Good Questions
&
Good Answers
About Insight(Vipassana)Meditation or Only Middle Way
Q1: Why we need to practise REAL Insight meditation?
Ans: We need to learn REAL Insight meditation so that we can permanently abandon actions of all mental defilements which prohibit our mental & physical development.
By practising REAL Insight meditation, once the more we can abandon actions of all mental defilements, the less hinderances upon our physical & mental development or success so we can achieve any goal of mundane or real enlightenment.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q2: How to practise real Insight(Vipassana) meditation? I’ve ever heard noting or concentration onto rising/falling of ... abdomen is the practising of Insight meditation, isn’t it?
Ans: Before my explanation, you will need to understand that there is two types of meditation.
(1) Serenity Meditation leading to temporary freedom(Samatha)
(2) Insight Meditation leading to permanent freedom(Vipassana)
If you practise Serenity Meditation leading to temporary freedom (Samatha), you will need to concentrate upon respiration or abdomen or something or words you want -etc.
But if you want to practise Insight Meditation leading to permanent freedom(Vipassana), you will need to abandon not only the desire of doing something but also that of doing nothing.
So, real insight meditation (Vipassana) is the getting rid of any mind or desire or feeling or likes or dislikes etc- which seems to be real/permanent /existing for a certain period.
Real insight meditation is to abandon the attachment of doing something, how to do ,what to do and doing nothing -etc; with the idea of something is real, ... abdomen is real, ...what to be done is real, ...how to do is real ....or entity which is controlling how to do, is real. The old habit of our mind is wanting to do something or note something which seems to be real or existing for a certain period.
Real Insight meditation is to abandon the old habitual actions of the minds which is always wanting to do something, note or concentrate something which seems to be most prominent in our perceptions.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q3.You tell that Insight meditaiton is to abandon the old habitual actions of the minds so, how can I abandon the old habits of the minds?
Ans: By only the way of being mindful(not-forgetting) ONLY the original truth, you can abandon the old habitual actions of the minds.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q4.What is the Original Truth?
Ans: Original truth is ultimate reality (Paramatha sacca) which will never change.
Buddha said that about the original truth & relative truth which we have already understood since childhood.
Here let me explain only original truth which can be applied in In sight meditation.
In Abhidhamma, in original reality Buddha said there are only four kinds of reality.
(1) energies (rupa)
(2) consciousness (citta)
(3) volitions/mental factors (cetasika) (This first three are ever-new Impermanent Natures)
(4) Nibanna (This fourth is real liberation / Only Permanent nature)
Although Buddha classfied and labeled four types in original truth, in describing in their nature, he described that there is only two natures
(1) Ever new Impermanent nature (the first three natures)
(2) Only Permanent Nature (the fourth one)
We will never understand the permanent Nature( Nibbana) unless we can understand the ever new impermanent nature as much as a enough certain level as Buddha taught.
Both of Original truths is not something. To Understand the Nibanna (to abandon the old habitual actions of minds) we must need to remember or not to forget the original truth of ever new impermanent nature of
(1) energies (rupa)
(2) consciousness (citta)
(3) volitions/mental factors (cetasika) but this three kinds are not something/someone human/animal/individual/soul/entity -etc, which is existing for a certain period such as one year, one hour, one minute, one second -etc, that our common senses can perceive. They are only in the formation of ever-new impermanent nature.
In Dhatukatha, the “Discourse on Elements/Energies,” Buddha said” The Elements/Energies Are Void of Beings” . The elements/energies do not possess the characteristic functions of living beings. They arise and cease within an exceedingly short period of time. In the wink of an eye or a flash of lightning, which lasts for a microsecond (10^-6 second), the mental elements arise and cease a trillion (10^12) times. (1,000,000,000,000 times). This is just an estimate.
The subcommentary takes the higher figure of 10^15. Thus the mental elements/energies arise and cease 10^15 x 10^6 = 10^21 times per second. Their extremely short duration is also mentioned in the Anguttara Nikaya.
