Kindly visit:
http://earthenvesselsweb.org/CMS/index.php
The Trap of the Senses
The THE
BLESSED NOBLE AWAKENED ONE talked about desire and the six things by
which desire is gratified: sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touch and
mind-objects. Desire and lust for happiness, for suffering, for good,
for evil and so on, pervade everything!
Sights…
there isn’t any sight that’s quite the same as that of a woman. Isn’t
that so? Doesn’t a really attractive woman make you want to look? One
with a really attractive figure comes walking along, “sak, sek, sak,
sek, sak, sek,” — you can’t help but stare! How about sounds? There’s no
sound that grips you more than that of a woman. It pierces your mind!
Smell is the same; a woman’s fragrance is the most alluring of all.
There’s no other smell that’s quite the same. Taste — even the taste of
the most delicious food cannot compare with that of a woman. Touch is
similar; when you caress a woman you are stunned, intoxicated and sent
spinning all around.
There was once a famous master of magical spells 
from
Taxila in ancient Jambudvipa That is The Great Prabuddha Bharath. He
taught his disciple all his knowledge of charms and incantations. When
the disciple was well-versed and ready to fare on his own, he left with
this final instruction from his teacher, “I have taught you all that I
know of spells, incantations and protective verses. Creatures with sharp
teeth, 
Antlers or horns, 
and even big tusks, 
you
have no need to fear. You will be guarded from all of these, I can
guarantee that. However, there is only one thing that I cannot ensure
protection against, and that is the charms of a woman. I can not help
you here. There’s no spell for protection against this one, you’ll have
to look after yourself.” 
Mental
objects arise in the mind. They are born out of desire: desire for
valuable possessions, desire to be rich, and just restless seeking after
things in general. This type of greed isn’t all that deep or strong, it
isn’t enough to make you faint or lose control. However, when sexual
desire arises, you’re thrown off balance and lose your control. You
would even forget those raised and brought you up — your own parents!
The THE BLESSED NOBLE AWAKENED ONE
taught that the objects of our senses are a trap — a trap of the evil
one’s. Evil One should be understood as something which harms us. The
trap is something which binds us, the same as a snare. It’s a trap of
the evil one’s, a hunter’s snare, and the hunter is evil one.
If
animals are caught in the hunter’s trap, it’s a sorrowful predicament.
They are caught fast and held waiting for the owner of the trap snare
springs and “boop” — caught by the neck! A good strong string now holds
it fast. Wherever the bird flies, it cannot escape. It flies here and
flies there, but it’s held tight waiting for the owner of the snare.
When the hunter comes along, that’s it — the bird is struck with fear,
there’s no escape!
.jpg)
The
trap of sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touch and mind-objects is the
same. They catch us and bind us fast. If you attach to the senses,
you’re the same as a fish caught on a hook. When the fisherman comes,
struggle all you want, but you can’t get loose. Actually, you’re not
caught like a fish, it’s more like a frog — a frog gulps down the whole
hook right to its guts, a fish just gets caught in its mouth.
Anyone
attached to the senses is the same. Like a drunk whose liver is not yet
destroyed — he doesn’t know when he has had enough. He continues to
indulge and drink carelessly. He’s caught and later suffers illness and
pain.
A
man comes walking along a road. He is very thirsty from his journey and
is craving for a drink of water. The owner of the water says, “You can
drink this water if you like; the color is good, the smell is good, the
taste is good, but if you drink it you will become ill. I must tell you
this beforehand, it’ll make you sick enough to die or nearly die.” The
thirsty man does not listen. He’s as thirsty as a person after an
operation that has been denied water for seven days — he’s crying for
water!
It’s the same with a person thirsting after the senses. The THE BLESSED NOBLE AWAKENED ONE taught
that they are poisonous — sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touch and
mind-objects are poison; they are a dangerous trap. But this man is
thirsty and doesn’t listen; because of his thirst he is in tears,
crying, “Give me water, no matter how painful the consequences, let me
drink!” So he dips out a bit and swallows it down finding it very tasty.
He drinks his fill and gets so sick that he almost dies. He didn’t
listen because of his overpowering desire.
