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StartingOutSmallACollectionofTalksforBeginningMeditators
by
PhraAjaanLeeDhammadharo(PhraSuddhidhammaraṅsīGambhīramedhācariya)
TranslatedfromtheThai
byṬhānissaroBhikkhu(GeoffreyDeGraff)
EXPANDEDEDITION,2016
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3
Introduction
Thisisaworkinprogress.Eventually,IhopetomakeavailableinEnglishamuchlargercollectionofAjaanLee’stalkstoaddtothecollectionsalreadyavailable:LessonsinSamādhi,FoodforThought,InnerStrength,andTheSkillofRelease.Butforthemoment,inkeepingwiththetitleofthecollection,I’dliketostartoutsmall.
ThepassagestranslatedherehadtheirbeginningsintalksthatAjaanLeegavetogroupsofpeoplewhiletheyweremeditating.Insomecases,thepeoplewerehisfollowers;inothers,totalstrangers.Ineverycase,AjaanLeefounditnecessarytocoverthesortsofquestionsthatoccurtopeoplenewtomeditation—Whymeditate?HowshouldImeditate?Andwhyinthatparticularway?—andinhisownstyleheprovidednotonlystraightforwardanswerstothesequestionsbutalsovividanalogies,tohelphislistenersrelatetheirmeditationtofamiliaractivitiessothattheywouldfeellessintimidatedbytheunchartedareasofthemindstheyweretryingtotame.
OneaspectofAjaanLee’steachingsthatmightstrikeyouasforeignishisanalysisofthebodyintofourproperties:earth,fire,water,andwind.ThismodeofanalysisdatesbacktothetimeoftheBuddha,althoughAjaanLeedevelopsitinadistinctiveway.Thinkofthisanalysis,notasanattemptatbiologyorchemistry—thesciencesweusetoanalyzethebodyfromtheoutside—butasawayofanalyzinghowthebodyfeelsfromtheinside.Thisisanaspectofawarenessthatweoftenoverlookandthat,inEnglishatleast,wehaveapoorvocabularyfordescribing.Asyougainthroughmeditationagreaterfamiliaritywiththisaspectofyourawareness,you’llcometoseehowusefulAjaanLee’smethodofanalysisis.
ThepassagesincludedherehavetakenafairlycircuitousroutefromAjaanLee’smouthtoyoureyes.Oneofhisfollowers—anun,MaeChiiArunAbhivaṇṇā—tooknotesduringthetalks,fromwhichshelaterworkedupreconstructedversionsofwhatAjaanLeehadsaid.AjaanLeehadachancetoreviewandrevisethereconstructionsofthetalksdatedpriorto1957.Asforthetalksmadeafterthatyear,MaeChiiArundidn’tgetaroundtomakingreconstructionsuntilafterAjaanLee’sdeathin1961,andsothesewereprintedwithouthisinput.
Althoughthetalksmakeforgreatreading,theymakeforevenbetterlistening.Ifyoumeditatewithagroupoffriends,tryarrangingforonememberofthegrouptoreada
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passagewhiletheothersaremeditating.Inthatway,youcanbestrecreatethecontextforwhichthetalkswereoriginallyintended.
ṬhānissaroBhikkhu
OCTOBER,1999
Thisexpandededitioncontainstranslationsoftwonewtalksthathaveneverbeenpublishedbefore—“Merit”and“OnTarget”—alongwithcompletetranslationsofthetalks“TheArtofLettingGo”and“AttheTipofYourNose,”bothofwhichwereexcerptedinLessonsinSamādhi.Ihopetocontinueaddingnewtalk-translationstothiscollectionastimepermits.
ṬhānissaroBhikkhu
JANUARY,2016
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BrightnessWithin
May18,1958
Forpeopletobehappyorsad,goodorbad,alldependsontheheart.Theheartiswhat’sincharge,themostimportantthingtobefoundinourbody.That’sbecauseit’slastingandresponsibleforallthegoodandevilwedo.Asforthebody,itknowsnothingofpleasureorpain,happinessorsadness,andit’snotatallresponsibleforanyone’sgoodorevilactions.Whyisthat?Becausethebodyisn’tlasting.It’sempty.
Tosaythatit’semptymeansthatassoonasit’sdeprivedofbreath,itsfourpropertiesofearth,water,wind,andfireseparatefromoneanotherandreturntotheiroriginalnature.Thepartscomingfromtheearthpropertyreturntobeearthastheyoriginallywere.Thepartscomingfromthewaterpropertyreturntobewaterastheyoriginallywere.Thepartscomingfromthewindandfirepropertiesreturntobewindandfireastheyoriginallywere.There’snothingaboutthemthat’s“woman”or“man,”“good”or“bad.”Thisiswhywe’retaught,Rūpaṁaniccaṁ,physicalformisinconstant.Rūpaṁdukkhaṁ,it’shardtobear.Rūpaṁanattā,it’snot-self,empty,anddoesn’tstayunderanyone’scontrol.Evenifwetrytoforbiditfromgrowingold,growingsick,anddying,itwon’tbehaveinlinewithourwishes.Ithastofallinlinewiththeprocessesofarisingandwastingawayinaccordancewiththenatureofnaturalfabrications.Thisappliestoeveryone.
Butyoucan’tsaythatthebodyisentirelyanattā,forsomepartsofitareattā.Inotherwords,theyliesomewhatunderourcontrol.Forinstance,ifyouwantthebodytowalk,it’llwalk.Ifyouwantittoliedown,it’llliedown.Ifyouwantittoeat,it’lleat.Ifyouwantittotakeabath,it’lltakeabath.Thisshowsthatitliessomewhatunderyourcontrol.Sothebodyisbothanattāandattā.Butevenso,bothaspectsareequalinthesensethatthey’reemptyandnotresponsibleforthegoodorevilthingswedo.Nomatterhowmuchgoodorevilyoudo,thebodydoesn’thaveanypartintherewards.Whenitdies,itgetscrematedandturnsintoasheseitherway.It’snotresponsibleforanyone’shappinessorsadnessatall.Whenpeopledogoodorevil,theresultsoftheirgoodandevilallfalltotheirownminds.Themindiswhat’sresponsibleforallouractions,andit’stheonethatexperiencestheresultsofitsactionsaswell.Thisiswhythe
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Buddhataughtustocleanseourheartsandminds,tomakethempureasawayofleadingustofuturehappiness.
Whatdoweusetocleansetheheartandmind?Wecleansetheheartandmindwithskillfulness—inotherwordsbydevelopingskillfulqualitieswithinitthroughpracticingconcentration.Wecutawayallthethoughtsofgreed,anger,anddelusionwithinthemind,suchastheHindrancesofsensualdesire,illwill,torpor&lethargy,restlessness&anxiety,anddoubt.Allofthesequalitiesarethingsthatsoilthemind.Whenthemindissoiledinthisway,it’sboundtosuffer.It’sheadedfordarknessbecauseofitsownactions.
Ourunskillfulactionscanbedividedintothedifferentwaysthey’redark.Somearedarklikethedarknessofnight,i.e.,totallydevoidofanybrightness.Somearedarklikeclouds,i.e.,theyalternatebetweenbeingdarkandbright,justaswhenthemoonisbrightatsometimesandcoveredbycloudsatothers.Someofourunskillfulnessisdarklikehaze,obscuringallourvisionwhetherbydayorbynight.Thisthirdkindofunskillfulnessisignorance,oravijjā.Itobscuresthemindatalltimessothatwecan’trecognizewhichofthemind’sobjectsarepast,whicharefuture,andwhicharepresent.Thisiswhythemindconcernsitselfwithpast,present,andfuturesothatitcan’tstayfirmlyinanyoneplace.Ithasnocertaintyaboutanything.Thisisignorance.Fromignorancecomescraving,thecauseofallstressandsuffering.
Togetridofthishazewehavetomeditate,gettingridofthoughtsandconceptsofpastandfuturebyseeingthemasinconstant,stressful,andnot-self;seeingalltheaggregatesofform,feeling,perception,thought-fabrication,andconsciousnessasinconstant,stressful,andnot-self,tothepointwherethereisnopast,nofuture,nopresent.That’swhenthemindisreleasedfromthecloudsandhazeofitsHindrancesandentersintobrightness.
Therearetwokindsofpeopleintheworld.Somearelikethosewithgoodeyes.They’retheoneswhodevelopskillfulqualitieswithinthemselves,andsotheyseethebrightnessoftheworldbothbydayandbynight.Thentherearethosewhodon’tdevelopskillfulmentalqualities.They’relikepeoplebornblind:eventhoughthelightofthesunandmoonmaybeshining,thesepeopleareinthedarkness—inthiscase,thedarknessoftheirownminds.ThisiswhytheBuddhataughtustoremovethedarknessfromourminds,toremoveourmindsfromdarkness,asinthePaliverse,
Kaṇhaṁdhammaṁvippahāyasukkaṁbhāvethapaṇḍito,
whichmeans,“Havingabandoneddarkqualities,thewisepersondevelopsthebright.”Whenpeopledevelopbrightnesswithinthemselves,theycanusethatbrightnesstoilluminatealltheiractivities.Thiswillbringthemsuccessinalltheydo.
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Butifthey’reinthedark,it’sasiftheywereblind,sothatthethingstheydowon’tsucceedinfullmeasure.Forexample,theymaylistentotheDhamma,butiftheirmindsarestillwanderingoutallovertheplace,it’sasiftheywereobscuredbythecloudsandhazeoftheirHindrances.
Thisiswhywe’retaughttopracticetranquilitymeditation,fixingthemindonasinglepreoccupation.TellyourselfthatthequalitiesoftheBuddhaaren’tseparatefromthequalitiesoftheDhamma,whicharen’tseparatefromthequalitiesoftheSaṅgha.They’reactuallyoneandthesame,asthePaliversetellsus:
BuddhodhammosaṅghocātinānāhontampivatthutoAññamaññāviyogāvaekībhūtampanatthato
“AlthoughtheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghamaybedifferentasobjects,seeminglyseparatefromoneanother,theyareactuallyoneinmeaning.”
Thuswhenwemakethemindfirminitsawakenedawareness,itcontainsthequalitiesoftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghaallinone.That’swhenourconcentrationwilldevelopintheproperway.
SoIaskthatyouabandonunskillfulmentalqualitiesandcleansethemindsothatit’scleanandpure.Brightnesswillthenarisewithinyourheart.Thiswayyou’llexperienceeaseandhappinesswithoutadoubt,asthePalipassageguarantees:Cittesaṅkiliṭtheduggatipāṭikaṅkhā.Citteasaṅkiliṭthesugatipāṭikaṅkhā.“Whenthemindisdefiled,abaddestinationcanbeexpected.Whenthemindisundefiled,ahappydestinationcanbeexpected.”
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TheLightofDiscernment
August23,1958
Ourdiscernmentislikelight,andtherearethreelevelstoit:low-leveldiscernment,whichislikethelightofatorch;intermediatediscernment,whichislikethelightofacandleorakerosenelantern;andhigh-leveldiscernment,whichislikeelectriclight.
Togetlightfromatorch,youneedtousealotoffuel.Andeventhoughit’sbright,itcreatessmoke.Thisislikethediscernmentthatcomesfrombeinggenerous:itrequiresalotoffinancialresources,andyousometimeshavetocontendwithresistancefrompeopleoutside.
Thelightofacandleorgaslanternislikethediscernmentthatcomesfromobservingtheprecepts.Youhavetoexercisealotofcareanduseyourpowersofendurancetokeepthempure.Lantern-lightrequiresfuelandawick.Asforcandlelight,itrequiresawickandsomewax.Ifyouhavewaxbutnowick,youcan’tgetanylight.Andbothlantern-lightandcandlelightcreatesmokeandsoot,soneitherofthemcountsasbeingentirelygood.
Asforelectricdiscernment,there’snoneedforfuel,anditdoesn’tcreatesmokeorsoot.It’seasytouse:wheneveryouwantit,bydayorbynight,justflipontheswitch.Thisreferstothediscernmentthatcomesfromdevelopingconcentration.Thepowerofthemind,whenit’spureandfirmlyestablished,givesrisetothelightofknowledge—liberatinginsight—enablingustoseeeventsclearly,bothintheareaoftheworldandoftheDhamma.Whenwecanmakethemindcleanandpure,itgivesrisetoconcentrationandtothelightofdiscernment—paññā-pajjoto—whichislikeelectriclight,orthelightofthesun,whichshinesalltwelvehoursoftheday.Thiskindofdiscernmentisthediscernmentofthenobleones.
Allthreeformsofmerit—generosity,virtue,andmeditation—dependondiscernment.Whenwedevelopdiscernment,we’llknowhowtolookformeritonourown.Andwhatkindoflightwillwewant—torchlight,candlelight,lantern-light,orelectriclight?Deathislikedarkness.Whenthetimecomestodie,outsidelightwon’tbeofanyusetous.Ourspeech,hands,feet,arms,andlegswon’tbeofanyusetous.Theywon’tbeabletohelpusatall.Oureyeswon’tbeabletoseeanylight.Noonewillhear
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whatwehavetosay.Ourhandsandfeetwon’tbeabletomove.Ourpossessionswon’tbeabletohelpus.Theonlyresourcethatwillbeabletohelpusisourdiscernment,makingsurethatgreed,aversion,anddelusiondon’tgetprovoked,maintainingthemindinastatefreefromgreed,freefromaversion,freefromdelusion.We’llbeabletoseparatethesethreethings—body,mind,anddefilement—outfromoneanother,inthesamewaythatweseparatethewickofacandlefromitswax.Thefireofdefilementwillthenhavetogoout,becausethewickandthewaxlieinseparateplacesanddon’tmakecontact.Inthesameway,ifwecanseparatethebodyfromthemind,ournormalawarenesswillhavetogoout.Butwhenitgoesout,thatdoesn’tmeanthatawarenessisannihilated.It’sstillthere,butasaspecialformofawarenessthatdoesn’tdependonthebodyormindandyetcanstillbeaware.It’sjustlikefiregoingoutfromacandle:it’snotannihilated.There’sstillplentyoffirepotentialleftintheworld.It’stherebyitsnature,simplythatitisn’tinvolvedwithanyfuel.Thiskindoffireisbetterthanthekindthatrequiresfuel,becauseitdoesn’twearanythingout.It’ssimplytherebyitsnature.Thiskindofmeritismorewonderfulthananythingelse.
Ifwecanseparatethebody,themind,anddefilementfromoneanother,there’llbenomoreheat.Themindwon’tbehot,andinsteadwillbecoolatalltimes.Thelightoffirearisesfromthespinningofwaves.Iftherearenowaves,there’llbenospinning.Thewavesarelikedefilement.Ifwecancutthroughthewaves,thespinningwillstop.Therewillbenomorebirth.Greed,aversion,anddelusionarelikewaves—orlikethewickofacandle.Ifwecutoutthewick,leavingonlythewax,firewillhavenoplacetocatchholdandsowillhavetogoout.Whenthecandlegoesout,it’slikethedeathofhumanbeings:thefireleavesthecandle,butthefirepotentialisn’tannihilated.Inthesameway,themindthatgoesoutfromthebodyisn’tannihilated.Ifitcanremainonitsown,withouthavingtodependonabody,itdoesn’tappearinanyway,shape,orformanywhereatall.That’stheawarenessofnibbāna.
Thisisthekindofawarenessthat’sreallylikeelectriclight.Wheneverwewantit,it’sthereforustoknow.Sometimesevenifwedon’twanttoknow,westillendupknowing.Asforordinarypeople,eveniftheywanttoknowthings,theyoftendon’tknow;theyoftendon’tseeevenwhentheywanttosee.That’sliketorchlightorcandlelight:ifthere’snofuel,there’snowayitcanbebright.
Thisiswhywe’retaughttotrainourmindstobefirmlyestablishedinconcentration—forthemindwell-trainediswhatgivesrisetothelightofdiscernmentthatdoesn’tgetdeluded:thediscernmentthatknowsforsure.
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Clinging
September9,1957
Clingingisthecauseofallsufferingandstress.It’swhatgivesrisetostatesofbecomingandbirth.It’snotatallsafe.Whateverappearsandtakesshapeisboundtocreatesuffering.Justaswhenaperson’smoneyappearsinawaythatotherpeoplecansee:thereareboundtobethieveswhowillstealitaway.Whenyouhavemoney,you’reafraidifpeopleseeit.You’reafraideveniftheydon’t.Inthesameway,whenpeopleclingtothefiveaggregatesastheirselfinthisworld,theysuffer.Whentheydieandgotothenextworld,theysufferstill.
Theclingingwefeelhasthreekinds,orthreetimeframes:past,present,andfuture.Ineachtimeframetherearefiveaggregates,whichmeansthateachofushas15aggregates.Andwhenwehavesomanyaggregatestocarryaround,it’snowonderwesuffer.Whenwelookahead,westartwondering:“IfIliveuntil60,70,or80,what’sitgoingtobelike?IfIfallintopoverty,whatwillIdo?”Whenwethinklikethis,westartworryinginallkindsofways.Ifwethinkaboutgoodthings,wegetenthralled.Ifwethinkaboutbadthings,wegetdisheartened.Somepeoplethinkaboutbadthingssomuchthattheygetreallydiscouragedanddespondent.That’sbecausetheyclingtotheirthoughtsandpreoccupations.Thisiscalledhavingfiveheavystonesplacedinfrontofus.
Thenweturnaroundandlookbehindus:“Whenwedie,whatwillhappentoourchildrenandgrandchildren?”Wemightthinkofgivingthempartofthefamilyfortunesothatthey’llbeabletosetthemselvesupinlife.Butthenwethinkofhowfoolishtheycanbe.“Iftheytakeourfamilyfortuneandgambleitallaway,whatwillwedo?”Whenwethinklikethis,itmakesusdiscouraged.Othertimeswethinkofourowngoodqualities,ourchildren’sgoodqualities,inthepresent,anditmakesushappy.That’sanotherfiveheavystones.Soaltogetherwehavefivestonesinfrontofus,fivestonesbehindus,andfivestonesinthepresent.Ourrighthandclingstophysicalphenomena,ourlefthandtomentalphenomena.Weholdontoform,feeling,perception,thought-constructs,andconsciousnessasourself.Sowecarryaburdeninourrighthand,aburdeninourlefthand,andmoreburdensplacedonapoleoverourshoulder.Ifwe
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keepcarryingthesethingsaroundwithouteverputtingthemdown,we’llmeetwithnothingbutsuffering.Thenwegrabontothesufferingsothatwesufferevenmore,tothepointwhereourfacesareallcontortedandourshoulderstwistedoutofshape.
ThisiswhytheBuddhahadsuchcompassionforusandtaughtustocāgopaṭinissago,torelinquishandletgo.Whoeverdoesn’tputdownthepoleonhisorhershoulderwillnevergetaway.Ifwecanfirstletgoofourthoughtsofpastandfuture,thingswillbesomewhatlighter.Ifwe’reonlycarryingthingsinourhandsthere’ssomehopethatwe’llbeabletokeepgoing.Inotherwords,ifwedon’tpracticeconcentration,keepingourmindsstillandawayfromtheHindrances,we’restillcarryingapoleoverourshoulderswithburdensinfrontofusandbehindus,allbecausewecan’tletgoofourthoughtsofpastandfuture.Thoughtsofpastandfuturearethingswedon’tneedtothinkabout.Whetherthey’reourownaffairs,theaffairsofourchildrenorgrandchildren,orourbusinessorfinancialaffairs:whenwe’vecometomeditatelikethis,there’snoneedtothinkaboutanythingatall.Beintentonsittingstill.Keepyourbodystraight,focusonwatchingonlythepresent—thebreath—andlightwillappear.Eventhoughyourrightandlefthandsarestillholdingontophysicalandmentalphenomena,atleastyou’veputdownbothburdensthatwereonyourshoulders.
Asforthephysicalphenomenathatarestillheavy,that’sbecausetheKingofDeathkeepssprinklingpoisononthem.Forexample,oureyes:Atfirsttheyareclear.Everythingweseeissharpandbright.ButthentheKingofDeathsprinkleshispoisoninthem,makingthemmurkyanddark,orgivinguscataracts.Sowehavetogorunningtohaveoureyesexamined,togetglassesforthem,toputmedicineinthem,togoinforsurgery.Theymakeussufferineveryway,sothatourtinylittleeyesstartweighingasmuchasafistintheface.
Asforourears,atfirsttheycanhearallkindsofsounds.ThentheKingofDeathcomesandsprinkleshispoisoninthemsothattheystartringingorgoingdeaf.Wecanhardlyhearwhatotherpeoplearesaying,wecan’tunderstandwhatthey’regettingat,andthismakesusirritable.Theysaybadthings,andtoustheysoundgood.Ortheysaygoodthings,andtoustheysoundbad.Wegetthingsrightandwrong,andthisgivesrisetoquarrelsanddisagreements.
Thesamewithournose.Atfirstit’singoodshape,butthentheKingofDeathsprinklespoisoninit,sothattumorsandgrowthsdevelop.Wehavetogolookingformedicinalsnuffandinhalers,orfordoctorstozapthegrowthswithelectricity.Ournosestartssmellingbadanddisfiguresourface.
Asforthetongue,body,andmind,theypileushighwithpaininjustthesameway.Thisiswhywe’retaught,rūpaṁaniccaṁ:allphysicalformsareunstableandinconstant.Ifwegetstuckonthinkingaboutthesethings,itsetsusonfire.Ourskinandfleshgrow
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flabbyandwrinkled,ourbacksgetbent,andaswegrowolderlikethisit’saburdenbothtoourownheartsandtotheheartsofourchildrenandgrandchildren.Inaddition,it’saburdenintermsofthemoneyweneedtospendtolookafterourselves.
Whoeverholdsontounstablethingsasbeinghisorherselfwillhavetowalkinanunstableway.Mostofustendtoclingtothebodyandotherphysicalthingsasbeingours.Sometimesweclingtomentalphenomena—feelings,perceptions,thought-constructs,andconsciousness—asbeingours.Thisiscalledcarryingthingsinbothhands.Still,it’sbetterthancarryingloadsonapoleoverourshoulder,foraslongasourburdensareonlyinourhandswe’reabletositorliedown.Butifwehaveburdensonapoleoverourshoulder,wecan’tsitdown.Wehavetokeepstanding.
Forthisreasonweshouldtrainourheartstobepeacefulandstill—inotherwords,todevelopconcentration.Whentheheart’stranquilandstill,discernmentwillarise.Whendiscernmentarises,we’llunderstandourownbirth:Whenwewereborn,wedidn’tbringalongevenasingletoothorpieceofcloth.Howeverwecameishowwe’llhavetoreturn.Wewon’tbeabletotakeasinglethingalongwithus,asidefromthegoodandevilthatwilltakeustobereborningoodorbaddestinationsorthatwillsendustonibbāna.Peoplewhocanmeditateinthiswaywillbecomelightandunburdened,forthey’llbeabletoletgoofwhatthey’recarryingintheirhands.Inthatwaythey’llbehappy,forthey’vereceivedthreejewelstoadornthemselves.Whentheygettotheotherside,they’llbeabletosellthemforagoodprice.Aslongastheystayhere,they’llhavegoodthingstodressupwith.Whoeverhastheintelligencetopracticelettinggointhiswaywillreceivewealththat’sofvalueeverywhere—likegold:Nomatterwhatcountryyougoto,goldisrecognizedashavingvalue.It’snotlikepapermoney,whichisrecognizedonlyinyourowncountry.
Forthisreason,whenwecantrainthemindtoletgo—sothatit’sreleasedfromholdingontothefuture,thepast,andthepresent—it’sasifwe’vereceivedanentireingotofpuregold.We’llbehappyatalltimes.Butifwe’restupidenoughtoholdontothingsasourown,we’llsetthemindonfiresothatitwon’tknowanypeace.
ThisiswhytheBuddhahaswarnedus:whoeverclingstophysicalormentalphenomena,ortomentallabelsandthoughts,willhavetobesoburdenedthattheywon’tbeabletogetanywhere.Ultimately,they’llhavetodiestuckintheworld,likethemonkeystuckinatartrap.
Whoeverclingsissaidtobeheavilyburdened.Aslongaswe’realive,wehavetroublefindingtruegoodness.Whenwedie,wehaveheavyburdenslyinginourway.ThisiswhytheBuddhateachesustoletgo.Don’tgraspontothoughtsofpast,future,orpresent.Makethemindlikewateronalotusleaf,whichdoesn’tseepin.Itreachesaqualitythatdoesn’tdie,doesn’tcomebacktobeborninthisworldoranyother.Free
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fromsufferingandstress,itreachesthehighest,mostexcellentease.Soweshouldalltryourbesttolightenourburdens.
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LettingGo
NotesfromaTalkApril21,1953
Lettinggo.OneoftheimportantreasonswhytheBuddhataughttheDhammawastoteachus
toletgo,nottoholdontothings.ThemorewereallyknowtheDhamma,themorewecanletgo.Thosewhoknowalittlecanletgoofalittle;thosewhoknowalotcanletgoofalot.
Asafirststepwe’retaughtdāna—tobegenerous,togivedonations—asastrategyforgettingustolearnhowtoletgo.Thenextstepiscāga—renouncingrightsofpossession—whichislettinggoatahigherlevelthandāna.Andfinally,onamorerefinedlevel,we’retaughttorelinquishallourupadhi,ortheacquisition-defilementsinthemind.Thisisthelevelonwhichweexamineandexploreuntilwecangaintotalrelease.
Danameansgivingawaymaterialthings.Ifwedon’tgivethemaway,they’rehardtoletgo.Forthemostpart,ifwedon’tgivethingsaway,weholdrightsoverthemandregardthemasbelongingtous.Butifwegivethemaway,wenolongerhaveanyrightsoverthem.Thingsweholdontoaredangerous.(1)Theycancauseusharm.(2)Theycauseharmtopeoplewhostealthemfromus.And(3)oncethosepeoplehavestolenthem,thentheyclaimrightsoverthem.TheBuddhasawthesedangers,whichiswhyhetaughtustobegenerous,tolearnhowtogivethingsaway.
Peoplewhodevelopthehabitofbeinggenerousreapmanyrewards.Theiractofgenerositycomesbacktothembothinthepresentandonintothefuture.Theyhavelotsoffriends.Otherpeopletrustthem.Theirheartsarelight—theyaren’tweigheddownwithworriesaboutlookingafterthethingsthey’vegivenaway.Andthesesameresultswillkeepcominginthefuture,justaswhenwehaveabucketofricegrains:ifweplanttheminafield,we’llreaptenbucketsofriceinreturn.Thesameholdstruewiththegoodnesswedevelopinthislifetime.Itgivesenormousreturns.That’showpeopleofdiscernmentunderstandit.
Cāgaisthenextstep.Danaissomethingthatevencrazypeoplecando,butcāgaisa
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typeofgivingthatonlywisepeoplecando,becausetheirsenseofpersonalpossessionhastoendimmediatelyintheactofgiving.Theyseethatallmaterialthingsarecommonproperty:thingsdon’treallybelongtous,theydon’treallybelongtootherpeople.Ifyouseethingsasbelongingtoyou,that’saddictiontosensuality(kāmasukhallikānuyoga).Ifyouseethingsasbelongingtoothers,that’saddictiontoself-affliction(attakilamathānuyoga).Whenwe’reborn,wedidn’tbringanythingalongwithuswhenwecame.Whenwedie,wewon’ttakeanythingalongwhenwego.Sowhatreallybelongstous?Oursenseofpossessionhastofallawayfromtheheartifourgivingistocountascāga.
