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                          THE MEDITATIVE MIND
                                          
                                          
  People are often surprised to find it is difficult to meditate. 
  Outwardly it seems to be such a simple matter, to just sit down on a 
  little pillow and watch one's breath. What could be hard about that? 
  The difficulty lies in the fact that one's whole being is totally 
  unprepared. Our mind, senses, and feelings are used to trade in the 
  market place, namely the world we live in. But meditation cannot be 
  done in a market place. That's impossible. There's nothing to buy or 
  trade or arrange in meditation, but most people's attitude remains the 
  same as usual and that just doesn't work.
  
    We need patience with ourselves. It takes time to change to the 
  point where meditation is actually a state of mind, available at any 
  time because the market place is no longer important. The market place 
  doesn't just mean going shopping. It means everything that is done in 
  the world: all the connections, ideas, hopes and memories, all the 
  rejections and resistances, all our reactions.
    
    In meditation there are may be momentary glimpses of seeing that 
  concentration is feasible, but it can't be sustained. It constantly 
  slips again and the mind goes right back to where it came from. In 
  order to counteract that, one has to have determination to make one's 
  life a meditative one; it doesn't mean one has to meditate from 
  morning to night. I don't know anyone who does. And it doesn't mean we 
  cannot fulfill our duties and obligations, because they are necessary 
  and primary as long as we have them. But it means that we watch 
  ourselves carefully in all our actions and reactions to make sure that 
  everything happens in the light of the Dhamma -- the truth. This 
  applies to the smallest detail such as our food, what we listen to or 
  talk about. Only then can the mind be ready with a meditative quality 
  when we sit down on the pillow. It means that no matter where we find 
  ourselves, we remain introspective. That doesn't mean we can't talk to 
  others, but we watch the content of the discussion.
    
    That is not easy to do and the mind often slips off. But we can 
  become aware of the slip. If we aren't even aware that we have 
  digressed from mindfulness and inner watchfulness, we aren't on the 
  meditative path yet. If our mind has the Dhamma quality established 
  within, then meditation has a good chance.
    
    The more we know of the Dhamma, the more we can watch whether we 
  comply with its guidelines. There is no blame attached to our 
  inability to do so. But the least we can do is to know the guidelines 
  and know where we're making mistakes. Then we practice to get nearer 
  and nearer to absolute reality, until one day we will actually //be// 
  the Dhamma.
  
    There is this difference between one who know and one who practices. 
  The one who knows may understand the words and concepts but the one 
  who practices knows only one thing, namely, to become that truth. 
  Words are an utilitarian means not only for communication, but also to 
  solidify ideas. That's why words can never reveal the truth, only 
  personal experience can. We attain our experiences through realizing 
  what's happening within and why it is as it is. This means that we 
  combine watchfulness with inquiry as to why we're thinking, saying and 
  reacting the way we do. Unless we use our mind in this way, meditation 
  will be an on-again, off-again affair and will remain difficult. When 
  meditation doesn't bring joy, most people are quite happy to forget 
  about it.
    
    Without the meditative mind and experience, the Dhamma cannot arise 
  in the heart, because the Dhamma is not in words. The Buddha was able 
  to verbalize his inner experience for our benefit, to give us a 
  guideline. That means we can find a direction, but we have to do the 
  traveling ourselves.
    
    To have a meditative mind, we need to develop some important inner 
  qualities. We already have their seed within, otherwise we couldn't 
  cultivate them. If we want flowers in our garden and there are no 
  seeds, we can water and fertilize, yet nothing will grow. The watering 
  and fertilizing of the mind is done in meditation. Weeding has to be 
  done in daily living. Weeds always seem to grow better in any garden 
  than the flowers do. It takes a lot of strength to uproot those weeds, 
  but it is not so difficult to cut them down. As they get cut down 
  again and again, they eventually become feeble and their uprooting is 
  made easy. Cutting down and uprooting the weeds needs sufficient 
  introspection into ourselves to know what is a weed and what is a 
  flower. We have to be very sure, because we don't want to pull out all 
  the flowers and leave all the weeds. A garden with many weeds isn't 
  much of an ornament.
    
