Post # 54- The Four Right Exertions (samma-padana);

Are you visiting this Blog for the first time? It would be good if you could visit the 1^st Post to know about this Blog and then read the others in sequence.  

We saw in Post # 41 and Post # 42 that the Buddha has referred to 37 factors that assist in realizing the world transcending wisdom which in the Pali language are termed as sath tiss bodhipakkhiya-dhamma. It is the ultimate wisdom known as Awakening. These 37 factors are grouped under seven sets based on their focus and emphasis.

I will in the Post, list out some details on the ‘Four Right Exertions’ (samma-padana), - one of the seven sets consisting of the 37 factors referred to above - for your consideration.

The following is an extract from the web, presented here for your easy reference.

If the Buddha were here today he would probably say, “If you want to change your life, then start by changing your thinking.” In the Noble Eightfold Path, the Buddha taught that the way to happiness is to practice ‘Right Effort’, meaning that we should relinquish negative and harmful thoughts and instead cultivate positive and beneficial ones. Peace and happiness can really be one thought away provided we know which thoughts we need to let go of and which ones we should cultivate and encourage.

The Four Right Exertions ( sammappadhāna) are an integral part of the Buddhist path to Enlightenment. Built on the insightful recognition of the arising and non-arising of various mental qualities over time and of our ability to mindfully intervene in these ephemeral qualities, the Four Right Exertions encourage the relinquishment of harmful mental qualities and the nurturing of beneficial mental qualities. The Four Right Exertions are associated with the Noble Eight-fold Path factor of "right effort" (sammā-vāyāma); and the faculty - "energy" (viriya) in the Five Spiritual Faculties  and Five Spiritual Strengths; and one of the aforesaid seven sets of qualities conducive to Enlightenment . The Four Right Exertions are found in the Vinaya Pitaka,  Sutta Pitaka, Abhidhamma Pitaka and  Pali commentaries.   These are presented below.

Four Right Exertions

The Four Right Exertions (cattārimāni sammappadhānāni) are defined with the following traditional phrase:

"There is the case where a monk generates desire, endeavors, activates persistence, upholds & exerts his intent for:

·         the sake of the non-arising [anuppādāya] of evil, unskillful qualities that have not yet arisen.

·         the sake of the abandonment [pahānāya] of evil, unskillful qualities that have arisen.

·         the sake of the arising [uppādāya] of skillful qualities that have not yet arisen.

·         the maintenance [ṭhitiyā], non-confusion, increase, plenitude, development, & culmination of skillful qualities that have arisen."

This elaboration is attributed to the Buddha in response to the following questions:

·         "What is right effort?"  in the context of the Noble Eight-fold Path 

·         "What is the faculty of energy?" in the context of the Five Spiritual Faculties  and such Strengths

·         "What are the four right strivings?"

In a section of the Anguthara Nikaya  known as the "Snap of the Finger” section, Accharāsaṇghātavaggo),  the Buddha is recorded as stating that, if a monk were to enact one of the four right exertions for the duration of a  snap of the fingers, then "he abides in jhana, has done his duties by the Teacher, and eats the country's alms food without a debt."

With ‘Right Effort’ we come to that part of the Noble Eight-fold Path which is concerned with the mind and mental states. Effort can sometimes mean physical exertion, but more often, and especially here, it is exerting the will constantly towards a particular goal. This needs to be done in a way which can be sustained, rather than subjecting ourselves to a level of stress we cannot keep up. But nevertheless, progress towards Enlightenment can only be made by constantly trying.

Traditionally ‘Right Effort’ is analyzed into the four exertions, which are - preventing, eradicating, developing and maintaining. They are as said before, preventing the arising of unskillful thoughts, eradicating unskillful thoughts that have already arisen, developing skillful thoughts, maintaining skillful thoughts which have already arisen

What constitutes "unskillful" or "unwholesome" (akusala) and "skillful" or "wholesome" (kusala) qualities is taken up in the Abhidhamma Pitaka  and the post-canonical Pali Commentaries . In general, the unskillful states are the three defilements ( kilesa ): greed (lobha), hatred (dosa) and delusion (moha), and the Skillful states are the opposites. That is non-greed (alobha), non-hatred (adosa) and non-delusion (amoha).  

'Skillful' and 'unskillful' terms used in Buddha Dhamma  are to translate the Pali terms

kusala and akusala. That is, those that are helpful in working towards enlightenment and unhelpful in working towards enlightenment. Explaining them this way will help avoiding some of the assumptions we might make when talking of good or evil.  

By working in these four ways we can produce the overall result of having more skillful thoughts and fewer unskillful ones. This can be elaborated as follows:

1. Preventing the arising of unskillful thoughts - involves the attempt to remain aware of ways in which we might be influenced by what we experience, and how this might give rise to greed, hatred, or ignorance. After you’ve exposed yourself to temptation to a certain extent, habit is likely to take over: so the best way to change your habits is to avoid the situation which produces the temptation to begin with.

2. Eradicating unskillful thoughts which have already arisen -supposing you haven’t avoided the situation. You have exposed yourself to the sense-experiences which give rise to unskillful mental states, and those unskillful mental states have arisen. You can still do something about this, according to Buddha Dhamma. Exactly what you can do depends on the type of unskillful mental state: unskillful mental states correspond to the Five Hindrances which prevent concentration in meditation: greed, hatred, doubt, restlessness & anxiety, and sloth & torpor.

