- Refuge
- An Introduction to the
Buddha, Dhamma, & Sangha
- Thanissaro Bhikkhu (Geoffrey DeGraff)
Copyright © Thanissaro Bhikkhu, 1997
They go to many a refuge,
to mountains, forests,
parks, trees, and shrines:
people threatened with danger.
That's not the secure refuge,
that's not the highest refuge,
that's not the refuge,
having gone to which,
one gains release
from all suffering and stress.
But a person who, having gone for refuge
to the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha,
sees the four Noble Truths
with right discernment --
stress,
the cause of stress,
the transcending of stress,
and the Noble Eightfold Path,
the way to the stilling of stress:
That is the secure refuge,
that is the highest refuge,
that is the refuge,
having gone to which,
one gains release
from all suffering and stress.
-- Dhammapada, 188-192
Abbreviations ![[go to toc]](return-to-text.gif)
A ..... Anguttara Nikaya
Cv ..... Cullavagga
D ..... Digha Nikaya
Dhp ..... Dhammapada
Iti ..... Itivuttaka
M ..... Majjhima Nikaya
Mv ..... Mahavagga
S ..... Samyutta Nikaya
Sn ..... Sutta Nipata
Thig ..... Therigatha
Ud ..... Udana
References to D, M, and Iti are to discourse. References to Dhp are to verse.
References to Mv and Cv are to chapter, section, and sub-section. References to the
remaining texts are to chapter (vagga, nipata, or samyutta) and discourse.
Preface
This book is a short introduction to the basic principles of Buddhism: the Buddha, the
Dhamma (his teachings), and Sangha (the community of his noble disciples), also known as
the Triple Gem or the Triple Refuge. The material is divided into three parts: (I) a pair
of introductory essays on the meaning of refuge and the act of going for refuge; (II) a
series of readings drawn from the earliest Buddhist texts illustrating the essential
qualities of the Triple Gem; and (III) a set of essays explaining aspects of the Triple
Gem that often provoke questions in those who are new to the Buddha's teachings. The
readings on Dhamma form the core of the book and are organized in a pattern -- called a
graduated discourse (anupubbi-katha) -- that the Buddha himself often used when
introducing his teachings to new listeners. After beginning with the joys of generosity,
he would describe the joys of a virtuous life, followed by the rewards of generosity and
virtue to be experienced here and in heaven; the drawbacks of sensual pleasures, even
heavenly ones; and the rewards of renunciation. Then, when he sensed that his listeners
were inclined to look favorably on renunciation as a way to true happiness, he would
discuss the central message of his teaching: the four noble truths.
My hope is that this introduction will help answer many of the questions that newcomers
bring to Buddhism, and will spark new questions in their minds as they contemplate the
possibility of developing within their own lives the qualities of refuge exemplified by
the Triple Gem.
Thanissaro Bhikkhu
I. Introduction
Going for Refuge
The act of going for refuge marks the point where one commits oneself to taking the
Dhamma, or the Buddha's teaching, as the primary guide to the conduct of one's life. To
understand why this commitment is called a "refuge," it is helpful to look at
the history of the custom.
In pre-Buddhist India, going for refuge meant proclaiming one's allegiance to a patron
-- a powerful person or god -- submitting to the patron's directives in hopes of receiving
protection from danger in return. In the early years of the Buddha's teaching career, his
new followers adopted this custom to express their allegiance to the Buddha, Dhamma, and
Sangha, but in the Buddhist context this custom took on a new meaning.
Buddhism is not a theistic religion -- the Buddha is not a god -- and so a person
taking refuge in the Buddhist sense is not asking for the Buddha personally to intervene
to provide protection. Still, the Buddha's teachings center on the realization that human
life is fraught with dangers -- from greed, anger, and delusion -- and so the concept of
refuge is a central part of the path of practice, in that the practice is aimed at gaining
release from those dangers. Because both the dangers and the release from them come
ultimately from the mind, there is a need for two levels of refuge: external refuges,
which provide models and guidelines so that we can identify which qualities in the mind
lead to danger and which to release; and internal refuges, i.e., the qualities leading to
release that we develop in our own mind in imitation of our external models. The internal
level is where true refuge is found.
Although the tradition of going to refuge is an ancient practice, it is still relevant
for our own practice today, for we are faced with the same internal dangers that faced
people in the Buddha's time. We still need the same protection as they. When a Buddhist
takes refuge, it is essentially an act of taking refuge in the doctrine of karma: It is an
act of submission in that one is committed to living in line with the belief that actions
based on skillful intentions lead to happiness, while actions based on unskillful
intentions lead to suffering; it is an act of claiming protection in that one trusts that
by following the teaching one will not fall into the misfortunes that bad karma engenders.
To take refuge in this way ultimately means to take refuge in the quality of our own
intentions, for that's where the essence of karma lies.
The refuges in Buddhism -- both on the internal and on the external levels -- are the
Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha, also known as the Triple Gem. They are called gems both
because they are valuable and because, in ancient times, gems were believed to have
protective powers. The Triple Gem outdoes other gems in this respect because its
protective powers can be put to the test and can lead further than those of any physical
gem, all the way to absolute freedom from the uncertainties of the realm of aging,
illness, and death.
The Buddha, on the external level, refers to Siddhattha Gotama, the Indian prince who
renounced his royal titles and went into the forest, meditating until he ultimately gained
Awakening. To take refuge in the Buddha means, not taking refuge in him as a person, but
taking refuge in the fact of his Awakening: placing trust in the belief that he did awaken
to the truth, that he did so by developing qualities that we too can develop, and that the
truths to which he awoke provide the best perspective for the conduct of our life.
The Dhamma, on the external level, refers to the path of practice the Buddha taught to
his followers. This, in turn, is divided into three levels: the words of his teachings,
the act of putting those teachings into practice, and the attainment of Awakening as the
result of that practice. This three-way division of the word "Dhamma" is
essentially a map showing how to take the external refuges and make them internal:
learning about the teachings, using them to develop the qualities that the Buddha himself
used to attain Awakening, and then realizing the same release from danger that he found in
the quality of Deathlessness that we can touch within.
The word Sangha, on the external level, has two senses: conventional and ideal. In its
ideal sense, the Sangha consists of all people, lay or ordained, who have practiced the
Dhamma to the point of gaining at least a glimpse of the Deathless. In a conventional
sense, Sangha denotes the communities of ordained monks and nuns. The two meanings overlap
but are not necessarily identical. Some members of the ideal Sangha are not ordained; some
monks and nuns have yet to touch the Deathless. All those who take refuge in the Buddha,
Dhamma, and Sangha become members of the Buddha's four-fold assembly (parisa) of
followers: monks, nuns, male lay devotees, and female lay devotees. Although it is widely
believed that all Buddhist followers are members of the Sangha, this is not the case. Only
those who are ordained are members of the conventional Sangha; only those who have
glimpsed the Deathless are members of the ideal Sangha. Nevertheless, those followers who
do not belong to the Sangha in either sense of the word still count as genuine Buddhists
in that they are members of the Buddha's parisa.
When taking refuge in the external Sangha, one takes refuge in both senses of the
Sangha, but the two senses provide different levels of refuge. The conventional Sangha has
helped keep the teaching alive for more than 2,500 years. Without them, we would never
have learned what the Buddha taught. However, not all members of the conventional Sangha
are reliable models of behavior. So when looking for guidance in the conduct of one's
life, one must look to the living or recorded examples provided by the ideal Sangha.
Without their example, we would not know (1) that Awakening is available to all, and not
just to the Buddha; and (2) how Awakening expresses itself in the varied aspects of
everyday life.
On the internal level, the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha are the skillful qualities that
we develop in our own minds in imitation of our external models. For instance, the Buddha
was a person of wisdom, purity, and compassion. When we develop wisdom, purity, and
compassion in our own minds, they form our refuge on an internal level. The Buddha tasted
Awakening by developing conviction, persistence, mindfulness, concentration, and
discernment. When we develop these same qualities to the point of attaining Awakening too,
that Awakening is our ultimate refuge. This is the point where the three aspects of the
Triple Gem become one: beyond the reach of greed, anger, and delusion, and thus totally
secure.
A Refuge in Skillful Action
Is human action real or illusory? If real, is it effective? If it is effective, does
one have a choice in what one does? If one has a choice, can one choose to act in a way
that will lead to genuine happiness? If so, what is that way? These are questions that lie
at the heart of the way we conduct our lives. The way we answer them will determine
whether we look for happiness through our own abilities, seek happiness through outside
help, or abandon the quest for a higher-than-ordinary level of happiness altogether.
These questions were precisely the ones that led Siddhattha Gotama -- the Bodhisatta,
or Buddha-to-be -- to undertake his quest for Awakening. He felt that there was no honor,
no value in life, if true happiness could not be found through one's own efforts. Thus he
put his life on the line to see how far human effort could go. Eventually he found that
effort, skillfully applied, could bring about an Awakening to the Deathless. The lessons
he learned about action and effort in the course of developing that skill, and which were
certified by the experience of his Awakening, formed the basis of his doctrine of kamma
(in Sanskrit: karma). This doctrine lies at the heart of his teaching, and forms
the essence of the Triple Refuge. Put briefly, it states that action is real, effective,
and the result of one's own choice. If one chooses to act skillfully, and works to develop
that skill, one's actions can lead to happiness, not only on the ordinary sensory level,
but also on a level that transcends all the dimensions of time and the present. To
understand this doctrine and get a sense of its full implications, we must first have some
background on how the Buddha arrived at it. This will help us to see how kamma can act as
a refuge, and what kind of refuge it provides.
Background
People often believe that the Buddha simply picked up the doctrine of kamma from his
environment, but nothing could be further from the truth. Northern India at his time was a
place of great intellectual activity, and all of the great philosophical and religious
issues of human life were up for grabs, as science made new advances and called many of
the old, established beliefs into question. The foremost science at that time was
astronomy. New, precise observations of planetary movements, combined with newly developed
means of calculation, had led astronomers to conclude that time was measured in eons,
incomprehensibly long cycles that repeat themselves endlessly. Taking up these
conclusions, philosophers of the time tried to work out the implications of this vast
temporal frame for the drama of human life and the quest for ultimate happiness. These
philosophers fell into two broad camps: those who conducted their speculations within the
traditions of the Vedas, orthodox religious and ritual texts; and other, unorthodox
groups, called the Samanas (contemplatives), who questioned the authority of the Vedas.