As regards the material elements, since they endure for 17 thought-moments. they arise and cease 10^21/17 (app= 58,823,530,000,000,000,000) times per second.
But because the functions of the elements give rise to the concepts of continuity, collection and form the ideas arise of (1) the initial effort that has to be exerted when a deed is about to be performed and (2) the care that has to be taken while the deed is being performed to its completion. And this leads to the subsequent ideas (3) “I can perform” and (4) “I can feel”, Thus these 4 imaginary characteristic functions of being have brought about a deep-rooted belief in their existence. But the elements have not the time or span of duration to carry out such functions. (From Dhatukatha, PTS).
So our common senses can’t perceive the true nature of this ever new mpermanent energies. So our common senses can detect only the fake/ imitation/ unreal nature, not knowing the true nature of original truth.
So we misunderstand what we see, hear, smell, taste, sense, touch, feel or think is real and we misunderstand something, someone, sometime, somewhere, feeling, thinking, thoughts -etc, as reality.
We misunderstand we can know or note the elements/mind/thinkingt/houghts which Buddha taught such as citta, cetasika, rupa -etc. We often tells one thought or mind is wandering while I meditate. But it is not real as taught by Buddha.
Actually mind/citta is arising and ceasing a trillion (10^12) times in the wink of an eye or a flash of lightning accordingly Buddha's teaching.
For one simile, a fire flame in a candle. We are being deceived to be seemed that one single flame is existing for one minute, one hour or two hour above a wax rod. That is not true.
In reality, impermanent heat energies are renewing and vanishing consecutively, repeatedly and immediately due to the wax fuel.
So, it is not one single flame. One single flame is not existing even for one second. It is not something (one single flame) but ever new impermanent heat energies renewing and vanishing consecutively, repeatedly and rapidly within a milli-second or one thousandth second.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q5.So do you mean our knowing or perception is unreal according to the Buddha’s teaching?
Ans. Of course. our habitual knowing/perception is unreal but....only the misunderstanding/ascribing that our habitual knowings/perceptions are true, is real in any religion or any race or anytime.
The misunderstanding of habitual knowings of something or someone as reality is ... one of the four original truth as Buddha taught.(sammudaya sacca)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q6. So how can we do the abandon the misunderstanding upon original truth or mental defilements (kelisa) for right understanding?
Ans. If you know one statement that is false as the wrong , your knowing is right.
But if you think one statement that is false as right , your knowing is wrong.
So Buddha taught right knowing/understanding (samma ditti) is most important & first inclusive in noble eightfold path, one of the original truth (Magga sacca).
So by continuous right understanding/being mindful/ rememberance to Original Truth, we must abandon the misunderstanding upon original truth or we can abandon mental defilements (kelisa).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q7.What is right understanding or right mindfulness or right rememberance?
Ans. According to Ultimate reality or original noble truth, there is no soul, ego, self, entity, something or someone but misunderstanding that soul, ego, self, entity, something or someone is real.
Actually we can debate whether there is no permanent personal God, but we can’t deny that the ascribing or taking something soul, ego, self, entity, someone, I, you or personal God -etc, as reality, is in everyone’s mind.
There is no personal God, but misunderstanding that God is existing in somewhere, is existing in the believer’s mind.
So also, there is no “someone, something, rising or falling -etc, but misunderstanding “something, someone, rising, falling etc, ” as reality.
For example, you must need to believe or accept that hotness/pain is unreal, but misunderstanding the hotness/pain is real/permanent for a certain period, is real.
Pain is unreal but ascribing/ misunderstanding the pain is existing/ real for a certain period, is real.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q8. Why can you tell hotness/pain/habitual perception/knowing as unreality?
Ans. We can surely tell the dual nature of hot and cold, long or short, loose or tight, ugly or beautiful, pain or pleasure, Yin or Yang -etc is unreal. But they seems to be real due to realitivity or comparison each other.