Thethirdleveloflettinggoisrelinquishingwhat’sintheheart.Whetherornotwegivethingsaway,weletgooftheminthehearteveryday.Weletgoofthethingswehave.Weletgoofthethingswedon’thave.Justasapersonhastowashhismouthandhandseverydayafterheeatsifhewantstostaycleanatalltimes.Whatthismeansisthatwe’renotwillingtoletanythingactasanenemytotheheartbymakingusstingyorgrasping.Ifwedon’tdothis,we’rethetypeofpersonwhodoesn’twashupafterameal.We’renotclean.Westayasleepwithouteverwakingup.Butwhenweletgointhisway,it’scalledvirāga-dhamma,ordispassion.Thelowerlevelsoflettinggoarethingswecandoonlyfromtimetotime.Dispassionissomethingwecandevelopalways.
Ordinarilyourdefilementstieusdownhandandfoot,andthennailustothefloor.It’shardtogetfree,whichiswhyweneedahighlevelofskill,calledbhāvanāmaya-paññā—thediscernmentthatcomesfromdevelopingthemindinmeditation—togainrelease.
Dispassionisamentalqualitythat’sreallydeliciousandnourishing.Whoeverhasn’treachedthisleveloftheDhammahaseatenonlytherindofthefruit,withoutknowingthetasteandnourishmentoftheflesh.Thegoodpartofthefleshliesdeep.
Theupadhi-kilesas,oracquisition-defilementsinthemind,areignorance,craving,andclinging.IfwereachthelevelwhereweseetheDhammaforourselveswithinus,thenwetakeresponsibilityforourselves.Wecantakecareofthesethingsonourown,justaswhenwecomeofageintermsofthelaw.
Ifwecangetourmindsintothefirstjhāna,wecanletgoofthefivehindrances.Mostofusarelikeinexperiencedchildren:whenweeatfishorchicken,weeatthe
bonesalongwiththefleshbecausewehaven’tdevelopedanyintuitiveinsight.Whenthisinsightarises,it’smoredazzlingthanthelightofafire,sharperthanaspear.Itcanconsumeanything:meat,bones,rice,husks—anything—becauseit’ssmartenoughtopoundeverythingintoapowder.Itcanconsumesights,sounds,smells,flavors,tactilesensations,andideas.Goodorbad,itisn’tpicky.Itcaneatthemall.Ifpeoplepraiseus,wecanuseittonourishtheheart.Iftheycriticizeus,wecanuseittonourishtheheart.
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Evenifthebodyisinterriblepain,theheartcanbeatitsease,forithasalltheutensilsitneedstofixitsfoodproperly:grinders,mixers,steamers,pots,andpans.Thefogofignorancewillscatter.Everythingthattiesusdown—thenailsofthefiveaggregatesofclinging,thethreeropes(loveforspouse,loveforchildren,loveformaterialpossessions),andtheeightchainsoftheaffairsoftheworld(loka-dhamma)—gain,loss,status,lossofstatus,praise,criticism,pleasure,andpain—willallfallaway.
Stupidpeoplethinkthatstayinginjailiscomfortable,whichiswhytheykeepondoingmoreandmoreevil.Theyseetheworldaspleasantandsothey’relikeprisonerswhodon’twanttogetoutofjail.Asforpeoplewithdiscernment,they’relikethecagedquailwhokeepslookingforawaytogetoutofthecage.Asaresultthechainsthatholdthemdownwillfallawayonelinkatatime.Theeightaffairsoftheworldarelikethechainsputoncriminalstokeepthembound.Stupidpeoplethinkthesechainsarenecklacesofgoldtowearasornaments.Actually,they’rethingsthatdefilethemind.Peoplewhogettieddownbythemwillnevergetaway,becausethey’reafraidthey’lllosetheirwealthandstatus,afraidofcriticismandpain.Anyonewhoisstuckonpleasure,whoisafraidofcriticism,willnevermanagetocometothemonasterytopractice.
TheBuddhasawthatwe’relikemonkeystiedtoachain.Ifwedon’tdevelopliberatinginsight,we’llnevergetfreefromourchains.We’llnevermakeittodispassion.
Inthefirststageweletgoofevilandstartdoinggood.Inthesecondstageweletgoofevilandsomeformsofgood.Inthethirdstageweletgoofeverything,goodandevil,becauseeverythingisfabricatedbynatureandthusundependable.Wedogoodbutwe’renotattachedtoit.Whenyouletgo,youhavedoitintelligently,andnotinaruinousway—i.e.,bynotdoinggood.Youcan’tholdoneventoyouropinions,muchlesstomaterialthings.Whenyoudogood,youdoitforthesakeofthelivingbeingsoftheworld,foryourchildrenandgrandchildren.Youdoeverythinginthebestwaypossible,butyou’renotattachedtoit,becauseyouknowthatallthingsfabricatedareinconstant.Thiswayyourheartcanbeclearandbrightlikeajewel.
Ifyougetcaughtuponcriticismorpraise,you’refoolish.It’slikedrinkingotherpeople’ssaliva.Whenyouactrightly,therearepeoplewhowillsaythatyou’rerightandthosewhowillsaythatyou’rewrong.Whenyouactwrong,therearepeoplewhowillsayyou’rewrongandthosewhowillsayyou’reright.There’snothingconstantaboutgoodorbad,forthey’reallnothingbutfabrications.
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ThreePrinciples
July6,1956
Inbrief,therearethreeprinciplesthatarereallybasictomeditation:
1)Therightintention:Youhavetomakeupyourmindthatyou’regoingtoletgoofallthoughtsandpreoccupationsdealingwiththeworld.Youaren’tgoingtokeepthemtothinkabout.Everythoughtandconceptdealingwiththepastorfutureisanaffairoftheworld,andnotoftheDhamma.Makeupyourmindthatyou’regoingtodoonethingrightnow:theworkofthereligion,andnothingelse.Inotherwords,you’regoingtoworkontheimmediatepresent.Thisiscalledtherightintention.
2)Therightobject:Thismeanstherightthemeorfocalpointforthemind.Thethemehereisdhātuvavatthana,orresolutionintotheproperties,oneofthethemesintakingthebodyasaframeofreference(kāyānupassanā-saṭipaṭṭhāna).Inshort,we’regoingtolookatthefourpropertiesthatmakeupthebody:thepropertiesofearth,water,wind,andfire.Theearthpropertycoversthehardpartsofthebody,suchasthebones.Thewaterpropertycoverstheliquidparts,suchasurine,saliva,blood,andpus.Thefirepropertycoverstheheatandwarmthinthebody.Thewindpropertycoversthefeelingsofenergythatflowinthebody,suchasthebreath.Ofalltheseproperties,themostimportantoneisthewindproperty,orthebreath.Ifotherpartsofthebodygetdamaged—say,ifoureyesgoblind,ourearsgodeaf,ourarmsandlegsgetbroken—itcanstillsurvive.Butifitdoesn’thaveanybreath,itcan’tlast.It’llhavetodie.Sothebreathisanimportantobjectbecauseitformsabasisforourawareness.
3)Therightquality:Thismeansthefeelingsofcomfortordiscomfortthatariseinthebody.Whenyoutakecareofthein-and-outbreathsothatitflowsfreelythroughthevariouspartsofthebody,it’llgiverisetoresults.Takegoodnoteofwhethertheresultsthatthebodyandmindreapfromthebreatharegoodorbad.Doesthebodyfeelopenandatease,ordoesitfeeltightandconstricted?Doesthemindfeelcalm,quiet,andpleasant,orisitirritable,distracted,andchaotic?Ifthebodyandmindfeelatease,thatcountsasgood
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results.Iftheoppositeistrue,thenthatcountsasbadresults.Soyouhavetogainasenseofhowtoadjustthebreathsothatitbecomescomfortable.
Asfortherightqualitiesofthemind,thosearemindfulnessandalertness.Trytokeepfollowingthesethreebasicprincipleseverytimeyoupractice
concentration.Onlythenwillyougetresultsthatarefullandcorrect.Asfortherewardsofconcentration,therearelotsofthem.Theyariseinlinewith
thepowerofthemindofthepersonmeditating,asI’llexplainatalaterdate.
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ThreeStrandsofaRope
August19,1959
Ifyou’venevermeditated,thesetwoeasyprinciplesareallyouhavetounderstand:(1)ThinkofthequalitiesoftheBuddha;and(2)thinkofbringingthemintoyourmind.Whatthismeansis,bemindfultomakethemindfirmlyestablishedsolelyinthebreath,withoutforgettingitorlettingyourselfgetdistracted.
Notforgettingthebreathmeansbeingmindfulofthein-and-outbreathatalltimes.Notgettingdistractedmeansthatyoudon’tgrabholdofanythingelsetothinkabout.Ifthemindisfocusedbutyou‘rethinkingaboutsomethingelse,it’snotcalledRightConcentration.Yourmindfulnesshastokeepwithintheboundsoftheworkyou’redoing,inotherwords,stayingwiththebreath.
Don’tputpressureonthebreath,tenseitup,orholdit.Letitfloweasilyandcomfortably,aswhenyouputafresheggincottonbatting.Ifyoudon’tthrowitorpushitdown,theeggwon’tgetdentedorcracked.Thiswayyourmeditationwillprogresssmoothly.
Thebreathisonething,mindfulnessisanother,andyourawareness,stillanother.Youhavetotwistthesethreestrandstogethersothattheydon’tbreakawayfromoneanother.Inotherwords,yourawarenesshastostaywiththeactofmindfulness,thinkingaboutthebreath.Andbothyourawarenessandmindfulnesshavetostaywiththebreath.Onlythencanyousaythatthesethingsarefactorsofmeditation.
Whenyoucantwistthesethreestrandsintoasinglerope,focusyourawarenessonobservingthein-and-outbreathtoseewhetherit’scomfortableornot,expansiveorconfined,broadornarrow.Whicheverwayofbreathingfeelscomfortable,keepbreathinginthatway.Ifthebreathisn’tcomfortable,keepchangingituntilitis.
Ifyouforcethemindtoomuch,it’sboundtopopaway.Ifyouloosenyourgriptoomuch,it’sgoingtogetlost.Sotrytotendtoitinawaythat’sjustright.Theimportantpointisthatyourmindfulnessandalertnessbecircumspect,makingadjustmentsthroughoutthebreath.Don’tletthemindgoflowingoutafterotherpreoccupations.
Mindfulnessislikeapersonwho’sawakeandalive.Ifthemindlacksmindfulness,it’slikewe’resleepingwithdeadbodiesinacemetery.There’snothingbutfoulsmells
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andfear.Thisiswhywe’retaughttobemindfulofourselvesinthepresentmomentatalltimes.Cutawayallthoughtsofpastandfuturewithoutgrabbingontothemtothinkabout,forthesethingsaredeceitfulandillusory,likespiritsanddemons.Theywasteyourtimeandpullyoudown.Sobeawaresimplyofthebreath,forthebreathiswhatgiveslifeandleadsyoutohigherhappiness.
Mindfulnessislikeamagicsoapthatscrubsthebreath.Alertnessisanotherbarofmagicsoapforscrubbingthemind.Ifyouconstantlyhavemindfulnessandalertnessinconjunctionwiththebreathandthemind,yourbodyandmindwillbevaluableandpure,sothataslongasyouliveintheworldyou’llbeatyourease;whenyoudie,youwon’tbeputtodifficulties.
Ifthemindisfocusedbutforgetsthebreathandgoesthinkingaboutotherthings,that’scalledWrongConcentration.IftheminddropssomeofitsHindrances,suchassensualdesire,byfallingasleep,that’scalledWrongRelease.OnlyifthemindisfirmlyfocusedonmindfulnessandthebreathisitinRightConcentration.OnlyifitdropsitsHindrancesbybeingwisetotheirtricksisitcalledRightRelease.
Ifmindfulnessandalertnessareconstantlyestablishedinthemind,ourviewswillbecomestraight,ourconcentrationwillbecomeright,justaswhentwobeamsoflightmeet:theygiverisetothebrightlightofdiscernment.Therearetimeswhendiscernmentarisesforonlyatinymomentinthemind,andyetitcankilloffenormousdefilements.Forexample,itcanletgoofalltheaggregatesofclinging.Itcanabandonself-identityviewsbylettinggoofthebody;itcanabandonattachmenttopracticesandpreceptsbylettinggooffeeling;anditcanabandonuncertaintybylettinggoofperception,mentalfabrications,andconsciousness.
We’retaughttodevelopthissortofdiscernmentbypracticingRightConcentration.Evenifitarisesonlyfortheflashofaneye,itcanbringusmany,manybenefits.Justlikeanatomicbomb:eventhoughit’sonlyatinything,itcanbringdestructiontotheworldinanawesomeway.
Thediscernmentarisingfromwithinthemindissomethingthatcan’tbedescribed.It’satiny,littlething,notliketheknowledgethatcomesfromstudyingandmemorizinginschool.That’swhywecan’ttalkaboutit.TheBuddhaevenlaiddowntrainingrulesforthemonks,forbiddingthemfromtalkingabouttheirspiritualattainments.Thisiswhywecan’tknowifotherpeoplearenobledisciples.It’ssomethingthateachnobledisciplecanknowonlyforhimorherselfalone.
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AttheGateofaCattle-pen
August23,1959
I’dliketorecommendthebasicprinciplesofsittinginmeditationfornewcomerswho’veneverdoneitbefore.
1.Makeupyourmindthatyou’renotgoinggatherupanythingelsetothinkabout,thatyou’regoingtothinkaboutonlyonething:thequalitiesoftheBuddha,orthewordbuddho.
2.Befirmlymindfulofthebreath,thinkingbud-withthein-breath,anddhowiththeout.Orifyouwant,youcansimplythinkbuddho,buddhointhemind.
3.Makethemindstillandthendropthewordbuddhosothatyoucansimplyobservenothingbutthein-and-outbreath.It’slikestandingatthegateofacattle-penandkeepingwatchoverthecattletoseetheircharacteristicsastheycomeinandoutofthepen.Whatcolorarethey—black?red?white?spotted?Aretheyoldoryoung?Aretheycalvesorfullygrown?Makesureyoudon’tgowalkinginwiththecattleyet,fortheymightkickyouandbreakyourshins,orgoreyoutodeathwiththeirhorns.Stayrightatthegate.Whatthismeansisthatyoukeepyourmindstillinonepoint.Youdon’thavetomakeitgoinandoutwiththebreath.Observingthecharacteristicsofthecattlemeanslearninghowtoobservethebreath:Doesbreathinginshortandoutshortfeelgood,ordoesinlongandoutlongfeelgood?Howaboutinlongandoutshort,orinshortandoutlong?Learntorecognizewhichtypeofbreathingismostcomfortable,andthenstickwithit.
Sotherearethreestepsyouhavetofollow:thefirststepistostaymindfulofthewordbuddho.Thesecondistobemindfulofthebreath,thinkingbud-withtheinbreathanddhowiththeout.Don’tforget.Don’tgetdistracted.Thethirdstep,whenthemindisstill,istodropthewordbuddhoandtobeobservantofnothingbutthein-and-outbreath.
Whenyoucandothis,themindwillgrowstill.Thebreathwillbestill,too,likeadipperfloatinginabarrelofwater:thewaterisstill,thedipperisstill,becausenooneis
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pressingonit,tippingit,orhittingagainstit.Thedipperwillkeepfloatinginperfectstillnessonthesurfaceofthewater.Oryoucansaythatit’slikeclimbinguptothetopofaverytallmountain,orlikefloatingupabovetheclouds.Themindwillfeelnothingbutacoolsenseofpleasureandease.Thisistheroot,theheartwood,theapexofallthatisskillful.
It’scalledtherootbecauseit’sagoodqualitythatrunsdeepandtenaciousrightdownthemiddleoftheheart.It’scalledtheheartwoodbecauseit’ssolidandresilient,liketheheartwoodofatreethatinsectscan’tburrowintoanddestroy.Eventhoughinsectsmaybeabletonibbleawayatthetree,theycangoonlyasfarasthebarkorthesapwood.Inotherwords,eventhoughdistractionsmaycomeandbotherus,theycanreachonlyasfarasthesensedoors:oureyes,ears,nose,tongue,andbody.Forexample,whensightsstrikeagainsttheeye,theygoonlyasfarastheeye.Theydon’tgetintotheheart.Whensoundsstriketheear,theygoonlyasfarastheear,andnotintotheheart.Whensmellsstrikethenose,theygoonlyasfarasthenose.Theydon’tentertheheart.Thisiswhywesaythatthegoodnessofmeditationistheheartwoodofwhat’sskillful,becausethevariousformsofevilcan’teasilydestroythegoodnessoftheheartwhenit’ssolidandstable,inthesamewaythatinsectscan’tboreintoheartwood.
Theskillfulnessofamindinconcentrationiscalledtheapexofallthat’sskillfulbecauseit’shighinquality.Itcanpullallotherformsofgoodnessintothemindaswell.Whenthemindisstill,itsgoodnessspreadsouttocovertheentirebody,sothatwestopdoingunskillfulthingswiththebody.Itwillcoverourspeech,sothatwestopsayingunskillfulthingswithourmouth.Theunskillfulthingswe’vedonewithoureyes,ears,hands,willallgetwashedaway.Inthisway,thegoodnessthatcomesfrommeditatingwillwashoutoureyesandears,willwashourhandsandallthevariouspartsofourbodysothattheyallbecomeclean.
Whenwehavecleanlinessinchargeofourbody,it’sagoodnessthat’shighinquality—justasrainfallingfromhighupintheskyspreadstocovereverything.Thehigheritcomesfrom,themoreterritoryitcovers.Whenthemindishighinquality,itsgoodnessspreadstocoveroureyes,ears,nose,tongue,andbody.Itspreadstocoversights,sounds,smells,tastes,andtactilesensations.Itspreadstocoverourthoughtsofpastandfuture.Inthisway,thisgoodnessspreadsoutuntileventuallyitcoverstheentirecosmos.These,inshort,areafewoftherewardsthatcomefrommeditation.
Thehigh-qualitygoodnesscomingfrommeditationislikerainfallingfromhighinthesky.Notonlydoesitwashawaythedirtythingsontheground,butitalsonourishestheplantssothathumanbeingscandependonthem.Inaddition,itrefreshespeoplewithitscoolness.TheBuddhashoweredhisgoodnessontheworldbeginningfromtheverydayofhisAwakening,andhisgoodnessisstillrainingonus2,500yearslater.The
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BuddhawasaGreatBeingbecauseofthehigh-qualitygoodnesshedevelopedthroughhismeditation—thesamemeditationwe’redoingrightnow.
Toputitsimply:everyaspectofmeditationisgood.Nomatterhowmuchyoudo,evenifyoudon’tseemtobegettinganyresults,it’sallgoodregardless.Evenwhenyousimplyrepeatthewordbuddho,it’sgoodforthemind.Whenyou’remindfulofthebreath,it’sgoodforthemind.Whenyoucanmakethemindstillwiththebreath,it’sgoodforthemind.Forthisreason,meditationissomethingyoushoulddoatalltimes.Don’tletthetimeandopportunitytomeditatepassyouby.
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StartingOutSmall
May17,1959
ThepoweroftheBuddhaismoretremendousthanthatofallotherbeings,humananddivine.Hisbodyisenormous,inthatwe’vebeenmakingrepresentationsofitfromancienttimesuptothepresentandyetstillhaven’tfinishedthejob.Hismouthisenormouslywide.Manyarethethingsthathesaidonlyoncebutthatotherpeoplehaverepeatedwithoutceasing:hereI’mtalkingabouthisteachings,whichmembersoftheSaṅghahavecopieddownintotextsanddeliveredassermonsforustohearuptothepresent.TheBuddha’sphysicalmouthwassmall,buthiswordsareamazinglygreat,whichiswhywesaythathismouthiswide.Hiseyesarewideaswell:they’veseenthetruenatureoftheentirecosmos.Thisisthewayitiswithpeoplewhoarereallygood:theytendtohavethiskindofenormousgreatness.
Bigthingslikethishavetocomefromsmallthings.BeforetheBuddhacouldbecomeenormousinthisway,hefirsthadtomakehimselfsmall.Inotherwords,hecuthimselfofffromhisroyalfamilyandwentaloneintotheforesttositunderthebranchesoftheBodhitreeonthebanksoftheNerañjarāRiver.Helethisin-and-outbreathinggrowsmallerandsmalleruntilitwasextremelysubtle,andtherethefireofhisdefilementsandmentalfermentationswenttotallyoutwithouttrace.Heawakenedtotheforemostrightself-awakening,becomingaBuddha.Hisheart,whichhehadletgrowsoextremelysubtleandsmall,explodedoutwardingoodnessinawaythatisstillblatanttouseventoday.
SoIaskthatweallsetourmindsonreallypracticingconcentration.Don’tworryaboutthepastorthefutureoranythingelse.Whenthemindisfirmlysetinconcentration,knowledgeanddiscernmentwillarisewithoutourhavingtoworryaboutthem.Don’tletyourselfthinkthatyouwanttoknowthisorseethat.Thesethingswillcomeontheirown.Astheproverbsays,“Thosewithalotofgreedgetonlyalittletofeedon;thosecontentwithonlyapinkie’sworthwillgetawholethumb.”Keepbearingthispointinmind.
Forthemindtorangefarandwide,wanderingafteroutsideconceptsandpreoccupations,sapsthestrengthitneedstodealwithitsvariousaffairs.Whateverit
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thenthinksofdoingwillsucceedonlywithdifficulty.It’slikeagunwithabroad-gaugedbarrel.Ifyouputtinybulletsintoit,theyrattlearoundinsideanddon’tcomeoutwithmuchforce.Thenarrowerthegaugeofthebarrel,themoreforcethebulletswillhavewhenyoushootthemout.It’sthesamewiththebreath:Themoreyounarrowitsfocus,themorerefinedthebreathwillbecome,untileventuallyyoucanbreathethroughyourpores.Themindatthisstagehasmorestrengththananatomicbomb.
Intelligentorchardownersgettheirbananastohelpthemplanttheirorchard,gettheirmangoestohelpthemplanttheirorchard.Theydon’thavetoinvestalotofcapital.Inotherwords,theyclearthelandbitbybit,plantitbitbybit,harvestbitbybit,sellbitbybit,untiltheorchardgrowslargerandlargerallthetime.Thiswaytheydon’tneedtoinvestmuchintermsoflabororcapital,buttheresultstheygetarelargeandlasting.Asforstupidpeople,whentheystartanorchard,nomatterhowlarge,theypouralltheirmoneyintoit,hiringpeopletocleartheland,plowit,andplantitallatonce.Iftheyrunintoadroughtforthreedaysorsevendaysrunning,theirplantsallwitheranddie.Grassandweedsspringupandoverruntheplace.Atthatpoint,there’snothingtheownerscando,becausetheorchardiswaytoobigforthem.Theydon’thavethemoneytohiretheworkersagain,becausetheyusedupalltheirfundsrightatthebeginning.Alltheycandoissitwiththeirarmsaroundtheirknees,blinkingbackthetears.They’velostalltheircapitalandhavenoprofitstoshow.That’sthewayitiswithpeoplewhoaregreedy.Asforthosewhokeepattheirworksteadily,bitbybit,theresultskeepgrowingbiggerandbiggerallthetime.
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Housework&Fieldwork
August4,1956
Whenwesitandmeditate,therearethreethingswehavetoworkwith:
1)Thebreath:makeittheobjectofthemind.2)Mindfulness:thinkofthemeditationwordbud-withthein-breathanddho
withtheout.3)Themind:keepthemindbothwiththebreathandwiththemeditation
word.Letthebreathflowcomfortably.Letthemindbeatease.Don’tforcethebreathortrytoputthemindintoatrance.Keepthemindfirmandupright,anddon’tletitslipoffhereorthere.
Thesearethethingswehavetostudy—notjustsothatwe’llknowthem.Westudythemsothatwecanputthemintopractice,i.e.,wepracticethemsothatwe’llcometotheknowledgewereallywant.
Inkeepingthemindpure,wehavetocutawayperceptionssothattheydon’tstickintheheart.It’slikelookingafterawhitesheetspreadonourbed.Wehavetowatchoutforanydustthatwillblowinonthewindandlandonthesheet,andforanyinsects—suchasantsorbedbugs—thatwillcometolivethere.Ifweseeanydust,wehavetotakethesheetandshakeitout.Whereverthereareanystains,wehavetolaunderitimmediately.Don’tletthemstaylongonthesheetorelsethey’llbehardtowashout.Ifthereareanyinsects,wehavetoremovethem,fortheymaybiteusandgiveusarashorkeepusfromsleepingsoundly.Whenwekeeplookingafteroursheetinthisway,itwillhavetostaycleanandwhiteandbeacomfortableplaceforustosleep.
ThedustandinsectsherearetheHindrancesthataretheenemiesoftheheart.Wehavetolookafterourheartinjustthesamewaywelookafterourbedding.Wecan’tletanyoutsideperceptionscomeinandsticktotheheartornibbleatit.Wehavetobrushthemallaway.Thatwaythemindwillbecomecalm,freefromdistractions.
Whenwemeditate,we’regivingrisetoskillinthreeways:wearen’tharminganyonewithourbody;wearen’tbad-mouthinganyonewithourspeech;andwe’regettingthemindtostaywithgoodintentions.Inotherwords,we’restayingwithbuddhowithevery
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in-and-outbreath,sowe’renotthinkingofdoinganythingevil,andwedon’tthinkthoughtsofangerorhatredaboutanyone.Thiswayourbody,speech,andmindarepure.Thisiswhatgivesrisetomeritandskill,forwe’renotdoinganyevilatall.
Whenwethinkofthebreathinthisway,it’sasifwe’repaintingapictureonapieceofwhitecloth.Ourmindinitsordinarystateislikeaplainpieceofcloth,withnopatternsordesigns.Whenweraisethemindtoahigherlevelandthinkofthefactorsofmeditation,it’slikedrawingamentalpictureonit.Forexample,thewordbuddhoisamentalpicture,inasmuchaswecan’tseeitwithoureyes,butwecanseeitthroughourthinking.Ifwethinkofitconstantly,it’sasifourinkorpaintseepsdeepintothecloth.Ifwedon’tthinkbuddho,orthinkofitinonlyasuperficialway,it’slikedrawingwithapencil.Thepicturewon’tstickandseepintotheheart.Itmightgetsmearedorentirelyerased.
Thenweadddetailstoourpicture:thisiswhat’smeantbyevaluation(vicāra).Ifwekeepatit,ourpicturewillbecomemoreandmoreelaborate.Asthepicturebecomesmoreandmoreelaborate,we’llnoticewhetherthein-and-outbreathhasbecomecomfortableornot.Ifit’seasyandcomfortable,keepitthatway.Sometimesyou’llnoticethatthemindiscomfortablebutthebodyisn’t;sometimesthebodyiscomfortablebutthemindisirritableanddistracted;sometimesthebodyisreasonablycomfortableandatease,andthemindhassettleddownandisn’tjumpingabout.Sowhenyouseeanyaspectthatisn’tcomfortable,youshouldfixit,inthesamewaythataricefarmerhastokeepcarefulwatchoverthesluicegatesinhisfield,clearingoutanybranchesorstumpsthatwillcutofftheflowofthewater.Whenyouseeanythingthatisn’tgood,youshouldgetridofit.Youhavetostayobservantofthebreath,toseeifit’stooslowortoofast,orifit’smakingyoutired.Ifitis,changeit.
Thisislikeplowingorharrowingyourfield.Whenthebigclodsofearthgetbrokenupandspreadaround,thefieldwillbelevel.Whenthebodygetslevelandsmooth,keepitgoingthatway.Themindwillthenbecomelevelandsmoothaswell—foritliveswiththebody,andnowitgetstostayinaplaceofcomfort.Whetherit’sgoodineverypart,oronlyinsomeparts,you’llknow.
