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Dalam sesi tanya jawab ini, Ajahn Sona membahas berbagai pertanyaan seputar praktik Buddhis, mulai dari melamun, meditasi, anatta, cinta kasih, hingga pandangan tentang alam semesta. Ia membedakan melamun yang tidak terkendali dari imajinasi yang disengaja dan bermanfaat, seperti dalam praktik metta, serta menekankan dampak melamun terhadap kehadiran dan kemajuan spiritual. Untuk pemula yang sulit duduk diam, ia menyarankan memulai meditasi pernapasan dengan menghitung lima hembusan napas dan secara bertahap menambah durasi, sambil mengakui bahwa meditasi napas itu sulit tetapi bermanfaat. Ia juga berbagi pengalaman pribadi tentang berjalan tanpa alas kaki sebagai bhikkhu, termasuk tantangan dan kerusakan kaki, serta membahas pandangan Buddhis tentang hewan, kapasitas indra mereka, dan pentingnya belas kasih tanpa syarat. Mengenai anatta, ia menjelaskan bahwa ini adalah pemahaman yang menghilangkan ilusi diri, berbeda dengan istilah samar 'kesadaran yang diperluas', dan menggambarkannya sebagai perubahan perspektif yang mendasar. Untuk integrasi objek meditasi, ia merekomendasikan latihan terpisah untuk napas, cinta kasih, dan keseimbangan batin, serta menyarankan kontemplasi 32 bagian tubuh dan empat elemen sebagai latihan tambahan. Ia menekankan bahwa metta diberikan tanpa syarat, tanpa memandang moralitas, dan menjelaskan cara kerja pikiran Arahant, termasuk ketidakmampuan berbuat jahat dan kebebasan dari akibat kamma. Dalam hal disiplin meditasi, ia menekankan pentingnya ketekunan dalam memilih satu objek meditasi, menggunakan analogi latihan piano, serta memberikan nasihat tentang meditasi berjalan dengan kesadaran panoramik (sampajañña). Mengenai kritik diri, ia menjelaskan bahwa kritik diri yang sehat harus dilakukan dengan kasih sayang, seperti seorang ibu yang mengoreksi anaknya, bukan dengan kekerasan yang menyebabkan depresi. Ia juga menegaskan bahwa semua kondisi, termasuk alam surgawi seperti Vaikuntha atau Goloka, adalah tidak kekal, dan hanya Nibbana yang merupakan keamanan sejati. Terakhir, ia menjelaskan lima kemampuan spiritual (keyakinan, energi, perhatian, konsentrasi, kebijaksanaan) dan pentingnya mengembangkan semuanya secara seimbang, serta menjawab pertanyaan tentang sukha dalam jhana. Pesan utama dari ceramah ini adalah pentingnya praktik yang seimbang, disiplin, dan penuh kasih sayang dalam perjalanan spiritual, serta pemahaman mendalam tentang ketidakkekalan dan bukan-diri.
I'm Ajahn Sona. Welcome to our Q&A from Birken Forest Monastery.
Feel free to submit a question and I will attempt to answer it.
Let's have the first question.
Yes, Ajahn. The first question is from the chat from Amin from Calgary.
Dear Ajahn, what is daydreaming in its nature and how does it impede one's progress?
Can fantasizing about a wholesome act, for example, a conversation about Dhamma with someone, also have an impeding effect?
Well, daydreaming, there's daydreaming and then there's imagination.
Daydreaming is imagination, but usually it's an impression.
It's an impediment when it's happening on a regular basis without control.
I think a lot of bright people begin to daydream at school.
If they can handle the teaching, they're trapped in a classroom, even as kids,
and they are...
not totally consumed.
Their interest is not consumed by the teaching.
They stare out the window and they remember and they dream and they fantasize.
They learn how to, you know, fantasize in order to prevent boredom.
But it becomes habitual.
And
it's a nuisance.
It becomes annoying after a while because you're not present.
You're not present anymore.
You're always somewhere else.
So, this is not satisfactory.
And also, you begin to drift away in the middle of listening to teachings and so forth
that you should be paying attention to instructions given at work or in university or classrooms.
Even in relationships, you're fantasizing and daydreaming.
And you're...
your significant other is attempting to communicate with you.
And you are somewhere else.
So, this is not satisfactory.
And...
But there is no teaching, really.
Sometimes people say, oh, stop daydreaming, you know.
Pay attention.
But there really isn't, you know, systematic training of how to...
or even advice that daydreaming is a bit of a waste of time.
So, that's what one discovers actually going to Buddhist meditation retreats.
One discovers how frequent daydreaming is
and how helpless you are in being taken, you know, kidnapped in a sense.
