The Varieties of Buddhist Meditation

On this article, we’ll take a look at the kinds of Buddhist meditation. Narrowing all Buddhist practices down to a couple important ones is sort of a frightening activity: Buddhism is a sprawling custom current all throughout Asia, with three main embellishments or Turnings of the Wheel, and various faculties that originated throughout every flip.

To offer some construction to this, we’ll take a look at the most important kinds of Buddhism and the Three Turnings of the Wheel. That may permit us to higher orient ourselves as we take a look at the most important Buddhist faculties current within the West at present, together with the primary kinds of meditation they use.

Let’s begin with the three main kinds of Buddhism.

Two or Three Main Varieties of Buddhism

There are two or three predominant sorts of Buddhism, and every department, of which there are dozens if not tons of, falls into certainly one of them.

One is the Theravada faculty. Consider this as Buddhism 101, the unique teachings of the Buddha as-is. That is behind the stereotypical picture of Buddhism as being a practice of renunciation and purity.

A few of the key ideas in Theravada are samsara and nirvana, the Three Marks of Existence, the 4 Noble Truths, and the Eightfold Path. The purpose is to flee samsara to seek out nirvana. Samsara is despised, as are odd human needs. The last word purpose or archetypal excellent is the arhat.

The second main kind is Mahayana, a later elaboration that included a lot of the unique Theravada canon, however added its personal twist and discarded the elements it deemed to be unhelpful. Mahayana emphasises compassion, knowledge, and the Bodhisattva archetype.

Vajrayana is the ultimate one. You’ll be able to contemplate it a part of Mahayana or as its personal kind. It incorporates tantric practices and esoteric strategies into the Mahayana system.

Now, let’s flip to the Three (or 4) Turnings of the Wheel: the three main chronological embellishments of Buddhism from its origins 2600 years in the past to the current day, every of which transcends and consists of its predecessor:

• Theravada, the primary main type as described above,
• Madhyamaka (a part of Mahayana), emphasising the transformation of defilements into radiance, the unity of Nirvana and Samsara, the vacancy of self and actuality, the Two Truths doctrine, and the unqualifiability of absolutely the,
• Yogachara (a part of Mahayana), emphasising the transmutation of defilements, the total union of Nirvana and Samsara, notion not actuality as the reason for phantasm,
• Tantric/Vajrayana (usually enveloped inside Yogachara), emphasising that toxins are wisdoms, using defilements as automobiles, the view that every one issues are ornaments of Spirit, direct tips to Spirit, enlightenment now.

Understanding in regards to the two or three main kinds of Buddhism and the Three (or 4) Turnings of The Wheel helps us higher perceive the sprawling Buddhist custom and why its faculty and sub-schools use various kinds of meditation.

The Main Varieties of Buddhist Meditation

Now, let’s flip to the most important kinds of Buddhist meditation, every of which is primarily from Theravada, Mahayana or Vajrayana.

We’ll deal with the varieties which can be common and well-known within the West and the mainstream as a way to higher perceive and start to apply these widespread programs. Comply with the hyperlinks to be taught extra about every and start to apply them.

Varieties of Buddhist Meditation 1: Zen Meditation

Who hasn’t heard of Zen in some type? That is probably probably the most practiced type of meditation within the West. Zen originated in China and unfold to Korea, Japan and Vietnam earlier than being imported to the West within the sixties and seventies.

Zen is a Mahayana faculty, and its modern-day well-known academics embody Roshi Joan Halifax, Sasaki Roshi, Shinzen Younger and Thich Nhat Hanh.

Simply to complicate issues, there are two main faculty of Zen Buddhism, Rinzai Zen and Soto Zen. Curiously, Jon Kabat-Zinn’s scientific meditation programme is influenced partially by Soto Zen.

Rinzai Zen is the world of Zazen, koans, and spontaneity. We’d name it an “other-shore” custom, which means that enlightenment is seen a distant purpose to be attained, which is typical of non-Vajrayana approaches.

Zazen means “simply sitting”, and is a panoramic type of meditation that has us dissolve the sense of separation between ourselves and our environment.

Koans are paradoxical or complicated statements that time to our true nature and that one contemplates till their resolution arrives within the type of an epiphany. Koans are the brainchildren of Grasp Hakuin and comprise six phases that take thirty years for Rinzai college students to finish.

Soto Zen has flavours of Yogachara and Vajrayana, and is what we would name an “already-here” custom. Its basic Zazen apply has us contact what already is, fairly than arrive to particular states of consciousness. As its figurehead, Eihei Dogen, stated,

In Rinzai, meditation is seen as an expression of Nirvana, which we already are and which is inseperable from Samsara, fairly than as transport for the journey from Samsara to Nirvana.

2: Vipassana Meditation (AKA Perception Meditation)

Earlier than we discuss Vipassana, a fast clarification. Vipassana is each a basic talent in meditation and one of many many kinds of Buddhist meditation, with its personal distinct practices.

The talent of vipassana goes again to the historic Buddha, whereas solely in latest instances has Vipassana emerged as its personal faculty, additionally referred to as Perception Meditation, whose proponents embody Jack Kornfield, Sharon Salzberg and Joseph Goldstein. This custom additionally influenced Jon Kabat-Zinn.

The college comes from Burmese Theravada Buddhism, and have become common within the West due to S.N. Goenka, a pupil of U Ba Khin, and the well-known 10-day silent retreats on this lineage.

There are 4 predominant phases in U Ba Khin and Goenka’s apply: respiration meditation, physique scanning, physique sweeping and lovingkindness. Discover ways to apply U Ba Khin’s Vipassana.

There’s one other common faculty of Vipassana, the Mahasi Sayadaw custom, which makes use of the breath as an anchor as we develop our consciousness, finally bringing it into strolling and into observing feelings.

Varieties of Buddhist Meditation 3: Tibetan Meditation

Tibetan Buddhism is one other of the primary kinds of Buddhist meditation. It is a sprawling Mahayana and Vajrayana custom, with 4 predominant lineages: Gelug, Kagyu, Sakya and Nyingma. Its present chief is the 14th Dalai Lama, and well-known modern-day academics embody Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche and Lama Surya Das.

We’ll deal with the 2 programs which can be well-known to superior Western meditators: Dzogchen, a part of the Nyingma faculty, and Mahamudra, a part of Kagyu. You’ll be able to be taught and apply the meditations by following the hyperlinks.

Typically you’ll hear Dzogchen and Mahamudra referred to collectively, as a result of they’re very related practices. In my view, Dzogchen is a Vajrayana or Tantric method, and Mahamudra is extra a Yogachara method.

In Dzogchen, we level on to the character of thoughts, to our Buddha nature, to our final non-dual perfected self by pithy directions. In Mahamudra, we systematically take away our delusions and misidentifications, which then leads us to discovering our Buddha nature.

After spending round eight years engaged on Theravadan- and Mahayanan-style meditation with academics like Jon Kabat-Zinn and Shinzen Younger, I’ve spent this 12 months practising and finding out Dzogchen, and it has left its mark on me.

I really like its poetic and direct type. I discover it empowering to see that my Buddha nature is proper right here, proper now, not after 10,000 hours of meditation, or in some future lifetime.

In August 2024, I recorded a collection of stay guided Dzogchen meditations on my YouTube channel. Right here is one:

I hope this helps you higher perceive the numerous kinds of Buddhist meditation, their origins, and their relation to 1 one other. Do apply and experiment till you discover the type that resonates with you. However the important thing phrase actually is apply. It’s greatest to be a practitioner, not a scholar.

In my six-week meditation course, we cowl lots of the widespread Buddhist strategies in a secular context. See you there!

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