Kammatthana Practice Lp Ruesi Ling Dam Vol1

Contents Page 1. Cutting off worry 1 2. Cutting off the hindrances 10 3. Together with truthfulness 16 4. Mindful awareness of the breath 23 5. Piti (rapture) 29 6. The first jhana 35 7. Maintaining jhana 40 8. The heart of practising kammatthana 46 9. Anapanasati in brief 52 10. The perils of sensuality 55 11. The path of the solitary person 59 12. The Noble Truths in brief 67 13. Kayagata (mindfulness of the body) 79 14. Maranassati (recollection of death) 85 15. Anapanasati 92 16. Right concentration, Buddhanussati 98 17. Buddhanussati up to the 8 attainments 105 18. Silanussati in detail 112 19. Buddhanussati as vipassana 123 20. Answering troubling questions 132 21. Admonishing the monks 140 22. Dhammanussati by way of contemplation 148 23. Dhammanussati by way of the [illegible] mental state 154 24. Dhammanussati as vipassana-nana 160 (3)

Page 25. Sanghanussati (recollection of the Sangha) 169 26. Caganussati (recollection of generosity) 176 27. Devatanussati (recollection of the devas) 182 28. Kayagatasati (mindfulness of the body) 189 29. Maranassati (recollection of death) 201 30. Maranassati (continued) 211 31. Upasamanussati (recollection of peace) 221 32. Anapanasati 229 33. New Year blessing 235 34. Anapanasati 243 35. Anapanasati (continued) 249 36. Anapanasati (continued) 257 37. The mental state of concentration 264 38. Asubha kammatthana (meditation on foulness) 270 39. Kasina by way of recitation-meditation 277 40. The 10 kasinas by way of vipassana 283 41. Ahare-patikula-sanna (perception of the loathsomeness of food) 291 42. Catudhatuvavatthana, the 4 elements 298 43. The 4 Brahmaviharas 304 44. Vipassana-nana 309 45. Vipassana-nana (continued) 315 46. The 4 Brahmaviharas guarding virtue 322 47. Shortcomings of practitioners 327 48. Using wisdom to govern virtue and concentration 334 (4)

Cutting Off Worry

On this occasion, all of you members of the Buddhist assembly have together taken the precepts and taken up the practice of kammatthana. Today's practice of kammatthana is not on an even footing, because some are old hands and some are newcomers. Therefore, today I will speak on the preliminary business of kammatthana; at the very end I may speak of the concluding stage. The practice of kammatthana is of 2 kinds: kind 1 is samatha-bhavana (tranquillity meditation), kind 2 is vipassana-bhavana (insight meditation). As for samatha-bhavana, we want one thing only: to maintain mindfulness and clear comprehension until they are complete — what is called the mind having samadhi. As for vipassana-bhavana, it uses wisdom as the instrument of meditation according to the true nature of the five aggregates; that is, striving to accept and honour the law of reality. That is the lesson of vipassana-bhavana.

In the beginning stage of practising kammatthana one must necessarily use samatha-bhavana, that is, controlling the moods of the mind so that they hold steady. If our samatha-bhavana is not stable, we will find that vipassana-bhavana bears no fruit either. If we can hold the mind, hold samatha, hold samadhi firmly, reaching the 4th jhana, then practising vipassana-bhavana is exceedingly easy. As for attaining the paths and fruits, the time can be reckoned according to what the Buddha said: if one's parami (perfections) are mature and strong, one will attain arahatship within 7 days; if one's parami are middling, one will attain arahatship within 7 months; if one's parami are of the very poorest, one will attain arahatship within 7 years.

The word parami here means strength of heart (willpower). If our strength of heart is complete, we are said to have full parami. To use the expression that our parami is weak — that is not true. Originally, before being born, it may have been possible for parami to be weak; but this parami is something we can build anew. If, having been born and having met the Buddha's religion, one still says it is weak, that shows one is far too lazy, not knowing how to control one's strength of heart, letting it drift along according to the condition of the defilements — what fruit will that have? And then to sit grumbling brings no benefit. Other folk can do it and we cannot, and we sit grumbling that we cannot do it — that is because we are simply not good enough. Use strength of heart as the key thing. Remembering the words, the counsel and teaching; having effort and perseverance; having mindfulness and wisdom in control — those are what matter. Practising samatha-bhavana at the start — the start and the finish have the same character, namely:

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First of all, do not take interest in any external concerns whatsoever. The affairs of other folk of every kind — set them aside, we take no interest. Our own affairs likewise. Cut off all worry completely — what is called palibodha (impediments). The Buddha said that first of all one must cut away all worry entirely, keeping one resolve only: fixing the mind to grasp solely the samatha-bhavana object that we want. All other mental objects we do not want at all. It must be done like this for it to bear fruit — not merely going through the motions, merely reciting, merely contemplating; done that way, however much one does, it bears no fruit. Remember well: first of all, cut off all worry — worry outside and worry inside, that is, worry over other people's affairs: children, wife, husband, relatives, brothers and sisters, friends and companions — set them all aside, take no interest. Whatever happens to anyone, let it be; each to his own. When we die, we cannot invite one another to fall into hell or rise to heaven together. This concerns the mental state we use in maintaining the concentrated mind.

And our own worrying moods are the same: whether it lives or dies, let it be. We want one thing only: the purity and firm establishment of the mind. It is not that when some sign or sensation of one kind or another arises in the body we grow suspicious of this and that, afraid it will be like this, afraid it will be like that. With the mind in such a state, one could practise for however many kotis of lifetimes and it would bear no fruit.

Then comes the second point: the Lord, the Perfectly Self-Awakened Buddha, has us keep our virtue pure — whether the five precepts or the eight precepts that we have undertaken; above all, in the first rank, the five precepts are the most important thing. The phrase "I cannot" may not be used; we must always be one who is able in maintaining virtue. To bring up whatever cause as a claim that it was necessary this way or necessary that way — that will not do, because from the standpoint of practising kammatthana one can see no necessity whatsoever that would require breaking the precepts. In this second point the Buddha has us maintain virtue purely, namely:

1. We will not transgress the precepts ourselves, nor destroy the precepts ourselves. 2. We will not incite others to destroy the precepts. 3. We will not rejoice when another person has destroyed the precepts.

This is the great principle. It must be achieved — not heard and then forgotten. One must both do it, and remember it, and accomplish it, for it to bear fruit. And even this much bears fruit only at the level of the outer bark-flakes.

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When virtue has been maintained in purity, then at the same time the mind must still the five hindrances (nivarana). The five hindrances are: desire for beautiful forms, sweet sounds, fragrant scents, delicious tastes, touches according to one's wishes, and the mood of being absorbed in sensuality — that is, taking pleasure in gain, rank, praise, and happiness. Moods of this type must be thrown away; do not take them.

Then, the second point: one must still anger and vindictiveness. The third point: still drowsiness, listlessness and yawning sleepiness. The fourth point: control the strength of the mind so that it thinks only of the one particular object that we want, not letting the mind wander in distraction or be irritated by sounds. The fifth point: have no doubt in the teachings of the Buddha; accept and honour the teachings of the Buddha. This is one principle — and it is not yet the end.

Then, as the next point, the Buddha has us keep the mind dwelling in the 4 Brahmaviharas, that is: radiating metta (loving-kindness) throughout the entire universe. We will not go and be an enemy to anyone; we will be a friend to all beings and persons. Our heart will be refreshed, seeing no one as our enemy. The fruit of metta — the word means love — is that we have love for our fellows in birth, aging, sickness, and death, equally with ourselves.

The second is having karuna (compassion), having pity, wishing others to have happiness. We keep the constant attitude of mind that we want to assist other people and other beings who are suffering, so that they may have happiness according to the ability we can bring to bear. If we cannot advise them ourselves, cannot help them ourselves, then we direct them to go to a person who has the ability, who can help and assist them.

The third is mudita, having a gentle mind — that is, stilling envy and jealousy, cutting it off and throwing it away; when anyone attains something good, we share in gladness at that goodness too.

Fourth is upekkha, equanimity. Whatever workings of the law of kamma arise concerning the body or the community, they are causes we cannot refuse — such as aging, sickness, death, and separation from what is loved and pleasing, and so forth. They are natural things. When they arise for ourselves or for the community, we remain even-minded, regarding it as a normal matter that cannot be avoided.

When all of you possess the virtues as described, namely: 1. Cutting off all palibodha (impediments)

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2. Maintaining pure sila (morality). 3. Suppressing the five nivarana (hindrances) decisively while maintaining samadhi. 4. Being able to maintain the four Brahmavihara.

Thus the Lord Buddha, the Teacher, said: you possess goodness only at the shell (outer bark) of the religion. Measure yourself well; measure your heart well as to whether, at this time, our goodness has yet reached the shell of the religion. This point, this shell-point, is the most important point. You must be very careful; you must keep it steady at all times, especially the maintaining of sila or of the four Brahmavihara. It is not that you maintain them only while formally undertaking kammatthana practice. As for sila, the four Brahmavihara, and the cutting off of palibodha — worry and concern — these must be maintained the full 24 hours. To put it simply, maintain them all your life, every hour, every minute, and every second. The mind must be governed like this. As for the five nivarana, they are ordinary things: now we defeat them, now they defeat us. But keep trying to control them and before long they will become mere underlings for us — that is, we defeat them; that is, we become one who maintains jhana. If you cannot suppress the five nivarana, then samadhi need not even be spoken of; nothing will be of any benefit. We can have samadhi reaching the first jhana because we can suppress the five nivarana. Suppressing them for one day, for one moment, is usable, but still not good. Ideally you must be able to suppress the nivarana all day long — only then is it truly good.

How does one suppress the nivarana? If we delight in beautiful, attractive things, we cultivate asubha-kammatthana (contemplation of foulness) or kayagatanussati (mindfulness of the body).

If we would subdue dosa — that is, anger or vindictiveness — then use the four Brahmavihara, or use the four color kasinas, namely the red kasina, yellow, green, or white, any one of them.

We suppress drowsiness by walking sometimes, changing posture sometimes, opening the eyes wide sometimes, washing the face with water sometimes, rubbing the eyes with the hands sometimes, or tilting the head back to look at the stars sometimes. If the mind's mood is scattered and will not hold steady, count the in-and-out breaths.

If doubt about the teaching of the Lord Buddha arises, we sit and look at ourselves: the Buddha said that once arising has occurred, there is change, and finally there is dissolution. Look at ourselves now, grown as big as father and mother — when newly born, were we this big? Go back 10 years, 20 years — were we as old as this? With just this much we will know that the Buddha

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preached rightly. And have we ever seen people who were born and then died? Animals and people are alike. If this is true, we can stop doubting: the Buddha taught truly. This is the great principle in cultivating vipassana-bhavana, and samatha-bhavana as well.

All these principles none of you in the whole Buddhist assembly can avoid; not a single item may be excused or omitted. This is speaking of when we mean to attain something good. If we do not aim for the good, that is all right — but then do not come and sit complaining that you have practiced kammatthana for a full three years, four years, five years with nothing to show for it. The reason there is no result is that we cannot cut off worry, cannot keep sila pure, cannot suppress all five nivarana, cannot maintain the four Brahmavihara. As for those who practice and before long reach this or that attainment, it is because these four virtues are complete in them at all times.

And please do not claim it is because their parami (accumulated perfections) is great. One should rather say their strength of heart is good, that they are diligent and persevering. A person who claims their parami is insufficient thereby shows they are very lazy and their strength of heart is poor. There is nothing to it: parami is something that can be built anew; it does not always have to be something built in previous lives. Otherwise no one would ever attain the paths and fruits.

In practicing kammatthana, as the very first step before meditating, the Lord Buddha taught us to contemplate — to take it simply — death first. We keep in mind always that we must certainly die; this life is not ours, this body is not ours, because there is birth, aging, sickness, and then death all the same. The word 'aging' here does not mean decrepit old age; it need not always be decrepitude. Once we have been born, as a day passes, as one minute or two minutes move by, it grows older every moment. At first it is soft and limp; then it grows bigger all the time — this movement toward growth they call 'growing older.' Once past the age of twenty-five, it now ages downward, it bends down — all of that is aging. The Buddha's word 'old' does not mean one must always lean on a staff. Born only two or three days, one is already called old — here arising has occurred, and change appears, that is, aging appears; in the end it dies.

Now, as for our body: we do not want aging, we do not want sickness, we do not want hardship, we do not want death — but we certainly must die. Whatever we do, we cannot avoid death. Think always: we will certainly die. And when will we die? Think: here we breathe in —

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if we do not breathe out, it dies; having breathed out, if we do not breathe in, it dies. When are we going to wait around to die? We must always keep in mind that death is with us at every mind-moment; we must be one who is not heedless.

On this matter the Lord, Refuge of the World, asked Phra Ananda: 'Anantha — behold, Ananda — how many times a day do you think of death?' Phra Ananda replied: 'I think of death seven times a day, Lord.' The Buddha said: 'Anantha — behold, Ananda — that is still too far apart. The Tathagata himself thinks of death with every in-and-out breath.' Here we take the Buddha as our model. Death must be thought of at every moment: we might die at this very time — and are we ready yet? Ready to die, or not yet? When we are ready to die, have we chosen the way we will go? Before dying — we have met Buddhism, so we ought to have chosen where to go already, if we are people with strength of heart, not lazy, with a firm state of mind, because whatever happens it must die. Before dying: the body is like a rented house; when the time comes to be evicted, we must go. But before going we should find a house first. Will we go find a hut, or a house the same as before, or a better house? Or will we go take up the station of a great millionaire? For that we must accumulate the goods to bring in for the sake of the greater benefit. If we mean to go badly, never mind — one can be as bad as one pleases.

If we would go better than before, we must choose the way to go. As for going better than before: dana and sila I will not discuss, because they are already normal; we will speak only of the time of meditation. This is the criterion of meditation: if we meditate, in samatha-bhavana or vipassana-bhavana, and the mind rests in the state of khanika-samadhi (momentary concentration), maintaining the concentrated mood a little, as is fitting, not very long, then the mind leaps off over there, leaps over here, flitting away to other objects; as soon as we catch it, as soon as we are aware, we pull it back in again, meditating or catching the in-and-out breath; a moment later it leaps away again; we do not give in — as soon as we are aware we pull it back — playing tug-of-war like this, pulling back and forth: this they call khanika-samadhi. But this khanika-samadhi, if it can hold — pulling back and forth like this — then when you die you go to be born in the Tavatimsa heaven in comfort. This is called preparing to find a new house, knowing the qualities we shall obtain from meditation.

If the mind has higher power — there is rapture and fullness, there is refreshment, concentration holds better, there is greater ease of heart, greater brightness of mind — this they call upacara-samadhi. Now, even though the heart may be bright, refreshed, and full of rapture, it still jumps as well; the mind still jumps — it is not

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that it does not jump: it runs off over there and over here; when we catch it we pull it in, and once pulled in it holds steady, with refreshment, ease of heart, cheerfulness and delight, ready to practice kammatthana at all times; and concentration holds well. But even this is not certain: good today, tomorrow it may not be good. This is called upacara-samadhi. If you can maintain it like this, then when you die you go to be born as a deva of the Yama level. Set your intention well — whichever level you want, you can take it.

Now, if we maintain jhana — maintaining the beginning jhana, above all the first jhana (pathama-jhana); today I will speak only of the first jhana; in speaking, the time has already run on. As for knowing whether our mind has reached the first jhana or not: reaching the first jhana may not last long — some two or three minutes and it slips from jhana; that is, the mood slips back into the ordinary state that we call bhavanga. The term bhavanga — try to use it correctly. Bhavanga does not mean being sound asleep, nor does it mean losing awareness of oneself. Bhavanga means the normal mood, having awareness and existing according to its original condition — that is called bhavanga. You have heard this often, but it is used incorrectly. Better not to use it at all — Pali, if you cannot use it properly, will spoil the matter; people who know will laugh at you.

If the mind is about to enter the first jhana, observe like this: when the mind enters the first jhana, we defeat the nivarana; the five nivarana are stilled and the mind enters the first jhana at once. Or, whether we are reciting our meditation or contemplating, the ear hears outside sounds clearly and distinctly, but our heart can still work as normal, does not go struggling after the sound, is not annoyed by the sound — this is called the first jhana. The first jhana also has coarse and refined grades; to explain them — the time is already up. We maintain the coarse first jhana: in a day we get two minutes, three minutes, five minutes, ten minutes — call it 'so be it'; there is no need to go setting a timer for the whole day. When it does not reach the first jhana, the mind still enters a little samadhi; when the mind settles well it enters the first jhana, perhaps sometimes succeeding, sometimes not, pulling back and forth. This is called the coarse first jhana; after death one goes to be born as a Brahma of the first level.

