Ein sehr interessanter Fund auf http://www.buddhistinformation.com/dhamma_in_cambodia.htm (http://www.buddhistinformation.com/dhamma_in_cambodia.htm) , werd nicht mehr dazu kommen Ihn zu lesen, bzw. zu bearbeiten, aber ich denke das da sicherlich was gutes zu finden ist doch es kann auch ganz ungekehrt sein.
*sgift*
Download: http://forum.sangham.net/index.php?action=tpmod;dl=item123 (http://forum.sangham.net/index.php?action=tpmod;dl=item123)
Dhamma in Cambodia
Dhamma Discussions under the leadership of Acharn Sujin Boriharnwanaket
Preface
This book is the translation from Thai of the recorded Dhamma discussions held in Cambodia December 2000, under the leadership of Acharn Sujin. I wish to express my great appreciation to Acharn Sujin who gave us Dhamma all day during our journey in Cambodia. We were overwhelmed by the confidence in the Dhamma expressed by our Cambodian friends. They came to the temples in great numbers, welcoming Acharn and all of us, and before and after each session they lined up and said in a loud voice, again and again, "Anumodaniya", which means appreciation.
Our journey was organized in Thailand by Fongchan Nanta (Khun Ell) and in Cambodia by But Sawong who was the interpreter during the sessions which took place almost twice every day in different temples. But Sawong is a great teacher and the driving force to reestablish Buddhism in Cambodia, after the Pol Pot regime. He had learnt Thai in order to follow Acharn Sujin’s radio program on Buddhism and he comes regularly to Thailand in order to listen to Acharn Sujin. He teaches the Cambodians the development of Satipatthāna in daily life and people have great confidence in him.
During the sessions Acharn Sujin spoke about daily life, about dukkha, sorrow, and sukha, happiness, saying that nobody can control the amount of happiness or sorrow he experiences, and that it all depends on conditions. At that moment we thought of the many tribulations our Cambodian friends had experienced during the Pol Pot regime. They had lost husband, wife, family members and friends, they had suffered a great deal. But they understood that it all happened because of conditions. They were keenly interested in Satipatthāna and asked many questions about this subject. We were impressed by their great confidence and interest while they listened to Acharn Sujin’s explanations of the Dhamma.
The first session was held in the main temple, the Unaloam Temple, where the Patriarch, the head monk of Cambodia, was present. He showed his appreciation of Acharn Sujin’s explanations of the Dhamma and he also asked questions on Satipatthāna.
Apart from the sessions in the temples we also had Dhamma discussions in the hotels in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. In Siem Reap we visited the famous temple complex of Angkor Wat. On the "Terrace of the Elephants" we even had a Dhamma discussion in the open air and, here again, a great crowd of Cambodians came to listen. Acharn said that we should benefit from being in this life where we can hear the Dhamma. We should not neglect the study of the Dhamma because we cannot be sure whether we have in the next life an opportunity again to study it.
At this moment everything is Dhamma, reality. We hear about Dhammas but we do not know the characteristic of Dhammas. Therefore, we should listen again so that there are conditions for sati to be aware of realities, and in this way there will be more understanding of the characteristics of Dhammas. The characteristics of realities should be known, and we do not have to name them. Acharn also stressed that the development of paññā leads to detachment, to the abandoning of ignorance and the wrong view of self. If we have desire for the arising of sati there is lobha, no understanding of the Dhamma. This was a perfect Dhamma lecture in a place where we were surrounded by trees and the remnants of the old monuments.
Acharn Sujin explained to the Cambodians that everything that naturally appears can be the object of Satipatthāna. The study of the scriptures is necessary as a foundation and it should not be neglected, but the purpose of the study should not be forgotten: the understanding of the present moment. She stressed many points we had heard before, but we can never hear enough that nama and rupa appear at this moment and that understanding of them can be developed now, not at another time.
I have added footnotes to the text to help the reader who may not be familiar with certain notions and terms.
I am extremely grateful to Acharn Sujin who gave Dhamma to all with great selflessness and tirelessness. I also wish to express my appreciation to But Sawong and all our Cambodian friends whose confidence and interest were an inspiration to all of us.
Nina van Gorkom
Chapter I
Discussion in the Unaloam Temple, Phnom Penh
Sujin: I would like to invite you all to take part in the Dhamma discussion and if you have questions, please ask them because we do not have much time. I know that people in Cambodia take a great interest in Satipatthāna and therefore let us discuss this subject of Buddhism because it is of the highest benefit. If one studies the teachings without developing the understanding which realizes the Dhammas one has studied, one merely develops theoretical understanding of realities.
There are realities, Dhammas, all the time, also at this moment. When people study Dhammas, they usually study concepts denoting realities. Dhammas are reality. However, if the Exalted One, the Sammāsambuddha, had not attained enlightenment, nobody would know that what we take for self, for the world, for different things, are only Dhammas, each with their own characteristic.
I do appreciate the kusala all of you have accumulated, and this is the condition for you to come together at this place. If you had not accumulated kusala in the past there would no condition for you to listen to the Dhamma now.
The Dhamma is the truth but it is difficult to comprehend. No matter whether one is born as a human being or as another kind of living being, there are only Dhammas, realities, that are born. However, how many people who listen to the Dhamma can really understand that everything is only Dhamma, reality?
It seems that the Dhamma which is real is very ordinary. However, it is difficult to really understand it, because it is the true Dhamma of the Aryans, the enlightened ones. When we are sound asleep nothing appears to us, but why is it that as soon as we have opened our eyes there are objects appearing to us? This seems very ordinary to us, but we should really understand the reason why, while we are asleep, nothing appears, and why, when we have opened our eyes, different objects can appear.
If there would not be nama Dhamma (mental reality), there would not be any reality that could appear. If there would not be seeing, different things could not appear at this very moment. If we would not hear, smell, taste, experience things through the body-sense or think, the world could not appear. At this moment we all are seeing and on account of what we see happiness or sorrow arises. When we hear, happiness and sorrow arise on account of what we hear. It is the same in the case of the experiences through the other -senses.
