TEACHINGS

When we hear something about Buddhism in the daily news we usually think of it having a background of huge idols and yellow-robed monks, with a thick atmosphere of incense fumes. We never feel that there is anything in it for us, except, maybe, an exotic spectacle.
But is that all there is in Buddhism? Do the news photographers take pictures of the real Buddhism? Do the glossy magazines show us the fundamentals, or only the externals? Let us see, then, what Buddhism really is, Buddhism as it was originally expounded and as it still exists underneath the external trappings and trimmings. Although generally regarded as a religion, Buddhism is basically a method of cultivating the mind. It is true that, with its monastic tradition and its emphasis on ethical factors, it possesses many of the surface characteristics that Westerners associate with religion. However, it is not theistic, since it affirms that the universe is governed by impersonal laws and not by any creator-god; it has no use for prayer, for the Buddha was a teacher and not a god; and it regards devotion not as a religious obligation but as a means of expressing gratitude to its founder and as a means of self-development. Thus it is not a religion at all from these points of view.
Again, Buddhism knows faith only in the sense of confidence in the way recommended by the Buddha. A Buddhist is not expected to have faith or to believe in anything merely because the Buddha said it, or because it is written in the ancient books, or because it has been handed down by tradition, or because others believe it. He may, of course, agree with himself to take the Buddha-doctrine as a working hypothesis and to have confidence in it; but he is not expected to accept anything unless his reason accepts it. This does not mean that everything can be demonstrated rationally, for many points lie beyond the scope of the intellect and can be cognized only by the development of higher faculties. But the fact remains that there is no need for blind acceptance of anything in the Buddha-doctrine.
Buddhism is a way of life based on the training of the mind. Its one ultimate aim is to show the way to complete liberation from suffering by the attainment of the Unconditioned, a state beyond the range of the normal untrained mind. Its immediate aim is to strike at the roots of suffering in everyday life.
All human activity is directed, either immediately or remotely, towards the attainment of happiness in some form or other; or, to express the same thing in negative terms, all human activity is directed towards liberation from some kind of unsatisfactoriness or dissatisfaction. Dissatisfaction, then, can be regarded as the starting point in human activity, with happiness as its ultimate goal. Dissatisfaction, the starting point in human activity, is also the starting point in Buddhism; and this point is expressed in the formula of the Four Basic Statements, which set out the fact of dissatisfaction, its cause, its cure, and the method of its cure. The First Basic Statement can be stated thus:

Dissatisfaction is Inescapable in En-self-ed Life

In its original meaning, the word which is here rendered as "dissatisfaction" and which is often translated as "suffering" embraces the meanings not only of pain, sorrow, and displeasure, but also of everything that is unsatisfactory, ranging from acute physical pain and severe mental anguish to slight tiredness, boredom, or mild disappointment.
Sometimes the term is rendered as "dissatisfaction" or "unsatisfactoriness"; in some contexts these are perhaps more accurate, while at other times the word "suffering" is more expressive. For this reason we shall use both "suffering" and "dissatisfaction" or "unsatisfactoriness" according to context.
In some translations of the original texts it is stated that birth is suffering, sickness is suffering, old age is suffering, and pleasure is suffering. In English, this last statement fails to make sense; but if we restate it as "pleasure is unsatisfactory" it becomes more readily understandable, for all pleasure is impermanent and is eventually succeeded by its opposite, and from this point of view at least it is unsatisfactory.
Now the Buddha-doctrine teaches that dissatisfaction or suffering is inescapable in en-self-ed life; and the term "en-self-ed life" needs some explanation. In brief, the doctrine teaches that the self, considered as a fixed, unchanging eternal soul, has no reality.
The central core of every being is not an unchanging soul but a life-current, an ever-changing stream of energy which is never the same for two consecutive seconds. The self, considered as an eternal soul, therefore, is a delusion, and when regarded from the ultimate standpoint it has no reality; and it is only within this delusion of selfhood that ultimate suffering can exist. When the self-delusion is finally transcended and the final enlightenment is attained, the ultimate state which lies beyond the relative universe is reached. In this ultimate state, the Unconditioned, suffering is extinguished; but while any element of selfhood remains, even though it is a delusion, suffering remains potentially within it.
We must understand, then, that the First Basic Statement does not mean that suffering is inescapable; it means that suffering is inescapable in enselfed life, or while the delusion of selfhood remains.
We can now move on to the Second Basic Statement, which says:

The Origin of Dissatisfaction is Craving

If you fall on a slippery floor and suffer from bruises, you say that the cause of your suffering is the slippery floor. In an immediate sense you are right, of course, and to say that the cause of your bruises is craving fails to make sense.
But the Second Statement does not refer to individual cases or to immediate causes. It means that the integrating force that holds together the life-current is self-centered craving; for this life-current — this self-delusion — contains in itself the conditions for suffering, while the slippery floor is merely an occasion for suffering.
It is obviously impossible, by the nature of the world we live in, to cure suffering by the removal of all the occasions for suffering; whereas it is possible in Buddhism to strike at its prime or fundamental cause. Therefore the Third Basic Statement states:

Liberation May Be Achieved by Destroying Craving

It is self-centered craving that holds together the forces which comprise the life-current, the stream of existence which we call the self; and it is only with self-delusion that unsatisfactoriness or suffering can exist. By the destruction of that which holds together the delusion of the self, the root cause of suffering is also destroyed.
The ultimate aim of Buddhist practice, then, is to annihilate the self. This is where a great deal of misunderstanding arises, and naturally so; but once it is realized that to annihilate the self is to annihilate a delusion, this misunderstanding disappears. When the delusion is removed, the reality appears; so that to destroy delusion is to reveal the reality. The reality cannot be discovered while the delusion of self continues to obscure it.
Now what is this reality which appears when the delusion is removed? The ultimate reality is the Unconditioned, called also the Unborn, the Unoriginated, the Uncreated, and the Uncompounded. We can, inadequately and not very accurately, describe it as a positive state of being. It is characterized by supreme bliss and complete freedom from suffering and is so utterly different from ordinary existence that no real description of it can be given. The Unconditioned can be indicated — up to a point — only by stating what it is not; for it is beyond words and beyond thought.
Hence, in the Buddhist texts, the Unconditioned is often explained as the final elimination from one's own mind, of greed, hatred and delusion. This, of course, also implies the perfection of the opposite positive qualities of selflessness, loving-kindness, and wisdom.
The attainment of the Unconditioned is the ultimate aim of all Buddhist practice, and is the same as complete liberation from dissatisfaction or suffering. This brings us to the last of the Four Basic Statements:

