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“Attā hi attanō nāthōkō hi nāthō parō siyāattanā hi sudanténanātham labhati dullabham”(Dhammapada verse 160)“One is one’...
15/05/2024

“Attā hi attanō nāthō
kō hi nāthō parō siyā
attanā hi sudanténa
nātham labhati dullabham”

(Dhammapada verse 160)

“One is one’s own refuge
how can another be a refuge to one?
(one reaches salvation) by purifying one’s own mind
getting to the refuge (Nibbāna) is rare.”

SN 22.95: Pheṇapiṇḍūpamasutta A Lump of FoamOn one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Ayojjha on the bank of the r...
24/04/2024

SN 22.95: Pheṇapiṇḍūpamasutta

A Lump of Foam

On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Ayojjha on the bank of the river Ganges. There the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus thus:

“Bhikkhus, suppose that this river Ganges was carrying along a great lump of foam. A man with good sight would inspect it, ponder it, and carefully investigate it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in a lump of foam? So too, bhikkhus, whatever kind of form there is, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near: a bhikkhu inspects it, ponders it, and carefully investigates it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in form?

“Suppose, bhikkhus, that in the autumn, when it is raining and big rain drops are falling, a water bubble arises and bursts on the surface of the water. A man with good sight would inspect it, ponder it, and carefully investigate it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in a water bubble? So too, bhikkhus, whatever kind of feeling there is, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near: a bhikkhu inspects it, ponders it, and carefully investigates it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in feeling?

“Suppose, bhikkhus, that in the last month of the hot season, at high noon, a shimmering mirage appears. A man with good sight would inspect it, ponder it, and carefully investigate it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in a mirage? So too, bhikkhus, whatever kind of perception there is, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near: a bhikkhu inspects it, ponders it, and carefully investigates it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in perception?

“Suppose, bhikkhus, that a man needing heartwood, seeking heartwood, wandering in search of heartwood, would take a sharp axe and enter a forest. There he would see the trunk of a large plantain tree, straight, fresh, without a fruit-bud core. He would cut it down at the root, cut off the crown, and unroll the coil. As he unrolls the coil, he would not find even softwood, let alone heartwood. A man with good sight would inspect it, ponder it, and carefully investigate it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in the trunk of a plantain tree? So too, bhikkhus, whatever kind of volitional formations there are, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near: a bhikkhu inspects them, ponders them, and carefully investigates them. As he investigates them, they appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in volitional formations?

“Suppose, bhikkhus, that a magician or a magician’s apprentice would display a magical illusion at a crossroads. A man with good sight would inspect it, ponder it, and carefully investigate it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in a magical illusion? So too, bhikkhus, whatever kind of consciousness there is, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near: a bhikkhu inspects it, ponders it, and carefully investigates it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in consciousness?

“Seeing thus, bhikkhus, the instructed noble disciple experiences revulsion towards form, revulsion towards feeling, revulsion towards perception, revulsion towards volitional formations, revulsion towards consciousness. Experiencing revulsion, he becomes dispassionate. Through dispassion his mind is liberated. When it is liberated there comes the knowledge: ‘It’s liberated.’ He understands: ‘Destroyed is birth, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more for this state of being.’”

This is what the Blessed One said. Having said this, the Fortunate One, the Teacher, further said this:

“Form is like a lump of foam,
Feeling like a water bubble;
Perception is like a mirage,
Volitions like a plantain trunk,
And consciousness like an illusion,
So explained the Kinsman of the Sun.

“However one may ponder it
And carefully investigate it,
It appears but hollow and void
When one views it carefully.
“With reference to this body
The One of Broad Wisdom has taught
That with the abandoning of three things
One sees this form discarded.

“When vitality, heat, and consciousness
Depart from this physical body,
Then it lies there cast away:
Food for others, without volition.

“Such is this continuum,
This illusion, beguiler of fools.
It is taught to be a murderer;
Here no substance can be found.

“A bhikkhu with energy aroused
Should look upon the aggregates thus,
Whether by day or at night,
Comprehending, ever mindful.

