Day 10 The Buddha's Awakening Part 2

DIN THAYAM CHAGKU MAHEKARAJAM HARISAVANNO PATA VIPPA BHAASAM THAM THAM NAMAS SAMI HARISAVANNAM PATA VIPPA BHAASAM THAYAM JAGUNTA. Thank you. So my bowl serves as a camera stand, which is quite fabricated. Did you have a meal for the day? Yes, I did. Some generous souls helped me have an early meal. Very good vegetarian Indian cuisine. And the server actually started speaking French to me. So I was really impressed. This Indian man just knew French. So that was good. I guess just to put you into a little context, I'll just change my view. There we go.

So day five of the retreat, when Delson and I went to the Bodhi tree and had this idea to give a talk on the awakening, I gave the first part, which was how the Buddha went through the Mahasaccaka Sutta, when he's going through all the austerities with the breath, and even cutting out his breath, not breathing, and then cutting out food, and then becoming so emaciated. And he actually, after so long of doing that, and actually here in Bodh Gaya, the cave is really nearby. It's eight kilometers from here, where he did these six years of austerities.

And actually, we're supposed to go check it out tomorrow. He came to the conclusion that that was not the way to awakening, because he had been doing that for six years. And I also talked about, because it is linked to a previous sutta, which is the Noble Search in the Majjhima Nikaya. They're both in the Majjhima Nikaya. These are the two main suttas that talk about his kind of breakthrough to awakening.

And his previous teachers, basically, Ala Ara Kalama, and so these two teachers who brought him all the way to the plane of nothingness and neither perception or non-perception and so but still he was he thought that that doesn't lead to nibbana that doesn't lead to disenchantment and even though he was asked to be a teacher in those traditions he said no because he wasn't feeling like this was what he was looking for so and then he did the six years of tapas really harsh austerities and realized this is not the path and and then realized he remembered his youth when he was a young child looking at the plowing festival and his father the king was plowing the field and everybody was there and he was just alone under the tree and he actually experienced Jana there for the first time she's just that letting go of all sensory you know worries engagements and then And there's this nice, clear joy that arises from that.

And there's still some kind of very wholesome thinking that is possible at that point, but very lightly. And that came through with a lot of relief and a lot of joy. And then he remembers that. And then he says, well, could that be the way to awakening? Why am I afraid of that pleasure? Why am I afraid of this? So he continues to think, and he's like, well, I'm not afraid of this. This is blameless. This has got nothing to do with sensorial desires, selfishness or anything. It's only actually, it's blameless basically. So I'm not going to go through the whole thing because I've already spoken about it. And actually this is going to be day five of the retreat and it's going to be posted relatively soon.

So this is meant to be just the sequel to that, because Delson's part afterwards. So basically we took, I took the first part and then he took the second part, where he wanted to speak about dependent origination. So I suggested maybe to talk about the beginning of the Mahavagga, basically, so when he's going through after awakening, so basically what his whole realization was under the seven following weeks, under each of the different trees. And so this is mainly found in the Mahavagga, and unfortunately Delson's talk, I'm not sure why the recorder stopped recording. I think the data was full in the card, so we don't have that talk. But I'll be doing a little bit of a sequel to the first part that I started with, and this is in the Mahavagga, which is in the Vinaya Pitaka. And I'm not going to only talk about dependent origination. It starts with that, but it flows into all the rest of the seven weeks after his awakening, depending on how the audience feels.

Either maybe touch on the... I was thinking maybe we can include the... or not. So basically, we'll see. But this whole sequence, for me, is kind of really the awakening of the Buddha, you know, when he's actually getting enlightened afterwards and what he's going through, his realizations, and then he goes to teach his first students basically and set the wheel of Dhamma rolling. I think that's kind of the summary of everything around awakening. And I believe I'll begin, because this is found in the Vinaya Pitaka but it's also found in the Udana. This is the opening lines of the Udana and I have a translation on that, so I just need to find myself here. Yes, you can still see me.

Because I can't see you anymore. I'll try to maybe do half a screen. Good. So here we are, and the Buddha is awakened of the tree of awakening, just after his complete awakening. On that occasion the awakened one sat in one posture for seven days experiencing the bliss of freedom. So I always like to kind of underline that he was just blissing out after awakening. That's the first thing he's doing, just saying. Then when the week had passed he emerged from this samadhi, and in the first part of the night paid careful attention to the arising chain of causality.

