text:
Where can I find the "10 merits of life liberation" in the Tripitaka?
I searched, but I couldn't find, where these "10 merits of life liberation" are included in the Tripitaka.
Here you can find the "10 merits" I mentioned: Why do Buddhists practise life liberation?
There is also a Pali verse I found about this, but it's not in English, and also I don't study Buddhism in English normally -- so'll be thankful if anyone can point out where it is in the tripitaka.
I guess it may be in the therapadana part, according to that Pali verse -- I can't write it clearly in English letters as I found it only in Sinhala letters, but nearly it's like this:

abhayadanan dhatwana - jaththuno bhayajjite
  dasanisanse anubhomi - kammanuchchawike mama

Ten Ways of Making Merits, given by Upasaka Mahinda Wijesinghe and Bhante Nyanadassana, might be of help.

This page doesn't appear to be based on the Tipitaka -- e.g. because it mentions, "Amitabha Buddha's Pureland", the "Avatamsaka Sutra", the "Om Mani Padme Hum" mantra.

Current Pali canon is Hinayana, Theravada, but that site is Tibatian Mahayana Dalai Lama. Everyone who learned Pali can compose a new Pali poems, but the context can specify itself of what it is. The main idea of that link is completely Mahayana's idea, so I think you can use this Chinese context for searching into Mahayana's tipitaka.

@madhawavish, If you tag your question with "mahayana" tag, may be you'll find an answer quickly. Because there may be a lot of mahayana followers who are searching questions using tags.

@Damith machan, I saw those 10 merits in a sinhala article also..so i don't think this is from mahayana...Here you can see it,http://archives.dinamina.lk/2010/12/01/_art.asp?fn=a1012015&p=1 ...

@ChrisW I saw those 10 merits on a article written by a sri lankan theravada monk, but i can't clearly translate that into english..sometime these context may be included in "vimanawattu" part...Anyway haven't you heard about the merits of life liberation(liberation of animals from death and, death fear..which is also called as "abaya dana") from anywhere in tipitaka..

@madhawavish, The 10 merits mentioned in sinhala article are different than the 10 merits mentioned in the link you've provided in the question. The latter contain dhamma from Mahayana (This is evident that the 10th merit mentioned is "One will be easier born in Pureland", which is taught in Mahayana). I will try to trace 10 merits from Teravada Tipitaka.

@Damith Ok thanks,The above mention merits in sinhala article are found on thera apadana part in tipiaka..But liberation merits are not in that sutta..

This is a bit delicate, because the list of ten you have mentioned includes statements such as:

One will have abundant offsprings for future generations.
One will easily attain what one wishes.

With #4, since monastics are generally celibate as part of the Vinaya, there would be no "abundant offspring" in the literal sense. Perhaps in the spiritual sense would might have "offspring", but with the wording, that would be a bit of a stretch.
With #5, this also a bit in contradiction with all the suttas such as SN12.23 that clearly state that craving leads to suffering. Wishing is a tricky word to use. One might wish for a Ferrari or one might wish for a spiritual path.
Compare your referenced list of ten with a list of ten from the DN33 sutta:

A mendicant has given up five factors, possesses six factors, has a single guard, has four supports, has eliminated idiosyncratic interpretations of the truth, has totally given up searching, has unsullied intentions, has stilled the physical process, and is well freed in mind and well freed by wisdom.

Indeed, why would a Liberated One wish for anything? Grasping a wish, one searches for the fulfillment of that wish. And above we have clearly stated that there is no more searching.
Note, that one might argue that the list you've quoted is a list for lay practitioners. However even here, we have AN8.61 with Ugga the Householder happily choosing celibacy:

I’ve undertaken the five training rules with celibacy as fifth

I would recommend reading AN8.61 yourself to understand how far the list you have linked differs from what the Pali Canon shows in the suttas.
When lay instructions differ from monastic instructions it is always good to understand the differences so that we our practice progress rather than regresses.
Advantage #5 is very close to the following quote from DN33. Yet the following quote provides more context. One must be ethical and pure.

The heart’s wish of an ethical person succeeds because of their purity.

This is a very important consideration. When we live by violence, that is impure. WHen we give fearlessness, we are being ethical. So item #5 should be read in the context of being ethical. It does not stand alone.
DN33 goes on to say:

If only, when my body breaks up, after death, I would be reborn in the company of well-to-do aristocrats or brahmins or householders!

So yes, in the context of Right View, one will easily attain what one wishes simply because what one wishes for is Right. This is where the precepts come in for lay practitioners:

It’s when a noble disciple doesn’t kill living creatures, steal, commit sexual misconduct, lie, or use alcoholic drinks that cause negligence
  --an5.179

The following warning from DN33 also indicates that being rich, young and healthy and having abundant offspring is a temporary condition with uncertain outcome. One must focus on Right View:

It is not because of endowment with family, wealth, or health that sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm.
  It is because of endowment with ethics or view that sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm.

The list of 10 therefore does have concrete roots in the suttas. The suttas mostly deal with monastic study. They do also have instruction for lay practitioners. The lay instructions are usually quite terse and somewhat restrictive. Indeed, many lay practitioners would have trouble following the first five precepts (e.g., avoid alchohol?). Because of this, one might list out the advantages of following the first five precepts. I believe the list you have referenced is one such list. It is a list of advantages to be gained from following the path of:

Right View
Right Thought
Right Speech
Right Action
Right Livelihood
Right Effort
Right Mindfulness
Right Immersion

I think the list is for lay practitioner, and that the quoted "life liberation" refers to the practice of liberating animals, which I think means buying animals -- including e.g. previously-captured wild birds -- in order to set them free (i.e. to "liberate them") in the wild or their natural habitat, possibly after reciting dharma to them. And the "merits of life liberation" are merits which result from performing this practice.

You are quite right. I have edited the answer with more practical instructions. Thank you.

Well the merit 10 is about Pureland, which is an idea invented by puthujjanas, and you will not find it in the pali cannon.
Anyway, merit 9 is ''9. One will experience joy and peacefulness in all seasons.'' that's typically what the result of what people today call mindfulness

[3] "He is resistant to cold, heat, hunger, thirst, the touch of
  gadflies & mosquitoes, wind & sun & creeping things; to abusive,
  hurtful language; he is the sort that can endure bodily feelings that,
  when they arise, are painful, sharp, stabbing, fierce, distasteful,
  disagreeable, deadly.
  https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.119.than.html

merit 4 ''3. One will be unharmed by natural disasters and accidents.'' is typically what people say is the result of getting the citta into the samma samadhi. For instance, ajahn brahm loves to tell the story of a bikkhu who was not burned by a fire, when the citta was in samadhi.
the other listed merits are about daily life of humans and karma, which is what puthujjanas crave to know,
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an04/an04.235.than.html
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.135.than.html
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an08/an08.054.nara.html
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an05/an05.043.than.html


text:
What does 'Not percipient of form internally' in Salayatana Sutta mean?
In the Salayatana Sutta in the last paragraph it says;

Not percipient of form internally, he/she sees forms externally. This is the second direction.

What does this mean? Does it mean you do not react? OR Is related to reification, like look at things and don't try to make sense of them?

One projects internal phenomenas outwardly. Don Quichote might be a good sample of such or "having/being in a movie". Not avle to distinguish between mind and matter in its four directions.

Your quote from MN137 appears in several suttas. It is significant:

ajjhattaṃ arūpasaññī bahiddhā rūpāni passati

The word ajjhattaṃ has a connontation of self, of identity view. In other words, there is a personal relationship to the seen, the heard, etc. In this way, it is very much like "My Precious" from the Lord of the Rings. There is a sense of possession in the internal form. There is the taint of identity.
The word rūpāni has a connotation of non-identity, of simple recognition of form, that which is seen, heard, etc., but without personal identification. One sees a stranger's wedding ring, one sees the wealth embodied in the ring, one sees the proclamation of wealth in a ring, one sees the promises bound into the ring, one sees the hope bound into the ring, one sees the suffering bound into the ring.
The liberations are an important progression of awareness. Suffering, one perceives the world in terms of craving. With each step of liberation, one sees beyond oneself. One sees more of the world as it is and relinquishes identity view.
Seeing things externally, just see them for what they are, not for what they are to you.

The Eight Liberations (Aṭṭha-Vimokkha)

Kāyagatāsati-RūpaJāna (rūpī) Attainer perceives own kāya (rūpa) to attain jhāna.

Kāyagatāsati-RūpaJāna Attainer perceives other's kāya, rūpa, to attain jhāna. << This is your answer.
Both are body's organ, such as bloody&shitty colon, so they are not beautiful.

ColorKasiṇa-RūpaJāna Attainer perceives the color. it is the only color, so it's beautiful.

- 7. are ArūpaJāna Attainer, 8. is the champion of all jhānā because jhāna try to blind of Rūpa&Arūpa, and saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpatti can do it completely.