There are four common techniques which can be used for dealing with any of these types of unskillful mental states:

·         Considering the consequences: Reflect on what will happen if you carry on in this mental state. The more strongly you can envisage this the better, because you may then look beyond the current situation enough to change your attitude.

·         Cultivating the opposite: Some of the hindrances are opposed to another hindrance: so greed is opposed to hatred and sloth is opposed to anxiety, whereas doubt is opposed by trust, a positive quality. So if you’re in a greedy state of mind you can think about what’s hateful or unsatisfactory about the object of your greed, or if you’re in a state of anxiety you can try and calm down by measured breathing etc.  

·         Detachment: You can just let the unskillful thoughts pass like clouds in the sky. You just witness them as an impartial observer and detach yourself from them, or alternatively analyze it psychologically.

·         Suppression: A last resort is to simply exert strength of will to force yourself not to think in this way. This is not always advisable (because there will be a backlash from the suppressed feeling later) unless you have to act in this way to avoid acting immorally.

3. Cultivating skillful thoughts - involves the converse of preventing the arising of unskillful thoughts. Rather than just negatively avoiding putting yourself in situations where unskillful thoughts are likely to arise, you positively put yourself in situations where skillful thoughts are likely to arise. This might mean spending time with friends who are wise and compassionate, or doing some meditation activity which one knows to be liable to produce wholesome thoughts, or deliberately dwelling on positive thoughts. Some forms of visualization such as visualizing a Buddha or bodhisattva who is associated with skillful thoughts. By using such a symbol one constantly puts oneself back into a skillful frame of mind through association.

4. Maintaining skillful thoughts which have already arisen -  Once skillful mental states have been developed, it is very easy to slip out of them, so it is necessary to stay on one’s guard. So again, this exertion may mean avoiding unhelpful influences as well, and engaging in  practices such as regular meditation which help to keep up skillful mental states.

I hope the above elaborations gave you enough tools to work with to gain these important skills to build up the 37 factors that assist in realizing the world transcending wisdom. Please await a Post on the Four Bases of Power, which is next in line on the seven sets of the 37 factors.

Post # 53– Sathara Sathipattana- The Four Foundations of Mindfulness

The Way to Practice – Part 3

It would be necessary to read Post 52 in this blog, before reading this Post.

Continuing Ven. Dr. Analayo Thero’s descriptions from Post # 52....

4.3. The Six Bases

 “Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the six internal and external bases. And how does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the six internal and external bases? Here a bhikkhu understands the eye, he understands forms, and he understands the fetter that arises dependent on both; and he also understands how there comes to be the arising of the un-arisen fetter, and how there comes to be the abandoning of the arisen fetter, and how there comes to be the future non-arising of the abandoned fetter.
“He understands the ear,… he understands sounds … he understands the nose,.. he understands odours … he understands the tongue, …he understands flavours … he understands the body, …he understands tangibles … he understands the mind.., he understands mind-objects, and he understands the fetter that arises dependent on both; and he also understands how there comes to be the arising of the un-arisen fetter, and how there comes to be the abandoning of the arisen fetter, and how there comes to be the future non-arising of the abandoned fetter.
 “In this way he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects internally, externally, and both internally and externally … And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the six internal and external bases.

4.4 The Seven Enlightenment Factors

“Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the seven enlightenment factors. And how does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the seven enlightenment factors? Here, there being the mindfulness enlightenment factor in him, a bhikkhu understands: ‘There is the mindfulness enlightenment factor in me’; or there being no mindfulness enlightenment factor in him, he understands: ‘There is no mindfulness enlightenment factor in me’; and he also understands how there comes to be the arising of the un-arisen mindfulness enlightenment factor, and how the arisen mindfulness enlightenment factor comes to fulfillment by development.
 “There being the investigation-of-states enlightenment factor in him … There being the energy enlightenment factor in him … There being the rapture enlightenment factor in him … There being the tranquility enlightenment factor in him … There being the concentration enlightenment factor in him … There being the equanimity enlightenment factor in him, a bhikkhu understands: ‘There is the equanimity enlightenment factor in me’; or there being no equanimity enlightenment factor in him, he understands: ‘There is no equanimity enlightenment factor in me’; and he also understands how there comes to be the arising of the un-arisen equanimity enlightenment factor, and how the arisen equanimity enlightenment factor comes to fulfillment by development.
 “In this way he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects internally, externally, and both internally and externally … And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the seven enlightenment factors.

4.5 The Four Noble Truths
 “Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the Four Noble Truths. And how does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the Four Noble Truths? Here a bhikkhu understands as it actually is: ‘This is suffering’; he understands as it actually is: ‘This is the origin of suffering’; he understands as it actually is: ‘This is the cessation of suffering’; he understands as it actually is: ‘This is the way leading to the cessation of suffering.’

Insight - “In this way he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects internally, or he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects externally, or he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects both internally and externally. Or else he abides contemplating in mind-objects their nature of arising, or he abides contemplating in mind-objects their nature of vanishing, or he abides contemplating in mind-objects their nature of both arising and vanishing. Or else mindfulness that ‘there are mind-objects’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and mindfulness. And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the Four Noble Truths.

