Alan Wallace Fall 2012 Retreat Podcast: Vipashyana, Four Applications Of Mindfulness

Teaching pt1: As we revisit this section, Alan will present teachings from the shravakayana and dzogchen. 
According to the shravakayana, nama rupa should not be understood as two entities but as a single activity of experience. Nama (naming) is the subjective experience of identifying an object. Rupa (all appearances) is the objective experience of an object perceived or conceived through the process of identification. Mano/manas (mind/mentation) is the mental process of conceptualization which makes meaning out of the 6 sensory inputs. 
According to dzogchen, dharmadhatu and primordial consciousness (yeshe) are of the same nature and extensive. Appearances are considered their creative expression or effulgence. Ignorance of this play when rigified becomes the substrate which is immaterial, blank, unthinking, and void. Substrate consciousness radiant and clear is the basis for appearances. It reflects but does not identify them. From the substrate consciousness, arises sense of I over here and sub

Alan notes that we’re starting the second half of the retreat. Afterwards, when we return to an active way of life, while our shamatha practice may be maintained at best, other practices may indeed flourish. In an active life, the practices of the 4 applications of mindfulness can shift how we view reality in accordance with the 3 marks of existence, gradually becoming unstuck. Similarly, as our best friends, bodyguards even, the 4 immeasurables can be practiced in everyday life as we engage with others. Together, both sets of practices represent wisdom and skillfull means. So that we may train in the 4 immeasurables as in previous retreats, Alan will now dedicate the morning sessions to guided meditations of the 4 immeasurables. Meditation: loving-kindness. Ask yourself the following 4 questions in sequence, envision your response clearly, practice the corresponding exercise, and imagine your vision becoming reality in the here and now. 1) What will make you truly happy? With every out breath, lig

Teaching: Continuing from Asanga’s Shravakabhumi, Alan gives the detailed explanation of the 4th thorough training by way of the 16 phases: 1) long breath, 2) short breath, 3) the whole body, 4) refining the bodily formation, 5) joy, 6) well-being, 7) formations of the mind, 8) wonderfully refining formations of the mind, 9) experiencing the mind, 10) bringing exception joy to the mind, 11) concentrating the mind, 12) liberating the mind, 13) impermanence, 14) eradication of obscurations, 15) freedom from attachment, 16) cessation of the aggregates. Each practice is appropriate at certain stages, and involves vipasyana knowing coupled with the in and out breaths. 
Alan outlines the 3 shamatha practices in healing the body and mind using different entry points: 1) mindfulness of breathing whereby we can watching healing via the body, 2) settling the mind whereby we can watch healing via the mind, and 3) awareness of awareness whereby we go straight to the center, without watching the body and mind sort th

Teaching: Alan talks about the fifth of the five obscurations afflictive uncertainty. While it is appropriate to be uncertain about that which is uncertain, when we wonder about whether or not it is possible to make progress in our practice or attain enlightenment we need to apply its antidote close investigation. As the Dalai Lama says, something becomes hopeless, the moment we’ve given up hope. 
Alan introduces the fourth of the 4 immeasurables equanimity. People appear to us differently, so how can we attend evenly to a reality that’s uneven? We need to look more deeply until we find common ground: just like me, every sentient being wants to be free from suffering. How can we attend to all sentient beings? Every sentient being you encounter, either physically or those who come to you, represents all sentient beings. Meditation: equanimity. Direct attention to the space of the mind, settling the mind in its natural state. When someone comes to mind, attend to that person carefully until you fi

Teaching: Continuing from Asanga’s Shravakabhumi, Alan introduces the 4th thorough training by way of the 16 phases: 1) breathing in, 2) breathing out, 3) the whole body, 4) tranquilising the bodily activities, 5) joy, 6) happiness, 7) formations of the mind, 8) tranquilising formations of the mind, 9) experiencing the mind, 10) gladdening the mind, 11) concentrating the mind, 12) liberating the mind, 13) impermanence, 14) eradication of obscurations, 15) freedom from attachment, 16) cessation of the aggregates. 
Alan elaborates more on sukkha and joy which may arise from engaging in the practice.
Alan addresses the sudden enlightenment of the Buddha’s disciples. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per Asanga followed by mindfulness of phenomena (aggregates).
I) Mindfulness of breathing per Asanga. Know exactly when the out breath ends, how long the interim out breath is, when the in breath starts, when the in breath ends, how long the interim in breath is, and when the out breath starts.
II) Mindf

