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Spiritual Development 
The Roots of Good and Evil: An Anthology by Nyanaponika Thera
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V.The Removal of the Unwholesome Roots
21 THE TRIPLE GEM AND THE ABANDONING OF THE EVIL ROOTS
Once the venerable Ananda was staying in Kosambi, at Ghosita's monastery.
At that time a certain householder, a lay devotee of the Ajivaka ascetics,
went to see the venerable Ananda. Having arrived, he saluted him and sat
down at one side. So seated, he said this to the venerable Ananda:
'How is it, revered Ananda: Whose doctrine is
wellproclaimed?
Who
are those who live
well-conducted in the world? Who are
the blessed
ones in the world?'
16
'Now, householder, I shall ask you a question on
this matter, and you may answer as you think fit. What do you think, householder:
as to those who teach a doctrine for the abandoning of greed, hatred and
delusion, is their doctrine well-proclaimed or not? Or what do you think
about this?'
'I think their doctrine is well-proclaimed, revered
sir.'
'Then, householder, what do you think: those whose
conduct is directed to the abandoning of greed, hatred and delusion, do
they live well-conducted in this world or not? - Or what do you think about
this?'
'I think they are well-conducted, revered sir.'
'And further, householder, what do you think: those
in whom greed, hatred and delusion are abandoned, cut off at the root,
made (barren) like a palm-stump, brought to nonexistence, no longer liable
to arise in the future again - are they the blessed ones in the world or
not? Or what do you think about this?'
'Yes, I do think, revered sir, that these are the
blessed ones in the world.'
'So householder, you have admitted this: Well-proclaimed
is the creed of those who teach a doctrine for the abandoning of greed,
hatred and delusion. Those are well-conducted whose conduct is directed
to the abandoning of greed, hatred and delusion. And the blessed ones are
those who have abandoned greed, hatred and delusion and have totally destroyed
it in themselves.'
'Wonderful, revered sir! Marvellous, revered sir!
There was no extolling of your creed, nor a disparaging of another's creed.
Just by keeping to the subject matter, the doctrine was explained by you.
Only facts were spoken of and no selfish reference was brought in.
'It is excellent, revered sir, very excellent. It
is as if one were to set aright what was overturned, reveal what was hidden,
point the way to those who have lost it, hold up a light in the darkness
so that those who have eyes may see what is visible. Thus was the
teaching in diverse ways explained by the worthy Ananda.
'I now go for refuge to that Exalted One, to his
teaching and to the Order of monks. May master Ananda accept me as a lay
follower from this day onwards as long as life shall last. May he regard
me as one who has thus taken refuge.'
Anguttara Nikaya, 3: 71
Comment
This text introduces us to an unnamed lay follower of the Ajivakas,
a sect of naked ascetics contemporary with the Buddha. The questioner must
have been a person of sensitivity, and was obviously disgusted with the
self-advertisement he may have found in his own sect and among other contemporary
religious teachers. So he wanted to test a disciple of the Buddha to see
if they too indulged in self-praise. He even laid a trap for the venerable
Ananda, by phrasing his questions in terms of the well-known Buddhist formula
of homage to the Triple Gem. Perhaps he expected that the venerable Ananda
would answer thus: 'These are the very words we use, and we claim these
achievements for our doctrine, for our monks and for our Buddha.' But the
venerable Ananda's reply, being free from self-praise and blame of others,
came as a happy surprise to him. And as the questioner was perceptive,
he immediately grasped the profound significance of the venerable Ananda's
words connecting the Three Gems with the abandonment of the unwholesome
roots. Moved to admiration for both the speaker and his teaching, the inquirer
declared on the spot his dedication to the Triple Gem.
This dialogue between a non-Buddhist and a Buddhist
monk suggests that the teaching on the three roots can be immediately convincing
to anyone with an open mind and heart. It offers an eminently practical,
non-creedal approach to the very core of the Dhamma, even for those reluctant
to accept its other tenets. It is for this reason that the awareness of
those three roots and their significance is elsewhere called a directly
'visible teaching' (Text
18)
and a doctrine that can be grasped without recourse to faith, tradition
or ideologies (Text 29). It can be
easily seen that greed, hatred and delusion are at the root of all individual
and social conflict. Those who still hesitate to accept the Buddha's teaching
on the truths of suffering and its origin in their entire range of validity
may not be ready to admit that all degrees and varieties of greed, hatred
and delusion are roots of suffering. Yet even if they only understand the
more extreme forms of those three states to be the root causes of evil
and unhappiness, such understanding, practically applied, will be immensely
beneficial to themselves and to society.
