Bro Teoh’s 7 March 2019 Thursday class sharing

Bro Teoh’s Thursday Meditation class March 7, 2019 Outline short notes

1. Bro Teoh advised all Kalyanamittas to sincerely (with faith) cultivate the Buddha Dhamma to transform their life for the better and to use their dhamma understanding to live the good life for the benefits of all.

2. Sis Angie shared that learning to relax is very profound and important in our meditation practice and has helped her see how her body and mind moved as one and has now experience much less tension. Bro Teoh rejoiced and confirmthat the first support for awareness based meditation to  always relax into every mind states that arise during meditation is very important, otherwise one may develop meditative concentration and energy build up, leading to stress, tension and headache. This concentrated and focused mind is a conditioned mind, is not a free mind and will not lead you to wisdom and understanding of who you are and what are you. Only the free mind can allow you to see things as they are to develop the wisdom i.e. having the direct knowledge and vision of the reality to understand the Truth (Nature’s laws that govern all of life and existence) as taught by the Buddha.

3. Relax is the first of the 4 supports for awareness based meditation:
   • To relax into every mind state that arise. Be at ease so that there is no tension, no suppression, no concentration, no control and focusing of the mind. The relaxed mind is a free mind which is just aware and there is no thought to cloud the true mind and this will allow the mind to enter satiand samadhi (the collected and unwavering free mind).
   • Without thought, you are already aware and you don’t have to doanything to be aware. The natural state of your mind before your heedless thinking and stirring thought process, is actually stillness and tranquility. The reason why most people cannot realize that tranquil silent state of mind is that their thoughts are active throughout the day. Thoughts = mundane mind = thinking mind = conditioned arising or dependent originating mind. Understand this and your meditation will become easy. The mundane mind arises from your mental stirring borne of your own delusion.
   • Aware and silent the mind. Aware means relax and silent – no thinking. Don’t try to do anything. When you are silent, everything will slow downand cease and your original state of mind will return. This is real meditation. The moment you are without thought, your true mind is there. When there is mental activities (stirring of mind), thought arises, the mundane mind arises and there is delusion.
   • When you stabilize your true mind, you develop samadhi and your daily mindfulness will fall into place. Do not belief in what people say or what is shared here too, but inquire, reflect and investigate into all this and find out for yourself to see if this stand up to investigation. That is how you can develop the understanding to straighten our view.
   • 24 hours support means trying to maintain our awareness for as long as we can.
   • Trust your true nature

4. Bro Teoh also shared the 3 hallmarks of Hui Neng’s teaching which lead directlyto the true mind having: No Thought, No Mark and No Dwelling.

5. No thought = true mind. Without understanding the true mind, you cannot understand truth. You cannot realize your true mind if your spiritual faculties are not developed. Your mental hindrances prevent you from entering themeditative state of inner peace, inner calmness, well-being and awareness.
6. The Buddha taught Anapanasati is to help you develop mindfulness of the in and out breath leading to heedfulness. With mindfulness (you are without thought), you will experience piti and joy. With Sati when you investigate the Dhamma(Dhammavicaya), Viriya will arise when the Dhamma stands up to investigation. Viriya will drive you to cultivate further and your Sati will stabilize, then Piti will arise. Then you are supposed to relax into all mind states and maintain awareness then Piti will become more and more refine until it cumulates into Sukha. Continue to relax and your mind will become very quiet and subtle, and the mind enters sati leading to Passaddhi (the tranquility and stillness of mind) which is still, aware and without thought with nothing within. Stabilize it further till the mind is in Samadhi. With Sati, Pasaddhi and Samadhi, you can see things as they are and you will awaken. Wisdom will be developed leading to the arising of the last enlightenment factor of upekkha.

7. Having dhamma friends -> listening to the true dhamma -> faith in the Triple gem (Buddha and his teaching) -> Yoniso manasikara (initial wisdom) -> Sati Sampajjana (mindfulness and clear comprehension). Sati when stabilize leading to heedfulness. Heedfulness = ever mindful + constantly meditative (cultivating the N8FP). Heedfulness (sati sampajjana) -> develops sense restrain -> develops the 3 ways of right conduct -> cultivate the 4 foundation of mindfulness -> leading to the 7 factors of enlightenment -> true knowledge leading to enlightenment, will fulfil all the 10 steps as stated in the enlightenment cycle of the Avijja Sutta.

8. The Buddha advice the Kalamas to investigate into all Truth told to them. If it is the truth it will stand up to investigation. It will also bring above more wholesomeness and be conducive for the good life.

9. Take care of Karma and karma will take care of your life and you will have the good life. Realize the true mind and be awaken to the Truth.

10. Without thought, you are just aware, and there is no fear, no worry, no anxiety, no sorrow, no lamentation and no problem. You are just calm, peaceful and at ease. This is wonderful living.

11. Bro Joseph enquired when we are in Sati, is it ok for us to recall the positive and beautiful songs and enjoy them. Bro Teoh thank Joseph for the rather good question because it will give rise to causes and conditions for him to discuss this rather important topic concerning life especially how to live life which many do not understand. As long as you are mindful and you understand, you can listen to nice music and watch the video or any cinema show. You can also have good food if there is condition for you to have them. The only advice by the Buddha isnot to be attached, not to cling and not to have craving. When there is no condition to have them, just accept the reality of it and do not allow the cravingto make you miserable or unhappy.

Human beings problem is, when they recall through  memories their scars of memories, phobias, life’s problem etc. they develop the unnecessary fear,  worry and anxiety instead of resolving them amicably with wisdom and understanding borne of dhamma understanding.

Do not accumulate such psychological memories borne of wrong views. Treat memory like random access memory (RAM) as in a computer, only access them when need to use them. The memory can still be there (inside the brain) but we don’t go and hold onto or cling on to them all the time to arise the unnecessary fear, worry and anxiety. Just be aware and don’t get lost in it and don’t crave for it (if it is something pleasant that you desire/like).

(The above draft outline short notes is by Sister Angie)

With metta always,