Meditation
by
--o0o--
Seekers of goodness who have gathered here please
listen in peace. Listening to the Dhamma in peace means to listen with a one-pointed mind,
paying attention to what you hear and then letting go. Listening to the Dhamma is of great benefit. While listening to the Dhamma we are encouraged to firmly establish both body and
mind in samadhi, because it is one kind
of dhamma practice. In the time of the
This place is well suited to meditation
practice. Having stayed here a couple of nights I can see that it is an
important place. On the external level it is already peaceful,
all that remains is the internal level, your hearts and minds. So I ask all of
you to make an effort to pay attention.
Why have you gathered here to practice
meditation? It's because your hearts and minds do not understand what should be
understood. In other words, you don't truly know how things are, or what is
what. You don't know what is wrong and what is right, what it is that brings you suffering and causes you to doubt. So first
you have to make yourselves calm. The reason that you have
come here to develop calm and restraint is that your hearts and minds are not
at ease. Your minds are not calm, not restrained. They are swayed by
doubting and agitation. This is why you have come here today and are now
listening to the Dhamma.
I would like you to concentrate and listen
carefully to what I say, and I ask permission to speak frankly because that's
how I am. Please understand that even if I do speak in a forceful manner, I am
doing so out of good will. I ask your forgiveness if there is anything I say
that upsets you, because the customs of Thailand and those of the West are not
the same. Actually, speaking a little forcefully can be good because it helps
to stir people up who might otherwise be sleepy or drowsy, and rather than
rousing themselves to hear the Dhamma
allow themselves to drift instead into complacency and as a result never
understand anything.
Although there may appear to be many ways to
practice really there is only one. As with fruit trees, it is possible to get
fruit quickly by planting a cutting, but the tree would not be resilient or
long lasting. Another way is to cultivate a tree right from the seed, which
produces a strong and resilient tree. Practice is the same.
When I first began to practice I had problems
understanding this. As long as I still didn't know what's what, sitting
meditation was a real chore, even bringing me to tears on occasion. Sometimes I
would be aiming too high, at others not high enough, never finding the point of
balance. To practice in a way that's peaceful means to place the mind neither
too high or too low, but at the point of balance.
I can see that it's very confusing for you,
coming from different places and having practiced in different ways with
different teachers. Coming to practice here you must be plagued with all kinds
of doubts. One teacher says you must practice in one way, another says you
should practice another way. You wonder which method to use, unsure of the
essence of the practice. The result is confusion. There are so many teachers
and so many teachings that nobody knows how to harmonize their practice. As a
result there is a lot of doubt and uncertainty.
So you must try not to think too much. If you do
think, then do so with awareness. But so far your thinking has been done with
no awareness. First you must make your mind calm. Where there is knowing there
is no need to think, awareness will arise in its place, and this will in turn
become wisdom (pañña). But the ordinary kind
of thinking is not wisdom, it is simply the aimless
and unaware wandering of the mind, which inevitably results in agitation. This
is not wisdom.
At this stage you don't need to think. You've
already done a great deal of thinking at home, haven't you? It just stirs up
the heart. You must establish some awareness. Obsessive thinking can even bring
you tears, just try it out. Getting lost in some train of thought won't lead
you to the truth, it's not wisdom. The
To meditate you do not have to think much more
than to resolve that right now is the time for training the mind and nothing else.
Don't let the mind shoot off to the left or to the right, to the front or
behind, above or below. Our only duty right now is to practice mindfulness of
the breathing. Fix your attention at the head and move it down through the body
to the tips of the feet, and then back up to the crown of the head. Pass your
awareness down through the body, observing with wisdom. We do this to gain an
initial understanding of the way the body is. Then begin the meditation, noting
that at this time your sole duty is to observe the inhalations and exhalations.
Don't force the breath to be any longer or shorter than normal, just allow it
to continue easily. Don't put any pressure on the breath, rather let it flow
evenly, letting go with each in-breath and out-breath.