If, with a refreshed mood, one can hold longer than that — half an hour or one hour — this is a Brahma of the second level. If one maintains this condition well, one can set the time outright: say we will sit for about two hours — enter the first jhana and hold it straight through; at the two-hour mark the mind cuts off at once. This is the refined first jhana, a Brahma of the third level. Each level of jhana is a step higher and higher. Here we can choose our own place before we die. Before we die we must choose — what will we take?

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If we resolve that we will have none of it — that birth as a human, as a deva, or as a Brahma is no good — we want to go to Nibbana, not wishing to be born again: make the heart at ease by the power of jhana, and turn back to contemplate that this body is not us and not ours; it is merely the four elements come together as a temporary body; before long it collapses; it degenerates all the time. Whatever bears the name of the five khandhas, we do not want it any more; this life is the final life of birth for us. Love of forms, sounds, smells, tastes — of what use is it? When our own body is no good, how would the bodies of other folk anywhere be good? Our body is filthy; their bodies are filthy too. Since what we want is cleanliness, why would we take another person's body — it is filthy; and it has no stability, dissolving away in the end.

When we contemplate that our body is no good, that it no longer holds steady, that it must collapse, then love by the power of tanha (craving) lessens; quite possibly it is finished entirely — this is where they cut it. Greed (lobha): why scramble and claw — for what benefit? Making a living by samma-ajiva, making a living by right livelihood, the Buddha never called greed. This word greed means one must cheat others, snatch and wrestle things from others, destroy others' useful possessions to ruin — that is, obtaining things by dishonest means. That is called greed. If we trade in the ordinary way, farm fields and paddies, serve in government, work as employees receiving salary and wages according to our ability, this is not greed. However large a salary we receive, however much profit we make in trade, it is still not called greed — except passing off bad goods as good goods: that, indeed, is greed, cheating them. Now, if we must die, why would we cheat them — for what benefit? Make a living by right livelihood. When we die it does not go with us; the heart is at ease; greed can be cut off.

Now anger — wanting to kill someone: we must die, and he must die just the same. Why go and kill him? There is no need to kill; he will die by himself.

Now delusion — 'that is mine, this is mine' — just sit and look: even our own body is not ours, because our body still collapses; then will other people's bodies, other objects, be ours? The wealth of the world is useful only while there is a body. Once the body has dissolved, none of the wealth of the world is of any use at all. Why should we be infatuated, dreaming that that is us, that it is ours — for what benefit? There is none; it is not us and not ours. Cut the body away entirely by strength of mind

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It is not to be clung to, because this body is a fault, it is suffering, of no benefit. Known as the five khandhas — a body such as this will no longer be ours. Make the mind at ease, and it will be at peace, accepting and respecting the law of nature. When old age appears, be at ease, knowing it will age. When sickness appears, be at ease, knowing that once born, one must fall ill. When death appears, or separation from what is loved and cherished appears, there is no crying over it, no regret, because it is natural. If your mind accepts and respects the law of nature in this way, this is called an Arahant. In this way one can go to Nibbana, and has the greatest happiness of all.

Well then, fellow Buddhist followers, the two periods of time set aside are now both finished. From this point on, I ask everyone, first of all, to take hold of the in-and-out breath. When breathing in, know that you are breathing in; when breathing out, know that you are breathing out. When breathing in, think "Phut"; when breathing out, think "Tho" [together forming "Buddho"], until you hear the signal announcing that the time is up.

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2. Cutting Off the Hindrances

Tonight's explanation of the meditation practice continues from last night. Last night we emphasized that the key points for developing the meditation practice well are:

1. Cut off all concerns completely. What is called external concern refers to other people besides ourselves, or to objects. Internal concern refers to our own body. Cut it away entirely — consider that this burden we no longer have. We have only one single thing left: to control the mind so it rests in concentration (samadhi), or to use wisdom to examine and confirm knowledge according to the truth.

2. We are one whose precepts are pure. 3. Suppress the five hindrances (nivarana), and 4. Maintain the four Brahmavihara (divine abodes of mind).

This is the major principle for controlling the power of the mind. If we are unable to control the power of mind according to this, the development of the meditation practice bears no fruit. These four rules — I ask every one of you Buddhist followers — must be kept without fail, must be maintained without fail; it must not be done merely for form's sake. If these four rules dwell constantly in the mind of every one of you Buddhist followers, at every mind-moment, until it becomes one-pointedness (ekaggatarammana) — that is, a settled mental state — then it can be said that concern is absent, precepts are pure, the five hindrances are suppressed as fully as we wish, and the mind maintains the four Brahmavihara throughout the day. Even so, the Buddha said this only reaches the outer shell of the goodness of the Buddhist religion — this that we have attained is only the shell, these four things.

Now, as for maintaining goodness at the level of the shell — today I will continue on this. Maintaining goodness at the level of the shell, in truth, this shell-level is the four jhanas. If we cannot maintain the four jhanas, we have not yet even reached the shell, except for this one case: if our mind has reached the first jhana, it can then maintain vipassana-insight — this is reaching the core. Even if the mental state does not reach the fourth jhana, but is only the first jhana, if the mind can maintain vipassana-insight and cut off the fetters (samyojana) from the third fetter upward, this is called reaching the core, being the essence, being the supreme core that the Buddha intended.

To be able to maintain such a state of mind, we will not speak further of precepts or other such matters. First of all, we need to maintain samatha-bhavana (calm-meditation). Samatha-bhavana means: a technique that serves as an instrument for calming the mind; it is an important force

...great force for the practitioner who seeks goodness. If our mind is not calm, then worry will arise, precepts will not hold steady, and maintaining the four Brahmavihara will not go according to intention; developing vipassana-insight will bear no fruit either. This calm is therefore what sustains precepts, concentration, and wisdom together — it is very important, and is reckoned a great force.

As for how we go about calming the mind — we must look into the face of the hindrances (nivarana). We now study the topic of the hindrances. If our mental state is one that delights in beautiful forms, delicious tastes, fragrant smells, or pleasant sounds, and so on — this is called delighting in beauty and attractiveness, let us say. Beautiful things, beautiful people, beautiful animals — all included. That is, we are caught up in beauty; whether we ourselves are beautiful or others are beautiful, it is the same thing. In sum, the mind delights in beauty and attractiveness. The Buddha had us suppress this state with mindfulness of the body (kayagatasati) and the foulness meditation (asubha-kammatthana); the correct object of meditation must be used. This is what we mean by the hindrances. If we can subdue the hindrances, the mind can attain the first jhana. Developing the meditation practice does not require using only one method at all times and in all seasons — it should follow whatever mental state arises. But there are specific methods that are used for this purpose; I will explain them shortly.

When the mind develops love of beauty and attractiveness, one should use contemplation on the foulness meditation (asubha) as the key method. Asubha means not beautiful, not attractive. The Buddha had us look according to the truth: this thing we see as beautiful — is it truly beautiful, or how is it really? If we see a beautiful person — if a beautiful person is truly beautiful, they must not be dirty. If they become dirty, then however one tries to make it beautiful, it will not work. Whether it is a person or an animal that we see as beautiful, we should look and seek the truth. If it were truly beautiful, truly good, truly clean, then there would be no need to bathe, no need to cleanse the body — leave it as it is and the body would maintain its goodness at all times. Now, whether person or animal, the ones we call beautiful — do they need to cleanse the body or not? This is looking at it superficially, in a way we can see easily. Now then, suppose one were not to bathe for as long as 7 days — one could not bear it, the person themself could not bear it. It would become crusted with sweat and grime, full of filth — where then is the beauty in this? This is the mind deceiving itself, taking something not good and claiming it is good. This is what leads down to hell — this is why beings must keep circling through death and rebirth in the cycle (vatta), sometimes as a deva, sometimes as a Brahma, sometimes as a human, sometimes as an animal, sometimes as a hell-being, sometimes as a hungry ghost (peta), sometimes as an asura — spinning round and round like this, all because of the foolishness of the mind that takes something bad and calls it good.

Now let us look further still. Both humans and animals — cut through the surface to reach the flesh beneath: if we peel off the outer skin entirely, what condition would remain? The things we think are beautiful, the things we think are good — these are stuck only at the skin

...only this thin outer skin. If we peel further in, we will meet blood, and lymph and pus appearing within. Beyond the flesh lies the bony skeleton; what remains is liver, kidneys, intestines, lungs, new food and old food, all sorts of machinery within. It is entirely full of filth. This is called using mindfulness of the body (kayagatasati) and the foulness meditation (asubha-kammatthana) together. This is finding this point in order to find the truth. In developing this meditation practice we are searching, seeking to find the truth. Now try thinking: if the state of things is really like that, then the truth is that it is like that — is the body dirty, or is it clean?

If we are unable to see inside, and the mind is obstructed, then let us look instead at what flows out from within. As for the saliva we hold in our mouth — once we spit it out, can we pick it up again? While saliva is in the mouth we are able to swallow it; but once we have spat it out, can we swallow it again? Well — suppose we do not swallow it — can we take it back into our mouth and hold it there? If we do not hold it in the mouth, can we touch it with our hand and smear it on our own face? We would say it is dirty. And this dirty matter — where is it? It is inside our own body, is it not? Feces and urine are the same. We find them disgusting, calling them dirty — but where do they come from? Feces come from food that we ourselves have chosen with care — this food is good, this food is delicious, this food is clean enough to eat. If it were dirty we would not eat it. We think it is clean, but in truth it is dirty; once eaten — chosen with every care — once it becomes waste and is excreted, can we pick it up with our hand? It came out of our own body, did it not? This is speaking of the body. Speaking of what is dirty could go on for ten days and never finish. Let us contemplate only this much — use wisdom to contemplate and find the truth, cutting off the feeling in the phrase "seeing as beautiful, attractive, clean and tidy" according to how we wish it to be.

If we speak of material objects — we see something as beautiful — we must look: this object that is new now, can it become old? Before it becomes old, if we leave it with nothing covering it, without ever polishing its surface, within just a few days dust will come to settle on it, and tarnish will arise. This arises from external conditions coming to interfere with it. But even if external conditions do not interfere with it, if left alone for a long time, tarnish will arise by itself, because it is old, it deteriorates, and in the end it disintegrates. Now if we use wisdom to contemplate in this way as a regular practice, the mental state of loving beauty and attractiveness will subside. The striving after beauty and attractiveness will come to an end. If this striving comes to an end in this way, it is said that we have conquered the first hindrance. We are about to step into the first jhana, which is the milestone for developing vipassana-insight so as to attain the status of a noble one (ariya).

The second hindrance is dosa — anger, or ill-will, the thought of wishing harm on others that arises in the mind. The Lord of the Three Worlds, the Great Teacher, taught that we should use loving-kindness (metta) together with compassion (karuna), both of these, to strike it down and destroy it. Metta is love; karuna is compassion. We should think that others and ourselves share the very same condition — birth, old age, sickness, death — we suffer just the same. If another does something wrong, we should reflect in our own mind that every person, in everything they have done — whether speaking or acting — thought it was good, and so did it. If they had known it was bad, that it would cause trouble, they would not have done it. But why then do they still do evil? This is because an unwholesome state of mind — an unwholesome mind, that is, badness — has come to possess the heart, much like being possessed by a ghost. It steeps the mind in delusion, making one believe that badness is goodness. A person possessed by a ghost, or by defilements possessing them in this way, deserves to be forgiven for it. Seeing them do wrong that does not break rules or discipline, it may be said that we can forgive them on a personal level. But if it breaks the law, breaks discipline, breaks the rules, then this must be punished according to the discipline, according to the rules — it is not to be treated as a personal matter, because all rules and discipline are laid down in order to make people do good. If someone violates them, that shows wrongdoing; if we do not punish it, that shows we are letting that person remain wicked forever. This would not be called having a mind of loving-kindness and compassion. People who love one another and feel compassion for one another must be careful to guard against letting anyone become wicked, become bad. Punishing according to the rules and the discipline is considered an act of loving mercy, meant to prevent them from doing evil. When we already have love and compassion, then anger, ill-will, and the thought of doing harm simply cannot exist.

If this kind of loving, compassionate state of mind is one we cannot hold steady, our Great Teacher has another method to recommend: to use one of the four kasinas — that is, the color kasinas (vannakasina): the red kasina, the yellow, the white, the green — take up whichever one and hold it as the object of meditation, letting the mind rest fixed in that kasina image; this too is able to destroy an aversion-type (dosa-carita) temperament. When our mind has destroyed the aversion temperament, there will be only a cool, tranquil state of mind, because aversion is a hot, agitated state. If we can destroy it, there will be only coolness; the mind will have happiness, and will be able to maintain concentration for a long time. This means we are already very close to reaching Nibbana in full, even just from developing samatha-bhavana [calm meditation].

The third hindrance is drowsiness and sleepiness. This one is not hard to remedy: open the eyes wide, rub the eyes with the hand, wash the face with water, look up at the stars, walk back and forth — this follows the method that the Buddha—

...taught to Phra Maha Moggallana, because Phra Maha Moggallana, while practicing with the Buddha, kept sitting there falling asleep, dozing off. The Buddha instructed him to practice as follows. So if this kind of state arises, this is how it is remedied.

The fourth hindrance is uddhacca-kukkucca — restlessness, distraction, and irritation. The Victor over Mara, the Great Teacher, taught that specifically the mindfulness-of-breathing meditation (anapanasati) should be used, with no need to recite any formula at all. If one insists on reciting or contemplating while the mind is already scattered, it will only help it scatter all the more. He taught us to note the in-breath and the out-breath: when breathing in, know that one is breathing in; when breathing out, know that one is breathing out — just this much. Take hold only of the in-breath and out-breath. If holding on like this it still does not settle, then — very well, do not simply leave it at that; also bring in a counting device. This device is not a mental image. One in-breath and one out-breath together count as 1; continuing, the next in-breath and out-breath count as 2, forming the second pair; the third pair, the fourth pair, up through the tenth pair. Set the rule that from 1 to 10, we will not allow the mind to think of anything else. We will hold only to the in-breath and out-breath, nothing more; and there is no need to do more than that — just up to 10 and then stop. If the mind is still scattered — because at times even the counting itself does not stay steady — it thrashes about, refusing to settle. For this, the Buddha's teaching says: if it thrashes about and refuses to settle, then let it go. If we do not let it go, there is one further method: that is, to let it think according to its own inclination — whatever it wishes to think, let it think as it pleases — while still keeping hold of the power of mind. Whenever it stops thinking, at that very moment we will attain concentration. If we let the mind think in this way, it will not be long — about 4 minutes, 10 minutes, no more than 20 minutes at the very slowest — before the mental state grows weary and stops thinking. As soon as it stops thinking, we then take hold of the breath in and out once more; at that point the mental state will be drawn straight into jhana, and will then be able to maintain concentration for a long time. This is the method for suppressing the hindrances — suppressing them little by little.

The fifth hindrance is doubt regarding the teachings of the Fully Self-Enlightened Buddha. This matter, I think, needs no explanation — if one still had doubt, what would one be doing sitting here at all? Would it not be better to go home and sleep? This point needs no explanation, because everyone who has come to sit here shows by that very fact that there is no doubt. Let us drop this and move along.

Now then — as for these five hindrances, if we are able to suppress them by this method, at first the suppression will not last long — perhaps 2 minutes, 3 minutes, 4 minutes, 5 minutes, or at most about 10 minutes. If [these] 10...

The minute [of holding it] has passed and the mental state will start to wander. We catch and pull it back in again — wherever it goes, let it go; when it slips away, let it go too. This mind of ours has been wandering for hundreds of thousands of aeons; now and then we come and catch it to make it still. Held quietly, it cannot stay long. We reckon that if we can sustain the mind, we can sustain it for a while; as soon as it goes we know it has gone — it doesn't take long — then we pull it back in, hold its object for a moment, and it slips out again. Even so, this is still better than the original condition where it did not even know it was wandering off. This shows our mind has begun to have concentration. His Holiness the Jeweled Lamp [an epithet of the Buddha] said: the state that appears like this is called khanika samadhi — that is, sometimes able to hold, sometimes not, pulled back and forth; we catch and sustain it for a moment and it pulls away again, pulls away and goes off thinking pleasantly of this and that; then when we come to our senses — oh, it has gone scattering off again! — and we pull it back in once more. This is what His Holiness the Lord of the Three Worlds calls khanika samadhi.