This is the ordinary daily life of everybody. Every day we see, we hear, we experience happiness and sorrow, time and again. Everybody is attached to what he sees. Can anyone deny that he clings each time he sees? These are Dhammas which arise and take their course, and nobody can prevent them from arising. When life arises it has to take its course each moment, and nobody can exert control over the amount of happiness or sorrow he experiences, this depends on conditions.
Do you think about birth in the same way as the Bodhisattva? You may think that being born is just an ordinary event, common to everybody. Nobody can prevent this and nobody particularly wants to be born, but when there are the right conditions there has to be birth. However, the Bodhisattva reflected on birth as follows: Dhammas which have arisen must fall away. When will there be an end to what is susceptible to change, when will it fall away and not arise again?
People who have not realized the noble Truths [1] and do not take an interest in the Dhamma will have to continue to see, to hear, all the time, in each plane of existence, during each life. This will happen until they begin to see that it is of the greatest benefit to study the Dhamma and to hear the Dhamma from the person who has attained enlightenment and who could reach the end of the arising of Dhammas.
People who are not the Sammasambuddha nor a "Solitary Buddha" (Pacceka Buddha) [2] should be "listeners", people who listen attentively and with great care to the Dhamma. We should remember that the Dhamma the Buddha realized through his enlightenment is of a profound nature and that nobody can understand it without study and investigation.
The Buddha realized through his enlightenment the true Dhamma of the Aryans (the enlightened ones). He realized the Dhammas, which are reality, so that people who had developed paññā to the degree of penetrating the true nature of these Dhammas could become Aryans as well.
We may have developed worldly knowledge in many fields, in many branches of science, but we are still susceptible to suffering, dukkha. All of us have to undergo many kinds of dukkha. Let everybody here consider the truth of daily life: we have a body and thus, we are susceptible to sickness, to suffering. We should realize that even a discomfort such as hunger occurring in daily life is dukkha. Is there anybody who never experienced pain or illness? Even while we are sitting now we may feel stiffness.
Apart from bodily pain occurring in daily life, there is also mental pain. When we suffer from bodily pain there is bound to be mental affliction as well. We can discern these two kinds of dukkha; we can see that bodily pain is real and that mental pain, oppression or disturbance, is also dukkha. We can understand that these two kinds of dukkha are truly dukkha; they are called "dukkha dukkha".
There are three kinds of dukkha: dukkha-dukkha (intrinsic suffering), vipariṇāma dukkha (suffering in change) and sankhārā-dukkha (suffering inherent in conditioned realities). As regards dukkha-dukkha, this is bodily pain and mental affliction that everybody experiences. This does not mean that people who know these kinds of dukkha are already Aryans. Everybody knows these kinds of dukkha in daily life. There is another kind of dukkha which is vipariṇāma dukkha, dukkha because of change. This kind of dukkha occurs when happiness changes, when it does not last. Everybody looks for happiness and wants to experience happiness, but when one has acquired it, it changes again, it does not last. What causes happiness is susceptible to change and then one looks again for something else that can bring happiness. For example, people wish to acquire a particular thing, but when they have acquired it, it can only bring happiness for a moment, and therefore, they wish to acquire something else again that can bring happiness. Thus, happiness which changes and does not last is a kind of dukkha, suffering.
Everybody has to experience dukkha, each day, but one does not feel that there is dukkha because of the fact that everything arises and then falls away, that everything changes very rapidly. One does not realize the dukkha inherent in all conditioned Dhammas, sankhārā Dhammas, which are impermanent.
The Buddha explained the characteristics of the three kinds of dukkha by way of feelings. As to dukkha-dukkha, this is bodily pain and unpleasant mental feeling, domanassa vedanā, which is mental pain. Thus, when dukkha-dukkha is classified by way of feelings, it includes the painful feeling which accompanies body-consciousness and the unpleasant mental feeling which accompanies the citta with aversion. Happy feeling, sukha vedanā, is a cause for suffering when it changes, and one looks for another object that can bring happiness; thus, it is suffering in change, vipariṇāma dukkha. Indifferent feeling, feeling that is neither pleasant nor unpleasant, and also all other Dhammas which arise and fall away, which are impermanent, are sankhārā dukkha. People may well know bodily suffering and mental suffering, and they may well realize that even pleasant feeling is suffering, since it is susceptible to change, but this does not mean that they are Aryans. They cannot become enlightened until they realize the kind of dukkha which is sankhārā-dukkha, dukkha inherent in all conditioned realities.
Is there anybody among you while you are sitting here who really knows to what extent there is dukkha? Everything arises and then falls away extremely rapidly. People who have studied the Dhamma know that a moment of seeing is different from a moment of hearing and that therefore seeing has to fall away before the reality of hearing can arise. Everybody can know through the study of Dhamma that the arising and falling away is dukkha, but this is understanding of the level of theoretical knowledge, pariyatti. This is different from the direct realization of the truth that the Dhammas which arise and then fall away are dukkha. We read in the "Kindred Sayings" (IV, Saîāyatana vagga, Second Fifty Ch 3, § 81) that sectarians asked the monks for what reason they were ordained in accordance with the Dhamma and the Vinaya. The monks answered that the reason was practicing with the purpose of realizing dukkha. We read that the monks said to the Buddha: [3]
"Now here, lord, the wandering sectarians thus question us: ‘What is the object, friend, for which the holy life is lived under the rule of Gotama the recluse?’ Thus questioned, lord, we thus make answer to those wandering sectarians: ‘It is for the full knowledge of dukkha that the holy life is lived under the rule of the Exalted One.’
