Saturday, December 31, 2016

七覚支 (3)

次のタイ・ファップ・ダンによる「七覚支(悟りの7要因)」に関する法話を深く傾聴してください。
http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
以下はポッドキャストからの抜粋です。

引用:
(25:10~)
ですから、マインドフルネスとは、心が体へ戻り、今この瞬間に留まるということです。マインドフルネスとは、あなたが感じていることを何でもすること(エゴの否定的な感情に従うのではなく、目覚めた意識が触れた通りに行動すること)です。単純に聞こえますが、私たちの心は一度に多くのことをする(同時に複数のことをする)のが好きですので、たくさんの訓練が必要です。私たちの心は過去へ、未来へと遠くに逃げ出すことを好みます。 私たちの心は、考えることと計画することが非常に上手です。そして、私たちの心は走って走ってばかりいる白馬のようだと、仏陀は言いました。

(26:55~)
仏陀は、は私たちののようだと言いました。マインドフルネスの訓練をすることは、実際に、停止することに熱中するための心のトレーニングであり、走るのを止めるための心のトレーニングであり、思考さえ停止するための心のトレーニングです。思考には何も問題はありません。しかし、私たちは考え過ぎです。思考のほとんどは生産的ではありません。そして、私たちの思考のほとんどは非常に否定的です。思考には多くの不安と恐れがあります。心配があります。

ですから、マインドフルネスとは、ただ居るということです。一度に一つのことをしてください。本当にただ居るということです。私たちの心はとても狂っていますので。ですから、ただ居るということは訓練であり、全然簡単ではありません。馬、心の中の馬を訓練すること、それがマインドフルネスです。

(34:28~)
第二の悟りの要素は、ダルマ(法:仏陀の教え)の検証です。ですから、仏陀は悟りを定義することにおいて非常に明確でした。第一(要素)がマインドフルネス、今この瞬間において自分自身に戻ることです。心と体が一つになります。ですから、マインドフルネスなしでは、悟りはありません。いいですか?それは確かです。ですから、一瞬一瞬の目覚めた意識です。マインドフルネスは真の悟りです。真の命です!
:引用終わり

(つづく)

(解説)
マインドフルネスとは、思考を止めることです。私たちの行動(呼吸や歩行などの自動詞の行動は、目的語、即ち心の対象を要しませんので、思考を止めるのに最適です)に集中する時、思考を止めて、目覚めた意識が非思考になると同時に自動的に復活します。すると、私たち(目覚めた意識)は生命の奇跡と、自分の内面と周囲の現実の本質に触れることができます。ですから、私たちは常に洞察を得ることができ、いつでも愛と思いやりを発生させることができます。その結果、私たちの心はいつも穏やかで澄んでおり、その心が平和、喜び、幸せをもたらします。しかしながら、この段階はまだ一時的な悟りであり、全ての概念の絶滅を通した完全な悟りではありません

思考を止めることによってマインドフルになるためには、洞察を通して私たちの恐れや不安の根本原因を理解する必要があります。なぜなら、根本原因を理解しない限り、私たちは思考を止めることができないからです。それから、意識的な呼吸や歩行は、一時的に思考を止めて、苦しみの根本原因の洞察を得るのに、補足的な手法として役立つと理解しています。しかし、意識的な呼吸や歩行は、恐れや不安を持っている人にとってはあまり簡単なことではありません。なぜなら、意識的な呼吸や歩行中であっても、恐れや不安を持っている人が思考を止めるのは非常に難しいからです。

(参考)http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/ss-62242338

歩行瞑想

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

七覚支 (2)

次のタイ・ファップ・ダンによる「七覚支(悟りの7要因)」に関する法話を深く傾聴してください。
http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
以下はポッドキャストからの抜粋です。

引用:
(16:00~)
ですから、マインドフルネスを実践しているのであれば、私たちは正しい方向に向いています。混乱することは何もありません。何も心配する必要はありません。時々、私たちはティク・ナット・ハンや仏陀からこの非常に重要な実践(マインドフルネス)を学びましたが、しばらくすると自分の実践に自信がないように感じ始めます。なぜなら、ティク・ナット・ハンが実践する方法はとても単純だからです。そして、私たちはそれ(マインドフルネス)は効果がないと考えました。単純なものは効かないと。悟りは高い所にあるものだから、洗練されたもの、神秘的なものが効くだろうと。ですから、それは私たちが(たぶん、これは私には効かないという)疑いの罠に簡単に陥る錯覚です。私が修道僧になって4年が経過した時に、私がしたことと全く同じです。