If you have ever learned or understood ‘the relativity theory’ by Albert Einstein who is regarded as the greastest scientist or human being of 20th Century, you can easily understand your ascribing upon the pain as ‘pain, pain’ or upon the pleasure as "pleasure, pleasure’ is just a perceptual distortion.
If one having ever experienced or from very hot Sahara desert, must stay in Kuala Lumpur, he won’t take the temperature of Kuala Lumpur in sunny days as hotness for him. But if one from Canada or USA must stay in KL at sunny days, he will take that of these days in KL as hotness for him.
If you will jerk on the arm of a girl at the age of 14 by his fist in certain degree of intensity, she will take such a jerk as pain but if he will in again jerk on the arm of a heavy weight boxer as in same degree in intensity as that upon the girl’s arm, the boxer will not take it as pain.
If you compare yourself with one native black African , you think you’re so handsome but you will assign you’re not handsome in relative to the very popular Hollywood star such as Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie.
So also, in ascribing that time or distance is too long or short , Einstein gave his friends one example; ‘you will assign the five minutes of standing on hot stove is too long but one hour of being or wining together a young beautiful lady is too short’. And then he said to his friends in humouring, “If you don’t believe this relativity, you can test about it by standing on the hot stove for five minutes but I will drink together with a beautiful lady.” That’s right!. Our minds is always taking or ascribing that the difficult or painful period is too long but the pleasant or sweet period is too short although these two periods are equal in amount.
The distance from Kuala Lumpur to Burma is very far for one who has ever been travelling within his town if he has to travel this trip but one who often travels to KL to USA, will take this distance is not very far if he has to start this trip.
If one who always has the meal with too much hot chilli, must eat a curry with chilli, his mind will not take it isn’t too hot, but if one who has ever been having the sweet curries, must eat this chilli curry, his mind will assign it is too hot.
You can easily understand our ascribing is not real but just a perceptual distortion (wrong arbitrary decision) of past experiences if you can be mindful your sensation or feelings carefully.
For example, ‘you’ drink half of a cup of sweet coffee or milk at first and then you eat the some amount of sugar or some sweets. After that, please drink the left half cup of this same coffee again.
Your tongue will automatically assign this coffee is not so sweet in relative to the previous time. Our mind takes one same quality (same degree of sweet intensity) as two different degrees of sweet intensity in two different time intervals.
These above are some practical similes to understand that our taking ‘something, someone, somewhere, sometime’ or ‘good or bad’ or ‘pain or pleasure’ or ‘long or short’ or ‘ugly or beautiful’ or ‘hot or cold’ or ‘sweet or bitter’ as reality, is just misunderstanding.
In order to ascend the insight meditation level, these notings/ascribings upon our habitual perceptions such as "pain or pleasure", “rising or falling”-etc,...as same ascribing as our habitual perceptions such as "pain or pleasure", “rising or falling”-etcm, is not enough for ‘right understanding’ or ‘wisdom’ or ‘insight meditation’ to understand the Original truth.
In the insight level, it is most important to be able to abandon the idea of sensations, pains, pleasures, rising, falling, something, or someone as reality by the way of not-forgetting only the original truth.
In order to practise the real insight meditation, we need to accept or understand whatever our habitual six sense organs can perceive is unreal..... but just ever-new impermanent nature (anicca).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q9.Do you mean only the impermance of something is real, doesn’t it? Can you explain more details the Anicca (Impermanence) as Buddha taught?
Ans. Actually there are two types of Impermanence(Anicca).
1) Impermanence of something or someone.(sammuti-sacca)
2) Just ever-new Impermanence.(paramatha sacca)
In insight meditation, Anicca does not mean the impermanence of something or someone.
Annica in insight meditation level does not mean like that ;
for example: one man is living for 70 years. After 70 years he passed away. So, after 70 years he is impermanent.
One hotness is permanent for 7 minutes. After 7 minutes, it disappears. So after 7 minutes, it is also impermanent.
One mind is wandering for 7 seconds. After that, it vanishes. After a certain peroid, it is impermanent too.
