How do we meditate?
This training is in relation to the mind. We can't isolate components of our being – it is a whole – but the conventional distinction of body-mind is useful. So, let's start with the body. Stop moving. Be physically still. A still body engenders a still mind (and vice versa). You can stand and meditate or you can, more classically, sit down; on a chair or on the floor. The main thing is that you are relatively comfortable, relatively relaxed. And I seriously emphasise 'relatively' in that you should not demand or expect 'perfectly' – we establish intention but do not demand... anything. Sit with your spine straight, the chest open, allow the breath and bodily energies to flow freely. Establish the intention to relax. Give attention to your shoulders, notice any tensions. Perhaps rotate them to be sure they are relatively loose, relaxed – then be still and compare the before-and-after. Likewise with your neck; study it, then rotate your head to loosen it. Again, note the difference. Sit as still as you can and give attention to other parts of your body... the heart area, the abdomen, the hands, etc. You can simply note their tone or gently massage them if there is felt tension – but don't turn this into a massage session 😊 – the aim is to simply relax, as best you can, knowing that 'perfect' is not attainable. Feel the whole body as an energy field, a sense experience. It is a mass, it has heat, it feels gravity, there are pressures and sensations. Hold these as you would hold and observe a handful of pebbles – not getting too fixed on any one. Breathe. Notice the breath. Likewise, not as a single pebble but as a flow – the breath entering the body, the diaphragm distending, your abdomen filling out drawing air into the lungs – a pause – then the exhalation – follow that with careful attention. You can use counting; one on the in-breath, two on the out, three on the in... up to ten, start again at one, the in-breath. You are opening to relaxation, to calming the body and mind with focus primarily on the breath. Those mind-bits that are not the breath are not relevant just now. You wander off, wake up to the fact that you have been wandering (at some point), and go back to the breath. Establish training in this way.

When we deliberately make our activity, both physical and mental, relatively simple the mind will naturally calm. Throwing stones into a pond will agitate the water. Just stop, be still, the water will become like polished glass, limpid, bright and clean. Sitting on the beach just watching the waves roll in and out (like the breath) is simply peaceful. Laying on your back on a clear night just looking up at the stars – ahhhh, sublime. The beauty of training with the breath is that you always have it with you – and, if you forget to bring it along... you are dead. No problems 😊. You can stop anywhere, any time, and turn your attention to the breath. Breathe in, relax... As you become more practised the association with the breath will more easily bring that calm and peaceful state of mind.

The why?
With a relatively calm mind you are more easily able to see, in any moment, your habitual reactions to a situation; you can see anger arising, you can see fear entering the mind. The habit is often just to react. If we first see, then respond, there is a bit of a gap in which we can think 'hmmm, anger – do I want to go there?'. That's the concept but the reality is not always so easy. It takes practice. Like catching a ball... as a kid you had to learn that. Maybe you missed the catch and, wham, right in the face. Anger, fear, jealousy, depression... can be like that – wham! It just overwhelms you. But, with practice, we can transform the habits of a lifetime. We can learn. Be patient.

And the transcendent?
This really warrants a separate post but here are a few thoughts. I earlier mentioned the religious and the spiritual. The word religion has its roots in the Latin word 'religio' = to gather together (unite), to connect or join. The inferred suggestion is dissolving the barriers between humans and the divine; this is primarily theological. Spirituality has a wider inference based on the sense that there is something greater than myself, some-thing beyond the material connecting with some higher power or reality. In Buddhism no such higher power or reality is defined nor is the idea of a spirit or soul. What is transcended is ignorance (avijjā = non-knowledge) – we see through our incorrect understanding of the nature of nature and we more clearly see our deluded perceptions of reality. To acknowledge that our views are subject to bias and distortion, that these views are influenced by unseen forces – upbringing, emotion, culture, etc. – is not a sign of weakness but a critical step toward authenticity, toward truth. And we are capable of seeing through our conditioning and seeing the truth. In positive terms transcendence is the arising of wisdom and freedom from suffering. Does this seem a good reason to meditate? With a clear mind you can more clearly and quietly investigate the opinions and perceptions you have about nature, especially your own nature and perhaps you see a few wonky ones. The Buddha's teaching offers many useful benchmarks against which to consider and evaluate your views and opinions.

Here are a few key principles that can be usefully considered:

1. The three characteristics of all conditions; impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, non-self (anicca, dukkha, anatta).
2. The dependently arisen nature of all conditions; paticca samuppada.
3. The law of kamma; cause and effect.
4. The Four Noble Truths (suffering, its cause [desire], its end, the path).
5. The importance of morality, virtue (sila). Keeping the five precepts.
6. The three refuges: Buddha, Dhamma, Sangha.