“He should discard all the fetters
And make a refuge for himself;
Let him fare as with head ablaze,
Yearning for the imperishable state.”

-Bhikkhu Bodhi-


1.2.5.3. ඵෙණ පිණ්‌ඩූපම සූත්‍රය

එක්සමයෙක භාග්‍යවතුන් වහන්සේ අයෝධ්‍යා නගර සමීපයෙහි ගංගා නම් ගංඉවුරෙහි වැඩවසන සේක. එහි දී භාග්‍යවතුන් වහන්සේ ‘මහණෙනි’ යි භික්ෂූන් ඇමතූ සේක. ‘පින්වතුන් වහන්සැ’ යි ඒ භික්ෂූහු භාග්‍යවතුන් වහන්සේට පිළිවදන් ඇස්සූහ. භාග්‍යවතුන් වහන්සේ තෙල වදාළ සේක:

මහණෙනි, යම්සේ මේ “ගංගා” නදිය මහත් පෙණපිඩක් එළවන්නේ ද, ඇස් ඇති පුරුෂයෙක් තෙල පෙණපිඩ දක්නේ යැ, සිතන්නේ යැ, නුවණින් පිරික්සන්නේ ය. දක්නා, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ ය. බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ ය. හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ ය. මහණෙනි, කිම, පෙණපිඩෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, එසෙයින් ම අතීත–අනාගත–පච්චුප්පන්න ආධ්‍යාත්මිකවූ හෝ බාහිර වූ හෝ ඖදාරික වූ හෝ සුක්ෂ්ම වූ හෝ හීන වූ හෝ ප්‍රණීත වූ හෝ යම් කිසි රූපයෙක් වේ ද, දුර වූ හෝ ළඟ වූ හෝ යම් රූපයෙකුත් වේ ද, මහණ එය දකියි, සිතයි, නුවණින් පිරික්සයි. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වුවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. මහණෙනි කිම, රූපයෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, යම්සේ සරත්කල මහත් පොද ඇති වැස්ස වස්නා කල්හි දියෙහි දිය බුබුළෙක් හටගන්නේත් වේ ද, නැසෙන්නේත් වේ ද, ඇස් ඇති පුරුෂයෙක් තෙල දිය බුබුළ දක්නේ යැ, සිතන්නේ යැ, නුවණින් පුනපුනා පිරික්සන්නේ ය. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. මහණෙනි, කිම, දිය බුබුළෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, එසෙයින් ම අතීත–අනාගත–පච්චුප්පන්න ආධ්‍යාත්මිකවූ හෝ බාහිර වූ හෝ ඖදාරික වූ හෝ සුක්ෂ්ම වූ හෝ හීන වූ හෝ ප්‍රණීත වූ හෝ යම් කිසි වේදනාවක් ඇත් ද, දුර වූ හෝ ළඟ වූ හෝ යම් වේදනාවකුත් ඇත් ද, මහණ එය දකියි, සිතයි, නුවණින් පිරික්සයි. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වුවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. මහණෙනි, කිම, වේදනායෙහි සාරයක් ඇත්තේ ද?

මහණෙනි, යම්සේ ගිම්කල පැසුළුමස මධ්‍යාහ්නයෙහි මිරිඟු සැලේ ද, ඇස් ඇති පුරුෂයෙක් තෙල මිරිඟුව දක්නේ යැ, සිතන්නේ යැ, නුවණින් පිරික්සන්නේ යැ. බලන, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වූවක් සේම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ, හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. මහණෙනි, කිම, මිරිඟුවෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, එසෙයින් ම අතීත–අනාගත–පච්චුප්පන්න ... යම් කිසි සංඥාවක් ඇත් ද, දුර වූ හෝ ළඟ වූ හෝ යම් සංඥාවකුත් ඇත් ද, මහණ එය දකියි, සිතයි, නුවණින් පිරික්සයි. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වුවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. මහණෙනි, කිම, සංඥායෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

