พระอาจารย์อธิบายว่าก้าวแรกคือบอกตัวเองให้รู้ตัวว่าอกุศลกำลังทำงาน แล้วกุศลในตัวจะตั้งขึ้น วางใจเป็นกลางไม่ยินดียินร้าย พร้อมอธิบายว่าแต่ละขณะมีภพที่เป็นละอองขาวหรือดำแผ่รอบตัว และการเจริญสัมมาสติทำให้มิติกาลเวลาขยายออก ช่วยให้ตั้งหลักทันPra Ajarn explains that the first step is to tell yourself to become aware that the unwholesome is at work, so the wholesome within can arise; then set the mind even, neither delighting nor resisting. He describes how each moment has a 'state of being' — a white or dark mist around us — and how cultivating right mindfulness expands the dimension of time, helping one steady oneself in time.
Someone asked: if we realize we've become prey to through those around us, how should we respond?
The First Step: Tell Yourself to Become Aware
The unwholesome possesses either us or others — people or animals — and then causes us trouble. We must tell ourselves to become aware that the unwholesome is now at work. If we're not aware, the unwholesome within us possesses the mind and compels us automatically. When we remind ourselves that the unwholesome is at work, using this person or that, or an animal, within us arises. Whoever arises first has the advantage; if the wholesome contests its way in first, the unwholesome has a hard time.
Set the Mind Even, Removing Covetousness and Grief
When the wholesome contests its way in, it guides us — establish well. Even when the wholesome wins, the unwholesome tries to win it back; it's a contest for control. Set the mind even, neither delighting nor resisting. The phrase 'remove covetousness and grief toward the world' is very important, because when the unwholesome contests its way in: if the situation is pleasant, it guides one to greed; if it's unpleasant — grief — it guides one to anger and vengefulness. It all comes down to the three cravings: sensual craving, craving for existence, and craving for non-existence.
Each Moment Has a 'State of Being' — a White or Dark Mist Around Us
The '' () is what appears in each moment we dwell in. If it's wholesome, a clear white mist spreads around us; if unwholesome, a dark mist covers us — invisible to the human eye but seen by of . The darker the state, the darker the inner bodies of hell-beings, asuras, and animals, varying with the state that holds them. If the state is clear and white, the wholesome inner bodies — the subtle body, celestial body, brahma body — come to possess us according to that state's clarity, because a state of being must hold a body.
Cultivating Right Mindfulness Expands the Dimension of Time
For most people this is already automatic. To make it not automatic, one must train in , noting the body, feelings, mind, and mental objects. Once one notes them, the dimension of time expands. If the unwholesome possesses us, time races so fast we can't steady ourselves; but if the wholesome possesses us, the dimension of time expands, and we see situations as if in slow motion, with pauses for the wholesome to point out cause and effect — like a world-champion tennis player who, before a match, sits with eyes closed to calm the mind; once calm and abiding in the wholesome, they play and see the ball slow down and can return it in time, whereas flaring up in anger, the ball comes so fast it's hard to return.