(17:18~)
そして、誰もがマインドフルネスを知っており、皆さんは既にマインドフルネスを実践していますが、マインドフルネスはまた、悟りのようなものであり、考えではありません。マインドフルネスは概念ではないのです。マインドフルネスは思考ではありません。マインドフルネスは皆さんが行うことができ、発生させることができるエネルギーなのです。マインドフルネスは私たちが好む精神エネルギーです。皆さんが見ることができ、聞くことができ、感じることができる澄んだ目覚めた意識として定義できます。そして、皆さんは本当にこのエネルギーに触れることができます。ですから、これは弟子に引き継いで、今私たちへと伝えられてる仏陀の正しい教えであり、正しい実践です。ですから、皆さんが自分自身の実践を信じることができるようになればと思い、私はこのように皆さんに分かち合いたいのです。

(18:27~)
マインドフルネスとは、心と体が一つになることとして定義されています。一息、息を吸って、最初から最後までその息に気付いているなら、それがマインドフルネスです。ご存知ですよね。皆さんはそのエネルギーを感じることができます。そして、マインドフルネスは、ただの呼吸、呼吸法ではないのです。マインドフルネスはまた、花を見ることでもあります。あなたが花を見るのです。マインドフルネスは正にそのようなものです。それがマインドフルネスです。皆さんは風が自分の体を休めているのを感じます。そして、風のさわやかさに気付く気持ち。それもまたマインドフルネスです。そして、皆さんは自然の中を歩きます。すると、自分の顔や肩に日差しを感じますそれもまたマインドフルネスです。マインドフルネスは精神エネルギーです。マインドフルネスは、私たちの心の中で非常に澄んでいます。澄んだ目覚めた意識です。それが、仏陀の本質です。人は仏性について語りますが、これ(澄んだ目覚めた意識)が本当の仏性です。皆さんはマインドフルネス触れることができます。マインドフルネス思考ではありません。

マインドフルネスは、仏陀がほとんど毎日本当にやったことであり、仏陀の弟子たちが毎日実践していたことです。歩行が大地を感じます。それがマインドフルネスです。ですから、マインドフルネスは(脳)からはやって来ません。マインドフルネスはからやって来ます。そうですね、マインドフルネスは皆さんが感じ、触れ、経験することにより近いです。それ以上でないことは確かです。ですから、実際にマインドフルネスについて考えることは、マインドフルネスではありません。

(21:05から)
ですから、「禅」(「禅那」)の第二の状態があります。思考がない状態思考は混乱させると、私は言いました。思考は私たちを生命から遠ざけます。私たちは多くのことを考えながら、そこで座禅を組んでいます。そして、私たちは目の前の花を見ないのです。
:引用終わり

(つづく)

(参考)http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/ss-62242338



歩行瞑想

Sunday, December 25, 2016

七覚支 (1)

次のタイ・ファップ・ダンによる「七覚支(悟りの7要因)」に関する法話を深く傾聴してください。
http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
以下はポッドキャストからの抜粋です。

引用:
(9:18~)
たぶん、プラム・ビレッジの実践が私には効かないと、私は考えました。(中略)(見習い)僧侶として4年経過後、私は若い比丘(完全に叙任された仏教の僧侶)になりました。私はティク・ナット・ハンの部屋に行って、「師よ、私はあなたを去りたいと思います。私は寺院を去り、あなたから離れたいです。私は異なる実践を学ぶために、ダライ・ラマの所へ行きたいです。なぜなら、4年が経った今、私はもはや平和を見い出せないからです。最初の内は、私は本当にたくさんの平和、喜び、幸せでいっぱいでした。(中略)しかし、今は非常に疲労困憊し、体が病気になっています。私は行きたいです。たぶん、あなたの実践方法は私には効きません。私には、この息を吸って吐くことや歩行瞑想よりも、より複雑且つ神秘的真言のようなものが必要なのです」と言いました。(笑)