We then read that the monks asked the Buddha whether their answer was in accordance with his teaching. The Buddha stated that it was. He then said:
But if, monks, the wandering sectarians should thus question you: "But what, friend, is that dukkha, for the full knowledge of which the holy life is lived under the rule of Gotama the recluse?"- thus questioned you should answer thus: "The eye, friend is dukkha. For the full knowledge of that the holy life is lived... Objects... mind...that pleasant feeling or unpleasant feeling or indifferent feeling that arises through mind-contact, - that also is dukkha. Fully to know that, the holy life is lived under the rule of the Exalted One."....
Thus we see that the understanding of dukkha has several degrees. There is not merely the degree of knowledge stemming from listening.
People who have not developed paññā, right understanding, may understand in theory, because they listened to the Dhamma, that the citta which sees falls away. However, they do not realize that the impermanence of all conditioned realities is dukkha. As soon as one kind of citta falls away it is succeeded by another kind of citta which arises. One kind of Dhamma arises and falls away and then another Dhamma arises succeeding it, but when paññā is not keen enough, people are not ready to see the continuous arising and falling away of all conditioned Dhammas, thus, they do not realize these as dukkha. The arising and falling away of Dhammas occurs extremely rapidly and therefore people still tend to believe that these Dhammas are a self who is there all the time. They are not immediately affected by the arising and falling away of the Dhammas that see or hear. They take Dhammas for permanent and self, until they know the true nature of the Dhammas and do not take them for self any more.
The understanding which is the study of Dhammas should be developed gradually, stage by stage. One cannot forego any stage of development, and therefore, it is not possible to realize immediately the arising and falling away of realities. It is necessary to know first the characteristic of nama which is non-self, and the characteristic of rupa which is non-self.
We have discussed this subject here only for a little while and therefore you may not be able to realize already the characteristic of nama Dhamma and of rupa Dhamma. We should continue to discuss this subject for a long time. Buddhism does not teach only about dukkha, it also teaches about the cause of the arising of dukkha, the Dhamma which is the cessation of dukkha and the way of the development of paññā that leads to the complete cessation of dukkha, so that it does not arise again.
This is the teaching of the four noble Truths. Paññā that can penetrate the four noble Truths should be developed stage by stage. For example, there is seeing at this moment and this is real, and thus, paññā can only know the characteristic of the Dhamma which is seeing. It can realize seeing as the Dhamma which knows an object, as an element (dhātu) which knows or experiences. What appears through the eye-sense is rupa Dhamma that does not know anything. This is the development of paññā in daily life. Daily life is different for different people; some people may have accumulated skill for jhāna and others not, but realities appear naturally in the life of each individual. So long as lokuttara citta (supra-mundane citta experiencing nibbāna) has not arisen yet a person cannot consider and investigate lokuttara citta as the noble Truth of dukkha, but he can investigate other cittas that arise and appear at this moment.
Thus, the study of Dhammas should be in conformity with a person’s real life so that he can understand what has been taught in the Tipitaka, also with regard to the four noble Truths. When someone is seeing and Satipatthāna does not arise, paññā cannot clearly realize the difference between nama Dhamma and rupa Dhamma and then the noble Truth of dukkha cannot be penetrated.
At this moment Dhammas are arising and falling away, but ignorance (avijjā) cannot penetrate the truth and there is still clinging and desire to realize the truth. All kinds of clinging and desire are obstructions, they prevent a person to become detached and to realize the third noble Truth, the cessation of dukkha, that is, nibbāna.
Paññā is not developed if one merely expects to know what has not arisen yet, what has not appeared yet. However, there is a way to test whether there is the real paññā or not at this moment, when a reality is appearing. We can find out whether or not the characteristic of that reality can be understood as a nama Dhamma or a rupa Dhamma. People should not have false expectations to know a reality other than the Dhamma that appears at this very moment.
At this moment a reality is appearing but there is no paññā, which knows as it really is the characteristic of that reality. How can paññā then develop? If there is no understanding at this moment, there will not be understanding at the next moment. Only when paññā arises together with sati, when there is awareness and understanding of the characteristic of the reality that appears, can paññā can gradually develop. Paññā can grow together with sati which is aware over and over again of the characteristics of all kinds of Dhammas. In this way there can be understanding of all Dhammas appearing through the eyes, the ears, the nose, the tongue, the body-sense and the mind-door.
People should understand correctly that the reality appearing at this very moment is the Dhamma paññā should know as it really is. If they do not know yet the Dhamma which appears now, they should continue to study the Dhamma and continue to listen to the Dhamma. In that way understanding can grow and there will be conditions for the arising of Satipatthāna. There is no other way to know the characteristics of Dhammas as they really are.
When you are listening and beginning to have understanding, you are actually beginning to develop the paññā that is able to know the characteristics of realities. This is the very beginning of the development of insight, of vipassana.
But Sawong: there is a question about a parrot that develops Satipatthāna by reciting, "Atthi, atthi " (the pali term for bones) [4] . I would like to ask how rupa Dhamma or nama Dhamma can be the object of Satipatthāna in this way?
Sujin: A parrot cannot know the four noble Truths and nobody can know the mind of a parrot.
If a parrot says, "bones" and a human being says the word "bones", is there a difference between the ability of a bird and of a human being to understand the meaning of this word? What is a person thinking who has listened to the Dhamma for a long time and hears the word "bones" ; does he think in a way different from a parrot ?
A parrot and a human being have each a different bodily appearance. Is seeing-consciousness different in the case of a parrot and of a human being, or is it the same? We can see that a parrot is different from a human being because of its bodily appearance. However, nama Dhamma has no outward appearance; there are kusala cittas and akusala cittas which arise. Birth as a bird is the result of akusala whereas birth as a human is the result of kusala. We should consider the Dhamma in all details. When someone just listens to the words of the Dhamma without considering them he may mistakenly believe that a parrot can develop Satipatthāna. The parrot may have accumulated inclinations which we cannot know; it is true that the Bodhisattva who developed paññā was also born as a bird in his former lives. We do not know about this, we only know with regard to ourselves the realities which arise. We can find out that Satipatthāna is not at all easy. We have to listen to the Dhamma for a long time so that there can be conditions for sati to be aware of a reality even at this very moment.