It comes with The Eight Bases for Transcendence, Aṭṭha-Abhibhāyatana, in MN Mahāsakuludāyisuttaṃ:

Abhibhāyatana (Pali: the 8 'stages of mastery'), are powers to be
obtained by means of the kasina-exercises see: kasina. In the Com. to
M. 77, where āyatana is explained by 'means' kārana it is said: The
abhibhāyatana through their counteracting may master and suppress
their adverse opposite states, and by means of higher knowledge they
may master the objects of mind. They are means for transcending the
sense-sphere.
The stereotype text often met with in the Suttas e.g. D. 11, 33; M.
77; A. VIII, 65; X, 29 is as follows:

Perceiving blue..., red..., yellow..., white forms in or on one's own body, one sees as if external small forms (e.g.: tooth) ,
beautiful or ugly; and in mastering these one understands: 'I know, I
understand.' This is the first stage of mastery.
Perceiving forms on one's own body, one sees these forms as if external, yet now also large ones (e.g.: leg-bone=femur). This is the
second stage of mastery.
Not perceiving forms on one's own body, one sees forms externally, small ones (e.g.: pollen inside flower). This is the third stage of
mastery.
Not perceiving forms on one's own body, one sees forms externally, large ones (e.g.: planets, galaxies). This is the fourth stage of
mastery.
Not perceiving forms on one's own body, one sees forms externally, blue (cobalt, yves-klein, flax, clear & pure) forms, forms of blue
color, blue appearance, blue lustre, and mastering these one
understands: 'I know, I understand. This is the fifth stage of
mastery. 6-8: The same is repeated with yellow, red and white forms.
As preparatory kasina-object for the 1st and 2nd exercise one should
choose on one's own body a small or a large spot, beautiful or ugly,
and thereon one should focus one's full undivided concentration, so
that this object after a while in mind is visualized as a mental
reflex or image nimitta and, as if it were, as something external.
Such an exercise, though appearing quite mechanical, if properly
carried out will bring about a high degree of mental concentration and
entrance into the 4 absorptions jhāna. In the 3rd and 4th exercises
the Bhikkhu by an external kasina-object gains the mental reflexes and
absorption see: As objects of the remaining exercises, perfectly clear
and radiant colors should be chosen, flowers, cloth, etc.

A kasina-object of small size is said to be suitable for a mentally
unsteady nature, one of a large size for a dull nature, a beautiful
object for an angry nature, an ugly one for a lustful nature.
In Vis.M V it is said: By means of the earth-kasina one succeeds in
reaching the stage of mastery with regard to small and large objects.
By means of the blue-kasina one succeeds in causing blue forms to
appear, in producing darkness, in reaching the stage of mastery with
regard to beautiful and ugly colours, in reaching 'deliverance through
the beautiful', etc. cf. vimokkha II, 3. The same is also said with
regard to the other colour kasinas.

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text:
How to deal with petty anger?
There are at present time only two things which still give me emotional responses that I seemingly have no control over. The one that I will be dealing with in this question is my inability to stop getting frustrated with video games.
So, while I do not expect that the Buddha had any remarks about how to treat your Jungler on League of Legends, I would be interested to hear any parallels in Buddhist philosophy as it pertains to the real world.
So, I will word it in reality.
When someone is doing something which I find disagreeable, and which negatively impacts me, how should I avoid falling into the trap of being angry at them for "sabotaging" me? More importantly, how do I avoid seeing it as sabotage, when surely they are doing what they think is right?
How do I avoid being angry at false expectations? In Stoic philosophy, there is this notion of avoiding expectation—i.e., there is no reason to believe that what I wish to happen will happen, and that nothing is owed to me. Are there meditative practices which can assist with this?
What does the Buddha say about these things? Or what does Buddhist philosophy have to say?

You ask - "Are there meditative practices which can assist with this?" There may be no other practices that will. You only need to do some reading of the standard literature to find an answer. How can you become angry and frustrated when you're not even there?

Petty anger is resentment.
From DN33 we are told:

Nine grounds for resentment. Thinking: ‘They did wrong to me,’ you harbor resentment. Thinking: ‘They are doing wrong to me’ … ‘They will do wrong to me’ … ‘They did wrong by someone I love’ … ‘They are doing wrong by someone I love’ … ‘They will do wrong by someone I love’ … ‘They helped someone I dislike’ … ‘They are helping someone I dislike’ … Thinking: ‘They will help someone I dislike,’ you harbor resentment.
Nine methods to get rid of resentment. Thinking: ‘They did wrong to me, but what can I possibly do?’ you get rid of resentment. Thinking: ‘They are doing wrong to me …’ … ‘They will do wrong to me …’ … ‘They did wrong by someone I love …’ … ‘They are doing wrong by someone I love …’ … ‘They will do wrong by someone I love …’ … ‘They helped someone I dislike …’ … ‘They are helping someone I dislike …’ … Thinking: ‘They will help someone I dislike, but what can I possibly do?’ you get rid of resentment.

I can confirm through personal experience that the above does in fact work in everyday life. Memorize and repeat.

Maybe my giving this answer is cheating -- an easy/facile answer, and not the answer you want -- but maybe it helps to see anger as dependently originated.
I.e. it arises in certain circumstances, because of conditions.
The question is full of first-person narrative -- "I find disagreeable", "negatively impacts me", "my Jungler on League of Legends".
Putting that aside, what are the conditions in which anger arises? What if you identify the condition, what if you alter or remove the condition?
You started to identify a condition -- "my inability to stop getting frustrated with video games" -- so the condition is, "with video games". What if you take the video game away? Why not -- would there still be a craving for video games? So the condition is "with video games, and craving"? Now what's that "craving" for exactly -- what are you craving? Is it worth it, to crave that, if it results in frustration? Can you change your attitude to participate more skilfully, e.g. "I don't mind who loses, I just want to play with my friends" or "I just want to play as well as I can". Or if not -- if you can't (I'm not saying you can't, that's for you to decide) -- perhaps you shouldn't play ... like there is no healthy way to smoke cigarettes, if you want to be healthy you have to stop.

When someone is doing something which I find disagreeable, and which negatively impacts me, how should I avoid falling into the trap of being angry at them for "sabotaging" me?

By contemplating what you consider being "me". By learning more about the notion of a "me" in terms of skandha and/or sankhara.
Short version is that we may become angry because we strive for things that others might obstruct. Or we may become angry because we believe certain ideas, motives or ideals are "ours". We falsely identify with concepts, and then get upset when others don't agree or behave like we want them to.

More importantly, how do I avoid seeing it as sabotage, when surely they are doing what they think is right?

Interesting observation. In metta bhavana one is encouraged to remind oneself that others do their best to be happy, just like we do ourselves. Reflecting on other people's motives can foster an understanding of other's perspective. Sometimes that can calm our anger to a certain degree.

And Ven. Bodhi's note:
MA: When thoughts of sensual desire arise directed towards living beings, the “other sign” is the meditation on foulness (see MN 10.10); when the thoughts are directed to inanimate things, the “other sign” is attention to impermanence. When thoughts of hate arise directed towards living beings, the “other sign” is the meditation on loving-kindness; when they are directed to inanimate things, the “other sign” is attention to the elements (see MN 10.12). The remedy for thoughts connected with delusion is living under a teacher, studying the Dhamma, inquiring into its meaning, listening to the Dhamma, and inquiring into causes.
https://dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=18448&p=259181&hilit

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text:
Would zen Buddhists agree with this quote from Chih-I?
Would zen Buddhists agree with this quote from Chih-I?

Quoted in T'ien-t'ai Buddhism and Early Madhyamika p110
I've not read the original material, so am not sure where Chih-I makes these points (about the four alternatives) from. But they do seem to make sense to me, and (potentially) be what matters most about meditation etc.. But I have no means to really study tendai, only some local zen schools.

I can't see why they wouldn't agree. The quote seems to cover the Three Turnings with the Buddha's view as the third for which all distinctions are denied. .  .

The voices of torrents are from one great tongue,
the lions of the hills are the pure body of Buddha.
"Isn't that right?" he said to the teacher.
"It is," said the teacher, "but it's a pity to say so."

that's pretty @Codosaur

I think Zen Buddhists would agree. Tiāntāi had been hugely influential on Japanese Buddhism especially through it's Tendai iteration. Consider: Venerable Shinran was a Tendai seminarian, as were Venerables Nichiren & Eisai. Venerable Hōnen was also ordained as a Tendai priest. As we can see, many later schools/sects of Japanese Buddhism actually sprout from Tendai as their mother.
The above quote is from Mahāśamathavipaśyanā T1911.38.661c-662a.
A lot of this discourse is to-do with identification, suchness vs differentiation, real vs unreal, ultimate vs provisional, nirvāṇic vs worldly.
The book you are quoting from compares Venerable Zhìyǐ's round fusion with the Madhyamaka's teaching. it seems.
This seems relevant in light of that, from the Sinitic recension of Venerable Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā:

All Buddhas either speak of self or speak of no self.  All dharmas’
  true aspect, within this, there is neither self nor no self.  All
  dharmas’ true aspect is defined as mental activity’s and spoken
  language’s ending.  There is no arising and no cessation, there is
  calm extinction, such is nirvāṇa. All is real, all is unreal, all is
  both real and unreal,  all is neither real nor unreal: this is called
  all Buddhas’ dharma.