You're being kidnapped and find yourself in some other place continuously,
which is called daydreaming.
So, this is not satisfactory.
Not a good situation.
It's really an interesting...
It's an interesting experience to systematically interrupt
and not go with the daydream.
Not go with the dreamy memories or the imaginary playgrounds and so forth.
And it's...
You run up smack dab into your habitual nature.
So, this is a retraining of the mind.
And that's what all it is, is retraining of the mind.
Do an extended long retreat
and you will be very present and aware.
Also, the more you meditate,
especially if you do long deep retreat meditations,
you will suddenly realize that people are daydreaming
even more or less in the intervals between sentences.
When you're in a conversation with them, they're drifting away.
Their eyes flick up to the side.
They have disconnected thought patterns.
This is not...
You're not aware of this
when you are also having these disconnected thought patterns.
But the more you meditate,
the more you're present, fully there,
you realize that people are dreaming,
walking around in a dream all the time, you know?
So, yeah, one should do something about this.
However, is there something productive
where you imagine a situation where...
Yes, you can...
You can do productive imaginary exercises.
Loving-kindness.
You can imagine being in a situation
where people are criticizing you
or misbehaving or even threatening you
and you're maintaining your loving-kindness.
So that's a rehearsal of Dhamma.
So that's systematic
and you're aware that you're doing it
and you can practice in that way.
Loving-kindness.
Whereas metta,
friendliness for all beings,
concern and friendliness for all beings,
is a systematic meditation
using imagination and memory.
So you try to delve into your memory
of moments when you had the experience,
the feeling of friendliness
and then you try to expand it.
But usually you search in your memory
for the feeling of it.
A situation where, you know,
you're visiting your grandparents
or you get a new puppy or something like this.
So you use this memory
and you then turn it into imagination
and expand it.
So it's a deliberate exercise
in memory and imagination.
But it's not just drifting.
So those are the two kind of...
One is pernicious,
random, drifting daydreams.
The other one is useful,
beneficial imagination and memory
to cultivate the divine abidings
of loving-kindness,
of compassion,
of sympathetic joy
and of equanimity.
So that's the difference.
The next question,
which might tie into that answer a little bit,
is from HDTISI
from Bristol, United Kingdom.
Dear Ajahn,
A friend wants to learn meditation
but has tried guided breath meditation
and is unable to sit still
for more than a few minutes
so may give up.
Any advice?
What can I suggest?
Well, you can start...
And this is fragmented attention.
And lots of people have ants in their pants.
They wouldn't even begin to try even.
The idea of watching your breath
is scary for them.
So don't ask them to sit there
for half an hour or an hour
or anything like that.
Ask them, say,
let's do it for one minute.
Can you count two...
Let's say,
can you count five exhalations?
That's all.
See if they can manage five exhalations.
Now, you ask them to do five exhalations
for five days.
Just once a day for five days.
Then ask them to do five exhalations
twice a day for five days.
Counting them without losing your place.
Then ten exhalations.
Counting.
One on the exhalation.
Two...
You don't need to count the inhalation.
We don't speak on inhalation.
We speak on exhalation.
So it's more natural
to just count the exhalations.
So this is one of the...
This is a commentarial trick, actually,
for helping people
to establish themselves
with breath meditation.
But do remember,
breath meditation
is a very, very difficult meditation.
Those who are
practicing breath meditation
should feel a little bit
relaxed about the fact
that it's very difficult
to actually maintain
your attention on breath.
You can be gone
for lengthy periods of time.
And you might think,
oh, it's just me.
Everybody else is paying attention.
No, it's not just you.
It's a very, very high demand
on attention.
It's unnatural.
And that's why the Buddha chooses it.
The breath is a neutral object.
It's neither pleasant nor unpleasant.
And it's something
that we don't pay attention to
because we don't have
to pay attention to it.
It goes on without
being conscious of it.
And so he uses it
because it's portable
and it's with you all the time
until your last breath.
So if you practice with it,
it's a marvelous tool
for increasing your presence,
your groundedness,
your lucidity,
your clarity,
your mindfulness,
all of these things.
But be aware that it's a very,
very high demand exercise.
And it is an exercise.
But it has great rewards as well.
It can be very, very difficult,
very trying,
something you don't want to do,
et cetera,
like a lot of exercises.
But it has great benefits in the end.
But with your friend,
just start them with something
they can do.
Count five out breaths.
And then tomorrow,
count five out breaths.
And then do it twice,
once in the morning,
once in the evening.
Then build it up to 10.
And maybe when they can get to 30,
if they can count to 30,
then ask them,
now stop counting
and see if you can just stay
experiencing the breath.
And give yourself
a 10-minute session.
