Practice on The Body, Feeling and Mind

revised on 2019-06-14

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Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw; 3rd to 4th Jan. 1960

It becomes mind and body by condensing those five khandhas. They are unstable and have the characteristic of deteriorating nature (vipariṇāma lakkhaṇa) and the truth of dukkha (dukkha sacca) or vipariṇāma lakkhaṇa dukkha saccam. This is still not your own experience yet. It's true or not, check it directly! (This is a very important point on faith in Buddhism.) You will find out that after arising and it's disappearing. Then it's unstable and deteriorating (vipariṇāma). It's the truth of dukkha and does not bring happiness but only to suffering. It lets its normal nature to deteriorate and die. Therefore, it's suffering. You see your own suffering. If you contemplate literally on the attributes of the Dhamma and it becomes samatha practice, but use it as an insight practice. Sandiṭṭhiko – visible here and now, contemplate to see impermanence by yourself. Only impermanence exists so you discern anicca. By discerning anicca not continue to craving, clinging and action (taṇhā, upādāna and kamma). This is akāliko (non-temporal or timeless). With these 2-Dhamma Attributes (qualities) you can realize Nibbāna. Why is that? Because it's not leading to the continuation of khandhas. Birth, old and death stop coming without continuation. It's Nibbāna. Only it becomes sandiṭṭhiko, you will see Nibbāna. In contemplation you are seeing feeling and knowing anicca. I want to make some corrections in insight practice. Most people think watching and contemplating means: give an example, a crane is watching at the outlet of a drainage farm for catching the fishes. It's not in this way. Whatever is arising and following behind with knowledge. Here watching is mindful attention and follow with paññā (sati/paññā). Whatever dhamma shows you, observe with knowledge. (Here Sayadaw compared watching and observing with the example of a crane and a fish are simple but have some hidden meanings. Find out by contemplation. What are the differences between them?) Insight practice is cutting off the continuation of the khandhas by one-self. In vipassanā practice don't look at the bodily form. Observe the mind. Before, people were using the body for teaching. Using the 32-parts of the body and dividing them into group and the 4-elements etc. (This is one of the common practice in the Thai Forest Tradition.) It takes longer time. Human life span is short. So the best way is contemplating one's mind. For an example, the mind wants to eat something arises and then observe it as there is or not? You will find it as not there. Not existing there is anicca and the knowing is magga. You get the insight knowledge. Make effort to know it as not there, not there when every state of mind arises. This is you are observing your own death. The later Mr. Smith observes the death of previous Mr. Smith.

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revised on 2019-06-14; cited from https://oba.org.tw/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=4031&p=35595#p35595 (posted on 2018-12-15)

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• Content of Part 3 on "Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw"

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• Content of "Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw"

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• Content of Publications of Ven. Uttamo

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According to the translator— Ven. Uttamo's words, this is strictly for free distribution only, as a gift of Dhamma—Dhamma Dāna. You may re-format, reprint, translate, and redistribute this work in any medium.