[Lal]

Siebe said: “Cultivating metta has effects on the heart chakra, for example. Seeing tilakkhana leads to a process of grounding, becoming less dreamy, an effect of sobering up.”

That is correct.

Siebe said: “Some buddhist schools have invented special purification practices based upon the understanding of these subtle processes and how they are influenced.”

That is correct too. They are deviating away from the key message and that could be distraction. It is not necessarily bad to learn about such things, but there is a danger that one could get focused on those chakras, nadis, etc and spend too much time on that.

Siebe said: “Would the Buddha disapprove? I do not know for sure ofcourse, but why would he if they are conducive to the goal of reaching Nibbana?”

If the Buddha thought those things are necessary, he would have taught them. Again, only a Buddha can teach about the samsaric suffering, whereas there are others who can teach such mundane things. He did not want to deviate from the key and critical message.

The Buddha knew much more than current scientists about nuclear power, lasers, etc. Those things could be useful to a society at a mundane level. But they are not necessary (and could become distractions) in pursuing Nibbana. If one understood the true dangers of the rebirth porcess, one would not spend much time on such topics.

However, when one is sick, one MUST seek medical advice. Without getting better, one cannot pursue the Path to Nibbana. So, we need to keep that in mind too. If one can get rid of some bodily aches by practicing yoga or just to maintain physical health, it is prudent to learn and practice yoga. I myself do yoga, but I can learn those techniques from websites/books specialized in yoga. There in no need for me teach yoga or to discuss those techniques here.

So, let us not mix up Buddha Dhamma with yoga or chakras or nadis.

[Lal]

Just published the post on this and other related issues:
 “Sammā Ditthi – Realization, Not Memorization“.

[Lal]

Buddha Dhamma is NOT for providing relief to pains and aches or to provide temporary physical relief (even though the practice could help in some instances). Buddha’s message was focused on providing relief from the samsaric suffering (in the rebirth process), which can be unimaginably harsh.

This is why the Buddha banned bhikkhus from engaging in mundane activities to act as doctors, astrologers, yogis, etc. This is not to say that those are not important. But there are others who can provide such remedies: doctors can help with physical pains and illnesses, astrologers can help those who believe in such things, anariya yogis can help with breath meditations, anariya jhanas, chakras, nadis, etc, etc.

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Siebe said: “I belief, we cannot really say that only what is mentioned in the Canon has buddha’s approval.”

That is NOT correct. The Buddha taught for 45 years, and literally ALL he taught was remembered by Ven. Ananda (and he made sure to get approval of that material from the Buddha) and they were all incorporated to the Tipitaka.

So, it is safe to say that the Pali Canon, Tipitaka, would not have anything significant missing.

[Lal]

@Siebe: What you said in the above:
“A bit salt in not much water will give very salty water. But the same amount in a river cannot even be detected. This is mentioned in AN3.100 (numbering Bodhi). Thanissaro numbers AN3.99:
Lonaphala Sutta: The Salt Crystal

That is correct with regard to any situation, not only in this particular case. And that is an important point. When one habitually does many punna/kusala kamma, they accumulate and tend to dilute the effects of any occasional papa/akusala kamma.

In addition to the examples given in that sutta, we can consider the following too: When a $1000 check bonces off of an account at a bank, where one has only $500 in all accounts at the bank, that is a big problem. However, if that person had a million dollars in another account at the bank, then that is not a problem at all.

Another example similar to the one is the sutta: Sometimes we see standing water in a ditch by the roadside. It could be discolored and even smelly. However, when a good rainfall comes, all that dirty stuff will be washed away. The Buddha called this “rivers of punna/kusala kamma washing off many small accumulations of papa/akusala kamma“.

When one has “a lot of reserves of good”, an occasional misstep or misdeed is not going to affect the overall situation.

[Lal]

In the above post, I was mainly referring assisted suicide in the cases of old age/terminal illness.

However, in the case of young, healthy people committing suicide due to depression/breakup of relationships etc, it is a different situation. In such cases, they may generate hateful/angry thoughts towards others or themselves and that is bad for them. They are not only terminating this life, but could be also terminating what is left of their human bhava.

Therefore, in such cases, Johnny’s reasoning is valid.

[Lal]

Assisted suicide
This is a very complex issue. We cannot judge exactly what kind of kamma are accumulated by either the person making the decision to end his/her life or other persons assisting.

As I discussed before, there are two key factors to be remembered in evaluating how to assess a kammā vipāka; see, “What is Intention in Kamma?“:

1. Which of the dasa akusala is the intention? For example, it could be taking a life, stealing, or harsh speech. Who is affected is not involved in this step. The “cetana” in “cetana ham bhikkhave kamman vadami”, is just which dasa akusala is in one’s mind; that is all.
2. Then the strength of the kammā vipāka is based on the “level of consciousness” or “qualities” of the living beings affected by that kammā. For example, killing a human will bring stronger kamma vipaka than killing an animal.

