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22 EASTERN HORIZON | TEACHINGS

Dhamma teachings in the West and East

suffering and just died down. recognize them and bring in wisdom, The mind needs to be directed, and
This is how to meditate— they will take over the mind. dhamma vicaya does that. Once you
with interest and inquiry every have set a direction for the mind,
time one or more of the three The equanimity that came when it will continue in that direction.
unwholesome root qualities [craving, I was listening to my teacher and This is a natural quality of the mind.
anger, and confusion] arise. the visitors talk was the result of If you leave the mind undirected,
true understanding of the nature there will be chaos.
The Buddha called this vital quality of of liking and disliking in the mind.
inquiry in the mind dhamma vicaya, This arose through observation and Take fear as another example.
which means a mind that naturally investigation of the discomfort that If there is fear and you decide
investigates reality. It is a mind that I was feeling. to investigate this emotion, you
studies itself by asking questions are setting the mind in the right
to discover what is happening and In this same way, as soon as you direction. If, however, you try to get
why it is happening. The mind wants recognize any mental discomfort, rid of this fear, you are directing the
to know the nature of the three turn your attention toward it to mind wrongly.
unwholesome root qualities. learn all that you can about it. If you
can see subtle mental discomfort, Give yourself time. Go slowly, feel
Often practitioners pay watch it change: Does it increase your way through whatever is
attention to mindfulness and or decrease? As the mind becomes happening. Try to gather as much
right effort, but they forget to more equanimous and sensitive, information as you can. That’s the
practice dhamma vicaya. They it will recognize subtle reactions function of awareness—to gather
forget to investigate and to ask more easily. information. Whenever you feel
questions about experience in there is an issue that needs to be
order to learn. But mindfulness is Always take the arising of an looked into, investigate it. What
about understanding. You have to unskillful root quality as an is going on in the mind will seem
use wise thinking to decide how opportunity to investigate its rather chaotic at first.
to handle things; you cannot limit nature. Ask yourself questions! How
your practice to continuously being do the unwholesome roots make You need to look at the same issues
aware. That’s not good enough. you feel? What thoughts arise in the repeatedly and from different
mind? How does what you think angles. As your awareness becomes
The unwholesome roots are very affect the way you feel? How does more continuous, your fear will
dominant in the mind. They are what you feel affect the way you settle down, and you will be able
very experienced, very skillful, and think? What is the attitude behind to understand which issues are
they will always get their way if the thoughts? How does any of this important and which are not.
we are not aware. If you don’t fully change the way you perceive pain?