In This Very Life

by Sayadaw U Pandita

  Great Possibilities That Come to Fruition in Practice. Thus, there are three ways of appreciating the fact that the Dhamma is well proclaimed. First, if you think deeply about the great possibilities that lie within meditation practice, your mind will be full of praises for the Dhamma—and of rapture, too, of course. Perhaps you naturally possess great faith, so that whenever you hear a discourse or read about the Dhamma you are filled with rapture and interest. This is the first of three ways of appreciating the Dhamma. Second, if you enter the practice itself, the promises and guarantees of the Buddha will certainly begin to come true. Sila and samādhi will improve your life. This teaches you more intimately how well proclaimed the Dhamma is, for it has brought you clarity of mind and a deep, subtle happiness. Third and finally, the greatness of the Dhamma can be seen in the practice of wisdom, which leads eventually to the happiness of nibbāna. At this point profound changes may take place in your life. It is like being reborn. You can imagine the rapture and appreciation you would feel at this point.

  3. Rejoicing in the Virtues of the Sangha

  Recollecting the virtues of the Sangha is the third major way of developing rapture listed in the commentaries. The Sangha is the group of noble individuals who are totally committed to the Dhamma, striving earnestly and patiently. They follow the path in a straight and correct way and arrive at their respective destinations.

  If you have experienced some purity of mind in your practice, you can imagine others feeling the same thing, and perhaps even deeper levels, far beyond what you have known. If you have attained some degree of enlightenment, you will be endowed with unshakable faith in the existence of other noble ones who have traversed this same path with you. Such people are indeed pure and impeccable.

  4. Considering Your Own Virtue

  The fourth way of arousing rapture is to consider the purity of your own conduct. Impeccability of conduct is a powerful virtue that brings a great sense of satisfaction and joy to its possessor. It takes great perseverance to maintain purity. When you review your own efforts in this regard you may feel a deep sense of fulfillment and exhilaration. If you cannot maintain pure conduct, you will be invaded by remorse and self-judgment. You will not be able to concentrate on what you are doing, and thus your practice cannot progress.

  Virtue is the foundation of concentration and wisdom. There are many examples of people who have attained enlightenment by turning their mindfulness toward the rapture that arises from their contemplation of the purity of their own sīla. This contemplation can be particularly helpful in an emergency.

  Rapture during an Emergency: The Story of Tissa. There was a young man called Tissa who, upon listening to the Buddha, was struck with a great sense of urgency. He was a very ambitious person, but he felt a deep sense of emptiness in the world and so he turned his ambition toward becoming an arahant. Soon he renounced the worldly life and took the robes of a monk.

  Before he ordained, he gave some of his property to his younger brother Culatissa, a gift that made his younger brother very prosperous. Unfortunately, Culatissa’s wife suddenly became very greedy. She was afraid that the bhikkhu might change his mind, disrobe, and come to reclaim his property, which would deplete her own situation. Culatissa’s wife tried to think of ways to protect her newly acquired wealth, and finally fell upon the idea of calling some hit men. She promised them a handsome prize if they would kill the bhikkhu.

  The thugs agreed, and went in search of this bhikkhu in the forest. Finding him immersed in his practice, they surrounded him and prepared to kill him. The bhikkhu said, “Please wait a while. I haven’t finished my job yet.”

  “How can we wait?” one thug replied. “We’ve got a job to do as well.”

  “Just a night or two,” the bhikkhu pleaded. “Then you can come back and kill me.”

  “We don’t buy that! You’ll run away! Give us a guarantee that you won’t.”

  The bhikkhu had no material possessions beyond his bowl and robe, so he could not leave any deposit with the hit men. Instead, he took a huge boulder and smashed both his thighbones. Satisfied that he could not escape, the thugs retreated and left him to his striving.