Teaching: Alan talks about the fourth of the five obscurations excitation and anxiety. Excitation is associated with restlessness and agitation. Anxiety is also known as guilt, remorse, shame, or regret. Bliss and joy are the natural antidotes. But since these qualities cannot be called up at will, discursive meditation on the pros and cons of the practice (in this case, shamatha) can be helpful. As long as we have not achieved shamatha, we are subject to the 5 obscurations characterized as being: 1) sensual craving = indebted, 2) ill-will = sick, 3) laxity/dullness = bondage, 4) excitation/anxiety = enslaved, 5) uncertainty = lost in a desert tracked. Achieving shamatha is the ultimate retreat, makes both body and mind supple, places the 5 dhyana factors at our disposal, and allows us to truly help others. It also greatly facilitates the realization of bodhicitta, vipasyana, and for buddhahood in one lifetime according to Dudjom Lingpa, threkchö and thogyal. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per

Teaching: Continuing from Asanga’s Shravakabhumi, Alan introduces the 3rd thorough training by way of dependent origination. Asanga begins by attending to the breath which is dependent upon the body and mind which are in turn conditioned by the life faculty (subtle continuum of mental consciousness and prana) which is in turn dependent on previous compositional factors (samskara) which are in turn dependent on ignorance. The antidote to ignorance is wisdom which leads to the cessation of ignorance and so forth. Alan briefly sketches the 3rd thorough training by way of the 4 Noble Truths which involves contemplating them repeatedly. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per Asanga followed by mindfulness of phenomena (aggregates).
I) Mindfulness of breathing per Asanga. Let awareness rest at the space of the navel, and observe sensations of prana coming to fill that space and flowing out again like at a train station. Observe the body breathing without inhibiting the exhalation or pulling in the inhal

Teaching: Alan talks about the third of the five obscurations laxity and dullness. Dullness occurs when attention is no longer fully engaged with the object. It is experienced from stages 1-4, whereas laxity is experienced between stages 4-5. Its antidote is coarse investigation (aka applied thought) whereby you just check it out. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per Asanga. Allow your body to breathe itself as your respiration settles into its natural rhythm. Let the mind come to stillness in the present moment. Shine the spotlight of your attention on sensations of the respiration as prana flows down to the navel, and keep your attention there single-pointedly. Note the end of the in and out breaths. Note the beginning of the in and out breaths. Arouse attention at every in breath as the navel cavity fills with prana. Maintain the flow of mindfulness throughout the entire breath cycle. Meditation starts at 6:12

Teaching: Continuing from Asanga’s Shravakabhumi, Alan introduces the second thorough training by way of the aggregates. Asanga begins by explaining the characteristics of achieving shamatha—i.e., 1) pliancy in the mind, 2) pliancy in the body, and 3) single-pointedness taking delight in the object. Having achieved shamatha, we return to the desire realm in an expedition to gain insight into the five aggregates: 1) form in terms of mindfulness of breathing, 2) feelings (positive/negative/neutral) arising with the mindfulness of breathing, 3) recognition associated with the mindfulness of breathing, 4) volition associated with the intention to sustain mindfulness of breathing, and 5) mind as composite. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing followed by mindfulness of phenomena (aggregates). In the first half of the session, practice the mindfulness of breathing practice of your choice. In the second half... 1) know the domain of the body as aggregate of form, 2) recognize feeling associated with mindfu

Teaching: Alan talks about the second of the five obscurations ill-will. As shamatha dredges the psyche, it is normal for ill-will to arise in response to memories, etc... The antidote is sukkha or well-being. You are experiencing sukkha when you enjoy and get into the flow of the practice. Sukkha comes through shamatha. Further support for the antidote comes from mudita or empathetic joy. On the spiritual path, we need to make a gentle transition from 100% dependence on hedonic well-being to genuine happiness. Find interest in the breath. Find interest in the quality of awareness. The latter will come in handy through the various bardos. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per Asanga. Release the mind into the present. Utterly release yourself into the breath. Let your awareness observe the space of the body and in particular, the flow of the breath between nostril and navel. Relax deeply all the way through. Let the mind be especially calm at the end of the in and out breaths. With every o

