141: Retreat Dhamma Talk 36: Four Dominant Causes for Supreme Peace

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SPEAKER_01 0:02

Nammo tasabhavato rahato samma sambudasa nammo tasabhavato arahato samma sambudasa nammo tasambhavato rahato sama sambudasa retreat series Dhamma talk number thirty-six. All our Dhamma talks are directly related to Satipatana Vipassana practice, mindfulness, insight. It's all about what we are doing, how we are doing, why we are doing and what are the objectives and goals or the benefits. The more you understand these things, the faster the progress will grow. And as we have been talking from various approaches, because Buddha taught us from all different approaches to the same thing. Today we'll present in a different format about this practice. We can call it the four great causes and its four great effects. Four great causes and its four great effects. One of the main cause to produce that effect is the great noble desire for the great noble effects or the goal. What is this great desire? One must have a great desire to practice this mindfulness and sight meditation. You can call it desire, you can call it willingness. To do what? And to reach all, to reach the objective or to reach the goal. And that goal is also the noble goal or noble objectives. What is this goal? This goal is in one word peace, supreme peace for oneself and all others. So that is the one of the great cause, one of the full great cause, noble desire or willingness to practice so that we can achieve supreme peace for oneself as well as all others. And the second one, the second one is when you are practicing this, okay, it has to be coupled with a certain a certain thing. That certain thing is the effort. The effort that you apply. The effort that you apply must be very strong, very firm. Strong and firm effort. In other words, one cannot be lazy, one cannot be half-heartedly applying the effort. And that is the second great cause of the fall. First one is the noble desire for the practice. Second one is you apply great urgent, strong and firm effort. That's the second cause. To achieve this, great supreme peace. And the third one, the third one is you can call it a resolute mind. Your determination must be very strong. Not ordinary determination, not a determination or resolution that you put every new year and then it breaks down within a few weeks or a few months. This is the kind of a determination that you keep for life. The resolute mind. Fantasy is not, we are not even talking about any other thing directly related with the Dharma. Because of the a lot of information that you have seeds, you go into some sort of a storyline fantasy into the practice as well. You begin to imagine this way, imagine that way. Especially some people are very imaginative. That imagination associates with a lot of the information that you know ahead. You build up some stories and scenarios and you begin to believe yourself. And also you put a lot of uh rationalization on based on what you do and what you don't do. But the mind must be resolute. Only one. I'm going to practice and till I reach this supreme peace, I will not rest. Nothing would stop me. That is the third great cause. Noble desires, burden effort, and the resolute mind. And the fourth cause to achieve that peace is simply put insight. What insight is when you are practicing, you begin to experience things. What do you experience? You experience things based on what you do and what are you doing. In a more precise sense, you are observing. You are observing all mental activities and physical activities within oneself, which means within this body and within the mind that is working together with this body. You are observing. In other words, you are trying to understand, you are trying to uncover the true nature of this physical activities, mental activities of this body and the mind. They are true nature. And this is the cause itself. You work, you probe into the nature of the the true nature of the mind and this body. And whenever you understand, then that is called insight. There are many pieces, you can put it in a different way. You understand the specific characteristics of each and every object you are observing. And also you understand the general characteristics of all things that you are observing. You can say all things, but it falls always under two. One is the material phenomenon and one is the mental phenomenon. That is what is wicked all. All physical phenomena or material phenomenon and all mental phenomena. That is you. And in fact, that is what the universe is constructed of. So when you have insight into the specific characteristics and general characteristics of these two phenomena, material and mental, that's insight. So that is the fourth cause. So there are four great cause if you are practiced to attain supreme peace. The first one is you must have a great willingness or desire to practice this mindfulness inside meditation. And then second one is when you practice, you are practicing with urgent effort, not superficial effort, not associated with laziness, but urgent effort, more than average. In fact, it is more than any effort you have ever applied before. But in here is consistently, persistently throughout. It is not just a short burst of effort. And thirdly, while you are doing it, you have to do with a resolute mind, which means nothing would stop me till I reach my goal. I will not waver, I will not deter any direction. And finally, every moment you are investigating and you are understanding bits and bits, pieces and pieces of the true nature of this material phenomenon and mental phenomenon. These are the four causes that one has to apply to achieve supreme peace. And if you have these four causes, there's no if or but you will achieve it. And in here too, you can see these four causes. They are different. One is