  You can imagine what a strong desire the young man had to uproot the kilesas. He was not afraid to die or suffer pain. But he was afraid of the kilesas, which were still very much alive in him. He had his life, but he had not finished his work yet, and he dreaded the thought of dying before he had uprooted the defilements.

  Since this young man had renounced the world with such deep faith, he must have been quite diligent in developing his mindfulness. His practice must have been strong enough to face the excruciating pain of smashed thighbones, for he watched that intense pain without giving in. While he watched, he reflected on his own virtue. He asked himself whether he had broken any of the bhikkhu’s precepts since the day of his ordination. To his delight, he found that he had been perfectly pure, without committing a single offense. This realization filled him with satisfaction and rapture.

  The pain of his fractured limbs subsided, and intense rapture became the most prominent object in the young man’s mind. He turned his mindfulness toward it, and noted rapture, happiness, and joy. As he was noting in this way, his insight matured and speeded up. Suddenly he broke through: he experienced the Four Noble Truths and became an arahant in a short space of time.

  The moral of this story is that one should build a good foundation in sīla. Without sīla, sitting meditation is no more than an invitation to aches and pains. Build up your foundation! If your sīla is powerful, your meditative efforts will prove very fruitful.

  5. Remembering Your Own Generosity

  The fifth way of arousing rapture is to recollect one’s own generosity. If one can perform an act of charity without any selfish motivation at all, but rather wishing for the welfare and happiness of others, or wishing for liberation from suffering, then that act will be full of merit. Not only that, but the act brings great happiness and gladness into your mind. Motivation is crucial in determining whether generosity is beneficial. It should not be motivated by ulterior selfishness.

  Gifts in Times of Scarcity. Generosity is not only financial. It can also mean simply encouraging a friend who is in need of support. It is most important to be generous in times of scarcity, and these can also be the most satisfying times to share the little that one has.

  There is a story of a king in Sri Lanka in the old days. It seems that one day he was retreating hastily from a battle, carrying only the barest of provisions. While he was going through the forest he chanced upon a bhikkhu making alms rounds. The bhikkhu was an arahant, it seems. The king gave part of his food to that monk, even though he only had enough for himself, his horse, and his attendant. Much later, when he recalled all the gifts he had given in his life, some of which had been splendid and precious, this was the one he cherished most.

  Another story on this subject is set in the Mahāsī Sāsana Yeiktha, a center in Rangoon. Some years ago, when the center still was in a slow process of development, some of the yogis could not afford to pay for their food and accommodations. People were poor at that time. But these yogis were making good progress, and it was a great pity to see them leaving the center only because they could not afford to stay. So the meditation teachers got together and supported those yogis who had strong potential. Indeed, these students made tremendous progress. When the yogis succeeded in attaining their goals, the teachers were filled with joy and rapture.

  6. Considering the Virtues of the Gods

  The sixth way to bring rapture is to think of the virtues of the devas and brahmās, beings in the higher realms. While these beings were still in the human realm, they had great faith in kamma. They believed that good actions will bring a reward, and harm will bring harmful consequences. So, they tried to practice what was good and refrain from unskillful actions. Some of them even meditated. The positive force of these beings’ actions resulted in their rebirth in higher planes, where life is more ple
asant than it is in our human world. Those who gained absorption in the jhānas were reborn in the brahmā world, with lifespans lasting eons. Thus, when we think of the virtues of superhuman beings, we actually consider the faith, charity, effort, and perseverance that they developed in the human world. It is easy to compare them with ourselves. If we can find ourselves on a par with the devas and brahmās, we can be filled with satisfaction and joy.

  7. Reflecting on Perfect Peace

  The seventh way of arousing rapture is to reflect on the peace of the cessation of kilesas. In the ultimate sense, this means reflecting on nibbāna. If you have experienced this depth of peace, you can bring up a lot of rapture upon recollecting it.

