DHAMMA PADETHA – 36. HAPPINESS, ONLY BY HAVING FOUR FORESIGHTS

DHAMMA PADETHA – HAPPINESS, ONLY BY HAVING FOUR FORESIGHTS

All knowledgeable or wise individuals wish to be prosperous, and have progress both in the mundane and supramundane worlds and wish to work accordingly. They wish to be successful in whatever they do. To be successful there must be four kinds of foresights.

The four factors of foresight are:

(1) Sathakasampajanna – having the foresight of choosing that is beneficial

(2) Sapp±yasampajanna – having the foresight of choosing whether it is suitable or not

(3) Gocarasampajanna – having the foresight of working continuously

(4) Asammohasampajanna- having the foresight of clear comprehension without confusion

Reasoning in Mundane affairs

(1) To be prosperous in the mundane world you must choose the kind of work which is most beneficial before you start to work. In this way, choosing the best kind of work is the fundamental factor for the development of the work.

(2) Next, to be able to start work, a suitable locality, an appropriate time must be chosen. Ancient people have advised us to choose the suitable time, place, value and wealth. If an unsuitable time and locality are chosen and set up your work, then it may not progress as expected. If circumstances are unfavourable, you might have to suffer loss of property. That is why suitable time and locality must be chosen i.e. having the foresight. Thus, in choosing whether it is suitable or not is another fundamental factor in the development of your work.

(3) After choosing the most suitable work, time and locality, you have to start working, you must be interested in your work, put heart and soul into it and work continuously.

After setting up your work, if you are not interested in it and most of your time is taken up by other affairs, then your work will not progress as expected, it might even deteriorate. That is why you have to work continually with interest. Thus working incessantly with interest is one of the basic factors for the development of your work.

(4) In working continuously you must study and be aware of the situation of your work, whether it is progressing or deteriorating. You must know clearly and definitely without having confusion. Knowing the correct amount of investment, profit and loss for one day, one month or one year etc., definitely, without any confusion, is one of the fundamental factors in the development of your work.

Those who are complete with these four factors of foresight will progress in their work and become prosperous in the mundane world.

Things to reason in the affairs of dhamma

(1) Those who are going to practise dhamma to realize nibb±na will have to choose the most beneficial kind of merit before practising. The most beneficial deeds: performing dana; observing sila; worshipping sacred pagodas; practising samatha meditation; Vipassana meditation; and etc., are to be chosen as the foremost acts. Thus choosing the best kind of merit is the basic factor to realize noble dhamma and reach nibb±na.

(2) After choosing the most beneficial kind of merit, you must choose the time, meditation centre (yeiktha), monastery, instructor or teacher. You must choose and reason for yourself which time, meditation centre, instructor or teacher are suitable for you.

Though reasoning and choosing that is beneficial has been done before hand, if you had not chosen a suitable time, and if the dhamma is practised at an unsuitable time, you may not get any benefit. You might even degenerate. Therefore, you must choose a suitable time, a suitable meditation centre and an instructor or teacher who is suitable.

For example: going to Pagodas and Buddha Images to worship is beneficial but if there happens to be a festival, there will be lots of music, singing and dancing. Then that time is unsuitable for a monk or a samanera.

If monks and Samaneras should go and worship the pagodas at the time of big festivals they will not get any merit but will be committing offences (apatti) and be degenerated till they become lay again. That is why monks and Samaneras, who wish to gain merit, should choose the time to worship pagodas, when there are few people.

When practising Vipassana meditation which is beneficial, one must choose a suitable meditation centre. A monastery which has five qualities is a suitable place to practise meditation.

The five qualities are:

(a) a place which is neither too far nor too near from your own place;

(b) a quiet place with few people;

(c) a place with few gad-flies mosquitoes, flies;

(d) a place where food, medicine and other requisites are easily obtainable; and

(e) a place with a good meditation (kammatthana) teacher who can instruct those who have not experienced dhamma to experience dhamma, and those who have experienced dhamma to a certain level to reach higher stages and attain noble dhamma.

A meditation centre which has these five qualities is a place where Vipassana meditation should be practised.

In another method:

There are four kinds of meditation centre serving the practise of meditation.

