151. THE TWO WAYS DEFILEMENTS DISAPPEAR
Singapore Retreat 2014 141103 Discussion Group 2A-2B (24:22-27:06)
You cannot let go of anger, only wisdom can let go of anger. Only wisdom can prevent defilements from arising.
Awareness sometimes cannot. Awareness knows the object – craving or aversion. Then you watch, watch, watch and learn something. When understanding comes, then the defilement disappears.
Sometimes when you watch for a long time, defilement cannot grow because you cannot think, then slowly the defilement fades away. When you’re aware continuously, the defilement doesn’t have a chance to think about the storyline. The defilement calms down.
There are two ways that the defilement goes away: one is because of concentration – if you are aware continuously, the mind cannot think about the story; that’s why defilement has no chance to come.
Why does defilement continue? Sometimes defilement arises and continues a long time – the whole day, the whole evening and even into the next day – because you allow the mind to continue to think about the story – you feed the defilement; you’re thinking about the storyline again and again.
Another way is that you learn from the defilement. When you understand something – that defilement is conditioning, or defilement is nobody, defilement is nature, defilement is Anatta, this is cause-and-effect process, there is nobody there – if some understanding arises, or when the defilement becomes just an object, any understanding arises, then the defilement disappears.
152. DYING WITH AWARENESS IS DYING WITH A WHOLESOME MIND
Singapore Retreat 2014 141103 Discussion Group 2B-2A (4:08-5:50)
Yogi: Is awareness going to help in our rebirth if we die in an accident?
Sayadaw: In the end, we should die with awareness. Awareness is a wholesome mind – in the awareness, there are sati, samadhi, faith, effort and pañña – and these 5 spiritual faculties are there to support your next life.
That’s why we can use anxiety (when dying) as an object when awareness is present. Awareness is a wholesome mind; the anxiety is the effect of past kamma. There are two kamma – one is the effect of past kamma, and the other is new, present kamma. Awareness is present kamma.
153. CULTIVATING THE WHOLESOME MIND REDUCES THE POWER OF DEFILEMENTS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141103 Discussion Group 1B-1A (00:54-04:04)
When any understanding arises or even when you cultivate any wholesome mind such as awareness, metta, Buddhanusati, or your breath, it reduces the power of the defilement – any craving or aversion.
Even if you don’t understand, if you just grow the wholesome minds, when the wholesome mind becomes stronger than the unwholesome mind, you will not feel depressed. Depression is just when the unwholesome mind is stronger than the wholesome mind.
When you try to practice, when you try to be aware, you’re actually cultivating the wholesome minds – sila, samadhi, panna; and once they become stronger, the depression will go down.
When there is awareness, you’ll know that something unwholesome is going on in the mind, you have the information, then you’ll stop the mind from continuing to grow the unwholesome thoughts and concentrate on being aware; you grow the awareness rather than the unwholesome thoughts.
154. WHEN WE KEEP BEING AWARE, THE MIND EVENTUALLY UNDERSTANDS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141108 Discussion Group 4B-4A (29:50-30:28)
When we just keep recognizing, even it’s the same thing over and over again, eventually the mind learns something from it.
That’s called practicing; we’re interested, we’re practicing, we’re being aware. By itself, the practice grows.
You’re doing what you should do; right practice. We need to be mindful all the time.
155. OBSERVE THE SIX SENSES TO LEARN ABOUT THEIR NATURE
Maui Retreat 2016 Morning Instructions (40:11-41:14)
Our habit is to refer to these 6 senses as myself – ‘I’m seeing something, I’m hearing something, I’m thinking something, I’m feeling something”. We should instead remind ourselves that our 6 senses are nature. (The senses have their own nature and we try to observe and learn about their nature.)
So, instead of buying into that way of talking to ourselves, we could may be change the words so that we can go into the other mode; if we could remind ourselves ‘Oh, the mind is thinking, this is the nature of the mind’, or ‘The mind is feeling this’ and see why the mind is feeling this - if we could remind ourselves that all of this is happening of its own nature.
‘Seeing is happening, hearing is happening, aversion is happening’ instead of ‘I’m seeing, I’m hearing, I’m feeling, I’m angry’.
156. AWARENESS SUPPORTS WHOLESOME STATES OF MIND
Singapore Retreat 2014 141107 Discussion Group 2B (18:35-18:50)
When you continue to be aware, wholesome minds slowly replace unwholesome minds.
The quality of awareness is such that it always supports wholesome minds, wholesome states. When you lose awareness, unwholesome mind increases.
(Sayadaw often reminds yogis that we meet real defilements in daily life and will certainly need real wisdom to face these real defilements.)
The feel-good awareness-wisdom we have experienced at retreats is only training camp wisdom.
When the mind recalls this advice, we are encouraged to persist in daily practice although we get clobbered again and again.
