Right concentration forms the heart of the path. The other factors of the path serve two functions. One is to get you into concentration; the other is to make sure you don’t get stuck there. In other words, concentration on its own is a state of becoming that’s useful on the path. Even though you eventually want to go beyond all states of becoming, if you don’t first master this state of becoming you’ll be wandering around in other states of becoming where it would be hard to see what’s going on in the mind. As the Buddha said, when your mind is concentrated you can see the four noble truths as they actually come to be. When it’s not concentrated, you can’t see these things clearly. Non‐concentration, he says, is a miserable path, leading nowhere useful at all.
Taken from Meditations, Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Read latest e-book taken from Thanissaro Bhikkhu's 2008 dhamma talks: Meditations
4 comments:
Hi solitaire,
I'm sorry i cannot figure out any other way to do this other than via a blog entry:
The link to Wat Metta should be
http://www.watmetta.org/
Also, the link to "Old Notes" by Bhikkhu Nanamoli has been updated:
http://waij.com/oldbooks/thinkersnotebook.html
-restless mind
Thank you, Mahaggatam. I have made the necessary corrections. :-)
hi solitaire,
you may also be interested to check out portland friends of the Dhamma's link which contains a selection of mp3 talks from various teachers from the thai forest meditation tradition.
you may be interested in the talks given by Ajaan Geoff, especially the ones on Ajaan Lee's 'frames of reference' in nov 07 and his new book, 'the paradox of becoming', in oct 08.
the url is:
http://www.pdxdhamma.org/audio/teachings.htm
Thank you Mahaggatam!
I have downloaded the talks given by Ajaan Geoff on The Paradox of Becoming :-)
Will be adding the link on my site.
Thank you once again.
with metta
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