(Āryanāgārjunasya Mūlamadhyamakakārikāyām Ātmaparīkṣā, T1564.23c16 : 諸佛或說我 或說於無我 諸法實相中 無我無非我 [etc.], section 18)
Compare the above with the Venerable Vimalākṣa's commentary on that section, for his or her Mādhyamikaśāstra, one of the three theses of East Asian Madhyamaka (三論宗 Triśāstravāda, "the School of the Three Treatises"), which would have been well-familiar to Venerable Zhìyǐ:

Reply: Those who are attached to dharmas classify dharmas into two
  kinds, some being worldly, some being of nirvana. They say that the
  nirvana dharmas are calm and extinct, but do not say that the worldly
  dharmas are calm and extinct. In this treatise it is taught that all
  dharmas are empty in nature and have the characteristic of calm
  extinction. Since those who are attached to dharmas do not understand
  this, nirvana is used as an example. Just as with your assertion that
  the characteristic of nirvana is emptiness, with no characteristics,
  calm extinction, and no vain thoughts, so it is with all worldly
  dharmas.
Question: If the Buddhas do not teach self, non-self, and the
  cessation of all mental activities and the cutting-off of ways of
  verbal expression, how do they make people understand the real
  character of dharmas?
Reply: All the Buddhas have unlimited powers of skilful means, and
  dharmas have no fixed characteristics. In order to save all living
  beings, they may teach that everything is real, or they may teach that
  everything is unreal, or that everything is both real and unreal or
  that everything is neither unreal nor not unreal. If you search for a
  real nature of dharmas, you will find that they all enter into the
  ultimate meaning and become equal, with identical characteristics,
  which is to say no characteristics, just like streams of different
  colour and different tastes entering into a great ocean of one colour
  and one taste, which is to say no taste. At the time when one has not
  yet penetrated into the true character of dharmas, each one can be
  contemplated separately as unreal, existing merely by the combinations
  of conditions. There are three levels of living beings; superior,
  average and inferior. The superior person sees that the characteristic
  of dharmas is that they are neither real nor unreal. The average
  person sees the characteristics of dharmas as either all real, or all
  unreal. The inferior man, since his powers of perception are limited,
  sees the characteristics of dharmas as a little real, and a little
  unreal, regarding nirvana, because it is an inactive dharma and does
  not perish as real, and regarding samsara, because it is an active
  dharma, empty and false, as unreal. Neither unreal nor not unreal is
  taught in order to negate ‘both real and unreal’.

(Āryavimalākṣasya Mādhyamikaśāstre Ātmaparīkṣāparivartaḥ T1564.24a15: 有人說神。應有二種。若五陰即是神。若離 五陰有神。[etc.], translation Brian Christopher Bocking)
Furthermore, returning to the source text of the commentary above, we later have this, a passage Ven Zhìyǐ would have been very familiar with:

Between nirvāna and
  this world there is not even a slight disparity. Between this world
  and nirvāṇa there is also not even a slight disparity. From nirvāṇa’s
  true apex towards this world’s apex, like this, there are two apices,
  like this, there is not the smallest sliver of disparity between them.

(Mūlamadhyamakakārikāyām Nirvāṇaparīkṣā, T1564.35c27: 涅槃與世間 無有少分別 世間與涅槃 亦無少分別 涅槃之實際 及與世間際 如是二際者 無毫釐差別, section 25)

this is a difficult answer, but probably good. i'm going to have to read it a few times, thanks...

i'm going to accept it as an answer, even-though all three of its quotes woosh over my head entirely. maybe you could provide more commentary on them?

I think for the terms of service for this forum we're supposed to keep conversation to a minimum and mostly answer questions. What about the above was confusing? It's mostly a "yes, and look at some similar quotes the author would have been very familiar with". What particularly went "whoosh"?

A Rinzai monk might simply grab the book being read and knock the monk on the head with it, asking, "what Realm is this?" wack

not gonna upvote, but i agree, thanks!

I studied Zen for many years. However, Zen is more effective with the suttas, especially the EBT's. The most important consideration I have found is not actually the realms. It is Identity View. The illusion of identity fuels so much suffering. Desire, forms and non-form are all bound up to lesser degrees in identity.  This is why the wack is important. It cuts to the chase and points out the core conflict. Identity. wack

What does "Zen is effective with the suttas" mean? Does studying Zen include studying suttas? Does it typically exclude the study of suttas? Do you find you're better able to explain Zen's mission if if you study the suttas 'on the side' (i.e. not as part of but as an adjunct to the Zen curriculum)?

I studied Zen to be rid of suffering. It didn't work. I read the suttas. They work. Now I understand how I should have studied Zen.


text:
Is Karma part of Dharma? In other terms, is Karma a subset of Dharma?
As per title.
I read the English translation of the heart sutra recently.If Karma is part of the Dharma, or is the Dharma, does this mean that Karma is not created or destroyed, and it neither decreases or increase, according to the heart sutra?

Notice the Heart Sutra's subsequent sentences' explanation:

This is because in emptiness there is no form, sensation, conception, synthesis, or discrimination. There are no eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or thoughts. There are no forms, sounds, scents, tastes, sensations, or dharmas. There is no field of vision and there is no realm of thoughts. There is no ignorance nor elimination of ignorance, even up to and including no old age and death, nor elimination of old age and death. There is no suffering, its accumulation, its elimination, or a path. There is no understanding and no attaining.

So does that mean there's no need to cultivate the Path because there is "no ignorance nor elimination of ignorance"; and actually no cultivation whatsoever because "there is no understanding and no Path"?? Of course not, the bolded part is the key point. Until one's penetrated that dimension/nature of emptiness, there is still ignorance to be eliminated, a Path to be cultivated, and wholesome and unwholesome Kammas to be decreased/increased, created/destroyed, etc.


text:
Tibetan word "sur"
I am reading a transcript of a talk given by a Tibetan lama, and the word 'sur' is used.  What is it?  Does it have something to do with food offering?

Can you copy-and-paste to quote from the transcript, to include the context, maybe a paragraph or two?

sur = burnt food offering (Wylie transliteration = bsur). See
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sur_offering

It's difficult to answer this question without the context of the word use.
The Tibetan and Himalayan Dictionary defines sur (སུར) as meaning "to whom", but in combination with other words it has totally different meanings, for example sur dug (སུར་དུག) = disease, and kha sur (ཁ་སུར) = date tree.

"Tsok" is a Tibetan Buddhist feast offering, could that be what is meant?
See the Rigpa Wicki explanation.


text:
What is this tile and what do its symbols depict?
I found a clay tile outside on the street that appears to depict the Buddha. It has a man in lotus position on one side and four scenes along with some text on the reverse. It is roughly as broad as my thumb.
I'd be curious to know what scenes are depicted, the meaning of the text, what this tile is called, and what the function of the tile is.
I'm guessing it shows his youth, becoming enlightened, being a teacher, and his death, but I don't know if it's more specific or different than my interpretation.

What scenes are depicted?

On the side with text:

The place where Shakyamuni Tathagata Lord Buddha was born.
The place where Shakyamuni Tathagata Lord Buddha awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening.
The place where Shakyamuni Tathagata Lord Buddha set rolling the unexcelled wheel of Dhamma.
The place where Shakyamuni Tathagata Lord Buddha totally unbound in the property of unbinding with no fuel remaining.

Lumbini, The birth place of Lord Buddha

Bodh Gaya, The place where Lord Buddha attained enlightenment

Saranath (Isipatana), The place where Lord Buddha preached his first dhamma sermon - Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, SN 56.11

Kushinagar (Upavattana Sal Grove), The place where Lord Buddha attained parinibbana
~ Source of images: The Life of the Buddha in Pictures
On the other side:
A statue of Shakyamuni Tathagata Lord Buddha in Samadhi (Dhyana) mudra (hand gesture) was carved on this side of the tile. By the appearance of the halo, I suggest that it must have been influenced by Mathura school of art. A similar halo can be seen in the famous Buddha statue at Saranath museum which was carved during Gupta dynasty.

The meaning of the text?

I cannot be sure about the text. But, by examining the appearance of the script, it should be related to one of the Indo-Aryan languages.

What this tile is called?

I have seen different small Buddha statues and carvings were placed inside vehicles and carried with themselves by the Buddhists in my country. But I have never seen this kind of tile in my country. So I cannot give it a name.

What the function of the tile is?

You've mentioned that the tile is roughly as broad as your thumb. So it must have been carved in order to take with oneself wherever he/she goes.

“Ānanda, there are these four places that merit being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merit his feelings of urgency & dismay [saṁvega]. Which four? ‘Here the Tathāgata was born’ is a place that merits being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merits his feelings of urgency & dismay. ‘Here the Tathāgata awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening’.… ‘Here the Tathāgata set rolling the unexcelled wheel of Dhamma’.… ‘Here the Tathāgata totally unbound in the property of unbinding with no fuel remaining’ is a place that merits being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merits his feelings of urgency & dismay. These are the four places that merit being seen by a clansman with conviction, that merit his feelings of urgency & dismay. They will come out of conviction, Ānanda—monks, nuns, male lay followers, & female lay followers—to the spots where ‘Here the Tathāgata was born,’ ‘Here the Tathāgata awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening,’ ‘Here the Tathāgata set rolling the unexcelled wheel of Dhamma,’ ‘Here the Tathāgata totally unbound in the property of unbinding with no fuel remaining.’ And anyone who dies while making a pilgrimage to these shrines with a bright, confident mind will—on the break-up of the body, after death—reappear in a good destination, a heavenly world.”