The Way of Liberation Is the Noble Eightfold Path

The eight factors of the path are these:

1. Right understanding, a knowledge of the true nature of existence.
2. Right thought, thought free from sensuality, ill-will and cruelty.
3. Right speech, speech without falsity, gossip, harshness, and idle babble.
4. Right action, or the avoidance of killing, stealing and adultery.
5. Right livelihood, an occupation that harms no conscious living being.
6. Right effort, or the effort to destroy the defilements of the mind and to cultivate wholesome qualities.
7. Right mindfulness, the perfection of the normal faculty of attention.
8. Right concentration, the cultivation of a collected, focused mind through meditation.

Now you will see that in this Noble Eightfold Path there is nothing of an essentially religious nature; it is more a sort of moral psychology.
But in the East as well as in the West people as a whole demand external show of some sort, and — on the outside at least — the non-essentials have assumed more importance than the essentials.
While some external features in the practice of Buddhism must of necessity vary according to environment, the essential and constant characteristics of that practice are summed up in the following outline of the Noble Eightfold Path, the Middle Way between harmful extremes, as taught by the Buddha.
Although it is convenient to speak of the various aspects of the eightfold path as eight steps, they are not to be regarded as separate steps, taken one after another. On the contrary, each one must be practiced along with the others, and it might perhaps be better to think of them as if they were eight parallel lanes within the one road rather than eight successive steps.
The first step of this path, right understanding, is primarily a matter of seeing things as they really are — or at least trying to do so without self-deceit or evasion. In another sense, right understanding commences as an intellectual appreciation of the nature of existence, and as such it can be regarded as the beginning of the path; but, when the path has been followed to the end, this merely intellectual appreciation is supplanted by a direct and penetrating discernment of the principles of the teaching first accepted intellectually.
While right understanding can be regarded as the complete understanding of the Buddha doctrine, it is based on the recognition of three dominating characteristics of the relative universe, of the universe of time, form and matter. These three characteristics can briefly be set out in this way:

1. Impermanence: All things in the relative universe are unceasingly changing.
2. Dissatisfaction: Some degree of suffering or dissatisfaction is inherent in en-selfed life, or in life within the limitations of the relative universe and personal experience.
3. Egolessness: No being — no human being or any other sort of being — possesses a fixed, unchanging, eternal soul or self. Instead, every being consists of an ever-changing current of forces, an ever-changing flux of material and mental phenomena, like a river which is always moving and is never still for a single second.

The self, then, is not a static entity but an ever-changing flux. This dynamic concept of existence is typical of deeper Buddhist thought; there is nothing static in life, and since it is ever-flowing you must learn to flow with it.
Another aspect of right understanding is the recognition that the universe runs its course on the basis of a strict sequence of cause and effect, or of action and reaction, a sequence just as invariable and just as exact in the mental or moral realm as in the physical. In accordance with this law of moral action and reaction all morally good or wholesome will actions eventually bring to the doer happiness at some time, while unwholesome or morally bad will-actions bring suffering to the doer.
The effects of wholesome and unwholesome will-actions — that is to say, the happiness and suffering that result from them — do not generally follow immediately; there is often a considerable time-lag, for the resultant happiness and suffering can arise only when appropriate conditions are present. The results may not appear within the present lifetime. Thus at death there is normally a balance of "merit" which has not yet brought about its experience of happiness; and at the same time there is also a balance of "demerit" which has not yet given rise to the suffering which is to be its inevitable result.
After death, the body disintegrates, of course, but the life-current continues, not in the form of an unchanging soul, but in the form of an ever-changing stream of energy. Immediately after death a new being commences life to carry on this life current; but the new being is not necessarily a human being, and the instantaneous rebirth may take place on another plane of existence. But in any case, the new being is a direct sequel to the being that has just died.
Thus the new being becomes an uninterrupted continuation of the old being, and the life-current is unbroken. The new being inherits the balance of merit built up by the old being, and this balance of merit will inevitably bring happiness at some future time. At the same time, the new being inherits the old being's balance of demerit, which will bring suffering at some time in the future.
In effect, in the sense of continuity, the new being is the same as the old being. In just the same way — that is, in the sense of continuity only — an old man is the same as the young man he once was, the young man is the same as the boy he once was, and the boy is the same as the baby he once was. But the identity of the old man with the young man, and with the boy, and with the baby, is due only to continuity; there is no other identity.
Everything in the universe changes from day to day and from moment to moment, so that every being at this moment is a slightly different being from that of the moment before; the only identity is due to continuity. In the same way, the being that is reborn is different from the previous one that died; but the identity due to continuity remains as before.
These teachings are basic to the Buddha-doctrine — the illusory nature of the self, the law of action and reaction in the moral sphere, and the rebirth of the life-forces — but there is no need for anyone to accept anything that does not appeal to his reason. Acceptance of any particular teaching is unimportant; what is important is the continual effort to see things as they really are, without self-deceit or evasion.
So much for a brief outline of the doctrine under the heading of right understanding. The second step, right thought or aim, is a matter of freeing the intellectual faculties from adverse emotional factors, such as sensuality, ill-will, and cruelty, which render wise and unbiased decisions impossible.
Right speech, right action, and right livelihood together make up the moral section of the path, their function being to keep the defilements of the mind under control and to prevent them from reaching adverse expression. These defilements, however, cannot be completely eradicated by morality alone, and the other steps of the path must be applied to cleanse the mind completely of its defilements.
Now in the next step — right effort — we enter the sphere of practical psychology, for right effort in this context means effort of will. In other words, the sixth step of the path is self-discipline, the training of the will in order to prevent and overcome those states of mind that retard development, and to arouse and cultivate those that bring about mental progress.
The seventh step of the path is also one of practical psychology; this is the step called right mindfulness, and it consists of the fullest possible development of the ordinary faculty of attention. It is largely by the development of attention — expanded and intensified awareness — that the mind can eventually become capable of discerning things as they really are.
The primary function of the seventh step, right mindfulness, is to develop an increasing awareness of the unreality of the self. However, it functions also by continually improving the normal faculty of attention, thus equipping the mind better to meet the problems and stresses of the workaday world.
In the Buddha-way, mindfulness consists of developing the faculty of attention so as to produce a constant awareness of all thoughts that arise, all words that are spoken, and all actions that are done, with a view to keeping them free from self-interest, from emotional bias, and from self-delusion.
Right mindfulness has many applications in the sphere of everyday activities. For example, it can be employed to bring about a sharpened awareness, a clear comprehension, of the motives of these activities, and this clear comprehension of motive is extremely important.
In right concentration, the last of the eight steps, the cultivation of higher mind-states — up to the meditative absorptions — is undertaken, and these higher mind-states serve to unify, purify, and strengthen the mind for the achievement of liberating insight.
In this ultimate achievement the delusion of selfhood, with its craving and suffering, is transcended and extinguished.
This penetrating insight is the ultimate goal of all Buddhist practices, and with it comes a direct insight into the true nature of life, culminating in realization of the Unconditioned. While the Unconditioned is the extinction of self, it is nevertheless not mere non-existence or annihilation, for the extinction of self is nothing but the extinction of a delusion. Every description of the Unconditioned must fail, for it lies not only beyond words but beyond even thought; and the only way to know it is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path to its end.
This, then, is the original Buddhism; this is the Buddhism of the Noble Eightfold Path, of the path that leads from the bondage of self to liberating insight into reality.

