Once the mind has let go of external mind–objects, it means you will no longer feel disturbed by the sound of traffic or other noises. You won’t feel irritated with anything outside. Whether it’s forms, sounds or whatever, they won’t be a source of disturbance, because the mind won’t be paying attention to them – it will become centred upon the breath.

If the mind is agitated by different things and you can’t concentrate, try taking an extra–deep breath until the lungs are completely full, and then release all the air until there is none left inside. Do this several times, then re–establish awareness and continue to develop concentration. Having re–established mindfulness, it’s normal that for a period the mind will be calm, then change and become agitated again. When this happens, make the mind firm, take another deep breath and then expel all the air from your lungs. Fill the lungs to capacity again for a moment and then re–establish mindfulness on the breathing. Fix mindfulness on the in–breaths and the out–breaths, and continue to maintain awareness in this way.

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Ajahn Chah
Year Published: 2010

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