MN 11 The Shorter Discourse of the Lion's Roar - Only one Path to the Unconditioned

so let me share my screen so this is a continuation of our series on Majima Nikaya and this one is majminikai 11 the chula sihanada sutta and what does that actually mean the shorter discourse on the lion's roar chuta is uh it says chula but it's pronounced chuta with almost like a d sound shuda is uh small or short uh siha or singha in in the or sanskrit is lion and nada is sound nada is vibration or here in this case roar so the lion's roar you know why do we call lions roar it's in ancient india the lion is the king of the jungle with the exception of course of

the tiger but in this case let's say it's the lion and a lion is someone is a being or an animal that is at the top of the food chain no one except for maybe humans which may protect themselves from lions or hunt them or whatever but the lion remains the leader of the food chain it remains a leader of all animals as per ancient india and it is confident and it is sure of uh itself and so the lion's roar is this is what we proclaim this is what we claim this is what we put out into the world with confidence without any

so-called ability for someone to challenge it so we'll see what that means thus have i heard on one occasion the blessed one was living at savati in jeta's grove anathapindikas park there he addressed the bhikkhus thus because venerable sir they replied blessed one said this because only here is there a recluse only here a second recluse only here a third recluse only here a fourth recluse only here is in the buddha dharma in the dharma of what the buddha has proclaimed only here is there a recluse second recluse third fourth what is that that's the four stages of awakening the doctrines of others are devoid of recluses so the buddha is here you know uh drawing a line in the sand and saying it's only in this dharma that we actually experience full awakening or stages towards full awakening that is how you should rightly roar your lions roar.

It is possible because that wanderers of other sects might ask, but on the strength of what argument or with the support of what authority do the Venerable One say thus? Wanderers of other sects who ask thus may be answered in this way, friends. Four things have been declared to us by the blessed one who knows and sees, accomplished and fully enlightened.

We have confidence in the Dhamma. We have fulfilled the precepts. And our companions in the Dhamma are dear and agreeable to us, whether they are laymen or those gone forth. These are the four things declared to us by the Blessed One who knows and sees, accomplished and fully enlightened, on seeing which in ourselves we say as we do.

Now it is possible because that wonderers of other sects might say thus, Friends, we too have confidence in the teacher, that is, our teacher. We too have confidence in the Dhamma, that is, our Dhamma. We have fulfilled the precepts, that is, our precepts, and our companions in the Dhamma are dear and agreeable to us too, whether they are laymen or those gone forth. What is the distinction here, friends? What is the variance? What is the difference between you and us? Wanderers of other sects who ask thus may be answered in this way. How then, friends, is the goal one or many?

So the question here is, what is the goal and where does it lead? For many of the wanderers during the time of ancient India, the goal was one, which was moksha, freedom, liberation, awakening. Answering rightly, the wanderers of other sects would answer thus, Friends, the goal is one, not many. But friends, is that goal for one affected by lust or free from lust? Answering rightly, the wonderers of other sects would answer thus. Friends, that goal is for one free from lust, not for one affected by lust.

But friends, is that goal for one who has vision or for one without vision? Henceing rightly, they would answer, friends, that goal is for one with vision, not for one without vision. So we'll stop here for a minute. Let's just look at what we're discussing here. So in other words, there is an agreement, there is an acknowledgement that in order for anyone to be fully awakened And for anyone to attain towards full enlightenment or full awakening or to enter into the goal of moksha, to be free from the burden of suffering, you need to be free from lust. you need to be free from the roots of lust you need to be free from hatred any kind of hatred aversion irritation ill will any kind of aversion in which there is desire to harm or desire to push away you have to be free from delusion what is delusion delusion here is the misperception of seeing things that are impermanent as permanent, that are causes or are suffering as happiness,

that are impersonal as personal. That's the delusion, the moha, getting caught up in the sense of me mine or myself one who is free from craving what is craving we have multitudes of craving we have craving for sensual pleasures we have craving for becoming we have craving for non-becoming and so what is craving craving is the obsession around an object or the pursuit of owning it or for pushing it away one who is affected or free from clinging i should say what do we mean by clinging clinging is upadana it's the fuel it's the it's the association it's the rationalization of why we crave something and we'll go deeper into what that is

and for one who has vision what is vision here we're talking about the right view for one who has established the right perspective on things you know dhiti or drishti it's to look at something in the right way, samadhiti, that is samyak drishti, the way of looking at something in the right way, that leads towards the right intention, the right speech, the right action, the right livelihood, the right effort, the right mindfulness and the right collectedness. It starts with vision.