Whenwegiverisetoskillinthemindlikethis,it’sasifwe’vegainedwealth.Andwhenwegainwealth,thingsareboundtocomeanddisturbus,justasatreewithbeautiful,fragrantflowerstendstohavecaterpillarsorinsectsdisturbingitsflowers.WhenthevirtuesoftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghaariseintheheart,thereareboundtobethingsthatwilldisturbordestroythem,suchasvisionsorHindrances,justaswhenaflowerispesteredbyinsects,itmayfallawayfromthetree.Whenitfallsoffthetree,itwon’tbeabletobearfruit.Thesamewithyourmind:Don’tletyourgoodnessfallawayundertheinfluenceoftheHindrances.Youhavetokeepafterit,tomakesure
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thatitstaysstillandestablishedinthebodyuntilthere’snosenseofanythingdisturbingitortryingtodestroyit.Themindwillthenbelikeasprayofmangoflowersnourishedwithdropsofmist.Innolongtimeitwillbearfruit,andyou’llbeabletoharvestthefruitandeatitincomfort.
IntheDhammapada,theBuddhasaysthatapersonwhoisforgetfulorheedlessislikeadeadperson.Inotherwords,ifmindfulnesslapsesforamoment,you’vepassedoutforamoment.Ifitlapsesforalongtime,you’vepassedoutforalongtime.Soifyourealizethatit’slapsed,youhavetocorrectthingsimmediately.Inotherwords,youre-establishmindfulnessrightaway.Ifyou’verealizedit’slapsed,there’satleastsomehopeforyou.Somepeopledon’tevenknowthatit’slapsed:thosearetheoneswhoarehopeless.AstheBuddhasaid,Pamādomaccunopadaṁ:heedlessnessisthepathofdeath.Thisisbecauseheedlessnessisdelusion,therootofunskillfulness.Whendelusionarises,itopensthewayforallkindsofevilandunskillfulthings.Soweshouldtrytouprootitimmediatelybeforeitstartsgrowingandspreadingitsbranchesfarandwide.Whenmindfulnesslapses,itopensthewayforustothinkofallkindsofthings,makingithardforustofinishourwork.Tosaynothingofkeepingtrackofthebreath,ifmindfulnesskeepslapsingwecouldn’tevenfinishwritingasingleletter.
Sowehavetobeespeciallycarefultomaintainmindfulness.Don’tletyourselfforgetorlosetrackofwhatyou’redoing.
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StrengthfortheJourney
May7,1958
Whenyousitinconcentration,youhavetokeepbeingobservanttoseewhetherthemindisestablishedinallthecomponentfactorsofmeditation.Yourpracticeofconcentrationhastobecomposedofthreecomponentfactorsforittocountascorrectinlinewiththeprinciplesofmeditationthatwillgiverisetothefullresultsthatweallwant.Thecomponentfactorsofmeditationare:
1.Therightobject.Thisreferstotheobjectonwhichthemindsettles—orinotherwords,thebreath.Wehavetofocusourawarenessonthebreathandnotletitstrayoutinotherdirections.Thisisthe“ṭhāna”orfoundationofourkammaṭṭhāna.
2.Therightintention.Oncewe’vefocusedourawarenessonthein-and-outbreath,wehavetokeepourmindfulnessfixedsolelyonthebreathbythinkingbud-inwiththein-breath,anddhooutwiththeout.Wehavetokeepdoingthisuntilthemindisstillandinplace.Thenwecandropthemeditationword.Oncethemindisstillanddoesn’tgowanderingoffinotherplaces,mindfulnesswillstaysnugwiththebreathwithoutslippingawayorgrowingabsentminded.Thisistheintention,thekammaofourkammaṭṭhāna.
3.Therightquality.Thisreferstotheskillwithwhichwecanimprove,adjust,andspreadthebreathsothatitbecomescomfortable.Forexample,ifshortbreathingisuncomfortable,changeitsothatit’salittlelonger.Iflongbreathingisuncomfortable,changeitsothatit’sabitshorter.Observelongbreathing,shortbreathing,fastorslowbreathing,andthenkeeponbreathinginwhicheverwayismostcomfortable.Ifanyproblemordiscomfortarises,makefurtherchanges.Butdon’ttenseupthebreathortrytoholdit.Letthebodybreatheinandoutwithasenseofease.Thebreathwillthenfeelwideopen,agile,andspacious.Itwon’tgetbottledupinanyonespot,won’tfeelheavyorconfined.Whenthisisthecase,asenseoffullnessandrefreshment,acoolsenseofeasewillariseinthemind.Asforthebody,it’llfeelateaseaswell.Thisistheessenceofwhatisgood,theskillfulnessthatwealldesire.
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Whenwecantrainthemindtostayfirmlyinthesethreefactorsofmeditation,it’llbecometameandobedient,andnolongerstubborn—becauseonceourmindbecomesskillfulandintelligent,it’llgainasenseofwhat’sgoodforus,what’snot,whataretheaffairsofotherpeople,whatareourownaffairs.Whenthishappens,therewon’tbealotofconfusion.It’sthesameaswhenwe’vetrainedanox.Wecanputittogoodworkandwon’thavetowastealotofropetokeepittieddown.That’swhenwecanbeatourease.Evenifweletitwanderoffonitsown,itwon’tgetlost.Whenitgoesaway,it’llcomebacktoitspenonitsown,foritknowswhichpenbelongstoitsowner,whichpensbelongtootherpeople,whichpersonisitsownerandwhichpeoplearenot,whichplantsarethegrassesitcaneat,whichplantsarethericeplantsitshouldn’t.Thiswayitwon’tinvadethefieldsofotherpeople,tramplingtheircropsandeatingtheirrice,whichwouldgiverisetoallsortsofcontroversiesandbadfeelings.Thatway,wecanliveinpeace.
It’sthesamewiththemind.Onceit’strained,it’llbecometame.Itwon’tgotraipsingoffafterexternalthoughtsandpreoccupations.Normally,theminddoesn’tliketostaywiththebodyinthepresent.Sometimesitgoesflowingouttheeyes,sometimesouttheears,sometimesoutthenose,thetongue,andthebody,sothatitsplitsintofivedifferentcurrents,justlikeariverthatsplitsintofivechannelsinsteadofstayinginone:theforceofthecurrentgetsweakened.Andinadditiontoleakingoutthefivesensedoorsaftersights,sounds,smells,tastes,andtactilesensations,themindalsogoesflowingoutafterthoughtsofthepastandthoughtsofthefuturewithouteverstayingfirmlyinthepresent.Thisiswhyitknowsnopeace,becauseitdoesn’tgetanytimetorest.Asaresult,itsstrengthbeginstofail,andwhenthestrengthofthemindgrowsweaker,sodoesthestrengthofthebody.Whenthisisthecase,wecan’tbringanyofourprojectstocompletion,eitherintheareaoftheworldoroftheDhamma.
Whenthishappens,we’relikeasickpersonwho’saburdenonhisdoctorsandnurses.Thedoctorshavetokeepmakingvisitstocheckuponhissymptoms.Thenurseshavetofeedhim,givehimmedicine,andtakehimtothebathroom.Whenhetriestositup,heneedssomeonetosupporthim.Thepeoplelookingafterhimhavetogowithoutsleepbothbydayandbynight,andcanneverleavehimalone.Asforthepeoplefinanciallyresponsible,theyhavetorunaroundtryingtofindmoneytopaythemedicalbills.Thewholefamilyisworriedandconcerned,andthesickpersonhimselfcanfindnocomfort.Hecan’tgoanywhere,can’tdoanything,can’teatsolidfood,can’tgetanysleep:everythingbecomesaproblem.
Inthesameway,whenourmindsaren’tquietandstill,andinsteadkeepflowingoutafterconceptsandpreoccupations,we’relikesickpeople.Wedon’thavethestrengthtobringourworktocompletion.Thisisbecausetheuntrainedmindgoeswanderingoffasitlikesandisverystubborn.Youcan’ttellittodoanythingatall.Ifyoutellittolie
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down,it’llsitdown.Ifyoutellittositdown,it’llgetupandwalk.Ifyoutellittowalk,it’llstartrunning.Ifyoutellittorun,it’llstop.Youcan’treallycontrolitatall.Whenthisisthecase,allsortsofunskillfulqualities—ignoranceanddefilementslikegreed,anger,anddelusion,orthefiveHindrances—willcomeflowingintothemind,overcomingitandpossessingitinthesamewaythatpeoplegetpossessedbyspirits.Whenthisisthecase,we’reinallsortsoftroubleandturmoil—allbecausetheminddoesn’thavethestrengthitneedstowithstandignoranceortodriveitoutoftheheart.
TheBuddhasawthatthisisthewaythingsareforpeoplebyandlarge,causingthemtosuffer,whichiswhyhetaughtustogatherupthestrengthofbodyandstrengthofmindweneedtofightoffthesevariousformsofsuffering.Inotherwords,hetaughtustopracticeconcentrationsoastomakethestrengthofourmindfirmandsolid.Practicingconcentrationmeanstrainingthemindtobequietandstill.Asthemindstaysquietandstillforlongerandlongerperiodsoftime,it’llbecomeclear.Whenit’sclear,thelightofdiscernmentwillarisewithinit.Thisdiscernmentisthestrengththatwillenablethemindtocontendwithallsortsofevents,bothgoodandbad,forit’llhavetheintelligenceenablingittowiseuptoallthepreoccupationscominginbywayoftheeyes,ears,nose,tongue,body,andintellect.Itwillbeabletoidentifyperceptionsofpast,present,andfuture.Itwillbeacquaintedwiththeproperties,aggregates,andsensemedia,knowingwhat’sgood,whatisn’t,what’sworththinkingabout,what’snot,what’suntrue,what’strue.Whenitknowsthis,it’llbecomedispassionate,disenchanted,andwillletgoofallthoughtsandconcepts,letgoofitsattachmentstothebody,letgoofitsattachmentstothingsoutside,allofwhicharisefromtheprocessoffabricationandhavenorealenduringessence.
Whenthemindcanletgoofallthoughtsandpreoccupations,it’llbecomelightandagile,likeapersonwhohasputdownalltheburdensshe’sbeencarryingonhershouldersandinherhands.Shecanwalk,run,andjumpwithagility.Shecansitdownorliedownwithease.Wherevershegoes,she’scomfortable.Whenthemindhasexperiencedasenseofcomfort,it’llbecomehappyandfull.Itwon’tfeelhungry.Whenit’sfullandhappy,itcanrest.Onceit’srested,it’llhavestrength.Whatevertasksitundertakes,intermsoftheworldortheDhamma,willsucceed.Ifthemindlacksasenseoffullness,though,it’llbehungry.Whenit’shungry,it’sinalousymood:irritableandupset.Whenthisisthecase,it’slikeasickpersonwhodoesn’thavethestrengthtocompleteanytaskwithease.
Asforpeoplewhohavepracticedconcentrationtothepointwheretheirmindsarequietandstill,they’renolongerhungry,fortheyhaveasenseoffullnesswithinthem.Thisgivesthemfivekindsofstrength—conviction,persistence,mindfulness,concentration,anddiscernment—whichwillenablethemtoadvancetoevenhigherlevelsofgoodness.Whenthemindisstill,itdevelopsmentalserenity.Whenthebodyis
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still,itdevelopsphysicalserenityaswell:thevariouspropertieswithinitarepeacefulandharmonious,anddon’tquarrelwithoneanother.Thewholebodyisthenbathedinthepuritythatcomesflowingoutthecurrentsofthemindthroughthepropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwind,caringforthemandprotectingthem.Whenthingsareprotectedandcaredfor,theydon’trundown.Inthiswaythepropertiesofthebodyreachastateofharmony,givingthemthestrengththeyneedtowithstandfeelingsofpainandweariness.Asforthemind,it’lldevelopgreaterandgreaterstrength,enablingittowithstandallsortsofmentaltorments.It’llkeepgettingmoreandmorepowerful,likethegunpowderusedtomakerocketsandfireworks.Whenit’slit,itexplodesandshootsallthewayuptothesky.
Whenwepracticeconcentration,it’sasifweweregatheringprovisionsforatrip.Theprovisionsherearetheskillfulqualitieswedevelopinthemind.Themoreprovisionswehave,themorecomfortablywecantravelandthefurtherwecango.Wecangotothehumanworld,thedevaworlds,thebrahmāworlds,orallthewaytonibbāna.Whenwehavealotofprovisions,ourtravelingiseasy,forwecanaffordtogobycarorbyboat.Wecanstayincomfortableplacesandhaveplentyoffoodtoeat.Thetripwon’ttireus,andwecangofarandfast.Asforpeoplewithmeagerprovisions,theycan’taffordthecarfare,sotheyhavetogobarefoot,walkingongravelandsteppingonthorns,exposedtothesunandrain.Theycan’tstayincomfortableplaces;they’relackinginfood;theirprogressistiringandslow.Bythetimetheyreachtheirdestinationthey’rereadytogiveup,forthey’realloutofstrength.Butwhetherwetravelquicklyorslowly,we’reallheadedtothesamedestination.Forexample,supposewe’reallgoingtoBangkok.Thosewhogobyfootwillgetthereinthreemonths;thosewhogobycar,inthreedays;whilethosewhogetonaplanewillarriveinthreeminutes.
Forthisreason,youshouldn’tgetdiscouragedinyoureffortstodowhat’sgood.Developasmuchstrengthasyoucan,sothatyou’llhavetheprovisionsandvehiclesyou’llneedtohelpspeedyoualongtoyourgoal.Onceyou‘vearrived,you’llexperiencenothingbuthappinessandease.WhenyoupracticetheDhamma,evenifyoudon’treachthepaths,theirfruitions,ornibbānainthislifetime,attheveryleastyou’redevelopingtheconditionsthatwillhelpyoualongthewayinthefuture.
Whenwemeditate,it’sasifweweredrivingacaronatrip.Ifyouhaveasenseofhowtoadjustandimproveyourbreath,it’slikedrivingalongasmooth,pavedroad.Thecarwon’trunintoanyobstacles,andevenalongtripwillseemshort.Asforpeoplewhoaren’tcenteredinconcentration,whosemindsareslippingandslitheringaroundwithnosenseofhowtoimprovetheirbreathing,they’redrivingtheircaralongabumpy,unpavedroadfullofpotholes.Insomespotsthebridgeshavecollapsed.Inotherstheroadiswashedout.Whatthismeansisthattheirmindfulnesslapsesandtheylettheirmindsfallintothoughtsofthepastandfuture.Theydon’tstayputinthepresent.If
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theydon’tknowhowtorepairtheirroad,they’llkeeprunningintodangersandobstacles.Theircarwillkeepgettingboggeddown.Sometimestheyspendweeksandmonthsstuckinoneplace,andtheirshorttripturnsintoalongone.Sometimestheygobacktothebeginningpointandstartalloveragain.Runningbackandforthlikethis,aroundandaroundincircles,they’llneverbeabletogettothegoal.
SoIaskthatyouallrememberthisdiscussionoftheDhammaandtakeittoheart.Tryusingittomakeadjustmentsinyourmindandseewhathappens.IfyoutrainthemindcorrectlyinlinewiththethreefactorsofmeditationthatI’vementionedhere,youmaywellmeetwiththepeaceandhappinessforwhichyouaim.
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IntoPosition
Undated,1958
Whenmeditators“getintoposition,”exactlywhataretheydoing?“Gettingintoposition”meansmakingthemindstayinplace,makingitstaywiththebody,notlettingitgostaywithotherpeopleorthinkaboutanythingelseatall.Ifthemindstaysoutsideofthebody,it’slikeabatterywithoutanycurrent.Youcan’tgetanyuseoutofit.Youcan’tuseittoproduceheatorgiveofflight.Sothisiswhywe’retaughttokeepthemindinside.
Whentreesarewitheredanddry,it’sbecausetheydon’thaveanywatertonourishthem.Thesameholdstruewithus.Iftheminddoesn’tstayinsidethebody,thebodywon’tflourish.It’llhavetowitherandwearout,growillinonewayoranother,andeventuallydiebecauseofthisdiseaseorthat.Sothemindislikewaterthatpermeatesthebodytogiveitnourishment.Ifthemindfocusesitsattentionoutsideofthebody,thenthebodywon’tbeabletogainanysenseoffreshness,fullness,orease.Thisisbecausethemindisthemostimportantfactorinfluencingthebody.It’sourmostvaluableresource.
Now,whenthemindisavaluableresourceinthisway,weshouldlearnhowtolookafterit.Wehavetohanditovertosomeonewecantrust.Inotherwords,weentrustittosomebodyvenerable.Butthewordvenerableheredoesn’tmeantheexternalvenerables,likemonks,becausenotallmonksaretrustworthy.Someofthemaregoodmonks,someofthemaren’t.Ifweletthemcheatusoutofourvaluables,weendupevenworseoffthanbefore.No,venerableheremeansinternalvenerables:thevenerablequalitiesoftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghawithinthemind.
Whenwemeditate,we’rehandingourmindsovertothesevenerablequalities.They’requalitiesthatarekindandconsiderate.Theywon’tabuseusorcauseanyoneanyharm.Thisiswhywecanwholeheartedlyentrustourvaluables—ourmind—tothem.Forexample,whenwemeditatebuddho,buddho,wehavetobesinceretothesequalities.Wereallyhavetothinkaboutthem.Wedon’tjustthinkabouttheminjest.“Thinkinginjest”meansthatwethinkwithoutreallybeingintent.Wehavetobereallyintentonkeepingbuddhowiththemind,andthemindwithbuddhoeachandeverytime
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webreatheinandout.Thisiswhatitmeanstobesincereinourthinking.It’sthekindofthinkingthatservesapurpose.
Thepurposehereistodevelopsomethingofrealandabundantessencewithinourselves—tocreateresultsthatwillbelasting.Thingsthatdon’tserveanyrealpurposearethosegivingresultsthatdon’tlast.Whenwetalkaboutlastingresults:forexample,whenyousithereandmeditate,you’llfindthattheresultswillcontinueappearingevenafteryoudie.Butifyouaren’treallymeditating,ifyouletyourmindthinkaboutotherthings,you’llfindthattheresultswillvanishatdeath,becausethethingsyouthinkaboutaren’tcertainorsure.They’renotlasting.They’llhavetochange,deteriorate,andendupdisappearinganddyinginthesamewaythatyouwill.
Whenwemakeourselvesquietandstill—whenweputthemindintoconcentration—it’sasifwe’rechargingourbattery.Onceourbatteryischarged,wecanputittousewheneverwewant.Whenourbatteryisfullycharged—fullofdiscernment—wecanuseitforanysortofpurposeatall.Wecanhookituptoawireanduseittocookourfoodorlightourhome.Ifwesimplychargeit,withoutconnectingituptoanything,thecurrentwillstaythere,coolinthebattery,withoutcausingdangerofanysort,likethecurrentinaflashlightcell.Ifabatteryisjustsittingthere,wecantouchitwithourhandsandseethatitfeelscool,nottheleastbithot—andyetthere’sstillthefireofelectricityinthere.Ifweneedlightorwanttocookourfood,allwehavetodoishookupawireandturnontheswitch,andtheelectricitywillcomeoutofthebatterytoachievewhateveraimswehaveinmind.
Our“battery”isthemindinconcentration.Ifwehookupthewireofardencytoroastourdefilements,thepowerofourcurrent,ordiscernment,willburnthemtoashes.Aswhenwecookfoodtogetridofitsrawness:thefoodwillbesavedfromgoingspoiledandwillbenefitthebody.Inthesameway,peoplewhohavediscernmentwithinthemselvescaneliminateallthedefilementsthatpresentadangerandcausesufferingtothebodyandmind.Thisiswhywe’retaughttodevelopconcentration:soastoaccumulatethediscernmentthatwillbenefitusbothinthispresentlifetimeandonintothenext.
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TwoGuardianMeditations
August11,1956
Whenyousitandmeditate,keepobservingtwoimportantfactors:
1)thebody,whichiswheretheminddwells;and2)themind,whichisthefactorresponsibleforgoodandevil.
Themindisafactorthat’sextremelyfickleandfast.Itlikestoslipofflookingforallsortsofnonsense,forthingsthatbringusnothingbuttrouble.Itdoesn’tliketostayinplace.Nowitgoesrunninghere,nowitgoesrunningthere,bringingbackdifferentkindsofsuffering.That’swhywesaythatit’sfickleandfast:easilydiverted,hardtolookafter.Now,sinceourmindissofickleandfast,theBuddhahadtosearchforamethodbywhichwecantakethisweakpointandturnitaroundintosomethinggood.Heteachesustodevelopconcentrationbyfocusingonthebody.Inotherwords,hehasusfixourattentionononeofthereallyimportantfactorsofthebody,thebreath.Thebreathiswhathelpsusfindcomfortandeaseinallthepartsofthebody.It’swhatkeepsthebodyalive.Allofoursensedoors—theeyes,theears,thenose,thetongue,thebody,andthemind—dependonthebreathtocreatethesensationsbywhichtheyreceiveimpressionsofoutsidethingsandbringthemintohaveaneffectonthebody.Forinstance,thefunctionoftheeyesistoreceiveimpressionsofformsforustosee.Thefunctionoftheearsistoreceiveimpressionsofsoundsforustohear.Thefunctionofthenoseistoreceiveimpressionsofaromasforustosmell.Thefunctionofthetongueistoreceiveimpressionsofflavorsforustotaste.Thefunctionofthebodyistoreceiveimpressionsoftactilesensationsforustotouch.Thefunctionofthemindistoreceiveimpressionsofthevariousthingsthatcomeinviatheseotherfivesenses.
Sowhenwemeditate,wehavetocloseallofthesesensedoorsofftight.Wecloseoureyes:wedon’thavetolookatprettysightsoruglyones.Wecloseourears,sothatwedon’tlistentoanythingthatisn’tnecessary—i.e.,anythingthatisn’tbeneficialtolistento.Onlythewordsthatadviseustodogoodshouldwelistento.Asforthenose,it’snecessaryforlife.Ifwedon’thavethenoseasourbreathingpassage,westarthavingproblemsintheotherpartsofthebody,sowekeepitopen.Asforthemouth,wekeepit
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closed.Andasforthebody,wekeepitinoneposition,aswhenwesitwithourlegscrossed,likewe’redoingrightnow.
Wehavetotrytokeepthesesensedoorsclosedoff,sothatwedon’tuseoureyes,ears,nose,tongue,body,ormindinanyotheractivityasidefrompracticingconcentration.Weherdthemindintoonepreoccupation,sothatitstaysinitshome,thebody,withthewindowsanddoorsallshut.
Themindistheheart-propertyorheart-element.Thenatureofthemindisthatit’sfasterthanthewindintheair,whichflowstoandfro,upanddown,andneverstaysinplace.Sowehavetobringourmindfulnessintothemindsothatwecantakethisweakpointandturnitaroundintosomethinggood.Thisiscalledbhāvanā,ormentaldevelopmentthroughmeditation.WefocusonthebreathandrecollectthequalitiesoftheBuddha.WhenwestartoffrecollectingtheBuddhainthisway,wesimplythinkoftheword,buddho.Wedon’tyethavetoanalyzewhatitmeans.Buddhoisanameformindfulness.Itmeansbeingaware,beingawake.Butifwesimplythinkofthewordbuddho,itdoesn’tfulfillallthefactorsformentaldevelopmentthroughmeditation.Whenwethinktheword,wehavetosteadyandadjustitsothatitstaysinrhythmwiththebreath.Whenwebreathe,wehavetobreathejustright,nottooslow,nottoofast,whateverfeelsnatural.Thenwethinkbuddhobackandforthwiththebreath,adjustingourthinkingsothatitmergeswiththebreathing.That’swhenwecansaythatwe’refulfillingthefactorsofmeditation.
ThisiscalledrecollectionoftheBuddha,inwhichwethinkofthequalitiesoftheBuddhainanabbreviatedway,dependingonthebreathasourfocalpointandkeepingourmindfulnessinchargeofthethinking.
Whenmindfulnessbecomesonewiththebreathandwithourawarenessinthisway,ourvarioussenseswillgrowevenandcalm.Themindwillgraduallygrowmoreandmorequiet,bitbybit.Thisiscalledgettingestablishedinthefirst“guardianmeditation”—recollectionoftheBuddha—inwhichweuseourthinkingasapathofpractice.
ThiskindofthinkinggivesresultsforBuddhistsofallsorts.Atthesametime,itbringsusintothefactorsthatarehelpfulforthemind—mindfulnessandalertness—thefactorsthatsupportthemindingettingestablishedingoodness.
Thesecondguardianmeditationisgoodwill.Thewordgoodwill—mettā—comesfrommitta,orfriend.Asaquality,itmeanslove,benevolence,familiarity,intimacy.Whenweimbueourmindwithgoodwill,weescapefromanimosityandhostility.Inotherwords,weshouldremindourselvesthatwe’regoingtostaywithourfriendatalltimes.Wewon’tgowanderingoff.Wewon’tleaveourfriendinalurch.Ourfriend,here,isthebody,becausethebodyandmindhavetodependoneachotheratalltimes.
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Thebodyhastodependonthemind.Themindhastodependonthebody.Whenpeoplearefriendstheyhavetoloveeachother,wisheachotherwell,stickwitheachother,beintentonhelpingeachotheratalltimes.Theydon’tabandoneachother.
Sotellyourselfthatwhenthebodybreathesin,you’regoingtostickwiththebreath.InPali,thebreathiscalledkāya-saṅkhāra,orbodilyfabrication,becauseit’swhatfixesthebodytokeepitalive.It’slikethecookwhofixesfoodinahomesothatthepeopleinthefamilycaneattheirfillandbehappy.Ifthere’ssomethingwrongwiththecook,thenthere’sgoingtobeturmoilandchaosinthehouse.Ifthecookofthebody—thebreath—getsweird,everyoneelseinthebody—thepropertiesofearth,water,wind,andfire—willallhavetosufferandgetthrownintoaturmoilaswell.Sowecansaythatthebreathisthepropertythatlooksafterallthepropertiesinthebody.Forexample,weinhalethebreathintothelungs.Thereitcleansesthebloodinthelungs,whichgetssenttotheheart.Thefunctionoftheheartistosendthebloodouttonourishallthepartsofthebody,sothatthebloodandthebreathenergyflownormally.Ifthebreathisn’tasgoodasitshouldbe,thelungswon’tbeasgoodastheyshouldbe.Theheartwon’tbegood,theblooditpumpsoutwon’tbegood,soallthevariouspartsofthebodywillhavetosufferasaresult.Thisiswhenthepropertiesofthebodyaresaidtobedefiled.
Ifthemindreallyhasgoodwillforthebody,thenithastolookafterthebreathinthebodytokeepitfunctioningproperly.Sowehavetokeepafterour“cook”tomakesurethatsheisn’tfilthy,lazy,orapathetic.Otherwise,she’llputpoisoninourfoodtokillus,orfilthinourfoodtomakeussick.Sowehavetomakesurethatourcookiscleanandpureinherhabits,aswhenwebreathethequalitiesoftheBuddhainwiththebreath.
Thebreathaccompaniedbybuddhoiscalledthesukkabreath,ortheclean,clearbreath.Whenthemasterofthehouseiscleanandcircumspectlikethis,thecookwillhavetobecleanandcircumspect,too.Alltheemployeesinthehousewillhavetobeclean.Inotherwords,whenwe’remindful,thebreaththatgoesintothebodywillbeapurebreath.Whenitreachestheheart,itwillcleansethebloodintheheartsothatit’spureaswell.Whentheheartpumpsthispureblood,sendingittonourishthebody,thebodywillbepurified,too.Andthenthemindwillhavetofeelwell.Inotherwords,theheartisgood,thenourishmentinthebloodisgood.Whenthemindisingoodshapelikethis,thebloodwon’tbecomeabnormal.Andwhenthisgoodbloodissenttonourishthenervesthroughoutthebody,thebodywillhavetofunctionwell.Itwon’tfeeltiredoraching.