So then there's no consciousness possible. There is only liberation. So Mante, is that removing the sankharas pretty much? Well, it's removing them, but it's removing them through wisdom and tranquilizing them. The unwholesome states of mind, as creating more agitation and disturbances and dukkha, basically. And as we let go of those, there is only more and more liberation. And yes. And then when the chain, because it's not only like cut clear, like nirodha samapatti kind of thing. So it's when we actually, you know, work at tranquilizing these unwholesome states, we actually give a lot less power to the whole chain, so the tanha, upadana, bhava, jati, all that is weakened greatly, and so that manifests in weaker sankharas too, because there's not a great sense of self, there's not so much preoccupation about me, myself and I all the time. It's actually just light, generous, open.

But coming out of it, he sees how the chain arises. He sees how this consciousness is not eternal. It's not eternal. It's not everlasting. It's actually made up. It's fabricated. So he's just coming out and seeing his own consciousness kind of firing up again, and seeing how this whole process happens, and seeing in the second part of the night looking at the cessation aspect of it, and then understanding, yes, when these things are in order: when there's not this, then that doesn't come; when there's not that, then that doesn't come; when there's not that, then that cannot be. So he's basically being a scientist just on his own mind. And this is the last part of the night, when he's actually putting everything together and really understanding the whole thing.

And this is just the cherry on the cake. Surely when the nature of things becomes clear to the devoted meditating brahmana, one stands shattering death and its troops like the sun lighting up the sky. So here is the Buddha actually becoming a Buddha, so here's the end of my translation, and I will be moving to the Divinia. We could speak a little bit about dependent origination, but since I'd like to cover a little bit more of the whole story behind the Buddha's awakening, I'm not going to drag into it. But it's so profound just to contemplate. Really, when you look at it simply, it's simply a matter of finding what is the support for the next thing, and how these things arise together, and how when there's no more lacking of awareness of any kind, when awareness has been just purified through just this letting go and upliftment of the mind.

wholesome states, then these sankharas that arise, they are wholesome and they are very light. So the whole chain that arises is, of course, there's a consciousness that arises, but that consciousness is not heavy. It's not very heavy, and so it's not super attached or personalizing and form as much as it could be. For example, because consciousness supports basically nama-rupa, this mind and body, which I call mind and body. It's translated in many different ways. And then, without consciousness, there cannot be mind and body. It's like the Buddha says, it's like two stacks of kusa grass that are leaning against each other. If you take away one, the other one falls. So there cannot be body without consciousness, and there cannot be consciousness without the body, without this, unless someone is in the arupa realms. But mainly this is for the rupa realm, basically, otherwise we wouldn't be talking about nama-rupa.

And then how could the sense even come into being? Like, if there's no nama-rupa, like this sense of mind and matter, basically this sense of name and form, however we want to call it. The senses are just basically rooted in that. They are nothing but that. And then from there, if there's no sense, there cannot be any sense contact. That's just pretty plain and simple, so that makes a lot of sense. And then from contact, that's where we have some kind of experience, and that's where really the crux of the chain is. Whether what we're going to do with that experience will dictate how the mind will become, and whether it will become heavier or lighter. So basically, it's all conditioned, even the path is conditioned. We're conditioning our minds all the time, but hopefully in a wholesome way, in a way that's wholesome and uplifting and beneficial for as many beings as possible, and which supports ourselves in the first place. So now I will be getting into... So this was under the, on awakening.

This is going for the Pabba Javagga. And now I will be talking, I will be reading from... This is the older translation from I.B. Horner, and she, I kind of like her translation, actually. I just have to organize my... It's a bit of a new system here, so... Oh, so I can't do that. So this is at the goatherd's banyan tree. Now, at the beginning, we were under the... the Bodhi tree, the tree of awakening, and now he's under the goatherd's banyan tree.