~ Cited from: Mahā Parinibbāna Sutta, Deega Nikaya, Tipitaka (DN 16.5)
According to the above sutta, the four places carved on the tile are very important and sacred to the Buddhists. A devotee can keep this tile with himself/herself in order to frequently remember the places that merit his/her feelings of urgency and dismay.

This is an amazing answer. Thank you so much.

Not to harp on too much, but this is truly an excellent answer. I appreciate you updating it with images and additional info. Thanks again. :)

The script is probably Kannada. The first letter reads 4. So probably the text must mean 'holy places'.

Yes.
I see that as his birth, enlightenment, first Dhamma sermon, and Parinirvana.

Thank you for the answer. Could you elaborate on any elements that inform your interpretation? Any thoughts on the text?

I thought this is pretty elementary. You find these pictures in many temples. However, this seems to be an important archaeological artifact hence worth a lot. Take care of it.


text:
What does craving feel like?
What does craving feel like as a set of sensations (body and mind)? I'm interested the recognition of craving as it occurs in that moment and how other people's lived experience accords with my own. Also, if there are very different forms of craving that present in entirely different ways.
Many Thanks

For me, craving is obsessive imagination and cyclical replay of a momentary situation in which a key sign of the desirable object is reconstructed by the mind and the sanna (perception or recognition) of the object by the sign occurs.
This sanna is then extended through a chain of associations into a sequence of memories, both good and bad, associated with the object. Some of these memories bring somatic components, both pleasant and painful.
The basic configuration, for me, of craving is: I am here and the object is there. I can partially recreate the object momentarily in my imagination, but the contact is brief and fleeting, and so not satisfying. This helplessness, or lack of power to bring the object fully and permanently into the now, brings about a sense of frustration. This feeling of mismatch or conflict between imagined object (with its nice associations) and the present absence of it, along with helpless frustration and hopelessness - is dukkha.
Anyway, the key component of craving, for me, is involuntarily mentally being in a different place than the here and now.

I think my take is like as in Andrei's answer, i.e.:

I remember something, a form -- usually a person or a place, but maybe an activity or a state
There's then some feeling[s] associated with that -- e.g. "I like[d] that", "that was nice", "that was me"
Then I think, "Yes I could miss that, feel nostalgia, if I didn't know better than to now (i.e. craving that could quickly lead to suffering). Also, that seems to be an example of I-making."

I think of that as "craving for the past". Less easy to describe concisely are "craving for the future" (possibly a.k.a. "becoming-craving"); and, whatever the mind was doing which allowed the potentially-nostalgic image to even arise (possibly a.k.a. "anusaya and asava") -- I guess that's like, if you're physically thirsty, then you're presumably continuously thirsty whether or not you're momentarily actually thinking of water.
So that's "past", "future", and "underlying tendency".
That doesn't quite match the traditional classifications -- i.e. kāma-taṇhā, bhava-taṇhā and vibhava-taṇhā (i.e. "sensuality", "becoming", and however you translate vibhava in that context -- I think either "craving for the cessation of becoming" or "craving for the becoming of cessation").
"Wanting something to stop" is probably easy to understand or to have understood, though: e.g. discomfort, personal or sympathetic.

To give my simple way of thinking about this: Imagine being completely at peace and in the moment. Any thought, feeling, action that has the form "that is more important that what is here now" is craving in my book.
In terms of my mind I am distracted, sometimes I feel fuzzy-minded. Certainly there is no contentment; I'm displeased - wanting something that isn't here.
In terms of my body sensations, the breath is the biggest tell. I either stop breathing or breathe faster than normal. Sitting, exercise, sex, reading, watching TV, when the breath is away from its normal state, the mind is unbalanced and craving.

In Theravāda-Buddhism, we understand a thing by its conditions and effects, so in Dī.A. (sumaṅgala.2) Mahāsatipaṭṭhānasuttavaṇṇanā Satipaṭṭhāna-Udesavaṇṇanā:

The practitioner have to comprehend a mind by 1. its object, governer-object, governer-mental-factors,  co-nascence-conditions, state, Kramma, resultants, Kiriya, etc., 2. impermanent, etc., and 3. in citta-anupassanā-satipaṭṭhāna "mind has passion", etc.

According to above explanation, the practitioner should have understood 8 Lobha-Mind-Arising, lobha-cittuppāda, with their conditions and effects in the dependent origination cycle to catch arising caving.
The example resource:
The path of purification, aggregate chapter, consciousness (90) (91) (92):

Tattha lobhamūlaṃ somanassupekkhādiṭṭhigatasaṅkhārabhedato aṭṭhavidhaṃ.
Ñ(XIV,90): II. (a) Herein, (22)-(29) that rooted in greed is of eight kinds, being classed according to joy, equanimity, [false] view, and prompting,
Seyyathidaṃ, somanassasahagataṃ diṭṭhigatasampayuttaṃ asaṅkhāraṃ sasaṅkhārañca, tathā diṭṭhigatavippayuttaṃ.
Ñ: that is to say: (22) when accompanied by joy it is either associated-with-[false-] view and unprompted, or (23) prompted; or (24) it is dissociated-from-[false-] view and likewise [unprompted or (25) prompted];
Upekkhāsahagataṃ diṭṭhigatasampayuttaṃ asaṅkhāraṃ sasaṅkhārañca, tathā diṭṭhigatavippayuttaṃ.
Ñ: and (26) when accompanied-by-equanimity it is either associated-with-[false-] view and unprompted, or (27) prompted; or (28) it is dissociated-from-[false-] view and likewise [unprompted, or (29) prompted].
Yadā hi ‘‘natthi kāmesu ādīnavo’’ti (ma. ni. 1.469) ādinā nayena micchādiṭṭhiṃ purakkhatvā haṭṭhatuṭṭho kāme vā paribhuñjati, diṭṭhamaṅgalādīni vā sārato pacceti sabhāvatikkheneva anussāhitena cittena, tadā paṭhamaṃ akusalacittaṃ uppajjati.
Ñ(XIV,91): (22) When a man is happy and content in placing wrong view foremost of the sort beginning 'There is no danger in sense desires' (M.i,307), and either enjoys sense desires with consciousness that in its own individual essence is eager without being urged, or believes auspicious sights, etc., have a [real substantial] core, then the first kind of unprofitable consciousness arises;
Yadā mandena samussāhitena cittena, tadā dutiyaṃ.
Ñ: (23) when it is with consciousness that is sluggish and urged on, then it is the second kind.
Yadā micchādiṭṭhiṃ apurakkhatvā kevalaṃ haṭṭhatuṭṭho methunaṃ vā sevati, parasampattiṃ vā abhijjhāyati, parabhaṇḍaṃ vā harati sabhāvatikkheneva anussāhitena cittena, tadā tatiyaṃ.
Ñ: (24) But when & man is happy and content only, without placing wrong view foremost, and indulges in sexual intercourse, or covets others' good fortune, or steals others' goods, with consciousness that in its own individual essence is eager without being urged, then it is the third kind.
Yadā mandena samussāhitena cittena, tadā catutthaṃ.
Ñ: (25) When it is with the consciousness that is sluggish and urged on, then it is the fourth kind.
Yadā pana kāmānaṃ vā asampattiṃ āgamma aññesaṃ vā somanassahetūnaṃ abhāvena catūsupi vikappesu somanassarahitā honti, tadā sesāni cattāri upekkhāsahagatāni uppajjantīti
Ñ: (26)-(29) But when the consciousnesses are devoid of joy in these four instances through encountering no excellence in the sense desires, or through want of any such cause for joy, then the remaining four, which are accompanied by equanimity, arise.
evaṃ somanassupekkhādiṭṭhigatasaṅkhārabhedato aṭṭhavidhaṃ lobhamūlaṃ veditabbaṃ.
Ñ: So that rooted in greed should be understood as of eight kinds, being classed according to joy, equanimity, [false] view and prompting.

The  Co-nascence of lobha-minds are 22 mental factors: (Universals-7) 1. Contact*, 2. Feeling, 3. Perception, 4. Volition, 5. One-Pointedness, 6. Psychic life, 7. Attention, (Particulars-6) 1. Initial Application, 2. Sustained Application, 3. Decision, 4. Effort, 5. Joy, 6. Conation (Immorals-9) 1. Delusion, 2. Shamelessness, 3. Fearlessness (of consequences, or to commit wrong), 4. Restlessness, 5. Attachment, 6. Misbelief, 7. Conceit, 8. Sloth, 9. Torpor. See: Abhidhmmatthasaṅgaha Chapter 2 for a brief explanation, and see the path of purification for the explanation in detail.
The pre-nascence matters of lobha-minds are Hadayavatthu and Hadayavatthu has its own Co-nascence as well.
The practitioner also has to know the dependent origination as well.

