“Because your mind moves like a river, it does not rest without the foundation of meditative serenity; a mind that is not in meditative equipoise cannot understand reality just as it is. Also, the Bhagavan says, ‘With meditative equipoise, you know reality just as it is.’” — Kamalaśīla, First Stages of Meditation, The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (v3, p21)

Sections
Definitions    |   JABL Subject Headings   |   Calm Abiding in Tibetan Buddhism   |   Indian Sources   |   Media and Other Resources

Definitions

ཞི་གནས་
zhi gnas
śamatha

Calm abiding; calming down; quietude; appeasing; serenity (UMA Tibet Dictionary)

JABL Subject Headings

Calm Abiding in Tibetan Buddhism

  • Tsong-Kha-Pa Blo-Bzang-Grags-Pa. 2002. The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment. Vol. 3. Snow Lion Publications. JABL
  • Gen Lamrimpa. 2011. How to Practice Shamatha Meditation. National Geographic Books. JABL
  • Geshe Gedun Lodro and Jeffrey Hopkins, trans. 1998. Calm Abiding and Special Insight. JABL
  • Zahler, Leah.1997. Meditative States in Tibetan Buddhism. Wisdom Publications. JABL

Indian Sources

Bhāvanākrama
Stages of Meditation (Kamalaśīla)
བསྒོམ་པའི་རིམ་པ་
bsgom pa’i rim pa
Tibetan: initial, middling, final
Sanskrit

  • Adam, Martin T., trans. 2002. Meditation and the Concept of Insight in Kamalaśīla’s Bhāvanākrama. Dissertation. McGill University. WorldCat
  • ​​Bstan-ʼdzin-rgya-mtsho, Dalai Lama XIV, and Geshe Lobsang Jordhen, Losang Choephel Ganchenpa, and Jeremy Russell, trans. 2001. Stages of Meditation: [Commentary]. Snow Lion Publications. JABL
  • Lhundup Sopa, Geshe, Elvin W. Jones, and John Newman, trans. [n.d.] Middle Length Stages of Meditation. (Drepung Goman)
  • Sharma, Paramananda, trans.. 2004. Bhāvanākrama of Kamalaśīla. Aditya Prakashan. JABL

Media and Other Resources

  • Adam, Martin T. 2006. “Two Concepts of Meditation and Three Kinds of Wisdom in Kamalaśīla’s Bhāvanākramas: A Problem of Translation.” Buddhist Studies Review. 23 (1): 71–92. (https://journal.equinoxpub.com)
  • Bstan-ʼdzin-rgya-mtsho, Dalai Lama XIV. 2008. Great Treatise on the Stages to the Path of Enlightenment. Lehigh University. July 10-15. Day 5 – Morning.  The Tibetan Buddhist Learning Center and Lehigh University. YouTube
  • “Deepening Calm-Abiding – the Nine Stages of Abiding.” 2022. Terebess
  • Wallace, B. Allen. 2010. The Attention Revolution: Unlocking the Power of the Focused Mind. Wisdom Publications. JABL
Subject Guides
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