..续本文上一页d or bad. Explain to the mind how cause and effect functions. And when it again grabs onto something that it thinks is adorable, the knowing has to again teach the mind, again explain cause and effect, until the mind is able to cast that thing aside. This leads to peace of mind. After finding out that whatever it grabs and grasps is inherently undesirable, the mind simply stops. It can”t be bothered with those things anymore, because it”s come under a constant barrage of rebukes and reprimands. Thwart the craving of the mind with determination. Challenge it to its core, until the teachings penetrate to the heart. That”s how you train the mind.
Since the time when I withdrew to the forest to practice meditation, I”ve been practicing like this. When I train my disciples, I train them to practice like this. Because I want them to see the truth, rather than just read what”s in the scriptures; I want them to see if their hearts have been liberated from conceptual thinking. When liberation occurs, you know; and when liberation has not yet happened, then contemplate the process of how one thing causes and leads to another. Contemplate until you know and understand it through and through. Once it”s been penetrated with insight, it will fall away on its own. When something comes your way and gets stuck, then investigate. Don”t give up until it has released its grip. Repeatedly investigate right here. Personally, this is how I approached the training, because the Buddha taught that you have to know for yourself. All sages know the truth for themselves. You”ve got to discover it in the depths of your own heart. Know yourself.
If you are confident in what you know and trust yourself, you will feel relaxed whether others criticize or praise you. Whatever other people say, you”re at ease. Why
Because you know yourself. If someone bolsters you with praise, but you”re not actually worthy of it, are you really going to believe them
Of course not. You just carry on with your Dhamma practice. When people who aren”t confident in what they know get praised by others, they get sucked into believing it and it warps their perception. Likewise when someone criticizes you, take a look at and examine yourself. ”No, what they say isn”t true. They accuse me of being wrong, but actually I”m not. Their accusation isn”t valid.” If that”s the case, what would be the point of getting angry with them
Their words aren”t true. If, however, we are at fault just as they accuse, then their criticism is correct. If that”s the case, what would be the point of getting angry with them
When you”re able to think like this, life is truly untroubled and comfortable. Nothing that then happens is wrong. Then everything is Dhamma. That how I practiced.
FOLLOWING THE MIDDLE PATH
It”s the shortest and most direct path. You can come and argue with me on points of Dhamma, but I won”t join in. Rather than argue back, I”d just offer some reflections for you to consider. Please understand what the Buddha taught: let go of everything. Let go with knowing and awareness. Without knowing and awareness, the letting go is no different than that of cows and water buffaloes. Without putting your heart into it, the letting go isn”t correct. You let go because you understand conventional reality. This is non-attachment. The Buddha taught that in the beginning stages of Dhamma practice you should work very hard, develop things thoroughly and attach a lot. Attach to the Buddha. Attach to the Dhamma. Attach to the Sangha. Attach firmly and deeply. That”s what the Buddha taught. Attach with sincerity and persistence and hold on tight.
In my own search I tried nearly every possible means of contemplation. I sacrificed my life for the Dhamma, because I had faith in the reality of Enlightenment …
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