How Can One Quickly Cultivate Meditative Concentration?

To subdue afflictions and change one's unwholesome mental disposition, so that meditative concentration (samādhi) can be cultivated more quickly — meditative concentration is not necessarily achieved through long sitting; one need not rely on long hours of sitting meditation to attain meditative concentration. Mental disposition is very important; when afflictions are slight, it plays a decisive role in the arising of meditative concentration.

Greed, hatred, delusion, arrogance, and doubt, as well as incorrect views, are all afflictions. Each person's afflictions have different emphases, and thus the causes obstructing the Path differ. But overall, they are all caused by delusion, ignorance, and afflictions. Delusion is the general and major affliction; without delusion, the afflictions of greed and hatred, the affliction of self-conceit, as well as the afflictions of doubt and wrong view (mithyā-dṛṣṭi), would not exist. Everyone should observe attentively to find their own greatest and primary affliction, and focus mainly on subduing that primary affliction. When the principal contradiction is resolved, all contradictions can be dissolved. Subduing afflictions works the same way: by subduing the primary affliction, the obstruction can be basically removed, and the other afflictions will be eliminated accordingly. Some people are extremely greedy, some extremely hateful, some extremely deluded, some extremely arrogant, some heavily doubtful, and some hold views that are far too incorrect. The great, primary afflictions are the causes of other afflictions. Find the cause and resolve the cause, and the conditions will no longer exist, and the obstruction will be eliminated.