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plane of mind 
/blithni/ 
sphere of existence /bhava/ 
underpinning virtue 
sensual plane 
[kAmavacarabhEmil 
sensual sphere [kAmabhaval 
<human> Five Precepts 
intact 
<angelic> shame of evil 
thiri] and fear of evil 
lonappal 
form plane 
[rEpavacarabhEmil 
form sphere irEpa-bhaval 
The four divine 
abidings [brahmaviliArai: 
I. loving kindness: 2. 
compassion: 3. sympathetic 
joy:4 al in, n nn bv. 
formless plane 
[arEpavacarabhEmil 
formless sphere CarEpa-bhaval 
arupaihAnri absorptions 
transcendental 
Nirvana 
Noble Eightfold Path 
(more in Blessing 33) 
Lion — again, it is no more difficult to explain than 
more detail. The Spheres of Existence are threefold, 
someone who has scramEtigiErtNi &WAN tiffrEistencifige fkenifigedPrhift(IfftifitTatilgslaafttrories can be 
last minute (but who habitually knows nothing about 
expanded in detail to up to thirty-one realms of 
their subject) who is put in an advanced class as the 
existence. 
result of their good examination results. This might be 
equivalent to someone who is indifferent to virtue all 
their lives, but who makes an effort to elevate the 
quality of their mind in the final years of their life. 
Returning to the maxim of 'like attracts like' we find that 
states of mind and realms of existence have virtues and/or 
inner experience in common — and if these virtues or 
inner experiences are habitual for a person throughout 
their lives or are steadfast in a person at their moment of 
death, they will lead to rebirth in the corresponding realm. 
The correspondence is illustrated in the table above. 
Please note that if the Five Precepts are not intact then 
the mind will be attracted to the unfortunate realms 
such as the hell realms at the break-up of the body. 
8.3 Realms of Existence 
Having understood the correspondence between inner 
experience and realms of existence, we now turn to 
look at each of the Spheres of Existence in 
B.3.1 The Three Spheres of Existence 
The realms of existence can be summarized down into 
three spheres: 
I. The sensuous sphere [kAmabhava] — equivalent in 
subtlety to the sense-pleasure state of mind 
— is the state of existence inhabited by humans, 
animals, hell-realms and angels. In the deepest heart 
of every being which inhabits this realm, there is still 
the feeling of enjoyment of sense pleasure. Sense 
pleasure can mean sexual pleasure or it can mean 
pleasures of the five senses (pleasurable images seen 
with the eyes, pleasurable sounds heard with the 
ears, pleasurable tastes reaching our tastebuds, 
pleasurable aromas that reach our nostrils or soft 
sensations that come into contact with our skin. 
Every living being in the sensual realm is searching 
for happiness via sense pleasure, whether by the 
channels of sight, sound, taste, smell or touch. 
2. The Form Sphere [rEpabhava] is the dwelling place 
of form-Brahmas [rEpabrahma]. Such be 
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ings also are derived from people who ma 
train themselves in meditation until they att 
'form absorptions' [repajhAnal. When the 
away, their body was buried or created, but t 
(astral body) had no further attraction for th 
of Sensual Pleasure so they escape from thi 
into the Sphere of Form and take rebit 
form-Brahma. 
3. The Formless Sphere [arEpabhava] is the 
place of formless-Brahmas [arEpabrahma]. Su 
also are derived from people who manages
themselves in meditation until they atta 
'formless absorptions' [arEpajhAna]. They 
who were attached neither to sensual pleasure 
pleasure of the form-absorptions — but the 
the pleasure of the formless realms. 
To imagine the relationship between the thre 
so far discussed, you should picture three 
spheres — one the size of a football, the sec 
centre of the football, but the size of a tenni 
the third inside the tennis ball, but the 
ping-pong ball. If you were to use the a 
explain the relationship between the three Sp 
can compare the ping-pong ball to the 
Sensual Pleasure. The tennis ball can be coi 
the Sphere of Form and the football can be co 
the Sphere of the Formless. 
B.3.2 Subdivisions within the Three Sp 
Existence 
The world system consists of thirty-one real 
are arranged within the three spheres of 
already described. The sensual sphere [kA, 
includes the hells, the human realm and all t 
of heaven. In this sphere, the inhabitants spe 
all of their time fulfilling themselves by the p 
the senses. If we can escape the sensual realn 
enter upon the sphere of form [rEpabhava] 
known as the Brahma-world because it is inh 
Brahmas or gods. However there is a third 
existence which is even more refined and this 
the formless sphere [artpabhava] which is in 
formless Brahmas. 
ineg the 
sfiasesre . 
realms of existence 
wil
trainee 
eirclEilaid
Nirvana 
3 t& .. ere
0 
*ants a 
dwelling 
:h being! 
trigs 
• Realm of neither perception nor non-perception 
[NevasafthAnAsafMAyatanal • Realm of 
nothingness kkificalthAvatanal • Realm of infinite 
consciousness [vinnAAancAyatanal • Realm of 
infinite space tAkAsAnalicAymanal 
(o 
top-rk 
%%Vs t" (
ere thosc 
or to rilf 
enjoyec 
! Sphere 
oncentric 
nd in thc 
ball anc 
izo of z
alogy tc 
eres, you. 
phere o' 
spared tc 
[pared tc 
Iteres of 
ns. The) 
• Realm of the supreme Brahmas [AkaniEEhAl • 
Realm of Brahma, who are clear-sighted [Sudassfil 
• Realm of Brahmas who are beautiful (SudassAl • 
Realm of Brahma, who are serene lAtappAl • 
Realm of Brahma, who do not fall from prosperity 
[AvinAj• Realm of non-percipient beings 
[AsafthEsattAl • Realm of Brahmas with abundant 
reward WchapphalAl • Realm of Brahmas with 
steady aura [SubhakiAhAJ • Realm of Brahmas with 
infinite aura [AppamkkasubhAl • Realm of 
Brahman with limited aura [ParitiasubhAJ • Realm 
of Brahtnas with radiant lustre I/Massa:Ai • Realm 
of Brahma.. with infinite lustre lAppamAAAbhAj • 
Realm of Brahmas with limited lustre IntrittAbhAi 
• Realm of Great Brahmas IMahAbrahmAJ • Realm 
of Great Brahma's ministers Il3rahmapurohnAJ • 
Realm of Great Brahma's attendants 
[BrahmapAriasajjAt 
ex/Relic(
n-s
a
ie realm! 
Id neat 
ensure o 
then wt 
which i! 
'halted b
;phere o 
is calk( 
abited b) 
Fortunate Realms Ikarnatagatil: • Heaven Realms: • 
Heaven of the Angels who lord over the creations of 
others [ParanimmicavasavattEl • Heaven of the 
Angels who rejoice in their own creations 
[NimmAnaratEJ • Heaven of the Satisfied Angels 
• [TusitAl • Heaven of the Angel of Death IYAmAJ • 
Heaven of the Thiny Three [TAvatiOsAt • Heaven 
of the Four Great Kings ICAtumahArAjikAl • 
Human Realm Wanussal The unhappy realms 
/ApAyat • Animal Realm riracchAnayonil • 
MonsterslAsutakAyal: • Hungry Ghosts 
[Pittivisayal • Hell Realms [Nirayal 
TABLE 32.4: The Thirty-One Realms of Existence Blessing 
Thirty-Two: Practising the Brahma-Faring 361 
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8.4 Rebirth 
8.4.1 If Rebirth is so obvious why should we believe 
otherwise? 
Another new concept which comes with moving around 
between realms of existence is 'rebirth'. For doctrinal reasons 
the teaching of rebirth has been suppressed and intentionally 
removed from Biblical Christian literature. Only during the 
reign of Constantine the Great with the finalizing of the 
scriptures to be included in the Bible, was the doctrine of 
transmigration as preached by the Gnostics decreed to be 
heretical and received criticism from Greek philosophers such 
as Hyppolitus, Irenaeus etc. In fact the main problem for 
Christians with the concept of rebirth seems to be that they 
don't see animals as sentient beings. If man can be born as an 
animal sometimes, it devalues his spiritual 'worth' in the eyes 
of God. 
Before this time doctrine of rebirth is not so alien to 
western thinking as you may think. In the early days of 
Christianity as still recorded in some of the apocryphal 
(non-Biblical) scriptures and commentaries on the 
Bible, rebirth of the soul was accepted up until about 
280 Aix In the Gnostic tradition who emphasized inner 
insight as the main source of revelation they found no 
difficulty in fitting reincarnation into their plan of 
salvation. Far from thinking that reincarnation is alien 
to gospel-teaching, they elaborately interpret certain of 
the most striking sayings in this sense, and give graphic 
details of how Jesus, as the First Mystery, brought to 
rebirth the souls of John the Baptizer and of the disci-
ples, and supervised the economy of his own in-
carnation. In this respect the Great Seth scriptures offer 
richer material for those interested in this ancient and 
widespread doctrine than can be found in any other 
old-world document in the West. Gnostic teachings like 
Buddhist ones have regarded reincarnation as a 
calamity to be overcome by liberation. 
