Penang Retreat 2019 Group 1 Record 1 (1:11:35-1:12:38)
Yogi: If I’m not skillful or strong enough to watch anxiety and fear, will it make the anxiety and fear grow bigger?
Sayadaw: When you cannot handle the emotion, you first watch a neutral object like the breath or body sensation. Shift the object and calm the mind down; when the mind is calmer, face the emotion again.
We are not trying to avoid the defilement – because we are weak, we use a neutral object to strengthen the mind and then only face the defilement.
Because the enemy is too strong, we need to build up our strength before facing the enemy again.