Practice Matters for Every Life: Dwelling Within the Wholesome System

Phra Ajarn Suraphong opens by stressing that this practice is of the utmost importance and necessity for every life, because it lets us dwell within the wholesome system, which the Triple Gem watches over and maintains. We appear at their center; they appear bright at ours; and both we and they appear bright at the center of Nibbana, the center of the knower of boundless power, beyond calculation — simply by dwelling within the wholesome system.

Dwelling Within the Wholesome System Takes Many Forms

Dwelling within the wholesome system can take many forms, and every form serves to draw in pure energy: giving, precepts, renunciation, wisdom, effort, endurance, truthfulness, resolution, loving-kindness, equanimity — all of them serve to draw in this pure energy. Once the wholesome takes up residence, the wholesome system guides us, almost as though the thought were our own, toward practicing these good deeds so the stream of merit keeps flowing. Cultivating right mindfulness is another such form, one that connects us directly to the stream of merit, carrying us into ever finer, deeper inner dimensions, level after level — something we must learn and train in deliberately.

The Principle From the Tipitaka: Determining Awareness of Body, Feeling, Mind, and Dharma

The Buddha taught the monks, as recorded in the Tipitaka: "Monks, you should determine clear awareness of body, feeling, mind, and dharma, in order to eliminate covetousness and grief toward the world." In other words, he taught the monks of that era that they must determine — must mark, specify, point precisely. If a monk fails to mark his own awareness, some other nature will step in and dictate what he marks instead, serving only to draw in its own energy — bringing no benefit whatsoever. Worse, the unwholesome will guide us toward marking what we shouldn't, and once we accept that guidance, we become captive within its system, drawing in energy that is itself sin, generating no end of suffering and harm.

That is why he taught us to mark only two things: the body and the heart. We cannot mark anything outside ourselves — only within. We mark the body — the breath, the body's center, the felt sense of the body — and then perceive whatever we've marked. As for marking the heart: whatever arises in the heart is Dharma. Dharma arises only in the heart, nowhere else. The heart perceives Dharma composed of images, sounds, and feeling — and feeling means pleasant, unpleasant, or neither.

Feeling Reveals Who Rules the House: Knowing Reality Moment by Moment

Whenever we perceive the state appearing in each moment, in this very present — are we at ease right now? If we're at ease, the wholesome rules the house. But if we feel that this moment is suffering — a state that must be endured with difficulty — the unwholesome rules the house. And if we feel simply blank, neither pleasant nor unpleasant, avyakata, the neutral, rules the house. Perceiving each present moment as it truly is helps us anchor mindfulness and rely on it.

If the wholesome rules the house, ease arises, and we simply keep perceiving that ease, staying continuously aware without lapsing, resting in that bodily and mental ease. As we keep perceiving this happiness and ease, merit arises — knowing it, anchoring to it, relying on that ease, merit keeps arising continuously. We sit at peace, heart at ease, receiving the stream of merit and treasure, moving toward purity and liberation. As merit flows through, the wholesome system is driven by that very merit to refine and correct our elements toward cleanliness and purity, clearing away every defilement.

But if the unwholesome rules the house, a pressured state arises — we find ourselves in a state that must be endured with difficulty; it presses and constricts the heart, then guides us toward wrong and unwholesome action, serving only to draw in more sin.

Suffering Can Topple Every Other Meditation Object — Which Makes It the Clearest Signal

When this state that must be endured with difficulty arises, gather knowing to anchor onto it, because once the unwholesome rules the house, there's no escaping this pressured state — going to watch a movie or listen to music, deep down that pressure remains constant. We should face it directly. This suffering is a state hard to endure, coarse and harsh and intense — intense enough to topple any other meditation object we try to establish. If this hard-to-endure state is severe enough, it can overwhelm every other practice.

Given this, we take this very intensity and determine awareness of it as our signal — its signal, being so vivid and continuous, becomes our anchor. We determine awareness of this state that must be endured with difficulty, continuing to know it. The sphere of knowing anchors onto this state of suffering — a bright sphere, mindfulness, recollection. Anchored to suffering as its object, the sphere of knowing draws pure energy toward us, and we keep on knowing, exactly as the Buddha taught: suffering is a state that must be endured with difficulty, and when it arises, simply determining awareness of it is enough — no need to struggle against it, just determine awareness. Because once we determine awareness, the sphere of knowing forms and continuously draws in pure energy, refining away the defilement that causes the suffering, lightening it more and more until it's gone entirely.

Equanimity Versus the Blankness of the Neutral: What's the Difference?

But if avyakata, the neutral, rules the house, we feel a strange, odd blankness — quite unlike the blankness of equanimity (upekkha). Equanimity's blankness is a balanced calm, neither pleased nor displeased, a settled restraint of the heart; balanced, it becomes firmly established, able to stand on its own. This differs entirely from the blankness of avyakata, which is strange — not quite good, not quite bad. It's precisely this strangeness that lures us to wander off, to go out, eat, or be entertained — we go along because we don't want to sit with that odd blank feeling any longer.