BUDDHISM

The Mind-Doctrine, or Buddha's teaching on Mind, is the heart of his message. It is the sum of human wisdom. It does not deal with something foreign, far, or antiquated. It deals with that which is common to all humanity, ever young, and nearer to man than hands and feet. The message of the Buddha comes to the world as an effective way of help in present-day problems. It is a radical cure for the ever-present ills. Some of us may doubt, How could words spoken 2600 years ago have any relevance to our modern world? Time and distance in space cannot alter the Eternal Truths or render them ineffective. Has not the teaching from Nazareth reached many nations far from Nazareth and become an important part of their life and thought? Are not the mathematical laws of Greece relevant today in Britain or elsewhere? The objectors should consider the numerous basic facts of life that are common to all humanity. It is about them the Buddha prominently speaks. True wisdom is always young and always within the grasp of an open mind. In the Buddhist doctrine, mind is the starting point, the focal point and also the culminating point in the liberated and purified saint. The Dhammapada, the popular Buddhist scripture, opens with the words: "All that we are is the result of what we have thought: all that we are is founded on our thoughts and formed of our thoughts." These momentous words lead straight home, into man's very heart. Mind is the nearest to us, as through mind alone we become aware of the external world—including our own body. If mind is comprehended, all other things are comprehended. Mind is the source of all good and evil that arises within and befalls us from without. The words of the Buddha in the first two verses of The Dhammapada bring home this fact: ...If a man speaks or acts with an evil thought, pain pursues him, as the wheel of the wagon follows the hoof of the ox that draws it. (Verse 1) ...If a man speaks or acts with a pure thought, happiness pursues him like his own shadow that never leaves him. (Verse 2) Turning into the recesses of one's own mind from disastrous paths will result in saving the world from its present crisis. Only through a change within, will there be a change without. If there is a well-ordered and strong inner centre in our mind, any confusion at the periphery will gradually disappear. Discipline or confusion of the society corresponds to and follows the discipline or confusion of individual minds. But the amelioration of the suffering of humanity will not have to wait for the Dawn of a Golden Age when all men are good. We know from history that a single truly saintly man could form the focal point for "good," around whom will rally those who have not the courage to take the lead but are willing to follow. Better nature always prevails and "good" has a strong infectious power over "evil." One should have the courage to put it to the test. One should surely appreciate the great curative and theoretical results achieved by modern analytical psychology, particularly of C. G. Jung who has taken a definite turn towards the appreciation of Eastern Wisdom. The modern science of the mind may well supplement the Mind-Doctrine of the Buddha. It may translate it into the conceptual language of the modern age, facilitate its curative and the critical application to a particular individual or to the social problems of the present time. But the decisive fundamentals of the Buddha's Mind-Doctrine have retained their full validity and potency unimpaired by any change of time. This is because the thypical events in human life and our physical and mental make-up remain unaltered—pain and pleasure reacting on the body—the same as happened as of old. The Buddha's Mind-Doctrine is based on an exceptionally clear grasp of these two factors. This bestows on it its timeless character, its undiminished modernity and validity. The Buddha's message as a time-honoured Doctrine of the Mind, teaches three things: (1) To know the mind—so near to us, yet so unknown. (2) To shape the mind—so unwieldy and obstinate, yet may turn so pliant. (3) To free the mind—in bondage all over, yet may win freedom here and now. Dhamma-Vandana (as given in Discourse Summaries by S. N. Goenka, p. 101) says: Clearly expounded is the Teaching of the Exalted One [Buddha]: To be seen [practised] for oneself. Giving results here and now Inviting one to come and see [try and know] Leading straight to the goal Capable of being realized for oneself By any intelligent person. The Mahayana Buddhist text, The Voice of the Silence, says: "Mind is the great Slayer of the Real. Let the Disciple slay the Slayer." The "Real" is beyond mind. But only the mind of the disciple slays the Real. It becomes the slayer. It is interesting to note that again mind is the instrument to slay the "slayer"—just as a diamond is cut into pieces by another diamond. Only "mindfulness" can know, shape and free the mind and experience the Real beyond mind. A knife in the hands of a murderer kills life and the same in the hands of a surgeon saves life. Man should know the enormous power of the mind and use it "mindfully" to redeem the sorrow and suffering in the world and "make the earth an Eden, like the Heaven above," and not turn it into a Pandora's box. Understanding the functioning of our mind forms the basis of Buddhist philosophy and practice; as the first verse of the Dhammapada (quotations from the Buddha) states: "All things are preceded by the mind, led by the mind, created by the mind." Similarly, in the Abidharma (the earliest attempt at a systematic representation of Buddhist philosophy and psychology), the world is regarded as a phenomena originating in the mind. Mind is defined in Buddhism as a non-physical phenomenon which perceives, thinks, recognises, experiences and reacts to the environment.  The mind is described as having two main aspects: clarity and knowing; meaning that the mind is clear, formless and allows for objects to arise in it, and that the mind is knowing, an awareness, a consciousness which can engage with objects. "What is the mind? It is a phenonmenon that is not body, not substantial, has no form, no shape, no color, but, like a mirror, can clearly reflect objects."  Lama Zopa Rinpoche The two main types of mind are explained as the conceptual and the non-conceptual. The conceptual is the "normal" mind aspect we use to survive in daily life, but is ultimately mistaken about the way in which reality exists. The non-conceptual type of mind is also called the Buddha nature, rigpa (Tib.), fundamental pure nature of mind which realises emptiness (see the page onWisdom).  Study and training the mind in wisdom uses the conceptual mind, like preparing the mind before the underlying non-conceptual Buddha-nature of the mind can appear. In Buddhist psychology, much emphasis is given to the so-called delusions, which we need to diminish and ultimately even eliminate for spiritual progress. An over 1800 year old 'one-liner' by Nagarjuna: "Without the discipline of guarding the mind, what use are any other disciplines?" Ayya Khema: "In Pali, heart and mind are one word (citta), but in English we have to differentiate between the two to make the meaning clear.  When we attend to the mind, we are concerned with the thinking process and the intellectual understanding that derives from knowledge, and with our ability to retain knowledge and make use of it.  