Yogi: When the pain arises, the object is very clear. Why then do we watch aversion instead of the pain?

Sayadaw: When the pain arises, there is anger. For the normal yogi, when the pain arises, the mind reacts to the pain with aversion.

If the mind watches the pain with anger, then we’re not meditating because the pain will increase; for example, if we’re angry with someone and we pay attention to them, then the mind will get angrier and angrier.

This is the same principle. That is why if we want to know the nature of the pain, we need to watch it with equanimity by taking care of the anger first.