So when avyakata rules the house, we search for whatever meditation object suits us, whatever has worked before, and simply use it. For example: mark the body's center, then perceive it there. The marker can be an image — clear or unclear makes no real difference; all we need is for the sphere of knowing to have something to anchor to and rely on. Even if the image isn't seen clearly, that's fine — simply feeling that it's there is enough.

Three Tools: Image, Sound, and a Relaxed Feeling

As for sound, we recite silently in the heart — "Samma..." — and this sound shields us from other sounds trying to intrude. The image of the Buddha, the crystal sphere, or whatever image we've chosen shields us from other images intruding. As for feeling, it should simply be a relaxed, comfortable feeling, done at ease. These three — image, sound, and relaxed feeling — become our tools for shielding against the intrusion of the unwholesome and the neutral. Practice with them until they become second nature, relying on the chosen image as our object, the recited sound, and a relaxed, comfortable feeling, continuing pleasantly in our recitation.

Reciting With Counting: The Buddha Image Rises One by One

As we recite, we should count along, which lets us gauge how steady our concentration has become. Samma Arahang one, Samma Arahang two, Samma Arahang three — counting pleasantly as we go, the Buddha image rises one after another, following along. Whether it's clear or not makes no difference; simply feeling that it's there is enough — feeling a Buddha image at our center, one by one. As we count "Samma" for the first image, "Samma" two for the second, "Samma" three for the third appears — whether newly arising or simply appearing, either way is fine. Knowing this, we simply continue.

Stay continuously aware, without lapsing — know what we're aware of, staying with our object of meditation. Let the sphere of knowing, mindfulness, anchor to and rely on that object, known with a relaxed heart. Count along, one image at a time, each Buddha image forming at our center. Whether clear or not doesn't matter; even without seeing it, feeling that it's there is enough. This alone is enough for us to dwell within the wholesome system.

The Sphere of Merit Contains Every Treasure

Once the sphere of knowing — mindfulness — forms, it continuously draws the pure energy called merit into the bright center of that sphere. This sphere of merit is made of pure, sacred Dhamma elements, powerful enough to dissolve suffering, grief, and misfortune entirely. Beyond that, at the center of the sphere of merit lies every treasure — physical wealth, material wealth, virtues, retinue, fame, praise, the path and fruit of Nibbana, and the knowledge of the Dhamma body — all fully present within that sphere. When merit flows through us, subtle treasure flows through us too, and this subtle treasure continuously draws worldly treasure toward us.

As this pure element of merit flows into the center of the sphere of knowing — mindfulness, recollection — it drives the wholesome system to refine and correct our elements toward cleanliness and purity, dissolving every defilement completely. We are then liberated continuously from one dimension into another. In each dimension we discover, we enter a new one that is purer and finer still, with less defilement. The stream of merit pouring through grows ever clearer and purer; the happiness within the sphere of merit grows sweeter and finer; the treasure carried within the sphere of merit grows more abundant; our accomplishing intentions grow finer and more exquisite; and the knower of that dimension, with even greater power, watches over us, guiding, teaching, and instructing us all the more.

Radiating Loving-Kindness: Drawing on a Mother's Heart for People and All Beings

Once we've brought benefit to ourselves through this meditation, we go on to make an aspiration and radiate loving-kindness, bringing benefit to the people of the world and all beings, that they be free from suffering and share happiness together. This loving-kindness is a tool of the wholesome system, used to help and benefit the people of the world.

Phra Dej Phra Khun Luang Pu taught that we should draw upon the loving heart of a mother, brimming with love and goodwill for her own young child, and establish that very heart within us — a mother's heart, brimming with pure love and sincere goodwill for her child, established at our center. And we make this aspiration: may all beings be free from suffering and share happiness together. Those with much suffering, may it lessen; those with little suffering, may it end entirely; those with little happiness, may it grow; and those already happy, may their happiness increase further still.

Expanding Loving-Kindness to Loved Ones, Home, and Village

Having made this aspiration, we expand this loving heart to those dear to us: may we ourselves be happy; may our loved ones — parents, siblings, grandparents, teachers, children, and all in our circle, all who have supported us and helped one another — be happy and free from every suffering.

We expand this loving heart to cover our own home. Loving-kindness, which takes the form of a bright, clear sphere, radiates its gentle light, brimming with love, kindness, and goodwill, spreading through every atom of the surrounding air; people, beings, and all things within our home become bright, cool, clean, and pure.