It's almost impossible to understand all of that knowledge with no mistaking by one's self without Jhāna meditation and the professional master's taking care. When I ask the teacher of Pa-Auk about mental factors, he answered me whether I have to meditate Jhāna to get the answer. That's why I often recommend Pa-Auk.

I'll add in my own response to this one. As a (mostly) adult most of my cravings can be addressed immediately. I feel like a coffee I go get a coffee. I want to step outside then I step outside. I'm subject to many many mild cravings that I just address, respond to and thus temporarily cancel out. For me these kind of cravings feel like a slight absence that is almost too slight to miss - almost like a gap. Just what I experience.

What does craving feel like?
There "are" three kinds of craving: craving after sensuality (objects of the six senses: world) after becoming (existing) and after not-becoming (non-existence). These "are" the three kinds of craving (tanha, thist).
One can split them also into 108, dividing it per past, present, future, senses, in-, outwardly
Watch out of which arises when touched by the answer.
What does craving feel like now?


text:
Is severing negative communication with an "incompatible" person a big no-no in the Buddhist pracice?
A close relative of mine who I shared the living space with has passed away recently from an unrelated injury. The relative was a good person but inherently "bossy", always getting their own way and intruding my personal life and space in ways I was not a strong enough person to continuously tolerate.
At a certain point I've "had enough" and decided that severing all communication was the best course of action for us both to avoid painful arguments, so I did that.
I did not feel contempt to that person and understood a lot of their antics were due to their very old age and difficult childhood, I was wishing them well, and was hoping they would make a first step and apologize eventually, which they never did.
As a longer term solution I was hoping to move out and live alone, confident that would help me regain my bearings, but there were setbacks in my apartment search, so I did not make it in time either.
Now that they're gone, I wonder how a person following the Buddhist precepts would have handled this. Showing compassion every once in a while is one thing, having your life and personal space invaded with petty commands, requests and criticism day after day, even when you're trying to meditate, seems like another.

To everyone who have answered: Thank you, I greatly appreciate your input. I will need time to think about everything before marking the question as answered, but please note all your thoughts are very valuable to me.

The Pali suttas say (Snp 1.10; SN 10.12) there are four qualities for the household life (which are also to be applied to any significant relationship), namely:

Sacca (truthfulness; honesty; straightforwardness; openness; no secrets)
Dama (training in self-improvement); and Dhamma (principles)
Khanti (patience; forbearance; tolerance)
Caga (sacrifice; generosity)

Therefore, in a significant relationship, a person should truthfully communicate to the other person any concerns they have about their behaviour and both should train in self-improvement to abolish that unwholesome behaviour.
If the other person does not respond and the relationship is toxic or harmful (intolerable) then cutting ties is OK. For example, one sutta says a wife (SN 37.30) without ethics is expelled from the household.

that's the opposite of your title. Severing negative communication with an “incompatible” person a big yes yes. you can tell the person that you do not appreciate what she says and you prefer to avoid her form now on.
A puthujjana will never ever become a good puthujjana by living around bad people. Even worse, puthujjanas have zero notion of morality, they do not know who are good people, who are bad people, what are good thoughts, speeches, actions, what bad thoughts, speeches, actions.
Also, living alone for a puthujjana is bad idea too. Puthujjanas must live around the kalyanamittatas, meaning the admirable friends. When there are no buddha, it is hard to find such people. there are plenty of suttas about this
https://www.accesstoinsight.org/ptf/dhamma/sacca/sacca4/samma-ditthi/kalyanamittata.html
living around the admirable people is the way to have sati sampajanna, or ''mindfulness'' like people say today.
Once you are good at sati sampajanna, you can use sati to transform sati sampajanna into samadhi. THe buddha claims that becoming homeless is for people who are good at setting the citta into samadhi, not for people who are bad at it. Then once you are good at setting the citta into samadhi, you use sati to transform samadhi into vipassana.
http://obo.genaud.net/dhamma-vinaya/pts/an/04_fours/an04.259.wood.pts.htm
this is what it takes to be ready for a monk for the homeless life in a forest

Monks, if he possess four qualities a monk is fit to resort to lonely
  spots and solitary lodging in a forest.
What four?
Thoughts of renunciation, thoughts not malicious, harmless thoughts,
  or if he be not dull-witted, not an imbecile.
These are the four qualities of a monk fit to resort to lonely spots
  and solitary lodging in a forest.'

another sutta

"Upāḷi, it's not easy to endure isolated wilderness & forest lodgings.
  It's not easy to maintain seclusion, not easy to enjoy being alone.
  The forests, as it were, plunder the mind of a monk who has not gained
  concentration. Whoever would say, 'I, without having gained
  concentration, will spend time in isolated wilderness & forest
  lodgings,' of him it can be expected that he will sink to the bottom
  or float away.

http://obo.genaud.net/dhamma-vinaya/ati/an/10_tens/an10.099.than.dto.htm
Instead the buddha lists various dwellings what to do with them
What is good about living alone in a house, is that you can play the homeless for a few days, feeling safe by knowing that you still have a house if the situation worsens.

A Buddhist meditator eventually changes their relationships when they start to be aware of the path that leads to suffering.

Not associating with fools,
  Associating with the wise,
  Honoring those worthy of honor;
  This is the greatest blessing.

Either solitude or having right relationships are the main necessities for freedom from suffering.

Beings of low dispositions come together & associate with beings of low dispositions. Beings of admirable dispositions come together & associate with beings of admirable dispositions.

https://buddhasadvice.wordpress.com/friendships/
However, it is possible to create relationships with the people who have deep narcissistic personality disorder. A Buddhist meditator can come to a point that not dwelling in past so much and not clinging to self(which is just an illusion) anymore, and he/she can keep smiling and talking to a person in the evening who have just became a monster in the same day's afternoon. But this is just a gift of noble spiritual path of Buddhism. In general you have to keep your distance or cut your connection completely with people who are just harming you. Also, a Buddhist meditator have to create relationships with the people who are involved in spirituality(meditation/mindfulness) and not with the ordinary people who are completely enslaved by the evil nature of humanity. If you have to live in a difficult situation(like living in a prison for life-time etc..) then just wait to become a Sakadagami and then you will not have any problem anymore LOL. Never feel guilty for cutting your connections with narcissistic people. A narcissist can never be a "good" person, they are actually the complete opposite of the "good". Loving does not require "liking" or keeping contact with everyone.

I feel a sense of sadness and remorse in your question.

Now that they're gone, I wonder how a person following the Buddhist precepts would have handled this. Showing compassion every once in a while is one thing, having your life and personal space invaded with petty commands, requests and criticism day after day, even when you're trying to meditate, seems like another.

If your practice deepened by leaving, that was better for both.
If your practice could have deepened by staying, that would also have been good for both. Yet if you had stayed, your practice might have gone nowhere and even descended into mutual anger, which would not have been good.
From AN4.95 we have in increasing order of goodness:

One who practices to benefit neither themselves nor others;
one who practices to benefit others, but not themselves;
one who practices to benefit themselves, but not others; and
one who practices to benefit both themselves and others.

Please note that what you did was #3 and that is better than #2.
Of course #4 is best. It is also the most difficult. Do what you can and leave remorse behind. Remorse is a hindrance.


text:
Is OM MA NI PADME HUM flag useful?

May I use this Tibetan flag above door and will this protect house from negative and bad energy?
I know importance of chanting OM MA NI PADME HUM.
So is it helpful or just feng shui thing?
I thought to ask before having one above the main door.

If it helps guard your and others' hearts as a summons to mindfulness it is quite useful.
If it is intended to ward off a jet falling from the sky it is not so useful.
If you are looking for a guard against "Negative and bad energy (black magic)" you are looking for a place without fear.

Thank you I know there's no miracle like things it could do. But that I've asked about "negative and  bad energy (black magic)".

Ah. Thanks. I've added a sutta link for you to study.  Notice that a jet that crashes might have done so from the negative and bad energy of a terrorist. Each of us has that seed inside us of negative and bad energy, however. The sutta says this better than I can.

Oh yes the source is a mind. Thank you so much.


text:
Is there a objective book on how vipassana of U. Mahasi and S.N. Goenka works?
I have been practicing Vipassana in S.N. Goenka's lineage for two years. I have read some of Mahasi's and Webu's Sayadaw writings as well. The biggest hindrance I've thus come across is Doubt. Every now and then I find myself full of questions regarding the technique, especifically about the way it works in pavimenting the path to liberation. I would like some pretty direct answers to questions as...

'why noting and paying attention to the movement of the stomach
helps creating understanding' or
'how not reacting to sensations throught the body leads to insight'
or
'how restraint of the senses and mindfulness leads to liberation'
etc.

I'm aware that I may have read satisfactory answers to those questions in the past. But I really would like to get something directand easy to come back to, instead of reading full long texts full of heavy explanations.
Thanks.

