“Practice” in Gotama’s teachings includes a number of techniques for training the mind in calming, concentration, & insight (mindfulness, sati). These all represent a practical (pragmatism) means to the goal of liberation: seeing how things really are, or, if you prefer, what being a human being really is. Practice in techniques of meditation, concentration, & insight work with study of dhamma: Studying the teachings gives you some first ideas for understanding how things are, & basic ideas for practice; practice, in turn, prepares the mind for insights, seeing directly how things are. These insights, in turn, allow deeper appreciation for more subtle aspects of the teachings. This cycle repeats & deepens over time. We have to calm the mind, which normally races around, wanders, & is distracted. Then we can begin to look for the mental patterns Gotama describes in his teachings: the endless flow of mental events arising & passing, the lack of anything there like a solid self to which events are occurring.
Because there are so many good resources already for learning meditation, concentration, & insight, this site does not go into depth about these. Also, most people find practicing with a like-minded group, with support from experienced teachers, is the best way to go, especially (but not only) at the beginning.
mindfulness • pragmatism • sati • study