Post # 76 – Developing World Transcending Wisdom in the Path to Nibbana- A guided meditation Practice - Part 3

This is a continuation of the Step by Step meditation practice described in Post # 74 and Post # 75

Step 8

We then contemplate on what the Dhamma teaches about right mindfulness’ (samma sathi). We recollect that right mindfulness’ is developed by resorting to the Bhawana (meditation) practice of Satara Sattipattana - the four foundations of mindfulness. We also review that right mindfulness helps to develop insight knowledge by understanding the nature of experience as it unfolds from moment to moment in the present and that the experience in the present moment is a compounded form of the present moment experience of the body and mind. As described in the Dhamma, we then separate body and mind as the first level of disaggregation (vippassana) to contemplate on, for a true understanding of this living being. 

We thereby see that by having mindfulness of body, feelings, states of mind and dhammas (mind objects/phenomena) we develop the skills required to be aware, be mindful and have clear comprehension (sihiya, sathiya, and sathi sammpa-janya) of the present moment life experiences. 

Reviewing what Dhamma says that emotions and experiences of the present moment, prompts us to react in the way we are accustomed to, we see that our past life experiences/mental formations (sankara) determine the nature of our reaction. We then review that these sankaras have their own conditioning root causes. When the root causes are flavored by unwholesome traits (desire, aversion and delusion) the sankaras are unwholesome in quality and vice versa. We also note that these sankaras condition our bhava that gives rise to re-becoming, and determines our rebirth in Samsara.

Step 9

We also note that the skill and practice we acquire by this means helps us to be more successful in worldly/daily life, by getting about our chores efficiently and mindfully. On the spiritual side these endeavours will help us to progress in reaching world transcending states (marga pala).

We then reflect on how the skills developed of being aware, being mindful and being of clear comprehension through our meditation, help us to see the present moment living experience arising from what we see, what we hear and what we feel etc. in their true perspective. We then contemplate on how we give vent to them by actions through word, deed and thought and how they lead to creating future bhawa forming sankaras.

We will then use the skills developed to be aware, be mindful and have clear comprehension  to exercise Yoniso Manasikara (acting mindfully and wisely according to Dhamma) about these feelings, emotions and perceptions, and to intervene as necessary in the present moment to act with restraint to avoid and control the bhawa forming sankaras thus limiting the future samsaric journey. Thus we see us practicing Samma Sathi. 

We also realize that creating these future bhawa forming sankaras are due to our inherent traits and tendencies brought over from the past including the previous births. We also contemplate on the knowledge that if we were to engage in a regular practice to develop this Path, and the other virtues of punnya kamma and kusala kamma, we would have the confidence that we are spending quality time in a steady dhamma practice. Therefore we could spend our days in the comfort zone that, in terms of the popular teaching- dhammo have' rakkathi dhamma chari – “the one who is in the right dhamma practice gets protection from the dhamma”. This is particularly so with regard to the protection we get, from not being born in an unhappy realm at the next birth.

Step 10

We then contemplate on the fact that, while formation of new sankaras are thus limited, there still exist and comes to bear upon our present moment experiences, the influences of the previous life experiences (sankaras) that have been accumulated from the past including the previous lives. These are held and kept potent in our minds, due to our desire and attachment to them. Because of our lack of understanding or ignorance, we cultivate some traits due to thanna (desire), that they are mine, they are my experiences, my skills, my abilities etc, and mana (self esteem), that they are me, I exist with them, they are  my personality etc. and ditti (view of a self), that I will act according to them. These traits cultivated due to ignorance are carried over from the past.

We then contemplate on how to free ourselves from their influence. Seeing their true nature of impermanence, unsatisfactory nature and nature of not-self as taught in the Dhamma makes us understand that continuing to have desire and attachment to phenomena with such nature makes no sense, it is unproductive and unwise. Thus desire and attachment to them gradually wane freeing us from their influence. 

