Learn to meditate this spring (How to)

Beginning meditators are babies in white, so go easy. Meditation may make one sleepy at first.

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An outfit just for practice helps.

It's spring. This is a good time, maybe the best time, to begin a regular meditation practice,. Well, actually the best time would have been seven years ago, but the second-best time is right now. Sitting can graduate to walking meditation, mindfulness in nature, then deep stillness and clarity to see things (vipassana) as they truly are.

Do the basics: Put on all white. Find a quiet spot apart from distractions. Use this spot over and over again. It becomes powerful. Set down a mat and cushion (a bundle of leaves or grass is enough to get the tailbone higher than the knees). Sit. Inhale deeply. Release. Do it again a few times, without forcing the air out. It's just about letting go completely, so completely that the body hangs as if held up by a clothing hanger, not stiff, not slack.

Straighter is more comfortable, even though it doesn't seem like it at first. Posture is important to attention. Bring (advert) the attention to the present moment, this moment, and to stay in just this moment, remain aware of the breath. Which breath? This breath, just the one happening now all by itself. Become the watcher (not the commenter, fixer, improver, slowdowner, or anything else), just the watcher. This is mindfulness -- clear awareness of the present without evaluation.

Whoa, what a trip! What was that? I want that again!

Set a time limit in advance and keep it. Even if it would be nice to go longer because it is going so well, know the time of rising. Even if it is going horribly with raving lunatic thoughts of a psychopath with lurid fantasies and wrath, lust and revenge, delusion and a lightshow, know the time of rising. The mind will thank you later.

Ten minutes is a good start time, slowly working up to an hourlong sit. That seems impossible now, but in time, whaddyaknow, it suddenly is possible. What changed? I'dunno. This practice is about persistence. It does itself and then there is no effort. The enemies of that are expectations, unsettled greed or desire for achieving something, and the Five Hindrances. They will come to hinder. They are already present. They can be overcome. But whether or not they have been overcome, persist. This is spring. This is the beginning. Have "beginner's mind" in place of the "monkey mind" that usually rules the cage. Smile. It helps.

Instructions are confusing because it's so simple.

It is easy to say that "meditation is NOT about thinking." That's clear. That's easy to see. Don't indulge thought; just let them be by turning your attention to this subtle breath that keeps changing. What is difficult to grasp is that "meditation is NOT about not-thinking." Not-thinking may happen. It doesn't matter. As that is not the goal, if it doesn't happen, it's okay. Giving attention to one object and bringing attention back and back again and again ("Begin again" as Sharon Salzberg says) is what is important.

The mind like a petulant and insolent child will resist. Let it. Bring it back. Do not scold it or become upset. Let it be. Surrender completely to this moment, whatever is in this moment, not being moved to do anything no matter what the mind says it must do. See what happens. Could the mind be wrong no matter what it feels or demands or insists is true?

How did Siddhartha Gautama do it?

We'll never see things as they really are so long as we keep believing that we already are seeing them that way. We have never been seeing them that way. If we had, we'd awaken. We'd be enlightened, which is to say, Dependent Origination would make sense. And it doesn't, does it? (Hint: It's a practice, not a theory). That's a whole different kind of meditation called insight (vipassana) after getting good at this kind, which is called serenity (samatha). Don't jump ahead. Let it go. (If all else fails, sign up for a free 10-day Goenka retreat. Everyone should do at least one in life).

• Dhr. Seven, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Jen Bradford, Wisdom Quarterly

Pinocchio Day: Pineal Gland Eye

I want to be a real person. Mind-blowing truth

"Pinocchio The PINEAL GLAND"

Wait, it's a real day? - Of course it is!

If Italian readers already understand, it's news to the rest of us. Are English speakers ready to understand? You will change.

The divine eye in Buddhism, the dibba cakkhu, is the third eye around the forehead, transcendent vision, the ability to "see" beyond the sight of our human eyes, perhaps rooted deep in the brain where another eye (replete with rods and cones) resides in the complete dark. What subtle waves, what broad spectrum photons, what light source is it responding to?

(daily MOTIVATION) Pinocchio the Pineal Gland Eye Boy. Subscribe to Santos Bonacci on YouTube at MrAstrotheology for more works on syncretism: @mrastrotheology 

Secrets of pineal gland: scientific proof

(i24NEWS English) The Secrets of Pineal Gland Scientific Proof

• #PinealGland #Pinocchio; daily MOTIVATION, Aug. 16, 2023; i24NEWS English, The Secrets; Pat Macpherson and Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Voices of Insight Meditation (anthology)

Begin again, begin again, and if necessary...