5.0 Conclusion

“Bhikkhus, if anyone should develop these four foundations of mindfulness in such a way for seven years, one of two fruits could be expected for him: either final knowledge here and now, or if there is a trace of clinging left, the state of non-return.
“Let alone seven years, bhikkhus. If anyone should develop these four foundations of mindfulness in such a way for six years etc. etc.……

 “So it was with reference to this that it was said: ‘Bhikkhus, this is the direct path for the purification of beings, for the surmounting of sorrow and lamentation, for the disappearance of pain and grief, for the attainment of the true way, for the realization of Nibbāna—namely, the four foundations of mindfulness.”

That is what the Blessed One said. The bhikkhus were satisfied and delighted in the Blessed One’s words.
Proficiency in satipaììhãna, together with delight in seclusion, is indeed the distinguishing qualities of an arahant. Thus satipaììhãna is not only the direct path leading to the goal, but also the perfect expression of having realized the goal.

If for some reason you found that these contemplations on the four factors were too excessive  and you could not relate their purpose to our objective, I will say that it would be a normal attitude for such a person given his/her prevailing mental framework and convictions. I would therefore like to suggest to such visitors to this blog to keep a balanced mind. If we have sufficient trust in Buddha we may want to inquire why such methods were advocated by him. Did Buddha find that the uninitiated follower  was so embroiled in views conditioned by excessive sensual desire, that they would tend to be skeptical of views other than those that they habour? Why do we have to look at the body with such disgust?  It may be that Buddha felt that a very strong reminder was needed to bring out the reality in their minds.  To this end it might be helpful to reflect on the following explanations given by some learned monks.

Ven. Ududumbara Kashapa Thero emphasizes that we should strive to contain our natural traits and tendencies for sensual stimulation by restraining the sense faculties (indriya sanvaraya) and exercising control on the natural prompting for Aswadaya (the experiencing feelings, sensations as enjoyment).

Ven Pitigala Gunarathene Thero explains that the Sathra Sathi Pattana Sutta was intended for the destruction of the four mis-conceptions ( sathara vippalasayo) about phenomena. They are - a concept of Nithya (permanence), of suka (delight), of athama (I/Mine), of  suba (good/pleasurable ). What should we know to begin with?  What we see, hear, smell, taste, bodily contacts and ideas are due to causes. Our perceptions that they are delightful and pleasurable are their effects. These effects are mixed with the causes. What we do by contemplating on the four frames of reference is to realize the true nature of the five aggregates of clinging.  The contemplation of the body (Kaya-nu passana) is to see the form aggregate of clinging in its true nature. Contemplation of feelings (Vedana- nu- passana) is to see the feelings aggregate of clinging for its true nature. Contemplation of mind (Chitta-nu- passana ) is to see the true nature of the Vinnana aggregate of clinging . Contemplation of mind objects ( Dhamma-nu- passana) is to see the true nature of the perception aggregate and metal formations aggregate for their true nature. This true nature is their impermanence, their unsatisfactory nature and their nature of non self.  Thus any clinging or attachment to these aggregates haboured by an uninitiated person can be made to wane and disappear.

My objective of posting this topic in such detail in this Blog was for the purpose of climaxing our Buddhist practices by including this important teaching by the Buddha in our regular routine.

I hope I was able to give you enough inspiration and motivation to engage regularly in Sathipattana meditation. By observing and developing in the practices that are listed in this Blog, a lay householder may now have the confidence that the essential content in Buddhist practice, to the extent that is practicable in lay life is being covered.

Therefore you have the comfort that the benefits and protection that can be had from Buddha Dhamma is being progressively gained.

Post # 52– Sathara Sathipattana- The Four Foundations of  Mindfulness- The Way to Practice – Part 2

It would be necessary to read Post # 51 on ‘The Way to Practice’- Part 1, before reading this Post.  

Continuing  Ven. Dr. Analayo Thero’s descriptions from Post # 51....
 

1.5. Elements
“Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu reviews this same body, however it is placed, however disposed, as consisting of elements thus: ‘In this body there are the earth element (abstract earth element), the water element ( abstract water element), the fire element (abstract fire element), and the air element  ( abstract air element).’ 
“In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, externally, and both internally and externally … And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

1.6. The Nine Charnel Ground Contemplation

An interpolation of a comment here by me may be relevant before we review Dr. Analayo Thero’s descriptions on this.matter.

-- "The Buddha's path is called the middle path, which means a path of balance. We have to balance all extremes, so that they become a useful basis for a harmonious person. This is one reason why the Buddha recommended the meditation on the loathsomeness of the body. People often say they don't want to think of their body as loathsome, it is a good working machine and very useful. But we are actually enamored with our body; we are hanging on to it, loving it, trying to preserve it, keeping it young and beautifying it. We are attached to it and consider it as "me". The loathsomeness of the body meditation is not designed to disgust us, but only to create a balance to our identification with our body. We can compare this with walking on a tight-rope; if we lean too far to the right, we fall down, too far on the left, we topple. Constant balancing is necessary, which has to be done by everyone for themselves."