Expanding Loving-Kindness to the Country, the World, and the Cosmos

We expand this loving heart to the neighboring villages, and onward, letting this light of loving-kindness shine across the whole province, covering the entire country, and continuing onward to neighboring countries and beyond, covering the whole world, making this world a bright, clean, happy, radiant crystal sphere. May the people of the world and all beings be happy — earthbound devas, tree devas, sky devas, the heavenly beings of every level, Brahma and formless-Brahma realms, together with beings in hell, hungry ghosts, and animals — may all beings be free from suffering and share happiness together. Those with much suffering, may it lessen; those with little suffering, may it end entirely; those with little happiness, may it grow; and those already happy, may their happiness increase further still.

Having made this aspiration, we expand this loving heart out into the atmosphere of the cosmos, covering the countless stars — tens, hundreds, thousands, millions, billions of them — and continuing across the ten thousand world-systems and the boundless cosmos. Our loving-kindness shines out boundlessly, benefiting every being, every thing, and every element. This light of loving-kindness shines into the center of every being's heart, dissolving the resentment that taints it, and the wholesome nature gains the opportunity to take up residence as ruler of the house, drawing the pure energy called merit continuously into the bright center of every heart. The wholesome uses this merit to clear away the defilement specific to each dimension, freeing people and beings into ever finer dimensions, where abundant good things await, bringing great benefit to people and beings and to the very atmosphere of the world, making it bright throughout.

Whoever Benefits the World and the Cosmos Comes to Use Its Treasures

Whoever benefits the world and the cosmos may in turn make use of its treasures — just as the Great Bodhisatta did in ages past. When he arose in the world, he cultivated loving-kindness exactly as we do now, bringing boundless benefit to the people of the world and all beings, until he attained the jhanas, benefiting people and beings throughout his life until it ended, whereupon he was reborn in the Brahma realm, attaining the status of the Great Brahma, enjoying immense happiness for an age, until that life too ended in the Brahma realm, and he was reborn once more as a human. Born again into the human world, he attained the status of a universal monarch, using the treasures of the world and cosmos to govern people and beings toward peace and happiness. People lived by virtue and Dharma, with lives like those of heavenly beings, free from harming one another, caring for and helping one another — such abundance and material sufficiency arose precisely because the Bodhisatta had done good for the benefit of the world and the cosmos, and so was able to use its treasures.

Stopping Still at the Center of the Triple Gem and Our Teachers

We gather the mind within this stream, at the center of happiness, the center of bright purity. We gather the mind still at the center of the Triple Gem — the center of the Buddha jewel, the Dhamma jewel, the Sangha jewel, the center of our great teachers. The heart is an accomplishing element: however we determine it, so it becomes. We gather the mind to stop, gather it to be still, at the center of the finest Dhamma body of Luang Pu, at the center of the finest Dhamma body of Luang Phor, and at the center of the finest Dhamma body of our teachers. As we reach them, we appear bright within their center; they appear bright within ours; and both we and they appear bright at the center of Nibbana, the center of the knower of boundless power, beyond calculation.

Nibbana already holds all beings within its center. Any being established in universal goodness shines brightly, continuously, at the center of its own heart and body — because we too shine at the center of Nibbana, just as we do now. Nibbana takes whatever merit we've generated and multiplies it further, helping to correct and free people and beings, ourselves included, from defilement and every karmic and demonic obstruction — not only that, but also linking us to a stream of merit and treasure, smoothing the path ahead so that we may gather worldly success with ease and comfort.

Closing Aspiration

In this most auspicious moment, he leads us to pay respects and ask for blessings, so as to establish success along this bright path of merit, that our life from this moment forward be filled with knowledge, happiness, and purity, along with success in every good and rightful aspiration. May the radiance, strength, power, and absolute authority of Nibbana throughout every element and every Dhamma, together with the merit and perfections of Luang Pu, Luang Phor, and our teachers, combine with the merit we ourselves have sincerely accumulated since our very first life, across countless lives, up to the present — combining into sacred, potent merit of boundless power, refining our body, speech, mind, and the elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing — earth, water, wind, fire, space, and consciousness — making them bright, clear, cool, clean, and pure. May we be freed from misfortune, karmic results, demonic obstruction, and every obstacle in life; may greed, hatred, delusion, lust, ignorance, wrong view, craving, and clinging end without remainder. May we gain the eye that sees the Dhamma, penetrating fully into the knowledge of the Dhamma body — the three knowledges, the eight knowledges, the six higher powers, the four analytical insights, the eight liberations, and the fifteen conducts, in full. May we also enjoy strong health and long life, building perfections throughout our lives, with unfailing spirit as we press on toward Nibbana, the ultimate end of the path.

He closes by asking that any wrongdoing committed knowingly or unknowingly across countless past lives be forgiven fully, that no new wrongdoing be committed in body, speech, or mind, and that all the merit we have sincerely accumulated combine into sacred, potent, and wondrous power, bearing fruit continuously from this moment until the very end of the path, by the boundless power of every Buddha.