From such an initial understanding and application,
it may not be too difficult for an honest searching mind to proceed to
the conclusion that even the very subtle tendencies towards greed, hatred
and delusion are harmful-seeds from which their most destructive forms
may grow. But the Dhamma is a gradual teaching: the extension of that initial
understanding should be left to the natural growth of the individual's
own insight and experience without being forced upon him. This was the
very attitude which the Enlightened One himself observed in his way of
teaching.
Following the example of the venerable Ananda, it
will be profitable also in the present day if, for various levels of understanding,
the practical message of the Dhamma is formulated in terms of the wholesome
and unwholesome roots. In its simplicity as well as its profundity, this
teaching carries the distinct seal of Enlightenment. It is a teaching that
will directly affect everyday life, and will also reach to the very depth
of existence, showing the way to transcend all suffering.
22. IT CAN BE DONE
Abandon what is unwholesome, O monks! One can abandon
the unwholesome, O monks! If it were not possible, I would not ask you
to do so.
If this abandoning of the unwholesome
would bring harm and suffering, I would not ask you to abandon it. But
as the abandoning of the unwholesome brings benefit and happiness, therefore
I say, 'Abandon what is unwholesome!'
Cultivate what is wholesome, O monks!
One can cultivate the wholesome, O monks! If it were not possible, I would
not ask you to do so.
If this cultivation of the wholesome
would bring harm and suffering, I would not ask you to cultivate it. But
as the cultivation of the wholesome brings benefit and happiness, therefore
I say, 'Cultivate what is wholesome!'
Anguttara Nikaya, 2: 19
Comment
This text proclaims, in simple and memorable words, man's potential
for achieving the good, thus invalidating the common charge that Buddhism
is pessimistic. But since man also has, as we know only too well, a strong
potential for evil, there is as little ground for unreserved optimism about
him and his future. Which of his potentialities becomes actual-that for
good or that for evil-depends on his own choice. What makes a person a
full human being is facing choices and making use of them. The range of
man's choices and his prior awareness of them expand with the growth of
his mindfulness and wisdom, and as mindfulness and wisdom grow, those forces
that seem to 'condition' and even to compel his choices into a wrong direction
become weakened.
These hope-inspiring words of the Buddha about man's
positive potential will be grasped in their tremendous significance and
their full range,, if we remember that the words wholesome
and
unwholesome
are
not limited to a narrow moral application. The wholesome that can be cultivated
comprises everything beneficial, including those qualities of mind and
heart which are indispensable for reaching the highest goal of final liberation.
The unwholesome that can be abandoned includes even the finest traces of
greed, hatred and delusion. It is, indeed, a bold and heartening assurance
- a veritable 'lion's roar'- when the Buddha said, with such wide implications,
that what is beneficial can be cultivated and what is harmful can be abandoned.
23. THE ARISING AND NON-ARISING OF THE ROOT
There may be outsiders, O monks, who will ask you:
'Now, friends, what is the cause and
condition whereby unarisen greed arises and arisen greed becomes stronger
and more powerful?' 'An attractive object', they should be told. In him
who gives unwise attention to an attractive object, unarisen greed will
arise, and greed that has already arisen will become stronger and more
powerful.
'Now, friends, what is the cause and
condition whereby unarisen hatred arises and arisen hatred becomes stronger
and more powerful?' 'A repulsive object', they should be told. In him who
gives unwise attention to a repulsive object, unarisen hatred will arise,
and hatred that has already arisen will grow stronger and more powerful.
'Now, friends, what is the cause and
condition whereby unarisen delusion arises and arisen delusion becomes
stronger and more powerful?' 'Unwise attention', they should be told.
In him who gives unwise attention, unarisen delusion will arise, and delusion
that has already arisen will grow stronger and more powerful.
'Now, friends, what is the cause and
condition for unarisen greed not to arise and for the abandoning of greed
that has arisen?' 'A (meditation) object of impurity', they should be told.
In him who gives wise attention to a (meditation) object of impurity, unarisen
greed will not arise and greed that has arisen will be abandoned.
'Now, friends, what is the cause and
condition for unarisen hatred not to arise and for the abandoning of hatred
that has arisen?' 'Loving-kindness that is a freeing of the mind', they
should be told. In him who gives wise attention to lovingkindness that
is a freeing of the mind, unarisen hatred will not arise and hatred that
has arisen will be abandoned.
