When practicing Mahasi-style meditation, should we label rising and falling, or just distractions? The instructions seem contradictory
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They are not contradictory because they are two different methods of achieving the same result, Samatha. One tells you to label certain things, one tells you not to. Pick one and follow through. How do you know which one to follow? Experiment & see the results for yourself. Better yet, ask your teacher if you have one. But don't mix them.
how does one note 'rising' and 'falling' without using the word, at least mentally?
Through sensation. When you feel something, you don't have to mentally label it. For example, right now you are experiencing thousands of sensations but you are not labelling every single one of them. The weight of your body on the chair, the touch of your clothes against your skin, the wind, the ambient sounds going on in your room, the light hitting your eyes from the screen you are reading this. You can feel all this, without creating labels. That's how you note 'rising' and 'falling' through body sensation only.
The labelling is a habit that can be subdued. If you feel like you can't help but label it, then maybe Sayadaw's method is more suitable for you.
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