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VIPASSANA MEDITATION Continue Last Page The second purification is Purification of Mind (Citta-visuddhi). If we want to attain insight knowledges, the mind must be purified from all kinds of defdilements. When the mind is well con- centrated on any mental or physical phenomena, it is free from all these hindranes. This is known as purification of mind Citta-visuddhi. With this purification, the mind can penetrate into the men- tal and physical processes in their true nature. First of all, he distinguishes between mental process and physical process (nama and rupa) through his own experience. That is known as Namaruparic cheda-nana knowledge of the difference between mentality and physicality. Purification of View The third is Purification of View (itthi-visuddhi). When a meditator penetrates into the true nature of mental and physical processes, he does not take them to be a person or a being, soul or a self. Then he has purified his view, he has attained Ditthi-visuddhi, Purification by Overcoming Doubt The fourth is Purification by Overcoming Doubt (Kankhavitana-visuddhi). Kankha means doubt, 'visuddhi' means purification by overcoming doubt. When a meditator has attained the second stage of insight knowledge Knowledge of Cause and Effect (Paccayapariggaha-nana), he no longer has doubts about his past exstence. Thus, he overcomes doubt. This is purification by overcoming doubt. To attain this knowledge he has to observe every intention, wish or want before every action or movement. All actions are preceded by intention, wishing or wanting. That is why we have to be mindful of every intention before every action or movement. When we have an intention to lift our foot, we should note it as 'intention' intention' then 'lifting, lifting'. When we have an intention to bend our arm, we should note 'intention, intention', then 'bending, bending'. While we are eating, we have an intention to open our mouth to take food, then first of all, we should note 'intention, in- tention', then 'opening, opening'. In the act of opening the mouth, the intention is the cause, and the opening of the mouth is the effect. Without wishing or wanting to come here, could you come here?. Then what is the cause and what the effect?. The act of coming is the effect, the intention is the cause. Then why do you sit on the chair?. Yes, it is the intention that makes you sit on the chair. Is there any sitter?. If you think there is a person who sits on the chair, then we should bring a corpse from the hospital and make it sit on the chair. It cannot sit because there is no intention. It is only intention, the mental process, that causes an action or movement. So is the sitting posture a man or a woman, a samane ra or a bhikkhu?. It is none of these. In the sitting posture, there is a physical process supported by the wind element (vayo-dhatu -the internal and external wind element). Sitting is a physical process. So if we want to sit, first of all, we have to note 'intending,intending,' then 'sitting, sitting,' sitting'. All the sitting movements must be observed after we have noted intention. When we bend our arm, we must first of all note the intention, then the movements of bending, the arm. When we stretch out our arm, first of all, we must note intention, then the movements of stretching as 'stretching, stretching, stretching'. When our concentration is deep enough, by being aware of intention and the actions that follow it, we come to realise that nothing arises without a cause. Everything arises depending on a cause.  Therefore,
a so-called person, a man or a woman is just the process of cause
and effect. There is no doer, no one that does anything. If we believe that there is a person who does the sitting, it is called Sakkaya-ditthi or Atta-ditthi (wrong view of a doer). If we thoroughly realise the cause and effect relationship, what we realise is just a natural process. Then there is no 'person' that became a president, there is no 'person' that became a king. Then what existed in the past?. In the pst, there exsited only the process of cause and effect. Then we have no doubt about our past exsistence. In this way, we can overcome doubts about our past existence so, this is known as purification by overcoming doubt (Kankhavitarana-visutthi). Some meditators find it difficult to observe intention before every action because they are not patient enough. To observe, we must be patient with our actions or movements so that we can observe the intention before every action or movement. When we observe intention before lifting our foot, we will come to realise how the intention is related to the lifting of the foot. Then again, when we observe intention before the pushing of the foot, we will come to realise how intention is related to the pushing movement of the foot. When we observe the intention before the dropping of the foot, we will also come to realise how the intention is