'Now, friends, what is the cause and
condition for unarisen delusion not to arise and for the abandoning of
delusion that has arisen?' 'Wise attention', they should be told. In him
who gives wise attention, unarisen delusion will not arise and delusion
that has arisen will be abandoned.'
Anguttara Nikaya, 3: 68
Comment
This text shows the decisive role attention plays
in the origination and eradication of the unwholesome roots. In the discourse
'All Taints' (Sabbasava Sutta, Majhima Nikaya a) it is said: 'The uninstructed
common man . . . does not know the things worthy of attention nor those
unworthy of attention. Hence he fails to give attention to what is worthy
of it and directs his attention to what is unworthy of it.' And of the
wellinstructed disciple the same discourse says that he knows what is worthy
of attention and what is not, and that he acts accordingly.
The commentary to that discourse makes
a very illuminating remark: 'There is nothing definite in the nature of
the things (or objects) themselves that makes them worthy or unworthy of
attention; but there is such definiteness in the manner (akara)
of attention. A manner of attention that provides a basis for the arising
of what is unwholesome or evil (akusala), that kind of attention
should not be given (to the respective object); but the kind of attention
that is the basis for the arising of the good and wholesome (kusala),
that manner of attention should be given.' It is this latter type
of attention that in our present text is called 'wise attention' (yoniso
manasikara). The former kind is 'unwise attention' (ayoniso manasikara),
which elsewhere in the commentaries is said to be the proximate cause of
delusion.
Things pleasant or unpleasant - that
is, those potentially attractive or repulsive - are given to us as facts
of common experience, but there is nothing compelling in their own nature
that determines our reaction to them. It is our own deliberate attitude
towards them, the 'manner of attention', which decides whether we will
react with greed to the pleasant and with aversion to the unpleasant, or
whether our attention will be governed instead by right mindfulness and
right understanding, resulting in right action. In some cases, it will
also be possible and advisable to withdraw or divert attention altogether
from an object; and this is one of the methods recommended by the Buddha
for the removal of unwholesome thoughts. (See Text 24 and
Comment.)
Our freedom of choice is present in
our very first reaction to a given experience, that is, in the way we attend
to it. But only if we direct wise attention to the object perceived can
we make use of our potential freedom of choice for our own true benefit.
The range of freedom can be further widened if we train ourselves to raise
that wise attention to the level of right mindfulness.
24.. FIVE METHODS FOR REMOVING UNWHOLESOME THOUGHTS
A monk who is intent on the higher consciousness (of meditation)
should from time to time give attention to five items. What five?
1. When, owing to an object to which
the monk has given (wrong) attention, there arise in him evil unwholesome
thoughts connected with desire,17with
hatred and with delusion, then that monk should give his attention to a
different object, to one connected with what is wholesome. When he is doing
so, those evil unwholesome thoughts connected with desire, hatred and delusion
are abandoned in him and subside. With their abandonment, his mind becomes
inwardly steady and settled, unified and concentrated.
2. If, when giving attention to an object that is wholesome,
there still arise in him evil unwholesome thoughts connected with desire,
with hatred and with delusion, then the monk should reflect upon the danger
in these thoughts thus: 'Truly, for such and such reasons these thoughts
are unwholesome, they are reprehensible and result in suffering!' When
he is reflecting in this way, those evil unwholesome thoughts are abandoned
in him and subside. With their abandonment, his mind becomes inwardly steady
and settled, unified and concentrated ....
3. If, when reflecting upon the danger in these thoughts,
there still arise in him evil unwholesome thoughts connected with desire,
with hatred and with delusion, he should try not to be mindful of them,
not to give attention to them. When he is not giving attention to them,
those evil unwholesome thoughts will be abandoned in him and subside. With
their abandonment, his mind becomes inwardly steady and settled, unified
and concentrated ....
4. If, when he is not giving attention to these thoughts,
there still arise in him evil unwholesome thoughts connected with desire,
with hatred and with delusion, he should give attention to the removal
of the source of these thoughts. 18
When he is doing so, those evil unwholesome thoughts are abandoned in him
and subside. With their abandonment, his mind becomes inwardly steady and
settled, unified and concentrated ....
5. If, while he is giving attention to the removal of
the source of these thoughts, these evil unwholesome thoughts still arise
in him, he should, with teeth clenched and the tongue pressed against the
palate, restrain, subdue and suppress mind by mind. 19
When he is doing so, those evil unwholesome thoughts
are abandoned in him and subside. With their abandonment, his mind becomes
inwardly steady and settled, unified and concentrated . . . .
