Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

1. A Program for Practice of These Meditations
I have made a complete day-to-day program of six
sittings for a hermit, and hope it may be of practical
value to those devoting themselves full-time to
meditation.
a. Early Morning Session: one sitting
Meditation: mindfulness of breathing
Why practice this in the morning? It is then when our
energies are strong and these make for a distracted mind.
Or, after having just awakened, a person may not be
fully awake, which can cause sloth and torpor. This
meditation helps overcome both these conditions. Also,
the air in the early morning is very fresh and good, so
that concentration on the breath is particularly beneficial.
Its nature is such that it is easily related to both the
important aspects of meditation development: both to
the accumulation of merits (punya-sambhava) and to
knowledge of voidness (jnana-sambhava).
Before Noon: first sitting.
Meditation: The merciful mind—for the
development of merits.
Second sitting.
Meditation: The resolution of the elements—for
knowledge of voidness.
Afternoon: first sitting.
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