Resting the Mind Through Relaxation: Whatever We Determine, That Dhamma Appears

Phra Ajarn Suraphong leads a brief settling of the mind through relaxation, staying with the state of relaxation itself. Whatever dhamma we determine will appear in our heart, and once it appears, it shows its own qualities. If we determine relaxation, a clear bright sphere arises at the center of our heart and displays its quality as relaxation; the mind perceives it and shifts according to that quality, because the mind is our instrument of knowing — however the mind knows, that is what we know. But what the mind knows depends entirely on what we determine. If we do not determine, some other nature will determine for us instead — so before that happens, we determine relaxation first: open, spacious, light, at ease.

The Mind Is Our Instrument of Knowing — Not Us, and We Are Not It

No dhamma, wholesome or unwholesome, can arise anywhere but the heart — and only one at a time; when one dhamma arises, another must cease, because the mind can only perceive one thing at a time. Whatever we determine appears in the heart and then displays its qualities; the mind perceives because the mind is our instrument of knowing. The mind is not us, and we are not the mind — it is simply the tool we use to perceive things. When we close our eyes, the only faculty we still use is the mind; the eye-sense is shut, though hearing, smell, taste, and touch remain active.

Perceiving One Thing at a Time: Why It Seems Simultaneous

What the mind knows depends on what we determine — we perceive exactly what we determine, one thing at a time. What seems simultaneous — like seeing an image and hearing a voice while talking with a friend — is actually alternating perception happening so fast it feels simultaneous. Everything depends on what we determine: determine the breath, and we know the breath; determine bodily awareness, and we know the body.

Wherever We Determine, Consciousness Arises There: Settling the Mind in One Place

Wherever we determine, consciousness arises there; the mind arises there. When we see an external image, the mind is at that image, and consciousness appears there. When we bring the mind back to bodily awareness, the mind stays with the body; when we know the breath, the mind settles at the nose, and the consciousness of perceiving arises at the nostrils. In meditation we need to settle the mind firmly in one place, without changing it, so as to perceive what arises there — the breath coming and going, simply perceived until it becomes familiar, known, and understood. Once familiar and understood, we can manage it, seeing the cycle of the phenomenon clearly. But if we don't know or understand it, we won't know how to handle it, and we grow weary of it.

Neither the Dog Nor the Cat We Keep: Familiarity Grows Into Love

Whatever we wish to perceive, we must first learn to understand it until it becomes familiar; once familiar, it begins to teach us. Don't treat it like a stranger — build familiarity, come to know it gradually. Neither the dog nor the cat we keep — if we grow familiar and understanding with them, love gradually forms, gradually takes root. In every undertaking we need to learn to understand, to become familiar, and love for that thing gradually builds. But without knowledge, understanding, or familiarity, we grow weary — whether of a person, an animal, a friend, a partner, or any pastime.

If we are to practice meditation, we must learn to understand it, to become familiar with it — understanding leads to more familiarity, familiarity leads to more understanding, and love for the practice arises, building endlessly upon itself. Love only forms through mutual familiarity and understanding — whether between people, friends, spouses, or children. It requires learning, understanding, and familiarity. Happiness arises from familiarity and understanding, becoming liking; liking deepens into love. All of it begins from learning until we understand and become familiar.

The Tool of Meditation Is Mindfulness: Applied and Sustained Thought

The same applies to meditation practice — we must learn and understand what mindfulness (sati) is, the tool we use for development, just as every activity needs its tool. Mindfulness is the tool of meditation practice. What is it? Recollection, knowing. At first, before we even begin, once we sit down we must first recollect ourselves; once recollected, the mind returns to the body, and we ask ourselves what meditation object to determine. Once we determine to use bodily awareness, the recollection of that awareness arises — this is called applied thought (vitakka), raising the topic and setting it up; then dwelling and reflecting on that bodily awareness is called sustained thought (vicāra).

