951. REAL SILA IS LED BY WISDOM
20200131 What is the real morality and donation // Sayadaw U Tejaniya's Dhamma Interview Section https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YONKo1ypDjg&feature=share... (0:03-1:01)
Yogi: Sila and wisdom are the same thing. We know the right thing to do only when there is wisdom. Sila is not bound by any 1 law like we don’t kill and we don’t steal; it’s just the right thing to do at that point.
Sayadaw: Yes, wisdom is very important. Actually, sila is should or should not do. If it is something that you should do, you need to do and if you shouldn't, you don’t do, right? That is sila.
But how do we know if we should or should not do? So, some understanding has to be present to make the right decision; otherwise, we’re just following instructions.
952. PURE DANA IS WITHOUT EXPECTATION
20200131 What is the real morality and donation // Sayadaw U Tejaniya's Dhamma Interview Section https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YONKo1ypDjg&feature=share... (1:02-2:35)
Dana means to give; it is not limited to giving money. And why do we give?
Many people give to get something in return; it is not easy to give freely without expectation. Dana means to give without expecting anything in return.
Why can we give? It is because we’re not attached to whatever we give. The important thing is to develop the alobha mind, the non-greedy mind.
We need to practice this mind by giving repeatedly and slowly we’re not attached and lobha reduces.
Pure dana is done without expectation; just give. Building up the alobha mind is also meditation; and the mind is happy and free when alobha is present.
953. WISDOM IS AN ANTIDOTE FOR EVERYTHING
Swiss Retreat 2019 Q&A 20.05.2019 (55:13-55:44)
I was very lazy yogi – I would lie down and meditate all the time – but when I discovered the benefits of meditation, then the mind became willing to meditate.
Wisdom, understanding the benefits of something, can also help the mind to release its unwholesome tendencies.
954. ALL MINDS ARE MOMENTARY
Swiss Retreat 2019 Q&A 20.05.2019 (07:15-10:20)
Yogi: Is everything that appears in the mind impermanent? And is the knowing itself impermanent?
Sayadaw: It’s clear that it is impermanent – that is why we keep losing our mindfulness. We cannot be continuously mindful all the time, right?
When the mindfulness gains momentum, and when it starts to feel like the mindfulness is doing its own work, it can really feel like the flow of mindfulness is not impermanent, but that it is always there.
We don’t try to be mindful, but we keep knowing things. When the mindfulness is that continuous, bring the attention to the mindfulness itself.
We can see that although mindfulness continues on its own because of the momentum, it is also arising afresh every moment.
955. LIFE BECOMES OKAY BECAUSE THE MIND HAS CHANGED
Swiss Retreat 2019 Closing Remarks 20.05.2019 (25:04-25:35)
When things become okay in life, it is not because the situations have started changing to suit our mood or desires – that is not what happens.
Life still does what it does, but the way we relate to life has changed, the way we view life has changed, the way we believe life should be has changed.
This mind has become okay with the way life is; that is what has become okay.
956. THE PROCESS OF HOW MERITS ARE SHARED
IMS Retreat 2012 Q&A Group D No.1 (30:02-33:42)
When we share merits with other beings, what they receive is not our good kamma because in every being’s stream of consciousness, they have a potential store of wholesome and unwholesome effects that can take place.
When they hear and they can rejoice, that wholesome mind opens the door for their wholesome kamma to enter their stream of consciousness.
They’re not getting our good kamma; they’re allowing their good kamma to come through only if they can feel the gratitude or happiness that someone is trying to share.
It’s like you’re full and you wish another person ‘I hope that you’re not hungry’, it doesn’t make them not hungry. But if they can feed themselves – in this case feed themselves with wholesome thoughts – then, that fulfills their good kamma.
957. EVERY MIND HAPPENING IS ITS OWN PROCESS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Q&A 20.05.2019 (21:18-22:48)
Yogi: Is there anything personal in the mind?
Sayadaw: Everything that happens in the mind is its own process. If we want, we can make it ‘mine’, and that would be a concept.
