The purpose of meditation is to make our mind calm and peaceful. If

If we train in meditation, our mind will gradually become more and

more peaceful, and we will experience a purer and purer form of

happiness. Eventually, we will be able to stay happy all the time, even

in the most difficult circumstances.

Usually we find it difficult to control our mind. It seems as if our mind

 is like a balloon in the wind - blown here and there by external

circumstances. If things go well, our mind is happy, but if they go

 badly, it immediately becomes unhappy. For example, if we get

what we want, such as a new possession or a new partner, we become

excited and cling to them tightly.

However, since we cannot have everything we want, and since we will

inevitably be separated from the friends and possessions we currently

 enjoy, this mental stickiness, or attachment, serves only to cause us

pain. On the other hand, if we do not get what we want, or if we lose

something that we like, we become despondent or irritated.

For example, if we are forced to work with a colleague whom

we dislike, we will probably become irritated and feel

aggrieved, with the result that we will be unable to work with

 him or her efficiently and our time at work will become

stressful and unrewarding.

Such fluctuations of mood arise because we are too closely involved in the external situation. We are like a child making a sand castle who is excited when it is first made, but who becomes upset when it is destroyed by the incoming tide.

By training in meditation, we create an inner space and clarity that enables us to control our mind regardless of the external circumstances. Gradually we develop mental equilibrium, a balanced mind that is happy all the time, rather than an unbalanced mind that oscillates between the extremes of excitement and despondency.

If we train in meditation systematically, eventually we will be able to eradicate from our mind the delusions that are the causes of all our problems and suffering. In this way, we will come to experience a permanent inner peace, known as "liberation" or "nirvana". Then, day and night in life after life, we will experience only peace and happiness.

How to meditate:

To learn how to meditate, the guidance of a qualified teacher is

 indispensable. A teacher can take you through the various

stages of meditation and answer any questions you might have.

 This will ensure that the techniques you are developing are

correct and effective.

First of all you will learn how to meditate by stopping

 distractions, making your mind clear and more lucid. This can

be accomplished by practicing a simple breathing meditation.

You will then progress further and learn meditation techniques

 such as visualisation, and analytical and placement meditation.

You may choose to supplement the classes you attend with

your own meditation practice. First, choose a clean, suitable

place to meditate. A clean environment makes the mind clear

and fresh. Moreover, if we are going to engage in preparatory

 prayers or chanted meditations, we should ensure that our

room is clean and tidy beforehand as a sign of respect for the

 Buddhas.

If we wish, we can set up a shrine with representations of Buddha’s body, speech and mind. To represent Buddha’s body, we place a statue or picture of Buddha in the centre of the shrine. To its right we place a Buddhist text, representing Buddha’s speech, and to its left we place a stupa, or a picture of a stupa, representing Buddha’s mind. We should feel that we are actually in the presence of the living Buddha and make prostrations and offerings accordingly.

When these preparations are completed, we can sit down to

 meditate. If possible, we should sit in the vajra posture, but if

 we are unfamiliar with this, we can sit in any posture that is

comfortable. If we cannot sit cross-legged, we can sit on a

 chair. The most important thing is to have a straight back so

 that the subtle energy winds in our body can flow freely and

 keep our mind alert. When the body and mind are comfortable,

 we can proceed with our chosen meditation practice as taught

 in the classes.

At the end of the meditation session, we dedicate the merit

 we have accumulated from practicing the preparations,

contemplating, and meditating to the happiness of all living

 beings.

The benefits of meditation can be experienced quickly and

easily by complete beginners. If we practice simple meditation

 - such as a breathing meditation - regularly, gradually our 

distracting thoughts will subside and we will experience a

sense of inner peace and relaxation. Our mind will feel lucid

 and spacious and we will feel refreshed.

When the sea is rough, sediment is churned up and the water

 becomes murky, but when the wind dies down the mud

gradually settles and the water becomes clear. In a similar

 way, when the otherwise incessant flow of our distracting

thoughts is calmed through concentrating on the breath, our

mind becomes unusually lucid and clear.

