นำนั่งสมาธิด้วยอุปมาว่าใจที่ผูกอยู่กับเงินทองหรือหุ้นย่อมขึ้นลงตามราคาของสิ่งนั้น เช่นเดียวกับใจที่ผูกอยู่กับกุศลหรืออกุศลก็ยกสูงหรือกดต่ำตามธรรมชาติทั้งสามฝ่ายที่ควบคุมชีวิตเรา พระอาจารย์นำผู้ฟังกำหนดใจให้สบาย น้อมสู่พระรัตนตรัยภายใน แผ่เมตตาสู่สรรพสัตว์ทั่วจักรวาล และปิดท้ายด้วยการอุทิศส่วนบุญและอธิษฐานจิตIn this guided sit, Phra Ajarn opens with an image of the mind as something we tie to things — tied to gold or stocks, it rises and falls with their price; tied to the wholesome or unwholesome, it is likewise lifted or pressed down by the three natures that govern our life. He then leads listeners into ease of mind, resting with the Triple Gem within, radiating loving-kindness across the universe, and closing with a dedication of merit and a heartfelt aspiration.
Begin by closing your eyes gently, comfortably. Let be at ease and the mind be still — relaxed, open, spacious, light, clear, cool, clean, pure, and radiant. Adjust both body and mind until they are comfortable.
Whatever we determine, that is what arises. Determine something good, and something good appears. Determine something not good, and that appears in the mind instead. Life, then, depends on what we tie our mind to. Someone whose mind is tied to money and gold finds their mind rising and falling with the price of gold. Someone whose mind is tied to stocks finds their mind rising and falling with the stock price. Tie the mind to something unwholesome, and the mind sinks low, because is aimed that way by nature. But tie the mind to what is wholesome, and it lifts the heart higher and finer. It comes down to what we choose to tie our mind to — good things bring benefit, bad things cost us benefit.
What, then, is good, and what is not? When something arises in the mind and draws in pure energy — — along with happiness and refined qualities, flowing through and mind, and lifts the heart higher and finer, that is what is good. When something arises and instead presses our inner elements down, drawing in defilement that becomes the seed of problems and obstacles, along with suffering that is hard to bear, and misfortune that destroys our good qualities — that is not good.
Feelings such as boredom, gloom, tedium, stress, irritation, weariness, discouragement, despair, dejection, restlessness, and resentment should have no place in the mind. They should be avoided, because they draw in demerit, misfortune, and suffering. Wholesome states, by contrast, are relaxed, open, spacious, light, joyful, radiant, clear, cool, clean, pure. When these good feelings settle in the mind, they draw in pure energy — merit — along with happiness and refined qualities.
Three Natures That Govern Our Life
We live under the governance of three natures: nature, the unwholesome nature, and nature. These three natures use and to govern people and beings. The law of kamma is what we have done in the past, both good and bad, coming to bear fruit in each present moment. The law of the three characteristics governs from the present into the future — the three natures compete over who becomes master of the house of our mind. Whoever controls the mind controls the body, and controls our resources. Whichever nature possesses the mind overlays its own body, feeling, mind, and mental object onto ours. If it is the wholesome nature, it lifts us higher, purifying and freeing us. If the unwholesome nature takes the house, it presses us down, drawing in demerit, misfortune, and suffering, bringing trouble into our life.
The unwholesome nature aims to harm and destroy, even to the point of taking life, and drags a being even after death down into the lower realms — hell, the realm of demons, the animal realm. The wholesome nature, by contrast, brings benefit, rightness and goodness, worldly and spiritual happiness and progress, and even at the closing of the eyes on this world carries one to the happy realms — the realm of celestial beings, brahma, and the formless brahma.
The indeterminate nature neither benefits nor harms us — but its drawback is that it occupies more than ninety percent of our waking life. Morning, noon, evening, night, we are mostly absorbed in the business of the indeterminate: working, earning a living, and it does not lead us to merit or demerit. After work we eat, play, relax, and finally sleep — none of it builds merit, but none of it causes harm either.