Taking one of these themes and giving time to study the academic information presented online, in books, in audio talks, etc. will hopefully give you new perspectives. Bear in mind that information conflict and overload can easily happen. Keep it simple, one step at a time. Contemplate one of these principles while you sit quietly listening to the 'echo' that comes when you balance these ideas against your existing views. For example, the first one, impermanence. This applies to all things – you, your body, your mind. Will you die? Today? Do you see the naturalness of that? Are you fully at peace with that possibility? Will you lose your mind? Dementia? It is quite possible. These are just aspects of nature – like gravity, heat, cold, hunger... and we do our best to maintain our comfort but peacefully allow that 'perfectly' is not possible. When we can relax with that, truly be at peace with our current situation, our current reality, the present moment... then the mind has a stillness and tranquillity that surpasses any pleasure derived from sense distraction or material acquisition. Fully establishing a relaxed clarity and understanding moves us toward liberation (from ignorance) and the heart is naturally imbued with love and compassion.

PS. Having read through the text a few times editing I could see the repeated inclination to expand and further qualify many of the ideas here so... I have renamed it -101 with the thought that there can be a -102. Later... :)

So back to 'this business' this me/you life business – dissembling the various angular contusions of the mind. The sheer weight of it all can sometimes appear daunting, questionably balanced, scary and overwhelming. Begin small. Perhaps, analogously, just trim a few of the easily accessible, smaller branches with a handsaw? The important thing is that the need to undertake the work is seen and that one begins with the intention to continue to completion. Winter is coming and past experience has given me a clear appreciation of the benefits of doing this – and that – work.

Splitting the cut logs is just another stage in dissembling. Various tools can be used; a hatchet, machete or other smaller whacker/cutter to trim any remaining bits-sticking-out as they snag when trying to put them in the stove. A set of wedges can be a useful aid. And a good two-handed axe or a dedicated splitting maul is all great exercise! We had a really gnarly old pine some years back and felt is was good grounds for getting a powered splitter. Awesome! Becoming familiar with the relative benefits of each tool is important. Those contusions? What is the best tool? A nicely honed metta (loving-kindness) can be really useful to work with some of your awkward sticking-out bits. Patience – pacing ones efforts (samma vayama) - allowing that a particularly gnarly contusion you have may take a long time to dissemble. Take time to investigate (dhamma vicaya) and understand which bits are most usefully worked on, let go of, first. And studying how the 'grain' runs, where is the best line of cleavage, the best point of entry for clean severance; raise the axe with confidence, bring it down with an even swing and make a clean cut - right through to the chopping block. Swing too soft and the axe gets stuck part way into the log - too hard and the axe can get buried in the chopping block. So, a patient and balanced effort - working with determination (adhiṭṭhāna) - to clearly know the work that needs to be done, and making a commitment to do it.

Ajahn Thanissaro wrote a book - Mind Like Fire Unbound - that wonderfully considers nibbāna in relation to its literal meaning: the extinguishing of a fire. He says: "fire is caused by the excitation or agitation of the heat property. To continue burning, it must have sustenance, (fuel, upādāna – literally: clinging, grasping)". Detachment, splitting off, severance, letting go, requires a relaxation of the relationship, the bond. The entanglement that binds the fibres of a piece of wood together need to be separated, relaxed, opened up. If you have a relatively short, even grained log this can be done gently, with minimal effort. If you have an old, gnarly, knotty issue in mind then it really needs to be understood well before applying effort; strike in the wrong place and the axe flies off and whacks you on the shin, or worse. Be kind, be compassionate, be patient but... be resolute. That sucker is going in the fire! Literally, in the context of the wood, or metaphorically in the sense of our attachments – which can, with practice, just be laid aside, let go of. And what is your fuel? What do you burn dependent on - what are you addicted to? What is your 'habit'? Try searching 'common bad habits' and see how many fit you? And there are also many good habits but it is behaviour that harms self and others that needs to be let go of.

The fire is a dynamic, active, life-element. When visible we see it as clinging, being bound to, some kind of fuel. When the fuel is exhausted or the flame lets go of its fuel the fire is freed, released – but not annihilated. The simile is not suggesting we identify with fire as some kind of life-force, some kind of spirit or soul. It is an image of relationship to contemplate... where does the fire go? And... ultimately, what is the nature of the unconditioned, the mind of an arahant when the sense of self is seen as perceptually fabricated, empty, fugacious, evanescent... and, this is a BIG topic, so, in the meantime, back to the firewood.

