Self and Non-Self: The Evolving Consciousness

0:00:00 Thank you. There is the teaching of the Three Dharma Seals. The Three Dharma Seals are Impermanence, No-Self and Nirvana. They are called the Three Dharma Seals because if any teaching does not bear the mark, does not bear the marks of the tree.

0:01:02 These three things cannot be conceived to be an authentic teaching of the Buddha: impermanence, non-self, and nirvana. And impermanence, non-self and nirvana should not be looked upon like a description of reality only. It should be looked upon as instruments so that we can work it out, we can train ourselves in looking and in seeing things.

0:01:56 First of all, impermanence. Impermanence, it means that everything is changing all the time. Nothing can remain itself, the same forever. Today, I am a little bit different from yesterday. from the way I was yesterday. I am no longer the same person because things have been changing. Things change all the time.

0:02:46 And in the teaching of the Buddha, impermanence should be understood in the light of no-self because nothing can be made the same thing in two consecutive moments. And then they cannot retain their absolute identity. And that means that impermanence means no self. When we speak about things like rebirth, reincarnation, we should bear in mind the fact that rebirth within Buddhism The reincarnation within Buddhism has to along with the teaching of impermanence and yourself.

0:04:04 Otherwise, it would not be truly Buddhist. We have read stories called "Rataka" - the past lives of the Buddha. These are very beautiful stories. Sometimes, the Buddha was a deer, sometimes, he was a rock, sometimes, he was a tree. And we tend to think that the same person takes different kinds of forms. and instead of while taking a variety of forms, the same person, the same person, the Buddha, remains intact.

0:04:56 It sounds like there is a permanent song that enters into one body and when the body disintegrates, it will enter another body and continue to do like that. It acquires different kinds of bodies, and that is many people's idea about rebirth. But in the teaching of the Buddha, nothing can remain the same in two consecutive moments. That is why to believe in a permanent entity is against the teaching of all else. So if we believe in reincarnation or in rebirth in that way, we are not talking about rebirth as a thought in Buddhism.

0:06:03 Impermanence is a wonderful tool. And we should train ourselves in looking at things in such a way that we can touch the nature of impermanence. Impermanence is not the cause of our suffering. The cause of our suffering is that things are impermanent but we believe them to be permanent. When we see a flower dying, we do not suffer a lot because it seems that we are aware, we know that the flower is very impermanent.

0:06:54 That is why we don't suffer so much. But when a person close to us dies, We suffer very much, partly because we have not learned to live with that person as an impermanent entity. If we know that we ourselves are impermanent, and that the other person is also impermanent, I would know how to cherish her presence in the here and the now and would be able to do everything, to do anything you can do in the present moment to make him or her happy.

0:07:47 Because that way of life is based on the inside of impermanence. Many people after having lost one dear relative, We suffer so much. Of course, we suffer when we lose someone we love. But we suffer also because of the guilt, of the regret that we have in us, that we have been neglectful. We were not very aware that that person can die. that we consider him or her as permanent.

0:08:36 That is why we did not cherish her presence. And if the inside of impermanence was always there, we would be able to live more deeply our relationship. And you could have done everything you could in order to make him or her happy while she was alive. So the insight of impermanence, the samadhi of impermanence, the concentration of impermanence is what we have to practice. We train ourselves to look at everything in a way that we can touch the nature of impermanence in them. And that is why I said that it is not impermanence that makes us suffer, but because of our ignorance about impermanence that makes us suffer.

0:09:34 And if we know how to touch impermanence deeply, we discover the nature of non-self, of no-self. Because things are changing all the time, nothing can remain the same in two consecutive moments. That is why there is no permanent entity. No permanent entity. That is non-self. And then if you look deeply in the light, under the light of impermanence and non-self, we see that nothing can be by us, itself alone.

0:10:18 Everything has to inter-be with everything else. And that is why sometimes we use the word "inter-be". Inter-be, what is it? It is impermanence, it is non-self. Sometimes we use the word "sunyata", emptiness. What does it mean? To be empty. To be empty means to be empty of a separate self. A flower cannot be without the cloud, the sunshine, the seed, the earth, the minerals. A flower can only interfere with everything else in the cosmos. A flower is full of everything within herself except one thing, a separated existence.