These crazy looking trees with so many roots that are going all over the place, and the branches look like roots and the roots look like branches. But is that tree still there? No, even the Bodhi tree is not the original one. Yes. I haven't inspected the whole area, because I saw the place where he was standing looking at the tree for seven days unflinching. That I did see. I did see. But the banyan tree, I didn't see. I mean, I think Bodh Gaya right now is very different

than what it was at that time, from what I can tell anyway. But I'm not a specialist either, so I would really have to... I really would have liked to go more actually to the temple, because I've only been teaching the retreat, so I haven't been able to really get around. Maybe tomorrow I'll check out the cave where he did all of his asceticism. Still up in the air, we don't know. So then, and she uses the word lord, so of course bear with me. Then the lord, having emerged from that contemplation at the end of seven days, approached the goatherd's banyan tree from the foot of the tree of awakening. So yeah, it's going to be a little bit different here. So having approached, he sat cross-legged in one posture for seven days at the foot of the goatherd's banyan, experiencing the bliss of freedom. Then a certain brahmin of the

of the class uttering the word hum approached the lord. Having approached, he exchanged greetings with the lord, with the blessed one. Having exchanged greetings of friendliness and courtesy, he stood at a respectful distance. As he was standing, that brahmin spoke thus to the Blessed One: To what extent, good Gautama, does one become a brahmin? And again, what are the things which make a brahmin? Then the Blessed One, having understood this matter at that time, uttered this sullen utterance.

That brahmin who bars out evil things, not uttering the sound Aum, with no impurity, curbed of self, master of the Vedas, who lives the Brahma faring. This is the brahmin who may rightly speak the Brahma speech, who has no blemishes anywhere in the world. Then moving on to the Muchalinda tree. I said the tree, Muchalinda tree. Oh, I guess it was Muchalinda's tree. They're actually talking about a tree here, but that's why I got confused. I'm just picking up with my own story here.

Then Muchalinda, the serpent king, having come forth from his own hunt, having encircled the Lord's body seven times with its coils, having spread a great hood over his head. That's a pretty serviceable snake, I would say. Pretty nice. Clear and without a cloud, having unwound his coils from the Blessed One's body, having given up his own form and assumed a youth's form, stood in front of the Blessed One, honoring the Blessed One with joined palms. Then the Blessed One, having understood this matter at that time, uttered this sullen utterance.

Happy is solitude, who glad at heart hath Dhamma learned, and doth the vision see. Happy is the benignity towards the world, which on no creature worked harm. Happy the absence of all lust, the ascent past and beyond the needs of sense desires. He who doth crush the great 'I am' conceit, "This truly, this is happiness supreme." So he's sharing with us a few glimpses of what he's experiencing. And I guess in the past verse, I could say that there is a whole chapter in the Dhammapada that talks about what the Buddha said that makes a real brahmin. Very alive, even though it's kind of not, but it still is in people's minds. So people say it's not officially active, but it is really.

People think about it. They know about it. And I had just some discussions with some people about that, about their own caste and things like that. And here it's really, you are born a brahmin. It's not something that you do. So that's why he's actually asking, what makes a brahmin? What really is a brahmin? Because in the usual tradition, you are born a brahmin. You cannot become a brahmin. That's impossible. And a brahmin being also a master of the Vedas and a Vedic priest or things like that, you could not just become a brahmin like that. You would have to be born in the right family. You would have to be pure and all of that.

So that's why it's a theme that comes back very often in the Dhammapada. There's a whole, and I think it's the biggest chapter actually, the Brahmanavagga, which is at the end. And it's the Buddha talking about what really makes a brahman, like a holy man, a holy woman or a holy person basically. Not by birth or by family or by caste. Yes. I rode from Ukkala to that district. Then a Devata, who was a blood relation of the merchants, Tapusa and Balikka, spoke thus to the merchants: My good fellows, this Blessed One, having just become wholly awakened, is staying at the foot of the Rajayatana tree. Go and serve that Blessed One with barley gruel and honey balls.

"This will be a blessing and happiness for you for a long time." Then the merchants Tapusa and Balika, taking barley gruel and honey balls, approached the Blessed One. Having approached, having greeted the Blessed One, they stood at a respectful distance. As they were standing at a respectful distance, the merchants spoke thus to the Blessed One: "And honey balls. That this may be a blessing. And happiness for us. For a long time."

