Is there a sequence when to use the mantra, the breath, the elements, or the asubha objects?

Question: Is there a sequence when to use the mantra, the breath, the elements, or the asubha objects?

Tan Ajahn: It is up to each individual practitioner to choose the right kind of meditation object or mindfulness object for himself.

For a person who likes a mantra, he can use the mantra all day long from the time he gets up to the time he goes to sleep and while sitting in meditation. He can use the mantra all the time. The goal of using the mantra is to stop the mind from wandering, to stop the mind from thinking. When the mind doesn’t wander or think, it stays in the present with the body and then you don’t have to use the mantra.

But as soon as it starts to wander, starts to think of this and that or going to the past or future, then you should bring it back to the present. When you have time, you should sit, because your mind cannot enter into jhāna while the body is still moving. You need a still body to bring the mind to stillness, to bring the mind to jhāna.

Sitting is very important if you want to have samatha, if you want to have apanā-samādhi. You need to sit down, close your eyes, and focus only on the meditation object; then your mind will eventually enter into jhāna and become one with itself. It will separate from the body temporarily. All the things that come through your body will no longer be in your mind, such as sight, sound, smell, taste and tactile objects; then the mind is peaceful and left alone. But it can only remain in that position for a short while. The stronger your mindfulness is and the more you sit, the longer your mind will remain in that state.

When you first start, it might just stay there briefly and then withdraw from that position; we call that khaṇika-samādhi. Khaṇika is brief. Apanā-samādhi is longer in duration—5 minutes, 10 minutes, 20 minutes, 30 minutes, 40 minutes, or in some cases one hour. Some yogis can remain in it for seven days, depending on the strength of their mindfulness.

“Dhamma for the Asking, Dec 9, 2014”

By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto
www.phrasuchart.com

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