157. THE MIND IS VERY QUICK
Sasanarakkha Buddhist Sanctuary Retreat 2013 - Guided Meditation
The mind is very fast, very quick; that’s why awareness/meditating mind/observing mind comes and goes.
158. WHEN SENSING, BEWARE OF GETTING CARRIED AWAY BY MEANINGS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141106 Discussion Group 4A-4B (19:20-23:40)
Yogi: I’m stuck.
Sayadaw: This whole experience starts from the mistake of thinking that there is a pulling sensation because pulling shows a sense of direction and direction is a concept. There is a sensation there, but you’re not taking it as a sensation. You have given it a meaning – pulling.
Pulling, pushing, pressing, up and down and side to side; all this is direction, all this is concept. At that time, you should already realize that your mind is paying attention to concept – try not to do that – and see whether you can just know the sensation without following the direction.
Yogi: The pulling sensation sometimes lands up as stars; and they merge into a cooling moonlight.
Sayadaw: Stars and moonlight, all these images you use to describe something to yourself, are concepts. When you use images and words to describe something to yourself, they are concepts.
This is happening because you’re focusing. When you focus, the mind needs to describe its experience to itself. And when you describe, you’ll get all these imagery.
In our past practice, we’ve spent so much time focusing, using a lot of energy to focus.
159. THE MEANING OF BHAVANA, CULTIVATION
Maui Retreat 2016 – Last morning instructions (2:05-2:35)
My teacher always said to me from the first time I started practicing in my teens that even when I went home, I must continue practicing. I never understood what that really meant until I was almost 30, I was desperate, I was suffering and I had to do it.
I had no choice; and when I really began to do it all the time, that was when I understood the meaning of bhavana, cultivation.
I have spent time on long retreats – 6 months, 1 year, 2 years, but when I didn’t continue to practice in daily life, then the defilements would overwhelm me.
When I practiced in daily life, day by day, I struggled and because I used every potential – awareness, effort, wisdom – to apply in daily life, slowly the mind became stronger.
Deeper understanding can arise in daily life practice because you meet real situations and real experiences. Real defilements arise from real situations in your daily life.
You must face this real defilement with real awareness, real samadhi and real wisdom – they must match the real defilement.
If your understanding, awareness and samadhi are not real, defilements are not afraid of you. You can see real defilements in your life.
To learn how to live your life a better way, all day long, you check your thoughts, feelings and actions. (Sasanarakkha Buddhist Sanctuary Retreat 2013 Guided Meditation Part 3 (55:44-58:24)
A yogi told me he practiced 2 hours sitting meditation every day – 1 hour in the morning and 1 hour in the evening – for 5 years. But he noticed that his mind hasn’t changed much after 5 years. (Russia Retreat 2012 Opening Talk)
160. THINKING INVOLVES IDENTIFYING WITH THOUGHTS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141102 Discussion Group 4A (51:15-52:35)
Seeing and looking, which one do you think is you?
Usually, looking and listening, we think is ‘me’ because we pay attention. Seeing and hearing are passive (sensed directly through the ear and eye doors); so, we identify less with them.
When we pay attention, we give meaning to the object; it involves thinking. When we think, we identify with our thoughts – ‘I’m thinking’.
161. WATCHING ANXIETY WITH UNDERSTANDING
Singapore Retreat 2014 141101 Discussion Group 2A (1:13:23-1:14:56)
Face the anxiety – look at the feelings; look at the thoughts that arise in the mind when there is anxiety. Learn to understand what is the source for anxiety; what the trigger for anxiety is, what the concerns of the mind are when this thought comes up.
The goal is not to be without anxiety; the goal is to understand that anxiety is here, but anxiety is not me. I am not anxious; anxiety is a nature of the mind.
Once you can understand from that perspective, there can be anxiety, but you may not be anxious – you can have it but be free of it at the same time.
Remember, you’re not watching anxiety or any defilement so that it will go away. You’re watching anxiety so you understand that anxiety is nobody; then you’ll have interest – like anxiety has got to be there so that you can watch it and understand it. If you’re watching to try and make it go away, then you will not understand that.
162. WRONG ATTITUDE OF FOCUSING BECAUSE AFRAID TO LOSE MINDFULNESS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141105 Discussion Group 2A-2B (35:50-37:51)
You’re focusing because you’re afraid that you’ll lose your mindfulness. Don’t be afraid. If the mind goes somewhere, you know the mind goes somewhere, you recognize and return to being mindful, that’s all.
Awareness should just be like this – you put your awareness here and you’re aware; it should be open. But now you’re like you press it hard, you’re trying to prevent it from going away; when you do something because you’re afraid that something else will happen – that’s wrong attitude.
If there are many thoughts, you know that there are many thoughts. Thoughts are a mind object; don’t be afraid of thoughts.
Thinking is not a problem; thinking is just another Dhamma object that we can observe and learn to understand.
