The Practice of Meditation Based on Salāyatana Discourse according to the Four Foundation of Mindfulness for the Liberation of the Mind

Abstract

The aims of this study were: 1) to analyze and synthesize the Sālāyatana scriptures in the context of Satipaṭṭhāna or the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, 2) to integrate the knowledge from the Sālāyatana scriptures into practical application in alignment with the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, and 3) to develop a meditation practice (Kammaṭṭhāna) model grounded in the Sālāyatana scriptures, aligned with the Four Foundations of Mindfulness, aimed at achieving mental liberation. This research employed a qualitative approach. The study was conducted at Tamma Isaro Park and Wat Pa Nantaraburiyan Sangkhararam, with 24 key informants participating. Data analysis was carried out using descriptive methods, incorporating in-depth interviews, knowledge assessment forms, and satisfaction evaluations through self-assessment questionnaires and semi-structured group interviews.

The research findings revealed that: 1) The analysis and synthesis of the Sālāyatana scriptures according to the Four Foundations of Mindfulness in the Saṅyutta Nikāya, Sālāyatana Vagga, Volume 18, categorized the knowledge into two sections: (1) Sālāyatana as it relates to the arising of suffering in the realms of existence, referred to as Samudayavāra, and (2) Sālāyatana as it relates to the cessation of suffering in the realms of existence, referred to as Nirodhavāra. 2) The knowledge in the Sālāyatana scriptures applied to practice according to the Four Foundations of Mindfulness involves maintaining mindfulness to guide the six internal sense bases—eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind—which are in contact with the external sense bases of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and mental objects. One should be mindful of the present moment across the four foundations: body, feeling, mind, and phenomena. The understanding of the internal and external sense bases among the informants did not show significant differences. 3) The development of a meditation practice model in the Sālāyatana scriptures according to the Four Foundations of Mindfulness for the liberation of the mind consists of three principles: Pariyatti (learning), Pāṭipatti (practice), and Pāṭivedha (realization). This approach to practice does not involve reciting specific phrases in meditation objects but integrates with Pārisuddhi-sīla (Four Moralities for Purification): (1) Pātimokkha-sīla (observance of the monastic code), which involves maintaining faith in the precepts; (2) Indriyasaṃvara-sīla (restraint of the senses), which involves mindfulness in safeguarding the six internal sense bases; (3) Ājīva-parisuddhi-sīla (purity in livelihood), which entails right effort in engaging in right livelihood; and (4) Paccayasannissita-sīla (wisdom in consuming external factors), which involves the wisdom to wisely partake in external requisites.