The Buddha made a general distinction between two types of cultivation or "meditation," one emphasizing calm and the other wisdom, shamatha and vipassana. This tradition of calm-and-insight is inseparable, one interdepending on the other, acting as the foundation for the other. The Theravada tradition used to encourage (foolishly in our opinion) dry insight, that is, this kind of meditation without the help of the other. Begin with calm and use it as a support for insight practices, which mainly derive from the two Satipatthana Suttas or the "Fourfold Setting Up of Mindfulness Discourses."

• READ A SAMPLE

Sharon Salzberg edited an anthology called Voices of Insight about vipassana meditation in 1/9/99 with Mirabai Bush. It has 4.7 out of 5 stars 21 ratings.

Voices of Insight

In this anthology, leading Western teachers of Buddhism share their personal experiences on the path of insight meditation called vipassana; their understanding of the basic teachings of the Buddha; the lessons they've learned in their training with their own teachers; and some good advice on following the Buddha-Dharma in everyday situations of work, family, and service. These contributors include:

• Jack Kornfield
• Sharon Salzberg
• Larry Rosenberg
• Sylvia Boorstein
• Christopher Titmuss
• Joseph Goldstein
• Steve Armstrong
• Narayan Liebenson Grady
• Bhante G (Ven. Gunaratana)
• Gavin Harrison
• Kamala Masters
• Michele McDonald-Smith
• Rodney Smith
• Steven Smith
• Ajahn Sumedho
• Carol Wilson
• Christina Feldman
• BOOK: Voices of Insight
• Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Ajahn Chah: Developing Samadhi (audio)

Samaneri Jayasāra - Wisdom of the Masters,  9/11/22 edited by Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly

Ajahn Chah: Developing samadhi (stillness, superconsciousness, one-pointedness), Theravada Buddhist Thai Forest Tradition

(Samaneri Jayasāra - Wisdom of the Masters) This reading is of a talk given to a group of lay meditation practitioners in England on the topic of samadhi at Hampstead Vihara, London, in the late 1970s. It was designed to be listened to as a guided meditation.

• Theravada Thai Forest Tradition of Ajahn Chah

The Pali/Sanskrit word samādhi, usually misleadingly translated as “concentration,” is made up of three parts, a verbal root and two prefixes (sam+ā+dhi). The last part, dhi, is a noun form derived from the verbal root dhā, meaning “to put or place.” The prefix ā gives direction and suggests “placing upon,” and the prefix sam [complete] means “gathering or bringing together.” When combined and used in a Buddhist context, these elements add up to the sense of “unifying the mind and placing its awareness upon a particular object.” Traditional sources also emphasize that the mind focuses on a single (eka) point (agga), and “one-pointedness” (Pali ekaggatā, Sanskrit ekāgratā) is another common way of translating samādhi (Andrew Olendzki).

ABOUT: Ajahn Chah was a Thai Buddhist monk and meditation master. He was an influential teacher of the Buddha Dhamma and a founder of two major monasteries in the Thai Forest Tradition, including Wat Pah Nanachat, the International Forest Monastery for Westerners. He was reputed to be an arahant, a fully enlightened practitioner.

🙏 May whatever goodness arises from these readings/offerings benefit all sentient beings. 🔆 Thank you to everyone who has written to inquire about offering donations to express appreciation for this channel. All are welcome to do so, and all offerings will go towards supporting requisites and overheads at a Buddhist nun's hermitage. There are two options to donate using this email address: vivekahermitage@gmail.com with PayPal or using this link: paypal.me/VivekaHermitage or become a Patron at: patreon.com/jayasara. If anyone prefers an alternative means of making a donation, please contact us at the above email address for account details.

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Gratitude with Gary Sanders (video)

Gary Sanders (Portland Insight); alanpeto.com; Dhr. Seven, Ananda (DBM), Wisdom Quarterly

The Conquest of the Five Hindrances

The Five Mental Hindrances and Their Conquest: Selected Texts [Anthology] from the Pali Canon and the Commentaries by Nyanaponika Thera (trans.); edited by Dhr. Seven, Wisdom Quarterly, 2020

It's great to learn at Sutta Central or ATI.

Unshakable liberation of the mind is the highest goal in the Buddha's Teaching or Dharma.

Here, liberation means: the freeing of the mind from all limitations, fetters, and bonds that tie it to the Cycle of Suffering, to the Wheel of Life and Death, to the Endless Round of Becoming.