And so we continue and it says, but friends, is that goal for one who favors and opposes or for one who does not favor and oppose answering rightly they would answer friends that goal is for one who does not favor and oppose not for one who favors and opposes here when we're saying favor and oppose it's like the reactions to the pleasant and the unpleasant that lead to craving or aversion it's the reactivity it's the underlying tendencies that cause the craving or aversion to arise.

But, friends, is that goal for one who delights in and enjoys proliferation or for one who does not delight and enjoy proliferation? Answering rightly, they would answer, Friends, that goal is for one who does not delight in and enjoy proliferation, not for one who delights in and enjoys proliferation. You know, what is proliferation? proliferation is the mind that's always thinking about this that or the other the questions that come up in the mind of you know is there a self or is there not a self does the world exist or not exist is the world going to exist after a period of time or not you know what is the nature of the world what is it made up of uh who am i what is this i um you know these kinds of proliferation

you know thinking about well if this karma arose in lifetime number 258 and does that mean in lifetime 1058 i'll have this experience you know this kind i know it sounds so silly but the mind is silly the mind and its thoughts are silly and so if you find and catch your mind thinking about these things, know that there is no straight answer. And moreover, once you do have the answer, let's say, what are you going to do with it? How does it help cease your suffering, but rather just essentially satiate your mental hunger? That's what mental proliferation is. It's mental hunger.

Because there are these two views, the view of being and the view of non-being. Any recluses or Brahmins who rely on the view of being adopt the view of being, accept the view of being, and are opposed to the view of non-being. Any recluses who rely on the view of non-being adopt the view of non-being, accept the view of non-being, are opposed to the view of being. So this is eternalism.

That's the being. versus annihilationism, which is the non-being. In other words, the self continues after death. So there is an eternal heaven or an eternal hell or something in which the soul, the so-called soul, continues and persists and pervades. The non-being is, after this life, that's it, YOLO. You only live once. And so there is nothing after this life. And so from that view, there can be materialism, there can be all kinds of views. It's annihilationism. That's the bracket under which we keep everything.

So what is it? What is the origin of these kinds of views? What are the origin of these kinds of views? Well, ignorance for one, the inability to recognize and see the four noble truths in every given moment, craving of course, identification with the five aggregates. Ignorance is the seed, it's the foundation of everything.

And if you go even one step before that, it's the ditthi asava, that is the virus of wrong view or of attachment to views. You have to think about this. Where did the view come from? It was inherited. You take up a worldview based on your experience of the world. You may grow up in a certain household in which there is a certain view.

You may grow up in school where you start adopting the views of your peers or of your teachers. You may adopt the views based on what you see on TV, what you read in books, what seems to be satisfying to the mind, but seems to be temporarily satisfying to the mental hunger of proliferation. That's the origin. You take it up from the world. That's the contact with the world, the perception with the world or of the world.

The disappearance of that, how does that disappear? How does it go away? Well, primarily, the wrong views of the view of being and non-being essentially go away when you enter the stream. When you enter the stream, you have let go of wrong views. You have let go of views of the self because you see things as an impersonal process.

Yes, the mind will still hold on to the conceit of this is me, mine, myself. But as we continue to practice, that starts to whittle away. But intellectually, from deep experience, we realize that there is no pervading permanent self that is independent of causes and conditions. The gratification, what is the gratification of these views? That's the, oh, I am right about this view, or the mental hunger that is curbed or satiated by discussing about these views, by going to places that are offering satisfaction to your bias of those views.

The danger, what is the danger? When you have the attachment to these views or these views in general, there is the sense of the eternal self. And so there is this idea that I will persist as I am, as the soul, as the Atman, after this life. And it will be eternal. But really, when you see things as an impersonal process, then you can't find that Atman.

You realize that there was no Atman to begin with. The danger of the non-being, the view of annihilationism. That's like, well, there is no consequence after this life, so let me take, take, take. Let me kill, kill, kill. Let me steal, steal, steal. Let me do everything I have to do to gratify this body and its sensual pleasures. YOLO, right? Very dangerous view.

And so, the escape from that view or those views is ultimately nibbana. It is to experience for oneself, so to speak, to experience nibbana, to let go of all craving, to let go of all clinging, and experience that space that is unconditioned, that is unfabricated, that is uncaused, that is without any formations, without any proliferation. It is the ultimate refuge, the ultimate shelter. It is the place in which no thoughts arise or pass away, a space in which awareness also ceases because one cannot grasp the nibbana dhatu. It is, as I term it, para-conscious, beyond the norms of everyday consciousness that is dependent upon different causes and conditions.

