Buddhist Practices

Meditation

“All we are is the result of what we have thought: is founded on our thoughts, it is made up of our thoughts.” Dhammapada Chapter 1:1-2

Meditation is a conscious effort to control and to change how the mind is functions.  Buddhist meditiation is the act of turning your thoughts away from the world and its activity and towards our thoughts, feelings, and perceptions.  Meditation involves yhr mind entering a state of one-pointedness, which comprises the six forces; hearing pondering, mindfulness, awareness, effort, and intimacy.  

Types of Meditation

There are many ways in which a mind can reach the mental clarity which defines meditation.  These practices have been generally grouped into four different types of meditation.  These include Concentrative, Generative, Receptive, Reflevtive.  

Concentrative

Concentrative meditation is meditation during which you begin by focusing all attention upon one object until it becomes clearer and calmer.  There are many things you can focus on, a mantra, a tactile perception, etc., however the most common method is to focus upon the breathing (anapanasati).  

Breathing in long, he discerns, 'I am breathing in long'; or breathing out long, he discerns, 'I am breathing out                  long.' Or breathing in short, he discerns, 'I am breathing in short'; or breathing out short, he discerns, 'I am breathing out short.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe in sensitive to the entire body.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out sensitive to the entire body.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming bodily fabrication.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming bodily fabrication.' Just as a skilled turner or his apprentice, when making a long turn, discerns, 'I am making a long turn,' or when making a short turn discerns, 'I am making a short turn'; in the same way the monk, when breathing in long, discerns, 'I am breathing in long'; or breathing out long, he discerns, 'I am breathing out long' ... He trains himself, 'I will breathe in calming bodily fabrication.' He trains himself, 'I will breathe out calming bodily fabrication.'
Buddha: Maha-satipatthana Sutta

Generative

One example of Generative meditation is the practice of metta bhavana or “loving kindness”.  Metta Bhavana begins with the thought, “May I be free from enmity; may I be free from ill will; may I be ride of suffering; may I be happy.”  After doing this, the next step is applying this same form to the same degree, but towards a companion or a friend. Following the thoughts of a friend, thoughts of a neutral party should follow.  Harbor the caring and compassionate words towards someone whom you neither like nor dislike.  Next is repeating these same lines, and harboring the same compassion for someone who is hostile, or whom you dislike.  When the feelings of loving kindness are equal for all four beings, a meditation has been successful.  To bring it a step further, the meditator can extend the feelings towards all sentient beings, to envelop the entire world, good and bad. 
(And let him think:) In safety and in bliss
May creatures all be of a blissful heart.
Whatever breathing beings there may be,
No matter whether they are frail or firm
With none excepted, be they long or big
Or middle sized, or be they short or small
Or thick, as well as those seen or unseen,
Or whether they are dwelling far or near,
Existing or yet seeking to exist,
May creatures all be of a blissful heart.
Let no one work another one's undoing
Or even slight him at all anywhere;
And never let them wish each other ill
Through provocation or resentful thought
Buddha: Metta Sutta

Receptive

Receptive meditation is particularly popular in zen buddhism.  This practice of meditation is simply the act of being mindful, and practicing zazen.  Zazen or 'just sitting' is meditation through sitting, eyes open, and just being aware of what is happening exactly in each moment without judging, trying to change things, or fantasizing.  A similar practice is the Tibetan tradition of dzogchen.  In both, the aim of meditation is to revel in the moment and not being separate from the present.  

Reflective

Reflective meditation is choosing a topic or theme to think about.  The mind should focus around this theme but be open to whatever arises, acknowledging the wayward thought, and then returning to the theme.  The mind is able to think throughout our daily lives, but the thought is muddled and unclear.  The idea of reflective meditation is to take advantage of the clear and focused menial state of meditation to think about difficult questions.  Some examples of questions to use for reflective meditation: Who am I?, what is the meaning of life?, the universal laws of cause and effect, what is the nature of change and impermanence?, the preciousness of life and the inevitability of death, the interdependence of all beings, what legacy do I want to leave when I am gone?, what values and principles are worth living for?, how can I help relieve the sufferings of others?

Mandala

Mandalas are a tradition in primarily the Tibetan sect of Buddhism.  The word mandala means "circle" in sanskrit, and indeed mandalas are sacred geometric circles.  A mandala is a geometric design created with colored sands, known in Tibetan as dul0tson-kyil-khor, or "mandala of colored powders."  Mandalas were said to have been introduced by the Buddha himself, and each different design of the mandala is a different lesson to teach.   

The construction of a mandala is a deeply spiritual and sacred ritual, a meditative practice, which can take weeks to finish.  The general design of the mandala is outlined on a platform of some sort.  Normally, four monks work simultaneously on a mandala.  They work together from the center outward.  The center of the mandala is typically dedicated to a deity, though some mandalas do not have deities.  From the center they work creating intricate and time consuming designs with colored sand.  Though mandalas are usually made with colored sand, sometimes they are created using powdered flowers and herbs or grains.  Gems and precious stones were often used in ancient times.  Some mandalas are painted to endure as an object of meditation, but normally they are destroyed as a symbol of the Buddhist idea of the impermanence of all things.  To destroy them, a monk will brush the sand from the edge toward the middle, and the resulting sand will be deposited into moving water, extending the positive energies.  

Mandalas are overflowing with Buddhist symbolism.  Outside of the center of the mandala are several concentric circles.  The outside circle is usually a ring of fire, which simonizes the transformation humans must undergo before entering the innermost realms.  The next ring is a ring of thunderbolts and diamond scepters which symbolize indestructibility and illumination.  Next is a ring of eight graveyards, indicating the eight aspects of human consciousness that forces it to remain in samsara (rebirth).  The innermost ring is mad of lotus leaves, the lotus flower being of paramount importance in the Buddhist culture, these flowers represent religious rebirth.  The square at the center of the mandala often represented either the four boundless thoughts (loving-kindness, compassion, sympathy, and equanimity) or the four directions (north, east, south, west).  In the center of the mandala is the chief deity, the center of the mandala represents the seed or center of the universe. 

Buddhist Worship 

Buddhists can worship in a group setting, at a temple, at home, or not at all.  In the home, Buddhists will often have a room set aside for worship.  The room would have a statue of Buddha, a candle, and an incense burner.  Buddhist temples may be in any shape or style.  The most well known temples are the pagodas of China and Japan, however not all temples are similar in style.  Another type of Buddhist temple is a stone enclosure around some relic or text of Buddhist teachings.  Five different elements are symbolized in Buddhist temples: fire, air, earth (symbolized by the square base), water, and wisdom (symbolized by the pinnacle at the top).  All Buddhist temples have an image, statue, or representation of some kind, of the Buddha.  

There are many different ways to worship in Buddhism due to the many schools and denominations of Buddhism.  In the Mahayana tradition, buddhists may worship Buddha and the Bodhisattvas.

A mantra is a phrase, words, or prayer that is repeated many times, which has a spiritual effect on a person.  One of the most well known mantras is simply Om.  Om appears at the beginning of another famous mantra, om mani padme hum.  The phrase very roughly translates to "Behold! The jewel in the lotus!", although this translation does not accurately capture the deep spiritual meaning this phrase holds for Buddhists. 

Throughout Buddhism there are many different ways that one can worship.  Each person's worship is a very personal experience which they view with great levity.  Worship is a large part of the Buddhist lifestyle.