actually the desire or the zeal, willingness. Another one is the application, persistent application of energy, and the third one is the determination, and the fourth one is understanding. Full different segment, full approach process, full different causes. And in here, every one of us is applying. And when we are applying these full causes for the noble objective, you will find each of us are different. Some people are very strong, you know. They are desire basis, very strong. Stronger than the other. Some people, no, they are always like a walk horse, steady and applying effort. And some people, no, and they're their determination when they decided to do something, regardless of what, they don't stop. And some people have a very sharp and smart intelligent mind. They can see things a lot faster and quicker than the others. So, in here, based on your personality, based on the strength that you have, you must know your strength. You have, and that will become the leader. The leader of the four causes is based on your own asset base. You must understand which is the strongest asset that you have, and then apply that one stronger than ever. And whenever one of the causes is leading, the other three causes will follow automatically. But know your strength and apply it. So those are the four Greek causes one has to apply to achieve supreme peace. And if you understand Buddhism properly, nothing arises out of nothingness, nothing is accidental, everything is cause and effect. Without a cause, there can be no effect. If there is an effect, there is a cause. Causal relationships, the law of causal relation operates throughout this universe of mind and matter. Causeal relationship, the law of causal relationship operates throughout the universe of mind and matter. As long as there is mind and matter, this law applies. So taking this cause or law, you will understand if you apply these four causes, there will be effects, there will be result. And that result is bound to follow. If you apply this cause, you like it or not, the corresponding result will come to be, it will arise. You don't have to wish for the result, you don't have to wish or create the effect or the result. Just simply do the causes, and when you apply the causes, the results will automatically follow. That's the law. And if you understand that law, you don't have to wish for anything. Simply apply the causes. But of course, you need to understand. In general, is one and one final objective is the supreme peace. Supreme peace, that is the result. So let's say you are applying all these four causes. When you apply these four causes, you will surely get four types of result. Four types of result in first and foremost, the result or the effect that you have. It's a culture. One will become a cultured person. And what is culture? Simply we know the word if we put in a pair of opposites. Barbarian. Barbarous, barbarian. And the opposite to barbarous or barbarian is a cultured person. Barbarian, rude, harsh, rough, tough. And cultured is also totally opposite. The word is opposite to the barbarous nature. So one will become a cultured person if you practice this. Why? And how can these four causes can produce this nature of being cultured? And what is cultured? Cultured means to explain in a very simple way, a person's behavior is become gentle. Gentle. Gentle and polite and cultured. The mannerism totally changed. And that is the presentation, physical presentation of the cultured person. When you look at the cultured person, the movement, the way it moves, the way it talks, is very polite, very gentle, very considerate, and do not produce any hurt or harm onto others. That is a cultured person. That is in a very simple, straightforward, everyday words. That's what you become. And how does it become? How does it become is people are normally, everybody is. We always live with what? Okay, jealousy and envy, greed and aversion and hatred. These are on a very strong and gross form level. And ill will and always in a state of uncertainty, not knowing what the right cause is. Of course, in general, every day you know, but there's always come a major point. Let's say once you graduate high school, do I go to science? Do you guys go to arts or law or this or that and so on and so forth? Those are the critical points, and you are quite confused, uncertain in those times. Of course, there's an exception, and so on. Certain points of life, a critical juncture come, there's always the uncertainty comes in. Then it becomes very obvious. So those kinds of uncertainty also come in. But on a most settler level, every day, in fact, every hours, in fact, minutes, there's a state of anxiety, there's a state of worry, anxiety and worry, unsettledness, uncertainty. Even on a moment, uh certainty, should I go shopping or should I go to my exercise class? That little thing comes in. Those kind of things are always happening. Worry, anxiety. In other words, all the emotional state, especially the negative emotional states, these are always arising in us. Whenever these rises, what happens? Your behavior is very, very noticeable. If you are mindful, if you know how to observe, okay. Now you're observing others, if you are mindfully observing others, it is very simple. The way they move, okay, the way they speak is not flowy, not harmonious, a little bit jittery. Sometimes scratching here, scratching there, sometimes squeezing here, squeezing there, okay, jumping from one to the other, one place to the other, one topic to the other, can't settle in. Especially like obvious one is people with ADD, they can't settle on one thing. Move here, move there, move here, move there, that kind of thing. And that is all the nature of the expression of these jealousy, envy, worries, anxiety that is transpiring inside oneself. And when these are happening, that kind of nature, the physical