This
is how it is for a person caught in the pleasures of the senses. He
drinks in sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touch and mind-objects — they
are all very delicious! So he drinks without stopping and there he
remains, stuck fast until the day he dies.
“Now,
the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones, when touched with a
feeling of pain, does not sorrow, grieve, or lament, does not beat his
breast or become distraught. So he feels one pain: physical, but not
mental. Just as if they were to shoot a man with an arrow and, right
afterward, did not shoot him with another one, so that he would feel the
pain of only one arrow. In the same way, when touched with a feeling of
pain, the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones does not sorrow,
grieve, or lament, does not beat his breast or become distraught. He
feels one pain: physical, but not mental.
“As
he is touched by that painful feeling, he is not resistant. No
resistance-obsession with regard to that painful feeling obsesses him.
Touched by that painful feeling, he does not delight in sensual
pleasure. Why is that? Because the well-instructed disciple of the noble
ones discerns an escape from painful feeling aside from sensual
pleasure. As he is not delighting in sensual pleasure, no
passion-obsession with regard to that feeling of pleasure obsesses him.
He discerns, as it actually is present, the origination, passing away,
allure, drawback, and escape from that feeling. As he discerns the
origination, passing away, allure, drawback, and escape from that
feeling, no ignorance-obsession with regard to that feeling of
neither-pleasure-nor-pain obsesses him.
“Sensing
a feeling of pleasure, he senses it disjoined from it. Sensing a
feeling of pain, he senses it disjoined from it. Sensing a feeling of
neither-pleasure-nor-pain, he senses it disjoined from it. This is
called a well-instructed disciple of the noble ones disjoined from
birth, aging, & death; from sorrows, lamentations, pains,
distresses, & despairs. He is disjoined, I tell you, from suffering
& stress.
“This
is the difference, this distinction, this the distinguishing factor
between the well-instructed disciple of the noble ones and the
uninstructed run-of-the-mill person.”
The discerning person, learned,
Doesn’t sense a (mental) feeling of pleasure or pain:
This is the difference in skillfulness
Between the sage & the person run-of-the-mill.
For a learned person
Who has fathomed the Doctrine-Practice of the Path Shown by the Blessed, Noble, Awakened One,
Clearly seeing this world & the next,
Desirable things don’t charm the mind,
Undesirable ones bring no resistance.
His acceptance
& rejection are scattered,
Gone to their end,
Do not exist.
Knowing the dustless, sorrow less state,
He discerns rightly,
Has gone, beyond becoming,
To the Further Shore.
“When embraced,
The rod of violence
Breeds danger & fear:
Look at people quarreling.
I will tell of how
I experienced
Dismay.
Seeing people floundering
Like fish in small puddles,
Competing with one another —
As I saw this,
Fear came into me.
The world was entirely
Without substance.
All the directions
Were knocked out of line.
Wanting a haven for myself,
I saw nothing that wasn’t laid claim to.
Seeing nothing in the end
But competition,
I felt discontent.
And then I saw
An arrow here,
So very hard to see,
Embedded in the heart.
Overcome by this arrow
You run in all directions.
But simply on pulling it out
You don’t run,
You don’t sink.
Whatever things are tied down in the world,
You shouldn’t be set on them.
Having totally penetrated
Sensual pleasures,
Sensual passions,
You should train for your own
Unbinding.
Be truthful, not insolent,
Not deceptive, rid
Of divisiveness.
Without anger, the sage
Should cross over the evil
Of greed & avarice.
He should conquer laziness,
Weariness,
Sloth;
Shouldn’t consort with heedlessness,
Shouldn’t stand firm in his pride —
The man with his mind set
On Unbinding.
He shouldn’t engage in lying,
Shouldn’t create a sense of allure in form,
Should fully fathom conceit,
And live refraining from impulsiveness;
Shouldn’t delight in what’s old,
Prefer what’s new,
Grieve over decline,
Get entangled in
What’s dazzling & bright?
I call greed
A ‘great flood’;
Hunger, a swift current.
Preoccupations are ripples;
Sensuality, a bog
Hard to cross over.
Not deviating from truth,
A sage stands on high ground
: A brahman.
