..續本文上一頁work of a king. Mindfulness is a very important factor in these five factors but every factor is important and everyone must be working in harmony and in balance with the other factors.

　　When the five mental factors are working in balance and a yogi is clearly comprehending, then what is the result

　　 The result is overcoming covetousness and grief in the world. That is the result a yogi gets from clearly comprehending in the practice of mindfulness meditation.

　　Now here, most English translations missed the point. They translate it as "having overcome" or "having abandoned", or "having removed" covetousness and grief in the world. What is the practice for

　　 What is this mindfulness practice for

　　 It is for overcoming covetousness and grief. Covetousness means attachment and grief means ill will or anger. So, Vipassanā or Satipatthāna meditation is "for overcoming" covetousness and grief.

　　If a person has already overcome covetousness and grief he/she does not need to practice. For this very purpose we are practicing mindfulness, but if we have already achieved this purpose we do not need to practice mindfulness. So, here we should translate it as "overcoming (at the same time) covetousness and grief in the world," and not "having overcome." That means the yogi overcomes covetousness and grief as he practices mindfulness. I want you to be aware of this. (Here an explanation with reference to Pāli grammatical construction would be helpful; but since it would be too involved I have no choice but to ignore it.)

　　Overcoming covetousness and grief in the world means avoiding craving or attachment or anger or ill will concerning the object the yogi is observing. "In the world" means in the world of body, feelings and so on, concerning that object. We see one object and we can be attached to that object. If we come to the conclusion that it is beautiful, or it is good, we will be attached to it; and we can have anger, or hatred, etc., towards that object if we decided it was ugly or disgusting. So, these mental defilements can come into our minds when we experience something.

　　In order to prevent them from arising, we need to make some protection and that protection is mindfulness. When we are mindful, they will not get a chance to get into our minds. When we are mindful, when we comprehend clearly, and when we see the objects clearly, we know that these objects come and go, these objects are impermanent and so not to be attached to them. So, we can avoid covetousness or attachment and grief or hatred regarding that object by the practice of mindfulness.

　　Whether we say "overcoming" or "removing" or whatever, actually we are avoiding or preventing them from arising. Not that they have come and then we overcome them, or we remove them after they have come. The meaning really is preventing covetousness and grief from arising in our minds. If we do not practice mindfulness on the object they will surely come, either covetousness or grief, or attachment or hatred. These mental states can come, but by the practice of mindfulness we can prevent them from coming. Preventing them from arising in our mind is what is meant by overcoming them. (But if they have arisen, of course, we should make them the object of our attention to eliminate them.)

　　When we talk about enlightenment we say, "at the moment of enlightenment" mental defilements are eradicated. What mental defilements are eradicated at that moment

　　 The present ones, or past ones or the future ones

　　 The past is already past, we do not have to do anything to get rid of them, and the future defilements are not here yet, so you cannot do anything about them. What of the present defilements

　　 If they are present there can be no enlightenment. Because enlightenment is a wholesome state and those me…

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