I am practicing Vipassana meditation and I want to know is it possible to practice samadhi/anapana and pragya/Vipassana without following Sila.

I am going for minor operation. Should I ask for anesthesia or do without it(seeing the unpleasant sensation equanimously) ? And when I have orgasm or very tasty food it's very difficult to see the sensation equanimously. What to do? Any tips to remain in equanimity in orgasm ?(too difficult!) Isn't anesthesia same as alcohol ? (numb your consciousness )

I have been a Vipassana meditator since 2001 and had a very strong practice and very good concentration. Last 2-3 years I started feeling a physical violation of space and then hearing voices. What interacts with me is some kind of demon or demons that have started harming with negative gross vibrations of all kinds and use very harmful language. They also harm physically and hurt around the spine and different organs of the body and the nervous system- to get your energy -some kind of energy vampires. They harm continuously and never stop. It is impossible to meditate or do anything else. They seem to know how to connect to human mind and body and somehow gain control the nervous system. I asked a lot of people for help including meditators even teachers but so far havnt found anyone who knows about this or wants to help. I don’t even know where to get the help. No drugs or medicines have helped so far, even tried to get some mantra tantra help. I have also read and listened to Ratana and Atanatiya sutta. Written to monasteries..I cannot give metta or practice Vipassana at all because I am constantly under attack. I am not delusional and these are not illusions. Really looking for some help or inputs that refer to any success stories through monks or healers or Vipassana teachers. Someone who really knows about this well.

I have been focused on the breath in meditation and I am interested in Vipassana, but I am confused about the object of meditation. I have read that you focus on the breath and as thoughts arise, you should observe them and then return to the breath and that it is the returning to the breath that increases one's mindfulness. I have also read that in Vipassana meditation, one shifts the object of meditation to the thoughts that arise and make them the object of mediation. This approach seems to be just sitting and letting your thoughts wander. Do I misunderstand the meaning of making arising thoughts the object of meditation? As it is now, I continue to make the breath the object and observe my other thoughts but generally do not pursue them, rather just categorizing the thought (like "planning the future" or "reliving the past") and then return to the breath.

I just completed my first 10 vipassana retreat. I'm wondering if anyone has had this experience and how long it took for it to subside- I've seen the question posted by other users experienckng it, but no follow ups. Around day 5 of the retreat i started to experience a floating, swaying sensation after the meditations, during the evening discourse i couldn't look at the tv as it felt like it was moving. By day 9 i had some intense experiences during the meditations, like I was no longer in my body but merely a witnessing the body and everything around me seemed fragmented, and i was also having a hard time narrowing my focus on my body, like my awareness of my body expanded way beyond my body and i couldn't actually feel sensations in 'my' body. Also i would feel an energetic force move through me, sometimes moving my body (head would raise, arms would move) it wasn't intentional, and felt natural, and resisting it (to maintain determination) felt like it was creating stress or tension. I'm home now and this energetic force feeling continues to pulasate in my body and gives me a swaying /rocking feeling, it makes me dizzy nauseas, unable to fcous. I try to remain objective and merely observe. But it has made day to day life impossible, i can't drive or walk, and I'm not sure if I should continue to meditate, or take a break, or not go as deep into meditation. When we started vipassana in the retreat I was very able to narrow my focus precisely and feel every subtle sensation, now it feels like if I try i don't feel much, eveeything seems very light and airy. Trying to give as much info as possible. But also very dizzy writing this and having difficulty.

I can devote 7 hours to ( meditation + sleep ) per day . Should I do 5 hour sleep and 2 hour mediation(1 hour twice) **or** 6 hours of sleep and 1 hour of meditation ?please give reason . will 2 hours increase my productivity (please tell from your own experience, not any bookish knowledge ) Will meditating twice will give me **twice** more benefit than meditating once ?

When we study with concentration and our mind gets distracted we bring back to the very subject we study. The same thing we do it in meditation,when mind gets distracted we bring it back to breath . So isn't Studying is also meditation

I am new to buddhism and meditation (I have been practising it for one month now), and despite finishing my fourth book on the matter, I am still very unclear about what a meditation session should look like when practicing either concentration or mindfulness. From what I understood, each of these practices are clearly differents and even have different pali names (Samatha and Vipassana if I am right ?). I can already tell that I can't differenciate concentration and mindfulness. When I focus on my breath, I am naturally distracted by all kind of things which I have to be mindfull of (the way my body feels, the sounds I ear, what I smell from the kitchen, my thoughts and emotions). And when I try to practice mindfulness, I can't help but focusing on my breath, because it is often the first thing that I can notice in that state, and it is always present. When I start my meditation I focus on my breath, then if something happens I try to be mindfull of it, and then I focus on my breath again until something else happens, switching maybe every 2 to 10 seconds. I am wondering why concentration and mindfulness are referred to as disctinct practices in the books I read, as it doesn't make much sense to me. At this point I am afraid that I may be missing something important.