Conceptually, we can bring in the illusion of ownership or a self and believe that it is mine. We can do that; that is what the mind is actually always doing. We can consider it ‘mine’, but that is another process at work in the mind.
None of it is actually ‘me’.
958. CONFIDENCE IN THE AWARENESS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (20:49-21:30)
Yogi: Nowadays, when you’re aware, what is your attitude?
Sayadaw: Because the mind already understands the benefit of being mindful, my mind is content just to be mindful even if it’s nothing special.
There is a lot of confidence in mindfulness itself as a vehicle to something greater and it doesn’t matter what it is and when it’ll come.
Because I have experienced it so many times and I’m sure about it, as a result, I can settle into being mindful.
959. STAYING AWARE IN DAILY ACTIVITIES
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 1 (0:40-3:37)
Yogi: I have trouble maintaining continuity of awareness when I do something like scrubbing the pot hard.
Sayadaw: When we pay too much attention to the outside, like to what we’re doing, that’s when we lose the mindfulness. If you’re scrubbing a pot and you’re looking too much at how the pot is, it is easier to lose mindfulness.
Using too much energy also refers to how we do something. When we use too much energy to do the activity, it also causes us to lose mindfulness.
If we remember to use some of our energy to always bring attention back to ourselves, we’ll still notice the details we want to notice and do it effectively.
If you’re holding the pot and scrubbing, if your attention can be on the holding, the movement and your feelings, you’ll still notice if the pot is getting scrubbed clean or not and adjust accordingly, and have enough mindfulness at the same time.
When we do something, we always think a little too much about what we’re doing, more than is necessary; and that’s why we lose mindfulness.
Next time you scrub pots, start by just scrubbing the pot and then ask yourself: What do I know? Then, you’ll notice all the things popping up and stay with that.
960. A LONG-TERM PRACTICE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (00:04-01:52)
Yogi: How can I remember to be more aware? I have been struggling to remember.
Sayadaw: There is no need to try to make the awareness more continuous. It is more about practicing consistently.
In the beginning, nobody’s awareness is continuous. Everybody repeatedly forgets to be aware and then remembers again.
If you just keep doing that every day – you do as much as you can when you become aware – over the days, you’ll find that the moments you’re aware become more and more. Don’t mind the times you forget.
961. ADDING AWARENESS TO WHAT WE NORMALLY DO IN DAILY LIFE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (4:02-4:55)
Usually, whatever we do, our attention is outside. Mindfulness is the opposite – we have to bring it back into ourselves, into this body and this mind.
It’s a new habit of doing the same thing but with the attention inside the body while we’re doing what is outside and not giving too much attention to what is outside.
It’s like a taste of it in the retreat – you walk and you’re aware; you can do two things – you’re walking and you’re aware you’re walking. You’re eating and you’re aware you’re eating; and later on, you’re talking and you’re aware you’re talking.
This is to get a taste of how to stay inside while doing what we normally do.
962. LEARNING TO MAINTAIN AWARENESS OF MORE THAN ONE ACTIVITY
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (05:09-06:08)
Yogi: Can I take time to switch from being aware of walking to seeing and looking so that the awareness is maintained?
Sayadaw: Yes, you can even stop walking; take it slowly and practice at your own pace.
I get it that the yogi is not asking about walking slowly but taking time to be aware of seeing and also be aware of walking.
963. LET THE PRACTICE BE VERSATILE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Closing Remarks 20.05.2019 (28:06-28:44)
We need to learn all the skills that are available to us, and that is the skill of being able to be aware of any of the 6 senses that we have. Not just feeling or thoughts, but also seeing, hearing, tasting, smelling and touching.
We cannot be versatile in practicing the dhamma by just knowing one object.
964. PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 1 (3:40-5:12)
Yogi: A lot of judging and disliking arise whenever I meet people. How can I be aware of that?
Sayadaw: It’s just practice – if you keep setting up an intention to be aware, it’ll come.
Right now, you might know later and that’s fine. When you know is when you start; and then, it’ll get earlier and earlier.
We’re so skillful at being mindful of the body and not so skillful at noticing what’s happening in the mind; and that’s why we notice the mind later.