It means the cleansing of the mind of all defilements that mar its potential purity, removing all obstacles that bar its progress from the mundane (lokiya) consciousness to supramundane consciousness (lokuttara-citta), that is, to enlightenment/awakening from the illusion.

There are many obstacles that block the spiritual road and impede or derail our progress. But there are FIVE in particular that, under the name of the Five Hindrances (pancha nivarana), are often mentioned in the Buddhist texts:

1. Sensual craving (kamacchanda)
2. Ill-will (byapada)
3. Sloth and torpor (thina-middha)
4. Restlessness and remorse (uddhacca-kukkucca)
5. Sceptical doubt (vicikiccha).

Yes, when I release them, meditation just happens.

They are called "hindrances" because they hinder and envelop the mind (heart) in many ways, obstructing its development (bhavana or "meditation").

According to Buddhism, spiritual development is twofold, through tranquillity (samatha-bhavana, "serenity") and through wisdom (vipassana-bhavana, "insight").

Tranquillity is gained by complete mental coherence (collectedness, usually and misleadingly translated as "concentration") of the mind during the meditative absorptions (jhanas).

For achieving these meditative absorptions, the overcoming of the Five Hindrances, at least temporarily, is a preliminary condition.

It is especially in the context of achieving the absorptions that the Buddha often mentions the Five Hindrances in sutras or discourses.

The Factors of Absorption

There are also five opposite mental constituents that are chiefly representative of the first meditative absorption. They are therefore called the "Factors of Absorption" (jhana'anga).

On the one hand, for each of these there is, according to the ancient Buddhist commentarial tradition, one of the Five Hindrances that is specifically harmful for it and excludes its development and refinement to the degree required for mental absorption.

On the other hand, the cultivation of these five factors beyond their average level is an antidote to the hindrances, preparing the road to absorption.

The relationship between these two groups of five is indicated in this anthology, under the heading of the respective hindrance.

Not only the meditative absorptions but also lesser degrees of samadhi (mental concentration) are impeded by the Five Hindrances.

There is something prior to full absorption. It is called "neighborhood" or "access" concentration (upacara-samadhi), being the preliminary stage for fully absorbed concentration (appana) reached in absorption.

Likewise excluded by the presence of the Five Hindrances is something called "momentary concentration" (khanika-samadhi) -- not because it only lasts a moment but because it runs alongside the effort moment by moment -- which has the strength of "neighborhood concentration" and is required for mature insight (vipassana).

But apart from these higher stages of mental development, any earnest attempt at clear thinking and pure living will be negatively affected by the presence of these Five Hindrances. ...

The Five Hindrances

I. GENERAL SUTRAS

The Buddha teaches Buddhist nuns.

There are five impediments and hindrances, overgrowths of the mind that [stultify or] nullify insight. What are the five?

1. Sensual craving is an impediment and hindrance, an overgrowth of the mind that nullifies insight.
2. Ill-will...
3. Sloth and torpor (laziness and sleepiness)…
4. Restlessness and remorse...
5. Skeptical doubt [are all] impediments and hindrances, overgrowths of the mind that nullify insight.

Without having overcome these five, it is impossible for a meditator whose insight lacks strength and power, to know one's own true good, the good of others, or the good of both [of the entire community or society].

Nor will one be capable of realizing that superhuman state of distinctive achievement, the knowledge and vision (knowing-and-seeing) enabling the attainment of enlightenment/awakening.

But if a meditator has overcome these five impediments and hindrances, these overgrowths of the mind that nullify insight, then it is possible that, with strong insight, one can know one's own true good, the good of others, and the good of both.

And one will be capable of realizing that superhuman state of distinctive achievement, the knowledge and vision enabling the attainment of enlightenment. — AN 5:51 More

What about gays? Goenka in Berkeley (video)

Mr. and Mrs. S.N. Goenka via Dhamma Naturalmind; Ellie Askew, Wisdom Quarterly

Q&A: Goenka-jii (of free 10-day insight meditation vipassana retreats fame) addresses a few amusing questions from Californians in this Dhamma (Dharma) talk in Berkeley, California, USA on June 8, 2002. The original video was uploaded to vridhamma.org, a resource for more videos and information.

We can't go out, so let's go in (Insight LA)

Trudy Goodman, Jack Kornfield (insightla.org); Ananda, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

InsightLA (online offerings)

In response to COVID-19, all are welcome to this four-week class series with founding teacher Trudy Goodman.