Thisisbecausewe’veadjustedourbreathwell,sothatwecantreatallkindsofdiseasesandpains.Whenthepurityofthebreathspreadsthroughouteverybloodvessel,thebadthingsalreadythereinthebodywillhavetoscatter.Thosethathaven’t
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yetappearedwon’tbeabletoappear.Thiswillhelpthebodytobebalancedandnormal.Whenthebreathisingoodshapeandtheheartisingoodshape,thenthefire
propertyinthebodywon’tbetoostrong.Ifthebreathisn’tright,orifit’stoohot,thenthefirepropertygetsthrownoutofbalance.Whenitgrowstoohot,thebloodthickensandgetsstuckinthecapillaries,makingussleepyorgivingusaheadache.Ifitgrowstoocold,itgivesustheshiversormakesusfeverish.
Sothebreathismoreimportantthananyoftheotherthepropertiesinthebody.Itassiststhefireproperty,whichinturndistillstheliquidproperty.Theliquidpropertyinthebodyfallsintotwosorts:thepartthathardensandturnsintoearth,andthepartthatstaysliquidbyitsnature.Whenthebreathfunctionsproperly,alltheotherpropertiesfunctionproperly,andthebodywillfeelrestedandatease.
Thisiscalledshowinggoodwillforyourself.Themindstickswiththebreath,thebreathstickswiththebody,thebodystickswiththemind.Theydon’tabandononeanother.They’reaffectionate,intimate,harmonious—they’regoodfriends.
Whenpeoplestaytogethertheybecomeintimateandfamiliarwithoneanother.Iftheydon’tstaywithoneanother,theycan’tbecomefamiliarwithoneanother.Andwhenthey’renotonfamiliarterms,theydon’treallyknowoneanother.
Whenpeoplearefriendsandonfamiliarterms,theytrustoneanother.Theytelloneanothertheirsecrets.Theydon’thidewhat’sgoingon.Inthesameway,whenwebecomeclosefriendswiththebodyandonfamiliarterms,we’regoingtolearnallthebody’ssecrets.Forinstance,wemaylearnwhatkammainthepastledtothebirthofthebodythewayitis—whatourpreviouslifetimeswerelike,whatgoodandbadthingswedid,thatledtothebody’sbeinglikethisorthat.We’lllearnhowthefourpropertiesofthebodyfunction.We’lllearnhowthingsariseandpassawayatthepropertiesoftheeye,ear,nose,tongue,body,andintellect.We’llgettoknowthesecretsofthevariousaffairsconnectedwiththebody,becauseitwillhavetorevealitstruenaturetousineveryway—justaswhenweopenthecoveronaservingdish,enablingustoseewhat’sthereinthedish.
Whenwecometoknowhowthingsfunctioninthebodythisway,that’scalledvijjā,orclearknowing.Thissortofclearknowingarisesfromthestillnessofthemind.Whenthebodyandmindarebothquiettogether,theygiveknowledgetoeachother.Justaswithpeople:ifwe’refriendlywiththem,they’reboundtobefriendlywithus.Ifwe’reantagonisticwiththem,they’reboundtobeantagonisticwithus.Inthesameway,whenthebodyisfriendlywiththemind,themindisboundtobefriendlywiththebody.Inotherwords,itcanhelpthevariouspartsofthebody.Itcanhelpmakethebodyactinlinewithitsthoughts.If,forinstance,there’safeelingofpainorweariness,wecangatherthepowerofthemindatfullstrengthtothinkofthefeelinggoingaway,andthat
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feelingofpainorwearinessmaycompletelyvanish,simplythroughthepowerofasinglementalmoment.Peoplewhohavehelpedeachotherinthepasthavetohelpeachotherallthetime.Ifwecanhelpthem,they’reboundtobeabletohelpus.
Theabilitytodothiscomesfromthepowerofthemindthat’scapableofgivingordersinlinewithitsaspirations.Whenwecanmakeourfriendgoodthroughthepowerofourthought,thenallourfriendscanbecomegood.Forexample,whenwethinkofpurifyingthebreath,thebreathwillhelpimprovethefireproperty.Thefirepropertywillhelpimprovetheliquidproperty.Theliquidpropertywillhelpimprovetheearthproperty.Whenallthepropertieshelponeanotherinthisway,theybecomebalancedandahelptothebody,sothatthebodycanbehealthy.
Asforthemind,itgrowscoolandcalm.Anyonewhocomesnearwillpickupsomeofthatcalmnessaswell.Justlikeamountaincoolinitsdepths:whoeverwalkspastwillbecooledaswell,eventhoughthemountaindidn’tmakeapointofsplashingwateronthemtocoolthemoff.
Herewe’vebeenspeakingaboutthebody.Asforthemind,whenit’spureitgivesevengreaterresults.Whenwethinkusingthepowerofthepuremind,thecurrentsgofasterthanlightningthroughthesky,andtheycangoallaroundtheworld.Ifanyonewantstocomeandharmus,theycan’tgetnear,becausethecurrentofapure,strongmindhasthepowertowardoffallkindsofdanger.TaketheBuddhaasanexample:Noonecouldkillhim.Peoplewhothoughtofkillinghim,assoonastheygotnearhim,sawhimastheirlovingfather.ThosewhoweresubjecttothecurrentoftheBuddha’spurityletgooftheirevilhabitsandturnedintogoodpeople;theyletgooftheirviolenceandviciousness,becominggentleandmild.Aṅgulimāla,forinstance:Ifhehadn’tbeenwillingtolistentotheBuddha,hewouldhavebeenswallowedupbytheearth.Buthewasabletothink,“TheBuddhawon’tkillme.Iwon’tkillanyone.”Heimmediatelyputdownhisweapons,gaveupkillingonceandforall,ordained,andbecameoneoftheBuddha’snobledisciples.
Sointhesameway,weshouldthinkofthequalitiesoftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghawitheveryin-and-outbreath.WhenwestaywithintheterritoryoftheDhammainthisway,it’sasifwewerehavinganaudiencewiththeBuddhahimself.Eventhough—whenwekeepthinkingofthequalitiesoftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅgha—wekeepgoingoverthesameoldterritoryoverandoveragain,what’swrongwiththat?Actually,whenweuseourpowersofdirectedthought(vitakka)andevaluation(vicāra)backandforththisway,theresultsweendupwitharepositive:asenseoffullnessthatspreadsthroughouteverypartofthebody.Themindwillfeelfullandbright.Theheartwillfeelblossoming,establishedinthesenseoffullness,orrapture(pīti),thatcomeswiththoughtsofgoodwill.Whentheheartisfullinthisway,it’satease,justaswhen
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we’veeatenourfilloffood.Andwhentheheartisfull,itsfriendthebodyissuretofeelfullandrestedaswell.We’llbeatoureasebothinbodyandinmind,justaswhenweseeourchildrenandgrandchildrenwell-fedandsleepingsoundly.Thisiscalledpleasure(sukha).Andwhenweseethatsomethinggivespleasuretoourchildrenandgrandchildren,wehavetofocusoureffortsonitcontinually.Thisishowthemindreachessinglenessofpreoccupation(ekaggatārammaṇa),enteringintoastateofpeace,freefromeverysortofdisturbanceanddanger.
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PlayingHost
September27,1956
Whenyousitandmeditate,tellyourselfthatyourbodyislikeyourhome.Whenyourepeatthewordbuddhoinwiththebreath,it’slikeinvitingamonkintoyourhome.Whenpeopleinviteamonkintotheirhome,whatdotheydoinordertoqualifyashavinggoodmanners?1)Theyhavetoprepareaplaceforhimtositdown.2)Theyprovidehimwithgoodfoodordrinkingwater.3)Theyhavetoconversewithhim.
Whenwemeditate,“preparingaplacetositdown”meansthinkingbud-inwiththein-breath,anddhooutwiththeout.Ifwe’remindfultothinkinthisway,thewordbuddhowillalwaysstaysnugwiththebreath.Wheneverourthinkingslipsawayfromthebreath,it’sasifweputaripintheseatwe’repreparingforourguest.Anddon’tforgetthatbeforeyouprepareaseat,youfirsthavetosweeptheplaceclean.Inotherwords,whenyoufirststartout,youshouldbreatheinlonganddeepandthenletthebreathcomeallthewayout,twoorthreetimes.Thenyougraduallyallowthebreathtogrowlighter,bitbybit,untilit’sjustenoughforyoutofollowcomfortably.Don’tletitgrowanyweakerorstayanystrongerthanjustright.Thenyoustartcombiningbuddhowiththein-and-outbreath.Whenyoudothis,yourvisitingmonkwillcomeintoyourhome.Nowmakesurethatyoustaywithhim.Don’tgorunningoffanywhereelse.Ifyourmindrunsofftohangaroundwithexternalconceptsofpastorfuture,it’sasifyou’verunawayfromthemonkyou’veinvitedintoyourhome—whichisreallybadmanners.
Oncethemonkhassatdownintheseatyou’vepreparedforhim,youhavetogivehimsomegoodfoodorwater,andthenfindgoodthingstoconversewithhim.Thegoodfoodhereisthefoodofintentions,thefoodofsensorycontact,andthefoodofconsciousness.Thefoodofintentionsstandsforthewayyouadjustthebreathsoastomakeitcomfortablebothforthebodyandforthemind.Forinstance,you’reobservanttoseewhichkindofbreathingisgoodforthebody,andwhichkindisbad.Whatkindofin-breathingfeelseasy?Whatkindofout-breathingfeelseasy?Doesitfeelgoodtobreatheinfastandoutfast?Howaboutinslowandoutslow?Youhavetoexperimentandthentastethefoodyou’veprepared.Thisisonekindoffoodforthemind.Thisiswhybeingintenttostaywiththebreathiscalledthefoodofintention.Whenyouadjust
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thebreathtothepointwhereitfeelscomfortableandingoodorder,it’llgiverisetoasenseoffullnessandease.That’swhenyoucansaythatyou’veprovidedyourvisitingmonkwithgood,nourishingfood.Whenhe’sfinishedhismeal,he’sgoingtochantblessingsforthesakeofyourwell-beingandhappiness,sothatyou’llbefreefrompainandsuffering.Or,asthesayinggoes,thepoweroftheBuddhagetsridofsuffering.Inotherwords,whenyou’veadjustedthebreathproperly,thepainsinthebodywilldisappear.Eventhoughtheremaybesomethatdon’tdisappear,theydon’timpingeonthemind.Asforpainandsufferingintheheart,thatwillalldisappear.Themindwillcooldown.Whenitcoolsdown,it’llbeatitsease—quiet,blooming,andbright.
Andasforthesaying,thepoweroftheDhammagetsridofdangers:thevariousformsofMaracomingtodisturbthebody,suchasthepainsoftheaggregates,willallvanish.Themindwillbefreefromdangersandanimosities.
Andasforthesaying,thepoweroftheSaṅghagetsridofdisease:allthevariousdiseasesinthemind—sorrow,lamentation,pain,distress,anddespair—willdisappear.Thisway,onceyou’veinvitedthismonkintoyourhomeandprovidedhimwithgoodfood,he’sgoingtogiveyouthreekindsofblessing:youescapeforpain,fromdanger,andfromdisease.Thisispartoftheblessingthatyourvisitingmonkwillgiveyou.Butif,whenyou’veinvitedamonkintoyourhome,yougorunningoffoutside—inotherwords,ifyouforgetthebreathorgohangingaroundwithexternalthoughts—it’sreallyimpolite,andthemonkisgoingtobeputtodifficulties.It’sasifyouhadinvitedhimintoyourhomebuthadforgottentopreparehismeal.Soifyouaren’treallyintentonthebreathanddon’treallywelcomeyourmonkintoyourhome,youwon’tgetthiskindofblessing.
Thelastpartofinvitingyourmonkintoyourhomeistoconversewithhim.Oncehe’seatenhisfill,youtalkwithhim.Thisstandsforthequalitiesofdirectedthought,evaluation,rapture,pleasure,andsinglenessofpreoccupation.Youconnectallsixtypesofbreathenergyinthebodysothattheyallflowintooneanother—aswhenyouputupatelephoneline.Ifthelinestaysingoodshape,youcanhearwhattheysayallovertheworld.Butifthelineiscut,youcan’tgetwordofwhatthey’resayingeveninBangkokjustdowntheroad.Sowhenyoukeepyourlineingoodshape,youcanhearanythingbeingsaidanywhereatall.Whenthemindstaysinthefirstjhānathisway,it’sasifyourvisitingmonkistalkingwithyou,andyou’retalkingwithhim.Andthethingsyou’retalkingaboutareallDhamma.Thisputsyouinagoodmood.Astimepasses,youfeelsogoodthatyoudon’tevenwanttoeat.Thisisrapture:thebodyfeelsfull.Atthesametime,themindisfreefromdisturbancesandsofeelspleasure.Whereveryougetasenseofpleasure,youkeepstayinginterestedinthatpoint:thisissinglenessofpreoccupation.
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Whenyouwelcomeyourvisitingmonkinthisway,he’sgoingtokeepcomingtovisityou.Nomatterwhereyougo,he’llbeabletoreachyou.Evenifyou’restayinginthemountainsorforestwilderness,he’llbeabletogiveyouwhateverhelpyouneed.
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AnImageoftheBuddha
August31,1958
Ourgoodness:whatcanwedotomakeitreallygood?Fortoday’sgoodnessIwanteachofustosetourmindsoncastingaBuddhawithinthemindtoprotectourselves,becauseBuddhasarethingsthataremoresacredandnuminousthatanyotherobjectintheworld.Theycanprotectusandhelpussurviveallsortsofdangerandsuffering.Aswe’retoldinthePalichant,“Sabba-dukkhāsabba-bhayāsabba-rogāvinassantu,”whichmeans,“Allsufferings,alldangers,alldiseasescanbedestroyedthroughthepoweroftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅgha.”
WhoeverhasaninnerBuddhaisprotectedfromallthreemajorfears.Thefirstkindisthefearofsuffering,i.e.,birth,aging,illness,anddeath.TheBuddhaisn’tafraidofthesethingsatall,forhehaswardedthemoffinalltheirforms…(2)Thevariouskindsofdanger,suchasdangerfromcriminals:Whoevermighttrytocomeandstealhisvaluables,theBuddhaisn’ttheleastbitafraid,forhisvaluablesaren’tthekindthatanyonecansteal.Thedangeroffire:Don’tmentionhousefiresorbeingbombedbynuclearweapons.Evenifthefiresoftheendoftheeonweretoburnuptheentireworld,hewouldn’tbestartledorfearful.Thedangeroffloods:evenifwaterweretofloodfromtheearthuptothesky,hewouldn’tbeconcerned.Thedangeroffamine,drought,andpestilencewouldn’tmakehimsufferorputhimtoanyhardship.(3)Thevariousdiseasesthatariseinthebodydon’tcausehimanyfear.JustlookattheBuddhaimageinfrontofyou:Whatdangersisheafraidof?Fromwhere?Nomatterwhatanyonedoestohim,hejustsitsthereperfectlystill,notafraidofanythingatall.ThisiswhyweshouldcastaBuddhawithinourselvessothatwecanwearitaroundourneckandprotectourselvesfromfearwhereverwego.
Now,whentheycastaBuddhaimage,whatdotheydo?Thefirstthingistomakeamoldthat’sbeautifulandwell-proportioned.Thentheyheatituntilit’shotthroughandthrough.Thentheypourmoltenmetalintothemold.Thentheyletitcool.Whenit’sthoroughlycooled,theypulloffthepiecesofthemold,leavingonlytheBuddhaimage,buteventhentheimageisstillroughandunattractive.Theyhavetopolishituntilitgivesoffclearreflections,orelsepaintitwithlacquerandcoveritwithgoldleaf.Only
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thenwilltheyhaveafinishedBuddhaimageinlinewiththeiraims.Sonowthatwe’recastingaBuddhawithinourselves,wehavetoheatourmold
beforewecanpourthemetalintoit.Pretendthatthebodyhereisyourmold;yourmindistheexpertcraftsman.IwantusalltosetourmindsoncastingaBuddhawithinourselves.Who’sgoingtohavethemostbeautifulBuddhawilldependonhowskillfulandcapableeachcraftsmanisatsmelting.
Howdoweheatourmold?Weheatthemoldbysittinginconcentration:yourrightlegontopoftheleft,yourhandsplacedpalm-upinyourlap,yourrighthandontopofyourleft.Situpstraight.Don’tleanforwardorback,ortilttoeitherside.Ifthemoldisoff-center,yourBuddhawillhavetobeoff-center,too.Thenextstepistofixyourmindfulnessonthebreath,thinkingbud-withthein-breathanddhowiththeout.Stayfocusedexclusivelyonthebreath.Youdon’thavetothinkofanythingelse—justasifyouwerepumpingairintoyourfurnacetoheatupthemold.Ifyourmindfulnessdoesn’tstaywiththebreath—ifyouforgetorabsent-mindedlythinkofotherthings—it’sasifyourairpumpbreaksdown.Thefirewon’tgrowstrong,andthemoldwon’tgetheatedthrough.Ifthemoldisn’theatedthrough,thenwhenyoupouryourmoltenmetalintoit,themoldwillcrackandthemetalwillleakoutallovertheplace.Soyouhavetobecarefulthatyourmolddoesn’tcrack,andmakesurethatyourairpumpdoesn’twearout,either.Inotherwords,keepwatchoveryourmindfulnesssothatitisn’tabsent-mindedorforgetful.
Nowlet’stalkabouthowyoumeltyourmetal—thebronze,gold,silver,orwhateverkindofmetalyou’regoingtousetocastyourBuddhaimage.Whentheycastanimage,theyhavetomeltthemetalandremoveallthespecksandimpurities,leavingnothingbutthemetalinitspureform.Onlythendotheyuseittocasttheimage.Inthesameway,wehavetocutawayfromtheheartalltheconceptsandpreoccupationsthatactasHindrances.ThefiveHindrancesarelikeimpuritiesmixedinwithgold.Ifwedon’tmeltthemawayorremovethemfromtheheart,ourBuddhaimagewon’tturnoutasperfectandpowerfulaswe’dlikeit.It’llbeblemishedandfullofholes.Ifyouweretoputitonanaltar,itwouldn’tlookinspiring.Ifyouweretogiveitaway,noonewouldwanttoreceiveit.Thereforeit’snecessary—crucial—thatyourexpertcraftsmanbemeticulous,circumspect,andnotcareless;thathemakeaconcertedefforttopurifythemetalhe’susing.Inotherwords,youhavetobrushawayallconceptsofpastandfuture,leavingonlythepresent:thebreath.Beawareonlyofthebreath.Whenyourmoldisthoroughlyheated(i.e.,you’realerttothewholebody),yourairpumpisworkingwell(i.e.,mindfulnessissteadyandstrong),andyourmetalispureandfreefromspecks(i.e.,therearenoHindrancesintheheart),thentheBuddhaimageyou’recastingwillbebeautifultoyoursatisfaction.
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CastingaBuddhaimagewithinyoumeanssittinginconcentration,givingrisetopeaceandcalminthemind.Whenthemindisatpeace,thebodyisatpeace.Rapture—asenseoffullnessinbodyandmind—willarisewithinyou(i.e.,whenmindfulnessfillsthebody,yourawarenessfillsthebody,too).Whenrapturearisesinfullforce,itgiveswaytopleasure.Whenthere’salotofpleasure,themindgrowsclearandbright.Thebrightnessofthemindistheknowledgeofliberatinginsight.Youcometoseethetruthofthebody,thatit’ssimplythefourpropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwind—notyoursoranyoneelse’s.It’sinconstant.Stressful.Thisgivesrisetoasenseofwearinessanddisenchantment,sothatyouletgooftheprocessofmentalandphysicalfabrication,seeingthatthere’snorealsubstancetoit.Youcanseparatethebodyfromthemind.
Themindwillthenbefreeofitsburdeninhavingtohaulthephysicalbodyaround.Itturnsintoamindthat’sfree,light,andatease.Whicheverwayyoulookiswideopen—asifyouweretoremovethefloors,walls,androofofyourhome:ifyoulookdown,youseetheground.Ifyoulookup,you’llseethestars.Lookaroundinallfourdirectionsandyou’llseethatthere’snothingtoobstructyourlineofsight.Youcanseeeverythingclearly.Ifyoulooktothewestyou’llseethenobletruthofstress.Looksouthandyou’llseethecauseofstress.Lookeastandyou’llseethecessationofstress.Looknorthandyou’llseethepath.Ifyoucanseeinthiswayyou’resaidtobeafulldollar,i.e.,worthfourfullquarters.Andifyougetfourfullquartersmanytimesover,you’llgrowmoreandmorevaluableallthetime.You’llturnintoarichpersonwithlotsofwealth—i.e.,nobletreasures.You’llbereleasedfrompoverty.
Whoeverhasnobletreasuresissaidtobeanobleperson.Noblepeoplearethosewhohaveseenthefournobletruths.WhoeverseesthefournobletruthsissaidtoseetheBuddhawithin.TheBuddhalikestostaywithpeopleofthatsort—andwhentheBuddhaisstayingwithus,we’llbeblessedandwon’tfallintohardship.We’llsimplykeepheadinghigherandhigher.ThisiswhyweshouldallcastaBuddhawithinourselvesbypracticingconcentrationwheneverwehavetheopportunity.
AnotherwayofcastingaBuddhawithinourselvesistomeditateconstantlyonthefoulnessofthebody,aswhenwechant:Ayaṁkhomekāyo:Thisbodyofmine.Uddhaṁpadātalā:Fromthetipofourbigtoeuptothehead—whatisitlike?Addhokesamatthakā:Fromthecrownoftheheaddowntothebigtoe,whatisitlike?Tacapariyanto:Insidethisburlapbag,whatvaluablesdowehave?Theskincoveringthebodyislikeaburlapbagfullofallkindsofthings,solet’sseewhatfantasticvaluableswehavehereinthisbag.Startingwiththeribs,heart,liver,lungs,intestines,foodinthestomachandintestines,blood,gall,lymph,urine.Whatkindoflovelyvaluablesarethesethings?
Ifyoulookcarefullyatyourbody,you’llseethatwhatyouhavehereisthefour
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statesofdeprivation,nothingwonderfulatall.Thefirststateofdeprivationistheanimalkingdom:allthewormsandgermsthat
liveinourstomachandintestines,inourbloodvessels,andinourpores.Aslongasthere’sfoodforthesethingstoeatinthere,they’realwaysgoingtobewithus,multiplyinglikecrazy,makingusill.Ontheoutsideofthebodytherearefleasandlice.Theylikestayingwiththosewhodon’tkeepthemselvesclean,makingtheirskinredandsore.Asfortheanimalslivinginthebloodvesselsandpores,theygiveusrashesandinfections.
Thesecondstateofdeprivationisthekingdomofhungryghosts,i.e.,thepropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwindinthebody.Firsttheyfeeltoocold,thentoowarm,thentheyfeelill,thentheywanttoeatthisorthat.Wehavetokeeppanderingtothem,runningaroundtofindthingsforthemtoeatwithneveranychancetostopandrest.Andtheyneverhaveenough—likethehungryghostswhostarveaftertheydie,withnoonetofeedthem.Thesepropertieskeeppesteringus,andnomatterwhatyoudo,youcanneverpleasethem.Firstthefoodistoohot,soyouhavetoputiceinit.Thenit’stoocold,soyouhavetoputitbackonthestove.Allofthiscomesdowntoanimbalanceintheproperties,sometimesgood,sometimesbad,nevercomingtoastablestateofnormalcyatall,makingussufferinvariousways.
Thethirdstateofdeprivationisthelandofangrydemons.Sometimes,whenwegetillorloseoursenses,werunaroundnakedwithoutastitchofclothing,asifwewerepossessedbyangrydemons.Somepeoplehavetoundergooperations,gettingthisremovedorcuttingoutthatorsuckingoutthis,wavingtheirarmsandmoaninginawaythat’sreallypitiful.Somepeoplegetsopoorthattheyhavenothingtoeat;theygetsothinthattheyhavenothingleftbutribsandeyeballs,sufferingliketheangrydemonswhocan’tseethebrightnessoftheworld.
Thefourthstateofdeprivationispurgatory.Purgatoryisthehomeofallthespiritswithalotofbadkarmawhohavetosufferbeingroasted,spearedwithred-hotironspikes,andpiercedwiththorns.Alltheanimalswhosefleshwe’veeaten,afterthey’vebeenkilledandcooked,gathertogetherinourstomachandthendisappearintoourbodyinhugenumbers.Ifyouweretocountthem,you’dhavewholecoopsofchickens,herdsofcattle,andhalfasea’sworthoffish.Ourstomachissuchatinything,andyetnomatterhowmuchyoueatyoucanneverkeepitfull.Andyouhavetofeedithotthings,too,likethedenizensofpurgatorywhohavetolivewithfireandflame.Ifthere’snofire,theycan’tlive.Sothere’sabigcopperfryingpanforthem.Allthevariousspiritswe’veeatengatherinthebigcopperfryingpanofourstomach,wherethey’reconsumedbythefiresofdigestion,andthentheyhauntus:Theirpowerspenetratethroughoutourfleshandblood,givingrisetopassion,aversion,anddelusion,makingussquirmasif
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wewereburnedbythefiresofpurgatory,too.Solookatthebody.Isitreallyyours?Wherediditcomefrom?Whoseisit?No
matterhowmuchyoucareforit,it’snotgoingtostaywithyou.It’llhavetogobacktowhereitcamefrom:thepropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwind.Thefactthatit’sabletostayforawhiledependsentirelyonthebreath.Whenthere’snomorebreathtoit,itstartstodecay,andnoonewantsitthen.Youwon’tbeabletotakeitwithyouwhenyougo.There’snoonewhocantakehisarms,legs,feet,orhandsalongwithhim.Thisiswhywesaythatthebodyisnot-self.Itbelongstotheworld.Asforthemind,it’stheonethatdoesgoodandevil,andwillbereborninlinewithitskarma.Themindiswhatdoesn’tdie.It’stheonethatexperiencesallpleasureandpain.
Sowhenyourealizethis,youshoulddoasmuchgoodasyoucanforyourownsake.TheBuddhafeltcompassionforusandtaughtusinthisway,butwedon’tfeelmuchcompassionforourselves.Weprefertofillourselveswithsuffering.Whenotherpeopleteachus,it’snomatchforourteachingourselves,forotherpeoplewillteachusonlyonceinawhile.Thepossibilityofbeingacommonanimal,ahumanbeing,aheavenlybeing,orofenteringnibbānaallliewithinus,sowehavetochoosewhichonewewant.
Thegoodyoudoiswhatwillgowithyouinthefuture.ThisiswhytheBuddhataughtustomeditate,tocontemplatethebodytogiverisetodispassion.It’sinconstant,stressful,andnothingofours.Youborrowitforawhileandthenhavetoreturnit.Thebodydoesn’tbelongtothemind,andtheminddoesn’tbelongtothebody.They’reseparatethingsthatdependoneachother.Whenyoucanseethis,youhavenomoreworriesorattachments.Youcanletgoofthebody,andthreehunksofrust—self-identityviews,attachmentstopreceptsandpractices,anduncertaintyinthePath—willfallawayfromyourheart.You’llseethatallgoodandevilcomefromtheheart.Iftheheartispure,that’sthehighestgoodintheworld.
