FEELINGS AS FEELINGS

Breathing in, I am aware of feeling joy.
Breathing out, I am aware of feeling joy.

Breathing in, I am aware of feeling happiness.
Breathing out, I am aware of feeling happiness.

Breathing in, I am aware of my mental formations.
Breathing out, I am aware of my mental formations.

Breathing in, I calm my mental formations.
Breathing out, I calm my mental formations.

MINDFULNESS OF FEELINGS:

Mindfulness of feelings refers to both bodily sensations and emotions. Similarly to the body, feelings can also be subdivided. Here the Buddha is telling us to contemplate “the feeling in the feelings.” Whether they be pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral, we learn to observe and fully acknowledge our feelings, and that they eventually always dissipate. Through this foundation, one learns to simply observe feelings as they come up, and not identify with them or attach any judgment to them. They do not define who you are, they are simply feelings. Seeing a feeling as an emotion or sensation rather than “my” feeling, we come to know that feelings are selfless. In this way, Buddha says we recognise the truth about feelings. In other words, we “know feelings as they really are.”

With the arising of the peace of happiness, due to the first practice of MINDFULNESS OF BODY, the next practice of mindfulness of feelings turn our attention to all feelings that arise, whether produced by the body or the mind. The term mental formations includes all feelings, perceptions, and mental phenomena.

OBSERVING FEELINGS / SENSEATIONS:

Whenever a practitioner has a pleasant feeling, he is aware, “I am experiencing a pleasant feeling.” Whenever he has an unpleasant feeling, he is aware,
“I am experiencing an unpleasant feeling.” Whenever he experiences a feeling which is neither pleasant nor unpleasant, he is aware, “I am experiencing a neutral feeling.”

AWARENESS

Feelings or sensations are of three types. They can be pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral. These feelings or sensations are what arise through the contact our senses make with the world. They are extremely important to become aware of, because they condition how we act and how we perceive our relationship to our experience of the world. It’s important to develop mindfulness of feelings because when we are not mindful, we become slaves or automatons; the feelings give rise to moods, emotions, perceptions, ideas, and addictions that lead to unskillful behavior and suffering. While practicing, this means becoming aware of a feeling as it arises as well as any reactivity to the feeling.

THREE KINDS OF FEELINGS

The first step in developing mindfulness of feelings is distinguishing among the various kinds. Sometimes the Buddha says that there are two kinds of feelings— pleasant and unpleasant. Other times, he mentions three kinds—pleasant, un-pleasant, and neutral. Neutral feelings are neither pleasant nor unpleasant. When we have a pleasant feeling, we should be mindful that we are having a pleasant feeling. That’s pretty straightforward. Whenever we feel pleasure, we know that it is pleasure. Similarly when we have a painful feeling, we know that it is painful feeling and can be mindful of that. People understand pleasant and un-pleasant feelings naturally without too much explanation. The third category, neutral feelings, may be slightly more confusing for people who do not pay much attention to feelings. It helps to remember that in the Dhamma, there is no category called “mixed feeling.”

Maintaining mindfulness of the three kinds of feelings is relatively easy, because when we pay attention, we notice that when we are experiencing a pleasant feeling, no unpleasant or neutral feeling is present. The same is true of an unpleasant and a neutral feeling. In other words, we experience one emotion or sensation at a time.

Moreover, when we are mindful, we notice very quickly that our feelings are always changing without any conscious control. Say, for instance, we are in a happy mood. The sun is shining, and we’ve finished our work and are heading home to a good dinner. But after a while, even though we might wish to hold on to that pleasant feeling, it disappears and a neutral feeling arises. Then, perhaps, we recall an argument we had with a friend during the day, and our neutral feeling changes to an unpleasant one. So from our experience we know very well that every feeling—pleasant, painful, or neutral—is impermanent.