Also remember that some kamma lead to both good and bad vipaka. For example, if one saves the life of a frog which was about to be eaten by snake, one would gain merits by saving the frog’s life, but gets bad vipaka for depriving the snake of its meal (food).

I would just stay away from these issues, unless I am involved in the process myself. Then I would have to make the decision based on the exact situation that I need to deal with. It is unfruitful (and could even lead to bad vaci sankhara) to just speculate on kamma done by others. We simply do not know their exact situation(s).

[Lal]

First of all, “desires” are two kinds:

1. Desire for sense pleasures. This also has a wide range from kamaccandha (removed at Sotapanna stage) to kama raga (removed at Anagami stage) to rupa raga and arupa raga (removed at Arahant stage).
2. Desire to attain Nibbana. This is chanda iddhipada, one of satara iddhipada or four bases of mental power: “The Four Bases of Mental Power (Satara Iddhipada)“.
   Anything that one “desires” to do in order to attain Nibbana falls under chanda iddhipada.

Desire to learn Sinhala is of the second kind. And it makes sense because Sinhala is the closest to Pali. It is easier to learn Pali, if one knows Sinhala language.
– On the contrary, Sanskrit (which many people try to learn) is the wrong language to learn. Sanskrit words are deliberately composed to provide mundane meanings and also to make enticing and appear sophisticated. The Sanskrit word for paticca samuppada, pratityasamutpada, is a good example. It sounds sophisticated, but does not convey anything.

• The Buddha specifically instructed not to translate Tipitaka to Sanskrit, because of this problem; see #5 of “Preservation of the Dhamma“.

The best way to learn Sinhala could be just go to Sri Lanka and spend a few months. I am not sure whether that is practical. Another possibility is to learn from a Sinhala-speaking person if one is available for regular interaction (i.e, if such a person lives close by).

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Hi Tobias:

Yes. It is a subtle point. The key is the is that just by doing kusala kamma one CANNOT remove the ditthi anusaya. This is why it is not possible to attain Nibbana just via moral conduct (sila).

Without removing the ditthi anusaya (and vicikicca anusaya, which is also related to getting to Ariya Samma Ditthi), one cannot start removing the other types of anusaya. This happens only at the Sotapanna stage.
– But anyone can do kusala kamma with alobha, adosa, amoha. That does not require panna (wisdom), which is the comprehension of Tilakkhana.
– Ditthi anusaya cannot be broken just with alobha, adosa, amoha. Without breaking the ditthi anusaya, one cannot remove the remaining anusaya.

Those remaining anusaya are then removed at higher magga phala; see, “Conditions for the Four Stages of Nibbana“.

It is amazing that ditthi anusaya is responsible for 99+% of the akusala kamma conducted by a given person. At one time, the Buddha took a bit of dirt to his fingernail and told the bhikkhus that if the soil in the whole Earth (or is it the amount in a given mountain?, I don’t remember) is compared to the defilements of a normal human, then the amount that a Sotapanna has remaining can be compared to that bit of dirt. The point is that what is remaining to be removed (by getting rid of other types anusaya) is relatively very small.

People tend to think about killing, stealing, etc (those done by the bodily actions and speech) to be the prominent dasa akusala. But one does more akusala by the mind (conscious thinking or vaci sankhara) based on wrong views (which under tempting situations can easily lead to akusala by the body and speech). This is why removing ditthi anusaya is so important!

It is also important to realize that ditthi anusaya or wrong views are removed at two stages, as I keep emphasizing: First, the 10 types of micca ditthi removed before the Sotapanna stage, and then wrong views on nicca, sukha, atta nature of this world removed starting at the Sotapanna stage.

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@Embodied: Satipatthana (and Anapana) can be done by anyone at any stage. One just needs to be mindful and stay away from dasa akusala, and also cultivate kusala/punna kamma.

Vipassana can be done by anyone too, but it will become more effective as one starts comprehending Tilakkhana. In a way, this is also true of Satipatthana (and Anapana), since one will become better at it with an understanding of the “true nature” of this world.

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I mostly agree with what Akvan said above.

But I think it is a good idea to elaborate on some points. So, my next post will be on this issue. If anyone else has any other related questions/comments, please post them. I can try to address those too.

[Lal]

Thank you, Tobias, for catching that error. I just revised #1 in that post. I will read that post carefully and make any more necessary corrections.