expression come in. Some are obvious, some are very subtle, but as a mindful person you can observe the in oneself as well as on others. That's what it means by what you call the first one, cultured. So you don't have to be just taking a gun or getting a knife and then cut and be barbarous. And here is the way you present to the society. The presentation is very composed, very subtle. When you become very composed and very subtle, and then you are in awareness of everything and you can make a very sharp decision. You are not rattled by events quite easily. You are quite subtle. And you can cite situation with the calm posture, composed posture. And that is what is called by cultured. So that is one of the causes. If you are applying those full great causes, this is one of the sorry effects that comes in. You don't have to wish for it, I'm going to behave correctly, well-mannered. Okay, this is the etiquette, I will do this way, I will do that way. You don't have to do anything, you just practice those full causes, and automatically your behaviors and manners become very gentle, very well-mannered, and then cultured. That is the result, that is the effect of the practice of the full causes. And second one, when you are practicing these things, what happens is automatically you the result is one has been protected. That's the state. You are under the protection or one has been protected. Protected from what? Protected from the main major enemy. What is our greatest enemy of among all things? It is not the opposition force, it is not another country, it is not with another party or another viewpoint. The greatest enemy in our life and everybody's life is mental defilements. Loba, dosa, and moha, or you can call it last or greed. Okay. And then, or craving, last greed craving, that is loba. Dosa, dosa is a whole spectrum. Whether you are in a frustrated or agitated or having anger or even hatred or ill will, those are the second type, dosa, mental defilement. Third one is delusion or illusion. Okay, not knowing exactly what the true nature is, not exactly what is right and what is wrong in a cruiser form. And these four, these three, Loba, Dosa, and Moha, are called mental defilements. And that is the greatest enemies of all living beings. Specifically for us as we can call it of human beings. The greatest enemies of all human beings is this mental defilement. But when you are practicing these, applying these full causes, you become protected from this enemy. You become protected. Why is it protected? But you are simply just practicing what? What do you practice? Desire to practice this method, and then you apply effort, and then you have a resolution. I won't give up. And you start trying to pick up pieces in their true nature. And how can it protect it? But look at it. What are we practicing? Practicing is mindfulness insight. Insight of vipassana practice. We are practicing insight of vipassana practice, using full foundation of mindfulness as a tool. Okay, so when we are applying full foundation of mindfulness as a two, every moment what are you doing? Any objects that belongs to those four groups, you are observing, in other words, you are being mindful, you are being mindful, mindful, mindful, moment to moment. When you are mindful exactly what is happening at the moment, at that moment, at that particular moment when you are mindful, there is no lobak, no craving or greed, there is no dosak, no frustration, irritation, anger or hatred, and at the same time you know exactly what it is happening. Because of that, there is no mental defilement at that moment because you are being mindful. So as there is no mental defilement at that moment, what happens is you are being protected from the mental defilement at that moment. Why? Because you are applying these full causes, that's how one is being protected. Okay, all the time it's protected, and that is the effect of the full causes that you are constantly applying. That's a second great result. Don't underestimate that. That is very important. Okay, being protected from your greatest enemy. And the third result, the third result is called, in Pali is called Satangriya. So what it is is simply you have the sense of control, okay, specifically on the five physical senses and particularly the sixth one, the mental sense. There are six senses. Five are physical, one is mental, six senses. When you are practicing this, okay, applying these causes, automatically your senses are become under control. What is mean by these senses are being under control? Here you're applying, and then look at average in normal everyday life that going about when we see something that we like. Okay, you like it, you want it, you might go to the point of achieving it. Sometimes in a good and nice way, sometimes when it becomes extreme, you might even transgress upon others' people's privileges and rights, and then you will try and get it. Or in other words, by hook or by crook, you will do it to attain that, to achieve that. That is just on a material that you see. And the same kind of rule applies based on the sound. Okay, we just think about an ugly sound and beautiful sound. But there are sound that carries meanings and words that affect you. In other words, the sound affected, but actually it is the meaning that is conveyed through that sound that is hitting you all the time. So sometimes you hear things that you like, sometimes you hear things that you don't like, you hate. And through that, there's a lot of reaction going on. And again, too, you might be reacting violently, you might be reacting progressively, but in general, based on the intensity of that bombardment of that sound, one time or the other, you will slip through and you will transgress. Trangress means simply trying to put yourself in a conflict zone. Okay? Create a disharmony. And then act something that is hurtful