Transporting is a fairly simple, logistic exercise with nothing too technical involved. The split wood is here and the wood shed is there... although, there are always variables. Do we get people to form a chain and pass it by hand? A couple of people with wheelbarrows? The quad ATV with a trailer? Me on my own just chucking it down the hill by stages? Having our fuel relocated from... sub-conscious and unaware to recognition and attunement does need to happen. Left where it is it just settles deeper. Good, trusted friends can really be helpful.

Stacking can be a bit of an art - at least I require it so - as opposed to just 'throwing it in the shed'. Barbarians! There needs to be older wood in one stack for this winter and green wood in another to be burned next season and, unless there is a physical wall between them, the stack needs to be self-supporting, to be independent. Don't you too? Building a vertical wall of split wood takes practice; interlocking, orientation and size selection. Simple and satisfying work. But I did forget one last item - kindling. A nice stash of all the collected up small bits left from the crash, smash and slice; waste nothing. Shorter, even grained parts of a log can be set aside for kindling - the delicate split - the kind-ling. Paring off slivers the size of your finger can be tricky and be careful that your finger doesn't join the pile :(

All stages require undistracted attention (sati sampajañña), deft hand-eye coordination. And the overall result... sitting in my kuti with the kettle gently bubbling. Meditating, drinking a hot beverage with the warmth of a quiet friend engendering a calm sensitivity and a softening of time. A silent dialogue with nature. Cosy.

Reading what others say about firewood, I discover that since about 2019 one can be lumbersexual. Funny old world. I also came across a book called: Norwegian Wood by Lars Mytting - Chopping, Stacking, and Drying Wood the Scandinavian Way.

And here are some canonical references:

Upādāna Sutta (SN 12.52) Craving increases when you linger on pleasing things that stimulate grasping, illustrated with the simile of a bonfire.

Upādāna Sutta SN 45.173
“Bhikkhus, there are these four kinds of clinging (upādāna). What four?

• Clinging to sensual pleasure, (kāmupādāna)
• clinging to views, (ditthupādāna)
• clinging to rules and vows, (rites, rituals, etc. with the delusion that they suffice) (sīlabbatupādāna)
• clinging to ideas of a self. (atta-vādupādāna)

The Noble Eightfold Path is to be developed for direct knowledge of these four kinds of clinging, for the full understanding of them, for their utter destruction, for their abandoning.”

Sammaditthi Sutta M9 (the section on clinging) = "When a noble disciple has thus understood clinging... the cessation of clinging... he here and now makes an end of suffering. ...and has arrived at this true Dhamma".

Adittapariyaya Sutta: The Fire Sermon uses the harmful nature of fire in the context of the three roots: passion, aversion, and delusion. It considers the dependent (addictive) nature and limitations of sense experience through which one develops disenchantment (nibbida), a weariness with the endless pursuit of 'fuel'.

My thoughts here are more from a personal, practice perspective and are based on the consideration of two factors: context and view. The first relates to our situation, our environment, our lifestyle, etc. – our dimension generally but particularly in the mind. And the second relates to our conceptual compass, our vision, outlook, goal, etc. For example, if I wanted to make a table, I would go into the workshop (context) and look for, muse on, tools and wood (view). If I wanted to get enlightened, to have insight, where would I go and what would I look for? Very simply, I would go to a quiet place and look for silence. I would listen. The mind that is listening is non-constructive it is receptive, still, stable, composed, poised... and I would call this meditation... and I could call this jhana. It is not static, it is dynamic, it is alive.

In the meditation grouping, at the end of the eight-fold path, we have vayama, sati & samadhi – effort, awareness (mindfulness, presence...) & concentration (stability, composure...) I suggest several words as I feel that words have different intentional meaning, nuances that season both our context and, especially, our view. Am I building a table, a bench, a counter, a trestle? Each thought inflects a different perception. Definition helps bring understanding with a well formulated question often containing the answer.

The Satipatthana Sutta starts with the body.
"Breathing in a long breath, one knows (discerns, understands), 'I am breathing in a long breath'..."
And throughout the sutta the emphasis on knowing, discerning, understanding is consistently repeated. And the sutta ends... "This is the direct path for the purification of beings... and for the realisation of Nibbāna — namely, the four foundations (arousings, frames of reference) of awareness."