Already by the time of Siddhattha Gotama, philosophers of the Vedic and Samana schools
had developed widely differing interpretations of what the laws of nature were and how
they affected the pursuit of true happiness. Their main points of disagreement were two:
1) Survival beyond death. Most Vedic and Samana philosophers assumed that
a person's identity extended beyond this lifetime, eons before birth back into the past
through the cycles of time, and after death on into the future. There was some
disagreement, however, as to whether one's identity from life to life would change or
remain the same. The Vedas had viewed rebirth in a positive light, but by the time of
Prince Siddhattha the influence of the newly discovered astronomical cycles had led those
who believed in rebirth to regard the cycles as pointless and confining, and release as
the only possibility for true happiness. There was, however, a Samana school of hedonist
materialists, called Lokayatans, who denied the existence of any identity beyond death and
insisted that happiness could be found only by indulging in sensual pleasures here and
now.
2) Action and causality. The ancient Vedas had formulated a doctrine of kamma
(in Sanskrit, karma), or purposeful action, which stated that correctly performed
actions played a causal role in providing for one's happiness in the life after death. The
primary actions recognized by these texts, though, were ritualistic: ritually performed
sacrifices, often involving animals, and gifts to priests. To be effective, the ritual
actions had to be correctly performed. This concern for correct performance led the
Vedists to compose ritual manuals that prescribed in incredibly minute detail the proper
things to do and say in the course of their rituals. They even included special chants and
spells that were supposed to compensate for any inadvertent mistakes in the course of a
particular ritual, so great was their conviction that the quality of an act depend on its
physical expression.
The Samana schools rejected the Vedic teachings on kamma, but for a variety of
different reasons. One set of Samana schools, called the Ajivakas, asserted that an
individual's actions were not in the least bit responsible for the course of his/her life.
One branch of the Ajivakas taught that all action in the cosmos is illusory, as the only
truly existing things are the unchanging substances of which the cosmos is made. Thus
there is no such thing as right or wrong, good or evil, for in the ultimate sense there is
no such thing as action.
Another branch of the Ajivakas taught that action was real, but that it was totally
subject to fate: deterministic causal laws that left no room for free will. Thus they
insisted that release from the round of rebirth came only when the round worked itself
out. Peace of mind could be found by accepting one's fate and patiently waiting for the
cycle, like a ball of string unwinding, to come to its end. Although these two positions
derived from two very different pictures of the cosmos, they both led to the same
conclusion: good and evil were illusory social conventions, human beings were not
responsible for their acts, and human action had no role in shaping one's experience of
the cosmos.
The Lokayatans came to a similar conclusion, but for different reasons. They agreed
with the Vedists that physical action was real, but they maintained that it bore no
results. There was no way to observe any invariable cause-effect relationship between
events, they said; as a result, all events were spontaneous and self-caused. This meant
that human actions had no consequences, and thus there were no such things as good and
evil because no action could have a good or evil effect on anything else. They concluded
that one could safely ignore moral rules in one's pursuit of sensual pleasure, and would
be a fool to deny oneself immediate gratification of one's desires whenever the
opportunity appeared.
Another school, the Jains, accepted the Vedic premise that one's actions shaped one's
experience of the cosmos, but they differed from the Vedas in the way they conceived of
action. All action, according to them, was a form of violence. The more violent the act,
the more it produced effluents, conceived as sticky substances that bound the soul to the
round of rebirth. Thus they rejected the Vedic assertion that ritual sacrifice produced
good kamma, for the violence involved in killing the sacrificial animals was actually a
form of bad kamma. In their eyes, the only way to true happiness was to try to escape the
round of kamma entirely. This was to be done by violence against themselves: various forms
of self-torture that were supposed to burn away the effluents, the "heat" of
pain being a sign that the effluents were burning. At the same time, they tried to create
as little new kamma as possible. This practice would culminate in total abstinence from
physical action resulting in suicide by starvation, the theory being that if old kamma
were completely burned away, and no new kamma created, there would be no more effluents to
bind the soul to the cosmos. Thus the soul would be released.
Despite the differences between the Vedic and Jain views of action, they shared some
important similarities: Both believed that the physical performance of an action, rather
than the mental attitude behind it, is what determined its kammic result. And, both saw
kamma as acting under deterministic, linear laws. Kamma performed in the present would not
bear fruit until the future, and the relationship between a particular action and its
result was predictable and fixed.
These divergent viewpoints on the nature of action formed the backdrop for the
Bodhisatta's quest for ultimate happiness. On the one side stood the Ajivakas and
Lokayatans, who insisted for various reasons that human action was ineffective: either it
was non-existent, chaotic, or totally pre-determined. On the other side stood the Vedic
and Jain thinkers, who taught that physical action was effective, but that it was subject
to deterministic and linear laws, and could not lead to true happiness beyond the round of
rebirth. The Buddha's position on kamma broke from both sides of the issue, largely
because he approached the question from a radically new direction.
The Principle of Skillful Action
Instead of arguing from abstract science, the Bodhisatta focused directly on the level
of immediate experience and explored the implications of truths that both sides
overlooked. Instead of fixing on the content of the views expressed, he considered the
actions of those who were expressing the views. If views of determinism and total chaos
were followed to their logical end, there would be no point in purposeful action, and yet
the proponents of both theories continued to act in purposeful ways. If only physical acts
bore consequences, there would be no point in teaching a proper understanding of the
nature of action -- for the mental act of understanding, right or wrong, would have no
consequences -- and yet all sides agreed that it was important to understand reality in
the right way. The fact that each side insisted that the other used unskillful forms of
observation and argumentation to advance its views implied that mental skills were crucial
in determining the truth. Thus the Bodhisatta looked directly at skillful mental action in
and of itself, followed its implications in developing knowledge itself as a skill --
rather than as a body of facts -- and found that those implications carried him all the
way to release.
The most basic lesson he learned was that mental skills can be developed. As one of the
Pali discourses notes, he found that thoughts imbued with passion, aversion, and delusion
were harmful; that thoughts devoid of these qualities were not harmful; and that he could
shepherd his thoughts in such a way to avoid harm. The fact that he could develop this
skill means that mental action is not illusory, that it actually gives results. Otherwise,
there would be no such thing as skill, for no actions would be more effective than others.
The fact of skillfulness also implies that some results are preferable to others, for
otherwise there would be no point in trying to develop skills. In addition, the fact that
it is possible to learn from mistakes in the course of developing a skill -- so that one's
future actions may be more skillful -- implies that the cycle of action, result, and
reaction is not entirely deterministic. Acts of perception, attention, and intention can
actually provide new input as the cycle goes through successive turns.
The important element in this input is attention. Anyone who has mastered a skill will
realize that the process of attaining mastery requires attention to three things: (1) to
pre-existing conditions, (2) to what one is doing in relation to those conditions, and (3)
to the results that come from one's actions. This threefold focus enables one to monitor
one's actions and adjust them accordingly. In this way, one's attention to conditions,
actions, and effects allows the results of an action to feed back into future action, thus
allowing for refinement in one's skill.
In the first stage of his practice, the Bodhisatta refined the skillfulness of his mind
until it reached a state of jhana, or concentrated mental absorption, marked by perfect
equanimity and mindfulness. The question that occurred at that point was how much further
the principle of skillful action could be applied. Did action (kamma) directly or
indirectly explain all experience in the world, or only some of it? If all of it, could
the same principle be used to gain escape from the suffering inherent in the world, or
were the Jains right in saying that action could only keep one bound to the cycle of
suffering?
As the texts tell us, the Bodhisatta's first attempt to answer these questions was to
direct his mind -- now stable, bright, clear, and malleable -- to knowledge of previous
lifetimes. If it were true that he had been born before, his actions from past lives might
explain experiences in this life -- such as the circumstances into which he was born --
for which no actions in this life could be held accountable. He found that he could indeed
remember previous lives, many thousands of them: what he had been born as, where, what his
experience of pleasure and pain, how he had died and then experienced rebirth as something
else.
This first insight, however, did not fully answer his question. He needed to know if
kamma was indeed the principle that shaped life, not only in terms of the narrative of his
own lives, but also as a cosmic principle effecting the lives of all beings. So he
directed his mind to knowledge of the passing away and arising of beings throughout the
cosmos, and found that he could indeed see beings dying and gaining rebirth, that the
pleasure and pain of their new lives was shaped by the quality of their kamma, and the
kamma in turn was dependent on the views that gave rise to it. Right views -- believing
that good kamma, based on skillful intentions, gave rise to happiness -- lay behind good
kamma, while wrong views -- not believing these principles -- lay behind bad.
Even this second insight, however, did not fully answer his question. To begin with,
there was no guarantee that the visions that gave him this knowledge were true or
complete. And, even if they were, they did not tell whether there was a form of right view
that would underlie a level of skillful kamma that would lead, not simply to a pleasant
rebirth within the cycle of rebirth, but to release from the cycle altogether.
It was here that the Bodhisatta turned to look again at the events in the mind, in and
of themselves in the present, and in particular at the process of developing of
skillfulness, to see if it offered any clues as to what a right view leading out of the
cycle of rebirth might be. As we noted above, the process of skillfulness implies two
things: a non-linear principle of cause and effect, involving feedback loops to allow for
greater skillfulness; and the fact that some results are preferable to others. The
Bodhisatta used these principles, in their most basic form, to divide experience into four
categories based on two sets of variables: cause and effect on one hand, and stress and
its cessation on the other. He then dropped the categories in which the first two
knowledges had been expressed. In other words, he dropped the sense of "self"
and "others" in which the narrative of the first knowledge had been expressed;
and the sense of "beings" inhabiting a "world" in which the cosmology
of the second knowledge had been expressed. In his place, he analyzed experience in
categories empty of those concepts, simply in terms of the direct experience of stress,
its cause, its cessation, and the path of mental factors leading to its cessation.
In the first round of this new insight, he was able to identify each of these
categories: stress, in ultimate terms, was attachment to anything that might be identified
as a "self." The cause of stress was craving, which in turn was based on
ignorance about the true nature of stress. The cessation of stress was the total
abandoning of craving, while the path to the cessation of stress was a cluster of eight
factors: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right
effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. In the second round of this insight,
he realized the duties that had to be performed with regard to each of these categories.
