Tập san Tánh Không - Take Time Each Day To Do Meditation
Mô Bổn Sư Thích Ca Mâu Ni Phật
Kính bạch Thầy,
Below I have written an essay of my experience with meditation. I have not attained
samadhi, and do not claim to realize prajna. I am only a beginning student. Please accept
my following essay as coming from my limited experience.
The more I practice meditation, the more
I realize how important it is for me to
continue practicing. Even though I have a
busy schedule, if I don’t sit for at least
two hours a day, I feel like my day is not
complete. Sitting in meditation is a
normal part of my daily routine.
It is difficult at first to discipline ourselves
to sit, but with consistent effort and a
genuine will to attain prajna (wisdom),
sitting in meditation will be a normal part
of our daily lives.
The purpose of meditation is to quiet our
minds and soften our vibration to be able
to experience our true nature. When we
are able to experience our true nature, we
will see the unimportance of our desires
and the illusion of the world. This alone
will make us realize how important
meditation is. The rewards that
meditation brings cannot be spoken about
or taught, it only can come through
experience and practice. This is the only
way.
You will never understand what the
ancient spiritual books and writings talk
about from just reading. When you
continue to consistently practice, then you
will understand prajna through your own
experience. Until then, conceptually
understanding prajna and the benefits of
meditation will only be conceptual
knowledge, which is not the direct
experience of truth.
If you are serious about attaining prajna,
take time each day to do meditation.
Build your practice up so that you are
sitting in meditation for at least two hours
a day. Meditation should become a part
of your daily routine, just like taking a
shower, or eating food. You will never
know the wisdom of the masters and
experience the benefits of meditation if
you don’t take the time to experience for
yourself.
Từ Hạnh
Honolulu, Hawaii, February 4, 1999
*Bài dịch qua tiếng Việt