Dawn of the Truth

Teachings of Buddha primarily focus on knowing Dukkha(suffering) and ending Dukkha, by comprehending what Dukkha is, its cause, ending and the Path leading to end Dukkha.    Buddha’s approach to ending Dukkha or the Noble Path entered with the Right View called for a paradigm shift from the practices of the renowned teachers at the time like Alarakalama and Uddkaramaputta and the other seekers of the Truth, during and before his time. We come across some venerated Buddhist monks in the   present era who grasped this previously unseen radical approach of the sublime Teachings of the Buddha written   in the Sutra Pitaka of the Buddhist Cannon. Among them   are Venerable Nyanathiloka, Venerable Nyanaponika,   Venerable Nyanavimala Maha Theros form yester year and Venerable Denmarkaye Nyanadeepa and Ven Katukurunde Nyanananda Maha theros in recent times who had lived exemplary spiritual lives perfecting the three essentials of Buddhist tr...

Uggatasharira was a Brahmin who had planned to make a Great sacrifice (maha yañña) of the 500s (―500 bulls, 500 bullocks, 500 heifers, 500 goats, and 500 rams‖), but was given good advice by the Buddha on the true sacrifice.     Before lighting the inaugural fire and raising the flag post to conduct the Great Sacrifice which he thought was beneficial, the Brahmin visited the Buddha seeking his blessings. Having worshipped the Buddha the Brahmin reported the blessed one that he is about to light the inaugural fire and raise the flag post to begin the Yaga and inquired  if the Buddha agrees that such rituals are beneficial and has good consequences ( mahathpala mahanisansa ). The buddha agreed that such preparations will have worthy consequences provided they are done with good intentions. The Brahmins' intention was that conducting such sacrifice was a holy act, as done in the day, which was considered beneficial to the society and ...

There are four types of Posture meditation ( Iriyapatha Bhavana ) , which are  Sitting ( nisinna ), Standing ( ṭhita ), Walking ( gacchanta ), and Lying ( sayāna ).  Posture meditation techniques are commonly practiced to develop Samdhi or stillness.  However, the practice of Iriyapatha taught by the Buddha aims to develop insights to his profound Dhamma.  What is commonly practiced today is simply walking and to switch posture between sitting down, standing or lying positions maintaining concentration and mindfulness in whatever body posture or movement you choose to contemplate on. We need to know well how Iriypatha meditation can be practiced for e.g. walking ( sakman ) meditation. It is to be noted that Irriyapatha meditation was not invented by the Tathagatha but was practiced even before the Buddha's time by the practitioners or yogis who sought liberation.  However, the common understanding is that it is solely a Buddhist practice wher...

The teaching of the Buddha, 'sukha kamani bhutani' is that the worldlings often seek happiness and therefore they are attracted to sensual pleasure for satisfaction. On one occasion the Buddha said that a person with uncontrolled craving `jumps from here to there like a monkey searching for fruit in the forest'( Dhammapada 334 ). Over indulgence in sensual pleasures often end in dissatisfaction, making people look for ways to detach from sensual pleasures.   In Search of Liberation   Interestingly, looking for ways to refrain from sense pleasures, the worldlings, still yearn for satisfaction, the Buddha has also said that the beings are insatiable. There are some who take up spiritual meditation practices which enable them to experience some form of happiness by relinquishing greed and ill will to which they tend to get attached and like to dwell in. Those practitioners often leave their lay life (i.e. sensual pleasures) to live in isolation and move to forests. Such yogis...

The pain and fear are experienced (felt) when one takes it as 'I' who feels the pain or fear .  As long as it is a person who  experiences fear and pain, he or she cannot see the truth of experiencing (feeling). This was pointed out by the Buddha.  When a person is  tormented with pain & fear the mind becomes agitated and therefore how could a person look for the truth, or be heedful? When one is disgruntled and bored the mind gets unsettled and the person with a perturbed mind makes way  to lower realms. Though the person will begin to find the value of the dhamma at such point, it is beyond his or her reach by that time . A mind that is unsettled, deprives one of the opportunity (to seek Dhamma) that is in reach. Nevertheless, the one who sought the truth of experiencing (feeling) and developed wisdom can dwell in equanimity. Overcoming the perplexity, such person begins to see the path ,observing the erroneous notion that 'I" am experiencing and it...

Titthayathana Sutta (AN) describes three sectarian doctrines ( Titthayathana ) which were declared as wrong views by the wise. “Monks, there are these three doctrines some recluses and Brahmins hold”, the Buddha preached. “However, all these when fully examined, investigated and discussed by the wise as wrong doctrines being of non- action ( akiriya vada ), they ignore such advice and continue to hold onto them.”     We need to examine these wrong views that the Buddha referred to closely, in such a way that it awakens Yonisomanasikara (wise attention). Our aim and effort must not be to gain mere understanding but to abandon the self-view ( sakkhaya ditti ) and develop the Right View ( samma ditti ) to embark on the path to nibbana. The Three Sectarian Doctrines What are these three doctrines? (a) There are, monks, some recluses and Brahmins who teach and hold this view, “Whatever a person experiences, whether pleasurable, painful or neutral, all that ...