Vipassana Meditation


	The Five Objectives of The Lord Buddha 1. For the purification of all beings 2. For passing beyond sorrow and lamentation 3. For release from bodily and mental pain 4. For seeing the truth of life; what real, true life is like 5. For the end of all suffering. The method of practice that will lead to these five objectives is Vipassana (Insight Meditation), in line with the Four Foundations of Mindfulness.
			*What is Vipassana?* Vipassana means seeing clearly. Vi means clearly; passana means seeing. To see clearly in regards to what? To see clearly three things 1. that, inside ourselves and in the whole world, things are uncertain, changing all the time (anicca). 2. that, inside ourselves and in the whole world, things are stressful, unsatisfying (dukkha). 3. that, inside ourselves and in the whole world, things are uncontrollable (anatta). The Four Foundations of Mindfulness are: Body: walking mindfully; sitting mindfully Feelings: Noting aches, pain or soreness, as well as happy feelings and neutral feelings Mind: Noting thoughts about past or future Dhammas: Noting the five hindrances - liking, disliking, drowsiness, distraction, doubt *What is Satipatthana* ?** Sati means the ability to remember or remind oneself. It is often translated as Mindfulness. Patthana means foundation or base. Satipatthana is thus translated as Foundation of Mindfulness.
	Why should we be mindful? The Four Foundations of Mindfulness are a device that stops evil, stops bad deeds, stops defilement. 'Sati nivaranam settham' - Mindfulness is an exceptional preventer of evil states. During the time when we are mindful, evil won't enter in to reach our hearts. We will have pure hearts always. It is like dark and shining light. Mindfulness is a shining light; all defilements, all evil states, are like darkness. When the bright light shines, the darkness disappears. For this reason, we should be mindful at all times - our mind will be bright, clean and peaceful all of the time. (Ajahn Tong translated by Phra Noah Yuttadhammo)		(photograph by Khun Thanat Chindaporn)