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I’m sorry if I am asking repeated questions without reading everything in full.
I learn better through discussion rather than reading long paragraphs, and I don’t really have anyone nearby to discuss Dhamma with, I’m not in Sri Lanka and I don’t have access to monks or teachers here. Sometimes I feel a bit helpless, so I really appreciate this forum.
I am still reading about nava kamma and purāna kamma, but meanwhile a question came to my mind:
If everything is conditioned, even thoughts and wisdom, is there such a thing as free action?
If everything arises due to causes and conditions, how does choice or freedom work?
I’m not even sure if I am asking this correctly, but I am trying to understand.
Any simple explanation would be very helpful.
Theruwan Saranai 🙏
Dear HugoZyl 🙏🏻
Thank you very much for your kind suggestions and encouragement.
I feel that I can usually handle emotions in the first two levels you described, but the third type is definitely harder for me. I appreciate your advice about repeating “Namo Buddhaya” or using a calming phrase. I think it can help slow down my reactions and give me a little space and time to look at the root cause more clearly instead of immediately reacting.
I will try to practice this together with my mindfulness in daily life.
Thank you again for sharing this with kindness.
Namo Buddhaya 🌺
Thank you for your guidance and for sharing those resources. I will try to go through some of the posts gradually and reflect on them together with my daily practice.
I am still learning step by step, so I may ask questions if something is not clear. I appreciate your time and explanations.
Bohoma pin, Theruwan Saranai!
@AniccaSeeker: You may not have seen my above comment yet. I will wait to hear from you. I cannot explain things until I know roughly where you are on the Path.
- Until then, the following sutta explains what ‘bhāvanā‘ in Buddha Dhamma is: “Bhāvanā Sutta (AN 7.71).” One must first cultivate Satipaṭṭhāna.
- Essentially, one cannot remove defilements in the mind permanently (with the removal of samyojana) until one grasps the worldview of the Buddha and frees the mind of pañca nīvaraṇa at least for a short time.
- The first time overcoming pañca nīvaraṇa (temporarily) occurs at the Sotapanna phala moment.
- So, the first step is to understand Buddha’s worldview. It explains how the ‘world’ (the same as pañcupādānakkhandha) arises through two stages of mind contamination: purāna kamma and nava kamma. No one knows about the ‘unconscious part’ of the pañcupādānakkhandha generation (the ‘purāna kamma‘ stage) until a Buddha discovers it.
- Until then, everyone tries to stop mind contamination with the mind already in the nava kamma stage. They can never reach the purāna kamma stage until they clearly understand how it arises automatically.
- That seems like a lot of work, but it can be done. But one must proceed step-by-step. Before starting on Satipaṭṭhāna, one must meditate (contemplate) on the complete ‘mind contamination process’ occurring via two stages. That allows the mind to overcome pañca nīvaraṇa (temporarily) and attain the Sotapanna stage.
Dear Mr. Lal,
Thank you for your detailed reply and for the sutta reference 🙏
I’m still a lay practitioner working mainly with daily-life mindfulness — seeing how emotions and thoughts arise from craving and expectations, and trying to reduce clinging and aversion. I don’t really do long sitting meditation for hours yet. Instead, I try to observe my actions and thoughts throughout the day and look at them in terms of anicca, dukkha, and anatta.
I’m not very familiar with the terms purāna kamma and nava kamma. What I currently understand instead are vipāka citta and kamma citta, and that these two processes are operating in the mind. I am not sure whether emotions like anger and jealousy are vipāka citta or kamma citta.
If they are vipāka, I can observe them as anicca, dukkha, and anatta.
But if they are kamma, I wish to understand how to prevent them from arising in the first place.
All I currently understand is that everything is conditioned, a saṅkhata, a paṭicca-samuppanna process. Things do not bend according to our personal will; we can only have a limited, conditional influence. Because of this, I see that grasping and aversion lead to dukkha. By reflecting this way, I see the anatta nature — that there is nothing solid to hold on to.
