Permanent and Temporary Homes

revised on 2024-07-10

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Dhamma Talks by Mogok Sayadaw; 3rd October 1961

The Buddha taught these with his deep and wide knowledge that the permanent homes of living beings are the four woeful planes. Human and celestial realms are only temporary visits (sightseeing and indulgence in pleasures). Don’t be satisfied with your small good results. You have to note that these are still not worthy. From here you have to go to apāyas (for most humans today). For example, you take a pebble and throw it upward into the air. Its going upward and staying there for a moment is very short indeed, and the pebble falls to the ground again. The time of staying for a moment in the air is very insignificant compared with staying on the ground. Generally, unwholesomeness (akusala dhamma) of living beings (especially humans) is extremely muddy.

You can only kill the hellish seed of wrong views and doubts in this human world. It’s very difficult to kill them in heaven and Brahma-heavens. Only in this human world do sacca dhamma and paṭiccasamuppāda dhamma exist. Even these dhammas are quite rare now.

If you don’t practise, what the khandha and ñāṇa know will just go to woeful existences. You have to practise very quickly, because the khandha is running toward death. The khandha process is: “Whatever you’re doing, I’ll go to the cemetery.”

People are shamelessly making prayers for becoming (bhava) in front of the Buddha statue (later Buddhists). It’s quite ugly indeed by seeing with the knowledge of knowing sacca. With wrong attention, people take dukkha sacca as sukha sacca. Wrong attention is like the soil, not knowing (avijjā) is like the seed, and affection for family members and possessions is like pouring water (taṇhā) on the soil with the seed. Therefore, the khandha of dukkha sacca tree grows out from the soil and later bears dukkha fruits, and avijjā seeds fall again on the soil. In this way, saṁsāra is revolving. Dukkha will end by planting the vijjā seed on the soil of right attention and pouring saddhā water (faith) on it.

(This is a strong saṁvega talk on the importance of practice to end painful births, which are permanent places for most human beings.)

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revised on 2024-07-10

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• Content of Part 16 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.