Why all these practice if all and everything are selfless and impermanent?
So that the selfless mind doesn’t behave, act and react in the hurtful way that hurt itself and others and the surrounding environment ignorantly, if under the presence of unconditional peace and correct understanding, if under the absence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, or void of the disturbed suffering state of mind deriving from all that, during its selfless impermanent existence in the world of many diversities that doesn’t belong to anyone.
If all kinds of selfless impermanent changes are governed by cause and effect, where there’s no ‘I’ existing to be in control of the selfless impermanent changes, or the ceaseless thoughts, feelings and emotions arising, changing and passing away selflessly under the influence of elements and energy, and there’s no ‘I’ existing to be under going selfless impermanent changes or suffering, then why still bother about attaining self-realization to be free from ignorance and suffering, and why there’s still freewill or self-control to be performing certain practice to transcend all these selfless impermanent existence, function and changes?
Selflessness, where there’s no permanent independent unchanging existence of ‘I’ existing in the selfless physical body and the selfless thinking faculty, doesn’t mean that the selfless physical body and the selfless thinking faculty doesn’t exist and function selflessly without a permanent unchanging individual identity.
Selflessness in the selfless physical body and the selfless thinking faculty, where there’s no permanent independent infinite ‘I’ existing under going doubt, ignorance and suffering being bound by the inevitable selfless impermanent changes, doesn’t mean that the selfless thinking faculty doesn’t perceive selfless impermanent changes that give rise to inevitable suffering deriving from selfless impermanent changes, as well as perceiving the unnecessary suffering deriving from the presence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness.
Selflessness in the body and mind, doesn’t mean that the selfless thinking and acting faculty doesn’t perform actions via the organs of action and expression of the selfless physical body that might be hurtful towards itself, others and the surrounding environment, out of the disturbed suffering state of mind deriving from ignorance or incorrect understanding under the influence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, either with or without awareness and freewill. And it doesn’t mean that the selfless thinking faculty and the selfless physical body won’t be responsible for activating cause and effect, or actions and the consequences of actions.
Selflessness doesn’t mean that the selfless thinking and acting faculty doesn’t or won’t have awareness and freewill not to be performing actions that might be hurtful to itself, others and the surrounding environment out of correct understanding void of ignorance under the absence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, even though there’s no permanent independent infinite ‘I’ being responsible for activating cause and effect, or actions and consequences of actions.
Selflessness doesn’t mean that the selfless thinking faculty doesn’t function and think and desire out of its selfless function of awareness and freewill, to be performing actions that are wholesome and beneficial for itself and others, or not to be performing actions that are unwholesome and hurtful for itself and others.
Due to the inevitable selfless impermanent changes, as well as the ignorance in the selfless thinking faculty of being ignorant towards itself, towards it’s selfless existence and selfless function, where the selfless thinking faculty perceives duality and generates attachment, identification, desire of craving and aversion towards the presence and absence of different qualities of names and forms that it likes and dislikes, agrees and disagrees, desires and doesn’t desire, and hence, arise the perception of ‘suffering’ in this selfless modification of the selfless thinking faculty upon ungratified desires, upon coming in contact with names and forms that are unpleasant, disagreeable and undesirable to the mind, while doesn’t come in contact with names and forms that are pleasant, agreeable and desirable to the mind, where there is perception of the ‘suffering’ deriving from the inevitable selfless impermanent changes that are not necessarily pleasant, agreeable or desirable, as well as the ‘unnecessary suffering’ deriving from the presence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, where the selfless thinking faculty is being ignorant towards what is going on in itself.
That’s why this ignorant ‘suffering’ selfless thinking mind needs all these teachings and practice to help or guide itself towards attaining self-realization, to know Thyself, to be free from ignorance, and to be transcending the perception of ‘suffering’ during it’s momentary selfless existence and selfless function perceiving a selfless worldly life existence, where the perception of many things or experiences are not necessarily pleasant, agreeable or desirable.
So that, this selfless thinking mind doesn’t generate unnecessary hurtful damaging behaviors, actions and reactions via the selfless organs of action and expression of the selfless physical body, out of ignorance and the disturbed suffering state of mind, that give rise to unnecessary hurtful damaging effects or consequences unto itself and others and the surrounding environment ignorantly, either wittingly or unwittingly, intentionally or randomly, directly or indirectly.
Who or what is under going selfless impermanent changes and self-transformation, and attaining self-realization, if all and everything are selfless?
It’s the selfless perceptive cognitive intellectual emotional thinking faculty, or the selfless thinking mind that exists and functions under the support of the supportive selfless elements and selfless energy, that is under going selfless impermanent changes and self-transformation, and attaining self-realization.