Could you please explain in simple terms what you mean by “purāna kamma” and “nava kamma,” and how I can apply that practically when anger or jealousy arises in daily life?
Theruwan Saranai 🙏
Bohoma pin everyone for all your suggestions. Now I have a list and will look into them in more detail. Thank you
May you all realise Nibbāna through the Bodhi you aspire to.
Theruwan Saranai 🙏🙏
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Dear all,
Thank you so much for your replies. I really appreciate the kindness and honesty in what each of you shared 🙏
I understand better now that even a good wish can become clinging if I hold onto it too tightly. My main intention is not “to become a bhikkhunī” as a goal by itself, but to keep purifying the mind and practising wisely. If the path leads to Anāgāmi, that would of course be far more meaningful than just wearing robes.
At the same time, I also see how monastic life can sometimes help by giving fewer distractions. So I am only exploring gently, not rushing, not forcing, just learning what possibilities exist.
It was also helpful to know that bhikkhunī ordination is unlikely at Waharaka monasteries. That gives me a realistic picture. If the future ever points toward ordination, I may have to look elsewhere while still trying to stay aligned with correct Dhamma.
For now, I will keep practising as a lay person, focusing on anicca, living with sila, and using uposatha days and quiet times for deeper reflection. I trust that if conditions are right, the next step will become clear naturally.
Thank you again for your guidance and encouragement. Theruwan Saranai 🙏
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Thank you both. Yes, ChatGPT told the same story — it seems like there’s no bhikkhuni practice at Waharaka. Let’s see; I hope the path or some support will arrive at the right time. Theruwan Saranai 🙏
Dear Lal,
I did some research and learned that the Buddha did not actually teach the concept of the five niyāmas. What you explained was exactly correct — bohoma pin for clarifying that.
I’ve also been learning about Waharaka Temple in Sri Lanka and I’m curious whether they support or host a bhikkhunī community (fully ordained nuns), or if there are only monks there.
If anyone has visited or has reliable information about their approach to bhikkhunī ordination or women’s monastic practice, I would really appreciate your insight.
I’m currently practicing anicca-vipassanā, and I feel less attached to worldly life as time goes on. I’m developing a sincere interest in someday becoming a bhikkhunī. However, I don’t know of any place that follows Waharaka Thero’s teachings for women. I’m not planning to make an immediate decision — I only want to learn whether such places exist, in case I choose that path in the future.
Thank you!
Dear Lal,
Thank you very much for your detailed explanation. I will go through all the provided links carefully, get a better understanding, and will comment later.
Theruwan Saranayi. 🙏
The means to get the Dhamma really understood, get craving, suffering, defilements, understood, see the first Noble truth rightly, is to steady associate with Dhamma, eg. dukkha. If not building up a firm border, fence, at first place, so that one does not steady “escape” wrongly from dukkha, there is no change to get it seen rightly. This face for purificasion is Sila, virtue, right conduct.
As long as building fake fences out of merely philosophical ideas, there is no way to come and stay in proper association, no way to develop Saddha and by it the path.
Venerable Bhante,
I fully understand your point, based on sīla → samādhi → paññā. I would like to share from my own experience.
From childhood, I was encouraged to keep sīla. I tried my best to protect the pañca-sīla, even keeping a journal to track myself. But without knowing the true Dhamma, it was very difficult — often it felt like just forcing myself.
Now, as I gradually realise the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta, I find that sīla and samādhi arise naturally. I no longer have to force them. For example, I cannot imagine killing, stealing, or lying — not because I am holding external rules, but because before I even act, my citta itself shows me the ādīnava. With wise attention I stop. If I slip due to assāda, guilt immediately arises, which again reminds me of the truth.
So I feel: when true understanding is present, one does not need to cling to sīla and samādhi by force — they happen on their own.