8.4.2 Rebirth v.s reincarnation 
At this point it is necessary to point out a small dis-
tinction in the use of language between the words 
'rebirth' and 'reincarnation'. In Buddhism we usually 
use the word 'rebirth' to describe the continu 
ity from life to life. It indicates that the 'soul' or 'entity' 
that is reborn between one life and the next might not 
be the same in nature but will have a quality which will 
differ according to the actions most recently performed 
by that being. Hindu tradition, by contrast, uses the 
word 'reincarnation' which indicates that a person 
reborn, has an unchanging character or soul, but the 
new form of being at birth might change to be a frog or 
a cat or an elephant, but the soul is still John Smith etc. 
C PRINCIPLES OF LIBERATION 
The Three Spheres together are like a three-layered prison which 
traps the beings in the world in a cycle of rebirth. Returning to 
our model with three concentric spheres, we realize that even 
now, we are still in that prison, rattling about inside the pingpong 
ball. Even if we were to be born as angels we would not escape 
the ping-pong ball. We get in a spaceship and go to the moon, 
thinking that we can escape from the prison of the world — but in 
fact, the moon is just a satellite of the earth. Even if we make it to 
the sun or the stars, we are still in the same old galaxy, the same 
old universe — and we am still in the most basic level of prison 
— the sensuous realm. No matter how far we travel, we cannot 
escape. What must we do to escape from our prison? The key to 
gaining liberation of our being is to gain liberation of mind. Body 
has mind as its governor. Liberation in Buddhism entails 
permanently extricating one's mind out of states within the mun-
dane Vokiyal plane and elevating one's mind permanently into 
the transcendental Unkuttaral plane. If one's mind is liberated 
into the transcendental plane it will have access to happiness 
which is qualitavely different from the worldly state. 
The people of old had a metaphor for the degree of 
happiness attained in each of the levels of mind. In the 
four different levels, the level of happiness is not the 
same. In higher levels there is more happiness and this 
is why we have to make the effort to improve our level 
of mind. 
I. The happiness of the sensual sphere (the happiness 
of having a family and of sense pleasure) is like the 
happiness of a newborn child playing with mud or 
dung. 
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2. The happiness of the form sphere (the happiness of 
attaining the form absorptions) is the satisfaction of 
someone who fulfills himself by performing his work 
well. 
3. The happiness of the formless sphere (the happiness 
of the formless absorptions) is like the satisfaction of 
seeing the success of others who you have raised up, 
such as the happiness of raising one's children into 
responsible members of society, when you once again 
have the freedom to live your own life again. 
4. The happiness of the transcendental (the happiness 
of removing all defilements) is happiness beyond 
comparison. 
Furthermore, the states of mind on the transcendental level 
will be beyond the touch of the worldly vicissitudes (see 
Blessing Thirty-Five) — the reason for this difference is 
the radically reduced number of defilements inthe mind. 
If we can permanently raise our mind to the highest 
level, then when dying from the human realm we will 
gain entry to a purer existence, or better still, will not be 
reborn any more. 
C.! Relinquishing as a relay 
We have to throw off the temptations of sensuality, and 
the temptations of satisfaction with the form or 
formless absorptions. You have to sever the at-
tachments sequentially. This point is difficult to un-
derstand — it has been very widely misunderstood 
even amongst monks. You don't give up everything all 
at once. According to the RathavinEta Sutta 
(M.i.I45ff.), the process is a relay. For the mind it is 
the same, in order for the mind to escape a lower level, 
we need to build up a higher state of mind ready and 
waiting to receive the outgoing mind. If you plan to 
remove sensual interest from the mind and you just try 
to sever the ties without anything in the way of 
replacement you will never succeed. The mind needs 
something as the object of its attention. If you have no 
new (better) object of interest as a replacement, the 
mind will never give up its old ways. This is why you 
have to train yourself in meditation to the degree that 
you attain the first absorptions of the mind (brightness 
within) before you can hope to sever the ties of sensual 
tempts 
tion. Your mind has to be completely absorbed in the 
happiness of meditation attainment before it will be 
able to give up the happiness derived from sensual 
fulfillment. 
If you have sweet dreams of graduating and finding a 
cute husband or wife to many, and having a cute little 
house and one or two cute little children of your own, 
and someone comes along and says 
— give up all interest in sensual pleasure — it'll be 
good for you — you would probably think that killing 
yourself might be a more viable possibility. If you 
really want to give up sweet dreams of sensual 
fulfillment, you have to meditate until brightness arises 
within, there is a possibility of finding alternative forms 
of fulfillment. Without an alternative you cannot force 
people to give up sensuality. Thus, anyone who decides 
to give up sensual attachment without doing meditation 
to build up a better alternative for themselves is 
doomed to failure. 
D. PRACTISING THE BRAHMA-FARING IN 
EVERYDAY LIFE 
D.l Attitude to Sensuality 
How can it be that a person already had a spouse or a 
partner or a boyfriend or a girlfriend or children and the 
Buddha still insisted that sensual fulfilment is a 
mistake? The Buddha gave many reasons, but in these 
pages, just ten of his metaphors will suffice, to make 
the point. If you cannot completely sever the ties, you 
can prevent yourself from increasing them. However, if 
you can release yourself fromall the ties of sensuality it 
is the best of all. Someone wishing to extricate 
themselves from sensuality should remind themselves 
regularly of the following metaphors: 
Sensuality is like a hungry dog chewing a dry bone 
(the dog exhausts itself with its chewing but will never satiate 
its appetite). Married life is just the same. It never fulfills us. 
Love is never what it promises; 
2 
Sensuality is like a piece of meat fought over by 
vultures. (It is said if you choose a wife, never choose a 
beautiful one, because she will be a source of attraction to 
other men in the future too, and that will become the bane of 
your life.); 
3 
Sensuality is like carrying a torch offire while 
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walking into the wind. (As it bums down, the fire 
one to whom you are no longer physically at-
comes closer and closer to burning your hand and in 
tracted) 
the end you have to throw it away. In the same way 
7. 
Sensuality is like a fruit tree in the forest 
however much you may love your spouse, both of (The fruit of a tree in the forest is public domain. The 
you get older year by year and in the end one of you 
fruit it bears is there to be taken by anyone who has the 
has to be the first to the deathbed); 
time to pick it. If you are good at climbing the tree or 
knocking off the fruit or even at cutting down the tree, 
Sensuality is like a pool of burning fuel (Everyerthe fruit is yours. The climber half way up the tree will 
knows if they fall in the pool they will never get out alive, hfithurt when the tree cutters come along — but there is 
they cannot help being attracted to walk along the edge atifithing in the way of compensation because none of 
pool until they eventually fall in — even though they knov,hem own the tree for themselves. In the same way, you 
the saying 'wherever them is love there will be tears') 
cannot become the exclusive owner of the life of 
2 
Sensuality is like a dream (You dream of happinerhur person. If anyone else puts in the time and the 
but before long you have to wake up to the real world. Try effort to make they love them mom than they love you, 
asking a married couple what the happiest day of their 
then your spouse becomes your ex-spouse. If you get 
marriage was. They will always reply that it was the first akeutal up by other suitors, who can you complain to?) 
since that day the causes of suffering have been increasing 
day by day. When you were single you could please yourself, 
but since you got married that has had to change. In the oldg
days we thought it was hard work to look after our parents ''w 
Sensuality is like a steak hammer. (Anyone 
now you have to look after your partners' parents too — anaho gets involved with sensuality will be putting their 
awn 
perhaps their extended family too and any children inheritea 
life at risk.) The more beautiful or handsome you
D 
from previous marriages! You end up saying to yourself, 
"ISfOUSC, the more risky is your marriage. You know
ur husband finishes work at four in the afternoon. 
only I had known I would never have got married!" but yo 'Why is he still not home at six o'clock? Has there been 
will be saying that to the end of your days.) 
3 
Sensuality is like borrowed jewelry (When you wear 
 e,
an accident or is he having a secret affair? The more 
it, it looks good and everyone admires you, but as soon as attractive they are, the more you have to worry about. 
y 
Hapnu 
As the result, instead of your marriage bringing you 
meet the lender, they will ask for that jewellry back. Before 
piness, the ensuing worry ages you before your 
marriage we take special care to choose the best of beauty wine
handsomeness in our partner. People will admire you when 
you first many saying `What a lovely couple!' but that beauty 
and handsomeness will gradually be 'returned to its lender9. 