すると、ティク・ナット・ハンが何と言ったと思いますか?「座禅の最初から最後までマインドフルな呼吸をすることができますか?」(と尋ねられました) 私は、「いいえ、私はそうすることはできません」と答えました。「マインドフルな歩行をできますか?歩行の最初から最後まで、本当に大地を感じることができますか?」 (通常、プラム・ビレッジでは(歩行瞑想を)約45分します。)そして、私は、「いいえ、私はそうすることはできません」と答えました。すると、(ティク・ナット・ハンは)、「あなたは残らなければなりません」と言いました。(笑)それは、師が私に去る許可をくれないことを意味します。 私はまだ訓練ができていませんでしたので、それはその通りです。私はまだこの単純な実践を完全に訓練できていませんでした。(それなのに)私は混乱していましたので、もう出て行きたかったのです。私は自分の中の多くの苦しみに直面し、自分の苦しみから逃げていました。私は、より洗練された実践方法神秘的な真言密教を学ぶために、異なる教えの方へ行く必要があると考えて、自分の苦しみから逃げていたのです。

(11:55~)
今、僧侶として27年が経過し、私はいつも、「私は誰?」ではなく「私は何をしているのか?」と、自問します。「私は正に今、何をしているか?」 と。すると、この質問は基本的な実践に私を連れ戻してくれます。「私はここで何をしているのか?」それから、「私は寺院で自分の命のために何をしているのか?」と。ですから、この自問が直ちに、私を基本的な実践である息を吸って吐く実践、歩行瞑想、食事瞑想へと連れ戻してくれるのです。

私の心は彷徨い続けていました。(中略)時には悟りを探し求めていました。僧侶になるという私の願望は、仏陀になるためでした。(中略)私は仏陀になりたかったので、私は悟りを得たいと思っていました。ですから、「私は誰?」と自問する傾向は、人間としての人生目的は何なのかということですが、それは完全に悟りを開いた仏陀になるということであり、私の内面の奥深くにありました。(しかしながら)私の日々の実践においては、それは全く役に立ちません。

しかし、それ(仏陀になる願望)は、私が完全に悟りを開いていることを特定する心の状態を探し求めて、走り続ける非常に深い不安からきています。しかし、それは馬鹿げています。そんな風にはいかないのは確かです。なぜなら、悟りは心の状態ではないことを、私は今、知っているからです。悟りは考えではありません。悟りは、内面の奥深くへ入り込み、内部を探求することではありません。違います。

悟りは、日々の一瞬一瞬の実践です。私たちは何を実践しているでしょうか?マインドフルネスの実践です。ですから、マインドフルネスが悟りの第一要素なのです。仏陀が悟りの七要素七つの悟りの特徴について語ったことを、皆さんはご存知です。非常に具体的で、非常に明確です。その第一の要素がマインドフルネスです。
:引用終わり

(つづく)

(解説)
タイ・ファップ・ダンは完全に悟りを開いている(プラム・ビレッジの伝統において完全に悟りを開いている数名の内の一人である)と、私は理解しています。タイ・ファップ・ダンが完全な悟りを開く前の非常に具体的な経験を分かち合ってくれたことは、非常に心を開いていて率直です。マインドフルになるためのタイ・ファップ・ダンの手法は、「私は何をしているのか?」と自問することによって、自分を直ちに基本的な実践に連れ戻すことでした。そして、タイ・ファップ・ダンは息を吸って吐く実践や歩行瞑想といった、日々の一瞬一瞬の実践を通して、完全な悟りを開いたようです。私はタイ・ファップ・ダンに、「それが全てですか?」と尋ねたいです。なぜなら、深い不安を取り除くのは、そう簡単なことではないと、私は理解しているからです。私の推測は、タイ・ファップ・ダンが基本的な実践中に自分の非常に深い不安の根本原因を洞察を通して理解したに違いないということです。なぜなら、深い恐れや不安を取り除くためには、無条件の自己受容、即ち無条件の自己愛が不可欠であるからです。ちなみに、「私は誰?」と自問する私の自己探求手法は、以下の通り大変上手くいきました

(参考)http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/3-46874436


タイ・ファップ・ダン

Wednesday, December 21, 2016

The 7 Factors of Awakening (4)

Listen deeply to the following Dharma talk on The 7 Factors of Awakening by Thay Phap Dang. http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
The followings are excerpts from the podcast.