And if you drift away,
that's fine.
Well, to be expected,
of course,
you're going to drift away.
You're not looking for perfection.
You're not looking
You're looking to try
to begin to change your mind.
So that's the approach.
The next question is from
Deuce Tex Max.
Dear Ajahn,
what has been your experience
walking barefoot?
Have you noticed any unexpected
benefits over the years?
Well, barefoot is our natural condition,
but there's a lot of imaginary benefits
that don't occur.
If you're a monk in Asia,
you have to go barefoot.
And you have to go barefoot
on gravel roads
and through dirt
and sometimes broken glass
and all kinds of things.
You start to develop
heavy calluses on your feet.
And what happens is,
the calluses get so great
that your feet crack
and the skin can't heal
because the calluses are too great.
So you learn a lot about
what it is to live barefoot
as a monk.
And it's more or less
a whole learning process
about how to maintain your feet
so they don't become
permanently cracked
and bleeding and so forth.
So it's not glamorous.
You end up with feet
like a hoof of an animal almost.
Eventually you can walk on anything.
You're walking on sharp gravel
with these heavy calluses.
You don't feel it anymore.
But I don't know whether it's that good.
My feet,
the soles of my feet
from having walked barefoot
for years in these situations
have areas of...
loss of feeling.
Nerves have been lost
and so forth.
I don't want to romanticize
going barefoot.
It's the way it was
at a certain time in history.
People didn't have shoes.
Shoes were hard to come by.
Leather eventually...
There was an area of...
In the time of the Buddha,
he laid down rules.
Monks must go barefoot
on their alms round in villages.
In the monastery,
they can wear sandals.
But then monks went north
into rougher areas,
higher elevations,
harsh, rocky areas.
And they were having a lot of trouble
with their feet.
And one of them asked permission,
showed the Buddha his bleeding feet
and said, you know,
is it possible
that I could wear a sandal?
And the Buddha allowed.
I allow monks the wearing
of one strip of leather sandal.
And then the sandal,
the one strip,
wore out very quickly.
And so he allowed two layers,
then three, then four layers.
So this is the proper way
to contextualize this.
Simply the act of going barefoot
is just not just 100%
a great idea.
It depends on the environment,
it's lovely to walk on the beach
barefoot sometimes,
on grass barefoot sometimes,
on just nice dirt sometimes.
A walk around the house barefoot,
very nice.
But look at the feet of villagers
who live barefoot.
It can be very damaging as well.
The next question is from Tandon
from Washington, New York.
From Washington, United States.
Will you expound a bit about animals?
I've practiced as a layperson
for 30 years in both the Tibetan
and Theravadan traditions.
As a farmer and growing up,
I have had a life of relationships
with birds, horses, dogs, goats,
sheep and cattle,
as well as having cougars
and bears in my environment.
I can't accept that they are
of a lower realm.
Their perceptions and senses
are very keen in my experience.
Yes.
Well, here at the monastery
we're also surrounded by animals
continuously.
The day before yesterday
there was a bear on the property.
So we all got a notice,
there's a bear on the property.
Watch out, big black bear.
Moose, deer,
range cattle,
all kinds of birds, etc.
So we're in interaction
with them all the time.
And they have exquisite senses,
far exceeding human capacities.
Their sense of smell sometimes,
their sense of hearing.
Some of the birds, like the eagles,
have incredible vision possibilities.
They have intuitions,
intuitive senses about location
and so forth.
But they don't have
a moral sense.
They don't have reasoning processes.
So they can't stand outside themselves
or reflect on things like that.
So that's kind of what humans
have developed this capacity,
which in some cases is a curse.
Humans' development
of the mind is also
prone to agonizing
indecisions,
learning ideas that are wrong, etc.
So that's really what we're getting at.
Of course, the Buddha,
from a Buddhist point of view,
we have been animals.
So that's why Buddhism
never had much of a difficulty
with the theory of evolution.
From the theory of evolution,
we are animals.
Humans are animals.
We evolve out of early forms of life.
We evolve through
humanoid kind of systems.
And we can see things
that are very closely related to humans.
The apes and monkeys and so forth
share much of the genetic structure.
So we also practice compassion
because they also fear violence
and injury to themselves and death.
And they also display reactivity
to non-threats.
You can see all the domestic animals
we have respond to kindness,
and they become very attached
to their owners and so forth.
So Buddhism has this attitude
that all beings should be
treated with kindness
or at least not harmed.
But we recognize there is
a scale of consciousness,
that the animals have
some advanced capacities
with their senses,
but not with
reflective capacity,
as far as we know.
Some of them are mysterious.
What do dolphins think?
What are elephants thinking?