යම්සේ පුරුෂයෙක් හරයෙන් ප්‍රයෝජන ඇතියේ හර සොයනුයේ හර සෙවීමෙහි සරනුයේ තියුණු කෙටේරියක් ගෙන වනයට පිවිසෙනුයේ ද, හේ එහි ඇද නැති අලුත් නොහටගත් බඩය ඇති මහත් කෙසෙල් කඳක් දක්නේ යැ. තෙල කෙසෙල් කඳ මුල සිඳින්නේ යැ. මුල සිඳ අග සිඳින්නේ යැ. අග සිඳ, පත්වැටි ගලවන්නේ යැ. හේ එහි පත්වැටි ගලවනුයේ ඵලය ද නො ලබන්නේ ය. හර කොයින් ද? ඇස් ඇති පුරුෂයෙක් ඒ තෙල කෙසෙල් කඳ දක්නේ යැ, සිතන්නේ යැ, නුවණින් විමසන්නේ යැ. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් විමසන ඔහුට එය හිස් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ, හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යි. කිම, මහණෙනි, කෙසෙල් කඳෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, එසේයින් ම අතීත–අනාගත–පච්චුප්පන්න වූ ආධ්‍යාත්මික වේවයි බාහිර වේවයි ඖදාරික වේවයි සුක්ෂ්ම වේවයි හීන වේවයි ප්‍රණීත වේවයි යම් කිසි සංස්කාර කෙනෙක් ඇද්ද, දුර වේවයි ළඟ වේවයි යම් සංස්කාර කෙනෙකුත් ඇද්ද, මහණ එය දකියි, සිතයි, නුවණින් පිරික්සයි. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වුවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ, බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ, හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. මහණෙනි සංස්කාරයන්හි කුමන හරයෙක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, යම්සේ ඉඳුරුදැලියෙක් (විජ්ජාකරුවෙක්) හෝ ඉඳුරුදැලියකුගේ අතැවැස්සෙක් හෝ සිවුමංසලෙක මායාවක් (විජ්ජාවක්) දක්වන්නේ ද, ඇස් ඇති පුරුෂයෙක් තෙල මායාව දක්නේ යැ, සිතන්නේ යැ, නුවණින් පිරික්සන්නේ යැ. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්න් යැ, බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ, හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙන්නේ යැ. කීමැ, මහණෙනි, මායාවෙහි හරයක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, එසේයින් ම අතීත–අනාගත–වර්තමාන වූ ආධ්‍යාත්මික වේවයි බාහිර වේවයි ඖදාරික වේවයි සුක්ෂ්ම වේවයි හීන වේවයි ප්‍රණීත වේවයි යම් කිසි විඥානයෙක් ඇත් ද, දුර වේවයි ළඟ වේවයි යම් විඥානයෙකුත් ඇත් ද, මහණ ඒ විඥානය දකියි, සිතයි, නුවණින් පිරික්සයි. දකින, සිතන, නුවණින් පිරික්සන ඔහුට එය හිස් වුවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි, බොල් වූවක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි, හර නැත්තක් සේ ම වැටහෙයි. මහණෙනි, විඥානයෙහි හරයෙක් වන්නේ ද?

මහණෙනි, මෙසේ දක්නා ශ්‍රැතවත් ආර්යශ්‍රාවක තෙමේ රූපයෙහි දු කලකිරෙයි, වේදනායෙහි දු කලකිරෙයි, සංඥායෙහි දු කලකිරෙයි, සංස්කාරයෙහි දු කලකිරෙයි, විඥානයෙහි දු කලකිරෙයි. කලකිරෙන්නේ නො ඇලෙයි. නො ඇලීම හේතුයෙන් (පස් කඳෙන්) මිදෙයි, මිදුණු කල්හි මිදිණැ යි දැනීම (ප්‍රත්‍යුවෙක්ෂා ඥානය) වෙයි. ජාතික්ෂය විය. මහබඹසර වැසැ නිමවන ලද, කරණී කරණ ලද, මේ රහත් බව පිණිස අන් කිසෙක් නැතැ යි දැනගනියි.