Since most books are subjective, I doubt there can be found an objective book on how vipassana of U. Mahasi and S.N. Goenka works. These methods are merely constructed out of theories. For example, the Buddha taught all conditioned things are impermanent. If you watch leaves falling from a tree or waves lapping on the seashore, you will see impermanence. However, this does not mean watching falling leaves or lapping waves will bring enlightenment. Similarly, just because U. Mahasi and S.N. Goenka have chosen impermanent meditation objects, it does not mean these methods alone will work.
In the Pali suttas, it is reported the Buddha taught meditation as the development (bhavana) of concentration (samadhi). Properly developed samadhi has two fruits or results, namely, samatha (tranquility) and vipassana (clear seeing of higher truth). If the mind does not have samadhi (which itself is comprised of a degree of selflessness or mental purity) then watching the impermanence of falling leaves, lapping waves, abdomen rising & falling or painful sensations probably will not result in sufficient vipassana to end the defilements and liberate the mind.
Thus, to answer your questions:

Noting and paying attention to the movement of the stomach is theoretically supposed to create understanding because the mind is supposed to see constant impermanence. If the mind can see every expansion of the stomach and every contraction of the stomach then it can see things (such as the stomach, breathing & mind consciousness itself) only last for a moment. If such clear seeing of impermanence occurs, then the mind will know all things, including life itself, are impermanent. The mind will be peaceful & calm when impermanence (such as loss of property, loved ones or life) occurs.  But, as I previously said, if the mind has too much ego, the meditation really won't be effective because there is too much ego in the mind. The mind is too impure. The seeing of impermanence is not clear enough and not strong enough.
Not reacting to sensations throughout the body theoretically leads to insight because two things occur: (i) concentration is developed via non-reacting; and (ii) since reacting is disturbing, non-peaceful or suffering, by non-reacting, the mind can have the insight that non-reacting is peaceful. However, if samatha (tranquility) and selflessness has not been developed then there will not be much peace to be felt via non-reacting. In summary, the Buddha's path is comprised of eight factors. Each of the eight factors must work together to get the result of liberation & peace.
Similar to the above, restraint of the senses and mindfulness leads to liberation because the mind is not stirring up reactions and defilements that are suffering. However, the mind must have some peace before restraint can lead to liberation. If the mind has many hindrances & defilements, trying to restrain the mind will be like trying to restrain a tidal wave or tsunami.

In conclusion, the Buddha's path is the Noble Eightfold Path. The whole path must be practised, which includes wisdom-based-morality and samadhi. Trying to follow moral rules without wisdom about them will also not work. Trying to develop samadhi without wisdom also will not work. Trying to develop wisdom alone also will not work.
Vipassana is one of the final results of the path, similar to the top of a tree. A tree is not climbed from the top. A tree is climbed from the bottom. Similarly, attempting to begin meditation with vipassana probably won't work. Instead, we should try to make the mind calm by learning how to end hindrances and sit at ease with awareness of breathing. "Vipassana" (knowing & seeing things as they actually are) is something that occurs without any act of will. You may refer to Cetana Sutta: An Act of Will.

thank you very much.
I have been practicing ever since I received this answer, and understanding has severely improved.
I do thank you.
Sadhu!


text:
How does the 'Great Doubt' compare to doubt?
A while back I heard something about the 'Great Doubt'. I think it is a Zen thing? Does anyone know what it is and how it might compare to the doubt that all human beings feel from time to time?
Many Thanks

This paper gives pretty good explanation between 'Great Doubt' vs. regular doubt: https://terebess.hu/zen/great_doubt.pdf

@santa100 I agree and would upvote that answer if you gave it.

Just please don't post a link as an answer - extract the most relevant quotes and tie them together with your summary.

See Dark Night of the Soul. It's a moment that happens to everyone on a spiritual journey.

I think Stephanie of Treeleaf puts it well:

I used to feel very confused as to what set "Great Doubt," the virtue, apart from "skeptical doubt," one of the traditional Five Hindrances of Buddhism. I have since learned from my experience that skeptical doubt is more of an automatic resistance to things, a destructive tendency to pick apart and reject even what is good, that bats away and refuses to entertain anything that comes along and does not fit within parameters of what has been determined to be acceptable or true. Whereas Great Doubt is the presence of a question or questions that push us beyond the normal boundaries of our thought processes, beyond the answers that usually comfort and reassure us.

This matches my own experience. Regular doubt is based on fear. It is the lack of trust or courage to let go of our conceptual/emotional ground and to go all the way into the quest for Truth. In contrast, Great Doubt (Japanese "gidan" or "dai-gidan"; Chinese "yituan"/"dayituan") is suspending one's judgement and giving up all grasping to certainty, all attachment to preconceived notions - including one's assumptions about the nature of dharma, the goal, everything.
Regular doubt is the mind of "I know", the mind of calculation and negotiation, the "setting sun" mind, flat mind, logical mind, wavering mind.
Great Doubt is the mind of "only don't know", is the "beginner's mind", the ego-less mind, the "Great Eastern Sun", the vulnerable mind, the mind that is completely open, the mind combining the opposites.
Regular doubt is an obstacle on the path, Great Doubt is the door to Freedom.

I must respectfully disagree with Stephanie: what she calls "skeptical doubt" is actually encouraged by the Buddha in the Avatamsaka Sutra. It is also what Buddhism has in common with the scientific method.It can hardly be argued that skeptical thinking does not take us out of our "box", otherwise mankind would never have discovered Evolution, Quantum Mechanics or Relativity. Otherwise, according to her definition, we would have to state that Darwin, Einstein and Heisenberg experienced Great Doubt since their theories clearly go beyond "the answers that usually comfort and reassure us".

@AndreiVolkov. Thank you for the reference and the answer. That feels helpful. Stephanie's post talks of spiritual despair - is that a synonym for the 'Great Doubt' do you think?

@CrabBucket I think they are related - but not as synonyms. It's more like, spiritual despair is a temporary stop on the road to Great Doubt. With G.D. one can't despair, because despair requires being certain that one is screwed, but with G.D. you can't really tell - perhaps you are the happiest person of all. Which only makes it even more frustrating, because you can't even complain. (In my experience; YMMV)

Great Doubt: Getting Stuck & Breaking Through -- The Real Koan by Jeff Shore is a lecture on that topic.
Some quotes from its introduction:

In Zen practice, the essential point is to arouse Doubt. What is
  this Doubt? For example, when you are born, where do you come
  from? You cannot help but remain in doubt about this. When you
  die, where do you go? Again, you cannot help but remain in doubt.
  Since you cannot pierce this barrier of life-and-death, suddenly
  the Doubt will coalesce right before your eyes. Try to put it down,
  you cannot; try to push it away, you cannot. Eventually this
  Doubt Block will be broken through and you’ll realize what a
  worthless notion is life-and-death – ha! As the old worthies said:
  “Great Doubt, Great Awakening; small doubt, small awakening;
  no doubt, no awakening.”

Perhaps Great Doubt can be considered an essential
  element of any religious practice – without it, why practice?
  It’s clearly central to Buddhism: look at the life of Gotama
  (Skt.: Gautama) Buddha, his great renunciation or leaving
  home, his struggle and Awakening. Through it all, his quest to
  resolve it is unmistakable.

[...] Japanese Zen master Bankei[盤珪 1622-93] is not criticizing
  Great Doubt – he himself was spurred on by it since childhood.
  He is criticizing unnatural, forced, contrived, made-up doubt
  based on someone else’s words or experience.

"the great doubt" is what an 'i' feels when every thought; every impulse is understood fully to flow from a desire to move, through time. one sees that every thought and action is calculated on some level merely to achieve and progress the self. to refine. become more than i am now. the great doubt happens at the end of this game, after one is able turn in every direction - and understand that, in thought, no unique direction exists.
the great doubt is an intellectual paralysis. 南無阿彌陀佛

The Great Doubt in Zen is what the Buddha would call disenchantment and dispassion for which there are many such references in the suttas. The mind, having seen the drawbacks of conditionality, cannot find a familiarity in the domain of form due to the insights that have arisen regarding impermanence, suffering and not-self. This can evoke a sense of hopelessness, hence The Great Doubt.
Some Zen masters see the great doubt as a coveted attainment meaning that, when a practitioner informs his master of the presence of Great Doubt, the master responds positively although in true Zen-style that might sound something like, "Gooood goood. Keep going".
The point here is that the great doubt is not cast into any negative frame of reference - like generalized societal doubt is - because the master sees its potential for spiritual growth and that growth comes from the recognition of the great doubt and the perceptual/feeling components that it comprises. This is what the Buddha called 'knowing' in satipatthana and this leads to disenchantment and dispassion of even that of itself.
Now, you mentioned the other type of doubt; a doubt that humans feel from time to time. The comparison between the two is like night and day. These are mostly doubts about specific things in life, situations, people and general worldly affairs. The great doubt is much more fundamentally significant for a Buddhist practitioner, reaching far beyond the mundane world and into the very essence of mind, identity and reality. It is a fearless challenge to the regular run-of-the-mill appearance of things which can, at times, create a deep sense of loneliness and hopelessness. If held correctly and in the right way (yoniso manasikara) we can emerge into a greater and fulfilling understanding of reality.
In summary, regular worldly doubt is concerned about things only within the boundaries of what we think we know.  The great doubt is that which informs us about the true extent of what we think we know about reality, which is nothing, and pushes us to know something from a very different place. At best, I could say a non-conceptual place.