Obviously we see with elephants,
dolphins,
some of the higher animals,
quite amazing capacities.
So we don't know
quite their capacity.
And what we also see is that
some humans are missing
some elements of mental capacity as well.
They are unable to think properly
or they are devoid of certain feelings
and affects.
So yeah, it's quite a mixture.
But generally it appears
the organizational capacities,
the capacity to communicate
and cooperate
is very sophisticated in humans.
To have abstract ideas,
the use of very,
the creation of very complex tools,
and ethical systems
are the mark of the
development of the mind, yes.
The next question from the chat
is from Mudita.
Dear Ajahn,
I enjoy caring for all the animals
I care for.
However, my challenge is with
the owners and people.
Is it time to let go?
Well, it's always time to let go.
We shouldn't be clinging
and holding on to anything.
It makes, you know,
when we're,
when we're irritated
and frustrated with the way people
relate to animals
or treat animals,
we suffer.
And this kind of problem
of humans and animal interaction
is age old
and will continue
into the long into the future.
So,
so we have to
not indulge in these negative emotions
It doesn't help the animal,
doesn't help the people,
and it doesn't help us
if we're frustrated
and even saddened
or disappointed in people
because they're not
dealing with animals properly,
they're not compassionate, etc.
So,
we can do what we will
in order to improve animal welfare
or make people understand
the relationship to animals.
But we,
there's no need for us to do
it with negative emotion
because that only injures ourselves.
So, we do it with goodwill.
We do it with goodwill
towards ourselves,
towards the animals,
and towards the other people
who are not,
not very understanding
of the proper relationship
to the other animals.
The next question from the chat
is from Monica.
Is expanded conscious awareness
similar to the experience
of Anatta?
Well,
the,
no, not necessarily.
I mean, first of all,
expanded consciousness awareness
is such an indefinite kind of term
that we don't really know
what is meant by it.
Anatta means no self
or not self,
that we don't find
a substantial self.
So,
that,
first of all,
is an idea
and it can become an experience.
Where,
it is an,
it is an idea to begin with.
We,
we don't have a self.
We never had a self
to begin with.
So,
when we
overcome the idea,
what we're doing is
overcoming an illusion
or a delusion.
It's like discovering
you're adopted,
you know, like,
you,
you thought
you were the child
of so and so
and then you're
15 years old
or 20 years old
and you find out that
those aren't your parents.
Is that similar to expanded
consciousness awareness
or,
I don't know.
It,
suddenly,
a whole belief system
evaporates.
You were,
you were under the
illusion,
the mistaken illusion
that you were
their child
and now it turns out
you,
you were,
you are the child
of other parents.
These people aren't
your parents.
Isn't that interesting?
All kinds,
we can find out
all kinds of
mysterious things
we believed
and they turn out
to be false.
So,
this is,
this is the nature
of this understanding
of anatta.
It's people
understanding that
the world is,
is round
and suspended
in space
rather than flat.
Sitting on a
back of a turtle
or something.
This is,
this can be a shocking
re,
perspective
on reality.
So,
this is what it is.
And I suppose
it changes
your consciousness.
It changes
your perspective.
But,
what,
we can't say
too much about
expanded consciousness
awareness
because it's just too vague.
The terms are too vague.
Yeah.
The next question
from the chat
is from Eric
in Red Deer,
Alberta,
Canada.
Dear Ajahn,
as daily practice
develops,
breath,
body scanning
and metta
and upeka
integrate organically.
Should I trust
this
or intentionally
emphasize
one meditation
object
or a particular
sequencing?
Well,
breath
is
a
very
central
meditation
subject
for Buddhism.
It is
the subject
that the Buddha
used himself,
breath
awareness.
And,
but,
you know,
whether you're
doing it
the correct
way,
in a way
that's very useful
to you
is another thing.
Then you talk
about body scanning.
That body
scanning
is a particular
kind of
idea
of
in certain
Vipassana schools.
Generally speaking,
it is not,
you don't find
specific instructions
about
scanning
the body
from
the soles
of the feet
to the head,
et cetera,
as an
exercise
in
sensations.
It's
a
specialized
technique
from
some of the
Burmese
Vipassana schools.
It's used
in the Goenka
schools as well.
But it's
you do
find
instructions
to
you know,
kind of
imagine
the body
or
see
the body
from the soles
of the feet
to the
hairs
on your
head.
Is body
meditation
not,
it's
nothing
to do
with
sensations.
It's
to do
with
the reality
of the body,
it's
to give you
detachment
from the body,
to see the body.
They talk
about
divided into
32 parts,
head hair,
body hair,
nails,
teeth,
skin,
flesh,
fluids,
bones,
bone marrow,
all of these
things,
intestines,
blood,
all of these
things
to get
real
about the
body.
