Buddhānussati Meditation

In the following sections, we will explain the recollection meditations or Anussati bhāvanā. Anussati bhāvanā is practiced on several themes. The themes are Buddhānussati bhāvanā or meditation on the qualities of the Buddha; Dhammanussati bhāvanā or meditation on the qualities of the Dhamma; Sanghānussati bhāvanā or meditation on the qualities of community of Noble Monks; Seelanussati bhāvanā or meditation on one’s own virtue; Chaganussati bhāvanā or meditation on one’s own generosity; Devatanussati bhāvanā or meditation on heavenly beings, and Marananussati or meditation on death. In the following sections, we will discuss each of these meditation techniques in detail.

 

In Buddhānussati meditation, one recollects the marvelous and unsurpassed qualities of the Buddha. The Gautama Buddha was the greatest sage who lived on the earth and taught the Dhamma, which he himself had realized without anyone’s guidance, with compassion to beings, in particular for humans and gods, in order to help them understand the reality of the life. If one recollects the qualities of the Buddha, even for a moment, one is practicing Buddhānussati meditation. Each moment one recollects the qualities of the Buddha, one purifies, tranquilizes, and settles his mind. By practicing Buddhāussati meditation, one begins a new life without even knowing it.

 

The Buddha had a heart free from all defilements. His mind was free from passion. The Buddha was not furious about anything at all; he was free from hatred. The Buddha was not deceived or charmed by the illusions of the world as he was free from delusion. Therefore, the Buddha is an arahant. By thinking about incomparable qualities of the Buddha, you can purify your mind. The Buddha did not commit immoral acts even in secret. As he was free from all defilements, he was free from all suffering. The Buddha realized the Four Noble Truths without any guidance of a teacher. The Buddha fully realized the entire world system and all kinds of living beings in it, as well as their passing away and rebirth. By showing the direct and the right path to end suffering, which is the Noble Eightfold Path, he became the perfect and most capable teacher of gods and humans. In this way, whenever you can recollect the qualities of the Buddha, you think about the supreme sage, the Buddha who introduced the golden era to the world.

 

 

The instant you start to recollect the qualities of the Buddha, from that very moment on, your mind starts to be free from defilements and calms down. A Buddha is born into this world very rarely. You can recognize who the Buddha is only if you can develop your wisdom. That wisdom must be gained through listening to the Buddha’s teachings. You can recognize the Buddha through the Dhamma, based on your wise consideration.

 

The Buddha’s purity, marvelous wisdom, great compassion, unsurpassed concentration, and extraordinary energy, all of these incomparable qualities, will illuminate your world.

 

You can recollect on the qualities of the Buddha, thinking about the meanings of Arahaṁ quality, Sammā Sambuddho quality, Vijacarana Saṁpanno quality, Sugato quality, Lokavidu quality, Annutaro purisadamma sārati quality, Satta Devamanusanaṁ quality, Buddho quality, and Bhagavā quality. Be familiar with this contemplation by constantly practicing it. This is a very beneficial contemplation.

 

Human life is like a stream of water that is being dried out gradually. As a human being, you have the rare opportunity to develop wisdom before you lose this human life by practicing the Buddhānussati meditation.

 

My great teacher, supreme Buddha, possessed extraordinary qualities.

 

I pay homage to my great teacher, supreme Buddha, who possessed incomparable wisdom and great compassion.

Buddhānussati Meditation - Method 01

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, was free from all defilements.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not engage in unwholesome acts, even in secrecy.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, escaped from all evil.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, was worthy of accepting material and spiritual offerings.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not cling to, was not repelled by, and was not deceived by forms seen with the eyes; he eradicated desire for all forms.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not cling to, was not repelled by, and was not deceived by sounds heard with the ears; he eradicated desire for all sounds.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not cling to, was not repelled by, and was not deceived by odours smelled by the nose; he eradicated desire for all odours.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not cling to, was not repelled by, and was not deceived by tastes sensed by the tongue; he eradicated desire for all tastes.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not cling to, was not repelled by, and was not deceived by sensations felt by the body; he eradicated desire for all bodily sensations.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, did not cling to, was not repelled by, and was not deceived by thoughts cognized by the mind; he eradicated desire for all thoughts.
      Because of these great qualities, my great teacher, Supreme Buddha is an Arahant.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, realized “suffering”, as the first noble truth, without having guidance from a teacher.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, realized “the origin of suffering”, as the second noble truth, without having guidance from a teacher.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, realized “the cessation of suffering”, as the third noble truth, without having guidance from a teacher.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, realized “the path leading to cessation of suffering”, as the fourth noble truth, without having guidance from a teacher.
      Supreme Buddha realized each Noble Truth in three steps making twelve aspects; these steps are, knowledge of truth (sattya ñāna), knowledge of what needs to be done (kruttya ñāna), and knowledge of fulfillment of what needs to be done (kruttak ñāna).
      Because of his great achievement my great teacher, Supreme Buddha is Sammā Sambuddho.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, possessed supernatural powers; he walked in the sky, walked on water and passed through solid objects.
      In this way, my great teacher, supreme Buddha possessed the knowledge of infinite supernatural powers (iddhivida ñāna).
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, acquired the divine eye (dibba cakkhu ñāna) which enabled him to see things from any distance.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, acquired the divine ear (dibba sota ñāna) which enabled him to listen to sounds from any distance.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, acquired the ability to recollect past lives of beings (pubbe nivāsānussati ñāna).
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, acquired the ability to see passing away and arising of beings based on actions (cutūpapāta ñāna).
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, acquired the knowledge of eradicating all hidden taints (āsavakkhaya ñāna).
      Because of his great knowledge, because of his great virtue, and because of his great concentration, my great teacher, Supreme Buddha is Vijjacarana Saṁpanno.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, discovered the excellent path to Nibbāna, and by following it, reached the supreme bliss of Nibbāna.
      Because of his great discovery, my great teacher, supreme Buddha is Sugato.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, understood completely all brahma worlds, all divine worlds, the human world, the ghost world and the four hells; he escaped from these worlds.
      Because of his great comprehension, my great teacher, supreme Buddha is Lokavidu.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, tamed arrogant divine beings and humans using his superhuman abilities.
      The Buddha tamed and directed them to Nibbāna with his supernatural powers (iddhi patihariya), reading their minds (adesana pratiharya) and preaching Dhamma (anusasani pratiharya).
      Because of his great talent in taming beings, my great teacher, supreme Buddha is Anuttaro Purisa Dhammasarathi.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, showed the path to cross over the cycle of rebirth and attain Nibbāna to wise divine beings and wise humans.
      Because he guided gods and humans to Nibbāna, my great teacher, supreme Buddha is Satthā Devamanussanaṁ.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, taught the Four Noble Truths clearly, pleasantly, and meaningfully using clear words and clear definitions helping others realize Dhamma.
      Because he taught Dhamma profoundly, my great teacher, supreme Buddha is Buddho.