The Way Out Is to Dwell With the Wholesome System
Only the wholesome nature can give us benefit, rightness, goodness, understanding, happiness, success, and fulfillment. Every other nature gives no benefit and, worse, brings suffering and harm. We must therefore choose to dwell within the wholesome system. This system is watched over by the Triple Gem, which resides at the center of every one of us as a crystal-clear, radiant kaya, with Nibbana watching over it all, holding every being at its center, refining, correcting, and helping.
As the owner of this house of body and mind, we must determine, so that the sphere of arises — used to draw pure energy, merit, flowing in to drive the wholesome system, refining and purifying the elements within us. The essential foundation of life is happiness, ease of mind. We must determine ease of mind again and again — every time we do, the state of ease arises and releases a current that brings the mind comfort. Whatever we think, think at ease; whatever we say, say what brings ease to ourselves and others; whatever we do, do it with an easeful mind. Let our life be nothing but ease of mind, again and again — this is what we must train ourselves to determine until it becomes familiar.
The Mind Needs a Clear Base: Knowing Body, Feeling, Mind, and Mental Objects
Practicing Dhamma is learning and training to dwell within the wholesome system. We must train repeatedly until it becomes easy, skillful, and automatic — beginning by bringing the mind to rest with the body, relaxed and at ease. This wholesome life begins at the mind, so we must ask the mind often: where is it now, how does it feel, how should we care for it, how should we settle it at ease, how should we sustain it rightly and well? To dwell within the wholesome system, the mind needs a clear base to draw in merit.
As the Lord Buddha taught in the Mahapatthana Sutta: “Monks, you should clearly know the body, feeling, mind, and mental objects, in order to remove and grief toward the world.” This is an essential sentence to remember and understand, because it is the sentence that can turn an ordinary person into a noble one. The Buddha taught the monastic community to dwell in determination. To determine is to specify, to mark — wherever we specify, the mind is placed there. When we come to know it, the sphere of awareness — mindfulness — arises. Once it arises, it draws in pure energy continuously, driving the wholesome system to refine and purify the elements within us, making them clear, clean, pure, radiant. Because this sphere of mindfulness is itself a wholesome , its arising means the wholesome mind, the wholesome system, has arisen — merit will flow in continuously to clear away every defilement.
Once we determine, we rest with the mind — wherever we determine, the mind is placed there; whatever we determine, that appears in the mind. Know it relaxed and at ease. Rest the body, the mind. Simply bring body and mind to sit at ease — that alone is enough.
Resting the Mind With the Triple Gem Within
When ease of mind arises, bring that easeful mind to rest with the Triple Gem within — with a mind that is relaxed, open, spacious, light, clear, cool, clean, pure, radiant. Recite inwardly: “Sammā-Arahaṃ”. When the mind is at ease, invoke the name of the One who practiced rightly and well, free from every defilement, replete with the of wisdom, , and great compassion.
As we invoke that name, a crystal-clear, pure image appears at the center of our body and mind — the crystal Dhammakaya, radiant, delicate, soft, cool and clear, seated on a plane of absorption within a sphere of Dhamma that fills his lap. He comes with boundless compassion, taking our elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, and the elements of earth, water, wind, fire, space, and consciousness, refining them clear, clean, and pure, freeing them from every defilement, every karmic residue, every obstacle.
Then, feel that we are the crystal Buddha, and the crystal Buddha is us — merging our body with his, part by part, from the crown of the head to the soles of the feet, all of it the radiant crystal Dhammakaya. Then merge our mind with his, resting still and stopped at the center of the crystal figure, at the center of the body, at the center of the mind — soft, at ease, clear, cool, clean, pure, radiant. Stopped within stopped, still within still. Then send the heart and mind straight toward the path of Nibbana — the mind is itself the place of accomplishment: whatever we determine, that is what becomes so.
Nibbana already holds every being at its center. Any being who dwells in universal goodness — whether or not they follow Buddhism, whether or not they hold any religion at all — so long as they abide in goodness, a stream of merit appears clear and bright at the center of them, shining within Nibbana itself, within every Lord Buddha, every Pacceka Buddha, and every Arahant.