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Binoculars
August20,1956
Whenyoumeditate,youhavetobemindfulofthreethingsatonce.Inotherwords,asyoubreatheinandout,threethings—(1)thebreath,(2)themeditationword,and(3)themind—havetostaytogetherwitheverymoment.Atthesametime,alertnessalwayshastobeincharge.Onlythencanyousaythatyou’reestablishedinthefactorsofmeditationlyingattheessenceofwhat’smeritoriousandskillful.
“Mindfulness”—heedfulness—countsaswhat’smeritorioushere.Forgetfulness—heedlessness—countsasevil.
Alertnessiswhatsurveystheresultsofouractivities—seeingwhatwedothatgivesgoodresults,whatwedothatgivesbad—andthenmakesadjustments.Forexample,ifthebreathisn’tyetcomfortable,wemovethemindtoanewspotorchangethewaywe’rebreathing.It’slikechangingtheplacewherewesit.Ifwherewe’resittingisn’tcomfortable,wehavetogetupandfindanewplacetositdown.Oncewe’vefoundacomfortableplacetosit,wehavetokeepitgoingaslongaswecan.Wedon’thavetochangeseatsanymore.
Whenmindfulnessstayswiththebreath,it’scalledānāpānasati.Whenit’simmersedinthebody,it’scalledkāyagatāsati.Whenmindfulnessstayswiththebodyandmindatalltimes,it’scalleddevelopingourmeditationtheme(kammaṭṭhāna)—aswhenwesitheremeditating:we’redoingourwork,i.e.,ourworkonourmeditationtheme.
Mindfulnessisthecause.Ifwefocusourattentiononworkingwiththemind,we’llgetlotsofresultsonthelevelofthemind.Ifwefocusonworkingwiththebody,we’llgetlotsofresultsonthelevelofthebody.
Theresultsthatcomefromdevelopingourmeditationthemeare(1)wecalmdowntheevilqualitiesofthemind;and(2)wecalmdownthephysicalpropertiesofthebody.Themindwillbewideopenandfree,liketheoceanwhenit’sfreeofwaves:thewindisstill,thewatersmooth,andtheairisclear.Whenthisisthecase,wecanseeallkindsoffardistantthings.Thiswaywegettoknowtheaffairsofthebody.Onthelowestlevel,wecometoknowthebodyinthepresent:weunderstandwhat’sgoingonwiththepropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwind,bothintheirimportantpartsandintheir
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unimportantparts.Theimportantpartsaretheonesthatstayinthebody;theunimportantpartsaretheonesthatcomeandgo,formingabridgebetweenthepropertiesinsidethebodyandthoseoutside.Intermsofthewindproperty,we’llseehowmanytypesofbreathenergystayinthebody,andhowmanytypesofbreathcomeinandout.We’llseewhichpartsoftheearth,water,fire,andspacepropertiesstayinthebody,andwhichpartscomeandgo.Thesameholdstruewiththepropertyofconsciousness.Forinstance,whenoureyesdon’tseeclearly,what’swrongwiththepropertyofeye-consciousness?We’llbeabletoseeallthewaysinwhichitchanges,aswellasallthechangesinthepropertiesofear-,nose-,tongue-,body-,andintellect-consciousness.We’llhavemindfulnessandalertnessconstantlyincharge.
Mindfulnessandalertnessarelikebinocularsforseeinggreatdistances.Themindislikethebinoculars’owner.Ifthepropertiesinthebodyaren’tatnormalcy,iftheyaren’tsmoothandcalm,thennomatterhowfantasticourbinoculars,wewon’tbeabletoseeanything.Forexample,whentheBuddhasurveyedthebeingsoftheworld,he’dwaituntiltheworldwasquietandstill—thelastwatchofthenightbeforedawn,whenthemindsofhumanbeingswerequiet,still,andasleep.That’swhenhe’dusehisspecialbinocularstosurveyallthatwasgoingonintheworld.
Whenthemindiscalmit’slikeanoceanthat’scalm:thewindisstill,theboatisn’trocking,thewaterisclear,andtheairwideopen.
Aswekeeptrainingthemind,itkeepsgettingmoreandmoremature,moretemperedandsharp,abletocutrightthroughanythingatall.Likeaknifethatwealwayskeepsharpening:there’snowayitcan’tbecomesharp.Soweshouldkeepatthepracticeinthesamewaywesharpenaknife.Ifanypartofthebodyormindisn’tingoodshape,wekeepadjustingituntilwegetgoodresults.Whengoodresultsarise,we’llbeinastateofRightConcentration.Themindwillbefirmlyestablishedinthepresent,inastateofsinglenessofpreoccupation.We’llgainpowerbothinbodyandinmind.Powerinbodymeansthatwherevertherearepains,wecanadjustthepropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwindtogiverisetoasenseofcomfort,inthesamewaywetrimatree.Ifanybranchesarebrokenorrotten,wecutthemawayandgraftonnewbranches.Ifthenewonesbreak,wegraftonmorenewones.Wekeepdoingthisuntilthetreeishealthyandstrong.
Whenweworkatthemindinthisway,thefourbasesforsuccessariseinfullstrength.AndastheBuddhasaid,whoeverdevelopsthebasesforsuccesswilllivelong.Inotherwords,
chanda:we’recontentwithourwork;viriya:westickwithourworkanddon’tgetdiscouragedorgiveup;citta:wefocusourfullattentiononnothingbutourwork;
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vimaṅsā:we’recircumspectinthemind,circumspectinthecausesandresultsofwhatwe’redoing.
AllfourofthesequalitiesarebasesorstepstothePath.They’rethecausefordevelopingpowerinbodyandpowerinmind,allthewaytotheknowledgeoftheendingofmentalfermentationsandonintonibbāna.
WhatI’vesaidsofarismeanttogiveusallasenseofhowtodevelopmindfulnessandalertnessasourownspecialbinocularsforsurveyingeventsintermsoftheworldandoftheDhamma.Soyoushouldtrainyourmindtostayfirmanduprightinthefactorsofourmeditation,ridingherdonitsothatitwillstaywiththebodyinthepresent.RegardlessofhowmuchyoucanrememberofwhatI’vesaid,youshouldsetyourmindonpracticingatalltimes.Don’tabandonthepractice,ordoitinfitsandstarts,forthatwillpreventyoufromreachinganykindofsuccess.Thinkofyourselfasasupervisor,constantlykeepinganeyeonthebodyandmind.Whenyoudothis,yourworkers—thepropertiesofearth,water,fire,andwind—won’tdareshirktheirjobsorbeslackintheirwork.Eachwillhavetofulfillitsresponsibilitiestothefull.Inthisway,you’llcometosucceedinyourworkineveryway.Atthesametime,onceyou’vedevelopedyourspecialbinoculars,youreyesightwillgofurtherthanthatofordinarypeople.Inthisway,you’llbeabletokeepyourselfprotectedonallsides.You’llescapefromdangersandmeetwithhappinessandfulfillmentineveryway.
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TheElectricHeart
October22,1958
Thecurrentsoftheheartarefast,erratic,anddon’ttakeonanyshapethatcanappeartotheeye.Thecurrentsofsoundandsmellcanbemeasuredintermsofnumbers—1,2,3,4,etc.—butthecurrentsofthemindcan’tbemeasuredatall.Andit’sthenatureoffastthingsthattheybesubtleaswell.That’swhythecurrentsofthemindareimpossibleforanyonewho’snotreallyinterestedinresearchingthemtosee.Somepeopleevenmaintainthatthereisnomindinanyindividual,thatallwehaveisabody,liketrees.Whenwedie,there’snothingleft,nothingtotakerebirth.There’sonlythepropertiesofearth,water,wind,andfire.
It’sthenatureofreallyfast-movingthingsthatwecan’tseethem—whattheyare,whattheirshapeorcharacteristicsare.Forexample,whenwerideinacaroraboatpassinganotheronecomingintheoppositedirectionattopspeed,wecan’tseethefacesofthepeopleridingintheothercarorboatwellenoughtorecognizewhotheyare.Orsupposethattwopeoplerunpasteachotherathighspeed.Theywon’tbeabletoseeeachother’sfaces.Somebirdsflythroughtheairsoquicklythatwecan’tevenseethem.Allwecanhearisthewhooshgoingpastintheair.Thecurrentsofthemindthatflashoutofthebodyarethesamesortofthing.
TheBuddhadiscoveredthatthehumanmindissomethingpowerful—strongerandmorenuminousthananythingelsethereis.Butbecausethemindspinssofast,wecan’tseeit.Ifwewanttoseeit,wehavetogetittospinmoreslowly.Asitspinsmoreandmoreslowly,wecangetittostop.Whenitstops,we’llrealizethatthemindissomethingtrue,somethingthatdoesn’tdie.Atthesametime,it’scool.Whenithasn’tyetstopped,it’shot.Theheatcomesfromthespinning.Whenitspinsreallyfast,itcangeneratetheelectricityofpassion,aversion,anddelusion.
Aswegeneratethesethreekindsofelectricitywithinourselves,themindwillgorunningoutthesixwires—thenervesoftheeyes,ears,nose,tongue,body,andmind.Ifanyofthesewiresgetshorted,theycansetourhome,ourtown,onfire.Whenthesecurrentsflareupinthemind,theycanwearoutthenervesofoureyes,ears,nose,tongue,andbody,sothattheystartsendingusthewronginformationandmakeus
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misunderstandthings.Ifwegoaroundwithexposedwiresandmeetupwithsomeoneelsewhosewiresareexposed,we’regoingtogetshorted,andbothofuswillbedevastated.It’sbadenoughthatbothofusaregeneratingelectricity;tomakethingsworse,wegoaheadandputourhandsrightoneachother’sexposedwires.Whenthishappens,we’llgetelectrocuted.Thedangerofexposedwiresisthattheircurrentsucksusin.Whenweconnect,theheatbuildsupandexplodesintofire.
Thespinningofthemindbuildsupheatinthepropertiesofthebody,andwhenthepropertiesgetunbalancedlikethis,theycangiverisetopainandillness.Whenthemindspinsinthisway,itdarkenseverything.Oureyes,ears,etc.,getdarkenedsothattheycan’tseethetruthofsights,sounds,smells,tastes,tactilesensations,andideas.ThisiswhytheBuddhateachesustogiverisetostillnessbydevelopingtheballastofskillfulandmeritoriousactions.Andwhatactsasballastforthemind?We’retaughttocreateballastforthemindbylookingforthreebighunksofrock:generosity,makingdonationsofmaterialthings;virtue,keepingourwordsanddeedsatnormalcy;andmeditation,trainingthemind.Ifthemindisn’tsloweddownbytheweightsofwhat’sskillfulandmeritorious,there’snowayitcangetrelieffromtheheatofitsfires.Sometimesevilpullsitinonedirection,whilegoodnesspullsitinanother.Goodnessislikethepositivecurrent;evil,likethenegativecurrent.Themindalternatesbetweengoodandevil,lookingforgoodonlyfromtimetotime,butitdoesn’tfindanyrealpeaceandquiet.Still,it’sbeginningtoseethingsalittlemoreclearly,aswhenacarbeginstoslowdownbuthasn’tyetstopped.
Sowehavetofindfourotherwaystoslowtheminddown.Inotherwords,wehavetomakesurethatourthoughts,words,anddeedsdon’tfallunderthefourkindsofbias:biasbasedondesire,basedonaversion,basedondelusion,andbasedonfear.Wehavetobefairandgentlewithotherpeople,harmingneitherourselvesnorothers.Thishelpsourmindspinevenmoreslowly.Ifitspinsforward,ithasfourblockadesintheway.Ifitspinsback,ithasthreerocksweighingitdown.Weneedprinciplesinhowwesit,stand,walk,liedown,speak,act.Thesearethemainstaysofthemindindevelopingtranquilityandinsight.Thisiswhat’smeantbymeditation.
Themindislikeamachine.Whenthemachinestops,wecansafelytouchallitsbeltsandgears.Thebeltshereareitsvariousconceptsandperceptions.Inotherwords,perceptionsofpastandfuturespinbackandforth,whichiswhythemindcan’tfindanycoolness.Asitkeepsspinning,itdevelopsheat.Ifitspinsreallyfast,it’llsetonfire,burningitselfandspreadingouttoburnotherpeopleaswell.Thisiswhywe’retaughttostopthespinningbycuttingthebelts.Inotherwords,wepracticetranquilitymeditation,notallowingthemindtospinalongafterthecurrentsoftheworld.Whateveractivityyou’reinvolvedin,keepthemindfullyinvolvedinwhatyou’redoing.Thisislikewaterintheoceanwhenit’sfullofwaves:ifwetakeabowlfulofwaterand
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setitapartuntilthewavesgrowstill,orifweclarifythewaterwithanalumcrystal,wecanlookintothewaterandseeourreflectionclearly.
Ourfaceissomethingthatnormallyweneversee.Eventhoughweuseourmouthtospeakdayinanddayout,we’veneverseenwhatshapeitis.Eventhoughwebreathethroughournosewitheverymoment,we’veneverseenit.Ourearshearsoundsalldaylong,butwe’veneverseenwhattheylooklike.Oureyescanseeallkindsofthings,buttheycan’tseethemselves.Thisiswhywehavetodependonmirrorstoseeourreflections.Onlythencanweseeourface.Whenpeoplehavediscernment,it’sasiftheyhavealargemirrorforlookingatthemselves,becausediscernmentistheclearknowingthatcomesfromamindbright,clean,andpure,freefromspinning,freefromwaves.
Whenthemindstopsspinning,itcomestostillness.Thisstillnessiswhatgivesrisetothediscernmentthatdevelopsintocognitiveskillswithinus—thethreeskillsandtheeight,suchasrecollectionofformerlives,whichenablesustoseeourselves;knowledgeofthepassingawayandarisingoflivingbeings—oncewe’veseenenoughofourselves,wecanseeotherpeople;andknowledgeoftheendingofmentalfermentations:wecanseewhat’sgood,what’sevil,whatshouldbeabandoned,whatshouldbedeveloped,whattakesbirthanddies,whatdoesn’ttakebirthanddoesn’tdie.Whentheseskillsarisewithinus,wewillthoroughlycomprehendourownbodiesandminds,aswellasfabricatedthingsingeneral.Thethreefiresofpassion,aversion,anddelusionwillstayseparatedfarfromtheheart.Theheartstopsspinning,andwhenthere’snomorespinning,thefireandelectricitystop,leavingnothingbutcoolnessandease.
Thisiswhywe’retaughttofindballastandblockadesforthemindsothatitwillspinmoreandmoreslowly,moreandmoreslowlyuntilitstops,forthesakeofthecoolness,ease,andpeaceI’vementionedhere.
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RestraintoftheSenses
August5,1958
Restraintofthesensesmeansmakingsurethey’reinharmonywiththeirobjects.Inotherwords:
Cakkhu-saṁvaro:Exerciserestraintovertheeyes.Don’tletyoureyesbebiggerthantheirvisualobjects,anddon’tletthevisualobjectsbebiggerthanyoureyes.Anexampleofsmalleyesandbigobjectsiswhenyouseesomethingandtheheartlatchesontoitfordaysonend.Thisiscallednotbeingstraightforwardinyourpractice,becauseyou’veletthevisualobjectgetbiggerthanyoureyes.Asforbigeyesandsmallobjects,that’swhenyoucan’tseeenoughofanobject.Whenitdisappears,youwanttoseeitagainandagain.Youcan’tletgoofit.Thisiscalledeyesbiggerthantheirobjects.Thisiswhatgivesrisetogreed.Whenobjectsarebiggerthanyoureyes,thatalsogivesrisetogreedanddelusion.Anyonewhodoesn’tknowhowtoexerciserestraintovertheeyesgivesrisetothethreefiresofpassion,aversion,anddelusion,whichburntheeyesandgiverisetosuffering.
Sota-saṁvaro:Exerciserestraintoveryourearsandtheirsoundssothatthey’retherightsizeforeachother.Sometimesyourearsarebiggerthanthesoundstheyhear,sometimesthesoundsarebiggerthantheears.Forexample,someonesayssomethingandyoutakeittothinkaboutformanydays.That’sacaseofthesoundbeingbiggerthantheears.Thisgivesrisetolikingordisliking.Thefiresofpassion,aversion,anddelusionburntheearsofpeoplelikethis,fortheyhaven’twatchedoutforevil,andsoevilcancomeflowingintotheirhearts.
Ghāna-saṁvaro:Exerciserestraintoverthenoseandsmells.Ifasmellsmellsgood,don’tfallforit.Ifitsmellsbadandyoucan’tstandit,getawayfromit.Don’thateit.Ifyoucontemplatethenoseanditssmells,you’llseethatsometimesasmellisbiggerthanthenose,i.e.,onewhiffanditgetsstuckintheheartformanydays,months,andyears.Thesmellmayhavebeenoverandgoneformanydays,months,andyears,butthenosehasn’tgottenoverit.Passionandaversiongetprovoked,andthendelusiongoesrunningafterthesmell.Thisiscallednotexercisingrestraintoverthenose.
Jivhā-saṁvaromeansrestraintoverthetongueandflavors.Ifthefoodyougetis
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edible,don’tgostrugglingtolookforthingstomakeitmorespecialthanitalreadyis.Ifyoulikeit,eatyourfill.Ifyoudon’tlikeit,eatjustalittle.Choosefoodsthatbenefitthebody.Otherwise,you’llsuffer.Don’tfollowyourtastebuds.Sometimestheflavorsarebiggerthanthetongue.Yousitthinkingabouteatingchickenorduck,porkorfish,andsoyougolookingforthem.Whenyougetthem,yourtongueshrivelsupandyoucanhardlyeatthematall.Thisiscallednothavingasenseofenough,notexercisingrestraint.Inadditiontoeating,thetongueplaysaroleinspeaking.Sometimesthetonguegrowslarge:whatyousaygoeswaybeyondthetruth.Youspeakwithoutstoppingandit’sallnonsense.Othertimes,thetopicisbigbutthetonguegrowssmall:there’salottobeexplained,butyouhemandhawsothatnoonecanunderstandthetruth.Thisiscallednotexercisingrestraintsothatthetongueisthesamesizeasitstopics,andit’sonewayofbringingonsuffering.
Kāya-saṁvaromeansrestraintoverthebodyandtactilesensations.Sometimestheyfeelcomfortabletogether,sometimestheydon’t.Inotherwords,theplacewhereyou’restayingmaybebig,butthebodyissmall.Sometimestheplaceissmall,butthebodyfeelsbig.Theydon’tgotogether.Thetactilesensationsthattouchthebodydon’tfit.Sometimesthebodyissmallbutthesensationsarebig.Forexample,youcomeacrossasensationyoulike.Then,evenwhenit’svanishedformanydays,youstillmissit.Sometimesthebodyisbigbutthesensationsaresmall.Forexample,youdon’tfeelcomfortablewhereveryousitorliedown,forthewholeworldseemsnarrowandconfining.That’scallednotexercisingrestrainttokeepthebodyanditstactilesensationsinlinewitheachother.Andthatgivesrisetosuffering.
Mano-saṁvaro:Exerciserestraintoverthehearttokeepitontherightpathinlinewiththingsastheyarise.Sometimesyourthoughtsarebiggerthanthemind:youworryandstewaboutsomething,goingwaybeyondthetruthofthesituation.Thisleadstomisunderstandings,makingthemindrestlessandanxious.Sometimesthemindisbiggerthanyourthoughts:youtakeaminorproblemandturnitintofourorfivebigones.Inotherwords,youdon’texerciserestraintoverthehearttokeepitinlinewithyoursituation—whattheycall“harvestinggrasstoroofthefield.”Thisleadstouselessdistraction,whichopensthewayforgreed,anger,anddelusion.Thisiswhywe’retaughttoexercisecarefulrestraintoverthehearttobringittopeaceandcalm.That’swhat’smeantbyrestraintofthesenses.
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Snakes,Fires,&Thieves
April12,1959
Thedangersfacedbythemindarelikepoisonoussnakes,fires,andgreatthieves—thingsthatarealwayslyinginwaittolayustowaste:robbingus,killingus,andstrippingusofourvaluables,ourhumangoodness,everydayandnight.
“Poisonoussnakes”herestandforpassion,aversion,anddelusion,whichhaveapainfulpoisonthatseepsintothemindsofrun-of-the-millpeople.Whenitreachestheheart,thispoisoncankillyou.
Asfor“fires,”therearetwokinds:forestfiresandhousefires.Aforestfiredoesn’thaveanyoneowner.Itarisesofitsownaccord,byitsnature,andspreadsitsdestructionfarandwide,withoutbounds,untilitdiesoutonitsown.Thisstandsforthefiresofbirth,aging,illness,anddeath,formsofsufferingthatariseinthebodiesofalllivingbeings.Thisfirecanburnupbothourworldlytreasuresandournobletreasures(i.e.,thegoodnessofthemindthatweotherwisewouldbeabletodevelop).Asforhousefires,thosearethefiresthatarisefromwithintheheart—defilements,ignorance,craving,andclinging—thehindrancesthatgetinthewayofthegoodnessthatcomesfromtrainingtheheartandmind.
The“greatthieves”or“500mostwantedcriminals”standforourfiveaggregates:form,feeling,perception,thought-constructs,andconsciousness,whichareconstantlyrobbingus,killingus,andoppressingus,destroyingbothourworldlytreasuresandournobleones.Inaddition,therearetheundergroundcriminalsthatkeepsneakinguponuswithoutourrealizingit:materialgain,status,praise,andpleasurefromexternalthings.Whoevergetsdupedbythesecriminalsfindsithardtoworkfree.Thisiswhytheycandestroythegoodnessthatwe’dotherwisebeabletoattainintheareaoftheheartandmind.
Allofthesepoisonoussnakes,fires,andcriminalsposeatremendousdangertotheheart.Theykeepdestroyingourgoodnesseverymoment.Ifwe’renotwisetothem,we’llhavetroublegainingreleasefromthem.TheonlywaytopreventthesedangersisthroughthepoweroftheDhamma:inotherwords,thepracticeofmeditation,usingourpowersofdirectedthoughtandevaluationwithinourselvestothepointwherewegive
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risetothediscernmentthatclearlyknowsandseesthetruthofallfabricatedthings.Whenwecanseethedangersonallsides,we’lllearntobecarefulandonourguard,tolookforwaysofdestroyingthemorofescapingfromthem.Whenwecandothis,ourliveswillbehappy.
WhenwepracticetheDhammait’sasifweweregoingthroughalonely,desolateforestonthewaytoagoalthat’sthehighestformofhappinessandsafety.Togetthroughtheforest,wehavetodependonthepracticeofconcentration,withourmindfulnesscircumspectonallsides.Wecan’tbeheedlessorcomplacent.Wemustmaketheefforttocutawayalltheconceptsandpreoccupationsthatcomeintodestroythegoodnessofthemind.Whenweknowthattherearepoisonoussnakes,fires,andthe500mostwantedcriminalslyinginwaitforusalongourway,wehavetobemindful,alert,andwakefulatalltimes,andtogetgoodweaponsreadysothatwecanfightthemoff.
Atthesametime,weneedprovisionstohelpusonourway—inotherwordsthefactorsofjhāna.Directedthoughtiswhatfocusesthemindonwhatitwantstoknow.EvaluationiswhatkillsofftheHindrances.Thesetwoqualitiesarelikefixingdinner.Butifwehaveonlythesetwoqualities,it’sasifwe’vepreparedourdinnerbutdon’tyetknowtheflavorofthedifferentkindsoffoodwehave.Ifwecanstilltheminduntilit’sonewithitsobject,that’slikeeatingandswallowingourfood.That’swhenwe’llknowitsflavorandbeabletogainasenseoffullnessandnourishmentfromit:inotherwords,asenseofrapture,pleasure,andsinglenessofpreoccupation.Theheartwillthenbeabletogainfullstrength,justlikethebodywhenit’shadanourishingmeal.
Outerfoodiswhatnourishesthebodyandgivesitstrength.Whenthebodyhasstrength,wecanwalkorrunanywherewewant.Whateverwewanttodo,we’llhavethestrengthtosucceed.Asforinnerfood—theDhamma—that’swhatnourishestheheartandmind.Whentheheartandmindarewellnourished,thepoweroftheheartismaderesilientandstrong.Whateverwesetourmindonwillsucceedinlinewithourthoughts.IfthemindisdeprivedofthefoodoftheDhamma,itgetsfeebleandweak.Its
thoughtsmeetwithnosuccess,oratbestwithsuccessinsomethingsandnotinothers,notfullyinlinewithourhopes.That’swhywehavetoshoreupthestrengthofourownmindsasmuchaswecan,forthestrengthofthemindisthemostimportantthingwithinusthatwilltakeustoourgoalofthehighesthappiness.
Aslongasyou’restillaliveandbreathing,don’tletyourselfbeheedlessorcomplacent.Don’tlettimepassyoubytonopurpose.Hurryupandaccelerateyoureffortsatdevelopinggoodness—forwhenthere’snomorebreathforyoutobreathe,you’llhavenomoreopportunitytodogood...
Youshouldfocusexclusivelyonwhateverthoughtshelpmakethemindfirmsothat
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itcangiverisetogoodness.Don’tdallywithanyotherkindsofthinking,regardlessofwhethertheyseemmoresophisticatedorless.Shakethemalloff.Don’tbringthemintothemindtothinkabout.Keepthemindfirmlysetinasinglepreoccupation:that’syourtrueheart,thetrueheartoftheBuddha’steachings.
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EnduringPrinciples
May26,1958
Thoseofuswhoaretrainingourheartsandmindsinhopesofthepathsandfruitionsleadingtonibbāna,ifwedon’tstudytounderstandthefundamentalprinciplesoftheworld,arelikelytowanderoffthepath.Orelsewe’llkeepingcirclingaroundwithouteverreachingourgoal.Soifwereallywanttoputanendtosuffering,weshouldaskourselves:whatdowehavewithinusthatcanactasatruerefugeforourselves?Thisisthesortofquestionweshouldkeepreflectingonallthetime.Aswechanteveryday:“Svākkhātobhagavatādhammo,sandiṭṭhikoakāliko—TheDhammawell-expoundedbytheBlessedOne,tobeseenhere&now,istimeless.”Inotherwords,ifwewanttoreachit,we’llbeabletoreachit.Ifwedon’twanttoreachit,wewon’t.Butwhetherornotwe’llreachitdependsonunderlyingcauses,whichcomeintwosorts:anenduringprincipleandsupportingprinciples.Theenduringprinciple,calleddhamma-ṭhiti,iswhatstaysunmovingbyitsnature.Thesupportingprinciplesareourtrainingandeducation,whichcanbeeithergoodorbad.Thisiswhyourpracticeswaysbackandforth,likeatreeinthemiddleofanopenfield,swayingbackandforthinthewind.Ifwedon’tdiscovertheenduringprinciplewithinus,wewon’tbeabletofindanythingtoactasatruerefuge—forourtrainingandeducationaresimplysupportingfactors.
Thisiswhyweshouldkeepaskingourselves:“Havewefoundanyprinciplewithinourselvesthatcanactasourrefuge?”Aslongaswe’restilldependingonotherpeople,otherthings,wedon’thaveatruerefuge.Ourtrainingandeducationarenothingmorethansupportingfactors—likethefertilizerwegivetoplants.Whenthefertilizerrunsout,theplantwillhavetofalltothegroundanddecompose.ThesameholdstruefortheBuddha:whenhisbodyranoutofstrength,itturnedintothefourelements.TheDhamma,whenitnolongerhasanypower,turnsintonothingbutlettersonpaperorpalmleaves,whichthendisintegrate.AsfortheSaṅgha,whentheyrunoutofstrength,theydie.Sotherefugewetakeinthesethingsisnothingmorethanasnackorfingerfood,butpeopleforthemostpartmisunderstandthemtobeourtruerefuge.TheythinkthattheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghawillcarryordragthemtoheavenornibbāna.Fromoneanglethisisright,butfromanotherit’swrong.It’srightinthesense
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thattheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅghakeepalivethetraditionofgoodnessthatwecanholdontoandfollow.It’swrong,though,inthesensethattheyaren’tthethingsthatwillmakeusreachthepathsandfruitionsleadingtonibbāna.Reachingnibbānadependsonourownactions:ourpractice.