Nobody here can know the citta of someone else, and who would have the kind of paññā that knows the citta of a parrot? Thus, what we would be able to know is our own citta at this moment and this is what is most beneficial. Then we shall know that even thinking of a parrot is only one moment of citta that thinks. This is different from the citta that sees or hears. This is the way to develop paññā so that we correctly understand the characteristic of nama Dhamma, the element that knows, that can know an object through the eyes, the ears, the nose, the tongue, the body -sense and the mind-door. Everybody here can only know his own citta and thus he should have more understanding of his own citta.
But Sawong: There are questions concerning the development of Satipatthāna. In the section on "Clear Compression" it has been stated that one should be aware while going forward. Should sati be aware now of going forward or of the element of wind produced by citta which conditions the going forward?
Sujin: At this moment nobody is going forward, but sati can arise and be aware of the characteristic of the Dhamma that is real at this moment. There is no need yet to think of something. If you can understand the characteristic of sati which is aware of the characteristic of the reality now there will be no doubt about the object of awareness. Sati is anattā, non-self, and when there are the right conditions it can arise and be aware of realities at any moment in daily life, no matter whether one sits, is lying down, stands, walks, speaks, is silent or thinks.
But Sawong: Someone has a question about right understanding, sammā-dithhi. He asks whether sammā dithhi arises when someone practices Satipatthāna in daily life. Can he at such a moment consider rupa Dhamma and nama Dhamma? Or are there other Dhammas arising together with sammā-dithhi that he can consider?
Sujin: There are eight Path factors, but usually we have to do with five factors, because the three factors which are the abstinences (virati cetasikas) arise, all at the same time, only with the supra-mundane citta, lokuttara citta [5] . The five Path-factors are: right understanding (sammā-dithhi), right thinking (sammā-sankappa), right effort (sammā-vayāma), right mindfulness (samma-sati) and right concentration (sammā-samādhi).
The characteristic of a particular cetasika can only be known if there is mindfulness of it at that moment. If there is no sati, right thinking, for example, does not appear and thus the characteristic of right thinking cannot be known. The citta which sees is accompanied by seven kinds of cetasikas [6] but if sati is not mindful of these cetasikas they do not appear and then they cannot be known. When, for example, at the moment of seeing, the cetasika that is life-faculty (jīvitindriya, maintaining the life of the accompanying nama-Dhammas) or the cetasika that is volition (cetanā cetasika) do not appear, they cannot be known.
While we are sitting there is rupa produced by citta [7] . How can this rupa be known? When a particular reality is known, it can be known only when it appears through the appropriate doorway. When a blind person, for example, wants to know what the different colors really are, he cannot know this because the eye-door is lacking. Sound does not appear to a deaf person, and thus, paññā could not know the characteristic of sound.
At this moment a reality appears and thus there must be a doorway, the means through which that reality can appear. Without a doorway that reality cannot appear. With regard to the rupa produced by citta, this arises within oneself, not outside. Therefore, only when it appears through a doorway could it be known.
Can anybody without the rupa which is body -sense (kāyapasāda rupa) experience a rupa appearing on the body? Can rupas such as softness, hardness, cold, heat, motion or pressure appear? When someone’s body -sense is contacted by cold, heat, softness or hardness, he takes the cold, heat, softness or hardness for his own. The rupas of cold, heat, softness, hardness, motion and pressure arise and appear on the body, but if a person does not know that they are not self or belonging to a self, how can he know the characteristic of rupa produced by citta? Cold, heat and the other rupas appearing through the body-sense are not only rupas produced by citta; they can also be rupas produced by the other three
factors, namely, kamma, temperature (utu) and nutrition (āhāra).
Thus, the study on the level of theoretical knowledge of the Dhamma (pariyatti) is the study of the names of realities. At that level the characteristics of realities do not appear to paññā. Paññā should be developed stage by stage so that the true nature of realities can be directly known.
But Sawong: The venerable Patriarch has some questions. If it is true that one cannot choose or select any object for the practice of Satipatthāna, how do you explain that, as we read in the commentaries, objects are selected in accordance with a person’s temperament or character, such as a greedy temperament (tanhā carita) or a speculative temperament (dithhi carita) [8]. Furthermore, some people have samatha as their vehicle, they have developed tranquility and insight, and some have vipassana as their vehicle, they have developed only vipassana. In the Commentary to the Satipatthāna Sutta a city with four gates has been compared to nibbāna, and it has been explained that just as people can enter a city with four gates by anyone of these gates, one can attain enlightenment by means of anyone of the four applications of mindfulness, mindfulness of the body, of feeling, of citta and of Dhammas. How do we have to understand this?
Sujin: Usually when people read in the scriptures about these subjects they desire to know more about this, or they desire to act in a particular way. When they hear about different temperaments, such as a person of an intelligent temperament, a ruminating temperament, or a hateful temperament, they think of themselves as having such or such temperament and they choose a particular way of development which suits their character. However, in reality this subject of the Dhamma has been taught so that it is a condition for the arising of paññā that knows the truth. Only when one develops Satipatthāna, paññā can arise and then a person can know what character or temperament he has. Without the development of Satipatthāna he does not know realities and he can only guess what kind of temperament he has. There are qualities such as attachment, aversion, ignorance, and also paññā, understanding of the Dhamma. What temperament do we have? This is only thinking and guessing. Everybody has these Dhammas. Only when paññā arises and sati is aware we can know the truth about the different characters of each individual, we can know how our accumulated inclinations are the condition for our own temperament.
