China Retreat 2014 Concluding Talk
Whenever you’re not meditating, defilement is already happening.
Also, if we are not ready with awareness, when a strong defilement arises, we don’t have enough strength to face it and it becomes difficult to handle.
We need to grow our awareness so that it’s strong and ready to face defilements all the time.
Also, when we are mindful, we’re collecting information – we can know how the mind reacts in different situations. If you’re alone, the mind is different from when you’re outside with others; it’s also different with friends and with family. The mind has its pattern.
The mind is always safe for the good meditator because awareness and peacefulness are present.