..续本文上一页ncepts that allude to either the past or the future. So when we want to ward them off, we should let go of these concepts and focus our attention in on the present, and the Hindrances will weaken away.

　　2. Inner mental qualities: The skillful mental qualities we should foster within ourselves are five, counting their component factors, and four, counting their levels, in other words —

　　(a) The first of jhana, which has five factors:

　　— Vitakka: directed thought, focused on the object of the mind”s concentration, such as the breath.

　　— Vicara: evaluating and adjusting the breath so that it becomes comfortable to the point where it spreads throughout the entire body; coordinating and connecting the various breath-sensations existing within us.

　　— Piti: rapture, refreshment, fullness of body and mind.

　　— Sukha: pleasure, ease of body and mind.

　　— Ekaggata: The mind enters into a single object, such as the breath; i.e., all five of these factors deal with a single topic.

　　(b) The second jhana has three factors:

　　— Piti: The sense of refreshment and fullness for body and mind becomes stronger, so that the mind abandons its directed thought (vitakka).

　　— Sukha: The sense of ease for body and mind becomes greater, so that it can relieve mental discomfort. This leads the mind to abandon its evaluating and adjusting (vicara).

　　— Ekaggata: The mind enters into a subtle and gentle level of breath, with a feeling of spaciousness and relief throughout the body. This subtle breath bathes and pervades the entire body, so that the mind becomes absolutely snug with its one object.

　　(c) The third jhana: The singleness of the mind”s object becomes even more refined, leaving just a feeling of ease of body and mind, the result of steadying the mind in a single object. This is called ekaggata-sukha — all that remains is singleness and ease.

　　(d) The fourth jhana: Upekkha — the breath sensations in the body are still, so that we can do without the in-and-out breath. The still breath fills all the various parts of the body. The four physical properties are all quiet and still. The mind is still, having abandoned past and future, entering into its object that forms the present. The mind is firmly focused on one object: This is ekaggata, the second factor of the fourth jhana. Mindfulness and alertness are present in full measure and thus give rise to mental brightness. When mindfulness is strong, it turns into cognitive skill (vijja); when alertness is strong, it turns into intuitive insight (vipassana-ñana), seeing the truth of physical sensations (rupa) and mental acts (nama), whether near or far, gross or subtle, our own or those of others. This knowledge appears exclusively within our own body and mind, and we can realize it on our own: This is what is meant by the word, "paccattam."

　　3. Mental qualities in and of themselves. This refers to mental qualities of another level that appear after the above qualities have been developed. Intuitive knowledge arises, e.g., —

　　"Dhamma-cakkhum udapadi": The eye of the mind, which sees in terms of the Dhamma, arises within one.

　　"Ñanam udapadi": intuitive sensitivity, thoroughly penetrating. This refers to the three forms of intuitive knowledge beginning with the ability to remember previous lives.

　　"Pañña udapadi": Liberating discernment arises.

　　"Vijja udapadi": Cognitive skill — clear, open, penetrating, and true — arises within one.

　　These forms of knowledge arise on their own — not for ordinary people, but for those who have developed concentration. Discernment, here, refers to the discernment that comes from mental training and development, not to the ordinary discernment coming from concepts we”ve remembered or thought out. This is discernment that arises right at the hear…

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