WE KEEP ON LOSING AWARENESS (MIND) BECAUSE EVERY MIND IS ALWAYS NEW

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 1 Round 3 (39:00-39:50)

When one awareness is over, the next awareness has to come. That is why we continue to be aware. If awareness doesn’t disappear, why do we need to be aware continuously? Why not stick the awareness onto the object and be done with it?

If the mind is not changing, we should be able to paste awareness onto the object; then we don’t have to try to be aware one moment after another.

It is because the mind is always changing that we need to be aware again and again.

Slowly, we can understand that.

PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO REALITY AND THE MIND WILL STABILIZE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 1 Round 3 (30:48-32:39)

Yogi: When I step on a cold floor, unpleasant feeling arises 

Sayadaw: It is unpleasant because of your idea, your judgment. You think it is unpleasant because you don’t like the cold sensation. If you like it, it becomes pleasant.

It is the judgment/thinking that you need to acknowledge.

The experiences through the 6 sense doors are always happening and different minds arise depending on how the mind thinks about the objects. The process is: we sense the object, think about the object, and depending on whether right view or wrong view comes, then different processes follow. If right view comes, defilement does not arise, if wrong view comes, defilement exaggerates the experience.

The physical objects are only our 5 sense contacts, but they kick off many more mental processes. (Touching the floor is a physical process, but it initiates more happenings in the mind.)

Sense the object, think about the object and feel the object – as much as you can try to see the process of the mind.

LEARNING TO HANDLE EMOTIONS IN DAILY LIFE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 1 Round 3 (45:00-45:38)

Yogi: When disliking arises, I think that disliking is nature and then go back to watching my breath.

Sayadaw: Don’t be in a hurry to go back to watching the breath; observe the discomfort first. That is more useful – whenever an emotion or reaction arises, you need to practice watching it so that later you understand how to handle your emotions in daily life.

CHECKING THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE MIND AND OBJECT IS INVESTIGATION

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 2 (1:00:32-1:02:06)

There’s a reason for liking and disliking to arise; investigation is checking for the cause.

For example, why does the mind react when pain arises? Later, why does the mind not react? You can find out the process.

All new yogis don’t like pain, but later, they can accept pain. Why isn’t it a problem anymore? Do they still then resist the pain?

After they can accept the pain and more subtle peaceful states arise, they begin to enjoy the peaceful states. This is another reaction.

First, you need to see the aversion reaction, and then, the craving reaction. You can also learn how you view the pain when dosa comes. You watch dosa, and when it disappears, how do you see the pain?

There is a relationship between the mind and object – and when we check, it is investigation. But, we’re not trying to think of the answer when we ask ‘Why’ – we just observe the process repeatedly.

If we keep on checking the interaction between object and feeling, some understanding may arise.

MEDITATION IS WATCHING THE PROCESS, NOT TRYING TO STOP ANYTHING

Penang 2019 Retreat Group 4 Round 2 Q&A (9:35-11:03)

Yogi: I heard music playing while eating and the mind started to follow and sing. I tried to stop the singing and noticed that when I said to stop, it stopped, and when I didn’t, it continued.

Sayadaw: Because of liking and intention, the mind sang. Try to be aware of liking and the intention to think (singing in the head is thinking). Don’t try to stop the process.

Don’t try to stop anything; meditation is trying to be aware. If you don’t try to stop the process, you can see the intention. You cannot see the intention because you try to stop the singing.

If you cannot see the intention, just notice the liking and the mind singing.

PAYING ATTENTION TO THE NATURE OF MIND GIVES US RELIEF

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 2 (49:30-50:30)

Yogi: External things influence how the mind reacts. When I'm in a crowd, the mind gets agitated and upset. 

Sayadaw: If you pay too much attention to outside things, it agitates and overwhelms the mind. So, you should pay attention to inside yourself, to your senses happening, to seeing and hearing. 

Meditation object is nature (a process that happens because of causes and conditions), not seeing things or hearing things. It is enough to notice just seeing and hearing and how the mind reacts to the senses happening. 

If you pay attention to the people, the mind thinks and reacts to the crowd and so forth; if you pay more attention to the seeing, the mind won’t think and react much.

ROUNDING UP THE PRACTICE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 2 (21:00-22:45)

Yogi: When dosa thoughts arise, I can watch the feeling and not get lost in the thoughts, but for pleasant or neutral objects, I can get lost in the thoughts. The momentum of the awareness will drop then.

Sayadaw: You need to be awake in all states – pleasant, unpleasant or neutral. Your responsibility is the awareness, not the experience. If you check your awareness, awareness continues to work. If you pay more attention to the object, then it is easy to lose the meditating mind.

Pleasant or unpleasant experience arises, you need to check your attitude and how the mind feels – check, check and continue to check.

WISDOM MAKES WIN-WIN DECISIONS

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 2 (34:50-37:00)

Yogi: I was distributing extra half-boiled eggs at the retreat breakfast. A yogi asked for an egg when I had already finished distributing all and I decided to give him the one I kept for myself. It was okay to give.

