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The Natural Elements in Meditation

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Edited by Richie Cuthbertson, Wednesday, 5 Apr 2023, 14:44


Have been listening to these talks given by the venerable Ajahn Sona today. He is a great teacher, and the one who gave me the dhamma name Asoka, which means sorrowless. Asoka is a succinct teaching for me, as someone who has experienced much sorrow in life and struggled with depression, this name inspires me to become the opposite (-:

These five talks go into detail about how to practise meditation on the four elements: Earth, water, fire, air  and also how to practise the four colour kasinas: red, blue, yellow, white.

I took part in this retreat last spring, and it is good to go over it again to refresh the memory. It is interesting how when one listens to a talk again one picks up something that they missed the first time they listened to it. I think it is because the mind takes what it needs at different times. The mind changes, and as one develops on the path, the mind looks out for new pieces of information to help with its current understanding, and perhaps that's why different things stand out on subsequent listenings to dhamma talks.

Anyway, I wanted to post these talks for anyone else out there who might find this topic interesting.


Here is the link to the talks on YouTube: 

https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCXN1GlAupG1RoN3z1NN7jzwapA6OKbF5


May this practise be as much a blessing for you, as it has been for me.

Peace and metta


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Asoka

Change

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I have become quite fond of standing and watching puddles in the rain. There is something oddly fascinating about them, they are like the visual equivalent of white noise. I can get into a state of serene composure just standing and watching the shapes and ripples the rain makes on the surface. 

The waves of the sea feel magic as I walk along. My peripheral vision changing as I move in sync with the ocean next to me, the waves changing shape all the time, a liquid reminder of anicca (impermanence). The air all around reveals its invisible presence in the dancing movement of the numerous plant beings, under the wings of birds, in sounds, and the tactile sense of it on my skin and within each breath.

I notice my mood, and how I am in a different state of mind than I was at the beginning of my walk and how this too keeps changing.

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Asoka

Rainy days

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Edited by Richie Cuthbertson, Thursday, 5 Jan 2023, 17:43

scan of a painting

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Asoka

Soap dragon

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What appeared to look like a water dragon made out of bubbles.

abstract painting of a soap dragon that links to a webpage featuring this painting.

Free download of scan available here

Permalink 2 comments (latest comment by Richie Cuthbertson, Friday, 6 May 2022, 09:33)
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Asoka

Plankton

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Edited by Richie Cuthbertson, Wednesday, 23 Feb 2022, 19:53

Plankton are a diverse range of organisms which include the larvae of different creatures who are carried by water currents and are food for a great many organisms that live in the water, including species as large as basking sharks and the blue whale. Because the sea and freshwater is getting warmer, more polluted and over-fished, plankton are finding themselves under increasing pressure to survive.

Painting about plankton

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