Yogi: I made a determination to sit one hour but couldn’t. Is it still beneficial to make this determination?
Sayadaw: No need. Determination needs some wisdom or understanding; if we do it with delusion, it then becomes extreme and we try too much. When we cannot achieve it, we become depressed.
You can only do it when you know your abilities very well – then this adhitthana is effective.
But you don’t have enough energy and you think you can do it (that is delusion), then there is no benefit in trying.
Buddha made his adhitthana because he knew his conditions very well; then he made his adhitthana. But yogis make determination without knowing their conditions well.
For example, a yogi wanted to meditate all night at Shwe Oo Min from the day he arrived; he had a lot of faith. I said “Cannot – you should try as much as you can and build up your strength slowly”. He didn’t follow my advice and sat the whole night, but he was sleeping through the night.
If he keeps on practicing this way, then bad habit forms because he would sleep every time he sits, he’ll be trying blindly with delusion.
Every effect happens by fulfilling necessary conditions – due to cause and effect. It takes many conditions for an effect to happen, not only one condition (e.g. faith alone); you need to fulfill many conditions to get an effect; otherwise it will not happen and what you do is not beneficial.