You must understand that you are letting go as
you do this, but there should still be awareness. You must maintain this
awareness, allowing the breath to enter and leave comfortably. There is no need
to force the breath, just allow it to flow easily and naturally. Maintain the
resolve that at this time you have no other duties or responsibilities.
Thoughts about what will happen, what you will know or see during the
meditation may arise from time to time, but once they arise just let them cease
by themselves, don't be unduly concerned over them.
During the meditation there is no need to pay
attention to sense impressions. Whenever the mind is affected by sense
impingement, wherever there is a feeling or sensation in the mind, just let it
go. Whether those sensations are good or bad is unimportant. It is not
necessary to make anything out of those sensations,
just let them pass away and return your attention to the breath. Maintain the
awareness of the breath entering and leaving. Don't create suffering over the
breath being too long or too short, simply observe it without trying to control
or suppress it in any way. In other words, don't attach. Allow the breath to
continue as it is, and the mind will become calm. As you continue the mind will
gradually lay things down and come to rest, the breath becoming lighter and
lighter until it becomes so faint that it seems like it's not there at all.
Both the body and the mind will feel light and energized. All that will remain
will be a one-pointed knowing. You could say that the mind has changed and
reached a state of calm.
If the mind is agitated, set up mindfulness and
inhale deeply till there is no space left to store any air, then
release it all completely until none remains. Follow this with another deep
inhalation until you are full, then release the air again. Do this two or three times, then re-establish concentration.
The mind should be calmer. If any more sense impressions cause agitation in the
mind, repeat the process on every occasion. Similarly with
walking meditation. If while walking, the mind becomes agitated, stop
still, calm the mind, re-establish the awareness with the meditation object and
then continue walking. Sitting and walking meditation are in essence the same,
differing only in terms of the physical posture used.
Sometimes there may be doubt, so you must have sati,
to be the one who knows, continually following and examining the agitated mind
in whatever form it takes. This is to have sati. Sati watches
over and takes care of the mind. You must maintain this knowing and not be
careless or wander astray, no matter what condition the mind takes on.
The trick is to have sati taking control
and supervising the mind. Once the mind is unified with sati a new kind
of awareness will emerge. The mind that has developed calm is held in check by
that calm, just like a chicken held in a coop...the
chicken is unable to wander outside, but it can still move around within the
coop. Its walking to and fro doesn't get it into trouble because it is
restrained by the coop. Likewise the awareness that takes place when the mind
has sati and is calm does not cause trouble. None of
the thinking or sensations that take place within the calm mind cause harm or
disturbance.
Some people don't want to experience any thoughts
or feelings at all, but this is going too far. Feelings arise within the state
of calm. The mind is both experiencing feelings and calm at the same time,
without being disturbed. When there is calm like this there are no harmful
consequences. Problems occur when the "chicken" gets out of the
"coop." For instance, you may be watching the breath entering and
leaving and then forget yourself, allowing the mind to wander away from the
breath, back home, off to the shops or to any number of different places. Maybe
even half an hour may pass before you suddenly realize you're supposed to be
practicing meditation and reprimand yourself for your lack of sati. This
is where you have to be really careful, because this is where the chicken gets
out of the coop -- the mind leaves its base of calm.
You must take care to maintain the awareness
with sati and try to pull the mind back. Although I use the words
"pull the mind back," in fact the mind doesn't really go anywhere, only the object of awareness has changed. You must
make the mind stay right here and now. As long as there is sati there
will be presence of mind. It seems like you are pulling the mind back but
really it hasn't gone anywhere, it has simply changed a little. It seems that
the mind goes here and there, but in fact the change occurs right at the one
spot. When sati is regained, in a flash you are back with the mind
without it having to be brought from anywhere.
When there is total knowing, a continuous and unbroken
awareness at each and every moment, this is called presence of mind. If your
attention drifts from the breath to other places then the knowing is broken.
Whenever there is awareness of the breath the mind is there. With just the
breath and this even and continuous awareness you have presence of mind.
