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LWC2: The Foundation of Buddhist Practice > Setting Up a Meditation Session > Flashcards

Setting Up a Meditation Session Flashcards

Chapter 6 (88 cards)

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1
Q

Why should one make continuous effort on the path as long as one is under the influence of ignorance and karma?

A

Because our unsatisfactory experiences in cyclic existence have no break, our efforts to transform our mind and free it from afflictions should also be continuous.

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2
Q

How can one integrate lamrim topics into daily life according to one suggestion in the text?

A

Choose one lamrim topic each day, meditate on it in the morning, and view experiences that day through the lens of that topic.

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3
Q

What is an alternative to daily cycling through lamrim topics for deeper understanding?

A

Focus on one lamrim topic for a week or even a month before going on to the next to go more deeply into each one.

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4
Q

What is the benefit of regularly reading texts and discussing meditation topics with Dharma friends?

A

It is like keeping a fire’s embers glowing overnight so that the fire is easy to start the next morning; it invigorates and intensifies meditation sessions.

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5
Q

What is the key to gradual spiritual development over time?

A

Making effort daily so that over time gradual change occurs.

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6
Q

Why is having a consistent and continuous meditation practice important?

A

It produces stable changes in our mind.

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7
Q

What can be the result of a strong foundation gained through meditation on the lamrim?

A

Your natural perspective on life will be the Buddhist worldview, and your character will be shaped by the aspirations for liberation, bodhicitta, and wisdom.

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8
Q

What are the different approaches to incorporating study with meditation?

A

Some prefer to study (read, review notes, listen to recordings) before meditating, while others prefer to meditate first and study later.

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9
Q

Why is it important to make time for quiet study, reflection, and meditation?

A

It is important for emotional, physical, and spiritual health.

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10
Q

What is the caution against pushing oneself to meditate longer than comfortable?

A

It can make your mind resistant to future practice.

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11
Q

Why might someone need to sacrifice late-night activities for early morning meditation?

A

To go to bed earlier and get up early for meditation when the mind is clearer.

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12
Q

What is the analogy used for daily spiritual practice?

A

Just as daily meals and exercise are necessary to keep our body healthy, daily spiritual practice is essential for our mental well-being and progress toward awakening.

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13
Q

What is important to pay attention to regarding meditation instructions?

A

Pay attention to the meditation instructions and do your best to follow them, adjusting slightly if necessary to suit personal needs.

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14
Q

Why is Śākyamuni Buddha’s image placed in the center of the altar?

A

Because he is the founder and source of the teachings.

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15
Q

What attitude should one cultivate towards Dharma items like Buddha images?

A

Cultivate an attitude of respect and avoid buying costly images with the motivation to show them off.

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16
Q

What are the five wrong livelihoods to avoid when procuring offerings?

A

Flattery, hinting, giving a small gift in the hopes of receiving a large one, coercion, or hypocrisy.

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17
Q

Should offerings imitate Tibetan-style offerings if one is not in Tibet?

A

No, it is not necessary. One may offer things from their own culture and items easily available where they live.

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18
Q

What quality standard should offerings to buddhas and bodhisattvas meet?

A

They should be the same or better quality than what we eat.

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19
Q

What is the consequence of meditating with eyes focused on an attractive object?

A

Distraction will easily arise.

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20
Q

What is the benefit of getting accustomed to meditating with eyes slightly open?

A

Restraining senses in break time will be easier because one is already used to ignoring sense data.

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21
Q

When might the position of the eyes differ in meditation?

A

In Kālacakra practice, eyes are open and look up; in Dzogchen, eyes are open and look straight ahead.

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22
Q

If the mind is agitated, what practice is helpful before taking refuge?

A

Calming the mind by observing the breath.

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23
Q

What should one do if afflictions are present after observing the breath?

A

Reflect on past misery due to afflictions and make a firm determination not to get entangled with them during practice.

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24
Q

How does visualization of holy beings aid in practice?

A

It naturally makes us reflect on their awakened qualities and creates a feeling of closeness, strengthening faith and confidence in the Three Jewels.