Quote:
(from  54:45) 
The sixth factor of enlightenment is concentration. Concentration goes along with mindfulness, samadhi. We all need concentration. All schools of meditation come to play of concentration. No concentration, no enlightenment. Whether you belong to zen school or belong to the school of tantric, all need concentration, samadhi. Samadhi is equivelent to Samatha which means that your mind comes to rest and your mind comes to concentrate, focus. Your mind comes to the body. You don't fix your mind but you get a feeling that is always resting, that is always there for you. 

So, the continuity of mindfulness is actually concentration. So, the spectrum of mindfulness is actually concentration of the mind. The longer mindfulness you have, the longer concentration you have. And your mind comes to tranquility all day long. Quietness and tranquility. We need quietness because we are so active in the end. 

So, we need concentration in order to see our mind. Because most of the time we are controlled by the seed in our mind. It (seed) actually tells us what to do. We have no control. Like when you are lonely, "I need somebody to talk". ... Actually we are manipulated by our own mind. That's why the Buddha said, "You are riding by the horse but your own mind, you, actually have no sovereignty.

So, concentration helps us to have concentrated sovereignty of it, freedom, liberation. We see what is happening here. We see the thought before it becomes energy. We see the emotion before it becomes a strong emotion. We see the attachment before we send our energy. Sometimes attachment is so strong and we send our energy out. "I like you. Don't you see me beautiful?" It goes like that. 

(from  1:00:38)
The last one (the seventh factor of enlightenment) is equanimity. This is very important. Equanimity means letting go. ... This factor is so important to be free and to be enlightened. Because most of the time we attach, we hold. Underneath, we want to hold more, grasp more. We want everything belongs to us. So, letting go. 

But the deep down is the fear from attachment. You are afraid of losing them. You are afraid that one day you have to let them go. But you will have to go. One day you have to die. So, the final liberation is actually to let go, to let go of attachment (things belong to myself). Even this body has to let go. And actually when we look deeply, we see this body is the process of birth and death. You are always constantly dying and constantly being born. And this is the law of impermanence

There is nothing called you in that moment because you change all the time. People don't have this practice, so they don't see this process of everlasting changing. So, they are afraid of dying. They are afraid of being sick. They are afraid of departure from the loved one one day. You are like that, or your loved one is like that. 

So, that's life. That's why we need to devote our time into this practice of enlightenment, enlightenment of every step we make. If in each step we don't have enlightenment (no joy, no tranquility), something is wrong. We are wasting our time. Some monks and nuns, or lay practitioners, we don't fulfill our aspiration. We don't continue the career of the Buddha and the teacher. It's so sad to put them down. 

So, the practice is throughout the day. It's not just when you come to the meditation hall. We said training the horse within. So, don't let the horse ride you. You control the horse. In zen, they say that you ride the buffalo, (you should) not allow the buffalo ride you. Actually there must be another animal, a monkey. I said that my consciousness was a monkey. The buffalo is just the alaya consciousness. The seeds, the totality of our behavior, of our mind, so that is called the buffalo. And usually it's very dark because of the negative energy

But the one who lives, who controls our life, is the monkey, the monkey who fabricates our life, who creates things in our life, who brings us hell or heaven, who brings us love or hate. So, the monkey is the one who is very intelligent. We need to pay attention to him. So, shine the light of mindfulness on the monkey. Make the monkey sit quiet. Tame the horse to be calm and relaxed. And that is our practice. 

You don't need to look for the true nature of the beginner's term of purity or whatever. Who cares about that? You don't need even to look for the Buddha outside. You don't need to get enlightenment at the end of the vow. You can get enlightenment in every step you make. 
:Unquote

(End)

(My commentary)
I understand that equanimity is the most difficult factor of enlightenment. That's because equanimity means non-discrimination, non-separation, non-duality, inclusiveness, the wholeness, or unconditional love and compassion. So, other 6 factors of enlightenment are means or tools to attain the 7th factor as the fruit

Non-thinking for 24 hours a day is essential for the full enlightenment. So, the extinction of all notions is essential for that. We must throw away all notions to stop thinking completely. And for that we need to understand the ultimate truth of emptiness, or interbeing through insight. In other words, we have to understand that all notions made up by ego are wrong because all notions cause separation, discrimination, or the duality

When we attain the insight, we are fully enlightened and can stop thinking completely. So, there will be no more separation, discrimination, or the duality. And no afflictions such as fear and anger will arise anymore. Therefore, sufferings will be eliminated completely. Or, I should say that there will be no notion of sufferings made up by human ego. All animals, plants and minerals enjoy living like that. Only most humans are the living dead (corpse) except for little children.