When we speak of "heart" we think of feelings and emotions, our ability to respond with our fundamental being.  Although we may believe that we are leading our lives according to our thinking process, that is not the case. If we examine this more closely, we will find that we are leading our lives according to our feelings and that our thinking is dependent upon our feelings. The emotional aspect of ourselves is of such great importance that its purification is the basis for a harmonious and peaceful life, and also for good meditation." For more information on counteracting these delusions, like anger and attachment, see the pages on delusions. THE AGGREGATES A 'person' can be described as a number of phenomena into a single working unit. In Western philosophy, one usually refers to Body, Mind and (sometimes) Soul or Spirit. In Buddhism, the Five Aggregates (Skandhas in Skt.) are used to analyse a person. Please note that the terminology can be confusing, as e.g. the term 'Feeling' refers to something very specific here: : 1. Form (rupa Skt.) - the body  2. Primary Consciousness (vijnana in Skt.) - Awareness, experience, in the sense that the presence of consciousness together with the sense organ and the object of the sense organ produces a sense experience or awareness. 3. Perception (samjna Skt.) - the five sense consciousnesses (smell, touch, taste, seeing and hearing) and mental consciousness, in other words, direct perception. Perception also refers to the activity of recognition, or identification, such as attaching a name to an object of experience. It includes the formulation of a concept about a particular object. 4. Feeling (vedana in Skt.) - this refers only to the mental separation of perceptions into pleasant, unpleasant and neutral (nothing more). 5. Compositional Factors, Volition (samskara Skt.) - these are all other remaining mental processes, in general "thoughts". To begin with, it is interesting to see that four out of five aggregates are concerning the mind, and they do not directly correspond to the divisions made in Western psychology at all. Furthermore, the distinctions in Buddhist psychology are made from the point of view of how to obtain liberation and buddhahood; and certainly not to figure out how 'the brain works'.  Simply said, in Buddhism, the brain is considered a part of the body where many of the instructions of the mind are led to the other parts of the body, it is not regarded as the 'factory of thoughts'; thoughts are purely a function of the non-physical mind. "From contact comes feeling.  From feeling comes reaction.  This is what keeps us in the cycle of birth and death.  Our reactions to our feelings are our passport to rebirth."  Ayya Khema To use a simple example of how this works, let's say: something touches our hand: - This is physical contact, and (as we know from Western science) our nerve cells pick up the movement of the skin, and translate it into energy (more subtle part of the Body).  - This energy is then picked up by Primary Consciousness, which is an aspect of the mind, in Buddhism, this is actually called the Contact (see below as the 5th. Omnipresent Mental Factor); the contact between the physical and the mental aspects. - Next, the mental process of Feeling evaluates the Perception and decides it to be pleasant, unpleasant or neutral.  - Simultaneously, Perception (Recognition/Discrimination) gets to work in finding out what the thing is that touches my hand, is it pressure or heat, etc. and is it related to other information; maybe I see a table near my hand and consider it likely that my hand must be touching the table. - Based on the Feeling and Discrimination, the mind creates the Compositional Factors/Volition, which are for example, the reaction to the hand to withdraw if it is unpleasant, an instruction to the eyes to check what is touching the hand, possibly projections/thoughts like 'it must be this bothersome fly again' or 'I am touching the table I am walking past' etc. ^Top of Page THE MIND AS OUR SOFTWARE To illustrate the Buddhist approach to the mind, let us compare our body and mind to a computer. In this simile, the body is the hardware and the mind is the software. As mentioned above, the mind is defined as a non-physical phenomena which perceives, thinks, recognises, experiences and reacts to the environment, not unlike computer software.  Although software needs to be imprinted or registered in something like the hard-drive before it can do anything, in itself, a program represents a lot of thinking by the software manufacturer. Without software (mind), the hardware (body) is just a 'dead thing'. The hardware (body) is of course important in what the computer can do; how fast it is, which programs can be run, and how the computer can interact with the world. However good the hardware is, it can ultimately only perform what the program 'knows'. The hardware can get damaged, or even 'die', and the software can be moved onto another set of hardware; not unlike rebirth! The software needs to use the 'senses' of the hardware, like the keyboard, the mousea, a video camera, a modem etc. to receive 'input'; just like the mind needs the senses the receive the 'input' of the outside world. This leads to an important observation: it is easy to recognise that a computer is not 'objective' about the world; depending on what kind of video camera, microphone or modem we connect it to, the input will be different. Similarly, our bodily senses cannot really be objective: people's ears are different, the eyes are different etc., so how can someone ever claim to be an 'objective observer'? Above and beyond that lies the software; the more advanced this is, the more 'intelligent' it will be able to read the world and determine what is the best thing to do. Similarly, the more advanced our mind is, the more intelligent and wise we will be, providing we are not hampered by serious physical problems. As the software actually determines what the hardware does, so is the mind the master of the body - within the physical limitations of the body. But the Buddha made it clear that a human body is the best type of available hardware! There are limits to the development of the hardware; for example, the amount of electrical circuits on chips is getting larger and larger, but there are physical limits which the developers encounter. With the software, the limit appears to be much less clear; the first types of computers behaved with the intelligence of an on/off switch, but already they can beat a grandmaster at chess and nobody can say where it will end. Similarly, Buddhism teaches that there is no real limit to the development of our mind, and in fact omniscience is possible. At that stage, all our normal values and concepts dissolve as limited and non-objective. Buddhism encourages us to develop the software of our mind to enter into a different state which is beyond limitations, suffering and problems. The method to develop our mind is summarised as study and meditation. Initially, we need to understand how the programs of our mind work and how they can be improved, and then do the reprogramming in meditation. This is why psychology and meditation are so important. Below listing of aspects of the mind may appear very dry and boring, but remember, so are computer manuals... CLEAR-LIGHT MIND In Tibetan Buddhism, often the so-called 'clear-light mind' is mentioned. This is the most subtle level of mind (see also death & rebirth), which we are normally not even aware of. It appears to the very advanced meditator and during the death process, but in this case, also only advanced meditators will be able to notice it. It is a non-conceptual, 'primordial' state of mind. From a talk given by HH Dalai Lama. Oct. 11-14, 1991 New York City. Path of Compassion teaching preliminary to Kalachakra:  Question: When people hear of luminosity of clear light that dawns at the moment of death they ask why it is called clear light. What has this got to do with light as we know it?  