But that's
not
a specific
technique
that
you just
basically
don't find
in the
compendium
of meditation
subjects
in the
suttas.
So I'm
setting that
one aside.
I don't
teach that,
etc.
I don't
practice that
one.
So breath
meditation,
yes.
Reflection
on the
body,
yes.
And you
can do
32 parts
of the
body,
or the
four elements
of the
body,
the
fluids,
the
heat,
fluids,
solids,
and air.
You can
turn the
body
into
these
basic
elements.
These are
specifically
mentioned
in the
suttas.
And then
equanimity,
loving kindness
and equanimity,
yes,
they're
quite
natural.
They need
to be
practiced
specifically.
They are
single
topic
practices.
So you
focus on
loving kindness,
develop it,
concentrate it,
and do it
frequently
and deeply.
The instructions
for the
development
of loving
kindness
are very,
very heavy
on the
practice
a lot of
time
practicing.
It's like
learning to
play classical
piano.
You spend
hours in
the
practice
room.
If you
want to
play
music,
good
music,
you're
going to
have to
spend
hours in
the
practice
room.
If you
want to
generate
loving
kindness,
you want
to be
good at
this loving
kindness,
if you
want to
make it
an essential
part of
your
personality,
you're
going to
have to
spend a
lot of
time doing
it.
And also
with
equanimity.
So there's
three different
specific
exercises.
Breath
meditation
for
developing
clarity,
concentration
and mindfulness
and serenity.
Loving
kindness
for
developing
the
sublime
warmth
of
loving
kindness.
Equanimity
for the
sublime
coolness
of
philosophical
detachment.
And
if you
want to
then I
recommend
32 parts
of the
body.
Dividing
the body
into 32
parts,
you'll
find
instruction
for this
easily.
And also
the four
element
meditation
on the
body
as well.
The next
question is
from TV
from Finland.
When we
give loving
kindness
to ourselves
and others,
how do we
know what
to choose
to make
effort
towards in
a corrupt
lay world
versus
self-liberation?
Well,
loving
kindness
towards the
so-called
corrupt
lay world
has nothing
to do
with whether
they're
corrupt or
not.
It's
without
any
conditions
attached.
So it's
not loving
kindness
if you're
having difficulty
because they're
corrupt and
problematic.
It's
you don't
have any
when you
radiate
loving
kindness
for
beings,
you're
not asking
whether
they're
pure
or
corrupt,
whether
they're
large,
because
conditions,
no strings
attached,
you're
just radiating
loving kindness
towards them
without strings
attached.
And you also
do this to
yourself
without
strings
attached.
You have
failings,
you have
good points,
you have
bad points,
but that's
not what
you take
into
consideration
when you
do loving
kindness
for yourself.
It's simply
the pure
radiation of
goodwill
towards yourself
and the
pure
radiation of
goodwill,
friendliness,
and the
wish for
well-being
for all
beings.
And you're
not concerned
about their
moral
condition,
whether
they deserve
it or
not.
It's
not whether
they deserve
it.
It's the
fact that
you will
give yourself
the gift
of the
beautiful
experience
of loving
kindness.
And
don't
interfere
with it
by asking
whether
people
deserve
it.
So that's
how you
deal with
it.
So you
can
radiate
it
to the
The next
question from
the chat
is from
Christian.
Dear
Ajahn,
with
Sakya Ditti
eradicated,
how does
Chaitanya
operate in
an
Arahant's
Kyriachitta
to select
actions
without
breaking
upayika?
Well,
Sakya
Ditti
is
view
of self
and that
falls away
actually at
stream entry,
the first
stage of
enlightenment.
A fixed
view of
a solid
self is
relinquished.
This is
what makes
you
a
first
stage of
enlightenment.
You
have
kind of
seen
through
the
fiction
of
a
fixed
self.
It
is,
but there
are still
things
remaining
that
need to
be overcome.
And so
you also
mentioned
this
Arahant
and
this
Chaitanya.
So,
Arahant
is the
fourth
stage of
enlightenment,
fully
delivered
from
any
trace
of the
sense of
self.
And
so
Sakya
Ditti,
this
first
sense
of
view
of
self
has
been
overcome,
but there's
still
traces
left.
And
that's
only
overcome
by the
Arahant
in
the
fourth
stage.
What's
called
ignorance.
One of the
fetters
is ignorance,
and that
is finally
overcome by
the
fourth
stage of
enlightenment.
And
then what
is the
mental
processes
of this
Arahant?
How
do they
make
decisions
and
how
does it
not
affect
their
equanimity?
