..續本文上一頁e just grope in the darkness and don”t know the way out. If it”s like this then we have not yet mastered ourselves. We try to defeat others, but in doing so we only defeat ourselves; but if we have mastery over ourselves then we have mastery over all — over all mental formations, sights, sounds, smells, tastes and bodily feelings.

　　Now I”m talking about externals, they”re like that, but the outside is reflected inside also. Some people only know the outside, they don”t know the inside. Like when we say to "see the body in the body." Having seen the outer body is not enough, we must know the body within the body. Then, having investigated the mind, we should know the mind within the mind.

　　Why should we investigate the body

　　 What is this "body in the body"

　　 When we say to know the mind, what is this "mind"

　　 If we don”t know the mind then we don”t know the things within the mind. This is to be someone who doesn”t know suffering, doesn”t know the cause, doesn”t know the end and doesn”t know the way. The things which should help to extinguish suffering don”t help, because we get distracted by the things which aggravate it. It”s just as if we have an itch on our head and we scratch our leg! If it”s our head that”s itchy then we”re obviously not going to get much relief. In the same way, when suffering arises we don”t know how to handle it, we don”t know the practice leading to the end of suffering.

　　For instance, take this body, this body that each of us has brought along to this meeting. If we just see the form of the body there”s no way we can escape suffering. Why not

　　 Because we still don”t see the inside of the body, we only see the outside. We only see it as something beautiful, something substantial. The Buddha said that only this is not enough. We see the outside with our eyes; a child can see it, animals can see it, it”s not difficult. The outside of the body is easily seen, but having seen it we stick to it, we don”t know the truth of it. Having seen it we grab onto it and it bites us!

　　So we should investigate the body within the body. Whatever”s in the body, go ahead and look at it. If we just see the outside it”s not clear. We see hair, nails and so on and they are just pretty things which entice us, so the Buddha taught to see the inside of the body, to see the body within the body. What is in the body

　　 Look closely within! We will see many things inside to surprise us, because even though they are within us, we”ve never seen them. Wherever we walk we carry them with us, sitting in a car we carry them with us, but we still don”t know them at all!

　　It”s as if we visit some relatives at their house and they give us a present. We take it and put it in our bag and then leave without opening it to see what is inside. When at last we open it — full of poisonous snakes! Our body is like this. If we just see the shell of it we say it”s fine and beautiful. We forget ourselves. We forget impermanence, unsatisfactoriness and not-self. If we look within this body it”s really repulsive. If we look according to reality, without trying to sugar things over, we”ll see that it”s really pitiful and wearisome. Dispassion will arise. This feeling of "disinterest" is not that we feel aversion for the world or anything; it”s simply our mind clearing up, our mind letting go. We see things are naturally established just as they are. However we want them to be, they just go their own way regardless. Whether we laugh or cry, they simply are the way they are. Things which are unstable are unstable; things which are not beautiful are not beautiful.

　　So the Buddha said that when we experience sights, sounds, tastes, smells, bodily feelings or mental states, we should release them. When the ear hears sounds, let them go. When the nose smells an odor, …

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