And so these two views, as the Buddha says, are affected by lust, hatred, delusion, craving, clinging. One has no vision when these views arise. One reacts one way or the other with craving or aversion, and they delight in and enjoy proliferation. For me personally, I can tell you, when I get into discussions about the Dhamma, I kind of just mentally walk away when people are talking about, oh, but what about the thing about this karma comes here, or the world is here, and what about the devas and how do they live and how does this happen? It's interesting, it's interesting. But if you're not discussing how to let go of craving, if you're not discussing the ultimate, which is nibbana, you know, yesterday I said this at the Dhamma talk: do not mistake the bliss for the ultimate. Right, there are those out there who say jhana is the greatest, it's the most wonderful. No, it's a stepping stone to liberation.

Bliss is great, but there is greater, and that is the deep wisdom that liberates the mind. If you don't orientate your mind in that direction, and you're only going towards proliferation for the sake of philosophical discussion, that's going to be nice for your mental hunger, but it's not going to do anything else. So they are not freed from birth, aging, and death, from sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair. They are not freed from suffering, I say. That's the ultimate thing. That's the Buddha's ultimate touchstone. Is this taking me closer to suffering? Or is it taking me away from suffering?

Any recluses or Brahmins who understand as they actually are the origin, the disappearance, the gratification, the danger, and the escape in the case of these two views are without lust, without hate, without delusion, without craving, without clinging, with vision, not given to favoring and opposing. And they do not delight in and enjoy proliferation. You will see this for yourself when you let go of these kinds of views, when you just, in some sense, relish in the realization that life is too short to be talking about these things ultimately. And really, the goal is to get out of here.

It's to get out of here. There will be people who say, oh, but what about taking care of the world and being a good citizen and these kinds of things? Do what you can do, what you can. If you feel like that's what you want to do, and if you feel like that's where you want to be, and if you feel like that's where you want to be in heightening sensual pleasure and living life to the max, that's where you want to be, great, fine. But ultimately, you will have hollowness in your heart.

Because there will be this impending. It will be impending as you get closer towards your death. How will I face death? Will I face death with remorse, with existential fear, with confusion, or will I face death with full acceptance and a smile and letting go, knowing full well through experiential wisdom that this is also not me, not mine, not myself, and ultimately transcending this entire sakkaya view. Sakkaya view means this entire wheel of a trap. This samsara is a trap.

The only reason we are here is because we are trying to learn from our past. Not just the past in this life, but the past in terms of karma of previous lives. So when you are met with karmic repercussions, when you are met with situations that are difficult, when you are met with situations in which people are not cooperative, when they're in conflict with you, when you are stuck in traffic, when you're, somebody forgets to make the coffee that you want, or the coffee machine is broken down, or all of these little things, accept them as they are, because the more we react, the more we cause further suffering for ourselves, and the more there is karma to be dealt with, the more there's karma to be dismantled, so to speak. So accept things as they are as much as possible. But does that mean there is a certain level of passivity?

No. No, not at all. It just means using your intuition and knowing when it is appropriate to act and when it is appropriate not to act. And if you can act without reacting, go right ahead. But easier said than done. Because there are these four kinds of clinging. What four? Clinging to sensual pleasures, clinging to views, clinging to rules or rites and rituals, and clinging to a doctrine of self.

Therefore, they describe only the full understanding of clinging to sensual pleasures, clinging to views and clinging to rules and observances or rites and rituals without describing the full understanding of clinging to a doctrine of self. So let's break this down. First of all, when we talk about these four kinds of clinging, very briefly put, what are those four kinds of clinging? Clinging to sensual pleasures is the attachment, the rationalizing of why it is that you crave for some kind of a sensual pleasure. It's the association that you've made with that particular scent, with that particular taste, with that particular sound, with that particular tangible, with that particular sight, whatever it might be. And so that clinging to sensual pleasures is let go of when you see your mind saying, I like this because of so and so. That because of so and so is the clinging, the rationalizing.

And when you see that and you let go of that, and you let go of the I that is doing that process, then you've let go of clinging in that moment. Clinging to views. When you talk about clinging to views, it's really clinging to wrong views. Clinging to views of annihilationism, eternalism. Clinging to views of materialism. Clinging to views of...

Skepticism. The idea of "I'm not really holding on to any views," but you're holding on to the view that you're not holding on to views. Clinging to the view of asceticism. There are different kinds of views here, or even clinging to right view. Clinging to our opinions about what is right and what is wrong. Clinging to our opinions about this particular politics or this particular religion or this particular ideology. Clinging to the right view here is clinging to the Dhamma with the idea that it is a thing, but it isn't ultimately, in the very absolute sense, there isn't a thing or there isn't a no-thing. It is all arising and passing away, dependent upon causes and conditions. The Dhamma is not eternal in this sense. It is something that is eternal only insofar as the fact that conditionality and causality is always there, whether we know it or not. But the Dhamma as a view itself is conditioned.

