Today's a big anniversary: ten years. For ten years I have been practicing Vipassana (Theravada) Buddhism, like that found in Thailand. The core of my Buddhist practice (and I hope that if I practice enough I will get good at it) is mindfulness meditation: 30 minutes, every day, come hell or high water--which is of course when it is most needed.
After some 'concentrate on the breath, notice the air entering the nose; notice when air leaves the nose' warm-ups I contemplate the Three Jewels.
1) I take refuge in Buddha--enlightenment is possible and has been attained by many people
2) I take refuge in Dharma--there is a well-known and straightforwardly-learned way to gain enlightenment
3) I take refuge in Sangha--there is a community of other people striving for enlightenment, and we can help each other.
I then do the loving-kindness meditation: starting with myself and moving out into my personal community through people I feel less close to and ending with any people I may feel negative feelings for, I say "May Mom enjoy happiness and the roots of happiness. May Mom be free of suffering and the roots of suffering." The former is followed by 'May Mom practice kindness and mindfulness; forgiveness and compassion.' The latter I translate as suffering=self-intensification (e.g., obsessing) and the roots of suffering=craving. This builds empathy and compassion. The ultra-challenge for the last several years was 'May Dick Cheney be free of suffering and the roots of suffering,' which REALLY builds the compassion.
Self-intensification is like this for me: I worry, then I think about being worried, then I feel an adrenaline response, then I think about the adrenaline response, then I feel more adrenaline. Basically none of my life is so split-second that adrenaline is helpful as a response to a perceived hazard. So internally I say, 'hello Worry, old friend, I see you have come for a visit. Be comfortable, stay as long as you'd like, but I have other things to be mindful of.' This is also kind of like visualizing myself as a child, and giving myself a big reassuring hug. Self-intensification can also apply to pleasurable experiences, where the positive excitement distracts me from enjoying the situation causing the pleasure. Another helpful concept here is that everything is unsatisfactory: there is always a problem, weakness, or potential failure present, so I expect them and don't get too excited when I encounter them. Conversely, however much I crave something, if I get it, it will have flaws or shortcomings so I expect those and embrace them as a part of whatever I am craving.
Craving can be for things, people, feelings, or anything that is not currently present. It is related to attachment--wanting something to persist. However, everything is temporary--impermanent in Buddhist parlance--so attachment causes suffering. That is not so say I have no wants; I have plenty. But satisfying desires does not extinguish the desires, it stokes them. Cravings and attachment wash onto me just like always; but I no longer try to fill my containers with them but let them drain away. Well, I fill them less often, and not as fully ;-)
I feel the same feelings I have always felt, but the share of my consciousness allocated to them has dramatically shifted. During meditation my mind wanders like it always does, but when I notice it I say internally 'well that is interesting but let's think about that later and go back now to focusing on the breath then resume meditating.' The proverbial Buddhist tranquility is a result of the meditation, not a part of it.
So there's Tom's Buddhism 101, my version of Theravada Buddhism. There is no reincarnation in it, no supernatural beings, no magical thinking at all. Everyone's practice is different. I hope that you find some of it to be helpful. May you enjoy happiness and the roots of happiness; may you be free of suffering and the roots of suffering.
Thu Jan 02, 2014 at 8:20 AM PT: Thank you for such a strong and positive response! Thank you for the Recommendation, DKos Sangha, and Street Prophet listings!