Wednesday, May 2, 2012

The Breath of Love - Introduction

The Breath of Love
Author
Most Venerable Bhante Vimalaramsi Mahàthera


Layout and Design
Vidi Dayàsati
Publisher
Ehipassiko Foundation
Copyright ©2012 Bhante Vimalaramsi
ISBN 978-602-8194-49-5
1st print: Feb 2012
Dhamma Sukha Meditation Center
8218 County Road 204, Annapolis, MO 63620 USA
www.dhammasukha.org
Phone: 573-5461214


Foreword
The  Buddha’s  Teachings  are  very  suitable  for  any  individual
who is seeking peace and happiness, irrespective of any religious
background. With this universal tradition you can practice sweet
Loving-kindness (“Mettà” in Pàli) Meditation and become a true
blessing to the whole world.
Loving-kindness is the first of four sublime states of mind. The
other  sublime  states  of  mind  are:  compassion,  appreciative  joy,
and  equanimity.  Practicing  these  four  sublime  states  of  mind
have  limitless  applications  and  boundaries  in  our  every-day
lives.  For  example,  Loving-kindness  can  be  radiated  towards
yourself,  towards  family  members,  friends  and  co-workers.  It
can even be radiated toward all living beings under the sun and
beyond. Whenever you wish someone Loving-kindness you can
bring them healing, peace, and happiness.
Loving-kindness equally offers its sweet blessings on the pleasant
and the unpleasant, on the rich and the poor, on the vicious and
the virtuous, on females and males, as well as on human beings
and  non-human  beings.  This  meditation  instruction  is  simple
to  follow.  It  can  be  practiced  by  everyone  who  has  the  strong
desire  to  experience  more  calm  and  joy  than  ever  before.  We
all  try  in  many  different  ways  to  pursue  happiness.  This  is  an
unmistakable  way  to  the  true  happiness  that  goes  far  beyond
worldly materialistic types of happiness.
Some years ago in Malaysia I met the Ven. Vimalaramsi and was
so  impressed  by  his  style  of  teaching  meditation  that  I  invited
this always smiling monk to come and teach meditation at the
Washington  Buddhist  Vihàra.  He  is  not  just  another  ordinary

meditation  teacher  who  follows  the  popular  and  modified
meditation  teachings  of  some  Buddhist  commentaries.  This
extraordinary  teacher  always  refers  to  and  uses  the  suttas  as
taught by the Lord Buddha in the original Pàli Canon.
I see him as a serious follower of the “Kàlàma Sutta”. This sutta
suggests that we not follow anything without true investigation.
He is continually checking and practicing to see if the teachings
are in agreement with the spirit and the teachings of the suttas
given by the Buddha.

Ven. M. Dhammasiri
President of the Washington Buddhist Vihàra

Introduction
The most rewarding day of my life was the day I knew for certain
that the Buddha-Dhamma was REAL! This Dhamma changed my
life  completely.  It  could  change  yours,  too.  Each  day  is  a  day  of
thanks for the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Saïgha and for the
privilege  of  being  born  within  this  Buddha  Dispensation.  What  a
wonderful opportunity and adventure!
The  first  edition  of  the  little  book  “The  ânàpànasati  Sutta:  A
Practical  guide  for  Breathing  and  Tranquil  Wisdom  Meditation”
was  printed  in  1995.  Today  the  original  text  continues  to  spread
worldwide.  Hundreds  of  thousands  of  copies  have  been  issued
presently in 9 languages. It’s even been used in universities abroad
as the guide for learning meditation. Most amazing is that the book
has spread on its own!
The  author,  Most  Venerable  Bhante  Vimalaramsi  Mahàthera,  is  a
thirty plus year meditator who spent over twenty years following
the commentarial explanations on how to meditate before looking
in the suttas. Then he practiced according to the suttas and having
seen  for  himself  the  results  do  not  match  the  commentarial
descriptions, Bhante put aside the commentary as he was advised to
do by an elder monk. From that point on, he followed the Buddha’s
instructions as closely as possible.
For  over  sixteen  years,  he  has  dedicated  himself  to  further
investigations.  He  has  been  teaching  anyone  who  would  dare  to
ask the following questions directly: Did the Buddha actually find
a  way  out  of  suffering  in  this  life  that  was  different  from  other
meditation traditions of his time? If he did, how did he do it? Did
he leave us precise instructions? Can it be done again in this day