Someone may guess about his temperament and he may believe that he should develop a particular object among the four Applications of Mindfulness. He hopes to obtain a result by this way of practice. However, this is not the right condition for knowing the truth of non-self of realities; it is not the way to know all realities thoroughly. Someone may select an object and fix his attention on that object since he believes that he has such or such temperament and that he should therefore develop this particular Application of Mindfulness. At that moment he neglects awareness of all the objects he is used to taking for self. Of what temperament is a person when attachment arises, when aversion arises or when ignorance arises? All these realities are non-self, anattā. Therefore, the wrong view of self cannot be eradicated by selecting an object someone believes is suitable for his temperament. It is true that in the development of samatha the object of meditation is selected in accordance with someone’s character. By the development of samatha defilements are subdued so that calm increases. However, the development of vipassana is different from the development of samatha and it has a different aim, namely, the eradication of ignorance. Ignorance of realities conditions the wrong view which takes realities for self.
Therefore, in the development of Satipatthāna there should not be any selection of objects of understanding. In the "Path of Discrimination" (Treatise I on Knowledge, Ch 1, Section 1, All), it has been said: [9]
"Bhikkhus, all is to be directly known. And what is all that is to be directly known? Eye is to be directly known, visible object is to be directly known, eye-consciousness... eye-contact... any feeling that arises with eye-contact as its condition whether pleasant or painful or neither-painful-nor-pleasant is also to be directly known..."
Further on all realities are summed up and it is said that all of them should be known thoroughly, not any reality is excepted.
But Sawong: The venerable Patriarch wishes to express his appreciation, anumodana, to the Thai Buddhists who are a large group brought here by "Mother" Sujin, and who have come to Cambodia to support Buddhism. People here listen to the Dhamma now with great joy and happiness. The Patriarch considers himself as the host receiving his guests who bring along the noble Truths. He wishes to apologize if there is anything lacking or anything which is not as it should be.
Buddhism in this country has only recently be reestablished, since twenty years, because in the time before that it had all disappeared. At the present time the study of the Dhamma has just begun again. Usually people are trying to understand Maha-Satipatthāna and therefore, they have many questions on this subject. Everybody begins to understand the subject of Maha-Satipatthāna. They try to grasp the meaning of Satipatthāna and thus they ask questions all the time about this subject. If there are questions which are not suitable I also wish to apologize to Mother Sujin.
As the host, the Patriarch extends his blessings to everybody of this group and expresses his thankfulness.
Footnotes
1. The four noble Truths are: dukkha, suffering, the origin of dukkha, the cessation of dukkha which is nibbāna, and the Path leading to the cessation of suffering. At the moment of enlightenment one realizes the four noble Truths, one becomes an Aryan.
2. A Silent Buddha, Pacceka Buddha, is an arahat who has realized the Truth all by himself, but does not have accumulated wisdom to the same degree as the Sammāsambuddha. The Silent Buddha does not proclaim the Dhamma to the world.
3. I have added the text of this Sutta.
4. Among the four Applications of Mindfulness, in the Application of Mindfulness of the Body, is included a meditation on parts of the body, such as bones.
5. Lokuttara cittas arise at the moment of enlightenment. Only lokuttara cittas are accompanied by all three abstinences, thus by eight Path-factors.
6. The seven cetasikas accompanying each citta are the "Universals" of contact, feeling, remembrance, volition, concentration, life faculty and attention.
7. Rupas of the body are conditioned by the four factors of kamma, citta, temperature and nutrition.
8. See Visuddhimagga (translated by Ven. Nyanamoli) III, 74 and following. The Visuddhimagga discerns a greedy person, a hateful person, a deluded person, a person of faith, an intelligent person (Buddhi), a ruminating person (with vitakka, thinking, that can be kusala or akusala). Furthermore, there are different combinations of these temperaments.
9. I have inserted the text.
Chapter 2
Discussion in Tuantumpung Temple
Sujin: Dhamma is reality that can be verified at each moment. The characteristic of hardness or softness that is appearing at the body falls away at the place where it has arisen, and therefore, there is not "I" who is still there. We can only know the truth of realities if we consider, study and investigate the characteristics of the Dhammas that are appearing. When we are seeing through the eye-sense we should know exactly what characteristic is appearing. It is the same in the case of what appears through the ears, the nose, the tongue, the body-sense and the mind-door. What is appearing at this moment while we are sitting? Paññā is able to know that what appears can appear because it has arisen. If it had not arisen it could not appear.
One should not select any particular object of awareness in the development of paññā. Paññā should be developed for a long time and it should understand all objects so that the wrong view of self can be abandoned. No matter whether we are sitting, lying down, standing or walking, paññā should be developed and it should know all the Dhammas appearing through the six doorways.
But Sawong: Ariya Metteyya [1] is the future Buddha who will attain enlightenment. What is the condition for meeting him?
Sujin: Meeting a Sammāsambuddha is the result of kusala kamma, it is kusala vipāka.
What is the benefit of meeting a Sammāsambuddha, whoever he may be? In the past people met a Sammāsambuddha who had not yet finally passed away, who had not yet attained parinibbāna of the khandhas [2] . Some people, when they had met him, could attain enlightenment and thus become Aryans. Other people who met the Sammāsambuddha had wrong view and, thus, for them it was not beneficial to meet him.
Can anybody here say that he in the past had met this Sammāsambuddha? This is not the only life into which we are born. There were also past lives and if we had not listened to the Dhamma in the past we would not have any interest in listening to the Dhamma again.
Be it in the past or at the present time, if people would only see a Buddha but would not listen to the Dhamma, they would not really see him as the Exalted One, the Sammāsambuddha.