Stress was to be comprehended, its cause abandoned, its cessation realized, and the path
developed. He then proceeded to pursue those duties until the mental powers of the path
were so fully developed that stress was totally comprehended that there were no more
objects where craving could land, and thus it was naturally abandoned. Thus in the third
round of this insight he realized that the duties with regard to all four truths had been
fulfilled. At that point there was nothing further for the mind to do -- there was nothing
more it could do in these terms. Right view and concentration -- the mental
qualities lying at the heart of the path -- had done such a thorough job of nosing out
stress and craving that, as their final act, they detected the subtle stress and craving
inherent in the act of right view and right concentration themselves. Thus, as its final
act, the mind let go even of these path factors, just as a carpenter would let go of his
tools when they had finished their job.
As a result, all present mental input into the processes of experience naturally came
to a halt in a state of non-fashioning. This state opened onto an experience of total
liberation, called Unbinding (nibbana; in Sanskrit, nirvana). Realizing that
this Unbinding was the total cessation of suffering and of the processes of death and
rebirth as generated in the mind, the Bodhisatta, now the Buddha, knew that his questions
had been answered. Skillful action, based on right view in the form of the four categories
based around stress -- which he termed the four noble truths -- could indeed bring about a
total happiness free from the limitations of birth, aging, illness, and death.
The Teaching of Right View
The texts tell us that the Buddha spent the first seven weeks after his Awakening
experiencing that happiness and freedom. Then he decided to teach the way to that
happiness to others. His teachings were based on the three insights that had led him to
his own experience of Awakening. Because right view lay at the heart of his analysis of
kamma and the way out of kamma, his teachings focused in particular on the two forms of
right view that he learned in the course of those insights: the form he learned in the
second insight, which led to a favorable rebirth; and the form he learned in the third
insight, which led out from the cycle of death and rebirth once and for all.
The first level of right view the Buddha termed mundane right view. He expressed it in
these terms:
There is what is given, what is offered, what is sacrificed. There are fruits and
results of good and bad actions. There is this world and the next world. There is mother
and father. There are spontaneously reborn beings; there are priests and contemplatives
who, faring rightly and practicing rightly, proclaim this world and the next after having
directly known and realized it for themselves.
M 117
This passage means that there is merit in generosity; that the moral qualities of good
and bad are inherent in the universe, and not simply social conventions; that there is
life after death; that one has a true moral debt to one's parents; and that there are
people who have lived the renunciate's life properly in such a way that they have gained
true and direct knowledge of these matters. These beliefs form the minimum prerequisite
for following the path of skillful action that will lead to happy results within the cycle
of rebirth. Thus this might be termed right view for the purpose of a happy rebirth.
The second level of right view, which the Buddha termed transcendent right view, he
expressed simply as:
Knowledge in terms of stress, knowledge in terms of the origination of stress,
knowledge in terms of the cessation of stress, knowledge in terms of the way of practice
leading to the cessation of stress.
D 22
In other words, this level of right view consists of knowledge in terms of the four
noble truths, and might be called right view for the purpose of escaping from rebirth
altogether.
Just as the third insight grew out of the first two insights, the second level of right
view grows out of the first. Its purpose is impossible to fathom if taken outside of the
context of mundane good and bad kamma and their good and bad results. Together, the two
levels of right view provide a complete and complementary picture of the nature of kamma
as viewed from two different perspectives. The first level views kamma as a cosmic
principle at work in the narrative of each individual's many lives. The second form views
kamma as a principle at work in the present moment, approached from a frame of mind empty
of the categories of self and other, being and non-being, which lie at the essence of
narratives and cosmologies.
To see how these two levels of right view complement one another in shaping the form
and content of the Buddha's teachings, we can look at his most common mode of presenting
his teachings: the "graduated discourse" (anupubbi-katha), beginning with
the principle of good and bad kamma and gradually building up through the topics of
generosity, virtue, heaven, drawbacks, and renunciation, ending with the topic of the four
noble truths. There were several reasons for this gradual approach, but primarily they
came down to the fact that the four truths were too abstract to appear immediately
relevant, and the goal of escape from rebirth made no sense unless viewed in the proper
context. The role of the graduated discourse was to provide that context.
Starting with the first level of right view, the Buddha would describe good actions
under two main categories: generosity and virtue. Together, the two categories could be
stretched to cover almost any type of good physical, verbal, or mental deeds. For example,
generosity covers not only the giving of material gifts, but also generosity with one's
time, knowledge, gratitude, and forgiveness. Virtue begins with the five precepts --
against killing, stealing, illicit sex, lying, and taking intoxicants -- includes
prohibitions against five forms of wrong livelihood -- selling slaves, intoxicants,
poisons, weapons, and animals to be killed for food -- and goes on to cover abstention
from all forms of harmful behavior. Thus good behavior, taken under these two categories,
means both refraining from harmful behavior and performing actions that are positively
beneficial.
Having described good actions, the Buddha would describe their rewards, as results of
the cosmic principle of kamma that good actions lead naturally to pleasure, and bad
actions to pain. The rewards here include both visible rewards in this world and rewards
to be anticipated in the next, i.e., in the various levels of heaven and in this world on
one's return to a human birth. Scattered throughout the Buddhist texts are glowing
descriptions both of the sense of well-being in the immediate present that results from
good actions, and of the exquisite pleasures that rebirth in heaven entails. Implicit in
these descriptions was the dark side of the principle of kamma: the inherent punishments
that come from bad behavior, again both those visible in this world and those that could
be anticipated in the next: in the various levels of hell and other lower births -- such
as a common animal -- and again in this world on one's return to the human state.
The fact that the rewards of good kamma were not eternal -- in line with the fact that
the actions that engendered them were not eternal -- led naturally to the next topic in
the discourse: the drawbacks of the cycle of rebirth as a whole. No happiness to be found
within the cycle is permanent; even the most refined heavenly pleasures have to end when
the force of one's good kamma ends, and one is forced to return to the rough and tumble of
lower realms of being. The changeablility of the mind lying behind the creation of kamma
means that the course of an individual's life through the realms of rebirth is not
necessarily ever upward. In fact, as the Buddha saw from his remembrance of his own lives,
the course leading from one rebirth to another is filled with aimless ups and downs, like
a stick thrown up into the air: sometimes it lands on this end, sometimes on the other
end, sometimes in the middle. The amount of suffering and stress suffered in the course of
these many throws is more than can be measured.
These considerations led naturally to the next topic of the discourse: renunciation.
Having realized the fleeting nature of even the most refined pleasures that the round of
rebirth has to offer, the sensitive listener would be prepared to look favorably on the
idea of renouncing any aspiration for happiness within the round, and cultivating the path
that would lead to release. The texts compare this mental preparation to the act of
washing a cloth so that it would be ready to take dye. This was when the Buddha would take
the listener beyond the level of mundane right view and broach the transcendent level.
The texts describing the steps of the graduated discourse give this step simply as
"the teaching special to the Buddhas: stress, its origination, its cessation, and the
path," i.e., the four noble truths. However, the four noble truths are simply one out
of three interrelated versions of transcendent right view taught in the texts: (1)
this/that conditionality (idappaccayata), (2) dependent co-arising (paticca
samuppada), and (3) the four noble truths (ariya sacca). In order to gain a
full picture of the Buddha's teachings on the nature of kamma, it is useful to look at all
three.
This/That Conditionality
The most basic version of right view is simply the causal principle of feedback loops
that the Buddha found at work in the process of developing skillful action. He called this
principle "this/that conditionality" because it explains experience in terms
that are immediately present to awareness -- events that can be pointed to in the mind as
"this" or "that" -- rather than in terms of principles hidden from
awareness. He expressed this principle in a simple-looking formula:
"(1) When this is, that is.
(2) From the arising of this comes the arising of that.
(3) When this isn't, that isn't.
(4) From the stopping of this comes the stopping of that."
A X 92
There are many possible ways of interpreting this formula, but only one does justice
both to the way the formula is worded and to the complex, fluid manner in which specific
examples of causal relationships are described in the texts. That way is to view the
formula as the interplay of two causal principles: one diachronic, acting over
time; and the other synchronic, acting in a single instant of time. The two
principles combine to form a non-linear pattern. The diachronic principle -- taking (2)
and (4) as a pair -- connects events, rather than objects, over time; the synchronic
principle -- (1) and (3) -- connects objects and events in the present moment. The two
principles intersect, so that any given event is influenced by two sets of conditions:
input acting from the past and input acting from the present.
Although each principle seems simple, the fact that they interact makes their
consequences very complex. To begin with, every act has repercussions in the present
moment together with reverberations extending into the future. Depending on the intensity
of the act, these reverberations can last for a very short or a very long time. Thus every
event takes place in a context determined by the combined effects of past events coming
from a wide range in time, together with the effects of present acts. These effects can
intensify one another, can coexist with little interaction, or can cancel one another out.
Thus, even though it is possible to predict that a certain type of act will tend to give a
certain type of result -- for example, acting on anger will lead to pain -- there is no
way to predict when or where that result will make itself felt.
The complexity of the system is further enhanced by the fact that both causal
principles meet at the mind. Through its views and intentions, the mind takes a causal
role in keeping both principles in action. Through its sensory powers, it is affected by
the results of the causes it has set in motion. This creates the possibility for the
causal principles to feed back into themselves, as the mind reacts to the results of its
own actions. These reactions can take the form of positive feedback loops, intensifying
the original input and its results, much like the howl in a speaker placed next to the
microphone feeding into it. They can also create negative feedback loops, counteracting
the original input, much like the action of a thermostat that turns off a heater when the
temperature in a room is too high, and turns it on again when it gets too low. Because the
results of actions can be immediate, and the mind can then react to them immediately,
these feedback loops can at times quickly spin out of control; at other times, they may
act as skillful checks on one's behavior. For example, a man may act out of anger, which
gives him an immediate sense of dis-ease to which he may react with further anger, thus
creating a snowballing effect. On the other hand, he may come to understand that the anger
is causing his dis-ease, and so immediately does what he can to stop it. However, there
can also be times when the results of his past actions may obscure the dis-ease he is
causing himself in the present, so that he does not immediately react to it one way or
another. This means that, although there are general patterns relating habitual acts to
corresponding results, there is no set one-for-one, tit-for-tat, relationship between a
particular action and its results. Instead, the results are determined by the context of
the act, both in terms of actions that preceded or followed it and in terms one's state of
mind at the time of acting or experiencing the result.
