Buddhist-Meditation-Systematic-and-Practical

prolonged meditation on the rise and fall of the
diaphragm (limiting concentration during sitting
practice to this area alone)? Or what effects might
be produced from samatha meditation on the center
of the body two fingers' widths above the navel?
2. Can insight, vipasyana or samapatti, be obtained
by any method where samatha practice is not first
accomplished?
These questions arise because one does not recognize
clearly the principles and practice of meditation. We
have emphasized many times in this book that there can
be no samapatti (investigation, insight), without the
initial development of samatha (tranquility). (See Ch.
VII, C.)
All good samatha techniques teach the gathering of the
whole mind upon one point, and this is what is being
done in these methods. It is easy to gain calm by
practice in the region of the abdomen. In that region of
the body is the earth-circle, and this element, having the
characteristic of steadfastness, is therefore a suitable
base for meditation practice.
Another reason for this practice is that the disturbed
mind is caused by too much energy rising up, and
concentration above this midpoint of the body may only
increase this. On the other hand, one-pointed-ness
established lower than the navel may easily stimulate
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