This kind of impermanence(impermanence of something) is not intended for Insight meditation. This kind of impermanence of something/someone can be understood or experienced by everyone without the teaching of Buddha.
Being unable to understand/believe only the true nature of ever-new impermanence of mental & physical energies (citta/cetasika/rupa), misunderstanding that something, someone, feeling, thinking, sensation, pain, pleasure as reality, appears continuously & endlessly.
So, you must need to understand the impermanence of hotness/something is unreal and being unable to accept/believe only the ever-new impermanent nature (original truth,) misunderstanding (delusion) appears and creates to be deceived that hotness/something arises & disappears after a certain moment.
But nearly everyone/meditators who can understand like that can’t abandon the idea of someone/something such as element/breathing/rising/falling//soul/self/ entity/wandering mind -etc, is real or existing for a certain period that our common senses can detect.
So we need to go beyond the idea of something is arising and passing away.
We need to understand or accept the idea of something /hotness/ coldness/breathing/rising/falling -etc,) is arising and passing away, is unreal and just for labels.
Actually only the ever-new impermanent nature (dukkha sacca) is arising and passing away. or only the misunderstanding (samudaya sacca) of something such as hotness or coldness or rising or falling -etc, as reality, is arising and passing away. .
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q10. Do some meditation teachers teach that the aim of meditation is to grasp the calm/ blank/ peaceful mind, don’t they?
Ans. We can say like that to the people who are not interested in meditation so that they can easily guess some results of practising meditation.
But while you practise meditation, you will need to understand there is not something /mind/ thoughts/feelings that can be grasped or occupied as reality.
We need to understand that the purpose of meditation is to neither create something good/special/calm/good nor reject something bad/unpleasant.
The aim of meditation is to abandon the wrong idea of something good or bad, someone good or bad, feeling good or bad -etc, is real/existing for a certain period, by the only way of not-forgetting or believing only the original truth.
Rather than to grasp a calm mind, we practice meditation so that our actions need to be actions only which must not represent someone or something or entity.
We can see, talk, hear, taste, sense or think but our seeing must be seeing only, our hearing should be hearing only, tasting ,sensing, thinking must also tasting only, sensing only, thinking only which must not represent someone/individual / something and these must not be grasped as someone, I, mine, something, you, yours, individual, entity -etc.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q11. What is the most importance in practising Insight meditation?
Ans: Understanding that nothing is important is important because what we know or how to do or what we can do are concerned with something or someone which is unreal and just for usage(labels).
Insight meditation (vipassana) means understanding upon things as they are really as differently as understanding of habitual six senses.
Orally, we can tell others that vipassana is "seeing things as they really are". Actually things are not things but ever-new impermanent energies only.
And we misunderstand upon ever-new impermanent nature/energies as a thing or something or someone or somewhere -etc.
Being unable to accept/believe only the ever-new impermanent nature (dukkha sacca). actions of misunderstanding that things, something, someone, feeling, thinking, rising or falling -etc, as reality or as existence for a certain period, are arising & passing away continuously & endlessly.
Rather than trying to concentrate something/nature which is taken as reality/existence for a certain period, it is more important to abandon the taking that something, someone, somewhere is real, by frequent repeated right understanding (remembering the original truth).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q12. Can you explain briefly about the right understanding the original truth & its effect as a conclusion?
Ans: Right understanding is beyond the idea of the noting/taking/conceiving as something, feeling, sensation, rising, falling, breathing or abdomen -etc. as existence for a certain period because it is a kind of sassata ditthi.
Right understanding is accepting(remembering) only the truth of repeated & endless ever-new impermanent nature of the misunderstanding of something, feeling, sensation, rising, falling, breathing, abdomen, someone, individual, soul, self -etc, as reality.
As the result, the right understanding will abandon the misunderstanding (avijja) of something, something, feeling, sensation, rising, falling, breathing, abdomen, someone, individual, soul, self -etc; as reality, and the idea of good or bad & dislike & likes & attachment about something or someone or everything or everyone which are just for labels or relative truth.
After that, Permanent liberation/nature/happiness will appear.
