..续本文上一页nner wind element” is active in the body as motion, vibration and pressure, manifesting itself in the passage of air through the body (e.g. in breathing) and also in the movement of limbs and organs. It becomes perceptible as a tactile process - as an object of touch - through the pressure or pushing sensation caused by it. As the meditator tunes into this particular sensation or specific characteristics in the movement of the abdomen, it will then reveal or expose the three general characteristics, of change, unsatisfactoriness, and insubstantiality.

　　Insight meditators, who focus on the body as their primary meditation object, need to have the same body consciousness – not necessarily the level of fitness, may I add - of an elite athlete in training. It is essential that the meditator”s body is open and relaxed so that he or she can sense into the subtle internal and external movements from a state of receptivity.

　　If on the other hand, the meditator”s body is tense and tight, the practice becomes a struggle and one is out of touch with the present moment awareness. So at the beginning of a sitting session, check to see if the body is relaxed and if at any time during the session you notice that the body has tensed, do a body scan, that is, scan the body part-by-part, relaxing each region as the awareness moves through the body, while softening into any tension or contraction you find. If the body is contracted so must be the mind. Be open and allowing, as the practice is about receptivity and openness, allowing a “tuning in” to what actually is manifesting.

　　Do not interfere. Do not force or manipulate the movement of the abdomen in any way, just sense the natural movement. Beginners often assumed that they must stay focused on the abdomen”s movement all the time, and measure their success on whether they achieve this or not. Actually, within an hour”s sitting session, the abdomen movement might be discernible for short periods of time only. Other objects such as body sensations, mind states and thinking might become predominant, and these must be noted as secondary objects until they disappear.

　　While the meditator is focused on body phenomena, there are actually two things that one can be aware of: the object, and the ”knowing of it” or the ”consciousness of it”. For example, there is one”s body sensations and the associated awareness that knows the sensations. This practice is known as ”pairing” and needs to be established from the very beginning of the practice. In this way, the meditator will come to appreciate that what is observing the phenomena is just the ”knowing” or the mind knowing the mind, and ”not me or myself”. At least one comes to see one”s identification with the consciousness, which perhaps was not suspected at all before.

　　To have clarity that leads to insight, the meditator needs to be able to differentiate between mind and body. Normally, we have the sense that the mind and body are merged or we act as if the body leads. Yet the Buddha tells us in the first verse of the Dhammapada that: "Mind precedes all knowables, mind is their chief, mind-made are they". Seeing the distinction between mind and body will create a “mental space”, which will help to free us from the gross identification with the phenomena, allowing one to witness the mind and body relationship as an impartial observer without identification.

　　Walking meditation can be the key to insighting into the body”s reality. When investigating movement in walking, the meditator needs to slow down and sense into the subtle movements as the component parts of the step that are experienced. Then what had appeared to be just one continuous movement is seen to be clearly defined stages. He or she will know that the lifting movement is the not the same as…

《The Vipassana Retreat: 11· Investigating the Body’s Reality》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…