The Buddhist Hour Radio Broadcast Archives
Buddhist
Hour
Broadcast 285
For Sunday 13 July 2003
This
script is entitled:
“Lightening Up by Overcoming the Five
Hindrances”
We would like "to lighten up" to use the
vernacular.
Our mind is usually not light and clear nor
tranquil nor calm.
It is constantly agitated by five
hindrances (nivaranas); namely, sensuous desire (kâmacchanda),
illwill (vyâpâda), sloth and torpor (thina-middha),
restlessness and remorse (uddhacca-kukkucca) and sceptical doubt
(vicikicchâ).
These hindrances to "lightening up"
are common to most human beings. Also they are found in animals and
lower beings.
The 'hindrances' (nívarana), are 5 animal
qualities that are obstacles to the mind. They blind our mental
vision. In the presence of them we cannot reach
neighbourhood-concentration (upacára-samádhi) and full
concentration
(appaná-samádhi), and are unable to
discern clearly the truth. They are:
Sensuous desire
(kámacchanda), it is common when we think about sex in any
form.
Ill-will (vyápáda), it is common when we
think of our enemies.
Sloth and torpor (thína-middha),
are special forms of physical and mental laziness, lack of
will-to-do.
Restlessness and scruples (uddhacca-kukkucca), is
a form of discontent, and
Sceptical doubt (vicikicchá)
exists in various ways.
In the beautiful similes of a sutta,
sensuous desire is compared with water mixed with manifold
colours;
Ill-will with boiling water, sloth and torpor with water
covered by moss;
Restlessness and scruples with agitated water
whipped by the wind;
Sceptical doubt is compared with turbid and
muddy water;
just as in such water one cannot perceive one's own
reflection; so in the presence of these 5 mental hindrances, one
cannot clearly discern one's own benefit, nor that of others, nor
that of both.
The jhanas are levels of being. The old term for
them is absorptions.
Regarding the temporary suspension of
the 5 hindrances on entering the first absorption, the stereotype
sutta text states:
*
"He (or she) has cast away
sensuous desire; he (or she) dwells with a heart free from sensuous
desire; from desire he (or she) cleanses his (or her) heart.
*
"He
(or she) has cast away ill-will; he (or she) dwells with a heart free
from ill-will, cherishing love and compassion toward all living
beings, he (or she) cleanses his (or her) heart from ill-will.
*
"He (or she) has cast away sloth and torpor; he (or she)
dwells free from sloth and torpor; loving the light, with watchful
mind, with clear consciousness, he cleanses his mind from sloth and
torpor.
*
"He (or she) has cast away restlessness
and scruples; dwelling with mind undisturbed, with heart full of
peace, he (or she) cleanses his (or her) mind from restlessness and
scruples.
*
"He (or she) has cast away sceptical
doubt; dwelling free from doubt, full of confidence in the good, he
(or she) cleanses his (or her) heart from doubt.
*
"He
(or she) has put aside these 5 hindrances, and come to know these
paralysing defilements of the mind. And far from sensual impressions,
far from unwholesome things, he (or she) enters into the first
absorption, etc."
The overcoming of these 5 hindrances by
the absorptions is a merely temporary suspension. To get the
hindrances to disappear forever there is a need, called 'overcoming
through repression' (vikkhambhana-pahána) to enter the 4
supermundane paths (s. ariyapuggala), i.e. sceptical doubt on
reaching Sotápanship; sensuous desire, ill-will and mental
worry on reaching Anágámiship; sloth, torpor and
restlessness on reaching Arahantship.
The translations of
texts to English language possible are many, for example Buddhist
Dictionary - Manual of Buddhist Terms and Doctrines by
NYANATILOKA.
found on the web at:
http://www.palikanon.com/english/wtb/dic_idx.html, has these
comments.
Sensuous desire influences the mind to be wandering
about sensuous objects which it has enjoyed before.
Illwill
agitates the mind by taking notice of disagreeable things.
Sloth
and torpor, restlessness and remorse, and sceptical doubt blind the
mental vision and disturb the concentration.
To reiterate,
Lord Buddha compared sensuous desire with water mixed with manifold
colours, illwill with boiling water, sloth and torpor with water
covered with mosses, restlessness and remorse with agitated water
whipped by the wind, sceptical doubt with turbid and muddy water.
Just as in such water one cannot perceive one's own reflection, so in
the presence of these five hindrances, one cannot clearly see one's
own benefit, not that of others, not that of both.