In the Ānāpānasati Sutta MN 118 the process is extended: mindfulness > seven factors of enlightenment > liberation.

To have clear, undistracted knowing requires a mind that is balanced and composed; this is the context, the stable space; the workshop. The view is the knowing, the insight. (Explore the first factor of the eight-fold path, samma ditthi). In the table analogy, having entered the workshop, we select appropriate tools with a clear understanding of relationships: leg, rails, top... Words again, but I enjoy musing on perception, which sees, and apperception, which understands. My general thought is that samadhi provides context and sati (supports) view. Samadhi is the laboratory and sati is, together, the elements, their fluid mixing and, primarily, the observation of the process. Being in the body... "Breathing in a long breath..." there is clear knowing, observation.

I think the original question needs revision. Perhaps, "what are the causes for the arising of insight?" For context, find a room or place that is tidy, clean, quiet where you can rest uninterrupted for a period of time. Use objects that can form a shrine (in the widest sense of the word) with elements that remind you of or in some way symbolise your goal. Internalise this, not as thinking but as feeling. Relax. And then relax some more. The breath is a useful anchor to the present moment. Too much of meditation is about getting – rather than being.

Thought and thinking are very commonly regarded as an obstacle but it is important to note that these are both present in first jhana. Obsessing against thought is more obstructive than obsessive thought.

Common meditation language sees that: "I am concentrating on the object" or, "I am with or mindful of my breath". I am not on my workshop, nor with or of my workshop. I and my table-to-be, the perception and the apperception of table is all in my workshop, in my mind. Can I be fully relaxed and peaceful with all of that? The expectation of anything else other than what is creates an unreality, a perversion of the truth.

Wood that has perfectly straight grain lacks character, it can be very bland. The beauty in a plank that has twists and convoluted turns shaped by nature can be difficult to bring out but is a joy to behold when we do. Our work is not to overcome, but to refine. Listen to the problem making, the dialogue of wrongess, of lack. Breathing in with awareness is to know that you are alive. Rejoice. Take a caring interest in the grain of the table wood, the timbre of the space that surrounds the content of your current encounter – your mind. It is timeless. It is never right, it is never wrong.

From the Ghosa sutta: AN 2.125-126... "There are two conditions for the arising of right view. The voice of another and appropriate attention (yoniso manasikara)." Dhamma vicaya = investigation, examination, inquiry... of dhamma is the second of the seven factors of enlightenment.

Be still, relax, let go of expectation. With a (relatively) calm mind, listen, take an interest, pay attention, observe. The seeds of dhamma will bring forth the fruits of insight.

There are many ways of considering the 'who am I' question and I consider two: relationship and function. I define myself using an interplay of internal and external factors, an elaborate 'join the dots' to form a line-image of me. The quote, in part, from the previous post by the UCal cosmologist on defining time: "...you isolate part of the universe and call it your clock" - we generally use the earth relative to the sun. When defining my self I isolate 'this here' - relative to 'all the rest'. I include many things as being me & mine within the sphere of my-self but feel separate from a great deal, most of it. When I have a group of people, or objects, that I comfortably relate to or identity with I don't feel isolated. When those relationships seem fragile, less substantial, I do feel isolated, lonely, alienated. Isolation is always relative - this (me), separate from other.

One dictionary defines function as: "What something is used for" with other meanings but generally pointing to performance. It is about what you 'do', about your participation - assuming that you will do it well, that you will succeed. With no or little sense of function there are often feelings of non-inclusion, one feels isolated. One useful reflection is the Lokavipatti Sutta: Anguttara 8.6 on what are commonly called the 'Eight Worldly Winds' where socially promoted function has us pursuing the: 'gain, fame, praise, pleasure' and avoiding their opposites. A simple song - The Winds of Change - presents a simple response: refuge. [refuge needs an article + cf. social media] The main point is to recognise that it is impossible to get only gain and never have loss.