Dalai Lama: "I don't think that in the term clear light, light should be taken literally. It is sort of metaphoric. This could have its roots in our terminology of mental will. According to Buddhism, all consciousness or all cognitive mental events are said to be in the nature of clarity and luminosity. So it is from that point of view that the choice of the term light is used. Clear light is the most subtle level of mind, which can be seen as the basis or the source from which eventual experience or realisation of Buddhahood, Buddha's wisdom might come about, therefore it is called clear light. Clear light is a state of mind which becomes fully manifest only as a consequence of certain sequences or stages of dissolution, where the mind becomes devoid of certain types of obscurations, which are again metaphorically described in terms of sun-like, moonlike and darkness. These refer to the earlier three stages of dissolution which are technically called, including the clear light stage, the four empties. At the final stage of dissolution the mind is totally free of all these factors of obscuration. Therefore it is called clear light. Sort of a light. It is also possible to understand the usage of the term clear light in terms of the nature of mind itself. Mind or consciousness is a phenomena which lacks any obstructive quality. It is non-obstructed." A teaching from Venerable Ajahn Chah (Pra Bhodinyana Thera): "About this mind... In truth there is nothing really wrong with it. It is intrinsically pure. Within itself it's already peaceful. That the mind is not peaceful these days is because it follows moods. The real mind doesn't have anything to it, it is simply (an aspect of) Nature. It becomes peaceful or agitated because moods deceive it. The untrained mind is stupid. Sense impressions come and trick it into happiness, suffering, gladness and sorrow, but the mind's true nature is none of those things. That gladness or sadness is not the mind, but only a mood coming to deceive us. The untrained mind gets lost and follows these things, it forgets itself. Then we think that it is we who are upset or at ease or whatever.  But really this mind of ours is already unmoving and peaceful... really peaceful! Just like a leaf which is still as long as no wind blows. If a wind comes up the leaf flutters. The fluttering is due to the wind -- the 'fluttering' is due to those sense impressions; the mind follows them. If it doesn't follow them, it doesn't 'flutter.' If we know fully the true nature of sense impressions we will be unmoved.  Our practice is simply to see the Original Mind. So we must train the mind to know those sense impressions, and not get lost in them. To make it peaceful. Just this is the aim of all this difficult practice we put ourselves through." ^Top of Page 51 MENTAL FACTORS In the Abhidharmakosha of Vasubandu, 51 types of mind states or mental factors are distinguished. They are mainly categorised by the way they are related to the main delusions of attachment, anger and ignorance, (see below) and their relevance to mind training. Note that the English terms used often have different connotations than the actual definitions in Buddhism. Although below list may appear a dull list of definitions, a careful study of it can explain much of the Buddhist attitude towards the mind.  The list does not have the intention to be complete in describing all possible mental states, but describes merely the most important ones in relation to spiritual practice. THE 5 OMNIPRESENT (EVER-RECURRING) MENTAL FACTORS 1. Feeling (the first aggregate)  2. Recognition / discrimination / distinguishing awareness (the second aggregate)  3. Intention / mental impulse - I will ...  4. Concentration / attention / mental application - focused grasping of an object of awareness  5. Contact - the connection of an object with the mind, this may be pleasurable, painful or neutral as experienced by the aggregate of Feeling. THE 5 DETERMINATIVE MENTAL FACTORS 6. Resolution / aspiration - directing effort to fulfil desired intention, basis for diligence and enthusiasm.  7. Interest / appreciation - holding on to a particular thing, not allowing distraction  8. Mindfulness / Recollection - repeatedly bringing objects back to mind, not forgetting  9. Concentration / Samadhi - one-pointed focus on an object, basis for increasing intelligence  10. Intelligence / Wisdom - "common-sense intelligence", fine discrimination, examines characteristics of objects, stops doubt, maintains root of all wholesome qualities. THE 4 VARIABLE (POSITIVE OR NEGATIVE) MENTAL FACTORS 11. Sleep - makes mind unclear, sense consciousness turns inwards  12. Regret - makes mind unhappy when regarding a previously done action as bad, prevents the mind from being at ease.  13. General examination / coarse discernment - depending on intelligence or intention, searches for rough idea about the object.  14. Precise analysis / subtle discernment - depending on intelligence or intention, examines the object in detail. THE 11 VIRTUOUS MENTAL FACTORS (Note that 18 and 19 are not necessary always virtuous. The first 3 are also known as roots of virtue.) 15. Faith / confidence / respectful belief - gives us positive attitude to virtue and objects that are worthy of respect. Three types are distinguished, with the last one being the preferred type:    a. uncritical faith: motivation is for no apparent reason    b. longing faith: motivation is by an emotionally unstable mind    c. conviction: motivated by sound reasons  16. Sense of Propriety / self-respect - usually the personal conscience to stop negative actions and perform positive actions  17. Considerateness / decency - avoids evil towards others, basis for unspoiled moral discipline. 18. Suppleness / thorough training / flexibility - enables the mind to engage in positive acts as wished, interrupting mental or physical rigidity.  19. Equanimity / clear-minded tranquility - peaceful mind, not being overpowered by delusions, no mental dullness or agitation  20. Conscientiousness / carefulness - causes avoiding negative acts & doing good; mind with detachment, non-hatred, non-ignorance and enthusiasm  21. Renunciation / detachment - no attachment to cyclic existence and objects  22. Non hatred / imperturbability - no animosity to others or conditions; rejoicing  23. Non-bewilderment / non ignorance / open-mindedness - usually understanding the meaning of things through clear discrimination, never unwilling to learn  24. Non violence / complete harmlessness - compassion without any hatred, pacifist  25. Enthusiasm / diligence - doing positive acts (specifically mental development and meditation) with delight ^Top of Page THE 26 NON-VIRTUOUS MENTAL FACTORS THE 6 ROOT DELUSIONS (Delusion is defined as any secondary mental factor that, when developed, brings about suffering and uneasiness to self or others.) 