Without the support from the selfless elements and selfless energy, this selfless physical body and the selfless thinking mind cannot and doesn’t exist or function. That’s why it’s selfless, and it’s limited (which cannot be modified) as well as it’s impermanent, and it’s conditional (which can be modified).
Even the supportive elements and energy that are selflessly supporting and influencing all and everything to be existing, changing and ceased existing, are all selfless and impermanent, and all are limited as well as conditional.
If something that is not selfless, it means that it has a permanent independent solid individual existence, that exists independently and permanently unchanging without being supported or influenced by anything (unlimited and unconditional).
That’s why all and everything that are inevitably changing, that are arising, changing and passing away, being supported and influenced by some other selfless elements or selfless energy, that have a beginning of existence and an end of existence, that are under going impermanent changes in between the beginning of existence and the end of existence, that cannot and don’t exist independently and permanently unchanging without depending on and influenced by any supportive elements and energy, are all selfless and impermanent, and are limited as well as conditional.
It doesn’t mean that all these selfless impermanent existence of names and forms don’t exist at all, but all kinds of names and forms exist selflessly and momentarily, and constantly changing being influenced by selfless elements and selfless energy, governed by cause and effect.
Meanwhile, the complex selfless thinking faculty that has certain degrees of awareness and freewill, which are conditional, that can change and be modified up to certain extend under the presence of certain degrees of awareness and freewill, to choose what and how to behave, act and react, that determining what type of cause being generated, while can be influencing and modifying the process of cause coming into effect.
The cause is limited, it is what it is and it doesn’t change and cannot be modified.
The process of coming into effect is conditional, it can change and be modified.
Without a cause, there’s no effect. If there’s a cause, it will be followed by the process of coming into effect, respectively. That is limited, or that doesn’t change. But the process from the existence of a cause coming into effect, is conditional, that can change and be modified.
For example, the selfless existence and changes of a selfless mango tree is selfless and impermanent, is both limited and yet conditional, depending on the absence and presence of different supportive elements and energy that might be absence, or presence under different degrees and different qualities on different timing.
There are certain genetic factors that are determining what variety of mango, of certain type of appearance, colour, shape, size, texture, sweetness, sourness, smell or taste, as well as, how the different selfless thinking minds might be perceiving and reacting towards the appearance, colour, shape, size, texture, sweetness, sourness, smell or taste of the same mango fruit differently from one another, not to say, different selfless thinking minds perceive and react differently towards the different fruits of mango. That is limited, that doesn’t change.
Meanwhile, the conditional influences that are influencing the entire process from planting a mango seed that might or might not becoming a mango tree, that might or might not gives rise to flowers or fruits, is conditional, that can change and be modified up to a certain extend.
Planting a mango seed, will give rise to a mango tree that give rise to the flower of mango that give rise to the fruit of mango. That is limited, or that doesn’t change. Such as, planting a mango seed doesn’t give rise to an orange tree, doesn’t give rise to the flower of apple, and doesn’t give rise to the fruit of banana.
However, the entire process from planting a mango seed until it becomes a mango tree, until it gives rise to the flowers of mango, until the flowers gives rise to the fruits of mango, or under certain condition, the mango seed doesn’t become a mango tree at all, or it becomes a tree but doesn’t give rise to flowers, or it becomes a tree that gives rise to flowers but the flowers don’t give rise to fruits, or it becomes a tree that gives rise to flowers that give rise to fruits, but the fruits might be having different appearances, colours, shapes, sizes, textures, sweetness, sourness, smells or tastes, coming from the same tree growing out of a mango seed of one particular variety, depending on the presence and absence as well as the quality of the supportive elements, of suitable and unsuitable landscape, soil, nutrients, fertilizers, climate, weather, air, water, the availability, the amount and the direction of sunshine, the different types of insects, the near by other type of plants, the near by environmental factors, and the presence and absence of specific care or treatment, that are conditioning and influencing the entire process of having planted a mango seed. And that is conditional, that can change and be modified up to a certain extend.
If there are no supportive elements at all, nothing can grow. If there is a natural disaster or disease impacting the mango tree, it might not survive, or it survived but it’s suffering from certain damages. That is limited. No matter how good is the influential condition that is available to the mango tree to be healthy and fruitful, but there might be some other limited conditions that are what they are.
Although the cause is limited, being what it is, cannot be changed or modified, however, under the presence of awareness and freewill, the selfless thinking faculty can choose to generate what type of cause. Just as one can choose to plant a mango tree, or an orange tree, or an apple tree, or a banana tree, if it’s available. If all kinds of trees are not available, there won’t be any kind of tree to be planted. That’s why even the presence and absence of ‘the cause’ is also conditional, even though the cause itself, is limited, being what it is.