Sowehavetoaskourselves:“Whatdowewantinlife?”Ifwereallywantsomething,we’resuretosucceedatitineveryway.Butthefactthatwedon’tsucceedcomesfromourselves.Ifwewanttobemillionaires,we’llhavetobecomemillionaires.Ifwewanttobebeggars,we’llhavetobecomebeggars.Successandlackofsuccesscomefromwithinourselves—inotherwords,fromthecausalfactorslyingwithinthelimitsofourowngoodness.Ifwepracticecorrectly,we’resuretosucceed.Italldependsontheenduringprinciplesintheworld,togetherwiththesupportingfactorsthatpointusintherightdirection.Thesupportingfactorsaretheteachingsformulatedbywisepeopleandsages.Theenduringprinciples—dhamma-ṭhiti—comefromtheprinciplesofnature.Toreachthepathsandfruitionsleadingtonibbānarequiresdhamma-ṭhiti.
TakeourBuddhaorthePrivateBuddhasasanexample:whentheywereborn,therewasnoBuddhatoteachthem.ButtheyhadmetupwithsagesandBuddhasinpreviouslives,sotheywerebornwithcharactertraitsthatspurredthemontobehigh-minded,toseethedrawbacksoftheworldsocrowdedwithdefilementandcraving,withbirth,aging,illness,anddeath.Disenchanted,theyaspiredtogainreleasefromallthissuffering—foraslongaswehumanbeingsaresubjecttobirthanddeath,thenevenifwehadwingstofly,westillwouldn’tescapefromoursuffering.Butifwe’refreefrombirthanddeath,thenevenifwehavetocrawlonallfoursinthedirt,wewon’tfeelanysuffering.ThisiswhytheBuddhaleftthehouseholderlifeandwentoffintothewildernesstobealone,developingvirtue,concentration,anddiscernmentuntilheattainedfullBuddhahood.Oncehehadattainedhisgoal,hehadanothercharactertrait—hisgreatcompassion—thatinspiredhimtoteachtheDhammatohisrelativesandtolivingbeingsingeneralsothattheycouldgainreleasefromsufferingaswell.
Practicingvirtueiscalledcompassionintermsofone’sactions.Thisisfollowedbycompassionintermsofone’sspeechandthoughts.WhentheBuddhaexpressedthissortofcompassion,peoplerespondedtohiminkind:theylovedhim,respectedhim,andwerewillingtogranthimpower.TheBuddha’scompassionexpresseditselfintwoways:forthewellbeingoftheworld(lokattha-cariyā)andthewellbeingofhisrelatives(ñātattha-cariyā).
Intermsoftheworld,theBuddhaspreadhisgoodwillandcompassiontobeingsallovertheworld,withoutshowinganypartialityforanygrouporindividualatall.Asforthewellbeingofhisrelatives,likeeveryoneelsehehadparents,grandparents,andsiblings,andthesepeopleinturnhadchildren,grandchildren,andin-laws.The
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Buddha’scompassionspreadoutalongalloftheseconnections,expressedintermsofcompassionateactions,compassionatewords,andcompassionatethoughts.Thiscompassionspreadoutfromaheartthathadfounditsowndependablerefugewithin.Thiswaswhyhewasabletospreadhiscompassionsothatotherscoulddependonhimaswell.It’sthenatureoftheheartthatwhenitcandependonitself,itsgoodnessgraduallyspreadsoutofitsownaccord.Ifthere’sanykindofconnection—whetherpeoplearerelativesornot—itspreadsoutalongthoseconnections.Itspreadsoutintermsofwords,whenyoucanteachandinstructothers.Intermsofthoughts,there’snoanger,hatred,orjealousy.There’ssimplythewillingnesstosacrificeforothers.WhentherewerewaystheBuddhacouldhelpotherswithhisthoughts,hespreadthosethoughtsatalltimes.
Hehadseenthatthelaylifewasn’tconvenientforspreadinggoodnesssofarandwide,whichwaswhyhebecameamonk.Hehadseenthatbeingamemberofthenoblewarriorclassinvolvedbothgoodandevil,forit’sthenatureoftheworldthatpeopleareproudoftheirbirth,theirrace,theirclass,whichdividesusintofactionsandcreatesinequalities.Whendivisionslikethisariseintheworld,it’sdifficulttospreadgoodness.Thatwaswhyhelefthisrelatives,cuttinghimselfofffromhisclassandrace.
Andthisiswhy,whenanewmonkisbeingordained,theannouncingteacheraskshim,“Haveyourmotherandfathergiventheirpermission?”andthecandidateanswers,“Yes.”Hehasleftthelimitationsoftheworldlylifeandnowdoesn’tbelongtoanyfamilyatall.Then,oncehe’sordained,he’staughtnottogohangingaroundwithhisoldfamily.SowhentheBuddhalefthome,hewentoffonhisowntofindthetruthoftheDhamma.Regardlessofwhetherhewastogetteachingsfromothers,heexploredwithinhimselfwithoutdependingonhisoldwealthorfamilyconnections.Hegavehimselftotallytothepractice.AtfirsthehadstudiedwiththeSixTeachers,buttheywereunabletoconvincehimoftheirteachings.
ThefirstteacherwasTeacherEye.Thisteacherfoolsusinallsortsofways.Ittellsusthatthissightisbeautiful,thatsightisugly,thissightisgood,thatsightisbad.Itwhisperstotheheart,causingustotripandfall,becausewedon’tseethingsintermsoftheirbasicprinciples—thatallsightsarethesame.Whetherthey’rebirds,rats,people,animals,trees,vines,whatever,theydifferonlyintermsoftheirfeatures.Theirbasicconditionisthesame:theyarise,decay,andthendisappearinlinewiththeprinciplesofnature.
ThesecondteacherwasTeacherEar.Atfirsttherearetwooftheseteachers,butthentheyturnintofour,whichgetsthingsevenmoreconfusing.Inotherwords,theleftearhearsgoodsoundsandbadsounds,therightearhearsgoodsoundsandbadsounds,allofwhichgivesrisetodistortedperceptions.Weimaginegoodthingstobebad,andbad
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thingstobegood;truethingstobefalse,andfalsethingstobetrue.SoTeacherEarisanotherteacherwhofoolsus.TheBuddhathusleftbothTeacherEyeandTeacherEartostudywith:
TeacherNose.Atfirstthisteacherhastwonostrils,butthentheysplitintofour.Sometimesitlikesgoodsmells;sometimesitdoesn’tlikegoodsmellsandlikesbadsmellsinstead.Thenitgoeswhisperingtothehearttomakeitmisunderstandthings.Ifwecouldtakeaphotoofthemind,we’dseethattheeyesarebigandbulging,theearsaresetoutlikehugesails,whilethenoseiswide,wideopen.WhentheBuddhasawthathehadnouseforthesethreeteachers,hewentontostudywith:
TeacherTongue.Thisteacher—themouth—isevenmoreofaturmoil.Ifitwerepartofthearmy,it’dbecalledamulti-taskforce.Ontheonehand,iteatsfood;ontheother,itsaysallkindsofthings.Sometimesitlikestosaygoodthings,sometimesbadthings.Sometimesitdoesn’tliketosaygoodthings,andpreferstosaybadthingsinstead.Onelittletongue,butittoosplitsintofour.Whenit’snotspeaking,iteats.Sometimesthatpersongetstoeat,thispersondoesn’tgettoeat.Thispersonhasonlyalittletoeat,thatpersonstarves,whilethatpersonovertherehasmorethanenoughtoeat.Thedangersthatcomefromtheseaffairsblockthepathsandfruitionsleadingtonibbāna.SotheBuddhamovedontostudywiththefifthteacher:
TeacherBody.Thisteacherismadeupofthesixelements,butassoonastheelementsgetunbalanceditgetsfeverishorchilled,weakorstiff.Asitmeetsupwithfriction,itwearsout.Asforthesixthteacher,that’s:
TeacherMind.Thisteacherthinksandworries,deludingitselfinallsortsofways.Suppose,forinstance,thatwe’releavingthehousetocometothemonastery.Assoonaswe’veleftthedooritstartsdeceivingus:“Whatapain.It’ssofartowalk.Awasteoftime.Thesunishot.”Whenwegettothemonasteryandstartsittinginmeditation,itstartsdeceivingusagain:“We’vebeensittingtoolong.I’mtired.Mylegshurt.They’renumb.Mybackisstiff.”Thenitsqueezesourlegs,squeezesourarms,beatsourback,pokesourstomach,givingusheartburnorastomachache.Whenwe’rewhippedandbeatenlikethis,weeventuallygivein.Sometimesitcomeswhispering,“Whydon’tyoustop?Time’salmostup.Openyoureyes.”Soweleavemeditation,raiseourhandsinrespect,andbowdowntotheBuddha.Andthat’sit.Ifwe’reweakbynature,wefallforit.
ThisiswhytheBuddhaleftallofthesesixteachers,closedhiseyes,closedhisears,nose,tongue,body,andmind,notlettinghisheartgorunningaftersights,sounds,smells,tastes,tactilesensations,orideas.Heclosedoffhissensestoescapefromthesethings,leavingonlythedoorofthemind,whichhefocusedongoodness.Whenthiswasthecase,hedidn’tconcernhimselfwithanyofthesenses.Hewenttositcross-legged
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undertheBodhitreeonthefullmoondayinMayandgaverisetodiscernmentwithinhimself.Gatheringallhisthoughtssothattheywereright,hedidn’tletthemassociatewithanythingoutsideoftheDhamma.Hebeganmeditating,cuttingoffallconnectiontothepastandfuture,cuttingallconnectiontothenervesoftheeyes,ears,nose,tongue,body,andmind.Hefocusedonthebreath,makingitmoreandmorerefined,tothepointwheretheconditionofthebodydisappeared,leavingjustthequalitiesofthesixelements:seeing,forexample,howthebreathactuallymoves,howitstops.Thisiscalledbuddha-vijjā,theskilloftheawakenedones.Thisskillseesthingsinterms,notoftheircharacteristics,butintermsoftheirbasicqualities.Inconstancyisacharacteristic.Stressandnot-self—burdensomeness,whatcan’tbecontrolled—areallcharacteristics.
Basicqualities,though,areneutralandconstant.Inconstancyisonthelevelofcharacteristics.Tomakeananalogy:themouthcan’tturnintothenose.That’sanaffairofbasicqualities.Ifthingscouldchangelikethat,wewouldn’tbeabletolive.Forexample,iftonightourearschangedintoeyes,orourlegbecameanarm,orournosebecameamouth:ifthishappened,everythingwouldbreakoutintochaos.Ifweseethingsonlyintermsoftheircharacteristics,that’stheknowledgeofthesixteachers.Change-of-lineageknowledge,though,seesfrombothsides,bothascharacteristicsandasbasicqualities.Tomakeanotheranalogy:ourleg,eversinceweweretwo,hasbeenaleg.It’llstillbealegwhenwe’re80,inlinewithitsbasicquality.Thisisconstancy.Whateverit’sbeen,that’swhatit’llcontinuetobeuntilwedie.Whoeverdoesn’tseethroughtobasicqualitieslikethiswillgetdraggedoffbythesixteachers.ThisiswhytheBuddhaleftthesixteacherstostudytheskilloftheawakenedones,toseebothwhatitisthatchangesandwhatitisthatdoesn’t.Whoeverseesbothsides—thesideofinconstancyandthesideofconstancy—withoutgettingstuckoneitherside,that’schange-of-lineageknowledge:knowingtheprinciplesoftheworldandthebasicqualityoftheDhamma.
ThisiswhytheBuddhataught,“Sabbesaṅkhārāaniccā,sabbedhammāanattā:Allconditionedthingsareinconstant;allphenomenaarenot-self.”Regardlessofwhetherpeoplemightsay,“constant”or“inconstant,”“stress”or“bliss,”“Thereisaself”or“Thereisnoself,”theBuddhacouldremainunswayed.Thisiscalled,“Attāhiattanonātho”:thosewhocangiverisetothisknowledgeandskillwithinthemselvescantrulydependonthemselves.They’renotattachedtoknowledgeofthepast,knowledgeofthefuture,knowledgeofthepresent.They’renotstuckonanydimensionoftimeatall.Theycanletgoofconventions,formulatedteachings,formulatedultimatetruths.Theycanletgowithinthemselvesalone,knowwithinthemselvesalone.Thisiscalledtrulydependingonyourself.Whenyoureachthispoint,yourtrainingforthesakeofthepathsandfruitionsleadingtonibbānawillhavetosucceedinlinewithyouraims.Therewon’tbeanywanderingastray.
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Andthat’senoughfornow.
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Merit
July5,1959
Theworldisaplacewherehappinessishardtofind.Whicheverdirectionyoulook,there’snothingbutpain,trouble,andturmoil.Ifwecouldescapeandgolivesomeplaceelse,hardlyanybodywouldbeleftstayinghere.Theworldwouldfallvacant,withoutanyonelivinghereatall.Butbecausewe’restymiedandcan’tfindawayout,wehavetoputupwithlivinghereinagonyandanguish.Ifitweren’tsobeyondourcapacitytoescape,it’sunlikelythatanyonewouldwanttostay.
TheBuddha’spurposeinformulatingthecustomofgatheringtomeetonDhamma-listeningdayswastoinvitepeopletotrainthemselvesindoingwhat’sgood.Anygatheringwithoutapurposedoesn’tgiverisetoanything.Soaswegathertogethertoday,wehavetobesincereinourintenttosearchforgoodnesswithinourselves—notthatwecometothemonasterysimplybecauseweseeotherpeoplecome,orwegathertogetherbecauseweseeotherpeoplegathertogether.Ifwecomewithoutanypurposeinmindlikethat,norealbenefitsarise.
We’vebeeninterestedintheaffairsoftheworldeversincewewereyoung,butsomeofushavebecomeinterestedintheaffairsoftheDhammaonlynowthatwe’reold.Somepeoplediebeforetheymakeittothemonasteryevenonce.Youhavetoseethatthetimewhenyouhavetheopportunitytodogoodhasvalue.SowhenyoulistentothisDhammatalk,don’tjustgothroughthemotionsoflisteningwithoutanyrealpurpose.Youhavetobegenuinelyintentonlistening.OnlythenwillyourlisteningtotheDhammagiveresults.ThisiswhytheBuddhasaid,“Kālenadhamma-savanaṁetam-maṅgalam-uttamaṁ:PeriodicallylisteningtotheDhammaisthehighestblessing.”Whatthismeansisthatwe’llgetsomethingofexcellenceembeddedinourheart.
Theword“world”referstotheaffairsofmaterialthings.Theword“Dhamma”referstotheaffairsofthingsthataren’tmaterial.TheDhammaisanaffairoftheheartandmind.Theworldisanaffairofthebody.ButtheworldandtheDhammahavetodependoneachother,inthesamewaythatpeoplehavetodependontheworldinordertolive,andtheworlddependsonpeopletodressitupandmakeitlivableandlovely,arranginghomes,buildings,androadsinawaythat’sbeautiful.
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Lotsofpeopleareinterestedindressingupthemselvesandtheirhomestomakethembeautiful,buttherearehardlyanypeopleinterestedindressinguptheirminds,becausethemindissomethingyoucan’tsee.Butthefactisthatthemindisthemostimportantthingforanyhumanbeing.Thebodyandthemindhavetodependoneachotherifthey’regoingtogrow.Still,they’retwoseparatethings,notoneandthesame,inthesamewaythatpeoplehavetodependontheearth,buttheearthisn’tpeople,andpeoplearen’ttheearth.
Whatdoesoursufferingcomefrom?TheBuddhadiscoveredthatifthingsaregood,themindisatease;ifthey’renotgood,themindisn’tatease.Whetherthelivesofpeopleintheworldaretobepleasantorpainfuldependsonthesetwofactors.Sothequestionis,“Howcanwemakeourselvesgoodsothatwecanbeatoureaseandnotsufferinvariousways?”
Sowhatdowewant?Ifyouweretoaskpeoplethisquestion,they’dbesuretoanswer,“Wewantthebestthings,thecleanestthings,andthingsthatsatisfyourdesires!”Whentheheartissatisfied,itwillbehappyandatease.Buthappinessisoftwosorts.Thefirstsortislikericethat’scooked.Thesecondsortislikethebrightnessofstarsinthesky.Sothere’srice-happyandstar-happy.Thehappinessoftheworldisrice-happy.ThehappinessoftheDhammaisstar-happy.
Theheartislikeaninnocentchildthatputsthingsthataren’treallyfoodintoitsmouth,andsoitsuffers.Weallwanthappiness,butwekeepputtingsufferingintoourselveswithoutrealizingwhatwe’redoing.That’sbecausetherearethosetwokindsofhappiness.Star-happyisbrightandflavorful,withahighlevelofnourishmentthat’scoolingtotheheart.Rice-happyhasflavorforthebody,butitdoesn’thaveanybrightness—i.e.,norealhappinessfortheheart.
Thehappinessofthehearthasaflavorthat’scoolandsoothingbecauseitcandependontheDhammatosolveitsproblemsandkeepitingoodrepair.Ifthemindisn’tpervadedbytheDhamma,ithasnorealhappiness.Sowehavetomaketheheartgleaminglikethestarsandbrightlikethemoon.Ifthisissomethingyouwant,youshoulddowhatyoucantoreallyexperienceit.
Thisbodyofours—composedofvariouselementsgatheredtogetherinasinglelump:Ifwedon’tknowhowtoseparatetheelementsouttoseewhat’sthere,wedon’treallyknowourselves.It’sasifsomeoneweretohandusapieceofscrapmetal.Ifwedon’ttakeitandseparateoutthevariousmetalstoseewhat’smixedinit—tinorcopperorwhatever—itwon’thaveanyvalueforusandwe’llhavetosellitcheap.Weallhavegoodthingswithinourselves,butifwedon’tknowhowtoseparatethemout,thebodywillbenothingbutalump.We’lllookafterituntilitdiesinthesamewaythatwe’dliearoundhuggingapieceofmetalorapieceofrockwithoutknowingwhattodowithit.
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Wewon’tgetanybenefitoutofitatall.TheBuddhasawthatthebodyandthemindaretwoseparatethingsofdiffering
value.Thebodyisslowandheavy.Themindislightandveryfast.Forexample,ifyouthinkofgoingtoBangkok,themindimmediatelyzoomstoBangkok.Itcouldgotherewhoknowshowmanytimesinaday.Butwiththebody,ifyousimplywantittogo,it’llnevergetthere.Andit’sevenworsewhenyou’reold:Eachstepcanwearyouout.Sothespeedofthebodyandmindaredifferentinthisway.That’swhytheBuddhasaidthatthemindisthefastestthingintheworld,andit’sthemostimportantthinginthebody.Wehavetostudyitsothatwe’refullyacquaintedwithit.Otherwise,wewon’tbeabletomeetwithhappiness.
Buddhismisn’tanaffairofprayingorasking,andit’snotsomethingthatwecangivetooneanother.Weeachhavetodotheworkforourselvesifwewanttogetresults.ThisiswhytheBuddhataughtustomakemerit,formeritiswhatgivesrisetothehappinessweaspireto.Ifyoulookaroundyou,you’llseethatsomepeoplesucceedateverythingtheyputtheirhandto.Otherpeopledon’tsucceedatanything:Theytrythisanditdoesn’tsucceed;theytrythatanditdoesn’tsucceed.That’sbecausetheydon’thaveanymerittohelpthem.TheBuddhathuspraisedthosewhomakealotofmeritoften,forwhatevertheythinkofdoingwillsucceedinlinewiththeiraims.Thosearethepeoplewhoarehappy.
“Sowhat’sgoodaboutmerit?Themoreyoumakemerit,thelesswealthyouhave.What’ssogoodaboutit?”Ifpeoplelookatitonlyonthesurface,they’resuretoseethingsinthatway.Ifyouspeakonlybrieflyaboutmeritwithoutexplainingit,peoplearesuretomisunderstand.ThisiswhytheBuddhaexplainedtherewardsofthethreewaysofmakingmerit:generosity,virtue,andmeditation.
Generosityisawayofhelpingotherpeoplebehappy.Whenwehelponeanotherandgiveusefulthingstooneanother,ithastomeansomething.Sostopandthink.Allthesufferingandturmoilintheworld—thievery,arson,andworldwars:Whatdotheycomefrom?Theycomefrompeoplenoteatingtheirfill.Noteatingyourfillhappensintwoways:(1)nothavinganythingtoeat;and(2)havingthingstoeatbutyou’renotfull—i.e.,yourgreedhasnosenseofenough.Thesetwoformsofnoteatingyourfillgivebirthtoworldwars.Somepeoplewanttobetheonlyoneswhoarerich.Butthinkaboutit:Iftherewereonlytenreallyrichpeopleandtwentymillionpeoplewithnothingtoeat,thetwentymillionaresuretogangupontheten.Oncethetwentymilliongainpower,they’regoingtoforcethetenofyoutoeatnothingbutwateryriceporridgeandtosleepontheground.
ThisiswhytheBuddhataughtustobegenerous,tosharefoodwithoneanother.Don’tbestingyandselfish.Ifweweretosharethingswithoneanotheralloverthe
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world,thereprobablywouldn’tbeanyturmoil.Whenpeoplehaveenoughtoeat,theyquietdown.Andnotjustpeople:Thesameistrueofanimals,likedogs.Oncetheyhaveenoughtoeat,theyliedownstill.Youcanstepovertheirheadsandtheywon’tbiteyou.Andtheywon’tharasspeopleaswell.
It’sthesamewithpeople.Whentheycaneattheirfillandsleepatnight,theysmileuntiltheircheeksbulgeout.Otherpeoplecancursethemandtheywon’tgetangry.Butif,whenthey’rehungry,someonesaysanythingevenjusttheleastbitdispleasing,theycanalmostripoffthatperson’sfleshtoeatit.Thisisthewayitiswithpeopleandanimals.
“Nothavinganythingtoeat”:Whatdoesthatcomefrom?Itcomesfrombeingpoor.Povertycancomefromlotsofthings,butbyandlargeitcomesfromeitherlazinessorstupidity.That’swhymanypeopledon’thaveanythingtoeat.They’retoolazytowork,andsothey’repoor.Whenthey’repoortheydon’thaveanythingtoeat.
“Havingthingstoeatbutyou’renotfull”:Thishappenswhengreedandstinginesstakeovertheheart.Youhaveenoughbutyoudon’tdareeatitforfearthatyou’llrunout,orthatotherpeoplewillseeyou,orthatthey’llaskyouforsomeofwhatyou’vegot.Ifyoudon’tdareeatbecauseyou’reafraidofrunningoutorthatotherpeoplewillstealwhatyouhave,youhavetoeatinsecret.Whenotherpeoplewhodon’thaveanythingtoeatseeyou,they’llthink,“Whydothesepeoplehavesomuch?Whydotheyeatinsecretwithoutsharing?”Thisgivesrisetothieveryandrobbery.Thisisthefusethatignitesworldwars:Wedon’tsharefoodwithoneanother.Ifweweretosharewithoneanother,theworldwouldbepeacefulandhappy.Ifwedon’tshare,therewillhavetobeturmoil.Whenlittlewarsstart,theygiverisetobigwars,whichthenturnintoworldwars.
TheBuddhaforesawtheseproblemsandsohetaught,“Dānañcadhamma-cariyācaetam-maṅgalam-uttamaṁ:GivingandpracticingtheDhammaarethehighestblessing.”
Therearefourkindsofgiving:
1)Givingsupporttoyourchildren,sharingyourwealthwiththemasisappropriatetohelpthemgainaneducationandgetstartedintheirlivelihood.
2)Givingcharitytopoorpeoplewhendisastershit,andtosickpeopleandtooldpeoplewhoareweak.
3)Givingaidtothecountryatlarge,givingmoneytobuildroadsandhospitals,andbeingwillingtopayyourtaxesinfull.
4)GivingofferingsinhonoroftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅgha,thosewhoareworthyofofferings.
Whenyoudothis,it’sablessingforyourself.You’veputyourwealthinsafekeepinginthesefourbanks.Whenyouneedthatwealth,allyouhavetodoistorememberthe
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goodyou’vedone,andthemindwillbecomforted.Thistypeofwealthisnoblewealth:Itfollowsyoutoyourdyingday,andevenwhenyougotothenextworld,you’llhaveplentytousewithoutanyworry.
Forthisreason,theBuddhalookedaftertheworldtokeepithappyandatpeacebyteachingpeopletogivethesefourkindsofgifts.AndhetaughttheDhammasothatwewouldobservethepreceptsandpracticemeditation.Hetaughtus,“Don’tstaystuckinthepleasuresoftheworld—beingabletoliedownandsleep,andeatingyourfill—becausebeingfullinthiswaydoesn’tstayfullforlong,andisn’treallyfull.Ifyou’refulltoday,you’llbehungryagaintomorrow.Ifyou’refulltomorrow,you’llbehungryagainthenextday.Youhavetosufferinrunningaroundalwayslookingforthingstoeat.Asforthepleasureinlyingdown,there’snothingreliableaboutit.Trylyingdownforthreedaysandseewhatit’slike.Yourbackwillgetsostiffthatyouwon’tbeabletogetup.You’llhavetofindsomeonetomassageyouandrubyoudownwithoil.Whatyouthoughtwouldbepleasantendsupgivingyoupain.
That’swhytheBuddhataughtusnottobeinfatuatedwiththepleasureofeatingandlyingdown,andinsteadtopulverizethatpleasureintoafinepowdersothatit’llturnintosomethingofvalue.It’slikeatapiocarootthatcosts20cents.Ifyousliceit,dryitinthesun,andthengrinditdowntoafineflour,thenwhenyoutakeittosellinthemarketyou’llfindthatitspricehasincreasedtofourorfivedollarsakilogram.Orlikeordinaryrice,whichcostsadollarandahalfperliter:Ifyousunitandgrinditdownintoflourformakingsweets,you’llbeabletosellitfortwiceitsoriginalprice.
Inthesameway,theBuddhataughtustotakeourwealthandpulverizeitsothatit’llgrowinvalue.Inotherwords,hehasususeourdiscernmenttoseethatwealthissimplycommonpropertyoftheworld,andthatwecangainvaluefromitbygivingmaterialsupportandofferingstoothers,sothatwe’llthenbegeneroustoothers.Don’teatitallyourself.“N’ekāsīlabhatesukhaṁ:Thosewhoeatalonecanfindnohappiness.”Whenyouliedown,don’tliedownforlong.Sacrificesomeofyourtimeinbedbysittingupinmeditation,developingthoughtsofgoodwillasameansofstrengtheningyourheartandmind.Inthatwayyouwon’toppressotherpeople,andyouwon’toppressyourself.
TheBuddhataughtthatifthemindfallsintogoodthoughts,it’llfindeaseandhappiness.Ifitfallsintoevilthoughts,it’llfindsufferingandpain.Youcanprovethistoyourself:Whenyougobackhome,tryingthinkingofsomethinglonganddifficult,andseehowyoufeel.Yourheadwillimmediatelystartitchingandaching.Orelsethinkaboutsomeoneyoureallyhate—someonewho’sbeenyourenemyorhasabusedandoppressedyouinvariousways:Yourheartwon’tfeelhappyatall.Thisisthinkingaboutthingsthataren’tgood.
