Categories: Maintaining Mindfulness
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!
Today, we continue our series of teachings for those of you practically engaged with your spiritual development. We will explore a topic at the very heart of the path: cultivating mindfulness. As we develop our minds and pay close attention to our inner world, we begin to observe its activities. We see thoughts coming and going thoughts of attachment, thoughts of aversion, good thoughts, and bad thoughts. We learn to identify each one.
This act of recognition is what makes it easier to understand who we truly are. This practice of mindfulness, or Sati as it’s called in the Pali language, helps us grasp the nature of our own minds. For those of you who are practically engaged in this, you have likely already realized how incredibly helpful this is.
To advance in spirituality, cultivating mindfulness is essential. According to the teachings of the Lord Buddha, if we wish to escape the cycle of rebirth, known as Samsara, and eradicate the mental defilements, or Kilesas, to reach a state of no-rebirth, we must develop mindfulness. Through Sati, it becomes necessary to understand our mind, our thoughts, and the thinking process itself. We are here to show you how to walk this path.
The Challenge of Mindlessness in Daily Life
We have previously explained how this practice supports the calming meditations, or Samatha, that we teach. It’s crucial to understand its importance. I mention these foundational words because if you are new to these teachings, I encourage you to explore our articles from the beginning.
Especially if you are interested in developing insight, or Vipassanā, please read our series on establishing mindfulness. A good place to start is the teaching on silently watching the mind. From there, you can explore the other articles in the series. As you put these teachings into practice, you will gain the ability to understand your mind and your thoughts.
Today, we will discuss how to practice cultivating mindfulness in our daily lives. We are engaged in various activities, day and night. The Buddha clearly taught us how to maintain mindfulness in all four postures: sitting, standing, walking, and lying down.
We have even explored how to develop mindfulness from the moment you go to bed until you awaken, and how to arise from sleep while maintaining this state. When we undertake this practice, you will surely realize that we spend most of our time in a state of heedlessness or mindlessness, which we call Asihiya. The time we spend actually watching our own mind is very short.
The Mindful Shift: From External Distraction to Internal Observation
We use our sense faculties the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body to direct our attention elsewhere. We are more inclined to investigate other things. We spend most of our time looking at others and external matters, leaving no time to investigate ourselves. You may have found yourself in a state where you have no time to look after yourself, a reality you might be experiencing right now.
Therefore, as we practice cultivating mindfulness, we must constantly look at our own minds. When we do this, we pay attention to whatever enters our mind through these five sense doors. Normally, what you do is focus on what you see, hear, or feel through these senses.
We cling to these things, we get into conflict over them, and we try to live with them. However, the unique quality of a person cultivating mindfulness is that they examine the data that comes in through these five doors. They subject it to investigation. As you practice this, you will learn to conduct this very investigation while attentively observing your mind.
Studying Yourself: A Practical Example of Mindfulness in Action
So, from the moment you wake up in the morning until you go to sleep at night, you engage in this practice of paying attention. But no matter how attentive we are, our mind tends to drift into mindlessness more often. This is because, even in this human existence, our predominant tendency is towards heedlessness.
For instance, if you see a beautiful image a handsome man or a lovely woman a person practicing mindfulness does not get lost in the image. Instead, they observe: ‘When this image enters my mind, do I get attached to it? Do I desire it? Do I feel aversion? Am I intoxicated by lust?’ This is what it means to study oneself.
But for most of our lives, what have we done? When we encounter such an image, we just keep looking at it. Thoughts arise like, ‘That’s beautiful, if only I could have it, if only I could make it mine.’ You are often not even aware that such thoughts are arising. A signal arises within you: ‘I must make this mine.’ From there, you act.
You might try to strike up a conversation, build a connection, and move things forward. A person cultivating mindfulness does not try to do such things. They constantly watch their own mind, investigating whether attachment, craving, or aversion towards not getting it arises. They strive to identify these mental defilements, or Kilesas, and navigate this path correctly.
The Power of Past Practice and the Nature of Heedlessness
At this point, you might realize the extent to which we live in a state of mindlessness. Some may grasp this just by reading, but it is those who practice who understand it most deeply. This heedlessness is a strong habit we’ve carried through Samsara, the long cycle of rebirth.
However, if you are reading this and feel an interest in cultivating mindfulness and begin to practice it, it means you have practiced this before in past lives even if it was just for a minute or a single moment. There are many who read these teachings and feel no inclination to practice. Such people have not practiced it in their past lives, nor does the thought arise in this life. That is the difference.
Thus, the majority of people in the world live mindlessly. Their attention is not on themselves but on external matters. As we have discussed, we spend most of our time in a state of Asihiya. You understand this now, you have realized it through your own experience.