Having renounced all,
He is said to be at peace;
Having clearly known, he
Is an attainer-of-wisdom;
Knowing the Doctrine-Practice of the True Path Shown by the Awakened One, he’s
Independent.
Moving rightly through the world,
He doesn’t envy
Anyone here.
Whoever here has gone over & beyond
Sensual passions —
An attachment hard
To transcend in the world,
Doesn’t sorrow,
Doesn’t fret.
He, his stream cut, is free
From bonds.
Burn up what’s before,
And have nothing for after.
If you don’t grasp
At what’s in between,
You will go about, calm.
For whom, in name & form,
In every way,
There’s no sense of mine,
And who doesn’t grieve
Over what is not:
He, in the world,
Isn’t defeated,
Suffers no loss.
To whom there doesn’t occur
‘This is mine,’
For whom nothing is others,’
Feeling no sense of mine-ness,
Doesn’t grieve at the thought
‘I have nothing.’
Not harsh,
Not greedy, not
Perturbed,
Everywhere
In tune:
This is the reward
— I say when asked —
For those who are free
From pre-
Conceptions.
For one unperturbed
— Who knows —?
There’s no accumulating.
Abstaining, unaroused,
He everywhere sees
Security.
The sage
Doesn’t speak of himself
As among those who are higher,
Equal,
Or lower.
At peace, free of selfishness,
He doesn’t embrace, doesn’t
Reject,”
The Blessed One said.
Thus
abstaining from the taking of life leads to longevity, abstaining from
stealing to prosperity, abstaining from sexual misconduct to popularity,
abstaining from false speech to a good reputation, and abstaining from
intoxicants to mindfulness and wisdom.
For one who desires
Long life, health,
Beauty, heaven, & noble birth,
— lavish delights, one after another —
The wise praise heedfulness
In performing deeds of merit.
When heedful, wise,
You achieve both kinds of benefit:
Benefits in this life,
& benefits in lives to come.
By breaking through to your benefit,
You’re called awakened,
Wise.
But one awakened & knowing,
On acquiring wealth,
Enjoys it & performs his duties.
He, a bull among men,
Having supported his kin,
Without blame
Goes to the land of heaven.
Spiritual Community of The Followers of The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
The Eightfold Path and the Practice of Doctrine-True Practice of The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
Because the roots of ignorance are so intimately entwined
with the fabric of the psyche, the unawakened mind is capable of
deceiving itself with breathtaking ingenuity. The solution therefore
requires more than simply being kind, loving, and mindful in the present
moment. The practitioner must equip him- or herself with the expertise
to use a range of tools to outwit, outlast, and eventually uproot the
mind’s unskillful tendencies. For example, the practice of generosity (dana)
erodes the mind’s habitual tendencies towards craving and teaches
valuable lessons about the motivations behind, and the results of,
skillful action. The practice of virtue (sila) guards one against straying wildly off-course and into harm’s way. The cultivation of goodwill (metta) helps to undermine anger’s seductive grasp. The ten recollections
offer ways to alleviate doubt, bear physical pain with composure,
maintain a healthy sense of self-respect, overcome laziness and
complacency, and restrain oneself from unbridled lust. And there are
many more skills to learn.
The good qualities that emerge and mature from these
practices not only smooth the way for the journey to Nibbana; over time
they have the effect of transforming the practitioner into a more
generous, loving, compassionate, peaceful, and clear-headed member of
society. The individual’s sincere pursuit of Awakening is thus a
priceless and timely gift to a world in desperate need of help.
Doctrine-True Practice of The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
Reading the Natural Mind
(An informal talk given to a group of newly ordained monks after the evening chanting, middle of the Rains Retreat, 1978)
Our way of practice is looking closely at things and making
them clear. We’re persistent and constant, yet not rushed or hurried.
Neither are we too slow. It’s a matter of gradually feeling our way and
bringing it together. However, all of this bringing it together is
working towards something, there is a point to our practice.
For most of us, when we first start to practice, it’s
nothing other than desire. We start to practice because of wanting. At
this stage our wanting is wanting in the wrong way. That is, it’s
deluded. It’s wanting mixed with wrong understanding.
