Satvik.fyi

Mind · Dhyāna

Meditation

11 practices and the concepts beneath them, from the Buddha's mindfulness of breath to Patañjali's definition of dhyāna itself; each taught simply and cited to its source. Begin with the breath; everything else waits.

Practices

8 how-to practices, from breath to witness

  • Practice

    Inner Silence

    Antara Mauna

    Watch the mind's noise on purpose, thoughts, sensations, moods; until, seen and un-fed, it quiets by itself.

    tantric (Bihar school systematization of older vīkācana methods)

  • Practice

    Loving-Kindness Practice

    Maitrī Bhāvanā

    Deliberately wishing well, to yourself, a loved one, a stranger, a difficult person, everyone; until the wishing stops being an effort.

    Buddhist mettā; maitrī in the Indian yogic texts

  • Practice

    Mantra Meditation

    Japa Dhyāna

    Repetition of a chosen name or syllable, with a mala, on the breath, or in silence; giving the mind a sound to return to instead of its own noise.

    pan-Indian, vedic to tantric to everyday bhakti

  • Practice

    Mindfulness of Breath

    Ānāpānasati

    Attention resting on the natural breath, the first meditation the Buddha taught and the one every tradition keeps returning to.

    Buddhist ānāpānasati; adopted across the yoga traditions

  • Practice

    Open, Choiceless Awareness

    Attention with no object at all, whatever arises (sound, thought, itch, joy) is noticed and let pass, choosing nothing.

    vipassanā's later stages; the zazen of neighbours; advaita's abidance

  • Practice

    Steady Gaze

    Trāṭaka

    A soft, unwavering gaze at one point; classically a candle flame, that gathers the eye's wandering into a single flame of attention.

    haṭha yoga (a ṣaṭkarma); also yoga of the eyes in everyday teaching

  • Practice

    Walking Meditation

    Caṅkama

    Meditation at walking pace, the foot's rise, move and place; for minds that go stirry the moment they sit still.

    Buddhist caṅkama; the walking passages of Indian monasteries

  • Practice

    Yogic Sleep

    Yoga Nidrā

    Profound systematic relaxation while lying awake, the body sleeps, the awareness watches; rest deeper than sleep's, it is said.

    tantric origin; systematized in the modern Bihar school

Concepts & philosophy

3 entries that name what the practices do

  • Concept

    Dhyāna: What Meditation Is

    Dhyāna

    The seventh limb of Patañjali's yoga, attention flowing unbroken toward its object, like oil poured in one stream.

    Pātañjala yoga

  • Concept

    Pratyāhāra: The Withdrawal

    Pratyāhāra

    The fifth limb of yoga, the senses, drawn back from their objects like a turtle's limbs into its shell; the hinge between outer and inner practice.

    Pātañjala yoga

  • Concept

    The Witness Attitude

    Sākṣī-Bhāva

    The understanding that you are the watcher of experience, not the experience; an attitude that slowly reorganizes everything.

    advaita vedānta; adopted by the tantric Witness practices