Begin or sustain a meditation practice in a welcoming environment as we sit together in community. There will be a meditation with some guidance, followed by teaching and conversation. We need each other more than ever right now.

We will meet for four Thursdays from 6:00-7:15 pm -- March 26, April 9, April 16, and April 23 (skipping April 2). Receive the Zoom information after registering. Register

Register Now

Practices to Steady the Heart with Trudy Goodman and Jack Kornfield

Jack Kornfield, Trudy Goodman

Join InsightLA for shared practices -- powerful and caring ways to tend the body and steady the heart -- in this uncertain time.

We will connect with and support each other through guided meditations, teachings, and community conversations.

All of the revenue generated for this event will serve as a fundraiser for InsightLA so that we can continue to offer programs online and support caregivers on the front lines of this crisis.

Like many of us, InsightLA has become financially unstable as a result of closing our centers yet still needing to cover our rent while we shelter in place. With the loss of income from in-person events, the need for community support has amplified.

As a non-profit organization whose sole purpose is serving the needs of our community, we want to assure all that we will continue to do everything we can to offer accessible programming that is responsive to your needs through this ever-changing situation.

After registration, the Zoom link will be sent to join the class via video or by phone.

• Saturday, April 4, 2020, 3:30-5:30 PM

Register Now

• Online events

InsightLA Community SURVEY

Online Programming: As we all come into these new and challenging times, InsightLA wants to support our community with online programming that is responsive and reflective of the spiritual community (sangha) members' needs.

We'd love input on what kind of teachings, topics, community spaces, and practices would resonate most during this period of uncertainty, social distancing, difficult emotions, and radically new ways of being.

We are here for you
With gratitude and metta,
The InsightLA office Team & Teachers

Take Survey

"The Path of Insight Meditation" (pocket guide)

Jack Kornfield, Joseph Goldstein (amazon); Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Spirit Rock's Jack Kornfield (InsightLA.org)

The Path of Insight Meditation is an introductory guide to vipassana or Buddhist insight meditation.

It offers spiritual exercises from two American master teachers -- Jack Kornfield and Joseph Goldstein.

It looks into how this practice leads to compassion and a deeper understanding of "self."

Insight Meditation, Los Angeles (insightLA.org)

Insight meditation is a Buddhist practice that opens the way to profound awakening in our daily lives.

This introductory guide offers wisdom about how this path cultivates compassion, strengthens mindfulness, and leads to a deeper understanding of ourselves and others.

It also includes exercises from these two master teachers, developed from their meditation retreats taught around the world. Goldstein and Kornfield are the founders of the Insight Meditation Society in Barre, Massachusetts, and each has authored many books on Buddhist meditation. More

What the Buddha calls "mindfulness" (3/12)

Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Dhr. Seven, Jen, Wisdom Quarterly

Why do we meditate? (sharonsalzberg.com)

The Buddha taught the practice of mindfulness (Pali sati or Sanskrit smrti) to develop tranquility and insight. Remembering to bring the mind back to the present is the way mind (attention) is initially applied then sustained. But what passes for "mindfulness" nowadays is watered down to mean any kind of awareness. Mindfulness is much more. And the benefits are profound. We will look at what the Buddha says about it to practice insight-meditation (vipassana) as the path to going beyond to enlightenment in this very life. Free/by donation. RSVP:

• Dharma Buddhist Meditation
• Ahiah Center for Spiritual Living, Pasadena
• Thursday, March 12th, 7:00-8:30 PM

Sept. 19, 2020 (mindfulnessexpo.com)

Pa Auk Sayadaw: What is "vipassana"? (video)

Pa Auk Sayadaw, Setti Wessels (settiwessels.com); Dhr. Seven (ed.), Sayalay, Wisdom Quarterly

Vipassana is systematic clear seeing for gaining liberating-insight into the Truth.

(Pa Auk Sayadaw) In English with English subtitles for greater clarity and ease of understanding.

Prajna Paramita, East Java

Part 1: The most Venerable Pa Auk Tawya Sayadaw (Bhaddanta Acinna) explains vipassana or "insight meditation."

He is an accomplished Burmese scholar-practitioner with perfect confidence in the Buddha and the Theravada Buddhist Path leading directly to enlightenment and nirvana.

This is rare footage of Sayadaw explaining in English. It was recorded in Korea in 2008 after his yearlong personal retreat in Sri Lanka in 2007.