Some thoughts on resolution.
You can't function how you can't - you can't be what you aren't - but you can make effort (work) with what you've got. Things can and will change but!! it (life, the world, me) has base limitations. There has to be an underlying acceptance - to fully recognise that you are what you are... it can/will change... but, right now, you are like 'this'. You can be at peace with that. You can. A common quote is that: "you need to love your self". Quite true but to recognise the difference between liking and loving. The first accords with preference, desire - along with comparison, performance, function, etc. - where the second, love, is not judgemental. Love is not relative - it is accepting, embracing; not isolated. Isolation is always relative - this (me), being separate from other. (repeated for emphasis)

The base problem is the creation of a self (ego?) - this me thing - with which we compare and evaluate our relationships and functionality. And it is created, it is conditioned, programmed over time through a very complex process (mother, father, culture, media, etc.). This self-that-I-perceive is relative and contextually dependent. Advertising, the media, the world-out-there tells me that I should be... 'body image, success, media presence, happy, gender appropriate, socially conforming, etc.' (list from chatGPT) but attempts to permanently establish this ideal, solid and universally approved 'me' are doomed. Sorry about that :)- Sometimes we get it 'right' sometimes we don't. Some days it is sunny, some days it rains. Accepting that as truth we can be at peace with it, be at peace with this moment.

Underlying all this is our curious ability to know, to be able to witness, to observe the flow of the mind. This observation allows inquiry which leads to understanding, to wisdom. This ability can be trained and it is the key to unlocking the chains of our habits, our fears, our anger, our compulsions, our addictions. If we never recognise that we are bound, enslaved, there is never a move to explore - and it is our exploration that leads to discovery, to release.

A UCal cosmologist said: "The essence of relativity is that there is no absolute time, no absolute space. Everything is relative. When you try to discuss time in the context of the universe, you need the simple idea that you isolate part of the universe and call it your clock". The Buddha said [Anguttara 3.47]: "for the conditioned an arising is seen, cessation is seen, and its alteration while it persists is seen." This is experiential, referring to what I experience. Whether it exists independently or not doesn't really matter; when I feel too hot... I do. It may be a delusion but it is unpleasant either way. That's what I know.

I reference the above speculations as I find it useful to muse on existence, reality possibilities, outside of my current belief system; to open to alternatives. I have a model of the world, about me, you, here, there and everywhere that is me, that is mine; and some of it is silly. Here is a silly theory on the [Brontosauruses by Anne Elk (Miss)] and it is silly but... can we allow that (some of) our theories have a similar silliness, a delusional quality? We are missing something? My theory is a bit stuck, ossified, in need of change, updating. I need to change my mind. Satire can help :) Quite some time ago I started exploring a new theory: Buddhism.

The Buddha deflected speculative cosmological, metaphysical theories saying "There is suffering, the cause of, the end of and the path to the end." [Majjhima Nikaya 63: Cula-Malunkya Sutta] This is the four noble truths. Interesting. Along with the emphasis to muse on the impermanent nature of all conditions - but why make such a big deal out of the patently obvious? And the teaching on non-self, impersonality? And, the second truth, the cause = the attachment, the binding to 'stuff.' And I can see that this includes (addiction to) all my theories - of me and mine - as well as to objects, substances, things. The end of suffering = cessation, letting go, non-attachment, non-possession = freedom. The end.

Another story, the Rohitassa Sutta [Anguttara 4.45] which concludes with: "...an intelligent person, understanding the world, has completed the spiritual journey... gone to the end of the world." And the key word is 'understanding'. Knowledge, learning, education, wisdom, discernment, insight. To be able to unpack our theories, lay them out in full view (of a clear and bright mind) such that the overall picture becomes clear, comes into focus. I once had a theory about, a belief in Santa Claus. There was no doubt about it. It was true. Subsequent information has me understanding otherwise. Are there are other lingering delusions? Imagine so.

How to be free - of that, and all causes of suffering? Also in the Rohitassa sutta the Buddha says: "...it is in this fathom-long body with its perception and mind that I describe the world..." The mind, as an umbrella term, defies precise definition but it can be directly experienced. I know - what do I know? - what I know. Endlessly circular but knowing, awareness, mindfulness is a key to freedom. To have a clear, discerning perspective on what I know (hear, think, smell...) - as opposed to just believing it... because mother told me it was true - or whatever the foundational seed of my perception/memory was. Satire helps... to hold 'it' (life) lightly, to be able to laugh at ourselves, to open to the absurdity, the vast potentials for joy, the questionable truth of...? But all mediums of reflection and inquiry require an honesty, a clear and bright mind as a mind that is fogged by inflexible, fundamental beliefs can not see beyond itself. [consider the difference between belief and knowledge]

Meditation is a simple means of thinning the fog, clearing enough space in the mind for comparative evaluation - for effective musing. And once underway the process of meditation has an amplifying, expansive effect; like the rising sun with increasing warmth dispelling the morning fog. The mind becomes more clear and calm - and this becomes the spring board for greater clarity and calm, for peace. More on this - and the end (of ignorance) - at a latter time. The End.