Rewiring the Mind: The Habit of Returning to Mindfulness
As you continue cultivating mindfulness, the instances of falling into mindlessness are endless. The number of times you fall into heedlessness is far greater than the number of times you are mindful. The reason is that our mind is conditioned, like a magnet, to be mindless. We are pulled more strongly in that direction; the weight is still on that side.
However, when we repeatedly practice in our daily lives for example, if you can cook while watching your mind, work at your job while watching your mind, or manage your responsibilities with your children, parents, and home while watching your mind you gradually become a person who is truly practicing mindfulness.
Because of this continuous practice, no matter how many times we slip into mindlessness, the moments we return to mindfulness increase. Our mind starts getting used to what we practice. Then, the state of mindfulness begins to arise more naturally.
Catching Yourself: The Turning Point in Your Practice
I mentioned that you have been mindless for so long. But once you start to practice, you even begin to catch the moments you were mindless. You start to realize, ‘Ah, I was just mindless.’ Imagine you have a sudden burst of anger towards your spouse, a sibling, or a parent. In that moment, even though you are a practitioner, you might suddenly get into a verbal argument and scold them.
Immediately after, a thought will arise, or you will return to a state of mindfulness and think, ‘Oh, what a shame I scolded them. I should have remained mindful. If I had been mindful, I could have controlled the hateful thoughts arising because of the other person and refrained from reacting.’ This kind of realization naturally arises for someone who is practicing.
This is exactly what we are aiming for. It is a hallmark of walking this path. Even when you are practicing, you may slip into mindlessness and make mistakes. But even if mistakes happen, a few moments or minutes later, when you return to the state of mindfulness you have been cultivating, you think, ‘Oh, I should have been mindful at that moment.’ You might even feel regret, thinking, ‘I was trying to be mindful all this time, but I failed.’
Even this feeling of regret can be recognized with mindfulness. That too is unhelpful; it is a form of aversion or sadness. You can let that go too. Acknowledging that you were mindless, you can make a resolution: ‘Now, in this kitchen, I will be mindful,’ and resume the practice right then and there.
The Ultimate Goal: Mindfulness as the Path to Nibbāna (Liberation)
As you continue to practice this way, perhaps after half an hour or an hour in the kitchen, you might drift into mindlessness again. Especially as you get busy with children’s chores and other tasks, the tendency to become heedless can increase. Then, after a while, you will realize, ‘Oh, I was mindless all this time. I need to return to mindfulness now.’ And you will, almost automatically. By continuously practicing like this, your mindfulness will begin to grow.
This Sati, this mindfulness, is absolutely necessary to attain Nibbāna, or full liberation. It is essential for realizing it. Enlightened beings such as Arahants, Buddhas, and Paccekabuddhas are at the pinnacle of mindfulness; they are 100% mindful. Therefore, mindfulness is the highest state. This is not something that arises for teachers who only cultivate concentration (Samatha). That is the unique distinction.
No sage outside of the Buddha’s teachings possesses mindfulness to the degree of an Arahant, a Buddha, or a Paccekabuddha. That is why they are more powerful and profound than other sages. Attaining deep meditative states and psychic powers is indeed a spiritual strength compared to ordinary people, but being powerful in mindfulness is a far greater strength. Even individuals with the five higher knowledges and eight meditative attainments can sometimes be mindless.
The Stages of Awakening and the Power of True Insight
The state of Nibbāna is one of unshakable mindfulness, and there were supreme beings in the Buddha’s time who possessed this along with all the psychic powers. Such beings have existed in recent times, will certainly arise in the future, and can be found in the world even now. Imagine the spiritual and mental energy of someone who has realized Nibbāna and also reached the heights of concentration.
You too have the potential to reach this state. Mindfulness is what helps you attain the paths and fruits of enlightenment. There is a certain level of mindfulness in the stage of Sotāpanna (Stream-enterer), a higher level in Sakadāgāmī (Once-returner), and an even greater level in Anāgāmī (Non-returner). The fruit of Arahantship is the state of 100% mindfulness. This is the state we must achieve.
Beyond Words: Seeing Truth Directly Through Mindfulness and Wisdom
Without this, if a person just keeps contemplating the words of Dependent Origination (Paticcasamuppāda) or the Three Marks of Existence (Tilakkhana), as I always teach, only their concentration will develop. At most, they might enter meditative states or gain psychic powers. But by merely repeating the words, they will never understand the nature of the mind, how it works, or how these profound truths actually operate within their own mind.
It is only by cultivating mindfulness more and more that we can see these things for ourselves, directly within our own minds. This is not a way of seeing with a ‘second eye,’ but a way of seeing with wisdom and mindfulness the very functioning of the mind.