Q2: How to practise real Insight(Vipassana) meditation? I’ve ever heard noting or concentration onto rising/falling of ... abdomen is the practising of Insight meditation, isn’t it?
Ans: Before my explanation, you will need to understand that there is two types of meditation.
(1) Serenity Meditation leading to temporary freedom(Samatha)
(2) Insight Meditation leading to permanent freedom(Vipassana)
If you practise Serenity Meditation leading to temporary freedom (Samatha), you will need to concentrate upon respiration or abdomen or something or words you want -etc.
But if you want to practise Insight Meditation leading to permanent freedom(Vipassana), you will need to abandon not only the desire of doing something but also that of doing nothing.
So, real insight meditation (Vipassana) is the getting rid of any mind or desire or feeling or likes or dislikes etc- which seems to be real/permanent /existing for a certain period.
Real insight meditation is to abandon the attachment of doing something, how to do ,what to do and doing nothing -etc; with the idea of something is real, ... abdomen is real, ...what to be done is real, ...how to do is real ....or entity which is controlling how to do, is real. The old habit of our mind is wanting to do something or note something which seems to be real or existing for a certain period.
Real Insight meditation is to abandon the old habitual actions of the minds which is always wanting to do something, note or concentrate something which seems to be most prominent in our perceptions.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q3.You tell that Insight meditaiton is to abandon the old habitual actions of the minds so, how can I abandon the old habits of the minds?
Ans: By only the way of being mindful(not-forgetting) ONLY the original truth, you can abandon the old habitual actions of the minds.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q4.What is the Original Truth?
Ans: Original truth is ultimate reality (Paramatha sacca) which will never change.
Buddha said that about the original truth & relative truth which we have already understood since childhood.
Here let me explain only original truth which can be applied in In sight meditation.
In Abhidhamma, in original reality Buddha said there are only four kinds of reality.
(1) energies (rupa)
(2) consciousness (citta)
(3) volitions/mental factors (cetasika) (This first three are ever-new Impermanent Natures)
(4) Nibanna (This fourth is real liberation / Only Permanent nature)
Although Buddha classfied and labeled four types in original truth, in describing in their nature, he described that there is only two natures
(1) Ever new Impermanent nature (the first three natures)
(2) Only Permanent Nature (the fourth one)
We will never understand the permanent Nature( Nibbana) unless we can understand the ever new impermanent nature as much as a enough certain level as Buddha taught.
Both of Original truths is not something. To Understand the Nibanna (to abandon the old habitual actions of minds) we must need to remember or not to forget the original truth of ever new impermanent nature of
(1) energies (rupa)
(2) consciousness (citta)
(3) volitions/mental factors (cetasika) but this three kinds are not something/someone human/animal/individual/soul/entity -etc, which is existing for a certain period such as one year, one hour, one minute, one second -etc, that our common senses can perceive. They are only in the formation of ever-new impermanent nature.
In Dhatukatha, the “Discourse on Elements/Energies,” Buddha said” The Elements/Energies Are Void of Beings” . The elements/energies do not possess the characteristic functions of living beings. They arise and cease within an exceedingly short period of time. In the wink of an eye or a flash of lightning, which lasts for a microsecond (10^-6 second), the mental elements arise and cease a trillion (10^12) times. (1,000,000,000,000 times). This is just an estimate.
The subcommentary takes the higher figure of 10^15. Thus the mental elements/energies arise and cease 10^15 x 10^6 = 10^21 times per second. Their extremely short duration is also mentioned in the Anguttara Nikaya.
As regards the material elements, since they endure for 17 thought-moments. they arise and cease 10^21/17 (app= 58,823,530,000,000,000,000) times per second.
But because the functions of the elements give rise to the concepts of continuity, collection and form the ideas arise of (1) the initial effort that has to be exerted when a deed is about to be performed and (2) the care that has to be taken while the deed is being performed to its completion. And this leads to the subsequent ideas (3) “I can perform” and (4) “I can feel”, Thus these 4 imaginary characteristic functions of being have brought about a deep-rooted belief in their existence. But the elements have not the time or span of duration to carry out such functions. (From Dhatukatha, PTS).