Just like the selfless mind can perform many actions to be looking after, enhancing, optimizing and maintaining the good condition and function of the physical body and the thinking faculty as much as possible, out of certain degrees of awareness and freewill, and hence, the selfless body and mind will suffer less unnecessary suffering that can be avoided, however, the decaying process that begins upon the end of the growing process is inevitable, certain injury or illness is inevitable, the aging and weakening process, and eventually the physical body and the thinking faculty will ceased functioning and disintegrating, is inevitable.
Just as a mango tree will be growing from a young tree, to be matured, and then becoming older and older, under going decaying process, certain impact of damages or diseases, and eventually, disintegrating. Similarly, a fruit of mango will be growing from a tiny young fruit out of the flower, to be matured, and the ripening or decaying process starts happening, becoming riper and riper, and eventually rotting and disintegrating, if it’s being unconsumed by anyone, being there as it is. All that are limited, and doesn’t change. There is no ‘I’ in the mango tree, and there is no ‘I’ in the mango fruit. That is limited and unchanged.
However, during the entire selfless impermanent existence of the mango tree or the mango fruit, there are certain conditional conditions that can change and be modified. Such as the mango tree can be healthier or less healthy throughout its selfless impermanent life span, while the mango fruit can be premature or fully grown, sweeter or less sweet, more sour or less sour, being consumed by some other organism before and upon ripening or being left unconsumed until it rots and eventually disintegrated completely, depending on the presence or absence of certain conditions.
While the selfless thinking mind can choose to be looking after or neglecting the mango tree, or choose to be consuming or not consuming the mango fruit, regardless of whether the mango fruit is in good or bad condition, or choose to be consuming the mango fruit when it’s less ripen or more ripen, or preserving the mango fruit in certain way to be consumed much later, under the presence of awareness and freewill.
The selfless thinking mind under the influence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance and egoism, will perceive suffering upon under going all these limited inevitable selfless impermanent changes, while it doesn’t perceive suffering under the absence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance and egoism, upon under going all these limited inevitable selfless impermanent changes.
Even a selfless mango tree (or any kind of organism, plants, insects and animals), that was being planted and becoming what it is, not by its own will, desire or intention, also have the basic survival instinct, to be resilient, to be transforming, to keep surviving up to certain extend under the absence or presence of many conditional influential factors, or to be adjusting, adapting and accommodating to the surrounding environment of many factors, even if it couldn’t move itself from where it is, but its roots and branches could reach out towards whatever that is needed for it to be surviving.
Just as a selfless physical body with selfless thinking mind was being conceived and came into this world perceiving a selfless impermanent worldly life existence, not by its own will, desire or intention, but it has the basic survival instinct, as well as certain degrees of awareness and freewill that is conditional, that can be developed and strengthened, to be learning and understanding certain things or many things, either being influenced and encouraged by some others or out of self-effort of being interested in learning and understanding certain things or many things, having certain degrees of self-control to be performing or not performing certain actions and reactions upon reaching certain degrees of physical, mental and emotional independence, having developing certain degrees of reasoning power and understanding, even if it is selfless in nature.
Unlike the mango tree that cannot move itself from where it is, the selfless thinking faculty with the selfless physical body that have the function of mobility to be moving and performing actions, can choose to move to somewhere that has better condition, or to move away from somewhere that has bad condition, under the presence of awareness and freewill.
Similarly, under the presence of awareness and freewill, the selfless thinking faculty can choose to be disturbed or undisturbed by something that it perceives. It can choose to act and react, or not acting and not reacting. It can choose to be kind or unkind. It can choose to be happy or unhappy. It can choose to think or not thinking in certain way. It can choose to be free or not free from ignorance and it’s by-products, during its entire selfless impermanent life existence being supported by the supportive selfless elements and energy.
Of course, there are also certain limited condition and autonomous function in the selfless physical body and the selfless thinking faculty that are being what they are, functioning and changing selflessly as they are, even under the absence of awareness or freewill.
It’s part of the survival instinct of the organism, as it’s not possible to be surviving, if without the autonomous function existing in any life form that is keeping the life form staying alive, even without any awareness or freewill to control anything, such as the bodily systems are still functioning as they are, even when the body and mind is resting in sleep state, without awareness, out of consciousness, without freewill controlling the selfless function of the bodily systems that keep functioning restlessly until they encounter certain injury, interruption or dysfunction, and until they ceased functioning completely.
