Countless Asankhyeya Levels: Boundless Liberation in Every Moment of Practice

Phra Ajarn Suraphong opened the sitting by explaining that practicing Dhamma is essential and vital for every life, because we need to learn, understand, and train ourselves to practice in alignment with the wholesome system at a deep level. It is precisely at this deep level that we can be liberated continuously, even while things remain dim and unclear. That liberation is the growth of our spiritual life.

He pointed out that the dimensions of this journey number countless asankhyeya levels -- asankhyeya upon asankhyeya of countless levels. So the liberation we achieve, numbering countless levels though it may be, is still incomparably small next to liberation from the entire cycle of samsara, which is asankhyeya upon asankhyeya of countless levels beyond that. When we practice, we are liberated only by that countless-but-still-small measure. But once we reach the inner Dhammakaya, relying on the purity of the heart, each single instance of liberation there itself numbers countless asankhyeya levels.

So even in our present dim, unclear state, the countless levels of liberation we achieve are still considered very small -- yet far better than no liberation at all. Because when the unwholesome dominates us, we are likewise pushed down by countless levels, which is an even greater loss. This is exactly why we must learn and train ourselves in practice: the countless levels of liberation we accumulate serve to offset the countless levels the unwholesome side would otherwise drag us down.

The Buddha's Words: Determine to Know Body, Feeling, Mind, and Dhamma to Eliminate Covetousness and Grief

In this practice, the Fully Enlightened Buddha taught: "Monks, you should determine to know clearly the body, feelings, mind, and mental objects, in order to eliminate covetousness and grief regarding the world." He explained that "to determine" means to mark, to specify, to pinpoint -- pinpointing both body and heart. As for the body, if we specify the in-breath and out-breath, that is knowing the breath, called anapanasati; or knowing the whole body at once, called kayasati; or knowing the center of the body through the recitation and mental image. What we need is for the sphere of knowing to be established. Wherever we determine to know, that is where the heart goes; sati cannot arise anywhere else -- it arises only at the heart.

Within the body there is also feeling (vedana) -- pleasant, painful, or neither -- arising moment by moment. The mind (citta) is our thoughts, such as thinking of our meditation object. Dhamma refers to the mental factors we intend to know as they appear in each present moment. All of this serves to eliminate covetousness and grief regarding the world -- that is, to eliminate the delight and distress, the liking and disliking, toward the world made up of forms, tastes, smells, sounds, touch, and mental objects. He taught us to cultivate right mindfulness in order to let go of this delight and disliking, and instead abide in equanimity -- the equanimous mental factor (tatramajjhattata), the quality unmoved by whatever stimulates us, which keeps the heart steady and balanced. Once balanced and unmoved, the heart becomes firm; and once firm continuously, stability arises on its own.

The Seventh Base at the Center of the Body: The Gateway to Nibbana

Understanding this, we then need to determine to know specifically at the center of the body, the seventh base -- a position our teachers, our late revered teachers Luang Pu and Luang Phor, all emphasize. It is the center of the Cosmic Emperor, the center of Nibbana, the center of every kind of body -- subtle bodies, celestial bodies, Brahma and formless-Brahma bodies, and the Dhamma-body alike; every stream of elements and Dhamma has its center at this very position. It is the gateway into Nibbana, and so we need to place the heart there.

But if this feels too difficult at first, we may place the heart wherever feels comfortable, and once a bright sphere appears, gradually shift it to this position. For those who have no difficulty placing the heart here directly, we may gather the heart to stop, gather the heart to stillness, right at the seventh base. Even if we cannot clearly perceive exactly where that position is, the heart still knows -- determining it is enough, and the heart settles there automatically.

Reciting "Samma Arahang" Paired With the Mental Image, and Expanding the Crystal Dhammakaya

Let us establish the recitation and mental image: "Samma Arahang." This name is called according to his qualities, referring to the Dhamma-body of the one who has practiced well and rightly, whose practice leads far from every defilement. As we utter his name -- since form and name always come as a pair, wherever there is a name there is a form -- the Buddha image appears at the center of our body and heart. Once he appears, he does not appear empty-handed; he takes our elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, our earth, water, wind, fire, space, and consciousness elements, and refines them to clarity and purity, clearing away defilement and karmic results, connecting us to the stream of merit and treasure, and clearing the path ahead so that we may carry out our work and reap success and fulfillment with ease.

