Yogi: Did Sayadaw say that when there is an unwholesome mind, not to fuel it by being aware of it, but come away and go to the breath?

Sayadaw: Not quite like that. The instruction is to watch aversion, but to be careful when watching aversion. If it is growing, then use a neutral object instead of watching the aversion.

The first instruction is to know aversion, not to avoid it.

Yogi: I understand that, but it’s not easy to find the balance because when I’m watching something particularly unpleasant, I feel it in the body; then it is difficult to find something neutral in body. So, it’s just that I need to practice, really.

Sayadaw: Remember that it is because the mind hasn’t found the right attitude, the acceptance that it is happening right now, it is resisting it a little bit and when the mind is in that state, watching it fuels the aversion.

When the mind finds that it cannot adjust the attitude, and the aversion gets worse, that’s when we’ve to find some way to take the mind’s attention away from the aversion.