When those evil unwholesome thoughts
connected with desire, hate and delusion, which have arisen owing to (wrong)
attention given to an object, have been abandoned in a monk and have subsided
(due to his applying these five methods), and when (due to that) his mind
has become steady and settled, unified and concentrated, - then that monk
is called a master of the pathways of thoughts: he will think the thoughts
he wants to think and will not think those he does not want to think. He
has cut off craving, severed the fetter (to existence) and with the full
penetration of conceit, he has made an end of suffering.
Majhima Nikaya 20 (Vitakkasanthana
Sutta) 20
Comment
This Discourse on the Removal of Unwholesome Thoughts was addressed
by the Buddha to monks devoted to meditation, especially to the attainment
of the meditative absorptions (jhana), which constitute the higher
consciousness (adhicitta) mentioned in the sutta. But the five methods
for stopping unwholesome thoughts are not restricted to those engaged in
strict meditative practice. They are also helpful when desire, aversion
and delusion arise during less intensive contemplations undertaken by monks
or lay people. Even in situations of ordinary life, when one is confronted
with an onrush of unwholesome thoughts, these methods will prove effective,
provided one can muster the presence of mind needed to promptly apply them.
In applying them, one will be practising right effort, the sixth factor
of the Noble Eightfold Path. For the attempt to overcome arisen unwholesome
thoughts is one of the four great efforts (sammappadhana), constituting
the path factor of right effort.
By the first method one tries to replace harmful
thoughts by their beneficial opposites. The discourse gives the simile
of a carpenter removing a coarse peg with the help of a fine peg. The commentary
explains as follows: when an unwholesome thought of desire for a living
being arises, one should counter it by thinking of the impurity of the
body; if there is desire for an inanimate object, one should consider its
impermanence and its ownerless nature. In the case of aversion against
a living being, one should direct thoughts of loving-kindness and friendliness
towards that being; one should remove resentment against inanimate things
or against adverse situations by thinking of their impermanence and impersonal
nature. When deluded or confused thoughts arise, one should make an effort
to clarify them and discern things as they are.
The sutta statement deals with the case of countering
undesirable thoughts immediately on their arising. For sustained success
in substantially reducing and finally abolishing them, one should strengthen
the wholesome roots opposed to them whenever one meets the opportunity
to do so. Non-greed should be enhanced by selflessness, generosity and
acts of renunciation; non-hate by patience and compassion; nondelusion
by cultivating clarity of thought and a penetrative understanding of reality.
The second method for removing unwholesome
thoughts is that of evoking repugnance and a sense of danger with regard
to them. The simile in the discourse is that of a well-dressed young man
or woman who feels horrified, humiliated and disgusted when the carcass
of an animal is slung around his or her neck. Calling to mind the unworthiness
of evil thoughts will produce a sense of shame (hiri) and abhorrence.
The awareness that these unwholesome thoughts are harmful and dangerous
will produce a deterring 'dread of consequences' (ottappa). This
method of evoking repugnance may also serve as an aid for returning to
the first method of 'replacement by good thoughts', unless one has now
become able to check the intruding thoughts through the second method.
This method can be very effective when encounters in ordinary life call
for quick restraint of the mind.
By the third method one tries to ignore undesirable
thoughts by diverting one's attention to other thoughts or activities.
Here the simile is that of closing one's eyes at a disagreeable sight or
looking in another direction. If this method is applied during a session
of meditation,. it may require a temporary interruption of the meditation.
For a diverting occupation, the commentary gives as examples recitation,
reading or looking through the contents of one's bag (or pocket). Reciting
or reading may be helpful outside meditative practice, too. Until those
troublesome thoughts have subsided, one might also take up some little
work
that requires attention.
The fourth method is illustrated
in the discourse by a man who runs fast and then asks himself. 'Why should
I run?' and he slows down; he then continues that process of calming his
activity by successively standing still, sitting and lying down. This simile
suggests that this method involves a sublimating and refining of the coarse
unwholesome thoughts. But as this sublimation is a slow and gradual process,
it may not be applicable to a meditative situation when a quicker remedial
action is required. The commentarial interpretation seems, therefore, to
be preferable: one traces unwholesome thoughts back to the thoughts or
the situation which caused them to arise and then tries to remove that
thought source from one's mind. This may often be easier than confronting
directly the fullgrown end-result. It will also help to divert the mind
(according to the third method) from those unwholesome thoughts, which
at this stage may be hard to dislodge. We may thus describe the fourth
method as 'tracing the thought source'. But from the longer view of a continued
endeavour to eliminate the harmful thoughts, interpreting this method as
sublimation and gradual refinement need not be excluded. Such refinement
can reduce the intensity and the immoral quality of the three unwholesome
roots and even divert their energy into wholesome channels.