So our common senses can’t perceive the true nature of this ever new mpermanent energies. So our common senses can detect only the fake/ imitation/ unreal nature, not knowing the true nature of original truth.
So we misunderstand what we see, hear, smell, taste, sense, touch, feel or think is real and we misunderstand something, someone, sometime, somewhere, feeling, thinking, thoughts -etc, as reality.
We misunderstand we can know or note the elements/mind/thinkingt/houghts which Buddha taught such as citta, cetasika, rupa -etc. We often tells one thought or mind is wandering while I meditate. But it is not real as taught by Buddha.
Actually mind/citta is arising and ceasing a trillion (10^12) times in the wink of an eye or a flash of lightning accordingly Buddha's teaching.
For one simile, a fire flame in a candle. We are being deceived to be seemed that one single flame is existing for one minute, one hour or two hour above a wax rod. That is not true.
In reality, impermanent heat energies are renewing and vanishing consecutively, repeatedly and immediately due to the wax fuel.
So, it is not one single flame. One single flame is not existing even for one second. It is not something (one single flame) but ever new impermanent heat energies renewing and vanishing consecutively, repeatedly and rapidly within a milli-second or one thousandth second.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q5.So do you mean our knowing or perception is unreal according to the Buddha’s teaching?
Ans. Of course. our habitual knowing/perception is unreal but....only the misunderstanding/ascribing that our habitual knowings/perceptions are true, is real in any religion or any race or anytime.
The misunderstanding of habitual knowings of something or someone as reality is ... one of the four original truth as Buddha taught.(sammudaya sacca)
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q6. So how can we do the abandon the misunderstanding upon original truth or mental defilements (kelisa) for right understanding?
Ans. If you know one statement that is false as the wrong , your knowing is right.
But if you think one statement that is false as right , your knowing is wrong.
So Buddha taught right knowing/understanding (samma ditti) is most important & first inclusive in noble eightfold path, one of the original truth (Magga sacca).
So by continuous right understanding/being mindful/ rememberance to Original Truth, we must abandon the misunderstanding upon original truth or we can abandon mental defilements (kelisa).
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q7.What is right understanding or right mindfulness or right rememberance?
Ans. According to Ultimate reality or original noble truth, there is no soul, ego, self, entity, something or someone but misunderstanding that soul, ego, self, entity, something or someone is real.
Actually we can debate whether there is no permanent personal God, but we can’t deny that the ascribing or taking something soul, ego, self, entity, someone, I, you or personal God -etc, as reality, is in everyone’s mind.
There is no personal God, but misunderstanding that God is existing in somewhere, is existing in the believer’s mind.
So also, there is no “someone, something, rising or falling -etc, but misunderstanding “something, someone, rising, falling etc, ” as reality.
For example, you must need to believe or accept that hotness/pain is unreal, but misunderstanding the hotness/pain is real/permanent for a certain period, is real.
Pain is unreal but ascribing/ misunderstanding the pain is existing/ real for a certain period, is real.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q8. Why can you tell hotness/pain/habitual perception/knowing as unreality?
Ans. We can surely tell the dual nature of hot and cold, long or short, loose or tight, ugly or beautiful, pain or pleasure, Yin or Yang -etc is unreal. But they seems to be real due to realitivity or comparison each other.
If you have ever learned or understood ‘the relativity theory’ by Albert Einstein who is regarded as the greastest scientist or human being of 20th Century, you can easily understand your ascribing upon the pain as ‘pain, pain’ or upon the pleasure as "pleasure, pleasure’ is just a perceptual distortion.
If one having ever experienced or from very hot Sahara desert, must stay in Kuala Lumpur, he won’t take the temperature of Kuala Lumpur in sunny days as hotness for him. But if one from Canada or USA must stay in KL at sunny days, he will take that of these days in KL as hotness for him.
