Samadhi in the context of "Buddhist meditation"

Mysticism encompasses religious traditions of human transformation aided by various practices and religious experiences. Popularly, mysticism is used synonymously with mystical experience, a neologism which refers to an ecstatic unitive experience of becoming one with God, the Absolute, or all that exists.

Scholarly research since the 1970s had questioned this understanding, noting that what appears to be mysticism may also refer to the attainment of insight into ultimate or hidden truths, as in Buddhist awakening and Hindu prajna, in nondualism, and in the realisation of emptiness and ego-lessness, and also to altered states of consciousness such as samadhi.

Dhyāna (Sanskrit: ध्यान) in Hinduism means meditation and contemplation. Dhyana is taken up in Yoga practices, and is a means to samadhi and self-knowledge.

The various concepts of dhyana and its practice originated in the Sramanic movement of ancient India, which started before the 6th century BCE (pre-Buddha, pre-Mahavira), and the practice has been influential within the diverse traditions of Hinduism. It is, in Hinduism, a part of a self-directed awareness and unifying Yoga process by which the yogi realizes Self (Atman, soul), one's relationship with other living beings, and the Ultimate Reality. Dhyana is also part of other Indian religions such as Buddhism and Jainism. Several other traditions introduce unique aspects and context to Dhyana, and mutually influence each other.

The Noble Eightfold Path (Sanskrit: आर्याष्टाङ्गमार्ग, romanized: āryāṣṭāṅgamārga) or Eight Right Paths (Sanskrit: अष्टसम्यङ्मार्ग, romanized: aṣṭasamyaṅmārga) is an early summary of the path of Buddhist practices leading to liberation from samsara, the painful cycle of rebirth, in the form of nirvana.

The Eightfold Path consists of eight practices: right view, right resolve, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right samadhi ('meditative absorption or union'; alternatively, equanimous meditative awareness).

In the Buddhist tradition, the five hindrances (Sinhala: පඤ්ච නීවරණ, romanized: pañca nīvaraṇa; Pali: pañca nīvaraṇāni) are identified as mental factors that hinder progress in meditation and in daily life. In the Theravada tradition, these factors are identified specifically as obstacles to the jhānas (stages of concentration) within meditation practice. Contemporary Insight Meditation teachers identify the five hindrances as obstacles to mindfulness meditation.

Within the Mahayana tradition, the five hindrances are obstacles to samadhi. They are part of the two types of obstructions (Sanskrit: āvaraṇa), i.e. the obstacles to Buddhahood. The two types of obstructions are afflictive obstructions (Sanskrit: kleśāvaraṇa, which include the standard five hindrances) and cognitive obstructions (jñeyāvaraṇa, which can only be removed by bodhisattvas).

Paṭik(k)ūlamanasikāra is a Pāli term that is generally translated as "reflections on repulsiveness". It refers to a traditional Buddhist meditation whereby thirty-one parts of the body are contemplated in a variety of ways. In addition to developing sati (mindfulness) and samādhi (concentration), this form of meditation is considered conducive to overcoming desire and lust. Along with cemetery contemplations such as the contemplation of the nine stages of decay, this type of meditation is one of the two meditations on "the foul" or "unattractive" (Pāli: asubha).

Hinduism and Buddhism have common origins in Ancient India, which later spread and became dominant religions in Southeast Asian countries, including Cambodia and Indonesia around the 4th century CE. Buddhism arose in the Gangetic plains of Eastern India in the 5th century BCE during the Second Urbanisation (600–200 BC). Hinduism developed as a fusion or synthesis of practices and ideas from the ancient Vedic religion and elements and deities from other local Indian traditions.

Both religions share many beliefs and practices but also exhibit pronounced differences that have led to significant debate. Both religions share a belief in karma and rebirth (or reincarnation). They both accept the idea of spiritual liberation (moksha or nirvana) from the cycle of reincarnation and promote similar religious practices, such as dhyana, samadhi, mantra, and devotion. Both religions also share many deities (though their nature is understood differently), including Saraswati, Vishnu (Upulvan), Mahakala, Indra, Ganesha, and Brahma.