0:11:08 That is why the word emptiness means the lack, the absence of a separated self. and the worshipers like us are afraid because emptiness does not mean non-being. We tend to be afraid of non-being. And if we continue to look deeply into the nature of our things and discover impermanence and nonsense, We will be able later to discover that the true nature of everything is nirvana. Nirvana means the extinction of all notions, including the notions of self and non-self, the notion of importance and prominence, the notion of being and non-being.

0:12:38 Suppose we have a piece of of 25 cents, a quarter of a dollar. We observe and we see that the piece of money has two sides: the head and the tail. Suppose one side is impermanence and one side is no-self. The two manifestations are reality. But still, we have a third side. That is the base from the first two.

0:13:24 That is the metal substance. So the three dharma cells are selected. We may draw a line like this. We put above the line the word "impermanence" plus "non-self". And underneath, under the line, we put "Nirvana". Nirvana is the base of everything. Nirvana is the reality of no birth and no death.

0:14:13 We have talked about a wave on the ocean. And we have talked about the two dimensions of the wave. The first dimension being the historical dimension. In the historical dimension, the wave has a beginning and end. It looks like birth and death are really there for the wave. That the wave can be high or low, more or less beautiful.

0:15:03 And the wave can be compared with other waves. There is this and that. The other side, the other dimension is called the outer dimension, namely the water, of which the wave is made. From the side of water, we cannot talk in terms of birth and death, Beginnings and end, high or low, this or that. And yet water is the very substance of the way. We have that gatha to practice walking meditation.

0:16:05 of which the last line is, "In the ultimate, I dwell." And when I explained that, I said that if the wave is capable of touching the water within her, she will lose all her fear and sorrow because the water is the ground of being, of the wave. A wave can live the life of a wave, but a wave can also live the life of the water. So practicing touching the nature of impermanence, practicing touching the nature of no-self, we will come to touch the nature of nirvana because impermanence and no-self are the two doors by which we can penetrate into the ground of our being, namely nirvana.

0:17:28 Niuvanna is extinction. Extinction here means the extinction of all these notions and ideas like beginning, end, birth, death, being, non-being, one, all, inside, outside. It means all the pairs of opposites.

0:18:28 These notions and ideas are the ground for a lot of distress, suffering and ill-being. That is why the extinction of these notions brings about the extinction of all suffering. When we try to look deeply into a flower in order to see that the flower is made of non-flower elements, We find out there are elements like the garbage, the compost that are there in the heart of the flower. And we also find out that the garbage is not the opposite, is not the enemy of the flower.

0:19:34 We also talk about the right and the left. We have seen that without the right, there cannot be the left. And this is a way to train ourself in order to... to debarass ourself of the notions that prevent us to see things very clearly. On the first day, I remember, we began to talk about body and mind as two aspects of the same thing.

0:20:29 Consciousness, store consciousness, sometimes manifests itself as a body, sometimes as a mind. And we should learn how to look at our body as mind, also. There is a thinking in the blue sky. There is thinking in the mountain. There is thinking in the river. There is thinking in the ocean. The people who like to talk like that because they have begun to see that the blue sky, the ocean, the bottom is a manifestation of consciousness.

0:21:24 And the separation between matter and mind no longer exists. Stored consciousness manifests itself in different kinds of forms, in different kinds of formations. We know that there are mental formations manifested from stored consciousness, like our fear, our anger, our love, our distress. But Stalled Consciousness also manifests itself as other kind of formations. Like the 18 realms, Stalled Consciousness manifests itself as eyes, as nose, as tongue, as body.

0:22:24 Store consciousness manifests itself as form, sound, smell, touch, and so on. And store consciousness, alaya, manifests itself as a realm of beings. Let us speak now about the three natures of reality. Paracanpitta is the nature of construction. When we are caught by the notion of permanent self, when we have not seen the nature of intervening between right and left, All at one.

0:23:48 Our perceptions are full of errors. That is why we cannot reach, we cannot touch the realm of reality in itself. It is like in the dark, in the twilight, when we see a piece of rope, we think of it as a snake, a wrong perception. So when we are caught by the belief in permanence and self we cannot reach the ultimate, the realm of things in themselves.

0:24:56 And it is like we wear a pair of glass with colors and we see things through that color. The color is blue and everything becomes blue. That is the nature of construction. It is called parakampita, the nature of construction. We are caught in the notion of inside, outside, before, after, this, that, being and non-being.

