A Daily Meditation on Shakyamuni Buddha (How to Meditate on the Graded path to Enlightenment)

"Life is very busy, especially for those living in the West. Many people reject rituals because they do not understand the purpose and meaning of ritual. Done correctly, the following practices are not mere ritual: they are meditation. Without meditation, ritual becomes like a hollow orange - skin on the outside, empty inside. Each of these preliminary practices contains the entire path to enlightenment."

This practice booklet is an easy to use method for those wishing to establish a daily meditation practice. Written by Lama Zopa Rinpoche for use by beginning students, it is a clearly outlined practice complete with guided meditations for developing one's motivation, the mind of refuge, and the thought of bodhichitta. In addition, the practice contains mantra recitation and visualization based on Shakyamuni Buddha and a Lamrim prayer in the form of a request for blessings to develop all the realizations on the path to full awakening. It contains everything one needs for a complete daily practice.

Introduction

Life is very busy, especially for those living in the West. Many people say, therefore, that it is difficult to find the time during a busy day for a regular meditation practice. In this case, the best solution is to get up earlier each morning. Early rising is a good habit to develop; it follows the example of all the practitioners who have attained the path. And because it is very quiet, early morning is also a good time to meditate.

In this way you will be able to do your practice. If you put off your practice until the very end of the day, you might forget it completely, because you are distracted by television or something else or because you are too tired, especially if you have children. The best time to find peace and quiet for practice is generally after the children have gone to bed or before they awaken in the morning and demand your attention.

Many people reject rituals because they do not understand the purpose and meaning of ritual. Done correctly, the following practices are not mere ritual: they are meditation. Without meditation, ritual becomes like a hollow orange- skin on the outside, empty inside.

Each of these preliminary practices contains the entire path to enlightenment. If you understand the meaning behind them, the rituals taught by the Buddha are actually not separate from the entire path to enlightenment. Of course, one needs purification and a large collection of merit to be able to have faith in and to understand this.

While this meditation is based on Shakyamuni Buddha, it can be adapted to suit other practices by altering the visualization and the mantra recitation.