If wanting is not mixed with wrong understanding like this,
we say that it’s wanting with wisdom (Pañña). It’s not deluded — it’s
wanting with right understanding. In a case like this we say that it’s
due to a person’s Parami or past accumulations. However, this isn’t the
case with everyone.
Some people don’t want to have desire, or they want not to
have desires, because they think that our practice is directed at not
wanting. However, if there is no desire, then there’s no way of
practice.
We can see this for ourselves. The Blessed,Noble,Awakened
One-The Tathagata and all His Disciples practiced to put an end to
defilements. We must want to practice and must want to put an end to
defilements. We must want to have peace of mind and want not to have
confusion. However, if this wanting is mixed with wrong understanding,
then it will only amount to more difficulties for us. If we are honest
about it, we really know nothing at all. Or, what we do know is of no
consequence, since we are unable to use it properly.
Everybody, including The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The
Tathagata , started out like this, with the desire to practice — wanting
to have peace of mind and wanting not to have confusion and suffering.
These two kinds of desire have exactly the same value. If not understood
then both wanting to be free from confusion and not wanting to have
suffering are defilements. They’re a foolish way of wanting — desire
without wisdom.
In our practice we see this desire as either sensual
indulgence or self-mortification. It’s in this very conflict that our
Practitioner, the The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata, was
caught up, just this dilemma. He followed many ways of practice which
merely ended up in these two extremes. And these days we are exactly the
same. We are still afflicted by this duality, and because of it we keep
falling from the Way.
However, this is how we must start out. We start out as
worldly beings, as beings with defilements, with wanting devoid of
wisdom, desire without right understanding. If we lack proper
understanding, then both kinds of desire work against us. Whether it’s
wanting or not wanting, it’s still craving (Tanha). If we don’t
understand these two things then we won’t know how to deal with them
when they arise. We will feel that to go forward is wrong and to go
backwards is wrong, and yet we can’t stop. Whatever we do we just find
more wanting. This is because of the lack of wisdom and because of
craving.
It’s right here, with this wanting and not wanting, that we
can understand the Doctrine-True Practice of The Path Shown by The
Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata. The Doctrine-True Practice of
The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata which we
are looking for exists right here, but we don’t see it. Rather, we
persist in our efforts to stop wanting. We want things to be a certain
way and not any other way. Or, we want them not to be a certain way, but
to be another way. Really these two things are the same. They are part
of the same duality.
Perhaps we may not realize that The Blessed,Noble,Awakened
One-The Tathagata and all of His Disciples had this kind of wanting.
However The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata understood
regarding wanting and not wanting. He understood that they are simply
the activity of mind, that such things merely appear in a flash and then
disappear. These kinds of desires are going on all the time. When there
is wisdom, we don’t identify with them — we are free from clinging.
Whether it’s wanting or not wanting, we simply see it as such. In
reality it’s merely the activity of the natural mind. When we take a
close look, we see clearly that this is how it is.
The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
Insight Knowledge
“With his mind thus concentrated, purified, & bright,
unblemished, free from defects, pliant, malleable, steady, &
attained to imperturbability, he directs and inclines it to knowledge
& vision. He discerns: ‘This body of mine is endowed with form,
composed of the four primary elements, born from mother & father,
nourished with rice & porridge, subject to inconstancy, rubbing,
pressing, dissolution, & dispersion. And this consciousness of mine
is supported here and bound up here.’ Just as
if there were a beautiful beryl gem of the purest water — eight
faceted, well polished, clear, limpid, consummate in all its aspects,
and going through the middle of it was a blue, yellow, red, white, or
brown thread — and a man with good eyesight, taking it in his hand, were
to reflect on it thus: ‘This is a beautiful beryl gem of the purest
water, eight faceted, well polished, clear, limpid, consummate in all
its aspects. And this, going through the middle of it, is a blue,
yellow, red, white, or brown thread.’ In the same way — with his mind
thus concentrated, purified, & bright, unblemished, free from
defects, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability —
the true Follower of The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened
One-The Tathagata directs & inclines it to knowledge & vision.
