"If there is anything that would cope with modern scientific needs,
it would be meditation."
Albert Einstein  
 
A mind without mindfulness will stray, of course, and the gateways to defilement will be opened. To practice properly, you should not be so attached to the formalities. Using any form of recitation words while observing the breath will bring the mind to total calmness.

There are three stages of Calmness or Concentration Meditation, Momentary Concentration (Khanikasamadhi), Access Concentration (Upacarasamadhi) and the highest level, Attainment Concentration (Appanasamadhi). When you reach the highest level of the Calmness Meditation stage (Appanasamadhi), the mind will escalate to the Insight Meditation stage (Vippasana), on its own, because of the awareness of the Three Characters: Impermanence, Suffering and Non self. However, Appanasamadhi practices will only increase mind power into super normal power but without wisdom.

Meditation can be practiced in any position, just be mindful at all times; that is being totally in the present. There is no need to argue on the formalities as they are not the heart of meditation.
Sitting
Standing
Walking
Reclining
If the mind is not clear, the mind will never know the Three Characters, Impermanence, Suffering and Non-self. When the mind is clear Insight Knowledge will automatically occur on its own.

One will know the right meditation when the body feels a sensation of lightness. At the end of the meditation, you will feel fresh without any aches or pain. Therefore, the resulting blank mind is the best way to see the Truth. The stillness of the mind will produce Insight Knowledge and this knowledge comes from the mind itself.

During any light and vision display, do not cling to any vision because it is only the mind’s manifestation, they are not real. They are merely mind projection images from our subconscious level. Sometimes, we see divine beings and follow them to the end merely wanting to see heaven. They are only illusions and not real. They are only mind created visions.

During the Access Concentration stage (Upacarasamddhi), no matter how you may feel; big, small, hair standing on end, body movement, bright light displays, vision, images etc., do not be alarmed, just quietly and calmly acknowledge and observe everything that is happening. Your breathing and the mind will become more and more refined. The mind will continue to observe and acknowledge what happens until it sees the beginning and the ending. The Truth has no name, just the knowledge of the Three Characters which is beginning, changing and ending until the mind escalates into Attainment Concentration (Appanasamadhi).

After this, Insight Knowledge occurs on its own. At this stage, the sensation of the body disappears, only the mind is present. There is nothing else at this point only beginning and ending. The mind has become so refined and will escalate into Vipassana on its own. Once the Truth is realized there are no other delusions to be observed. Only Sila (morality), Samadhi (concentration) and Panna (wisdom).
To reach Appanasamadhi, you must maintain and follow the calmness sensation until Appana is achieved. Although, Super Normal Power can be achieved at the Appana stage, once you are able to repeatedly reach that stage over and over again, you should never be attached to it, although it’s the highest stage in Calmness Concentration. The attachment will prohibit you from advancing into Vippasana.

Additionally, you should also be cautious when coming out of Appanasamdhi, do not come out of Appana right away. You must continue to observe and follow all thoughts that pour out until the proper time to quit the meditation. At this point, regardless of the nature of the thoughts, good or bad, they are well filtered by the Mind. These thoughts could be the solution to your problems.

Things to remember:

•   Concentration Meditation is a foundation of Vipassana. First, get the mind to calm down so it can develop into Wisdom at the Vipassana level. The key is to practice at all time, it doesn’t matter what recitation words are being used.

•   Appanasamadhi: with the absence of the body, the mind will become dominant. Now, the real self is the MIND. The Mind is purified. The Mind is beyond Joy and Suffering. It is the stage of Stillness. This is the BASE of True Consciousness. When the mind comes out of this stage it is followed by feeling and sensation. At this point, you must follow all thoughts, as these thoughts are the Wisdom of self-knowledge. It doesn’t matter if it is a good thought or a bad thought. The more the conscious mind can follow the thoughts without attachment in either way the more the mind will be elevated into Wisdom because it is knowing without clinging, just knowing and seeing things as they are. This wisdom is called Samadhi Wisdom or Wisdom that emerges from within.

•   The proper way to practice meditation is not to cling to the formalities. All meditation methods serve the same purpose: to calm down the mind so that it can be elevated into Vipassana. But if you are clinging to the calmness alone, you are doing Samatha not Vipassana. Without Samatha (Calmness Concentration) there will not be Vipassana (Insight Concentration).

•   Visions: There are two kinds of visions, (1) Uggahanimitta (mental image in Samatha), when the mind is only concentrated on one object with closed eyes or opened eyes. (2) Patibhaganimitta (conceptualized image in Vipassana), when the mind realizes the change of vision and sees it as is. Now the mind is elevated into Vipassana because the mind realizes that there is nothing but emptiness or a non-self. However, visions are mind manifestations, they are not real and not to be clung to. Remember, when the mind is in total calmness at the Appanasamadhi level, the thoughts eventually occur. After the mind notices the thoughts (conscious) it is important to just acknowledge all of them and let them go in order to be elevated into the Vipassana level. Therefore, there is nothing to worry about in being attached to Samatha because at the end the mind can elevate itself to Vipassana.

•   The most important aspects of practicing meditation are Faith, Intention, Practice and Perseverance. These are necessary in order to achieve the higher levels accordingly. The conscious mind will lead our lives into overall righteousness living.

Conclusion:

It is easy to see how we can get separated from reality because we have to perceive everything with our own mind, which is basically deluded (limited wisdom) and it personalizes reality with its own opinions and views. Therefore, it corrupts reality, manipulates it, distorts and makes it the way it wants it to be. Then it believes everything it creates, it makes concepts out of its reality and even takes concepts to be reality and so we live in an illusion with delusion.

We need to learn how to differentiate between concepts and reality. This is really fundamental human knowledge that seems to have been largely overlooked by just about everyone. We may wonder how come our Moms and Dads didn’t teach us this stuff when we were kids? Or our teachers, our society? Simply, because they didn’t know. No one taught them. We just go on and on in this life believing the illusions that we see and we become lost.