasure.  Often, a big grin is on your face.  Happy joy, fun stuff.  Now, this may happen with a less dramatic transition if you have some experience with meditation, or some natural talent for stilling your mind.  But, the joy, pleasure, and stillness will always be there. 

When you enter the first Jhana, you have let go of a level of distraction, mind calms, and you get some candy- the happy joy.  This will sustain itself for a period of time, and then more distractions will arise.  Probably they will be different distractions.  Maybe more subtle, and brand new type of experiences since your mind was not clear enough to detect them before.  This is a good thing, even if it bounces you out of the Jhana.  Now, you can let go of more stuff, purify your mind more, and this will lead you to deeper Jhanas, deeper insight, and closer to the big insight of seeing the way everything in the mind works.  So, the distractions are just as important as the Jhana, we need the distractions to go deeper and see how mind works.

This is a process: there is an arising distraction, some work to let the distraction go, and then eventual release.  After a while, you will be ‘done’ with the distraction of a given level of meditation or Jhana.  Then you will have complete access to the Jhana without having to go through lots of work.  It’s like learning to ride a bike.  Its tough at first, you fall often, and have to put in time and work, but after a while you just do it instinctively.  This is pretty cool, having instant access to pleasure, calm, and a clear mind, on or off the cushion. Seriously, you can be standing in line at the grocery store or wherever with a clear happy mind and bliss just dripping off you.  A side effect worth working for, maybe?

As you start letting go of all these distractions, you might notice some stuff.  One thing is, distractions are instinctive, automatic reactions.  For example: you might remember or feel something, you then don’t like it, you starting thinking about why you don’t like it, and then you forget that you’re meditating.  Something like that, every time.  With practice, you get better at noticing the parts of this process.  Maybe you only catch yourself after you have forgotten that you are meditating.  Maybe after a while, you start to see when you starting verbally thinking, and can let that go and go back to the meditation before you get distracted.  Great, that’s improvement.  It takes mindfulness to do this, and mindfulness takes practice to cultivate.  As you get better at seeing the distraction arise, you can let it go before it becomes a thought.  You can notice that mind is starting to lose its focus, and bring it back right away.  In this way, you are learning to always stay with relaxing on the breath, or whatever meditation you are doing. 

So, what are the breathing instructions again?

Instructions:
When you breath in, be aware you are breathing in.  Relax you entire body and head one time.
When you are breathing out, again be aware of this fact in a very general way.  Relax you entire body and head one time.

When you get distracted, or begin to loose focus:
Let go of the distraction.  Let it be there, don’t push it away or dislike it.  Stop paying attention to it.
Relax you head and body one time. You wont succeed in relaxing everything.  Doesn’t matter.  Move on.
Smile, cause it makes everything easier – and this is an amusing game, yes?
And then go back to relaxing on the in and out breath. 
Do it again.

With Buddhist meditation, the path is well trodden.  The states on the path are well documented.  You follow a formula of training that has been completed over and over throughout the last 2500 years or so.  You follow the recipe, and predictable, well-documented results happen.  If you don’t follow the recipe, something else or nothing happens.  Simple.  What’s even better, even tho everything is well documented and there is a map of the training, you still have to rediscover it for yourself.  Nobody can do it for you, and the maps are only guides – the actual experience of the meditation path is not easy to explain and probably not what you think it is when studying the maps.  Gotta see it for yourself.

24 Mar 2012

Watch your mailboxes Bastards

Don't ask me why it took so long, but they're on the way. Hope you guys like em.

23 Mar 2012

In case you missed it, the anniversary of the Iraq invasion was this week

Occupy SpringA protester during a rally of Occupy Wall Street demonstrators in New York, March 17, 2012. (Photo: Robert Stolarik / The New York Times)



Then the morning came when I opened my eyes and felt the finger of Fate upon me, I knew the time had come...

- Robert Penn Warren


At this moment, tens of thousands of Americans in Iraq, Afghanistan and all over the world are under arms and in peril, engaged in conflicts that serve only to prolong this terrible, endless age of war. At this moment, millions of innocent people are cowering somewhere because of it.

Make no mistake: someone is, at this moment, bathing in riches at the expense of those soldiers, their families, and the untold scores of civilians whose only crime was getting in the way of the first, best, and biggest payday of this new century. The last ten years have been a festival of profit-taking for a small collection of people you will never meet.


-excerpt of an article by William Rivers Pitt, written for Trouthout.org


Sent from my iPod

21 Mar 2012

Zoom in and enjoy!

Leo from the Circumano blog down in Brazil is relentlessly raising the bar with his mind-blowing artistry.

He and Lucas continually crank out world class work in my humble opinion.
Cheers brothers!

19 Mar 2012

The journey IS the destination.

This may sound like an esoteric new age cliche to some, but any biker knows it as a simple and obvious truth. The ride itself is what it's all about, the destination is almost a disappointment. If it weren't for the inevitable need to sleep, eat, and put fuel in the tank...some out there might never turn the engine off.