and harmful or even violence. That's it. So that is on the sound. The first hand is the sight, the second is sound. The same applies with the smell. We don't have to go into detail. Whenever there's a pleasant smell come in, you react one way. Unpleasant smell comes in, you react another way. Then with the taste. And then of course finally the touch. The touch is a very wide. It is happening all the time because you have the sense, okay, sensual nerve all through your body, every part of your body on the skin, except the nails, hand, fingernails, toenails, teeth, hair. That's about it. But other than that, whenever there's a touch, there's a sensitivity, and you are always reacting to the sensitivity. Maybe in a very gross way, maybe in a very subtle way. Always there's some sort of a response or reaction going on. Those are the five physical senses, and they are in contact with you all the time. Even while you are sleeping, they are in contact. When they become intense enough, you woke up. Or you might be half asleep or day sort of a in a dream mode, but actually not a dream. Half asleep and half awake. You are reacting somehow. Your body is reacting. There's a lot of research going on different ways. Some people they are sleeping, they can see how your body is moving and reacting and actually even striking and poking. You don't know. And that is what is happening is through the senses of the touch as well as the mental sense. Mental sense, everything that you have done through the day, some intense situations, even in the sleep, they come in back in a dream and you are interrelating or reacting to it. And these kinds of things are always going on normal. But when you have practice, apply these four Greek causes, what happens is automatically in all these six senses, five physical and one mental, there's a you have a control. What does it mean by control? Before you hear somebody cursing at you, before you will turn around and put up a finger or scream back or yell at, or even some people they might walk out and punch it. That is the reaction. But in here is you hear it. When you hear it, because of the application of the four Greek causes, your reactiveness. And that kind of proactively doing things is called the sense control. Okay. Sense control. You have the control of your six senses. And you don't have to purposely, I'm going to control this way or control that way, I'm going to have a six-step plan or twelve-step plan, I'm going to this way, I'm going to manage my anger. Okay, that's those are the specific targeted techniques. Especially in the West, they have the courses and classes you have to pay to attend it. That's specific. But in here is you simply apply these four great causes into your practice. And we all know when we are practicing full foundation of mindfulness. It's not only sitting meditation, not only walking meditation, formal walking meditation, it is in every aspect of your life you are interjecting, interjecting, interjecting. So when you are applying this, automatically you will find you have a better control, a stronger control of the senses. They might be attacking you, they might be in touch with you all the time, but the way you have a control on it, in other words, you will never react to it and only find a proper solution and response it. That is the result that gains. And if you want to talk a little bit of more of a technical based on meditation, at that moment your mindfulness becomes very strong. Your mindfulness becomes very strong, strong to the point of you can maintain your mindfulness constantly and continuously for 15, 20, 30 minutes, that kind of a thing. In other words, if you can maintain for 15 to 30 minutes that your concentration power is become very strong. Second is effort, third is mindfulness, fourth is concentration, the fifth is insight. That's called pinching driya, five controlling mental faculties. Automatically these five controlling mental faculties, but specifically, specifically, mindfulness, sati and samadhi concentration, these two become to the point of they call it bala. Bala means they have become strong and powerful. They are not ordinary mindfulness anymore. They become strong mindfulness, firm mindfulness, powerful mindfulness. When you have reached to that stage of bala or strong and powerful stage of mindfulness and samadhi concentration, automatically you will find that you have the power to resist all the mental defilements that is bombarding at you and you have a control upon it. And that is the the third effect. Because of that, if you want to stay in one line, what happens is you have the achieved the states of security from the enemy of mental defilements. In the second stage is you have achieved the protection. You have the protection, you are protected from the mental defilements. At the third stage, you have the security. Security means you don't have to even worry about it. You have a very good handle on it and you are always aware about it. Sometimes it might slip. There's always a little slip of time, slip of thoughts, slip almost to react. Those kind of things arise and come in. If they arise and come in, you know right away and automatically it becomes under control. In general, you are always in a state of control when facing all the six senses. Once in a while you seem to lose it, but you're aware of it, and you will find quickly you correct it. You can see it like as if you were looking on a silver screen to on a movie on a silver screen. Just like that, you can see how it bombards you, how your reaction arises mentally, and how you become aware of it, and how that becomes dissolved. It's become clearer and clearer. That is security. That's the third result. Or the effect of the four causes that you are applying. And then of course the last one, the last effect or the result result. In Pali is called Riapata Sampana. If