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25
What is more important than the clarity of visualization initially?
Strengthening faith and confidence in the Three Jewels.
26
How is believing faith cultivated?
By understanding the four truths of āryas, leading to conviction that the Three Jewels (especially the Dharma Jewel) are nondeceptive objects of refuge.
27
What is aspiring faith?
The determination and enthusiasm to practice to become like the Three Jewels, not just admire or believe in them.
28
How can one counter the fear that thinking about others' suffering will lead to despair?
Return focus to sentient beings and recall the joyous and skillful ways the Three Jewels work to benefit them, which inspires hope.
29
Why is 'I take refuge in the gurus' sometimes added to the refuge formula?
To emphasize the importance and kindness of spiritual mentors, especially in tantric practice, where the guru is seen as inseparable from the Buddha.
30
How should one recite the refuge lines for better effect?
Recite each line several times before going on to the next, focusing on light streaming from that refuge object.
31
What kind of negativities can be created in relation to the Dharma?
Criticizing subtle points thinking they are just culture, or saying Dharma is not a correct path because it doesn't agree with one's ideas.
32
Why is it wise to avoid hostile judgment concerning anyone's spiritual level?
Ordinary beings are not capable of discerning spiritual levels, and such judgment interferes with refuge and creates destructive karma.
33
What is the significance of the refuge objects dissolving into you?
It reflects that ordinary beings and the Buddha have the same nature: their minds are empty of inherent existence, and all possess buddha nature.
34
When meditating on emptiness after the dissolution of refuge objects, what should be the focus?
Focus on their emptiness of inherent existence, which is the same as your ultimate nature, not on conventional objects like buddhas and sentient beings.
35
How does one reinforce the feeling of connection with others after meditating on emptiness?
Meditate on the four immeasurables: equanimity, love, compassion, and joy.
36
What is a 'field of merit' (punya-kşetra)?
An assembly where we plant seeds of virtue (e.g., root and lineage mentors, deities, buddhas, etc.).
37
How does prostrating benefit the practitioner?
Reduces pride, increases humility, and strengthens aspiration to develop qualities of holy beings.
38
What is the supreme offering that pleases buddhas and bodhisattvas?
Offering your Dharma practice (effort, understanding, virtue) because it contributes to their aim of liberating all sentient beings.
39
What is the benefit of rejoicing in one's own and others' virtue?
It fills the mind with hope and joy, overcomes competition and jealousy, and multiplies virtue.
40
Why is requesting Dharma teachings important?
It counteracts abandoning the Dharma and creates the cause to receive teachings in the future.
41
What is the purpose of requesting the buddhas to remain until cyclic existence ends?
It helps purify negativities related to spiritual mentors and buddhas and increases understanding of their importance.
42
What is the significance of dedicating merit?
Merit is dedicated for the full awakening of oneself and all others.
43
What is the purpose of reciting Śākyamuni Buddha's name mantra (om mune mune mahamuneya svāhā) during the preparation?
To connect with the Buddha and receive his blessings and inspiration after he dissolves on top of your head.
44
What is a 'glance meditation' on the stages of the path?
Reviewing the principal meditations in a brief form, for example, by reciting short lamrim texts.
45
How does reflecting on the emptiness of dedication elements (person, merit) prevent arrogance?
It increases understanding of the compatibility of emptiness and dependent arising.
46
Why is analytical meditation on lamrim topics critical at all levels?
It transforms the mind by giving an overview of the path, establishing the Buddhist worldview, engendering conviction, and creating correct motivation.
47
What is the advice if one faces a particular problem and knows a specific meditation will help?
Do that meditation even if it isn't in sequence in the lamrim.
48
How do earlier and later lamrim topics cross-fertilize each other?
Understanding earlier topics sets the stage for later ones, and understanding later ones enriches experience of earlier ones (e.g., bodhicitta enriching understanding of precious human life).
49
What are 'break times between meditation sessions'?
Daily life activities.
50
What is the role of daily life activities in spiritual practice?
They provide the chance to test how well meditation topics have been integrated into life.
51
What does Kamalaśīla encourage regarding diet for practitioners in 'Middle Stages of Meditation'?
A vegetarian diet, as it is generally conducive for being clear-minded when meditating.
52
What are the five points recited in the Chinese tradition before eating?
1. Contemplate causes, conditions, and kindness for receiving food. 2. Contemplate one's own practice, trying to improve. 3. Contemplate the mind, guarding from wrongdoing. 4. Contemplate food as medicine. 5. Contemplate aim of buddhahood, consuming food to accomplish it.
53
What is the benefit of offering food to the Three Jewels before eating?
It is meritorious and allows one to pause and reflect.
54
How can one make sleep virtuous?