This archival material was prepared for English meditators to provide an overview of:

• Subatomic particles (personally verifiable kalapas);
• Four Elements meditation (the qualities of matter, space and consciousness being the fifth and sixth elements or dhatus taught by the Buddha; see the book);
• Serenity meditation (Samatha as samma-samadhi, the first four meditative absorptions or jhanas taught by the Buddha but dismissed as distractions by many Goenka fans);
• Analysis of mentality and materiality (nāma-rūpa, where "mind" is a stream of cittas and cetasikas, mind-moments and mental-concomittants);
• Dependent Origination in actual, verifiable practice rather than theory (paticca-samuppāda kammatthana); ad
• Insight meditation (what vipassanā when most meditators do not establish sufficient right-concentration to purify direct vision of reality).

This body is composed of kalapas (particles)

These techniques are taught at Pa Auk Forest Monastery in Burma by the Sayadaw and his accomplished assistant teachers They are personally verifiable rather than theoretical.

Thanks to Joanna Semeniuk for uploading the files in the Netherlands and to Simone Vromen for carrying the originals on DVD all the way from Burma.

- Setti Wessels, Myanmar 2015

• Pa Auk Meditation Center
• YouTube with English subtitles
• Old version on youtube.com...
• Drive.google.com/open...

Ajahn Chah: What can transcend suffering?

Ajahn Chah (ajahnchah.org) via Ven. Sujato, Ellie Askew, Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

There are various positions for meditation: recline, sit, stand, or walk (S. G. Seyone).

.

Why won't this rope come unstuck?

The practice of Dharma is for leading the mind (heart) to the transcendence of suffering. The body can't transcend suffering — for having been born, it must experience pain and sickness, aging, and death.

Only the mind can transcend grasping and clinging. The Teachings of the Buddha, which we call pariyatti (theory), are skillful means (patipatti = practice) to this end (pativedha = realization).

To end all suffering

Being stuck sucks (CSP)

Trying to end suffering without first understanding the cause is like pulling on a rope that's stuck. We pull this end of the rope over here.

The other end of the rope is still stuck over there. So it never comes. What can we do to make it come over here?

It does not come free because we never seek out the source, the root of its being stuck. We get lost in pulling this end. What's it stuck on?

It must be stuck on something, and that's why it doesn't come. Go to the source, untangle the knot, and be free.

Meditation: Mindfulness of Death (video)

Ven. Nyanatiloka (Anton Walther Florus Gueth, Buddhist Dictionary: Manual of Terms and Doctrines via palikanon.com; Dhr. Seven, Amber Larson, Pat Macpherson (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Mara (Death personified) has the power to shapeshift, like a yakkha or genie (djinn).

The best way to get the most out of this life is paradoxically to be mindful of death (SE).

.

"Life" is so much more than we know.

Marana-ānussati or "mindfulness of death" is calling to mind, remembering, recollecting, contemplating the end of this run.

• [Due to the incessant cycling of rebirth in samsara, there are many more.]

It is one of the Ten Recollections treated in detail in the Path of Purification (Vis.M. VIII):

''Recollection of death, frequently practiced and developed, yields great reward, great blessing, has deathlessness (nirvana) as its goal and object. How may such recollection be developed?

"As soon as the day declines, or as the night vanishes and the day is just breaking, the meditator reflects:

"Demons of Mara" palm leaf manuscript, Nalanda, Bihar

"'Truly, there are many possibilities for me to die: I may be bitten by a serpent or stung by a scorpion or centipede, and thereby I may lose my life [if I do not practice the protection against dying of snakebite]. And this would be an obstacle for me.

"'Or I may stumble and fall to the ground, or the food eaten by me may not agree with my health. Or bile, phlegm, and piercing bodily winds may become disturbing. Or humans or ghosts may attack me. Thus I may lose my life. And this would be an obstacle for me.'

"Then the meditator considers: 'Are there still to be found in me unsubdued defilements, unwholesome things which, if I should die this day or night, might lead me to suffering?'

"Now, if one understands that this is the case, one should use one's utmost resolution, energy, effort, endeavor, steadfastness, attentiveness, and clear-mindedness to overcome these unskillful, unwholesome things" (A VIII, 74).

The Path of [self-] Purification

Don't worry, Suze. Death is ulimtately unreal.

In the Path of Purification (Vis.M. VIII) it says: "One who wishes to develop this meditation should retreat to solitude, and while living secluded should wisely reflect:

"'Death will come to me! The vital energy will be cut off!' or 'Death! Death!'