Sensuality is like a spear. (It has the tendency 
with the passing years leaving only wrinkles in its place. Etenvound you). It is like teeth and a tongue which share 
the most handsome filmstar ends up with a bald head. The the same mouth. Sooner or later you will end up biting 
best of beauty wears off after five or ten years. Supposing yaw tongue. The fights which grow up within a 
are twenty-five when you many. From the age of thirty-fivmarriage are some of the most painful to all concerned, 
to the end of your days, you have to live with some 
and eventually you end up dividing up the children be-
tween you as if they were nothing more than puppies or 
kittens. 
10. Sensuality is like a snake head (If you have 
anything to do with it, you have always to be on your 
guard. There is no time you can be off your guard. You 
have to be thinking all the time, "Do they really love 
me or are they just pretending to love me? Did they 
have an ulterior motive in loving me?" Suspicion grows 
like a can 
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cer in a marriage. Especially when your spouse is 
not a particularly moral person, the level of 
suspicion will be all the greater and the suffering 
greater too, as the result.) 
In fact the Buddha had many more metaphors for 
sensuality than this. Thus if you arc yet to get yourself a 
boyfriend, girlfriend or spouse, train yourself in 
meditation more and more and when you attain inner 
brightness, you will soon find a happiness which is 
superior. The thought of marriage will disappear of its 
own accord. As for those who are already married, 
there is no need to go encouraging divorces. If someone 
doesn't yet have any children, maybe they would prefer 
to keep in that way. If someone has a certain number of 
children already, maybe they can be content with the 
number they already have. Chastity can offer a bright 
future to all who can practice it. 
D.2 Ways to Practise the Brahma-faring 
Many of the ways of practising chastity have already been 
covered in previous Blessings. However, we come back to 
these again because chastity can be practised at many 
levels. There are ten ways of practising chastity and as 
usual they range from the easy to the difficult: 
If you see someone's car has broken down, you should 
help to push it. In a word, it is using strength surplus to 
our needs to help others. Often if we have too much 
effort unused, it becomes sensually directed instead, so 
you have to be quick to use it for more constructive 
ends. 
• Keeping the Five Precepts: You should keep the Five 
Precepts purely. You will notice that keeping the Five 
Precepts seems to be included in almost every form of 
Dhamma study. The Precepts are unlike many other 
items of virtue which can be compared to steps on the 
stairway of Buddhist practice, the Five Precepts can be 
compared to the banister. The banister is always as long 
as the stainvay itself — unlike the steps which each 
only extend a little way. Thus whenever you speak of 
another virtue, you always take for granted that that 
virtue comes within the guidelines of the Five Precepts 
(whether they are specifically mentioned or not). 
Concerning chastity, in the Five Precepts, the third 
Precept about not committing adultery is most 
obviously the most crucial. Supposing we would like to 
practice chastity, but we still have responsibilities to our 
own family, then proper attention to the Five Precepts is 
our best inroad to practice. Even if we are still single 
and we are not yet brave enough to sever the ties of 
sensuality completely, we should establish ourselves 
The Brahma-faring at the Lowest Level 
firmly in the Five Precepts so that we don't go messing 
Generosity [dAna]: Once your mind is already 
about with other people's husbands and wives and 
purified by austerity, the first thing you must do is to practisteating trouble for ourselves in the long term. 
generosity. The reason why we must be generous, because 
possessions surplus to our needs will be chinks in the armour 
via which sensuality can form attachments. An excess of pos-
sessions will attract people to love us for our wealth. 
The Brahma-faring at the Middle Level 
• 
Service: [veyyavajja] To give our time and effort to 
•Spreading Loving Kindness limitlessly [apamafifia]: 
help with good works or do favours to others in need. If there. 
is an ordination then you should do your best to help thentillis is the spreading of good wishes and forgiveness to 
the neighbours are making a new road you should help thee without exception 
Pick up litter that has fallen at the side of the road and help to— even if they are enemies or those who have hurt 
put it in the bin. Help them when they are organizing Kathindis in the past. Thinking to yourself, that we are all in 
offerings or the offering of 'forest robes'. If they are building the same predicament of old age, sickness and death, 
a new hospital or library, see what you can help with. 
so why create further suffering for ourselves by 
disharmony? Be careful to distinguish between 
spreading loving kindness and spreading affection 
[rAga]. If you spread loving kindness properly it will 
give the feeling as if the whole of the world is like 
our own children 
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— because we wish that all of them could enjoy 
happiness. Don't go mistakenly spreading the 
feeling that you would like everyone in the world to 
fall in love with you. This is no longer loving 
kindness. Loving kindness has no admixing of 
sensual desires. 
the day before the quarter moon days too, then on 
the quarter moon days and the day before the quarter 
moon days and on the day (i.e. Monday, Tuesday, 
Wednesday...) of your birthday and your spouse's 
birthday. The people of old lent a lot of importance 
to keeping the Eight Precepts on one's birthday — 
Contentment with one's own spouse [sadara- 
reasoning that othenvise, you might never have a 
santusa]: Whether you still find your spouse attractive or not, clear mind to think seriously about your life. They 
or less attractive than the neighbours is something you have titaid that anyone who has sexual relations on their 
put behind you now because you have gone ahead and 
birthday will be someone who will never know suc-
married them. You were the one who chose your spouse for cess in their lives. If a child is born as the result, it 
yourself. You don't have to blame anyone else. Cultivating will be the sort of child who doesn't appreciate its 
limitless loving kindness towards others without exception 
debt of gratitude to its parents — 
because the 
and contentment with your spouse will limit the scope of our parents haven't ever taken any trouble to appreciate 
sensual desires. 
with gratitude the preciousness of attaining human 
• 
Abstention from sexual relations [methunavirati]: birth. If you can build up your Eight Precepts, you 
This item applies specifically to those who do not yet have a will already be keeping Eight Precepts for four days 
family or a spouse of their own — or who are religiously 
of the week (or three days of the week if both 
ordained in some sense. If you are single or an ordained 
bjiusband and wife were born on the same day). 
person, you should think to yourself, "I'm strong enough to 
independent — I don't need to rely on anyone else to do my Another approach might be to keep the Eight 
ironing or to replace me as the bread-winner" and keep 
Precepts throughout the rainy season.
yourself single. Reflecting on the ten comparisons for sensual 
desire we have already mentioned, you will soon see that 
sensual restraint is the key to your own freedom. 
Following the Eightfold Path [ariyamagga]: This 
will be discussed in more detail in Blessing Thirty-Three. 
• 
Following all available teachings [sAsanadhamma]: 
This means following all Buddhist teachings available. It is 
like an amalgamation of all the practices already mentioned. 
The Brahma-faring at the Highest Level 
At all levels of the brahma-faring, the Precepts are al-
• 
Persistence [virtya]: This is the fortitude to practieeYs present. At the lower level, it is the Five Precepts, 
meditation continuously for the whole of your life. This referShe mid-level it is the Eight Precepts and at the High 
to the four components met in the previous blessing i.e. noievel, it will be Eight Precepts or 227 Precepts. 
doing evil that you have never done; giving up evil you haaas if you are going to practice at this high level, you 
already done; doing all the good things you have not yet dinbAuld start by performing dhutalga practice as 
and; continuing to do the good things you have done beforanentioned in the previous Blessing. Once you have 
• 
Keeping Eight Precepts [uposatha]: For those whoampleted your dhutaiga practice,you shouldn't just go 
are single, this means keeping the Eight Precepts the wholchofne and go back to bed! You need to further your 
the time. Those who are married or who have their own 
practice by practising generosity every day, keeping the 
family, they might start by keeping the Eight Precepts on tipa,cepts at a level appropriate to your marital status 
quarter-moon days, then on the quarter moon days and 
and train yourself in meditation for the rest of your life. 
You should seek to train yourself in every virtue that 
exists in the world and this is the true meaning of 
chastity. 
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D.3 Possibilities for practising celibacy 
I. Temporary or Permanent Ordination: There has 
long been the tradition in Thailand that every man 
should ordain as a monk at some time in their life. 
Usually at the age of twenty, young men will ordain for 
one month, two months or three months. Some ordain 
for the rest of their lives. 
2. Ordaining as Nuns: Although there are no female 
monks', it is possible to ordain as a nun who keeps the 
Eight Precepts for a temporary period or permanently. 
3. Staying celibate in your everyday life: It is possible 
to keep the Eight Precepts while earning your living in 
the proper way. All that is needed is to ignore those 
who would persuade you to do otherwise. Never forget 
that they are persuading you to turn yourself into a dog 
chewing a dry bone! There is nothing dishonourable 
about being an old maid. The people of old said that to 
remain unmarried is like to retain your freedom like a 
bird that flies free in the open sky. Once married, you 
are no longer a bird but more like a pet dog that has 
been put on a chain at home. Thus, if anyone tries to 
chat you up or to pinch your bottom, you can tell them 
where to go. 
4. Staying celibate once your eldest child gets married 
(or the first child in family gets married): there is an old 
tradition amongst the country people of Thailand that as 
soon as the oldest child in a family gets married, the 
parents must keep chastity (at low/mid/high level) from 
that time onwards. 