[Lal]

It is essential to sort out the two types of “right thinking” or Samma Sankappa. In fact, each of all 8 steps on the Path have two types. These have been discussed, but I will summarize again.

The problem with most translations is that they do not pinpoint the key issues, but rather translate Pali word by word. Pali is a phonetic language. One has to get the meaning of the overall sentence. So, let us discuss the essence.

Eightfold path (either one) works step-by-step. Both sets of eightfold paths start with “right vision”. One’s thinking is ALWAYS based on one’s knowledge or more correctly panna (wisdom).

This is not book knowledge, but knowledge about the wider world of 31 realms.
It comes in two stages:

1. First getting rid of the 10 types of micca ditthi involving the laws of kamma, knowing the difference between right and wrong (dasa akusala), etc.
When one understands the bad consequences of those 10 types of micca ditthi, one has the ability to CONSCIOUS THINKING (vaci sankhara) WITH THAT MINDSET. Then one’s mind becomes less burdened and one starts feeling the first stages of niramisa sukha.
2. At that point, one’s mind is capable of grasping the Tilakkhana (anicca,dukkha, anatta), the Three Characteristics of Nature.

• First one realizes that it is unfruitful AND dangerous to engage in actions, speech, and thoughts (vaci sankhara), that could lead to births in the apayas.

So, I hope you can see the difference between the “right thinking” at the mundane path and the Transcendental (Lokottara) Noble Path.

Of course, the details can be found in many posts throughout the website. I have been emphasizing the importance of understanding vaci sankhara; see, “Correct Meaning of Vacī Sankhāra“.

It is important to realize that Samma Sankappa are Vaci Sankhara of the “correct” or “moral” type. They get to deeper stage with the comprehension of Tilakkhana.

In effect, the two types of “right thinking” are the following:
– The vaci sankhara involved in the mundane path (understanding the laws of kamma, realizing that rebirth must be valid, etc), which makes it possible for one to get to the second stage.
– The second stage starts with vaci sankhara BASED ON understanding the unfruitfulness and dangers of EXCESS attachment to sense pleasures that could lead to rebirths in the apayas (which leads to the Sotapanna stage).
– After that there are more steps leading to higher stages of Nibbana based on deeper understanding of the Tilakkhana.

Of course, those two steps are then followed by right speech, right actions, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness (sati), and right “state of mind” (samadhi). Again, each of those are of two types, as discussed in other posts.

[Lal]

Tobias said: “The kusala-mula PS operates only for Ariyas, starting at the Sotapanna stage. For a normal human (a “worldling”) the akusala-mula PS is always applied. See also https://puredhamma.net/forums/topic/what-is-intention-in-kamma/”

This is not right. If I implied that, I must have made a mistake. One can do kusala even before the Sotapanna Anugami stage.

We need to remember that amoha is not necessarily the same as panna, and thus anyone can act with alobha, adosa, amoha.

[Lal]

Tobias asked: “But an Arahant has removed all six causes (also alobha, adosa, amoha). Can I conclude that an Arahant does not have the kusala-mula PS? Then which type of PS is still executed by an Arahant?”

Good question. One can learn a lot by carefully thinking about this.

1. One is born in this world due to the six root causes.
• One is born in the apayas or dugati due to bad gati arising mainly due to lobha, dosa, moha. The akusala-mula PS operates when actions, speech, and thoughts take place with these three root causes.
• One is born in the remaining “good realms” or sugati due to good gati due to alobha, adosa, amoha. The kusala-mula PS operates when actions, speech, and thoughts take place with these three root causes.
2. Therefore, NEITHER of the PS cycles operate for an Arahant. If either one operates, that would lead to making new kamma and new bhava and more rebirths.
3. For those who are into Abhidhamma, a citta vithi always starts with an external sense input due to a past kamma, i.e., due to a kamma vipaka. So, an Arahant will have sense inputs, and experience the vipaka during the first stag of the citta vithi (those citta before the vottapana (“V”) citta in the citta vithi; see #15 of “Avyākata Paticca Samuppāda for Vipāka Viññāna“.
• A decision is made at the vottapana citta automatically (based on one’s gati) on how to respond to the sense input. Then appropriate javana citta will run, and new kamma will be done.
• But an Arahant has removed ALL gati, and as we discussed above, his/her javana citta will have no kammic power.
4. Furthermore, it is essential that one stay away from dasa akusala (and thus minimize akusala-mula PS), and also to CULTIVATE kusala-mula PS.
• That is Anapana (Satipatthana). And that in the long run will lead to cultivation of panna (wisdom), and to the Arahant stage via four intermediate stages.
• All six root causes are eliminated at the pinnacle of panna, at the Arahant phala moment.

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