Well,
they're
not always
in
equanimity.
Equanimity
is one
mental
state.
It is
the
seventh
factor
of
the
seven
factors
of
enlightenment.
And
there are
basically
two
kinds
of
equanimity.
One is
the
Christian
uses
the
word
upeka.
Upeka
means
equanimity
or
beautifully
balanced
mind,
a very
balanced
mind.
There's
two kinds
of
that.
One
is
in
conscious
interaction
with
the
world.
You
remain
balanced
in
the
midst
of
praise
and
blame,
success
and
failure,
good
fortune
and
bad
fortune.
This
kind
of
situation,
fluid
situation
in
the
world,
you're
in
concentration
states,
is
pervaded
by
equanimity.
That
equanimity
is
primarily
a
manifestation
of
stillness,
exquisite
stillness.
There's
no
activity
of
the
brain,
the
mind
or
the
body.
This
is
accessible
for the
arahant and
they maintain
these things,
but they
also can
swing into
the
condition
of
joy
or
serenity.
They
can
reflect
and
they
do
intentionally
good
actions
as
well.
They
teach,
and
their
intention,
what is
the
intention
that they
have is
said to
be
without
results.
So,
they have
gone
beyond
good and
evil.
It means
that they
have
gone
beyond
having
the
fruits
of
good
actions
because
they
have no
future
lives.
They are
at the
end of
the
rebirth
cycle.
So,
although
they do
good,
they
do
beautiful
good
things,
they
will
not
experience
the
fruits
of
those
actions.
Because
there is,
they will
not be
reborn
into
samsara
and
experience
those.
And they
will not
experience
bad
things because
they don't
do any
bad
things.
They're
incapable,
not only
do they
not do
evil,
they
cannot
do
evil.
So,
that is
roughly
a way of
answering
that question.
The next
question from
the chat
is from
Brendan
Breathes.
During a
meditation,
is it
good to
use
only a
single
focus
or
technique,
or is
it advisable
to change
on the
fly
based on
the
feeling
tone?
Or could
this represent
a kind
of agitation
of the
mind?
Again,
it's kind
of like
practicing
the piano,
you know.
You might
want to
just get
on to
playing
some
Mozart
or
Beethoven,
but you
don't have
the finger
capacity.
So,
you're
going to
have to
spend
some hours
just doing
scales.
And you
can't just
bypass
that,
otherwise
you'll
always
play
badly.
So,
you do
have to
do
these
technical
exercises.
Watching
the
breath
and so
forth
increases
your
clarity
and capacity.
And it may
not be
fun.
It can
even be
some suffering
that leads
to the
end of
suffering
in some
of these
exercises.
You're
bored and
restless,
but you
decide,
well,
I have
to meditate.
I can't
just follow
my
restlessness.
I can't
just distract
myself.
You decide,
okay,
ahead of
time,
I don't
care what
kind of
state I'm
in,
I'm
going to
do just
breath
meditation
for the
next
45
minutes
or an
hour.
And I
don't
care if
I feel
restless
or
anxious
or
whatever.
I am
going to
persist
with this.
And then
now you
can decide,
okay,
in the
afternoon,
what I'm
going to
do is
just loving
kindness.
I'm
going to
see if
I can
establish
myself
in
goodwill
and
friendliness
and see
if I can
maintain
that
through
the
afternoon.
So these
are all
positive
exercises
that you
can do.
But you
don't have
to just
abandon
a
meditation
determination
whimsically
because
you're
not
feeling
it.
So sometimes
you have
to just
persist
even
though
you're
not
producing
any good
fruit.
You might
have to go
to loving
kindness
because
it will
settle
you in
order that
you can
do
breath
meditation,
et cetera.
So you
have to
have some
wisdom
and
compassion
but also
discipline
as well.
Next question
from the chat
is from
Joni.
Dear Ajahn,
I have
been doing
walking meditation
on a trail
and need
to watch
the ground
a few inches
in front of my
feet.
I am
distracted
by all
the branches
and leaves.
How do I
refocus
with these
distractions?
Well,
you don't
have to
actually
watch
every
inch
of your
foot
in front
of your
feet.
You don't
you
were
plowing
a
field.
So a
farmer
plows
a
field
with
these
wooden
plows,
you know,
with
an ox
pulling
a wooden
plow.
And they
just keep
their eye
on the
point of
the plow
so they
know where
it's going.
And they're
not distracted
by the
neighbors
or the
birds
in the
sky,
etc.
They're
watching
in front
of them.
So you
don't
have to
watch
two inches
in front
of your
foot.
You're
watching
six feet
in front
of you.
Of course
you don't
want to
walk into
a branch
or a
tree.
