This type of meditation, Samatha (pronounced: sha ma ta) (Tibetan: zhi-gnas), means quiet abiding or meditative calm. I will describe here what has been taught to me as a student of Tibetan Buddhism.

To begin, one assumes a straight back posture, sitting cross legged on a cushion. The chin is slightly tucked down toward chest while keeping the top of the head straight up and the shoulders drawn back. The eyes are open and the gaze is with a soft focus, directed down to a spot about 5-6 feet ahead of oneself. The hands rest on top of the thighs, palms down a couple of inches above the knee. The jaw is relaxed with the lips slightly parted with the tip of the tongue resting behind and above the upper front teeth.

The breath is natural breathing. The breath is allowed to come in by relaxing and letting go of the abdomen. Slightly contracting the abdomen, the breath flows out. Follow the breath. If you find that you are having many random thoughts and are focusing on these, (and this will happen), gently note to yourself that this has occurred by saying to yourself silently, "thinking", exhale out and return to your breath. Continue to follow your breath in this manner.

Whenever the mind strays from this place, return to the breath in a gentle, non-judgmental way. Touch the thoughts with a light touch by saying "thinking", let them go and simply begin again at the next exhalation. Let the mind move at will. If you become aware of any tension or pain in the body, movement, or noise, consciously note this also by saying to yourself, "thinking", and letting go with the breath. There should be no attempt to freeze or stop the mind from thinking.

Thought is the very nature of the mind, do not try to stop the mind from thinking. The attempt should be to focus the mind and let naturally settle itself. If you find that you are having trouble letting go, don't force the issue. It might be a good idea to stop and begin again another time. Try this at the beginning for short periods of time, say five minutes. If you can, continue practicing so you can do sitting practice for twenty to forty minutes at a time. When one becomes advanced with this practice, then it can be done for long periods.

Another technique I suggest for people to use is one that was passed along to me from Dr.Trogawa Rinpoche. One should find a hill on which to sit with the ground sloping down and away from one leaving an expanse of openness out in front. This can best be done where one finds water. Once finding a stream, river or the ocean, find a spot overlooking the water with nothing blocking one's vision. One should sit and look out across the water and let the mind settle. Using the above methods, as soon as one becomes aware that they are thinking, they should let the thought process relax and dissolve itself. It is best to do this practice at sunrise and sunset. In the morning face the west. In the evening face the east. Sit and watch the water flowing away from you. If you are on the ocean, the best time is when the sun is behind you and the tide is going out. Let your thoughts and problems go away with the flow of the water.

Care must be used since the wrong meditation or improper practice of meditation can cause meditation-induced sok-rlung or Wind imbalance. This can be described as a manic state where the mind races, jumping from topic to topic producing restlessness and agitation. Any meditative practice which tries to force the mind into submission, creates frustration, or raises the center of consciousness to the top of the body or the tip of the nose, will tend to create a Wind imbalance or aggravate an existing one.

Dr.Trogawa Rinpoche has said that being in a calm state of mind "breeds physical health in ourselves throughout the whole body. This is by means of the internal, physical humor we call Wind. The Wind that moves the body's energy moves the blood, so the Wind follows the pattern of the circulatory system. In a medical sense, this has to do with the relationship of Mind and internal Wind. Mind is based on the Wind and the Wind circulates all through the body, through the circulatory system. This is the connection between Wind and the Mind."