(Cf.) http://www.amazon.com/dp/B014NYEP04


Tuesday, December 20, 2016

The 7 Factors of Awakening (3)

Listen deeply to the following Dharma talk on The 7 Factors of Awakening by Thay Phap Dang. http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
The followings are excerpts from the podcast.

Quote:
(from 35:07)
The second enlightenment factor is investigation of the Dharma. It means that you have to look for the right Dharma, the right Dharma door. ... So, we learned the practice of mindfulness, of concentration, of insight we bring into our daily life to practice. And then we investigate, look. So, investigation is more like looking deeply, Vipassanā. We bring the mind to stop to the present moment. And then we look into our body, into our feelings, into our perceptions. Because we need to understand what is our body. There is a very deep secret in our body. Our body has a vast area to learn.

If we don't understand, we suffer but we don't know why. We create more suffering for the body. We don't know why. So, mindfulness goes along with the investigation of the Dharma. ... But for sure, mindfulness is the way, the Buddha way. No mindfulness, no enlightenment. ... You like or dislike, is very projective. It's not because of him or her. It's the manifestation of our mind.

(from 42:02)
The third factor of enlightenment is energy. We need energy to continue this way of life. So, this energy is like a force, the energy of diligence. So, no energy, no enlightenment. Laziness, it doesn't work. Can you get enlightenment if you become so lazy? ... You have to generate the energy on regular basis. It's just like we need. 

So, spiritual life is like that. We need to be diligent. We enjoy doing it. Because we know this is the most important thing in our life. It's the generating energy of mindfulness, concentration, clear mind. If not, we just go back to the same pattern, or autopilot. Confusion. Habitual energy. And we have a tendency to bring suffering to oneself and others. So, energy is needed. ... Energy makes us stable. The energy you know what is negative, you don't do it. You know what is negative energy, negative thought, negative mental formations, you don't do it, watering it. ... So, watering good seeds is happiness and joy.

(from 50:03) 
Joy is the fourth factor of enlightenment. Sometimes they call it rapture. Can you believe that a depressed person can get enlightenment? No way! So, we need to have some joy. We like to do it. You enjoy to do the practice. You feel the joy. Joy is a skill of way, is like mindfulness to be in touch, to experience. So, it's not auto-suggested. But you feel the joy. We sit quietly and you feel joy. ... Joy comes from tranquility, clear mind.

(from 51:15) 
The fifth factor of enlightenment is relaxation and tranquility. ... True mindfulness is no thinking. True concentration is no thinking. So, tranquility is very important. ... Just sit there. Just be yourself. The most suffering of human beings is that you can not be yourself. Is that right? You are looking for a love but you can not love yourself. You want somebody else to love you but you can't love yourself. You want somebody to pay attention to you but you can not pay attention to you. That is the most suffering of humans. 

So, go back (to yourself) and be relaxed. Be relaxed in the body. Be tranquil in the mind. We have this quality. And actually this is the factor, the energy very straight into enlightenment. Actually you have enlightened. You are the Buddha to be. I hope that everybody can be a Buddha because as human beings we create a lot of sufferings. But when you become a Buddha, you are radiating the energy of relaxing and tranquility. Your mind becomes more clear. That means your perception is more clear and more direct.

(from  54:13)
When you come to the place of perception, we color a lot. Because the bottom of perception is the mind. On top of the perception is the person. So, we color the person with our own mind. Whether we like or we don't like is very projective, very subjective. So, that's why the tranquility of the mind, relaxing the body is very important. 
:Unquote

(To be continued)

(My commentary)
We must keep the following phrases in mind because it is very important and very true.

"You like or dislike, is very projective. It's not because of him or her. It's the manifestation of our mind."
"So, we color the person with our own mind. Whether we like or we don't like is very projective, very subjective."

The above phrases mean that we see our mind, namely ourselves in the other person. So, the way we see depends on the way we think. If we blame the other person, we are actually blaming ourselves.

(Cf.) http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/3-versions-of-oneself

Friday, December 16, 2016

The 7 Factors of Awakening (2)

Listen deeply to the following Dharma talk on The 7 Factors of Awakening by Thay Phap Dang. http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
The followings are excerpts from the podcast.