Once he appears and begins to benefit us, he expands and settles as one with our entire body, so that our whole body becomes the Dhamma-body. Our head becomes the crystal Dhamma-body's head with its radiant lotus-bud crown; our face becomes the Dhamma-body's face, sparkling and radiant; our eyes become the Dhamma-body's eyes, clear, pure, and radiant; our forehead sparkles and shines; our eyes gently closed, with a face gently smiling, refined, tender, cool, and pure. Our neck, shoulders, and both arms all become the crystal Dhamma-body, radiant, cool, clean, and pure; our chest, belly, and back all become the crystal Dhamma-body, refined and gentle, cool, clean, pure, and radiant; our hips, thighs, knees, shins, and feet all become the crystal Dhamma-body, radiant, cool, clean, and pure. We are the Buddha image, and the Buddha image is us; our entire body becomes the crystal Dhamma-body, sparkling and radiant, refined and gentle.

Phra Ajarn advised working through the body part by part -- wherever we can perceive most clearly, we determine there first, even if it begins from just a small, bright point.

Expanding the Buddha Image Into the Atmosphere of the Cosmos

The Buddha image expands from a tiny bright point at the center of our body and belly, becoming the Buddha image, overlapping as one with us, then continuing to expand outward into the surrounding atmosphere, and further out into the cosmos. Our heart becomes joyful, spacious, and at ease. Image after image expands and overlaps as one with us, continuing to expand into the vast atmosphere of the cosmos; our heart becomes joyful, spacious, at ease, cool, clean, and pure, expanding boundlessly outward. As the image grows larger and more expansive, our heart grows ever more joyful and refined. With each recitation of "Samma Arahang," the Buddha image appears at the center of our body and heart, expands and overlaps as one with us, and continues expanding, vast and wide, in every direction.

The Stream of Merit and Subtle Treasures: Reciting Until It Becomes Second Nature

As we remain continuously aware, aware of the Buddha image and this joyful, spacious ease, the stream of merit continues pouring in at the center of our body without interruption, sphere after radiant sphere, the merit element together with its subtle treasures -- form, wealth, virtue, retinue, gain, honor, praise and happiness, the paths and fruits of liberation, and the knowledge of the Dhammakaya, all complete and abundant within the sphere of merit. When merit flows through us, these subtle treasures flow through us as well, and it is precisely these subtle treasures that continuously draw the coarser treasures of the world toward us, supporting us in our livelihood and income.

Phra Ajarn taught us to stay continuously aware, aware of what we are aware of -- staying with the recitation and mental image "Samma Arahang" until it becomes second nature, recited constantly, whether walking, lying down, sitting, going about our work, earning our livelihood, or speaking with others -- reciting "Samma Arahang" silently in the heart. As we utter his name, he appears and continues to help us.

Merging Into a Single Unity With the Triple Gem

Merging ourselves with him into a single unity is itself the wish of the Triple Gem -- he desires to merge with us, and in truth he is already merged with us; we simply need to become aware of his presence. If our heart holds him, he appears at the center of our body, and we appear at the center of his body; both we and he appear luminous within the center of Nibbana, the center of the one who knows, possessing boundless power, countless asankhyeya in number. So we need to remain continuously aware of him, without lapsing, practicing this again and again.

The Sphere of Knowing Rises, the Sphere of Ignorance Falls: Continuously Drawing In Pure Energy

Phra Ajarn stressed staying continuously aware, aware of our meditation object with its clear and continuous signal, so that the sphere of knowing -- sati -- has something to anchor and rely on. As long as we continue to know what we know, sati continues to draw in the pure energy called merit, flowing continuously into the center of the brightness of the sphere of knowing. This pure energy drives the wholesome system to correct the elements of Dhamma within us, purifying and liberating us continuously from one dimension to the next.

As we determine to know, the sphere of knowing establishes itself, and the sphere of not-knowing -- the sphere of ignorance -- falls away. This sphere of knowing, sati, draws in the pure energy called merit, flowing continuously into the center of its brightness. This pure energy that flows in drives the wholesome system to correct the elements of Dhamma within us, purifying us so that we may be liberated continuously, from one sphere to the next.

Loving-Kindness: Drawing on the Heart of a Mother, Radiating Across the Cosmos

Once we have brought benefit to ourselves, we go on to bring benefit to the world of beings and all sentient creatures, as well as to the entire environment, using the tool of the wholesome system called metta, loving-kindness. We need only set the wish: may all beings, our companions in the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death, be free from suffering and share happiness everywhere. In setting this loving-kindness, we must stand in sacca -- sincerity -- with a genuinely sincere wish for goodness; only then will we come to know its flavor for ourselves.

