In Buddhism, wisdom is important, because it is necessary for attaining liberation and buddhahood. Concentration supplements wisdom, and can be further subdivided into the “two ambrosias” (meditation on breathing and on the charnel yard) or the five types of calming meditation. Although these are considered to fall under the category of “concentration,” these can also be seen as expedients, each counteracting different problems. In Tiantai, the five types of calming meditation are used for the attainment of the various Tiantai stages, and include a wide variety of content. Similarly, as the five types are taken as preparatory expedients to the path of seeing, they would have different contents for each of the four types of teaching. This paper discusses the five types of calming meditation in terms of each of the four types of teaching.
