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You wrote: “This constant pressure to maintain is the “bhara”, or “parihara bhara” or “peeda”.”
- I am guessing what you mean by “bhara” is the “burden” and “peedā” is “stress” (“pilana” in Pāli)?
If so, that sentence embeds what the Buddha was trying to teach.
- “Bhara” (or bhāra) is the burden of “seeking pleasure in worldly things.” Since worldly things never provide lasting happiness (instead, seeking them leads to more suffering in the long term), people (and all living beings) are trapped in this process. Icca (or iccha) is the desire for worldly things and, thus, to pursue them.
- That is why the Buddha said, “pancupadanakkhandha is dukkha.” See #8 of the new post “Pāli Suttās in Tipiṭaka – Direct Translations are Wrong.”
- This message is embedded in the “Bhāra Sutta (SN 22.22).”
Can you explain the reasons for your conjecture?
- How does one cultivate jhana? If you can answer that things will become clear. I invite anyone to answer this question. I will wait for a day or two.
- Instead of repeating what others say, it is wise to understand the reasons. Ask the question from those who gave you this idea. How do they cultivate jhana?
The English translation of that sutta in the following link is good enough to answer your question: “Nandiyasakka Sutta (SN 55.40)”
@marker 3.1 Nandiya asks the Buddha: ” And how does a noble disciple live negligently?”
- Buddha says: “Firstly, a noble disciple has aveccappasāda in the Buddha.
- But some are content with that confidence and don’t make a further effort to make progress by day and night.”
- When they live negligently, there’s no joy. When there’s no joy, there’s no rapture. When there’s no rapture, there’s no tranquility. When there’s no tranquility, there’s suffering. When one is suffering, the mind does not become immersed in samādhi. When the mind is not immersed in samādhi, principles do not become apparent. Because principles have not become clear, they’re reckoned to live negligently.”
- That explanation is repeated for a negligent Ariya with aveccappasāda in Dhamma and Sangha up to @marker 4.12.
@marker 5.1: The Buddha says: “And how does a noble disciple live diligently?”
- Firstly, a noble disciple has aveccappasāda in the Buddha.
- But they’re not content with that confidence and make further effort by day and night. When they live diligently, joy springs up. Being joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel the bliss. And when blissful, the mind becomes immersed in samādhi. When the mind is immersed in samādhi, principles become clear. Because principles have become clear, they live diligently.
- That explanation is repeated for a diligent Ariya with aveccappasāda in Dhamma and Sangha up to the end of the sutta.
Some people get to the Sotapanna stage and don’t make an effort to make further progress, i.e., try to get to the higher stages. Lady Visaka was a good example.
- Many others did make that effort and attained higher magga phala.
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“Unshakable confidence with wisdom (aveccappasada) in Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha.”
Yes. That is a good measure of whether one is a Sotapanna.
- However, the key is defining “Unshakable confidence with wisdom (aveccappasāda)”
- One could say that based on “blind faith” without having a deeper understanding.
One becomes a Sotapanna (or Sotapanna Anugami) when one can see the futility and danger of being trapped in the rebirth process. The rebirth process continues because of one’s attachments (cravings/tanha) for worldly things.
- The word “aveccappasāda” (avecca pasāda or ava icca pasāda) has that meaning.
- See #12 of “Sotapatti Aṅga – The Four Qualities of a Sotāpanna.”
When one can “see that with wisdom” or “Sammā Ditthi,” one becomes at least a Sotapanna Anugāmi. However, a Sotapanna still has not removed cravings or kāma rāga; that happens at the Anāgāmi stage. Yet, with that “Sammā Ditthi,” a Sotapanna‘s mind would not engage in a severe immoral deed that can lead to rebirth in the apāyās.
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Many concepts have been incorrectly translated over the years, especially in current English translations. So, be patient.
- I will discuss this issue in the new post later today.
Thank you!
- There are a few errors. The first one at the top of the table: “Here Anityata (Impermanence) in ones Life is seen.”
- “Anicca” does not mean just impermanence, even though impermanence is part of it.
- An introduction to the sutta: “Essence of Buddhism – In the First Sutta“
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Informative. Thank you!
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Thank you! It will be a good practice.
- You have a better understanding than many. I have not been able to convey these ideas to some of my friends. Some have Ph. D.s but don’t “get it.” Their minds are occupied with making “scientific discoveries” or simply not interested! It motivates me to see my efforts make a difference in at least some!
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“Harayati” means “no substance,” as I explained in “Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta – According to Some Key Suttā“
Please write comments while at home. There is no need to respond immediately. I also had to correct many spelling errors and grammar in other comments. I don’t mind that in short comments, but it is added work for me. A good comment may not make sense if not written correctly.
- Especially with long comments, please use software like Google Docs or Word to ensure the comment is grammatically correct.
- I may delete a comment and ask to be resubmitted in the future.