Khanika samadhi means 'minor concentration.' Concerning sustaining it, His Holiness the Great Teacher said: one who has attained khanika samadhi can, in a given day, hold the mind calm for only a single mind-moment. The Buddha said: we call such a person one never apart from jhana. Whoever can keep the khanika samadhi they have attained, when they die they go comfortably to the Tavatimsa heaven. We can go to heaven, and we can also walk among humans. Even though it is said that going to heaven cannot compare with going to the Brahma realm, and the Brahma realm cannot compare with Nibbana, still, for the first step, let us hold on to heaven first — call that already a great gain, a goodness, a happiness; after that we advance further toward the state of Brahma or Nibbana.

Well then, as for the time left to speak, it has run on quite a while already, since the signal announcing time is up has now appeared. From here on, may all you Buddhist devotees try to keep the body upright and the mind firmly established. For those newly practising the meditation exercise — whether new or old — try to hold the breath, aware of it going in and out. If we wish to recite, recite as we are inclined; or if we wish to contemplate something, we may do so as we are inclined, until we hear the signal that time is up.

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3. Ready with Sacca

On this occasion, all you Buddhist devotees have together undertaken the uposatha precepts and undertaken the meditation exercise. May all you Buddhist devotees hold the whole of this undertaking as the very heart of the practice.

Having undertaken the precepts, intend firmly to keep them pure — do not merely go through the motion of undertaking them. And keeping the precepts pure is not only for this present occasion; count it that from the first time in our life we undertook the precepts, we must keep them continuously until the day we die — only then can it be called valid. This applies equally to monks and novices. Being one who upholds pure precepts is naturally a cause that cuts off trouble. When we have pure precepts and habitually keep the precepts in mind, the Buddha calls this one who cultivates sīlānussati [recollection of virtue] as a meditation subject. This is one goodness that will bring us, at the very least, to the sensuous heavens, or else to the Brahma realm; and if the precepts are truly pure, we can go to Nibbana — if we have understanding of the precepts.

Second: when we undertake the meditation exercise we recite — imāhaṃ bhagavā attabhāvaṃ tumhākaṃ paricajjāmi — which translates in meaning as: 'I offer my body, I dedicate my life, to the Lord, the Perfectly Self-Awakened Buddha.' This phrase is the most important of all; let us be one who does not forget it. If we do not forget this phrase and intend to practise according to it, then we may be said to be one for whom taking up goodness is not difficult.

The phrase 'offer the body, dedicate the life to the Lord, the Perfectly Self-Awakened Buddha' means that we will practise according to everything He taught.

What did the Buddha teach?

The Buddha said: strive to abandon evil, practise good, and purify the mind. Abandoning evil means not transgressing the Five Precepts or the Eight Precepts. Practising good means conducting oneself according to the sense of the precepts already mentioned — not transgressing, and then following the precepts. Purifying the mind means calming the mind from passion, greed, anger, and delusion. Why did the Buddha teach us in that way? 16

That is because He knew well that —

— This physical body is not us, is not ours; we are not in the body, and the body is not in us.

— The body is merely the four elements — the water element, the earth element, the wind element, the fire element — combined into a temporary dwelling-frame.

— And once it has come into being at the start, it deteriorates moment by moment, and in the end it disintegrates — what we call dying.

— If the body truly were us, truly were ours, then it must not age, must not fall sick, and must not die. We do not want it to be so, but when the moment comes it takes on that condition anyway. Therefore the Buddha said: it is not us, it is not ours.

— Now then, who is this "us"?

The word "us" means the mind that dwells within the body. The body's condition is like a rented house, temporary; when the term of the lease is up, [the owner] evicts us, and this house collapses — it was only ever a temporary house. This kind of collapsing, in ordinary people's language, is called dying.

— This death has no omen, no sign, no fixed time. It is not that once we are born we must live out a full lifespan of 75 years or 100 years before we die — it is not like that at all. It can die at any time. Plenty of people born after us have died before our eyes; many people born at the same time as us have also died before our eyes; and there are people born before us who have died [later] too. This is why death is called the constant, and life is called the inconstant.

Therefore, may all you Buddhist devotees not be intoxicated with life, not be intoxicated with the body. In coming to practise according to the Dhamma teaching, we want to attain goodness together — so keep always in mind:

"We are certain to die" — hold this thought. And then do not become infatuated with beauty and loveliness. 17

Do not become infatuated with the plumpness of the body. Do not become infatuated with the radiance of the complexion. Reflect and see according to the truth that —

Our body is full of filth; it has excrement, rotten discharge, blood, lymph, and pus inside it. The only thing that hides this from our eyes is a thin sheet of skin. A person who is scalded by hot water, or burned by fire so that the skin peels away raw, would then let us see no beauty at all in that person's body.

The persistence of the body is never certain; it grows older every day, it deteriorates every day, and in the end it dies. What is there to hope for from it? Only foolishness clings to the delusion that the body still holds together, that it will not die. This intoxication with the body is a cause giving rise to, a cause bringing about, suffering.

Therefore, if we are to be without this intoxication with the body, at the outset we should think that we must always be on the verge of death. Think in the manner of the noble ones — they think:

"Waking this morning, whether we shall get to eat breakfast or not, we do not know. Having eaten breakfast, whether we shall get to eat lunch or not is not certain — we may die before then. Having eaten lunch, whether we shall get to eat dinner or not is not certain. Having eaten dinner, we cannot even be certain we shall see the sun again on the next day."

Now, a person who keeps death in mind like this must choose how to act — as to where we will go at the time we die. Will we go to hell, or become a hungry ghost, an asura-body being, or an animal? Will we be born as a human — a fine person or a base person? Or will we be born as a deva, be born as a Brahma, go to Nibbana free of all suffering? This is ours to choose.

If we want to be a hell-being, a hungry ghost, an asura-body, an animal, then we need not respect the Five Precepts or the Eight Precepts — we destroy them entirely, and then we can go to hell quite comfortably. That is the choice.

If we want to be born human — and if a fine kind of human — then we must be one with pure precepts. Once our precepts are pure, we then give alms and make donations, and cultivate meditation habitually; when we are then born [as human], we will have a form... 18

...a handsome face, wealth not lost to robbery, theft, fire, storm, or flood; people under one's authority; a husband or wife, sons and daughters; even one's servants are compliant and easy to instruct, staying within one's guidance; whatever one says to anyone becomes an authoritative word that people accept and are glad to hear; and one is never without mindfulness and clear awareness; one's wealth is complete and abundant in every respect. This is what happens if we want to be born a fine kind of human being.

But if we see that the state of being human cannot escape old age, cannot escape death, we may instead go and rest in goodness, escape suffering, at just the level of a deva. As for resting from suffering at the deva level, it is said: if our precepts are pure, we give alms habitually, we cultivate meditation regularly — this cultivation of meditation is what draws the mind upward, keeps us from forgetting goodness, brings our mind into khanika samadhi or upacara samadhi — then we can become a deva. If we practise in the ordinary way, we have hiri and ottappa, that is, shame at evil and fear of evil; we do not do evil either in private or in public; we do not consent to transgress the precepts either in private or in public. Whatever mental state tends toward greed, anger, or delusion will not arise in the mind, because such a state is a state of evil — called evil arising in private, which others cannot see but we ourselves see. When we can restrain such states habitually, then when we die we are born as a deva.

If we want to be born as a Brahma, then we cultivate concentration of mind until we attain jhana-samapatti; in this way we are born as a Brahma.

If we want Nibbana, then we set down the five khandhas — that is, the body — seeing that this body is not us, is not ours; we are not in the body, the body is not in us — until we no longer cling to the body, or to external possessions, as being us or ours. We regard everything as [subject to] ordinary law. We see the whole world as suffering; we no longer wish for further birth; the heart is refreshed, the mood is joyful, the mind fixes exclusively on Nibbana as its object. In this way we reach Nibbana. This has been said in brief.

Let us set our intention especially on this: we have already been born as a human; if we should fall back down into hell again, that would feel utterly wretched — instead of practising well we would revert to practising badly; having already become bright, we would turn dark again, and that would serve no purpose. This has been speaking of the meaning of why we must cultivate goodness in the position of being human. From here on, we will speak of the practice of sustaining concentration so that it is of benefit. 19

Cultivating goodness in the Buddha's teaching, we must always sustain the mental state of one who is victorious, not make ourselves a defeated person. We must have sacca, truthfulness; viriya, diligent effort; sati, the ability to call things to mind and recollect; paññā as the instrument for considering what is good, what is evil, what is proper, what is improper; khanti, patient endurance, as a constant quality of mind; and adhiṭṭhāna, sustaining the firm intention that 'we will do good.' All of these things we cannot discard; we must keep them constantly.

For all of us to practise toward goodness, the very first step must be to bring the mind into concentration. This concentration is extremely important — it is the great strength.

The first level of concentration I will tell you to attend to is this: noting the in-breath and out-breath. This is a very important factor; this meditation subject is a major meditation subject. And it is further recommended: when breathing in, think 'Bud'; when breathing out, think 'dho.' This matters. The word 'Buddho' is the Name expressing the goodness of the Buddha; it is said that we hold on to the Buddha by sustaining mindfulness and clear awareness together with it. This is the fresh goodness by which we can overcome the evil of the mind — why is that? The most important point is the mind's tendency to dart and scatter. As for this scattering of the mind, if we understand it, there is really nothing to be burdened about. If the mind is scattering, the Lord, the Perfectly Self-Awakened Buddha, has us take up only the ānāpānasati meditation subject — that is, the in-breath and out-breath — noting continually: 'this is our in-breath, this is our out-breath,' being aware of it constantly, restraining the mind. If it is truly going to scatter, it cannot be restrained for long. We fix the mind, saying: for this period of 5 minutes or 10 minutes, we will not allow our mental state to go to any other object; we will be aware only of the breath in and out, or of the recitation-word — when breathing in think 'Bud,' when breathing out think 'dho' — holding it at this point for a short period; once 5 minutes, 10 minutes is reached, we stop, we let it rest, because ordinarily our mind has had the nature of wandering for a very long time already, for many hundreds of thousands of aeons; to suddenly force it to stay under one single power for a long, long time is simply not possible. When the mood becomes comfortable, with a feeling of ease and clarity, we begin again. This kind of practice can be done by day or by night — any time will do. Whether sitting cross-legged, sitting with legs folded to the side, sitting with legs hanging down, lying on the left side, lying on the right side, lying face-up, sitting in a chair, walking back and forth, or standing — all of it can be done. That is, it is not necessary that it be done only by coming to sit together in formal meditation. If we think that we will let our mind hold mindfulness and clear awareness, noting the breath in and out and the recitation-word, only during this one particular time, once a day, that shows that we are still far from... 20

There is much goodness in this; do not let yourself be defeated by the mood of evil — we must be the one who wins. If we cannot win in a single day, then we win in stretches, though not the whole day through. Not long after, the mind grows accustomed to it. When the practice truly succeeds, it is, at one point, a measure of our own mind — it may serve as insight-knowledge (vipassana-nana) too. For those who are already experienced practitioners, we already know what is calm (samatha) and what is insight (vipassana), and which of the forty kammatthana subjects, or which subject of the Mahasatipatthana, we are drawn to. If we are content, we may go ahead and do it. But first — never forget to establish awareness of the in-and-out breath beforehand. Whether one is a new practitioner or an old one, if we intend to be one who habitually sustains jhana every day, then each day we should be one who is never without jhana. However it may be, we must manage to sustain jhana, both in the early evening and at dawn — meaning, even if the time is short.

In the early evening, make the mind at ease: chant, recite the blessings, undertake the meditation subject, do the meditation together with friends, then return to where you are staying, and go to sleep. As you lie down to sleep, hold fast to the mood of the Buddha. Resolve firmly that we want Nibbana — do not let go of this mood; keep thinking always that we want Nibbana. Remember this well. If we want Nibbana, what do we do? We must cling to the Lord Buddha, the Fully Self-Enlightened One — that is, the recitation word 'Buddho' — because the Buddha himself dwells in this Nibbana. If we truly wish to go to Nibbana, we reflect on the goodness of the Buddha. When the mind clings to the Buddha, where can it go? Even in death, it follows the Buddha.

As you lie down, recite: hold the in-and-out breath, recite 'Buddho', keep reciting until you fall asleep. If at first it does not bring sleep and becomes irritating, you may stop for now — lie down, and let yourself fall asleep afterward. If the mood grows accustomed through continued recitation, before long you will sleep. Or sometimes it becomes fluent — you say 'Bud' and before you can say 'dho' you are already asleep; let it happen, do not resist, because this is what we want — to fall asleep. And understand this well: if the mind has not reached the first jhana, it will not be able to fall asleep — it will only grow irritated instead.

If you recite until you fall asleep together with the recitation word, not even aware of where sleep overtook you — that is exactly the mind reaching the first jhana, the first level of absorption. We become a Brahma at ease. And throughout the whole period of sleep, it is held to be sleep within a state of samadhi. If, by chance, something should happen and we die during that sleep, we would go to be a Brahma instantly.

But if you wake and there is no urgent task requiring you to rise, then remain lying as you are, holding the in-and-out breath together with the recitation, keeping the mind at ease. However much moisture (freshness of contentment) your mind has, the time...

However long the mind can hold steady at dawn, that whole day will be nothing but happiness. This shows that we have sustained jhana from early evening all the way through to dawn. If one can do this as a regular habit, then the words hell, hungry ghost, asura, and animal do not apply to you. If you should die, you would become a Brahma at once, close to Nibbana.

Well then — in speaking these words of advice to all of you, the Buddhist faithful, let us remember that we must be the one who wins — that is, winning at some one point according to the rule of the forty kammatthana subjects, whichever it may be, according to one's own temperament. If you still do not understand, go and get the meditation manual and read it, or get the Mahasatipatthana Sutta and read it. Wherever you find it pleasing, recite there; wherever you find it pleasing, contemplate there — so that it suits your own temperament. But the most important thing is the awareness of the breath together with the recitation word 'Buddho'. Do not abandon this 'Buddho' — keep sustaining it. When the mind is at ease, then contemplate according to the meditation subjects as stated in the texts — this will not be wrong, and it will be of benefit to you.

Well then, from now on, may all of you, the Buddhist faithful, strive to keep the body upright, keep the mind firm, maintain awareness of the in-and-out breath, and use the recitation word and contemplation according to your own temperament until you hear the signal announcing that the time is up.

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4. Establishing Awareness of the Breath

For today, we continue our study from the previous day. On the previous days we spoke about the foundation of meditation practice in its beginning stages. Let all of you, the Buddhist faithful, understand the method of practice. Today we continue on to the subject of the mood of samadhi. As for listening to the Dhamma talk on meditation at night, please take it that you should listen continuously, in sequence. If there is anything you do not understand, go open the meditation manual and read it — everything will be found there. From tonight onward, teaching will proceed in sequence until it is finished, because if we keep going back and forth — with old students staying and new students arriving, and so returning again and again to the beginning — the knowledge will never come to a conclusion. As for some of you who have the book but have not read it, this is much to be reproached. To have the texts available and not read them seems far too careless; it is practicing without real wish for good in one's practice, doing it merely for form's sake — this yields no benefit. Studying the rules of practice according to the principles and criteria must be known thoroughly. If it is not known, it is like diving underwater searching for a needle — it yields no benefit at all; it would only be by chance that we could do well. Our rules of practice are complete in full; students and practitioners ought to have grown wise by now, after so long.

From here we will speak of the mood of samadhi; the background matters we will not speak of further — anyone newly studying may go research it in the texts. The word 'samadhi' has three levels, namely:

Khanika-samadhi, meaning momentary samadhi, a small samadhi.

Upacara-samadhi, meaning approaching samadhi, a middling samadhi, drawing near to jhana.

Appana-samadhi, the heaviest, foremost level of samadhi — that is, beginning from the first jhana up through the fourth jhana, a samadhi of firm stability.

In cultivating meditation, we should take hold of anapanasati (mindfulness of breathing) as the essential point, because this anapanasati kammatthana is necessary for every type of person without exception, since anapanasati is the meditation subject that quells the mind's distraction. Whatever we cultivate, if we cannot quell the mind's distraction, samadhi will not arise. And who, where, has a mood that is never distracted? Is there anyone? None can be found. Those whose moods are truly never distracted are only the Arahants. The Lord who upholds the Dhamma, that is, the Buddha himself...

...is the omniscient one, who knows the truth. Therefore, in the Mahasatipatthana Sutta, he placed anapanasati first. This is the pattern of teaching; what we teach, we teach according to the Buddha's own pattern. As for the patterns that ordinary townsfolk have newly invented, we do not accept those. Why? Because the ones who created them are not the Buddha — at best, whoever created them is not even an Arahant. Since the creators of such patterns gained nothing from them, what could those who practice according to such patterns possibly gain?