Quoting Dr. Analayo-  “Again, bhikkhus, as though he were to see a corpse thrown aside in a charnel ground, one, two, or three days dead etc. ………., a bhikkhu compares this same body with it thus: ‘This body too is of the same nature, it will be like that, it is not exempt from that fate.’
“In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, externally, and both internally and externally … And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.
 “Again, as though he were to see a corpse thrown aside in a charnel ground, being devoured by crows, hawks, vultures etc.……….., a bhikkhu compares this same body with it thus: ‘This body too is of the same nature, it will be like that, it is not exempt from that fate.’
“That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.
“Again, as though he were to see a corpse thrown aside in a charnel ground, a skeleton with flesh and blood etc., … disconnected bones scattered in all directions—here a hand-bone, there a foot-bone….., there the skull etc.—a bhikkhu compares this same body with it thus: ‘This body too is of the same nature, it will be like that, it is not exempt from that fate.’
“That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.
“Again, as though he were to see a corpse thrown aside in a charnel ground, bones bleached white, the colour of shells etc. …  , a bhikkhu compares this same body with it thus: ‘This body too is of the same nature, it will be like that, it is not exempt from that fate.’

Insight - “In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, or he abides contemplating the body as a body externally, or he abides contemplating the body as a body both internally and externally. Or else he abides contemplating in the body its nature of arising, or he abides contemplating in the body its nature of vanishing, or he abides contemplating in the body its nature of both arising and vanishing. Or else mindfulness that ‘there is a body’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and mindfulness. And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

2.0 Contemplation of Feeling

2.1 “And how, bhikkhus, does a bhikkhu abide contemplating feelings as feelings? Here, when feeling a pleasant feeling, a bhikkhu understands: ‘I feel a pleasant feeling’; when feeling a painful feeling, he understands: ‘I feel a painful feeling’; when feeling a neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘I feel a neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling.’ When feeling a worldly pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘I feel a worldly pleasant feeling’; when feeling an unworldly pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘I feel an unworldly pleasant feeling’; when feeling a worldly painful feeling, he understands: ‘I feel a worldly painful feeling’; when feeling an unworldly painful feeling, he understands: ‘I feel an unworldly painful feeling’; when feeling a worldly neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘I feel a worldly neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling’; when feeling an unworldly neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘I feel an unworldly neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling.’

2.2 Insight - “In this way he abides contemplating feelings as feelings internally, or he abides contemplating feelings as feelings externally, or he abides contemplating feelings as feelings both internally and externally. Or else he abides contemplating in feelings their nature of arising, or he abides contemplating in feelings their nature of vanishing, or he abides contemplating in feelings their nature of both arising and vanishing. Or else mindfulness that ‘there is feeling’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and mindfulness. And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating feelings as feelings.

3.0 Contemplation of mind

3.1 “And how, bhikkhus, does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind as mind? Here a bhikkhu understands mind affected by lust as mind affected by lust, and mind unaffected by lust as mind unaffected by lust. He understands mind affected by hate as mind affected by hate, and mind unaffected by hate as mind unaffected by hate. He understands mind affected by delusion as mind affected by delusion, and mind unaffected by delusion as mind unaffected by delusion. He understands contracted mind as contracted mind, and distracted mind as distracted mind. He understands exalted mind as exalted mind, and un-exalted mind as un-exalted mind. He understands surpassed mind as surpassed mind, and unsurpassed mind as unsurpassed mind. He understands concentrated mind as concentrated mind, and un-concentrated mind as un-concentrated mind. He understands liberated mind as liberated mind, and un-liberated mind as un-liberated mind.

3.2 Insight - “In this way he abides contemplating mind as mind internally, or he abides contemplating mind as mind externally, or he abides contemplating mind as mind both internally and externally. Or else he abides contemplating in mind its nature of arising, or he abides contemplating in mind its nature of vanishing, or he abides contemplating in mind its nature of both arising and vanishing. Or else mindfulness that ‘there is mind’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and mindfulness. And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind as mind.

4.0 Contemplation of Mind-Objects

4.1 The Five Hindrances

 “And how, bhikkhus, does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects? Here a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the five hindrances. And how does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the five hindrances? Here, there being sensual desire in him, a bhikkhu understands: ‘There is sensual desire in me’; or there being no sensual desire in him, he understands: ‘There is no sensual desire in me’; and he also understands how there comes to be the arising of un-arisen sensual desire, and how there comes to be the abandoning of arisen sensual desire, and how there comes to be the future non-arising of abandoned sensual desire.’
“There being ill will in him … There being sloth and torpor in him … There being restlessness and remorse in him … There being doubt in him, a bhikkhu understands: ‘There is doubt in me’; or there being no doubt in him, he understands: ‘There is no doubt in me’; and he understands how there comes to be the arising of un-arisen doubt, and how there comes to be the abandoning of arisen doubt, and how there comes to be the future non-arising of abandoned doubt.

Insight - “In this way he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects internally, or he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects externally, or he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects both internally and externally. Or else he abides contemplating in mind-objects their nature of arising, or he abides contemplating in mind-objects their nature of vanishing, or he abides contemplating in mind-objects their nature of both arising and vanishing. Or else mindfulness that ‘there are mind-objects’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and mindfulness. And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the five hindrances.

4.2 The Five Aggregates

 “Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the five aggregates affected by clinging. And how does a bhikkhu abide contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the five aggregates affected by clinging? Here a bhikkhu understands: ‘Such is material form, such its origin, such its disappearance; such is feeling, such its origin, such its disappearance; such is perception, such its origin, such its disappearance; such are the formations, such their origin, such their disappearance; such is consciousness, such its origin, such its disappearance.’
“In this way he abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects internally, externally, and both internally and externally … And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects in terms of the five aggregates affected by clinging.

