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More useful and freeing perspectives than identifying with these factors would be language such as “the thought is the thinker,” “love loves,” “anger angers,” “joy enjoys.” These mental factors are not “self,” not “I,” not “mine”; they don’t belong to anyone.
our moods trigger certain patterns of thoughts. We might feel tired, discouraged, or grumpy and then begin to notice a lot of critical, judgmental thoughts.
The last of the five aggregates is consciousness (viññāna, in Pali).
Within the breadth of a mind moment, a citta [consciousness] arises, performs its momentary function, and then dissolves, conditioning the next citta in immediate succession. Thus, through the sequence of mind moments, the flow of consciousness continues, uninterrupted like the waters in a stream.
The great challenge here is both to understand consciousness as a magical display and at the same time to live a life of wisdom and compassion, engaged with the world.
As we continue the practice and our perception of impermanence becomes more refined, we see the rapid arising and passing away of not only the object, but also the knowing mind.
This is a time in practice of great insecurity,
neither the object nor the knowing last long enough for us to be mindful of them, and so we think that mindfulness has fled.
With the dissolving aspect so strong, the mind begins to experience various stages of fear and even disgust at the instability of phenomena.
Here, a teacher can be very helpful to remind us to be patient an...
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At some point the mind becomes so clear and balanced that whatever arises is seen and left untouched, with no interference. One ceases to focus on any particular content and all is seen as simply mind and matter, an empty process arising and passing away of its own . . . a perfect balance of mind, with no reactions. . . . There is no longer any doing
It is important to be mindful of the knowing mind because it is easy to become subtly identified with this very pure and refined consciousness.
[At times there is] nothing to note, with the body disappearing and the sense of touch lost. However at this moment, knowing consciousness is still apparent. In the very clear open space of the sky there remains only one very clear, blissful consciousness, which is very clear beyond comparison and very blissful. The yogi tends to delight in such clear, blissful consciousness. But, the consciousness is not going to stay permanent. . . . It has to be noted as “knowing, knowing.”
As the twelfth-century Ch’an master Ta Hui said, “As soon as there’s something considered important, it becomes a nest.” If freedom is our aspiration, we don’t want to make even consciousness our nest. As long as there is identification with anything, any sense of the knower, the one knowing, then we are still bound by the conventional, conditioned mind.
“Don’t push the river.”
There is a world of difference between the wanting mind, when there is a leaning into experience, and the true openness of nonpreference. This is not to say we suddenly stop making choices in our lives; rather, when we’re mindful at the different sense doors, we can practice relaxing into a mind not conditioned by wanting, even if just for a few moments at a time.
“Forms, sounds, tastes, odours, Tactiles, and all mental objects: This is the terrible bait of the world With which the world is infatuated. “But when one has transcended this, The mindful disciple of the Buddha Shines radiantly like the sun, Having surmounted Mara’s realm.”
perceptions are not absolutes; they are conditioned on many different levels. One of the great misconceptions we often carry throughout our lives is that our perceptions of ourselves and the world are basically accurate and true, that they reflect some stable, ultimate reality.
the way we see things is based on our karmic predispositions.
Cultural conditioning also influences how we perceive things.
“Things are seen through the lenses of our desires, prejudices, and resentments and are transformed accordingly.”
As soon as I was no longer caught in attachment to my own perception of things, I became less caught in judging and blaming, and it became much easier to understand other people’s strong feelings.
we see how all sides are conditioned and then bring as much wisdom as we can to determine the best course of action.
because perceptions are conditioned by our mental habits, we can also train our perceptions in a way that supports happiness and freedom.
What are the four important distortions of perception that the Buddha pointed to?
First, we take what is impermanent to be permanent.
A good feedback for when we’re hallucinating in this way is the presence of attachment or clinging.
We’re deluded into thinking a particular experience is worth holding on to.
This is not to suggest that we close off to experience; rather, that we don’t cling to it.
The second hallucination of perception is taking what is unattractive to be attractive, the nonbeautiful to be beautiful.
This understanding does not mean that we dismiss the experience of beauty in our lives.
understanding this hallucination is a reminder to look more deeply when we find ourselves caught in attachment and lust for a beautiful form.
The third hallucination of perception is taking what is suffering or unsatisfying to be happiness.
In this hallucination of perception, we’re often deluded into thinking that wanting itself is happiness.
Seeing through this hallucination of perception, taking what is ultimately unsatisfying to be satisfying, is the basis for a great compassion to arise.
It’s said that after the Buddha’s enlightenment, he was moved to teach by compassion, because he saw all beings seeking happiness, wanting happiness, yet doing the very things that caused suffering.
cutting through our own hallucinations can become the fuel for bodhichitta, the wish to awaken in order to hel...
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The last hallucination of perception is taking what is non-self to be self.
The Buddha talked of two kinds of supernormal powers.
The second kind of supernormal powers are called “noble” ones, because they are not bound up with such defilements.
The Buddha described these powers as mastery over one’s perceptions.
As countermeasures to the hallucinations of perceptions, the Buddha recommended cultivating other ways of perceiving.
this training does not refer to a process of reflection or consideration, but only to awareness of a particular feature of an object, the experience of different objects from a particular point of view.
We can train our perceptions to see those characteristics of experience that balance our own particular unwholesome tendencies of mind.
If, for example, there is a lot of aversion in the mind, if our tendency is toward annoyance, irritation, and ill will, we can train ourselves to perceive the good and beautiful qualities in others, which becomes the basis for mettā and loving feelings.
The final training in this noble supernormal power of mastery over one’s perceptions is abiding in equanimity, mindful and fully aware of whatever arises. In all of these ways of training perception, we are making choices out of wisdom rather than out of habitual reactivity.
The more we understand our own process of conditioning, how our perceptions are influenced and colored by deeply rooted habits of mind that are often unconsciously activated, the more we can understand how other people come to their own points of view.
So we pay attention to the sense spheres internally, externally, and both.
We also contemplate the arising and passing away of experience in the six sense spheres.
Sati is derived from the root meaning “to remember,” but its meaning goes far beyond our usual notion of memory.