The fifth and
last method is that of vigorous suppression. This method is to be applied
when unwholesome thoughts have gained such a strength that they threaten
to become unmanageable and to bring about situations of grave peril, practically
and morally. The discourse illustrates this method by a strongbodied man
forcing down a weaker person by sheer physical strength.
If the application of these five methods
is not neglected but is kept alive in meditative practice as well as in
ordinary circumstances, one can expect a marked and progressive weakening
of the three unwholesome roots, culminating in the perfect mastery of thoughts
promised at the end of the sutta.
25. FOR ONE'S OWN SAKE
For one's own sake, monks, vigilant mindfulness should
be made the mind's guard and this for four reasons:
'May my mind not harbour lust for anything
inducing lust!' - for this reason vigilant mindfulness should be made the
mind's guard, for one's own sake.
'May my mind not harbour hatred toward
anything inducing hatred!' - for this reason vigilant mindfulness should
be made the mind's guard, for one's own sake.
'May my mind not harbour delusion concerning
anything inducing delusion!' - for this reason vigilant mindfulness should
be made the mind's guard, for one's own sake.
'May my mind not be infatuated by anything
inducing infatuation!' -for this reason vigilant mindfulness should be
made the mind's guard, for one's own sake.
When now, monks, a monk's mind does
not harbour lust for lust-inducing things, because he is free from lust;
when his mind does not harbour hatred
toward hateinducing things, because he is free from hatred;
when his mind does not harbour delusion
concerning anything inducing delusion, because he is free from delusion;
when his mind is not infatuated by
anything inducing infatuation, because he is free from infatuation - then
such a monk will not waver, shake or tremble, he will not succumb to fear,
nor will he adopt the views of other recluses.21
Anguttara Nikaya, 4:17
26. THE NOBLE POWER
Monks, it is good for a monk if, from time to time:
he perceives the repulsive in the
unrepulsive,
if he perceives the unrepulsive in
the repulsive,
if he perceives the repulsive in both
the unrepulsive and the repulsive,
if he perceives the unrepulsive in
both the repulsive and the unrepulsive,
if he avoids both the repulsive and
the unrepulsive (aspects), and dwells in equanimity, mindful and clearly
comprehending.
But with what motive should a monk
perceive the repulsive in the unrepulsive? 'May no lust arise in me for
lust-inducing objects!' - it is with such a motive that he should perceive
in this way.
With what motive should he perceive
the unrepulsive in the repulsive? 'May no hatred arise in me towards hate-inducing
objects!' - it is with such a motive that he should perceive in this way.
With what motive should he perceive
the repulsive in the unrepulsive as well as in the
repulsive? 'May no lust arise in me for lust-inducing objects nor hatred
towards hateinducing objects!' - it is with such a motive that he should
perceive in this way.
With what motive should he perceive
the unrepulsive in the repulsive as well as in the unrepulsive? 'May no
hatred arise in me towards hate-inducing objects nor lust for lust-inducing
objects!' - it is with such a motive that he should perceive in this way.
With what motive should he avoid both
the repulsive and the unrepulsive, and dwell in equanimity, mindful and
clearly comprehending? 'May lust for lust-inducing objects, hatred towards
hate-inducing objects, and delusion towards deluding objects never arise
in me anywhere in any way!'- it is with such a motive that he should avoid
both the repulsive and the unrepulsive, and dwell in equanimity, mindful
and clearly comprehending.
Anguttara Nikaya, 5: 144
Comment
This fivefold method of mastering perception is called
in Pali ariya iddhi, a term which may be rendered as noble power,
noble success or noble magic; or, alternatively, as the power, success
or magic of the noble ones (ariya). In its perfection, this arduous
practice can be ascribed only to Arahats as several suttas and commentaries
indicate. But, as our text shows at the beginning, the Buddha recommended
this training to the monks in general, including those in whom the three
unwholesome roots were still active. It is eradication of these roots which
is said to be the motivation for taking up this practice.
For applying this fivefold power, the following directions
have been given in the canon and commentaries.22
1. To perceive
the repulsive in the unrepulsive, one pervades attractive living beings
with the contemplation of the body's impurity; towards attractive inanimate
objects one applies the contemplation of impermanence.
