Developing the Meditation Model of EEC

Abstract

This research aimed to 1) examine models of meditation in Buddhist traditions; 2) investigate approaches to meditation practice in Thailand’s Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC); 3) synthesize the findings from 1) and 2) into the meditation model of EEC; and 4) verify the accuracy of the model. Data were collected from documentary sources: the Tipiṭaka, the commentaries, and related exegetical treatises, as well as from fieldwork. Field data comprised 18 key informants: meditation masters and 108 meditation practitioners, and participatory observation, including monastic ordination and a 15-day period of practice following the EEC meditation model. The data were analyzed using structural and content analysis and then synthesized into a meditation model.

The findings are as follows. 1) Buddhist meditation models can be classified into three types: Samatha leading to Vipassanā, Vipassanā leading to Samatha, and the concurrent meditation of Samatha and Vipassanā. 2) Meditation practice in the EEC encompasses nine approaches: “Buddho,” “Rising–falling,” “Samma-arahang,” “Ānāpānasati”, “Rūp–nām”, “Manomayiddhi,” “Rhythmic movement,” “Observing the mind,” and “Integrating Satipaṭṭhāna with Ānāpānasati.” The first and second approaches are the most widely practiced. All approaches except the last one were originally developed in other areas and were subsequently disseminated in the EEC. 3) The EEC model of meditation corresponds to the ninth approach, which includes both Samatha and Vipassanā components. 4) The EEC model provides a process for learning, practice, and application to everyday life and work. It begins with the understanding that life itself constitutes Satipaṭṭhāna, i.e., life comprises body and mind distinguished into five components: form, feeling, perception, mental formation, and consciousness, which serve as bases for mindfulness training. Practice is then narrowed to the body as breathing, in accordance with Ānāpānasati, to cultivate concentration to the level of the first Jhāna. This Jhāna is subsequently applied to living and working through the practical factors emphasized in Satipaṭṭhāna and Ānāpānasati: diligent, clearly comprehending, and mindful namely, working continuously, fully aware the work being done, and being remember that one is engaged in that work. Consequently, the EEC meditation model can be applied to life and work with every breath.