The 1 Question That Defines a Wise Life (The Buddha’s Start Point)

The One Question That Defines a Wise Life – The Buddha's Start Point The Buddha said that the question that lies at the beginning of discernment is, What, when I do, will lead to my long-term welfare and happiness? What, when I do, will lead to my long-term harm and suffering? It's a question that's aimed at the future. In other words, you focus on what you're doing right now, but you're thinking about what the long-term consequences are going to be. There are some people who think that we should focus on the present moment so much that we forget about the future, not even think about it. Some say that if you say you're doing something now for the sake of the future, you're getting in the way of the awakening that could happen right now. At some point in the future, that will be true, but it's not true yet. When the Buddha talks about focusing on the present moment, it's not for the sake of the present moment itself. It's because there's work to be done here, because there are dangers lying down the road. As in the verse where he says, put aside thoughts of the past, concerns of the future, and focus on what you can experience right here, right now. The reason he says to do that is because there are duties to be done right now, because death could come at any time, and you have to prepare. That's aimed at the future. You provide for the future by being focused on doing wise things in the present moment. As when you're generous, you give away something, and that means you have to deprive yourself right now of the pleasure you could get from consuming whatever that was. But you see that there's a greater pleasure that comes when you're able to give. There's a feeling of wealth. You have enough to share. That's a benefit right in the present moment. But it also develops good qualities in the mind that will serve you well down the line. You learn to appreciate your freedom of choice. You easily could have not given the item, but you choose to give it. In fact, that's probably one of your first experiences of freedom of choice. When as a child, you were able to give something to somebody else, not because you were told to give it, but simply because you wanted to. You could say no to your greed, no to whatever selfish ideas you might have. This gives you a sense of power. You know you're doing something good for other people, and it'll serve you well down the line. You'll learn that over time. The same with the precepts. There are lots of things you may like to do right now that would break the precepts. But when you can say no, there's a sense of honor that goes with that. You realize that you can live in this world without harming others. You can say no to your less than honorable desires. And the fact that you're able to maintain a precept develops good qualities in the mind. You have to keep the precept in mind. That's mindfulness. You have to be alert to watch over your actions to make sure they stay in line with the precept. And finally, you have to be ardent in doing this. In other words, there will come times when it's very tempting to break a precept. And sometimes it's not through obviously bad motives. You want to lie to somebody out of what you think is compassion. Because you feel they may not be ready to take the truth. But then you realize that if you do that, after a while, they'll catch on to the fact that you've misinformed them, misled them, and they're not going to trust you. So, it's better for the long term that you develop trust. So again, you learn how to see the times when you need to sacrifice what you would like to do in the present moment for long-term goals. As we're meditating, it's the same sort of thing. You focus on the present moment, which you can do in terms of getting the mind to settle down with the breath. You're going to be giving up other things you could have been doing right now. Sometimes you find yourself sitting here in pain. And you wonder, why am I putting up with this pain? But then you realize, here's your opportunity to study it. Why would you want to study pain? Because pain is going to get worse as life goes on. The body will suddenly stop doing things it used to be able to do. Or when it does certain things, it gives you a pain it didn't give before. If you can prepare yourself by understanding your relationship to pain right here, right now, you won't have to suffer so much then. The Buddha states this in one of his suttas about the dangers of the future. Sometime in the future, you're going to get sick. Sometime in the future, you're going to get old. Sometime in the future, you're going to die. Those are givens. But if you train the mind now, you'll develop qualities inside that will ensure that you don't have to suffer when those times come. So, you're focusing on the present moment for the sake of the future. That's when you're wise. If you focus on the present moment just for its own sake, you end up doing not much of anything. There's always an effort you have to put into the present moment. That's a given. The Buddha tells how to direct those efforts wisely for the sake of the future. He tells you of duties you have to do in the present moment if you want to put an end to suffering. They're not forced on you by anybody. But they are forced on you by the fact of suffering. Some people complain, why does the Buddha focus on the negative side of life so much? Doesn't he see that there are positive pleasures to be gained simply by enjoying the nice things of life? Well, he does admit that there are pleasures. With the five aggregates, he said, if they were exclusively stressful, exclusively