The Sphere of Boredom, the Sphere of Ease: Resetting the Foundation When Obstacles Arise

Once we've learned and understood, if we feel bored, that shows a "sphere of boredom" — the unwholesome has possessed the mind and overlaid this sphere, meaning the foundation of our mind has a problem. We then determine bodily awareness relaxedly, resetting the foundation — bringing the mind to know the body with relaxation and ease, open, spacious, light, comfortable, full of ease. Repeating this determination, the boredom fades away, because the mind perceives only one thing at a time — when we bring in the state that opposes boredom, namely ease, it takes over. If we don't like bodily awareness, we can switch to the breath or the recitation "Samma Arahang." Use whatever you're already familiar with.

The Sphere of Knowing Is the Sphere of Mindfulness: Drawing In Merit to Clear the Hindrances

This wholesome wave itself draws in the pure energy called merit, flowing continuously into the center of the sphere of knowing. Once established, mindfulness draws in pure energy from the deepest, most refined part of nibbana, flowing into the center of our heart, into the center of the sphere of knowing. This pure energy purifies all the defiling stains that cause problems and obstacles in the many forms of hindrance (nīvaraṇa) — drowsiness, restlessness, doubt, or distracting noise. This pure energy called merit purifies the defilement at the root of the problem.

Officers on Duty: The Analogy of the Inner and Outer World

Our role is simply to determine and know — that's enough. Knowing the problem that has arisen, the sphere of knowing draws in pure energy, and that pure energy does the purifying itself. We can see different officers each doing their own job to manage things — like officials in a city, each with a different role: the detective does detective work, the dispatcher receives and reports, the enforcement unit intervenes once notified. Just as the outer world works, so does the inner world — each part has its own role. We simply need to perform our own role correctly.

Don't Overstep: Keep to Your Own Role

The human body's role is to determine, to stay continuously aware without lapsing — this phrase belongs to the Great Teacher. At first we need some patience; giving it time means giving it the chance, without overstepping our role. Don't crave results, because craving leads us to overstep, and the system gets disrupted. Behind that craving is always the unwholesome, directing it. Once we overstep, we fail to keep our role, and the continuous, unlapsing determining cannot continue — when knowing cannot be established, the drawing in of pure energy stops.

Feed What Is Good to Body and Mind: Developing the Inner Dimensions Without End

The inner world and outer world — or our internal organs, lungs, liver, spleen, heart — each has its own role; we simply need to keep our own role correct. Our role toward the body is to feed it good food, clean water, fresh air. Our mind is the same — we must keep our own role, establishing good feelings and right, good thoughts in the heart. Good thoughts and feelings draw in the pure energy called merit. Conversely, if we harbor bad thoughts, they draw in the defiling energy called demerit, creating problems and obstacles.

This inner dimension has countless levels; we must therefore keep developing and elevating our mind, level by level. Each dimension that improves yields ever more refined, purer, more sacred energy corresponding to that level of subtlety. In closed-eye meditation, what we want is to develop the inner dimensions ever more deeply and refined. The internal condition is the cause; the external condition is the result. We are cultivating the cause, elevating our internal condition — and this will affect the outer world, bringing us more happiness, success, and fulfillment.

From Manual Determining to Automatic

How do we stay continuously aware without lapsing? We attach our knowing to anything that lets us stay aware without lapsing — the breath, bodily awareness, or the recitation "Samma Arahang." As long as we stay continuously aware, the sphere of not-knowing — ignorance — must fall away. If we wish for the stream of merit to keep flowing continuously through the center of our body and heart, we must keep staying continuously aware, without lapsing.

At first, we develop this determining manually; gradually, it develops into something like an automatic mode, able to continue on its own. When we lapse and it stops, a small conscious determination restarts the automatic system again — needing periodic restarts before becoming fully automatic. But once it becomes automatic, the process runs from the moment we wake until we sleep; staying continuously aware without lapsing becomes automatic. We need to develop our practice to that point.