..续本文上一页greeable to the body, we”ll develop expertise. We”ll become more adept with our sense of the body. Results will arise: a feeling of fullness and satisfaction pervading the entire body, just as kerosene pervades every thread in the mantle of a Coleman lantern, causing it to give off a bright white glow.

　　Vitakka is like putting sand into a sifter. Vicara is like sifting the sand. When we first put sand into a sifter, it”s still coarse and lumpy. But as we keep sifting, the sand will become more and more refined until we have nothing but fine particles. So it is when we fix the mind on the breath. In the first stages, the breath is still coarse, but as we keep using more and more vitakka and vicara, the breath becomes more and more refined until it permeates to every pore. Olarika-rupa: All sorts of comfortable sensations will appear — a sense of lightness, spaciousness, respite, freedom from aches and pains, etc. — and we”ll feel nothing but refreshment and pleasure in the sense of the Dhamma, constantly cool and relaxed. Sukhumala-rupa: This sense of pleasure will appear to be like tiny particles, like the mist of atoms that forms the air but can”t be seen with the naked eye. But even though we feel comfortable and relaxed at this point, this mist of pleasure pervading the body can form a birthplace for the mind, so we can”t say that we”ve gone beyond stress and pain.

　　This is one of the forms of awareness we can develop in concentration. Whoever develops it will give rise to a sense of inner refreshment: a feeling of lightness, like cotton wool. This lightness is powerful in all sorts of ways. Hinam va: The blatant sense of the body will disappear — panitam va — and will turn into a more refined sense of the body, subtle and beautiful.

　　The beauty here isn”t the sort that comes from art or decoration. Instead, it”s beauty in the sense of being bright, clear, and fresh. Refreshing. Soothing. Peaceful. These qualities will give rise to a sense of splendor within the body, termed sobhana, a sense of rapture and exhilaration that fills every part of the body. The properties of earth, water, fire, and wind in the body are all balanced and full. The body seems beautiful, but again this isn”t beauty in the sense of art. All of this is termed panita-rupa.

　　When the body grows full and complete to this extent, all four of the elementary properties become mature and responsible in their own spheres, and can be termed mahabhuta-rupa. Earth is responsible in its own earth affairs, water in its own water affairs, wind in its own wind affairs, and fire in its own fire affairs. When all four properties become more responsible and mature in their own affairs, this is termed olarika-rupa. The properties of space and consciousness also become mature. It”s as if they all become mature adults. The nature of mature adults, when they live together, is that they hardly ever quarrel or dispute. Children, when they live with children, tend to be squabbling all the time. So when all six properties are mature, earth won”t conflict with water, water won”t conflict with wind, wind won”t conflict with fire, fire won”t conflict with space, space won”t conflict with consciousness. All will live in harmony and unity.

　　This is what is meant by ekayano ayam maggo sattanam visuddhiya: This is the unified path for the purification of beings. All four physical properties become mature in the unified sense of the body, four-in-one. When the mind enters into this unified path, it”s able to become well-acquainted with the affairs of the body. It comes to feel that this body is like its child; the mind is like a parent. When parents see that their child has grown and matured, they”re bound to feel proud. And when they see that their child can care for itself, they can pu…

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