Mindful Happiness

Anthony Quintiliani, Ph.D, LADC

  • Home
  • Dr. Anthony Quintiliani
    • About
  • Mindful Happiness
  • Mindful Expressions Meditation CD
  • Contact

November 8, 2017 By Admin

Tibetan Tantric Meditation on Selflessness

Tibetan Tantric Meditation on Selflessness

Mahamudra meditations tend to unify emptiness and bliss, and represent many core principles of Tibetan Buddhism. Nagarjuna’s text on The Middle Way played an important and influential role in these practices. Selflessness of persons and selflessness of phenomena are highly represented in noted meditation practices. Therefore,, this can be considered an advanced post on the topic. The following general steps will note aspects of the meditation sequence. We begin with the idea that all realness related to perceptions of I/Me/Mine are imputed through thoughts and the projections of the mind. Humans tend to experience I/Me/Mine and objects of awareness as real, concrete, substantial, and permanent entities.  This is one reason why we cherish human life so, so much. To open up awareness and experience to  the opposites of these characteristics, we need to focus meditative practice within a series of specific steps. These modified steps are noted below.

  1. First decide what the object of negation is.  All will be related to emptiness of persons and objects. For our practice now, we will focus on the I/Me/Mine of “your” breath as our object of negation (selflessness and emptiness). Your breath is not permanent or self-originated; it contains properties of emptiness.
  2. Using our mind, body, breath and object awareness as the sources of negation is quite difficult, and may require years of practice to achieve.  This is due to the reality of using our mind and body in experiencing the perceived situations and negating their inherent existence at the same time. This can be confusing.
  3. Defining inherent existence is a problem in and of itself. This depends on key Buddhist principles like impermanence, dependent origination, no-self, and ultimate emptiness of all things. I/Me/Mine ego perceptions of self, phenomena, and breath meet none of these listed Buddhist requirements.
  4. Use of logic is important at first. Since the I/Me/Mine of self, mind, body, phenomena, and breath have never existed as permanent, self-originating, substantial entities the use of logic is a starting point. So now just focus strongly on how the breath is impermanent, not self-originating, and ephemeral. Tangle with your mind and body experience on this while you breath slowly and deeply in and out, in and out.
  5. Realize it is your “self-grasping” mind (p. 189) that makes you “think” the breath is real in ultimate terms not simply in contemporary terms. Just because we mind-body experience breath does not mean it is ultimately real and ever-lasting. We all know that when we die, so does our breath.
  6. Remember a time when you were insulted or harmed by the words and/or actions of others. Notice how quickly your mind-body system can produce that unpleasant emotional reactions – a temporary emotional reaction.  You probably felt flattened, but for a short time related to your lifetime!
  7. Now recall a time when you were joyous or happy by the words or actions of others, and how that pleasant emotional reactions was also quite temporary  – not ever-lasting. You probably felt inflated but for such a short time.
  8. Our pleasure-seeking and suffering-avoiding self does not bring us happiness; in fact this brings us more suffering exactly because of the core principles of impermanence and dissatisfaction with whatever we now experience. We always want more and more! We attach to and grasp at anything that we believe may make us happier. We do the same thing for suffering; we hope in vain to avoid, reduce or end it.
  9. The I/Me/Mine of your breath is not part of the aggregates or it may be. If you are ill, it is not YOU who are ill but part of the body or mind that is ill. If the experience is and is not part of the aggregates then it cannot exist inherently, ultimately. It is only our contemporary experience that is being mind-body registered. It is the working of the “mistaken minds” (p. 194).
  10. Recall that the aggregates (also named skandhas) of form, feeling, perception, volitional acts,  and consciousness are the “heaps” related to attachment and desire. Each one upholds impermanence, self-suffering, and no-self. Our endless seeking desires and behaviors cause suffering due to general dissatisfaction with what is, and imply no underlying soul or self in this endless samsaric process.
  11. If nothing exists concretely and permanently in ultimate time and space, what is there to fear and what is there to seek?  Have you experienced anything like emptiness in your meditative being here now? Before you answer to yourself, note that emptiness experiences come is various forms.
  12. Now slowly and with discernment, take a few more deep, slow, calming breaths. Be with yourself!

For more information on this complex process refer to Geshe Kelsang Gyatso (1982, 2014 end.). Clear Light of Bliss: Tantric Meditation Manual. London, UK: Tharpa Publications, pp. 187-204.

Anthony R. Quintiliani, PhD., LADC

From the Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation in Monkton, VermontChiYinYang_EleanorRLiebmanCenter

Author of Mindful Happiness  

Mindful Happiness cover designs.indd

New Edition of Mindful Happiness in Production…Coming soon!

 

Filed Under: Featured, Mahamudra, Meditation, MIndfulness, Selflessness, Tantric Tagged With: MAHAMUDRA, MINDFUL MEDITATION, MINDFULNESS, TANTRIC MEDITATION ON SELFLESSNESS

Twitter

Mindful Happiness -Currently in Production

Mindful Happiness Posts

Happiness #5 – Last Post on Characteristics This will be my last post for a while on the important topic of happiness.  Here I will hit a few highlights about simple joy and lasting inner experiences of true happiness. Simple Joy – We experience simple joy in simple experiences, small sometimes subtle events in our […]

From The Eleanor R. Liebman Center for Secular Meditation, Monkton, Vermont – Five Breathing and Meditation Practices – Attention and concentration on the breath are common practices to attune meditation capacity. We use the breath as an object of attention in our mind training.   The better your quality of attention and concentration, the better […]

