Effort and effortlessness

<p>I have heard that most people who is trying to meditate is making a a very strong effort to keep the mind in one object. But it should be emphasised that before one is trying to establish proper concentration one has to know a little about how the mind work. </p>
<p>We know about what objects mind can think of. And a person's mind can think of millions of objects in one day. But if we categorize what the mind can think of it can be divided to six types of thoughts. Those are <br>
1. The things that we have seen in the past or currently seeing or that we will be seeing in future<br>
2. that we have heard or hearing or that will hear <br>
3. that we have smelt or that is smelling or that will be smelling in future<br>
4. that we have tasted or currently tasting or will be tasting <br>
5.that we have touched currently touching or will be touching in future <br>
6. the things that we have thought or that is currently thinking or will be thinking in future </p>
<p>these are the types of things that the mind can concentrate on. or in other words the things that we understood(identified) or understanding(identifying ) or that will be understanding(identifying ) in future. </p>
<p>In meditation time we close our eyes and try to concentrate. When our eyes are closed we will not be seeing anything from our eyes. But what we have seen before and what we like or dislike to see in future may come to the mind. Hence like we are watching a movie on the screen we will be seeing a continuous set of images sounds words thoughts etc.</p>
<p>And the mind will keep on hopping from one thought to another and one object to a another like a monkey that jumps from one branch to the next. </p>
<p>So as beginners of meditation we want to stop this monkey hopping from one branch to the other.</p>
<p>Lord budda had given a great simile for this. </p>
<p>There are six animals. Those are a dog,a snake a crocodile a fox a bird and a monkey. And these six tries to go to six places. <br>
Dog wants to go to village <br>
Monkey wants to go to the tree<br>
snake wants to go to the earth hole<br>
Bird wants to fly to the sky <br>
crocodile wants to go to the river<br>
and fox wants to go to the cemetery.</p>
<p>But all these six animals are tied in one rope. So the animals. tries hard to go the place that each want and pulls in six directions. And in this case the moment that one animal is stronger it pulls all other animals in the direction that it want to go.</p>
<p>This simile is given to see our own selves. We also have six untamed animals. Those are eyes ears nose tongue body and mind.

And this each organ pulls us on the direction that organ's object.  And the sense organ that is powerful at a given moment wins over the others. Say for example when we are listening to a song our ear is more powerful than others and we concentrate on hearing.

Hence when we sit for meditation our mind becomes the powerful organ and others become dormant. Now at this moment the mind want to keep on hopping from one thought to another.

What the lord budda advices to be mindful. Mindful of one object of meditation. Being mindful of the object is like tying the six animals to one pole. The pole is the mindfulness object. The rope that ties the animals to the pole is the mindfulness itself.