We’re usually afraid of thinking mind because we’re afraid we’ll get lost in the story; but I’m not asking you to look at the story, I want you to recognize that the mind is thinking. ‘Thinking is happening; Oh, this thinking is happening’, that’s all. That is knowing the mind.
You know the mind, you know the body; you only have these two meditation objects, right?
163. BEING ABLE TO ACCEPT UNPLEASANTNESS IS A KIND OF UNDERSTANDING
Singapore Retreat 2014 141102 Discussion Group 3A-3B (34:25-36:42)
Being able to accept suffering and unpleasant states, and be interested in them, that is a kind of understanding. When we have that understanding, it allows us to be okay; it means that we are being mindful.
In those moments when the mind has wrong attitude, when the wrong attitude is there, then it’s very difficult. Always remember that when the mind is upset, when it is feeling dissatisfied or depressed, that’s when the mind has the wrong attitude.
And when the mind has the right attitude, all the wisdom that you have, they all come up again.
You need to understand only one thing – an object is just an object – that alone is enough if you understand it deeply.
164. JUDGING DEFILEMENT AS BAD IS DIFFERENT FROM UNDERSTANDING IT AS BAD
Singapore Retreat 2014 141103 Discussion Group 1B-1A (55:44-57:22)
When defilement comes to the mind, it is so important not to judge it as bad, but to see it as mind and the nature of mind so that you would want to watch it. Right view must come in.
What we’re doing is judging – we say ‘Oh, this is bad!’, but when we judge, it doesn’t go away. If we accept it as this is the mind, we change our view to right view and we watch it. We watch everything this mind does, like jealousy – we watch how it feels and what it does until the mind understands ‘Oh, this is bad!’ When the mind understands, it will go away by itself. That is understanding.
When we judge it, it doesn’t go away; but when we realize it, it goes away.
To come to the true realization that this is bad, you have to live with it and stay close to it to understand that it’s truly bad.
So, at first, you cannot judge it as bad because understanding it is bad and judging that it is bad is actually the difference between wisdom and defilement; judging is another defilement.
165. WATCH DEFILEMENTS AND ACT FROM THE WHOLESOME MIND
Singapore Retreat 2014 141105 Discussion Group 2A-2B (28:25-29:02)
First, you need to clear your worrying mind by watching it – watch the feeling of worry, anxiety and not liking. You watch without thinking because if you think it will keep growing; so, no thinking, just watch the feeling, the feeling calms down.
When the feeling is not there, when you are not worrying, then you need to think about what you should do.
Doing something because you’re worried, or doing something because you’re disliking it, is following the defilement. But if you can be clear of the defilement, then you can decide what you should do. Maybe you can move away; then you move away with a clear mind, knowing that this is what is necessary.
166. DISCERN THE STATE OF MIND FROM THE ACTIVITY OF MIND; KNOW BOTH
Singapore Retreat 2014 141103 Discussion Group 2B-2A (20:30-21:36)
When the mind becomes quieter, the quietness is a state of mind; it’s the background of your mind. All the other things that you see – the busy stuff, the thinking that is happening, that is the activity of the mind; and you must know both.
So, don’t keep bringing the mind towards quiet, which is the state of mind. Because you want the quietness, you think that the mind should not be busy; but the mind is always busy. So, you should know both; recognize that both are the nature of mind – one is the state of mind and the other is the activity of mind.
You think that the quietness is good, the busyness is not good; but actually your mind is knowing what is happening in the mind – there are the state of mind which is quiet, and the things the mind is doing which you can see because the mind is quiet.
Usually the mind is doing things, but you don’t know, right? The stillness gives you the opportunity to see and know the thinking mind. This is your opportunity; you should not be ignoring it.
Don’t keep going back to the quietness. Just recognize both.
167. ACTUALLY WATCHING AND INVESTIGATING HAPPEN SIMULTANEOUSLY
Singapore Retreat 2014 141104 Discussion Group 3B-3A (1:07:57-1:09:08)
We use the word ‘watching’ to talk about the part of the mind that is just watching only, but when we watch, the mind speaks to us; and that’s the investigating bit.
You’re watching something and you think ‘What should I do now? What am I aware of now? What’s happening now?’ – All that is investigating happening.
Whether you investigate more depends on your state of mind. If awareness is better and your mind is calm, then you should investigate; but too much investigation is also not good.
We should prioritize awareness because we have to gather information first; when you have enough information, you can then investigate why and what. Then only you can see the whole picture and understanding can arise.
168. HOW NOT TO BE DROWNED IN THOUGHTS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141103 Discussion Group 2B-2A (30:11-31:40)
If you do not have a strong object, the mind has more chances to think. If you can be aware of your thinking, then there’s no problem; you won’t be lost. If you’re not skillful and you watch your thoughts, then you can get lost in day-dreaming for a long time.
That’s why you need to use a strong, obvious object, like a physical object. It is easier to use a physical object together with the thoughts to stay more and more with the awareness.