Since the Buddha saw that anapanasati was of such importance, he placed it at the very beginning of the Mahasatipatthana Sutta. When one sustains anapanasati to the mood of jhana — this anapanasati especially — one can sustain the mood up to the fourth jhana, for one whose disposition is of the disciple-vehicle (savaka-bhumi); but for one whose disposition is of the Buddha-vehicle (buddha-bhumi), one can sustain it up to the fifth jhana. It is reckoned a meditation subject of very great importance, and it is also the meditation subject that quells the bodily formations (kaya-sankhara). When our body is sick, unwell, afflicted with painful feeling, we use anapanasati kammatthana to sustain jhana, and the painful feeling will ease; at best, if one reaches the fourth jhana, one will not even feel that painful sensation at all.

Another point: one who is skilled in anapanasati kammatthana knows the time of one's own death — knowing exactly when we will die, in what manner we will die, when we will die. Knowing this, one becomes a person free of dread toward death. And furthermore, anapanasati kammatthana is a meditation subject of great importance in yet another way: whatever other meditation subject we practice, whether in calm-meditation (samatha-bhavana) or insight-meditation (vipassana-bhavana), we must use anapanasati kammatthana as the foundation to calm the mind first. Otherwise, cultivating meditation in any other subject, whether in calm- or insight-meditation, will yield no result at all. The Lord of the Ten Powers, the Supreme Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, saw the virtue of anapanasati kammatthana in just this way; therefore the Great Sage had it placed first among the meditation subjects in the Mahasatipatthana Sutta.

In cultivating anapanasati kammatthana according to the commonly favored method of practice, one should also use buddhanussati kammatthana (recollection of the Buddha) to accompany and control it, helping to generate strength of will. In doing good within the Buddha's Dispensation, if one lacks strength of will alone, nothing will come of it, because this training is a training of the mind — we do not train the body. If there is only the awareness of the in-and-out breath, we might think the mind has simply become empty; but by recollecting the goodness of the Lord Supreme Conqueror, using the word 'Buddho', one feels that the mind becomes firm. This, too, I do not deny is a form of goodness.

There is one more layer added: first, we have anapanasati kammatthana; second, we have buddhanussati kammatthana. These become two meditation subjects combined together, without creating any extra fatigue, since only two words are used — breathing in, think 'Bud'; breathing out, think 'dho'. Done this way, it does not conflict with anapanasati kammatthana.

Having understood the qualities of anapanasati kammatthana, now for the qualities of buddhanussati kammatthana: this meditation subject is a very great power, with very high benefit. If one dies and becomes a deva, one's bodily radiance will be even more brilliant than that of devas who accumulated merit by other means. Devas themselves hold that whoever has the most brilliant bodily radiance is the deva with the greatest store of merit. And cultivating buddhanussati kammatthana is a cause that draws the mind, enabling all of you, the Buddhist faithful, to reach Nibbana swiftly. Remember this well — this is the benefit, the result.

Now let us return to the beginning. The practice of maintaining awareness of the in-and-out breath is called anapanussati kammatthana. The Buddha instructed that we should maintain awareness thus: 'this is my in-breath, this is my out-breath'; whether our in-breath is long or short, whether our out-breath is long or short, we should also know this. This makes the mind convenient to work with, makes the mind refined and meticulous, and makes mindfulness-and-clear-comprehension (sati-sampajanna) steady. He gave a simile: it is like a turner drawing the cord of a lathe — as he draws the cord long or short, he is aware of whether the drawing motion is long or short. This is what makes the mind aware, ever-present.

If one asks how long this awareness of mind should be maintained, the answer must be: be aware of it with every single in-and-out breath, from the moment you wake until you fall asleep — that indeed is the ideal. Cultivating meditation in this manner does feel burdensome for a newcomer, or for one who has not yet attained jhana. Anapanasati kammatthana is not something trivial — it holds great power. But if it is so great that one cannot bear to carry it, then no one at all would ever attain it. Since there are countless people who have attained it, this shows that it is not, in fact, too heavy — it is well within the strength of those among the Buddhist faithful who have genuine faith to accomplish it.

So then, in what manner should we cultivate it so that it bears merit? Here we combine it with buddhanussati: while breathing in, be aware that you are breathing in while thinking 'Bud'; while breathing out, think 'dho'. Done this way it is not tiring, because there is no need to force the breathing. One must let the breath proceed naturally — do not force it to go quickly, and do not slow it down either; do not hold the breath — let it go comfortably. Sometimes our mindfulness and clear comprehension are not good enough, so that ordinary breathing is not felt, and so we force the breath to be heavy — this will not do. The breath must be allowed to proceed...

...as it normally would, and then take our mind and measure it, hold it fast: 'this is breathing in, this is breathing out'. If, under ordinary conditions, the mood should slip and become inattentive, this shows that our mindfulness and clear comprehension have wandered off — the mind is not sustained in samadhi. This is a sign to watch for; this is the advice of the Supreme Lord of the World.

In cultivating mental samadhi, the anapanasati side is the enemy of the distracted mood and irritation at outside noise. Ordinarily, our mind has been wandering for many hundreds of thousands of aeons, with no one to control it — or perhaps in past lives we did have some measure of control over it, that may be so — but in this present life, we have only just begun to use it, only just begun to control it, and so it forgets the way, forgets the path, just the same. In the early stages, we set a time — half an hour, one hour, two hours — but forcing the mind to stay as we please for that long is simply not possible. We must look to the pattern that the Lord Supreme Conqueror, the Fully Self-Enlightened Teacher, explained in the Visuddhimagga, because in the Visuddhimagga he explained the method of controlling the mind in fine detail — that one should observe and examine the mind. If we maintain awareness of the in-and-out breath together with a recitation word, or without a recitation word, and use an unlimited span of time, the mind will become distracted and unsteady, unable to control the mood of mind so that it stays firm. The Lord Supreme Conqueror had us practice in this way: count the in-and-out breaths as we go — breathing in and out counted as one; this is the first beat. Then breathe in and out — one; breathe in and out — two; count up to two. Then start again from the beginning, counting up to three; start again, counting up to four; start again, counting up to five; then start again, counting up to six, seven, eight, and then to ten. Once you reach ten, go back and start again counting one; then start again counting one to two, and so on in sequence. He instructed us to do it this way so that it would control the power of the mind — that is, counting alongside gives the mind something to be occupied with in counting. The mood of the mind's awareness may become a little coarse in the process — never mind that; we are after the result, we are not practicing for the sake of accumulating a quantity of time. We want the mood of mind to become genuine samadhi.

Now then, we begin: in the first stage, we intend to count from 1 to 5. Within this range of 1 to 5, we will absolutely not allow the mood of our mind to become distracted toward any other object. One must have real firmness of resolve. In building goodness for the sake of heaven, for the Brahma world, or for Nibbana — if one is weak and merely goes through the motions, beware of becoming conceited, thinking oneself already accomplished, and falling into hell instead. Many people go this way. Those who cultivate meditation do not always go to heaven — the moment one becomes conceited, that is the moment one falls to hell. Whether a person has real goodness or not is easy for us to observe: a person with true goodness, whose samadhi reaches the heart, does not speak carelessly or ramble; their manner is composed and proper. If they do speak, there is reason behind it...

...bears result — not just speaking for the sake of speaking. This is an outward sign, easy to observe. A person who sustains samadhi — and even more so, one who sustains samadhi as jhana, truly maintaining jhana — such people are the most reluctant to speak at all. On seeing someone's face they already feel weary of talking, not wanting to speak, because if they engage in speech it wastes the time of their sustained samadhi. At worst, if someone invites them into idle chatter, it causes their jhana to deteriorate. Such people are averse to speaking; unless there is real necessity, they will not speak. This is a sign to observe.

If we want to set this up so it is easy to grasp: count from 1 to 5 — first stage 1, then stage 1-2, stage 1-2-3, stage 1-2-3-4, stage 1-2-3-4-5 — only up to 5, that's all; this is according to the Buddha's own pattern. Within this span of 1 to 5, we will absolutely not allow any other mood to intrude upon the mood of our mind. Once we can sustain it well, once the counting stays steady well, and no other mood intrudes up to 5, then stop right there. This means our mind does not yet sustain the mood enough, is not yet settled firmly enough — stop and let it relax. When we feel at ease again, start over: count 1 to 5 once more. When you stop, stop in a relaxed way — chat a bit, read a book a bit, lie down and rest a bit, listen to the radio a bit — let it go comfortably. We control it for a short while, then let it run about freely and comfortably; then afterward we come back and count 1 to 5 anew, until we can begin counting 1 to 10. In the first round of this rhythm, it may feel well-sustained, but as soon as the mind begins to waver, stop. After a few more days, once the mood grows accustomed, come to counting 1 to 10 for about two rounds, keeping it steady to this rhythm. This is according to the pattern set by the Fully Self-Enlightened One — practice this way. This has been tried by others already, by people who have gone through it and are still here today. There is no one who fails to practice according to the flow of the Supreme Teacher's own words — no one resists it. As for those who resist and yet claim to have attained it, that is simply delusion, not the real thing — it is a mistaken delusion; the truth is they have not really attained it, but merely think they have. This is one method by which we gather strength of resolve in the practice of anapanasati kammatthana.

There is another pattern too, namely: when the mind is truly so scattered that even 1 to 5, or 1 to 3, cannot be endured — this does happen as well. Sometimes today the mind is at ease, and tomorrow one intends to do even better, yet instead the mind refuses to cooperate, scattering in ways one cannot even describe, impossible to control. In such a case, the Supreme Teacher advises all of you, the Buddhist faithful, to simply let the mind go along with its mood. If it wants to think and cannot be controlled, let it think; and we take hold of our resolve to keep watch over it. Let it think wherever it wants to think; and the moment it stops thinking, we put it to use as samadhi immediately. He gave a simile, likening it to a person...

...training a horse. With a wild, unbroken horse — while it still has strength, whatever you try, you cannot bring it onto the path; you cannot train it to go according to the manner we want. When it truly cannot be done, one simply holds it back, letting it run about as it pleases. It wants to be wild, so it runs and runs; once it has spent its strength, then we lead it onto the path — it stops being wild simply because it no longer has the strength to be wild. Our own mental power is exactly the same. If it is truly scattered and cannot be controlled, do not go struggling with it — at worst you would make yourself ill with a nervous breakdown from it. He tells us to let it go — let it go, and then keep watch over it. It will stop thinking within twenty minutes at the very most — this has been tried and tested. The very instant it stops thinking, catch hold of the mood into samadhi — maintain awareness of the in-and-out breath. This time, in just a single moment, the mood will be drawn in and will settle firmly into jhana at once; it becomes calm and at ease. At best, half an hour, even a full hour, may pass without your wanting to stop — the mood is so pleasant, it has become jhana.

This is the basic training of samadhi; may all of you, the Buddhist faithful, remember it. If I were to say more it would not amount to much more than this — this much is the method of training. As for the mood of samadhi at each stage, we will speak of that gradually on the days to come.

From here on, may all of you, the Buddhist faithful, strive to keep the body upright, keep the mind firm, maintain awareness of the in-and-out breath, and use the recitation word or contemplation according to your own temperament, until you hear the signal announcing that the time is up.

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5. Closing

The other day we spoke of the mood of samadhi; we spoke only a little before the time ran out. Before any of you, the Buddhist faithful, think of anything else at all, the very first thing you should think of is death, taken as the object of contemplation, because life itself is impermanent, but death is certain. We come together to build goodness precisely so that it will serve as capital stored up for the time when we die. This taking of death as an object of contemplation the Buddha called maranassati kammatthana (mindfulness of death), and it is reckoned as heedfulness in life, because we should always think: if we should die, then for as long as we have not yet become an Arahant, we must still wander on through birth and death in the round of samsara. Before we die, then, let us seek out goodness to store up.

The first form of goodness that the Lord Supreme Conqueror, the Fully Self-Enlightened Teacher, recommended at the outset is the giving of alms (dana). Giving is the cause of love; giving is the cause of forming friendship. One who gives naturally has a mind that is happy — meaning that wherever one goes, the person who has received our gift will show us friendship in return, except only for certain rare people who do not recognize kindness — and even this we forgive, through the power of loving-kindness (metta-parami). After passing from human existence, one who has given alms will never encounter poverty or hardship; and for as long as we have not yet reached Nibbana, we shall have happiness in enjoying our wealth and possessions. This is the fruit of giving that we are entitled to receive.

Another point — a foundational goodness in preparing oneself for death — is keeping one's precepts pure. One who dies with pure precepts (sila) will have a long life and a handsome, pleasing appearance, if reborn as a human being; will have wealth and possessions that are not destroyed by fire, thieves, flood, or storm, owing to the protective power of the precepts as a boundary; those under one's care will feel bound to follow one's instruction, with no one transgressing; one's speech will be beloved by others; and one's mindfulness and clear comprehension will be complete. This is the second form of goodness we should prepare in readiness for death.

Third, the Lord Supreme Conqueror has us recite in contemplation, calling to mind the goodness that the Fully Self-Enlightened Buddha himself practiced, and so forth. This the Lord of the Ten Powers had us hold onto so as to prevent forgetting mindfulness and clear comprehension — it is a way of sustaining mindfulness and clear comprehension, so that we do not forget at the very moment we are to die. Because at the time we are to die, if we have bound ourselves to recitation beforehand, the mood of the mind will have grown accustomed to the wholesome side; and if, at that moment, our mind calls to mind some portion of wholesomeness, or the recitation word 'Buddho, Dhammo, Sangho', or the like, any one of these...

...and then dies — the realms of misery (apaya-bhumi) hold no place for us. At worst, we will be a fine human being, or else a deva, or else a Brahma. Whichever verse we have recited until it has become second nature — later on, should we encounter the Lord Supreme Conqueror, the Fully Self-Enlightened Teacher, or an Arahant, he will preach the benefits of that verse, and we need only hear it through once to attain the fruit of Arahantship and reach Nibbana.

This, then, is what we should resolve before we die: that after death we will not be one who suffers hardship; that after death we will be one free of misery; that we will have a reasonable measure of happiness, even if we have not yet reached Nibbana. This is the kind of virtue the Buddha recommended. May all of you, the Buddhist faithful, remember this and practice it as a matter of course, so that it may be said we have not wasted our chance at this birth. For if we are born human and then, upon death, must be reborn in the realms of misery — as a hell-being, a hungry ghost, an asura, or an animal — then it must be said we have fared very badly indeed; it is a net loss. Building goodness, what is commonly called 'making merit', is the cause and condition that gives us ever-increasing happiness. This, I ask all of you, the Buddhist faithful, to keep prepared in every moment of mind.

From here on, I would like to speak of the mood of samadhi that we ought to attain. Last night we spoke a little of anapanasati, intending to continue, but the time to speak ran out. The binding of the mood, the restraining of the mind on account of its distraction — this we already know, as explained last night; there is no need to go back over it.

Now then, let us look at the strength of resolve — that is, the result we ought to gain from cultivating samadhi. In cultivating samadhi, we must have the disposition to know how to train, to know how to fix the mind, and to know, of the task we are performing, just how far its results extend — it is not a matter of simply sitting there doing something like endless diving underwater; that yields no result. At worst, we might even come across something good and then throw it away. Sometimes we encounter a cause that becomes an enemy to the mood of samadhi, whether on the side of calm-meditation or insight-meditation; the practice itself becomes an instrument that destroys virtue, while we believe we are holding onto something good — and so it turns out we have merely exhausted ourselves for nothing in our practice. Therefore, insofar as all of you, the Buddhist faithful, hold respect for the Fully Self-Enlightened One, please resolve firmly to fix this in mind for the sake of understanding.

Whether one sustains anapanasati kammatthana, or buddhanussati kammatthana, or any other single meditation subject — if we are able to sustain this goodness, then next we should fix the mind to consider the mood we ought to gain from it. If we sustain the goodness — that is, quelling distraction, quelling anger and ill-will, quelling the feeling of satisfaction in sensual objects, or quelling doubt regarding the goodness of the Lord Supreme Conqueror — even once, for just a single moment, for a mere minute or two, the mood of mind still tends to scatter...

...thinking of this matter and that matter, and then after a moment we become aware of it and pull the mind back in again, alternating back and forth like this — this is called momentary concentration (khanika samadhi). There is nothing here yet that need cause suspicion (of wrongness).