In this way, the combination of two causal principles -- influences from the past
interacting with those in the immediate present -- accounts for the complexity of causal
relationships as they function on the level of immediate experience. However, the
combination of the two principles also opens the possibility for finding a systematic way
to break the causal web. If causes and effects were entirely linear, the cosmos would be
totally deterministic, and nothing could be done to escape from the machinations of the
causal process. If they were entirely synchronic, there would be no relationship from one
moment to the next, and all events would be arbitrary. The web could break down totally or
reform spontaneously for no reason at all. However, with the two modes working together,
one can learn from causal patterns observed from the past and apply one's insights to
disentangling the same causal patterns acting in the present. If one's insights are true,
one can then gain freedom from those patterns. This allowance opens the possibility for
escape from the cycle of kamma altogether by means of a fourth type of kamma, in addition
to good, bad, and a mixture of good and bad. This fourth type of kamma leads to the ending
of kamma by developing heightened skillfulness through the pursuit of the noble eightfold
path.
In addition, the non-linearity of this/that conditionality explains why heightened
skillfulness, when focused on the present moment, can succeed in leading to the end of the
kamma that has formed the experience of the entire cosmos. All non-linear processes
exhibit what is called scale invariance, which means that the behavior of the process on
any one scale is similar to its behavior on smaller or larger scales. To understand, say,
the large-scale pattern of a particular non-linear process, one need only focus on its
behavior on a smaller scale that is easier to observe, and one will see the same pattern
at work. In the case of kamma, one need only focus on the process of kamma in the
immediate present, in the course of developing heightened skillfulness, and the
large-scale issues over the expanses of space and time will become clear as one gains
release from them.
Dependent Co-arising
The teaching on dependent co-arising helps to provide more detailed instructions on
this point, showing precisely where the cycle of kamma provides openings for more skillful
present input. In doing so, it both explains the importance of the act of attention in
developing the fourth type of kamma, and acts as a guide for focusing attention on present
experience in appropriate ways.
Dependent co-arising shows how the cosmos, when viewed in the context of how it is
directly experienced by a person developing skillfulness, is subsumed entirely under
factors that are immediately present to awareness: the five aggregates of form, feeling,
perception, mental fabrication, and consciousness, and the six sense media. The standard
list of causal factors runs as follows: the suffering and stress of aging, illness, and
death depend on birth; birth in turn depends on becoming; and so on down through clinging,
craving, feeling, sensory contact, the six senses (counting ideation as the sixth), name
and form (mental and physical phenomena), sensory consciousness, mental fabrications, and
ignorance. Although the list reads like a linear pattern, the precise definitions of the
terms shows that it is filled with many feedback loops. Because it is non-linear, it thus
functions on several scales: "birth," for instance, refers both to the birth of
a physical organism and to the birth of a sense of being in the mind.
Included in this list is the Buddha's ultimate analysis of kamma and rebirth. For
instance, the nexus of kamma, clinging, becoming, and birth accounts for the realm in
which birth takes place. Kamma (covered under the factors of name and form) gives rise to
the five aggregates, which form the objects for craving and clinging. Once there is
clinging, there is a "coming-into-being" in any of three realms: the sensual
realm, the realm of form, and the formless realm. These realms refer not only to levels of
being on the cosmic scale, but also to levels of mental states. Some mental states are
concerned with sensual images, others with forms, and still others with formless
abstractions. The relationship between birth and becoming can be compared to the process
of falling asleep and dreaming. As drowsiness makes the mind lose contact with waking
reality, a dream image of another place and time will appear in it. The appearance of this
image is called becoming. The act of entering into this image and taking on a role or
identity within it -- and thus entering the world of the dream and falling asleep -- is
birth. The commentaries to the Pali texts maintain that precisely the same process is what
enables rebirth to follow the death of the body. At the same time, the analogy between
falling asleep and taking birth explains why release from the cycle of becoming is called
Awakening.
Once there is birth in a particular realm, the nexus of name-and-form with
consciousness accounts for the arising and survival of the active organism within that
realm. Without consciousness, the mental and physical organism would die. Without the
mental and physical organism, consciousness would have no place to land and develop. This
nexus also explains the feedback loops that can lead to skillful action. "Name"
includes the sub-factors of attention, intention, feeling, perception, and contact, which
are precisely the factors at work in the process of kamma and its result. The first lesson
of skillfulness is that the essence of an action lies in the intention motivating it: an
act motivated by the intention for greater skillfulness will give results different from
those of an act motivated by greed, aversion, or delusion. Intention, in turn, is
influenced by the appropriateness or inappropriateness of the act of attention to one's
circumstances. The less an act of attention is clouded by delusion, the more clearly it
will see things in appropriate terms. The combination of attention and intention in turn
determines the quality of the feeling and the physical events ("form") that
result from the act. The more skilled the action, the more refined these results will be.
Perceptions arise with regard to those results, some more appropriate than others. The act
of attention selects which ones to focus on, thus feeding back into another round in the
cycle of action. Underlying the entire cycle is the fact that all its factors are in
contact with consciousness.
This interplay of name, form, and consciousness provides an answer to the quandary of
how the stress and suffering inherent in the cycle of action can be ended. If one tried
simply to stop the cycle through a direct intention, the intention itself would count as
kamma, and thus as a factor to keep the cycle going. This double bind can be dissolved,
however, if one can watch as the contact between consciousness and the cycle naturally
falls away. This requires, not inaction, but more and more appropriate attention to the
process of kamma itself. When one's attention to and mastery of the process becomes fully
complete, there occurs a point of equipoise called "non-fashioning" (atammayata),
in which the contact between the processes of kamma and consciousness -- still fully
conscious -- naturally becomes disengaged. One modern teacher has compared this
disengagement to that of a fruit naturally falling, when fully ripened, from the tree.
This is how the cycle of action comes to an end in the moment of Awakening.
As this analysis shows, the most important obstacle to release is the element of
ignorance that keeps the act of attention from being fully perceptive. As the Buddha
traced the element of ignorance that underlay the processes of mental fabrication that
kept the cycle of kamma going, he found that it came down to ignorance of the four noble
truths: the identity of the truths, the duties appropriate to each, and the mastery of
those duties. When this ignorance is fully overcome, the craving that keeps the cycle
going will have nothing to fasten on, for all the possible objects that it might fasten on
are seen for what they are: suffering and stress. With no place to land, craving
disappears, and the cycle can come to an end.
The Four Noble Truths
Because knowledge in terms of the four noble truths is what ends ignorance and craving,
the Buddha most often expressed transcendent right view in their terms. These truths focus
the analysis of kamma directly on the question of stress and suffering: issues that tie in
immediately with the narratives that people make of their own life experiences. As the
Buddha noted in his second insight, his memory of previous lives included his experience
of pleasure and pain in each life, and most people -- when recounting their own lives --
tend to focus on these issues as well. The four truths, however, do not stop simply with
tales about stress: they approach it from the problem-solving perspective of a person
engaged in developing a skill. What this means for the meditator trying to master the
fourth type of kamma is that these truths cannot be fully comprehended by passive
observation. Only by participating sensitively in the process of developing skillful
powers of mindfulness, concentration, and discernment -- and gaining a practical feel for
the relationship of cause and effect among the mental factors that shape that process --
can one eradicate the ignorance that obstructs the ending of kamma. Thus, only through
developing skillfulness to the ultimate degree can the cycle be brought to equilibrium
and, as a result, disband.
The Knowledge of Unbinding
The truth of the Buddha's understanding of the processes of kamma -- as informed by
this/that conditionality, dependent co-arising, and the four noble truths -- was proven by
the knowledge of Unbinding that followed immediately on his mastery of the fourth type of
kamma. He found that when skillfulness is intentionally brought to a point of full
consummation, as expressed in the direct awareness of this/that conditionality, it leads
to a state of non-action, or non-fashioning, that forms the threshold to a level of
consciousness in which all experience of the cosmos has fallen away. When one's experience
of the cosmos resumes after the experience of Awakening, one sees clearly that it is
composed entirely of the results of old kamma; with no new kamma being added to the
process, all experience of the cosmos will eventually run out -- or, in the words of the
texts, "will grow cold right here." This discovery proved the basic premise that
kamma not only plays a role in shaping experience of the cosmos, it plays the primary
role. If this were not so, then even when kamma was ended there would still remain the
types of experience that came from other sources. But because none of the limitations of
the cosmos remained when all present kamma disbanded, and none would resume after all old
kamma ran out, kamma would have to be the necessary factor accounting for all experience
of those limitations. This fact implies that even the limiting factors that one encounters
in terms of sights, sounds, etc., are actually the fruit of past kamma in thought, word,
and deed -- committed not only in this, but also in many preceding lifetimes. Thus, even
though the Buddha's development of the fourth type of kamma focused on the present moment,
the resulting Awakening gave insights that encompassed all of time.
Faith in the Principle of Kamma
From this discussion it should become clear why kamma, as an article of faith, is a
necessary factor in the path of Buddhist practice. The teaching on kamma, in its narrative
and cosmological forms, provides the context for the practice, giving it direction and
urgency. Because the cosmos is governed by the laws of kamma, those laws provide the only
mechanism by which happiness can be found. But because good and bad kamma, consisting of
good and bad intentions, simply perpetuate the ups and downs of experience in the cosmos,
a way must be found out of the mechanism of kamma by mastering it in a way that allows it
to disband in an attentive state of non-intention. And, because there is no telling what
sudden surprises the results of one's past kamma may still hold in store, one should try
to develop that mastery as quickly as possible.
In its "empty" mode -- i.e., focusing on the process of action, without
referring to questions of whether or not there is a self or a being behind the processes
-- the teaching on kamma accounts for the focus and the terms of analysis used in the
practice. It also accounts for the mental qualities needed to attain and maintain that
level of focus and analysis. In terms of focus, the principle of scale invariance at work
in the complexities of kamma means that their essential processes can be mastered by
giving total attention to phenomena in and of themselves in the immediate present. These
phenomena are then analyzed in terms of the four noble truths, the terms used in observing
and directing the experience of developing the qualities of skillful action. The most
immediate skillful kamma that can be observed on this level is the mastery of the very
same mental qualities that are supporting this refined level of focus and analysis:
mindfulness, concentration, and discernment, together with the more basic qualities on
which they are based. Thus, these mental qualities act not only as supports to the focus
and analysis, but also as their object. Ultimately, discernment becomes so refined that
the focus and analysis take as their object the act of focusing and analyzing, in and of
themselves. The cycle of action then short-circuits as it reaches culmination, and
Unbinding occurs.