Our late revered teacher advised that if we still cannot fully taste it, we should draw on the heart of a mother, brimming with love and genuine goodwill toward her own small child, and let that quality of mind arise within our own heart. Then we come to understand the flavor of loving-kindness, brimming with the pure, sincere love and goodwill a mother holds for her own small child. May all beings, our companions in the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death, be free from suffering and share happiness everywhere. For those who suffer much, may their suffering lessen; for those who suffer little, may it end and happiness arise; for those with little happiness, may it grow; and for those already abundant in happiness, may it grow still further.

Once we have set this wish for goodness, we extend this heart, brimming with loving-kindness, outward to encompass our home and dwelling; loving-kindness shines into every corner of the atmosphere, refining people, beings, and all things until they are radiant, cool, clean, and pure. We then extend it further to encompass the whole village, making the entire village radiant with loving-kindness, and continue extending this love and goodwill onward to the sub-district, district, and province, and further still to encompass the entire country, extending this love and goodwill to neighboring countries and all nations, until it encompasses the whole world, making this world a crystal world, radiant, cool, clean, and pure -- earthbound devas, sky-dwelling devas, celestial beings of every heavenly realm, the formless Brahma gods, and beings in hell, hungry ghosts, and animals alike. May all beings be free from suffering and share happiness everywhere. For those who suffer much, may their suffering lessen; for those who suffer little, may it end and happiness arise; for those with little happiness, may it grow; and for those already abundant in happiness, may it grow still further.

We then extend this heart, filled with loving-kindness, out into the atmosphere of the cosmos, encompassing countless stars -- tens, hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions -- and continuing onward to the ten thousand world-systems, the hundred thousand koti of universes, the infinite universe. Our heart expands, joyful, spacious, at ease, cool, clean, pure, and radiant. Wherever the heart extends, loving-kindness shines there too, continuing to shine within the hearts of people and beings, dispelling resentment and defilement in their hearts entirely. The wholesome nature, taking this opportunity, seizes the seat of the heart, drawing in pure energy to correct and refine the elements of Dhamma within us, making them radiant, clear, clean, and pure, liberating us continuously from one dimension to the next, sphere after sphere.

The effect of this loving-kindness benefits not only the world and its beings but every particle of the surrounding environment as well -- the earth, water, air, and sky, mountains, seas, and oceans, trees and grasses, buildings and dwellings, everyday belongings, all becoming radiant and benefiting the world and its beings, allowing them to live in peace. Whoever brings benefit to the world and the cosmos is able, in turn, to make use of the treasures of the world and the cosmos.

The Story: The Bodhisatta Who Cultivated Loving-Kindness and Became a Universal Monarch

Phra Ajarn gave the example of a Bodhisatta from a past age. When this Bodhisatta was born into the world, he cultivated loving-kindness just as we are doing now, continuing throughout his entire lifespan, until he attained the meditative absorptions. When he closed his eyes and left the world, he was reborn in the Brahma realm, attaining the status of a Great Brahma, enjoying a vast span of happiness in the Brahma world for a very long time. When that lifespan ended, he returned once more to be born in the human world, and this time attained the status of a Universal Monarch (Chakkavatti). Having been born into that role, he used the treasures of the world and the cosmos to bring great benefit to the world, allowing people to live in peace and happiness like the inhabitants of heaven -- with no need to oppress one another, generously helping and supporting each other, with no wars or strife of any kind, and the people of the world abiding beautifully in virtue and Dhamma.

Phra Ajarn therefore taught us to diligently cultivate loving-kindness in this way, gathering the heart to stillness within this radiant, boundlessly expanding loving-kindness. The stream of merit continues pouring in at the center of the brightness of this loving-kindness without interruption, and we then dedicate this merit to arise for the world and all beings: may the world and all beings share in this merit we have sincerely and rightly performed, and may they be free from suffering and dwell in happiness.

Resting in the Refined Body of Our Teachers and the Center of Nibbana

We gather the heart to stop, gather the heart to stillness, in the center of the radiant brightness of the pure merit element, in the center of happiness and purity, immersed in the center of the ever-flowing stream of merit. We gather the heart to stop, gather the heart to stillness, within loving-kindness itself; the heart is a sphere of accomplishment -- whatever we determine, so it becomes. We then gather the heart to stillness within the Triple Gem, within the Buddha Jewel, the Dhamma Jewel, and the Sangha Jewel, merging ourselves with them into a single unity. We must remain close, intimate, and firmly bound, never distant from the Triple Gem.

We gather the heart to stop, gather the heart to stillness, within our great teachers, within the utterly refined Dhamma-body of our late revered teacher Luang Pu, within the utterly refined Dhamma-body of our late revered teacher Luang Phor, and rest in stillness within the utterly refined Dhamma-body of Khun Yai. As we rest in stillness within them, we appear bright and clear within them, and they appear bright and clear within us; both we and they appear luminous within the center of Nibbana, the center of the one who knows, possessing boundless power, countless asankhyeya in number, the center of every Fully Enlightened Buddha, the center of every Solitary Buddha, and the center of every Arahant.