භාග්‍යවතුන් වහන්සේ මෙය වදාළ සේක. සුගත වූ ශාස්තෲන් වහන්සේ මෙය වදාරා යලි මතුදු තෙල ගාථා වදාළ සේක:

(1) රූපය පෙණපිඩක් වැන්න, වේදනාව දියබුබුළක් වැන්න, සංඥාව මිරිඟුවක් වැන්න, සංස්කාර කෙසෙල් කඳක් වැන්න, විඥානය මායාවක් වැන්නැ යි ආදිච්චබන්ධු වූ බුදුරජාණන් වහන්සේ විසින් දක්වන ලදී.

(2) යමෙක් එය නුවණින් දකී ද, යම් යම් පරිද්දෙන් එය සිතා ද, නුවණින් පිරික්සා ද, එපරිද්දෙන් හිස් වූවක් බොල් වූවක් වෙයි.

(3) පතළ නුවණැති බුදුරජාණන් වහන්සේ විසින් ගැරහිය යුතු කොට දේශිත, (ආයු ආදී) දහම් තුනෙක ප්‍රහාණය ඇති, සොහොනෙහි දමන ලද රූපස්කන්ධ සංඛ්‍යාත මේ කාය යමෙක් දක්නේ ද,

(4) ආයුෂත් (ජිවිතෙන්ද්‍රියත්) උණුසුමත් (කර්මජතේජෝධාතුවත්) විඥානයත් යම් කලෙක මේ කය හර දමා ද, එ කල්හි බැහැර කරණ ලද්දේ (කෘමිගණාදි) මෙරමා හට බත් ව අචේතන ව හොවී යි (දකියි)

(5) (මළහු පිළිබඳ) මේ ප්‍රවේණිය (ක්‍රියාවලිය) මෙ බඳු ය. මේ විඥානය බාලයන් ලවා මැනැවැ යි කියවන මායවෙකි. තෙල ස්කන්ධ (ඔවුනොවුන් නසාලන අර්ථයෙන්) වධයෙකැ යි පවසන ලදී. මෙහි හරයෙක් නැති.

(6) ඇරැඹූ වෙර ඇති මහණ ඉඳින් දහවල් හෝ රැය හෝ මනා නුවණ ඇත්තේ එළඹ සිටි සිහි ඇත්තේ ස්කන්ධයන් මෙසේ බලන්නේ යි.

(7) අච්‍යුත සඞ්ඛ්‍යාත නිවන පතනුයේ සියලු සංයෝජන දුරු කරන්නේ යැ, තමහට පිහිටක් කර ගන්නේ යැ, හිස ගිනි ගත්තකු සේ හැසිරෙන්නේ යි.

03/04/2024

Patta Kamma Sutta - The Discourse on Worthwhile Work

The Patta Kamma Sutta is a remarkable little discourse on the ideal lay practitioner, heading for accomplishment or excellence both on the worldly and spiritual
levels.

The householder Anāthapiṇḍika went up to the Buddha, bowed, and sat down to one side.

The Buddha said to him:

“Householder, these four things that are likable, desirable, and agreeable are hard to get in the world. What four? The first thing is the wish: ‘May wealth come to me by legitimate means!’

The second thing, having got wealth by legitimate means, is the wish: ‘May fame come to me, together with my family and teachers.’

The third thing, having got wealth and fame, is the wish: ‘May I live long, keeping alive for a long time!’

The fourth thing, having got wealth, fame, and long life, is the wish: ‘When my body breaks up, after death, may I be reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm!’ These are the four things that are likable, desirable, and agreeable, but hard to get in the world.

These next four things lead to the getting of those four things. What four? Accomplishment in faith, ethics, generosity, and wisdom.

And what is accomplishment in faith? It’s when a noble disciple has faith in the Realized One’s awakening: ‘That Blessed One is perfected, a fully awakened Buddha, accomplished in knowledge and conduct, holy, knower of the world, supreme guide for those who wish to train, teacher of gods and humans, awakened, blessed.’ This is called accomplishment in faith.

And what is accomplishment in ethics? It’s when a noble disciple doesn’t kill living creatures, steal, commit sexual misconduct, lie, or take alcoholic drinks that causes negligence. This is called accomplishment in ethics.

