Mindful Breath Body And Feelings

This posting is a recording of the dhamma dialogue following a guided meditation associated with coordinating the first two tetrads of the Anapanasati Sutta with mindfulness of the body and mindfulness of feelings.  This integrative process increases physical relaxation and diminishes the normal chatter of the mind, preparing for the practice of vipassana, insight into the impermanence of subjective experience.  The practice of vipassana will be a major focus of the guided meditation and discussion next Wednesday night: the third and fourth tetrads of the Anapanasati Sutta and the third and fourth foundations of mindfulness, of the mind and mental phenomena.

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Guided Mindful Breath Body And Feelings Meditation

This guided meditation is intended to provide practical support for integrating mindfulness of breathing practice with mindfulness of the body and mindfulness of feelings.  The first two tetrads of the Anapanasati Sutta are directily related to cultivating mindfulness of the body and of feelings.  Part of the practice of mindfulness of the body is the contemplation of the “four elements”: earth, air, fire and water (subjective sensations of hardness, movement, temperature and  cohesion).  Contemplating these clear sensational qualities provides a non-commentarial focus that fosters “calming the breath body” and “calming the mental formations”, important developments related to fulfilling the four foundations of mindfulness.

This recording is accompanied by another .mp3 posting of the talk following the meditation, which supports processing how mindfulness of breathing was experienced during the meditation.

Next Wednesday’s meeting will also involve a guided meditation which is intended to provide support for integrating the third and fourth tetrads of the Anapanasati Sutta with the cultivation of the third and fourth foundations of mindfulness.

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Four Tetrads And Four Foundations

During this talk, Peter reviewed the four groups of four stanzas in the Anapanasati Sutta as they relate to the four foundations of mindfulness.  The four groups of stanzas are called the four tetrads.  The intention in this presentation is to foster an integration of mindfulness of breathing with the four foundations as they appear in the sutta.

Next week’s discussion will explore practical applications of mindfulness of breathing to the cultivation of the four foundations.

The next post will contain the notes prepared relative to this talk

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Notes For The Anapanasati Sutta Fourth Tetrad

These notes were written by Peter in preparation for the talks presented over the last several weeks.  The fourth tetrad of the sutta provides training for the practice of vipassana (insight), emphasizing awareness of impermanence, dispassion, liberation and letting go.  Here are the notes: ANAPANASATI SUTTA FOURTH TETRAD

The next recording posted will review all four tetrads as representative of the four foundations of mindfulness.