    People's hearts and minds usually contain equal amounts of flowers 
  and weeds. We're born with the three roots of evil: greed, hate and 
  delusion, and the three roots of good: generosity, loving-kindness and 
  wisdom. Doesn't it make sense to try and get rid of those three roots 
  which are the generators of all problems, all our unpleasant 
  experiences and reactions?
    
    If we want to eliminate those three roots, we have to look at their 
  outcrops. They're the roots underneath the surface, but obviously a 
  root sprouts and shows itself above the surface. We can see that 
  within ourselves. Caused by delusion, we manifest greed and hate. 
  There are different facets of greed and hate, and the simplest and 
  most common one is "I like," "I want," "I don't like," and "I don't 
  want". Most people think such reactions are perfectly justified, and 
  yet that is greed and hate. Our roots have sprouted in so many 
  different ways that we have all sorts of weeds growing. If we look at 
  a garden we will find possibly thirty or forty different types of 
  weeds. We might have that many or more unwholesome thoughts and 
  emotions. They have different appearances and power but they're all 
  coming from the same roots. As we can't get at the roots yet, we have 
  to deal with what is above the surface. When we cultivate the good 
  roots, they become so mighty and strong that the weeds do not find 
  enough nourishment any more. As long as we allow room for the weeds in 
  our garden, we take the nutriment away from the beautiful plants, 
  instead of cultivating those more and more. This takes place as a 
  development in daily living, which then makes it possible to meditate 
  as a natural outcome of our state of mind.
    
    At this point in time we are trying to change our mind from an 
  ordinary one to a meditative one, which is difficult if one hasn't 
  practiced very much yet. We only have one mind and carry that around 
  with us to every activity and also to the meditation. If we have an 
  inkling that meditation can bring us peace and happiness, then we need 
  to make sure we have a meditative mind already when we sit down. To 
  change it from busy-ness to quiet at that moment is too difficult.
    
    The state of mind which we need to develop for meditation is well 
  described by the Buddha. Two aspects of importance are mindfulness and 
  the calming of the senses. Internal mindfulness may sometimes be 
  exchanged for external mindfulness because under some circumstances 
  that is an essential part of practice. The world impinges upon us, 
  which we cannot deny.
    
    External mindfulness also means to see a tree, for instance, in a 
  completely new way. Not with the usual thoughts of "that's pretty," or 
  "I like this one in may garden," but rather noticing that there are 
  live and dead leaves, that there are growing plants, mature ones and 
  dying ones. We can witness the growth, birth and decay all around us. 
  We can understand craving very clearly by watching ants, mosquitoes, 
  dogs. We need not look at them as a nuisance, but as teachers. Ants, 
  mosquitoes and barking dogs are the kind of teachers who don't leave 
  us alone until the lessons are fully learned. When we see all in the 
  light of birth, decay, death, greed, hate and delusion, we are looking 
  in a mirror of all life around us, then we have Dhamma on show. All of 
  us are proclaiming the truth of Dhamma constantly, only we don't pay 
  enough attention.
    
    We can use mindfulness to observe that everything in existence 
  consists of the four elements, earth, fire, water, air; and then check 
  out what is the difference between ourselves and all else. When we 
  take practice seriously and look at all life in such a way, then we 
  find the truth all around as well as within us. Nothing else exists.
    
    This gives us the ability to leave the marketplace behind where the 
  mind flits from one thing to the next, never has a moment's peace, is 
  either dull and indifferent or hateful and greedy. But when we look at 
  that which really is, we're drawing nearer to what the Buddha taught, 
  out of his compassion for all the beings that are roaming around in 
  //samsara// from one //dukkha// to the next. He taught, so that people 
  like us may awaken to the truth.
    