Just from this kind of momentary concentration alone, if all the Buddhist faithful maintain it every single day, the benefit we will gain — even more than that — is that at the time we are to die, we will not die in confusion. At a time of very serious illness, the mind gathers itself together and can hold itself in jhana, or if not that, can hold itself in concentration; higher still, up to the level of access concentration (upacara samadhi) — because a person who knows they are about to die will always gather the strength of body and mind to help themselves. This is a natural law. The results gained from momentary concentration: for the most part such a person will not be reborn as a human again — not reborn as an animal, as a hungry ghost (peta), as an asura, or as a hell-being. Momentary concentration brings the Buddhist faithful to the Tavatimsa heaven, the heavenly realm of the Thirty-Three.

There are many examples in Buddhism, such as the deity Matthakuladi [as printed], who had never made merit in any past life, because his father was a stingy man. The father's name was Atinnapubbaka the brahmin, meaning 'the brahmin who had never given anything before.' Extremely miserly — he never made merit, never did a good deed, because his attachment begrudged spending wealth. When the young Matthakuladi, as a son, fell gravely ill, his father would not fetch a doctor to treat him, out of stinginess, and only kept medicine to treat him with alone. In the end the son died. As the son neared death he thought: even if my parents are kind, all this wealth of up to forty koti is of no benefit to me. He thought the Lord of the Ten Powers must have great compassion to grant happiness, and so he called to mind the goodness of the Fully Self-Enlightened Buddha, in the way we recite 'Buddho.' He reflected on the Buddha's goodness for only a brief moment, and his mind left the body — what we call dying. This small merit of recollecting the virtue of the Lord of Wisdom is called momentary concentration. He was then reborn in the Tavatimsa heaven with a golden mansion, with smooth earrings, with 500 celestial maidens as retinue — a considerable happiness, even though he had never made merit in any past life. If we were to do the same, we would gain far more than the deity Matthakuladi, because we have made merit in the religion of the Blessed One countless times, and we have also given charity outside the bounds of Buddhism countless times — such as giving to beggars, giving to those in hardship, giving to animals. Giving of this kind carries great blessing — the blessing

...will all gather together, and we will have goodness even greater than the deity Matthakuladi, more happiness, and better power and merit-based fortune.

As for the concentration that is to be feared, it is access concentration (upacara samadhi). This access concentration destroys a great deal of a person's goodness. The signs of access concentration are a feeling of being full and gratified, a feeling of joyful rapture, and diligence in the practice of tranquility meditation and insight meditation — all because rapture (piti) serves as a support for the mind, and there is bodily and mental happiness because the power of concentration reinforces it, causing us not to feel sated or bored in developing concentration or insight-knowledge. When a meditator reaches rapture — that is, access concentration — with rapture at its fullest, all such people fare well, except only those who go astray.

The signs of access concentration that arise: first there is a sudden rush of goosebumps, called 'hair standing on end.' While simply sitting, one has the sensation of hair standing on end as though it were normal, even though beforehand there was no cold and no contact with wind, yet the hair rises on its own for no reason — this is counted as the first stage of rapture. There is no need to correct it. If our mental strength is lower than that, this sign tends not to occur; if our mental strength rises a bit higher, this sign then disappears. As for this bodily sign, may all the Buddhist faithful please not let the mind get entangled with it. Let it be whatever it will be — we had better simply gather our mental strength and hold the mind's state in concentration instead. Some people let the mind get entangled with it until they lose the result — there are many such cases — and some, even after this has been explained to them, still do not lose their doubt, going back and forth over the bodily sign that occurs. If the state of mind is like this, then in this whole lifetime nothing good can be achieved. Bear in mind that the training of tranquility and insight meditation is a training of the mind; as the mental state becomes more refined, it will show up somewhat in the body — let it be whatever it will be, pay it no attention. Keep the mind in concentration, and that is enough.

The second sign: once the goosebump sensation has passed, this time tears flow. One sits, sits at ease, and the tears flow — whether one likes it or not they flow rather heavily — and then they stop; but at the time of sitting in concentration, sometimes one encounters something that touches the heart, or someone says something that touches the heart. The mind is already holding rapture at that point; we do not realize it because we were not being careful — this rapture is pent up within the mind, and the tears simply flow out on their own. But it is not crying; it flows in a way that cannot be restrained, without cause and without reason. This kind of sign occurs among the Buddhist faithful — one should think that our mental strength has advanced further, that concentration has risen to reach the level of the second rapture. This rapture means a feeling of fullness of heart. This kind of sign is the freshness in the practice of merit

...merit tends to increase progressively, with confidence in the goodness of Buddhism growing firm. It is people of this type whom the Fully Self-Enlightened Buddha forbade from asking for any material object — because once they ask, since their mental strength is high, the giver will give. If a monk himself asks, it is a fault, an offense — except for the case where we simply see that we are lacking something, and the giver, out of sympathy, offers it to the monk; that is not wrong. But if any monk goes and opens his mouth to beg, he has every prospect of falling straight into hell. This sign is the second stage. If the mind's strength rises further, the sign of flowing tears will then disappear.

Now a new sign arises: the body sways back and forth, forward and backward. Sometimes it spins all around the body; sometimes it shows a stiff, jerking motion like a puppet being roused. This kind of sign is called Okkantika-piti [as printed], the third rapture. Whatever the strength or lightness of this bodily movement, one will feel that one's mental strength remains firmly established in the state of concentration without decline. As for this kind of bodily sign, if it appears one must use the phrase 'let it be' — whatever it shows itself to be, let it be. Once our mind is at ease that is enough; the matter of the body does not concern us. This must be well remembered. This kind of sign appears in a great many people, and many have come to ask about it, especially in Bangkok — they ask about it, and after it has been explained to them they still do not listen, do not accept it, and go back and forth in doubt. So one thinks to oneself that people of this type will achieve nothing good even until death, because as for the sign that arises in themselves, they themselves do not know it; even when someone who has already been through it tells them, they still will not listen, still sit there full of doubt. Wherever this doubt comes in and lodges, that is where ruin follows. The fruit of the practice then fails to appear. When this sign appears, we will feel that our mind has become more firmly established. We want only this one thing — that the mind be firmly established; let the body be whatever it will be.

Next comes the fourth rapture, called Uppenga-piti [as printed]. At this stage of rapture there will be a sensation of the body floating up into the air, yet the mind remains at ease. This floating sensation is not levitation — when the mind reaches this level, this rapture floats up on its own. If the mind's strength eases even slightly, it will drift back down to sit in its original place as usual; there is no need to fear that once floated up it cannot come back down. The state of mind will have a freshness, more joy and delight than the previous rapture.

If our mental strength rises a little further still, that sensation will disappear, and instead there will be a tingling sensation as if the body were light, the body feeling airy as though it were nothing — there will seem to be only a thin layer of skin mixed in, with the flesh and bones within not appearing at all; one has this kind of feeling. Sitting like this, the sensation seems as if one's body has grown larger somewhat, the face bigger somewhat, the body taller somewhat, yet the state of mind remains fresh, the mind stays normal

...the mind is firmly established in concentration. This sign is called Pharana-piti [as printed], the final rapture. It also carries a sensation close to happiness. Once this rapture has appeared and then subsides, happiness then appears. This 'appearance of happiness' is truly happiness — one could sit for twenty or thirty days without ever getting up. There will be no illness, no fatigue, no bodily or mental discomfort at all — only a sense of brightness and freshness that cannot be adequately described.

Now, once the mind enters between the stage of rapture and the stage of happiness, or reaches happiness itself, this is called access concentration. If it reaches the stage of happiness it is considered full access concentration; beginning from the first rapture onward it is called preliminary access concentration. The signs of rapture described above, through these five stages, do not mean that everyone must pass through them all in the same way. Some pass through only one or another of them; some whose mental state is higher do not pass through them at all — that is, they pass through without any noticeable sensation, entering straight into the first jhana at once. This applies to those who have attained jhana in a past life.

Then, at the point when the mental state reaches access concentration, from the stage of rapture onward, one must be careful, because various lights, colors, and images will appear. At this point the meditation masters have all instructed: do not pay attention to any such images, lights, or colors at all. If one pays attention to any image, light, or color, our mind will move away from concentration. We set our intention on one thing only: whatever comes, let it come; whatever goes, let it go — we pay it no attention. We are interested only in the concentration we are holding; maintain our mental strength firmly as before, such as continuing to note the breath in and out, whatever the word of recitation may be — hold that state as normal, and the mind will then reach the first jhana quickly. If we fall into getting lost in the lights and colors, our goodness will dissolve away.

For all of you whose mind reaches access concentration in this way, when you die from the human state, for the most part you will become a deva of the Yama heaven — that is, a deva who is continuing to build merit and fortune.

Well then, Buddhist faithful, for today the time for speaking has ended. From here on, may all the Buddhist faithful try to keep the body upright, keep the mind steady, note the breath going in and out, and use the word of recitation and contemplate according to your own inclination, until you hear the signal announcing that time is up.

* * *

6. The First Jhana

Today, before studying anything else, let us bear in mind the natural law as something important. The natural law that applies to us is: 'Jatipi dukkha' — birth is suffering; 'Jarapi dukkha' — old age is suffering; 'Maranampi dukkham' — death is suffering; sorrow, lamentation, pain, and grief and so on — sorrow and grief are suffering; separation from what is loved and cherished is suffering; having frustration or an unfulfilled wish is suffering. The Buddha said: we are born in order to encounter suffering. Among all who are born, there is no one at all who will be free of suffering. If we still hold to the view that the body is ours, that wealth is ours, that relatives and friends are ours, then the feeling of suffering arises — it arises because we cling, which is called clinging (upadana), especially with regard to the eight worldly conditions (lokadhamma): gaining wealth — joy; wealth dissolving away — sorrow; gaining status — joy; status dissolving away — sorrow; having happiness in sensual pleasure — joy; that happiness ending — distress; receiving slander — trouble; receiving praise — happiness. This too is considered a state of clinging, creating suffering, creating agitation for us.

What should we do, then, to be free of suffering?

The Fully Self-Enlightened Buddha advises us to hold the thought constantly in mind that this is the natural law of the world which we cannot avoid. If it happens to us, we regard it as 'let it be.' In the Pali language this is called khanti, patience. But if we use the word 'patience' it is hard to understand — better to use plain Thai: whatever kind of thing arises, let it be.

Being born is suffering — suffering through seeking a livelihood, earning a living, pursuing an occupation, managing the body, managing a group; the tasks that must be done are wearisome, and one meets with frustration. We regard it as simply doing our duty; we have done it to the best of our ability, and whether anyone criticizes it as good or bad, we do not hold on to that, we do not consider it important — because the Blessed One said: natthi loke aninditto — there is no one in the world who is never criticized. Therefore, whatever slander or ill-speech may come, we regard it as 'let it be,' as only natural. Everything we do, we do according to duty.

If being born is suffering in this way, we should regard it thus: this is because, through our own foolishness, we are born. Foolish because of what? Foolish because of clinging to the view that the body is us, is ours, that we exist within the body, that the body exists within us. Once we cling to the body alone, we then also cling to external possessions as well — but in truth

All these things are not us, are not ours. If they were truly us, truly ours, they could not grow old, could not fall ill, could not die. But once born, they must grow old, must fall ill, must die. Why then should our mind go on suffering over it? If we always bear in mind that we are born in order to grow old, born in order to fall ill, born in order to encounter states we dislike, born for the sake of separation from what is loved and cherished, which results in death in the end — in sum, we are born in order to die. Since it is our very lot, upon being born, to encounter matters of this kind, why should we suffer over it when such things occur? We should regard this simply as a natural matter, and before long we will be free of suffering.

How does one become free of suffering?

We practice giving as a matter of course. If our mind is fully engaged in giving, this is called cutting off greed. We keep loving-kindness (metta) as a matter of course. The state of loving-kindness that we maintain is what preserves our precepts (sila). If we have loving-kindness, our precepts will not be broken. If we have loving-kindness as a matter of course, besides keeping the precepts unbroken, loving-kindness also serves to destroy anger (dosa). We then contemplate to find the truth: 'Jatipi dukkha' — birth is suffering. You wish to be born — however much suffering it may bring, let it be; we keep the mind at rest regardless. 'Jarapi dukkha' — old age is suffering: the trembling, faltering movements, the body no longer strong, no longer sprightly, having wishes that go unfulfilled because one can no longer do things oneself — and so we then have suffering. We regard this as simply a natural matter for the aged; one is born in order to grow old. 'Maranampi dukkham' — death is suffering: an ordinary matter for common folk, but we do not suffer over it; we regard it as a natural law. It is even good to die, because then all this trouble comes to an end. And seeing the five aggregates (khandha) as a fault, as suffering for us, we then think further: as for what is called the five aggregates — this coming to be born with a body of the five aggregates — let this not happen to us again. We will not foolishly consent to having a body again. If our state of mind holds this thought as a matter of course, we will then be free of suffering; it will gradually come to be understood on its own.

This is a lesson that all Buddhist followers should keep in mind as a matter of course, in order to reach nibbana. This is the final insight-knowledge (vipassana-nana).

From here on, I will continue from yesterday. Yesterday we spoke up to the completion of access concentration. Today I will speak about reaching the point of jhana. As for maintaining the breath in and out and the recitation word 'Buddho' — in truth this recitation is not restricted; you may recite in whatever way suits your own inclination. Whatever recitation is used, note the breath going in and out along with it. When breathing in, think 'Bud'; when breathing out, think 'dho.'

At whatever moment our mind still has awareness, the mind still remains within the bounds of the word 'Buddho' or of the breath going in and out — one should know that at that moment our mind is established in the state of concentration.

As for maintaining concentration even a little each day, the Blessed One said: such a person is one who is never without jhana — that is, one whose virtue is high enough to save oneself. If we can maintain concentration better still — meaning that at the moment when you are noting the breath in and out and holding the word of recitation, reciting with a mind at ease — the ears clearly hear outside sounds: dogs barking, dogs howling, people talking, the sound of singing or a play, the sound of villagers quarreling, people gossiping, or even speaking ill of us — we hear it all, yet it appears that our mind is not annoyed; we have no irritation at the sound, and we are able to note the breath in and out and hold the recitation with ease. If this state can be maintained for two or three minutes, five minutes, or even ten minutes, this state is considered the state of the first jhana. Our mind has reached the first jhana — this is the first jhana.

For this first jhana we have a rough guide to observe: that is, we are not annoyed by sound, because sound is the enemy of the first jhana — take note of this. But reaching the first jhana and maintaining the first jhana are different things. Maintaining means we command the mind to remain in that state for however long we intend; this is called being one who maintains jhana. If the state of mind reaches the first jhana, it cannot stay long — sometimes it holds for a minute or two, three minutes, then it reduces and drops down, drops down low. Once it has dropped down low, we then intend to rise up again; whether it rises again or not is up to it.

In the early stage of reaching the first jhana, there is a matter that tends to cause doubt — that is, the initial sensation. If our mental state is coarse, there will be a sensation of dimness, a dozing feeling similar to falling asleep; there will be a dark sensation. Sometimes we have the feeling as if we are about to fall asleep. If the mind drops down out of that state, the mind will then have a sensation of brightness, and we think we may have dozed off or not, we are not sure. We can observe whether we were asleep or not asleep, or whether the mind entered a jhanic state of this kind, which is called 'coarse jhana.' If we were really asleep, we would have to nod forward or tilt backward, as is the manner of a sleeping person. If the body sits still and simply has this kind of dozing sensation, almost losing awareness and then becoming aware again — this shows that your mind has reached the first jhana, but it is coarse; it cannot be maintained for long. Later the mind will refine itself on its own. This is one characteristic that many practitioners have doubts about.

Another characteristic is this: while continuing to sit, there is a dizzy, swooping sensation resembling falling from a height, causing a sudden startled, heart-lurching feeling. Sometimes there is also a strong pounding of the heart as if falling from a height. Once one has had this sensation, the plunging feeling will not occur again; from then on there will only be a feeling of ease. This kind of sign — may all of you please understand — means that the mind has entered the first jhana, but the mind cannot hold there for long; it slips out of the jhana, meaning it slips out too forcefully, falling back into the ordinary state of consciousness (bhavanga) called the normal mind.

If it is the first jhana in refined form, there will simply be a feeling of ease, a brightness of mind; the mind will have a sense of calm stillness — the ears will hear all sounds, but the mind stays at ease, not annoyed by the sound. This is the refined first jhana.

If one has both of these signs, all Buddhist followers should feel proud that their mind has entered the first jhana — whether for just a moment, one minute, two minutes, or three minutes. If the mind can hold this every single day, one is then called one who is never without jhana. At the time of death one will become a Brahma deity. At a time of serious illness, the concentrated state of mind will gather itself together; once the mind has gathered together we will then have happiness. This is something we come to know only at a time of serious illness — how valuable it truly is. If the mind can gather and hold the first jhana, at a time of illness this truly bears fruit; it will be able to hold steady very well. When the mind can hold steady well at the time of death, dying while within the first jhana — if we have attained jhana in its coarse form we will be reborn as a first-level Brahma; if the middling kind, a second-level Brahma; if the refined kind, a third-level Brahma. This is speaking of the mundane (lokiya) side — this is mundane jhana.