It doesn’t matter – if we know later, we start then, and as we continue to practice it’ll get earlier and earlier.
965. DOES AWARENESS HINDER DAILY ACTIVITIES?
Dhamma lecture at Aquaplex, Arizona 2014 (56:24-57:20)
Yogi: In daily life, we’re busy most of the time. If we’re aware, we can’t do much else.
Sayadaw: Whether you’re talking or doing anything, with awareness present, your quality of mind is very different.
When you’re aware of what you’re doing, your quality of mind improves; and consequently, the quality of what you’re doing becomes better and better.
If there is no awareness, the mind is deluded and any defilement can come in; for example, you can immediately get angry without awareness.
If you’re aware, you know that the mind is angry, and there is some space before responding. Then, the mind can decide to talk or hold back.
Every time our mental, verbal and physical actions are guided by awareness and wisdom, the mind is secure.
966. BREAKING A BAD HABIT
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (50:44-54:45)
Yogi: Every time I sit on the cushion, I get very tense. I think there are a lot of wanting and forcing; and they get stronger by the day.
Sayadaw: If you continue like this, it’ll become a bad habit. You need to break the habit and have a different pattern.
When you sit, don’t think that you’re going to meditate. Sit informally and relaxingly, not in a meditation posture.
Don’t sit in a way that reminds you that you’re meditating; sit in a way that you’re not there to meditate, like you’re just killing some time.
If you sit in a posture you usually sit to meditate, the entire idea of what meditation means comes back and you’ll have the same attitude, feelings and tension. You want to break out of that.
You could also lean against a wall and simply check in on yourself what is the mind thinking and feeling. That’s all you have to check.
967. CHANGE THE HABIT WHEN TENSION PERSISTS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (55:25-55:35)
Yogi: Every time I sit on the cushion, I get very tense. I think there are a lot of wanting and forcing; and it gets stronger by the day.
Sayadaw: I suggest that you keep your eyes open.
Don’t close your eyes because when you close your eyes, the mind will have the idea that you’re trying to meditate.
968. JUST KNOW THE OBJECT; DON’T STARE AT IT
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 1 (29:25-31:03)
Yogi: Aversion arose and when I tried to look at it, there appeared to be a barrier, and I couldn’t see it.
Sayadaw: When you already recognize that something is present, stay with that, acknowledging that. And that keeps the mindfulness continuous – that is all you need. Trying to sort of look at it with binoculars might not work.
969. WHEN THE MIND CHANGES, THE EXPERIENCE WILL BE DIFFERENT
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (28:20-30:20)
Yogi: I was sick; there was a lot of pain and the mind felt really tight. I wasn’t very friendly to the pain and I was watching the aversion and doubt.
Sayadaw: This is enough – there is mindfulness.
Yogi: Do I do this forever?
Sayadaw: Once the mindfulness gains momentum, of course, the mind changes. And then your experience changes and becomes more interesting.
Our work is to keep developing the mindfulness, to keep doing it over and over.
970. REALITY AND CONCEPT ARISE TOGETHER
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 1 (19:07-22:07)
Yogi: When does nature stop and the concept or the story begin? For example, I meet a person and I don’t like the person, my aversion is nature and when I have some thoughts of my experience with the person in the past, that is the concept or story, is that correct?
Sayadaw: Reality and concept always arise together. The concepts are always built on the reality that the mind experiences.
We often just see the concept of the reality that we’re experiencing; that’s how we know it.
When you dislike someone, the concept has already happened with the reality. The reality is hearing, seeing and thinking. The concept is when the mind believes in what that thinking was, and sometimes we don’t see it and so the aversion arises.
If the mind stayed only on the reality – if it only saw the present-moment experience as it is – the mind will never have an unwholesome feeling. Reality doesn’t bring up unwholesome feelings because there is nothing to be biased about.
It’s only the concepts that bring up unwholesome feelings.
Yogi: I’m not sure if I have aversion.
Sayadaw: There is some judgment that has already happened that you didn’t notice.
Yogi: So, aversion is not nature?
Sayadaw: Aversion is nature but the reason it happens is because of an attention to a concept.