and time? Can this practice be taken into our daily lives? If so, what
difference can it make?
Remember: Meditation is life! Life is meditation!
Following his enlightenment and full awakening, Buddha Gotama
taught the Dhamma for a remarkable 45 years! This book is about
the  instructions  he  taught  that  have  survived  in  the  suttas,  the
discourses in the Pàli canon that were taught by the Buddha to his
followers. It examines “The ânàpànasati Sutta” from the Majjhima
Nikàya: the Middle Length Sayings.
This  sutta  teaches  us  Mindfulness  of  Breathing  through  Tranquil
Wisdom Insight Meditation (TWIM). The instructions are repeated
several times throughout the Pàli Canon using the same identical
words. This repetition confirms the importance of these instructions.
Sometimes phrases in a sutta indicate the instructions over again.
It is said that there are more than forty objects of meditation that
the Buddha taught. However, all these forms dealt with one goal in
particular, that is, reaching a clear understanding of the impersonal
process of Dependent Origination and the Four Noble Truths. This
book is about using the breath as the object of the meditation to do
just that.
The  result  of  this  practice  is  seeing  for  oneself  the  true  nature  of
things.  Students  who  have  put  forth  a  sincere  effort  to  follow
these instructions precisely have made remarkable strides in their
meditation progress.

Bhante  Vimalaramsi  brings  these  teachings  to  life  using  simple
clear  wording.  To  study  with  Bhante  Vimalaramsi  is  a  refreshing
rediscovery  of  our  inherent  altruistic  joy  and  an  introduction  to
what, according to the Buddha, a guiding teacher should actually

be. The Buddha indicates that a guiding teacher should be a sincere
conduit of the Buddha’s words, emboldening his students to listen
carefully,  investigate  fully,  observe  accurately,  frequently  question
and confirm everything through personal experience.
Here’s  the  amazing  thing.  What  the  Buddha  did  is  not  mythical,
strictly religious, or philosophical. It’s real! I’ve been investigating
it for over eleven years now. It is a methodical scientific experiment
which  uncovers  how  mind’s  attention  moves  and  leads  to  the
discovery  of  the  true  nature  of  HOW  everything  works  in  life.  It
piques  one’s  curiosity  and  alters  our  perspective.  It  becomes  all
too  clear  why  this  particular  practice  changed  the  world  in  the
Buddha’s time.
Buddhist meditation is the compassionate groundbreaking discovery
leading to a doorway that reveals a pathway for transcendence to
peace. To make peace a reality, mankind only needs to activate this
practice. The doorway is available just as it was in the time of the
Buddha! We have to choose to go through it.
Bhante has been bold in his approach to the practice and continues
to  reach  into  the  heart  of  the  Buddha’s  teaching  with  his  own
questions as he trains his students. He knows this is a journey you
must personally take for yourself to reach a full understanding of
this Dhamma. He sets the Dhamma Wheel in motion as you begin
your  journey  and  challenges  you  to  make  the  effort  to  reach  the
destination for yourself.
If you work with Bhante as your guiding teacher, you will discover
the  true  nature  of  suffering,  how  it  is  caused,  and  how  to  find
great relief in this life. He offers you the next step each time you
interview with him. Your progress is directly proportional to how
well you follow the instructions, your accurate investigation through
meditation, and your willingness to ask questions.

After 2600 years, the Buddha-Dhamma has become a bit diluted.
This is to be expected with any teaching this old. It is important that
we consider a slight realignment to get across to people today that
“Meditation is Life and Life is Meditation”.
If we follow the Buddha’s last wishes and go to the suttas instead
of recreating the teachings on our own, we will find that there are
the same 37 requisites for awakening that, when clearly understood
and fully experienced, can set us free. These requisites are like the
threads set upon a loom, ready to be woven into a balanced cloth.
If these teachings are taught as separate spools of yarn sitting in a
basket, the student may never realize that, when set upon the loom
and woven together, a bright tapestry can be woven with a pattern
of perfect symmetry and beauty that is the Dhamma Cloth! When
these  “spools  of  yarn”  are  studied  apart  from  the  loom,  we  have
great  difficulty  realizing  any  finished  product  or  understanding
how  this  can  help  us  today.  But  set  upon  the  loom,  in  balance
together, these spools of yarn give us the answers we seek: the true
nature of how things actually are and how we can become happier
living with this.
This practice is like a fine recipe. Don’t leave out ANY ingredients!
Don’t change the instructions! Just do it. Find out for yourself the
relief promised by the Buddha. Come and see!
Let  this  book  be  a  guide  to  your  deeper  understanding  of  the
Dhamma. Use it well and often. Pass it along to others.
Rev. Sister Khema
United International Buddha-Dhamma Society, Inc.
Dhamma Sukha Meditation Center
and Anathapindika’s Study Park

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