If you will jerk on the arm of a girl at the age of 14 by his fist in certain degree of intensity, she will take such a jerk as pain but if he will in again jerk on the arm of a heavy weight boxer as in same degree in intensity as that upon the girl’s arm, the boxer will not take it as pain.
If you compare yourself with one native black African , you think you’re so handsome but you will assign you’re not handsome in relative to the very popular Hollywood star such as Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie.
So also, in ascribing that time or distance is too long or short , Einstein gave his friends one example; ‘you will assign the five minutes of standing on hot stove is too long but one hour of being or wining together a young beautiful lady is too short’. And then he said to his friends in humouring, “If you don’t believe this relativity, you can test about it by standing on the hot stove for five minutes but I will drink together with a beautiful lady.” That’s right!. Our minds is always taking or ascribing that the difficult or painful period is too long but the pleasant or sweet period is too short although these two periods are equal in amount.
The distance from Kuala Lumpur to Burma is very far for one who has ever been travelling within his town if he has to travel this trip but one who often travels to KL to USA, will take this distance is not very far if he has to start this trip.
If one who always has the meal with too much hot chilli, must eat a curry with chilli, his mind will not take it isn’t too hot, but if one who has ever been having the sweet curries, must eat this chilli curry, his mind will assign it is too hot.
You can easily understand our ascribing is not real but just a perceptual distortion (wrong arbitrary decision) of past experiences if you can be mindful your sensation or feelings carefully.
For example, ‘you’ drink half of a cup of sweet coffee or milk at first and then you eat the some amount of sugar or some sweets. After that, please drink the left half cup of this same coffee again.
Your tongue will automatically assign this coffee is not so sweet in relative to the previous time. Our mind takes one same quality (same degree of sweet intensity) as two different degrees of sweet intensity in two different time intervals.
These above are some practical similes to understand that our taking ‘something, someone, somewhere, sometime’ or ‘good or bad’ or ‘pain or pleasure’ or ‘long or short’ or ‘ugly or beautiful’ or ‘hot or cold’ or ‘sweet or bitter’ as reality, is just misunderstanding.
In order to ascend the insight meditation level, these notings/ascribings upon our habitual perceptions such as "pain or pleasure", “rising or falling”-etc,...as same ascribing as our habitual perceptions such as "pain or pleasure", “rising or falling”-etcm, is not enough for ‘right understanding’ or ‘wisdom’ or ‘insight meditation’ to understand the Original truth.
In the insight level, it is most important to be able to abandon the idea of sensations, pains, pleasures, rising, falling, something, or someone as reality by the way of not-forgetting only the original truth.
In order to practise the real insight meditation, we need to accept or understand whatever our habitual six sense organs can perceive is unreal..... but just ever-new impermanent nature (anicca).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q9.Do you mean only the impermance of something is real, doesn’t it? Can you explain more details the Anicca (Impermanence) as Buddha taught?
Ans. Actually there are two types of Impermanence(Anicca).
1) Impermanence of something or someone.(sammuti-sacca)
2) Just ever-new Impermanence.(paramatha sacca)
In insight meditation, Anicca does not mean the impermanence of something or someone.
Annica in insight meditation level does not mean like that ;
for example: one man is living for 70 years. After 70 years he passed away. So, after 70 years he is impermanent.
One hotness is permanent for 7 minutes. After 7 minutes, it disappears. So after 7 minutes, it is also impermanent.
One mind is wandering for 7 seconds. After that, it vanishes. After a certain peroid, it is impermanent too.
This kind of impermanence(impermanence of something) is not intended for Insight meditation. This kind of impermanence of something/someone can be understood or experienced by everyone without the teaching of Buddha.
Being unable to understand/believe only the true nature of ever-new impermanence of mental & physical energies (citta/cetasika/rupa), misunderstanding that something, someone, feeling, thinking, sensation, pain, pleasure as reality, appears continuously & endlessly.