Sayadaw: You could also consider giving half – 50:50. Giving all could be too much (for the mind to stay stable). You should consider both sides when you decide – don’t only consider the benefit of one party.

Wisdom mind considers an action where you’re okay and I’m also okay; then, there is no more problem. If only others benefit and you don’t, this is also not wholesome.

Yogi: Why is that so?

Sayadaw: When all parties benefit, then it is really wholesome. Where you get everything, and I don’t get anything is not the best solution because being worldlings (puthujanna) we may resist the action at a subtle level and regret later.

If you’re totally unattached, then it is no problem to give all away.

WHEN AWARENESS IS ABSENT, DEFILEMENT INTENSIFIES THE EXPERIENCE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 1 Round 3 (02:04-03:50)

Yogi: I burnt my toast this morning and the mind was anxiously scolding and complaining. When awareness returned, the dosa thoughts stopped; I was just sensing the touch and the mind calmed down.

Sayadaw: Awareness and delusion are very different, right? If you’re not aware, delusion is present and the defilement exaggerates the experience.

When awareness comes back, wisdom can follow. (When there is awareness, wisdom arises and the mind pays attention to the touching reality; if awareness were absent, then defilement would pay attention to the concept and exaggerate the experience.)

If you’re not aware, the mind is already deluded; and when the mind is deluded, it is easy for all defilements to exaggerate the experience.

YOGIS OFTEN EXPECT TOO MUCH

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Condensed Guided Meditation (30:40-31:30)

Don’t expect too much about the result. However much you have practiced, that much you have already benefited.

The result will come depending on the way you practice (and how much you practice). So, focus more on the practice – how to practice and how to maintain the awareness.

PAYING ATTENTION IS MORE OBVIOUS THAN AWARENESS

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 1 (19:30-20:50)

Yogi: How can I clearly differentiate between awareness and the object?

Sayadaw: Between attention and awareness, paying attention is more obvious. (You can start by noticing the attention mind.)

Why can you know the touching sensation? Because the mind is paying attention, right? If you’re daydreaming, then you cannot know. Now, do you know that you’re paying attention to this?

Paying attention is an activity of the mind. Attention and touching sensation – you can see that they are different, right?

Now, you try to pay attention to this object and that object – can you know the attention mind?

It is obvious that the attention and the object are separate. Paying attention is more obvious than awareness because awareness sticks to the object and is more difficult to recognize.

THE MEDITATING MIND IS THE MOST IMPORTANT MIND

Penang Nov 2019 Retreat Condensed Guided Meditation (1:04:17-1:05:45)

Awareness is recognizing what is happening at the 6 sense doors, recognizing the 6 sense objects in the present moment. If you are watching the 6 objects (noticing that seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, body sensing, thinking, or feeling is happening), that’s awareness.

Sometimes the experience is defilement (greed, anger or delusion) – it is unpleasant or suffering, but the meditating mind can remain calm and stable. (Elsewhere: The awareness is valuable, the experience is not.)

What is important is that samadhi is with the meditating mind. If the meditating mind has samadhi, moment to moment, then samadhi increases in the mind.

The most important mind is the meditating mind. Awareness is recognizing what is happening at the 6 sense doors, recognizing the 6 sense objects in the present moment. If you are watching the 6 objects (noticing that seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, body sensing, thinking, or feeling is happening), that’s awareness.

Sometimes the experience is defilement (greed, anger or delusion) – it is unpleasant or suffering, but the meditating mind can remain calm and stable. (Elsewhere: The awareness is valuable, the experience is not.)

What is important is that samadhi is with the meditating mind. If the meditating mind has samadhi, moment to moment, then samadhi increases in the mind.

The most important mind is the meditating mind.

UNDERSTANDING FROM THINKING AND UNDERSTANDING FROM OBSERVING

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 1 (21:00)

Yogi: Are intellectual understanding and experiential understanding different?

Sayadaw: Yes, they are very different, 80% different. That is why I say that knowing is not nothing; knowing the experience is very important.

Without observing our own experience, deep understanding cannot arise.

DEFILEMENT IS NOT NECESSARILY THE CAUSE OF BODILY TENSION

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 1 (1:12:10-1:12:55)

Yogi: Is the tension in the body always due to defilement?

Sayadaw: The body becomes tense not necessarily due to the defilement – hardness and softness are the earth element (rupa).

Changes in the body can be due to any of 4 causes: mind, the effect of past Kamma, nutrition, and temperature. So, they need not be caused by the mind.

DEFILEMENTS DO THEIR JOB, WE DO OUR JOB

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 1 (59:04-59:50)

Yogi: When we practice to do away with suffering, is that a defilement?

Sayadaw: At the beginning, whatever the motivation, just start to practice. You know how to practice, right?

The motivation is not good, but you know how to practice (the 3 yogi jobs). When you keep on practicing, slowly the mind understands the practice.

The important thing is to know how to practice and to practice.