It is entirely possible that a person with no firm conviction in the principle of kamma
can follow parts of the Buddhist path, including mindfulness and concentration practices,
and gain positive results from them. For instance, one can pursue mindfulness practice for
the sense of balance, equanimity, and peace it gives to one's daily life, or for the sake
of bringing the mind to the present for the purpose of spontaneity and "going with
the flow." The full practice of the path, however, is a skillful diverting of the
flow of the mind from its habitual kammic streams to the stream of Unbinding. As the
Buddha said, this practice requires a willingness to "develop and abandon" to an
extreme degree. The developing requires a supreme effort aimed at full and
conscious mastery of mindfulness, concentration, and discernment to the point of
non-fashioning and on to release. A lack of conviction in the principle of kamma would
undercut the patience and commitment, the desire, persistence, intent, and refined powers
of discrimination needed to pursue concentration and discernment to the most heightened
levels, beyond what is needed for a general sense of peace or spontaneity. The abandoning
involves uprooting the most deeply buried forms of clinging and attachment that keep one
bound to the cycle of rebirth. Some of these forms of clinging -- such as views and
theories about self-identity -- are so entrenched in the narrative and cosmological modes
in which most people function that only firm conviction in the benefits to be had by
abandoning them will be able to pry them loose. This is why the Buddha insisted repeatedly
that conviction in the fact of his Awakening necessarily involves conviction in the
principle of kamma, and that both forms of conviction are needed for the full mastery of
the kamma of heightened skillfulness leading to release.
There are many well-known passages in the Canon where the Buddha asks his listeners not
to accept his teachings simply on faith, but these remarks were directed to people just
beginning the practice. Such people need only accept the general principles of skillful
action on a trial basis, focusing on the input that their actions are putting into the
causal system at the present moment, and exploring the connection between skillful
intentions and favorable results. The more complex issues of kamma come into play at this
level only in forcing one to be patient with the practice. Many times skillful intentions
do not produce their favorable results immediately, aside from the sense of well-being --
sometimes clearly perceptible, sometimes barely -- that comes with acting skillfully. Were
it not for this delay, the principle of kamma would be self-evident, no one would dare act
on unskillful intentions, and there would be no need to take the principle on faith. The
complexity of this/that conditionality is the major cause of the confusion and lack of
skill with which most people live their lives. The ability to master this process takes
time.
As one progresses further on the path, however -- and as the process of developing
skillfulness in and of itself comes more and more to take center stage in one's awareness
-- the actual results of one's developing skillfulness should give greater and greater
reason for conviction in the principle of kamma. Except in cases where people fall into
the trap of heedlessness or complacency, these results can spur and inspire one to hold to
the principle of kamma with the increasing levels of firmness, focus, and refinement
needed for Awakening.
This, then, is the sense in which kamma, or intentional action, forms the basic refuge
for the person on the path. On the one hand, as a doctrine, it provides the guidance one
needs to know the proper path of action, and the encouragement one needs in order to
muster the energy needed to follow the path. On the other hand, as the actual principle by
which skillful action is brought to a pitch of non-fashioning on the threshold of the
Deathless, it provides the mechanism by which human effort and action can bring about the
ultimate in genuine happiness.
II. Readings
'Indeed, the Blessed One [the Buddha] is pure and rightly self-awakened, consummate
in knowledge and conduct, well-gone, an expert with regard to the cosmos, unexcelled as a
trainer for those people fit to be tamed, the Teacher of divine and human beings,
awakened, blessed.'
'The Dhamma is well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here and now, timeless,
inviting verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.'
'The Sangha of the Blessed One's disciples who have practiced well...who have
practiced straight-forwardly...who have practiced methodically...who have practiced
masterfully -- in other words, the four types of noble disciples when taken as pairs, the
eight when taken as individual types -- they are the Sangha of the Blessed One's
disciples: worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality, worthy of offerings, worthy of respect,
the incomparable field of merit for the world.'
A X 92
Buddha
[The Buddha speaks:] I lived in refinement, utmost refinement, total refinement. My
father even had lotus ponds made in our palace: one where red-lotuses bloomed, one where
white lotuses bloomed, one where blue lotuses bloomed, all for my sake. I used no
sandalwood that was not from Varanasi. My turban was from Varanasi, as were my tunic, my
lower garments, and my outer cloak. A white sunshade was held over me day and night to
protect me from cold, heat, dust, dirt, and dew.
I had three palaces: one for the cold season, one for the hot season, one for the rainy
season. During the four months of the rainy season I was entertained in the rainy-season
palace by minstrels without a single man among them, and I did not once come down from the
palace. Whereas the servants, workers, and retainers in other people's homes are fed meals
of lentil soup and broken rice, in my father's home the servants, workers, and retainers
were fed wheat, rice, and meat.
Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought
occurred to me: "When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to aging,
not beyond aging, sees another who is aged, he is horrified, humiliated, and disgusted,
oblivious to himself that he too is subject to aging, not beyond aging. If I -- who am
subject to aging, not beyond aging -- were to be horrified, humiliated, and disgusted on
seeing another person who is aged, that would not be fitting for me." As I noticed
this, the [typical] young person's intoxication with youth entirely dropped away.
Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought
occurred to me: "When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to
illness, not beyond illness, sees another who is ill, he is horrified, humiliated, and
disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to illness, not beyond illness. And
if I -- who am subject to illness, not beyond illness -- were to be horrified, humiliated,
and disgusted on seeing another person who is ill, that would not be fitting for me."
As I noticed this, the healthy person's intoxication with health entirely dropped away.
Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought
occurred to me: "When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to death,
not beyond death, sees another who is dead, he is horrified, humiliated, and disgusted,
oblivious to himself that he too is subject to death, not beyond death. And if I -- who am
subject to death, not beyond death -- were to be horrified, humiliated, and disgusted on
seeing another person who is dead, that would not be fitting for me." As I noticed
this, the living person's intoxication with life entirely dropped away.
A III 38
The Quest for Awakening
Before my Awakening, when I was still an unawakened Bodhisatta, being subject myself to
birth, aging, illness, death, sorrow, and defilement, I sought [happiness in] what was
subject to birth, aging, illness, death, sorrow, and defilement. The thought occurred to
me: "Why am I, being subject myself to birth...defilement, seeking what is subject to
birth...defilement? What if I...were to seek the unborn, unaging, unailing, undying,
sorrowless, undefiled, unsurpassed security from bondage: Unbinding."
So at a later time, when I was still young, black-haired, endowed with the blessings of
youth in the first stage of life, I shaved off my hair and beard -- though my parents
wished otherwise and were grieving with tears on their faces -- and I put on the ochre
robe and went forth from the home life into homelessness.
Having gone forth in search of what might be skillful, seeking the unexcelled state of
sublime peace, I went to where Alara Kalama was staying and, on arrival, said to him:
"I want to practice in this doctrine and discipline."
When this was said, he replied to me, "You may stay here. This doctrine is such
that a wise person can soon enter and dwell in his own teacher's knowledge, having
realized it for himself through direct knowledge."
I quickly learned the doctrine. As far as mere lip-reciting and repetition, I could
speak the words of knowledge, the words of the elders, and I could affirm that I knew and
saw -- I, along with others.
I thought: "It isn't through mere conviction alone that Alara Kalama declares, 'I
have entered and dwell in this Dhamma, having realized it directly for myself.' Certainly
he dwells knowing and seeing this Dhamma." So I went to him and said, "To what
extent do you declare that you have entered and dwell in this Dhamma?" When this was
said, he declared the sphere of nothingness.
I thought: "Not only does Alara Kalama have conviction, persistence, mindfulness,
concentration, and discernment. I, too, have conviction, persistence, mindfulness,
concentration, and discernment. Suppose I were to endeavor to realize for myself the
Dhamma that Alara Kalama declares he has entered and dwells in...." So it was not
long before I entered and dwelled in that Dhamma, having realized it for myself through
direct knowledge. I went to him and said, "Friend Kalama, is this the extent to which
you have entered and dwell in this Dhamma, having realized it for yourself through direct
knowledge?"
"Yes...."
"This is the extent to which I, too, have entered and dwell in this Dhamma, having
realized it for myself through direct knowledge."
"It is a gain for us, a great gain for us, that we have such a companion in the
holy life....As I am, so are you; as you are, so am I. Come friend, let us now lead this
community together."
In this way did Alara Kalama, my teacher, place me, his pupil, on the same level with
himself and pay me great honor. But the thought occurred to me, "This Dhamma leads
not to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to stilling, to direct knowledge, to
Awakening, nor to Unbinding, but only to reappearance in the sphere of nothingness."
So, dissatisfied with that Dhamma, I left.
M 26
"Now, Aggivessana, these three similes -- spontaneous, never before heard --
appeared to me. Suppose there were a wet, sappy piece of timber lying in the water, and a
man were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, 'I'll light a fire. I'll
produce heat.' Now what do you think? Would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by
rubbing the upper fire-stick in the wet, sappy timber lying in the water?"
"No, Ven. sir...."
"So it is with any priest or contemplative who does not live withdrawn from
sensuality in body and mind, and whose desire, infatuation, urge, thirst, and fever for
sensuality is not relinquished and stilled within him: Whether or not he feels painful,
racking, piercing feelings due to his striving [for Awakening], he is incapable of
knowledge, vision, and unexcelled self-awakening....
"Then a second simile -- spontaneous, never before heard -- appeared to me.
Suppose there were a wet, sappy piece of timber lying on land far from water, and a man
were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, 'I'll light a fire. I'll produce
heat.' Now what do you think? Would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing
the upper fire-stick in the wet, sappy timber lying on land?"
"No, Ven. sir...."
"So it is with any priest or contemplative who lives withdrawn from sensuality in
body only, but whose desire, infatuation, urge, thirst, and fever for sensuality is not
relinquished and stilled within him: Whether or not he feels painful, racking, piercing
feelings due to his striving, he is incapable of knowledge, vision, and unexcelled
self-awakening....
"Then a third simile -- spontaneous, never before heard -- appeared to me. Suppose
there were a dry, sapless piece of timber lying on land far from water, and a man were to
come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, 'I'll light a fire. I'll produce heat.' Now
what do you think? Would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing the upper
fire-stick in the dry, sapless timber lying on land?"
"Yes, Ven. sir...."
"So it is with any priest or contemplative who lives withdrawn from sensuality in
body and mind, and whose desire, infatuation, urge, thirst, and fever for sensuality is
relinquished and stilled within him: Whether or not he feels painful, racking, piercing
feelings due to his striving, he is capable of knowledge, vision, and unexcelled
self-awakening....
