TO UNDERSTAND THE NATURE OF THE OBJECT AND THE MIND IS FUNDAMENTAL

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 3 (58:00- 1:01:44)

Yogi: When there is no disliking, the mind looks for a more obvious object like the sound of the sea; but after a while there is no meaning to it and it becomes boring.

Sayadaw: Watching a neutral object, you need to come back to the awareness. You need to know that the mind is free from suffering when watching a neutral object because the mind is balanced. Some understanding can arise when you maintain this equanimous state. Wisdom never comes when the mind is agitated.

It is a habit that the mind likes excitement because that object is more obvious, and that is why the mind looks for a more exciting object.

The mind is neutral when the object is without meaning – no meaning, no feeling. The mind can only feel when it gives meaning to the object.

You need to understand the nature of the object and the knowing mind. Then both the object and knowing mind become obvious.

DON’T BE FIXATED IN IDEAS OF PRACTICE; DISCOVER FOR OURSELVES WHAT WORKS

Sayadaw HKIMS Meeting 2020518 (46:00-60:00)

Yogi: In the sit, how should I choose a focused awareness, an open awareness, or metta practice and switch from one to the other?

Sayadaw: Yogis are often unsure when to do focused awareness or open awareness – if the mind is busy, then focused awareness will be more suitable for settling the mind. When the mind is settled and there is momentum in awareness, then you can allow the awareness to take in more objects.

If any time we find that having a metta attitude in our practice is helpful, it is always a skillful means. When we’re skillful, we just apply it in the practice – it doesn’t matter what we call it.

When there are challenging experiences, when the mind cannot observe in a neutral way, then focus solely on the feelings of the associated aversion or craving thoughts, cutting off the thoughts.

The most important thing ultimately is the awareness, maintaining the awareness with right attitude. When a particular object cannot stabilize the awareness, then we use whatever objects to stabilize the awareness – whether it’s metta practice or a neutral vipassana object or a samatha object.

The reason we are confused is that we divide samatha and vipassana practices. We should rather learn how and when each practice helps us – discover for ourselves what works.

TO UNDERSTAND ANATTA WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE CAUSE-AND-EFFECT PROCESS

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 2 Round 3 (20:10-20:50)

We need to understand cause-and-effect to understand anatta – saying ‘no me, no I’ is not good enough. If we don’t understand cause-and-effect, how can we say ‘no me, no I’? 

This cause-and-effect process is already running the whole day long – whether you know or not, it is already happening. If you’re aware, you can know. 

UNDERSTANDING THE CAUSE AND EFFECT PROCESS

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 2 Round 3 (11:14-12:32)

Yogi: How can I practice watching cause and effect?

Sayadaw: Obviously, intention and action because when the intention arises, action follows.

For example, why do you move and why do you not move? Because of intention, action follows, and when there is intention not to move, the body does not move. This mental and physical process happens throughout the day.

When we see something, the mind follows. It is cause and effect. Then the mind (intention) becomes the cause and the body movement is the effect. This is a chain cause-and-effect process because the causes and effects are connected. 

If you watch the mind and the body together, then you can understand better the relationship between the mind and the body.

CHANGE HAPPENS BECAUSE OF THE PRACTICE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 1 Round 3 (1:11:12-1:12:08)

Yogi: At home I’m impatient, but at the retreat I become patient; I worry that I’ll be impatient again when I go home. What shall I do?

Sayadaw: If you keep practicing at home, you’ll continue to be patient, but if you stop, you’ll return to being impatient again. You change because of the practice.

Impatience is anger – impatience arises because the dosa defilement is strong. If at home, awareness and samadhi become weaker, then impatience will return.

That is why meditation should not stop.

WHEN WISDOM ARISES, THE VIEW CHANGES

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 1 Round 3 (1:12:12-1:13:00)

Yogi: I have a strong attachment to my dog. What should I do?

Sayadaw: Watch the attachment continuously and when it subsides, recall your dog. When you have attachment, how do you think and feel about the pet? Very good, very good, etc... When the mind calms down, and the attachment subsides, you check again what you think about your dog. Learn from this.

Because of attachment, the mind thinks that the dog is very cute and more liking and thinking will follow. When wisdom arises, it changes the thoughts because when the quality of mind changes, the view changes.

LET UNDERSTANDING DEEPEN BEYOND THE INTELLECTUAL LEVEL

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 2 Round 2 (1:02:05-1:03:57)

Yogi: I know anicca, dukkha, and anatta. I understand anicca because everything is impermanent.

Sayadaw: Don’t think about impermanence – intellectual understanding is not strong enough.

You must keep on experiencing the object and mind changing or the object and mind are different, moment to moment. After repeated observations, when the mind understands this, when the realization comes, the mind knows ‘Yes, it is really anicca.’ This is experiential understanding, not intellectual understanding – it is a deeper understanding.

People think that intellectual understanding is good enough, but they don’t truly understand yet.