5. Staying celibate once you are widowed: Instead of 
thinking to remarry once your old spouse had died, you 
should start to think of your long term benefits and 
keep the Eight Precepts for the rest of your life. 
D.4 Practical knowledge about ordination 
It is a Buddhist tradition for all young men to ordain 
temporarily as monks at the age of twenty as a way of 
self-training in chastity. In practicality, however, many 
hesitate to take the opportunity to ordain because of 
unfamiliarity with the requirements. Accordingly, 
please find some hints and in 
1. in orthodox or Thcravaada Buddhism 
formation about ordination below: 
• 
Age at ordination: Those who ordain between the 
age of 15 to 20 will ordain as 'novices' (who keep the Ten 
Precepts). Those who ordain at the age of 20 upwards usually 
take full ordination as monks (who keep 227 Precepts). The 
latter is the superior form of ordination — but one should not 
provaricate about ordaining early in life because limitations of 
health may make ordination at a later age difficult. Also it is 
hard to teach an old dog new tricks and those ordaining late in 
life are notoriously hard to instil with new virtues; 
• 
Period of ordination: It is usual to ordain for the 
whole of one rainy season (three months) — or to ordain in 
the university summer vacation for one or two months. One 
might otherwise take ordination when it is convenient to take 
leave from work or taking lifelong ordination is also possible. 
Ordination should not be for less than one month, however 
because it does not allow sufficient time for the study of the 
Dhamma; 
• 
Choosing a place of ordination: The amount we 
learn while ordained is entirely dependent on the quality of 
the training given by a temple or institute. You should choose 
a place of ordination which emphasises strictness in Dhamma 
education and monastic discipline. At a good place of 
ordination, the preceptor will take direct and intimate 
responsibility for training the monks he ordains — giving an 
abundance of teachings and criticism to his students. This is 
in contrast to places which leave new monks to do whatever 
they like after their ordination. In some places, from the day 
of ordination to the day of disrobing, the ordinand doesn't get 
to converse a word of Dhamma with his preceptor. Really, 
what we are seeking from ow ordination is to maximise the 
opportunity to be trained at the hands of ow preceptor —
don't go thinking that the magic of ordination comes from 
wearing saffron robes! — it is the training that counts; 
• 
Monastic Discipline: We should think to ourselves 
that it is monastic discipline that sets us apart from household 
life. Without monastic discipline, we are no more than a 
householder with 
EFTA00286823

a shaven head and saffron robes. To masquerade as 
a monk is no better than to steal from the faithful —
therefore, once ordained we must be strict in 
keeping the monastic discipline otherwise we will 
regret it at a later date; 
suitor, they were quick to give her hand in marriage. 
Little did the parents of both sides know that both sides 
were already in communication with one another by 
letter. Both Pipli and the millionaires daughter had 
independently written letters to one another saying the 
Meditation Practice: Once ordained, one should same thing (i.e. please inform your parents to cancel the 
consecrate one's time entirely to studying the Dhamma andnarriage, because with all due respect, I am not 
meditating rather than chattering idly or looking for 
interested in marriage and would prefer to remain 
amusement; 
single for the rest of my life). The messengers bearing 
• 
Helping Society: When ordaining for three monthgl e letters met one another on the road between the two 
one should give first priority to training and benefitting 
towns. Both were scared that if they brought bad news 
oneself - if there are opportunities to help with humanitarlthlhe respective parents, they would get no reward for 
or social work while ordained — it is a good opportunity, Bacir efforts so the two of them read each other's letters 
one should not become so involved with this that one 
then rewrote the letters to say that both sides were 
diminishes the time available for meditation and Dhamma ready and waiting to many. So it came to pass that Pipli 
study. Welfare work doesn't require us to be ordained to d&w the millionaire's daughter were married, but 
— we can always do it later after our disrobing. The true vAlscause both had cultivated chastity for many lifetimes, 
to help society as a monk is to teach Dhamma for others' they had no interest in sensual pleasures. Both had the 
benefit — however as a newly ordained monk, our Icnowlelent ability to be amhants and even though they were 
will not yet be enough to teach others — all we can do for forced to sleep in the same bed, both of them felt 
society is to conduct ourselves well, go on almsround in anceipPletelY indifferent. They would put a garland of 
derly fashion, concentrating on making our behaviour wo *mine flowers between them on the bed and each of 
of faith — to be a good exemplar of the monastic disciplineh em would meditate in the sleeping position 
and knowing sense-restraint. 
throughout the night. Even after ten years when the 
parents on both sides of the family had passed away, 
they were still living their married life in the same way. 
Once the last of their parents had passed away, they 
gave away all the family legacy. They both obtained the 
robes of an ascetic and left the home life. When they 
came to a fork in the road, the wife said, "Now we are 
E. ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLES 
ascetics, to go around as a couple is no longer 
E.I Er. MahA Kassapa (AA.i.92ff, SA.H.I35ff, 
appropriate." Therefore the wife paid her last respects 
ThagA.H.I34ff, Apii.57.111., Ap.i.33ff) 
to her husband and both asked forgiveness for any 
There once was a young brahmin called Pipli. When he 
mutual trespasses in the past, before the wife took the 
was young, he was very handsome, but was not 
left hand fork and the husband took the right hand fork. 
interested in the married life. He was interested only in 
It is said that through the power of the decision by such 
the study ofthe Dhamma. His father was a wealthy man 
young people to go their own separate ways, at that 
and was worried that he would have no-one to look 
time their was an earthquake in the vicinity. It is said 
after the family fortune when he was gone. His father 
that they were doing something very difficult to do. The 
was so anxious to see his son married that he went 
Buddha detected the earthquake while he was 
looking for suitors himself. Eventually, the father found 
meditating and looked for the reason. When he saw the 
another daughter of a millionaire who lived in a distant 
reason was the ordination of Pipli, he went to meet him 
town. It happened that the daughter like Pipli was 
along the way and in a single sermon could elevate 
disinterested by the subject of marriage. The parents of 
Pipli to the level of an arahant in seven days. As for the 
this young girl were the same as Pipli's parents — they 
wife ... she met with a bhikkhuAi arahant who taught 
were afraid that she would be an `old maid'. As soon as 
her to the degree that 
they heard that Pipli was to be a 
EFTA00286824

she could attain arahantship within seven days in the 
same way. Ultimately, Pipli, under the ordained name 
of MahAkassapa Thera was the monk praised by the 
Buddha as unsurpassed in the practice of dhutaIga 
because he kept the dhutalga practices throughout the 
whole of his life. After the passing away of the Buddha, 
because he was one of the most senior of the monks in 
the community, he was the monastic president for the 
First Council. 
E2 Ex. MAtika MAta (Dhit.i.293) 
In the time of the Buddha there was a group of sixty 
monks who having made sufficient study of Buddhist 
theory, went to take leave of the Buddha before going 
into the deep forest to practise meditation. In the forest 
they came across an old woman who was the mother of 
the village mayor. The old woman was very pleased to 
see such a large number of monks coming to practice in 
the neighbourhood and so she provided for all the 
catering needs of the monks. One day she asked the 
monks, "Is it possible only to practice chastity as a 
monk or can women and householders also practice?" 
The monks answered that it was also possible for 
householders to practice chastity — it is possible for 
anyone who wants to come to an end of defilements. 
The monk taught the lady all about meditation and 
keeping the Eight Precepts and the remainder of the ten 
components of chastity. The lady trained herself strictly 
in accordance with what she had been taught and found 
she could make progress even more quickly than the 
monks themselves. The reason she could make more 
progress was because she had built up such habits over 
the course of many lifetimes and she could also see the 
value of such practice after coming across many 
disappointments during her life. She was able to attain 
the form-absorptions, the formless-absorptions and the 
DhammakAya to the level of anAgAmi. Through the 
power of her meditation, she was able to read the minds 
of others. She was able to know that her own progress 
in meditation was more than any of the sixty monks for 
whom she brought food. She meditated further and 
found that the reason that they weren't making progress 
in meditation was because the monks were unfamiliar 
with the sort of food they provided for them. Instead of 
meditating without any concerns, their minds were 
always distracted by the thought of the food they were 
used to. 
Thus from that day onwards, if the lady knew that there was a 
particular food that the monk was wishing for that day, she would 
provide the self-same food for the next meal. The monks were 
constantly surprised by the fact that whatever food they happened 
to be interested in, it would always be the next meal on their 
plates. Before long the monks were meditating better because 
they were no longer worrying about food and in seven days, 
fifty-nine of the sixty could become arahants. The fifty-nine 
returned to the temple where the Buddha was residing. The 
remaining monk who had not been practising so hard was not 
only hindered in his meditation, he also guessed that the lady was 
able to read his mind so he was scared of her. He knew if he 
should happen to think of anything wicked he would be ashamed 
to death of that lady. This last monk ran away back to the Buddha 
and asked permission to pursue his meditation somewhere else. 