Concise, very well put sir.

Good afternoon, Beau. ;-)


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Need to know more about this art
This was a birthday gift I received a couple of weeks ago.  I'm trying to figure out where it came from, what the images mean, and about how old it is.  It's at least a hundred years old.

Consider asking here: https://dharmawheel.net/

This is most likely a Tibetan Thanka which depicts 3 "levels". Based on the depictions, it's probably Vajrayana, specifically Gelug-pa, lit. "yellow hats" - this is the Tibetan Buddhist branch to which the Dalai Lama belongs.
The top level depicts the Buddha surrounded by females, most likely Dakini.
The central level depicts 3 people with a very recognizable yellow hat, so probably they are  Tulku, possibly the Dalai Lama in the center, the Panchen Lama and the Samding Dorje Pagmo or Karmapa. They are depicted as slightly above the world since they are considered reincarnations of Bodhisattva
The building in the bottom section could be a depiction of the Potala.
The two figures depicted in the bottom section are most likely high monks, but I can't think of any specific persons or roles for these.
The many occurences of Green, Red, Blue, Yellow and White refer to Pancha-Varna
As for the age of the painting, it's very difficult to tell, as iconography in Tibetan Buddhist art has changed very little in the last few hundred years.
You might enjoy this video on decoding symbolism in Thanka

May be the bottom figures depict offering of bare necessities of a monk (Civara = robes, Pindapata = alms-food, Senasana = monasteries, Gilanapratya = medications) to Dalai Lama. I cannot see the top level Buddha as Dakini. I suppose that depicts Amitābha Buddha because of Samadhi mudra, and the appearance of begging bowl. But the color of the Buddha doesn't support that interpretation.


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What are the merits (results) of giving fearlessness (abhaya danna)
And also need to know, where it includes in tipitaka..

How does one give "fearlessness"? Please elaborate on your question.

here is the sutta about giving a lack of fear
https://suttacentral.net/an8.39/en/sujato

There are, bhikkhus, these five gifts, great gifts, primal, of long
  standing, traditional, ancient, unadulterated and never before
  adulterated, which are not being adulterated and will not be
  adulterated, not repudiated by wise ascetics and brahmins. What five?
6(4) “Here, a noble disciple, having abandoned the destruction of
  life, abstains from the destruction of life. By abstaining from the
  destruction of life, the noble disciple gives to an immeasurable
  number of beings freedom from fear, enmity, and affliction. He himself
  in turn enjoys immeasurable freedom from fear, enmity, and affliction.
  This is the first gift, a great gift, primal, of long standing,
  traditional, ancient, unadulterated and never before adulterated,
  which is not being adulterated and will not be adulterated, not
  repudiated by wise ascetics and brahmins. This is the fourth stream of
  merit … that leads to what is wished for, desired, and agreeable, to
  one’s welfare and happiness.
7(5)–(8) “Again, a noble disciple, having abandoned the taking of what
  is not given, abstains from taking what is not given … abstains from
  sexual misconduct … abstains from false speech … abstains from liquor,
  wine, and intoxicants, the basis for heedlessness. By abstaining from
  liquor, wine, and intoxicants, the basis for heedlessness, the noble
  disciple gives to an immeasurable number of beings freedom from fear,
  enmity, and affliction. He himself in turn enjoys immeasurable freedom
  from fear, enmity, and affliction. This is the fifth gift, a great
  gift, primal, of long standing, traditional, ancient, unadulterated
  and never before adulterated, which is not being adulterated and will
  not be adulterated, not repudiated by wise ascetics and brahmins. This
  is the eighth stream of merit an.iv.247 … that leads to what is wished
  for, desired, and agreeable, to one’s welfare and happiness.

Young householder,
The merits of keeping the Silas (precepts), are not easy to measure, but in short next to become fearless and untouchable -- see also: The rewards of virtue, and, The Five Precepts.
And in short:

Imāni pañca sikkhā-padāni:
These are the five training rules.
Sīlena sugatiṃ yanti.
Through virtue they go to a good bourn.
Sīlena bhoga-sampadā.
Through virtue is wealth attained.
Sīlena nibbutiṃ yanti.
Through virtue they go to Liberation.
Tasmā sīlaṃ visodhaye.
Therefore we should purify our virtue.

People with little-to-no virtue fear much, but don't fear to act for their demerits, and so lose more and more. Not in this sphere, this is the merit of the given: some till final and total fearlessness. So don't waste time, no way to trade this in other ways.
Desiring further, best look here: Perfect virtue
My person guesses that the phenomena "Momo" is surely one example of cause and effect, totally present in this internet realm, and a great sign (or warning) to be heedful, even more all the time.
This example may help to show that sharing some specific fear, as a warning, is not in principle wrong but can be more that just ordinarily compassionate. The importance by giving certain samvega ("fear") is to give the exit from unskillful fear as well.
So it can be that someone giving fearlessness out of impure motivation cuts himself off from being given helpful fear as well, and may get lost in foolish not-knowing equanimity, with no more giver of useful advice.
That's an important point in a pseudo-liberal confused world, and invites not to dwell "like sheep", as the Buddha called such wrong-agreed assemblies.
If feeling insulted rather than conductive motivated toward good, let it be know. Ones own choices where one is headed to.
[Note: missuse of Dhamma in not given ways causes not only fear for others but also for one self, so one may not use it for worldly trade, exchanges, stackes...]


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What is the state of a Zen disciples mind prior to a Satori?
I have almost finished reading D.T. Suzuki's 'Essay's in Zen Buddhism'. There are many stories of disciples attaining state of Satori (which according to book is akin to Nirvana) when the Zen master does something illogical like twisting the nose or giving an absurd answer to what is asked.
As I am thinking about this it must be that the disciples mind must be in certain state that when the push is given by master it attains Satori.
Do we have any analytical understanding of this state? Its psychology? Is it a silent persent moment awareness for a long time? Is it something special to the culture and/or mind. Do we have any such examples of monks attaining Satori in present times?

Just a quick tidbit:  I can’t recall reading that book, but I suspect you might be missing something.  My understanding of Satori is that it is a flash - an unblocking if you will - and it creates an opening for Nirvana as a possibility.  Nirvana is something I’ve always interpreted as permanent and unchanging - the end of suffering.

It's a state known as Great Doubt, "dai-gidan" (Japanese) or "dayituan" (Chinese):

In Ch'an and Zen practice, this represents a highly intense doubt about everything one thinks to be true, including the efficacy of Zen practice itself. (Oxfordreference.com)

For more information, please see the following question: How does the 'Great Doubt' compare to doubt.

In addition to Andrei's answer, I would just like to point out that you're only classifying the actions you describe as illogical in the context of an important question. There's nothing illogical about rubbing your nose if it itches. What these "answers" are pointing to is that everyday life and experience ARE the state of satori for those that have experienced the non-duality of what appear to be two different things. In Zen Buddhism (and by extension in most Mahayana traditions), they are like the two poles of a magnet: you can't have a magnet with just one pole, so the poles are actually non-dual.
The problem is that this is very difficult to put in words, since language is all about classification, so the experience of Satori is to be experienced, not described. This is not as esotheric as it may sound: it's similarly almost impossible to describe the exact taste of chocolate to someone who's never tasted it, for example.
Thinking about "states of mind" to discuss this can be helpful, but at the same time it's a hindrance since it creates the conception that there are stages one must go through. According to Zen teachings, satori can take 30 years, or 3 seconds. This is why Zen is called the "Sudden Teaching".
We do have some scientific studies on the subject, most notably Zen and the brain and the more recent work of neuroscientist Sam Harris: Waking Up.

Up to that point, they probably think Satori is some "big thing".  When the master tells them its the same as doing the washing up, or picking your nose. Then they get it.  It about a change of expectations, not a change of the state in their mind.

There's no special state.  At least, not one that's outwardly discernible.  So much of Zen happens underneath the surface of our ordinary minds.  We might practice for years with the sense that nothing is happening.  All the while, massive shifts are happening deep within our consciousness.  Every so often, these shifts add up to a kind of seismic event that ripples through our ordinary consciousness.  This is satori and it can happen anywhere and at any time.  In fact, it often happens in the most mundane of places...like the line at a Wendy's drive through (personal experience!).
It's very important not to investigate things like the great doubt, or ordinary mind, or beginners mind, or anything of the sort too deeply.  We can never really apprehend their full import simply by thinking about them.  The roots go too deep and often what shows on the surface has no relation to what dwells below.  When we pursue these kinds of mistaken identities and false facades, we can really sidetrack our progress and end up down unproductive paths.


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The idea of “self” in Buddhism
How does Buddhism define “self?” I read in some book that Buddha would avoid such questions, but I wonder why.

