..续本文上一页 arise, mindfulness knows, "This is not what I”m supposed to be doing". Mindfulness discards that past or that future thought or perception. This is what happens. As I have been stating, this is the nature of the mind if you program it properly.
The Gatekeeper at Stage Two. In the second stage of Silent Present Moment Awareness, one has the goal of silence in the present, and the danger is inner chatter, inner thought. So one should tell the mind that”s what it”s got to avoid; that”s the enemy; that”s the danger. You tell the mind very clearly at the beginning of that stage: "I”ll be silently aware in the present moment and will discard all inner chatter." "I”ll be silently aware in the present moment. I will discard all inner chatter." "I will be silently aware in the present moment and will discard all inner chatter." That way you establish mindfulness. You give it a chance to work because you”ve instructed it very clearly.
The Gatekeeper at Stage Three. In the third stage, Silent Present Moment Awareness of the Breath, one instructs the mind three times to be aware of the breath in the present moment. "I”ll be aware of the breath in the present moment and will discard all other perceptions and thoughts." What are the dangers
It”s everything other than the breath, which includes: the sounds outside, the feelings in the body, people coughing, thoughts about anything else, lunch or dinner, or whatever. Everything else other than the breath is a danger. So one should tell oneself: "I will be aware of the breath in the present moment and discard all other perceptions or thoughts." "I will be aware of the breath in the present moment and discard all other perceptions and thoughts." "I will be aware of the breath in the present moment and discard all other perceptions and thoughts." Again, having told the mind very clearly both what it is supposed to be doing and not doing, you find you can let the mind do its work. One just looks on. When a thought other than the breath comes up, when you”re perceiving say the sound of a lawnmower outside, straight away the mind knows it”s not supposed to be doing this and it turns away automatically. One is training the mind in mindfulness. It”s fascinating to watch the mind when its well trained. It does what it has been told without having to tell it again. Because it”s already been told, it remembers the instructions. It knows what it”s doing and the meditation becomes smooth and has the appearance of effortlessness.
The meditation is not effortless though. You”re putting in the effort but at the right times, at the times when it”s really going to bear fruit. In just the same way as growing a tree. There are times when you put effort in and times when you let things be. You plant the seed in the ground. Then you water it and fertilise it. But most of the time, when you”re growing a tree, your job is just to guard it to make sure that nothing interferes with the process. The seed has got the instructions; it just needs to be given the chance. In the same way don”t keep interfering with the mind. Don”t keep prodding it and pushing it and telling it to do things, because otherwise after a while it will just rebel. "Leave me alone. Look, I”m trying to do my job. Get out of the way," says the mind. And if you don”t leave the mind alone quickly, your meditation”s shot!
The Gatekeeper at Stage Four. In the fourth stage of the meditation, Full Sustained Attention on the Breath, mindfulness is to be told to be aware of the whole breath in every moment and not to allow other things to intrude on this smooth, continuous awareness of the breath. "I shall be aware of the whole breath, continually and just disregard anything other than the breath in every moment." "I shall be aware of the whole breath con…
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