Thoughts are subtle and fast. If you’re not skillful yet, you cannot watch your mind.
Because of physical object, awareness is present; because awareness is present, you can know the thoughts without following them. If you do not have a strong base to keep awareness strong, then it is easy to follow the thoughts because it is the mind’s habit to pay attention to concepts, the storyline. The mind is already interested in the storyline; so, if you pay more attention to the storyline, you get lost.
Now we try to recognize thoughts and come back to the physical object. When you keep doing this, slowly the mind understands that thinking is an object – being known. Because of this understanding, you cannot be involved with the thoughts.
169. THE MIND GOing INTO A BLUR STATE
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 2 Discussion Group A (05:10-8:55)
When you know that you’re in a blur state, you cannot just stay like that.
At that time, the mind is already lacking effort and wisdom; that’s why it is blur. You need to put in effort. Ask: Do I know properly? It’s blur – what should I do? Should I open my eyes?
You need to think of different ways to deal with it, but you cannot stay in the blur state and try to be aware because the mind is not strong enough.
How do you use your wisdom? Ask a question; think what to do. That’s it.
We must learn to recognize the states of our mind and learn what we need to do to adjust the activity of the mind to suit the state of mind.
If things are becoming light, bright and energized, we recognize that it is a good state of mind but we should also recognize that complacency can set in.
On the other hand, when you’re dull, you can’t continue like that because the mind is not strong anymore; it’s not active, energized and working anymore. So, you need to work the mind.
We constantly need to be checking what the mind needs in the moment. Checking also keeps us alert and active.
170. ATTENTION SHOULD BE ON THE AWARENESS
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 4 Discussion Group C (55:45-58:45)
Whatever arises, observe that – just keep stepping away and observe that. And when a defilement arises in the mind, that should be first thing to keep an eye on.
The weakness of all yogis is that when things go good, we want to hang on to the experience – we feel happy with it, in a sense almost content with it. And then the right effort and wisdom, they fade when greed takes over.
171. TARGETING REQUIRES TOO MUCH ATTENTION
Singapore Retreat 2014 141108 Discussion Group 4B-4A (15:20-16:07)
When you’re doing walking meditation, you mention that mindfulness is not continuous whenever you turn around. But if you’re mindful, you can be mindful of anything; then why should mindfulness not be continuous?
Mindfulness is not continuous if you’re paying attention to the objects. You walk and you’ve targeted something to observe – your feet, your movement or whatever – and when you turn, it’s not the same object anymore. So, you feel like you lose mindfulness.
If you are aware of the mind and what it is aware of, then you walk and when you turn, you continue to be aware of whatever the mind picks up when you’re turning. Then, mindfulness should still be continuous.
172. JOURNEY OF AWARENESS INTO OUR WORK PLACE
Singapore Retreat 2014 141107 Discussion Group 2B (4:10-8.12)
I don’t encourage yogis to practice by moving slowly because none of us slows down in daily life. So, if we practice slowly on retreat, we cannot transfer it to daily life.
Whatever you do, you can be aware if you don’t hurry [yogi’s note: check for eagerness]. You need to know how to watch your emotion; if you hurry, hurry, awareness is gone. When anxiety and worry comes, awareness is gone.
You don’t have to be aware of every detail. Just one thing at a time is good enough; but try to make it continuous. Then, you can maintain awareness.
At work, you must be skillful in watching your thoughts too because you are often thinking of more than one job. Awareness must be fast.
Habit! Practice! You need to practice seeing, hearing, thinking and feeling for a long time; try to be skillful in watching many objects as objects. Then, your awareness becomes faster and faster.
Your awareness must be ready all the time. If you can maintain awareness, the mind is calm and fresh. Then you can think how to finish your job well.
173. TAKING THE STING OUT OF DELUSION
Singapore Retreat 2014 141108 Discussion Group 3B (39:18-39:28)
If you don’t know what and why the experience is, just leave it as an object. Just notice that the experience is being known, it is happening; that’s all.
174. AM I AWARE OR THINKING?
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 2 Discussion Group A (00:45-04:44)
Yogi: During daily activities and walking meditation, the mind can be aware; but when I sit, the mind just thinks.
Sayadaw: The posture helps the mind to be awake in daily activities and when walking; and our eyes are open.
In sitting, you have to make it your objective to be alert; that has to be foremost in your mind. You have always to be checking: Am I still aware? And then you need to be checking: Am I aware of the object properly? You almost need to verbalize the question to yourself. That gives the mind energy and makes sure that you’re doing that work.
So, you might need to do this many times throughout the sitting to ensure that the mind is still awake and aware throughout the sitting.
When you start feeling alert, don’t think “Oh, it’s okay!” You have to keep checking: “What am I aware of? Am I aware properly? Am I in touch with the breath? Or am I thinking about the breath?”
If you’re not sure if the mind is aware or thinking of the object, check if you can feel the breath? This way, you can be in touch with the object.