And what is accomplishment in generosity? It’s when a noble disciple lives at home rid of the stain of stinginess, freely generous, open-handed, loving to let go, committed to charity, loving to give and to share. This is called accomplishment in generosity.

And what is accomplishment in wisdom? When your heart is mastered by covetousness and immoral greed, you do what you shouldn’t, and fail to do what you should. Your fame and happiness fall to dust. When your heart is mastered by ill will … dullness and drowsiness … restlessness and remorse … doubt, you do what you shouldn’t, and fail to do what you should. Your fame and happiness fall to dust.

Knowing that ‘covetousness and immoral greed are corruptions of the mind’, that noble disciple gives them up. Knowing that ‘ill will …’ … ‘dullness and drowsiness …’ … ‘restlessness and remorse …’ … ‘doubt is a corruption of the mind’, that noble disciple gives it up.

When a noble disciple has given up these things, they’re called ‘a noble disciple of great wisdom, of widespread wisdom, who sees what matters, and is accomplished in wisdom’. This is called accomplishment in wisdom. These are the four things that lead to the getting of the four things that are likable, desirable, and agreeable, but hard to get in the world.

There are four fitting deeds that a noble disciple does with the legitimate wealth he has earned by his efforts and initiative, built up with his own hands, gathered by the sweat of the brow. What four?

To start with, with his legitimate wealth he makes himself happy and pleased, keeping himself properly happy. He makes his mother and father happy … He makes his children, partners, bondservants, workers, and staff happy … He makes his friends and colleagues happy … This is his first expenditure in an appropriate sphere on a deserved and fitting cause.

Furthermore, with his legitimate wealth he defends himself against threats from such things as fire, flood, rulers, bandits, or unloved heirs. He keeps himself safe. This is his second expenditure in an appropriate sphere on a deserved and fitting cause.

Furthermore, with his legitimate wealth he makes five spirit-offerings: to relatives, guests, ancestors, king, and deities. This is his third expenditure in an appropriate sphere on a deserved and fitting cause.

Furthermore, with his legitimate wealth he establishes an uplifting religious donation for ascetics and brahmins—those who avoid intoxication and negligence, are settled in patience and gentleness, and who tame, calm, and extinguish themselves—that’s conducive to heaven, ripens in happiness, and leads to heaven. This is his fourth expenditure in an appropriate sphere on a deserved and fitting cause.

'These are the four fitting deeds that a noble disciple does with the legitimate wealth he has earned by his efforts and initiative, built up with his own hands, gathered by the sweat of the brow.

Whatever wealth is spent on something other than these four fitting deeds is said to not be expenditure in an appropriate sphere on a deserved and fitting cause. But whatever wealth is spent on these four fitting deeds is said to be expenditure in an appropriate sphere on a deserved and fitting cause.

‘I’ve enjoyed my wealth,
supporting those who depend on me;
I’ve overcome losses;
I’ve given uplifting religious donations;
and made the five spirit-offerings.
I have served the ethical and
disciplined spiritual practitioners.

I’ve achieved the purpose
for which an astute lay person
wishes to gain wealth.
I don’t regret what I’ve done.’

A mortal person who recollects this
stands firm in the teaching of the noble ones.
They’re praised in this life,
and they depart to rejoice in heaven.”

(Pattakammasutta—Bhikkhu Sujato)

03/04/2024

Paththakamma Sutta | පත්තකම්ම සුත්‍රය - Durlaba Karana 4k Lebimata | දුර්ලභ කාරණා 4ක් ලැබීමට +145 | nauyane ariyadhamma theronauyane ariyadhamma mahathera n...

03/04/2024

The ancient Meghagiri Vihara or Meygiri Vihara is presently identified as the Isurumuni Vihara. It was built ...

Pāramī The word pāra means liberation, Nibbāna. If we take the simile of a river, we are on one shore and that is the Sa...
24/03/2024

Pāramī

The word pāra means liberation, Nibbāna. If we take the simile of a river, we are on one shore and that is the Saṃsāra. The other shore is the Nibbāna. In order to reach that shore, we need to cross the current of water which are called the kilesas, mental defilements.