Therefore, it is beneficial to see the Sammāsambuddha only when paññā can understand which person is a Sammāsambuddha. It is as the Buddha said: "Whoever sees the Dhamma, sees me ". This is true at the time when the Buddha was still alive and also after his final passing away. If someone has not listened to the Dhamma he does not see the excellent qualities of the Buddha that are his wisdom, his compassion and his purity. He does not know the truth the Buddha realized through his paññā when he attained enlightenment. He does not know what the Dhamma is the Buddha explained because of his great compassion. He does not know the purity with which the Buddha explained the Dhamma in order to help beings, without expecting any gain for himself. Therefore, the only way to grasp the Buddha’s wisdom at the present time is studying the Dhamma so that one gains understanding of it. When paññā is developed someone can know for himself that only a Sammāsambuddha and nobody else could penetrate through enlightenment the true nature of Dhammas and could also explain realities in all details, in all depth, to the people who listened, studied and could have correct understanding of them. Thus, we should understand in conformity with the truth that we can only see the Exalted One, the Sammāsambuddha, if we have understanding of his three excellent qualities, his wisdom, his compassion and his purity.
Buddhists have different inclinations, be they members of our family or friends, or people of different nationalities. Some people take it for granted that, once they are born, they are seeing or hearing, while life takes its course from day to day, and they believe that it is not necessary to have more understanding of life. Some people think that they should not study the Dhamma, since everybody who is born has at times happiness and at times sorrow. For all people life has gone on already for an endlessly long time and will continue like this, without there being an end to it. Is it not true that people never have enough of seeing, hearing, smelling, thinking, dying and being born again? Everybody who is born is subject to old age, pain and death, and he has to be born again, he has to become old again, be sick again, die again, and this has to continue all the time.
People who never have enough of all this will be born again and again. People who suffer may not want to be alive, but so long as there is ignorance of realities, they will be reborn after they part from this world. At this moment many people may not like to be reborn but this is only thinking without paññā. It is paññā that knows the truth that everything which arises must fall away, and it is paññā that knows that there must also be a way leading to the end of the arising and falling away of realities.
Nobody can find by himself the way leading to the end of the cycle of birth and death. If one would urge others not to be reborn this would be in vain. The paññā of each person should gradually have more understanding of realities, and it is useless to be impatient and follow immediately someone else, without having developed paññā oneself. We have to be reborn again and lead our life in this world, so long as all defilements have not been eradicated. We should thoroughly consider and investigate this fact and we should know that only paññā can be the condition for tranquility and more happiness.
Paññā is the most precious jewel, it cannot cause us any sorrow. Other precious things such as crystal, rings, silver or gold can cause us sorrow. Even wishing for such precious things is already sorrowful. Paññā, on the contrary, does not bring us any sorrow or suffering. People who hear this may like to have paññā, but where can they find paññā? We should know that paññā is reality, but the question is where and how to acquire paññā. It cannot be bought with money. There is no other way to acquire paññā but by listening patiently to the Dhamma so that understanding can grow. At this moment you have the patience to listen so that paññā grows very gradually. When you have listened to the Dhamma and you have understood even a little, paññā is already developing, and when you have listened more it will grow again. You sit here today to listen, and this is very beneficial, but only listening today is not enough. You should listen more, time and again.
But Sawong: Satipatthāna is the Dhamma, when it is practiced, that can lead to the cessation of dukkha. The Buddha taught the four Applications of Mindfulness in the country of the Kurus, in Rose-Apple Land (Jambudvipa Continent). Someone asked whether people who live in the other three Continents [3] , such as the Continent North of Mount Sineru, have any opportunity to develop Satipatthāna?
Sujin: What is the use of speculating about people who are living in the other Continents, people I do not know. While we are living in this world we should speak about ourselves here and now.
But Sawong: the venerable Abbot of this Temple does not have any questions. He expresses his appreciation of the way you answered the questions, such as the question about the other Continents, explaining that we do not have to think of other Continents because we are living in this world.
Footnotes
1. See "Dialogues of the Buddha" III, no. 26, "War, Wickedness and Wealth" (Cakkavatti-Sīhanāda Sutta), where it is explained that the future Buddha will be Metteyya.
2. Parinibbāna of the khandhas is the final passing away of the Buddha and the arahat, when the khandhas do not arise again in rebirth.
3. There are four human planes where one can be reborn. Apart from the human world where we live, Jambudīpa continent, situated to the South of Mount Sineru, there are three Continents situated to the East, the West and the North of Mount Sineru (see Visuddhimagga VII, 42, footnote 15).
Chapter 3
Dhamma Discussion in the Thudong Temple (Part I)
But Sawong: someone has a question about the thirty-seven factors pertaining to enlightenment, the bodhipakkhiya Dhammas. We can enumerate these as follows:
the four applications of mindfulness (Satipatthānas)
the four right efforts (sammā-padhānas)
the four bases of success (iddhi-pādas)
the five "spiritual" faculties (indriyas)
the five powers (balas)
the seven factors of enlightenment (bojjhangas)
the eightfold Path (ariya magga) [1]
In accordance with which section of the Dhamma should these factors be developed? In which way should they be developed so that they are factors pertaining to enlightenment?
Sujin: First of all, we should understand what Satipatthāna is. We should know that sati of Satipatthāna is not sati of the level of Dana, sīla or calm of citta. Sati arises with each type of kusala. We should distinguish between sati of Satipatthāna and sati of other levels of kusala. When we perform Dana, when we give things away, or when we abstain from unwholesomeness, there is sati of these levels of kusala, but this does not mean that one is able to know the truth of the characteristics of realities. Even when the citta is calm, free from akusala, one is not able to realize that it is not self who is calm. Sati of the level of Satipatthāna is different from sati of the other levels of kusala. There can be sati of the level of Satipatthāna when someone listens to the Dhamma and understands the realities at that very moment as not self. The Dhammas at this moment are real, but what are their characteristics? The factors pertaining to enlightenment are the Dhammas pertaining to the penetration of the true nature of realities through enlightenment, they concern the four noble Truths. Sati that arises when one gives things away or when one abstains from evil by the observance of sīla, is not the indriya (faculty) of sati. Thus, it is not sati as a factor pertaining to enlightenment. However, when sati arises and is aware of the characteristics of realities, it accompanies right understanding, sammā-dithhi, of the eightfold Path. There is at that moment right awareness, sammā-sati, and this is the indriya of sati.