Please await Post # 53 -The Four Foundations of Mindfulness- the Way to Practice - Part 3, for the continuation of the descriptions on the practice.

Post # 51– Sathara Sathipattana- The Four Foundations  of  Mindfulness- The Way to Practice – Part 1

Are you visiting this Blog for the first time? It would be good if you could visit the 1^st Post to know about this Blog and then read the others in sequence. 

It would be necessary to read Post # 48, Post # 49 and Post # 50 in this blog, to get a better understanding of The Four Foundations of Mindfulness, before reading this Post.  

This is a brief description of the way to practice Sathara Sathipattana- The Four Frames of Reference for mindfulness or the four focuses of mindfulness. As said before they are - contemplation of the body (kāyânupassanā); contemplation of feeling (vedanā’nupassanā); contemplation of mind (cittâ-nupassanā); and contemplation of phenomena (dhammâ-nupassanā).

Some readers may find the following descriptions to be too extraneous and may even feel whether they are necessary?. Although I have attempted to summarize them to some extent, I find that I am not qualified enough to abbreviate or modify them to suit contemporary thinking. Particularly any such attempt may even distort the meaning, although inadvertently, to our great detriment. We saw from some earlier posts that by developing right view, right concentration and right mindfulness one may have the ability to employ sihiya (awareness), sathiya (mindfulness) and sathi sampajjanya ( clear comprehension) to control new bawa ( condition for repeated re-becoming) forming sankaras (phenomena coming into being from  causes and conditions). This will thus restrict the new formations for re-becoming. Although one may thus restrict the new accumulations of bawa forming sankara,  one has to be aware that there is a large accumulation of sankaras from the past (previous births included) that are still there, coming forth now and again, conditioning our re-becoming process. In order to free ourselves from the influences from this large accumulation, we have to cut off the craving and attachments to them, created by us, due to ignorance. So getting rid of the ignorance and all the roots causing such craving, to seek full liberation, requires a special effort. This I believe is the intention of the Buddha to discourse this elaborate procedure.  So the readers are advised to bear with it and take advantage of the opportunity available to gain the best benefit that this sutta can provide. You may if necessary skip over some details if you find them too tedious. 

Joseph Goldstein in a series of guided meditations conducted by him says that this series will explore the practices of Vippasanna or insight meditation that are rooted in the Sathi Pattana Sutta-the four ways of establishing Mindfulness. 

He says for practicing mindfulness of body: –

“Settle into an awareness of the body sitting, be aware that  there is a body, and be open to whatever arises within it. As you are sitting noting the body, be receptive to all the sounds that you hear. They are background sounds, loud sounds, soft sounds. In this field of awareness be mindful of the different sounds that arise. Settling into this awareness of the body you can then explore the mindfulness of breathing in the different ways given in the sutta. Then direct your awareness to the physical elements of the body by noting the different sensations experienced as feelings of the body.

The second foundation of mindfulness is- the mindfulness of feelings –quality of pleasantness unpleasantness and neutral feelings. Note the experience on these feeling tones.

The third is mindfulness of mind. This is contemplating on mind states and emotions colouring and conditioning the knowing mind. From time to time notice whether the mind is conditioned by desire, aversion, delusion or confusion or whether the mind is free of those states. Being mindful of the presence or absence of those emotions is equally important. By this the Buddha is highlighting the wise discernment of what is skillful or wholesome and what is unskillful, to see which mind states are to be cultivated leading to happiness, and which states lead to suffering for you and others and therefore needs to be abandoned.  This has to be practiced both in formal meditation practice and throughout the day.  Whether the mind is contracted in sleepiness or whether it is distracted in restlessness or not will be noted. 
The fourth aspect is mindfulness of Dhammas. The first part of this mindfulness is awareness of thoughts and images. Other parts are the five aggregates, the six sense spheres etc. In this part you find that in your meditation you will experience a rush of thoughts and images. You should not  be disturbed by them but develop a wise attitude towards them. Thinking is a natural activity of the mind. Develop a wise attitude towards thoughts and images.  You are not practicing to prevent thinking but to rather recognize and acknowledge thinking. If you are disturbed by thoughts then there is a problem with your attitude. Buddha said that what you frequently think about becomes the inclination of the mind. You observe that there is a thought; what is its content? Then for the wisdom part, ask yourself - is this thought necessary? You see that a ‘thought’ is empty, insubstantial and not of a permanent nature. In and of itself a ‘thought’ is nothing - an energy blip in the mind. When you are not aware of thoughts they wield tremendous power in your mind. They are like little dictators of the mind, directing you to do this and do that, go here, go there etc. When you become mindful of thoughts and see their inherent nature like this you see that they have no power at all. You realize that the only power the thoughts have is the power you give them". 

I found that Dr. Analayo Thero's  description on the way to practice is simple and explicit. After getting a general understanding about the way to practice and trying them out, from these descriptions, one may want to listen to a good meditation teacher as to how he would explain the way this practice can be done..

Ven. Dr. Analayo Thero in his treatise on the Sathipattana Sutta and how it is practiced says – “They are developed by:

i. Remaining focused on the body in & of itself – ardent, alert, & mindful – putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world.

ii. Remaining focused on feelings in & of themselves – ardent, alert, & mindful – putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world.

iii. Remaining focused on the mind in & of itself – ardent, alert, & mindful – putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world.

iv. Remaining focused on mental qualities in & of themselves – ardent, alert, & mindful – putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world”.