There must be both sati and sampajañña. Sati is recollection and sampajañña is self awareness. Right now you are
clearly aware of the breath. This exercise of watching the breath helps sati
and sampajañña develop together. They share
the work. Having both sati and sampajañña
is like having two workers to lift a heavy plank of wood. Suppose there are two
people trying to lift some heavy planks, but the weight is so great, they have
to strain so hard, that it's almost unendurable. Then another person, imbued
with goodwill, sees them and rushes in to help. In the same way, when there is sati
and sampajañña, then pañña (wisdom) will arise at the same place to help
out. Then all three of them support each other.
With pañña
there will be an understanding of sense objects. For instance, during the
meditation sense objects are experienced which give rise to feelings and moods.
You may start to think of a friend, but then pañña
should immediately counter with "It doesn't matter," "Stop"
or "Forget it." Or if there are thoughts about where you will go
tomorrow, then the response would be, "I'm not interested,
I don't want to concern myself with such things." Maybe you start thinking
about other people, then you should think, "No, I
don't want to get involved." "Just let go," or "It's all
uncertain and never a sure thing." This is how you should deal with things
in meditation, recognizing them as "not sure, not sure," and maintaining
this kind of awareness.
You must give up all the thinking, the inner
dialogue and the doubting. Don't get caught up in these things during the
meditation. In the end all that will remain in the mind in its purest form are sati,
sampajañña and pañña.
whenever these things weaken doubts will arise, but
try to abandon those doubts immediately, leaving only sati, sampajañña and pañña.
Try to develop sati like this until it can be maintained at all times.
Then you will understand sati, sampajañña
and samadhi thoroughly.
Focusing the attention at this point you will
see sati, sampajañña, samadhi and pañña
together. Whether you are attracted to or repelled by external sense objects,
you will be able to tell yourself, "It's not sure." Either way they
are just hindrances to be swept away till the mind is clean. all
that should remain is sati, recollection; sampajañña,
clear awareness; samadhi, the firm and
unwavering mind; and pañña, or
consummate wisdom. For the time being I will say just this much on the subject
of meditation.
Now about the tools or aids to meditation
practice -- there should be metta (goodwill)
in your heart, in other words, the qualities of generosity, kindness and
helpfulness. These should be maintained as the foundation for mental purity.
For example, begin doing away with lobha,
or selfishness, through giving. When people are selfish they aren't happy.
Selfishness leads to a sense of discontent, and yet people tend to be very
selfish without realizing how it affects them.
You can experience this at any time, especially
when you are hungry. Suppose you get some apples and you have the opportunity
to share them with a friend; you think it over for a while, and, sure, the
intention to give is there all right, but you want to give the smaller one. To give
the big one would be...well, such a shame. It's hard to think straight. You
tell them to go ahead and take one, but then you say, "Take this
one!"...and give them the smaller apple! This is one form of selfishness
that people usually don't notice. Have you ever been like this?
You really have to go against the grain to give.
Even though you may really only want to give the smaller apple, you must force
yourself to give away the bigger one. Of course, once you have given it to your
friend you feel good inside. Training the mind by going against the grain in
this way requires self-discipline -- you must know how to give and how to give
up, not allowing selfishness to stick. Once you learn how to give, if you are
still hesitating over which fruit to give, then while you are deliberating you
will be troubled, and even if you give the bigger one, there will still be a
sense of reluctance. But as soon as you firmly decide to give the bigger one
the matter is over and done with. This is going against the grain in the right
way.
Doing this you win mastery over yourself. If you
can't do it you will be a victim of yourself and continue to be selfish. All of
us have been selfish in the past. This is a defilement which needs to be cut
off. In the Pali scriptures, giving is called "
You may think that practicing like this involves
hounding yourself, but it doesn't really. Actually it's hounding craving and
the defilements. If defilements arise within you, you have to do something to
remedy them. Defilements are like a stray cat. If you give it as much food as
it wants it will always be coming around looking for more food, but if you stop
feeding it, after a couple of days it'll stop coming around. It's the same with
the defilements, they won't come to disturb you, they'll
leave your mind in peace. So rather than being afraid of
defilement, make the defilements afraid of you. To make the defilements
afraid of you, you must see the Dhamma within your
minds.