If one's mental state reaches the first jhana in this way, and if we contemplate simply, in the elementary manner, this physical existence — this body is not us, is not ours; we do not exist within the body, the body does not exist within us; we do not cling to or hold on to the body; let it fall ill, let it grow old, let it die, let it be — we regard it as a natural matter. Whether anyone slanders or praises us, we pay no attention. However much wealth one has, however poor one may be, let it be — we earn our living according to our duty. Having much, we eat much; having little, we eat little. We consider: having much, one still dies; having little, one still dies. Having much, one still grows old; having little, one still grows old. Having much, one still falls ill; having little, one still falls ill. Having much, one still worries; having little, one still worries — it is worry all the same. All these things are natural; we keep our mind at ease.

If our mind does not cling to or hold on to the body, seeing that the body has birth, has old age, has illness and death in the end as its natural course, and has a firm resolve — that is, accepting and honoring the Buddha's teaching steadfastly, keeping the precepts pure, having the love of nibbana as one's constant state of mind — this is merely the first jhana

...attained to this extent, because the power of the first jhana has enough strength to cut off the defilements. In this way the Great Lord of the World calls it the fruit of stream-entry [sotapatti-phala, as printed]. If our state of mind reaches the condition of being a Stream-Enterer, or the fruit of stream-entry itself, the state of mind will no longer decline, will no longer move toward the states of misery (apaya). If we die from the human state, we will be reborn sometimes as a human, sometimes as a deva, alternating. If one attains stream-entry in its coarse form, one is reborn as a human for another 7 lifetimes and then goes to nibbana. A Stream-Enterer of the middling kind is reborn as a human for another 3 lifetimes. A Stream-Enterer of the refined kind is reborn as a human for only 1 more lifetime. This is spoken of according to the principle of whether we attain stream-entry, whether or not we get to meet a Buddha in person. Do not forget that the Stream-Enterer possesses only three qualities of virtue: constantly bearing in mind that we must die as a matter of course; seeing birth, old age, and any kind of distress as natural — yet greed, the desire to be wealthy, still remains; the desire to be beautiful still remains; anger still remains; delusion still remains. But this desire to be beautiful, to be wealthy, to be angry, to be deluded stays within the bounds of the precepts: wanting to be beautiful, one is beautiful without breaking the precepts; wanting to be wealthy, one obtains it without breaking the precepts, without cheating or defrauding anyone; one may become angry but cannot bring oneself to harm anyone, for fear of breaking the precepts; one is still deluded about the body as being 'self' and 'mine' — yet one still constantly knows that one must die, and the mind is able to let go. All work is done according to duty, with the attitude of accepting and honoring the Buddha's teaching, keeping the five precepts pure, and having the love of nibbana as a normal state of mind — this is merely the substance of the Stream-Enterer.

To put it briefly, the Stream-Enterer is:

1) One who has firm and certain respect for the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha.

2) One who keeps the five precepts as a matter of course, the five precepts never broken.

The sign of a Stream-Enterer is simply that of a fine, upstanding person. Practicing in this way to reach the state of Stream-Enterer is not a difficult thing.

Well then, from here on, all Buddhist faithful, try to keep the body upright, keep mindfulness steady, note the breath going in and out, use the word of recitation and contemplate according to your own inclination, until you hear the signal announcing that time is up.

* * *

7. Maintaining Jhana

On this occasion, all of you Buddhist faithful have together undertaken the meditation subject and undertaken the Uposatha precepts. From here on this is the occasion for all of you to together develop concentration of mind. In the very first stage of developing concentration of mind, the thing that must be set up as the object and maintained well is the breath going in and out. Try to maintain awareness of the breath going in and out — when breathing in, be aware that you are breathing in; when breathing out, be aware that you are breathing out. When breathing in, think 'Bud'; when breathing out, think 'dho.' Do not let go of this state at all; let it be maintained as normal. Why is this? Because the practice of concentration — the awareness of the breath in and out, the awareness of the word 'Buddho' — this is the sign of concentration. And then do not pay attention to any images or lights and colors that appear to the mind. If any image, light, or color appears to the mind, disregard the sign of that image; maintain the original state as normal. Only in this way can it be said to accord with the intention of the Fully Self-Enlightened Buddha. This state — may all of you please maintain it throughout your whole life.

And then, another matter: in developing the meditation subject, we must also constantly reflect that we develop the meditation subject because we want knowledge as a means of liberation — liberation from birth, old age, illness, and death, because birth is suffering. The Buddha said: 'Jatipi dukkha' — birth is suffering; 'Jarapi dukkha' — old age is suffering; 'Maranampi dukkham' — death is suffering. If we must still be born, grow old, fall ill, and die in this way, we have nothing but suffering, revolving through birth and death within the round of existence (vatta). We develop tranquility meditation and insight meditation in order to put an end to birth, because we no longer want suffering any further. Contemplate and seek to find suffering within the Four Noble Truths.

From here on I will continue from last night. Last night we spoke about the state of the first jhana. In brief, observe the state of mind, or the extent to which we recite 'Buddho' or note the breath going in and out. If our mental state hears outside sounds clearly and distinctly, understanding everything, yet we are not annoyed by the sound, and we are able to control our state of mind to remain normal, or able to note the breath in and out, able to hold the recitation — however much sound intrudes, we are not annoyed, the mind does not become agitated by the sound. This kind of state is the state of the first jhana.

Whether we can control our emotional state to remain steady for a long time or not is a matter of mind training — training the method of sustaining concentration (samadhi). As for the method of training to sustain samadhi: in the first stage the Buddha used counting as the key technique — that is, counting from 1 to 10 of the in-and-out breath, counted in pairs. We compel our mental state to remain fixed on this: that during the count from 1 to 10 we will not allow any other mental state to intrude at all, and then the mind truly remains steady like that. When we reach 10 we then let go, or begin again if the mind is still at ease — that is, we hold the mental state steady for another 1 to 10. If, having reached 10, we can still hold it, this is called training to sustain samadhi. Once we have practiced this manner until fluent, we can then use the method of counting 1 to 20, or set the count at 1 to 30, to 50, to 100.

The method of training to attain jhana and samadhi with certainty — in ancient times they did it this way: they used a lit candle set up in front of them. This method of using a candle must be done with the candle stuck in a bowl, or in some fixed place, to prevent the candle from falling over and burning down the house or the temple. This must be done by a person who is fully possessed of mindfulness and clear comprehension, who has intelligence — not doing things in some foolish way, letting danger arise like that; that is not to be praised, and it is not the good way. If it goes badly it will lead one down into hell. Whatever one does, one must have full mindfulness and clear comprehension — "nisammakaranam seyyo" [it is better to act having reflected] — one should reflect carefully first and then act; that is better. To do anything without reflecting, without considering, is not the path of good; it is the path of ruin. Before cultivating a kasina, the fire-kasina (tejo-kasina) for instance, in fixing the mind in samadhi, training the method of sustaining the mental state, we must exercise care — not simply do it carelessly. Lighting incense and candles to worship the Buddha is the same — once lit, one must take care as to whether the incense or candle will go on to burn anything or not. When finished, one should remove the incense stub and candle-wax and dispose of them, so that they do not become a source of danger to property.

Testing one's ability to sustain samadhi — the training method of the ancient monks: they used a beeswax candle, then attached a coin or a one-baht coin at some particular point, reasoning that as long as the mind had not yet reached that point, they would not allow the mind to move toward any other mental object. While sitting in meditation, one focuses the intention solely on the recitation. When the candle burns down to the coin or one-baht coin fixed there, the coin drops off with a clink — this shows that we have been able to control our mind comfortably, with the mind not wavering. Our mind has sustained jhana to that degree — "sustaining samadhi, sustaining the duration for as long as we wish."

Training the mind in samadhi, or training the mental state to remain steady, is a matter of great importance; otherwise our mental state will not be able to be controlled as a matter of course. This is the method of controlling the mental state so that it remains steady, called...

...sustaining jhana. All of you must train to make this normal. If you come and sit here (in the meditation hall) it is not really certain, because we use only a limited time of 30 minutes; you should also go and train at your own dwelling, then sustaining the samadhi mental state will really be good. If we merely do it for the brief moment we come to practice here, and then go back to our dwelling and let the mind go however it pleases, this shows that we are still at a great loss. As for sustaining samadhi — if we are not able to sustain samadhi for long, insight-knowledge (vipassana-ñana) will be poor. How good our insight-knowledge is can be seen from the conduct with which we act in our work, train in our work, and carry out our tasks — whether or not we are thorough and careful. If we lack carefulness in this, it shows that we are still far from the mental state of samadhi, that is, mindfulness and clear comprehension are still greatly lacking. In doing any task whatsoever we must bring the mental state of the meditation subject in to help — not merely go through the motions. Do it by examining closely, do it by reflecting, do it using wisdom as the instrument for considering what will be good, what will be bad or not bad. This is what is called: we work while also using the mind to help, making every step, every movement we make into calm (samatha) and insight (vipassana) together, so that it becomes samadhi and then vipassana continuously at every moment. If, in any task, there is a slip, if there is still coarseness, one will know in one's own mind that it is still very far from the path and fruit [of attainment], still further than jhana-attainment.

Next I will speak about the second jhana. Last night I spoke about the first jhana. The first jhana has five factors, namely: initial application (vitakka), sustained application (vicara), rapture (piti), happiness (sukha), and one-pointedness (ekaggata).

The word vitakka means to think of — thinking that we are going to breathe, thinking that we are going to recite.

Vicara is this: knowing whether we are breathing or not, whether the breath is short or long, whether we are reciting or not, whether the recitation-word is correct or wrong — this is called vicara.

Piti is as already described; piti has five modes.

Sukha is having an at-ease mental state, sustaining a comfortable mind with a feeling of joy and gladness.

Ekaggata is having the mental state as one single thing, sustaining the mental state — reciting and simply continuing to recite like that, holding the in-and-out breath, knowing only that one is holding the in-and-out breath like that. This condition is called the first jhana.

As for the second jhana, vitakka and vicara are cut away, leaving only piti, sukha, and ekaggata. As for the method of cutting away vitakka and vicara, most practitioners tend to misunderstand it — it is the same for everyone, practitioners in their early stage...

That is, when reciting or holding the in-and-out breath, reciting on and on, the mind becomes at ease with increasing freshness — on and on — the recitation word simply stops of itself, but the breath continues, only the breath becomes slightly softer. There is freshness, there is a feeling of fullness, the mind sustains samadhi well, though there is no recitation-word. This condition is called the second jhana, that is, jhana 2.

In some cases, or generally — I should say 100 percent of those who have gone through this themselves, or whom I have met — while the mind is in the first jhana, as soon as it reaches the second jhana, as soon as one becomes aware, the mind falls from the second jhana and one feels: "Oh no, this is really dying! I've forgotten to recite!" — fearing that one has fallen asleep or lost awareness — and then one grasps at the beginning and end without quite getting it right, reaches for the recitation-word without quite getting it right. The reason one has this feeling is because we misunderstand, thinking that we have dropped the recitation-word, forgotten to recite, drifted off or fallen asleep. That feeling is a mistaken understanding, but it happens to everyone just the same — if you have been through it, you get hit by it just like everyone else. So we should understand this: if by chance that condition appears — that is, reciting on and on, and it turns out the recitation-word has disappeared, the mind is fresh, the mental state is settled and at ease — then, at the moment the mind drops down and one feels "I've forgotten to recite," if this is what happens, know that at the moment it drops, one thinks one has forgotten to recite, and one almost cannot get hold of the recitation-word properly — this is the condition of the mind falling from the second jhana, jhana 2.

If we can sustain this second jhana, then when we die we go to be a Brahma of the 4th, 5th, or 6th level, according to the strength of the jhana. Jhana at the coarse level becomes a 4th-level Brahma; at the middling level, a 5th-level Brahma; at the refined level, a 6th-level Brahma.

Sustaining samadhi is important. In cultivating samadhi, if we have only ordinary samadhi, we feel that our resolve is not firm. Once we sustain samadhi comfortably, at ease to a reasonable degree, we then incline toward vipassana-insight, using it briefly — that is, contemplating the body: that this physical body is not us, it is not ours; we are not present in the body, the body is not present in us; we have arising at the beginning and then dissolution in the end — this is called: this body is not us, it is only a dwelling temporarily lodged in. Especially, if we think of it briefly, we may simply say that this body of ours will certainly die. When we are going to die, we think: if it dies, then that is that; once it is called death, there is no further turn for us [to take], because the body is full of suffering — whatever suffering we have is because...

...depending mainly on the body. Since the body is full of suffering like that, from now on we no longer want this kind of suffering — that is, we do not want the body. This is the first article of resolve; keep this in mind.

The second article: we will not doubt the teachings of the Fully Self-Enlightened One. We are certain of the result of the teaching that the Buddha taught — the Buddha himself became an Arahant, and those who practiced following it as we do also became Arahants, countless of them; there is nothing to be doubtful about.

The third article: resolve to keep one's precepts pure — laypeople keep the Five Precepts pure and firm; monks and novices likewise keep their own precepts pure.

The fourth article: our mind holds love of Nibbana as its object.

If our mental state thinks in this way, and we can practice like this automatically, without needing to exercise this kind of caution — this is called a Sotapanna [Stream-Enterer].

If our mental state advances a little higher still than this, one becomes an Anagami [Non-Returner]. One must then contemplate personality-view (sakkaya-ditthi), or some form of foulness meditation (asubha-kammatthana), contemplating so as to see that the bodies of people and animals are not solid masses — they are composed of the 32 parts, having liver, kidneys, intestines, lungs, new food, old food, feces and urine; the body is full of filth, full of dirtiness, nothing lovable or desirable about it, no cleanliness. We come to be disgusted with the body, until our mind grows weary — seeing people, seeing animals, other persons, or ourselves — feeling that it is all full of dirtiness, seeing that the body composed of the four elements of each person is dirty and repulsive, not to be desired for coupling and living together with, until our mind attains happiness free from love of beautiful form, pleasant sound, fragrant smell, delicious taste, and soft touch. After that, one cultivates loving-kindness, the four Brahma-viharas, as a means of cutting off anger and ill-will, until, seeing anyone do something one used to dislike, the mind has an easy, comfortable feeling — instead of anger, instead of harboring ill-will and wishing to harm them, there arises instead loving-kindness and love, compassion and pity, thinking that a person who does evil in that way is a person exceedingly pitiable, because it is self-destruction. This is gradually smoothed over, little by little.

As for the subject of vipassana-insight, I will reserve it specifically for the topic of the Anagami level, because at this time — the time for speaking has already gone on too long, as the time-signal has already appeared. First of all, please take hold...

...the in-and-out breath together with the recitation-word. Try to fix the mental resolve firmly, thinking: "From now on, for 30 minutes, I will absolutely not allow any other mental state to come and disturb my mind" — except that we sustain mindfulness and clear comprehension, knowing the in-and-out breath, knowing the recitation-word "Buddho" as normal. This requires making the mind strong, sustaining the mental state throughout. If one has become full and satisfied and at ease, when the mind turns back to thinking, let it think that this body of ours is not us, is not ours — sooner or later it will fall apart, sooner or later it will die; for what benefit should we cling to it? Since our own body will fall apart, for what benefit should we desire the bodies of others? And then, apart from the body, all wealth and possessions likewise have no benefit; yet we must still work and seek [a livelihood], since we still must eat and use things. If it should happen that we must die, then let us die — without regret for wealth, without regret for the body. We believe in the Lord of the Triple World, the Supreme Teacher, and then strive to keep our precepts pure. This matter of precepts should be regarded as a necessary point that cannot be avoided — necessary, absolutely necessary; there is no exception to this for one who cultivates calm-meditation and insight-meditation. It must be held as our normal, ordinary practice that we must observe. If it is like this, the mental state of the Buddhist congregation will attain the mental state of a Sotapanna. This is a matter of the greatest necessity; at the outset, if we do not practice to reach this point, then it is a waste of having been born to encounter the Buddha's Dispensation.

Very well, from now on, may all of you members of the Buddhist congregation, every one of you, strive to hold the body upright and steady the mind firmly, note the in-and-out breath, use the recitation-word, and contemplate according to inclination, until you hear the signal announcing that the time is up.