painful, we wouldn't be attached to them. So, they do offer their pleasures. But then, if we just stay with their pleasures, we become attached. Some people say, well, you can be wisely attached. Hold on for the duration of however long something is going to be there, knowing that it's going to go, and then be ready to let go. Hold on to the next thing and the next, as if it were a kind of dance. It's not a dance. It's desperation. Trying to squeeze as much pleasure as you can out of the present moment, knowing you have to let it go. And then, finding something else to grab hold of. But who knows what you're going to be grabbing hold of next, especially when you die. The body is not going to be offering any pleasure at that point. You think about the future, and the future is a big blank wall. At that point, the mind is going to grab at anything. So, as it's forced out of the body, if it hasn't been trained, it's going to grab hold of whatever. Again, there's a need to train the mind so that it can control its urges, so that it's not pushed around by pleasure or pain. This is why we focus on the painful side of these things, so that we can prepare. It's because there is an unpleasant side to the aggregates that we realize that we can't hold on. We've got to find something better, and there is something better. It's not past, present, or future. There's an awareness that lies outside of space, outside of time, which can be found when you let go of your passion and desire for the things of the senses. That's going to be in the future when you find it. When you get to it, it will be an experience that comes out of the present moment. But at this present moment right now, it's not happening. So, you focus on what you can do right now to prepare for that. What are your duties right now? In terms of the four noble truths, they are to comprehend suffering or stress, to abandon the cause, to realize cessation through developing the path. Dogen, the Zen master, makes the point that the duties of the last two truths actually come together. That by focusing on developing, in the midst of the developing, you're going to find the realization of the cessation. That doesn't mean that they're the same thing. Just that you should give all your attention to what you have to do right now. And don't try to second guess what's going to come down the line, how far away it may be. The Buddha makes that point again and again. You have no idea in advance when the moment of awakening will come. But you just keep on doing the path, making sure you do it right as much as you can. Focus on your duties right now. Right now. And they'll lead to a bright future. After all, those four noble truths are not totally pessimistic at all. They teach that it is possible through your own efforts to find an end to suffering. That's saying an awful lot about the power that you gain if you learn how to tame the power of the mind. It can do an awful lot. And you have to learn how to tame it right here. Because there's nowhere else you can do it. Right here is the path. And the path will bear fruit. But again, it's not going to be right here when the fruit comes. The last moments of the path will be right in a present moment. But then, they'll take you outside the present moment. So, focus here. This is where the work can be done. And it's good work both in the doing and in the results that will come down the line. Long-Term Welfare Lo-Fi The Buddha once said that the quest for wisdom, the quest for discernment starts with a question. What when I do it will lead to my long-term welfare and happiness? This may sound strange. Because we're used to hearing the Buddha's take on discernment or insight as dealing with inconstancy, stress, and not-self. Which sounds like the very opposite of happiness. But it's not. It's part of that quest. Look at that question. What when I do it will lead to my long-term welfare and happiness? It starts with the realization that happiness is something you have to do. Or something you have to bring about. It doesn't come floating in on its own. What seems to come floating in on its own is the happiness that comes from past actions. But that kind of happiness just comes and goes. Comes and goes. There's nothing really reliable about it. But when you realize that there is something that you can do. You can make a difference with your actions right now. That's where discernment begins. The next part of discernment is looking for long-term happiness. A happiness that's worth the effort you put into it. If you put a lot of effort into happiness. And get only a slight taste. And then it goes. It's not really worth it. So, you look for the kind of happiness that lasts. This is what the path is all about. We develop generosity. We develop virtue. And we meditate as ways of bringing about long-term happiness. The happiness that comes from giving. Lasts a lot longer than the happiness that comes from taking. It goes deeper. The same holds true for the happiness that comes from holding to your principles. If you gain the kind of happiness that comes from breaking your principles. You pay a big price. It's not worth it. But even with the happiness that comes from generosity and virtue. If you haven't developed the qualities of mind. That teach you how to deal properly with happiness. It can turn into a cause for suffering. This is why we meditate. To give the mind a deeper basis for its happiness. Look at the four noble truths. They start with the fact that there is suffering in life. And it lies in clinging. Sometimes the truths seem to be about nothing but suffering. But the third noble truth is the end of suffering. The