When I am doing meditation, if people or neighbors are making noise or playing music, should I hit them hard and beat them ruthlessly? It's very disturbing and annoying. Can I do violence without hatred and anger if someone is disturbing me by any means?

I asked this question in Philosophy and was advised to ask the question here on Buddhism as I may get better answers HERE. So I am pursuing Spirituality for quite some time now, I've had REALISATIONS but not the Proverbial Self-Realisation because questions remain. So was kinda wondering what is it EXACTLY that they realise. I've been told, you realise, "YOU ARE THE ONE" but it does nothing to me, no effect. So DEFINITELY IT'S NOT THE WORDS. What is it then?

Many teachers (Osho) have asked to do vigorous exercise before vipassana , IS it advisable and OK ?

I've been meditating for 1 hour, and I'm planning to extend it to 90 minutes. Will there be any significant change in my experience? Has anyone had a real experience with this? Follow up Why everyone asks to do twice , not once a day? In vipassana 10 days retreat they asked not to go beyond 60 mins as it will lead to different state. That's why I asked. Why it's getting more and more difficult if I am increasing duration?

When I am very angry or very fearful my efficiency of work increases I can concentrate more .but now when I am practicing Vipassana for a couple of years my fear and anger is diminishing. I am worried whether my work will get hamper/bad or not. Please guide me

Can I do some intense exercise before vipassana ? Please guide me. Exercise makes the body very agitated making it difficult to focus on your breath and to stay still? or These endorphins will also help focus the mind?

Things like sex or alcohol or drugs gives us pleasure because it shuts the conscious mind . But when doing meditation does we get happiness because of shutting of conscious mind / no thought ? I mean what's the difference between the two ?

I practice Vipassana meditation and am currently going through a period of anhedonia and I am trying to understand if my depression is a sankhara or if it is simply a result of my mind reacting and not being equanimous in my everyday life. While practicing Vipassana I don't have a problem following the instructions or have an overly difficult time practicing equanimity so it doesn't make sense that I would be able to cause that much suffering in my every day life because of my reactivity. But then if it's not my mind reacting to something it means it has simply arisen for whatever cause. I find it difficult to navigate the personal accountability of what one experiences (I caused my depression by not living a fulfilling life, not providing for my needs etc) and my depression simply being caused by the inescapable suffering of life and/or sankharas. Because then it does mean that we can control our well being by changing something outside of ourselves which contradicts the idea that we are 100% responsible for the pain we carry, but that's not true is it? We are hurt and traumatised by the world and relationships and while we then have responsibility to not generate more suffering for ourselves we didn't cause the harm that was done to us in the first place which would mean that certain pain and sadness that we carry does not come from us. I realise that ultimately, whether our suffering comes from a reaction, a sankhara or from wherever else the procedure of taking care of and approaching the suffering will be by the same technique according to Vipassana, namely through observing the sensations and by practicing equanimity. But is that enough? How do you know if you need to change things in your life to be able to be well? If you practice you might feel a sense of relief and a little more clarity but what if that's not enough to actually feel a sense of meaningfulness and a desire to take action, to do things? Hope this made sense, if anyone has any insight they'd like to share around this topic I'd be deeply appreciative, thank you.

I read the following on the internet: > Vipassana, the tranquil mind, is the core. > > When emotions arise, the tranquil mind observes and assesses before > the conscious is involved. > >The tranquil mind will recognise the burning heart and dualise > the self. When the self becomes two, the emotions don't rule the mind > and the mind doesn't rule the emotions. Is vipassana the tranquil mind? Does the tranquil mind observe before the arising of consciousness? What is meant by dualizing the self? How does the tranquil mind dualize the self? How does the dualized self stop emotions not ruling the mind?

Is doing 10 min meditation 6 times same as doing 1 hour meditation? Or is doing 30 mins 4 times same as 2 hour meditation ? Thanks for answer can i go more than 1 hr say 90 mins?

The Vipassana as taught by Gautam Buddha in his Maha Sati Patthana Sutta talks about four different feilds of meditation : Body, Sensations,mind and mental contents. Goenka focuses solely on sensations - Isthis not an incorrect application of Buddhas teaching. If focussing on only one frame of reference could liberate the bhikku, why then would he have specifically mentioned four?

I have heard it stated that vipassana can be practiced without samatha. Since samatha leads us to the early jhana factors of vitarka and vicara, how is it possible to do vipassana with wandering undirected and unsteady mind? "The Buddhist commentarial tradition, as represented by the contemporary Theravada, interprets vitarka and vicara as the initial and sustainted application of attention to a meditational object, which culminates in the stilling of the mind." - wikipedia ----> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vitarka-vicara