AboutJustin Choo Expertise When in doubt seek it out. All your questions will be answered, and you may not have to agree with the answers. Such is the beauty of Buddhism. You are free to decide. I follow the Theravada tradition, and have been studying Buddhism for more than 40 years. Please view my profile for more details. I have answered more than a thousand questions since joining this category. You are welcome to try me.
Experience I was brought up in the 50's as a Buddhist. For the past 30 years I have read numerous books on Buddhism and listened to numerous talks on Buddhism by well-respected and learned monks and lay teachers. I conduct Buddhist classes for parents of Sunday School children in a Theravada Buddhist Temple.
My teacher was the late Chief Reverend, The Ven. K Sri Dhammananda of The Brickfields Buddhist Mahavihara, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. You can view the relevent website in memory of my revered late teacher @
http://www.ksridhammananda.com
Organizations I am a life member of the Buddhist Missionary Society Malaysia.
Publications YOU ARE INVITED TO VISIT MY BLOG @
http://lifeislikethat999.blogspot.com/
Published a book called "The Rainbow And The Treasure". It is a compilation of extracts from various sources to introduce Buddhism to beginners. (Currently out of print)
Education/Credentials Bachelor of Commerce And Administration, Victoria University Of Wellington, NZ.(1974)
It seems to me that the point of Samatha meditation is to quiet the mind.
However, would you not agree that the mind also includes our emotions,
and, as such, we must not only calm our thoughts so that there is less
'chatter', but also calm the various sensations we feel? So that we are not
swayed about by gusts of sudden sadness and spontaneous happiness, but so
that we are in a more or less constant state of calm peacefulness?
If so, how would one go about doing this? Is this simply a natural result of
calming our thoughts, or is there some special practice we must do to
accomplish this?
Thank you very much for your time,
Nicolaas
Answer Hi Nicolaas,
Welcome back; again!
When you have cultivated a calmed mind, every emotion falls into place. You will be mindful to maintain equanimity in your behaviour.
Of course, this constant state of mindfulness is not easy to maintain, unless one has achieved a very high level of meditation practice.