Quote:
(from 16:00)
So, if we are practicing mindfulness, we are on the right track. Nothing to be confused. Nothing to be worried about. Sometimes we have learned this very important practice (mindfulness) from Thay and from the Buddha, but for a while we begin to feel like we are not trust, we are not confident in our practice. Because the way Thay makes the practice is so simple. And we thought that it (mindfulness) doesn't work. Something simple, it doesn't work. Something sophisticated, something mystic, it will work because the enlightenment is something high. So, that is a trick that we easily fall into a trap of doubt (maybe this doesn't work for me). Exactly like what I did when I was at a monastic after 4 years. 

(from 17:18)
And mindfulness, anybody knows mindfulness and you already practice mindfulness, it's also like an enlightenment, not an idea. It's not a notion. It's not a thought. Mindfulness is the energy you can do it, you can generate. Mindfulness is the spiritual energy that we like with it. You can define as the clear awareness that you can see, you can hear, you can feel. And you can really touch this energy. So, this is the right teaching, right practice of the Buddha who passed on his disciples and now it comes to us. So, I'd like to share with you like this, so that you would have faith in your own practice

(from 18:27) Mindfulness is defined as body and mind come together. One breath, breathing-in, and if we are aware of the in-breath from the beginning to the end, that is mindfulness. You know it. You can feel the energy. And mindfulness is not just the breathing, the way of breathing. Mindfulness is also to see the flower. You see the flower. That's exactly like that. That's mindfulness. You feel the wind resting your body. And that feeling that (?) of the refreshing of the wind. That is also mindfulness. And you walk in the nature. You feel the sunshine on your face, your shoulder.That is also mindfulness. It's the spiritual energy. It's very clear in our mind. It's a clear awareness. It's the essence of the Buddha. People talk about the Buddha nature. But this is the real Buddha nature. You can touch it. It's not a thought. ... 

Mindfulness is something that the Buddha really did almost every day and his monks were practicing every day. The steps feel the earth. That is mindfulness. So, mindfulness sometimes does not come from the head (brain). Mindfulness comes from the bodyYou know, more like you feel it, you touch it, experience it. Not above for sure. So, actually thinking about mindfulness, is not mindfulness.

(from 21:05)
That's why there is a state of Dhyana, the second state of Dhyana. There is no thinking. I said thinking is confusing. Thinking is taking us away from life. We are sitting there, thinking a lot of things. And the flower right in front of us, we don't see it. 

(from 25:10)
So, mindfulness is that mind goes back to the body and stays in the present moment. Mindfulness is that you do whatever you have to feel it. It sounds simple but it takes a lot of training because our mind likes to do many things at a time. Multi-tasking. Our mind likes to run away into the distant, into the past, into the future. Our mind is very good at thinking and planning. And the Buddha said that our mind is like a white horse running and running. 

(from 26:55)
The Buddha said the horse is like our mind. Training mindfulness is actually the training of mind to come to play of stopping, stop running, stop even thinking. It's nothing wrong with thinking. But we think too much. Most of thinking is not productive. And most of our thinking is very negative. It has a lot of anxiety and fear in it. A worry.

So, mindfulness is just to be. Just do one thing at a time. ... Really just to be. Because our mind is very crazy. So, just to be is a training, not easy at all. Training a horse, the horse within, is mindfulness.

(from 34:28
The second enlightenment factor is the investigation of the Dharma. So, the Buddha was very clear in defining enlightenment. The first is mindfulness, to come back to oneself to be in the present moment. The body and mind come together. So, without mindfulness, no enlightenment. O.K.? For sure. So, moment to moment awareness. Mindfulness is real enlightenment. Real life!
:Unquote

(To be continued)

(My commentary)
Mindfulness is to stop thinking. When we concentrate on our action (intransitive action such as breathing and walking is the best to stop thinking because the objective, or the object of mind is not required.), we can stop thinking and awareness automatically revives upon non-thinking. Then we (awareness) can touch the wonders of life and the true nature of reality inside and around us. So, we can attain insight and generate love and compassion anytime. As a result, our mind is always calm and clear, which brings about peace, joy and happiness. However, this stage is still the temporary enlightenment, not the full enlightenment through the extinction of all notions.