Practising in a certain meditation centre where one does not perceive the nature of dhamma vividly, and where food, drinks and medicine and other requisites are scarce. This sort of yeiktha, monastery, is unsuitable in which to practise meditation.

Practising in a certain meditation centre where one does not perceive the nature of dhamma vividly, but food drinks and medicines are in abundance. This also is not the suitable type of centre in which meditation should be practised.

Practising in a certain meditation centre, one perceives the nature of dhamma clearly but food, drinks and requisites are scarce. This is the kind of suitable yeiktha where one should practise meditation.

Practising in a certain yeiktha where one perceives dhamma vividly. Food, drinks and medicines are in abundance. This is the suitable type of meditation centre, where one should practise. Thus choosing a suitable meditation centre is a fundamental factor to attain noble dhamma and reach nibb±na.

(3) After choosing a suitable time and yeiktha you enter the centre and practise meditation keeping a target date to achieve noble dhamma. You must practise ardently until you attain the level of dhamma you had aimed for. The consecutive notings, concentrations and insight or intuitive knowledge must be continuous. You must practise incessantly till you reach the level of noble dhamma.

There are three kinds of mindfulness meditation for your noting to be continuous. Sitting meditation, walking meditation and noting miscellaneous daily activities. Out of the three kinds of meditation, noting miscellaneous daily activities is the most difficult.

To be clearly conscious of each bodily behaviour in detail, i.e. in walking, standing, sitting, lying, bending, stretching etc. and daily activities is known as clarity of conciousness or (sampajañña) in Pali. It is in the discourse of Lord Buddha.

You must be aware of every movement and note continuously, walking, standing, sitting, lying down, bending, stretching etc. in detail. You must keep on meditating so that there is no break, the former noting and the latter noting, former sam±dhi and the latter sam±dhi, the former insight and latter insight must all be in continuity. Thus being mindful without any interruption is a fundamental factor to achieve noble dhamma and reach nibb±na.

Out of five hundred monks chosen for the first great Council (Synod), four hundred ninety nine were arahants.

Ashin Ananda was the only one who was not an arahant. Ashin Ananda meditated, while walking, in the first watch of the night and midnight ardently. After past midnight, towards dawn, wishing to meditate while lying down, he entered the monastery and, while lying down he noted, ‘lying down, lying down’ in detail. Thus he became an arahant and realized the bliss of nibb±na.

(4) When you are noting the bodily behaviour, such as walking, standing, sitting, lying, bending, stretching etc. without interruption in detail and gain sam±dhi ñ±na, you realize that the objects such as walking standing, sitting, lying, bending, stretching constitute the physical phenomena (rupa), being separate from the noting conscious mind (n±ma). You perceive, without any confusion, the true nature of n±ma and rupa, which are separate.

As you keep on being mindful without any break or interruption, you will realize that because of the intention to walk, there arises the walking behaviour. Because of the intention to stand, there arises the standing behaviour. Because of the intention to sit, the sitting behaviour arises. Because of the intention to tie down, the lying behaviour arises. Because of the intention to bend, there arises the bending behaviour. Because of the intention to stretch, the stretching behaviour arises and so on. You realize the true nature of cause and effect.

When you are being mindful continuously, your sam±dhi ñ±na becomes stronger, and you discover that walking, standing, sitting, lying down, bending, stretching behaviours etc. occur and vanish one after another. You are aware of the phenomena precisely without any confusion.

Later as you keep noting without any interruption and as your concentration sam±dhi deepens, you realize that the bodily behaviours such as walking, standing, sitting, lying, bending, stretching etc. disappear at a great speed. So also is the consciousness of the noting mind. Because both the physical actions and the noting mind disappear at a fantastic speed, they are impermanent (anicca).

Because they disappear so rapidly they seem to oppress you. Hence it is suffering (dukkha). You cannot prevent or control the disappearance by any means. It happens of its own accord. Thus it is anatta. You are aware of these facts without any confusion. To be aware of the true nature of the processes without any doubt is one of the basic factors to attain noble dhamma and reach nibb±na.

To sum it up:

(1) To choose that is beneficial

(2) To discriminate whether it is suitable or not

(3) Having the foresight of working continuously

(4) Having the foresight of clear comprehension

If you are complete with these four factors of foresight you will progress and be prosperous and successful both in the mundane and supramundane worlds.