971. THE RIGHT IDEA
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (1:08:15-1:10:38)
Yogi: Whatever task I do, I do with great intensity; consequently, it is hard to be aware.
Sayadaw: It is because you think that the task is more important.
You like perfection, right?
Yogi: Yes.
Sayadaw: Then just do the awareness perfectly – make that your task.
You just need to change what is important in the mind.
972. REALITY IS ALWAYS NEW
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (43:34-47:10)
Yogi: I was happy to be aware of the nature of thinking mind, and that relaxes me a bit. And, I could be aware of walking; then the thoughts and agitation would come back again and again. It feels like I’m going in circles.
Sayadaw: It’s not again and again – it’s new, new.
The thinking process is always new. The thoughts, the concepts, are old, but the reality, the process, is new.
Yogi: If it’s new, I could be curious about it.
Sayadaw: Life is always new – there’s really nothing old.
Everything you know in the present moment is something that you have never known before.
You’re struggling with it because you think that it’s happening again and again. If you’re interested in the nature of what is happening now – this is happening now and this is happening now – then it’ll be different.
If you think about concept versus nature, the mind is arising now, the story which sounds the same is a concept, but this mind is new every moment.
Our memories – we have memories when we were children – are concepts, that is why they feel old, but the mind that is having the memories is new and is only happening now.
Yogi: How can we use this information for increasing wisdom?
Sayadaw: There’s no magic bullet – I’m telling you things that sound interesting because I have done the work and the work is the 3 yogi jobs of having right view, being mindful and continuing to be mindful with right view.
It’s so simple and you just have to keep doing that.
973. HOW TO TUNE DOWN THE ENERGY
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 5 (1:05:56-1:07:00)
Sayadaw: You’re aware but you’re over focusing a bit; and that’s why it keeps you awake at night. See if you can tune it down a bit.
Yogi: I tried, but I don’t know how.
Sayadaw: Don’t take a small object, take a larger object like the whole body and spread the awareness.
We can apply attention to one object, but we don’t know how to decrease our energy.
So, spread your attention over the whole body, put your attention over a larger area, and that will diffuse the energy.
974. WHEN THE MIND KNOWS THE OBJECT, KNOW THE AWARENESS TOO
20200128 Maintain the awareness, not just the calmness // Sayadaw U Tejaniya's Dhamma Interview https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x16R2fxleYc&feature=share... (05:38-6:07)
Yogi: The awareness becomes more obvious when watching a main object.
Sayadaw: Any object is the same, right? Main object or other object, the awareness and the object happen together.
Whatever object that you’re aware of, go through the knowing mind or awareness. Don’t lose the awareness.
975. MISTAKING FEELING GOOD FOR GOOD MEDITATION
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (1:24:35-1:26:28)
Yogi: Last 2 days, I was dead tired from boredom. Why so bored?
Sayadaw: Yes, the same objects are so boring to yogis especially at the start of a retreat.
What makes yogis interested is if you allow them to concentrate, to keep watching one thing, and they just love it when suddenly the mind becomes calm. Then, they become interested.
What they like is the good feeling because they want to feel good when they meditate. And not just when they meditate, they want to feel good all the time in life.
976. EXERCISE WISDOM WHEN IT COMES TO MEDITATION SCHEDULE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (35:11-40:30)
Yogi: I’m used to a strict walking and sitting meditation routine – this no-schedule practice makes me doubt if it’s enough to learn more and learn fast.
Sayadaw: Some people like to do their own way and some people like to follow instructions.
When told to follow your own instructions, some people find it confusing. You know you have to be mindful, but you want the teacher to tell you what, when and for how long.
It’s hard but you need to put in the effort to figure out a structure for yourself. I don’t give you a schedule so that you can find your own schedule. It might be what worked before.
When not given a schedule, we need to use more of our wisdom so that the mind will find a structure to be mindful.
There was a yogi rushing to the Dhamma hall. I asked him: Why? He replied he was going to meditate. I again asked: Why do you meditate? He replied: Because of the gong.
We do something because it’s important not because someone tells us to do it. We’re mindful because we know that it’s beneficial, not because somebody tells us to be mindful.