In daily activities, the mind is already taking up the object properly; but in sitting, the mind is not used to being in touch with the object. Or, it may have the idea that it needs to be with the watching more and stop being in contact with the object.
When the mind is not strong enough, it cannot be with the watching mind; it needs to stay with the object. When the mind starts to think, you need to go back to the object.
175. THE OBJECT/EXPERIENCE IS THAT WHICH IS BEING KNOWN
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group B (08:00-08:27)
Whatever you know is just the object; it is being known. And that is understanding the nature of that which is being seen versus that which is seeing. You can experience both natures.
That is another way of understanding the realities that are present.
176. MAKE IT A HABIT TO WATH CONTINOUSLY
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 4 Discussion Group A (57:22-57:40)
Yogi: I was disturbed during a discussion and the mind was not happy, but I kept on with the discussion.
Sayadaw: At that time, you should watch how you were feeling while you talked about it. We must make it a habit that whenever some defilement arises in the mind to watch it continuously.
Make it a habit to watch it continuously; not just recognize it once or twice. We must keep watching it; keep seeing what is happening to it.
177. MEDITATION IS AWARENESS, NOT PAIN
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group D (17:50-30:27)
The idea that you should sit without moving – never have an idea of what is good and set a target for yourself because we don’t know the conditions along the way. We want to be flexible enough to deal with it wisely.
When we have unrealistic expectations, we can set up the mind for disappointment. Then, yogis may stop wanting to sit. You have to see the conditions on the way in that hour, how things work out. If it’s unbearable, you shift, but you still remain aware.
Meditation is awareness, not pain; so long as awareness continues, it doesn’t matter whether you shift or not.
The purpose is not to make pain disappear, and the purpose is not to endure it. The purpose is to understand the nature of how the mind and body work – how the mind perceives pain when there is reaction, and how the mind perceives pain when there’s no reaction.
So, when there is pain, you’re to watch the aversion, how you feel, and not the pain.
The purpose is to observe things and learn, but the learning can only happen if the mind observes the liking or disliking with a neutral attitude. But we’re not always equanimous when we watch.
So, the learning is not about the object, but how to make the mind equanimous when there’s a reaction. This we do by watching the reaction. When the mind learns about the reaction of the mind, that’s when the mind becomes equanimous.
When the mind is biased in its observation, we’re never going to learn. It’s more important to see the biases in the mind, and when they clear away, when we recognize and understand them, then the mind becomes neutral and is in the right mood to learn.
It’s not about learning how to get rid of pain, how to fix the object; it’s about learning how to observe.
When the mind has an aversion towards pain, how does the mind feel about pain?
And when the mind is not reacting, what is the mind’s perception of the pain? How does the mind now view pain when there’s no aversion?
When we have a deeper understanding of the nature of pain, when there is wisdom, how does the mind experience pain?
178. WHY WE CAN PRACTICE AT THE CENTRE BUT NOT AT HOME
why we can practice at the centre but not at home
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group D (1:27:40-1:28:30)
When we can practice at the centre but not practice at home, it means that our understanding of how to practice skillfully is not enough – our ideas, our attitudes, whatever, they are not enough.
It just means that we have to practice more in life to learn the lessons we need to learn about practicing in life. This is the path; this is the way to go.
This is a long term practice – this has to become our lifestyle, our life.
For me, meditation is a way to live.
179. HAVING THE RIGHT OBJECTIVE FOR MEDITATION
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 4 Discussion Group A (32:10-36:35)
It’s very important to be clear about our objective for meditation. We should always use meditation and awareness as a means to become more aware, to understand more; not to become peaceful or to sleep. Stuff all these sneaky things that come in!
We are aware so that we will learn something.
At home, when we’re quiet and not being aware, we tend to be lost in our daydreams; we start to think. Mostly when the mind is still, it either sleeps or thinks.
When it has nothing else to do, it will either sleep or think. But now, we train it to be aware.
So, if we put the attention on the awareness, the right effort to continue to have some awareness, we won’t be lost in our daydreams – we’ll notice that thoughts keep arising, that these things arise in the mind because we’re trying to be aware.
180. OLD HABIT OF PUSHING THE MIND TO WATCH BREATH
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 4 Discussion Group A (0:50-4:24)
First, change your idea about what meditation is. Meditation is about being aware; so long as you’re aware, it doesn’t matter what you’re aware of. And the object can change or remain the same, but you recognize that there’s awareness (put your attention on the awareness).
Second, you need to remind yourself regularly, or check in with yourself with questions like: Am I aware? Do I know that I’m aware? Have I got lost in thinking? Am I present? Ask yourself questions to ensure that you’re still here.
And third, open your eyes. Don’t do sitting meditation with your eyes closed.
You’re going to make the mind work actively. It’s not a passive knowing; it’s a more precise and specific questioning. What do I know? Do I know only this? Does the mind notice anything else? So, really asking yourself questions deliberately about the practice, about how you’re being aware, or what you’re aware of.