In order to be mindful by stopping thinking, we need to understand the root cause of our fear and insecurity through insight. That's because we can't stop thinking unless we understand the root cause. And I understand that conscious breathing or walking is helpful for stopping thinking temporarily and attaining insight of the root cause of suffering as a supplemental method. But conscious breathing or walking is not so easy for those who have fear and insecurity. That's because it's very difficult for them stop thinking even during conscious breathing or walking.

(Cf.) http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/walking-meditation-62204227
Thích Nhất Hạnh

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

The 7 Factors of Awakening (1)

Listen deeply to the following Dharma talk on The 7 Factors of Awakening by Thay Phap Dang. http://deerpark.libsyn.com/2016-12-04-br-phap-dang-the-7-factors-of-awakening
The followings are excerpts from the podcast.

Quote:
(from 9:18)
I thought maybe Plum Village practice doesn't work for me. ... After 4 years as a (novice) monk, I became a young bhikkhu (fully ordained Buddhist monk). I went to Thay's room and said, "Thay, I would like to leave you. I would like to leave the monastery and leave you. I want to go to Dalai Lama to learn the different practice. Because after 4 years, I don't find anymore peace. At the beginning I do had a lot of peace, joy and happiness. ... But now I feel very exhausted and very sick with my body. I want to go. Maybe your way of practice doesn't work for me. I need something like mantra in a something more complicated, more mystic than this breathing in-and-out and walking meditation." (lol)

And you know what Thay said? "Can you do the mindful breathing from the beginning to the end at the sitting?" I said, "No, I can't do that." "Can you do the mindful step? Can you really feel the earth from the beginning of the walk to the end of the walk?" (Usually we have about 45 minutes (of walking meditation) in Plum Village.) And I said, "No, I can't do that." And he (Thay) said, "You have to stay." (lol) That means that he doesn't give me the permission to go. And it's true because I hadn't trained yet. I had not been training fully this simple practice yet. And I already wanted to go because I was confused. I faced a lot of sufferings in me and I was running away from my sufferings. I had been running away from my own sufferings, thinking I need to go to the different traditions to learn more sophisticated way of the practice, mystic mantra, tantric (tantra).

(from 11:55)
Now after 27 years as a monk, I always ask a question to myself, not "who I am", but "What am I doing?" "What am I doing right now?" And that question brings me back right into, you know, the basic practice. "What am I doing here?" And "What am I doing for my life in the monastery?" So, it brings me back right away to the basic practice; breathing in, breathing out, walking meditation, eating meditation

My mind kept wandering. ... Sometimes searching for enlightenment. My aspiration to become a monk was to become a Buddha. ... Because I wanted to become a Buddha, I wanted to get an enlightenment. So, that tendency of "who I am", you know what is the purpose in life as a human being, is to become a fully enlightened Buddha, which was very deep in me. It doesn't help at all in my daily practice. 

But it is very deep anxiety (that is) running, looking for the state of mind where identified that I'm completely enlightened. But it's nonsense. It doesn't work that way for sure. Because I know now that enlightenment is not the state of mind. Enlightenment is not ideas. Enlightenment is not that you go deep inside, searching inside. No. 

Enlightenment is a daily moment to moment practice. And what are we practicing? The practice of mindfulness. That's why mindfulness is the first factor of enlightenment. You know the Buddha spoke about enlightenment in seven factors, seven characteristics of enlightenment. Very concrete, very clear. And the first one is mindfulness.
:Unquote

(To be continued)

(My commentary)
I understand that Thay Phap Dang is fully enlightened (one of several fully enlightened persons in the Plum Village tradition). He is very open and frank to have shared his very concrete experience before his full enlightenment. His method to be mindful was to bring him back right away to the basic practice by asking "What am I doing?". And he seems to have attained the full enlightenment through his daily moment to moment practice of breathing in-and-out or walking meditation. I want to ask him, "Is that all?" Because I understand that it's not so easy to remove the deep anxiety. My guess is that he must have understood the root cause of his very deep anxiety during the basic practice. That's because unconditional self-acceptance, or self-love is essential to remove the deep fear and anxiety. By the way, my self-inquiry method of asking "Who am I?", was very successful as below.

(Cf.) http://www.slideshare.net/compassion5151/3-versions-of-oneself


Thích Nhất Hạnh and Thay Phap Dang