fourth noble truth is the path to the end of the suffering. Part of that path, right concentration includes pleasure and rapture. The pleasure and rapture that come from having the mind absorbed in a single object. This is the kind of pleasure. This is the kind of well-being or happiness. That forms the path. Something we work on. Once the mind gets settled in with that sense of well-being. Then you can turn to look at the other things. You ordinarily chase after for the sake of your happiness. You begin to see that they're awfully fleeting. And they're really not worth the effort. This is where the contemplation of the three characteristics comes in. Thinking about things that are inconstant, stressful and not self. As we were saying this afternoon. If you do this contemplation without a good solid basis in concentration. It gets threatening. Very depressing. It all becomes very negative. But if you're coming from the point of view based on the strength of concentration. With a strong sense of well-being. You can look at these other things you used to chase after. And you realize that you don't really want to anymore. They're not worth it. You find it a lot easier to let them go. So the contemplation of the three characteristics is designed to refine your happiness. To help you to stay more and more consistently with the happiness that's solid, secure. So as you're developing concentration. Don't worry about being attached to it. It's an important attachment. If you don't have this to hold on to. It's difficult to let go of other things. A group of people once came to see Ajahn Phuong. They had been studying the Abhidhamma. And they heard he was a very good teacher. So they wanted to find out what he taught. He told them. I teach breath meditation. Immediately they refused. They didn't want to study with him. He asked why. They said they were afraid that if they focused on the breath. They would get stuck on Jhana. And when they died. They would be born as Brahmas. And wouldn't make it to Nibbana. He took one look at them. And I think he realized there was no way they were going to get to Nibbana. The way they were practicing. I don't know about studying Abhidhamma here in the States. But in Thailand. Abhidhamma students are usually a very argumentative group of people. Very opinionated. Spending a lot of time analyzing each other's faults. That kind of person. Doesn't get even to the Brahma worlds. Much less to Nibbana. So he said. What's wrong with going to the Brahma worlds? Even non-returners go to the Brahma worlds. In any event. Being reborn as a Brahma. Is better than being reborn as a dog. That's what happens to people. When they stick with just the negative side of insight. It all becomes very critical. Very nitpicky. Then they start focusing on one another's faults. And who knows. They could very easily be reborn as dogs. You need to have a sense of well-being to hold on to. Before you can let go of other attachments. Otherwise. When you let go of. Say. Your attachment to sensual pleasures. You start holding on. To your attachment to your views. And that can be very strong. And very tenacious. Yet. Those are things we have to learn. How to let go of as well. We learn how to use our views. But we don't use them to hit one another over the head. The only way to let go of. Say. Your attachments to sights. Smells. Sounds. Tastes. And tactile sensations. Is to give the mind. A good sense of well-being. Just by breathing. So that when you let go. You're not letting go. With a sense of loss. You're letting go. With a sense that you already have enough. You've got something better. You don't need those things anymore. It's like growing up. You look at the things that used to give you pleasure as a child. And you realize. That they no longer have any substance. What you do as you practice. Is that you learn how to outgrow your attachments. By giving yourself better. And better things. To hold on to. This is why we have the teachings on the five aggregates. The three characteristics. You look at whatever pleasure. You've been depending on. And you take it apart. To see what it's made of. The more carefully. You look at it. The more you realize. There's really nothing there. In the building blocks. For this big edifice. Of whatever happiness. You've been able to find. The Buddha. Compares them to foam. Floating down the river. Or bubbles that appear on the river. When the rain falls. They come and they go. Like a mirage. They're like a magic trick. The more carefully you look at them. The less is there. They're very insubstantial. They seem substantial. Because of the buildup we give to them. The labels we paste on them. The anticipation we have. That this pleasure. Is going to be really good. This pleasure is going to be really satisfying. You put a lot of effort into it. And you hold on to that expectation. Then. When the actual pleasure comes. It's not nearly as satisfying. As you thought it might be. But then you hold on to the idea that it was. Just to convince yourself that it was all worth it. You've invested so much. You don't want to see your investment vanish away like that. So there's a basic dishonesty in the mind. In the way we normally look for pleasure. The way we normally look for happiness. What we're trying to do as we analyze things. Into the five kandas. And look at the characteristics of those five aggregates. To see how inconstant they are. How stressful they are. How they're not really you or yours. Is to teach ourselves how to be more honest with ourselves. About what we're doing. And the results of what we've done. Again. We do this. Because we also learn how to look for