Mindfulness of Feeling Meditation

It should be noted that one does not have to contemplate all four types of mindfulness. Whenever one can penetrate through to see clearly the cause of the arising of the Five Aggregates, that is sufficient for attaining the path and fruit of Nirvana and penetrating the Four Noble Truths. When a meditator begins concentration of mind and reaches the Dhamma sphere or nucleus, this is already Jhana, the absorption developing pure mind. One experiences feelings changing from the crude outer body to refined status. Suffering, Dukkha, becomes Happiness, Sukha. For example, when one sits a long time without developing concentration, one feels the hurting of the legs. This is suffering. When the mind is perfectly concentrated, the virtues of the Five Jhana Factors wipe out the Five Hindrances and the hurt in the legs disappears. This hurting in the legs can be termed as one of the Five Hindrances – either doubt, feeling ill at ease, or ill will, etc. These are eliminated in the First Jhana.

Meditating is doing good. The merit earned causes happier feelings. Thus, one experiences impermanence (Aniccang) in an upward direction. When there is no concentration, the mind wanders outside, building more attachments. The closest thing is one’s own body, so the mind immediately attaches to it. But, when the mind is concentrated and free from attachment to the body, this leads to happier feelings. As one concentrates more and more on the nucleus sphere, one delves deeper and deeper into the Spheres of Sila, Samadhi, Pañña, Vimutti and Vimutti-Ñanadassana. Then, comes the Refined Human Body. Over and over again, the meditator is led to leave behind that which feels crude or uncomfortable and become the more and more refined and blissful bodies. The merit from the new purity of morality Sila and concentration Samadhi helps the meditator feel happier and freed from the former suffering of the crude body as well as from hindrances and attachment. The mind becomes pure. This peacefully pure and concentrated quality of mind (Samadhi) is one of the keystone “Foundations of Mindfulness”, along with the Right Wisdom of knowing what causes suffering (Pañña) and good behavior or Sila.

Mindfulness of feelings is being aware of the freedom from suffering that one experiences as Sila, Samadhi, and Pañña all develop together. It can be that good behavior, Sila,  produces purer mind, which leads to Right Wisdom. In another way, Pañña develops Sila and Sila develops Samadhi. In brief, all three assist one another and develop simultaneously, along with Right Wisdom in the Four Noble Truths (Pañña). There can be both ups and downs. This is readily noted in daily life experience. One must be continually mindful during both meditation and daily life. Doing good develops the mind and makes one happier and purer. These are the benefits from good behavior. One must always avoid evil, do good, and purify the mind.

Now, to complete my answer, here is how Lord Buddha taught “Mindfulness of Feelings”. A bhikkhu* feeling a pleasant, unpleasant or neutral feeling knows that he is experiencing a pleasant, unpleasant, or neutral feeling. If the feeling is based on sense pleasures, he knows that it is based on sense pleasures. Thus he dwells perceiving again and again feelings as just feelings (not mine, not I, not self, but just as phenomena). He perceives this in himself and in others. He dwells perceiving the cause and appearing of feelings; or the cause and dissolution of feelings. He is firmly mindful that only feelings exists (not soul, self or I). Knowing that mindfulness of feelings is just for progressively developing more insight and mindfulness, he remains detached from craving and wrong view and dwells without clinging to anything in the world. In this way the bhikkhu dwells perceiving again and again feelings as just feelings.