FREE ONLINE TRAINING ON PRECEPTS AND TRADE-12
A POOL OF WATER
Anguttara Nikaya 1.45 - 46, Udakarahaka Sutta
Commentary: The Lord Buddha explains how an impure mind leads one to not understand that which is beneficial to oneself and/or others and does not allow for insights leading to higher states like Nibbana, and a pure mind does lead one to understand that which is beneficial to oneself and/or others and doesallow for insights leading to higher states like Nibbana.
Please note that an unenlightened mind can be a highly volatile and
unstable entity. Just as long as one subscribes to the negativities
within the mind the mind will remain impure and as soon as one lets go
of those negativities the mind will once again become pure (return to
its orginal pure state).
One should develop positive counter qualities to further guard against
mental negatives and to further purify and strengthen the mind. It is
equally important to not develop aversion towards the negativities
within the mind or attachment towards the positive states within the
mind (as they are impermanent) which can not only be detrimental to
one’s mental balance but also further defiles the mind.
45.
“Suppose there were a pool of water β sullied, turbid, and muddy. A man
with good eyesight standing there on the bank would not see shells,
gravel, and pebbles, or shoals of fish swimming about and resting. Why
is that? Because of the sullied nature of the water. In the same way,
that a monk with a sullied mind would know his own benefit, the benefit
of others, the benefit of both; that he would realize a superior human
state, a truly noble distinction of knowledge & vision: Such a
thing is impossible. Why is that? Because of the sullied nature of his
mind.”
Explanation: The Lord Buddha explains that just as one cannot see shells, pebbles, gravel, fish etc in a muddy pool of water; a person whose mind is defiled by various impurities will not be able to understand that which is beneficial to themselves and/or others and will not be able to gain any superior insights enabling higher realizations such as Nibbana.46.
“Suppose there were a pool of water β clear, limpid, and unsullied. A
man with good eyesight standing there on the bank would see shells,
gravel, & pebbles, and also shoals of fish swimming about and
resting. Why is that? Because of the unsullied nature of the water. In
the same way, that a monk with an unsullied mind would know his own
benefit, the benefit of others, the benefit of both; that he would
realize a superior human state, a truly noble distinction of knowledge
& vision: Such a thing is possible. Why is that? Because of the
unsullied nature of his mind.”
Explanation: The Lord Buddha explains that just as one can see shells, pebbles, gravel, fish etc in a clear pool of water; a person whose mind is not defiled by various impurities will be able to understand that which is beneficial to themselves and/or others and will be able to gain superior insights enabling higher realizations such as Nibbana.End of discourses.
PM, 19 others to be sworn in today
Ministers S M Krishna and M Veerappa Moily,
Mamata Banerjee, Ghulam Nabi Azad and Rajasthan PCC chief C P Joshi are
among the 19 leaders who would be sworn in as Cabinet Ministers in the
new government along with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh this
Buddhists and Christian fighting poverty
A message from the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue,
for the Buddhist feast of Vesakh. A call to work together to combat
that form of poverty which is a humiliation of human dignity, distress
and marginalization.
A word of thanks for the “dear Buddhist friends,” because of their
“inspiring witness of non-attachment and contentment,” together with an
invitation to “fight” that form of poverty “that prevents people and
families from living as befits their dignity; a poverty that offends
justice and equality and that, as such, threatens peaceful
co-existence.” These are the two points that form the basis of the
message for the feast of Vesakh released today by the Pontifical
Council for Interreligious Dialogue. Vesakh is the most important
Buddhist feast, and recalls the birth, enlightenment, and death of the
Buddha, all of which happened during the month of Vesakh. This year,
the feast falls on April 8 in Japan and Taiwan, on May 2 in Korea, and
on May 8 in all the other countries of Buddhist tradition.
In simple and friendly terms, the message expresses the closeness of
Catholics to the Buddhist communities. “Together,” it says, “we are
able not only to contribute, in fidelity to our respective spiritual
traditions, to the well-being of our own communities, but also to the
human community of the world.”
Recalling Benedict XVI’s words about a poverty “to be chosen” and a
poverty “to be fought” (message for the World Day for Peace 2009;
homily at the Mass on January 1), the Pontifical Council expresses its
appreciation for the fact that “monks, nuns, and many lay devotees
among you embrace a poverty ‘to be chosen’ that spiritually nourishes
the human heart, substantially enriching life with a deeper insight
into the meaning of existence.”
At the same time, it specifies that “for a Christian, the poverty to
be chosen is that which allows one to tread in the footsteps of Jesus
Christ. By doing so a Christian becomes disposed to receive the graces
of Christ, who for our sake became poor although he was rich, so that
by his poverty we might become rich (Cf. 2 Corinthians 8:9).” The
message also recalls the “poverty to be fought”: “affective, moral, and
spiritual poverty,” the marginalization of those who live in rich
societies and the “various forms of malaise despite their economic
prosperity,” and invites the Buddhist communities to “promote the
goodwill of the whole human community.”