Just now I received many garlands of flowers. The citta of the giver and the citta of the receiver is kusala citta, but, there is not the indriya of sati if there is no awareness of the characteristics of realities as nama or rupa.
I would like to speak first about indriyas, faculties, and about Satipatthāna, so that you will have understanding of some of the factors pertaining to enlightenment. Realities which are faculties, indriyas, are "leaders", each in their own field. Some indriyas are rupa, such as eye-sense or ear-sense, and some are nama. Among the indriyas which are nama there are five which have to be developed, namely: confidence, saddhā, energy, viriya, mindfulness, sati, concentration, samādhi, and paññā. When kusala citta without paññā arises, it is accompanied by confidence, energy, sati and concentration, but these are not indriyas. However, when Satipatthāna arises, the conascent cetasikas of confidence, energy, sati, concentration and paññā are indriyas. Satipatthāna does not arise easily, but it is not impossible to develop it. There should be correct understanding of the way to develop paññā, and then sati of Satipatthāna, which is sammā-sati of the eightfold Path, can arise. At this moment realities which are nama and rupa are appearing; these arose also in the past and will arise in the future. The person who develops Satipatthāna can know for himself when Satipatthāna arises and when it does not arise. When understanding of nama and rupa, and of Satipatthāna is established, there are conditions for Satipatthāna to arise naturally in daily life. If it cannot arise naturally, it is not Satipatthāna.
Therefore, when there is true paññā it can further develop so that it comes to know the real nature of the Dhammas appearing at this very moment. Paññā is not the understanding of what has not appeared yet. The development of Satipatthāna is the development of paññā, and there should not be an idea of self who intends to do something particular in order to induce paññā. Then there is no sati which is aware of the characteristic of the Dhamma that naturally arises and appears at this moment because of the appropriate conditions. Someone who does not have understanding of Satipatthāna may ask, while he is seeing naturally, what he should do in order to have sati. It is not the right practice if someone wishes to do something particular in order to have sati, because nobody can cause the arising of any reality. People can listen to the Dhamma, they can investigate, consider and understand what they hear, so that they will know that the Dhamma appearing at this moment is real, and that it appears through one doorway at a time. Therefore, it is necessary to have more understanding about the realities appearing one at a time through each of the doorways. At this moment, for example, an object is appearing through the eyes and thus, it can be seen. However, if there is no citta, no reality or element that experiences something, thus, a reality which sees, visible object cannot appear. If someone sees naturally but he does not realize the distinction between the characteristic of the object that appears and the reality that sees, vipassana, insight, is not being developed. Therefore, the only thing people can do is listening to the Dhamma so that they understand correctly that seeing at this moment is only a kind of reality, a Dhamma. One should listen, investigate and consider what one hears, so that one can gradually understand that there are only realities, no self. Dhammas are real, they are beyond control, they arise naturally because of their appropriate conditions.
When you are listening at this moment, sati arises, but it may not yet be Satipatthāna. It may be sati of the level of listening and considering, but in that way there will gradually be more understanding. We all know that sati belongs to the khandha of formations or activities, sankhārā khandha [2] , that it is non-self. Sati is not rupakkhandha, vedanākkhandha (aggregate of feeling) nor saññakkhandha (aggregate of remembrance or perception), but it is sankhārā khandha. Sati is a Dhamma that is sankhārā khandha, forming up conditions for the growth of paññā; there is no self who can do anything to cause the development of Satipatthāna. Therefore, when we are listening, conditions are accumulated for the growth of understanding. When we listen and when we have understanding about nama and rupa while we are seeing, sankhārā khandha will form up conditions for the arising of direct understanding while we are seeing. When someone understands the characteristics of realities this is not merely theoretical understanding of Dhammas or knowing the terms denoting them. When a reality appears there can gradually be a more precise understanding of that characteristic. One can understand seeing as a reality which experiences, as only an element, a characteristic of Dhamma which can arise and see what is appearing. At that moment there is Satipatthāna, but we do not have to name it Satipatthāna. Usually people know first the name Satipatthāna and then they doubt what it exactly is and when it arises. We do not have to use any name, because at this very moment realities are appearing and gradually understanding of their characteristics can be developed. That is Satipatthāna.
At this moment realities are appearing. If sati arises, one will gradually understand the characteristics of those realities. If some people say that that is not Satipatthāna, are they right or wrong? We can only know the true nature of Dhammas that we studied already for a long time as explained in the Tipitaka, the Buddhist scriptures, when sati arises and is aware of the characteristics of those Dhammas. When understanding has grown, all the terms as explained in the scriptures will become clearer in conformity with the paññā someone has developed. Thus, through Satipatthāna there will be correct understanding of the characteristics of realities. There will be no other way to understand the true nature of realities as dhatus, elements or āyatanas, bases [3] , or of other realities denoted by different terms in the scriptures. The whole Dhamma the Buddha taught is the truth of realities he realized through his enlightenment. The person who studies in order to know the true nature of realities should develop the paññā that realizes the characteristics of realities that appear. Then he will penetrate the true meaning of all Dhammas that have been taught and that he studied, to the extent his paññā has been developed.