Teaching: Alan elaborates on some points from his translation of Asanga’s explanations for mindfulness of breathing, as advice for people with heavy rumination. Asanga mentions 4 stages in mindfulness of breathing: 1) inhalation, 2) pause at the end of inhalation, 3) exhalation, 4) pause at the end of exhalation. He notes 1) overly lax or 2) overly forceful engagement. Asanga also presents training in counting as support: 1) counting individually (at end of inhalation/exhalation), 2) counting pairs (at end of exhalation of 1 breath cycle), 3) counting forwards (either practice in ascending order), and 4) counting backwards (either practice in descending order). The point of this training is to cultivate an ongoing flow of knowing, covering all 4 stages of one breath cycle. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per Asanga. Settle respiration, by releasing deeply without preference nor control. Set the mind at ease, without concerns of the 3 times. Let your awareness be still, illuminating the space

Teaching: Alan introduces some points from his translation of Asanga’s comprehensive explanations for mindfulness of breathing. While Asanga does not mentions following the breath at the tip of the nostril, he does mention following the flow of vital energies from nostril to navel, noting 4 stages: 1) inhalation, 2) pause at the end of inhalation, 3) exhalation, 4) pause at the end of exhalation. Asanga also presents several counting methods as support when needed: 1) counting each inhalation/exhalation, 2) counting each complete breath cycle, 3) counting forwards, and 4) counting backwards. Meditation: mindfulness of breathing per Asanga. Set the mind at ease, without concerns of the 3 times. Let your awareness be still, illuminating the space of the body and in particular, the flow of the breath from nostril to navel. Note the energies at 1) inhalation, 2) the pause at the end of inhalation, 3) exhalation, 4) the pause at the end of exhalation. With each out breath, relax and release any ruminat

Note: This recording is of minor quality since we had to recover it from another device. Thank you for understanding. Teaching: This practice shines a bright light on feelings by attending to feelings internally (our own), externally (someone else’s), and both internally and externally (in ourself and others in interaction). Alan introduces an alternative translation for a key line in the Sattipathana sutta. Instead of the common translation “One views the body in the body,” Alan proposes the following based on the Tibetan “One views the body as the body. One views feelings as feelings. One views the mind as the mind.” 
Mental consciousness is unique because in addition to its own domain, it can also piggyback on each of the 5 sense consciousnesses. We must learn that mental feelings are not enslaved by physical sensations. During the practice, we should know that we know feelings as feelings until the insight shifts our view of reality. Meditation: mindfulness of feelings. Let the light of aware

Teaching: Alan introduces the 4th application of mindfulness to phenomena (dharmas). Whereas the first 3 applications of mindfulness are microscopic, the mindfulness of phenomena takes a step back to understand how it all fits together and their inter-relationships—i.e., dependent origination. While dependent origination applies to all phenomena, the focus here is understanding causes and conditions leading to suffering and happiness. All the different lists of phenomena in this section are presented so that we can become free. Within the 5 obscurations, the first one is sensual craving which means fixating on an appearance and believing therein lies my happiness. Its antidote is single-pointed attention, and we can see how this can be in settling the mind. Lama Zöpa Rinpoche has said that renunciation is a prerequisite for shamatha. Renunciation itself can be cultivated by 1) discursive meditations of the lamrim, 2) devotion, or 3) shamatha. Meditation: silent session on either mindfulness of the bre

Teaching: Alan draws parallels between settling the mind and mindfulness of breathing. 
In settling the mind, in principle, being present with all mental arisings sufficient for the mind to undo its knots and heal itself. Don’t be the agent of thoughts! Sustain flow of mindfulness without distraction, without grasping. In reality, we grasp, and there are knots we cannot seem to undo on our own. In such instances, we may benefit from the counsel of spiritual friends and putting them into practice. The mind’s ability to heal itself remains the substantial cause. 
In mindfulness of breathing, being present with the space of the body, truly letting the breath settle in its natural rhythm without preference, should be sufficient for the prana system to sort itself out. Don’t be the agent of the breath! We must release rumination at every out breath. In reality, we may encounter blockages which are not releasing themselves. Similarly, we may benefit from the help of spiritual friends. In the end, the b

