Settling the Mind in Its Natural State
There is something contrived about the above state of non-
conceptuality, for during
the training that leads to it, the mind has been artificially
withdrawn from appearances
and ideation has been suppressed. The consciousness of which one
perceives
the characteristics of joy, clarity, and non-conceptuality is one
that has been conceptually
isolated from its normal conceptual processes and from the variety of
appearances
with which it is normally engaged. The question may then be raised,
‘Is it not
possible to identify the natural characteristics of consciousness in
the midst of the
mind’s activity, without suppressing ideation? After all,
consciousness is obviously
present and active while thoughts arise, so in principle there seems
no reason why it
could not be identified.
It was for this purpose that the technique of ‘settling the mind in
its natural state’
has been devised and taught within the Indo-Tibetan Buddhist
tradition (Dalai Lama
&Berzin, 1997, pp. 37–142; Karma Chagmé, 1998, p. 80). This method,
like all other
techniques for developing Samatha, entails freeing the mind from
distraction, so that
one’s attention is not compulsively carried away by either mental or
sensory stimuli.
However, this method is exceptional in that the attention is not
fixed upon any object.
Here one gazes steadily into the space in front of one, but without
visually focusing
on anything. Mentally, one brings the attention into the domain of
the mind, and
whenever any type of mental event is observed—be it a thought, an
image, a feeling,
a desire, and so on—one simply takes note of it, without conceptually
classifying it,
and without trying to suppress or sustain it. Letting one’s mind
remain at ease, one
watches all manner of mental events arise and pass of their own
accord, without intervention
of any kind. Settling one’s awareness in the present, the attention
is not
allowed to stray off in thoughts concerning the past or the future,
nor does one latch
onto any object in the present.
Normally when thoughts arise, one conceptually engages with the
referents, or
intentional objects, of those thoughts, but in this practice one
perceptually attends to
the thoughts themselves, without judging or evaluating them. The
heart of the practice
is allowing one’s consciousness to remain in its ‘natural state’,
limpid and vivid,
without becoming embroiled in fluctuating emotions and habitual
thought patterns.
While following this practice, one alternately seeks out the
consciousness that is
engaging in this meditation and then releases one’s awareness once
again. This is said
to be an effective means of dispelling laxity. The eighth-century
Indian Buddhist contemplative
Padmasambhava (1998) describes this technique as follows:
Having nothing on which to meditate, and without any modification or
adulteration,
place your attention simply without wavering, in its own natural
state, its natural limpidity,
its own character, just as it is. Remain in clarity, and rest the
mind so that it is loose and
free. Alternate between observing who is concentrating inwardly and
who is releasing. If
it is the mind, ask, ‘What is that very agent that releases the mind
and concentrates the
mind?’ Steadily observe yourself; and then release again. By so
doing, fine stability will
arise, and you may even identify awareness (p. 106).
The result of this practice, he says, is that flawless Samatha
arises, such that wherever
the awareness is placed, it is unwaveringly present, unmoved by
adventitious
thoughts, and vividly clear, without being sullied by laxity,
lethargy, or dimness. In
this way, too, the sheer clarity and cognizance of consciousness can
be recognized.
Available online as,
B. Alan Wallace:
The Buddhist Tradition
of Shamatha:
Methods for Refining and
Examining Consciousness
http://alanwallace.org/writings.htm
