Stepping Back
May 13, 2005
When you meditate, it’s easy to get frustrated. Here you are, looking at the breath, and as Ajaan Lee says, “Just four concentrations, and you can’t master them.” The mind keeps slipping off, and no matter how determined you are to stay with the breath, you find yourself someplace else. Often it doesn’t seem like the meditation’s heading in any particular direction — just kind of mucking around — and you wonder, “What does this have to do with the Deathless? What does this have to do with true happiness?” That’s when it’s time to step back and look at the larger perspective.