0:25:46 And that is the way of parakampita. We distort reality by our way of looking. And this kind of habit of looking, of seeing things, bring us a lot of suffering. The second nature is called the nature of Paratantra. "Paratantra" means we begin to train ourself in looking at things with the insight of interbeing, interconnectedness. We begin to see that right contains left, left contains right.

0:26:54 We begin to see that the collective is made of the individual, and the individual is made of the collective. We begin to see in the light of impermanence and no-self and inter-being. And that is the process of training. We begin to know how to see things in their non-dualistic nature. body, mind, self, non-self, and so on.

0:27:46 We begin to dissolve the notions, the concepts. And we have a chance now to touch the realm of things in themselves. And then, finally, we come to the third nature, the third nature of reality, which is called nature Nishpana, the nature of the fulfillment. It is the realm of reality in itself, the realm of suchness.

0:28:39 The realm of reality is not distorted by our mind full of wrong ideas, parakamputa. Let us go to the 39 verses. The co-dependent manifestation has two aspects: Deluded mind and true mind. Deluded mind is imaginary construction and true mind is from the full-filled nature.

0:29:55 The deluded mind here is the mind of Parakanpita. The mind that is conditioned by duality, by the notions of self and permanence, The mind that is caught by ignorance, by grieving, by anger. And true mind, here is the nishpana, the mind that can reveal the true nature of reality, namely the nishpana, nature of reality.

0:31:05 The elitist mind is the imaginary construction. Imaginary construction is exactly what we have on the board. Kanpita. Imaginary construction is Kanpita. True mind is from the full field of nature. Full field of nature is Nishpana. I sense that words are not used here in the translation. But imaginary construction, that is the translation of Parakannapita.

0:32:01 We live in that world of construction because our minds see things like that, construct things like that. If we do not live in the world of suchness, we do not live in the world of the realm of things in themselves, because our deleted mind invent, create, build, construct a lot of things. and it can not touch our reality. Let us use a few examples.

0:32:53 During a retreat organized at the Omega 150 for Vietnam War Veterans, There was a veteran who told us that until he came to the retreat, he could only see the Vietnamese as an enemy because he has been taught that the Vietnamese are enemies. When he came to the retreat, he saw evidence of a Vietnamese monk. The first impression he had was that this is an enemy.

0:33:43 Later on, thanks to the practice, he discovered that I am not his enemy. If your mind is grounded because of some ideas, some notions, you can see the things in themselves. Another example. In the last 30 years, one year, I have been denied the visa to go back to my country.

0:34:49 You can say that I have stayed in Europe since that time. I have never been back in Vietnam. But many Vietnamese friends of mine who went to Vietnam, lately they have reported that In Vietnam, they feel my presence is very attentional over there.

0:35:39 So the truth is that I am in Vietnam or I am not in Vietnam. Personally, I feel that I am there in a very real way. I continue to serve my friends and my students. Another example.

0:36:25 Yesterday, one of you wrote to me and said that he can accept that life and death are happening in every moment of our daily life. He can see that life and death and death into our that happens in every moment of our life. But he would like to know whether it is possible for us to continue after our body doesn't agree. Because I was talking about future life, past life, and present life. He said that the brain, when it disintegrates, then how can you imagine, how can you conceive of a continuation?

0:37:29 Thank you. For myself, even now, even at the time when my body has not disintegrated yet, I can already see myself everywhere. It is there. If you look deeply in the present moment, you can see my continuation everywhere. Look at my students, my disciples, and each of them carry me within them.

0:38:16 Now in this moment, in the city of Moscow, someone is breathing and smiling. That is me. And then when you hear the Buddha, when conditions are sufficient, something manifests, and you consider it as existing. And when conditions are not sufficient, something does not manifest and you can see it as non-existent. That is why "manifestation" is the key word. Everything manifests itself from the base of collective consciousness and individual consciousness.

0:39:17 and you are still caught in the notions of being and non-being. That is why you cannot touch the ultimate. The brain and the body, when conditions are sufficient, they manifest themselves. And we can see, we can say that there exists. And if one condition is lacking, the manifestation starts, and we qualify it as non-existent. That way of looking is not very deep.

0:40:04 It is a life of fire. When this fire starts to match, we can see fire manifested. And when the fuel runs out, the fire is not there. No longer there, you say the fire doesn't exist. You need to take another much more time. The problem is how to bring about enough conditions for you tonight. Now, the inner here is filled with signals sent to us by satellites. If you have a television post or a diary post, we can have these signals to manifest.