This brief explanation is elaborated by him as follows:

1.0 Contemplation of the Body

1.1 Mindfulness of Breathing
 “And how, Bhikkhus, does a bhikkhu abide contemplating the body as a body? Here a bhikkhu, gone to (meditation location).. ………..,and established mindfulness in front of him, ever mindful he breathes in, mindful he breathes out. Breathing in long, he understands: ‘I breathe in long’; or breathing out long, he understands: ‘I breathe out long.’ Breathing in short, he understands: ‘I breathe in short’; or breathing out short, he understands: ‘I breathe out short.’ He trains thus: ‘I shall breathe in experiencing the whole body’; he trains thus: ‘I shall breathe out experiencing the whole body.’ He trains thus: ‘I shall breathe in tranquillizing the bodily formation’; he trains thus: ‘I shall breathe out tranquillizing the bodily formation.

Insight - “In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, or he abides contemplating the body as a body externally, or he abides contemplating the body as a body both internally and externally. Or else he abides contemplating in the body, its nature of arising, or he abides contemplating in the body its nature of vanishing, or he abides contemplating in the body its nature of both arising and vanishing. Or else mindfulness that ‘there is a body’ is simply established in him to the extent necessary for bare knowledge and mindfulness. And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

1.2 The Four Postures
“Again, bhikkhus, when walking, a bhikkhu understands: ‘I am walking’; when standing, he understands: ‘I am standing’; when sitting, he understands: ‘I am sitting’; when lying down, he understands: ‘I am lying down’; or he understands accordingly however his body is disposed.
 “In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, externally, and both internally and externally … And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

1.3 Full Awareness  

“Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu is one who acts in full awareness when going forward and returning; who acts in full awareness when looking ahead and looking away; who acts in full awareness when flexing and extending his limbs; who acts in full awareness when wearing his robes; who acts in full awareness when eating, drinking, consuming food, and tasting; who acts in full awareness when defecating and urinating; who acts in full awareness when walking, standing, sitting, falling asleep, waking up, talking, and keeping silent.
 “In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, externally, and both internally and externally … and he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

1.4. Foulness—The Bodily Parts
“Again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu reviews this same body up from the soles of the feet and down from the top of the hair, bounded by skin, as full of many kinds of impurity thus: ‘In this body there are head-hairs, body-hairs, nails, teeth, skin, flesh, sinews, bones, bone-marrow, kidneys, heart, liver, etc. etc….’ Just as though there were a bag with an opening at both ends full of many sorts of grain, such as hill rice, red rice, beans, peas, millet, and white rice, and a man with good eyes were to open it and review it thus: ‘This is hill rice, this is red rice, these are beans, these are peas, this is millet, this is white rice’; so too, a bhikkhu reviews this same body … as full of many kinds of impurity thus: ‘In this body there are head-hairs etc. etc.… ’
“In this way he abides contemplating the body as a body internally, externally, and both internally and externally …  And he abides independent, not clinging to anything in the world. That too is how a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body.

Please await Post # 52 -The Four Foundations of Mindfulness- the Way to Practice - Part 2, for the continuation of the descriptions on the practice.

Post # 50– Sathara Sathipattana- The Four Foundations of Mindfulness- An Analysis - Part 2

This is the continuation of the analysis of the Sutta given by the learned scholars that were outlined in Post # 49. You need to read Post # 48 and Post # 49 before reading this.

Ven. Pitigal Gunerathana Thero introduces three aspects of the Sutta to be noted as; Sathi Pattana (the nature of the subject); Sathipattana Bahawana (the meditation) and the Sathi Pattana Bahawana Gamini Prathipadawa (the way to practice the meditation). He says that – “these aspects of Sathipattana respectively are about the nature of the mind, its vacillations and its nature where it is always in search of stimuli either of the past or future. The past is dead and future has not yet come. Re-living the past he says is based on an ‘avidaya karaka’ mind- a mind that creates imaginations. These imaginations of the mind create unwholesome traits. Future has not arisen and one cannot experience what is yet to come. Thus contemplation of the future is imaginary and not reliable. These traits hide the true nature of the present. Sathipattana mindfulness and Sathi Sammpajjanya prevents the mind travelling to the past or future and makes it stay in the present moment to be aware of the present moment activities. That is, the mind is aware of the body’s actions of the present.  That is the realization that the body is controlled by the mind. Once this is understood Buddha has said that –     " a  Bhikku (Monk) may engage in the sathipattana meditation according to the method of contemplation on the  four foundations I have explained"-. This meditation restricts the mind travelling to the past (an act of ignorance) and travel to the future, and engage in the present moment actions with clear comprehension.  This is a mind that can see the true nature of the present. This is vippassanawa.  This present moment experience of impermanence is vippassanawa. This is still not liberation. This gives the right view. The path that has to be followed for liberation is the Noble Eightfold Path”.

