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)
How are you? I have some questions below that I hope you can help to shed some light on,
1. What is the meditation method most conducive for Nibbana?
2. What is the link between meditation and Nibbana?
3. Is Mahasi's method of meditation with 16 level of "nana" (derived from Vissudimagga) a good yardstick to check on the progress?
4. Is jhana during meditation conducise for progress towards Nibbana?
Thank you.
With metta,
SW
ANSWER: Hi Soo Wan,
Welcome back after such a long absence.
First I must confess that I am not much of a meditator partly due to certain inflexible circumstances. So what I share here will be "academic and common sense" knowledge.
2. What is the link between meditation and Nibbana?
Without the correct practice of Buddhist meditation, no one can attain liberation. Meditation is to cultivate the mind to the purest level that it will escape the cycle of births and deaths.
3. Is Mahasi's method of meditation with 16 level of "nana" (derived from Vissudimagga) a good yardstick to check on the progress?
We can go very deep into the details of meditation and quote numerous esoteric terms and conceps. I plead ignorance on this.
4. Is jhana during meditation conducise for progress towards Nibbana?
This again is another controversial concept. You will get contradictory answers if you keep on asking different people!
To me one would experience the different stages of jhanas while progressing towards the ultimate liberation. With Nibbana as the goal, jhana is just a passing experience.
Hope this helps.
Take care.
Justin Choo.
You are invited to visit my blog
and Rev. Dhammika's :
QUESTION: Thanks for your answer, Justin. The ultimate aim of a practising buddhist is to achieve liberation and unless we are a sotapana, we can anytime regress with even more dukkha awaiting for us in samsara. We are indeed very very lucky to have come this close to Buddha's teaching that show us the way to the deathless. Please tell me in detail, as a lay person, how (what area to concentrate on) to practise with the aim of "entering the stream" IN THIS VERY LIFE. Our next life is a total unknown and as such there is a great urgency to enter the stream asap; do you agree?
Answer Hi Soo Wan,
Considering the unimaginably and incalculably long time span of one's existence, is it possible that this life will be our last one?? In terms of mathematical probability, the answer is a big "NO". I may sound cynical, but you be the judge.
In theory, it is very easy to attain Nibbana. Nibanna means "no craving". If you don't have any more craving, you are an enlightened person. There are only 3 simple steps to achieve this...