0:41:03 It is not because we don't have a television set or a radio set here that we qualify as a signal that is non-existent. That is why the meditation, the contemplation on our perception is very important, because we can see things according to the patterns of our mind, and we distort everything. We build up a world in which India is full of illusions, and we suffer because of this, of our constructed mind. That is why the basic thing is to learn how to look with the eyes of wisdom, the true mind, the eyes of the Buddha.

0:42:04 Let us read another verse, the 40th. "Construction impregnates the mind with seeds of delusion, thus bringing about the misery of samsara. The full field opens the door of wisdom to the realm of suchness." In construction, it means "Rat and Pitta". If we continue to look at things in the way we used to look, based on notions of self-permanence, based on our dualistic way.

0:43:03 And then that kind of seeing, looking will continue to sow, to water the seeds of delusion in us. And we continue to bring about the misery of samsara, samsara, the will of suffering. That is why it is very essential to change the way of looking. Changing the way of looking is the basic purpose. The full field opens the door of wisdom. The full field here is Nishpana.

0:43:51 seeing things in the nature of inter-being. And this is a trend. The full field opens the door of wisdom to the realm of suchness. "Meditation on the nature of interdependence can transform delusion into illumination." That is the 41st verse. "Meditation on the nature of interdependence." It means we practice looking deeply according to the nature, in order to touch the nature of inter-being of all things.

0:44:55 That is, Paratantra can transform delusion into illumination. Samsara and suchness are not different, they have the same ground. The object of the true mind is suchness. The object of the deluded mind is samsara. That is the 41st verse.

0:45:40 Meditation on the nature of interdependence can transform delusion into illumination. It means the practice of looking, of deep looking to see the nature of inter-being, that practice can transform delusion and to help illumination to take place. And when the deluded mind is still there, its object of cognition is the realm of samsara.

0:46:30 But when the deluded mind is transformed into the true mind, and then the object of the true mind now is suchness, the realm of things in themselves. So samsara and suchness are not two different things, and they have the same ground. That means when the mind is true mind, it is suchness. But the same thing, when the mind is diluted and then it is samsara. It is like what I said during the instructions of walking meditation. This ground is under our feet.

0:47:17 If we know how to walk, it's solidity and freedom to become the kingdom of God. And if we walk with sorrow, and fear, and anger, it is hell, the sin. But it depends on the way, our way, our mode of living can live with samsara, our suchness. We continue a little bit more, 40 seconds. A flower is already present in the garden. The garbage is already present in the flower. Flower and garbage are not too delusion and enlightenment into us.

0:48:12 Where do we have to seek for enlightenment? It is in delusion itself. The world of nobility and knowledge is to be found in the world of birth and death. Store Consciousness In the Store Consciousness, there are seeds of delusion, of cravings. and disease of delusion and craving have brought about a kind of consciousness called Manas.

0:49:24 "Stall consciousness functions permanently day and night." "Mannas also functions permanently day and night." tonight. Yesterday, I have said something like this. Here is a store consciousness. From store consciousness evolves another kind of consciousness called manas, the delusion about self. And manas, unbased all consciousness.

0:50:52 grasp it and conceive it as self and never release. I want to say that within us, within store consciousness, There are sheets of delusion, there are sheets of grieving, and ignorance, and the tendency to look for pleasure, to be afraid. All these sheets constitute an impulsive force that agitate consciousness at the time of name and form manifesting themselves.

0:51:49 Having Alaya as support, manas, consciousness, arise. Its function is mentation, grasping at Alaya, which it considers to be its object, the self. It comes from Alaya, it comes from the soul consciousness. It arises from alaya and it turns to grasp alaya as its object. And its function is meditation. Always grasping at alaya and consider it to be the object of self.

0:52:42 Manas is the lover. The object of manas is the mark of itself, the appearance of itself, found in the realm of representations. We know that there are three realms of objects. The first realm is the realm of things in themselves. So manas cannot enrich the realm of things in themselves, the realm of suchness, because it is made of delusion and cravings. And that is why its object is only the realm of representations.

0:53:29 It means the constructed world. created at the point where manas and store consciousness intersect. So manas is not taking the whole of Alaya as its object. It takes only a very tiny part of Alaya as object. The 19th. As the ground for good and evil of the other six consciousnesses of transformation, manas is both continuous and cogitating.