related to the dropping movement of the foot and so on. When we come to realise this relationship of cause and effect, we have almost com pletely realised the Law of Cause and Effect. By this realisation we overcome doubt as to whether there is any personality or entity which is everlasting in us. Then what really exists is just the process of cause and effect. Purification of Knowledge and Vision of Parth and Non-Path The fifth visutthi is Purification of Knowledge and Vision of Path and Non-Path (Maggamagga- nanadassana-visuddhi). In this stage of insight, you get very good experiences; lightness, happiness, serenity ect. Sometimes you may feel your body has become light, as if it has been lifted, or as if you were flying in the sky. Your mindfulness is very keen. Your effort is steady; neither slack nor vigorous, nor rigid. Your effort is moderate, steady and firm. Your concentration is deep, so you experience peace, calmness, serenity, tranquility, happiness, rapture and so on. This is a very good stage that meditators must go through. This stage may be experienced in about two weeks if medita tors practise strenuously, but some meditators go through this stage within a week. With such good experiences, meditators may think. "This must be nibbana this great, I have never experienced it before, it is better than having a million dollars now I have attained nibbana. "Thus, he does not go further because he is clinging to it. He thinks that if he goes further, he will go beyond nibbana. If a meditator holds that this stage is nibbana, this is the wrong path. Therefore, he must continue to meditate and practise strenuously. This is only a very minor and trivial experience and he should not be content with it, but must go ahead with practice.  Purification
of Knowledge and Vision of the Course
The sixth Visuddhi is Patipada-nanadassana-visuddhi. 'Patipada' means the course of practice, 'nana' means knowledge, 'dassana' means vision. Nana and 'dassana' are here referred to in the same sense. In order to lay emphasis on penetration, the text used the two words in the same sense knowledge and vision. So Patipada-nanadassana-visuddhi means Purification of Knowledge and Vision of the Course of Practice. It means that when we have passed Maggamagga-nanadassana- visuddhi, we are on the right path which leads to Arahantship or the cessation of suffering. If we were on the wrong path, we would stop at Maggamagga-nanadassana-visuddhi. Because we are on the right path, we have to go through the nine stages of insight and are approaching the goal, so we can judge that our ourse of practice is right. When we do not have any doubt about the course of practice. That doubt has been destroyed by knowledge and vision of the course of prac- tice. Then there is purification of knowlege and vision of the right course of practice Patipada-na naddassana-visuddhi. When you reach that stage, you have attained Anuloma-nana (knowledge of adaptation) because your experience is in conformity with the lower stages of insight knowledge and with the higher stages of insight. Knowledge of Maturity If we continue with our practice we will come to the borderline in a short time. In two or three thought moments we have reached the line and stand on it. The border here means the border between an ordinary person (puthujjana) and a Noble One (ariya). When you are on the boundary, do you want to go ahead or go back?. If you want to go back, your attention is towards the past, but if you want to go ahead your attention is ahead. Ahead is the cessation of compounded things, i,e, the cessation of all kinds of mentality (nama) and physicality (rupa). If you want proceed, standing on the boundary or border, you look ahead as well as behind. Then you will know. "If I go ahead, all kinds of suffering will cease to exist. So should I go ahead?. You will think about it. The answer is yes, because you have been suffering for many aeons (kappas). The word 'kappa' means countless numbers of existeness. When you are at the boundary, you will reflect on your past experience, 'I ve had enough of this eyele of dukkha. I've had enough of this I must put an end to this suffering. Your attention is then towards the cessation of suffering. That borderline knowledge is known as Gotrabhu-nana-Gotra' means Puthujjana or descendants. On this border, descendant of a Puthujjana are cut off totally. Then there is no more Puthujjana. Once you pass that borderline, you become a Noble One (Ariya) because you have cut off the Puthujjana lineage. Venerable Nyanaponika Thera translates it as maturity knowledge or knowledge of maturity because the medi- tator,s knolwdge is mature enough to attain thepath. Actually, we can translate it literally as the knowledge which has cut off the Puthujjana lineage. When the Puthujjana lineage has been cut off, the meditator has attained Sotapatti-magga-nana he becomes a Noble One, an Ariya. Continuous Next Page ( August, 15, 2007 ) |
Meditation