The kasina
meditations are difficult to do.
These hindrances can be
overcome and temporarily dismissed by tranquility meditation
(samatha-bhâvanâ). We may chose pathavi-kasina
(earth-circle) as an object of meditation. A tray of about one span
and four inches (about one foot) in diameter is filled evenly with
dawn-coloured clay or earth. This object is placed on a suitable
stand so that one can look at it comfortably.
It is
recommended that persons wishing to do kasina meditations do so under
the guidance of a Buddha Dhamma Teacher.
The Digha Nikaya II –
73 (Pali Text Society Translation) reads:
“…so long
as these five hindrances are not put away within him (or her), looks
upon himself (or herself) as in debt, diseased, on prison, in
slavery, lost on a desert road. But when these five hindrances have
been put away within him (or her), he (or she) looks upon himself (or
herself) as freed from debt, rid of disease, out of jail a free man
(or woman) and secure...”
One great bodhisattva from Sri
Lanka who passed away recently was the Venerable Piyadassi
Mahathero.
In his lifetime, he visited our Centre, and through
his Buddha Dhamma talks and writings, he inspired many persons.
The
Venerable taught that knowing where you are and which of the five
hindrances are being restrained by you is part of the Path of
Buddha's Teachings.
To reiterate as an aide to learning the
five hindrances are:
sensuality (kamacchanda);
ill will
(vyapada);
obduracy of mind and mental factors (thina-middha);
restlessness and flurry (uddhacca-kukkucca);
and doubt
(vicikiccha).
If these things appearing and disappearing on
the senses are not restrained, then the Venerable explained that you
get a three-fold nutrient which is the admittance of lust and hate to
our six senses.
The nutrient of non-restraint is shown by lack
of mindfulness and clear comprehension (asati asampajanna).
In
the Satipatthaanasutta the Four Foundations of Mindfulness it
reads:
A bhikkhu literally is a male Monk, but we can read 'or
nun' in context.
Bhikkhus or bhikkhunis, how does the bhikkhu
or bhikkhuni abide reflecting the Teaching? Here the bhikkhu or
bhikkhuni abides reflecting thoughts on the five hindrances.
How
does the bhikkhu or bhikkhuni abide reflecting thoughts on the five
hindrances?
When there are sensual interests the bhikkhu or
bhikkhuni knows, there are sensual interests in me.
When there
are no sensual interests the bhikkhu or bhikkhuni knows, there are no
sensual interests in me.
When non-arisen sensual interests
arise, he or she knows, that too.
How the arisen sensual
interests get dispelled, he or she knows that too.
How
dispelled sensual interests do not rise again, he or she knows that
too.
When there is anger, the bhikkhu or bhikkhuni knows,
there is anger in me.
When there is no anger, the bhikkhu or
bhikkhuni knows, there is no anger in me.
When non-arisen
anger arises, he or she knows that too.
How arisen anger gets
dispelled, he or she knows that too.
How, dispelled anger
does not rise again, he or she knows that too.
When there is
sloth and torpor, the bhikkhu or bhikkhuni knows there is sloth and
torpor in me.
When there is no sloth and torpor, the bhikkhu
or bhikkhuni knows there is no sloth and torpor in me.
When
non-arisen sloth and torpor arises, he or she knows that too.
How
arisen sloth and torpor gets dispelled, he or she knows that too.
How dispelled sloth and torpor does not rise again, he or she
knows that too.
When there is excitement and worry the bhikkhu
or bhikkhuni knows, there is excitement and worry in me.
When
there is no excitement and worry, the bhikkhu or bhikkhuni knows,
there is no excitement and worry in me.
When non-arisen
excitement and worry arises, he or she knows that too.
How
arisen excitement and worry gets dispelled, he or she knows that too.
How dispelled excitement and worry does not rise again, he or
she knows that too.
When there are doubts, the bhikkhu or
bhikkhuni knows, there are doubts in me.
When there are no
doubts, the bhikkhu or bhikkhuni knows there are no doubts in me.
How non-arisen doubts arise, he or she knows that too.
How
arisen doubts get dispelled, he or she knows that too.
How
dispelled doubts do not rise again, he or she knows that too.
Thus
he or she abides reflecting the Teaching internally.
Or he or
she abides reflecting the Teaching externally.
Or he or she
abides reflecting the Teaching internally and externally.
Or
he or she abides reflecting the arising of thoughts in the Teaching.
Or he or she abides reflecting the fading of thoughts in the
Teaching.
