Meditation means ‘mental development’

September 20th, 2003 at 12:00am

Day 4.

Lord Buddha gave five purposes for Vipassana (Insight) meditation:

To purify the mind
To get rid of sorrows and lamentations
To get rid of physical and mental sufferings
To understand the truth of life
To exinguish suffering and gain Nibbana

You achieve this through the four foundations of mindfulness:

Mindfulness of the body
Mindfulness of one’s feelings
Mindfulness of thought
Mindfulness of other mental recognition and other volitional activities

‘The goal of insight meditation is to gain a clear, complete understanding of the three obvious characteristics: impermanence, suffering, and non-self. Having gained an insight into the three characteristics, the meditator realizes that everything in this world is transient and, subject to suffering, and uncontrollable. Thus the mind abandons the desire to acquire, to have, and to be.’

Images of Wat Ram Poeng

Beauty in the shadows

Entry Filed under: Chiang Mai,North,Thailand