"I thought: 'Suppose that I, clenching my teeth and pressing my tongue against the
roof of my mouth, were to beat down, constrain, and crush my mind with my
awareness'....So, just as if a strong man, seizing a weaker man by the head or the throat
or the shoulders would beat him down, constrain and crush him, in the same way I beat
down, constrained, and crushed my mind with my awareness. As I did so, sweat poured from
my armpits. But although tireless persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness
established, my body was aroused and uncalm because of the painful exertion. But the
painful feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.
"I thought: 'Suppose I were to become absorbed in the trance of non-breathing.' So
I stopped the in-breaths and out-breaths in my nose and mouth. As I did so, there was a
loud roaring of winds coming out my earholes, just like the loud roar of winds coming out
of a smith's bellows....So I stopped the in-breaths and out-breaths in my nose and mouth
and ears. As I did so, extreme forces sliced through my head, just as if a strong man were
slicing my head open with a sharp sword....Extreme pains arose in my head, just as if a
strong man were tightening a turban made of tough leather straps around my head....Extreme
forces carved up my stomach cavity, just as if a butcher or his apprentice were to carve
up the stomach cavity of an ox....There was an extreme burning in my body, just as if two
strong men, grabbing a weaker man by the arms, were to roast and broil him over a pit of
hot embers. But although tireless persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness
established, my body was aroused and uncalm because of the painful exertion. But the
painful feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.
"Devas, on seeing me, said, 'Gotama the contemplative is dead.' Other devas said,
'He isn't dead, he's dying.' Others said, 'He's neither dead nor dying, he's an arahant,
for this is the way arahants live.'
"I thought: 'Suppose I were to practice going altogether without food.' Then devas
came to me and said, 'Dear sir, please don't practice going altogether without food. If
you go altogether without food, we'll infuse divine nourishment in through your pores, and
you will survive on that.' I thought, 'If I were to claim to be completely fasting while
these devas are infusing divine nourishment in through my pores, I would be lying.' So I
dismissed them, saying, 'Enough.'
"I thought: 'Suppose I were to take only a little food at a time, only a handful
at a time of bean soup, lentil soup, vetch soup, or pea soup.' So I took only a little
food at a time, only handful at a time of bean soup, lentil soup, vetch soup, or pea soup.
My body became extremely emaciated. Simply from my eating so little, my limbs became like
the jointed segments of vine stems or bamboo stems....My backside became like a camel's
hoof....My spine stood out like a string of beads....My ribs jutted out like the jutting
rafters of an old, run-down barn....The gleam of my eyes appeared to be sunk deep in my
eye sockets like the gleam of water deep in a well....My scalp shriveled and withered like
a green bitter gourd, shriveled and withered in the heat and the wind....The skin of my
belly became so stuck to my spine that when I thought of touching my belly, I grabbed hold
of my spine as well; and when I thought of touching my spine, I grabbed hold of the skin
of my belly as well....If I urinated or defecated, I fell over on my face right
there....Simply from my eating so little, if I tried to ease my body by rubbing my limbs
with my hands, the hair -- rotted at its roots -- fell from my body as I rubbed....
"I thought: 'Whatever priests or contemplatives in the past have felt painful,
racking, piercing feelings due to their striving, this is the utmost. None have been
greater than this. Whatever priests or contemplatives in the future...in the present are
feeling painful, racking, piercing feelings due to their striving, this is the utmost.
None is greater than this. But with this racking practice of austerities I have not
attained any superior human state, any distinction in knowledge or vision worthy of the
noble ones. Could there be another path to Awakening?'
"I thought: 'I recall once, when my father the Sakyan was working, and I was
sitting in the cool shade of a rose-apple tree, then -- quite withdrawn from sensuality,
withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities -- I entered and remained in the first jhana:
rapture and pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought and evaluation.
Could that be the path to Awakening?' Then, following on that memory, came the
realization: 'That is the path to Awakening....So why am I afraid of that pleasure that
has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful mental qualities?' I
thought: 'I am no longer afraid of that pleasure...but it is not easy to achieve that
pleasure with a body so extremely emaciated....' So I took some solid food: some rice and
porridge. Now five monks had been attending on me, thinking, 'If Gotama, our
contemplative, achieves some higher state, he will tell us.' But when they saw me taking
some solid food -- some rice and porridge -- they were disgusted and left me, thinking,
'Gotama the contemplative is living luxuriously. He has abandoned his exertion and is
backsliding into abundance.'
"So when I had taken solid food and regained strength, then -- quite withdrawn
from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, I entered and remained in the
first jhana: rapture and pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought
and evaluation. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or
remain. With the stilling of directed thought and evaluation, I entered and remained in
the second jhana: rapture and pleasure born of composure, unification of awareness free
from directed thought and evaluation -- internal assurance....With the fading of rapture I
remained in equanimity, mindful and alert, and physically sensitive of pleasure. I entered
and remained in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare, 'Equanimous and mindful,
he has a pleasurable abiding.'....With the abandoning of pleasure and pain -- as with the
earlier disappearance of elation and distress -- I entered and remained in the fourth
jhana: purity of equanimity and mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain. But the pleasant
feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of
defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, I directed it to
the knowledge of recollecting my past lives. I recollected my manifold past lives, i.e.,
one birth, two...five, ten...fifty, a hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand, many eons
of cosmic contraction, many eons of cosmic expansion, many eons of cosmic contraction and
expansion: 'There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such
was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such the end of my life. Passing
away from that state, I re-arose there. There too I had such a name, belonged to such a
clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain,
such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose here.' Thus I remembered
my manifold past lives in their modes and details.
"This was the first knowledge I attained in the first watch of the night.
Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose -- as
happens in one who is heedful, ardent, and resolute. But the pleasant feeling that arose
in this way did not invade my mind or remain.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of
defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, I directed it to
the knowledge of the passing away and reappearance of beings. I saw -- by means of the
divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- beings passing away and re-appearing, and
I discerned how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and
unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings -- who were endowed with bad
conduct of body, speech, and mind, who reviled the noble ones, held wrong views and
undertook actions under the influence of wrong views -- with the break-up of the body,
after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower
realms, in hell. But these beings -- who were endowed with good conduct of body, speech
and mind, who did not revile the noble ones, who held right views and undertook actions
under the influence of right views -- with the break-up of the body, after death, have
re-appeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.' Thus -- by means of the
divine eye, purified and surpassing the human -- I saw beings passing away and
re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly,
fortunate and unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.
"This was the second knowledge I attained in the second watch of the night.
Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose -- as
happens in one who is heedful, ardent, and resolute. But the pleasant feeling that arose
in this way did not invade my mind or remain.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of
defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, and attained to imperturbability, I directed it to
the knowledge of the ending of the mental effluents (asava). I discerned, as it was
actually present, that 'This is stress...This is the origination of stress...This is the
cessation of stress...This is the way leading to the cessation of stress... These are
effluents...This is the origination of effluents... This is the cessation of
effluents...This is the way leading to the cessation of effluents.' My heart, thus
knowing, thus seeing, was released from the effluent of sensuality, released from the
effluent of becoming, released from the effluent of ignorance. With release, there was the
knowledge, 'Released.' I discerned that 'Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled, the task
done. There is nothing further for this world.'
"This was the third knowledge I attained in the third watch of the night.
Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose -- as
happens in one who is heedful, ardent, and resolute. But the pleasant feeling that arose
in this way did not invade my mind or remain."
M 36
Through the round of many births
I wandered without finding
the house builder I was seeking.
Painful is birth again
and again.
House builder, you are seen!
You will not build a house again.
All your rafters broken,
the ridge pole destroyed,
gone to the Unfabricated, the mind
has attained the end of craving.
Dhp 153-54
The Buddha's Passing Away
Now at that time Subhadda the Wanderer was staying in Kusinara. He heard that 'Tonight,
in the last watch of the night, the total Unbinding of Gotama the contemplative will take
place.' Then this thought occurred to him, 'I have heard the elder wanderers, teachers of
teachers, saying that only once in a long, long time do Tathagatas -- worthy ones, rightly
self-awakened -- appear in the world. Tonight, in the last watch of the night, the total
Unbinding of Gotama the contemplative will take place. Now there is a doubt that has
arisen in me, but I have faith that he could teach me the Dhamma in such a way that I
might abandon that doubt.'
So he went to the Mallan Sal Tree grove and, on arrival, said to Ven. Ananda, 'I have
heard the elder wanderers, teachers of teachers, saying that only once in a long, long
time do Tathagatas -- worthy ones, rightly self-awakened -- appear in the world. Tonight,
in the last watch of the night, the total Unbinding of Gotama the contemplative will take
place. Now there is a doubt that has arisen in me, but I have faith that he could teach me
the Dhamma in such a way that I might abandon that doubt. It would be good, Ven. Ananda,
if you would let me see him.'
When this was said, Ven. Ananda said to him, 'Enough, friend Subhadda. Do not bother
the Blessed One. The Blessed One is tired.'
For a second time...For a third time, Subhadda the Wanderer said to Ven. Ananda, '...It
would be good, Ven. Ananda, if you would let me see him.'
For a third time, Ven. Ananda said to him, 'Enough, friend Subhadda. Do not bother the
Blessed One. The Blessed One is tired.'
Now, the Blessed One heard the exchange between Ven. Ananda and Subhadda the Wanderer,
and so he said to Ven. Ananda, 'Enough, Ananda. Do not stand in his way. Let him see the
Tathagata. Whatever he asks me will all be for the sake of knowledge, and not to be
bothersome. And whatever I answer when asked, he will quickly understand.'
So Ven. Ananda said to Subhadda the Wanderer, 'Go ahead, friend Subhadda. The Blessed
One gives you his leave.'
Then Subhadda went to the Blessed One and exchanged courtesies, and after the exchange
of courtesies sat down to one side. As he was sitting there, he said to the Blessed One,
'Venerable sir, these priests and contemplatives, each with his group, each with his
community, each the teacher of his group, an honored leader, well-regarded by people at
large -- i.e., Purana Kassapa, Makkhali Gosala, Ajita Kesakambalin, Pakudha Kaccayana,
Sañjaya Belatthitaputta, and the Nigantha Nathaputta: Do they all have direct knowledge
as they themselves claim, or do they all not have direct knowledge, or do some of them
have direct knowledge and some of them not?'
'Enough, Subhadda. Put this question aside. I will teach you the Dhamma. Listen, and
pay close attention. I will speak.'