The suffix “mī” on the other hand denotes anything that takes us to that shore. Therefore, the term Pāramī is what helps us to attain the
Nibbāna.

We should look into Pāramī in a more practical aspect. When Nibbāna or the magga ñāṇa is taken as the attainment, whatever we do to reach those goals become Pāramī. Closest to the Magga ñāṇa is Vipassanā.

Even practicing Vipassanā is completing Pāramī. We should not
think in a way that Pāramī is something else other than the practice, and when we fulfill them, we would get a ticket or some ability to reach the Nibbāna. The practice itself done in order to attain Nibbāna is Pāramī.

Vipassanā is the proximate cause to attain Nibbāna. We have various types of Vipassanā wisdoms called udayabbaya ñāṇa, bhaṅgānupassanā ñāṇa, bhayatupaṭṭhāna ñāṇa, saṅkhārupekkhā ñāṇa and so on. All these Vipassanā are necessary to attain the Magga ñāṇa.

Magga ñāṇa is the wisdom that eradicates the defilements which prevent us from attaining Nibbāna. Magga ñāṇa cuts off all defilements and makes us attain the unconditioned element,
asaṅkhata dhātu. Magga ñāṇa gets this ability to cut off defilements as a result of the mental
power one develops through Vipassanā practice.
Vipassanā wisdom is a necessary Pāramī to develop Magga ñāṇa. In order to attain Vipassanā, we should have few requisites. One is the concentration samādhi. We should also have some level of Sīla as a basis for our practice and also good knowledge on Dhamma.
Only then we would be able to gain Vipassanā wisdom. We are fulfilling Pāramī to raise our wisdom to reach an extraordinary phenomenon of removing entire defilements lying dormant
within ourselves. Magga ñāṇa has this capacity, and it obtains this ability with the help of the preliminary spiritual practice we make during our practice. We have a mind. In reality, it exists as a generation; hence it is better to call it a midstream.
Consciousness arises and passes away and it will be followed by another new consciousness which also passes away as soon after its arising. When we practice what we do is to upgrade
the level of our consciousness stream. In other words, we in-capacitate or strengthen our consciousness. So it is capable of suppressing defilements. We empower our own
consciousness to a certain level and at one point it becomes capable of eradicating deferments permanently. It is not that Magga ñāṇa arises in our mind having been somewhere else. It is
our own consciousness or our own wisdom that reaches to a level of eradicating defilements and we name it as Magga citta or Magga ñāṇa respectively. So, the whole responsibility of
achieving Magga ñāṇa and Nibbāna rests within us. Magga ñāṇa is a level that our mind reaches with spiritual practice. Fulfilling Pāramī means upgrading our mind to a level that it
becomes capable of eradicating defilements. When we keep on developing good qualities, we can see how our mind suppresses defilements.

There is another way of looking at the aspect of fulfilling Pāramī. That is as the process of purifying ourselves to be beings who are worthy of respect. When we become an Arahant, Paccekabuddha or Sammasambuddha after eradicating defilements even a part of our
physical bones becomes worthy for respect even from Devas and Brahmas. Fulfilling Pāramī is a process of making ourselves someday to be worthy of respect. In our sāsana everything that is required to attain Nibbāna are classified into ten Pāramīs, the
ten perfections. They are (1) generosity (dāna), (2) morality (sīla), (3) renunciation (nekkhamma), (4) insight (paññā), (5) energy (viriya), (6) patience (khanti), (7) truthfulness (sacca), (8) resolution (adhiṭṭhāna), (9) loving-kindness (mettā), and (10) equanimity
(upekkhā).

When we practice these ten pāramīs our mind automatically upgrades to a level that it is capable of eradicating defilements. It is not that we liberate after fulfilling all the Pāramīs one
after another. Fulfilling Pāramī means the entire journey towards Nibbāna. We are fulfilling Pāramī from the moment we start our journey towards Nibbāna till we attain it.

Please do not misunderstand that Siddhartha Bodhisattvas Pāramī were fulfilled during his Vessantara life. His Pāramīs were fulfilled under the Bodhi tree just before his attainment of Arahanta magga ñāṇa.