Who or what is having a weak or strong will power or self-control over the thinking, desire, behavior, action and reaction, if all and everything is selfless, and how can there be the presence of freewill or will power and self-control over the thinking, desire, behavior, action and reaction, to be modifying the selfless modification of the selfless mind functioning selflessly under the influence of cause and effect?
The selfless thinking faculty that is having a weak or strong will power. Because will power, or free will, or self-control, or awareness, or cognition, or intellect, or reasoning, or understanding, are all part of the selfless function or modification of the selfless thinking faculty, that is conditional, that can be developed, changed and modified. Unless, there’s some limited inherited genetic elements conditioning the physical body and the mentality in certain way, or there’s certain damaging physical injuries causing certain dysfunction in the brains or in certain part of the physical body, or there is the absence of certain functions in the brains that affects the selfless thinking faculty and certain physical bodily function or physical movement in certain way.
Selflessness of the existence and function of the physical body and the thinking faculty, doesn’t mean that there’s completely void of freewill in the selfless thinking faculty.
Cause and effect is not coming from no where, where it is being generated or arising from within the selfless function or modification of the selfless thinking faculty, either unwittingly, spontaneously or autonomously under the absence of awareness and freewill, or it is being generated wittingly under the presence of certain degrees of awareness and freewill.
There are spontaneous actions and reactions being generated under the absence of awareness and freewill, and there are non-spontaneous actions and reactions being generated under the presence of awareness and freewill. Where all actions and reactions (limited) will give rise to consequences of actions and reactions (conditional).
There’s neither right nor wrong, but it’s merely ignorance, when the mind thinks and believes, and intellectually understands that, ‘selflessness’ without a permanent independent unchanging existence, as well as the selfless impermanent changes are being governed by cause and effect, means that there’s no freewill at all in the complex selfless thinking faculty.
The mind that is under the veil of ignorance, that doesn’t understand this, it will perceive ‘ignorance’ or the presence of ‘ignorance’ in oneself as a form of ‘criticism’, or ‘insult’, or ‘humiliation’, or ‘inferiority’, or ‘shortcoming’.
The mind that is free from the veil of ignorance, that understands this, doesn’t perceive ‘ignorance’ or the presence of ‘ignorance’ in any minds as a form of ‘criticism’, or ‘insult’, or ‘humiliation’, or ‘inferiority’, or ‘shortcoming’.
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It’s normal that the minds that are still functioning under the veil of ignorance and egoism, will have non-comprehension or ignorance towards all these terms or teachings. There’s neither right nor wrong, neither good nor bad.
That’s why the existence of the practice of mind purification that consists of the essential renunciation, dispassion, silence, seclusion and solitude, self-discipline, self-independence, to be eradicating the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, to prepare the selfless thinking faculty for meditation and self-inquiry in order to attain self-realization towards knowing Thyself, where the selfless thinking mind will know and understand by itself towards all these, upon the absence or the annihilation of the veil of ignorance.
Inquire towards the truth of everything.
There are two different elements in selflessness and impermanence.
One is ‘limited’, which cannot be changed and cannot be modified. There’s no ‘I’ existing in all and everything, and that ‘selflessness’ is limited, and doesn’t change into something else, regardless of the presence or absence of ignorance, regardless of the presence or absence of awareness and freewill.
The other one is ‘conditional’, which is changeable and can be modified. Impermanent changes are conditional, can be influenced by the existence of many different elements and energy, even if there is no ‘I’ existing in all the impermanent changes governed by the nature’s law of cause and effect, of actions and consequences of actions, where ‘selfless impermanent changes’ is limited, being what it is, such as birth will gives rise to death. That is limited, that doesn’t change. But, the process of selfless impermanent changes, is conditional.
Meanwhile, the process of selfless impermanent changes in between birth and death, are conditional, which can be influenced and modified up to certain degrees, under the presence of awareness and freewill coming from the selfless thinking faculty.
The physical body and the perceptive cognitive intellectual emotional thinking faculty is selfless and impermanent, where there’s no ‘I’ existing in every single cell and atom and neutron supported by the supportive elements and energy to be existing and functioning as they are, that made up the entire complex bodily systems and the thinking faculty. That is limited, and doesn’t change.
There are certain factors influencing the selfless impermanent condition and function of the selfless physical body and the selfless thinking faculty in certain way, that is ‘limited’, which cannot be changed or modified. Such as, certain genetically inherited physical and mental condition and function of certain characteristics, personality and mentality being inherited from the parents and the previous many generations, the inevitable process of growth, ceased growing, the start of decaying process, weakness, aging, certain inevitable injury and illness regardless of how good is the condition and function of the physical body, the selfless impermanent restless modification of the selfless mind of ceaseless selfless thoughts, feelings and emotions arising, changing and passing away selflessly and ceaselessly, perceiving all kinds of selfless names and forms, of sights, sounds, smells, tastes and sensations through the selfless senses via the selfless sense organs, and eventually the selfless bodily systems and the selfless thinking faculty ceased functioning, and disintegrating. All these are limited. They are what they are.
There are also many conditional factors influencing the condition and function of the physical body and the thinking faculty in many ways, that is conditional, which is changeable and can be modified under the presence of awareness and freewill, where there are many conditional influences conditioning and influencing the selfless physical and mental condition and function, as well as the mind behavior pattern is being influenced greatly by the surrounding environment of certain type of mind inputs, learning, experiencing, ideas, beliefs, values and practice, which all that can be changed and modified under the presence of awareness and freewill coming from the selfless thinking faculty itself, that can be influencing the states of the mind, the mentality, the personality, the behavior, the action and reaction, the process of growth, the decaying process, the weakening process, the risk of contracting certain injury and illness, and the aging process in certain way, up to a certain extend, where the mind behavior pattern, actions and reactions, way of thinking, belief and disbelief, values, practice, reasoning, understanding, mentality and personality can be changed and modified under the presence of awareness and freewill, upon the availability of certain supportive elements and energy that allow all those changes and modifications under awareness and freewill to be happening, up until the moment of the selfless bodily systems and the selfless thinking faculty ceased functioning, and disintegrating.
The presence and absence of certain limitation or hindrance where certain action or condition is not available or not possible in the present moment now, doesn’t mean the selfless thinking mind doesn’t have freewill to be performing or not performing certain action. The selfless thinking faculty can choose not to be determined by the existence of certain limitation or hindrance, or the non-availability and impossibility in the present moment, while choose to either not to be doing something that is not possible in the present moment, but it could be done some time later when it’s possible, or to be doing something else that is possible in the present moment.
It’s about acceptance, adjustment, adaptation and accommodation, where all these are conditional, can be developed, be changed, be enhanced, or be optimized. Similarly, the selfless modification of the mind, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness are all conditional, can be changed, be rendered, be modified, be influenced, and even, be eliminated.
The truth of something, is permanent and unchanged.
The truth of selflessness and impermanence in all and everything, that inter-dependent on many supportive elements and energy to be existing and functioning, is permanent and unchanged.
Even though all and everything are under going selfless impermanent changes being governed by cause and effect, is the ultimate truth that cannot be changed, however, even though the truth of actions and reactions will give rise to the consequences of actions and reactions, cannot be changed or modified, but what type of actions and reactions can be chosen under the presence of certain degrees of awareness and freewill, as well as the entire process from the actions and reactions coming into consequences, is conditional, which can be changed and modified.
Awareness and freewill is part of the selfless function of the selfless thinking faculty that cannot exist and function if without the support of the supportive selfless elements and selfless energy, where the mind cannot function or think properly and the bodily systems cannot function properly, or the physical body cannot move or perform action under the will of the thinking and acting mind, if the energy level is extremely low. While it cannot exist or function at all, if energy is completely absence. That is limited.
However, as long as there is the presence of the supportive elements and energy supporting the existence and function of the selfless body and mind, during the entire selfless impermanent life existence of the selfless body and mind, there is certain degrees of awareness and freewill that can be influencing and modifying the existing conditional condition and function in the physical body and the thinking faculty.
Such as, the selfless thinking faculty can be choosing a healthy lifestyle to be optimizing and maintaining certain degrees of good health and fitness level, or developing certain skills in doing certain things, or performing certain practice to be eradicating the ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness in the selfless modification of the mind, to have correct understanding, to have self-control of not harming oneself and others and the surrounding environment, and to be unattached towards everything and be happy and peaceful, or not. Even though, all these won’t be happening, if without the supportive elements and energy supporting the existence and function of the selfless body and mind.
And more importantly, there is no need the presence of awareness or freewill to be doing or not doing anything, if the selfless body and mind doesn’t exist or function upon the absence of the supportive selfless elements and selfless energy.
Meanwhile, during the selfless impermanent existence and function of the selfless body and mind –
How the selfless mind reasons and understands everything that it perceives or experiences, that it comes in contact with, as well as how the mind thinks, feels, desires, behaves, acts and reacts, can be changed and modified, under the presence of awareness and freewill coming from the selfless thinking faculty.
The selfless thinking faculty could be acting and reacting spontaneously or autonomously without any freewill or awareness under the influence of the existing mind behavior pattern, which is conditional, that can be changed and modified under the presence of awareness and freewill. The selfless thinking faculty can also be acting and reacting in certain way under the presence of awareness and freewill.
It’s a very simple understanding. It’s science.
The complex behavior pattern of the selfless impermanent thinking faculty, is both limited (the absence of awareness and freewill, being influenced and conditioned by selfless elements and selfless energy, unwittingly) as well as conditional (the presence of awareness and freewill, to be over-coming the selfless elements and selfless energy that are also selfless and conditional, that’s why it’s possible to change, modify, render and overcome the restless selfless modification of the selfless mind through certain persist practice, discipline and observation).
The many minds that have been trying ‘very hard’ for some time, trying to overcome the restless selfless modification of the mind, trying to understand certain things, while thinking and believing that it’s not possible to do so, that is merely because they haven’t reach to the point of transcending the selfless modification of the mind yet. That they haven’t attained the correct understanding yet. It doesn’t mean that it’s not possible.
The presence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness in the selfless modification of the selfless thinking faculty, is conditional, that can change and be modified. And hence, the selfless existence of the universal selfless teachings and practice of yoga and buddhism, that can help or guide the selfless thinking faculty to be free from all that, under self-effort, through concentration and meditation, through self-inquiry and self-realization, under the presence of certain degrees of awareness and freewill.
The selfless thinking faculty can have awareness and freewill to change its existing conditional behavior pattern that is under the influence of ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, or under the influence of certain worldly passionate egoistic thinking, belief, values, desire and practice, by eradicating all that from the selfless function or modification of itself.
It can choose how it wants or doesn’t want to think, feel, behave, act and react, not being determined or disturbed by the selfless impermanent names and forms that are ceaselessly arising, changing and passing away in the selfless modification of the mind autonomously, through the presence of non-attachment, non-identification, non-association, non-craving, non-aversion, non-judgment and non-expectation towards the selfless impermanent changes in the selfless modification of the mind that are limited, that cannot be changed and modified even under the presence of awareness and freewill, upon attaining mental and emotional independence, transcending the influential energy fields, or Gunas, that are influencing the states of the mind.
The persist practice will reach to the point where the selfless modification of the mind becoming less and less restless, or more and more quiet, and eventually becoming stilled, where all thought activities subsided effortlessly through persist and prolonged concentration that leads to meditation, or silence, the annihilation of the modification of the mind. Over-coming or transcending the influential conditional selfless elements and selfless energy that are being rendered calm and quiet via the persistent practice, discipline and observation under certain degrees of awareness and freewill. Not being determined or disturbed by the inevitable process of decaying, aging and disintegrating, that is limited, that doesn’t change. And void of the unnecessary suffering deriving from the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, as all that is weakened and eradicated under the presence of awareness and freewill.
That’s why the importance of the observation of renunciation, dispassion, seclusion, solitude, silence, simplicity, desirelessness, and the development of certain degrees of mental and emotional independence, to be purifying the selfless function of the selfless intellect or reasoning power of the selfless mind, and quieting the restless selfless modification of the selfless mind, to be developing correct understanding through self-inquiry and self-realization, without being influenced or conditioned by the accumulated worldly limited knowledge and educational learning, the worldly passionate egoistic ideas, beliefs, values, desires and practice, the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness.
There’s no suffering arise, if there is non-grasping or non-attachment towards the selfless impermanent changes governed by cause and effect, or actions and the fruit of actions. Transcending duality, names and forms, elements, energy, limitation and condition, selfless impermanent changes of decay and disintegration. It doesn’t mean that all these don’t exist or stop existing upon self-realization. It doesn’t mean that the selfless thinking faculty stops performing any actions, in order to stop generating cause, in order to be exiting the wheel of ceaseless births and deaths that powered by endless cause and effect.
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The selfless mind can be changing and modifying the selfless modification of itself to be free from the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, transcending the suffering deriving from all that, but it cannot change or modify other minds to free them from all that. That is limited. The awareness and freewill enables the selfless mind to modify the modification of itself, but it cannot modify the modification of other minds. The selfless mind can be interfering with the process of impermanent changes in itself governed by cause and effect, by performing certain action or inaction that lead to consequences of action or inaction coming from itself under the presence of awareness and freewill, and correct understanding, but it cannot interfere with the impermanent changes in other minds governed by their own cause and effect, action and inaction, and the consequences of action and inaction being generated by or coming from themselves.
However, even though all that is limited, and doesn’t change, but it’s also conditional. Because the minds that are not free (that’s why they need to be free), that are mentally and emotionally dependence (that’s why they need to attain mental and emotional independence), can be influenced and conditioned by many external influential conditions and factors, regardless of something wholesome or unwholesome, wise or ignorant impact, that’s why there is the existence of the teachings and teachers, not to be interfering, changing or controlling other minds being what they are, but merely stand as a selfless guidance or a reflector, for the minds to come in contact with, or not, to be initiative to learn and practice, or not, to be reflecting upon themselves, or not, to be inquiring towards the truth of everything, or not, and to be determined and persevered to be free, or not, out of their own awareness and freewill, self-effort and right effort, determination and perseverance, powered by intense yearning towards liberation.
Under the correct understanding towards all that, there’s no attachment or identification arise in the selfless mind attaching or identifying towards the action and inaction and the consequences of action and inaction, allowing the action and inaction and the consequences being what they are, as they are, and they are impermanent.
The minds that are already free, that are mentally and emotionally independent, they are not being influenced or conditioned by any external factors, they don’t need all these teachings or practice. That’s why none can change the world, but the selfless mind can contribute wholesomeness or unwholesomeness and wise or ignorant impact into the world, or not. It’s up to the selfless mind itself, even though the mind is selfless, not having a permanent independent individual existence within this selfless physical body and selfless thinking faculty, and only existing momentarily in this world of diversities that doesn’t belong to anyone.
Just as there are many selfless elements and selfless energy supporting all and everything, selflessly and indiscriminately, to be what they are, to be existing, changing and passing away, and if without the selfless support of the supportive elements and energy, nothing can exist or function, but all these selfless elements and energy are not responsible for the ceaseless cause and effect, actions and consequences of actions generated by all and everything during their selfless momentary existence and function, either wittingly or unwittingly, intentionally or unintentionally.
The selfless function of the selfless thinking faculty, such as awareness, will power or freewill, certain degrees of mental and emotional dependence or independence, attention, and effort to be performing or not performing certain actions, are neither good nor bad, where the selfless thinking faculty could be performing actions that are either wholesome and constructive or unwholesome and destructive for itself and others and the surrounding environment out of those selfless function, depending solely on the presence and absence of correct understanding.
The initial cause that gives rise to the effect of the forming of a selfless life existence of the selfless body and selfless thinking faculty perceiving all this selfless impermanent changes, that is not being activated by this selfless thinking faculty that only exists and functions upon the forming of this selfless body being conceived by the selfless parents either intentionally or unintentionally. However, it is the responsibility of this selfless thinking faculty itself towards all its actions and consequences of actions, either wittingly or unwittingly, after having being conceived even though not out of its own will, intention or desire, and having this selfless impermanent life existence being supported by the selfless elements and energy.
Such as the mind is being disturbed and hurt by someone or something in the present moment. How the mind reacts towards everything in certain way, is the responsibility of the mind itself, regardless of with or without certain degrees of awareness and freewill. Under certain degrees of awareness and freewill and basic correct understanding, the mind can choose to react or don’t react, or react differently. And, even if the presence of someone or something has the quality or intention to be something disturbing and hurtful, and generating such cause for the selfless mind to be disturbed and hurt in the present moment, but in the next moment, if this selfless mind is continuing being disturbed and hurt by what had happened in the previous moment, that is its own responsibility. That is due to the presence of egoistic attachment, identification, and the desire of craving and aversion. Most minds might not understand this due to ignorance.
No doubt that, due to certain limited genetically inherited genes that couldn’t be changed or modified, while under the weak awareness and will power with the strong mental and emotional dependence, as well as under the presence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism, impurities and restlessness, or under the absence of correct understanding, the selfless impermanent states or modifications of the mind are mostly functioning and changing under the influence of the selfless elements and energy (the Gunas), on top of all kinds of external influential conditions and factors to be in certain way, to have certain mind behavior pattern, to think, believe, reason, understand, feel, desire, behave, act and react in certain way, but all these are conditional, that can change and be modified, under the developed and enhanced awareness and will power, under certain degrees of mental and emotional independence, and more importantly, under certain degrees of basic correct understanding, that initiates the selfless mind to be making an effort to be transcending all those limited and conditional inherited or influential conditions and influences, and attains self-realization towards the truth of the selfless impermanent existence and function of itself, and be free from all kinds of suffering due to being ignorant towards all that.
The selfless mind that is void of ignorance, is void of aversion or fear towards the unknown, uncertainty, or selfless impermanent changes of decay and disintegration, or death/ceased existence and functioning, or void of clinging or craving towards the opposite of all that. But merely making good use of this selfless impermanent momentary existence in this present moment, to be performing selfless service (actions being performed void of egoism) in this world of ignorance and egoism with all kinds of suffering deriving from that. Not being determined or disturbed by all kinds of selfless impermanent changes being governed by cause and effect or the action and consequences of action, doesn’t mean that the law of cause and effect is no longer existing or action and consequences of action is no longer valid.
Ignorance is the root cause of all kinds of inevitable and unnecessary suffering arising in the selfless mind, while the selfless mind under the influence of ignorance would be generating further ignorant hurtful actions and reactions out of the disturbed suffering state of mind that give rise to consequences that hurt itself and others and the surrounding environment. Where the selfless mind is being determined and disturbed by the selfless impermanent changes that is happening ceaselessly in the selfless body and selfless modifications of the mind, and being limited and determined by the actions and consequences of actions, that are not necessarily pleasant, agreeable and desirable.
Void of ignorance, the selfless mind is not being determined or disturbed by all that. And that is the fruit or consequences of action solely deriving from the awareness and freewill under certain degrees of mental and emotional independence and basic correct understanding, to be initiated to transform itself, to free itself from ignorance. Such transformation is not happening, or the ignorance is not going to be eradicated, if there’s no such initiation arising from the selfless mind under the presence of awareness and freewill.
Even when all these essential elements are very weak in the present moment, the selfless mind can still be developing and enhancing all these elements that are conditional, that can change and be modified, out of the tiny traces of awareness and freewill, unless the selfless thinking faculty is being born with certain deformity or long term damages in the selfless function of the selfless thinking faculty, then none can do anything about it, where there’s no awareness or any understanding at all, but merely being alive under the autonomous function of the bodily system dependent on someone to be looking after the maintenance of life and everything else that the deformed selfless thinking faculty couldn’t perform by itself.
That means, unless someone is suffering from certain mental disorders either due to genetic inheritance or due to certain injury or disease, all selfless minds have the basic function of awareness and freewill, and have some basic understanding to be initiative or responsible for looking after their own physical and mental over-all well-being, to modify what can be modified, to choose how they want or don’t want to think, believe, reason, understand, feel, desire, behave, act and react, to choose what type of cause or action being generated in this present moment, even though the past cannot be changed or undone. What type of consequences of actions, is being determined by the actions in the present moment, with or without awareness and freewill.
Even laziness might be existing in the genes, but that can also be modified if there’s a strong enough will.
Such as all minds comes with certain degrees of ignorance and egoism, including Siddhartha Gautama Buddha, Swami Sivananda and Ajahn Chah, that’s why all minds behave in certain way that might be different from one another, but no matter what are the degrees of ignorance and egoism that exist in the selfless thinking faculty, it is conditional, that can be modified, and even be eradicated completely, if there’s strong enough will to be free from ignorance.
It’s the freedom or the responsibility of the selfless mind itself, whether it is being aware of and acknowledging the presence of ignorance in itself, and whether to make an effort to free itself from the influence of ignorance, or not.
Many actions are being generated without particular intention towards the actions and consequences of actions to be in certain way, it doesn’t mean that there is no awareness and freewill or certain intention in such actions. The mind that has certain ‘good intention’ to be performing certain ‘good actions’ but somehow the consequences of what the selfless mind thinks and believes as ‘good actions’ out of ‘good intention’ doesn’t necessarily is all good as what the selfless mind thinks and believes what it is.
Many actions that are being performed out of self-righteousness under so called ‘good intention’ to make the world a better place according to what the selfless minds like, agree with and desire, are nothing but ignorant selfish hurtful actions being performed under the influence of the idea of ‘I’, ignorance, egoism and impurities, that hurt oneself and others and the surrounding environment.
Mental and emotional independence, as well as intense will power, not being determined or influenced by the external conditions and factors, is sort of a form of ‘stubbornness’. It’s neither good nor bad, depending on the presence or absence of correct understanding in the selfless mind, that might give rise to action or inaction that are wholesome and beneficial for all and everyone, or that are unwholesome and damaging towards oneself and others. That’s why the minds that want to control other minds to be or not to be in certain way would not like or agree with mental and emotional independence, as they can’t make the ‘stubborn’ minds to obey and follow their instruction or desire. That’s why most minds are being trained and encouraged to be having intense mental and emotional dependency among one another at home, at school or in the society.
Inquire the truth of everything, including all the teachings of yoga and buddhism, as well as all the existing thinking, belief, understanding, desires, values, practice, learning and the accumulated knowledge or information in the mind, that are influencing and conditioning how the mind reasons everything, regardless of whether it’s coming from anyone or anywhere, of buddhas, gurus, saints, sages, philosophers, scientists, parents, elders, good friends, teachers, leaders, or the many different writers of many different books about many different things or subjects.
My Daily Yoga Practice 