He discerns: ‘This body of mine is endowed with form, composed of the
four primary elements, born from mother & father, nourished with
rice & porridge, subject to inconstancy, rubbing, pressing,
dissolution, & dispersion. And this consciousness of mine is
supported here and bound up here.’ When a disciple of a teacher attains
this sort of grand distinction, Lohicca, that is a teacher not worthy of
criticism in the world, and if anyone were to criticize this sort of
teacher, the criticism would be false, unfactual, unrighteous, &
blameworthy.
5. Bhikkhuni-samyutta — Nuns
Stories of the Evil One’s attempts to lure the nuns away
from their meditation spots in the forest by asking them provocative
questions. Without exception, these wise women conquer Mara decisively.
Sister Alavika
At Savatthi.
Then, early in the morning, Alavika the nun put on her robes and,
taking her bowl & outer robe, went into Savatthi for alms. When she
had gone for alms in Savatthi and had returned from her alms round,
after her meal she went to the Grove of the Blind to spend the day.
Having gone deep into the Grove of the Blind, she sat down at the foot
of a tree for the day’s abiding.
Then the Evil One, wanting to arouse fear, horripilation, & terror in her, wanting to make her fall away from seclusion, approached her & addressed her in verse:
There’s no
escape
in the world,
so what are you trying to do
with solitude?
Enjoy sensual delights.
Don’t be someone
who later regrets.
Then the thought occurred to Alavika the nun: “Now who has
recited this verse — a human being or a non-human one?” Then it occurred
to her: “This is the Evil One, who has recited this verse wanting to
arouse fear, horripilation, & terror in me, wanting to make me fall
away from seclusion.”
Then, having understood that “This is the Evil One,” she replied to him in verses:
There is
an escape in the world,
well touched by me
with discernment —
something that you,
you Evil One,
kinsman of the heedless,
don’t know.
Sensual pleasures
are like swords & spears;
the aggregates,
their executioner’s block.
What you call sensual delight
is no delight for me.
![\"\\"](\"http://sarvajan.ambedkar.org/\")
Then the Evil One — sad & dejected at realizing, “Alavika the nun knows me” — vanished right there.
Spiritual Community of The Followers of The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
Discernment
The Eightfold Path is best understood as a collection of
personal qualities to be developed, rather than as a sequence of steps
along a linear path. The development of right view and right resolve
(the factors classically identified with wisdom and discernment)
facilitates the development of right speech, action, and livelihood (the
factors identified with virtue). As virtue develops so do the factors
identified with concentration (right effort, mindfulness, and
concentration). Likewise, as concentration matures, discernment evolves
to a still deeper level. And so the process unfolds: development of one
factor fosters development of the next, lifting the practitioner in an
upward spiral of spiritual maturity that eventually culminates in
Awakening.
The long journey to Awakening begins in earnest with the
first tentative stirrings of right view — the discernment by which one
recognizes the validity of the four Noble Truths and the principle of
kamma. One begins to see that one’s future well-being is neither
predestined by fate, nor left to the whims of a divine being or random
chance. The responsibility for one’s happiness rests squarely on one’s
own shoulders. Seeing this, one’s spiritual aims become suddenly clear:
to relinquish the habitual unskillful tendencies of the mind in favor of
skillful ones. As this right resolve grows stronger, so does the
heartfelt desire to live a morally upright life, to choose one’s actions
with care.
At this point many followers make the inward commitment to
take the Buddha’s teachings to heart, to become “Buddhist” through the
act of taking refuge in the Triple Gem: the Buddha (both the historical Buddha and one’s own innate potential for Awakening), the Dhamma (both the Buddha’s teachings and the ultimate Truth towards which they point), and the Sangha
(both the unbroken monastic lineage that has preserved the teachings
since the Buddha’s day, and all those who have achieved at least some
degree of Awakening). With one’s feet thus planted on solid ground, and
with the help of an admirable friend or teacher (kalyanamitta) to guide the way, one is now well-equipped to proceed down the Path, following in the footsteps left by the Buddha himself.