If you understand this, and if you truly wish to be free from the cycle of suffering and not be born again, you must absolutely develop mindfulness. If you practice Sati in the way we describe in these teachings, your wisdom (Paññā) will also unfold, because mindfulness and wisdom are intertwined. They are inseparable and essential. It is with these two together that we achieve true understanding. This is a crucial point to grasp.
The Tangible Benefits of Consistent Practice
There are many moments when we lose our mindfulness. But in those moments, we must slowly learn to say, ‘Ah, I have been mindless for this long.’ Let’s say you are mindless for five minutes a day, but you have practiced being mindful for three minutes. As you practice more and more, that five-minute period of mindlessness will gradually decrease.
It might become four minutes and thirty seconds of mindlessness, with that extra thirty seconds now becoming mindfulness. As it shifts to the other side, you will spend more time in a mindful state. This is the great importance of training.
So, practice in this way. While you are driving, while doing chores for your children or grandchildren, while working at your job, while fulfilling your duties to your spouse whatever your task may be, if you practice cultivating mindfulness bit by bit in your daily life, the mistakes you might make and the harm you might cause to others will all be prevented.
This is something you must understand. For those who apply this practically, the results are 100% certain. Some people share their experiences in the comments to help others understand and find support on their own path.
Broadening the Scope: Practical Applications and Healing
The benefits of this training are immense. So far, we have only discussed mindfulness within a certain limit: recognizing attachments, aversions, and the thoughts that arise in the mind. Beyond this lies a much deeper, more profound mindfulness. For now, we must broaden our mindfulness within this scope and remain awake and alert.
Practice this constantly. From a schoolchild to an elderly person, no matter your profession or field of study, you can practice this. Through this, your memory will improve. You will gain the ability to retain only what is necessary in your mind and discard what is not. The practice branches out into many different areas.
As I mentioned at the beginning, this helps develop the concentration meditations we teach. It can even help heal various mental afflictions. If someone is deluded, falsely believing they are historical figures or deities like Ravana or Mandodari, practicing mindfulness in this way can create the space and ability for them to distance themselves from those thoughts.
Of course, they also need the merit to be able to do this. However, I want to encourage everyone to engage in this training. Teach these valuable things to your children. Mindfulness is incredibly precious. It will enable you to attain a clear and healthy state of mental well-being.
Mastering Mindfulness: A Lifelong Journey of Practice
We have previously given a teaching about the ancient education system of our land, explaining how a child was taught from a young age. A key component of that system was this very practice of cultivating mindfulness. If you haven’t explored that teaching, I invite you to do so. Try using those methods and see for yourself how your life and your child’s life can change.
We are not here to just engage in idle talk. In our teachings, we have never limited ourselves to mere words or lectures. We have always explained the practical ‘how-to’ of these methods. Today’s teaching was another such practical clarification. No matter how much you have been lost in mindlessness, when you notice it, start practicing mindfulness little by little. Then, the act of returning to mindfulness will happen. From that point, continue to develop it.
Another thing to remember is that we only master something by practicing it again and again. When you start a new job, you may remember that at first, you couldn’t do things well. You would get confused and make mistakes. But after spending a long time at that job and becoming proficient, you can do it even while looking away. Cultivating mindfulness is just like that.
In the beginning, falling into mindlessness is more frequent. But if we practice, even a little, it eventually becomes ingrained and we become skilled. While riding a bus, sitting in a car, or talking to someone in all these moments, mindfulness will start to arise automatically, and we will reach a state where we can maintain it continuously.
Therefore, please practice these things. To gain this understanding, practical application is necessary. I have now delivered the essential points regarding mindfulness for today. There is no need to extend this further, as we will continue to provide practical teachings on mindfulness, the Four Foundations of Mindfulness (Satipaṭṭhāna), and insight meditation (Vipassanā) not limited to a book or just repeating words, but in a way that people of any age or nationality can understand and apply. Thus, I will conclude this teaching here. May all of you, by the power and blessings of the Triple Gem the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha be able to grasp these matters well and put them into practice.
We invite you to walk this path with us. Read our teachings, and most importantly, apply them practically in your own life. as you practice, questions will naturally arise. Please feel free to share your experiences and questions in the comments below, via email or contact form. I will do my best to offer guidance in future talks based on your progress. For now, begin this practice with an open heart and a mind free from expectation. Cultivate it correctly, and may you find the clarity and peace you seek.
Thank you for joining us. We hope this blog will be of great benefit to your spiritual journey.
May you all be well and happy.
May the blessings of the Triple Gem be with you all!.
