Cattāri Brahmavihārā

Last night as I was laying in bed I decided that a good place to place the mind and to put the time before bed to good use would be to mentally repeat the word “buddho.” I quickly realized that I should disconnect it from the breath as trying to coordinate the breathing with the syllables proved to scatter the mind over much. So I simply focused on the meditation word and repeated it over and over. The sensation was definitely interesting as I watched the mind slip under into sleep and bob up again to catch the word again and again. Eventually I lost all consciousness but I was inspired enough by the results that I did a few rounds of the word this morning prior as I sat for my formal meditation. It seemed to have helped me to center the mind and the minute I realized I was off somewhere else I switched to the brahma viharas which is a much more involved subject.

I think my whole point in documenting this is simply to point to the fact that at different points in my practice I find different techniques, ideas and approaches to be of value. Using this meditation word seems to help now when I am struggling to get back on track and to re-establish a routine in the midst of unrelenting stress and obligations but it may not be the case if I am in a more grounded space later. My hunch is that when the mind is coarse such meditation techniques work well to refine it and smooth it out but they can only go so far. Then again, I could be completely mistaken on that point.

In the final analysis, what is important to me is not so much where I am in the practice (although I don’t want anyone to misconstrue and take me for practicing a goal-less path) but simply that I am ever inclining towards the practice and doing my best not to squander this short life. May we all practice to find the eternal freedom from bondage.