TMI <--> Mahamudra/Dzogchen <--> Ānāpānasati 

Meditating on the mind itself involves bringing attention and awareness together in a completely open state. Essentially, you’re fusing attention and awareness.

This practice is similar to the Tibetan Kagyu practice called the Great Seal (Mahamudra), and the Nyingma practice of the Great Perfection (Dzogchen).  __TMI

Elephant Path

• The monk is the meditator.
• The rope he holds represents vigilant, alert mindfulness.
• The goad in his other hand represents strong intention and firm resolve.
• The elephant represents the mind.
• The black color of the elephant represents the Five Hindrances and the Seven Problems they give rise to.
• The monkey represents scattering of attention, and the black color represents subtle and gross distraction, forgetting, and mind-wandering.
• The rabbit represents subtle dullness.
• The flames represent vigilance and effort, and when the effort is no longer required, the flames disappear.
• The length of the road between successive Stages indicates the relative time required to progress from one Stage to the next.
• The Stages come closer together until Stage Seven, then they begin to stretch out again.
• Because the road folds back, it is possible to jump up to higher Stages or fall back to lower ones.

The Ten Stages

1. A monk chasing a black elephant and a black monkey. Black elephant means that the mind has no stability and is easily distracted by the 5 hindrances. The black monkey represents a distraction. This stage is considered the beginning level where a meditator have no control over the mind and it is a challenge to even sit for meditation. 
2. A portion of the head of the elephant and monkey turned white. With regular effort, the monk finally created a condition to sit regularly but conditioned by the habituated distracted mind, it is an upheaval task to sustain the focus.
3. The head of the elephant and monkey turned white and looking back at the monk, which means through persistent effort, he now reduced the mental wandering. But now a rabbit appeared, which means laxity in the form of forgetfulness and sleepiness appeared in the stage. 
4. The little part of the body of elephant, monkey and rabbit turned white. The monk finally got hold of the elephant with the rope of mindfulness. Strong dullness and sporadic mental scattering has been overcome. But subtle dullness and distraction is still present and turns into coarse dullness and distraction.
5. Chase is over for the monk. Finally monk is in front of the elephant, monkey and rabbit. Now he needs to instruct and train further on the path. The monkey is at the back, which means the mind is now malleable. But the rabbit is still riding the back.
6. The monk started leading the monkey. The rabbit has now disappeared and the monkey seems to be almost white.
7. The monkey finally turned white, with no gross and subtle distractions to afflict the mind. But even then, the monkey is doing what he always does, “hanging out”. Means, the monk still need to pay attention time to time as one can never leave the monkey out of sight. The elephant can now walk the path on its own with little guidance.
8. Monkey disappeared completely!!! Imagine for a minute. A mind in complete vacuity without a single thought? How does it even sound like, let alone to feel like? This is what the adept call Mental Pliancy; mind is in complete control. The elephant is fully trained and the monk can guide him wherever he wants.
9. The elephant sits down with the monk, in unification.
10. Both physical and mental pliancy are achieved and no more introspection and awareness are further necessary. A state of tranquility and equanimity arises where you do not react to pleasant and unpleasant feelings anymore. You will experience meditative joy and can sit for a longer time and can come out of the session when you want. A state of Samadhi. Just like a hot knife slices butter effortlessly, likewise your mind is now sharp to investigate the nature of reality. How do we exist? What is the nature of the body and mind? Who am I?

Every major tradition in the world from Hindu to Buddhist, Christian to Islam share the same path of Calm Abiding meditation which supposedly originated in India and practiced by mahasiddhas for 5000 years. This ingenious mental doctrine has been completely overlooked by Modern Science refuting the idea of consciousness outside the brain. Only with the advance of Neuroscience for the last decades and their sophisticated technology they are becoming interested in meditators. Yet, they are not fully sure of consciousness and termed meditation in the form of “Brain Mapping”. Hopefully, a day comes when science discovers that Mind actually exists and it is not physical.

Anapanasati

1. First Tetrad: Contemplation of the Body (kāya)
   1. Discerning the in and out breathing (SA 8.10 begins with "he trains" in the first step)
   2. Discerning long or short breaths (Ekottarika Agama 17.1 version adds "warm" and "cool" breaths)
   3. Experiencing the whole body (sabbakāya). Pali versions add "he trains" in this step. Some Samyukta-Agama sutras meanwhile have "bodily-formations" in this step.^[12]
   4. Calming bodily formations (kāya-saṃskāra)
2. Second Tetrad: Contemplation of the Feeling (vedanā)
   1. Experiencing rapture (pīti)^[14]
   2. Experiencing pleasure (sukha)
   3. Experiencing mental fabrication (citta-saṃskāra)
   4. Calming mental fabrication
3. Third Tetrad: Contemplation of the Mind (citta)
   1. Experiencing the mind
   2. Satisfying the mind
   3. Steadying the mind (samādhi)
   4. Releasing the mind
4. Fourth Tetrad: Contemplation of the Mental Objects (dhammā)
   1. Dwelling on impermanence
   2. Dwelling on dispassion (virāga). SA 8.10 instead has 'eradication'.
   3. Dwelling on cessation (nirodha). SA 8.10 instead has 'dispassion'.
   4. Dwelling on relinquishment (paṭinissaggā). SA 8.10 instead has 'cessation