In-Depth Means to Discover and Be Your True Self Henry David Thoreau reminded us that it is not what you look at, but it is what you see that matters. How do you SEE yourself?  John Muir reminded us that the sun shines in us as well as in our souls. Do you find “the […]

Being Mindful Of  Dr. Wayne W. Dyer Recently I receive a heart-felt tribute dedicated to Dr. Wayne W. Dyer, who died recently.  The tribute originated from Louise Hay, a long-time associate, colleague and publisher of Wayne Dyer.  To those of us who inhabit the spaciousness of the spiritual world, perhaps, no other person in recent […]

Building Healthy Intimate Relationships: Intimate relationships are often the source of many years of happiness and satisfaction, and sometimes the cause of great pain and suffering. It depends! I will list various realities of initiating and maintaining a positive intimate relationship.  After reading these, ask yourself: Where is my relationship? If you are unhappy, do […]

Contemplative Practices – Affirmative Self-Inquiry Contemplation and affirmative self-inquiry may be helpful in improving your awareness of your better parts of self – your positive strengths and traits.  Our self-critical mind often causes us to spend far too much time on critical, negative thinking about ourselves and about others.  The practice below may be helpful […]

Inner Workings of Self-Medication Process   To continue our discussion about the self-medication process we will first turn to the human brain.  The human brain is the most complex system known to science.  Here, my comments will be basic.  Self-medication often has roots in the quality of our earliest childhood experiences (attachment and object relations with […]

The Deep Courage to Let Go Pema Chodron, now recognized as a world leader in the Chogyam Trungpa Shambhala tradition, has presented a wonderfully clear method for letting go of personal blockages and impediments to enlightenment,  the bodhisattva way of life, and awakened bodhichitta (clear mind, soft heart). She teaches us how in “The Joy […]

Interoceptive Practices for Generic  Tai Chi  & Chi Kung  Postures By Anthony R. Quintiliani, Ph.D. From The Eleanor R. Liebman Center  for  the  Study  of  Secular  Meditation  in  Monkton,  Vermont These practices will require either knowledge of Tai Chi/Chi Kung postures or following pictures of the same postures.  Be prepared before you begin to practice. […]

Winnicott’s Ideas – Best Possible Clinical Alliance To develop and maintain a strong clinical alliance it is best to follow some of the well-known clinical advice on this topic.  Rogers, Kohut, Winnicott and many others have suggested just how to do so.  Here are some general clinical recommendations for enhancing the clinical alliance. Develop authentic […]

Behaviors People Display When in Groups After more than 35 years of facilitating hundreds of classes, workshops, family therapy sessions, group therapy sessions, and work project groups it has become clear that we do some strange things when we participate in groups. It appears to me that many of these in-group functions serve both ego […]

Self-Care as Ritual Self-care for Americans is often considered a luxury.  Due to our technological demands and addictions (Demons as they are), and the slow slipping of our economic structures, we are often at the mercy of the bottom line at work. Over-paid CEOs and CFOs and their many assistants eat up so, so much […]

Alternative to Buddhism as Religion   – Simply put and Clearly Stated In case you become too serious about yourself in this life, note that there are reportedly 400 trillion subatomic vibrations every second. So be humble! And being humble is something I have had to do regarding my experience with Zen Buddhism as my […]

Mindfulness & Happiness – Tools In this post I will provide basic instructions for several mind-body practices that allow calm equanimity both at rest and in action.  We will cover RAIN, RAINDROP, Cloud Journeying, Gratitude, Tapping, and other Body-Based practices. RAIN (Tara Brach) – This simple to use approach helps you to maintain a cognitive […]

 Poem on the Wind   I am quite pleased with my experience on BEING in the wind today.  This poem will suggest that you allow the wind to be a metaphor – even a fantasy – that allows your pain and suffering to be swept away by the endless, gentle, blowing wind of nature. We […]

Vipassana Meditation -No-Self   Journey 3 In this third vipassana meditation I will guide you on a meditation dealing with the experience of no-self.  No-self is a highly advanced experience in Buddhist meditation and wisdom practices, and it is, perhaps, one of the most misunderstood concept and experience. Along with impermanence, dependent origination, typical reality […]

Expanded Information about Your Compassion Practices and Benefits Compassion Practice Tips and Exercises The Buddha noted that one should not dwell on the past, become too attached to future outcomes, but instead concentrate our mind only on the present moment of our experiences.  The Dalai Lama noted that compassion is a necessary condition for inner […]

How to be Happier in a Relatively Unhappy World In today’s fast-paced, digitized, unstable world – with it uncertainty, childish tweets from on-high, and general dissatisfaction with things as they are – how may one become a happier person. It is clear that isolation will not work; it is clear that aggressive actions in opposition […]

-The Word, Sound, Meditation, and Music are all Timeless A Tribute to Elvis Presley and his Music The word has been associated with human consciousness.  The word requires the energy of sound to hear it.  Meditation places us in a most receptive state of mind and body; it allows us to be open to our […]

Equanimity, Suffering, and Resilience It is said that equanimity (Pali – upekkha), the seventh factor of enlightenment and the tenth perfection, is an end-product of life-long personal practice in meditation and/or meditative yoga. It is about “walking the walk.” Some practitioners note that equanimity is the foundation for other helpful states of mind and body. […]

Mindful Categories

Mindful Happiness Pages

  • About
  • Contact
  • Dr. Anthony Quintiliani
  • Mindful Expressions Meditation CD
  • Mindful Happiness
  • Site Map

Copyright © 2023 · Mindful Happiness