26. Ignorance - not knowing karma, meaning and practice of 3 Jewels, includes closed-mindedness, lack of wisdom of emptiness. 27. Attachment / desire - definition: not wanting to be separated from someone or something. Grasping at aggregates in cyclic existence causes rebirth & suffering of existence  28. Anger - definition: wanting to be separated from someone or something, can lead to relentless desire to hurt others; causes unhappiness  29. Pride -  inflated superiority, supported by one's worldly views, which include disrespect of others  30. Doubt / deluded indecisive wavering - being in two minds about reality; usually leads to negative actions  31. Wrong views / speculative delusions - based on emotional afflictions. Distinguished in 5 types: belief in the self as permanent or non-existent (as opposite to the view of emptiness); denying karma, not understanding the value of the 3 Jewels; closed-mindedness (my view -which is wrong- is best); wrong conduct (not towards liberation) THE 20 SECONDARY NON-VIRTUOUS MENTAL FACTORS Derived from anger:  32. Wrath / hatred - by increased anger, malicious state wishing to cause immediate harm to others  33. Vengeance / malice / resentment - not forgetting harm done by a person, and seeking to return harm done to oneself  34. Rage / spite / outrage - intention to utter harsh speech in reply to unpleasant words, when wrath and malice become unbearable  35. Cruelty / vindictiveness / mercilessness - being devoid of compassion or kindness, seeking harm to others. Derived from anger and attachment:  36. Envy / jealousy - internal anger caused by attachment; unbearable to bear good things others have Derived from attachment:  37. Greed / avarice / miserliness - intense clinging to possessions and their increase  38. Vanity / self-satisfaction - seeing one's good fortune giving one a false sense of confidence; being intoxicated with oneself  39. Excitement / wildness / mental agitation - distraction towards desire objects, not allowing the mind to rest on something wholesome; obstructs single pointed concentration. Derived from ignorance:  40. Concealment - hiding one's negative qualities when others with good intention refer to them this causes regret  41. Dullness / muddle-headedness - caused by fogginess which makes mind dark/heavy - like when going to sleep, coarse dullness is when the object is unclear, subtle dullness is when the object has no intense clarity  42. Faithlessness - no belief of that which is worthy of respect; it can be the idea that virtue is unnecessary, or a mistaken view of virtue; it forms the basis for laziness (43)  43. Laziness - being attached to temporary pleasure, not wanting to do virtue or only little; opposite to diligence [25])  44. Forgetfulness - causes to not clearly remember virtuous acts, inducing distraction to disturbing objects - not "just forgetting", but negative tendency  45. Inattentiveness / lack of conscience - "distracted wisdom" after rough or no analysis, not fully aware of one's conduct,  careless indifference and moral failings; intentional seeking mental distraction like daydreaming Derived from attachment and ignorance:  46. Hypocrisy / pretension - pretend non-existent qualities of oneself  47. Dishonesty / smugness - hiding one's faults, giving no clear answers, no regret, snobbery & conceit, self-importance and finding faults with others Derived from attachment, anger and ignorance 48. Shamelessness - consciously not avoiding evil, it supports all root and secondary delusions 49. Inconsiderateness - not avoiding evil, being inconsiderate of other's practice, ingratitude  50. Unconscientiousness / carelessness- 3 delusions plus laziness; wanting to act unrestrained  51. Distraction / mental wandering - inability to focus on any virtuous object When you hear something about Buddhism in the daily news you usually think of it having a background of huge idols and yellow-robed monks, with a thick atmosphere of incense fumes. You never feel that there is anything in it for you, except, maybe, an exotic spectacle. But is that all there is in Buddhism? Do the news photographers take pictures of the real Buddhism? Do the glossy magazines show you the fundamentals, or only the externals? Let us see, then, what Buddhism really is, Buddhism as it was originally expounded and as it still exists underneath the external trappings and trimmings. Although generally regarded as a religion, Buddhism is basically a method of cultivating the mind. It is true that, with its monastic tradition and its emphasis on ethical factors, it possesses many of the surface characteristics that Westerners associate with religion. However, it is not theistic, since it affirms that the universe is governed by impersonal laws and not by any creator-god; it has no use for prayer, for the Buddha was a teacher and not a god; and it regards devotion not as a religious obligation but as a means of expressing gratitude to its founder and as a means of self-development. Thus it is not a religion at all from these points of view. Again, Buddhism knows faith only in the sense of confidence in the way recommended by the Buddha. A Buddhist is not expected to have faith or to believe in anything merely because the Buddha said it, or because it is written in the ancient books, or because it has been handed down by tradition, or because others believe it. He may, of course, agree with himself to take the Buddha-doctrine as a working hypothesis and to have confidence in it; but he is not expected to accept anything unless his reason accepts it. This does not mean that everything can be demonstrated rationally, for many points lie beyond the scope of the intellect and can be cognized only by the development of higher faculties. But the fact remains that there is no need for blind acceptance of anything in the Buddha-doctrine. Buddhism is a way of life based on the training of the mind. Its one ultimate aim is to show the way to complete liberation from suffering by the attainment of the Unconditioned, a state beyond the range of the normal untrained mind. Its immediate aim is to strike at the roots of suffering in everyday life. All human activity is directed, either immediately or remotely, towards the attainment of happiness in some form or other; or, to express the same thing in negative terms, all human activity is directed towards liberation from some kind of unsatisfactoriness or dissatisfaction. Dissatisfaction, then, can be regarded as the starting point in human activity, with happiness as its ultimate goal. Dissatisfaction, the starting point in human activity, is also the starting point in Buddhism; and this point is expressed in the formula of the Four Basic Statements, which set out the fact of dissatisfaction, its cause, its cure, and the method of its cure. The First Basic Statement can be stated thus: Dissatisfaction is Inescapable in En-self-ed Life In its original meaning, the word which is here rendered as "dissatisfaction" and which is often translated as "suffering" embraces the meanings not only of pain, sorrow, and displeasure, but also of everything that is unsatisfactory, ranging from acute physical pain and severe