It's
normal.
They have
a term
for
this,
sampajanya.
Mindfulness
is
sati
and
panoramic
awareness,
comprehension,
appropriate
awareness.
And this
is the
instruction
for the
monk
when they
go on
alms round
in the
village.
They're
to make
sure that
their
robes
are all
put on
properly.
Then they
are to
attend
mindfully,
not
getting
interested
in the
sights
and sounds
and smells
and tastes
and touches
around them.
Not to
drift away
in thought.
So this
is mindfulness.
And
sampajanya,
meaning
they
need to
stay on
the route,
on their
alms round.
They need
to go
up the
right
street
and turn
left at
such and
such a
place.
And not
to be distracted
by the
surroundings.
But they
don't fall
into a
ditch
either by
staring at
the
ground
two inches
in front
of them.
Or walking
off the
trail.
Or walking
into a
branch
or a
wall.
They have
to have
both
things.
Mindfulness
and
clear
comprehension.
In meditation.
Yeah.
The next
question is
from Nessa.
Dear Ajahn,
where does
self-criticism
fall in
the five
hindrances?
Is metta
the best
response?
Yes.
Yes.
So,
the Buddha
has a
little
summary.
As a
mother
protects
her
child,
her
only
child.
A mother
doesn't
indulge
the child.
Because the
mother loves
the child,
they correct
the child.
You know,
the child is
putting,
you know,
messing
their face
up with
food or
dropping
food on
the ground.
They don't
think it's
all right.
They say,
no,
don't
do that,
dear.
The child
picks its
nose.
No,
that's not
nice,
dear.
You don't
do that.
The child
walks out
without any
pants on.
So,
then the
mother makes
sure that
they understand.
You must
wear clothes
in public,
you know.
So,
this kind
of thing.
Don't
make so
much
noise.
Don't shout
now.
You know,
we don't
shout.
We don't
hit.
So,
the mother
is constantly
critiquing
the child
and giving
the child
good advice
how to
improve
their
behavior.
But it's
with loving
kindness.
They're
not angry.
They're
not
disappointed.
They're
kindly,
it's out
of kindness
that they're
seeking to
improve the
quality of
the child's
life.
So,
it's out
of kindness
to yourself
that you're
seeking to
improve the
quality of
your life.
So,
when you
critique
yourself,
you don't
do it
through
harsh
negative
stuff,
making
you sad
and depressed
about your
terrible
faults and
so forth.
This is a
very widespread
practice.
Especially
women
are much
more prone
to this.
But men
do it
as well.
And they
end up being
very depressed
because they're
so disappointed
in themselves.
But that's
the wrong
approach to
the whole
thing.
You can
critique
yourself,
but you
can't
critique
The next
question is
from Stefan.
Dear Ajahn,
how does
Buddhism
understand
timeless
states like
Valikuntha
or Goloka?
Are they
truly
eternal or
are they
still
impermanent?
All states
are
impermanent.
All
conditioned
things
are
impermanent,
including
mental states,
consciousness.
Any form
of consciousness
is impermanent.
So this
is what
the Buddha
apparently
discovered
when his
first
teachers,
after he
left the
palace,
he,
of course,
was wise
enough to
find that
the pleasures
of the
palace,
the dancing,
the drinking,
the romances,
the fun
and games,
the music
and the art
and so forth,
are temporary.
You know,
it was wonderful
yesterday,
now what
will we
do today?
And sometimes
rather shallow
as well.
So he is
looking for
a higher
condition
which
might
overcome
these
limited
happiness,
this limited
joy of
the sensory
world.
So he
studies with
these various
yogis
and he
learns
formless
meditations
that,
you know,
you concentrate
on
space,
on
consciousness,
on
nothingness,
on
neither
perception
or
perception,
you know.
So these
are
abstract
ideas
and
are
which
the
yogis
at the
time
thought
this would
be,
if we
could be
reborn
into
these
bodiless
conditions,
formless
conditions,
that
would be
a safe
place
out of
the
changing
nature
of
samsara,
the
precarious
and dangerous
of everything
is so
precarious
and unpredictable.
Is there
any way
we could be
safe?
So this is
what philosophers
have been
seeking.
Some philosophers
have been
seeking safety
and religion
in a sense
seeks safety.
Is there
a heaven
where we
could go
after,
when we
die,
is there
a heaven
we can
go to
where it's
safe?
So these
are the
things that
the Buddha
attempted
and found
that all
of them
were limited,
that all
of them
have
time
limits
on them.
They're
more or
less
like orbits.
A rocket
goes into
orbit
and the
farther
it goes
out of
the
gravitational
pull
because of
the gravity
eventually
the orbit
will end.