'Yes, venerable sir,' Subhadda answered, and the Blessed One said, 'In any doctrine and
discipline where the noble eightfold path is not found, no contemplative of the
first...second...third...fourth order [stream-winner, once-returner, non-returner, arahant
] is found. But in any doctrine and discipline where the noble eightfold path is
found, contemplatives of the first...second...third...fourth order are found. The
noble eightfold path is found in this doctrine and discipline, and right here there are
contemplatives of the first... second...third...fourth order. Other teachings are empty of
knowledgeable contemplatives. And if the monks dwell rightly, this world will not be empty
of Arahants.
At age twenty-nine I went forth,
seeking what might be skillful,
and since my going forth
more than fifty years have past.
Outside of the realm
of methodical Dhamma,
there is no contemplative.
And no contemplative of the second...third...fourth order. Other teachings are empty of
knowledgeable contemplatives. And if the monks dwell rightly, this world will not be empty
of Arahants.'
Then Subhadda the Wanderer said, 'Magnificent, lord, magnificent! In many ways has the
Blessed One made the Dhamma clear -- just as if one were to place upright what has been
overturned, to reveal what has been hidden, to point out the way to one who is lost, or to
set out a lamp in the darkness so that those with eyes might see forms. I go to the
Blessed One for refuge, and to the Dhamma and to the community of monks. Let me obtain the
going forth in the Blessed One's presence, let me obtain admission.'
'Anyone, Subhadda, who has previously belonged to another sect and who desires the
going forth and admission in this doctrine and discipline, must first undergo probation
for four months. If, at the end of four months, the monks feel so moved, they give him the
going forth and admit him to the monk's state. But I know distinctions among individuals
in this matter.'
'Lord, if that is so, I am willing to undergo probation for four years. If, at the end
of four years, the monks feel so moved, let them give me the going forth and admit me to
the monk's state.'
Then the Blessed One said to Ven. Ananda, 'Very well then, Ananda, give Subhadda the
going forth.'
'Yes, venerable sir,' Ananda answered.
Then Subhadda said to Ven. Ananda, 'It is a gain for you, Ananda, a great gain, that
you have been anointed here in the Teacher's presence with the pupil's anointing.'
Then Subhadda the Wanderer received the going forth and the admission in the Blessed
One's presence. And not long after his admission -- dwelling alone, secluded, heedful,
ardent, and resolute -- he in no long time reached and remained in the supreme goal of the
holy life, for which clansmen rightly go forth from home into homelessness, knowing and
realizing it for himself in the here and now. He knew: 'Birth is ended, the holy life
fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for the sake of this world.' And thus
Ven. Subhadda became another one of the Arahants, the last of the Blessed One's
face-to-face disciples....
Then the Blessed One addressed the monks, 'I exhort you, monks: All processes are
subject to decay. Bring about completion by being heedful.' Those were the Tathagata's
last words.
Then the Blessed One entered the first jhana. Emerging from that he entered the second.
Emerging from that, he entered the third...the fourth...the sphere of the infinitude of
space...the sphere of the infinitude of consciousness...the sphere of nothingness...the
sphere of neither perception nor non-perception...the cessation of perception and feeling.
Then Ven. Ananda said to Ven. Anuruddha, "The Blessed One, sir, has entered total
Unbinding."
"No, friend, the Blessed One has not entered total Unbinding. He has attained the
cessation of perception and feeling."
Then emerging from the cessation of perception and feeling, the Blessed One entered the
sphere of neither perception nor non-perception...the sphere of nothingness...the sphere
of the infinitude of consciousness...the sphere of the infinitude of space...the fourth
jhana...the third...the second...the first jhana. Emerging from the first jhana he entered
the second...the third...the fourth jhana. Emerging from the fourth jhana, he entered
total Unbinding in the interim....
When the Blessed One had attained total Unbinding, Sakka, ruler of the gods, uttered
this stanza:
How inconstant are compounded things!
Their nature: to arise and pass away.
They disband as they are arising.
Their total stilling is bliss.
D 16
Dhamma
Basic Principles
Phenomena are preceded by the mind,
ruled by the mind,
made of the mind.
If one speaks or acts with a corrupted mind,
suffering follows one,
as the wheel of the chariot follows
the foot of the draught ox.
Phenomena are preceded by the mind,
ruled by the mind,
made of the mind.
If one speaks or acts with a bright mind,
happiness follows one,
like a shadow that never leaves.
Dhp 1-2
Heedfulness: the path to the Deathless;
Heedlessness: the path to death.
The heedful do not die;
The heedless are as if
already dead.
Knowing this distinction,
those wise in heedfulness
rejoice in heedfulness,
enjoying the range of the noble ones.
Dhp 21-22
There are these five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or
a man, lay or ordained. Which five?
"I am subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging"....
"I am subject to illness, have not gone beyond illness"....
"I am subject to death, have not gone beyond death"....
"I will grow different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to
me"....
"I am the owner of my actions (kamma), heir to my actions, born of my actions,
related through my actions, and live dependent on my actions. Whatever I do, for good or
for evil, to that will I fall heir"....
These are the five facts that one should reflect on often, whether one is a woman or a
man, lay or ordained.
Now, based on what line of reasoning should one often reflect... that "I am
subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging"? There are beings who are intoxicated
with a [typical] youth's intoxication with youth. Because of that intoxication with youth,
they conduct themselves in a bad way in body...in speech...and in mind. But when they
often reflect on that fact, that youth's intoxication with youth will either be entirely
abandoned or grow weaker....
Now, based on what line of reasoning should one often reflect... that "I am
subject to illness, have not gone beyond illness"? There are beings who are
intoxicated with a [typical] healthy person's intoxication with health. Because of that
intoxication with health, they conduct themselves in a bad way in body...in speech...and
in mind. But when they often reflect on that fact, that healthy person's intoxication with
health will either be entirely abandoned or grow weaker....
Now, based on what line of reasoning should one often reflect... that "I am
subject to death, have not gone beyond death"? There are beings who are intoxicated
with a [typical] living person's intoxication with life. Because of that intoxication with
life, they conduct themselves in a bad way in body...in speech...and in mind. But when
they often reflect on that fact, that living person's intoxication with life will either
be entirely abandoned or grow weaker....
Now, based on what line of reasoning should one often reflect... that "I will grow
different, separate from all that is dear and appealing to me"? There are beings who
feel desire and passion for the things they find dear and appealing. Because of that
passion, they conduct themselves in a bad way in body...in speech...and in mind. But when
they often reflect on that fact, that desire and passion for the things they find dear and
appealing will either be entirely abandoned or grow weaker....
Now, based on what line of reasoning should one often reflect... that "I am the
owner of my actions (kamma), heir to my actions, born of my actions, related through my
actions, and live dependent on my actions. Whatever I do, for good or for evil, to that
will I fall heir"? There are beings who conduct themselves in a bad way in body...in
speech...and in mind. But when they often reflect on that fact, that bad conduct in body,
speech, and mind will either be entirely abandoned or grow weaker....
Now, a noble disciple considers this: "I am not the only one subject to aging, who
has not gone beyond aging. To the extent that there are beings -- past and future, passing
away and re-arising -- all beings are subject to aging, have not gone beyond aging."
When he/she often reflects on this, the [factors of the] path take birth. He/she sticks
with that path, develops it, cultivates it. As he/she sticks with that path, develops it
and cultivates it, the fetters are abandoned, the latent tendencies destroyed. (Similarly
with each of the other contemplations.)
A V 57
The non-doing of any evil,
the performance of what is skillful,
the cleansing of one's own mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
Not reviling, not injuring,
restraint in line with the Patimokkha,
moderation in food,
dwelling in seclusion,
devotion to the heightened mind:
This is the Buddhas' teaching.
Dhp 183, 185
I do not see any one quality by which unarisen skillful qualities arise, and arisen
unskillful qualities subside, like friendship with admirable people. When a person is
friends with admirable people, unarisen skillful qualities arise, and arisen unskillful
qualities subside.
A I 72
Now what, TigerPaw (Byagghapajja), is friendship with admirable people? There is the
case where a lay person, in whatever town or village he may dwell, spends time with
householders or householders' sons, young or old, who are advanced in virtue. He talks
with them, engages them in discussions. He emulates consummate conviction [in the
principle of kamma] in those who are consummate in conviction, consummate virtue in those
who are consummate in virtue, consummate generosity in those who are consummate in
generosity, and consummate discernment in those who are consummate in discernment. This is
called friendship with admirable people.
A VIII 54
A female noble disciple who grows in terms of these five types of growth grows in the
noble growth, grasps hold of what is essential, what is excellent in the body. Which five?
She grows in terms of conviction, in terms of virtue, in terms of learning, in terms of
generosity, in terms of discernment. Growing in terms of these five types of growth, the
female noble disciple grows in the noble growth, grasps hold of what is essential, what is
excellent in the body.
Growing in conviction and virtue
discernment, generosity, and learning,
a virtuous female lay disciple
such as this
takes hold of the essence within herself.
S XXXVII 34
'Kamma should be known. The cause by which kamma comes into play should be known. The
diversity in kamma should be known. The result of kamma should be known. The cessation of
kamma should be known. The path of practice for the cessation of kamma should be known.'
Thus it has been said. Why was it said?
Intention, I tell you, is kamma. Intending, one does kamma by way of body, speech, and
intellect.
And what is the cause by which kamma comes into play? Contact....
And what is the diversity in kamma? There is kamma to be experienced in purgatory,
kamma to be experienced in the realm of common animals, kamma to be experienced in the
realm of the hungry shades, kamma to be experienced in the human world, kamma to be
experienced in the celestial worlds....
And what is the result of kamma? The result of kamma is of three sorts, I tell you:
that which arises right here and now, that which arises later [in this lifetime], and that
which arises following that....
And what is the cessation of kamma? From the cessation of contact is the cessation of
kamma....
And what is the way leading to the cessation of kamma? Just this noble eightfold path:
right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort,
right mindfulness, right concentration.
Now when a noble disciple discerns kamma in this way, the cause by which kamma comes
into play in this way, the diversity of kamma in this way, the result of kamma in this
way, the cessation of kamma in this way, and the path of practice leading to the cessation
of kamma in this way, then he discerns this penetrative holy life as the cessation of
kamma.
A VI 63
The Buddha: How do you construe this, Rahula: What is a mirror for?
Rahula: For reflection, sir.
The Buddha: In the same way, Rahula, bodily acts, verbal acts, and mental acts are to
be done with repeated reflection.