0:54:19 Its nature is both indeterminate and obstructive. "Obstracted" means it is caught. It is caught. There are obstacles on the way. That is why manas cannot touch the realm of suchness, the realm of things in themselves, in itself. But its nature is also indeterminate.

0:55:07 It means it can be transformed. Inter-dominate, it means it can be either good or evil. Manas is both continuous and cogitating. Continuous because it functions day and night without stop. That is a kind of consciousness that functions day and night without stop. And cogitating means embracing that part of Alaya and consider it to be an object of its love, cogitating, mentation.

0:56:13 The other six consciousness of transformation we can translate as the other six evolving consciousness because there are seven evolving consciousnesses. Interterminate here means it can become true mind, it can become the nature of the Buddha. Unobstructed means there is no obstacle standing on the way. There is a possibility of reaching the realm of things in themselves. Madness is obstructed.

0:57:15 and indeterminate also. And both of them functions non-stop day and night. Store, its function is holding together, holding everything together, maintaining all the seeds. And manas always, always grasping. Coming from the star, it turns back to the star and grasps it. Born from the star, it goes back to the star and grasps it.

0:58:05 And follows the star, always. The manas is the first evolving consciousness. Evolving... consciousnesses. There are seven evolving consciousnesses. Storm is the beast. It is Consciousness, and from it, from the base of Stalled Consciousness, there are seven other kinds of Consciousness that evolved from Stalled Consciousness. The Chinese is...

0:59:05 The seven evolving Consciousness. in the sense that it is Parabritti-Visnana. So, basing on manas, another consciousness is born, like basing on the eyes, eyes consciousness is born. And that consciousness is called mind consciousness. Or manavishnana. You see, manas is the base. from which manifests the Mind Consciousness.

1:00:07 It is like the eyes is the base from which the Eyes Consciousness is born. So Mind Consciousness is the second evolving Consciousness, Manas being the first. And then we have the other five evolving Consciousness. It's called Eyes Consciousness, Ear, Nose, Tank and Body. The object of the eye is form, the object of the ear is sound, the nose is smell, taste and touch so you have one two three four five six and together with the objects they make So we take 12, base, 6, object, 6, and when base and object encounter each other become consciousness. So you have 18 realms of being. Not only I's consciousness is manifested from soul, but I's is also manifested from soul.

1:02:33 but the form is only manifested from the star. Star here means collective star and individual star at the same time. And we should remember there is no such a thing as absolute collectivity. There is no such a thing as absolute individuality. It is like right and left. We may think of extreme right and extreme left, but there will be no extreme right or extreme left.

1:03:38 And right and left, they will rise to each other. Mind-consciousness is not like a minus and a star. It operates, but sometimes it's up, it's operation. Let us read the 23rd. with manas as base and phenomena as objects.

1:04:28 Phenomena here is the translation of dharmas, ideas, concepts, notions. Mental consciousness manifests itself, its sphere of cognition is the widest. Everything can be the object of madness. In order to understand it easily, we can say something like: "With eyes as base and form as object, eyes consciousness manifests itself." So here, with manas as base and phenomena as objects, mental consciousness manifests itself, and its sphere of cognition is the widest.

1:05:50 because it has the capacity to reach to every direction, and everything can be the object of its cognition. The 24th, mental consciousness possesses three modes of cognition, has access to three fields of cognition, and is capable of having three natures. All mental properties are concomitant to it: the universal, the particulars, the wholesome, the unwholesome, and the indeterminate. The three modes of cognition.

1:06:38 First of all, it is the direct intuition. direct knowledge without having to go through inference. And comparison. There are three modes of cognition. The first one is direct experimentation. The second mode of cognition is the mode of cognition, that can be called "discursive", Speculative inference.

1:08:22 Suppose when mental consciousness has as a subject this white flower. and it can just recognize it as a white flower without going through a process of inference. So that is direct.

1:09:06 And the second mode of cognition is something like you see some smoke rising up, and you do not see the fire. But because the fact is the smoke is there, you know the fire must be there. So that is the second mode of cognition. Inference. And the third...

1:10:01 Intuitive Inference. And the third is wrong. The third is a wrong mode of cognition. If it is correct, it is called the first. In the case that the intuition is not correct, it belongs to the third mode of cognition. In the case that the second mode is not correct, it belongs to the third category of cognition. In Vietnamese, we use the word "Hèn lờn".