As you beautifully said: “At first, beginners protect sīla with effort (fence). But when one sees anicca clearly, greed, hatred, and delusion weaken — and sīla begins to hold on its own.”
This is what I am beginning to see in my own life.
With gratitude for your guidance.
Theruwan Saranayi. 🙏
Dear Lal,
Bohoma pin for your kind words of encouragement. I also want to express my deepest gratitude for the tremendous effort you put into building the Pure Dhamma website and distributing the true Dhamma so freely.
I have already received so much help from your writings, and I know I will continue to gain more guidance in the future.
May you always have the strength and blessings to continue this noble work 🙏
Theruwan Saranai 🙏🙏
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Dear Lal,
Bohoma pin for your explanation. I took the time to read your articles, and this is the way I now understand it:
- The world indeed arises out of past avijjā and taṇhā. Why? Because everything is built from suddhāṭṭhaka — four elements (pathavi, āpo, tejo, vāyo) formed by avijjā, and the other four (vaṇṇa, gandha, rasa, ojā) made meaningful through taṇhā.
- I now see more clearly what distorted saññā means. We confuse our vipāka vedanā with permanent reality.
- Example: cake tastes sweet. That “sweetness” is distorted saññā, not a fixed truth. In fact, it’s only my vipāka sukha vedanā manifesting.
- Without knowing this, I build taṇhā over that saññā — I think the taste is “mine,” controllable, available on demand.
- This is how avijjā and taṇhā keep extending saṃsāra, leading to repeated dukkha.
- I also came to see the difference between anicca and anitya more clearly:
- Anitya (impermanence) is just one small part, like the tail of the elephant — it points to the fact that things arise and pass away.
- Anicca is the whole elephant — because these things arise and pass away beyond our control, they cannot be held according to desire. That’s why clinging to them inevitably leads to dukkha, and shows anatta.
🙏 Bohoma pin again for guiding me to see this connection between vipāka vedanā, distorted saññā, taṇhā, and anicca.
If I am misunderstanding any part of this, please kindly correct me.
Theruwan Saranai,
I’ve been reflecting on paṭicca-samuppāda and Waharaka Thero’s explanations.
He often says: if things were nicca, we could arrange them as we wish. But since they don’t work that way, they are anicca. Everything we experience is saṅkatha — already conditioned, running on causes and effects.
This makes me wonder:
- The world (nāma-rūpa, saḷāyatana, phassa, vedanā) comes out of past avijjā and taṇhā.
- It feels like a process that keeps running on its own, like a wheel that’s already spinning.
- We only add “fuel” when new avijjā and taṇhā arise.
So my question is: Is this unstoppable, conditioned continuation itself the anicca nature?
Because we can’t hold it, stop it, or bend it to our will → it leads to dukkha → and shows there’s no self (anatta).
Would love to hear others’ thoughts. 🙏
Thank you all for guiding me on the right path. I’ll give it another try, and if I have any questions, I’ll ask here. Bohoma pin 🙏
Dear Christian,
Thank you very much for your response and for pointing me back to the deeper essence of Anicca, Dukkha, and Anatta.
I truly agree that the focus shouldn’t be on the object itself — like hair — but on the nature of how all conditioned things behave. My intention wasn’t to analyse external things for their own sake, but to use a simple, personal example to reflect on how expectation, attachment, and identity lead to dukkha.
As Waharaka Thero often explains,
“Yamak saṅkhatai, paṭicca samuppannai” —
All things that arise are conditioned by causes and are therefore unstable and impermanent.So even something as ordinary as hair, a thought, a feeling, or a dream — all are saṅkhata dhamma, and thus anicca, dukkha, and anatta. If I can see that nature clearly in one, it helps reveal the same in everything. That was the approach I was experimenting with — not to over-analyse, but to reflect with yoniso manasikāra.
Your reminder not to get caught up going item by item is valuable — I will take care to stay focused on the underlying nature, not the surface detail.
Thank you again for helping me reflect more clearly.
Teruwan Saranai 🙏
