..續本文上一頁g than by simply following the path of discernment.

　　To summarize: These two qualities are like a right arm and a left arm, a right leg and a left leg. Wherever a person walks or whatever he does, he needs both arms and both legs. Concentration and discernment are necessary in just the same way. If you feel that concentration is better than discernment, or discernment better than concentration, then you should have only one arm or one leg, not two arms and two legs like everyone else. In other words, you don”t fit in with the rest of the world. Whoever doesn”t fit in with the Dhamma of the Lord Buddha -- criticizing discernment and praising concentration, or criticizing concentration and praising discernment -- is the same sort of person.

　　What”s right is that when you are developing concentration, you have to do your duties in terms of concentration and really see the value of concentration. When you are contemplating with discernment, you have to do your duties in terms of discernment and really see the value of discernment. Let each side rest at the right time. Don”t get them mixed up together. It”s the same as when you walk: When your right foot takes a step, your left foot has to stop. When your left foot takes a step, your right foot has to stop. They don”t both step at the same time. Thus both concentration and discernment have their benefits. But when mindfulness and discernment develop enough strength from being trained together, concentration and discernment will then step together -- it”s not the case that they”ll always take turns -- in the same way that your right arm and left arm work together.

　　Here we”ve discussed the relationship between concentration and discernment for those who tend to develop concentration first, who are usually in danger of their concentration”s going out of bounds without seeing discernment as the other side of the practice. If it”s a necessary quality, you should use it at the appropriate times. As for those who tend to have discernment fostering their concentration, their minds can”t settle down into stillness simply through the power of concentration practice alone. They need to use discernment to put brakes on the mind -- which is restless and running wild with its various preoccupations -- by keeping track of the restlessness of the heart so as to see why it is restless and what there is that encourages it to be that way. Discernment has to go ferreting out the various things the mind is labeling and interpreting until the mind surrenders to its discernment and is able to enter stillness. This sort of stillness of mind is said to be still through discernment.

　　Some people, even when their minds have entered stillness, can at the same time use discernment to investigate and form thoughts without these things being an enemy to that stillness. Perhaps you may think, ”If the mind is concentrated, how can it form thoughts

　　” and then become doubtful about your concentration. This is called not understanding your own tendencies. These doubts are normal for those who aren”t experienced and don”t know -- since no one has given them any directions that they can hold to as authoritative -- so they may become uncertain about their practice when this sort of thing happens to them. So here I”d like to take the opportunity to explain: The mind that attains stillness through the method of using discernment as its guardian can continue having thought processes occurring on one level of concentration, but when we reach a fully refined level, no matter which way our concentration is fostered, all thought-formations will cease. No labeling of things will be left in that refined concentration; no thought-formations or cognizance of various things will appear.

　　To summarize: The intermediate level of co…

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