Then it occurred to the Blessed One: "Truth finders do not receive with their hands. Now with what shall I receive the barley gruel and honey balls?" Then the four great kings, knowing with their minds the reasoning of the Blessed One's mind, from the four quarters presented the Blessed One with four bowls, so that he could use one. So that's how the Buddha got his bowl, basically. Supposedly from the four great kings of the four directions, crystal, rock crystal bowls, and merging all of them into one so that he could actually use just one.

Then the merchants Tapusa and Balika, having found that the Blessed One had removed his hands from the bowl, having inclined their heads towards the Lord's feet, spoke thus to the Lord: "Blessed One, we go for refuge to the Blessed One and to the Dhamma. Let the Blessed One accept us as lay disciples gone for refuge for life from this day forth." Thus these came to be the first lay disciples in the world using the two-word formula, because there was no Sangha at that point, so they only went for refuge to the Buddha and the Dhamma. The Burmese say that Tapusa and Balika were Burmese. The Thais say they were Thais, because it's understood that they were on their way to Suvarnabhumi, the golden land, which is Burma and Thailand.

So basically, there's a little bit of a national argument here. It seems to stay clear out of that one, because it's definitely in the north. Thanks to the distance between the ocean. Yes, yes, yes. There's other stories, but... Yes, definitely. And then the invitation from the Brahma, because the first thing that the Buddha realized was actually not necessarily to teach. It was so profound and so hard to grasp for a lot of people that his mind was really released. The last thing he would want to do is try to cram things into his mind, or try to be something. When you go beyond becoming, then it's not really to be expected that you would look for something to do. So somebody had to invite him, and who better than Brahma himself? So then the Blessed One, having emerged from that contemplation at the end of seven days, approached the Goatherd's Banyan Tree from the foot of the Rajayatana. Having approached, the Blessed One stayed there at the foot of the Goatherd's Banyan Tree.

When the Blessed One was meditating in seclusion, a reasoning arose in his mind. Thus, this Dhamma, one to by me, is deep, difficult to see, difficult to understand, peaceful, excellent, beyond dialectic, subtle, intelligible to the learned. But this is a generation delighting in sensual pleasure, delighted by sensual pleasures, rejoicing in sensual pleasures, so that for a generation delighting in sensual pleasures, this were a matter difficult to see, that is to say, causal uprising by way of cause-dependent origination.

This too were a matter very difficult to see: tendencies, the renunciation of all attachments, the destruction of craving, dispassion, stopping, Nibbana. Vibbana, basically. And here we find it very close, rooted in his awakening. And so if I were to teach Dhamma and others were not to understand me, this would be a weariness to me. This would be a vexation to me. I'm not sure if he would say a vexation, but definitely more like a burden. Buddha would get vexed about something. And further, these verses not heard before or in the past occurred spontaneously to the Blessed One: "This that through many toils I've won, enough, why should I make it known? By folks with lust and hate consumed, this Dhamma is not understood."

"Leading on against the stream, subtle, deep, difficult to see, delicate, unseen will be by patient slaves cloaked in the murk of ignorance." In such wise as the Blessed One pondered, his mind inclined to little effort and not to teach Dhamma. Then it occurred to Brahma Sahampati, knowing with his mind the reasoning in the Blessed One's mind, he thought: "Alas, the world is lost, alas, the world is destroyed, inasmuch as the mind of the truth finder, the perfected one, the fully awakened one, inclines to little effort and not to teach Dhamma." As a strong man might bend back his outstretched arm, even so did Brahma Sahampati, vanishing from the Brahma world, manifest before the Blessed One.

Then Brahma Sahampati, having arranged his upper robe over one shoulder, having stooped his right knee to the ground, having saluted the Lord with joined the Lord, said: "Bhante, let the Blessed One teach Dhamma. Let the Well-farer teach Dhamma. There are beings with little dust in their eyes who, not hearing the Dhamma, are decaying. But if they are learners of Dhamma, they will grow."