That will help the mind to be actively engaged.
181. GOING ON RETREAT SHOULD BE AN EXTENSION OF OUR PRACTICE
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 2 Discussion Group C (23:35-24:45)
This retreat concept that gets us going, we think: We got to do it properly! And that damns us all.
The mind already knows its intentions and purpose in coming; there’s no need to pop in extra energy.
It’s as though we’ve come on retreat and we’re going to start again, so we start to put in effort. But if we’re practicing continuously or trying to, then it should be an extension of our practice and where we are.
But then we seem to think we need to put in something afresh. That gets us off balance.
182. NOTICE THE QUALITIES WE BRING TO OUR MEDITATION
Maui Retreat 2016 – Opening Instructions (5:30-5:52)
Generally, in our lives, there is so much frustration, greed, delusion, and it is very normal for these qualities to come into our meditation. We’ll find these qualities manifesting themselves as we try to meditate.
183. NEVER FORGET THE PURPOSE OF MEDITATION
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 1 Instructions (13:10-14:06)
When we meditate, we must not forget that the purpose of meditation is to observe.
Our purpose is two-fold: observe and learn. We’re being present in the moment; and the first thing that happens is observation. And if we allow this observation to continue, learning happens.
That’s the purpose of observation.
184. WHAT IS RIGHT THOUGHT
Singapore Retreat 2014 141107 Discussion Group 2B (16:58-18:52)
Spontaneous thought, reasonable thinking is a kind of realization; that’s why the mind calms down.
But if you try to fix it by thinking about it, then there will be a conflict – the real mind still doesn’t want to let go and you’re trying to impose a ‘right’ thought.
It is better to be aware and watch craving and wholesome mind argue. If you’re aware, slowly wholesome mind can win.
Awareness always supports wholesome minds, wholesome states. When you continue to be aware, slowly wholesome mind replaces defilements; but if you lose awareness, then unwholesome mind increases.
185. RATHER THAN TRY TO STOP RANDOM THOUGHTS, ACKNOWLEDGE WHAT HAPPENS
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 5 Discussion Group B (1:00:41-1:02:06)
You don’t need to ask the mind to stop talking. You just need to pay attention and then that will fade away. So, do this work – check what’s happening in the present moment.
Think about how to practice; think about the practice. Then, the mind will practice; it won’t think about random things.
It’s very easy – for example, if we don’t want to be lost in negative thinking, do some positive thinking. If you don’t want to be lost in thoughts, then pay attention to the present moment. Do the positive, rather than try to stop the negative.
Right thought directs the mind to the right object; so, we need to combine sati with right thought. Right thought supports sati to be in the present.
Know that the mind is talking – no need to do anything – just know, know, know.
186. REMEMBER: WHEN YOU NOTICE DEFILEMENT, ITS LOSES ITS POWER
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group D (1:48:58-1:49:30)
Don’t believe the thought and keep noticing that the thought is coming up. So, it becomes: This thought is coming up again, this thought is arising again.
The more you see the thought rather than believe the thought, the more it loses its feel to the mind, the more it loses its power in the mind.
187. RIGHT ATTITUDE IS WISDOM
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group B (40:47-42:29)
Practicing at home takes more right effort, more sati, more samadhi; mostly it requires more right attitude, more right thinking, because we have to be more patient – the results may not be so immediate. Right attitude becomes the most important so that we can keep going and not give up.
I encourage yogis to practice at home because at retreats, there are so many supporting conditions – we rely on the supporting conditions, we don’t rely on ourselves.
When we go home we don’t have crutches; we have to rely on ourselves. And when we have to use our own strength, we will become stronger. Having to bring out the 5 spiritual faculties from ourselves, they become qualities that we can rely on.
188. WITH WHAT ATTITUDE DO WE UNDERTAKE PRECEPTS?
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 2 Discussion Group A (19:03-20:38)
The precepts, although a monk recites to us and we repeat, seems as though we go to take the precepts, as if somebody is giving us the precepts, but actually nobody needs to give us the precepts. Precepts are what we practice, precepts are what we undertake.
The wording is ‘I undertake the training precepts’. When we want to maintain the precepts and actually practice them in our lives, then that is our training. It’s ours, not for anyone to give us.
I wouldn’t say that getting up early in the morning to go and take the precepts is necessarily getting merit because if we felt grumpy about it then it’s not kusala. Kusala is what is in the mind, not the bodily action.
There are actions that can lead to kusala, but is your mind having kusala? If the mind is not happy about doing it, then you’re not getting the kusala.
189. WHEN THE PRACTICE APPEARS TO HAVE REGRESSED
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 4 Discussion Group C (18:30-20:10)
There is no magic pill; there’s only the sincere desire to practice, which is to be aware.
No matter how difficult it is, I will try to be aware as much as I can. That’s all.