Asforthingsthataregood,youcantrythataswell.Forexample,thinkaboutwhat
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wouldhappenifsomeonetoldyouanumberthat’llwinthefirstprizeinthelotteryforsure,andthatyou’dbeabletomakemeritinahugeway.Ifthelotterythencomesoutwithexactlythatnumber,notasingledigitoff,andyouhave500,000dollarsinyourhand,whatwouldyouwant?Whenyouthinklikethis,youcouldsittherejustsmilingtoyourself.Youcouldcloseyourdoorandlietheresmilingtoyourself.
ThisiswhytheBuddhataughtustothinkonlyofthingsthataregood—likethinking,buddho,buddho.Themindwillbeatitsease,bloomingandbright,withoutanysorrow.
Whenthemindthinksaboutthingsthataremeritorious,it’slikeeatingfoodthathasflavorandnourishment.Ifyousitherethinkingaboutallthemoneyyou’velenttootherpeople,it’snotanythinggood,becausesomepeople,whenthetimecomes,won’tpaytheirinterest.Youhavetoconfrontthembeforethey’llbewillingtopay.Somepeoplewon’tevenpaythen.They’llcheatyououtofboththeinterestandthecapital.Whenyouthinkaboutthis,itpainsyourheart.Sothinkaboutsomethingbetterthanthat.Tellyourself,“I’mgoingtoworksolelyonthemind.Iwon’tgetinvolvedinaffairsoftheeyes,ears,etc.,atall.”Whenthemindhasnothingdisturbingit,it’llgiverisetopurity.It’llbrightenupandbestar-happy.Don’tletitberice-porridgehappy:i.e.,youputitinaplate,leaveitthereforsixhours,andcomebacktofindthatit’sspoiled.
Nomatterhowamazingthegoodthingsoftheworld,thatgoodnessdoesn’tlast.It’llhavetopartwayswithus.It’snotlikehappinessintheDhamma,i.e.,whentheheartishappy.Thatkindofhappinessstayswithusatalltimes.Nomatterwherewego,it’llfollowusthere.Forthisreason,youshouldtrytobringyourmindtorightconcentrationwithinsightinyourheart.You’llbeatyourease.Whetheryou’rerichorpoor,youwon’tcare.Youwon’tbeinterestedintheaffairsoftheworldatall.
WhenyoupracticetheDhamma,youhavetopracticeinlinewiththeactualDhamma.It’sthesameaswhenyouwanttorideonanoxorinacar.Don’tridetheshadowoftheoxortheshadowofthecar.Onlyifyouridetheactualoxorcarwillyougainanycomfortandactuallygettoyourgoal.Theexternalsofmeritareliketheshadowoftheoxortheshadowofthecar.Ifyoudon’ttrainyourmind,you’llnevergettoreachactualmerit.You’lllandeitheronitsheadoronitstail,andtheoxmaykickyouorstabyouwithitshorns—ashappenedinastoryI’lltellyou.
OnedayatthebeginningoftheRainsretreat,ahusbandandwifedecidedtogiveagifttotheSaṅghafortheysawthatitwouldgainthemalotofmerit.ThatnighttheypreparedallthefoodandotherthingstheywouldgivetotheSaṅgha,andbothofthemfeltjoyfulandhappy.Thenextmorningthetwomonkswhoweretoreceivetheirgiftarrivedatthehouse.Thehusband’snamewasMaew,andthewife’snamewasMa.Bothofthembroughttraysoffoodandplacedtheminfrontofthemonks.
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Themonkshadordainedwhentheywereold,andneitherofthemknewhowtochanttheprecepts.SowhenMaewandMaaskedfortheprecepts,theeldermonkfidgetedaroundabitandthengavethefifthprecept—againstdrinking—first.Hehadheardthatdrinkingwasareallybigsin,andjustasatreeisbigatitsbase,hedecidedthatthebigpreceptshouldcomefirst.Sothat’showhechantedit.Whenhehadfinished,thesecondmonksaid,“That’snottherightwaytogivetheprecepts.”Thefirstonesaid,“Yes,itisright.”Thesecondonesaid,“No,it’swrong.”Sotheystartedgettingirritatedandarguedbackandforthuntilthefirstmonkchallengedthesecondmonk,“Whichpartofaboatcomesfirst?Whichpartofacarryingpolecomesfirst?Whichpartofapersoncomesfirst?Trythinkingaboutit.Anysideatallcancomefirst.Whenapersonwalks,thetoescomefirst.Whenhecrawls,thethumbsandkneescomefirst.It’sthesamewithboatsandcarryingpoles:Whicheverdirectionyou’reheaded,frontorback,that’sthepartthatcomesfirst.Sothere’snothingwrongwithgivingthefifthpreceptfirst.”
Sotheyagreedthathewasright,eventhoughthewholethingwastotallywrong.Usuallythepreceptagainstkillinghastocomefirsteverytime.It’sjustthatneitherofthemhadhadanytraining.
ThentheeldermonktaughtMaewthechantforofferingthegifttotheSaṅgha:“TheseofferingswegivetotheSaṅgha,”etc.MaewandMachanted“Namotassa…:HomagetotheBlessedOne,”threetimes,andthenMaewsaidtoMa,“Repeatafterme.”Sohestartedwiththefirstwordinthechant,“Imāni,”[whichmeans,“These,”inPali,but“ThisbitchMa,here,”inThai].Majustsatthereinsilenceanddidn’trepeatafterhim.SoMaewstartedagain,“Imāni.”ButMasattherefuming:“Herewe,onadaymakingmerit,andheusesthiskindoflanguagewithme.”SoMaewstartedagain,“Imāni.”Macouldn’tstanditanylongerandsosheshotbackatherhusband,“AiMaewni:ThisbastardMaewhere!”
Maewgotangryandgaveheranastylook.Finallytheystartedyellingateachotherand,takingtheservingspoonsfromthetray,beganbeatingeachotheroverthehead.“Wheredidyoustudythiskindoflanguage?”Mayelledatherhusband.“I’veneverheardyousayanythinglikethisbefore.”Maewsaidhelearneditfromthemonks.SoMaturnedontheeldermonkandaccusedhimofturningherhusbandagainstherandteachinghimfoullanguage.“Allthesemonksknowhowtodoiseat.Youcan’tevengivethepreceptsright.Well,I’vehadenough.Getoutofmyhouserightnow!”
Thetwooldmonkswereinafix.Whatevertheysaidwouldmakeherflareupevenmore,andtheythemselveswerefamished,sotheytooktheirbowlsandhurriedoutofthehouse.Whentheygotbacktothetemple,theyhadtoboilapotofricefortheirmeal.
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Thisiswhathappenswhenpeopletrytodogoodbutmisswhat’sactuallygoodinside,leadingtoallsortsoftrouble.
Sowhenyoutrytomakemeritanddowhat’sskillful,youhavetotrainyourheartsothatyourmeritreallywillleadtohappiness.Makeyourmindclearandclean,inlinewiththeBuddha’ssaying,“Kusalassūpasampadā:Becompleteinwhat’sskillful.”Thatmeritwillthencleanseyourmind,inlinewiththesaying,“Sacitta-pariyodapānaṁ:Cleanseyourmindonallsides”sothatit’sfreeoffaults.“Etaṁbuddhāna-sāsanaṁ:Thatwayyou’rerightinlinewiththeteachingsofall108Buddhas.”
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OnTarget
August28,1956
Tositinmeditationinawaythat’srightontarget,themindhastobeonthepath.Thismeansthatitstaysinthepresent,withouttrippingoverpreoccupationsthatitlikesordislikes.It’sestablishedsolelyinthemiddleway.Ifitmissesthistarget,it’snotonthepath.It’snotinlinewithtruemeditation.Nomatterhowmuchitmeditates,itwon’tgetanyresults.
Likeshootingabird:Ifyoudon’taimrightontarget,thenevenifyouhave100bulletsyou’llneverbeabletohitthebird.Butifyouaimaccuratelyrightatthebird,asinglebulletisallyouneedtobringitdownrightaway.Inthesameway,whensittinginconcentrationorsittinginmeditation,ifthemindstandsfirmandtallinthepath,you’llmeetwiththetruthofmeditation—stillness—withouthavingtowastealotoftime.
***Themindinconcentrationislikegenuinesilver—malleableandpurewhite—
becausenothingelseisadulteratingit.Wecanmakeitintowhateverwewantrightaway,withouthavingtowastetimeplacingitinacrucibleandheatingittogetridoftheimpurities.Themindnotinconcentrationislikeimitationoradulteratedsilver:hard,brittle,andblack,becauseit’smixedwithcopperorlead.Themoretheimpurities,theloweritsvalue.
Apuremindisthuslikegenuinesilver.Thevariousperceptionsthatdarkenthemindareliketheimpuritiesthatmakethesilverblack,brittle,anddull.Soifweletperceptionscomeinandgetmixedupinthemind,themindwillhavetotakeonthecharacteristicsofimitationoradulteratedsilver.Wewon’tbeabletofindanypurityinitatall.Whenthisisthecase,themindwillhavenostillness.
Butifwebrushawaythevariousperceptionsandpreoccupationsadulteratingthemind,it’llbecomefirmlyestablishedinconcentration,inlinewiththefactorsofthepath.
Oncethemindturnsintothepath,wehavetowatchoveritcarefully,inthesamewaythatwetrytokeeparoadfromwashingout.Wehavetosurveyitcontinuallytosee
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whereit’swearingout.Whereverit’swearingout,wefixitrightaway.Ifwedon’tfixitimmediately,andletitgetriddledwithpotholesorwashaway,it’llbereallyhardtorepair.Whenthemindisfollowingthepath,anyhindrancesthatinterfereareabreakintheroad.Ifweletitgolikethatanddon’thurryuptorepairit,thebreakwillgetwideranddeeperuntiltheroadturnsintoanordinarypieceofground.
Sowhileyou’retryingtodevelopthepath,ifyouletyourselfbeforgetful—ifyouletyourmindfulnesslapse,lettingdistractionsintothemind—thestateofmindthatformsthepathwillimmediatelybedestroyed.Yourmeditationwillbespoiled,yourconcentrationwillbespoiled,themindwillreturntoitsordinarystateandwon’tbeabletofindthepathtogenuinegoodness.
Beingforgetfulwhileyoumeditatecanhappeninthreeways.Thefirstisbybringinginsidethingsouttothinkabout.Inotherwords,yougrabholdofanylightsorvisionsthatmayappear,andinthiswayyourpathwashesout.Thesecondwayisbybringingoutsidethingsintothinkabout,i.e.,abandoningyourmeditationobject.Thethirdwayisbylosingconsciousness.Yousitthere,butit’sasifyouwereasleep.Allofthesethingsarecalledawashed-outpath,likearoadthatwashesoutandisfullofdeeppotholes.
Tokeeppreoccupationsoutofthemindistocutapathinthemind.Toletoutsidepreoccupationsinistoletthepathwashout.Whenthepathwashesout,there’snowaythatinsightordiscernmentwillarise—justaswhenaroadwashesout,nocarsortruckscanrunalongit.Whenconcentrationgetsextinguishedinthisway,youcan’tpracticeinsightmeditation.There’snothingleftbutthoughtsaboutinsight,thoughtsaboutconcentration,thinking,guessing,gropinginlinewithyouroldpreconceptions.Thevirtuesofyourheartdisappearwithoutyourrealizingit.Ifyouwanttogobackandstartallover,it’shard—likegoingbackoverawashed-outroad.
***Whenmindfulnessstayswiththebody,it’scalledkāyagatāsati:mindfulness
immersedinthebody.Ingeneral,thisreferstobeingmindfulofthefourproperties:earth,water,fire,andwind.Topickoutjustonepart,itreferstobeingmindfulofthebreath.Thisisalsocalledkāyānupassanāsatipaṭṭhāna:establishingmindfulnessthroughcontemplatingthebody.Mindfulnessisthecause;alertness,theresult.Oryoucouldsaythatthebreathisthecause,andasenseofcomfortistheresult.
Whenwehavemindfulnessandalertnessinchargeofusatalltimes,thebodywillalwaysbeawake.Itwon‘tgetsleepyordrowsy.Thehindranceswon’tbeabletocomein,latchon,andeatawayatthemind.It’slikeahomewherethere’salwayssomebodyawakebydayandbynight,withoutfallingsleep.Thieveswon’tbeabletobreakinanddisturbthem.
Whenthemindandbodyareasleep,theyopenthewayforvariousformsofMārato
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comeinanddestroyourgoodnessineveryway.Forinstance,thevariousdemonsoftheaggregateswillgetintothebody,makingformabnormal,feelingsabnormal,perceptionsabnormal,fabricationsabnormal,andconsciousnessabnormal.Thevariousdemonsofdefilementwillsneakinandplacepoisoninourbody.Inotherwords,assoonasmindfulnesslapses,thesedemonswillcomeinandforcethemindtosleep.Thenthey’llputmorepoisoninourhearts:thefivehindrances.
Thereasonthehindrancesarecalledpoisonisbecausetheymaketheminddizzyanddeluded.Forexample,sensualdesiremakesusdeluded,infatuatedwithdifferentobjects.Illwillmakesusangryandvengeful,hotandfierysothatourmindhasnopeace.It’sasifwefallintoalivinghell.Slothandtorpormakeusdiscouraged.Wedon’tseetherewardsofwhat’smeritoriousandskillful,orofgenerosity,virtue,ormeditation.Thismakesussleepy,drowsy,andlistless.Restlessnessandanxietymakeusdistracted,irritated,andscattered.Whenthishappens,uncertaintyisboundtoarise,sowegropearoundwithoutanysenseofwhatwecantakeasourstandard.
Allofthesethingsarenothingbutdetriment.They’reallpoisonsandintoxicants.Thisiswhythey’recalledthedemonsofdefilement.Whenthesethingsworktheirwayintous,they’reboundtoexertalotofpowerandinfluence.TheycanpullourbodyoutoftheBuddha’steachings;theycanpullourheartoutoftheBuddha’steachings,makinguslazy,careless,andunreliable.Westartlivinglikeduckweed,whichsimplyrisesandfallswiththewater,andisnothingmorethanfoodforturtles—ignorance—andfish—evil.Whenourmindhasn’tfathomedthequalitiesoftheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅgha,it’sboundtobethisway.Itstillliveswithflocksofdemons.Eventhoughwepractice,it’sjustashow.We’restillfarfromtheBuddha,Dhamma,andSaṅgha.Wedon’tcountasclosetothematall.
Tobefarmeanstobefarawayintermsofourbehavior.Forinstance,ifwedon’twakenthebody,don’twakenthemind,wedon’tcountaspracticingtheBuddha’sDhamma.Butifyou’remindfulandalert,you’llalwaysbeawakeinbodyandmind.Inotherwords,whenyoureyesareopen,yourmindisfirmlyestablished.Whenyoureyesareclosed,yourmindisfirmlyestablished.Whateverjobyou’redoing—whethersitting,standing,walking,orlyingdown—thenumber“1”hastobeinchargeofyourmindatalltimes.Don’tletitturnintothenumbers2,3,or4atall.Thisiswhat’scalledbeinggenuinelyestablishedintheBuddha’sDhamma,inlinewiththeversefromtheCanon:
Suppabuddhaṁpabujjhantisadāgotama-sāvakāYesaṁdivācarattocaniccaṁkāyagatāsati
whichmeans:Whoeverismindful,contemplatingthebody,alwaysawakeintheBuddha’s
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Dhammabydayandbynight,isagenuinediscipleoftheBuddha.
***Whenyousitinconcentrationorinmeditation,themindhastopenetratestraight
intothetruthifyou’regoingtogetresults.Don’thitonlytheconvention.Wewantgenuinesilver,butifthereareimitationthingsadulteratingit—ifthecopperhasadulterateditupto80or90percent—thatsilverisn’tthesilverwewant.
Therearetwokindsofconventions:conventionsinlinewiththetruthandconventionsnotinlinewiththetruth.Anexampleofaconventionisthewaywe’resittingwithoureyesclosedhere.Ifsomeoneasksuswhatwe’redoingaswe’resittinghere,wesaythatwe’resittinginmeditation.Butthisphrase,“sittinginmeditation”:Isourmindstillornotstill?Ifit’sstill,that’saconventioninlinewiththetruth.We’resittinginmeditation.Butifthemindisn’tstill,ifitflickersoutafterperceptionsandpreoccupations,that’saconventionnotinlinewiththetruth.Youcan’treallysaythatyou’resittinginmeditation.Whatyou’redoingissimplysittingwithyoureyesclosed,that’sall.Simplysittingwithyoureyesclosedisn’tsittinginmeditation.Thetruthoftheconventioncalled“sittinginmeditation”issittingwithastillheart,keepingthemindfirmlyestablishedinasinglepreoccupation,withoutbeingdistractedbyotherpreoccupations.That’stheconventioninlinewiththetruth.
Sonowthatwe’vecomehereintentonsittinginmeditation,weshouldtrytobeontargetwiththetruthoftheconvention.Ifwe’renotontargetwiththetruthoftheconvention,we’rejustsittingwithoureyesclosed.Nomatterhowmanydecadeswekeepthisup,it’snotlikelytoserveanypurpose.
Whenwemeditateinlinewiththetruthoftheconvention,we’llmeetwiththetruthasourreward.Theresultsofourworkwillberightconcentration.Thesilverputintoourmoldwillbepuresilver.Wewon’thavetotroubleourselveswithhavingtogetridoftheimpurities.It’s100percentpuresilver,sotheimpuritieswillfallawayontheirown.It’sthesamewhenthemindispure:Thehindranceswon’tbeabletopenetrate.Whateverworkwedo,nomatterwhat,willberightaction:cleanandpure.Ourwordswillberightspeech,purespeech.Whateverwesay,peoplewilltrustus.We’llbringprogressbothtoourselvesandtoothers.Ourwordswillbegood,withnodrawbacks.Whenthisisthecase,ourlivelihoodwilladvanceintherightdirection:rightlivelihood.
Ifthemindlacksafoundationinconcentration,it’slikeadulteratedsilver.Iftheadulterationsaremany,thesilverwillbeblackandbrittle.Whatevershapeyoutrytohammeritinto,it’llallbreak.It’suseless.Itisn’tmalleable.Butifyourmindisfirmlyestablishedinconcentration,it’slikegenuinesilverwithoutanyadulterations:bright,beautiful,white,andclean,somethingthatotherpeoplelove.Youyourselfwillbehappy,too,forthemindwillbefullandrefreshed,inandofitself.Whenyoulivewith
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otherpeople,they’llberefreshedaswell.Butifyou‘rethetypeofpersonwho’salwayssuffering,thenwhenyoulivewithotherpeople,youmakethemsuffer,too.
Sufferingarisesfromtheadulterationsofournotbeingtrue.IfwemeetupwiththetruthoftheDhamma,it’slikefindingahugehunkofmerit.Andwhenwehaveanenormoushunkofmeritinthisway,we’llhavemorethanenoughtoeatforlife.Thegoodnessburiedinourheartandmindislikeahunkofmineralburiedinrock.Ifthemineralismorethantherock,withthepassageoftimeitmightbeabletoturnthewholerockintodiamond.Butifthemineralisonlyasmallpartoftherock,itmaybenomatchfortherockandthedirt.Itmaygetturnedintowhicheverpartismore.
Ifwehaveonlyalittlebitofskillfulnessandmerit,it’sboundtobenomatchforourevilandunskillfulness.Withthepassageoftime,themindwillallflowbackdowntoitsevilways—inthesamewaythatsomepeople,eventhoughthey’realready80or90yearsold,haveneverbeenabletomakeanythingofthemselvesinlife.That’sbecausewhatevertheygain,theyuseitallupwithoutsettinganythingasidetoinvestinthefuture.Ifyoumakemeritbutthenthrowitaway,throwitaway,whenwillyouhaveenoughtolookafteryourself?You‘llhavetobepoorforlife.Ifyouhavechildrenandgrandchildren,they’llhavetobepoor,too,becausethey’rebornintoapoorfamily.Ifwe’rerichinnoblewealth,ourchildrenandgrandchildrenwon’tbepoor.We’llhavenodifficultyifwekeeponliving,andnofearifwedie.Butifthegoodwedoisn’tenoughforourownmouthsandstomachs,ifwedon’thaveenoughgoodnesstokeepourselvesgoing,ifwehavenothingbuteviltopassontoourchildren,we’recompoundingourevilontwolevels:theevilofbeingevilourselves,andtheevilpassingevilontothem.
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TheArtofLettingGo
August17,1956
Whenyousitandmeditate,evenifyoudon’tgainanyintuitiveinsights,makesureatleastthatyouknowthismuch:Whenthebreathcomesin,youknow.Whenitgoesout,youknow.Whenit’slong,youknow.Whenit’sshort,youknow.Whetherit’spleasantorunpleasant,youknow.Ifyoucanknowthismuch,you’redoingfine.Asforthevariousperceptionsandconcepts(saññā)thatcomeintothemind,brushthemaway—whetherthey’regoodorbad,whethertheydealwiththepastorthefuture.Don’tlettheminterferewithwhatyou’redoing—anddon’tgochasingafterthemtostraightenthemout.Whenathoughtofthissortcomespassingin,simplyletitgopassingon.Keepyourawareness,unperturbed,inthepresent.
Whenwesaythatthemindgoeshereorthere,it’snotreallythemindthatgoes.Onlyconceptsgo.Conceptsarelikeshadowsofthemind.Ifthebodyisstill,howwillitsshadowmove?Themovementofthebodyiswhatcausestheshadowtomove,andwhentheshadowmoves,howwillyoucatchholdofit?Shadowsarehardtocatch,hardtoshakeoff,hardtosetstill.Theawarenessthatformsthepresent:That’sthetruemind.Theawarenessthatgoeschasingafterconceptsisjustashadow.Realawareness—’knowing’—staysinplace.Itdoesn’tstand,walk,come,orgo.Asforthemind—theawarenessthatdoesn’tactinanywaycomingorgoing,forwardorback—it’squietandunperturbed.Andwhenthemindisthusitsnormal,even,undistractedself—i.e.,whenitdoesn’thaveanyshadows—wecanrestpeacefully.Butifthemindisunstableanduncertain,itwavers:Conceptsariseandgoflashingout—andwegochasingafterthem,hopingtodragthembackin.Thechasingafterthemiswherewegowrong.Thisiswhatwehavetocorrect.Tellyourself:Nothingiswrongwithyourmind.Justwatchoutfortheshadows.Youcan’timproveyourshadow.Sayyourshadowisblack.Youcanscrubitwithsoaptillyourdyingday,andit’llstillbeblack—becausethere’snosubstancetoit.Soitiswithyourconcepts.Youcan’tstraightenthemout,becausethey’rejustimages,deceivingyou.
TheBuddhathustaughtthatwhoeverisn’tacquaintedwiththeself,thebody,themind,anditsshadows,issufferingfromavijjā—darkness,deludedknowledge.
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Whoeverthinksthemindistheself,theselfisthemind,themindisitsconcepts—whoeverhasthingsallmixeduplikethis—islostlikeapersonlostinthejungle.Tobelostinthejunglebringscountlesshardships.Therearewildbeaststoworryabout,problemsinfindingfoodtoeatandaplacetosleep.Nomatterwhichwayyoulook,there’snowayout.Butifwe’relostintheworld,it’smanytimesworsethanbeinglostinthejungle,becausewecan’ttellnightfromday.Wehavenochancetofindanybrightnessbecauseourmindsaredarkwithavijjā.
Thepurposeoftrainingthemindtobestillistosimplifythings.Whenthingsaresimplified,wecansee.Themindcansettledownandrest.Andwhenthemindhasrested,it’llgraduallybecomebright,inandofitself,andgiverisetoknowledge.Butifweletthingsgetcomplicated—ifweletthemindgetmixedupwithsights,sounds,smells,tastes,tactilesensations,andideas—that’sdarkness.Knowledgewon’thaveachancetoarise.
Mind-statesmixedupwithsights,sounds,smells,tastes,tactilesensations,andideasarelikeaboatbuffetedbystormwindsfromtheback,thefront,theleft,andtheright—alleightdirections—thatkeepitfromstayinguprightandsimplycauseittosink.Thelanternsusedontheboatwillhavetogooutbecauseofthestrengthofthewinds.
Thoughtsandconceptsarelikewavesrunningbackandforthintheocean.Theheartislikeafishthatswimsupanddowninthewater.Justasit’sthenatureofthefishtoseethewavesoftheoceanasenjoyable,it’sthenatureofpeoplefilledwiththickignorancetoseetumultuousissuesasenjoyableaswell.Butwhenwecancalmdownalltheissuesofthemind,wecanbringittoitsmeditationobject,firmlyimplantingtherecollections—beginningwithrecollectionoftheBuddhaandendingwithrecollectionoftheSaṅgha—intheheart.
Whenthisisthecase,wecanthrowoutallthebadthingsintheheart,justaswethrowoutalltheuselessthingsinourboatandloadtheboatwithusefulthingsinstead.Eventhoughthesethingsmayaddweighttotheboat,ourheartislight—becausealltheaffairsofmeritandskillfulnessarelight.Whentheheartislightinthisway,ourburdenslessen.Themindisfreeofitsvariousthoughtsandconcepts,thehindrancesdon’tappear,andwecanimmediatelyenterintoourmeditation.
Wehavetousemindfulnessandalertnesstosurveytheeffectthatthein-and-outbreathhasonthebodyandonthemind.Ifthebreathisweak,startwithalongin-breathagain.Don’tletyourmindfulnesslapse.Keepadjustingthebreathuntilyoufeelthatthebodyandmindaregainingasenseofcomfortandease.(Totakeadeepbreathistohighlightyoursenseoffeeling.)Whenyougainasenseofcomfortandeaseinthisway,themindgrowsstill.Whenthemindisstill,itgivesrisetomanykindsofgoodresults:
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(1)resultsintheareaofthebodyand(2)resultsintheareaofthemind.Resultsintheareaofthebodyareasenseofopenness,lightness,andsupplenesswithoutanysenseofconstrictionortrouble.Youcanwithoutfeelingtightness,pains,ordisease.
Asforthemind,itfeelsundisturbed:wideopenandempty,freefromexternalthoughtsandconcepts.Becarefultolookaftertheseresultswell,maintainthemforalongtime.Otherresultswillthenappearintheirwake:i.e.,knowledge.Onthephysicallevel,thisreferstothevisionsthatmayarise(uggahanimitta).Whatevervisionappearsasanimageintheheartisasecondarylevelofresult.Whenthefoundationprovidedbythebodyiscomfortable,thefoundationprovidedbythemindisboundtobecomfortable,andresults—calledcognitiveskills—willappearinthemind.Forexample,thingswe’veneverreadaboutorstudiedcanappeartouse.Anothersortofresultiswhenthemindisniceandquiet,ifwewanttoknowaboutaparticularmatter,wesimplymovethemindjustalittlebitandwecanimmediatelyknowwhatwewantedtoknow—likeaneedleonarecord:Assoonasithitstherecord,soundswillarisetotellusclearlywhat’sontherecord.
Thiskindofknowledgecandevelopintoliberatinginsight(vipassanā-ñāṇa).Butiftheknowledgeconcernslowlymatters—dealingwithperceptionsofthepastandfuture—andwefollowitforalongdistance,itturnsintoworldlyknowledge.Thatistosay,wedabblesomuchinmattersofthebodythatwelowerthelevelofthemind,whichdoesn’thaveachancetomatureinthelevelofmentalphenomena.