Three Types of Liberation
There are three types of Bodhis, Sammāsambuddha-hood, Paccekabuddha-hood and becoming an Arahant. In order to become an Arahant, we should have the desire or intention
of getting liberated from Saṃsāra as quickly as possible. Because the mindset to become an Arahant is to get rid of Saṃsāra. First, we need to think that the main aim of all three liberations is to get liberated. But as a Sammāsambuddha, he also desires to liberate others while he gets himself liberated.
It is mentioned in the commentary of Cariyāpiṭaka how someone starts the process of achieving Sammāsambuddha-hood. The first seed of thought of becoming a Sammāsambuddha arises due to any of the following four conditions (Paccayas).

The Four Conditions (Remote Factors) are as follows.
1. A person who sees a Buddha performing a miracle may think, “The Omniscience is of
tremendous power; by acquiring it, the Buddha has come to be of such wonderful and
marvelous nature and to possess such inconceivable power.” Having witnessed the
Buddha’s powers, he is inclined towards Omniscience.

2. Another being though he does not himself see the Buddha’s great power, he hears
from others: “The Exalted One is endowed with such and such powers.” Having heard
thus, he is inclined towards Omniscience.
3. Although he neither witnesses nor hears of the Buddha’s great powers, he listens to a
discourse given by the Buddha himself on the powers of a Buddha. Having listened to
it he is inclined towards Omniscience.
4. Although he neither sees the powers of a Buddha nor learns about it from others, nor
hears a discourse concerning the Buddha’s attributes, since he has a very noble
disposition, he thinks thus: “I will protect the heritage, lineage, tradition and law of
the Bodhisattvas”. Because of this high reverence for Dhamma (Dhamma-gārava) he
is inclined towards Omniscience.
In an existence complete with the eight factors (like that of Sumedha the wise, who was a
human, a man, an ascetic etc.), the following thoughts occurs in the mind of a Bodhisattva
(like Sumedha the wise) without being aroused by anyone, but only by being endowed with
the same eight factors.
“When I have crossed the ocean of Saṃsāra by myself, with my own effort, I shall also
rescue other beings; when I have freed myself from the bonds of Saṃsāra, I shall also liberate
other beings; when I have tamed my sense faculties, I shall teach other beings so that they
become tame; when I have extinguished the fires of mental defilements in me, I shall calm
the burning minds of other beings; when I have gained the most excellent comfort of
Nibbāna, I shall let other beings enjoy the same; when I have extinguished in me the flames
of the three rounds of rebirths, I shall put out those flames raging in other beings; when I
have purified myself of the dust of defilements through my own effort, I shall cause
purification of other beings; when I have gained knowledge of the four Noble Truths, I shall
teach them to other beings. (In short, I shall strive to become a Buddha and go to the rescue
of all beings.)”.
Thus, the aspiration to Buddhahood arises fervently, continuously, as great meritorious
consciousness (mahakusala citta) together with its mental concomitants. These meritorious
consciousness and mental concomitants which aspire to Buddhahood are known as the great
merit (abhinīhāra), which forms the basic condition for all the Ten Perfections.
Indeed, it is only through the arising of this great aspiration that Bodhisattvas receive the
definite prophecy of Buddhahood; after receiving the prophecy, there occur in succession,
reflection on the Pāramīs, resolution to fulfil them and necessary practices that take him to
the sublime height of accomplishment.
This great aspiration has the characteristic of inclination of the mind towards Omniscience.
Its function is to aspire for Buddhahood and having gained it, to wish for the ability to bring
welfare and happiness to all beings until they attain Nibbāna. Its manifestation in the yogi’s
mind is its being the basic cause of the requisites for Enlightenment. Its proximate cause is
Great Compassion.
This great aspiration has, as its object, the inconceivable province of the Buddhas and the
welfare of the whole immeasurable world of beings. It should thus be seen as the basis of
actions, such as Perfections, Sacrifices and Practices, and the most exalted meritoriousness
which is endowed with incomparable power.