Radiating Loving-Kindness Across the Universe
Then perform the good deed of benefiting all people and beings by cultivating (). Loving-kindness is a tool of the wholesome — for those with abundant merit to benefit those with less. Determine love and sincere, pure goodwill; loving-kindness, appearing as a clear radiant sphere, arises, drawing pure energy, merit, in continuously. Loving-kindness has the special power to dissolve resentment from the hearts of all people and beings, and to purify the surrounding environment, making it fit for all beings to dwell in.
Let the mind, transformed by loving-kindness, expand outward — covering the village, the district, the province, the country, neighboring countries, until it covers the whole world, making this world a radiant crystal world, cool, clean, and pure. May the people of the world and all beings be free from suffering and find happiness — the earth-bound devas, tree devas, sky devas, celestial beings of every heavenly realm, the brahma and the formless brahma, down to the beings in hell, demons, and animals. May those with much suffering have less; may those with little suffering be free of it; may those with little happiness have more; may those already happy have ever greater happiness.
Then let this loving-kindness expand further, out into the atmosphere of the cosmos, covering countless stars, and continuing outward across boundless world-systems and universes — let this loving-kindness illuminate every particle of every person, being, and thing.
Dedicating Merit and Setting an Aspiration
Having done this good deed of benefiting all people, beings, and our own relations, dedicate this merit to our forebears, parents, siblings, grandparents, and teachers, and to all who have helped us, including the devas who watch over and support us. May all beings be free from suffering and find happiness, and share in the merit we have sincerely accumulated, through mutual forgiveness of karmic debts.
Then merge the mind with the Triple Gem and the great revered teachers as one — resting still at the center of the Buddha-jewel, the Dhamma-jewel, the Sangha-jewel, and at the center of the most refined body of Dhamma of our root teachers. The mind is itself the place of accomplishment: whatever we determine, that is what becomes so. Every layer of our elements, body and Dhamma, becomes radiant, clear, cool, clean, and pure. We shine at the center of Nibbana, at the center of the One who knows, whose power has no limit.
Using this most auspicious moment, ask for a blessing and set an aspiration, sealing it within this radiant sphere of merit — that our entire path of building perfections be filled with , happiness, and purity, and success in every rightful and good aspiration. May all the merit sincerely accumulated from our very first life until now converge into merit of boundless power, purifying our body, speech, mind, and the elements of seeing, remembering, thinking, and knowing, making them radiant, clear, cool, clean, and pure. May we be freed from misfortune, karmic obstruction, and every difficulty in life; may , hatred, delusion, lust, , wrong view, craving, and clinging vanish without a trace; may we gain the eye of Dhamma and penetrate fully into the knowledge of Dhammakaya.
May we have strong and complete health and long life, able to build merit and perfections throughout our life. May we have boundless resolve to keep building perfections, heading straight toward the path of Nibbana. Wherever we travel, may we meet only good fortune and safety, be loved by humans and devas alike, have a radiant wisdom that penetrates the Dhamma of the Lord Buddha and the knowledge of Dhammakaya. May whatever business or work we undertake prosper and flourish, with wealth enough to build great acts of generosity without limit. And when we close our eyes on this world, may we be born in the Dusita heaven, in the zone of the great Bodhisattas; and when we return to build perfections in the human world, may we be born into a family of right view — a warm family complete with the finest qualities of form, wealth, and virtue — able to recall our past lives from birth, together with a clear inner Dhammakaya, and to study the knowledge of Dhammakaya correctly and fully with our root teachers from youth until the end of our life.
May whatever unwholesome deeds we have done in the past, through carelessness or error, be forgiven forever, with no chance to bear further fruit, and may we resolve never to commit new unwholesome acts of body, speech, or mind. May all the merit we have sincerely accumulated converge and yield results of extraordinary power, continuing on until the very end of the path of Dhamma. May all these good aspirations be fulfilled, by the boundless power of every Lord Buddha.
Close with the Pali verse: “Sabbe buddhā parāpattā paccekānañca yaṃ balaṃ, arahantānañca tejena rakkhaṃ bandhāmi sabbaso. Sabba-buddhānubhāvena, sabba-dhammānubhāvena, sabba-saṅghānubhāvena, saddhā-sotthī ntu te” — Sādhu.