They ordinarily hold all beings within their center already; but for those beings who abide in universal goodness, the stream of merit pours continuously through the center of their being. So it is for us right now as well -- we too shine within the center of Nibbana, countless asankhyeya in number. As we appear luminous within the center of Nibbana, they take our elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, our earth, water, wind, and fire, and refine them to clarity and purity, connecting us to the stream of merit and treasure, and clearing the path ahead for us. While they are refining and helping us in this way, let us set our aspiration, pay respect, and ask for their blessing, so that we may fix our life-plan into the center of this radiant sphere of merit, so that throughout our entire path of accumulating perfections from this moment on, our life may be filled with wisdom, happiness, and purity, and every rightful, wholesome wish may come true.

Asking for Blessings and Setting the Life-Plan in Detail

We pay respect and ask for the blessing, merit, radiance, power, and unequivocal authority of Nibbana throughout all elements and all Dhamma, together with the blessing of our revered teachers, Luang Pu, Luang Phor, and Khun Yai. May all this merit and these perfections combine with the merit and perfections we ourselves have sincerely accumulated since our very first existence, through countless lifetimes, up to this present moment. May all this merit combine into sacred merit, possessing power, might, and boundless force, refining our body, speech, and mind, our elements of Dhamma, our seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, the elements of earth, water, wind, fire, space, and consciousness, making them bright, cool, clean, and pure. May we be freed from sacred misfortune, from the results of past karma, from obstruction by Mara, and from every manner of obstacle in life; may greed, hatred, delusion, lust, ignorance, wrong view, craving, and clinging all dissolve entirely, leaving no trace.

May we gain the eye that sees the Dhamma, reaching and penetrating the knowledge of the Dhammakaya, achieving the three knowledges, the eight knowledges, the six higher powers, the four kinds of analytical insight, the eight liberations, and the fifteen conducts, complete in every respect. May we also enjoy strong and complete health, a long lifespan, and the ability to accumulate merit and perfections throughout our entire life, safely to the very end, with an unceasing, elevated spirit in building perfections, heading straight along the path to Nibbana, to the very end of Dhamma. Wherever we travel, may we meet only good fortune and safety, may we be loved by both humans and devas, may we possess a bright wisdom that clearly penetrates the Dhamma of the Fully Enlightened Buddha and the knowledge of the Dhammakaya, and whatever business or work we undertake, may it flourish and progress, yielding results beyond what we could imagine or expect, gaining vast wealth like that of a Universal Monarch, never lacking, able to make offerings of great generosity endlessly, generous without stinginess, using it fully to build perfections.

When the time comes to close our eyes and leave this world, may we be reborn in the Tusita heaven, in the special sphere of merit reserved for future Buddhas and great Bodhisattvas, and when we return to build perfections in the human world, may we be born into a family of right view, a crystal family, a Dhammakaya family, a model family for the world, a warm and loving family, complete and abundant with the utmost treasures of form, wealth, virtue, gain, honor, praise and happiness, the paths and fruits of liberation, and the knowledge of the Dhammakaya. May we also possess a vast and sacred sphere of merit, able to recall our past lives from the moment of birth, together with a clear, bright inner Dhammakaya, and study the knowledge of the Dhammakaya correctly and faithfully alongside our revered teachers, Luang Pu, Luang Phor, and Khun Yai, from childhood until the end of our lifespan. Whatever unwholesome deed we may have committed by mistake or through carelessness in the past, throughout countless lifetimes, may that unwholesome karma be unable to catch up with us or bear its result, and may it become forgiven karma forever; may we commit no new unwholesome deed through body, speech, or mind. May all the merit we have sincerely accumulated combine together and yield its sacred result, powerful and wondrous, continuously from this moment onward, until the very end of Dhamma. May all these good wishes come to pass, come to pass, come to pass, for all of us, from this moment onward, in every life and every existence, until the very end of Dhamma, by the boundless power of every Fully Enlightened Buddha; may every wish be fulfilled.

Closing Chant

Phra Ajarn Suraphong closed the sitting by leading the chant of homage to the Triple Gem: Sabbe Buddha balappatta, paccekana nca yam balam, arahantananca tejena, rakkham bandhami sabbaso. Sabba-Buddhanubhavena, sabba-Dhammanubhavena, sabba-Sanghanubhavena, sadda-sotthi bhavantu te.