977. WHEN THE BODY SWAYS ON THE CUSHION
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (25:01-28:12)
Yogi: My body moves when I’m sitting. I’m not sure if I want it to move, but it’s interesting. Is it better to stop or to let it be?
Sayadaw: Is it necessary to move while you’re sitting?
There are several reasons why people move in sitting and often the motivations are subtle enough for us not to realize that we’re generating them.
People move when they’re bored or when they have pain. Whatever it is, it is not necessary to move and the concern is that it becomes a habit of moving voluntarily or involuntarily.
There are yogis who believe that when they move in a certain way, it is a sign of something. They’ll keep doing it over and over because of a belief.
Yogi: So, I should stop when it starts again?
Sayadaw: Yes, when you stop, you’ll also discover why the body wants to move.
Everything is cause and effect; we move or don’t move because of a cause, and we want to know what is happening. When we allow these movements to happen, we start thinking that they’re happening by themselves, but it is not like that.
978. EXPERIENCES ARE NOT ALWAYS CLEAR
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (07:00-10:40)
Yogi: Being aware of seeing triggered a lot when I was more into the looking – so, I stepped back to a light seeing. But when I saw something that was unclear, the mind was agitated again.
Sayadaw: When we’re being aware and the awareness sometimes becomes very clear, it also becomes clear that experiences are not always clear.
The non-clarity becomes known because of the awareness.
979. AWARENESS CAN BE PRESENT EVEN WHEN THINKING IS HAPPENING
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (1:16:50-1:18:48)
Yogi: Can I really be thinking about solving a problem and still be mindful at the same time? Or, should I switch between the two?
Sayadaw: Of course, you can be mindful and still think.
If we know how to be mindful when trying to solve a problem, there is more chance for wisdom to come in and help you solve the problem.
Because in the end, what helps us to solve problems is wisdom; and to invite wisdom into our mind, we need to be mindful and also have steadiness of mind or samadhi.
With steadiness of mind, the mind is not agitated by the problem. When the mind is mindful and not agitated, it is more possible for wisdom to come in and help.
980. KNOWING CAN BE KNOWN AS SURELY AS THE SENSATIONS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (10:50-12:17)
Yogi: I can feel the sensations in detail when I walk. Now, I’m trying to find out the knowing of the sensations.
Sayadaw: You can know the knowing as surely as you know sensations.
Although it doesn’t feel as solid as sensations, but you can be sure of it as you feel sure of sensations.
Touch your fingers; do you know the touching?
Yogi: Yes.
Sayadaw: Are the knowing and the touching separate?
Yogi: Yes.
Sayadaw: You know the touching and you also know the knowing.
Yogi: Should I try to stay with the knowing?
Sayadaw: Yes. And if you know the knowing, you already know what it knows. When you know the knowing, touching is already known.
981. CLARITY HAPPENS DUE TO THE STRENGTH OF AWARENESS, NOT BY PERSONAL EFFORT
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (14:17-17:41)
Yogi: Between touching and knowing the touching, it seems like I don’t see as much detail when there is knowing of the touching.
Sayadaw: Never mind that because you’re trying to know the mind and when the awareness is stronger, the detail will come back.
Knowing the detail of what is happening depends on the strength of the awareness.
When we try too much to see the detail of the object by ourselves, we forget how the awareness works and we never learn to look at the mind.
When we try to look at the object in more detail, there’s always the idea that ‘I’m trying to observe and I see more detail’. So, there’s always the sense of me being able to do something. But when we’re not trying to see detail but keeping the mindfulness continuous, and when the mind can see more clearly by itself, the true cause and effect becomes clear.
We don’t see more clearly because we want to see more clearly; we see more clearly when the mind becomes able to see more clearly.
982. ANY EXPERIENCE IS HELPFUL TO LEARNING
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (1:50:50-1:55:43)
Yogi: I worked with the question of how, when and why l lose awareness when I was meditating and after a while got caught into telling stories and having conversations in my mind. Then, I stopped and asked a simpler question and that helped.
Sayadaw: From this, you need to learn what is the limit, how much you can use the question before it goes out of control and becomes a whole conversation.
