I am not aware of Goenke’s teachings claiming to get rid of all karma, but they do correctly claim to reduce suffering, if practised properly. This is my experience. The answer to the question of “How Nibbana can be achieved without comprehension of Tilakkhana?” I think lies in ones ability to perceive and one certainly doesn’t have to know how to read to perceive or comprehend, although theory is certainly helpful. Which is why I reiterate that through experiencing the effects of the technique, one could come to their own conclusions without the need for any external references or validation. Nibbana is right here right now in the core of one’s being and it always has been, it is these filters and sankaras which prevent people from seeing the true nature of reality. Mind (is) The Gap translates that mind, or the thought-process, is what separates a person from their authentic self which in reality is not a self at all, but a composite of the macrocosmic whole.
By sankara I mean thought or reaction, which are intertwined. I’ll elaborate on how the process of releasing sankaras works. Bear in mind also that thoughts create matter and vice versa. By observing sila – the 5 precepts in a dhammic environment; a vacuum is created that prevents new sankaras from being generated, which in turn allows the “old stock” of sankaras to rise and be dissolved. Again I am speaking from my own experience, not based on fleeting unquantifiable theories, which may or may not be true. Or maybe they were true then, but are not necessarily true now. In any case the surest way to discover truth is through direct experience, otherwise why would any being bother to incarnate in the first place? That’s the game-changer – the experiential aspect.
“The real vipassana is about analyzing why such greedy or hateful thoughts arise, see their bad consequences and to get rid of them. Just by getting the mind off of such thoughts by focusing on breath is not a real solution” – Lal
Perhaps, but on the deepest levels, it is effectively achieved when gross unpleasant sensations – in particular, are experienced. In the process of observing them, one realizes intuitively, via their energetic language/signature their consequences – directly. Of course one will also have many opportunities in-between meditating to reflect on what has been shown to them.
I wrote:“The practice of Anapana for the first 3 days, concentrating on breath and the sensations of a small part of the body; in and around the nostrils and above the upper lip, helps the meditator to develop a concentrated mind that will be able to detect the very subtlest of sensations.”
On day 4 the meditators are introduced to Vipassana, once the mind has been sufficiently concentrated to detect the subtlest of sensations. The body is then swept from head to foot, foot to head, if there is a free-flow of sensations or at a slower pace part by part – back and forth “patiently and persistently” observing the full gamut of sensations that will now be more easily perceivable. If the mind becomes agitated, the meditator returns to anapana until balance is restored and then reverts to Vipassana.