In the English translation of the Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, by Bhikkhu Bhodhi, the descriptions on Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta,  begins as:

“Thus have I heard? On one occasion the Blessed One was living in the Kuru country where there was a town of the Kurus named Kammāsadhamma. There he addressed the Bhikkhus thus: “Bhikkhus.”—“Venerable sir,” they replied. The Blessed One said this: “Bhikkhus, this is the direct path for the purification of beings, for the surmounting of sorrow and lamentation, for the disappearance of pain and grief, for the attainment of the true way, for the realization of Nibbāna—namely, the four foundations of mindfulness.
What are the four? Here, Bhikkhus, a bhikkhu abides contemplating the body as a body, ardent, fully aware, and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. He abides contemplating feelings as feelings, ardent, fully aware, and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. He abides contemplating mind as mind, ardent, fully aware, and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world. He abides contemplating mind-objects as mind-objects, ardent, fully aware, and mindful, having put away covetousness and grief for the world”.

Bhikkhu Bhodhi then describes Sathipattana by saying- "the experience in the present moment is a compounded form of materiality and mentality". In his talks he goes on to say that- "the present moment experience of materiality and mentality is associated with present moment experience of the body and mind.

Separating body and mind as aggregates is the first level of disaggregation in vippassana for the true understanding of the living 'being'. The Sathara Sathi Pattana Bhawana, enables us to develop this subtle but quality awareness of present moment experience. That is by having mindfulness of body, feelings, states of mind and dhammas (mind objects/phenomena)".

Ven. Mahasi Sayadaw the meditation teacher/monk from Myanmar in his book on ‘Fundamentals of Vippassana Meditation’ says- On the question on how we develop insight- the answer is by meditating on the five aggregates of grasping. The mental and material qualities inside 'beings' are aggregates of grasping. They may be grasped with delight by craving or grasped wrongly by wrong views. You have to meditate on them to see them as they really are; otherwise you grasp them with craving and wrong views. Once you see them as they really are, you no longer grasp them. This is the way to develop insight”.

Ven. Ajahn Chah the Thai monk of the ‘forest monk’ tradition in his talk on Meditation says – “Listening to the Dhamma in peace means to listen with a one-pointed mind, paying attention to what you hear and then letting go etc. While listening to the Dhamma we are encouraged to firmly establish both body and mind in Samadhi. Why you are gathered here to practice meditation is because your hearts and minds do not understand what should be understood. When we know our own mind, when there is Sati to look closely at the mind, there is wisdom”.

S N Goenka (Jee) the Vipssana teacher from India, in his book on, The Art of Living, says – “All of us seek peace and harmony, because this is what we lack in our lives. We all want to be happy; we regard it as our right. Yet happiness is a goal we strive towards more often than attain it. At times we all experience dissatisfaction in life- agitation, irritation, disharmony, and suffering. Even if at this moment we are free from such dissatisfactions, we can all remember a time when they afflicted us and can foresee a time when they may recur.

Our personal dissatisfactions do not remain limited to ourselves; instead, we keep sharing our suffering with others. In this way individual tensions combine to create the tensions of society. This is the basic problem of life; its unsatisfactory nature. Things happen that we do not want; that we want do not happen. And we are ignorant of how and why this process works, just as we are each ignorant of our own beginning and end.  

We do not realize how harmful this ignorance is, how much we remain the slaves of forces within ourselves of which we are unaware.  Therefore the Buddha showed a path of introspection, of self observation. The path is also a path of purification. Because the problem originates in the mind, we must confront it at the mental level. We must undertake the practice of Bhavana – literally mental development or in common language Meditation”.

I hope these analytical observations by the learned scholars have given you a good insight into this important teaching, to motivate you to try out the practice.

Please see the next posts from # 51 for an explanation on how this practice can be done. May you have the necessary inspiration?

Post # 49– Sathara Sathipattana- The Four Foundations of Mindfulness- An Analysis - Part 1

 You would need to read Post # 48 in this blog, before reading this Post. 

The following extracts from the work of the Dhamma Scholars who were quoted before, give a deep analysis of the Sathara Sathipattana Sutta, with focus on its intent and the spiritual gains that can be had from this Sutta practice. It is hoped that the reader will get a good understanding of what the sutta is meant to provide and thereby the right motivation to engage in the practice.

The Buddha has recommended the practice of Satipaììhãna to newcomers and beginners, and also included advanced practitioners and Arahants among the cultivators of satipaììhãna.  For the beginner embarking on satipaììhãna practice, the discourses stipulate a basis in ethical conduct and the presence of a “straight” view as necessary foundations.

The object of Vipassana practice based on Satipaììhãna, is to learn to pay attention. Vipassana is a form of mental training that will teach you to experience the world in an entirely new way. It is a process of self discovery, a participatory investigation in which you observe your own experiences while participating in them, and as they occur. It is attentive listening, total seeing and careful testing. We learn to smell acutely, to touch fully and really pay attention to what we feel. We learn to listen to our own thoughts without being caught up in them.  The practice must be approached with this attitude. The experience would be viewed with a focused and concentrated mind, disaggregating it to its components to see what they really are and thus understanding the true nature of the experience. 

Joseph Goldstein co-founder of the Insight Meditation Society USA- says that throughout this discourse, a particular formula follows each individual meditation practice. This satipaììhãna “refrain” completes each instruction by repeatedly emphasizing the important aspects of the practice.  According to this “refrain”, satipaììhãna contemplation covers internal and external phenomena, and is concerned with their arising and passing away. The “refrain” also points out that mindfulness should be established merely for the sake of developing bare knowledge and for achieving continuity of awareness. According to the same “refrain”, proper satipaììhãna contemplation takes place free from any dependence or clinging

A meditator on this practice, first gains the skills of being aware (sihiya), being mindful (sathiya) and being with clear comprehension ( sathi sammpajjanna) of the activities, feelings and thoughts that are unfolding in the present moment of the living experience.