As long as it is making the mind pay attention, that’s fine. Once it starts to think about the question, it is too much conversation and you lose mindfulness.
983. LIVE WITH THE KNOWING MIND
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (00:13-06:04)
Yogi: I have a lot of bad judgment and comparing mind. I don’t like it and try to watch it. I tell myself that I should concentrate on positive things.
What else can I do?
Sayadaw: The good thing is that you’re aware of all this. That is the positive.
All the things that are happening in the mind, they are not important at all. The profit is that you’re aware of everything.
It is right view to know something as it is. You remember that you should be positive? So, remember this positive – that it is good that there’s mindfulness.
It is positive to be mindful of whatever is happening, however ugly.
Yogi: Even if it doesn’t change anything?
Sayadaw: There is no need to change anything. Meditation is not to fix anything; meditation is to know everything.
That knowing is wholesome; it has wisdom that can grow in it.
Yogi: But do I have to live with this?
Sayadaw: You’re supposed to live with the knowing mind. This knowing mind is what will transform your life.
The knowing has to happen a lot because the more this knowing mind knows, the more it will know the good, the bad, the beautiful, the ugly, the pleasant, and the unpleasant, the more it’ll understand, the more change it’ll see.
984. IF YOU KNOW IT THEORETICALLY, DO YOU SEE IT EXPERIENTIALLY?
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (1:20:41-1:23:30)
Yogi: When the calmness turns dull, what should I do?
Sayadaw: You have to think and reflect on your experience. What have I been taught about the theory behind this experience?
The theory is there are awareness and the object; now, in my current experience, do I know the object? And, do I know the awareness? Do the awareness and object stay the same?
If you know it theoretically, do you see it experientially? How many objects do I know?
What might I learn from this current experience? There are awareness and calm, and it is getting dull – what can I learn from this?
Or, why has the mind become dull? It can be any question to activate the mind.
You need to think about your experience and that’s how you investigate.
985. WE EXPERIENCE A FEW THINGS HAPPENING AT THE SAME TIME
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 3 (32:00-33:51)
Yogi: I’m struggling with different minds – there’s a mind that is observing and there’s another mind that is thinking. I know that it cannot be true because only 1 mind can happen at a time.
Sayadaw:: There’s the theory and there’s the practical. The theory that the mind arises one at a time, only the Buddha can know that.
For us, we experience the mind like a river; and the river is made up of many drops of water. Can you see one drop of water at a time? No.
When we experience the mind, it is like a river. We see many minds at the same time; it feels like that, and that’s correct for us. We cannot experience one mind at a time.
We experience a few things happening at the same time.
986. WATCHING AVERSION
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 2 (30:20-32:18)
Yogi: I was sick and there were pain, aversion and I was not sure what to do. It felt like the whole experience was painted by aversion.
Sayadaw: In this case, you’re aware of the aversion and all that; it is not overwhelming you. It doesn’t sound like you’re struggling with it so much, just that you’re aware of it.
In that case, it is actually more useful to be knowing the aversion because we can learn something about aversion. We need to watch aversion many, many times to learn about it.
It is useful to be able to be with it. It is not getting worse or overwhelming you; so, you can stay with it.
If you find any time that aversion is getting worse, it means that you’re not handling it and you need to go to a neutral object. But when you’re handling it, you’re just being mindful and then it is okay.
987. ADVICE FOR THE FAST WORKER
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (1:12:16-1:13:45)
Sayadaw: I notice that you do things fast.
If we do something quickly, it can quickly agitate the mind because of the energy we put in to be quick.
When we are relaxed and we have to react to something, we can even see just how much energy is needed to respond.
Yogi: Sometimes I do, and I tell myself there is no need and it is better to be slow and steady as in a marathon.
Sayadaw: Yes, and there’s no competition because you’re the only one running.
988. AWARENESS IS NEVER TOO LATE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 6 (1:19:45-1:20:14)
Yogi: Often I’m too late recognizing what is happening – I want to know the thoughts that send me to doing something. When I realize it, I’m already there drinking tea.