Watching how quickly our feelings change, without any effort on our part, we realize another important truth. We begin to see that feelings are just feelings, not my feelings or parts of me. We realize that we often identify so closely with our feelings that they seem to be part of our basic identity. We say, “My knee hurts whenever I sit down to meditate” or “I am angry about the government,” as if these feelings were unchanging parts of a self that is also permanent, everlasting, and immutable. But if our feelings were identical with the self, and the self were permanent, then our feelings of pain or anger should also be permanent. Experience tells us that this is not the case. Feelings change and our so-called self has no control over the changes. Observing this, we see very clearly that the self cannot be a permanent entity.
(sourse: The four foundations of mindfulness in plain English / Bhante Gunaratana)

DEALING WITH PAIN

Of the three basic kinds of feelings, we have been discussing—pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral—the unpleasant feeling of pain is likely the most difficult for us to manage. So long as we have a body and consciousness, we have pain. Even enlightened beings have pain. When painful sensations arise, we often become anxious, angry, or depressed. We react this way because we don’t know how to deal with pain.

So the first step is simply to notice that we are feeling pain. But this instruction also tells us that the sensation of pain has both a physical and a psychological dimension.

When we mindfully pay attention to a sensation of pain, the first thing we notice is that the sensation is always changing. For instance, a sharp stabbing pain changes to tingling pain, which changes to burning pain. In other words, like all feelings, pain is impermanent. As we become absorbed in watching these changing sensations, we start to relax and drop our resistance to the pain.

The same technique can be used to deal with painful emotions, such as sad- ness, grief, or depression. When painful emotions arise, we pay attention to them. We notice that they are always changing. We watch them ebb and flow. For in- stance, we mindfully pay attention as grief changes to anger and then to anxiety or depression. We keep in mind that no permanently existing self is experiencing these emotions, and that no painful emotion is permanent. This recognition in itself brings a measure of relief.

MINDFULNESS OF FEELING IN PRACTICE

You can practice mindfulness of feelings within your regular meditation on mindfulness of breathing or during yoga practice.

• When feelings arise, notice whether they are pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral. Watch as each feeling arises, peaks, and passes away. You do not need to do anything to control these feelings or make them change. Simply observe and then return your attention to the breath.
• When feelings arise, notice whether they are sensations that result from contact with an external object or emotions that arise internally. Watch as each arises, peaks, and passes away; then return your attention to the breath.
• As you observe your sensations, notice which sense and sense consciousness is the source of the sensation. For example, are you feeling warmth arising from the touch contact between your skin and the cushion, or the sound of a bird outside the window, or the smell of the soup cooking in the kitchen? Don’t verbalize these sensations or try to label them. Simply notice that you are experiencing a sensation and then return your attention to the breath.

For instance, say that the sensation is the agreeable sound of a bird. Pay attention only to the process that allows you to hear the sound—sound waves making contact with your ear and being transmitted to your brain, which analyzes the contact and give rise to a mental impression or feeling. Remind yourself, “This is a pleasant feeling. It has arisen depending on these factors. When these factors disappear, this pleasant feeling will also disappear.” Return your attention to the breath.

• If a sensation of physical pain arises, watch how the sensation changes. Watch its intensity ebb and flow without rejecting or resisting it. Remember that pain is not a thing, but an event. Pain is impermanent. There is no permanent I who is experiencing this sensation.
• If you feel an internally generated emotion, notice it without value judgment. Don’t help it, hinder it, or interfere with it in the slightest. Simply watch as the emotion rises, peaks, and passes away. Then return your attention to the breath.

For instance, if you experience a pleasant fantasy while you are meditating, notice that you have been distracted by a fantasy, notice how strong it is and how long it lasts. Notice the mental state of desire that accompanies the fantasy. Watch as it passes away and return your attention to the breath.

