If morality (Sīla) is the necessary condition and concentration (Samādhi) is the sufficient condition for wisdom (Paññā) to arise, then what exactly is Samādhi? What does it mean to practice concentration? What does it mean to enter concentration? What is the “one” in one-pointedness? What does the state of one-pointedness feel like? What must one do to reach that state?
1. Oh, the Mind and Consciousness!
What is mind, and what is consciousness? Probably only the Buddha and fully enlightened masters truly know 😊. I have to admit—I can't define them, let alone know where they reside. Reading the Abhidhamma and The Buddha and His Teachings, I found them fascinating, and I came to understand a bit more about the types of mind, the mental processes, and the makeup of consciousness across different realms of existence. But this understanding remains at the level of a reader. To truly grasp it, one must practice—that is, meditate and observe directly. And doing that takes serious time, effort, and proper methods.
Relying on Brother Alpha’s explanations, I redirected my focus to some (not all) findings from psychological and neurological research in an attempt to answer these questions. I must acknowledge that:
(i) Psychology, neuroscience, psychoanalysis, etc., all emerged long after the birth and enlightenment of the Buddha.
(ii) Most scientific studies in these fields are based on a small group of subjects. The findings may not generalize to populations outside of those studied.
(iii) Results often vary depending on study conditions, measurement tools, sample populations, and research goals. That’s why researchers come up with countless models and formulas to explain and predict human consciousness and behavior.
(iv) Above all, what the mind and consciousness actually are remains contested even at the level of definition, not to mention their exact location, structure, or function.[1]
Highlighting these points shows just how complex mind research really is. Science will still need a lot more time to (hopefully) understand it. But who knows—maybe science can become a valuable tool to assist spiritual cultivation, helping decode the deeper implications of the Abhidhamma, which back in the Buddha’s time lacked the tools to explain these concepts scientifically.[2]
2. Personal Experience with One-Pointedness
If we set aside the complicated issues of defining mind and consciousness—their similarities, differences, roles, and effects—and focus only on answering the earlier questions, then based on my own practice, I’ve found that:
(1) The state of one-pointedness is a calm, flat stillness—like standing in the middle of a vast plain on a silent, dark night. The dominant sensation is something like hearing a soft oooo...ooo...ooo (or something similar). Depending on how deep or shallow the state is, one may still hear external sounds (from family, animals, etc.) or feel mental ripples suddenly arise from within (like lingering thoughts or unresolved issues in life). The better the quality of one-pointedness, the thicker the stillness becomes, with fewer mental ripples, and less impact from external noise. When the state is strong, a sense of bliss (pīti) emerges, and the body feels light. If the bliss becomes intense, it comes in waves of pleasant tingling, especially around the chest area.
(2) To enter the state of one-pointedness, we must eliminate mental distractions (wandering thoughts). If our morality is weak, our life chaotic, our work overwhelming, with too many worries or too many social obligations (trying to please everyone), our mind becomes like a troop of wild monkeys—leaping uncontrollably all over the place. We can’t catch them or drive them away. One monkey is hard enough. Two? Even harder. A whole troop? What can we do? Either we leave (stop meditating and wait for another chance) or just sit and watch them dance around for fun.
There is another way to deal with this monkey troop: shrink or eliminate their living space. If we think of our mind as a big boat floating on the sea, and the monkeys (wandering thoughts) are bouncing all over it, instead of chasing them with a broom (a hopeless task), try something more radical: sink the boat. As the boat sinks, the space for wandering thoughts gradually disappears. Eventually, there’s nowhere left for the monkeys to stand—let alone jump around—and the distractions vanish on their own.
(End of Part 2/8)
Notes:
[1] See Morsella, Godwin, Jantz, Krieger, and Gazzaley, 2016. Homing in on consciousness in the nervous system: An action-based synthesis. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 1–70. In this study, the authors propose an entirely new theory of consciousness called Passive Frame Theory. According to this theory, consciousness plays a passive role—essentially acting as a mediator that transmits behavioral signals—rather than an active role in generating behavior, as previous theories had suggested.
[2] I haven’t yet looked into studies on the effects of meditation on consciousness. But the outlook doesn’t seem too promising—at least from my brief scan of a few related sections in Schneider and Velmans (2017), The Blackwell companion to consciousness. John Wiley & Sons. When the time or opportunity arises, I plan to explore this book in more depth: James (1902), The varieties of religious experience: A study in human nature. New York.