Sayadaw: Now you’re aware – start now. You’re aware that you’re drinking tea.
It’s not late; you’re just aware now.
989. MINDFULNESS DOESN’T HAVE TO BE GOOD
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 5 (1:07:20-1:10:27)
Yogi: So much is going on in daily activities – I have to concentrate on chopping the vegetables and I have to concentrate on being aware. I have so many sensations and thoughts and my mind is so busy and complex. Sometimes I’m aware and sometimes not.
Do I have to be aware of everything?
My meditation appears better in formal practice than in daily activities.
Sayadaw: Mindfulness doesn’t have to be good – you just have to try to be mindful.
When you lose it, you come back – you lose it, you come back. That’s all that is needed.
If we keep practicing, the way mindfulness feels changes just because we keep trying.
Don’t expect it to be like sitting. In sitting, it’s quiet and it seems like it is better mindfulness. That’s just an illusion; it only seems like it is better.
990. WE CAN’T FOCUS ON THE MIND LIKE WE FOCUS ON EXTERNAL OBJECTS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 5 (1:10:43-1:14:43)
Yogi: I was aware of sound and bodily sensations and tried to be aware of the awareness of sound and sensations. But it was too late and stressful.
Sayadaw: Don’t try to be aware of the awareness. In this instance, it is clear that the awareness is present. Just know the distinction between the object and the awareness, that you’re clear there is awareness.
Rather than try to know the awareness, point to it with the question: Do I know that I’m aware? If there’s a sense that awareness is present, that’s enough. Don’t try to focus or lock in on it.
Usually, we don’t look at reality; we understand reality.
We can’t focus on the mind like we focus on the external objects.
You can know the mind by its activity, movement and intention.
You can know what passes by, but to focus on it like you would on your leg, you will over focus and it will feel out of sync.
The mind is subtle and always shifting and you can’t grip it.
991. HOW TO BE AWARE OF THOUGHTS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 5 (9:55-11:25)
Yogi: How can I be aware of my thoughts as they happen?
Sayadaw: Right now when we are trying to practice, when we have to intentionally think, it is hard to be mindful because we also have to intend to be mindful.
It’s hard for the mind to do consciously when there are two intentions at the same time. But when you have been intentionally mindful for a long time, when the mind has some understanding of the nature of the awareness, the nature of thinking, the nature of knowing the object, then you can try to think of something and you’ll know that there is thinking, not because you’re trying to be aware, but because the awareness has become familiar with what thinking is.
So you just need to practice to be mindful continuously.
992. JUST BE AWARE OF WHAT IS THERE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 6 (1:17:45-1:18:10)
Yogi: When I do standing meditation, I can’t feel the aversion, but I know that I want to walk away.
Sayadaw: You know that you want to walk away – watch that feeling.
You can’t see aversion clearly; it’s fine. You don’t have to look for something that is not there – what’s there is the feeling of wanting to walk away, and you watch that.
993. WHEN WE’RE CARELESS IN GOOD TIMES, WE’LL SUFFER MORE IN BAD TIMES
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (1:46:56-1:48:45)
Always remember that when the meditation doesn’t seem to be working – like when it’s foggy or not working the way it should, just stop.
When business is not good, we should stop and regroup to figure out what is wrong with the business.
When it’s fine, yes, we can just go with the flow, but when something is off, we shouldn’t just keep trying.
We stop for a while and check what is in the mind – how and why is the mind trying to do this, and generally you’ll see the greed.
Probably what’s more subtle is to notice that when things are going well, it’s much harder to detect the greed and attachment to keeping it the way it is. Although we’re helpless to doing anything about it except watch, try to notice that because when greed comes in and the next day if things don’t come our way, then it’s aversion that arises to cause the cloudiness, difficulty and all that.
994. THE POINT OF BEING AWARE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 5 (01:00-07:23)
Yogi: I’m simulating practice in daily life – I notice that I’m late in seeing thoughts and that does not help to prevent unwholesome thoughts and actions. And, that’s not useful in daily life.
Can we really be aware of thoughts as they occur? That can prevent unwholesome actions.