The Buddha asked the reason, and the monk said, The supporter 
is a mind reader— supposing I think anything evil, what will she 
think of me?" 
The Buddha said, "To have shame even of your 
thoughts might just be your advantage!" The monk was 
sent back to where he had been before, but now he took 
such care even of his thoughts that he was able to 
become an arahant. As an arahant, he looked back into 
his past lives to see if this was the first lifetime in which 
that lady had helped him. He found that in a previous 
life the lady had been his wife — she had been 
unfaithful and had murdered him — however in other 
lifetimes, the lady had sacrificed her life for his benefit. 
The reason why the woman had become only an 
anAgAmi was because in the past she had not paid 
enough attention to the practice of dhutalga. 
E3 Er. BAhiya DAructriya DhA.ii.209ff 
Many kappas ago, the teaching of a previous Buddha 
was almost disappeared from the world. There were 
seven monks who still practised well. They saw that 
society had degraded to to a level where no-one was 
interested to learn the Dhamma any more. The seven 
monks decided to disappear into the forest to practice in 
earnest instead of wasting their time with society any 
more. They found a mountain which was surrounded by 
cliffs on all sides. The mountain in the forest which was 
suitable for meditation. They agreed 
EFTA00286825

amongst themselves to meditate on the top of the 
mountain until they could attain mental powers. They 
climbed a ladder up the cliff and when all had reached 
the top the kicked the ladder away — intending that if 
they couldn't attain enlightenment in their meditation, 
they would rather die than give in. They meditated 
without eating and without moving for five days before 
the first of the monks could attain transcendental states. 
He was able to become an arahant and floating in the 
air, flew down the mountain to go for almsround. 
Returning from almsround, he brought enough food for 
all the other monks too. However, the other monks 
were resolute in their meditation and refused his food. 
On the seventh day a second monk attained anAgAmin. 
The two enlightened monks went for almsround, but the 
remaining five still refused to eat the food they had 
brought. Eventually the remaining five died of physical 
exhaustion in their meditation. The arahant entered 
parinibbAna. The anAgAmt entered the Form-BrahmA 
realm and the rest of the monks were reborn in heaven. 
After spending the requisite time in heaven one of the 
five monks was reborn in the human realm as a 
merchant called BAhiya DArucEriya. While trading in 
a ship, it was wrecked and he was the only survivor. He 
got hold of a plank and eventually came to land at the 
port of Supparaka. As he was naked, he tied a piece of 
bark to his body, and sat in a place where people could 
see him. Passers-by gave him food. Some thought that 
he was a holy man and paid respects to him. Some 
brought clothes for him to wear but he refused, fearing 
that by wearing clothes, people would give him less 
respect. Besides, because some said that he was an 
arahant, he mistakenly came to think that he really was 
one. Thus, because he was a man of wrong views who 
was wearing a piece of bark as his clothing, he came to 
be known as BAhiya DArucEriya. 
At about this time, Maha BrahmA, who had been the 
friend who had attained anAgAmE in one of his 
previous existences, saw BAhiya's views going astray 
and felt that it was his duty to put him on the right path. 
Thus, the BrahmA came to him in the night and said to 
him, "BAhiya, you are not an arahant yet, and what is 
more, you do not have the qualities that make one an 
arahant." Faced with the 
truth, BAhiya looked up at the BrahmA and said, "Yes, 
I must admit that I am not an arahant, as you have said. 
I now realise that I have made a great mistake. But is 
there anyone in this world now who is an arahantr 
The BrahmA then advised him to go and seek help 
from the Buddha who was staying in SAvatthE. 
BAhiya, realized the enormity of his guilt, felt very much 
distressed and travelled all the way to SAvatthE to see the 
Buddha. BAhiya found the Buddha going on an almsround 
with other bhikkhus and respectfully followed him. lie 
pleaded with the Buddha to teach him the Dhamma, but the 
Buddha replied that since they were on an almsround it was 
not yet time for a religious discourse. And again, BAhiya 
pleaded, "Venerable Sir! One cannot know the danger to your 
life or to my life, so please teach me the Dhamma." The 
Buddha knew that BAhiya's mental faculties were not yet 
ready to completely realize the Dhantma. The Buddha also 
knew that BAhiya's mind was not receptive at that time 
because he had just made the long journey and also because 
he was overwhelmed with joy at seeing him. 
The Enlightened One did not want to expound the Dhamma 
immediately but wanted him to calm down to enable him to 
absorb 
the 
Dhantma 
properly. 
Still, 
BAhiya 
persistentlypleaded. So, while standing at the roadside, the 
Buddha said to him, "BAhiya, when you see an object, be 
conscious of just the visible object; when you hear a sound, 
be conscious of just the sound; when you smell or taste or 
touch something, be conscious of just the smell, the taste or 
the touch; and when you think of anything, be conscious of 
just that mind-object." 
BAhiya did as he was told and because of his deep 
concentration, the accumulated karmic force of his past 
good deeds became dominant and he attained 
Arahanthood. He asked permission from the Buddha to 
join the Order. The Buddha told him first to collect the 
robes, the bowl and other requisites of a hhikkhu. On 
his way to get them, he was gored by a mad cow and 
died. This is said to be one of the only examples of 
those to attain arahantship before ordination — but 
without ordination, he could not support such a high 
mental state and so passed away within seven days of 
his enlightenment. 
EFTA00286826

Blessing Thirty-Three: 
Seeing the Four Noble 
Truths 
A. INTRODUCTION 
A.I Blessing Thirty-three in the order of things 
This blessing and the remaining five blessings of the 
Malgala Sutta are the culmination of all the previous 
thirty-two blessings. It is not to say that there was nothing 
gained from the foregoing blessings, but those previous 
blessings have not yet managed to raise us to liberation or 
transcendental purity. 
In the Blessing Thirty-two we discussed cosmology 
saying that our current sphere of existence can be 
compared to 'life in a ping-pong ball' (!), i.e. the 
Sphere of Sense-Pleasure. Our sphere of existence is 
enclosed within a larger sphere like a tennis ball, which 
is called the 'sphere of form-BrahmAs'. This tennis 
ball is enclosed within a larger football which is called 
the 'sphere of formless-BrahmAs'. Sometimes we think 
that our cosmos is incomprehensibly large, but to a 
meditator, it is no more cosmically significant than a 
ping-pong ball. We refer to all three of these spheres 
together as the 'ti-bhEmi' or 'Triple World'. The 
knowledge of anything any further than this 'Triple 
World' is unique to Buddhism amongst world religions. 
Buddhism, has specialized in the fact that its implicit 
knowledge extends further than the Triple World into 
experiences that truly transcend the mundane world 
[lokuttara] and concern Nirvana. 
Of all the blessings we have studied, those which have 
emphasized earnest practice the most are blessings 
Thirty-One and Thirty-Two. Those who 
practice must use austere techniques to burn up the 
defilements in the mind — overcoming laziness and 
their habitual bad habits concerning use of clothing, 
food and shelter. In the blessing concerning the 
`Brahma-faring' we sowed the seeds of goodness in the 
pure mind. The process of sowing virtue is like 
smelting a metal to purity. We have already said that 
overcoming impurities in the mind can only take place 
if we have transcendental happiness to replace our 
mundane happiness. As we change the staple diet of the 
mind from mundane happiness to transcendental 
happiness, eventually when this becomes habitual, it 
will dictate our rebirth in the corresponding 
transcendental realm orlead to no further rebirth. 
As you practice more and more according to the 
prescribed stages, the clarity and brightness of the mind 
will increase. As the brightness of your mind increases, 
the mind will have the ability to appreciate the reality 
of life and the world. If you are able to appreciate such 
a reality, in that way you can come to an end of all 
suffering — and attain real happiness. Buddhism refers 
to 'seeing reality in the way that can bring you to an 
end of suffering' as 'Seeing the Noble Truths' — which 
is the subject of this blessing. 
A.2 Definition: The Noble Truths 
The word 'noble' is used to describe the truths ex-
amined in this Blessing. The reason for them being 
noble is threefold — they are: 
EFTA00286827

• Noble in themselves: Seeing these truths, you dis-
cover the key to the nature of reality. Simply knowing 
the truth about certain key issues, you will be able to 
appreciate the truth of everything 
— in contrast to the knowledge of mundane matters 
which does nothing to transform us for the better; 
a single epoch, but a period of the order of 10"..ons. 
