The third bojjhaṅga is viriya (effort) as in sammā-vāyāmo in the Noble Eightfold Path. Great effort is required, but the effort is not to react, to let things just happen. Even if you have been victorious in 1,000 battles against 1,000 warriors, this inner battle of non- reaction is more difficult because the old habit is to do something, to react. Some pressure is necessary to drill a hole in a precious gem, but too much pressure will break it. It is a middle path. As you keep practising with sati, dhamma-vicaya, and viriya, the impurities go away, and you experience the fourth bojjhaṅga, pīti: rapture. You have to be careful. If you develop attachment to this free flow of pleasant vibrations throughout the body, if you look for it and cling to it, it is no longer a bojjhaṅga. If the understanding of anicca remains—that this is still the field of mind and matter, of arising and passing—then pīti becomes a factor of enlightenment. After this, the meditator experiences passaddhi: a state of deep tranquility and calmness. The mind becomes extremely peaceful, quiet, and tranquil. Again the meditator may have the false impression that this deep peace, never experienced before, is liberation. Just as pīti, can become a bondage if not used properly, in the same way, passaddhi can also become a bondage. You understand that it is only a midway rest-house: the final goal is still far away. You can check that the six sense doors are still functioning: open your eyes, or listen. You are still in the field of arising and passing. You have not transcended the field of mind and matter. Thoroughly examine this passaddhi, this deep, tranquil, calm experience. Although difficult to grasp, a subtle oscillation remains, and this sensation is called adukkhamasukhaṃ (neither pleasant nor unpleasant). In pīti, the experience was pleasant; now it is just peaceful, and the danger is that anicca is not experienced. Detachment from craving towards pleasant sensation or aversion towards unpleasant sensation is much easier than detachment from this feeling of peace. You must be very attentive, with a very sharp mind, feel the subtle oscillation, check the six sense doors, and keep understanding that this experience is anicca. If you are aware of the very subtle oscillation, arising and passing, then it becomes a bojjhaṅga and gives you the strength to move further. Your experience grows. ~SNG @ Chronicles of Dhamma!!!
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 14:22:34 +0000
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