(The Great Chronicle of Buddhas by Ven. Mingun Sayadaw)

One who wishes to be a Paccekabuddhas has a desire to be liberated by himself without
getting the help of a Sammāsambuddha. A person who desires to become an Arahant have a
wish to get rid of Saṃsāra. All these three types of aspirants in the end attain the same
liberation, the Nibbāna, but they have three different mindsets. All of them need to fulfill ten
types of Pāramīs. There is no argument in it. But the mind set they have in relation to our
Bodhi is very important. A person who wants to be a Paccekabuddha has a desire to liberate
himself. Paccekauddhas see the danger of waiting in Saṃsāra till the appearance of a
Sammāsambuddha. Person who wants to attain Sammāsambuddhahood wants to liberate
others from Saṃsāra, so he should develop a great compassion towards many beings.
Becoming a Sammāsambuddha is a greater goal but it delays the liberation of the one who
aspires it. On the other hand, by trying to be a Paccekabuddha one accelerates his liberation.
Becoming an Arahant is liberating oneself from the Saṃsāra with the help of the teachings of
a Sammāsambuddha. In order to become an Arahant, one does not need to make sacrifices as
a Bodhisattva who wishes to be a Sammāsambuddha and or a person who aspires
Paccekabuddha-hood. All three Bodhis are great achievements in that sense. They have their
own benefits. So it is up to you to decide which bodhi he or she would prefer and pursue it.

23/03/2024
When you want to make a cup of milk tea, you may need four key ingredients; tea, hot water, milk and sugar. You have to ...
21/03/2024

When you want to make a cup of milk tea, you may need four key ingredients; tea, hot water, milk and sugar. You have to stir the mixture well before you take a small sip. Then you can enjoy it! According to one of the Buddha’s teachings, whatever we would like to accomplish in our lives; we need to have the right ingredients; the desire to act, strength or energy, mind and investigation or inspection.

In Pali we call them Iddhipādās; Chanda, Viriya, Citta and Vīmaṃsā. The Pali term iddhipādā, “iddhi” meaning power, success, accomplishment or potency and “pādā” meaning base or basis, is translated into English language as “bases of mental or psychic power” or “bases of spiritual power”. It can be said that cultivation of these four qualities to some extent is essential for the success or accomplishment of any task in one’s domestic, social, professional or religious life.

The final spiritual goal of the practitioners within Theravada Buddhism is Nibbana; liberation from all sufferings and the cycle of birth and death (Saṃsāra). In Theravada Buddhist Scriptures, Nibbana has been described as a supra-mundane state of the highest bliss and eternal happiness devoid of the suffering of birth, disease, old age, death, grief, lamentation and despair.

According to Buddha’s teaching a person should develop at least one of the four iddhipādā for the development of certain mundane and supra mundane mental powers during one’s spiritual development.

"Attā hi attanō nāthōkō hi nāthō parō siyāattanā hi sudanténanātham labhati dullabham”(Dhammapada verse 160)“One is one’...
18/03/2024

"Attā hi attanō nāthō
kō hi nāthō parō siyā
attanā hi sudanténa
nātham labhati dullabham”

(Dhammapada verse 160)

“One is one’s own refuge
how can another be a refuge to one?
(one reaches salvation) by purifying one’s own mind
getting to the refuge (Nibbāna) is rare.”

"Think about a person who is sick and waiting to get cured from the sickness. For that there should be a good doctor to prescribe medicines according to his disease. Having a doctor is not enough, there should be quality medicines. We also need the support of nurses, attendants. They give medicines at the correct time and instruct us, support us and compassionately guide us what to do and what not to do to get cured. Finally, if there is a good doctor, the best medicines, good nurses and attendants are there, it's our duty to behave properly and follow the instructions given by them and follow the healthy habits. Even though we are in the best hospital under the care of the best medical staff and high quality medicines, the greatest responsibility relies on us.

So the great doctor, the Great Buddha who understood the suffering of this world has given best medicine Dhamma to cure the sickness of craving in this Samsara with the support of the nurses and attendants, the Sangha who encourage us and guide us, but if we do not follow the path, we can never get out of this Samsara."

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