mental anguish to slight tiredness, boredom, or mild disappointment. Sometimes the term is rendered as "dissatisfaction" or "unsatisfactoriness"; in some contexts these are perhaps more accurate, while at other times the word "suffering" is more expressive. For this reason we shall use both "suffering" and "dissatisfaction" or "unsatisfactoriness" according to context. In some translations of the original texts it is stated that birth is suffering, sickness is suffering, old age is suffering, and pleasure is suffering. In English, this last statement fails to make sense; but if we restate it as "pleasure is unsatisfactory" it becomes more readily understandable, for all pleasure is impermanent and is eventually succeeded by its opposite, and from this point of view at least it is unsatisfactory. Now the Buddha-doctrine teaches that dissatisfaction or suffering is inescapable in en-self-ed life; and the term "en-self-ed life" needs some explanation. In brief, the doctrine teaches that the self, considered as a fixed, unchanging eternal soul, has no reality. The central core of every being is not an unchanging soul but a life-current, an ever-changing stream of energy which is never the same for two consecutive seconds. The self, considered as an eternal soul, therefore, is a delusion, and when regarded from the ultimate standpoint it has no reality; and it is only within this delusion of selfhood that ultimate suffering can exist. When the self-delusion is finally transcended and the final enlightenment is attained, the ultimate state which lies beyond the relative universe is reached. In this ultimate state, the Unconditioned, suffering is extinguished; but while any element of selfhood remains, even though it is a delusion, suffering remains potentially within it. We must understand, then, that the First Basic Statement does not mean that suffering is inescapable; it means that suffering is inescapable in enselfed life, or while the delusion of selfhood remains. We can now move on to the Second Basic Statement, which says: The Origin of Dissatisfaction is Craving If you fall on a slippery floor and suffer from bruises, you say that the cause of your suffering is the slippery floor. In an immediate sense you are right, of course, and to say that the cause of your bruises is craving fails to make sense. But the Second Statement does not refer to individual cases or to immediate causes. It means that the integrating force that holds together the life-current is self-centered craving; for this life-current — this self-delusion — contains in itself the conditions for suffering, while the slippery floor is merely an occasion for suffering. It is obviously impossible, by the nature of the world we live in, to cure suffering by the removal of all the occasions for suffering; whereas it is possible in Buddhism to strike at its prime or fundamental cause. Therefore the Third Basic Statement states: Liberation May Be Achieved by Destroying Craving It is self-centered craving that holds together the forces which comprise the life-current, the stream of existence which we call the self; and it is only with self-delusion that unsatisfactoriness or suffering can exist. By the destruction of that which holds together the delusion of the self, the root cause of suffering is also destroyed. The ultimate aim of Buddhist practice, then, is to annihilate the self. This is where a great deal of misunderstanding arises, and naturally so; but once it is realized that to annihilate the self is to annihilate a delusion, this misunderstanding disappears. When the delusion is removed, the reality appears; so that to destroy delusion is to reveal the reality. The reality cannot be discovered while the delusion of self continues to obscure it. Now what is this reality which appears when the delusion is removed? The ultimate reality is the Unconditioned, called also the Unborn, the Unoriginated, the Uncreated, and the Uncompounded. We can, inadequately and not very accurately, describe it as a positive state of being. It is characterized by supreme bliss and complete freedom from suffering and is so utterly different from ordinary existence that no real description of it can be given. The Unconditioned can be indicated — up to a point — only by stating what it is not; for it is beyond words and beyond thought. Hence, in the Buddhist texts, the Unconditioned is often explained as the final elimination from one's own mind, of greed, hatred and delusion. This, of course, also implies the perfection of the opposite positive qualities of selflessness, loving-kindness, and wisdom. The attainment of the Unconditioned is the ultimate aim of all Buddhist practice, and is the same as complete liberation from dissatisfaction or suffering. This brings us to the last of the Four Basic Statements: The Way of Liberation Is the Noble Eightfold Path The eight factors of the path are these: Right understanding, a knowledge of the true nature of existence. Right thought, thought free from sensuality, ill-will and cruelty. Right speech, speech without falsity, gossip, harshness, and idle babble. Right action, or the avoidance of killing, stealing and adultery. Right livelihood, an occupation that harms no conscious living being. Right effort, or the effort to destroy the defilements of the mind and to cultivate wholesome qualities. Right mindfulness, the perfection of the normal faculty of attention. Right concentration, the cultivation of a collected, focused mind through meditation. Now you will see that in this Noble Eightfold Path there is nothing of an essentially religious nature; it is more a sort of moral psychology. But in the East as well as in the West people as a whole demand external show of some sort, and — on the outside at least — the non-essentials have assumed more importance than the essentials. While some external features in the practice of Buddhism must of necessity vary according to environment, the essential and constant characteristics of that practice are summed up in the following outline of the Noble Eightfold Path, the Middle Way between harmful extremes, as taught by the Buddha. Although it is convenient to speak of the various aspects of the eightfold path as eight steps, they are not to be regarded as separate steps, taken one after another. On the contrary, each one must be practiced along with the others, and it might perhaps be better to think of them as if they were eight parallel lanes within the one road rather than eight successive steps. The first step of this path, right understanding, is primarily a matter of seeing things as they really are — or at least trying to do so without self-deceit or evasion. In another sense, right understanding commences as an intellectual appreciation of the nature of existence, and as such it can be regarded as the beginning of the path; but, when the path has been followed to the end, this merely intellectual appreciation is supplanted by a direct and penetrating discernment of the principles of the teaching first accepted intellectually. While right understanding can be regarded as the complete understanding of the Buddha doctrine, it is based on the recognition of three dominating characteristics of the relative universe, of the universe of time, form and matter. These three characteristics can briefly be set out in this way: Impermanence: All things in