Or he or she abides reflecting the arising and
fading of thoughts in the Teaching.
Or with mindfulness
established, there is a thought, he or she abides not supported on
anything in the world. Thus, too the Monk or Nun abides reflecting,
thoughts on the Teaching about the five hindrances.
You may
notice there is no micha ditthi - wrongview and moha - ignorance or
delusion in the list of five hindrances. Therefore samatha bhavana
cannot root out wrongview or delusion. Therefore the highest level of
samatha bhavana, jhana level, jhana labhi - the winner of the jhana,
the meditator cannot reject sakkaya ditthi. It is not for samatha
bhavana.
Jhana citta means a consciousness which arise
together with jhana factors, a consciousness that is endowed with
jhana factors. The Pali word jhana means burn out, or on the other
hand, it means closely contemplate on, or closely contemplating on.
It is the meaning of Pali word jhana. Jhana means burn out, burning
out. It can burn out five hindrances. The jhana factors each function
against five hindrances, vitakka - the initial application, functions
against thinamiddha or sloth and torpor or sleepiness. If jhana
factor vitakka is powerful it defeats thinamiddha or sleepiness. If
sleepiness is powerful it defeats vitakka, jhananga or jhana factor.
Therefore if you are sleepy you cannot concentrate your mind on the
meditation object.
Do not practice it if you are
sleepy.
Vicara or sustained application functions against
vicikiccha or doubt.
Piti (or zest) functions against ill
will. Zest functions against ill will.
If you cannot generate
zest in your practice it will come to no good.
Sukkha (joy)
functions against restlessness and doubt.
Ekaggata (one
object state of mind) functions against sensuous desire. If those
five factors are powerful they can burn out those five hindrances.
Therefore at the highest level of samatha bhavana, the jhana
level, the meditator can defeat those five hindrances successfully.
Those five hindrances are temporarily removed at the jhana level. The
jhana factors are powerful and they defeat five hindrances. Our mind
is freed from the five hindrances temporarily. It is reversible
sometimes the kamacchanda nivarana, sensuous desire, is powerful and
our jhana is in defeat. We lose our jhana.
In vipassana
practice the mind stays with the characteristic, characteristic or
lakkhana, lakkhana is characteristic. In vipassana it is the
characteristic of phenomena.
The basic is the characteristics
of impermanence, or arising and passing away of phenomena. It is the
very important characteristic in vipassana.
Name and form
fool us.
If one can see the arising and passing away of
phenomena, nama (name) or rupa (form) it means udayabbaya nana and in
that state the mind becomes clear, and it is also freed from the five
hindrances and the meditator's mind is still with that
characteristic.
The Lord Buddha said:-
"...Bhikkhus or
bhikkhunis, are the five obstructions, hindrances which overspread
the mind, which weaken wisdom. What five?
Desire for pleasure,
Bhikkhus or bhikkhunis, is an obstruction, a hindrance which
overspreads the mind, which weakens wisdom.
Illwill, Bhikkhus
or bhikkhunis, is an obstruction, a hindrance having the same
effects.
Sloth and Torpor, is an obstruction, a hindrance
having the same effects.
Restlessness and Remorse, is an
obstruction, a hindrance having the same effects.
Doubt, is an
obstruction, a hindrance having the same effects."
If you
wish to practice and learn please come to Abhidhamma classes on
Tuesdays at 7.30pm.
We are running a five-day course from 5 to
9 September that will enable you to make merit to practice well.
May
you obtain the benefits of systematic practice.
May you be
well and happy.
This script was written and edited by John
D. Hughes DipAppChem TTTC GDAIE, Julian Bamford BA AppRec, Leanne
Eames BA MA, and Pennie White BA Dip Ed.
References
Chan
Academy Australia business name of the Buddhist Discussion Centre
(Upwey) Ltd, material gathered using ISYS text retrieval software,
keyword search “five hindrances”, 8 July 2003.
BUDDHA
DHYÃNA DANA REVIEW
Chan Academy Australia business
name of the Buddhist Discussion Centre (Upwey) Ltd., The Testing
Without an Examiner, Buddhist Hour Radio Broadcast, 18 July
1999.
Mon, Dr. Mehm Tin, The Essence of Buddha Abhidhamma,
Mehm Tay Zar Mon, Yangon, see p 44.
Satipatthaanasutta
Sumedho,
Ajahn, 1984, Cittaviveka, Amaravati Publications, p 56.
Counts
Words: 1384
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