Sayadaw: It is possible for the mind to be aware of thinking or whatever else it is doing. For example, you can be aware while walking; and that is simultaneous. So, it is the same with thinking because thinking is another object.
The error in assumption is if you will know what is happening, you can prevent what is happening. That is not the point of being aware.
The point of being aware is to know. The only thing that can prevent the unwholesome or encourage the wholesome is wisdom; and that comes from practice and realization. And that takes time.
995. WHEN THE MIND TURNS QUIET
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 6 (53:56-56:20)
Yogi: The sit was good until many thoughts arose. I told myself that they were just the work of the mind and the mind became calm. Then, there was nothing happening except for the breath.
Sayadaw: When it becomes quiet, check which is the object and which is the awareness. Can you see?
They are different and you can see in every experience – when you watch your breath, do you know that breath is the object, and do you know the awareness? When you watch sensation, do you know that sensation is the object and do you know the awareness?
When you know the thoughts, do you know the awareness?
996. GIVE THE MIND A TASK TO DO WHEN WE PRACTICE
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (1:26:48-1:29:25)
Yogi: I give myself a task to see if it is possible to feel, see and hear at the same time. Is it?
Sayadaw: Of course.
Yogi: I can’t.
Sayadaw: At first, you will experience the switching; it’s fine because the awareness is not so fast at the start of the retreat.
Yogi: The training keeps me awake.
Sayadaw: That’s the most important thing – that the mind has a task. If it’s working, then it’ll be awake; if it no longer has a task, it gets dull.
Meditation is mind work; so, the mind has to have something to work on.
What can the mind do? It can pay attention or think about what it is doing. If we know how to think, it will help us to observe.
Whatever I say is just to help us to think or it may lead to other things that are helpful to us, like now you’ve found a task that is interesting.
Sometimes we hear other people’s experiences and we think that it’s interesting – we have something similar and we go and investigate. That keeps us awake and aware.
997. MEDITATION IS NOT DOING THIS TO GET THAT
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 6 (1:14:30-1:14:55)
When we meditate, we never think of meditation as if I did it this way, then maybe I could get it that way.
That’s not how we meditate. Meditation is just open, like what do I know. Whatever happens happens. And, none of it should be like this or should be like that.
998. WHEN FINDING OUT WHY LEADS TO MORE THINKING
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (22:14-23:45)
Sayadaw: If you’re used to thinking, you don’t need to think now – you just need to observe with some curiosity.
If there’s anger now, we’re not fixing the anger but observing what is anger, how does it work and what is it doing; and what do I know when I observe it.
Just observe; don’t think about it. You need to observe for a long time before you get answers. You must be patient.
Yogi: I don’t have to know why I’m angry or why I’m anxious?
Sayadaw: No. First, you just need to observe continuously.
Yogi: I find it difficult because the thinking of why I’m angry or anxious starts automatically.
Sayadaw: You acknowledge the thought and bring the mind back to the sensation and the feeling repeatedly.
999. AWARENESS AND OBJECT ARE DIFFERENT BUT THEY HAPPEN TOGETHER
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 4 (40:43-41:40)
Yogi: Everything that I see, there is a knowing of what it is. I thought that they are 2 different things, yet they are always coming together.
Sayadaw: Yes, they do happen together because they are part of the same process.
Whatever happens doesn’t necessary happen one at a time. Many functions happen together; we’re just figuring out that one is a different nature and the other is a different nature but they’re happening together.
1000. DEALING WITH SLEEPINESS
Swiss Retreat 2019 Group Interviews 6 (23:33-25:15)
Yogi: I often get sleepy while sitting. I don’t want it to become a habit and try not to be sleepy, but it is difficult to accept sleepiness and not be averse because I don’t want to fall asleep.
I do ask questions to ignite interest, but it is difficult.
Sayadaw: Just try and if you cannot, get up. Don’t stay sitting and sleepy.
Yogi: I still feel sleepy when I stand.
Sayadaw: Walk; and if you feel sleepy when you’re walking, go and sleep. And, sometimes you’ll be sleepy when you sit, stand and walk and when you finally go and sleep, you wake up.
If the mind is tired, you just need to let it rest.