No matter how difficult it is in a day, if I can remember to be aware in the toilet only, that’s okay. Rather than throw it away completely out of the window, ‘Oh, I can’t do it; I’m so busy’, do whatever you can. If you do it a little bit, at least you have that little bit, but you must do it every day.
So that the next time you come back for retreat, at least you have that little bit; otherwise, you’ll start from zero.
190. CHECKING IS WISDOM MIND WORKING
Singapore Retreat 2014 141108 Discussion Group 4B-4A (17:25-19:38)
When mindfulness uses wisdom to try and be mindful, it’s not only trying to do mindfulness anymore; it’s actually checking – checking how mindfulness is working and if it is working. It’s not so much the doing effort, but the following up – checking for the weaknesses, the cracks in the process and filling those.
Checking is more meaningful because there is more intelligence, wisdom being used.
When you’re checking, you not only see more detail, you also discover more because you’re checking what you might have missed. You notice other things.
Checking is similar to investigating. Also it is not looking for something, it’s checking for what’s happening right now. It’s a kind of awareness.
I like checking. And sometimes it’s not only checking, but double checking.
191. RECOGNIZING THE VARIED LEVELS OF THINKING
Maui Retreat 2016 Day 1 Morning Instructions (56:45-58:00)
Thinking is on so many levels; we have our very gross chattering minds, we have thoughts that we think deliberately, thoughts that we think subconsciously, and then there are the monologues and dialogues in our heads that are just doing their own thing, figuring our lives for us; but that’s the thinking mind too.
It is so important to recognize the monologuing and dialoguing that sort of go unnoticed most of the time because that’s helping us live our lives, right? Those are our beliefs and value system almost. And it’s important to recognize those because otherwise they are just running our lives and we don’t realize whether they are skillful or not.
192. NOTICE CONDITIONING IS HAPPENING
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group B (1:05:30-1:06:07)
Yogi: In certain days, the mind is totally drowned in thoughts, as if it’s the first day of retreat
Sayadaw: When the mind has conditions that settle the mind, the mind will remain settled. When the mind has conditions that unsettle the mind, the mind will start getting unsettled.
Whatever happens in the mind, there are some conditions present that have brought this effect.
It doesn’t happen out of the blue; it’s something that has to do with what has been happening in the mind in the days preceding that. You don’t notice what the mind has been thinking.
193. EACH MIND IS DOING ITS JOB
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 - Day 4 Discussion Group A (1:19:34-1:20:36)
This is the nature of that type of mind. It’s not that the whole mind is like that, but if the worry mind is there, the mind will worry about whatever. The stories will be worry, worry, and worry.
If the fear mind is there, then the mind will be afraid of this, this, and this. Everything that comes, the mind will have something to fear.
It’s the nature of that type of mind. So, when worry mind is there, it will worry; if fear mind is there, it will be afraid. If happy mind is there, it will be happy; if sad mind is there, it will be sad.
It’s like at night, usually the mind is already scared of the dark. So, when anything happens, we don’t really know what happens, we will think that it’s a ghost.
194. BE INTERESTED IN WATCHING THOUGHTS
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 4 Discussion Group A (16:05-21:06)
From watching what the mind thinks, we start to understand that our thoughts create in our mind emotions and stories for ourselves; and we begin to understand the nature of wholesome thoughts and unwholesome thoughts, the nature of thoughts themselves.
When we meditate and are aware, and we notice the mind thinking, we’re so disinterested in our thoughts. We want them to go away; but actually the thoughts hold so much information, they reveal so much to us about the nature of mind.
Thinking is not a problem. But if there are defilements pushing and feeding the thoughts, then we need to understand the relationship of how when there are defilements present feeding the thoughts, how they exaggerate things in our thoughts, how they make things seem real in our thoughts, how they make us belief, how they convince us to believe something that is not true. The defilements have all these characteristics and if we would see them, we wouldn’t be tricked.
We won’t always see all the detailed workings of the mind. But just noticing thoughts as they keep passing through our mind, is interesting in itself because that is the function of the mind.
Thinking is a function of the mind. Feeling is another function of the mind. And if we notice all of these at work, it’s interesting because we’re actually seeing how the mind does its work.
When there’s thinking, who is thinking? What kind of thought is it? Did I actively think that thought; am I the thought?
Just from observing thoughts without any idea that you’re going to watch for this or that, just giving them the time for you to notice what is happening, you can begin to understand that thought is its own cause and effect process, not your doing.
Right now, we’re very much identified with our thoughts – we think ‘I’m thinking; I’m feeling’. We think that our thoughts define us, but if we observe long enough, we can pull apart these things.
Sometimes we need to think about something – after we think, we think ‘I’m thinking because I want to’, but actually, the wanting mind wants to think, so that’s an intention to think and that’s what makes the mind think. So, there’s a process of different functions of mind working to make other things happen in the mind. But we identify with every step of the process, thinking ‘I’m somewhere there’.