Step 11

In order to experience this we contemplate on the knowledge we have gained on how these sankaras have arisen and how they have come to nest in our minds. We thus contemplate on the fact that these sankaras arise when this living ‘being’ (self), interacts with phenomena outside. In order to see the true nature of these sankaras, we therefore have to see the true nature of this ‘self’ and those of the phenomena outside. Thus by understanding the true nature of this ‘self’ and the external phenomena we are able to understand the true nature of the sankaras that are in accumulation in our mind.

Step 12

Therefore the focus firstly will be on phenomena experienced in the outside world. We then contemplate and mentally experience their nature by reflecting on what Buddha discovered and experienced, segregating them into finite and infinite phenomena. This is known from suthamaya panna.

We contemplate on what Dhamma says that finite phenomena have come to be, due to causes and conditions, and they change with them and therefore are not permanent. We see that all formations in the physical world are finite phenomena and are discernible to our sense organs and perceptible to our mundane mind. We see that they can be segregated into animate (formations which include a mind) and inanimate (formations without a mind) groups for our analysis and contemplation.

Contemplating on infinite phenomena on the other hand, we see that they have not come to be due to causes and conditions and therefore are more permanent in nature, subtle, not discernible to our sense organs and difficult to perceive by our mundane minds. Then we review what Dhamma says that aside from all others in infinite phenomena, we need to focus on, contemplate and consolidate the understanding gained from suthamaya panna about Nibbana, the most prominent of all in infinite phenomena. As this phenomenon is not discernible to our sense organs and difficult to perceive from our mundane minds, we reflect on what Buddha discovered and experienced. We then note what Dhamma says about Nibbana being a permanent state of peace and happiness, devoid of all suffering and recurring births. We also note that Nibbana explained more in terms as an existing reality, makes attaining Nibbana by following the Path described by the Buddha, as our only way for reaching salvation. We then contemplate on the Dhamma practice relating to the Path described by the Buddha for attaining Nibbana and mentally consolidate the four path wisdoms and their fruitions.

Step 13

We then reflect on what Dhamma says that, hindrances and obstacles for following the above Path are due to the influences from the finite phenomena we reflected on earlier. We therefore contemplate on understanding the true nature of finite phenomena and free ourselves from their influences. 

We therefore contemplate on the teaching that these influences are due to two reasons. First one relates to the influences arising from actions of five fundamental laws governing the finite phenomena or the physical world. The other is related to our reaction to the changes happening in these conditioned phenomena in the physical world due to the desire, craving and attachment that we have developed for these conditioned phenomena.  This is as a result of our not knowing or ignorance of the true nature of these conditioned phenomena.  

We then review what we know from suthamaya panna that the actions of five fundamental laws governing the physical world are described as Dhamma Niyama (laws of nature), Etthu Niyama (laws of the seasons), Beeja Niyama (laws of genetics), Kamma Niyama (law of cause and effect) and Chittha Niyama (caused by a mind at work). We then contemplate on our understanding that these influences are so familiar to us and we have seen them in action for so long and therefore come to accept them as regular happenings and not within our control and free ourselves from any stresses and discontent etc. arising due to their influences.

Step 14

We then contemplate on desire, craving and attachment that we have developed due to ignorance for the phenomena in the physical world.

Realising that to free ourselves from their influences we review what Dhamma describes as their true nature - viz impermanence, non-self and unsatisfactory nature, and that we have to contemplate on this until we gain the realisation that continuing to have desire and attachment to such phenomena is unwise, unproductive and does not make sense and that we must free ourselves from their influence.

We then contemplate on the understanding that the conditioned world is made up of animate and inanimate phenomena. That the animate world consists of all living beings which includes me (the self).  Thus by contemplating on what Dhamma explains about a ‘self’ and testing them through what we feel and experience, the inferential understanding about a ‘self’ is consolidated. We then extrapolate this knowledge to cover the other animate formations and inanimate formations in the outside conditioned world and consolidate our knowledge about the true nature of conditioned world.

As I have to limit the contents of each Post to facilitate easy reading, I will stop the descriptions here. We will see the continuation in Post # 77