  If you have not yet experienced nibbāna yourself, you can reflect on the coolness of deep concentration, or jhāna. The peace of deep concentration is far superior to worldly pleasures. There are people whose skill at absorption is so strong that even when they are not actually practicing concentration, their minds are never invaded by the kilesas. Thus, for sixty or seventy years they may live in peace. To think about this degree of coolness and clarity can bring about extraordinary joy.

  If you have not experienced jhāna, then you can remember times in your practice when the mind felt pure and clean. When the kilesas are put aside for some time, tranquility and coolness naturally fill the mind. You may find yourself comparing this with the happiness you may have enjoyed in this world. You will see that worldly happiness is quite coarse and gross in comparison with the happiness of practice. Unlike the rapture of coolness that arises from purity of mind, there is something burning about worldly pleasures. Comparing thus, you may be filled with rapture.

  8–9. Avoiding Coarse People, Seeking Refined Friends

  The eighth and ninth ways of arousing rapture are related. They are to avoid rough and coarse persons, persons overwhelmed by anger and lacking in mettā, or loving-kindness, and to seek out refined persons who have mettā in their hearts. In this world there are many people who are so overwhelmed by anger that they cannot appreciate the difference between wholesome and unwholesome activities. They do not know the benefit or appropriateness of paying respect to persons worthy of respect, nor of learning about the Dhamma, nor of actually meditating. They may be hot-tempered, easily victimized by anger and aversion. Their lives may be filled with rough and distasteful activities. Living with such a person, you can imagine, might not be a very rapturous experience.

  Other people have a deep considerateness and loving care for other beings. The warmth and love of their hearts is manifested in actions and speech. Refined individuals like these carry out their relationships in a subtle, sweet way. Gaining their company is very fulfilling. One is surrounded by an aura of love and warmth, which leads to the arising of rapture.

  10. Reflecting on the Suttas

  The tenth way of arousing rapture is reflecting on the suttas. Some suttas describe the virtues of the Buddha. If you are a person with a lot of faith, reflecting on one of these suttas can give you great joy and happiness. The Satipahāna Sutta, among others, talks about the benefits one can enjoy through practicing the Dhamma. Others contain inspiring stories of the Sangha, the community of noble ones. Reading or reflecting on these suttas can fill one with inspiration, which leads to rapture and happiness.

  11. Inclining the Mind

  Finally, if you firmly and consistently incline the mind toward developing rapture, your aim will be fulfilled. You must understand that rapture arises when the mind is relatively clean of kilesas. So, to reach rapture, you must put in energy to be mindful from moment to moment so that concentration arises and the kilesas are kept at bay. You must be fully committed to the task of arousing firm mindfulness in each moment, whether you are sitting or lying down, walking, standing, or doing other activities.

  TRANQUILITY: THE FIFTH FACTOR

  Most people’s minds are in a state of agitation all the time. Their minds run here and there, flapping like flags in a strong wind, scattering like a pile of ashes into which a stone is tossed. There is no coolness or calmness, no silence, no peace. This restlessness or dissipation of mind might properly be called the waves of mind, reminiscent of the water’s surface when wind is blowing. Ripples or waves of mind become apparent when restlessness occurs.

  Even if this scattered mind becomes concentrated, the concentration still is associated with restlessness, as when one sick member of the family affects all the others with feverishness and unrest. So, too, restlessness has a strong effect on other simultaneously occurring mental states. When restlessness is present, it is not possible for true happiness to be reached.

  When the mind is scattered, it is difficult to control our behavior. We begin to act according to our whims and fancies without considering properly whether an action is wholesome or not. Because of this unthinking mind, we may find ourselves performing unskillful actions or saying unskillful things. Such speech and action can lead to remorse, self-judgment, and even more agitation. “I was wrong. I shouldn’t have said that. If only I’d thought about it before I did it.” When the mind is assaulted by remorse and regret, it will not be able to gain happiness.

  The enlightenment factor of tranquility arises in the absence of restlessness and remorse. The Pāli word for it is passaddhi, which means cool calmness. Coolness and calmness of mind can only occur when mental agitation or activity have been silenced.