"To anyone who does not wisely reflect in this way, sorrow may arise by thinking about the death of a beloved person, just as happens for a mother thinking about the death of her beloved child.

"Again, by reflecting on the death of a disliked person, joy may arise, just as it does for enemies while thinking about the death of their enemies.

"By thinking about the death of an neutral (indifferent) person, however, no emotion arises, just as when a person whose work consists of cremating the dead has no feeling at the sight of a dead body.

I'll off myself slowly with this soda poison.

"But by reflecting on one's own death, fright may arise...just as at the sight of a murderer with drawn sword one becomes filled with horror.

"So whenever one sees a slain person or other dead beings, one should reflect on the death of such deceased persons who once lived in happiness. One rouses one's attentiveness, emotion, and knowledge and considers:

"'Death will come,' and so on.... Only in one who considers in this way, will the Five Hindrances (nīvarana) of mind be subdued. And through the idea of DEATH, attention becomes steadfast, and the exercise reaches neighborhood or access concentration (upacāra-samādhi)."

According to the Path of Purification (Vis.M. VIII), one may also reflect on death in the following various ways: One may think of Death (Mara or marana)

• as a murderer with a drawn sword standing there,
• or one may bear in mind that all happiness ends in death,
• or that even the mightiest beings on this earth are subject to death,
• or that we must share this body with all those innumerable worms (protozoa, bacteria, parasites) and other tiny beings residing in it,
• or that life is something dependent on in-and-out breathing and intimately bound up with it,
• or that life continues only so long as the elements, food, breath, [karma], and so on are properly performing their functions,
• or that nobody knows when, where, and under what circumstances death will take place or what kind of fate we have to expect after death
• or that life is very short and limited.

Continued cycling of samsara: again rebirth

"For as it is said, 'Short, indeed, is this life of humans, limited, fleeting, full or woe and torment. It is just like a dewdrop that vanishes as soon as the sun rises, a water bubble, a line drawn on water, a torrent dragging everything along and never standing still, cattle for slaughter that every moment stare death in the face" (A. VII, 74).

"The meditator devoted to this recollection of death is at all times indefatigable and thereby gains the idea of disgust with regard to all forms of existence, lets go of delight about life, detests wrongdoing [harming], no longer hoards things, is free from stinginess with regard to the necessities of life.

"And the idea of impermanence (anicca) becomes familiar. By pursuing this idea, the idea of unavoidable-disappointment (dukkha) [misery, the inability to find fulfillment through things] and of the impersonal (anatta, selfless) nature of all things become apparent to one [who continues to reflect in this way]....

Peace of Mind: "I'm Afraid"

(Mystic Knights of the Oingo Boingo) LYRICS: Afraid of the dark/Afraid of the light/Don't walk in the park/Afraid of the night/Afraid to get stabbed/Or hit by a car/Afraid of the streets/Afraid to go far/Afraid of the sky/Don't like to be high/I don't want to fall/Afraid I might die/Afraid of my friends/Don't like to be seen/Afraid to be nice/Afraid to be mean/Afraid that the wind/Will knock over trees/Afraid of my dog/Afraid of his fleas//

Hey, come on, Monkey Baby, don't be dead.

[CHORUS:] Peace of mind/Peace of mind/Hard to keep/Hard to find/Look ahead/Look behind/Looking for/Peace of mind/Peace of mind/Can't relax/Can't unwind/Deep inside/Secret mind/Oh no!//

Afraid to be caught/Afraid to be free/Afraid to make love/Afraid of VD/Afraid of the rain/Don't make me get wet/Afraid to take drugs/They make me forget/Afraid that the air/Will make me get sick/Afraid that the girls/Will cut off my...OHHH!/Someone tell me how it happened/Why my head is so confused/Can it be my circuits finally blew a fuse?/Can a human being really change into a humanoid?/Or is my imagination paranoid?/All I need is peace and quiet/Maybe just a little time/Turn the channel!/Turn the channel!/Piece of mind/Peace of mind//

[Chorus]//Afraid of success/Afraid to grow old/Afraid that my brain/Is covered with mold/Afraid that I might/Be put on a shelf/But last but not least, oh!/Afraid of myself!

"Free from fear and bewilderment, one will pass away [peacefully] at death. And if one does not yet realize the Deathless State (nirvana) in this lifetime, one will at the dissolution of the body attain to a happy course of existence" (Vis.M. VIII).

• Buddhist Reflections on Death (V.F. Gunaratna, Wheel 102/103)
• Buddhism and Death (Maurice O'Connell Walshe, Wheel #260)