1:11:00 Tilo. Tilo. Then learn the direct cognition without going through inference. Tilo. The kind of cognition you got from... "Inference" and "phileum" means the case when "Hien Lương" and "Ti Lương" are wrong. And it is part that for manas, manas, the first evolving consciousness, its mode of cognition is always wrong.

1:11:56 We go back to the 24th. The mental consciousness possesses three modes of cognition, has access to three fields of cognition, namely the field of things in themselves, the fields of representations and the fields of mere image. In our dream, when we dream during the night, The object of mental consciousness is the sphere of mere images. These mere images are there in the form of seeds in our store consciousness. building our dream, this mere image, as it manifests itself and constitutes the dream in which we live.

1:13:00 But when we are awake, we live mostly in the realm of representations, the realm of construction. And if we know how to practice looking according to the insight of impermanence and nonsense and interviewees, we can transfer the realm of representations in order for the realm of thinking in themselves have a share of the mind. So mental consciousness has three modes of cognition, three fields of cognition and is capable of having three natures.

1:13:58 Three natures means root, not root, and neutral. Wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral. All mental properties are concomitant to it, the universals, the particulars, the wholesome, unwholesome, and the indeterminate. Mental properties here, it means the mental formations in the number of 51 mental formations. and all these 51 mental formations I can collaborate with mind consciousnesses.

1:15:02 First, there are five mental formations called universals because all the eight consciousness have them as content, the five universals. Contact. Manaskara. Attention. Turning the mind. to the object.

1:16:40 Experiencing the feeling. Perception. Set that up. To think. ...to Determinate.

1:17:57 These five mental formations are called "Universals" because all the six, all the eight Consciousnesses We have to operate within us. First of all, the contact between objects and subjects of cognition. Namaskara is paying attention to the object of cognition. In Vedanta, there is the feeling as a result of this kind of contact and attention.

1:18:45 And after that, there is a perception of what is there. And satana is the decision, the volition, the thinking that happens after perception is islam. And when I's consciousness operates, I's consciousness has the five universals. When ear consciousness operates, it also has the five universals.

1:19:32 And when mind consciousness operates, and some five universals. We are not going to mention or to name all the mental formations here, but at least we have to read the names of the five particulars. Universal and it's particular. The five particulars, first of all, is the design, the wish. Second, that is the decision, the shock.

1:20:30 the awareness that you already know what it is. It means the opposite of doubt. When you see a flower, You are certain, you are confident that this is a flower. You are sure that this is a flower and not something else, that is aliboksha. Smurthy, remembering, this word is also used for mindfulness.

1:21:15 Samadhi, concentrating, and prajna, knowing, understanding. so many things. So all mental properties are concomitant to it, the universal, the particular, the wholesome, including compassion, loving-kindness, faith, and so on, the unwholesome, the afflictions.

1:22:07 And the indefinite means the mental formation that can be wholesome or unwholesome. And maybe tomorrow we'll have a list of these mental properties. They are mental formations in the name of fifty-one. Mental consciousness, this is the twenty-five, twenty-five. Mental consciousness is the root of all actions of body and speech. Its nature is codicating but not continuous.

1:22:54 It gives right to actions leading to maturation, playing the role of the gardener, the sows, the seeds. Mental consciousness is the root of all actions of body and speech. We act and we speak on the base of our thinking, of our cognition. Its nature is cogitating, it is like manas, the first evolving consciousness. But while manas is continuous, this mental consciousness is not continuous.

1:23:50 Sometimes when we sleep without a dream, mental consciousness stops completely. And when we faint, consciousness may not operate. And when we got into the meditation, the state of no mind, then mind consciousness, mental consciousness also stops to operate. That is why it is different from the first two consciousness. Mental consciousness is not continuous, and the same is true with the five other consciousness: eyes, nose, tongue, and body.

1:24:46 It will give rise to actions leading to maturation, playing the role of the gardener who sows the seed. It is based on mental consciousness that we take actions. That action is to water the seeds within us, to water the positive seeds and the negative seeds within us. If we continue to water the negative seeds in us, the result will be suffering, more suffering. And if we know how to water the positive seeds in us, and then there will be more understanding, love, and happiness.

1:25:35 If the mind-consciousness learns how to look in terms of impermanence and no-self and inter-being, it will bring the seed of enlightenment to grow and to bloom like a flower. That is why it gives rise to actions leading to maturation. the maturation of these seeds. And my mental consciousness is like the gardener. The gardener has to trust the garden. Because it is the garden that can bring about the fruit of understanding.

