An invaluable resource for Buddhist scholars, meditation teachers, and practitioners wishing to deepen their own practice of mindfulness. In this in-depth guide, the author examines all aspects of mindfulness practice, explores the history of mindfulness in the Buddhist tradition, and provides instructions for meditation practice, all supported by translations of the early Buddhist canonical texts.

This book identifies what is meant by sati (smrti), usually translated as ‘mindfulness’, in early Buddhism, and examines its soteriological functions and its central role in the early Buddhist practice and philosophy. Using textual analysis and criticism, it takes new approaches to the subject through a comparative study of Buddhist texts in Pali, Chinese and Sanskrit. It also furnishes new perspectives on the ancient teaching by applying the findings in modern psychology. In contemporary Buddhism, the practice of mindfulness is zealously advocated by the Theravada tradition, which is the only early Buddhist school that still exists today. Through detailed analysis of Theravada's Pali Canon and the four Chinese Agamas - which correspond to the four main Nikayas in Pali and belong to some early schools that no longer exist - this book shows that mindfulness is not only limited to the role as a method of insight (vipassana) meditation, as presented by many Theravada advocates, but it also has a key role in serenity (samatha) meditation. It elucidates how mindfulness functions in the path to liberation from a psychological perspective, that is, how it helps to achieve an optimal cognitive capability and emotional state, and thereby enables one to attain the ultimate religious goal. Furthermore, the author argues that the well-known formula of ekaayano maggo, which is often interpreted as ‘the only way’, implies that the four satipa.t.thaanas (establishments of mindfulness) constitute a comprehensive path to liberation, and refer to the same as kaayagataa sati, which has long been understood as ‘mindfulness of the body’ by the tradition. The analysis shows that kaayagataa sati and the four satipa.t.thaanas are two different ways of formulating the teaching on mindfulness according to different schemes of classification of phenomena.

This book offers a new interpretation of the relationship between 'insight practice' (satipatthana) and the attainment of the four jhànas (i.e., right samàdhi), a key problem in the study of Buddhist meditation. The author challenges the traditional Buddhist understanding of the four jhànas as states of absorption, and shows how these states are the actualization and embodiment of insight (vipassanà). It proposes that the four jhànas and what we call 'vipassanà' are integral dimensions of a single process that leads to awakening. Current literature on the phenomenology of the four jhànas and their relationship with the 'practice of insight' has mostly repeated traditional Theravàda interpretations. No one to date has offered a comprehensive analysis of the fourfold jhàna model independently from traditional interpretations. This book offers such an analysis. It presents a model which speaks in the Nikàyas' distinct voice. It demonstrates that the distinction between the 'practice of serenity' (samatha-bhàvanà) and the 'practice of insight' (vipassanà-bhàvanà) – a fundamental distinction in Buddhist meditation theory – is not applicable to early Buddhist understanding of the meditative path. It seeks to show that the common interpretation of the jhànas as 'altered states of consciousness', absorptions that do not reveal anything about the nature of phenomena, is incompatible with the teachings of the Pàli Nikàyas. By carefully analyzing the descriptions of the four jhànas in the early Buddhist texts in Pàli, their contexts, associations and meanings within the conceptual framework of early Buddhism, the relationship between this central element in the Buddhist path and 'insight meditation' becomes revealed in all its power. Early Buddhist Meditation will be of interest to scholars of Buddhist studies, Asian philosophies and religions, as well as Buddhist practitioners with a serious interest in the process of insight meditation.

An accessible beginner’s guide to the practice of mindfulness. Buddhist meditator and scholar monk Anālayo examines the various aspects of mindfulness practice and its many benefits. He also explores the history of mindfulness in the Buddhist tradition. At the end of every chapter he offers practical exercises to help develop mindfulness.

Analayo investigates the meditative practices of compassion and emptiness by examining and interpreting material from the early Buddhist discourses. Similar to his previous study of satipaa'-a'-hana, he brings a new dimension to our understanding by comparing Pali texts with versions that have survived in Chinese, Sanskrit and Tibetan. The result is a wide-ranging exploration of what these practices meant in early Buddhism.

The Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta is the most influential scripture in Buddhist meditation. It is the foundation text for the modern schools of 'vipassanā' or 'insight' meditation. The well-known Pali discourse is, however, only one of many early Buddhist texts that deal with mindfulness. This is the first full-scale study to encompass all extant versions of the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, taking into account the dynamic evolution of the Buddhist scriptures and the broader Indian meditative culture. A new vision emerges from this groundbreaking study: mindfulness is not a system of 'dry insight' but is the 'way to convergence' leading the mind to deep states of peace.

Mindfulness in Early Buddhism is a timely and thoroughgoing examination of the significance, meaning and development of mindfulness in early Buddhism. Buddhist meditator and scholar Bhikkhu Anālayo here provides answers to questions such as: To what extent is mindfulness an originally Buddhist concept? Is there a place for bare awareness and what are its results? What is the significance of mindfulness of the body and what are its benefits? How does mindfulness relate to memory and to the practice of recollection? What are the different benefits associated with mindfulness in the early discourses? and How does mindfulness relate to other aspects of the early Buddhist path of practice? In Part I Anālayo examines topics including mindful eating, ethics and compassion, central aspects of mindfulness practice, and a history of mindfulness, showing how from early Buddhism mindfulness evolved into the modern vipassana and dzogchen traditions' understandings. At the end of each chapter in Part I there are instructions for meditation practice. In part II Anālayo provides annotated translations from the Chinese Agamas and a comparative study of their Pali parallels.

In print for more than fifty years and translated into some ten languages, Nyanaponika Thera’s The Heart of Buddhist Meditation has attained the stature of a modern spiritual classic. Combining deep personal insight with the power of clear exposition, the author guides the reader into the essential principles making up the Buddha’s Way of Mindfulness. Besides offering a lucid account of the basic practices of insight meditation, the book contains a complete translation of the Great Discourse on the Foundations of Mindfulness, the Satipatthana Sutta, the Buddha’s own instructions on the practice. “A work of unique importance ... written with great depth, extraordinary knowledge, deep humanity... I do not know of any book which could be compared to this work as a guide to meditation.” Erich Fromm

Based on the early Brahminic literature, the author asserts the origin of the method of meditation learned by the Buddha from his two teachers and identifies some authentic teachings of the Buddha on meditation.

A quick guide to the history of the world's most popular meditation practice. From the time of the Buddha to the age of meditation apps, this straightforward introduction gives an entire overview of the use of the term "mindfulness" in Buddhist meditative traditions. Drawing upon years of experience through practicing, researching, and teaching the history of mindfulness, Dr. Sarah Shaw offers the first-ever accessible guide to the roots of this ancient meditation technique that continues to benefit millions throughout the world. Although the term is heard everywhere from boardrooms and classrooms to gyms and yoga studios, surprisingly little is known about the origins of mindfulness. This easy-to-read short history will give readers, whether they are seasoned or novice practitioners, a better sense of the most practiced meditation in the world.