This is how long it takes for someone to train 
themselves sufficiently well in the thirty-eight blessings 
to discover the Noble Truths anew. If such a person has 
not arisen in the world, the world will remain in 
ignorance concerning those truths. However, once such 
a person has seen the Noble Truths, even though they 
ght be able to teach those Noble Truths for the 
• 
Discovered by someone who was noble: The Nob%i
Truths can be discovered only by those who are really noblienefit of others, it doesn't mean that others will 
necessarily be able to see the Noble Truths in the same 
— not by birth but by the utter purity of their minds; 
• 
Will make the attainer noble: Whosoever attains WV . 
noble truths will gain penetrating knowledge of all things anle Noble Truths are difficult to see or appreciate 
that in itself will make that person noble. 
because our relationship to them (especially suffering) 
We might ask ourselves, having studied the forgoing 
blessings, why we have not yet see the Noble Truths as a 
result. The reason is because we have not yet trained 
ourselves to the utmost. First, we have to ask ourselves 
honestly whether we have really practiced the forgoing 
blessings in earnest or not? Once satisfied with our efforts to 
study the preceding blessings, it is also pertinent to remind 
ourselves that even if we are not yet at the point where we can 
see the Noble Truths for ourselves, the study of this blessing 
is still essential, even if only to know what we are looking for. 
To see the Noble Truths is not the work of a single day. 
Even if we cannot reach this spiritual destination today, 
at least we can know the route to take us there — so 
that in the future we can orientate ourselves in the right 
direction. Thus, this blessing will deal with 'knowing 
about the Noble Truths' so that we know what they 
comprise. When we have practised further, then we will 
be able to recognize the Noble Truths when we see 
them for ourselves. 
A.3 Noble Truths: overlooked for epochs 
The Four Noble Truths are Truths which have existed 
as long as the Earth or longer. However, even though 
they existed, no-one ever noticed them. Their discovery 
had to wait for many aeons (an aeon being defined as 
the time it takes to wear a 16km x 16km x 16 km solid 
stone mountain down to the ground by rubbing it once 
every hundred years with a light cloth [Pabbata Sutta 
S.ii.I SI ]). Not just 
is like a fish's relationship to water. A fish is so used to 
the water it lives in, that it fails to notice the presence of 
that water. In the same way, our human condition is so 
intimately in contact with the Noble Truths that without 
penetrative insight we fail to see the patterns or the 
reasons behind them. 
B. THE NOBLE TRUTHS 
The Buddha's first teaching, the Dhammacakkapavattana 
Sutta (S.v.420ff.), which is the main source of our 
knowledge about the Noble Truths is one of the most 
important 
teachings for Buddhists to know. Its 
importance lies in the fact that it acts like a blueprint for 
all the subsequent teachings on Buddhism given during 
the Buddha's lifetime. Even if the Lord Buddha were to 
teach the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta and never to 
teach another word of Dhamma for the rest of his life, His 
duty in proclaiming the Dhamma to the world would have 
been fulfilled. Just as each country of the world has a 
Constitution as the blueprint for the rest of the laws of the 
country to expand upon, similarly, the other teachings of 
the Buddha, the teachingsof the arahants and the 
teachings of distinguished Buddhist teachers down to the 
present time are simply enlargements upon the Noble 
Truths of the Dhammacakkapavattana Sutta. The Noble 
Truths are fourfold and consist of: 
I. The Noble Truth of Suffering [dukkhaariyasacca]; 
2. The Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering 
[samudaya-ariyasacca]; 
3. The Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering 
EFTA00286828

inirodhahaniijnggoefrieeipde-death omens and visions 
still within the Three Spheres you cannot escape: 
4. The Nobtbeffinveltticirlitigiono magoratingin vain I. Birth [jAta]: Most people wonder why the Buddha 
Suffering [MtcggilbnYtriedOftitlftliftftftwed ones in vain 
designated birth as a form of suffering — in contrast to 
nitodha-gMitftlial-AftIplilltkogrifittkauattie case of executimmost religions of the world which conclude that it is a 
pleasure to be born. The Buddha, by contrast, taught 
that birth is suffering because it is the starting point for 
all the other sorts of suffering. In addition birth is 
fraught with the following ten aspects all of which lead 
to suffering: 
If you were to compare these with our system of curing 
illness, you can compare: 
I. Suffering to the condition of being ill 
2. The Origin of Suffering to the pathogen, bacteria or 
virus 
3. The Cessation of Suffering to the condition of being 
healed from the illness 
4. The Path to the medicine that can cure one of 
the said disease. To take the metaphor further, it can be 
said that everyone in the world is ill with the disease of 
suffering — but it is as if no-one really knows what the 
nature or the cause of the illness — let alone the cure. 
The purpose of this blessing is to allow us to know the 
real nature of Suffering and how we can extricate 
ourselves from it. 
B.I The Noble Truth of Suffering 
The Pali word used for this Truth is sdukkha' which 
means the (truth of the existence of) Suffering. 
Suffering in general means 'awkwardness' or 
'discomfort' of body or mind. Over the course of many 
existences, when the Buddha had developed inner 
brightness sufficient to see the reality of the world, he 
saw that every living being in the world is plagued by 
suffering. Even multimillionaires are suffering. No 
matter if they are the president, members of parliament, 
the king, the emperor or even monks — all are plagued 
by suffering. All are suffering to a greater or lesser 
extent. As the result of extended self-training, the 
Buddha was able to see the nature of suffering and even 
to analyze it into its different components. There are 
eleven major categories of suffering under the two 
headings of inevitable and miscellaneous (to a greater 
degree avoidable) suffering: 
B.I.1 Inevitable Suffering [svabhAvadulckha]: It 
doesn't matter what sort of birth you take, you cannot 
escape this type of suffering — even if you are a man, 
an angel or a god, for as long as you are 
1. 
the Suffering of Internment in the 
Womb the Suffering of Physical Shocks to the 
Womb the Suffering of Unnatural 
Childbirfthe Suffering of Undergoing Childbirth (for 
the baby) 
5. 
the Suffering of Being Cleaned-Up after 
birth 
the Suffering of Curtailed 
Life 
the Suffering of Wounds in 
Combat the Suffering of Birth in the Hell 
Realms the Suffering of Birth in the Animal 
Kfingdobbffering of Birth in the Realm of Hungry 
Ghosts 
2. Aging [jarA]: Aging is a form of suffering easily seen 
from the sighs and moans of old people each time they 
have to get up from their chairs. Indeed, most people think 
that aging starts when you are seventy or eighty years old. 
However, the worst aspects of aging are not the grey hair 
and wrinkles, but the hidden part which works in the 
background from the day we were born 
— compared to an unseen fire which reduces a 
forest to cinders or storm which leaves nothing but 
debris in its wake; 
3. Death [maraAaJ: All living beings have to undergo death 
before they leave one existence for the next — no matter 
whether they are rich or poor, have led a good life or a bad 
one. When the mind must depart from one's body at the end 
of one's life, it is only those who have managed to attain 
transcendental [lokuttara] mental states who don't fear 
oncoming death. This is why the Lord Buddha referred to 
death as suffering. The suffering of dying brings excruciating 
misery because of: 
• the scorching sensation when dying which seems 
to penetrate the whole of our body 
EFTA00286829

sensitive about a particular thing or bear a grudge). 
Some people bear a grudge against their parents for 
not having showed them enough love. Some wives 
bear a grudge against their husbands for receiving 
less affection than they think they deserve. 
B.1.2 Miscellaneous Suffering [pakiAakkadukkha): This 
is suffering which is caused when the mind is lacking in 
quality. It is a category of suffering which you have the 
opportunity to escape — but for those who don't make the 
effort to escape, they will meet up with a lot of it. If you 
know the method to avoid this sort of suffering, you can 
reduce your misery 
— especially by changing your attitudes at a deeper 
level: 
1. Sorrow [soka]: This is the 'dry-minded' suffering —
for example, that of a mother with a new baby who 
cannot take her baby to work (or she will be fired), but 
must leave the baby in the creche or with a maid despite 
her misgivings. He anxiousness leads to sorrow for the 
situation. With the anxiety of whether the maid will 
take proper care of the baby or whether they will leave 
the baby to be bitten by ants. 
2. Lamentation [parideva]: This is sorrow that drives 
you to tears. If the mother in the last example should 
worry herself to tears it would be counted as 
lamentation. 
3. Pain [dukkha]: This is physical suffering. The 
Buddha characterized this sort of suffering as that 
which makes the mind depressed and dejected. The 
cause of the suffering might be illness, physical torture, 
punishment, imprisonment or having hands or feet cut 
off. As the suffering must be endured alone — friends 
and relatives can do nothing to help us, or else we are 
separated from them. Some people feel such pain as a 
result of their poverty — being unable to afford clothes 
and jewelry to wear like more fortunate people. The 
mental anguish which comes from the resentment of the 
unavoidability and seeming unfairness of one's 
circumstances can also be ascribed to this form of 
suffering. 
4. Feeling slighted [domanassa]: This is when one has 
a 'chip on one's shoulder' (to be aggressively 
5. Despair [upAyAssa]: This is when you give up any 
hope of success in something. You might see a task 
which is so great that you give up hope of ever 
completing it. 