Even though breathing meditation is only a preliminary stage

of meditation, it can be quite powerful. We can see from this

 practice that it is possible to experience inner peace and

contentment just by controlling the mind, without having to

depend at all upon external conditions.

When the turbulence of distracting thoughts subsides and our

mind becomes still, a deep happiness and contentment naturally

 arises from within. This feeling of contentment and well-being

 helps us to cope with the busyness and difficulties of daily life.

So much of the stress and tension we normally experience comes from our mind, and many of the problems we experience, including ill health, are caused or aggravated by this stress. Just by doing breathing meditation for ten or fifteen minutes each day, we will be able to reduce this stress.

We will experience a calm, spacious feeling in the mind, and many of our usual problems will fall away. Difficult situations will become easier to deal with, we will naturally feel warm and well disposed towards other people, and our relationships with others will gradually improve.

We should train in this preliminary meditation until we gain

some experience of it. Then we can progress to more practical

forms of meditation, such as the cycle of twenty-one Lamrim

meditations explained in The New Meditation Handbook by

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. 

Breathing meditation

At your local Kadampa meditation class, first you will learn how to stop

 distractions and make our mind clear and more lucid - this is

 accomplished by practicing a simple breathing meditation, which is

described in The New Meditation Handbook by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso:

“We sit with our eyes partially closed and turn our attention to

 our breathing. We breathe naturally, preferably through our

 nostrils, without attempting to control our breath, and we try

 to become aware of the sensation of the breath as it enters

and leaves the nostrils.This sensation is our object of

 meditation. We should try toconcentrate on it to the exclusion

 of everything else.

At first our mind will be very busy, and we might even feel

 that meditation is making our mind busier; but in reality we are

 just becoming more aware of how busy our mind actually is.

There will be a great temptation to follow the different

 thoughts as they arise, but we should resist this and remain

focused single-pointedly on the sensation of the breath.

If we discover that our mind has wandered and is following our

 thoughts, we should immediately return it to the breath. We

 should repeat this as many times as necessary until the mind

 settles on the breath.

If we practice patiently in this way, gradually our distracting

thoughts will subside and we shall experience a sense of inner peace

and relaxation. Our mind will feel lucid and spacious and we shall

feel refreshed. We should stay with this state of mental calm

for a while.” 

 Reference : The New Meditation Handbook by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

                                                           
Meditation techniques

In addition to the breathing meditation, your local Kadampa meditation

class introduces other meditation techniques on how to meditate such as

contemplation and placement meditation, and visualisation.

Contemplation and placement meditation

For example, if we are meditating on compassion we begin by

contemplating the various sufferings experienced by living beings until

a strong feeling of compassion arises in our heart. When this

compassion arises we meditate on it single-pointedly. If the feeling

of compassion fades, or if our mind wanders to another object,

 we should return to the contemplation to bring it back to mind.

 When the feeling has been restored we once again leave our

 contemplation and hold our compassion in placement

 meditation.This kind of meditation is immensely valuable in our

 daily life because it enables us to deal with difficult situations

by developing peaceful and constructive states of mind.

                                          

Visualisation

Sometimes the teacher will introduce simple visualisation

techniques. For example, the following simple visualization is

practiced in conjunction with a breathing meditation. When we

 have settled down comfortably we begin by becoming aware

of the thoughts and distractions that are arising in our mind.

 Then we gently turn our attention to our breath, letting its

 rhythm remain normal.

As we breathe out we imagine that we are breathing away all

disturbing thoughts and distractions in the form of black

smoke that vanishes in space. As we breathe in we imagine that

we are breathing in blessings and inspiration in the form of

white light that enters our body and absorbs into our heart.

 We maintain this visualisation single-pointedly with each

inhalation and exhalation for twenty-one rounds, or until our

mind has become peaceful and alert.

If we concentrate on our breathing in this way, negative thoughts and distractions will temporarily disappear. At this stage our mind is like a clean white cloth which we can now colour with a virtuous motivation such as compassion.