..续本文上一页ibbana Dhamma, or the Pure Dhamma.10 There is always this rivalry.

　　Keep on trying! Don”t lose out to these things, for you now have entered the boxing ring and must determine to be the champion. Fight without backing down. You”ll have to be dead before you”ll allow yourself to be carried out of the ring. If you”ve been floored but still live and can return to the fight, then battle on. If you can”t manage to fight on anymore, then you can always denounce and curse them right there in the ring. What harm can that do

　　 We are fighters and if we can no longer fight the defilements, then curse every mother and father of them. This is our single remaining weapon. We are down and cannot punch back, yet we still have a mouth. We can still talk, scold and curse even though we are knocked down.

　　Of course, this is only an analogy. To be a warrior doesn”t mean that we go round cursing or abusing anyone, but rather that we combat the defilements. We must fight to the extent befitting a disciple of the Tathagata,11 who was himself of the warrior class.

　　Have you ever noticed how our teachers and venerable acharns practiced

　　 These meditation masters, whom we respect so deeply, were all warriors in this way. If that”s how they themselves triumphed, why should they teach us to go in a different direction

　　Alright then. Keep switching and varying your probe, using wisdom to stay on top of the events within. This wisdom is of such sharp discernment that it will be able to find a way to draw us out of the deep mire of elements and aggregates in which we”ve been stuck and buried for countless eons. Ultimately, we end up with the heart, and even here we have to pull everything out. The ”I” must be extracted from form, from the body and from the elements of earth, water, air, and fire. We must pull the heart out of the painful feeling that we have taken on as ourself. The way to withdraw from form is simply to let go of the very form that we have grasped as self. We pull away from grasping each of the aggregates that we have taken as ”me” and ”mine”. Use wisdom to try and root-out, right here, keeping pace with whatever”s going on.

　　The heart is subtle and extraordinary. The body, in contrast, is nothing special — however much we uphold and cling to it in our delusion. It can only be our utter stupidity that leads us so readily to shoulder this gross thing, without ever wanting to put it down. If we were really smart and considered what”s behind it all, we would let it go. Why carry it

　　 Probe and investigate these questions using mindfulness and wisdom that are available.

　　There”s no need to go and be so afraid of dying. Fear itself is just another defilement. Why build up defilements by being frightened

　　 We must rather build up our courage because this is a quality that counters the defilements. Bring it out to fight the defilements and to find out what actually dies. In fact, nothing dies. And the defilements are always lying to us about it. The moment we are unguarded, they instantly insinuate themselves and whisper: "When will I die... today

　　... tomorrow

　　... here

　　... or over there

　　... I”m going to die very soon." We upset ourselves with such thinking, while the elements just exist, indifferently. In this way we complicate matters and confuse ourselves by thinking that we are responsible. What sort of responsibility is this

　　 It”s more a matter of self-confusion than self-responsibility.

　　If we are to be truly self-responsible and self-reliant, then our heart will need full mindfulness and wisdom to use for investigation and rooting out. It must be able to probe and extract from the heart all the anxieties and confusions about living, about death and sickness — and whatever else is found there. There can be no easing off or allowing the defilements…

《To the Last Breath - 5· Letting Go (Magha Puja Day)》全文未完，请进入下页继续阅读…