..續本文上一頁ore and more clearly. They will appear in the light shed by the phenomena themselves, not in a borrowed light, not even a light borrowed from the Buddha, the peerless and indispensable guide to these experiences.
These physical and mental phenomena, in their "self-luminosity," will then convey a growing sense of urgency to the meditator: revulsion, dissatisfaction, awareness of danger, followed by detachment — though certainly joy, happiness, and calm, too, will not be absent throughout the practice. Then, if all other conditions of inner maturity are fulfilled, the first direct vision of final liberation will dawn with the stream-winner”s (sotapanna) indubitable knowledge: "Whatever has the nature of arising, has the nature of vanishing."
Thus, in the unfoldment of the power of mindfulness, Satipatthana will prove itself as the true embodiment of the Dhamma, of which it was said:
"Well-proclaimed is the Dhamma by the Blessed One, visible here and now, not delayed, inviting inspection, onward-leading, to be directly experienced by the wise."
Notes
1.See Nyanaponika Thera, The Heart of Buddhist Meditation (London; Rider & Co., 1962).
2.Comy. to Sutta Nipata v. 334.
3.Anagarika B. Govinda, The Psychological Attitude of Early Buddhist Philosophy (London: Rider & Co., 1961).
4.The Way of Mindfulness, Bhikku Soma (Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society, 1975), p. 83.
5.See Path of Purification, p. 135 f.
6.Ibid, pp. 136 ff. The three rousing factors are investigation, energy and rapture; the three calming ones, tranquillity, concentration and equanimity.
7.A treatise of Chinese Taoism, strongly influenced by Mahayana.
8.About these important qualitative constituents of good, wholesome (kusala) consciousness, see the author”s Abhidhamma Studies (Kandy, Sri Lanka: Buddhist Publication Society, 1965), pp. 51 f.
9.This may be a somewhat ironical reference by that great sage to the fact that the well-known Mahayanic Bodhisattva vow of liberating all beings of the universe is often taken much too light-heartedly by many of his fellow Mahayanists.
10.Compare also the passage on the significance of sense impression (or contact) in the concluding section of the Brahmajala Sutta (Digha 1).
For further reading on Satipatthana meditation
The Way of Mindfulness.
The Satipatthana Sutta and Commentary. trans. with introduction by Soma Thera. 5th edition (Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society)
The Foundations of Mindfulness.
(Satipatthana Sutta) trans. with introduction and notes by Nyanasatta Thera. WHEEL No. 19
The Satipatthana Sutta and its Application to Modern Life.
V.F. Gunaratna. WHEEL No. 60
"Protection through Satipatthana."
Nyanaponika Thera. Bodhi Leaves No. B 34
The Progress of Insight
through the Stages of Purification. Mahasi Sayadaw. (Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society)
Practical Insight Meditation,
Basic and Progressive Stages. Mahasi Sayadaw. (Kandy: Buddhist Publication Society)
The Heart of Buddhist Meditation.
A Handbook of Mental Training based on the Buddha”s Way of Mindfulness. Nyanaponika Thera. (London: Rider & Co.) (Also available in France, Germany, Italy and Spain in their respective languages.)
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