the relative universe are unceasingly changing. Dissatisfaction: Some degree of suffering or dissatisfaction is inherent in en-selfed life, or in life within the limitations of the relative universe and personal experience. Egolessness: No being — no human being or any other sort of being — possesses a fixed, unchanging, eternal soul or self. Instead, every being consists of an ever-changing current of forces, an ever-changing flux of material and mental phenomena, like a river which is always moving and is never still for a single second. The self, then, is not a static entity but an ever-changing flux. This dynamic concept of existence is typical of deeper Buddhist thought; there is nothing static in life, and since it is ever-flowing you must learn to flow with it. Another aspect of right understanding is the recognition that the universe runs its course on the basis of a strict sequence of cause and effect, or of action and reaction, a sequence just as invariable and just as exact in the mental or moral realm as in the physical. In accordance with this law of moral action and reaction all morally good or wholesome will actions eventually bring to the doer happiness at some time, while unwholesome or morally bad will-actions bring suffering to the doer. The effects of wholesome and unwholesome will-actions — that is to say, the happiness and suffering that result from them — do not generally follow immediately; there is often a considerable time-lag, for the resultant happiness and suffering can arise only when appropriate conditions are present. The results may not appear within the present lifetime. Thus at death there is normally a balance of "merit" which has not yet brought about its experience of happiness; and at the same time there is also a balance of "demerit" which has not yet given rise to the suffering which is to be its inevitable result. After death, the body disintegrates, of course, but the life-current continues, not in the form of an unchanging soul, but in the form of an ever-changing stream of energy. Immediately after death a new being commences life to carry on this life current; but the new being is not necessarily a human being, and the instantaneous rebirth may take place on another plane of existence. But in any case, the new being is a direct sequel to the being that has just died. Thus the new being becomes an uninterrupted continuation of the old being, and the life-current is unbroken. The new being inherits the balance of merit built up by the old being, and this balance of merit will inevitably bring happiness at some future time. At the same time, the new being inherits the old being's balance of demerit, which will bring suffering at some time in the future. In effect, in the sense of continuity, the new being is the same as the old being. In just the same way — that is, in the sense of continuity only — an old man is the same as the young man he once was, the young man is the same as the boy he once was, and the boy is the same as the baby he once was. But the identity of the old man with the young man, and with the boy, and with the baby, is due only to continuity; there is no other identity. Everything in the universe changes from day to day and from moment to moment, so that every being at this moment is a slightly different being from that of the moment before; the only identity is due to continuity. In the same way, the being that is reborn is different from the previous one that died; but the identity due to continuity remains as before. These teachings are basic to the Buddha-doctrine — the illusory nature of the self, the law of action and reaction in the moral sphere, and the rebirth of the life-forces — but there is no need for anyone to accept anything that does not appeal to his reason. Acceptance of any particular teaching is unimportant; what is important is the continual effort to see things as they really are, without self-deceit or evasion. So much for a brief outline of the doctrine under the heading of right understanding. The second step, right thought or aim, is a matter of freeing the intellectual faculties from adverse emotional factors, such as sensuality, ill-will, and cruelty, which render wise and unbiased decisions impossible. Right speech, right action, and right livelihood together make up the moral section of the path, their function being to keep the defilements of the mind under control and to prevent them from reaching adverse expression. These defilements, however, cannot be completely eradicated by morality alone, and the other steps of the path must be applied to cleanse the mind completely of its defilements. Now in the next step — right effort — we enter the sphere of practical psychology, for right effort in this context means effort of will. In other words, the sixth step of the path is self-discipline, the training of the will in order to prevent and overcome those states of mind that retard development, and to arouse and cultivate those that bring about mental progress. The seventh step of the path is also one of practical psychology; this is the step called right mindfulness, and it consists of the fullest possible development of the ordinary faculty of attention. It is largely by the development of attention — expanded and intensified awareness — that the mind can eventually become capable of discerning things as they really are. The primary function of the seventh step, right mindfulness, is to develop an increasing awareness of the unreality of the self. However, it functions also by continually improving the normal faculty of attention, thus equipping the mind better to meet the problems and stresses of the workaday world. In the Buddha-way, mindfulness consists of developing the faculty of attention so as to produce a constant awareness of all thoughts that arise, all words that are spoken, and all actions that are done, with a view to keeping them free from self-interest, from emotional bias, and from self-delusion. Right mindfulness has many applications in the sphere of everyday activities. For example, it can be employed to bring about a sharpened awareness, a clear comprehension, of the motives of these activities, and this clear comprehension of motive is extremely important. In right concentration, the last of the eight steps, the cultivation of higher mind-states — up to the meditative absorptions — is undertaken, and these higher mind-states serve to unify, purify, and strengthen the mind for the achievement of liberating insight. In this ultimate achievement the delusion of selfhood, with its craving and suffering, is transcended and extinguished. This penetrating insight is the ultimate goal of all Buddhist practices, and with it comes a direct insight into the true nature of life, culminating in realization of the Unconditioned. While the Unconditioned is the extinction of self, it is nevertheless not mere non-existence or annihilation, for the extinction of self is nothing but the extinction of a delusion. Every description of the Unconditioned must fail, for it lies not only beyond words but beyond even thought; and the only way to know it is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path to its end. This, then, is the original Buddhism; this is the Buddhism of the Noble Eightfold Path, of the path that leads from the bondage of self to liberating insight into reality.