Doctrine-True Practice of The Path Shown by The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
The Wisdom of Everyday Experience
So it’s here that our practice of contemplation will lead us
to understanding. Let us take an example, the example of a fisherman
pulling in his net with a big fish in it. How do you think he feels
about pulling it in? If he’s afraid that the fish will escape, he’ll be
rushed and start to struggle with the net, grabbing and tugging at it.
Before he knows it, the big fish has escaped — he was trying too hard.
In the olden days they would talk like this. They taught
that we should do it gradually, carefully gathering it in without losing
it. This is how it is in our practice; we gradually feel our way with
it, carefully gathering it in without losing it. Sometimes it happens
that we don’t feel like doing it. Maybe we don’t want to look or maybe
we don’t want to know, but we keep on with it. We continue feeling for
it. This is practice: if we feel like doing it, we do it, and if we
don’t feel like doing it, we do it just the same. We just keep doing it.
If we are enthusiastic about our practice, the power of our
faith will give energy to what we are doing. But at this stage we are
still without wisdom. Even though we are very energetic, we will not
derive much benefit from our practice. We may continue with it for a
long time and a feeling will arise that aren’t going to find the Way. We
may feel that we cannot find peace and tranquillity, or that we aren’t
sufficiently equipped to do the practice. Or maybe we feel that this Way
just isn’t possible anymore. So we give up!
At this point we must be very, very careful. We must use
great patience and endurance. It’s just like pulling in the big fish —
we gradually feel our way with it. We carefully pull it in. The struggle
won’t be too difficult, so without stopping we continue pulling it in.
Eventually, after some time, the fish becomes tired and stops fighting
and we’re able to catch it easily. Usually this is how it happens, we
practice gradually gathering it together.
It’s in this manner that we do our contemplation. If we
don’t have any particular knowledge or learning in the theoretical
aspects of the Teachings, we contemplate according to our everyday
experience. We use the knowledge which we already have, the knowledge
derived from our everyday experience. This kind of knowledge is natural
to the mind. Actually, whether we study about it or not, we have the
reality of the mind right here already. The mind is the mind whether we
have learned about it or not. This is why we say that whether the Buddha
is born in the world or not, everything is the way it is. Everything
already exists according to its own nature. This natural condition
doesn’t change, nor does it go anywhere. It just is that way. This is
called the Sacca Dhamma. However, if we don’t understand about this
Sacca Dhamma, we won’t be able to recognize it.
So we practice contemplation in this way. If we aren’t
particularly skilled in scripture, we take the mind itself to study and
read. Continually we contemplate (lit. talk with ourselves) and
understanding regarding the nature of the mind will gradually arise. We
don’t have to force anything.
The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata
Vipers
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Savatthi in Jeta’s Grove. Then he addressed the monks, “Monks, suppose there were four vipers of utmost heat & horrible venom.
Then a man would come along — desiring life, desiring not to die,
desiring happiness, & loathing pain — and people would tell him:
‘Good man, these four vipers, of utmost heat & horrible venom, are
yours. Time after time they must be lifted up, time after time they must
be bathed, time after time they must be fed,
time after time put to rest. And if any of these vipers ever gets
angered with you, then you will meet with death or death-like suffering.
Do what you think should be done.’
Then the man —
afraid of the four vipers of utmost heat & horrible venom — would
flee this way or that. They would tell him, ‘Good man, there are five
enemy executioners chasing right on your heels, [thinking,] “Wherever we
see him, we’ll kill him right on the spot.” Do what you think should be
done.’
Then the man — afraid of the
four vipers of utmost heat & horrible venom, afraid of the five
enemy executioners — would flee this way or that. They would tell him,
‘Good man, there is a sixth executioner, a fellow-traveler, chasing
right on your heels with upraised sword, [thinking,] “Wherever I see
him, I’ll kill him right on the spot.” Do what you think should be
done.’
Then the man —
afraid of the four vipers of utmost heat & horrible venom, afraid of
the five enemy executioners, afraid of the sixth fellow-traveling
executioner with upraised sword — would flee this way or that. He would
see an empty village. Whatever house he entered would be abandoned,
void, & empty as he entered it. Whatever pot he grabbed hold of
would be abandoned, void, & empty as he grabbed hold of it. They
would tell him, ‘Good man, right now, village-plundering bandits are entering this empty village. Do what you think should be done.’