The Buddha never avoided it. All that occurred here is there was a teaching (SN 44.10) where the Buddha refused to answer certain wrongly put questions by a confused individual.
The Buddha taught:

The underlying tendency to form "self-views" lies within every new born baby (MN 64)
"Self" is an ignorant assumption that is a mental fabrication or deluded thought (SN 22.81)
The arising of this "self" thought or view is the arising of suffering (SN 12.15; SN 5.10)
This "self" idea is a "disease" - Ud 3.10
This "self" idea is a cancer, dart & affliction - MN 140

This world is burning. Afflicted by contact, it calls disease a 'self.'
Ud 3.10

Bhikkhu, ‘I am’ is a conceiving; ‘I am this’ is a conceiving; ‘I shall be’ is a conceiving; ‘I shall not be’ is a conceiving; ‘I shall
  be possessed of form’ is a conceiving; ‘I shall be formless’ is a
  conceiving; ‘I shall be percipient’ is a conceiving; ‘I shall be
  non-percipient’ is a conceiving; ‘I shall be
  neither-percipient-nor-non-percipient’ is a conceiving. Conceiving is
  a disease, conceiving is a tumour, conceiving is a dart. By overcoming
  all conceivings, bhikkhu, one is called a sage at peace.
MN 140

The Buddha never avoided the topic of the self. It is in fact an important topic in Buddhism.
The self is the core of one's being. Usually, one assumes one or more of six view-positions, from MN 22:

"Monks, there are these six view-positions. Which six?
  There is the case where an uninstructed, run-of-the-mill person — who
  has no regard for noble ones, is not well-versed or disciplined in
  their Dhamma; who has no regard for men of integrity, is not
  well-versed or disciplined in their Dhamma — assumes about form: 'This
  is me, this is my self, this is what I am.'
"He assumes about feeling: 'This is me, this is my self, this is what
  I am.'
"He assumes about perception: 'This is me, this is my self, this is
  what I am.'
"He assumes about fabrications: 'This is me, this is my self, this is
  what I am.'
"He assumes about what seen, heard, sensed, cognized, attained, sought
  after, pondered by the intellect: 'This is me, this is my self, this
  is what I am.'
"He assumes about the view-position — 'This cosmos is the self. After
  death this I will be constant, permanent, eternal, not subject to
  change. I will stay just like that for an eternity': 'This is me, this
  is my self, this is what I am.'

Such an assumption is itself is a mental fabrication according SN 22.81. The tendency to assume this is an underlying tendency that even babies have, as stated in MN 64. (both mentioned by Dhammadhatu)
For e.g. if somebody touches your hand and you may reply "don't touch me" or "don't touch my hand". Here, clearly you assume that your form is your self, or your hand belongs to your self. This can be extended to a lot of things, like your car, your spouse, your soul or you as the soul (which is a mentally constructed concept), your consciousness or you as consciousness etc. Even when you say "I exist after death" or "I don't exist after death", you still have a self-view.
The unenlightened also suffer from objectification-classification or reification (prapanca from Snp 4.14). Everything is objectified and classified relative to self. For e.g. this is my car, but that is not my car. Or if I see some unidentified object, I may wonder if that object poses any threat to me, or if it can profit me in any way. This reification is related to craving, as explained in this answer.
Suffering is closely related to the assumption of the self. For e.g. you will suffer when your possessions are damaged or your body gets disease or you get a disease (assuming form as the self) or your family member dies or you age. You will also suffer if something you like is denied to you.
From the Buddhist perspective, the assumption of the self arises from the inter-working of five aggregates (form, feeling, perception, mental fabrications, consciousness) just as music arises when different parts of a musical instrument function together. But if you break the musical instrument to pieces, you will not find music. Similarly, if you break the five aggregates into pieces, you won't find a self.
From SN 35.246:

“Suppose, bhikkhus, there was a king or a royal minister who had never
  before heard the sound of a lute. He might hear the sound of a lute
  and say: ‘Good man, what is making this sound—so tantalizing, so
  lovely, so intoxicating, so entrancing, so enthralling?’ They would
  say to him: ‘Sire, it is a lute that is making this sound—so
  tantalizing, so lovely, so intoxicating, so entrancing, so
  enthralling.’ He would reply: ‘Go, man, bring me that lute.’
“They would bring him the lute and tell him: ‘Sire, this is that lute,
  the sound of which was so tantalizing, so lovely, so intoxicating, so
  entrancing, so enthralling.’ The king would say: ‘I’ve had enough with
  this lute, man. Bring me just that sound.’ The men would reply: ‘This
  lute, sire, consists of numerous components, of a great many
  components, and it gives off a sound when it is played upon with its
  numerous components; that is, in dependence on the parchment sounding
  board, the belly, the arm, the head, the strings, the plectrum, and
  the appropriate effort of the musician. So it is, sire, that this lute
  consisting of numerous components, of a great many components, gives
  off a sound when it is played upon with its numerous components.’
“The king would split the lute into ten or a hundred pieces, then he
  would reduce these to splinters. Having reduced them to splinters, he
  would burn them in a fire and reduce them to ashes, and he would
  winnow the ashes in a strong wind or let them be carried away by the
  swift current of a river. Then he would say: ‘A poor thing, indeed
  sir, is this so-called lute, as well as anything else called a lute.
  How the multitude are utterly heedless about it, utterly taken in by
  it!’
“So too, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu investigates form to the extent that
  there is a range for form, he investigates feeling to the extent that
  there is a range for feeling, he investigates perception to the extent
  that there is a range for perception, he investigates volitional
  formations to the extent that there is a range for volitional
  formations, he investigates consciousness to the extent that there is
  a range for consciousness. As he investigates form to the extent that
  there is a range for form … consciousness to the extent that there is
  a range for consciousness, whatever notions of ‘I’ or ‘mine’ or ‘I am’
  had occurred to him before no longer occur to him.”


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Can you focus on the feeling of your body on the chair for reaching the jhanas?
I feel like focusing on the feeling of my feet on the ground is easier than focusing on the sensations of the breath. Is this a viable object for access concentration/jhana?

Jhana is not "access" concentration. Jhana is called "attainment" concentration.
Focusing on the feeling of feet on the ground may result in access concentration (because the mind may be relatively open, pliant & non-attached when focusing on the feeling of the feet) however:

The focus should not be overly forced or rigid because, for access concentration to occur, the mind must have the pliancy to fall into the body.
When access concentration occurs, the mind will automatically experience the breathing.

Methods such as feeling the feet on the ground; listening to silence via the ears; or sitting with a very quiet non-doing non-ambitious mind are often more effective in manifesting access concentration (than clumsy direct attempts at watching breathing). Because the Buddha actually taught his Path is the abandonment of craving, often practise is counter-intuitive.

So once you reach access concentration should using the feet for  example, should you shift the object to the breath?

No. There is no need for you to "shift". But if the mind shifts, you should allow the mind to shift to the breath.

If you maintain the idea that YOU must control the meditation, access concentration won't be attained.

I notice the breathing more after focusing on my feet  for sometime. Like it becomes more apparent. That is usual right?

Yes. PLAY HARD TO GET. Stay with your feet. Allow your mind to "notice" the breathing (but do not pursue the breathing). Just keep your mind gently with your feet so your mind remains broad, open & calm. When breathing becomes more apparent; remain calm. No need to "shift". Just let the mind notice the breathing but stay with your feet; in a balanced way. Regards

Any opinions about prescription drugs and meditation (e,g, adderal)? Should you discontinue them?

Thank you PN. I am not a psychiatrist. I think you could try to practise meditation and, if you get strong stable calming results, you can discuss reduction or discontinuing of medication with your doctor. Kind regards. DD

the way to set the citta into samadhi has nothing to do with concentrating on an object. at best concentration is ''alertness''.
The way to set the citta into samadhi is first to be good at sila, meaning to be good at ''mindfulness'', then to use right view to transform this ''alertness'' into samadhi.
the buddha explains to nanda how to be good at alertness here https://suttacentral.net/an8.9/en/bodhi
then the buddha explains to upali how to set the citta into right samadhi here http://obo.genaud.net/dhamma-vinaya/ati/an/10_tens/an10.099.than.dto.htm

"Having abandoned these five hindrances—imperfections of awareness
  that weaken discernment—then, quite secluded from sensuality, secluded
  from unskillful qualities, he enters & remains in the first jhāna:
  rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, accompanied by directed thought
  & evaluation.

in details and summarized, https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/an/an11/an11.002.than.html

"For a person endowed with virtue, consummate in virtue, there is no
  need for an act of will, 'May freedom from remorse arise in me.' It is
  in the nature of things that freedom from remorse arises in a person
  endowed with virtue, consummate in virtue.
"For a person free from remorse, there is no need for an act of will,
  'May joy arise in me.' It is in the nature of things that joy arises
  in a person free from remorse.
"For a joyful person, there is no need for an act of will, 'May
  rapture arise in me.' It is in the nature of things that rapture
  arises in a joyful person.
"For a rapturous person, there is no need for an act of will, 'May my
  body be serene.' It is in the nature of things that a rapturous person
  grows serene in body.
"For a person serene in body, there is no need for an act of will,
  'May I experience pleasure.' It is in the nature of things that a
  person serene in body experiences pleasure.
"For a person experiencing pleasure, there is no need for an act of
  will, 'May my mind grow concentrated.' It is in the nature of things
  that the mind of a person experiencing pleasure grows concentrated.

Puthujjanas who lack sati will never understand this part

''secluded from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities''