Being Free from the Poison of Passion

You keep generating impurities, and your misery continues. You can't stop it because there is a big barrier between the surface of the mind (intellect) and depth of the mind (the so-called 'unconscious' mind that is actually very active, every moment). Without Vipassana practice, this barrier remains.

 - Sayagyi U Goenka

From Principal Teacher of Vipassana Sayagyi U Goenka's article On Addiction, October 1991:

The Buddha said that one who understands Dhamma understands the Law of Cause and Effect. You must realize this truth within yourselves. Vipassana is the process by which you can do so. 

You take steps on the path of Dhamma by practicing Vipassana. Then, whatever you realize you accept it. Step by step, with an open mind, you experience deeper truths of this mind and matter called 'I'.

It is not for curiosity that you investigate the truth pertaining to your mind-matter and mental contents. Instead, you change habit patterns at the deepest level of the mind. As you progress, you will realize how mind influences matter, and how matter influences mind.

Every moment within the framework of the body, masses of sub-atomic particles (kalāpas) arise and pass away. How do they arise? The cause becomes clear as you investigate the reality as it is, free from influence of past conditionings of philosophical beliefs. The material input, the food (āhāra) that you have eaten, is one cause for arising of these kalāpas. Another is the atmosphere (utu) around you. 

You also begin to understand how mind (citta) helps matter to arise and dissolve. At times matter arises from the mental conditioning of the past - that is, the accumulated saṇkhāras of the past. By the practice of Vipassana, all of this starts to become clear. At this moment, that type of mind has arisen and what is the content of this mind? The quality of the mind is according to its content. For example, when a mind full of anger, passion or fear has arisen, you will notice that different sub-atomic particles are generated.

When the mind is full of passion (lust, sexual cravings), then within this material structure, sub-atomic particles of a particular type arise, and there is a biochemical flow which starts throughout the body. This type of biochemical flow, which starts because a mind full of passion has arisen, is called in Pali kāmā asava -the flow of passion.

Like a scientist you proceed further, observing truth as it is, examining the law of nature. When this biochemical flow produced by passion starts, it influences the next moment of the mind with more passion. Thus the kāmā asava turns into kāma tanhā, a craving of passion at the mental level, which again stimulates a flow of passion at the physical level. One starts influencing and stimulating the other, and the passion multiplies for minutes, even hours. The tendency of the mind to generate passion is strengthened because of this repeated generation of passion.

Not only passion but fear, anger, hatred and craving, in fact every type of impurity generated in the mind simultaneously generates an āsava, a biochemical flow. And this āsava stimulates that particular negativity, or impurity. The result is a vicious circle of suffering. You may call yourself a Hindu, a Muslim, a Buddhist, Jain or a Christian; it makes no difference. The process, this law of nature is applicable to one and all. There is no discrimination.

Coming out of suffering at depth of the mind

Mere understanding at a superficial, intellectual level will not help break this cycle of suffering, and may even create more difficulties. At the intellectual level, your beliefs from a particular tradition may look quite logical, yet those beliefs will create obstacles for you. 

The intellect has its own limitations. You cannot realize the ultimate truth merely by intellect because intellect is finite, while ultimate truth is limitless, infinite. Only through direct experience can you realize that which is limitless and infinite.

If you accept this law of nature intellectually but still are unable to change the behaviour pattern of your mind, you remain far away from realizing the ultimate truth. Your acceptance is only superficial, while your behaviour pattern continues at the depth of the mind. 

What is called the 'unconscious' mind is actually not unconscious. At all times it remains in contact with this body. And with this contact a sensation keeps arising. You feel a sensation that you label as pleasant, and you keep reacting. At the depth of your mind you react with craving or aversion. You keep generating different types of saṇkhāras, negativities, impurities, and the process of multiplying your misery continues. You cannot stop it because there is such a big barrier between the surface level and the depth of the mind. Without the practice of Vipassana, this barrier remains.

True freedom comes only with conquering lust - the sexual craving for another's body (*)- which, in reality, is only craving for a particular flow of sensations (kāmā asava) within one's own body. The ascetic Gotama successfully fought through this great inner battle against lust, in his journey to total purification of the mind with practice of Vipassana. He reached the ultra pure state of a Sammasambuddha, to serve all beings with infinite compassion. 

(Painting from the Global Pagoda Art Gallery of the Buddha's life).

At the conscious, intellectual (surface) level of the mind, one may accept the entire theory of Dhamma, truth, law, nature. But still one rolls in misery because one does not realize what is happening at the depth of the mind. But with Vipassana practice your mind becomes very sharp, sensitive, penetrating - so that you can feel sensations throughout the body. 

Sensations occur every moment. Every contact results in a sensation: in Pali, phassa paccayā vedanā. This is not a philosophy; it is the scientific truth which can be verified by one and all.

The moment there is a contact, there is bound to be a sensation; and every moment, the mind is in contact with matter throughout the physical structure. The deeper level of the mind feels these sensations, and it keeps reacting to them. But on the surface the mind keeps itself busy with outside objects, or it remains involved in intellectual games, imagination, emotion. Therefore, you do not feel what is happening at the deeper level of the mind.

When that barrier is broken with Vipassana practice, you start feeling sensations throughout the body, not merely at the surface level but also deep inside. By observing these sensations, you start realizing their characteristic of arising and passing, udaya-vyaya. By this understanding, you start to actually change the habit pattern of the mind.

For example, you are feeling a particular sensation that may be caused by: 1) the food you have eaten, 2) the atmosphere around you, 3) your present mental reactions, 4) old reactions (saṇkhāras) that are now giving their fruit. Whatever the cause, a sensation arises. With your training in Vipassana, you observe sensations with equanimity, without reacting to them. 

In those few wonderful moments of equanimity, you have started changing the habit pattern of your mind by observing sensation and understanding its nature of impermanence. You have stopped the blind habit pattern of reacting to the sensation and multiplying your misery. 

Initially you may not react to sensations only for a few seconds or minutes. But by practice, you gradually develop your strength and purity of equanimity. As the habit pattern of reaction becomes weaker, your behaviour pattern changes. You are coming out of your misery of addiction to this or that habit pattern - including the habit pattern of rolling in thoughts of passion and the craving/addiction to related actions and misconduct.

Coming out of addiction to impurities 

When we talk of addiction, it is not merely to alcohol or to drugs, but also to passion, anger, fear or egotism. All these are addictions to your impurities.

At the intellectual level you may well understand: "anger is not good for me. It is dangerous, harmful." Yet you are addicted to anger, and keep generating it. And when the anger is over, you keep repeating, "Oh! I should not have generated anger." Yet the next time a stimulus comes, you again become angry. You are not coming out of anger, because you have not been working at the depth of your mind where the actual problem multiplies.

By practicing Vipassana, you start observing the sensation that arises because of the biochemical flow when you are angry. You observe, and do not react to it. That means you do not generate anger at that particular moment. This one moment turns into a few seconds, a few minutes, and you find that you are not as easily influenced by this flow as you were in the past. You have slowly started coming out of your anger.

Those who regularly practice Vipassana try to observe how they are dealing with different situations. Are they reacting or remaining equanimous? The first thing a Vipassana meditator will try to do in any difficult situation is to observe sensations. Because of the situation, maybe part of the mind has started reacting, but by observing the sensations, one becomes equanimous.  Instead of the mind being swept away by the torrent of impurities, the bio-chemical flow of impurities fades away.

With regular daily practice and application of Vipassana, the behaviour pattern starts to change. Those who used to roll in anger, fear for a long time find their anger, fear diminishing in intensity or duration. Similarly, those who are addicted to passion find that it becomes weaker.

The time needed to fully free oneself of a certain impurity may vary, but sooner or later the process of Vipassana works, if one works properly.

The real addiction is to sensations, not outside objects

Whether you are addicted to craving, aversion, hatred, passion or fear, the addiction is actually to particular sensations that have arisen because of the biochemical flow. The deepest part of the mind reacts only to sensations, not to anything in the outside world.

The āsava, or flow, of ignorance is the strongest āsava. Of course, there is ignorance even when you are reacting with anger, passion or fear; but when you become intoxicated with alcohol or drugs, this intoxication multiplies your ignorance. Therefore it takes time to feel sensations, to go to the root of the problem. 

When you become addicted to liquor or drugs, you cannot know the reality of what is happening within the framework of the body. There is darkness in your mind. You cannot understand what is happening inside, what keeps multiplying inside. 

After a ten day Vipassana course, you may only make a slight change in the habit pattern of your mind. It does not matter; a beginning is made. If you maintain the (minimum) one-hour practice of Vipassana every morning and evening and take a few more Vipassana courses, the habit pattern will change at the deepest level of the mind. You will come out of your ignorance, out of your habit pattern of reaction - out of your suffering.

When the addictive urge arises (whether for a sexual action / wrong physical action, alcohol, drugs, tobacco etc), along with it there is a sensation in the body. Start observing that sensation, whatever it may be. Do not look for a particular sensation. Anything you feel at that time is related to the urge. And by observing the sensation as impermanent, anicca, you will find that this urge passes away. This is not a philosophy, but experiential truth.

Those who follow this advice find that they are coming out of their addictions, whether it be to tobacco, drugs, alcohol, anger and sexual cravings. They may be successful only one time out of ten at first, but they have made a very good beginning. They are striking at the root of their problem.

It is a long path, a lifetime job. But even a journey of ten thousand miles must start with the first step. One who has taken the first step can take the second and third; and step by step, one will reach the final goal of full liberation.

May you come out of all your addictions, addiction to mental impurities. 

May you change this strong negative behaviour pattern of rolling in impurities, and come out of your misery - for your own good, your own benefit. 

The Dhamma is such that when you start to benefit from Vipassana, you cannot resist serving others. Your Dhamma goal becomes the good and benefit of many, the liberation of all beings. 

So many people are suffering all around: may they all practice Vipassana, the pure Dhamma, and come out of their misery. May they start enjoying peace and harmony, the peace and harmony of being liberated from all impurities of the mind.

(from the Vipassana Newsletter article On Addiction, October, 1991)

* Contents of the human body: hair of the head, hair of the body, nails, teeth, skin, flesh, sinews, bones, marrow, kidney, heart, liver, pleura, spleen, lungs, intestines, mesentery, stomach and contents, faeces (excreta, body waste), bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, grease, saliva, nasal mucus, synovial fluid, and urine. This is its nature. (from the Mahā-Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta discourse)

[To see the true nature of the human body, go to Google Images, enter search word 'autopsy' ]

That aversion or craving is generated only to one's own bio-chemical flow of sensations within, not to external objects / person, is the fundamental, life-changing truth realized by practicing Vipassana.

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May all beings be happy, be free from all impurities of the mind, be liberated from every suffering.

Vipassana is to experience the way out of suffering, not "Buddhism"

From an interview with Principal Teacher of Vipassana Sayagyi U Goenka, broadcast on India's Doordarshan National television channel. Published in the Vipassana Newsletter, dated August 12, 2003.

Question: You are a meditation teacher. But there are so many different forms of meditation that there is some confusion about what meditation really is. What is meditation according to you?

Goenkaji: The word 'meditation' gives the impression of one concentrating one's mind on one object and submerging into it. This is so with most meditation techniques but Vipassana meditation is different. 

In Vipassana, there is an awareness of the totality of the body and mind interaction. One keeps observing what is happening inside. Because of ignorance about what is happening at the depth of the mind, feelings of craving and aversion keep on multiplying until finally you are overpowered by these feelings and becomes helpless. It leads to unwholesome actions at the physical level and repentance later. Vipassana meditation changes this habit pattern.

Question: Vipassana, the form of meditation that you teach, literally means mindfulness. To what degree is this circumscribed by Buddha's other teachings such as the four noble truths and the middle path? To what degree is a commitment to, or understanding of, those explanations and systems important to the practice of Vipassana?

Goenkaji: The practice of Vipassana follows the teaching of the Buddha-the four noble truths. The noble path has to be experienced and Vipassana is the way to experience it. It is not merely an intellectual game or philosophy to accept at an emotional or devotional level. One has to experience the truth -see, for example, the truth of misery. You observe the arising of misery, find the cause of misery at the level of experience. Thus, you can come out of all misery.

Question: So is there a scriptural, textual, philosophical, intellectual context from which you approach this teaching? Is it purely experiential?

Goenkaji: Though the references of Vipassana are found in the scriptures, knowledge of the scriptures or acceptance of a particular philosophy is not necessary to learn Vipassana. It deals with reality as it exists. The Buddha himself, time and again, emphasized two words: jāna and passa (Sanskrit: pashyah). Jāna and passa both mean to feel, to observe, to experience. Paññā (Sanskrit: Prajña) means knowledge, which is acquired through one's own experience, not bookish knowledge or something you learn through discussions or by intellectual inference. It has to be experienced.

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Question: You mentioned that sometimes if we are not mindful, we may commit certain actions which we regret later. Is there a moral framework that circumscribes Vipassana?

Goenkaji: The base of Vipassana is the Eight-fold Noble Path which is divided into three sections: sīla or morality; samādhi or mastery of the mind; and pañna or wisdom. You must purify the totality of your mind by developing your own wisdom. So, all three aspects are crucial but the base is morality, without which the other two steps cannot be complete.

Question: Do you require your students to follow these moral structures, framework, and guidelines to be more effective practitioners?

Goenkaji: This is true because morality is the foundation of the entire path of Vipassana. If the foundation is weak, the structure of meditation will collapse and one will not benefit. When people go for a course, they must follow five precepts for ten days. After the course, they are their own masters. Many of them find that these precepts are good and should be followed throughout their life; they start to live a moral life. Without morality, sammā samādhi or right concentration of the mind cannot be achieved.

Question: You use the word 'wisdom' a number of times. So, Vipassana assumes that wisdom is inherent and sometimes there are defilements that need to be eliminated and then natural, spontaneous wisdom will emerge?

Goenkaji: This is true. The so-called surface of the mind, which is a very small part of the mind, keeps on working at this level. But the larger part of the mind is constantly a prisoner of its own habit pattern. It is constantly reacting to the sensations on the body. If one feels a pleasant sensation, one immediately reacts with craving. If the sensation is unpleasant, immediately there is aversion. So, sensations are there throughout the day, all the time. Vipassana teaches you to feel the body sensations and remain equanimous. Then you start changing the habit pattern by understanding the entire physical and mental structure, which is constantly changing and in flux.

Question: Given this sort of intimate relationship between mind and body, modern research is looking at the biochemistry of the brain and a lot of work is being done on using chemicals to cure mental illness. How does Vipassana view the developments in the biochemistry of the brain, particularly in treating mental illness?

Goenkaji: Having experienced the Buddha's practical teaching and having studied his original words in the Pali language, I realized that he was not the founder of any religion but a scientist. 

He understood that at the apparent level one seems to react to sensual objects. When a shape, a form, colour comes in contact with the eyes, there is a sensation. Similarly, sound for the ear, smell for the nose, taste for the tongue, touch for the body and thought for the mind. 

As soon as something comes in contact with a sense organ, another part of the mind recognizes it and evaluates it based on past experience. Depending on the evaluation, one feels pleasant or unpleasant sensations and reacts with either craving or aversion. Thus, the blind reaction to the world, to the shape and the form. The Buddha used the word 'āsava' (Sanskrit:āśrava), which means the defiling flow. This results in a flow of biochemicals, a is very intoxicating flow. Again, one begins to react to it and so the āsava becomes stronger and the vicious circle begins. This happens with all the defilements of the mind. Every defilement of the mind generates the secretion of particular biochemicals, which start flowing.

Question: You have taken pains to emphasize that the practice of Vipassana is essentially secular and can co-exist with one's faith or the practice of one's religion. Yet it does derive from the teaching of the Buddha. This teaching makes some essentially Buddhist assumptions about reincarnation, about aspects of the subtle mind, etc.

Goenkaji: The Buddha never taught "Buddhism". He never made a single person 'Buddhist'. The entire teaching of the Buddha, which is contained in about 55,000 pages, including commentaries and sub-commentaries, does not use the world 'bouddh' or 'boddh' anywhere. In our research, we found that until about 500 years after the Buddha, the word 'Buddhism' or 'Bouddh Dharma' was never used. When we started using such words, the Buddha's teaching was degraded. The Buddha was totally against casteism: one is not high or low because of one's birth. He was against sectarianism of all kinds. 

His teaching is so clear. Vipassana is not a religion at all and there is no place for prayer in the Buddha's teaching. Somebody may show you the path but you have to work for your own salvation. The Buddha said, 'I can only show the path.' The Buddha only showed the path; one has to make the entire journey oneself.

Question: What is the work of the teacher? 

Goenkaji: The teacher shows the path. One must walk on the path and experience it step by step. Unless you walk on the path, you cannot reach the goal. Every step takes you nearer to the goal. But every step has to be taken by the individual - there is no gurudom. The teacher cannot liberate you; you have to work out your own liberation.

Question: So what are the qualities of a perfect teacher?

Goenkaji:  The four qualities of a good teacher: 
Good understanding of the technique so that there is no deviation. 

Able to experience the path at least to a certain extent, to be able to guide others. 

The teacher must have a lot of pure love (metta), compassion and goodwill for others. 

Teach selflessly without expecting money, power, name or fame in return. 

These are the four qualities on the basis of which we train people to become teachers.

Sometimes, one starts teaching and starts asking for money, which is totally prohibited in Dhamma. Every teacher must have a means of livelihood. The teaching of Dhamma must be free service. 

Question: You learned this teaching from your teacher (Sayagyi U Ba Khin) in Myanmar at a time when you were struggling with problems of psychosomatic ailments. You used to get headaches and you went to this teacher to learn Vipassana to address a specific problem. Could you tell us what happened?

Goenkaji: Sayagyi U Ba Khin refused to teach me Vipassana, saying that if I wanted to treat the migraine, I should go to a doctor. He said that I was devaluing the great spiritual teaching of my own country by trying to use it to cure a physical ailment. This response attracted me even more towards his saintly personality [since I was an influential, rich businessman and any teacher with wrong intentions would have been eager to have me as his student]. He told me to come back only if my aim was to purify my mind. 

When I expressed doubt about conversion to Buddhism, he asked whether my religion had any objection to learning morality-sīla. Then, he said, "you cannot lead a moral life unless you had control over one's mind. Otherwise, at the depth of the mind, the behaviour patterns remain the same. In Sanskrit, you have a word, 'prajña'. Prajña will help you to purify the mind at the deepest level." 

But I was still hesitant that this is Buddhism and these people don't believe in Soul, they don't believe in God. After a few months, I decided to try it. I was an egocentric person who thought I was very intelligent. This ego worsened my migraine. A change started coming within me after my first course and the defilements started passing away. I started to live a happier and more peaceful life. Hundreds of my Indian friends went to the same teacher and experienced the same results.

Question: You mentioned this aspect of happiness. There are different notions about happiness. Popular culture, popular media tells us to get the best car or a beautiful wife or handsome husband to be happy. What is your notion of happiness?

Goenkaji: The happiness that comes from these pleasures is not true happiness. It is transient and bound to turn into misery sooner or later [due to the impermanence, changing nature of the person or object that we attribute to our "happiness"]. This kind of happiness is full of agitation, therefore it is unstable. Eternal happiness is something beyond mind and matter. It starts with equanimity of the mind. You try to maintain equanimity as long as possible. Then gradually, with total purification of the mind, you transcend the entire field of mind and matter - and that is the state of real happiness.

Question: Is that nirvana? 

Goenkaji: One may call it moksha or mukti or somebody else may call it God Almighty. We are not here to quarrel about the words.

Question: Have you reached the experience of that stage? 

Goenkaji: I simply say that I am a tremendously changed person from when I started forty-five years ago. I am a much happier person and I teach to share my happiness with others.

Question: Do you have any aspirations or goals for yourself, or will you simply carry on and surrender to the future?

Goenkaji: The goal comes naturally, step by step, if I practice properly. I don't have to worry about that. 

I also want to do what I can to dispel the misunderstandings about the Buddha's teaching in India. We have great respect for the Buddha. However, much of what is said about the Buddha's teaching is totally wrong, totally baseless. 

I feel that the greatest son of our country was discarded. He got glory around the world but we have missed his teaching. Let us make use of his practical teaching, especially now when the country needs it so much. There is so much division because of casteism, because of communalism, sectarianism; there is so much unhappiness in the country. If we practice his teaching of Vipassana, all these divisions will go away and we will have a peaceful, prosperous and strong country.

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