So, you must need to understand the impermanence of hotness/something is unreal and being unable to accept/believe only the ever-new impermanent nature (original truth,) misunderstanding (delusion) appears and creates to be deceived that hotness/something arises & disappears after a certain moment.
So everyone including non-buddhists can understand that something/someone arises and passes way.
Everyone can understand that feeling/thinking/mind are arising & passing away and everything/everyone is impermanent.
So every religion’s purpose is to be a permanent one or permanent nature.
Everyone can understand that feeling/thinking/mind are arising & passing away and everything/everyone is impermanent.
So every religion’s purpose is to be a permanent one or permanent nature.
But nearly everyone/meditators who can understand like that can’t abandon the idea of someone/something such as element/breathing/rising/falling//soul/self/ entity/wandering mind -etc, is real or existing for a certain period that our common senses can detect.
So we need to go beyond the idea of something is arising and passing away.
We need to understand or accept the idea of something /hotness/ coldness/breathing/rising/falling -etc,) is arising and passing away, is unreal and just for labels.
Actually only the ever-new impermanent nature (dukkha sacca) is arising and passing away. or only the misunderstanding (samudaya sacca) of something such as hotness or coldness or rising or falling -etc, as reality, is arising and passing away. .
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q10. Do some meditation teachers teach that the aim of meditation is to grasp the calm/ blank/ peaceful mind, don’t they?
Ans. We can say like that to the people who are not interested in meditation so that they can easily guess some results of practising meditation.
But while you practise meditation, you will need to understand there is not something /mind/ thoughts/feelings that can be grasped or occupied as reality.
We need to understand that the purpose of meditation is to neither create something good/special/calm/good nor reject something bad/unpleasant.
The aim of meditation is to abandon the wrong idea of something good or bad, someone good or bad, feeling good or bad -etc, is real/existing for a certain period, by the only way of not-forgetting or believing only the original truth.
Rather than to grasp a calm mind, we practice meditation so that our actions need to be actions only which must not represent someone or something or entity.
We can see, talk, hear, taste, sense or think but our seeing must be seeing only, our hearing should be hearing only, tasting ,sensing, thinking must also tasting only, sensing only, thinking only which must not represent someone/individual / something and these must not be grasped as someone, I, mine, something, you, yours, individual, entity -etc.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q11. What is the most importance in practising Insight meditation?
Ans: Understanding that nothing is important is important because what we know or how to do or what we can do are concerned with something or someone which is unreal and just for usage(labels).
Insight meditation (vipassana) means understanding upon things as they are really as differently as understanding of habitual six senses.
Orally, we can tell others that vipassana is "seeing things as they really are". Actually things are not things but ever-new impermanent energies only.
And we misunderstand upon ever-new impermanent nature/energies as a thing or something or someone or somewhere -etc.
Being unable to accept/believe only the ever-new impermanent nature (dukkha sacca). actions of misunderstanding that things, something, someone, feeling, thinking, rising or falling -etc, as reality or as existence for a certain period, are arising & passing away continuously & endlessly.
Rather than trying to concentrate something/nature which is taken as reality/existence for a certain period, it is more important to abandon the taking that something, someone, somewhere is real, by frequent repeated right understanding (remembering the original truth).
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Q12. Can you explain briefly about the right understanding the original truth & its effect as a conclusion?
Ans: Right understanding is beyond the idea of the noting/taking/conceiving as something, feeling, sensation, rising, falling, breathing or abdomen -etc. as existence for a certain period because it is a kind of sassata ditthi.
Right understanding is accepting(remembering) only the truth of repeated & endless ever-new impermanent nature of the misunderstanding of something, feeling, sensation, rising, falling, breathing, abdomen, someone, individual, soul, self -etc, as reality.
As the result, the right understanding will abandon the misunderstanding (avijja) of something, something, feeling, sensation, rising, falling, breathing, abdomen, someone, individual, soul, self -etc; as reality, and the idea of good or bad & dislike & likes & attachment about something or someone or everything or everyone which are just for labels or relative truth.
After that, Permanent liberation/nature/happiness will appear.
No comments:
Post a Comment