The higher
the orbit
the longer
the orbit.
But eventually
it falls
back into
the gravitational
pull.
So it's
not an
ultimate
answer
to the
where
one is
safe.
So
whatever
that term
that,
can you
repeat
the term
that he
that he
had?
Yes,
it was
valikuntha
or goloka.
Or goloka.
Or,
so two
terms.
Valikuntha
is one.
Goloka.
G-O-L-O-K-A.
Yeah,
well
all of
those
things
are
impermanent.
Any form
of
knowledge
is
from
Tim
from
Maine,
United
States.
As
an
abbot,
he
intelligent,
analytical.
So those
are two
of the
faculties.
The first
faculty is
faith or
confidence.
The ability
to
have a
conviction
in something.
That's the
first,
what is
called
sada.
And then the
last one,
the fifth
one is
intelligent
or wisdom,
panya.
And some
people are
wise,
you know,
they've
thought it
through and
they've
carefully
analyzed it
and so
forth.
And others
are,
they have
these very
devoted convictions.
They don't
know all
of the
fancy stuff,
they haven't
worked it out
that way.
Others,
so then the
next,
the second
faculty is
energy.
So some
people are
very energetic,
lots of
energy.
They're up
early in
the morning,
energized all
day long.
And others
are very
mindful,
they have
a great
capacity
for
meditation.
And so
they have
a
capacity
to enter
into deep
stillness.
And you,
the,
it's not
that hard
to spot
these
personality
types.
All five
of those,
so confident,
it's a
reasoned
conviction.
The first
one is
faith
or
reasoned
conviction.
Conviction
is commitment
to
something.
And so
the first
the
second
one is
the
third
one is
the
fourth
one is
the
fifth
one is
the
sixth
one is
the
seventh
one is
the
eighth
one is
the
seventh
one is
the
eighth
one is
the
seventh
one is
one is
one is
the
seventh
one is
the
eighth
one is
the
seventh
one is
the
seventh
one is
the
seventh
can't remember what's appropriate they keep making the same mistake others are
wise so all five of these have to be developed so this is the five faculties
need to be converted into the five powers so this is a very important
teaching and so that was the teachers job is to to help people who are faith
have lots of faith but not much wisdom to develop their wisdom faculty some
people who are wise or intelligent don't have the the commitment faculty they
don't have the faith faculty so the the teacher will point out how frustrating
it is to just have an endless number of possibilities but never had to act on
any one of them never to commit to any one of them others need to raise their
energy levels
so the the the teacher will give them all kinds of exercises to raise their
energy levels to cultivate their concentration or cultivate their
mindfulness and there are they all interact with each other at these five
faculties interact with each other and then they you need to keep cultivating
them if you're weak in any area you need to develop that area and tell it that
you you have power in all of these you are you have conviction and faith you
have energy you have mindfulness you have
concentration and you have wisdom the next question is from William 42 when
doing breath jhana meditation PT went from being overwhelming to gradually
disappearing leaving a gentle Sukha behind Sukha seems to be staying with me
and while I enjoy it I'm wondering if I should be actively trying to get rid of
it in order to build equanimity instead okay so let's just
okay so let's just
for the audience
explain these terms PT means joy Sukha is usually bodily happiness these are
characteristic of samadhi practice the first jhana this is the first level of
of this concentration faculties of concentration
development
And PT, this joy, is a characteristic of this first jhana, the first jhana level.
Joy. And it can be very strong. It can be little shivers up the spine.
Your hair can even stand on end. You can have little tears come out the side of your eyes.
You know, joy. You see this at a football game.
You'll see that they play the national anthem or your team wins and you get shivers of joy up your spine, right?
Or they stand on the podium and get the medal and then they're weeping out of the side
or their parents are in the audience watching and their tears are streaming outside.
The joy, right? It's not exclusive to spiritual practice.
It happens in worldly situations as well. Joy.
And
the after effect is happiness. You feel happy.
In these worldly experiences, you get joy and then afterglow of happiness.
So it's fine. It's a beautiful thing.
But people aren't in that all the time.
Maybe looking back on it after some time,
the joy and the experience of happiness has faded away
but you feel happy.
You feel very calm and serene and it's a very beautiful experience in retrospect as well.
So that's something that also is a beautiful thing to experience.
They're all beautiful and nothing has to be removed or moved on from necessarily.
There is joy and happiness, which is beautiful.
And then there's equanimity.
They're just different states which are both very laudable, very beautiful,
especially when they're developed from spiritual points of view rather than worldly experiences,
inner experiences that you have control over.
So that's the idea there.
So we will wrap it up for today.
And we will aspire to be back next week with more opportunities for questions and answers.