Ven. Bhikku Bodhi in his talk on Sathipattana Sutta explains what Buddha has said. He says that Sihiya  is knowing what is taking place and making data available or accessible for clear comprehension. Sathi is remembering to be aware of the present or recollection of the present - a presence of mind with openness to what is happening in the present, to notice what is taking place. Sati Sampajana as full active knowing of what is taking place in the successive moments of experience, clear comprehension, deep discriminating understanding of what is taking place.

In the descriptions given by Ven Piyadassi in the book on the Seven Factors for Awakening, he refers to the discourse on the Foundations of Mindfulness and quotes- “where there is the delightful and the pleasurable, there this craving arises and takes root. When forms, sounds, smells, tastes, bodily contacts and ideas are delightful and pleasurable; there this craving arises and takes root. Craving when obstructed by some cause is transformed to frustration and wrath. From craving arises grief, from craving arises fear. To one who is free from craving, there is no grief, no fear”.

He also says that real happiness or rapture comes not through grasping or clinging to things animate or in-animate, but by giving up- nekkhamma. It is the detached attitude toward the world that brings about true happiness. The Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta, speaks of pleasant worldly feeling (sāmisa sukha) and pleasant unworldly feeling (nirāmisa sukha). Nirāmisa sukha is far superior to sāmisa sukha.

For the true understanding of the living 'being' using insight meditation, the first level of dis-aggregation for observation, is the present moment experience of materiality and mentality, by separating body and mind as aggregates.  The Sathara Sathi Pattana meditation enables us to develop this subtle but quality awareness of present moment experience. 

Ven. Dr. Analayo Thero observes that in the starting and concluding section of the discourse - Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta , there is a passage which states that satipaììhãna constitutes the direct path to Nibbãna. The next section of the discourse offers a short definition of the most essential aspects of this direct path. The “definition” also specifies the mental qualities that are instrumental for satipaììhãna. That is one should be diligent (ãtãpî), clearly knowing (sampajãna), mindful (satima), and free from desires and discontent for the world (vineyya abhijjhã domanassa). After this “definition”, the discourse describes the four satipaììhãnas of body, feelings, mind, and dhammas in detail. The range of the first satipaììhãna, contemplation of the body, proceeds from mindfulness of breathing, postures, and activities, via analyses of the body into its anatomical parts and elements, to contemplating a corpse in decay. The next two satipaììhãnas are concerned with contemplating feelings and mind. The fourth satipaììhãna lists five types of dhammas for contemplation: the mental hindrances, the aggregates, the sense-spheres, the awakening factors, and the four noble truths.

Then in an analysis of the Sutta he says that on closer inspection, the sequence of the contemplations listed in the Satipaììhãna Sutta reveals a progressive pattern. Contemplation of the body progresses from the rudimentary experience of bodily postures and activities to contemplating the body’s anatomy. The increased sensitivity developed in this way forms the basis for contemplation of feelings, a shift of awareness from the immediately accessible physical aspects of experience, to feelings as more refined and subtle objects of awareness.

Contemplation of feeling divides feelings not only according to their effective quality into pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral types, but also distinguishes these according to their origination from the respective sense faculties of eye, ear etc.. The latter part of contemplation of feelings thus introduces an ethical distinction of feelings, which serves as a stepping-stone for directing awareness to the ethical distinction between wholesome and unwholesome states of mind, mentioned at the start of the next satipaììhãna, contemplation of the mind.

 Contemplation of the mind proceeds from the presence or absence of four unwholesome states of mind (lust, anger, delusion, and distraction), to contemplating the presence or absence of four higher states of mind. The concern with higher states of mind in the latter part of the contemplation of the mind naturally lends itself to a detailed investigation of those factors which particularly obstruct deeper levels of concentration. These are the hindrances, the first object of contemplation of dhammas.

Contemplation of dhammas, after covering the hindrances to meditation practice, progresses to two analyses of subjective experience: the five aggregates and the six sense-spheres. These analyses are followed by the awakening factors. The culmination of satipaììhãna practice is reached with the contemplation of the four noble truths, full understanding of which coincides with realization.

Considered in this way, the sequence of the satipaììhãna contemplations leads progressively from grosser to more subtle levels. This linear progression is not without practical relevance, since the body contemplations recommend themselves as a foundational exercise for building up a basis of sati. The final contemplation of the four noble truths covers the experience of Nibbãna (the third noble truth concerning the cessation of dukkha) and thus corresponds to the culmination of any successful implementation of satipaììhãna.

Not only do the four satipaììhãnas support each other, but they could even be integrated within a single meditation practice. This is documented in the Ãnãpãnasati Sutta, which describes how mindfulness of breathing can be developed in such a way that it encompasses all four satipaììhãnas.  Thus any single meditation practice from the satipaììhãna scheme is capable of leading to deep insight, especially if developed according to the key instructions given in the “definition” and “refrain” of the discourse. Nevertheless, an attempt to cover all four satipaììhãnas in one’s practice does more justice to the distinct character of the various meditations described in the Sutta and thereby ensures speedy progress and a balanced and comprehensive development.

Please see Post # 50 next, for further elaborations on Sathara Sathipattana Analysis