And so we let go of our clinging to that as well, clinging to rites and rituals. In this case, when we say clinging to rites and rituals, we mean clinging to the idea that doing a certain rite and ritual will be the path to full awakening. You can still do those rites and rituals, as long as they're not causing you harm or causing another harm.

But with the idea that it makes you feel good, it makes you feel uplifted, that's all. But it's not the ultimate path to awakening. When you let go of this, and this is completely let go of this idea, when you have stream entry, this clinging to the wrong views is let go of when you have stream entry.

Clinging to a doctrine of self. Now this is interesting. This is, I would argue to say, exclusive to the Buddha Dharma: to let go of that clinging, of not holding on to any self view, whether it's self or no self. Letting go of all of that and seeing it as an impersonal process, this happens at stream entry as well. So while others may profess, as the Buddha says, the clinging to sensual pleasures and so on and so forth, they may not fully understand the other instances. They may not fully profess the clinging to other instances, and probably rightly so. Not all traditions that are different from Buddha Dharma will talk about the clinging to self. You clinging to a doctrine of self. Did I lose my place there? We are. Because in such a Dhamma and discipline as that, it is plain that confidence in the teacher is not rightly directed, that confidence in the Dhamma is not rightly directed, that fulfillment of the precepts is not rightly directed, and that the affection among companions in the Dhamma is not rightly directed.

Why is that? Because that is how it is when the Dhamma and discipline is, in this case, such a Dhamma and discipline. It doesn't mean the Buddha's dispensation, but any Dhamma and discipline that is badly proclaimed and badly expounded, unemancipating, unconducive to peace, expounded by one who is not fully awakened or enlightened. But, Bhikkhus, when the Tathagata, accomplished and fully enlightened, claims to propound the full understanding of all kinds of clinging, he completely describes the full understanding of all kinds of clinging. He describes the full understanding of clinging to sensual pleasures, clinging to views, clinging to rites and rituals, and clinging to a doctrine of self.

Now these four kinds of clinging have what as their source, what as their origin, from what are they born? These kinds, or these four kinds of clinging, have craving as their source, craving as their origin. They are born and produced from craving. Craving has feeling as its source. Feeling has contact as its source. Contact has the six-fold base as its source. The six-fold base has mentality-materiality as its source. Mentality-materiality has consciousness as its source. Consciousness has formations as its source. Formations have ignorance as their source.

Ignorance as their origin. They are born and produced from ignorance. So the ultimate thing to let go of is ignorance. The ultimate culprit is ignorance. And how does one let go of ignorance? By continuously being mindful, because practically speaking, ignorance is the lack of mindfulness of every given moment, is the lack of mindfulness of the four noble truths in every given moment. That is to say, when the mind is identifying with an experience that in itself is the suffering, or you can say the suffering that arises is due to the identification.

The letting go of that, utilizing right effort, utilizing the 6R's, and just being in that space of non-identification, non-proliferation, is the third noble truth. And we're doing the Eightfold Path, which is encapsulated in right effort, which is the Fourth Noble Truth, that leads to the emancipation of the mind in that moment, that leads to clarity of the mind in that moment, that leads to non-identification with that experience in that moment. Bhikkhus, when ignorance is abandoned and true knowledge has arisen in one, then with the fading away of ignorance and the arising of true knowledge, he no longer clings to sensual pleasures, no longer clings to views, no longer clings to rules and observances, no longer clings to a doctrine of self. When he does not cling, he is not agitated.

So when you have let go of ignorance, what happens? The ignorance goes away in that moment. Or, if you have fully let go of ignorance, then the formations that arise are no longer formations rooted in greed, hatred and delusion. Then the consciousnesses that arise are no longer stained by one of the 16 upakkilesas. Then the mentality and materiality that arises is no longer plagued by identification and identity.

Then the sixfold base that arises is seeing things or experiencing things as they are. And then the contact that arises is not dependent upon senses that are identified with. And then the feeling that arises just remains as feeling, without a sense of I, clinging or attaching to that feeling. Therefore no craving can arise, therefore no clinging, these kinds of clinging, can arise. Therefore no agitation of becoming, that this is who I am or this is who I ought to be, arises, and therefore no birth of new action and new karma arises, and therefore suffering does not arise. So when he is not agitated through

the cessation of becoming, through the cessation of clinging, the cessation of craving, there is the attainment of nibbana. He personally attains nibbana. He understands birth is destroyed, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more coming to any state of being. That is what the Blessed One said. The bhikkhus were satisfied and delighted in the Blessed One's words.