Teaching: Alan reminds us that all the shamatha practices have been attending to the mind in that there is mindfulness placed on an object and introspection to the mind. In settling the mind, the object of mindfulness is the javana of the psyche. In awareness of awareness, the object of mindfulness is the bhavanga. In mindfulness of the mind, we attend to both the javana and the bhavanga with probing and inquiry vis-à-vis the 3 marks of existence. We see first-hand how mental afflictions are unpleasant, how they come and go, and how they have no substantial nature. Meditation: silent session with practice of your choice. Q1a. In mindfulness of the mind, are feelings of desire and curiosity mental afflictions? Desire leads to craving and attachment, so would desire to achieve shamatha also be wrong? Curiosity can lead to anxiety. In my practice, both mental states can trigger unpleasant feelings, but can’t they also be positive states leading us to liberation?
Q2. Why aren’t you teaching settling

Teaching pt1: Empathetic joy is taking delight in others’ virtues. As the only one of the 4 immeasurables which involves cultivating an emotion, empathetic joy also serves as the antidote to the near enemy of compassion, grief and despair. Given the prevalence of low self-esteem and guilt, it is also useful for many of us to take delight in our own virtues which is considered virtuous in buddhist teachings. Meditation: empathetic joy. Moving along the timeline from childhood to the present day, recall the kindness others have shown you. With each out breath, light emanates gratitude and rejoicing. Moving along the timeline from childhood to the present day, recall the kindness you have shown others and your cultivation of heart and mind. With each breath, light emanates gratitude and rejoicing, filling body and mind. Direct your attention to someone in particular or whoever comes up, and take delight in his/her virtues. With each out breath, light emanates gratitude and rejoicing. Teaching pt2: Dis

Teaching: Who do you think you are? Are you identified with your body, your mind, or yourself? How does the I fit with the body and mind? We need to find out by probing experientially, not by thinking really hard. The image of a conglomeration of merchants with a CEO in charge. That CEO is the I. While that sense of there being a CEO or I is real, the referent, upon probing, is nowhere to be found and thus unreal. This sense of CEO or I is that which feels it is the agent or the observer in meditation or reacts to praise or criticism in everyday life. Meditation: mindfulness of the mind via awareness of awareness. Let your eyes be open, and rest gaze evenly. For a while, just be present, without doing focusing on any object. Let your interest converge on what’s left over, that most intimate knowing. Simply rest in the flow of awareness of awareness. For the oscillation, 1) inversion –withdraw from all appearances into the luminosity of awareness itself and 2) release –release into space of non-o

Teaching: Awareness of awareness is the most subtle and profound of all the shamatha practices. From the dzogchen perspective, we suffer because 1) we grasp onto that which is not I and mine as being I and mine and 2) we fail to recognize who we are. Normally, we grasp at gross manifestations of body and mind as being I and mine. Shamatha takes us past all that down to the substrate. From there, there are two paths: 1) break through the substrate to rigpa or 2) realize the empty nature of the substrate. 
In short, we probe the nature of everything we thought we were and were ours in order to totally release grasping. Just as we must first know the conventional nature of mind in order to realize the ultimate nature of mind, we must first find the substrate in order to break through to rigpa. This is the direct path. Meditation: awareness of awareness. Let eyes be open, and rest gaze evenly. For a while, just be present, without doing anything or focusing on any object. Be aware of what’s left over,

Alan recounts the story of how Shariputra and Maudgalyayana first encountered the teachings of the Buddha. “Those phenomena that are causally created, the Tathagatha has shown their causes and he has also shown their cessation. Thus, the teaching of the Great Sage.” Normally, we identify strongly with subjective impulses and objective appearances, but when we observe them, we see that they are just phenomena arising from and dissolving into the mind. This first-hand experience into the conventional nature of mind preps us for the dissolution of the coarse mind into substrate consciousness and for the ascertainment of the ultimate nature of mind. Meditation: mindfulness of the mind via awareness of awareness. Let your eyes be open and rest gaze in the space before you without focusing on anything. Just be present, and sustain the flow of mindfulness in the present. Absent of grasping, there is a quality of knowing. Rest in that awareness. Note mental events emerging from the flow of awareness and wa