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Kasiṇa in Buddhist Meditation

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Encyclopedia of Mindfulness, Buddhism, and Other Contemplative Practices

Synonyms

Kṛtsna (Sanskrit)

Definition

A kasiṇa stands for the meditative experience of something as a “totality,” this being the literal sense of the term, achieved as the outcome of cultivating concentration on an object that is meditatively experienced as all-embracing.

Kasiṇa

The early discourses list ten kasiṇas. These are differentiated according to their respective meditative themes, which are the four elements: earth, water, fire, and wind; four colors: dark blue, yellow, red, and white; with the final two being space and consciousness (Bodhi, 2012, p. 1370). According to ancient Indian thought, the four elements make up materiality. In early Buddhist thought, these four elements stand for qualities, evident in a discourse according to which a tree trunk can be viewed as made up of each of these four elements (Bodhi, 2012, p. 904). The qualities represented by these four elements are solidity (earth), cohesion (water), temperature (fire), and motion (wind).

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References

  • Anālayo, Bh. (2019). The role of mindfulness in the cultivation of absorption. Mindfulness, 10(11), 2341–2351.

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  • Anālayo, Bh. (2022). Developments in Buddhist meditation traditions, the interplay between theory and practice. Barre Center for Buddhist Studies.

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  • Bodhi, Bh. (2012). The numerical discourses of the Buddha, a translation of the Aṅguttara Nikāya. Wisdom Publications.

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  • Ñāṇamoli, Bh. (1991). The path of purification (Visuddhimagga) by Bhadantācariya Buddhaghosa. Buddhist Publication Society.

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  • Ñāṇamoli, Bh. (1995). The middle length discourses of the Buddha, a translation of the Majjhima Nikāya. Wisdom Publications.

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  • Walshe, M. (1987). Thus have I heard, the long discourses of the Buddha. Wisdom Publications.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Universität Hamburg, Hamburg, Germany

    Bhikkhu Anālayo

Authors
  1. Bhikkhu Anālayo
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Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Raleigh, NC, USA

    Nirbhay N. Singh

Section Editor information

  1. Centre for Positive Behaviour Support, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

    Yoon-Suk Hwang

  2. Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada

    Lance Hawley

  3. West Chester University of Pennsylvania, Center for Contemplative Studies, West Chester, PA, USA

    Donald McCown

  4. NOUS-School of Specialization (PsyD) in Psychotherapy, Milano, Italy

    Fabio Giommi

  5. Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy

    Antonino Raffone

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Anālayo, B. (2022). Kasiṇa in Buddhist Meditation. In: Singh, N.N. (eds) Encyclopedia of Mindfulness, Buddhism, and Other Contemplative Practices. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-90465-4_47-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-90465-4_47-1

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  • Print ISBN: 978-3-030-90465-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-030-90465-4

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