  In the world today, people feel a lot of mental suffering. Many resort to drugs, tranquilizers, and sleeping pills to bring calm and enjoyment to their minds. Often young people experiment with drugs to get through a period in their lives when they feel great agitation. Unfortunately they sometimes find drugs so enjoyable that they end up addicted, which is a terrible pity.

  The tranquil peace that comes from meditation is far superior to anything drugs or any other external substances can provide. Of course, the goal of meditation is much higher than just peace, but peace and tranquility are nonetheless benefits of walking the straight, correct path of the Dhamma.

  Calming the Mind and Body

  The characteristic of passaddhi is to calm the mind and body, to silence and tranquilize agitation.

  Extracting Heat from the Mind

  Its function is to extract or suppress the heat of the mind that arises due to restlessness, dissipation, or remorse. When the mind is assaulted by these harmful states, it becomes hot, as if on fire. Tranquility of mind extinguishes that heat and replaces it with the characteristic of coolness and ease.

  Nonagitation

  The manifestation of passaddhi is nonagitation of body and mind. As a yogi you can easily observe how this state of mind brings about great calm and tranquility, physical and mental.

  Surely you are familiar with the absence of tranquility. There is always an urge to move, to get up and do something. The body twitches, the mind darts nervously back and forth. When all of this ceases, there are no ripples in the mind, just a smooth and calm state. Movements become gentle, smooth and graceful. You can sit with hardly a flutter of movement.

  This factor of enlightenment follows invariably upon the arising of the previous one, rapture. The strongest rapture, pervasive rapture, is most particularly associated with strong tranquility. After pervasive rapture has filled the whole body, one feels unwilling to move at all, not to mention to disturb one’s mental stillness.

  It is said that the Buddha spent the first forty-nine days after his liberation enjoying the fruits of enlightenment. He maintained certain postures for seven days each, at seven different places, enjoying the fruits of enlightenment by going in and out of fruition attainments. By virtue of his pervasive Dhamma pīti, or Dhamma rapture, his whole body was permeated with satisfaction for all of that time, so that he did not want to move and could not even fully close his eyelids. His eyes remained fully opened or half opened. You, too, may experience how the eyes fly open involuntarily when strong rapture arises. You may try to close them, but they fly open again. Eventually you may deci
de to continue your practice with your eyes open. If you have such experiences, perhaps you can appreciate how much greater was the Buddha’s happiness and Dhamma rapture.

  Wise Attention Brings Tranquility

  According to the Buddha the way to arouse tranquility is through wise attention. More specifically, this is wise attention directed toward activating wholesome thoughts, wholesome mental states, and, more importantly, meditative mental states, so that tranquility and rapture will arise.

  Seven More Ways of Developing Tranquility

  For their part, the commentators point out seven ways of arousing tranquility.

  1. Proper Food

  The first way is to take sensible and nutritious food—food that satisfies the twin principles of necessity and suitability. Nutrition is very important, as you know. One’s diet need not be elaborate, but it should provide for the body’s physical needs. If your food is not nutritious enough, your physical strength will not be sufficient for you to make progress in meditation. Food should also be suitable, which means appropriate for you personally. If certain foods cause digestive upheavals, or if you really dislike them, you will not be able to practice. You will not feel well, and you will constantly be pining for foods you would prefer to have.

  We might draw a good lesson from the Buddha’s time. A particular rich merchant and a laywoman were the leaders and organizers of most of the religious occasions in the area where the Buddha was teaching. Somehow things never seemed to work quite right unless these two were involved in planning and organizing a retreat or other event. Their secret of success was holding to the principles of necessity and suitability. They always took the trouble to find out what was needed by the monks, nuns, or yogis who were invited to receive food donations. The man and woman also found out what was suitable. Perhaps you can remember having food you needed and longed for, food that also was suitable, so that after eating it you found your mind became calm and concentrated.