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Another translation that is a bit more informative is here: “Dhammapada Verse 149“
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It is a short sutta, a “Thera Gāthā” uttered by an Arahant “Siṅgālapituttheragāthā”:
“Ahu buddhassa dāyādo, bhikkhu bhesakaḷāvane;
Kevalaṁ aṭṭhisaññāya, apharī pathaviṁ imaṁ;
Maññehaṁ kāmarāgaṁ so, khippameva pahissatī”ti.
Translation:
“There was an heir of the Buddha, a bhikkhu in Bhesakaḷā forest,
who suffused the entire earth with the perception of “anicca saññā” (meaning he would not generate kama raga for anything on Earth)
I think he will quickly eliminate sensual desire (kāma rāga.)”
The critical point is to realize the following:
- There, aṭṭhi saññā means to realize the futility of craving things that induce kāma rāga, i.e., to cultivate “anicca saññā” for “sensual objects.”
- The “Aṭṭhikamahapphala Sutta (SN 46.57)” states that one who cultivates aṭṭhika saññā can become an Arahant or at least an Anagami: “Aṭṭhikasaññāya, bhikkhave, bhāvitāya bahulīkatāya dvinnaṁ phalānaṁ aññataraṁ phalaṁ pāṭikaṅkhaṁ—diṭṭheva dhamme aññā, sati vā upādisese anāgāmitā.” Here, “aññā” is an Arahant.
- The English translations of aṭṭhi saññā as “perception of bones” in the first sutta and “perception of a skeleton” in the second sutta in the above links are wrong. One cannot become an Arahant by contemplating “bones” or “skeletons.”
The meaning becomes evident in the “Girimānanda Sutta (AN 10.60)“: “Idhānanda, bhikkhu sabbasaṅkhāresu aṭṭīyati harāyati jigucchati.” I have explained this verse in #10 of “Anicca, Dukkha, Anatta – According to Some Key Suttā“
OK. Thank you!
Here is the reference: “Siṅgālapituttheragāthā.”
- I will take a look later. Others, please feel free to comment.
There are several Sila Suttas. I am not sure which sutta that refers to.
However, the “antarāparinibbāyī” state is described in the following sutta: “Paṭhamavitthāra Sutta (SN 48.15).”
“Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ indriyānaṁ samattā paripūrattā arahaṁ hoti, tato mudutarehi antarāparinibbāyī hoti, tato mudutarehi upahaccaparinibbāyī hoti, tato mudutarehi asaṅkhāraparinibbāyī hoti, tato mudutarehi sasaṅkhāraparinibbāyī hoti, tato mudutarehi uddhaṁsoto hoti akaniṭṭhagāmī, tato mudutarehi sakadāgāmī hoti, tato mudutarehi sotāpanno hoti, tato mudutarehi dhammānusārī hoti, tato mudutarehi saddhānusārī hotī”ti.”
Here, the ten samyojana are eliminated as follows:
- dhammānusārī and saddhānusārī are Sotapanna Anugamis. They have only started on eliminating the lowest three samyojana.
- sotāpanno has eliminated the lowest three samyojana.
- sakadāgāmī has started to eliminate the next two (kama raga, patigha).
- upahaccaparinibbāyī , asaṅkhāraparinibbāyī , sasaṅkhāraparinibbāyī, anduddhaṁsoto hoti akaniṭṭhagāmī are Anagamis who have eliminated the lower five samyojana and are in various stages of eliminating the higher five (rupa raga, arupa raga, mana, uddhacca, avijja.) They are born in various realms reserved for Anagamis.
- antarāparinibbāyī is a human Anagami who has died after eliminating rupa raga and arupa raga but has not eliminated mana, uddhacca, or avijja. Thus, he cannot be reborn in any realm because all three of kama, rupa, and arupa raga have been eliminated. But the existing manomaya kaya cannot perish since there are three more samyojana left. Thus, he stays with the manomaya kaya until the kammic energy left in the human bhava is worn out.
- P.S. Of course, arahaṁ refers to an Arahant who has eliminated all samyojana.
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I need to clarify the following I wrote above: “1. You like to eat ice cream and smoke because that gives you “mind-made” pleasure. If ice cream has an innate “deliciousness,” all living beings should have the desire to eat it.”
- The “sweet taste of ice cream” is not made up by your mind at that moment. It is built into the human body’s experience of tastiness. Even an Arahant tastes ice cream to be tasty/sweet.
- But that sweet taste is “mind-made” because the human body giving that taste arose via Paticca Samuppada. That happened in a previous life.
- But if you don’t “see with wisdom” that whole process and keep attaching to that taste, rebirth in kama loka cannot be stopped. An Arahant (or Anagami) feels the taste of ice cream (“rasa paṭisaṁvedī”) but has given up craving (no “rasa rāga paṭisaṁvedī”), not by willpower, but by cultivating wisdom, i.e., seeing how this endless cyclic process operates! See #7 through #9 of the new post “Ārammaṇa (Sensory Input) Initiates Critical Processes.”
- P.S. However, the craving for smoking is not “built into your body,” so that can be stopped more easily. Many people have up smoking by seeing the adverse health effects.
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