pleasure. In better ways. More lasting ways. Ultimately. We get to the point. Where we can let go of the other attachments. And the only attachment you've left. Is the attachment to concentration and discernment. If you look at them carefully. Then you begin to see. That they too. Are made up of the same aggregates. Only they're subtler. But they're made of the same building blocks. That's when you learn how to let go. Of your attachment to the path as well. But in the meantime. Don't be in a great hurry. To overcome your attachment to concentration. Many people practice concentration once or twice. Ah yes. Concentration is inconstant. Stressful. And not self. It doesn't last. And think they've gone beyond it. That's short-circuiting the practice. It's like being given a ladder. To take you up to true happiness. And you chop the ladder up into pieces. It's self-defeating. So. As you're focusing on your concentration. Don't be afraid of being attached to it. It's supposed to be good. It's supposed to be attractive. In fact. You want to spend a lot of time. Tailoring your concentration. So that it does really feel good for you. The Buddha. Talks about. Using concentration to gladden the mind. To steady the mind. To release the mind. You do that. In the course of learning how to use the concentration. So that it really feels good. For whatever ails you. For example. If you're feeling tired. There are certain ways of concentrating. That give you more energy. If you're feeling stressed out. There are other ways of focusing on the breath. Adjusting the breath. So that it's more relaxing. When things feel dry and disappointing in life. There are certain ways of focusing on the breath. So that it's really fulfilling. It feels really, really good. Deep down inside. Learning how to adjust your concentration. Enables you to balance out. Whatever is wrong. Either in the body or the mind. That's the skill that you need to develop. In concentration. A lot of people think. There's one state of concentration. Or one way of experiencing. Say. Each of the levels of Jhana. But that's not the case. Depending on what state the body is in. What state the mind is in. You're going to need different types of concentration. Different ways of playing with the concentration. In order to make it really gratifying. To release you from whatever sense of discomfort or disease you have. And to steady the mind in different situations. That's the skill of concentration. It's something we want to work on. To really familiarize ourselves with what the state of mind can do. So that we find it's more and more something we can rely on. As our concentration gets better. We're less and less attached to having our external world in a particular way. When you start out. You need things to be quiet. You like certain circumstances. In terms of the people around you. The society in which you're living. Because your concentration is still one-dimensional. But as you make it more multi-dimensional. You find that you can practice it in any situation. In fact, this is one of the reasons. Why the forest monks go out into the forest. To test themselves in different situations. Can they keep the mind under control. In places of physical hardship. In places of danger. Ajaan Phuang tells about how he once went to visit Ajaan Lee. Who at that time was teaching in Bangkok. Ajaan Phuang had been out in the forest. And his mind was doing very well in the forest. He came in to see Ajaan Lee. He said one night in Bangkok. In the monastery where Ajaan Lee was staying. Was right next to a railroad track. Had destroyed his meditation. He realized this that there was more that he had to learn. So he worked on meditating in less than ideal circumstances. And found that that forced him to become more and more skillful. In how he approached concentration. How he approached his breath. So simply getting the mind into concentration is not enough. You want to learn how to really use it. How to adjust it. How to master the concentration. So that it's good for whatever situation you're in. It can provide you a refuge wherever you are. Only then after you really learn how to depend on it. Will you want to look at what's even better. There comes a point where even the stillness of concentration is not enough. You want something even more still. Less burdensome than that. That's when you start taking it apart. But until then work on putting it together in every situation. Even after people have gained awakening. They still have their concentration. It's not that they abandon it forever. It's just that they use it just as a dwelling place for the mind. As a resting spot for the mind. It's a skill they've mastered. And so they know when to use it. Know when to put it aside. So don't be in too great of a hurry to get past the concentration. It's there to help you. Both to give you a sense of well-being in the present moment. And to form the basis for insight. For insight that's solid. So that when you let go. You let go out of a sense of simple dispassion. Not aversion. But dispassion. Two very different things. So no matter how much work that concentration may involve. It's all worth it. Don't think that it's a case of working on nothing but concentration. And then working on nothing but insight. The insight goes together with the concentration. As you get more and more refined in your sense of what true pleasure it. What true well-being is. And what you can do to attain long-term well-being. That one question carries you all the way through. What when I do it will be for my long-term welfare and happiness? It's the beginning. And it's the guide for insight all the way through.