Khandha Calling and Ñāṇa Going

revised on 2019-07-25

Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw; 5th to 6th March 1961

By listening Dhamma talk, ñāṇa must turn towards the khandha. The khandha will tell you about impermanence, suffering and not-self and truth of dukkha (anicca, dukkha, anatta and dukkha sacca). Don’t believe in what others say. Just believe in what the khandha will tell you. Stare at it and see what it has to tell you.

E-hi passiko—the khandha is calling at you to come and contemplate for moment to moment. You must follow it with ñāṇa. The calling is anicca and the following is ñāṇa. And you’ll know your khandha very well. For feeling, for example, body itching is calling at you. You go and look at it and it disappears. Minds are calling at you. Follow with sandiṭṭhiko and seeing that it’s not there. Don’t follow with lobha, dosa and moha (greed, anger and delusion). For example, the body is itching. It’s too itchy and you go with the hand. This is going with anger. Is there any time the khandha is not calling at you? I am only worrying that you are not following with ñāṇa. By going with ñāṇa and become akāliko—giving the result without delay.

Greed, anger and delusion—cease to arise. So no future khandha arises. Dhamma which are leading to the painful rebirths are not arising is akāliko.

E-hi passiko is calling and must follow with sandiṭṭhiko will close the doors to painful existence. Don’t follow with craving and anger. Also don’t forget it with delusion (These talks were based on the Susīma Sutta, SN.12. 70 Susimasuttaṃ). Is there any samatha practice including here? I had already told you about this yesterday.

This case also supported by the Buddha. Commentary also explained it. For example, at night bed bug bites you and follow with your hand. Vedanā is calling at you that your hand going there. It continues to taṇhā, upādāna and kamma because you follow with taṇhā. Whatever calling at you is anicca and every following is magga. Combining the process, it becomes object for contemplation, contemplating mind and the result.

You have to practice hard in this way. Samatha is including as samādhi and a necessary factor follows behind it. For an example, taking water is including the cup. Here water is like paññā and the cup is samādhi. The process of contemplation is anicca, magga and akāliko (the result). The Buddha and all ariyas finished their practices in this way.

If you do it now and it is sure to give you the result now—akāliko! There is no time that the Dhamma is not calling at you. There are only time you are not following it. The reason you missed each Buddha in the past was e-hi passiko calling you and not following with sandiṭṭhiko.

It was not important, whether you missed the Buddha, but it is important to not miss the Dhamma. If you don’t follow the Dhamma then you are building hell fire and hell woks from here. Don’t take it as I am frightening you.

For example, Upāsaka Nandiya's wholesome merits from the human world caused celestial mansions appearing in the heaven even before his death.

(This episode came from Mahā Moggallāna during his visit to heaven and saw these mansions (DhA. iii. 290ff). We can also discover some of the points and factors concerning with kamma and rebirth by research and contemplation with some of the sutta stories in the Nikāya). You have to extinguish the hell fire with magga from here (Here Sayadaw’s talk was humorous and with saṁvega) Aging and death are always following behind you. So do the practice quickly.

(continued the Susīma Sutta) The arahants' answer to Susīma’s question was that, they became arahants without jhāna practice. According to the commentary it was called dry insight, and freed from defilements by wisdom.

(Some Buddhists, mostly in the west, reject dry insight because they think it is impossible for realization without any jhāna. This comes from misunderstanding and misjudgments on the Theravadin Texts, both Nikāyas and Commentaries.

For example, some Buddhists thought that in the Buddha’s time someone became an anāgāmin or arahant directly without going through the lower two or three stages by listening talks. Even the Bodhisatta couldn’t do it.

Mundane jhānas can’t destroy the fetters. Only supramundane jhānas can do it. Without any jhāna can’t enter into the fruition state after the realization. We need to count the yogis’ direct experiences also)

The five path factors (here two wisdom and three samādhi factors) must go toward the five khandhas. The five khandhas arise before and the five path factors later. Why it’s this way? It can’t happen together simultaneously. Right view (sammā-diṭṭhi) means seeing the khandha as it really is. Right thought (sammā-saṅkappa) means helping to see it as really is. They are like the eyes and glasses. Both of them are leading the process and three samādhi factors following with them. They include as necessary factors.

The real seeing is the two wisdom factors. (He continued Susīma’s story). Not including jhāna and only access concentration (upacāra samādhi) is necessary in this process.

Paññāmattaneva—Only with wisdom, vimutta—to liberation. I ask you to contemplate with these arahants’ way (the arahants in the sutta).

I’ll tell you how they realized the Dhamma. ① is Dhammānu—and ② is dhammappaṭipatti. You will realize the Dhamma if you can practice in accordance with ① and ② .

This is the practice I give you now. In this way you’ll take away your hell fire and wok. You are in with the matters of sons, daughters and businesses that muddle with unwholesome dhammas. But you don’t have the practice of in accordance with the Dhamma to offer (to the three gems and teacher).

Khandha dhamma and magga dhamma must be in accordance with the Dhamma. For example, a feeling arises and you observe it and not there. It is passing away and you see the passing away. This is right knowing. You don’t see man or woman.

This dhamma process and this knowing are in accordance with the Dhamma. This point is very important. One might become a stream enterer in the evening by practicing from the morning if kilesa does not come in among the contemplation.

Let ① the existence of passing away and ② the knowing of passing away are in accordingly. This is Dhammānu-dhammappaṭipatti—practice in accordance with the Dhamma. Another example is the mind of hungry to eat something arises. You contemplate it with the next mind. The hungry mind is anicca and contemplation is magga.

This is Dhammānu-dhammappaṭipatti. Saṁsāra is long for all of us because these two dhammas are not in accordance with the Dhamma. You will be hopeless next time if you can’t make it accordingly this time because in the later period of the Buddha’s Sāsana, the mind of human beings will become much defiled. You will die HAPPILY if you can practice this one.

revised on 2019-07-25; cited from https://oba.org.tw/viewtopic.php?f=22&t=4049&p=35708#p35708 (posted on 2019-01-09)

Content of Part 5 on "Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw"

Content of "Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw"

Content of Publications of Ven. Uttamo

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.

據英譯者—鄔達摩比丘交待，此譯文僅能免費與大眾結緣，作為法的禮物（Dhamma Dāna）。你可以在任何媒體上重新編製、重印、翻譯和重新發布這部作品。