%2BBandits%2B%255Bwww.dvdquorum.es%255D.torrent&h=593&w=400&sz=50&tbnid=jMXdS_r108h7sM:&tbnh=135&tbnw=91&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dpictures%2Bof%2Bbandits%26um%3D1&start=2&sa=X&oi=images&ct=image&cd=2 "http://www.torrentportal.com/details/942833/(Q)+Bandits+%5Bwww.dvdquorum.es%5D.torrent")
Then the man — afraid of the
four vipers of utmost heat & horrible venom, afraid of the five
enemy executioners, afraid of the sixth fellow-traveling executioner
with upraised sword, afraid of the village-plundering bandits — would
flee this way or that. He would see a great expanse of water, with the
near shore dubious & risky, the further shore secure & free from
risk, but with neither a ferryboat nor a bridge going from this shore
to the other. The thought would occur to him, ‘Here is this great
expanse of water, with the near shore dubious & risky, the further
shore secure & free from risk, but with neither a ferryboat nor a
bridge going from this shore to the other. What
if I were to gather grass, twigs, branches, & leaves and, having
bound them together to make a raft, were to cross over to safety on the
other shore in dependence on the raft, making an effort with my hands
& feet?’ Then the man, having gathered grass, twigs, branches, &
leaves, having bound them together to make a raft, would cross over to
safety on the other shore in dependence on the raft, making an effort
with his hands & feet. Crossed over, having gone to the other shore,
he would stand on high ground, a brahman.
“Monks, I have made this simile to convey a meaning. Here
the meaning is this: ‘The four vipers of utmost heat & horrible
venom’ stands for the four great existents: the earth property, the
liquid property, the fire-property, & the wind property. ‘The five
enemy executioners’ stands for the five clinging-aggregates: the form
clinging-aggregate, the feeling clinging-aggregate, the perception
clinging-aggregate, the fabrications clinging-aggregate, the
consciousness clinging-aggregate. 
‘The sixth fellow-traveling executioner with upraised sword’ stands for passion & delight.
“‘The
empty village’ stands for the six internal sense media. If a wise,
competent, intelligent person examines them from the point of view of
the eye, they appear abandoned, void, & empty. If he examines them
from the point of view of the ear… the nose… the tongue… the body… the
intellect, they appear abandoned, void, & empty. ‘The
village-plundering bandits’ stands for the six external sense-media. The
eye is attacked by agreeable & disagreeable forms. The ear is
attacked by agreeable & disagreeable sounds. The nose is attacked by
agreeable & disagreeable aromas. The tongue is attacked by
agreeable & disagreeable flavors. The body is attacked by agreeable
& disagreeable tactile sensations. The intellect is attacked by
agreeable & disagreeable ideas.
“‘The great expanse of water’ stands for the fourfold flood:
the flood of sensuality, the flood of becoming, the flood of views,
& the flood of ignorance.
‘The near shore, dubious & risky’ stands for
self-identification. ‘The further shore, secure and free from risk’
stands for Unbinding. ‘The raft’ stands for just this noble eightfold
path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right
livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.
‘Making an effort with hands & feet’ stands for the arousing of
persistence. ‘Crossed over, having gone to the other shore, he would
stand on high ground, a brahman’ stands for the arahant.”
Mara Meets His Match
The nun Soma has entered Andhavana (Blind Man’s Grove) near
Savatthi to practice meditation. Mara, the embodiment of delusion, sees
her there and desires to make her waver and abandon her concentration.
He addresses her with a verse:
That which can be attained by seers
— The place so hard to arrive at —
Women are not able to reach,
Since they lack sufficient wisdom.
[Soma replies:]
What difference does being a woman make
When the mind is well-composed,
When knowledge is proceeding on,
When one rightly sees into Dhamma?
Indeed for whom the question arises:
“Am I a man or a woman?”
Or, “Am I even something at all?”
To them alone is Mara fit to talk!