    We should neither believe nor disbelieve what we hear or read, but 
  try it out ourselves. If we give our wholehearted attention to this 
  practice, we will find that it changes our approach to living and 
  dying. To be whole-hearted is a necessity in anything we do. If we get 
  married and are half-hearted about it, that cannot be very successful. 
  Half-hearted practice of Dhamma results in chaotic misunderstanding. 
  Whole-heartedness may have at its core devotion, and a mind which goes 
  beyond everyday thoughts and activities.
    
    Another facet which goes together with mindfulness, is clear 
  comprehension. Mindfulness is knowing only, without any discriminating 
  faculty. Mindfulness does not evaluate of judge but pays full 
  attention. Clear comprehension has four aspects to it. First: "What is 
  my purpose in thinking, talking or doing?" Thought, speech and action 
  are our three doors. Second "Am I using the most skillful means for my 
  purpose?" That needs wisdom and discrimination. Third: "Are these 
  means within the Dhamma?" Knowing the distinction between wholesome 
  and unwholesome. The thought process needs our primary attention, 
  because speech and action will follow from it. Sometimes people think 
  that the end justifies the means. It doesn't. Both means and end have 
  to be within the Dhamma. The fourth step is to check whether our 
  purpose has been accomplished, and if not, why not.
    
    If we live with these steps in mind, we will slow down, which is 
  helpful for our reactions. No inactivity, that is not the answer, but 
  the meditative quality of the mind, which watches over what we are 
  doing. When we use mindfulness and clear comprehension, we have to 
  give time to investigate. Checking prevents mistakes.
    
    Our wrong thinking creates the danger of making bad kamma and takes 
  us away from the truth into nebulous mind-states. The Dhamma is 
  straight forward, simple and pure. It needs a pure mind to stay with 
  it. Otherwise we find ourselves outside of it again and again.
    
    External mindfulness can also extend to other people, but here we 
  need to be very careful. Seeing and knowing others engenders negative 
  judgment. If we practice external mindfulness towards other people, we 
  have to realize that judging others is making bad kamma. We can pay 
  attention with compassion. People-watching is one of the most popular 
  pastimes but usually done with the intention of finding fault. 
  Everyone who's not enlightened has faults; even the highly developed 
  non-returner has yet five fetters to lose. What to say about ordinary 
  worldlings? To use other people as our mirror is very helpful because 
  they reflect our own being. We can only see in others what we already 
  know about ourselves. The rest is lost to us.
    
    If we add clear comprehension to our mindfulness and check our 
  purpose and skillful means we will eliminate much grief and worry. We 
  will develop an awareness which will make every day, every moment an 
  adventure. Most people feel bogged down and burdened. Either they have 
  too much or too little to do; not enough money to do what they like or 
  they frantically move about trying to occupy themselves. Everybody 
  wants to escape mechanism that each one chooses does not provide real 
  inner joy. However with mindfulness and clear comprehension, just 
  watching a tree is fascinating. It brings a new dimension to our life, 
  a buoyancy of mind, enabling us to grasp wholeness, instead of the 
  limitations of our family, job, hopes and dreams. That way we can 
  expand, because we're fascinated with what we see around and within 
  us, and want to explore further. No "my" mind, "my" body, "my" tree, 
  but just phenomena all around us, to provide us with the most 
  fascinating, challenging schoolroom that anybody could ever find. Our 
  interest in the schoolroom increases as mindfulness increases.
    
    To develop a meditative mind, we also need to calm our senses. We 
  don't have to deny our senses, that would be foolishness, but see them 
  for what they are. Mara the tempter is not a fellow with a long tail 
  and a flaming red tongue, but rather our senses. We hardly ever pay 
  attention to what they do to us when they pull us from an interesting 
  sight to a beautiful sound, and back to the sight, the tough, the 
  idea. No Peace! Our constant endeavor is to catch a moment's pleasure.
    