195. UNDERSTANDING GREED
Maui Retreat 2016 Day 1 Morning Instructions (54:28-56:35)
What makes you recognize that you’re watching greed?
Most of the time, it’s because of what we’re thinking or feeling in the moment, right? And we’ve called it greed. We recognize that there are signs of greed in the thinking and feeling.
But the thought is not greed, right? Thinking is just thinking. And the feeling is not greed either; the feeling reflects greed, but the feeling is not greed. Feeling is just feeling, right?
So, what is greed?
It is through this sort of process that we can get in touch with the nature of greed because we call it greed but we’re watching our thought or our feeling, and then there is some quality that we recognize that is behind it, which is not the thinking or the feeling. Can we get in touch with that quality?
So, our thoughts and our feelings are like the gateway for us to access greed or aversion or delusion. So, we need to use thinking mind; we need to observe thinking mind so that we know what is the quality that is emanating from it – that it is hiding or displaying.
196. CHECK YOUR EXPECTATIONS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141107 Discussion Group 1B-1A (51:35-54:17)
Don’t expect anything – motivation is important. Even if you want to understand – that can be a problem too.
Just watch the mind, that’s enough.
When your mind calms down, just continue to maintain the awareness and peacefulness; don’t expect wisdom to arise. Just maintain this first, and collect information – peaceful, information, peaceful, information. That’s enough.
When nature matures, understanding comes by itself. You need to be very patient. Nature takes time; nature cannot hurry. [Yogi’s note: Understanding takes time; understanding cannot hurry.]
I know that people have their life problems; they want to meditate to solve their problems. That’s also a kind of wrong attitude. If you meditate and you get the result, after getting the result then you can deal with your difficulties.
197. CONCLUSIONS SHUT DOWN THE ABILITY TO OBSERVE OPENLY
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 3 Discussion Group B (49:45-50:23)
The mind has this tendency – it observes a few things and then it wants to make a conclusion to feel like it has learned something.
That shuts down the mind’s ability to see more; so, we need to notice that the mind is making its conclusion and step away from that so that it continues to observe. And it might make another conclusion, and we need to step away from that and again continue to observe.
This helps the mind to keep its doors open.
198. CRAVING IS HUNGRY FOR RESULTS
Kalaw Retreat Mar 2017 – Day 2 Discussion Group A (10:25-12:17)
You don’t need to get out of the craving; you need to recognize and watch it.
If you can detect the idea, look at the idea and notice how it makes the mind feel.
The way we ask questions, we say: I don’t know how to get out of it; what should I do?
Our question should be: Do I know it? Usually, the answer is: Yes. If I know it, then I should continue to be aware of it, right? Am I aware of it with right view? Remember the 3 yogi jobs.
The learning will come with time – it’s not that you’re going to watch it now and learn immediately. So, you need to allow yourself to be with it – recognize it, recognize its signs, recognize what it does, that’s the learning that’s going to happen. Eventually, when the mind realizes that this is really not helpful, then it will learn.
We all have this – we all think that when we know something, that we should be learning something immediately and it is going to go away, right? But, the first step is just to know, the recognition that there is awareness of it.
The noticing is good – continue to observe it, to learn about it as in to know what is happening to it, not how to get rid of it, or how to deal with it. Know what is happening to it.
199. WRONG VIEW WORSENS DEPRESSION
Singapore Retreat 2014 141107 Discussion Group 2B (27:28-28:34)
Start from right view. Try to think that whatever happens is nature and try to be mindful of something.
If your mind is involved with thinking, then the depression gets worse and worse. Try to be aware of some neutral object and have right attitude. Slowly, you can calm down and be more awake.
Sometimes, you cannot only be mindful and mindful. Because of wrong view, when you watch your mind, you can become more depressed.
If they only meditate, they cannot overcome it. If they don’t understand right view, then problem comes because if they watch themselves, they have more suffering and they are finished.
200. NIGHTMARES AND PAINFUL THOUGHTS
Singapore Retreat 2014 141108 Discussion Group 3B (9.02-11:27)
You don’t have to recall the dream to address it. In the moment you’re feeling shaken you just need to watch the feeling of being shaken.
The concepts that bring on our emotions are not important. We never need to bring up the concepts to address the issue. We just have to address the reality that is happening at the present moment, which are our emotions, our feelings, our reactions; that’s what we need to address. So, we need to watch those.
In dreams and thoughts, the story is never the object of meditation. It’s the reality of the experience of thoughts [yogi’s note: dreams are just thoughts while we’re sleeping], that they arise; and if there are emotions and feelings, we watch them.
If you find that feeling difficult, remind yourself that a feeling is just a feeling; a state of mind is just a state of mind [yogi’s note: and that they are happening now].
A thought is just a thought; and when the thought is over, the thought itself is over, the effect is left behind. We deal with the effect, but we don’t have to go into what the thought is about.