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Mindfulness of Breathing (56) Signposts for Samādhi

Some people are fond of reading books about Buddhism, and if they want to learn about meditation, they might go find a book, or maybe nowadays, some people go find an audio recording. For the "book people," the book we're trying to read is found within ourselves. We're learning to read ourselves: read the signposts, the symptoms, the movements, the process of meditation that unfolds within us. That's the book to read, or that's the audio recording to listen to—really listen deeply into what's happening here.

Sooner or later, all that we are to discover in Buddhism is meant to be discovered here in our own body, in our own experience. To learn to read the signposts—to read what's happening—is part of the skill. For samādhi^[1], for developing concentration, stability, composure, and unification of mind, there are signposts.

The Pali word for signposts, usually translated into English as "signs," is nimitta^[2]. It is used in very different ways throughout the history of Buddhism and has different meanings. Sometimes it's reduced in meaning to a visual image that some people will see when their concentration gets strong. Maybe they're seeing a light, a white light or a yellow light, that lights up as they get concentrated, and the image is called the nimitta. But in the early Buddhist tradition, a nimitta is any kind of sign or indicator of the presence of something, or that something is about to happen.

The Buddha^[3] said that the nourishment for samādhi—what feeds and supports samādhi—is two of these signposts that we can find, read, and recognize in ourselves. One of them is the word samatha^[4], which means tranquility, calm, or quietude. The other is a word that means something like non-dispersal, non-fragmentation, or non-agitation of our thinking mind. As part of this unification process, this gathering together and being centered here, we're not being de-centered by spinning out. I think the Pali word that's translated as non-dispersal could maybe be read as "non-de-centered." So these are nimittas.

As we start getting concentrated, as we start getting settled in a steadiness of mind, we can recognize these signposts. We recognize that there is a quietude, tranquility, or serenity—however we want to translate this word, samatha. We recognize we're starting to be non-de-centered. We're starting to not be scattered or dispersed in our minds. The mind is not jumping around and chasing every thought that comes along, wandering off for minutes at a time in our fantasies or thoughts. Instead, there's a real feeling of being gathered in, being non-dispersed, being here.

Neither one of these has to be very strong at first. This is where learning to recognize that these are signposts comes in; they are pointing the way. There might be a lot of agitation, there might be a lot of dispersal of the mind, but if we keep focusing on those, it is too easy to reinforce them. The nourishment for samādhi is to take in, to allow ourselves to experience, and to be supported by tranquility and non-dispersal of the mind—this centeredness of the mind.

Even if there's a lot of agitation, recognize—maybe in the cracks of it, behind it, in the back room, in the attic, or the basement somewhere inside—"Oh, there's a little bit there. Yes, I'm agitated, but in fact, a little bit in my sternum, there's a little feeling of tranquility. A little bit in my hands; my hands feel steady, confident, calm, and tranquil." Find where it might be.

Don't manufacture it, and don't worry too much if you can't find it. We're talking about as meditation deepens and deepens. It's not just sitting down and boom, there you have to be able to do this. But as you begin feeling yourself settling, getting more and more here, and calmer than you were before, that's when you start feeling and appreciating. Affirm and validate these signposts: "This is good. This is the path forward. This is the direction to go. Now I've picked up the book at the chapter where I left it. Now I'm picking up again at the place where my practice is really deepening."

Recognize these signposts. There are two nimittas in Pali: one is samatha, and the other one is avyagga^[5]. "Agga" could mean "center," "vya" is divided or separated, and "a" means not—not separated from the center. So it's this idea of being centered.

There are other signposts for samādhi. There are a lot of them, and over time you might learn these different ones that can support us: "Oh, this is good. Now we're in the territory. This is the direction forward." Recognize it not to be attached to it, or to try to engineer and work too hard to get concentrated, but simply for the mind to begin recognizing that this is the way forward. This is the path in the forest. As opposed to being distracted by every little troll, bird, insect, and butterfly off into the forest, chasing after it and losing the trail.

Gather yourselves together to start feeling and recognizing these signposts. Some of the other signposts are physical sensations that shift and change, showing that you are getting concentrated. There can be tingling, a feeling of lightness, a feeling of warmth, or a glow. For some people, there's a strong feeling of physical pleasure. Sometimes a little bit of pressure or vibration begins happening someplace. Sometimes people feel it in the forehead, sometimes in the chest, sometimes in the belly. Sometimes parts of our body, like the arms, start feeling so light that maybe they even seem to disappear because things are so tranquil and peaceful there, or in other parts of the body.

There might be a visual signpost. As I said, the field of vision might get completely white or some other color. Some people, when they get concentrated, will see little shapes in their field of vision, sometimes geometrical shapes. It's important not to get distracted by these visual images, especially geometrical signs or shapes. But they are supportive, so take them in the background of your experience: "Oh, I'm on track. This is a signpost that I'm getting concentrated, that my practice is deepening here."

Then there are what could be considered more mental or emotional signposts. A common one is joy—feeling a joy welling up, delight, a kind of pleasure. Sometimes it's even a sense of rapture when the samādhi gets strong, a feeling of delight, gladness, or relief that might be there. Sometimes it's a deep sense of happiness, something more sublime, more subtle. It's more of a sense of contentment, a deep contentment in the quietude. Sometimes a sign of getting concentrated is that the mindfulness gets clearer and clearer. The awareness gets clearer, and there becomes more equanimity^[6] in that clear awareness. We're less likely to be reactive to things, and feeling that equanimity feels so good.

Don't expect all these things to happen at once, and maybe don't even try to memorize and look for all the things I've said. The two things that the Buddha emphasized as nimittas were this tranquility, calm, or quietude, and this non-de-centeredness—the non-dispersal, non-scatteredness of the mind, the mind being composed. Both of those are supported by the two action verbs that the Buddha used when he instructed us in what we might translate into English as "become concentrated." He didn't use the English word "concentrated" because he didn't speak English. He used two words: one was to "settle," and the other was to "steady." To settle on something, and to steady oneself on something.

So those four can be your signposts: settling on the breathing or in your experience, a steadiness with your breathing, a delightful, warm content of quietude and tranquility, and a non-de-centeredness—a feeling of, "Ah, this is good to really be here, not scattered anymore."

Perhaps you can read the inner book. Read yourself and see if you can find what supports you, guides you, and gives you something to—in the good sense of the term—hold on to as you're developing concentration. They can be cheerleaders or support from the side: "Stay there, be there, this is good, keep opening to this."

If you're not ready for that, or if it doesn't work because you're trying too hard and it's too much work, just put it aside. But sooner or later, hopefully, you begin recognizing your signposts for what it means when the goodness of samādhi, the goodness of being settled and unified, begins to come into play. Then appreciate that, validate that, and affirm that, so the mind knows this is what's important and valuable. Thinking about trolls, butterflies, and all the other things is useful sometimes, but not for the purpose of meditation.

Thank you all very much, and we'll continue tomorrow.