2. To perceive the unrepulsive in the
repulsive, one pervades repulsive living beings with loving-kindness and
views repulsive inanimate objects as consisting of the four elements; but
living beings too ought to be contemplated by way of the elements.
3. To perceive the repulsive in both
the unrepulsive and the repulsive, one pervades both with the contemplation
of impurity and applies to them the contemplation of impermanence. Or,
if one has first judged a being to be attractive and later repulsive, one
now regards it as unrepulsive throughout, i.e. from the viewpoint of impurity
and impermanence. 23
4. To perceive the unrepulsive in both the repulsive
and the unrepulsive, one pervades both with loving-kindness and views both
as bare elements. Or, if one has first judged a being to be repulsive and
later attractive, one now regards it as unrepulsive throughout; i.e. from
the viewpoint of loving-kindness and as consisting of elements.
5. Avoiding both aspects, one applies the six-factored
equanimity of which it is said: 'On perceiving (any of the six sense objects,
including mental objects), he is neither glad nor sad, but keeps to equanimity
and is mindful and clearly comprehending.' He does not lust after a desirable
object nor does he hate an undesirable one; and where others thoughtlessly
allow delusion to arise, he does not give room to delusion. He remains
equammous towards the six objects, being equipped with the six-factored
equanimity which does not abandon the pure natural state of the mind.
These five methods of applying the noble power have
several applications. They are first for use during meditation, when images
of repulsive and unrepulsive beings or things arise in the mind. At such
a time one can overcome the attraction or aversion by dwelling on the counteractive
ideas - such as loving-kindness or analysis into elements -as long as required
to dispel the defilements. Second, these methods can be used in the encounters
of everyday life when the counteractive ideas must be tersely formulated
and rapidly applied. This will require previous familiarity with them and
alertness of mind. In encounters with repulsive people one may also think
of their good qualities and of their common human nature, with its failings
and sufferings. When meeting a physically attractive person, one may vividly
visualize that person's body as subject to ageing and decay.
These five modes of perception, as perfected in the
Arahat, reveal the high-point of the mind's sovereign mastery over the
world of feelings and emotions. They show a state where the response to
provocative objects, usually so habitually fixed, can be chosen at will.
This approach differs from that used in the contemplation of feelings-
as shown below (Text 31). In the latter the feeling-values of experience
are accepted as they are given, but by applying bare attention to them,
one 'stops short' at the feelings themselves without allowing them to grow
into the passionate reactions of lust or aversion. However, in this method
of the noble power, the meditator does not take the feeling-values for
granted; he does not accept them as they present themselves.
His response is to reverse the feeling-value (mode 1,
2),
to equalize the response to the repulsive and the unrepulsive (mode 3,
4) and to transcend both by mindful equanimity (mode 5).
These fives modes thus constitute a
subtle 'magic of transformation' by which pleasant and unpleasant feelings,
as they habitually arise, can be changed at will or replaced by equanimity.
A mind that has gone through this training has passed the most severe test,
indeed. Through that training, it obtains an increasing control over emotive
reactions, and internal independence from the influence of habits and passions.
It is said in the Satipatthana Sutta, 'He dwells independent and clings
to nothing.' These words conclude a statement recurring after each of the
exercises given in the sutta. In the light of the above observations, it
is significant that they also occur after the section on contemplation
of feelings found in that sutta.
According to our text, the purpose
for cultivating the noble power is the eradication of greed, hatred and
delusion. In a mind disciplined in this radical training, the root defilements
cannot find a fertile soil for growth. The training also provides the experiential
basis for comprehending the true nature of feelings as being relative and
subjective. This the five modes of the noble power demonstrate in a convincing
way. The relativity of feelings and of the emotions roused by them was
succinctly expressed by Aryadeva (2nd century CE):
By the same thing lust is incited in
one, hate in the other, delusion in the next. Hence sense objects have
no inherent value.
Catuh-Sataka, 8: 177
Perfection in applying this noble power
is the domain only of the truly noble ones, the Arahats, whose mastery
of mind and strength of will are equal to the task of exercising it effortlessly.
But also on much lower levels, an earnest endeavour to develop this noble
power will be of great benefit. In the text here commented upon, the Buddha
does not restrict the cultivation of the noble power to Arahats, but begins
his exposition with the words: 'It is good for a monk . . .'. We may add:
not only for a monk. Prior practice of right mindfulness (satipatthana),
however,
will be indispensable. Of particular importance is the contemplation of
feelings, by which one learns to distinguish between the feeling linked
with a perception and the subsequent emotional reaction to it.
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