By falling asleep with a positive thought or intention, like dedicating sleep to rest for Dharma practice.
55
What aspiration does a bodhisattva have when going to sleep, according to the Flower Ornament Sutra?
'May all sentient beings attain the dimension of reality of a Buddha.'
56
What aspiration does a bodhisattva have when dreaming, according to the Flower Ornament Sutra?
'May all sentient beings realize the dreamlike nature of things.'
57
What aspiration does a bodhisattva have when waking up, according to the Flower Ornament Sutra?
'May all beings awake from the sleep of ignorance.'
58
What are the principal causes for progressing on the path?
Receiving teachings from a qualified teacher, reflecting and meditating on them, and putting them into practice in daily life.
59
What are external cooperative conditions that support the principal causes?
Being in the presence of a spiritual mentor, staying at a holy place, living with sincere practitioners, meditating before a Buddha image.
60
How does the Buddhist concept of 'blessing and inspiration' differ from sensory direct perception?
It depends in part on conviction in the possibility of awakening and the spontaneous awakening activities of enlightened beings.
61
What is the proper motivation to begin a session of meditation?
To cultivate compassion and wisdom for the benefit of all beings, not merely personal peace or comfort.
62
Why does the Dalai Lama emphasize daily meditation practice?
Because consistent effort transforms the mind gradually, just as water wears away rock over time.
63
What role does visualization play in tantric meditation?
It evokes the presence and qualities of enlightened beings, strengthening faith and aspiration.
64
What are the key features of correct meditation posture?
A straight spine, relaxed shoulders, and hands resting in the lap help balance alertness and relaxation.
65
What should one do before beginning a meditation session?
Prepare the space, correct motivation, and reflect on refuge and bodhicitta to set a sacred context.
66
Why is deity yoga emphasized in daily tantric practice?
It integrates the qualities of enlightenment directly into one's identity and experience.
67
What is the meaning of taking refuge in the Three Jewels?
It is entrusting oneself to the guidance of the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha as the path to awakening.
68
Why is understanding emptiness important for daily practice?
Because it counters clinging to inherent existence, the root of ignorance and suffering.
69
Why is compassion considered indispensable in Buddhist practice?
Because it transforms self-centeredness and forms the basis for bodhicitta and altruistic conduct.
70
What is the highest expression of altruism in Mahāyāna Buddhism?
The bodhisattva's vow to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings.
71
What is the 'innermost awareness' in Dzogchen practice?
It is the non-conceptual, luminous clarity of mind present beneath discursive thought.
72
How is compassion linked with insight in the Dzogchen tradition?
They are inseparable; insight must be grounded in compassion to avoid nihilism or coldness.
73
What is the significance of the 'space between thoughts' in meditation?
It reveals the deeper, unconstructed nature of awareness beyond conceptual elaboration.
74
How does Dzogchen describe the mind’s clarity?
As innate, ever-present luminosity that can be recognized when obscurations subside.
75
What is the purpose of Dzogchen’s three keys?
To introduce, maintain, and self-liberate into innermost awareness.
76
What is the role of 'clear light of death' in Dzogchen meditation?
It represents the meeting of primordial and resultant clear light, a moment of profound realization.
77
How should one align conduct with meditation?
By allowing awareness to guide speech and action with mindfulness and ethical sensitivity.
78
Why is view, meditation, and conduct described as a triad?
Because correct view supports stable meditation, which manifests in wholesome conduct.
79
Why is motivation important before meditation?
Because the quality of the session is shaped by the intention with which it begins.
80
What are the defining features of shinay meditation?
Stability, clarity, and a non-discursive resting of mind on an object or present awareness.
81
What is the function of lhatong or special insight?
It penetrates the nature of thoughts, self, and phenomena, leading to realization of emptiness.
82
Why is the body's posture emphasized in meditation?
Because it affects the subtle channels and energies which in turn influence mental clarity.
83
What attitude should one have when meditation feels difficult?
One should persevere gently, without grasping at progress or becoming discouraged.
84
How can a practitioner deal with persistent distractions?
By gently returning to the object of focus without judgment or aversion.
85
How can one measure progress in meditation?
By increasing stability, clarity, and resilience to distraction in and outside formal practice.
86
How does meditation relate to daily life?
It transforms perception, making ordinary experiences part of the spiritual path.
87
How does meditation help with difficult emotions?
It creates space around emotions, allowing clarity, non-reactivity, and deeper understanding.
88
What is the best way for a beginner to start meditation?
By keeping sessions short, regular, and simple, focusing on breath or presence without pressure.

LWC2: The Foundation of Buddhist Practice (15 decks)

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