15 Mar 2012

Sugar Skull Points Cover

Anybody want one of these mindblowing custom cast pieces of aluminum artistry? Inspired by the Zen Bastard skull logo, Tommy Shock created this rad casting. Any Bastards, or anyone else with good taste, hit up Tommy at www.tommyshock.com and get the coolest hunk of aluminum you'll likely ever bolt to your bike!

Ps-don't be put off by the 3rd reich themed parts available on the site. Some of it is of the panzer persuasion, but Tommy is a cool guy just makin what his customers have requested. Contact him about original design ideas if you have something special in mind.

13 Mar 2012

Sure could use a nice long ride

Any bastards have early season riding video or pics from rides to share?

7 Mar 2012

More meditation.


So you’re meditating.  Sitting comfortably or something, eyes closed. 
Breathing in, you are aware that you are breathing.  Relax.
Breathing out, you are aware you are breathing.  Relax.
Suddenly, you realize you are thinking about dinner.  Or that time last year when you cut your hand.  Or how much that jerk pissed you off. 
So, you notice that you’re not aware of the breath anymore. 
Let that distracting thought or feeling be there, but don’t pay attention.
Relax you head and body one time.
Smile, cause its all ridiculous.
And go back to breathing.
Simple.

Sometimes sitting will be awesome, and very interesting things will happen.  Keep going, good work, etc. 

Sometimes you will get distracted and the session may not be as fun.  Again, keep going, good work, etc.

So, what about distractions? 

When you practice with these instructions, distractions may arise.  In fact, by relaxing and avoiding a very tight focus on the sensations of the breath, you are allowing mind to be fluid enough to do something unexpected, something spontaneous.  Perhaps this sounds bad?  Maybe meditation and life are not supposed to have unexpected feelings and events?  Well, if you believe that, you are left with trying to force things to be the way you want them to be.  That is fighting with reality.  It's probably a really a bad idea, fighting with reality.  Guess who loses? 

One thing that is happening in the meditation is you are retraining yourself to stop trying to control stuff.  When you notice you are distracted, let whatever it is be there and relax, you are creating a new habit.  Instead of fighting or trying to control, you are allowing and opening. 

This opening and allowing mind does not have suffering in it.  There may be uncomfortable feelings, but there is no preference or identification with them.  What was YOUR pain, YOUR anger, YOUR lust for whatever, becomes something quite neutral if you let it be there, relax, smile, and breath.  Fitting, because you had nothing to do with it being there in the first place!  You were sitting in meditation, breathing, and suddenly the distraction came up.  Right?  You were actually doing something else and it happened anyway.  That process does not sounds like volition, or YOU to me… 

This is a fascinating, although disturbing notion: most of our thoughts and feelings happen TO us, they are not necessarily created by us.  They are part of an impersonal process. 

More usefully: this impersonally process might feel good or bad, but either way, it could suck if we fight it, or not suck if we allow it to be however it is.  Better to allow, then.

Interestingly, having an uncomfortable distraction come up is a great way to get over it.  If you deal with it skillfully and don’t suppress/control it, eventually you wont react, and it won’t re-occur. 

So, it is totally useful to have periods where mind gets full of turmoil.  This way you can let go, not react, and move on.  You can be sure that turmoil happens when you’re not paying attention.  When this happens without noticing, you react, suffer, and this limits your apparent choices. 

When you notice that there is turmoil or any level of distraction, you suddenly have a choice.  You can react and not like it, or you can let it be there, relax, breath, and move on so it will eventually stop bugging you. 

Nicely, this process works for good feelings as well.  Good feelings tend to change, but if we let them do what they will without a lot of preference or any attempt to control, we will enjoy them more and they tend to hang out longer.  Sounds good to me.

As we get better with how this all works and we let go of more stuff, Samadhi arises - it's direct result of letting go of distractions, not controlling them. 

So, you get to be tough and sharp of mind.  Keep your butt on the cushion and pay attention until the timer goes off, no matter what is happening.  It’s really not that serious at all, so be gentle if you get caught.  When there’s rough stuff on or off the cushion, you know what to do.  Let it be there.  Relax, smile, return to the breath.  Just do that.  At the very least, it will kill time and give you something to do that is actually your choice.  And that’s the point. 

There’s a lot to talk about with meditation in one sense, and in another sense meditation is just about breathing (or whatever your object of meditation happens to be), and not taking ANYTHING personally.  Anything that happens is part of a process, and so you might as well let it go and get on with whatever you meant to be doing. 

Once you understand this approach to distractions, you are basically prepared to respond to anything that could come up, and are ready to go deep.  Sure, you will sometimes get caught, but you know what to do.

Happy sitting!

6 Mar 2012

Taco Tuesday!

whos hungry?

Looking For Axed Tank for Flatty Build



Trying to find an axed tank for  the 45 build, if you have one it would be appreciated. To all I haven't stayed in contact with, I apologize, work has been rough lately, and we are not allowed to do any personal work right now, and it is putting a damper on my style. So Axed tank not Alien, and if you found one with old school flames it would fucking rock!!!


Something of this sort on an axed style tank, if you saw a "real" axed tank (split tanks chopped into one) it would be even better. I can only afford 2-3 bills however.


Jay

OH YEAH WHERE THE HELL ARE THE FMCO PICS FROM OUR WINNER!