INTRODUCTION TO GNOSTIC MEDITATION THE STEPS OF MEDITATION

INTRODUCTION TO GNOSTIC MEDITATION

THE STEPS OF MEDITATION 1. Ethics (Yama & Niyama) 2. Posture (Asana) 3. Breath (Pranayama) 4. Silence (Pratyahara) 5. Concentration (Dharana) 6. Meditation (Dhyana) 7. Ecstasy (Samadhi)

The most common ethics are summarized in the most basic of Buddhist vows: 1. To abstain from killing any creature. 2. To abstain from stealing. 3. To abstain from sexual misconduct. 4. To abstain from false speech. (lying, gossip, sarcasm, criticism, etc) 5. To abstain from intoxicants. (alcohol, drugs, etc)

CRAVING AND AVERSION When people see some things as beautiful, other things become ugly. When people see some things as good, other things become bad. Being and non-being create each other. Difficult and easy support each other. Long and short define each other. High and low depend on each other. Before and after follow each other. Therefore the Master acts without doing anything and teaches without saying anything. Things arise and she lets them come; things disappear and she lets them go. She has but doesn’t possess, acts but doesn’t expect. When her work is done, she forgets it. That is why it lasts forever. -Lao Tzu Tao Te Ching

CRAVING AND AVERSION Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt. Chase after money and security and your heart will never unclench. Care about people’s approval and you will be their prisoner. Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity. - Lao Tzu Tao Te

PREREQUISITES TO CONCENTRATION Conducive place: In general, this concerns the environment we live in. A dangerous area or very noisy home prevent us from relaxing completely. A place that is dirty or host to wrong or harmful actions will also surround us with difficult obstacles. A home filled with dissension will not be peaceful. If possible, we should do our best to establish ourselves in a peaceful, clean, safe environment. Having few wants: Too many desires keep the mind agitated and unhappy. The simpler we can be, the fewer desires we have, the more peaceful we will be. Being content: The less we own and are responsible for, the less there is to trouble the mind. Being content with what we have instills peace. Discontentment agitates the mind. Abandoning the demands of society: Engaging in a lot of worldly activities keeps the mind agitated. The more we can simplify our life, the more stable the mind will be. Pure ethics: Harmful activities greatly disturb the mind. In order to learn how to meditate, such activities must be completely stopped. Harmful activities include any actions (even in the heart and mind) which cause harm to ourselves or to others. Examples include ingesting intoxicants, engaging in sexual misbehavior (including masturbation), lying, stealing, killing, and more. All of these actions create karma and negatively impact the mind. Abandoning conceptual thought: Intellectualizing the teachings will distract us and impede our practice. Fantasy must cease in order for intuition to function. Thus, daydreaming, conceptualizing, and any form of mechanical imagination must be stopped.