What is the best way to train in concentration ?

[Caz]

As the title says what is the best way seeing as this is the most important thing that brings us realisations.
It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.
I am interested in hearing what methods you all use and how successful they are at creating a stiller mind and what you use them in conjunction with. 

[Yeshe Zopa]

As the title says what is the best way seeing as this is the most important thing that brings us realisations.
It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.
I am interested in hearing what methods you all use and how successful they are at creating a stiller mind and what you use them in conjunction with. 

We can make use of various breating techniques, such as vase breathing.
We can mak use of stimuli from other senses, such as gazing at a candle flame or mandala.
We can make use of thoughts and strive to keep a focus.
We can make use of emotions we generate, such as compassion, and strive to hold onto them.

I say 'strive' but of course there should be little effort.  I find it easy to focus on things I like - attachments which should be done away with.  Focusing on them as repulsive and objects of renincaition is powerful.

One of my favourites is to use mantras together with a visualisation as the mind can be totally absorbed in the process.   The focus may be held for long periods.

[Caz]

As the title says what is the best way seeing as this is the most important thing that brings us realisations.
It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.
I am interested in hearing what methods you all use and how successful they are at creating a stiller mind and what you use them in conjunction with. 

We can make use of various breating techniques, such as vase breathing.
We can mak use of stimuli from other senses, such as gazing at a candle flame or mandala.
We can make use of thoughts and strive to keep a focus.
We can make use of emotions we generate, such as compassion, and strive to hold onto them.

I say 'strive' but of course there should be little effort.  I find it easy to focus on things I like - attachments which should be done away with.  Focusing on them as repulsive and objects of renincaition is powerful.

One of my favourites is to use mantras together with a visualisation as the mind can be totally absorbed in the process.   The focus may be held for long periods.

Mantras and visualisation yeshe ? 
Very good tell me what exactly do you experience when engaged in Mantra and visualisation ? do you notice a progression through various levels of concentration ? 

[Yeshe Zopa]

As the title says what is the best way seeing as this is the most important thing that brings us realisations.
It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.
I am interested in hearing what methods you all use and how successful they are at creating a stiller mind and what you use them in conjunction with. 

We can make use of various breating techniques, such as vase breathing.
We can mak use of stimuli from other senses, such as gazing at a candle flame or mandala.
We can make use of thoughts and strive to keep a focus.
We can make use of emotions we generate, such as compassion, and strive to hold onto them.

I say 'strive' but of course there should be little effort.  I find it easy to focus on things I like - attachments which should be done away with.  Focusing on them as repulsive and objects of renincaition is powerful.

One of my favourites is to use mantras together with a visualisation as the mind can be totally absorbed in the process.   The focus may be held for long periods.

Mantras and visualisation yeshe ? 
Very good tell me what exactly do you experience when engaged in Mantra and visualisation ? do you notice a progression through various levels of concentration ? 

Usually the sadhana tells you what to visualise with each mantra.

That's one reason why empowerments are important, or we may just chant words without visualising the deity or mantra rosary or goddesses, as appropriate.

In addition to the instructions on visualisation I do also at time experience other visualisations as I stray.  I put these to one side and explore them in other meditation which is 'open' observation of what enters, flows and departs, rather than letting them disrupt my focus.;)

Iwould say that following the prescribed mantras and visualisatons is very much connected with sadhana practice.

The 'open' meditation where I follow the free flow of my thoughts has been very productive in terms of the jhanas and in many othe respects allied to HYT, past lives and shamanistic visions i won't share here. ;)

[Caz]

Thanks yeshe ! anyone else have anything to share with regards to increasing concentration ? 

[Spiny le Norman]

It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.

As a Therevadan mindfulness of breathing is one of my main practices.  I use it as a foundation for insight practice.

Spiny

[Karma Dondrup Tashi]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh ...



 

[Caz]

It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.

As a Therevadan mindfulness of breathing is one of my main practices.  I use it as a foundation for insight practice.

Spiny

And how well does that go spiny what have you experienced so far ? 

[TongueTied]

Do insight practice with the concentration method as a topic.  Run experiments.  Try to figure out what works and why.  Try to see through all the conceptual BS and figure out what concentration is really about.  Don't look for answers.  Just look.  Play around, have fun.  It doesn't matter what sort of concentration meditation you do.  Looking at it this way from time to time (or all the time) will help with concentrations skill.

[Monkey Mind]

I refer to here:
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.118.than.html

and here:
http://www.buddhanet.net/mp3/huxter/huxter_mindfulness%20of%20breath.mp3

[Anders Honore]

Initially, I'd say any method that actively engages the discriminating mind in the object of meditation. Metta meditation for example, or certain kinds of breath meditation where you have to examine and work with the breath in addition to watching it. It's a lot easier to focus the mind when your thoughts are working with the object, rather than as an obstacle to simply watching it.

At least, I found this to be much more efficient for calming the mind.

As the mind gets more stable and settled on its object, you can drop the training wheels and settle into a more 'quiet' mode.

[ABC]

Initially, I'd say any method that actively engages the discriminating mind in the object of meditation.

The best way to train in concentration is to abide in emptiness.

In SN 48.9, the Buddha explains:

What is the faculty of concentration? Here, the noble disciple gains concentration, gains one-pointedness of mind, having made relinquishment the object (vossaggarammanam karitva).

Buddhadasa clarifies as follows:

As for samadhi, an empty mind is the supreme samadhi, the supremely focused firmness of mind. The straining and striving sort of samadhi isn't the real thing and the samadhi which aims at anything other than non-clinging to the five khandas is micchasamadhi (wrong or perverted samadhi). You should be aware that there is both micchasamadhi and sammasamadhi (right or correct samadhi). Only the mind that is empty of grasping at and clinging to 'I' and 'mine' can have the true and perfect stability of sammasamadhi. One who has an empty mind has correct samadhi.

HWFBT

  

[t]

What is the best way to train in concentration?

Sit next to a tiger...one wrong move and....best concentration one can get...

[catmoon]

I've heard that meditating in full lotus with your knees sticking out over a cliff is pretty good.

[Spiny le Norman]

It is always good before Lamrim to engage in a preliminary session of focus upon the breath to make your mind calm and settled.

As a Therevadan mindfulness of breathing is one of my main practices.  I use it as a foundation for insight practice.

Spiny

And how well does that go spiny what have you experienced so far ? 

The insight meditation seems to be productive, but I'm still finding concentration difficult...er, what was I saying?....

Spiny