hands together in Añjali Mudrā, and sometimes bowing. Preaching or sharing the Dhamma; the gift of Dhamma is seen as a form of highest gift. (Dhammapada 354) Listening to Dhamma Having right view or Sammādiṭṭhi; mainly the Four Noble Truths and the three marks of existence. Meditation Meditation (Pāli: Bhāvanā, literally "causing to become" or cultivation) means the positive cultivation of one's mind. Forms Theravāda Buddhist meditation practice varies considerably in technique and objects. Currently, there are also various traditions of Theravāda meditation practice, such as the Burmese Vipassana tradition, the Thai Forest Tradition, the esoteric Borān kammaṭṭhāna ('ancient practices'), the Burmese Weikza tradition, Dhammakaya meditation and the Western Insight Meditation movement. Theravāda Buddhist meditation practices or Bhavana (mental cultivation) are categorized into two broad categories: Samatha bhavana (calming), and Vipassanā bhavana (investigation, insight). Originally these referred to effects or qualities of meditation, but after the time of Buddhaghosa, they also referred to two distinct meditation types or paths (yāna). Samatha ("calm") consists of meditation techniques in which the mind is focused on a single object, thought, or gatha, leading to Samādhi'''. In traditional Theravāda it is considered to be the base for vipassanā ("insight"). In the Theravāda-tradition, as early as the Pāli Nikayas, the four jhānas are regarded as a samatha-practice. The eighth and final step of the Eightfold Path, Right Samadhi, is often defined as the four jhanas. In the Pāli Nikayas, Jhānas are described as preceding the awakening insight of the Buddha, which turned him into an awakened being. Yet the interpretation of jhana as single-pointed concentration and calm may be a later re-interpretation in which the original aim of jhana was lost.Vipassana ("insight", "clear seeing") refers to practices that aim to develop an inner understanding or knowledge of the nature of phenomena (dhammas), especially the characteristics of dukkha, anatta and anicca, which are seen as being universally applicable to all constructed phenomena (sankhata-dhammas). Vipassana is also described as insight into dependent origination, the five aggregates, the sense spheres and the Four Noble Truths. It is the primary focus of the modernist Burmese Vipassana movement. In western countries it is complemented with the four divine abidings, the development of loving-kindness and compassion.Vipassana practice begins with the preparatory stage, the practice of sila, morality, giving up worldly thoughts and desires. The practitioner then engages in anapanasati, mindfulness of breathing, which is described in the Satipatthana Sutta as going