Whenever you see the object changing, don’t decide that it is anicca – just continue to watch the object changing. Don’t decide that you already know anicca – continue to see the object changing repeatedly until insight arises and decides for you.

LEARN RATHER THAN JUST STRIVE TO NOT REACT

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 3 Round 3 (45:45-46:50)

Yogi: I wanted to explore pain; so, I sat on the floor instead of the chair. When the pain started, I told myself that it was just sensation.

Sayadaw: This is not the way – you try not to react, but the mind doesn’t quite understand yet. You want the pain to go away, but it is better to see what is going on. Let the pain come and watch the resistance first. 

Watch the disliking or unpleasant feeling first and when the resistance subsides, go back to the pain. 

This way is more real.

WHEN RELAXED AWARENESS CAN DO ITS JOB

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 3 (00:15-02:19)

Yogi: I have been doing dead-focus awareness all the time until the mind says ‘It’s the mind doing it, not you!’ Then only the awareness relaxes.

Sayadaw: This means that the mind notices what is going on. That is why it believes when the mind says ‘It’s the mind doing it!’ – the mind then lets go and awareness can relax. The relaxed way is right, the tense way is not right.

WHEN ATTITUDE IS RIGHT, IT IS EASY TO PRACTICE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 3 (03:00-03:50)

Yogi: When the mind was lazy during the retreat, I knew that the mind was lazy and kept noticing that. It was really easy – there was no reaction.

Sayadaw: Yes, meditation is that simple. It only becomes complicated when the yogis want to change the experience, want a certain experience. Now, very simple – just recognizing what is happening.

Whether the object is good or bad is not the problem – attitude is more important. If you remember this, it is easy to practice. 

IT TAKES TIME FOR THE MIND TO MATURE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 3 (14:31-14:52)

Yogi: I notice that any kind of judgment will set back my practice – wrong attitude hinders the practice.

Sayadaw: You cannot stop judging, but you can learn from the judging mind. Every time it arises, you notice – slowly, the mind doesn’t want to do this. It takes time for the mind to mature. 

PRACTICE SMARTLY

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 4 Round 3 (25:24-26:39)

Yogi: In the morning sit, the mind was way too sleepy to maintain the awareness. I switched from sitting on the chair to the floor and the mind brightened up.

Sayadaw: Yes, you need to change your state of mind – if you cannot change the mind, then you have to change your posture or surrounding. Only then the mind can change and you can wake up and continue to be aware. Otherwise, you’re wasting your time.

Make it a habit to change the posture or surrounding whenever the mind has no strength to practice, when you cannot rely on your understanding and effort to change your state of mind.

HOW SAYADAW USED FEELINGS AS THE MAIN OBJECT IN LAY LIFE

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 3 Round 3 (39:00-41:20)

Yogi: During the retreat, awareness is strong, I just check the awareness and different objects can come and go; but in daily life, I have to use a main object because the awareness is weak.

Sayadaw: Yes, do that. In lay life previously, I used feelings as the main object – I would check if the mind was relaxed or agitated. If the mind was tense, immediately I would know and keep on watching till it became relaxed. When it was relaxed, I continued to be aware of the relaxed mind and maintain it – this was my main object. 

With practice, the mind immediately notices whenever it gets tense; it also immediately notices the cause. Slowly, you become skilled in maintaining the relaxed mind.

I only practiced watching feelings and maintaining the relaxed mind in lay life. Even when I was talking to someone, the first mind was checking the state of mind. The relaxed mind was my precious gem – otherwise, the mind would tense up immediately. 

If I didn’t see the relaxed mind, it was already gone – and straight away the mind would be agitated because my depression then was very strong. If I couldn’t maintain a peaceful mind, the depression would explode and I wouldn’t be able to handle it immediately. The depression was so powerful – so, whenever agitation arose, I would watch it continuously and pay little attention to everything else I was doing.

LEARNING TO UNDERSTAND THAT EVERY MOMENT IS NEW

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 3 Round 3 (9:50-11:01)

Yogi: How can I practice to understand that every moment is new?

Sayadaw: Practice to be aware, moment to moment – later you can know that every moment is new. That’s enough; you can understand when you notice object-and-mind, object-and-mind repeatedly.

You can notice the signs of impermanence – changing, different, new, or disappearing.

For some people, they notice the arising of object and mind, or new object and mind. Others notice the passing away of object and mind. It depends on what the mind is more interested in.

There are also those who notice that the first experience and the next experience are very different – not the same.

So, be aware every moment; that’s enough.

MIND-CREATED RUPA – CITTAJA RUPA

Penang Retreat Nov 2019 Q&A Group 2 Round 2 (14:50-16:25)

Because of the mind, some rupa happens. Vayo (wind) element is an example of cittaja rupa. Vayo element or energy arises depending on intension. Vayo element is strength, also called bala rupa. It comes from the mind, it is mind created. (Intention creates physical strength to do things.)

Take for example, when the mind is calm, the senses are clear and you can find something easily; if the mind is agitated, it will be difficult to find anything.

The mind can create rupa, but rupa cannot create the mind.