Then one can understand even a short saying such as : "there is not, there is, and then there is nothing to be found." Just a moment ago there was no sound, then there is sound, and then sound has disappeared. Thus it can be said: "there is not, there is, and then there is nothing to be found." Realities arise and then they fall away extremely rapidly. Therefore, when something arises, the remembrance of it prevents one from seeing the arising and falling away of realities according to the truth. One is bound to remember it as something lasting. When we listen to the Dhamma we should thoroughly consider and investigate it. We should not just listen to a subject of the Dhamma and then neglect to consider it more. Each word that we hear and understand we should continue to investigate. In that way our understanding can be in conformity with the subjects we shall learn about further on. Even the saying I just referred to, "there is not, there is, and then there is nothing to be found " is miraculous. We should consider that at the moment of bhavanga-citta (life-continuum) nothing appears [4]. If we do not use the Pali words of the scriptures but only words that we can easily understand, we could ask ourselves, when there is nothing, how can there, after that, be something that appears? The elements that are not self are miraculous. There are the elements of hardness, of sound, of odor, of heat, of cold, of anger, of attachment, of jealousy; everything is only an element. The words Dhamma and dhātu, element, have the same meaning in so far as they have no owner, they do not belong to anybody, they are not self, a being or a person. Each of the elements has its own characteristic that is real. The element of seeing is different from the element of hearing, and the element of hardness is different from the element of odor. Whenever someone knows the truth that all that appears is only an element and that there is nobody, no person, there is paññā that understands the true nature of realities.
Question: Are there among the factors pertaining to enlightenment, bodhipakkhiya Dhammas, also factors which are mundane, lokiya?
Sujin: They are both mundane and supramundane (lokuttara) factors.
Question: Dukkha arises and falls away, and even so, craving, the cause of dukkha, arises and falls away. I want to ask why there is in Buddhism the development of Satipatthāna with the purpose of penetrating dukkha and why is it necessary to abandon clinging? Why is this necessary, because all Dhammas arise and then fall away anyway.
Sujin: Nobody forces you to develop understanding. Buddhists listen to the Dhamma because they take their refuge in the Exalted One, the Sammāsambuddha, in the Dhamma and in the Aryan Sangha, the Community of the enlightened persons. All Buddhists take their refuge in the Triple Gem. In what way are the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha of the enlightened persons a refuge? If someone says that he venerates the Exalted One, the Sammāsambuddha, without studying the Dhamma and listening to it, is that true respect? At the time when the Buddha had not passed away Buddhists would visit him wherever he dwelt, in order to listen to the Dhamma. They wanted to listen because they realized the excellence of the Dhamma and valued it as a treasure. The Buddha explained that whatever arises does so because of the appropriate conditions and that it then falls away. It is dukkha because it is impermanent. It depends on the individual who listens whether he agrees with this or not, whether he is interested to know this or not. However, it is necessary to study the Dhamma first so that one can understand that the Dhamma as explained by the Buddha is entirely true.
Question: A samanera, a novice, asks about the meaning of the four predominant factors (adhipati), and the faculties, indriyas. Both the predominant factors and the faculties are "leaders", but in what way are they different? Moreover, the four bases of success, iddhipādas, and the four predominant factors are the same Dhammas, namely, desire-to-do (chanda), energy (viriya), citta and investigation (vīmaósa) which is paññā. In what way are the predominant factors and the bases of success different?
Sujin: The Dhammas that are faculties, indriyas, are leaders each as to their own task. Even the rupa of eye -sense, cakkhu-pasāda rupa, is a faculty, cakkhindriya. It is a leader in so far as it conditions color to appear when that impinges on the eye-sense. The Dhamma which is a leader as to its own task is indriya, faculty, and some indriyas are nama and some are rupa. The eye -sense, cakkhu-pasāda rupa, is an indriya specifically as it comes into contact with visible object appearing through the eyes at the moment of seeing. Ear-sense, sota-pasāda rupa, is an indriya specifically as it comes into contact with sound at the moment of hearing. There are several namas that are indriyas, leaders as to their own task, but five indriyas have been explained concerning in particular the development of Satipatthāna, and these are among the bodhipakkhiya Dhammas, the factors leading to enlightenment, leading to the penetration of the four noble Truths. These five indriyas or "spiritual faculties" are: confidence, saddhā, energy, viriya, mindfulness, sati, concentration, samādhi, and wisdom, paññā. These five Dhammas that are nama indriyas can arise together. It is different in the case of the predominant factors, adhipati, these cannot arise together. When one of them is predominant, the others cannot be predominant at the same time.
As regards the bases of success, iddhipādas, these are different from the predominant factors. They are factors that are bases of accomplishment, concerning both the development of samatha and the development of vipassana. [5]
Footnotes
1. Some of these factors, namely, the bases of success, iddhipādas, and the faculties, indriyas, will be dealt with further on. The four sammā-padhānas, right efforts are: the effort of avoiding akusala, of overcoming akusala, of developing kusala and of maintaining kusala. The five powers, balas, are the same realities as the five spiritual faculties, indriyas, but when the indriyas have been developed so that they are unshakable by their opposites, they have become powers. The seven factors of enlightenment are: sati, investigation of the Dhamma (Dhamma-vicaya), energy (viriya), rapture (pīti), tranquility (passaddhi), concentration (samādhi) and equanimity (upekkhā).
2. Sankhārā khandha is the aggregate or khandha of formations or activities. There are five khandhas: rupa khandha or physical phenomena, vedanākkhandha or feelings, sañña khandha or remembrance, sankhārā khandha, formations or activities, and viññāṇa khandha including all cittas. All cetasikas other than feeling, vedanā, and remembrance, sañña, are included in sankhārā khandha. Thus, all unwholesome and wholesome qualities are included in it. Sati, accumulated together with other wholesome qualities is sankhārā khandha that forms up conditions for the arising later on of direct understanding of realities.
3. The āyatanas are the six inner bases consisting of the five -senses and citta, and the six outer bases consisting of the five -sense objects and mind-object, dhammayatana.
4. Bhavanga-citta arises when we are fast asleep and not dreaming, and in between the processes of cittas. It maintains the continuity in the life of an individual. The bhavanga-citta does not experience an object impinging on one of the six doors such as the cittas arising in processes. Thus, at the moment of bhavanga-citta, color, sound and the other -sense objects do not appear. Whereas, when the processes of cittas arise, the -sense objects appear through the six doors.
5. The bases of success can lead to the acquiring of the supra-natural powers in samatha (Visuddhimagga Ch XII). In vipassana they are among the factors pertaining to enlightenment.