1:26:27 and compassion. The gardener has the role to confine the seeds, to recognize the seeds, the positive seeds, that are in store consciousness. And you have to practice day and night in order to be able to water, to help the seeds to grow. It is the garden store consciousness that can nourish and that can bring about the result. The flower of awakening, the flower of understanding and love is a gift from the garden.

1:27:19 And the gardener has to take good care of the garden in order for the flower to have a sense to grow. Today we have a happy visiting. All of us are encouraged to be alone, to be, you know, on your own, walking, walking alone, sitting alone, doing things alone. And this is my suggestion as to what you can do this afternoon, living in the mood of my living.

1:28:05 Just practice enjoying your walking, your sitting, and look into your filthiness. If you have a parent or a doctor or not, that would be wonderful. What would you tend to be that one or two conditions and you still need in order to be really happy. What do you think to be the only condition that you still need in order to be happy? It depends on you, maybe one way.

1:29:02 I think we have to look in our face to call it by its name, "stooling". Second, if that condition will never be realized, if that condition can never be realized, then do you think that you are going to be unhappy for all of your life? Suppose that condition will never materialize. What shall we do about it? How we accept not to be happy for all of our life?

1:29:48 So let us try to answer that question. The third, can you write down on a sheet of paper elements of happiness that are available in the present? In other words, what can make you happy right now right here? your daily happiness. This is a very easy thing to do, but we need to do it.

1:30:37 We have to write it down very clearly, the elements of happiness that are only available in the human life. And writing down like that is to recognize them, to identify them. Maybe you think that there are only a few, but if you continue, it may fill up two or three pages. So use a sheet of data and a pen for your meditation. 4. What kind of arrangement can you make, so that you have a chance to recognize them in your daily life and to profit often from them?

1:31:40 The idea is that we have the capacity to list our happiness, to list, to write down elements of our happiness. But the essential is how to arrange, so that we have a chance to recognize that in our daily life, and to quote from the parents, "What would be your practice?" We use our intelligence in order to make it possible for us to touch these elements of happiness every day and to be able to profit from them. The last point, we might like to do one or two, or all of us.

1:32:39 The last one: "For what is not to your liking now?" When the situation is not to your liking. "What do you think you can do in order to make it more acceptable to you?" What do you think you can do to make it more acceptable to you? Suppose our partner doesn't like our practice, He is not interested in our practice mindfulness.

1:33:32 He withdraws from us and he continues to smoke and to drink alcohol. So you wish that you will stop smoking, stop drinking, and begin to pay attention to your practice and to support you in your practice and to share your practice. But if the situation is not like that, what do we envisage to do in order to get into the situation? Or just sit there and complain about the situation? So please use this afternoon your free time, your personal time, to enjoy looking into these matters.

1:34:33 Of course, if you have a close garden assistant, they can offer that insight to us. But first of all, we have to use our own insight, and later on, when there is an opportunity, we ask our friend to shine more light, to shed more light on it, and to help us to see a little bit more deeply about this time.

1:35:21 After this Dhamma talk, there will be a formal meal. A formal meal is an opportunity for us to practice sitting with solidity and freedom in order to share and live together. In the time of the Buddha, the monster used to eat in silence with the Buddha. And they sit and enjoy the lunch and they do not stand up during the time of eating. they sit in such a way that solidarity and freedom will be possible.

1:36:18 They enjoy the food and the sangha. And it allows the energy of the sangha to penetrate in us. So the two aspects, the two objects of our roughness during the lunchtime is the food and the sangha. And let us not think of other things, just enjoying the food and the Sankhya surrounding us. The essential is to enjoy our togetherness.

1:37:05 That is why, after having taken our food, We go into the place, I think, here. And then we sit down with the plate of Fortifan class and we begin to practice mindful breathing, like sitting meditation. And when everyone is there, present, there will be a bell, and we practice listening to the fire and contemplation. The Buddha invites us to eat in mindfulness, pay attention to the food and the community of practice surrounding us, and not to let ourselves be carried away by any less thinking and conversation.

1:37:56 Brothers and sisters, when we hear that, they practice the five contemplations, and then they will be the sound of the breath, and the five contemplations will be heard. and after that, we begin to eat all of it. As for the 50 verses I can say, I think as we continue, they become greater and greater. And we will be able to come to the practical aspects of the practice very soon.

1:39:08 Thank you. Thank you.