you divide it, one is Ariya. Ariya can be divided, put into sometimes based on the sound. Ariya is the full posture that everybody has to maintain. Sitting posture, standing posture, walking posture, and the lying down posture. In other words, there is not a one moment that you don't engage in one posture or the other. You might be sitting, you might be standing, you might be walking, or you might be lying down. In other words, that's the every aspect of it. So in all full posture, you are in control. In all posture, you are in control. And sampana is sampajana. In control means not to mix up with the third one. In all full posture, you have the clear comprehension. In other words, you are fully aware of it, fully understand the situation of right and wrong and what it should be and what it could be and what must be done and what must be avoided. That is what is the fourth one. You are in not, I won't say control. This one is you have a full comprehension of every situation, whether you are sitting or standing or walking or lying down. That's the fourth one. So in here is what does it mean? What is the difference between the third one, security, and this one? Okay, in the security and this one is in here is you are not only doing sitting meditation or walking meditation. You are not only in a retreat. Up to the third one is mostly you have more of a control in those kind of situations. But in here, at the fourth level, when we say you have the clear comprehension on all four postures mean, you are in a normal daily life. Walking about, doing your job or earning your money, sorting out all the problems at work, the family problem, anything and everything under the sun of your life, in every casis. And in every casis, in every moment, every situation, you see things very clearly. You are and have a clear comprehension about it. So in other words, even though what the difference is, the third, second and third one is you are protected from the mental defilements, third one is you are secure from the mental defilement. The fourth one is you are fully comprehending every situation in a proper, correct, right way all the time. So in a lot of a high speed mode. Before it's a lot slower speed mode, this is a high speed activity mode, you are always in a clear comprehension, you know these things. Why? Suddenly you become able to be aware and mindful, even though you are not doing sitting meditation or walking meditation or you're focusing on it. Even though you are not developing concentration at that moment, continuous concentration, you are aware. What is the difference? Why is it come becoming like that? That like that is when you are applying the full causes, the one of the causes is what? It's called insight of wisdom. Insight of wisdom is when you are applying again and again and again, you begin to experience the true nature, the true characteristics of everything, physicality. Just based on the meditation-wise, you know rising movement, falling movement, hot, cold. Okay? Anything, all the four great elements. Mahabuddha, hardness, softness, lightness, that's on the physicality and mentality-wise. You know everything. You know the awareness, you know not being aware, you know where you slip, and you know exactly what kind of emotions are arising. Whether it's a good emotions or right, bad emotion, doesn't matter, everything. Not only that, you know them and you see them, you observe them, you know them, they are just a everything is simply exists for a fleeting moment. They arise and they passed away, they arise and they pass away, they arise and they pass away. You can observe them because you are constantly applying these four great causes, and you have become very skillful in the first three, which is the great desire, the great effort, and the resolute mind. And then you begin to uncover all these characteristics, and that repeated uncovering, repeated experiencing of these specific and general characteristics of physical and mental phenomena, when it is pounding millions and millions of time, experiencing millions and millions of time, it becomes a part of you, you become a part of it. And when it becomes like that, even in a normal mode, even in a normal day, the way you see things, the way you see every situation and conditions, that understanding of the main thing is the general characteristics or three common characteristics of all physical and mental phenomena. What are they? First of all, is everything is in a state of flux, everything's changing, nothing permanent. Secondly, is every physical and mental phenomenon are oppressed by this state of change. And nothing is certain, everything is taken in the direction of the condition of the environment. And that tree, your understanding is so deep in your daily movement, in your daily movement, you see, you feel, and you can apply. Apply means without any exerting any effort. It just simply is. You see things, everything, as you see every movement and every condition with that three general characteristics. You don't see anything as a big deal or a small deal. You don't see it's a trivial matter, you don't see it's a life and death situation. You simply know it is a condition and you simply know what to do. That is what it means by riapana sampanya and all activity and all full posture. That is, one is fully aware, fully comprehend the situation, right and wrong and what to do. And you become the warrior of Dharma in the world of all chaos and activities in the midst of all mental defilements. But nothing can touch you because you have attained the wisdom. So may all of you be able to apply the full great causes and may you receive benefit and then utilize the full results. Those are the effects of the full causes and create peace and harmony in the world. Sadhu Sadhu Sadu Buddham Vijaymi Buddhamam Sangam.

SPEAKER_00 50:11

Thank you very much.