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#2. Am I on the right path of understanding the connection between Sakkaya ditthi and Anatta? I know there’s more learning/details to be done, but this is what I can realize for now.
If you haven’t read it, here is a recent post that addressed sakkaya ditthi and anatta.
Anatta and Sakkāya Diṭṭhi – Two Different Concepts
About breath meditation, I used to do quite a bit of it, just like you. Some teachers of breath meditation (which they take as anapanasati) do say that it can take one to liberation since it’s a means to realize anatta (taken as “no self”). I haven’t heard of one who connects breath meditation to sakkaya ditthi.
The connection to anatta goes something like this: there comes a stage when one realizes that breathing is just breathing. There is no “I” who breathes; the “I” is an illusion, a mental concoction. Seeing through this is seeing anatta.
Best,
LangThis forum thread reminded me of another thread:
Kammic Energy Leads to Consciousness
In that thread I asked about the difference between “life” and “inert matter”, and in Lal’s response there was a side comment:
“EVERYTHING has its origins in kammic energy (via Paticca Samuppada)
– However, it is not necessary to focus on that right now.”So the below explains why that is the case:
“…four of the eight “basic units of matter” in a suddhāshtaka arise due to avijjā and the other four due to tanhā…”
Best,
LangIf we had to give an answer to “what makes you reborn” then the answer has to be the mind, as you indicated here.
From Abhidhamma, we know the description of “mind”:
hadaya vatthu + a set of pasada rupā
From this citta vithī flow (pasada rupā pinging the hadaya vatthu, making it vibrate), with each citta arising with a set of cetasikā.
For an arahant, cittā are pure, and the flow of citta vithī stops at the end of the arahant’s life.
For a non arahant ariya, cittā are “pure enough”, and citta vithī are abound to end after a certain number of bhava (depending on what magga phala it is).
For a puthujjana, cittā are contaminated to the point where there is no end in sight for the flow of citta vithī.
Isn’t this enough? Do we need to get deeper than cittā and cetasikā?
Best,
LangThank you!
This is inspirational indeed, and I don’t even speak Sinhala. It always brings me joy to learn that there are ariyā among us, especially when we see one who is still a todler.
To speculate about kamma a little bit (I know we are not supposed to but I can’t resist): I am not a parent, but it must have been due to big merit to have an ariya child. Conversely, if we sincerely learn and practice Dhamma, we then increase the chance of being reborn into an environment suitable for further learning and practice, such as being reborn to Jati Sotapanna parent(s).
Lal has said many times that anariya jhana or abhina powers can be lost in the rebirth process, but not magga phala. This is an example of it.
“– This child knows more Buddha Dhamma than 99% of Buddhists.”
For the subject of Sakkāya Diṭṭhi discussed here, I’ve heard some bhikkhus teach this, how the “I” is extra, but they taught it as anatta. And those same bhikkhus still teach anapana as breathing and anicca as impermanence.
Hearing a child talk about Sakkāya Diṭṭhi is indeed something to behold!
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Hi all,
I thought this forum might be a good place to post this. I came upon a series on desanas on YouTube. The first 2 are below. You can find all the others by searching on YouTube. I’ve listened to just 2, but it seems very much like what Lal teaches.
Path to Nibbhana – Season 1 – Episode 1 – Basic Understanding of Buddhism – Discourse 05 Mar 2020
Path to Nibbhana – Season 1 – Episode 2 – Becoming Sothapanna by Listening – Discourse 12 Mar 2020
Best,
LangHi,
You said about dukkha dukkha:
“… all beings suffer from Dukha dukha every single moment.”
My understanding is that it is always dukkha in the long run (until magga phala), and the most intense dukkha is in the apāyā.
The apāyā may be where dukkha is every single moment. In the kama loka from the human realm up, there is plenty of āmisa sukha to be had, and this is why we’re bound. Lal has many posts on āmisa sukha vs nirāmisa sukha.
In the brahma loka, beings just enjoy jhanic pleasures for the duration of the bhava.
Thank you for posting the desana of Waharaka Thero.
Best,
LangHello exist,
The following forum thread also touches on the topic you’re asking about.
Post on “Gati (Habits/Character) Determine Births – Saṃsappanīya Sutta”
Lal said:
“1. When one first starts comprehending Buddha Dhamma at a deeper level, one becomes a Sotapanna Anugami. That means one gets into the path (magga).