(source: The four foundations of mindfulness in plain English / Bhante Gunaratana)

MINDFULNESS MEDITATION ON FEELINGS

• When we meditate on mindfulness of feelings, we keep in mind that feeling arises dependent upon contact. As contact changes, the feelings also change. When we experience a pleasant feeling, we think, “This is a pleasant feeling. It has arisen depending on these factors. When these factors disappear, this pleasant feeling will also disappear.” We do the same for an unpleasant feeling or a neutral feeling. We don’t do anything to control our feelings or make them change. We only notice that our feelings are changing. Each feeling arises due to causes and conditions and then slips away. The mind cannot hold on to what we are experiencing and naturally lets it go. What else can it do? Nothing!
• As we observe this process, we should not try to put our feelings into words.
• Labeling our sensations and emotions can actually distort them or disguise them as something else. Each person’s feelings of pain or pleasure are totally personal.
• Feelings cannot really be conveyed in words exactly as they were experienced. We simply let the breath flow in and out. We stay fully awake and alert, paying total attention to each feeling as it arises, peaks, and passes away.
• As we meditate, certain special feelings may arise. One of these is called “spiritual urgency.” We see clearly that pain arises and pain disappears; pleasure arises and pleasure disappears. As we watch this repeating pattern, an insight arises that as long as we take birth in any form, we will continue to suffer. This insight inspires us to accelerate our spiritual practice and find a way to end this vicious cycle of birth and death right now, once and for all.
• We may also experience a special feeling of pleasure as we meditate that does not have an underlying tendency toward desire. Our body becomes calm, our mind becomes calm, and there is no agitation, no excitement. We experience very deep peace. This pleasurable feeling, arising from knowing that this pleasurable feeling and everything else is impermanent, unsatisfactory, and selfless, does not arouse any attachment. We simply experience it. We see the reality.

EQUANIMITY

The beneficial feeling we hope to cultivate through our mindfulness practice is equanimity. When we rest in equanimity, our feelings are in perfect balance. We neither push away unpleasant feelings nor grasp at pleasant ones. We are not confused by ignorance and see everything very clearly. Since we don’t identify our self with our feelings, they pass quietly away, leaving us at peace. As a feeling, equanimity is both neutral and spiritual. It is neither pleasant, nor unpleasant, but it is not indifferent. We are awake and alert and can continue our observation of our body, feelings, thoughts, and other experiences without being pushed and pulled by desire or aversion.

When we are in a state of equanimity and see a pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral sight, we recognize that it is conditioned, gross, and dependently arisen. Then we return to equanimity as quickly as we might open or shut our eyes. The same is true for each of the other senses:

When [meditators] hears a pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral sound, they understand that it is conditioned, gross, and dependently arisen. Then they turn their minds to equanimity just as quickly as a man snaps his fingers.

When they smell a pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral smell, they understand that it is conditioned, gross, and dependently arisen. Then they turn their minds to equanimity just as quickly as drops of water roll off a sloping lotus leaf….

Similarly, when they experience an idea with their minds and a pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral sensation arises, they understand that it is conditioned, gross, and dependently arisen. Then, just as when two or three drops of water fall onto an iron plate that has been heated for a whole day, the falling of the drops might be slow, but they quickly evaporate and disappear. In the same way sensations arisen due to ideas are replaced quickly and easily with equanimity.

With equanimity, we are no longer troubled by the ups and downs of pleasure and pain. Mind and body are in balance. We are free of restlessness, agitation, and worry. Confusion has ended and we rest in harmony with reality. Even the subtle desire for a beautiful experience to continue has disappeared. Instead, we feel immeasurable loving-friendliness and boundless compassion.

Having completely let go of what the Buddha calls “low quality” pleasant feelings—the pleasures of family, friends, good health, prosperity—we experience “high quality” pleasant feelings—the profound joys of higher states of meditative concentration. With each higher state, our enjoyment increases until we attain what the Buddha calls “the cessation of feeling and perception.” From there we can move to the highest quality pleasure of all, nibbana, total liberation from suffering.

(source: The four foundations of mindfulness in plain English / Bhante Gunaratana)