***

4. The Heart of Cultivating the Meditation Subject

Today I would like to go back and speak about the heart of the cultivation of calm-meditation (samatha-bhavana) and insight-meditation (vipassana-bhavana). Once you have heard it, please remember it. As a rule, the Buddha never repeated himself. In line with the Buddha's teaching there is a saying: "akkhataro tathagata" — Tathagatas are only those who point the way; the Buddha is not one who flatters or grants anyone the attainment of jhana. For practice to go well within the domain of the Buddha's Dispensation, we have the greatest necessity to practice in accordance with the current of the True Dhamma teaching of the Fully Self-Enlightened One. Whatever the Buddha prohibited, or advised was unsuitable, that we must avoid absolutely. If there is anything that the Buddha supported, that thing must be done with our whole life; strive to do it with a truly sincere mind.

Regarding the cultivation or practice of goodness within the Buddha's Dispensation for the sake of the Path and Fruit — many Buddhists still have a great deal of mistaken understanding about this, thinking that practicing with a strained, tense manner is a good thing. For this we must turn to look at the Dhamma-teaching of the Fully Self-Enlightened One, reckoned as the First Sermon, delivered to the Group of Five ascetics, headed by the Venerable Anna Kondanna, in the time when the Lord of the Ten Powers, the Supreme Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, had newly attained the consecration of Perfect Self-Enlightenment. At that time the Lord of the Triple World intended to come and preach for the benefit of the five members of the assembly. The heart of the True Dhamma teaching delivered at that time consisted of three things together, namely:

1. Attakilamathanuyoga [devotion to self-mortification]

2. Kamasukhallikanuyoga [devotion to sensual pleasure]

3. Majjhima patipada [the Middle Way]

These three, because at that time it was a time bridging between the Buddha's Dispensation and the Brahmanical religion. Originally the Brahmins liked to practice in the way of self-mortification — torturing the body in various ways: sitting without eating, eating only once a day, eating only from one house that offered it, eating only a very small amount, refusing to sleep, torturing the body, fasting, and so on. The Brahmins liked to torture themselves. This method — when the Lord of the Ten Powers, the Supreme Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, was newly going forth in search of the liberating Dhamma, the Lord of the Triple World also tried it likewise, because in that era it was held to be good. The Lord Jinasiha [the Victorious Lion] also did it — did it for a span of six years, until his body became extremely emaciated...

...walking would sway as if about to fall; running his hand over his body he felt that the hair fell out along with his hand, showing that there was no blood to nourish it — and it brought no success. Then the Lord of the Ten Powers, relying on the fact that his old accumulated merit (parami) was fully mature and complete, had a thought arise in his mind that attainment was, it seemed, not to be found by way of self-mortification, that is, torturing oneself. The Lord of the Ten Powers therefore took solid food until his strength was restored. The Lord, the Jewel Lamp [of the world], then took the eight bundles of kusa grass offered to him and laid them at the foot of the Bodhi tree, then sat with his back resting against the base of the Bodhi tree, facing the east, and made a resolution in his heart: "For as long as I have not attained Perfect Self-Enlightenment, let my blood and flesh dry up, or let this life come to an end — I will not consent to rise from this spot." And so it was that on that very day, the Lord Jinasiha, the Supreme Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, attained the consecration of Perfect Self-Enlightenment on that day — that is, the full-moon day of the eighth month, the same day on which the Buddha delivered his Dhamma teaching for the benefit of the Group of Five. The Lord Jinasiha then made this Buddha-utterance:

"Behold, monks, there are two extremes which one who seeks the Path and Fruit should not go near." That is, attakilamathanuyoga — practicing oneself with hardship, being tense and strained, torturing the body. This, I see, is much favored nowadays among practitioners who like to follow the wrong track — that is, they like to sit for a long time, torturing themselves for hours on end, holding this to be good. This is wrong. So it is that this torturing of the body is held by the Lord of the Triple World, the Supreme Teacher, to be wrong — it is not the way to attain the Path and Fruit; it is too tense.

The other low extreme is kamasukhallikanuyoga — the time when we sit reciting, and we think, wanting to reach this, wanting to reach that, wanting to become like this, wanting to become like that. This wanting is craving (tanha), that is, it is a defilement (kilesa) — so why then should we go wanting things?

These two conditions, the Lord who holds the Dhamma, the Supreme Teacher, had us abandon — do not go near them. The part that is truly proper for attaining the Path and Fruit is the Middle Way (majjhima patipada) — conducting oneself moderately, just enough: if sitting makes one tired, lie down; if lying down is uncomfortable, stand; if standing is inconvenient, walk — usable in all four postures. Take only what is just right and proper, not eating to excess, and make the mind steady, focused specifically on the mental object we require. This is what is called the Middle Way, which practitioners must strive to practice truly on the right track. This is the great rule.

Next let us turn to look at the Udumbarika Sutta, or the boon that Devadatta asked of the Buddha, which contains several matters that are minor defilements (upakkilesa), which present-day practitioners feel a need for, and then...

...what would that achieve? There is still the view that eating only once a day, or never eating meat at all, constitutes attainment of the Path and Fruit. Let us consider the Lord of the Ten Powers in that era: Devadatta asked a boon of the Buddha, that monks who dwell in the forest should remain in the forest and not enter villages, that monks who dwell in villages should not go out to the forest, and especially, that monks should never eat meat, because it encourages the laity to commit sin — when lay people wish to make merit they bring meat to offer. This the Lord of the Triple World, the Supreme Teacher, refused to comply with, because this too is a part of self-mortification (attakilamathanuyoga). Because if the villagers eat meat and the monks do not eat meat, the villagers would find it troublesome, having to prepare food in two separate ways; and further, the monks themselves would also have difficulty — difficulty over food, because the villagers would have nothing to give them.

Regarding the consumption of food, the Lord of the Triple World already has an established discipline for this. Whatever kind of food it may be, apart from what the monastic discipline (Vinaya) prohibits and food that is harmful to the body, before eating, the Lord of the Triple World has [us] contemplate it as "loathsome-food-perception" (ahare patikulasanna) — contemplating that this food has its basis in filth: plant crops and grains are also dirty, meat is also dirty; since we take in dirty things, our body too is dirty — what could make it clean? Our own body, and the bodies of animals alike, are in a disgusting condition, but we eat only in order to keep the physical being going. We shall not be intoxicated with life, we shall not be intoxicated with the body, we shall not become attached to the taste of food. This discipline the Lord Vanquisher of Mara already has in place.

As for the Udumbarika Sutta, the Lord, the Jewel Lamp [of the world], spoke of many kinds of minor defilements (upakkilesa), forty in total altogether, in which the Fully Self-Enlightened One said: "You should not think that other people are greedy for food; do not be conceited, thinking yourself a good person because you eat little, consume little, [while thinking] that person eats much, consumes much; that such a person does not choose their food," and so on. So it is that this kind of outward practice the Lord of the Ten Powers, the Supreme Teacher, did not praise, because it is not the way to attain the Path and Fruit. The way to attain the Path and Fruit exists only in the mind. Keep yourself at ease; wherever we go, we can fit in with that society. If we should practice in some way that is unlike that society, conceit will arise, becoming a defilement, thinking: "that society cannot compare with us, this society cannot compare with us, that society is better than us, this society is worse than us" — turning into pride and self-conceit. This is a mental state of upakkilesa [minor defilement] that is of no use.

Look at the Fully Self-Enlightened One — the great number of Arahants who attained the Path and Fruit: the Lord of the Ten Powers never ordered [anyone] to suppress this or suppress that, apart from ordinary conduct. As for eating meals, let it follow the ordinary practice of whatever the villagers bring to offer, according to what they have — they have only this much, we do not pick and choose otherwise, holding that it is only to sustain the physical being. If they give much, eat much; if they give little, eat little — though if they give too much, one should not eat to excess. Consuming food should follow "bhojane mattannuta" — knowing moderation in eating, eating neither too much nor too little, taking what is suitable, without sitting in judgment finding fault with others. This is one mental attitude.

Another point: we must make our mind come to rest at a point of calm. This means: we look only at our own mind, according to the Pali saying "attana codayattanam" — always admonish yourself by yourself, reminding yourself what the teaching of the Fully Self-Enlightened One has taught us to practice, and in what way it has forbidden us to act. This we must practice strictly — not go thinking according to the mental attitude of what the villagers happen to do. Seeing the villagers do something — the villagers are not the Buddha. If that person were truly so good, he would have to be a Buddha himself, [for anyone else] who sets up a new pattern to overturn the Buddha's teaching — we, as disciples of the Buddha, cannot follow that. If we insist on following it, we will attain no Path or Fruit whatsoever as taught by the Buddha, because we would already be contradicting the Buddha's teaching.

As for the mental attitude regarding the mind: the mental attitude is this — first of all, the Lord of the Triple World, the Supreme Teacher, has us consider only our own mind; whatever the conduct of other people may be, never mind. As it is said, "akkhataro tathagata" — Tathagatas are only those who point the way; "attana codayattanam" — admonish yourself by yourself, reminding yourself of what manner the Buddha taught us, [and] we act accordingly; whatever manner the Buddha forbade, we abstain from accordingly. This is one point we must practice strictly.

As for the method of practice for bringing the mind to attain jhana or a good level of vipassana-insight, remember this: samatha means the technique that is an instrument for calming the mind. Samatha-bhavana is not a technique for seeing ghosts or seeing devas, seeing hell or seeing heaven, seeing various visions — it is not like that. Remember the translation well: samatha means the technique that is an instrument for calming the mind, making the mind calm from external mental objects, holding to only the single mental object that we have resolved upon.

First of all, the Lord of the Triple World has us suppress the thought of going to sit in judgment over the villagers — that this person is good, that person is bad. Look only at our own mind — whether our own mind is good or whether our own mind is bad. Use mindfulness and clear comprehension to control it.

The second article: keep one's precepts pure.

The third article: suppress the five hindrances (nivarana) at every moment. The five hindrances are:

Suppress desire for sensual objects — beautiful forms, pleasant sounds, delicious tastes, fragrant smells, the touch we desire; the mind rolling about after sense-desire — this must be suppressed instantly, at once, every single time.

Suppress anger and ill-will.

Suppress drowsiness and sleepiness.

Such as today, hearing faint sounds drifting in — we must pay no attention to the sound; [suppress] restlessness and worry (uddhacca-kukkucca); the mind must not shoot off after the sound, and must not be irritated by the sound; hold onto the object of recitation and contemplate according to inclination, so as to sustain it.

Have no doubt in the teachings of the Fully Self-Enlightened One.

Besides this, the Blessed One has us sustain the four Brahma-viharas, that is:

Have loving-kindness (metta) as the normal state — think that we are enemies with no one, that we will be a friend to all people and animals throughout the world; make the mind at ease.

Compassion (karuna) — we have pity, and will help people and animals to have happiness according to our ability to do so.

Sympathetic joy (mudita) — have a gentle mind, envy no one, and rejoice when others attain good fortune.

Equanimity (upekkha) — remain unmoved; such as the sound of people amplifying sound today — that is a matter for those who are gathered together [in that situation]; they must use enticing sound as their own business; the work of cultivating samadhi of the mind is our own business.

This — this is the main principle in the cultivation of the meditation subject; that is all there is to it. If we can sustain the mental state according to this, without transgressing the admonitions of the Lord, the Jewel Lamp [of the world], and practice according to the teaching, before long we will attain jhana-attainment.

Well then, today let us test our own minds together. Today is actually very good, because there is a sound of amplified noise coming in to disturb us — all the better; it is not a bad thing. First of all, let us try to hold the in-and-out breath, because the in-and-out breath suppresses the wandering, distracted state of the mind. Breathing in, know that one is breathing in; breathing out, know that one is breathing out — or one may count. Breathing in and breathing out counts as 1. Try counting and see how far it gets — count it...

...just 10 pairs. Once we reach 10 pairs, we start over again. Let's see — within this 30-minute period, will we lose to the sound, or will we win against the sound?

If our ears still hear the sound clearly, we can tell they are singing every kind of song, but our mind is not annoyed by it — this is called: our mind has reached the first jhana. If the sound we hear grows fainter, our mood turns pleasant and refreshed, but the recitation-word drops away and is lost — this is called the second jhana. If the in-and-out breath feels like it has grown very faint and light, there is a tense, tight sensation, the body feels as if strained, the ears hear the sound only faintly, now and then, and the mind holds concentration well — this is the third jhana. At whatever moment, while continuing to recite and to contemplate, it happens that the ears no longer hear the sound at all, and one thinks the singer must have stopped, the mind feels at ease and open — this is the fourth jhana.

This is the measuring device for today, for [testing] the progress [of practice] — we have been developing meditation together for a long time now; what results has this had?

Well then — from this point on, may all of you Buddhist devotees please try to hold the body upright and steady the mind firmly, noting the in-and-out breath, using the recitation-word and contemplation as suits your own temperament, until you hear the signal announcing that time is up. Try testing your own mind to see whether the concentration we have been training has borne fruit or not. Today it went very well — this itself served as the practice, and it's now complete.

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9. Anapanasati in Brief

From this point on it is the occasion for all of you to develop concentration of mind and insight-knowledge. Please understand that the development of meditation practice — whether it is the development of calm (samatha) meditation or of insight (vipassana) meditation — is, in either case, what is called "ultimate practice" (paramattha-patibatti). If classed as a perfection, it is called "ultimate perfection" (paramattha-parami); it is the building of resolve within the wholesome side [of the mind].

Today I will speak briefly, just a little. The reason we do it this way is because the Lord Buddha, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, taught that birth is suffering — "jatipi dukkha," birth is suffering. We can see this easily: birth is suffering. This birth cannot be stopped; we must do every kind of work for our own livelihood and that of our family. No matter what occupation we take up, no matter how much wealth we may have, in the end we must die. If, after we die, evil still clings to the mind, it will drag us down into the states of loss — to be born as a hell-being, a hungry ghost, an asura, an animal, and so on. If we have goodness clinging to our mind, then at worst we are reborn as a fine human being, or as a deva or a Brahma. If [our mind] is fully pure, we reach Nibbana.

For our mind to cling to goodness, or for goodness to be able to cling to our mind, we must rely on: 1. Giving (dana) 2. Keeping the precepts (sila) 3. Developing meditation (bhavana)

Especially with regard to meditation, the Lord Buddha, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, wants to make the mind accustomed to wholesome states of mind, because the development of the forty kammatthana meditation subjects, as well as insight-knowledge, are all classed as wholesome — which the Great Blessed One declared to be the condition for reaching Nibbana. Therefore, may all you Buddhist devotees please understand that the first aim of developing meditation practice is to establish mindfulness and clear comprehension — that is, to have full mindfulness and clear comprehension, not forgetting goodness: giving, keeping precepts, and developing meditation.

In developing calm meditation, we want the mind to be at peace, away from unwholesome states, and for the mind to incline habitually toward the wholesome. Normally the ancient teachers advise recollecting the goodness of the Buddha as the object [of meditation], using the recitation-word "Buddho." But if one simply recites without more, the mind tends to drift too far, having nothing to hold onto, because the mind's nature is restless and wavering. For this reason, the teachers therefore advise taking up mindfulness of breathing (anapanasati) [as the anchor]...

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...meditation subject: hold the in-and-out breath, note the in-and-out breath — while breathing in, think 'Bud,' while breathing out, think 'dho.' As for this anapanasati meditation, or the noting of the in-and-out breath, it is a meditation subject that lessens the mind's distraction. It is also called a meditation subject that calms the bodily formations (kayasankhara). At times when we are sick and unwell, when the symptoms are severe, when there is intense tension, one should use anapanasati meditation to calm it — hold the in-and-out breath until the mind-state becomes jhana, or access concentration (upacara-samadhi); the painful feeling will then subside. In truth, the [physical] symptom itself has not lessened, but because our mind no longer accepts the sensation from the bodily condition, it brings ease. And second, this anapanasati is a meditation subject that calms delusion-temperament (moha-carita) and worry-temperament (vitakka-carita) — in sum, it cuts off the mind's foolishness; moha is foolishness — it makes the mind sharper.

As for buddhanussati — the meditation subject of recollecting the virtues of the Buddha as the object — this kind, if one is reborn as a human being, brings only prosperity, never falling back, never inferior to anyone. If reborn as a deva or a Brahma, one has great bodily radiance; devas and Brahmas measure goodness and merit by bodily radiance. It is said that, especially, developing this buddhanussati meditation is the easiest way to reach Nibbana.