Say,forexample,thatavisionarisesandyougethooked:Yougainknowledgeofyourpastlivesandgetallexcited.Thingsyouneverknewbefore,nowyoucanknow.Thingsyouneversawbefore,nowyousee—andtheycanmakeyouoverlypleasedorupset.Why?Becauseyoutakethemalltooseriously.Youmayseeavisionofyourselfprosperingasalordormaster,agreatemperororking,wealthyandinfluential.Ifyouletyourselffeelpleased,that’sindulgenceinpleasure.You’vestrayedfromtheMiddlePath.Oryoumayseeyourselfassomethingyouwouldn’tcaretobe:apigoradog,abirdorarat,crippledordeformed.Ifyouletyourselfgetupset,that’sindulgenceinself-affliction—andagain,you’vestrayedfromthepath.Somepeoplereallyletthemselvesgetcarriedaway:Assoonastheystartseeingthings,theybegintothinkthatthey’respecial,somehowbetterthanotherpeople.Theyletthemselvesbecomeproudandconceited—andthetruepathhasdisappearedwithouttheirevenknowingit.Ifyou’renotcareful,thisiswheremundaneknowledgecanleadyou.
Butifyoukeeponeprinciplefirmlyinmind,youcanstayontherightpath:Whateverappears,goodorbad,trueorfalse,don’tletyourselffeelpleased,don’tletyourselfgetupset.Keepthemindbalancedandneutral,anddiscernmentwillarise.You’llseethatthevisionorsigndisplaysthetruthofstress:itarises(isborn),fades
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(ages),anddisappears(dies).Whenyouknowinthisway,youcanstayneutralandequanimous.Themindwilllet
goofthevisionanddiscarditfromtheheart.Thevisionwilldisappear—butitisn’tannihilated.Thevisionstillhasitstruth.It’slikefireintheworld:Theredlightoftheflameexists,butwedon’ttouchitortrytograbit.Allvisionsdisband,buttheyaren’tannihilated.Whereverwego,they’restillthere,butwesimplydon’tlatchontothem.Iftheyarise,that’stheirbusiness.Iftheydisband,that’stheirbusiness,butourawarenessstaysatnormalcy.
Thisisthepath.Whenthepathisestablishedinthisway,thecauseofsufferingdisbands,butourabilitytoknowandseetheDhammaisstillthere.Forexample,ifwewanttoknowwhatheavenandhellarelike,oriftheyexist,avisionwillimmediatelyappear.Sometimesweknowtheaffairsofotherpeople:Thispersonislikethis,thatpersonislikethat,whatthey’relikeaftertheydieandwhattheplacethey’rerebornislike.Sometimeswhenweknowthesethingswegetcarriedaway,entrancedinotherpeoples’business,entrancedbyourownknowledge.Sometimesweseethefaceofanenemywhooppressedusinthepast,andthisgetsusupset.Whenthishappens,themindfallsintoself-torment.
Therightwayisthatwedon’thavetoshowanyhappinessorsadnessinthethingsthatwelikeordon’tlike.Wehavetoremindourselvesthatit’snormalthatallofushavebothgoodthingsandbadthingsinourpast.Theaffairsofbirthkeepingcirclingaroundlikethis.Nothing’sforsure.Nothing’strue.Thegoodthingsaren’ttrulygood.Thebadthingsaren’ttrulybad—andtheykeeponbeingunreliable.Thisisthewayitiswithus;thisisthewayitiswithotherpeople.
Whenyouseethetruthinthisway,themindgivesrisetodisenchantmentbecauseitseesclearlythateverythingofeverysortsimplyarisesandchanges,andwhenitchangesitdisbands.Themindcanletgoandstayneutral,andthepatharises.Themindstayssteadyandstill,withnoworries,noattachments.Itwillthenbereleasedfromthevisionsaboutyouandaboutothers,releasedfromitsknowledge.Itwon’tlatchontoknowledgeaboutyou—suchasknowledgeofpreviouslives—orontoknowledgeaboutothers,suchasknowledgeofthedeathandrebirthofotherbeings.
Whenwe’renolongerinvolvedinourownaffairs—trueorfalse,goodorbad,andaboutwhetherweknowornot—themindwillgainreleasefromthemundanelevelanddeveloptheknowledgeoftheendingofmentalfermentations.
Somepeoplereachthestageofgainingknowledgeandlatchontoit,whichcanleadtodelusion.Asforthoseperfectionsarestrong,they’llknowhowtoholdbackfromtheirknowledge,andthemindwillenterthelowestofthenobleattainments,orstream-entry.
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Somepeoplegaincognitiononthementallevel.Knowledgearisesconcerningtheaffairsofthemind.Thiskindofsignisaformofknowledgethatarisesfromstillnesswithoutourhavingthoughtofthematter.Itcansimplyariseonitsown.Assoonaswethinkofsomething,itwillimmediatelyarise,justaswehearsoundswhenweturnonaradio.Sometimesweknowthis,sometimesthat,sometimeswedon’tknow,sometimesitarisesonitsown.
Thiscanturnintothecorruptionsofinsight,whichiswhyweshouldn’tlatchontothetruethingsweknow,weshouldn’tlatchontothefalsethingsweknow.Ifyoulatchontoyourviews,theycanhurtyou.Latchingontofalsethingscanhurtyou;latchingontotruethingscanhurt.Infact,thetruethingsarewhatreallyhurtyou.Ifwhatyouknowistrueandyougotellingotherpeople,you’rebragging.Ifitturnsouttobefalse,itcanbackfireonyou.Thisiswhythosewhotrulyknowsaythatknowledgeistheessenceofstress:Itcanhurtyou.Knowledgeispartofthefloodofviewsandopinions(diṭṭhi-ogha)overwhichwehavetocross.Ifyouhangontoknowledge,you’vegonewrong.Ifyouknow,simplyknowandletitgoatthat.Youdon’thavetobeexcitedorpleased.Youdon’thavetogotellingotherpeople.
Peoplewho’vestudiedabroad,whentheycomebacktothericefields,don’ttellwhatthey’velearnedtothefolksathome.Theytalkaboutordinarythingsinanordinaryway.Theydon’ttalkaboutthethingsthey’vestudiedbecause(1)noonewouldunderstandthem;(2)itwouldn’tserveanypurpose.Evenwithpeoplewhowouldunderstandthem,theydon’tdisplaytheirlearning.Soitshouldbewhenyoupracticemeditation.Nomatterhowmuchyouknow,youhavetoactasifyouknownothing—becausethisisthewaypeoplewithgoodmannersnormallyact.Ifyougobraggingtootherpeople,it’sbadenough.Iftheydon’tbelieveyou,itcangetevenworse.
Sowhateveryouknow,simplybeawareofitandletitgo.Don’tlettherebetheassumptionthat‘Iknow.’Whenyoucandothis,yourmindcanattainthetranscendent,freefromattachment.
***Everythingintheworldhasitstruth.Eventhingsthataren’ttruearetrue—i.e.,their
truthisthatthey’refalse.Thisiswhywehavetoletgoofbothwhat’strueandwhat’sfalse.Onceweknowthetruthandcanletitgo,wecanbeatourease.Wewon’tbepoor,becausethetruth—theDhamma—willstillbetherewithus.Wewon’tbeleftempty-handed.It’slikehavingalotofmoney:Insteadofluggingitaroundwithus,wekeepitpiledupathome.Wemaynothaveanythinginourpockets,butwe’restillnotpoor.
Thesameistruewithpeoplewhoreallyknow.Evenwhentheyletgooftheirknowledge,it’sstillthere.ThisiswhythemindsoftheNobleOnesaren’tleftadrift.Theyletthingsgo,butnotinawastefulorirresponsibleway.Theyletgolikerich
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people:Eventhoughtheyletgo,they’vestillgotpilesofwealth.Asforpeoplewholetthingsgolikepaupers,theydon’tknowwhat’sworthwhileand
what’snot,andsotheyletitallgo,throwitallaway.Andwhentheydothis,they’resimplyheadingfordisaster.Forinstance,theymayseethatthere’snotruthtoanything—notruthtothekhandhas,notruthtothebody,notruthtostress,itscause,itsdisbanding,orthepathtoitsdisbanding,notruthtounbinding(nibbāna).Theydon’tusetheirbrainsatall.They’retoolazytodoanything,sotheyletgoofeverything,throwitallaway.Thisiscalledlettinggolikeapauper.Likealotofmodern-daysages:Whentheycomebackaftertheydie,they’regoingtobepooralloveragain.
AsfortheBuddha,heletgoonlyofthetrueandfalsethingsthatappearedinhisbodyandmind—buthedidn’tabandonhisbodyandmind,whichiswhyheendeduprich,withplentyofwealthtohanddowntohisdescendants.Thisiswhyhisdescendantsneverhavetoworryaboutbeingpoor.
SoweshouldlooktotheBuddhaasourmodel.Ifweseethatthekhandhasareworthless—inconstant,stressful,not-self,andallthat—andsimplyletgoofthembyneglectingthem,we’resuretoenduppoor.Likeastupidpersonwhofeelssorepulsedbyafesteringsoreonhisbodythathewon’ttouchitandsoletsitgowithouttakingcareofit:There’snowaythesoreisgoingtoheal.Asforintelligentpeople,theyknowhowtowashtheirsores,putmedicineandbandagesonthem,sothateventuallythey’resuretorecover.
Inthesameway,whenpeopleseeonlythedrawbackstothekhandhas,withoutseeingtheirgoodside,andsoletthemgowithoutputtingthemtoanyworthwhileorskillfuluse,nothinggoodwillcomeofit.Butifwe’reintelligentenoughtoseethatthekhandhashavetheirgoodsideaswellastheirbad,andthenputthemtogoodusebymeditatingtogaindiscernmentintophysicalandmentalphenomena,we’regoingtoberich.Oncewehavethetruth—theDhamma—asourwealth,wewon’tsufferifwehavemoney,andwon’tsufferifwedon’t,becauseourmindswillbetranscendent.
Asforthevariousformsofrustthathavebefouledandobscuredoursenses—therustofgreed,therustofanger,andtherustofdelusion—theseallfallaway.Oureyes,ears,nose,tongue,body,andmindwillallbecleanandbright.ThisiswhytheBuddhasaid,“Dhammopadīpo:TheDhammaisabrightlight.”Thisisthelightofdiscernment.Ourheartwillbefarbeyondallformsofharmandsuffering,andwillflowinthecurrentleadingtonibbānaatalltimes.
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AttheTipofYourNose
August26,1957
Iffeelingsofpainordiscomfortarisewhileyou’resittinginmeditation,examinethemtoseewhattheycomefrom.Don’tletyourselfbepainedorupsetbythem.Iftherearepartsofthebodythatwon’tgoasyou’dlikethemto,don’tworryaboutthem.Letthembe—becauseyourbodyisthesameaseveryotherbody,humanoranimal,throughouttheworld:It’sinconstant,stressful,andcan’tbeforced.Sostaywithwhateverpartdoesgoasyou’dlikeitto,andkeepitcomfortable.
Thebodyislikeatree:Notreeisentirelyperfect.Atanyonetimeit’llhavenewleavesandoldleaves,greenleavesandyellow,freshleavesanddry.Thedryleaveswillfallawayfirst,whilethosethatarefreshwillslowlydryoutandfallawaylater.Someofthebranchesarelong,somethick,andsomesmall.Thefruitsaren’tevenlydistributed.Thehumanbodyisn’treallymuchdifferentfromthis.Pleasureandpainaren’tevenlydistributed.Thepartsthatacheandthosethatarecomfortablearerandomlymixed.Youcan’trelyonit.Sodoyourbesttokeepthecomfortablepartscomfortable.Don’tworryaboutthepartsthatyoucan’tmakecomfortable.
It’slikegoingintoahousewherethefloorboardsarebeginningtorot:Ifyouwanttositdown,don’tchoosearottenspot.Chooseaspotwheretheboardsarestillsound.Inotherwords,theheartneedn’tconcernitselfwiththingsthatcan’tbecontrolled.
Youcancomparethebodytoamango:Ifamangohasarottenorawormyspot,takeaknifeandcutitout.Eatjustthegoodpartremaining.Ifyou’refoolishenoughtoeatthewormypart,you’reinfortrouble.Yourbodyisthesame,andnotjustthebody—themind,too,doesn’talwaysgoasyou’dlikeitto.Sometimesit’sinagoodmood,sometimesit’snot.Thisiswhereyouhavetouseasmuchthoughtandevaluationaspossible.
Directedthoughtandevaluationarelikedoingajob.Thejobhereisconcentration:centeringthemind.Focusthemindonasingleobjectandthen,givingityourfullattention,examineandreflectonit.Ifyouuseameageramountofthoughtandevaluation,yourconcentrationwillgivemeagerresults.Ifyoudoacrudejob,you’llgetcruderesults.Ifyoudoafinejob,you’llgetfineresults.Cruderesultsaren’tworth
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much.Fineresultsareofhighqualityandareusefulinallsortsofways—likeatomicradiation,whichissofinethatitcanpenetrateevenmountains.Crudethingsareoflowqualityandhardtouse.Sometimesyoucansoaktheminwateralldaylongandtheystilldon’tsoftenup.Butasforfinethings,alltheyneedisalittledampnessintheairandtheydissolve.
Soitiswiththequalityofyourconcentration.Ifyourthinkingandevaluationaresubtle,thorough,andcircumspect,your‘concentrationwork’willresultinmoreandmorestillnessofmind.Ifyourthinkingandevaluationareslipshod,youwon’tgetmuchstillness.Yourbodywillache,andyou’llfeelrestlessandirritable.Oncethemindcanbecomeverystill,though,thebodywillbecomfortableandatease.Yourheartwillfeelopenandclear.Painswilldisappear.Theelementsofthebodywillfeelnormal:Thewarmthinyourbodywillbejustright,neithertoohotnortoocold.Assoonasyourworkisfinished,it’llresultinthehighestformofhappinessandease:nibbāna—unbinding.Butaslongasyoustillhaveworktodo,yourheartwon’tgetitsfullmeasureofpeace.Whereveryougo,therewillalwaysbesomethingnaggingatthebackofyourmind.Youwon’tbeabletogetaway,foryou’llhavetocomebackandworkatyourjobagainuntilit’sfinished.
ThisiswhytheBuddhataught,
anākulācakammantāetam-maṅgalam-uttamaṁ
whichmeans,“Ajobnotleftunfinished:That’sthehighestblessing.”Onceyourworkisdone,youcangowhereveryouwantwithease,withoutany
worriesorcaresbeforeyouorbehindyou.Ifyouhaven’tfinishedyourjob,it’sbecause(1)youhaven’tsetyourmindonit;and
(2)youhaven’tactuallydonethework.You’veshirkedyourdutiesandplayedtruant.Butifyoureallysetyourmindondoingthejob,there’snodoubtbutthatyou’llfinishit.
Onceyou’verealizedthatthebodyisinconstant,stressful,andcan’tbeforced,youshouldn’tletyourmindgetupsetorexcitedbyit.Keepyourmindnormal,onanevenkeel.‘Inconstant’meansthatitchanges.‘Stressful’doesn’trefersolelytoachesandpains.Itreferstopleasureaswell—becausepleasureisinconstantandundependable.Alittlepleasurecanturnintoalotofpleasure,orintopain.Paincanturnbackintopleasure,andsoon.(Ifwehadnothingbutpainwewoulddie.)Soweshouldn’tbeallthatconcernedaboutpleasureandpain.Thinkofthebodyashavingtwoparts,likethemango.Ifyoufocusyourattentiononthecomfortablepart,yourmindcanbeatpeace.Letthepainsbeintheotherpart.Onceyouhaveanobjectofmeditation,youhaveacomfortableplaceforyourmindtostay.Youdon’thavetodwellonyourpains.You
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haveacomfortablehousetolivein:Whygosleepinthedirt?It’snotthecasethatwehavenothingbutpaininthesameplaceallthetime.
Sometimesourbackaches,sometimesourleghurts,sometimesthepainmovesfromthelegtoacheinthesmalloftheback.Sometimesithurtstodaybutdisappearstomorrow.Orsometimesitdisappearsbutthenitcomesbacktohurtusagain.That’sbecausethere’snothingcertainorstableaboutit.Soclassthebadpartsasbadkamma,andthegoodpartsasmerit,andthenaskyourself,“Doyouwantbadkammaormerit?”Ifyoudon’tlikebadkamma,letitgotooneside.Ifyoulikemerit,staywiththepartsthatfeelcomfortable.
Whenyoucandothis,sufferingwilldisappear.Yourmeritwillkeepondevelopinguntilallfiveaggregateswillfeelpleasant.Theformofyourbodywillfeelcomfortable,feelingwithfeelcomfortable,perceptionwillfeelcomfortable,fabricationswillfeelcomfortable,consciousnesswillfeelcomfortable.Whenthesefivekindsofcomfortarise,theheartwillliebackeatingnothingbutthegoodnessandmeritofwhat’scalledraptureandcalm.Thisiswhatcomesfromdhamma-vicaya,orexploringtheDhammaofthepresent.
Whenwebecomeacquaintedwithwhat’sgoingoninourselvesinthisway,wecankeeponmakinganeffortwithinourgoodnessoroldmerit,andourheartwillexperiencenothingbuttheeaseandrefreshmentofrapture.Asrapturegrowsgreaterandgreater,we’llfeeltotallyfull.Whenwe’refull,we’llstopfeelinghungry,stopfeelingtired,stopfeelinghotorcold.Wecanliveanywhereatallandbeatourease.Theenergyofourbodyandtheenergyofourmindwillgrowstrongandgainpower.We’llbeabletositforfivehourswithoutanyachesorpains.
Whentheheartisfulllikethis,itcanrest—butthisdoesn’tmeanthatitdozesoff.“Resting”heremeansthatitgrowsquietasitentersintoconcentrationwithasenseofeaseandcomfort,withnothingtodisturbit.Thiskindofrestingiscalledvihāra-dhamma,ahomeforthemind,asthemindentersintojhāna.It’slikesittingupinabright,wide-openplacewhereyoucanseeeverythingclearly,bothnearandfar.Ifyousitdowninadarkplace,youcan’tseeanythingatall.Inotherwords,theheartisobscuredwiththepowerofthehindrances.Ifyousitinabright,wide-openplace,thehindrancescan’tsneakupandoppressthemind.Restinglikethisisrestingwithyoureyesopen—i.e.,you’reawarewitheveryin-and-outbreath.Yourawarenessofthingsbothwithinandwithoutstaysconstant,seeingthingsfromeverysideandintoeverycorner—andyetthemindremainssteadyandstill.Thebodyisquiet.Themindisquiet.Thisiscalledkāya-passaddhi,physicalcalm,andcitta-passaddhi,mentalcalm.
Tranquilitymeditation(samatha)isamindsnuginasinglepreoccupation.Itdoesn’testablishcontactwithanythingelse;itkeepsitselfcleansedofoutsidepreoccupations.
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Insightmeditation(vipassanā)iswhenthemindletsgoofallpreoccupationsinastateofall-aroundmindfulnessandalertness.Whentranquilityimbuedwithinsightarisesinthemind,fivefacultiesariseandbecomedominantallatonce:(1)Saddhindrīya:Yourconvictionbecomessolidandstrong.Whateveranyoneelsemaysay,goodorbad,yourmindisn’taffected.(2)Viriyindrīya:Yourpersistencebecomesresilient.Whetheranyoneteachesyouthepathornot,youkeepatitconstantlywithoutflaggingorgettingdiscouraged.(3)Satindrīya:Mindfulnessbecomesdominant,enlargedinthegreatframeofreference.Youdon’thavetoforceit.Itspreadsalloverthebody,inthesamewaythatthebranchesofalargetreeprotecttheentiretrunkfrombottomtotop,withoutanyonehavingtopullthemdownorshakethemup.Ourawarenessbecomesentirelyradiantineveryposture:sitting,standing,walking,andlyingdown.Itknowsonitsownwithoutourhavingtothink.Thisall-aroundawarenessiswhatismeantbythegreatestablishingofmindfulness.(4)Samādhindrīya:Ourconcentrationbecomesdominant,too.Whateverwe’redoing,theminddoesn’twaverorstray.Evenifwe’retalkingtothepointwhereourmouthopenstwometerswide,themindisstillatnormalcy.Ifthebodywantstoeat,liedown,sit,stand,walk,run,think,whatever,that’sitsbusiness.Orifanypartofitgetswearyorpained,again,that’sitsbusiness,butthemindremainsstillinasinglepreoccupation,withoutstrayingoffintoanythingelse.(5)Paññindrīya:Discernmentbecomesdominantwithinusaswell,tothepointwherewecanmakethemindattainstream-entry,once-returning,non-returning,orevenarahantship.
Weallwantnothingbutgoodness,butifyoucan’ttellwhat’sgoodfromwhat’sdefiled,youcansitandmeditatetillyourdyingdayandneverfindnibbānaatall.Butifyoucansetyourmindandkeepyourmindonwhatyou’redoing,it’snotallthathard.Nibbānaisreallyasimplematter,becauseit’salwaysthere.Itneverchanges.Theaffairsoftheworldarewhat’shard,becausethey’realwayschanginganduncertain.Todaythey’reoneway,tomorrowanother.Onceyou’vedonesomething,youhavetokeeplookingafterit.Butyoudon’thavetolookafternibbānaatall.Onceyou’verealizedit,youcanletitgo.Keeponrealizing,keeponlettinggo—likeapersoneatingricewho,afterhe’sputthericeinhismouth,keepsspittingitout.
Whatthismeansisthatyoukeepondoinggoodbutdon’tclaimitasyourown.Dogood,andthenspititout.Thisisvirāga-dhamma:dispassion.Formostpeopleintheworld,oncethey’vedonesomething,it’stheirs—andsotheyhavetokeeplookingafterit.Ifthey’renotcareful,it’lleithergetstolenorelsewearoutonitsown.They’reheadedfordisappointment.Likeapersonwhoswallowshisrice:Afterhe’seaten,he’llhavetodefecate.Afterhe’sdefecatedhe’llbehungryagain,sohe’llhavetoeatagainanddefecateagain.Thedaywillnevercomewhenhe’shadenough.
Butwithnibbāna,youdon’thavetoswallow.Youcaneatyourriceandthenspititout.Youcandogoodandletitgo.It’slikeplowingafield:Thedirtfallsofftheplowon
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itsown.Youdon’tneedtoscoopitupandputitinabagtiedtoyourwaterbuffalo’sleg.Whoeverisstupidenoughtoscoopupthedirtasitfallsofftheplowandstickitinabagwillnevergetanywhere.Eitherhisbuffalowillgetboggeddownorelsehe’lltripoverthebagandfallflatonhisfacerightthereinthemiddleofthefield.Thefieldwillnevergetplowed,thericewillnevergetsown,thecropwillnevergetgathered.He’llhavetogohungry.
ThisisthewayourpracticeoftheDhammatendstobe.Whateverwedo,we’renotreallyintentonwhatwe’redoing.Wewalkalong,lookingtotheleft,glancingtotheright,forgettingwherewe’vebeenandwherewe’regoing—liketheoldhusbandandwifewho,oneday,tooktheirmachetesintotheforesttoclearafield.Aftercuttingdownallthebigtrees,theoldmancameacrosssometallgrass,sohetookofftheclothhehadwrappedaroundhishead,tieditasasasharoundhiswaist,andtuckedthemacheteintothesashbehindhisback.Thenhesquatteddowntopulloutthegrass.Ashewaspullingoutthegrass,hecameacrossastump,soheturnedaroundtopickuphismachetetocutbackthestump,buthecouldn’tfinditanywhereontheground.Hecouldn’trememberwherehehadplacedit,sohestartedwalkingaround,lookingforitintheforest.Afterwalkingaroundeverywheretwoorthreetimes,hestillcouldn’tfindit.Theoldwomancalledoutafterhim,“Whatareyoulookingfor?”Theoldmanreplied,“I’mlookingformymachete.Iwanttocutbackastump.”Theoldwomansawthemachetetuckedunderherhusband’ssash,anditstruckherassofunnythatallshecoulddowassnickertoherselftothepointwhereshecouldn’tsayanythingatall.
Finally,herhusbandwasathiswits’endastohowtofindhismachete.So—becausehewassotiredandthesunwassohot—heplunkedhimselfdownontheground.That’swhenthehandleofthemachetetuckedbehindhisbackhitthegroundwithfullforce.Startled,theoldmanturnedaroundtolook—andthat’swhenherealizedthatthemachetehadbeentuckedbehindhisbackallalong.
Thewaywepracticeconcentrationisn’tallthatdifferentfromtheoldman.Thisiswhywe’retaughttobepersistentindirectingourthoughtstoourmeditationobjectandevaluatingit,withmindfulnessandalertnessincharge,witheachandeveryin-and-outbreath.
Buddho,ourmeditationword,isthenameoftheBuddhaafterhisAwakening.Itmeanssomeonewhohasblossomed,whoisawake,whohassuddenlycometohissenses.ForsixlongyearsbeforehisAwakening,theBuddhatraveledabout,searchingforthetruthfromvariousteachers,allwithoutsuccess.Sohewentoffonhisownandonafull-mooneveninginMaysatdownundertheBodhitree,vowingthathewouldn’tgetupuntilhehadattainedthetruth.Finally,towarddawn,ashewasmeditatingonhisbreath,hegainedAwakening.Hefoundwhathewaslookingfor—rightatthetipofhis
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nose.Nibbānadoesn’tliefaraway.It’srightatourlips,rightatthetipofournose,butwe
keepgropingaroundandneverfindit.Ifyou’rereallyseriousaboutfindingpurity,setyourmindonmeditationandnothingelse.Asforwhateverelsemaycomeyourway,youcansay,‘Nothanks.’Pleasure?‘Nothanks.’Pain?‘Nothanks.’Goodness?‘Nothanks.’Evil?‘Nothanks.’Attainment?‘Nothanks.’Nibbāna?‘Nothanks.’Ifit’s‘nothanks’toeverything,whatwillyouhaveleft?Youwon’tneedtohaveanythingleft.That’snibbāna.Likeapersonwithoutanymoney:Howwillthievesbeabletorobhim?Ifyougetmoneyandtrytoholdontoit,you’regoingtogetkilled.Ifthisthiefdoesn’tgetyou,thatonewill.Carry‘what’syours’aroundtillyou’recompletelyweigheddown.You’llnevergetaway.
Inthisworldwehavetolivewithbothgoodandevil.Peoplewhohavedevelopeddispassionarefilledwithgoodnessandknowevilfully,butdon’tholdontoeither,don’tclaimeitherastheirown.Theyputthemasideandletthemgo,andsocantravellightandeasy.Nibbānaisn’tallthatdifficultamatter.IntheBuddha’stime,somepeoplebecamearahantswhilegoingontheiralmsround,somewhileurinating,somewhilewatchingfarmersplowingafield.What’sdifficultaboutthehighestgoodliesinthebeginning,inlayingthegroundwork—beingconstantlymindful,examiningandevaluatingyourbreathatalltimes.Butifyoucankeepatit,you’reboundtosucceedintheend.
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sabbesattāsadāhontuaverāsukha-jīvino
kataṁpuñña-phalaṁmayhaṁsabbebhāgībhavantute
Mayallbeingslivehappily,alwaysfreefromanimosity.Mayallshareintheblessings
springingfromthegoodIhavedone.
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TableofContents
Titlepage 2Copyright 3Introduction 4BrightnessWithin 6TheLightofDiscernment 9Clinging 11LettingGo 15ThreePrinciples 18ThreeStrandsofaRope 20AttheGateofaCattle-pen 22StartingOutSmall 25Housework&Fieldwork 27StrengthfortheJourney 30IntoPosition 35TwoGuardianMeditations 37PlayingHost 43AnImageoftheBuddha 46Binoculars 51TheElectricHeart 54RestraintoftheSenses 57Snakes,Fires,&Thieves 59EnduringPrinciples 62Merit 68OnTarget 76TheArtofLettingGo 81AttheTipofYourNose 87Dedication 93
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