Where does the Dhamma
arise? It arises with our knowing and understanding in this way. Everyone is
able to know and understand the Dhamma. It's not
something that has to be found in books, you don't have to do a lot of study to
see it, just reflect right now and you can see what I am talking about.
Everybody can see it because it exists right within our hearts. Everybody has
defilements, don't they? If you are able to see them
then you can understand. In the past you've looked after and pampered your
defilements, but now you must know your defilements and not allow them to come
and bother you.
The next constituent of practice is moral
restraint (sila). Sila
watches over and nurtures the practice in the same way as parents look after
their children. Maintaining moral restraint means not only to avoid harming
others but also to help and encourage them. At the very least you should
maintain the five precepts, which are:
1. Not only to kill or
deliberately harm others, but to spread goodwill towards all beings.
2. To be honest, refraining from infringing on
the rights of others, in other words, not stealing.
3. Knowing moderation in sexual relations: In
the household life there exists the family structure, based around husband and
wife. Know who your husband or wife is, know moderation, know
the proper bounds of sexual activity. Some people don't know the limits. One
husband or wife isn't enough, they have to have a second or third. The way I
see it, you can't consume even one partner completely, so to have two or three
is just plain indulgence. You must try to cleanse the mind and train it to know
moderation. Knowing moderation is true purity, without it there are no limits
to your behavior. When eating delicious food, don't
dwell too much on how it tastes, think of your stomach and consider how much is
appropriate to its needs. If you eat too much you get trouble, so you must know
moderation. Moderation is the best way. Just one partner is enough,
two or three is an indulgence and will only cause problems.
4. To be honest in speech -- this is also a tool
for eradicating defilements. You must be honest and straight, truthful and
upright.
5. To refrain from taking intoxicants. You must
know restraint and preferably give these things up altogether. People are
already intoxicated enough with their families, relatives and friends, material
possessions, wealth and all the rest of it. That's quite enough already without
making things worse by taking intoxicants as well. These things just create
darkness in the mind. those who take large amounts
should try to gradually cut down and eventually give it up altogether. Maybe I
should ask your forgiveness, but my speaking in this way is out of a concern
for your benefit, so that you can understand that which is good. You need to
know what is what. What are the things that are oppressing you in your everyday
lives? What are the actions which cause this oppression? Good actions bring
good results and bad actions bring bad results. These are the causes.
Once moral restraint is pure there will be a
sense of honesty and kindness towards others. This will bring about contentment
and freedom from worries and remorse. Remorse resulting from aggressive and
hurtful behavior will not be there. This is form of happiness. It is almost
like a heavenly state. There is comfort, you eat and sleep in comfort with the
happiness arising from moral restraint. This is the result; maintaining moral
restraint is the cause. This is a principle of Dhamma
practice -- refraining from bad actions so that goodness can arise. If moral
restraint is maintained in this way, evil will disappear and good will arise in
its place. This is the result of right practice.
But this isn't the end of the story. Once people
have attained some happiness they tend to be heedless and not go any further in
the practice. They get stuck on happiness. They don't want to progress any further, they prefer the happiness of "heaven."
It's comfortable but there's no real understanding. You must keep reflecting to
avoid being deluded. Reflect again and again on the disadvantages of this
happiness. It's transient, it doesn't last forever.
Soon you are separated from it. It's not a sure thing, once happiness
disappears then suffering arises in its place and the tears come again. Even
heavenly beings end up crying and suffering.
So the
When you see that things are imperfect your
heart will come to understand the Nekkhammakatha,
the reflection on renunciation. The mind will become disinterested and seek for
a way out. Disinterest comes from having seen the way forms really are, the way
tastes really are, the way love and hatred really are. By disinterest we mean
that there is no longer the desire to cling to or attach to things. There is a
withdrawal from clinging, to a point where you can abide comfortably, observing
with an equanimity that is free of attachment. This is the peace that arises
from practice.
---o0o---