     

    • My great teacher, supreme Buddha, was blessed with all of these noble qualities.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, was blessed with the brightest wisdom, that surpasses the sun and moon.
      My great teacher, supreme Buddha, was blessed with a heart full of limitless compassion.
      Because of his great fortune, supreme Buddha is Bhagavā.

     

    My great teacher, supreme Buddha, possessed extraordinary qualities.

     

    I pay homage to my great teacher, supreme Buddha, who possessed incomparable wisdom and great compassion.

Buddhānussati Meditation - Method 02

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ eradicated passion/ hatred and
    delusion.
    My great teacher/ the supreme Buddha/ eradicated the desire of/
    seeing forms…
    hearing sounds…
    smelling odors…
    tasting flavors…
    feeling bodily sensations…
    thinking thoughts/

    Supreme Buddha/ controlled sense faculties/ guarded sense faculties/ restrained sense faculties/ My great teacher/ the Supreme Buddha/ is free from defilements.

    In this way/my great teacher/ Supreme Buddha is an Arahant/ Arahant/
    Arahant.

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ realized “suffering” as a noble truth/
    without guidance from a teacher.

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ realized “the origin of suffering”/ as a
    noble truth/ without guidance from a teacher.

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ realized “the cessation of suffering”/
    as a noble truth/ without guidance from a teacher.

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/, realized “the path leading to
    cessation of suffering    ”/ as a noble truth/ without guidance from a teacher.

    In this way/my great teacher/ Supreme Buddha/ is Sammā Sambuddho/
    Sammā Sambuddho/ Sammā Sambuddho.

 

  • My great teacher/supreme Buddha/ possessed supernatural powers/
    walked in the sky/walked on water /and passed through solid objects/
    In this way/ my great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ possessed the
    knowledge of infinite supernatural powers (iddhivida ñāna).

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ acquired the divine eye/ (dibba
    cakkhu ñāna)     enabling to see things from any distance.

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ acquired the divine ear/ (dibba sota
    ñāna)     enabling to listen to sounds from any distance.

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ acquired the ability to recollect/ past
    lives of beings (pubbe nivāsānussati ñāna).

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ acquired the ability to see/ passing
    away/ and rebirth of beings/ based on their actions (cutūpapāta ñāna).

    My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ acquired the knowledge of
    /eradicating all hidden defilements (āsavakkhaya ñāna).

    In this way/possessing great knowledge virtue, and concentration/ the
    Supreme Buddha/ is Vijjacarana Saṁpanno/ Vijjacarana Saṁpanno/
    Vijjacarana Saṁpanno    .

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ discovered the excellent path to
    Nibbāna/ the noble eight fold path/ and by developing it/ reached the
    supreme bliss of Nibbāna.

    In this way/my great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ is Sugato/ Sugato/ Sugato.

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ fully understood all brahma worlds,
    all divine worlds/the human world/ the four fold hell/ and escaped from
    all these worlds.

    In this way/my great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ is Lokavidu/
    Lokavidu/ Lokavidu.

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ tamed arrogant divine beings and
    humans/ The supreme Buddha/ tamed and directed them to Nibbāna
    using supernatural powers (iddhi patihariya), reading their minds
    (adesana pratiharya) and teaching Dhamma (anusasana pratiharya).

    In this way/ my great teacher/ supreme Buddha is Anuttaro Purisa
    Dhammasarathi/ Anuttaro Purisa Dhammasarathi/ Anuttaro Purisa
    Dhammasarathi.

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ showed the path to Nibbāna/ to wise
    divine beings and humans.

    In this way/ my great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ is Satthā Devamanussanaṁ/
    Satthā Devamanussanaṁ/ Satthā Devamanussanaṁ.

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/ taught the Four Noble Truths/ using
    clear words/ and clear definitions/ clearly, pleasantly, and meaningfully/
    helping others to realize the Dhamma.

    In this way/my great teacher/ supreme Buddha is Buddho/ Buddho/ Buddho.

 

  • My great teacher/ supreme Buddha/was blessed with all of these noble
    qualities/ supreme Buddha, was blessed with the brightest wisdom/ that
    surpasses the sun and moon.My great teacher/supreme Buddha/ was blessed
    with a heart full of limitless compassion.

    In this way/ the supreme Buddha is Bhagavā/ Bhagavā/ Bhagavā.

    May my homage be/ to my great teacher/ supreme Buddha, who possessed
    incomparable wisdom and great compassion.