Well then, from this point on, may all you Buddhist devotees please intend to note the in-and-out breath — while breathing in, think 'Bud,' while breathing out, think 'dho.' At whatever moment we know the in-breath and out-breath, and know the recitation-word 'Buddho,' at that moment our mind is said to be in the concentration we seek. If, as we go on reciting, the mind grows at ease and the recitation-word simply stops on its own, this is a happiness even greater than before — so do not be alarmed by this. This is the state of the second jhana, which is an improved state of mind. If, continuing on, the sense of freshness disappears, there is a feeling of tension, the breath grows faint, the ears hear outside sounds only very faintly, and the mind stays firmly and closely fixed — this is the state of the third jhana. If, by chance, while continuing to recite and note the in-and-out breath, it turns out one does not know whether the breath is coming in or going out at all, there is simply a neutral feeling, a feeling of ease of mind — this is the state of the fourth jhana, reckoned to be the most important jhana-state in the Buddhist religion.

From here on, may all you Buddhist devotees, each and every one, try to hold the body upright, steady the mind firmly, note the in-and-out breath, using the recitation-word and contemplation as suits your own temperament, until you hear the signal announcing that time is up.

***

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10. The Faults of Sensual Desire

With this, the undertaking of the meditation precepts is concluded. From here on, may all of you please compose your minds and bring the mind into concentration — that is, holding mindfulness and clear comprehension, noting the in-and-out breath as the foundation. Breathing in and breathing out is the great foundation. Together with this, use whatever recitation-word suits your own temperament: "Buddho," "Dhammo," "Sangho," or "Arahang," or any other, as you find fitting — but let the mind incline, above all, toward the Blessed One who is endowed with well-being and glory, [reflecting] that we have entered within the bounds of the Buddhist religion because we have faith in Him, having no doubt in His teaching, and let us resolve our intention that we will accept and revere the Triple Gem — the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Noble Sangha — as the ones who lead us to happiness both in this present life and in the life to come.

Having inclined the mind to recollect the goodness of the Lord Buddha, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, let us then take up the Dhamma-teaching of the Blessed Lamp of the World, who taught us that this world is impermanent (anicca), nothing lasting can be found; it is suffering (dukkha), there is only suffering; it is non-self (anatta) — everything, every single thing, ultimately disintegrates. Being born as a human, born as a deva, born as a Brahma, or born as an animal — all are full of suffering. We must manage and carry out work for our own livelihood; in every kind of work there is no end — once done, it must be done again, done again and it must be done yet again, on and on like this all the time. We work until we die, and even then we are never free of it. After death, for as long as our defilements are not yet exhausted, we must still wander round in the cycle of birth and death — stepping down to become a hell-being, a hungry ghost, an asura, an animal — we would then be said to have suffered a loss. Even if we merely circle back to being reborn human again, we are likewise said to have suffered a loss, because if, having been human, we are reborn human once more, it is said that nothing has improved for us — we remain a slave to defilement, craving, clinging, and unwholesome kamma. So let us hold fast to the teaching of the Great Teacher: at the very least, when we die in this life, may we become a deva; or, doing good to a middling degree, may we be reborn as a Brahma; or else, what we want most of all is Nibbana — for Nibbana is the one and only place where the task is finished, where nothing more needs to be done; there is no other task left to perform. The Blessed Lamp of the World taught this in the Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta, the Adittapariyaya Sutta, and the Anattalakkhana Sutta as well; in the end, the Blessed Conqueror, the Great Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, taught in this manner.

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...that whatever we needed to do, we have finished doing, and there is no other task left to do — this means we have become an Arahant. So long as we have not yet attained Arahantship, we must continue to act. That kind of task is the task that still must be done — one must carry out and manage [affairs] for oneself, for one's family, for one's friends, for one's group, or for the nation, and so on — it is a wearisome task indeed.

There is an example of growing weary of a task that, once done, must be done again and again, found in the Dhammapada, in the Khuddaka Nikaya, from the time when the Blessed Lord of the Triple World, the Great Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, had arisen for about 10 years — within this period, no more than 10 years. During that time, among the Sakya royal house and the Devadaha royal house alike — the Sakya being the royal relatives of the Blessed Conqueror, the Great Teacher, the Fully Self-Enlightened One, and Devadaha being the relatives on the side of Princess Phimpha, the [Buddha's] royal consort — both of these two lineages were royal relatives within the same clan, and, one after another, many of them went forth and were ordained in the Buddhist religion. Now at that time, King Mahanama was the ruler of the Sakya line at Kapilavatthu. King Mahanama had two siblings, namely King Mahanama [himself], Prince Anuruddha, and Princess Rohini. As for Princess Rohini, it seems she need not be counted in this, since she was a woman. [The people of] Sakya as well as [those of] Devadaha city had, one after another, all gone forth as monks following the Blessed Conqueror, so that only our two [from this] lineage remained who had not yet gone forth — [King Mahanama said,] 'we shall become as if barren [of ordained descendants].' [He said,] 'If it must be so, then I, elder brother, will ask to be ordained; may you, younger brother, remain and inherit the estate, becoming king.' Prince Anuruddha listened in silence. Then King Mahanama said, 'If you are to be king and govern the people, you must learn the duties of a king, or of the common people in general, and what they need.' In those days a king had much work to do — he had to farm the rice fields. But Prince Anuruddha, being the younger brother, had never had to endure hardship or do such work, and so he asked how farming was done.

King Mahanama then said: 'When the time comes to begin, first you take the oxen and buffaloes out, take out the plough, take out the equipment, plough to make furrows, then scatter the rice seed down, then plough it under, then use the harrow to harrow it, and then gather up the weeds.'

Prince Anuruddha asked, 'Is that finished, then?' Mahanama said it was not yet finished. 'Next you must watch the water, and see whether the rice plants are coming up well or not. If it turns out there are weeds — that is, plants that would harm the rice plants — you must hack them, clear them, and pull them up; this is tending the rice. If there are insect pests or worms, you must find a way to drive off the pests and worms that eat the rice clusters.'

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Prince Anuruddha asked whether it was finished yet. Mahanama said not yet. 'Next, when the rice grows up it forms into ears; once it has formed ears and the grains are fully ripe, they must be harvested. Once harvested, they must be threshed. Once threshed, they must be stored away in the granary or the rice-barn.'

Prince Anuruddha asked whether it was finished yet. Mahanama said not yet, and went on to say: 'Next, the rice must be brought to be cleaned and milled to make it ready as milled rice, and then it can be brought [to eat].'

Prince Anuruddha asked whether it was finished yet. King Mahanama said not yet: 'Once we have eaten our way through the old rice, when the new farming season arrives, we must take the old rice to make new seed rice for planting again, and go on doing it this way continually. Every year it must be done anew; once the rice is harvested it goes on this way for a whole lifetime.'

Prince Anuruddha asked: 'Is there truly no stopping this business of farming and making a living?' King Mahanama said it cannot be stopped, because we must eat. 'Our elders, of every generation, all do it this way; even right up until death they never get the chance to stop, because it is a task we are obliged to do.' At this Prince Anuruddha said, 'If that is so, then I shall be ordained — you shall go on being king.'

So it was that King Mahanama let him have his way. In truth, at that time, though Mahanama was indeed a king, he had practiced the Dhamma to the point of attaining the state of Anagami (Non-returner). Once Prince Anuruddha received his elder brother's permission, he invited four other companions to go along with him, Devadatta among them, and Upali, who was a barber, went along too. When the time came to be ordained, [Anuruddha] had Upali ordained first — this was because, in the Buddhist religion, it is held that whoever is ordained first is the senior, the elder; those ordained afterward must show respect in due order. Having Upali ordained first, in his position as a servant, carried the inner intention: 'we have cut off our pride, not regarding ourselves as master or lord' — taking him as their senior would let go of that pride as a first step. After this, [Anuruddha] himself was ordained in the Buddhist religion. Having had the chance to hear the Dhamma from King Mahanama's account, that being born human means one cannot ever stop — one must go on making a living, and being reborn human again means having to make a living in just the same way, without end — he therefore no longer wanted to go on making a living [in that sense]. Once ordained, he went to attend upon the Blessed Lord of the Triple World. The Blessed One, the Lord, then spoke of Nibbana as the goal, [saying] that Nibbana is the single, supreme happiness, a happiness of the highest degree; it is said that not even one kind of suffering exists at all within the five aggregates [in that state] — it is a pure happiness, entirely filled with lightness.

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But one who would reach Nibbana must strive to cut off greed (lobha), desire; hatred (dosa), anger; delusion (moha), confusion — seeing that the body is without substance, without essence, that it is impermanent (anicca) — once born, nothing lasting can be found in it; suffering (dukkha), full of suffering; non-self (anatta), disintegrating in the end. If we remain foolish and continue awaiting further rebirth, there is no benefit in it. The Blessed One, the Lord, pointed out this fault for Prince Anuruddha and the assembly of monks to hear, [saying] that the body is a den of disease, a nest of illness — from the day one is born, every day there is nothing but sickness; there is no human being without some sickness, not even for a single second. Even if no other kind of sickness is present, one sickness always dwells confined within the body, namely: 'jighacchā paramā rogā' — it is said that hunger is the very worst of diseases. 'Roga' [disease] is explained as meaning something that stabs and pierces; when hunger arises, one can find no comfort at all — there is no ease in it. If we could cut off hunger, cut off this evil disease that is craving/wanting, then we would have happiness.

Prince Anuruddha asked, 'How is that done, Lord Buddha?' The Blessed Teacher then said: contemplate and see that the body is not us, is not ours; we do not exist within the body, the body does not exist within us. Once we have cut off [attachment to] the body, no longer seeing the body as ourselves or as ours, then we can cut off everything else in the world as well, because the reason we want possessions or want to have a family is because we hold the notion of 'body' to be important. Therefore, if we can cut off the sense of 'mine-ness' regarding the body, we are then said to be an Arahant. Having heard just this much of the teaching from the Blessed Conqueror of Mara, [Anuruddha] entered the forest to develop the ascetic's practice, that is, meditation. Having steadied his mind well into concentration, he then contemplated the five aggregates thus: not us, not ours; we do not exist within the five aggregates, the five aggregates do not exist within us. The body is merely the four elements — the earth element, the air element, the fire element, the water element — mixed together as a temporary mass, and in the end it must die. Even while it has not yet died, the body is impermanent, nothing lasting or certain can be found in it; it is suffering, filled with suffering; it is a den of disease, a nest of illness; 'pabhaṅguṇaṃ' — it must eventually decay and rot away. Neither our own body nor anyone else's body has anything of substance or essence in it — there is no cleanliness, only filth, no coolness, only being full of burning heat. Having contemplated along the stream of this true Dhamma-teaching of the Blessed Victorious One to just this extent, it is said that he attained the fruit of Arahantship, becoming a Noble One within the Buddhist religion.

Therefore, from this point on, may the monks and novices, every one of them, as well as all you lay devotees, please settle your minds and fix your minds into concentration — that is, note the in-and-out breath, and...

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...the recitation-word, and once the mind is at ease, contemplate just as Prince Anuruddha did. The result you may then obtain is bodily and mental happiness in this life and in the life to come. Well then, from this point on, may all of you please intend to develop meditation practice — you may sit, or stand, or lie down, or walk, as you find fitting, and hold mindfulness and clear comprehension in mind, that we shall know the in-and-out breath, or that we shall know the recitation-word, or keep reciting throughout the whole time we are practicing. In this practice, the timing need not be strictly fixed — let it proceed as suits your own temperament. If you are lying down, it is even better if you can rely on reciting or contemplating until you fall asleep — that is, if, having recited or contemplated, you fall asleep, this shows that the mind has reached the first jhana, which is reckoned a good sign. Now, as for the development of our meditation practice, it seems there is still much lacking on the side of wisdom (panna). Please make much use of wisdom in reflecting carefully; use mindfulness and clear comprehension to keep control — that is, keep the mind at ease — and then use wisdom to contemplate the five aggregates and the conditions surrounding them continually. Good results will come to all of you. Well then, from now on, may all of you hold the body upright, steady the mind firmly, note the in-and-out breath, recite and contemplate as suits your own temperament, until the time comes when you wish to stop.

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11. The Path of a Single Person

On this occasion, all you Buddhist devotees have together undertaken the precepts and undertaken meditation practice. The development of meditation practice naturally has forty different approaches. On the side of calm meditation [there are many]; insight meditation especially has only a single approach — namely, the contemplation of the five aggregates — though the wording used [in the various expositions] naturally is not repeated exactly the same, being presented in many different ways. From here on, before you Buddhist devotees make the mind-object into a jhana-object, first of all the mind must be brought to reach insight-knowledge (vipassana-nana). But in truth this insight-knowledge is very important, yet it must still rely on being controlled together with calm (samatha). If calm is absent, insight-meditation bears no fruit. The ancient teachers have always tried to instruct their pupils that, before reciting in whatever manner, you should all first contemplate according to the principles of insight-knowledge. If you contemplate in this way until you all remain seated for the full allotted time without using any recitation-word at all, this the Blessed Conqueror regards as the pinnacle of practitioners — that is, having a mind that has truly reached the state of Dhamma itself. Developing calm is merely the laying of the groundwork; but what truly cuts off defilement is contemplation according to the pattern of insight-knowledge.

As for the pattern of insight-knowledge that we can easily see for ourselves, that is to say, the Buddha declared: "Ekayano ayam, bhikkhave, maggo sattanam visuddhiya," and so on — meaning in substance that this path is the sole path, the path of a single person; when practiced to the point of attainment, one will together be freed from suffering, reaching the utmost end of suffering, which is Nibbana. This is the mind-object of a person who is able to reach Nibbana — it must be a mind-object of letting-go, a mind that knows and keeps pace with reality as it truly is, that accepts and respects what is true, and does not grasp firmly at what is [merely] clinging (upadana) — that is, [not] creating a state of mind that reaches defilement, having an easy mind, a normal mind, an open mind — this is called the mind-object of Nibbana. It is this kind of mind-object that we want. For such a mind-object to arise, one must rely on wisdom to contemplate that:

"Jatipi dukkha" — birth is suffering. "Jarapi dukkha" — old age is suffering. "Maranampi dukkham" — death is suffering.

"Sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupayasa" — sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair are also suffering; separation from what is loved and cherished is also suffering.

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All these conditions are the ordinary condition of human beings and animals alike who are born into the world. 'Jatipi dukkha' — the Buddha said that birth is suffering. Let us sit and contemplate that people and animals born into the world have suffering constantly, finding no happiness anywhere. If we truly use wisdom to contemplate, we will see that there is no happiness at all, from the very moment we open our eyes and wake up until the moment we fall asleep — we will never meet with happiness, we will meet only with suffering. The only exception is if we are devoid of mindfulness and clear comprehension — if we lack the mindful wisdom to contemplate with, then we will be unable to see the suffering at all. There is suffering simply because of the condition of a person's being born; we can see this easily — as children we do not yet speak of it, but nowadays it is said: 'jatipi dukkha,' birth is suffering. The word 'suffering' (dukkha) here means: a task that must be endured — whatever must be endured in doing, whatever must be endured in thinking — this is entirely a matter of suffering. The task that must be endured is hunger. When hunger arises, the Buddha said: 'jighaccha parama roga' — hunger is the very worst disease. This hunger means something that stabs and pierces; discomfort of body and mind arises from it — and it is precisely this bodily and mental discomfort that the Buddha called suffering. When hunger compels us, we must make a living by various means, undertaking work through right livelihood in some cases, wrong livelihood in others. As for 'right livelihood' — earning a living rightly in some cases; sometimes, when necessity compels us, we end up earning a living wrongfully. Even though it may be wrong, even though it may bring loss in whatever way, we are still ready to act for the sake of the body's comfortable existence — yet the mind remains full of suffering. Even when we earn our living through right livelihood, weariness and hardship still arise for us, and this too is a condition of suffering. Since time is limited, let this be taken only in brief summary, for you to contemplate further on your own. Doing every kind of work in order to obtain what is to be consumed — this itself is suffering. What tires us most of all is chiefly the matter of consumption. A set of clothes, once bought, lasts a long time; but as for eating, once eaten it says 'full' only for a moment, and before long, not too long, it says 'hungry' again — one must go and find food anew. Having eaten, if we do not prepare food for next time, do not set aside resources for next time, then when hunger comes again we will not know what to do — so we must keep on preparing, over and over. Thus it is that people do every kind of work to get by, and can never find time to rest and relax the mind, all because hunger is what matters most. We can thus see that this hunger truly is the very pinnacle of suffering. It is for this — enduring all this hardship and toil through every kind of work, passing through obstacles, staking our very life — all only for the sake of hunger, only to prevent the body from being hungry. Just from this one thing, hunger alone, we can see that it is suffering throughout the whole of life, no matter at what moment one continues to live, there still is [this hunger]...

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