..续本文上一页eaning of them

　　 Vimutti means liberation from the mental taints (asavas)_. There are two ways the mind can gain liberation: ceto vimutti refers to liberation that comes after samadhi has been developed and perfected to its most powerful and refined level. The practitioner first develops the ability to suppress the defilements completely through the power of samadhi and then turns to the development of insight to finally gain liberation. Panna vimutti means release from the outflows where the practitioner develops samadhi to a level where the mind is completely one-pointed and firm enough to support and sustain insight, which then takes the lead in cutting through the defilements.

　　These two kinds of liberation are comparable to different kinds of trees. Some species of trees grow and flourish with frequent watering, but others can die if you give them too much water. With those trees you only need to give them small amounts of water, just enough to keep them going. Some species of pine are like that: if you over water them they just die. You only need to give them a little water once in a while. Strange, isn”t it

　　 Look at this pine tree. It appears so dry and parched that you wonder how it manages to grow. Think about it. Where does it get the water it needs to survive and produce those big, lush branches

　　 Other kinds of trees would need much more water to grow to a similar size. Then there are those kinds of plants that they put in pots and hang up in different places with the roots dangling in mid-air. You”d think they would just die, but very quickly the leaves grow longer and longer with hardly any water at all. If they were just the ordinary kind of plants that grow on the ground, they would probably just shrivel up. It”s the same with these two kinds of release. Do you see it

　　 It is just that they naturally differ in this way.

　　Vimutti means liberation. Ceto vimutti is liberation that comes from the strength of mind that has been trained in samadhi to the maximum level. It”s like those trees that need lots of water to flourish. The other kinds of trees only need a small amount of water. With too much water they just die. It”s their nature to grow and thrive requiring only small amounts of water. So the Buddha taught that there are two kinds of liberation from the defilements, ceto vimutti and panna vimutti. To gain liberation, it requires both wisdom and the power of samadhi. Is there any difference between samadhi and wisdom

　　Venerable S: No.

　　Ajahn Chah: Why do they give them different names

　　 Why is there this split between ceto vimutti and panna vimutti

　　Venerable S: It”s just a verbal distinction.

　　Ajahn Chah: That”s right. Do you see it

　　 If you don”t see this, you can very easily go running around labelling and making such distinctions and even get so carried away that you start to lose your grip on reality. Actually though, each of these two kinds of liberation does have a slightly different emphasis. It wouldn”t be correct to say that they were exactly the same, but they aren”t two different things either. Am I correct if I answer in this way

　　 I will say that these two things are neither exactly the same, nor different. This is the way I answer the question. You must take what I have said away with you and reflect on it.

　　Talking about the speed and fluency of mindfulness makes me think of the time I was wandering alone and having come across an old abandoned monastery in the course of my travels, set up my umbrella and mosquito net to camp there and practise meditation for a few days. In the grounds of the monastery there were many fruit trees, the branches of which were laden with ripe fruit. I really wanted to eat some but I didn”t dare to because I was afraid that the trees were the property of the monastery and…

《Suffering On The Road》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…