    A sense contact has to be very fleeting, because otherwise it 
  becomes a great //dukkha//. Let's say we are offered a very nice meal 
  which tastes extremely good. So we say to our host: "That's a very 
  nice meal, I like it very much." The host replies: "I have lots of 
  food here, please stay around and eat for another two or three hours." 
  If we did, we would not only get sick in body but also disgusted in 
  our mind. A meal can last twenty or at the most thirty minutes. Each 
  taste contact can only last a second, then we have to chew and 
  swallow. If we were to keep it in the mouth any longer, it would 
  become very unpleasant.
    
    Maybe we feel very hot and go to take a cold shower. We say to our 
  friend waiting outside: "Now I feel good, that cold water is very 
  pleasant." Our friend says: "We have plenty of cold water, you can 
  have a shower for the next five to six hours." Nothing but absolute 
  misery would result. We can enjoy a cold shower for ten or twenty 
  minutes at the most.
    
    Anything that is prolonged will create //dukkha//. All contacts pass 
  quickly, because that is their nature. The same goes for sight, our 
  eyes are continually blinking. We can't even keep sight constant for 
  the length of time we're looking at anything. We may be looking at a 
  beautiful painting for a little while and really like it. Someone 
  says: "You can stay here and look at the painting for the next five 
  hours, we're not closing the museum yet." Nobody could do that. We 
  can't look at the same thing a long time, without feeling bored, 
  losing all awareness, or even falling asleep. Sense contacts are not 
  only limited because of their inability to give satisfaction. They are 
  actually waves that come and go. If we are listening to some lovely 
  music, after a few hours the same music becomes unbearable. Our sense 
  contacts are mirroring a reflection of satisfaction, which has no real 
  basis in fact. That's Mara constantly leading us astray. 
    
    There's a pertinent story of a monk in the Buddha's time which 
  relates the ultimate in sense discipline. A married couple had a big 
  row and the woman decided to run away. She put on several of her best 
  saris, one over the other, wore all her gold jewelry and left. After a 
  while the husband was sorry that he had let her go and followed her. 
  He ran here and there, but couldn't find her. Finally he came across a 
  monk who was walking along the street. he asked the monk if he'd seen 
  a woman in a red sari with long black hair and lots of jewelry around 
  her neck and arms. The monk said: "I saw a set of teeth going by."
    
    The monk was not paying attention to the concepts of a woman with 
  long black hair, a red sari, and lots of jewelry, but only to the fact 
  that there was a human being with a set of teeth. He had calmed his 
  senses to the point where the sight object was no longer tempting him 
  into a reaction. An ordinary person at the sight of a beautiful woman 
  with black hair, a red sari and lots of jewelry, running excitedly 
  along the street, might have been tempted to follow her. A set of 
  teeth going by, is highly unlikely to create desire. That is calming 
  the senses.
    
    If we come upon a snake, it's not an object of dislike, or 
  destruction, but just a sentient being that happens to be around. 
  That's all. There's nothing to be done, nothing to react to. If we 
  think of it as a snake that could kill us, then of course, the mind 
  can go berserk, just as the monk's mind could have done, if he had 
  thought "Oh, what a beautiful woman."
    
    If we watch our senses again and again, this becomes a habit, and is 
  no longer difficult. Life will be much more peaceful. The world as we 
  know it consists of so much proliferation. Everywhere are different 
  colors, shapes, beings and nature's growth. Each species of tree has 
  hundreds of sub-species. Nature proliferates. All of us look 
  different. If we don't guard our senses, this proliferation in the 
  world will keep us attracted life after life. There's too much to see, 
  do, know and react to. Since there is no end to all of that we might 
  as well stop and delve inside of ourselves.
    
    A meditative mind is achieved through mindfulness, clear 
  comprehension and calming the senses. These three aspects of practice 
  need to be done in everyday life. Peace and harmony will result, and 
  our meditation will flourish.
                                          
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