6. Exposure to hateful things [apiyehi sampayoga]: The 
Buddha characterized this form of suffering as the sort 
of cloudedness of mind, grief and melancholy which 
result from coming into contact with those things to 
which we are averse. The things which make us feel 
averse may come via our five senses — we feel aversion 
and would like to remove those hateful things or escape 
from their grasp — but when we can't it only adds to the 
suffering in our mind. 
7. Separation from loved ones and treasured things 
[piyehi vipayoga]: If we are the sort of person who 
wishes for fulfilment by the sense-pleasures and 
habitually indulges the senses, when we are eventually 
separated from such sources of pleasure, the heartbreak 
of parting is the characteristic of this sort of suffering. 
Separation from loved ones (like close relations who 
pass away) or from treasured things (possessions, home 
or honours) will bring us misery for as long as we still 
harbour these attachments in our hearts. 
8. Disappointment [alAbha]: The Buddha divided this 
category of suffering into two parts — physical 
disappointment and spiritual disappointment. 
Supposing in spite of working hard and having all the 
necessary patience in the face of hardship, a person still 
doesn't manage to earn their living successfully —
physical disappointment is what they feel as the result. 
If a person hankers after more abstract things like 
honours, but is unable to procure all that they are 
looking for, spiritual disappointment is what they feel 
as the result. For as long as we still harbour such 
disappointment in our hearts, they will continue to 
bring us misery. 
For people in general who never studied the 
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Dhamma or listened to sermons concerning suffering, 
when they are overtaken by old-age, sickness or death, 
it comes as a major shock. As for those who have 
achieved some level of enlightenment or have heard the 
teaching of the Lord Buddha, the inevitability of such 
suffering presents no surprise. Faced by suffering, the 
wise reflect that all beings are subject to suffering, 
irrespective of whether they are possessed of 
supra-normal powers — no matter how rich or 
influential a person might be, one doesn't feel one is 
being singled out for particular bad luck — all are equal 
in the face of suffering. Thus, to realize the reality of 
suffering for what it really is, to know the Noble Truth 
of Suffering, is indeed one strength of the Enlightened 
Ones. 
The realization of the Noble Truth of Suffering has 
been achieved independently by all the Buddhas and 
paccekahuddhas. As for the arahants and various 
enlightened disciples of the Buddha — it has only been 
as the result of the teaching of the Buddha that such an 
insight has been attained. 
B.1 The Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering 
The Pali word used for this Truth is `sanutdaya' which 
means the `origin' of Suffering. When people are 
ignorant of the real reason behind their suffering, they 
tend to clutch at straws — blaming anything they can 
think of (but themselves). Some blame the gods and 
deities, some say `that it is God's way of testing one's 
patience' or 'that it is God's punishment'. Some say the 
victim has `fallen prey to the local spirits or to the 
Devil'. It is like people who don't know the reason for 
an economic crisis will blame anything they can think 
of — e.g. the government or foreign countries — but 
they never think of blaming themselves or the laziness 
of their fellow countrymen. Some people will always 
find someone to blame whether it is their husband or 
wife or the government. If they fail their examinations 
they blame their teachers. They will do anything to 
make sure that they pass the buck. 
It is only the Buddha who taught us to blame ourselves 
— to blame ourselves for not having completely dealt 
with the craving that remains in the mind. The Buddha 
taught that we suffer because we still have defilements 
in the mind. The defile 
ments in the mind create craving [taAhA] which ex-
presses itself in different ways. The Lord Buddha taught 
the existence of three sorts of craving (A.iii.445): 
craving for sense-pleasure [kAmataAhA], craving for 
the form realms [bhavataAhA] and craving for the 
formless realms [vibhavataAhA]. 
1. Craving for Sense-Pleasure: Craving for 
sense-pleasure is the grasping of the mind when it is 
under the influence of greed or desire for the objects of 
the senses i.e. images, sounds, perfumes, tastes and 
touching. It is the craving of those who think that true 
happiness can be obtained via sense pleasures. Thus 
such people wish to be reborn in the human realm or 
one of the heavens, all of which are in the Sphere of 
Sense Pleasure [kAmabhava]. Skilful-minded people 
with such an attitude to life, try to do as many 
meritorious actions as possible (e.g. keeping the 
Precepts or being generous) in order to be reborn in 
heaven. Such an attitude is one driven by craving for 
sense-pleasure and the Lord Buddha enumerated it as 
one of the Noble Truths of the Origin of Suffering. 
2. Craving for the Form Realms: Craving for the 
Form Realms is the attitude of those who wish to be 
reborn in the BrahmA-world or the Realms of Form 
[rEpabhava]. Such people believe that being able to 
attain the BrahmA-world (to be reunited with God etc.) 
will allow them to escape from the suffering of birth, 
old age, sickness and death. Such people devote all 
their efforts to the attainment of the form-absorptions 
[jhAna] in order to pass away into the BrahmA-world at 
death. Spiritual practitioners who subscribe to this 
attitude, having developed a certain degree of 
meditation, will acquire the ability to recollect their 
previous lives and will know what form they had taken 
in previous lives. When passing away, the highest 
realm in which they can be reborn will be the 
Form-BrahmA world. Such an attitude is one driven by 
craving for the BrahmAworld and the Lord Buddha 
enumerated it as one of the Noble Truths of the Origin 
of Suffering. 
3. Craving for the Formless Realms: Craving for the 
Formless Realms is the attitude of those who 
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wish to be reborn in the formless BrahmA-world or the 
formless Realms [arEpabhava]. Such people believe that 
being able to attain the formless BrahmA-world will allow 
them to escape eternally from rebirth in lower realms and 
that it will allow them to attain Nirvana. Spiritual practi-
tioners who subscribe to this attitude, who have developed 
a certain degree of meditation, will acquire the ability to 
know what awaits them after death. The limit of the 
knowledge of such practitioners are the Formless-BrahmA 
Realms 
— knowledge gained as the result of developing the 
formless absorptions [arEpa-jhAna]. Such ascetics 
misunderstand that being reborn in the Formless 
BrahmA-world will release them from suffering —
thus all their time in the human world is spent trying 
to develop the formless absorptions in order to try to 
be born in the Formless-BrahmA Realms. Such an 
attitude is one driven by craving for the 
Formless-BrahmA world and the Lord Buddha 
enumerated it as one of the Noble Truths of the 
Origin of Suffering. 
The wise recognize these three forms of craving as the Noble 
Truth of the Origin of Suffering because they are the 
prime-mover for all subsequent forms of suffering. Craving 
for sense pleasure is the origin of all the suffering connected 
with rebirth in the Sphere of Sensual Pleasure. Craving for the 
Brahma world or the Formless Brahma World are the origins 
of all the suffering connected with rebirth in the Spheres of 
the Form-BrahntAs and the Formless-BrahmAs respectively. 
It is for this reason that craving is explained as being the sole 
cause of all forms of suffering — suffering cannot be blamed 
on any other thing. If craving can be avoided, the suffering of 
birth, old age and death will be escaped. 
Craving has been responsible for keeping beings in the 
endless cycle of birth and rebirth in the cycle of 
existence without offering any possible refuge. It is for 
this reason that craving has been called 'samudaya' the 
Noble Truth of the Origin of Suffering. 
B.3 Noble Truth of the Cessation of Suffering 
The Pali word used for this Truth is `nirodha' which 
means the 'extinction' or 'cessation' of Suffering. The 
Buddha found that craving can only be overcome if 
craving is extinguished. The way that craving can be 
extinguished is by eradicating the defilements in the 
mind. If defilements are reduced, craving is reduced. If 
craving is reduced, suffering will be reduced. If you 
can bring craving to an end, there is nothing to cause 
you to be reborn any more. If there is no birth any 
more, then that will eradicate suffering at its roots. 
Furthermore, cessation of suffering is something we 
can find for ourselves. We don't have to wait for an 
unknown 'factor' or external agent or deity to do the 
work for us. 
B.4 Noble Truth of the Path to the Cessation of Suffering 
The Pali word used for this Truth is 'magga' which means 
the 'Path' or 'dukkhanirodha gAminE paEipadA' which 
means the 'path leading to cessation. It refers equally to 
the 'Middle Way' and to the Noble Eightfold Path. 
The 'Middle Way' [majjhintA patipadAJ doesn't mean 
'moderation in all things' but to cultivate the cessation of 
craving by steering between the extremes of sensual 
indulgence [IcAmasukallikAnuyogal and self-mortification 
[attakilarnathAnuyoga] in one's spiritual practice. Such 
cultivation is a way of training ourselves until the mind can 
wriggle itself free of craving — something achieved by 
freeing the mind of all the thoughts that cause it to move. If 
the mind is not still it has no way of extinguishing craving. 
Furthermore, if the mind is still, it will be sufficiently clear 
and bright to identify the defilements remaining in the mind, 
and it will be possible to banish these defilements from the 
mind. This way or path of practice to bring the mind to a 
standstill consists of eight components — which is why it is 
called the Eightfold Path. 