– But it may take many days or even many years for a Sotapanna Anugami to cultivate that path and to become a Sotapanna.”In the forum I mentioned, Lal explained what happens when one gets into the path, which happens when a person gets to the Gotrabu stage.
After this stage, one may take some time to get to the magga citta, followed immediately with the phala citta.
Lang
If there’s a way to get a response from one in a coma about whether or not they want to be on life support, it’ll help with the decision making of family members; maybe Elon Musk’s brain chip can help in the future.
If a coma patient is able to communicate to be taken off of life support, is it a form of suicide? If it is, I suppose the kammic consequences are not big since it’s an understandable circumstance?
“…if one is to be born blind, then it would not have the cakkhu pasada rupa”
So it is possible for a gandhabba to have less than 5 pasada rupa?
Let’s say further that a gandhabba is to be born blind AND deaf, then it has no cakku and sota pasada rupa?
Lal said:
“– Most Westerners are brought up with the idea of a Creator God. So, understanding the intricacies of Buddha Dhamma is not easy. I see that many are struggling with the concept of rebirth. Even worse, the idea of the possibility of rebirth in the animal realm could be disturbing too.”This is quite common. I had a discussion recently with someone calling himself Buddhist. When I brought up rebirth, this “Buddhist” launched right into a vehement denial of a human being reborn as an animal, claiming how unscientific that was. A cow, for example, can come from only a cow; same as with a human. For realms other than humans and animals, he disregarded them all together, saying there is “proof” for them.
Another common position for secular Buddhists is to not think of rebirth at all. It is critical to just live happily “in the present moment”, then the next moment will be happy, and the one after that, and so on for the next birth (if there is one). I was in this camp.
In my own experience, if we make rebirth the focal point, how precarious it is in the long run, then a lot of things make sense when we learn Buddha Dhamma.
Lal said:
“– Of course, that does not mean one should forcefully lose attachment to one’s family. Things will be taken care of naturally.”I’d like to flip this around and ask about a specific experience to see if anyone went through it.
In my culture, when someone young turns toward Dhamma, it tends to make someone in the family nervous (often times a parent). It is critical for us to achieve mundane success (the more the better) to have a stable life for ourselves and to make the family shine with relatives and society.
We may start reading Dhamma books, going to temple, listening to desanas, and it may make a parent alarmed, although we haven’t relinquished anything outwardly yet. They then dissuade us from going “further” in that direction, and the relationship may become tense. Since they don’t think of, or don’t believe in, rebirths, they are not aware that they want us to lead a life that lengthens samsara.
If we remain resolute (inwardly) toward Dhamma, then with time will relationships that appear to be an obstacle now transform into supporting ones, according to “Dhammo ha ve rakkhati dhammacari”?
Has anyone experienced this?
Many thanks!
Lal said:
“People do not understand how serious the suffering in the rebirth process is.”My personal experience, especially since coming to this site, is that a more serious attitude is more beneficial in learning Dhamma.
Lal keeps emphasizing the danger of the rebirth process, and hence the urgency to get out of the 31 realms, starting with the apayā. When we learn Dhamma in this context, the concepts stick to the mind better.
A friend of mine told me just last week something like: “I listened to a talk of Thero X; I now forget what he was talking about, but I still remember his jokes.”
A number of theros do utilize jokes and humor in their talks. I suppose the intention is to keep the audience entertained (and thus attentive). The drawback of this approach is that it is very easy to lose sight of the future suffering, which is the crux of the matter.
“Mara is a deva in the highest deva realm. He wants people to engage in moral activities and to be reborn as devas.”
Just curious: Is “Mara” as designation of this deva the same word “mara” as in relating to death?
Hello Raja_mw,
There’s a whole section on Bhavana on the site that is just invaluable. Bhavana here is more on contemplation of a topic to let it sink into the mind, and from that a real change in habits (gathi) is possible.
In my personal case, contemplating on the 10 types of wrong views (miccha ditthi) has paid the most dividends, because of where I am on the path. And any oppotunities to contemplate anicca, dukkha, anatta is beneficial. Of course, the prerequisites is to abastain from the BIG EIGHT (explained in the bhavana section) as much as possible.
You mentioned “anicca;impermanence”-equanimity, and bodily sensations, so it sounded like you attended the vipassana retreats in the SN Goenka’s style. I know many in this tradition, and the experiences they report are very diverse: from heavy to very light, and occasionally they do feel strange. I myself had no unusual experiences when I used to practice that style.