Translator’s note
This, in my view, is the definitive statement in the
Buddhist tradition regarding the equality of the sexes. Whatever other
words have crept into the literature — from ancient times to the present
— whatever attitudes may have been expressed by Theras, Lamas, Roshis
or Teachers over the ages, this position of thoroughgoing equality in
light of the Dhamma is plainly stated by Soma, one of the Buddha’s
contemporary nuns.
Soma was the daughter of the chief priest of King Bimbisara
of Magadha, and was an early convert to the Buddha’s teaching. She spent
many years as a lay supporter before eventually becoming a nun, and
achieved awakening — like so many of her sisters — not long after
joining the order.
In this exchange Mara is clearly trying to provoke and
discourage Soma, but only reveals his delusion. The expression he uses
literally means “two fingers’ [worth]” of wisdom. It may originally have
been a reference to the domestic task of checking if rice is cooked by
examining it between the fingers, but here it is obviously used
pejoratively to impugn that women are less capable of liberation. Soma
not only refrains from getting offended (perhaps remembering Buddha’s
teaching to always “forebear the fool”), but calmly points out how
ludicrous the statement is when viewed in light of the Buddha’s higher
teaching about the nature of personhood.
from COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic
now responsible for more than 200,000 deaths worldwide, was synthesised
by the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), based in the city where the
disease was first identified.
Coronavirus Cases:
Deaths:
485,122
from COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic
from COVID-19 Coronavirus Pandemic
Countries and territories without any cases of COVID-19
1. Comoros,2. North Korea,3. Yemen,4.
The Federated States of Micronesia,5. Kiribati,6. Solomon Islands,7.
The Cook Islands,8. Micronesia,9. Tong,10. The Marshall Islands
Palau,11. American Samoa,12. South Georgia,13. South Sandwich
Islands,14.SaintHelena,Europe,15. Aland Islands,16.Svalbard,17. Jan
Mayen Islands,18. Latin America,19.Africa,20.British Indian Ocean
Territory,21.French Southern
Territories,22.Lesotho,23.Oceania,24.Christmas
Island,25. Cocos
(Keeling) Islands,26. Heard Island,27. McDonald Islands,28. Niue,29.
Norfolk Island,30. Pitcairn,31. Solomon Islands,32. Tokelau,33. United
States Minor Outlying Islands,34. Wallis and Futuna Islands,35.Tajikistan,
36. Turkmenistan,37. Tuvalu,38. Vanuatu
as they are following the original words of the Buddha Metteyya Awakened One with Awareness:
1. Dasa raja dhamma, 2. kusala 3. Kuutadanta Sutta dana, 4.
priyavacana,5. artha cariya ,6. samanatmata, 7. Samyutta
Nikayaaryaor,ariyasammutidev 8. Agganna Sutta,9. Majjima Nikaya,10.
arya” or “ariy, 11.sammutideva,12. Digha Nikaya,13. Maha
Sudassana,14.Dittadhammikatthasamvattanika-dhamma ,15. Canon Sutta ,16. Pali Canon and Suttapitaka ,17. Iddhipada ,18. Lokiyadhamma and Lokuttaradhamma,19. Brahmavihàra,20. Sangahavatthu ,21. Nathakaranadhamma ,22. Saraniyadhamma ,23. Adhipateyya Dithadhammikattha,24. dukkha,25. anicca,26. anatta,27. Samsara,28. Cakkamatti Sihananda Sutta,29.Chandagati,30.Dosagati, 31. Mohagati,32.Bhayagati,33.Yoniso manasikara,34. BrahmavihàraSangaha vatthu,35. Nathakaranadhamma,36.SaraniyadhammaAdhipateyya,37. Dithadhammikatth38.Mara,39.Law of Kamma,40. dhammamahamatras, 41.IV. Observation of Dhammas,42.Assamedha,43.Sassamedha,44.Naramedha,45.Purisamedha,46.Sammapasa,47.Vajapeyya,48.Niraggala,49.Sila,50.Samadhi, 51.Panna, 52.Samma-sankappa,53.Sigalovada Sutta,54.Brahmajala Sutta,55.Vasettha Sutta in Majjhima Nikaya,56.Ambattha Sutta in Digha Nikaya
The Blessed,Noble,Awakened One-The Tathagata