The aim of Dhamma cultivation is penetration and purification of saṇkhārā – the conditioning forces. Everything else is to support that. Mindfulness of body provides a steady and pleasant foundation, samādhi acts as a refuge from sensory input. Mind then has the power to resist, moderate and release from these conditioning forces.
Mindfulness can be thought of as a boundary setter. It’s used to discern what to stay with and deepen into, and what to avoid and stay out of. Instructions are given for how to apply this to ānāpānasati, mindfulness of breathing.
The function of mindfulness is to purify. It means we have to understand what purity is – what qualities cause problems, stress and contamination, an which are bright, fortifying and calming. Right view and right attitude inform the careful attention that leads to purification.
In Dhamma practice we aim to establish positive roots that can nourish our everyday actions and behaviors. We train in setting aside what is unskillful and causes stress, and lingering in and strengthening factors for awakening. The 5 indriya offer a beneficial domain for such cultivation.
The unawakened citta is always taking things in, seeking security from them. True security has not yet been found. Through developing meditation and samādhi, it’s possible to unlink from the flowing out towards objects and ideas. Citta can find true security in itself.
The sense of ‘I’ is crucial for understanding citta. Guidance is provided to access the direct experience of body, then tune into the fundamental sensitivity and receptivity of citta.
The person gets very entrained to follow circumstances, caught in a cycle of creating, worrying, planning, hoping. In meditation, it’s possible to witness the person rather than constantly re-create it. Start by establishing certain transpersonal/universal qualities of the 5 indriya.
Establish strong mindfulness that can act as a frame for shifting states of mind. Go easy on the mental content letting it all pass through. Aware of a basic luminosity, or vibrancy, assess what is needed to encourage citta – goodwill, patience, dispassion.
How to manage inconvenient feelings of attraction; reacting impulsively towards sexual desire and hatred; working with boredom and drowsiness; how does one turn towards the deathless; is nibbana “a ground of being”; what does the use of “internal and external” mean?
Citta has its own basic clarity and sanity. Practice to establish citta on its own ground, where there is no suffering. This is the upright citta, the foundation for all the virtues leading to awakening.
