CHAPTER 4

WISDOM

We usually acquire wisdom or knowledge by learning through reading or hearing (sutamaya pañña), by thinking and reasoning (cintamaya pañña), and through direct expe­rience (bhavanamaya pañña).

Sutamaya pañña is acquiring the right information to get us started. Cintamaya pañña is the process of digesting this information. Bhavanamaya pañña is understanding which arises through direct experience. We need both sutamaya pañña and cintamaya pañña in order to prac­tice mindfulness effectively so that experiential wisdom, bhavanamaya pañña, can arise. All three are part of meditation, all of them are essential for vipassana.

When we are new to meditation we need to read Dhamma books or at least listen to and participate in Dhamma discussions. This gives us the information and advice we need to practise, some ‘material’ to think about. We need to remember information and advice, we need to reflect when confronted with difficulties, and – of course – we should also ask questions in Dhamma discussions.

Making this conscious effort to bring in wisdom is essential. However, it is also very important to bear in mind the impact that this acquired knowledge will have on our practice. All such information will keep working at the back of our minds, will influence the way we think, the way we see things. So make sure that you have really understood ‘the basics’; make sure that you know what you are doing. Whenever you are uncertain or when you cannot figure things out by yourself, clarify your understanding with a teacher. It is vital to have the right information, the right motivation and the right thinking to practise intelligently and effectively. For most of us this process of acquiring wisdom is a slow and often painful learning experience – we keep making mistakes.

Don’t be afraid of making mistakes and – even more importantly – never feel bad about having made a mistake. We cannot avoid making mistakes; they are in a sense the stepping stones of our path, of our progress. Becoming aware of, carefully looking at, and learning from mistakes is wisdom at work! As we learn from our mistakes, wisdom will start coming in more naturally, more automatically. Over the years, as our practice progresses, as we become more and more mindful, the knowledge and understanding we have accumulated will naturally come in more quickly. Wisdom and mindfulness will start working as a team. 

When awareness becomes natural, the mind is strong and the wisdom you have acquired is always available. You no longer need to make an effort to bring it in. When the observing mind gets stronger, wisdom can deal more competently with defilements. As your wisdom grows, the mind becomes purer and more equanimous. Eventually you will start experiencing moments of equanimity and clarity in which you begin to see things in a completely new light. In other words, you start having insights.

Having an insight means understanding deeply what you previously only understood superficially, intellectually. It is something that happens naturally, spontaneously; you cannot make it happen. The account of someone describing certain experiences leading up to an insight and the actual insight itself are two fundamentally different things. So having similar experiences yourself does not at all mean that you are having an insight or that you will have an insight. When the time is ripe, when you are ready, you will have your distinct experiences and your own distinct insights. Then you will understand the vast difference between whatever you have read or heard about insight and the actual insight. You can express the effect an insight has on you or the experiences ‘around’ it but not the depth of under­standing you gain through the insight.

Such a direct experience of reality will have a profound impact on your practice, on the way you perceive the world and on the way you lead your life. In other words, the wisdom you acquire in this way will immediately alter the way you see things. However, an ‘insight-mind’ is not permanent; it only lasts for a moment. What perpetuates, what remains ‘alive’ is its quality, its potential. Unless we keep nurturing this quality it can fade away. Only continued practice will keep it alive, will make sure that the wisdom you have acquired keeps doing its job and that you keep growing in wisdom. Continued practice does not mean you have to spend a certain number of hours per day or per week sitting in meditation, even though it certainly helps. Continued practice means being mindful in whatever you do, to the best of your abilities.

At this stage of the practice, wisdom is moving into the limelight. Awareness remains as always at its side but now wisdom is running the show. This kind of wisdom will help us make significant progress in our practice.

Sutamaya, cintamaya, and bhavanamaya pañña also work hand in hand. The wisdom you gain by thinking will increase your faith in the Dhamma and therefore further stimulate your interest in the practice. Increased interest in the practice will result in more learning and thinking. You will stop being afraid of making mistakes and will start exploring new ways of dealing with difficulties. You will see the benefits of the practice more clearly and understand what you have learned at deeper levels. All this will further increase your faith. Once you start having insights your faith in the Dhamma will get a tremen­dous boost. This will yet again strengthen your determination to practise wholeheartedly. The practice of mindfulness will become the mainstay of your life and your world will never be the same again.

No matter how experienced you are, no matter how much more knowledge you have than everyone else, never be satisfied with the wisdom you have acquired or with the depths of insight you have had. Do not limit yourself; always leave the door wide open for new and deeper understandings.