The Noble Eightfold Path can be found at all levels of 
advancement, whether it be the Sensual Sphere 
[kAmavacarabhEmi], 
the 
Form 
Sphere 
[rEpA-
vacarabhEmi], the Formless Sphere [arEpavacara-
bhumi] or the Transcendental Level [lokuttarabhEmi]. 
If it arises at the Transcendental Level then it is called 
the Transcendental Path [lokatttaramagga]. If it arises in 
the Triple World then it is called the Mundane Path 
[lokiyamagga] — although the way it is applied 
changes with the level of practice (see Table 33.1. 
right) 
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TABLE 33.1: Practising the Eightfold Path on Mundane and Transcendental Levels 
Mundane jlokb'al 
Transcendental llokituaral 
Right View [sammA 
Confidence in the working of the Law of Kanna and 
Fiercely accurate understanding of life and the world 
diEEhij Right 
the power of the Triple Gem. Overcoming Eight Sorts 
based on thorough understanding of the Four Noble 
Intention [sammA 
of False View The wholesome intention to remove 
Truths and without further influence of ignorance or 
salkappal Right 
oneself from the influence of sensual desire, 
the defilements. Insight into the becoming of the Five 
Speech [sammA 
vengefulness and aggression by being generous, 
Aggregates Release from the three types of wrong 
). AcAl Right Action 
keeping Five Precepts and meditating Avoiding 
preoccupation lakusda-vitakkal and bias [agail] 
[sammA kammantal 
telling lies, divisive speech. harsh speech and idle 
Every word as artful speech or else maintaining noble 
Right Livelihood 
chatter. Refraining from killing and cruelty towards 
silence. Practice for the removal of every last trace of 
lsammA Ajtival 
living beings, stealing and sexual relations outside 
ignorance and craving. Earning one's living in a 
Right Effort [sammA 
marriage. Doing things by the rules. Refraining from 
compassionate way. Dedicating oneself actively to 
‘AyAmal Right 
earning one's living by selling weapons, slaves, 
the attainment of Nirvana. Cultivating the Four 
Mindfulness (sammA 
animals to the slaughterhouse, alcohol, drugs, poison 
Foundations of Mindfulness. Seeing and knowing the 
satil Right 
or prostitution, 'fixing' weights and measures used 
Four Noble Truths and the Three Universal 
Concentration 
for business or otherwise misleading customers. 
Characteristics in the Five Aggregates until releasing 
:sammA samAdhil 
Avoiding evils not yet done, breaking of bad habits, 
development of virtues not yet done and maintenance 
oneself from the action of the defilements. 
Attainment of Cessation of Suffering and entry upon 
of virtues already mastered. Keeping our mind on 
wholesome thoughts without any deviation, 
especially by practising meditation until attaining 
one-pointedness of mind Following the absorption of 
the mind onto equanimity. 
Nirvana. 
TABLE 33.2: Correlation between Eightfold Path Factors & the Threefold Training 
Eightfold Path Factors 
Threefold Training 
Right View Right Intention 
Wisdom 
Right Speech Right Action 
Right Livelihood 
Self-Discipline 
Right Effort 
Right Mindfulness 
Right Concentration 
Meditation 
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For as long as a meditator cultivates the Noble Eightfold Path 
purely, completely and according to the principles of the 
Middle Way (i.e. with the mind entering continuously upon 
the pathway at the centre of the body), the mind will be 
liberated from mood influences in the outside world. Once the 
mind has adjusted itself, the meditator will see the diamond 
clear 
Pathama 
Magga 
Sphere 
(DhaminA-
nupassanAsatipaaltAna Sphere) at the centre of his or her 
body. At its smallest it will be the size of a star. 
Medium-sized, it will be the size of the full moon. At its 
largest it will be the size of the midday sun. The PaEhanta 
Maw Sphere arises when all eight components of the Noble 
Eightfold 
Path 
are 
present 
and 
fuse 
into 
unity 
lmaggasainalgEj. This is the trailhead of the pathway to 
Nirvana. You need to train yourself simultaneously in all 
eight of the following the Noble Eightfold Path. 
The Eightfold Path can be expanded into the whole of 
the 84,000 teachings of the Buddha or contracted into 
the Threefold Training [sikkhA] of self-discipline 
[sEla], meditation [samAdhi] and wisdom [palutiA] —
(as shown in Table 33.2. p.377) 
C. SEEING THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS 
Cl How the Noble Truths can be seen 
At this point we now know how many sorts of suffering 
exist — but so far this is only theoretical knowledge. In 
fact, for the ariyasacca to work, we must see them 
twelve times — three cycles in twelve characteristics. 
(See Table 33A) Seeing the Noble Truths is different 
from seeing other things because seeing them, one's 
self is transformed by the act of seeing. Seeing, for 
example 'craving', one immediately will relinquish 
craving and having relinquished it, you see that one has 
done so. It is equivalent to seeing 'this is the medicine', 
while automatically realizing `this medicine should be 
taken' and eventually recognizing this medicine has 
already been taken'. This is possible only because it is 
not the physical eye or imagination which we use to see 
the truths but the Eye of the DhammakAya or 
sdhamma-cakkhie. 
Of course the other inner bodies of experience already 
mentioned in Blessing Thirty-two also have their 
equivalent form of `inner eye' but, as we shall see, (See 
Table 33.3) these eyes are not suf 
ficiently refined to be able to see the Four Noble Truths 
in the way described: 
The comparative wisdom of available to the inner 
bodies at each level was described by the Great Abbot 
of Wat Paknam Bhasicharoen (Phramonkolthepmuni) 
as follows: 
"If you am able to attain the body of enlightenment 
(DhanunakAya) you will find that it is many tens of times 
wiser than our human physical body. If you attain the subtle 
human body it is already twice as wise. Attaining the angelic 
body, it is twice as wise again. Attaining the subtle angelic 
body, it is three times wiser. Attaining the form-brahma 
body, it is four times wiser. Attaining the subtle 
form-brahma body, it is five times wiser. Attaining the 
formless-brahma body, it is six times wiser. Attaining the 
subtle formless-brahma body, it is seven times wiser 
Attaining the body of enlightenment and subtle body of 
enlightenment, they am eight and nine times wiser 
respectively. This is the nature of their successive wisdom 
— you should familiarize yourself with their 
relative wisdoms." 
What is the true meaning of `insight' [vipassanA] 
meditation? In fact insight is insightful vision or seeing 
things according to their true nature, seeing them 
thoroughly from every perspective. The `Dhamma' eye 
is the eye of the `Body of Enlightenment' which has the 
ability to penetrate to the truth, especially to know the 
origins of defilements, how they come to enslave the 
mind and how we can overcome them. This is a major 
difference from the eyes of bodies belonging to the 
mundane levels of mind to which the defilements are 
invisible. 
C2 Characteristics of the Body of Enlightenment 
Luang Phaw Wat Paknam explained that the Dhamma 
Body is similar in shape and form to a 
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TABLE 33.3: Correlation between stale of mind, inner experience & capacity for insight 
subjective experience 
equivalent inner eye 
sphere
sensual 
Physical Body: Angelic Body 
physical eye 
form 
Form-Brahma Body Formless-Brahma 
[maOsa-cakkhul angelic cyc 
formless 
Body 
Lehhha-cakkhaj the eye of 
wisdom IpaiiiiA-cakkhul 
all-seeing eye 
[sanzatua-cakkhu] 
mundane 
states of mind 
VokAxi) 
transcendental 
states of mind 
[thkuttaral 
Dhammakaya GotrabhE Body of 
Enlightenment and higher 
Buddha cyc 
[haddha-cakkha] 
TABLE 33.4: .Seeing the Four Noble Truths - Three Cycles with Twel e Characteristics 
Nirodhaghmtir E 
Dukkha knowledge of the 
Samudaya Ariyasacca 
knowledge of the existence 
Nirodha Ariyasacca 
knowledge of the existence 
Ariyasacea PafipadA 
Ariyasacca knowledge of the 
existence of suffering 
knowledge of what should
knowledge 
origin of suffering 
of the 
ffering 
of the cessation of suffering 
of what should 
existence of the path to the 
cessation of suffering 
Ariyasacca 
SaccatiAAa 
KiccatiAAa 
ICatafiAAa 
be done in relation to 
suffering knowledge that 
what needs to be done has 
been done in relation to 
knowledge of what should be 
done in relation to the origin 
of suffering knowledge that 
what needs to 
be
 done has 
be done in relation to the 
cessation of suffering 
knowledge that what needs 
to be done has been done in 
knowledge of what should be 
done in relation to the path to 
the cessation of suffering 
knowledge that what needs to 
suffering 
been done in relation to the 
origin of suffering 
relation to the cessation of 
suffering 
be done has been done in 
relation to the path to the 
cessation of suffering 
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