Whenever you want to perform a bodily act, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily act I
want to perform -- would it lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to
both? Is it an unskillful bodily act, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on
reflection, you know that it would lead to self-affliction, to the affliction of others,
or to both; it would be an unskillful bodily act with painful consequences, painful
results, then any bodily act of that sort is absolutely unfit for you to do. But if on
reflection you know that it would not cause affliction...it would be a skillful bodily act
with happy consequences, happy results, then any bodily act of that sort is fit for you to
do.
(Similarly with verbal acts and mental acts.)
While you are performing a bodily act, you should reflect on it: 'This bodily act I am
doing -- is it leading to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both? Is it
an unskillful bodily act, with painful consequences, painful results?' If, on reflection,
you know that it is leading to self-affliction, to affliction of others, or both...you
should give it up. But if on reflection you know that it is not...you may continue with
it.
(Similarly with verbal acts and mental acts.)
Having performed a bodily act, you should reflect on it....If, on reflection, you know
that it led to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it was an
unskillful bodily act with painful consequences, painful results, then you should confess
it, reveal it, lay it open to the Teacher or to a knowledgeable companion in the holy
life. Having confessed it...you should exercise restraint in the future. But if on
reflection you know that it did not lead to affliction...it was a skillful bodily act with
happy consequences, happy results, then you should stay mentally refreshed and joyful,
training day and night in skillful mental qualities.
(Similarly with verbal acts.)
Having performed a mental act, you should reflect on it....If, on reflection, you know
that it led to self-affliction, to the affliction of others, or to both; it was an
unskillful mental act with painful consequences, painful results, then you should feel
horrified, humiliated, and disgusted with it. Feeling horrified... you should exercise
restraint in the future. But if on reflection you know that it did not lead to
affliction...it was a skillful mental act with happy consequences, happy results, then you
should stay mentally refreshed and joyful, training day and night in skillful mental
qualities.
Rahula, all the priests and contemplatives in the course of the past who purified their
bodily acts, verbal acts, and mental acts, did it through repeated reflection on their
bodily acts, verbal acts, and mental acts in just this way.
All the priests and contemplatives in the course of the future...All the priests and
contemplatives at present who purify their bodily acts, verbal acts, and mental acts, do
it through repeated reflection on their bodily acts, verbal acts, and mental acts in just
this way.
Therefore, Rahula, you should train yourself: 'I will purify my bodily acts through
repeated reflection. I will purify my verbal acts through repeated reflection. I will
purify my mental acts through repeated reflection.' Thus you should train yourself.
That is what the Blessed One said. Pleased, Ven. Rahula delighted in the Blessed One's
words.
M.61
These five things are welcome, agreeable, pleasant, and hard to obtain in the world.
Which five? Long life...beauty...pleasure...status... rebirth in heaven.... Now, I tell
you, these five things are not to be obtained by reason of prayers or wishes. If they were
to be obtained by reason of prayers or wishes, who here would lack them? It is not fitting
for the noble disciple who desires long life to pray for it or to delight in doing so.
Instead, the noble disciple who desires long life should follow the path of practice
leading to long life. In so doing, he will attain long life, either human or divine.
(Similarly with beauty, pleasure, status, and rebirth in heaven.)
A V 43
I have heard that at one time the Blessed One was staying in Savatthi at Jeta's Grove,
Anathapindika's park. Then a certain deva, in the far extreme of the night, her extreme
radiance lighting up the entirety of Jeta's Grove, approached the Blessed One. On
approaching, having bowed down to the Blessed One, she stood to one side. As she was
standing there, she addressed him with a verse.
"Many devas and humans beings
give thought to protective charms,
desiring well-being.
Tell, then, the highest protective charm."
[The Buddha:]
"Not consorting with fools,
consorting with the wise,
homage to those deserving of homage:
This is the highest protective charm.
Living in a civilized land,
having made merit in the past,
directing oneself rightly:
This is the highest protective charm.
Broad knowledge, skill,
well-mastered discipline,
well-spoken words :
This is the highest protective charm.
Support for one's parents,
assistance to one's wife and children,
consistency in one's work:
This is the highest protective charm.
Generosity, living in rectitude,
assistance to one's relatives,
deeds that are blameless:
This is the highest protective charm.
Avoiding, abstaining from evil;
refraining from intoxicants,
being heedful of the qualities of the mind:
This is the highest protective charm.
Respect, humility,
contentment, gratitude,
hearing the Dhamma on timely occasions:
This is the highest protective charm.
Patience, composure,
seeing contemplatives,
discussing the Dhamma on timely occasions:
This is the highest protective charm.
Austerity, celibacy,
seeing the Noble Truths,
realizing Unbinding:
This is the highest protective charm.
A mind that, when touched
by the ways of the world,
is unshaken, sorrowless, dustless, secure:
This is the highest protective charm.
Everywhere undefeated
when acting in this way,
people go everywhere in well-being:
This is their highest protective charm."
Sn II 4
Generosity
These are the five rewards of generosity: One is dear and appealing to people at large,
one is admired by good people, one's good name is spread about, one does not stray from
the rightful duties of the householder, and with the break-up of the body at death, one
reappears in a good destination, in the heavenly worlds.
A V 35
What the miser fears,
that keeps him from giving,
is the very danger that comes
when he doesn't give.
S I 32
No misers are found
in the world of the devas.
Those who don't praise giving are fools.
The wise person expresses approval for giving
and so finds ease
in the world beyond.
Dhp 177
If beings knew, as I know, the results of giving and sharing, they would not eat
without have given, nor would the stain of miserliness overcome their minds. Even if it
were their last bite, their last mouthful, they would not eat without having shared, if
there were someone to receive their gift. But because beings do not know, as I know, the
results of giving and sharing, they eat without having given. The stain of miserliness
overcomes their minds.
Iti 26
Now on that occasion Princess Sumana -- with an entourage of 500 ladies-in-waiting
riding on 500 carriages -- went to where the Buddha was staying. On arrival, having bowed
down, she sat to one side. As she was sitting there, she said to the Blessed One,
"Suppose there were two disciples of the Blessed One, equal in conviction, virtue,
and discernment, but one was a giver of alms and the other one wasn't. At the break-up of
the body, after death, they would reappear in a good destination, in the heavenly world.
Having become devas, would there be any distinction, any difference between the two?"
"Yes, there would," said the Blessed One. "The one who was a giver of
alms, on becoming a deva, would surpass the other in five areas: in divine life span,
divine beauty, divine pleasure, divine status, and divine power...."
"And if they were to fall from there and reappear in this world: Having become
human beings, would there be any distinction, any difference between the two?"
"Yes, there would," said the Blessed One. "The one who was a giver of
alms, on becoming a human being, would surpass the other in five areas: in human life
span, human beauty, human pleasure, human status, and human power...."
"And if they were to go forth from home into the homeless life of a monk: Having
gone forth, would there be any distinction, any difference between the two?"
"Yes, there would," said the Blessed One. "The one who was a giver of
alms, on going forth, would surpass the other in five areas: He would often be asked to
make use of robes; it would be rare that he wouldn't be asked. He would often be asked to
take food...to make use of shelter...to make use of medicine; it would be rare that he
wouldn't be asked. His companions in the holy life would often treat him with pleasing
actions...pleasing words... pleasing thoughts... and present him with pleasing gifts, and
rarely with unpleasing...."
"And if both were to attain arahantship, would there be any distinction, any
difference between their attainments of arahantship?"
"In that case, I tell you that there would be no difference between the two as to
their release."
"It is awesome, lord, and astounding. Just this is reason enough to give alms, to
make merit, in that it benefits one as a deva, as a human being, and as a monk."
A V 31
Virtue
There are these five gifts, five great gifts -- original, long-standing, traditional,
ancient, unadulterated, unadulterated from the beginning -- are not open to suspicion,
will never be open to suspicion, and are unfaulted by knowledgeable contemplatives and
priests. Which five?
There is the case where a noble disciple, abandoning the taking of life, abstains from
taking life. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom
from oppression to limitless numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom
from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share
in limitless freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression....
Abandoning taking what is not given (stealing), he abstains from taking what is not
given....
Abandoning illicit sex, he abstains from illicit sex....
Abandoning lying, he abstains from lying....
Abandoning the use of intoxicants, he abstains from taking intoxicants. In doing so, he
gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless
numbers of beings. In giving freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from
oppression to limitless numbers of beings, he gains a share in limitless freedom from
danger, freedom from animosity, and freedom from oppression....
These are the five gifts, five great gifts -- original, long-standing, traditional,
ancient, unadulterated, unadulterated from the beginning -- that are not open to
suspicion, will never be open to suspicion, and are unfaulted by knowledgeable
contemplatives and priests.
A VIII 39
Cleansing with regard to the body, Cunda, is threefold; cleansing with regard to speech
is fourfold; and cleansing with regard to the mind, threefold. And how is cleansing with
regard to the body threefold? There is the case where a certain person, abandoning the
taking of life, abstains from the taking of life. He dwells with his rod laid down, his
knife laid down, scrupulous, merciful, compassionate for the welfare of all living beings.
Abandoning the taking of what is not given, he abstains from taking what is not given. He
does not take the ungiven property of another, whether in a village or in the wilderness,
with thievish intent. Abandoning sensual misconduct, he abstains from sensual misconduct.
He does not get sexually involved with those who are protected by their mothers, their
fathers, their brothers, their sisters, their relatives, or their Dhamma; those with
husbands, those who entail punishments, or even those crowned with flowers by another man.
This is how cleansing with regard to the body is threefold.
And how is cleansing with regard to speech fourfold? There is the case where a certain
person, abandoning false speech, abstains from false speech. When he has been called to a
town meeting, a group meeting, a gathering of his relatives, his guild, or of the royalty
[i.e., a court proceeding], if he is asked as a witness, 'Come and tell, good man, what
you know': If he doesn't know, he says, 'I don't know.' If he does know, he says, 'I
know.' If he hasn't seen, he says, 'I haven't seen.' If he has seen, he says, 'I have
seen.' Thus he doesn't consciously tell a lie for his own sake, for the sake of another,
or for the sake of any reward. Abandoning divisive speech, he abstains from divisive
speech. What he has heard here he does not tell there to break those people apart from
these people here. What he has heard there he does not tell here to break these people
apart from those people there. Thus reconciling those who have broken apart or cementing
those who are united, he loves concord, delights in concord, enjoys concord, speaks things
that create concord. Abandoning abusive speech, he abstains from abusive speech. He speaks
words that are soothing to the ear, that are affectionate, that go to the heart, that are
polite, appealing & pleasing to people at large. Abandoning idle chatter, he abstains
from idle chatter. He speaks in season, speaks what is factual, what is in accordance with
the goal, the D