Thus spoke Brahma Sahampati, and having said this, he further spoke thus: "There has appeared in Magadha before thee an unclean dhamma devised by impure minds. Open this door of deathlessness. Let them hear Dhamma awakened to by the stainless one." I have goosebumps just reading this, by the way. It's just such an amazing section. I was going to say it's one of my favorites, but you already, yeah. That's kind of getting old. It's obviously one of my favorites. "As on a crag, on the crest of a mountain standing, a man might watch the people far below. Even so do thou, O wisdom fair, ascending, O seer of all, the terraced heights of truth, grief released."

"Look down from grief released upon the peoples sunken in grief, oppressed by birth and old age. Arise, you hero, conqueror in battle, you freed from death. Man, leader of the caravan, walk the world over. Let the Blessed One teach Dhamma. They who learn will grow." When he had spoken thus, the Blessed One spoke thus to Brahma Sahampati: "Brahma, it occurred to me this Dhamma penetrated by me is deep.

And then he repeats the whole thing. And if I were to teach this and people would not understand, this would be troublesome. Spontaneously to me: "This that through many toils I've won is not easy to see." And then again repeats the same thing. "In such wise, Brahma, as I pondered, my mind inclined to little effort and not to teach the Dhamma." Then a second time did Brahma Sahampati speak thus to the Blessed One: "Blessed One, let the Blessed One teach Dhamma. If they are learners of Dhamma, they will grow." Still repeating. And then a third time.

So, three times asking. Then the Blessed One, having understood Brahma's entreaty and out of compassion for beings, surveyed the world with the eye of an awakened one. As the Blessed One was surveying the world, he saw beings with little dust in their eyes, with much dust in their eyes, with acute faculties, with dull faculties, of good dispositions and bad dispositions, docile or indocile, few seeing fear in sins and the worlds beyond.

So, few seeing fear in unwholesome actions. And few seeing the world beyond, basically. That's relating to the hiri-ottappa, basically. This sense, this natural sense of, this virtuous sense of, wholesome sense of fear in doing wrong things. And he saw that few people, some people had this. And another wrong view that is often clung to is that there is no world after, there is no life after this one. So that some people did think that their actions matter. So that's why the Buddha's teaching is all about karma. So that there wouldn't be another life after, that actions didn't matter at all, then it would be a very nihilistic approach. But he saw that there was some goodness.

He saw that some people were intent on good, even though they didn't always know how to do it. But they still were intent on it. Even as in a pond of blue lotuses, or in a pond of red lotuses, or in a pond of white lotuses, some are born in the water, grow in the water, do not rise above the water, but thrive while altogether immersed. And some blue, red or white lotuses are born in the water, grow in the water, and reach to the surface of the water. And some blue, red or white lotuses are born in the water, grow in the water, and stand up rising out of the water, undefiled by the water.

And that's one of the most beautiful similes to imagine a Buddha, basically. If you do a Buddha Anusati, it's like this person who's just transcended this world completely, like a lotus jutting out of the water, not even touched by any kind of droplets of water. It's just completely blooming above it, even though he came from that environment. So that's quite beautiful.

Even so, the Blessed One surveying the world with the eye of an awakened one, seeing beings with little dust in their eyes and with much dust in their eyes, seeing Brahma Sahampati, addressed him with verses: "Open for those who here are the doors to the deathless. Let them renounce, let them show their faith. Thinking of useless fatigue, I have not preached, Brahma, the sublime and excellent Dhamma to men."

Then Brahma Sahampati, thinking the opportunity was made by me for the Blessed One to teach Dhamma, paid respect and vanished then and there. So now he's wondering who he will teach, because who's gonna understand this? A good teacher needs some really good first students, close by and close core students, because that's just the way that the teaching shines. I think some people will be close and understand that teaching quite quickly. And that tells a lot, because usually the people who are actually experiencing the teaching will be a kind of testimony to the teaching itself. So even though he says he's fully awakened, it happens later. Not everybody believes him.

Usually some people with really good karma will be close by. Then it occurred to the Blessed One: "Now to whom should I first teach Dhamma? Who will understand this Dhamma quickly?" Then it occurred to the Blessed One. First he thinks about his two first teachers, which is another interesting point. He's not even thinking about the five ascetics first, the first teachers who taught him, well, this one in particular, the plane of nothingness.

But then an invisible Devata announced to the Lord, Bhante, Alara Kalama passed away seven days ago. And the knowledge arose to the Blessed One that Alara Kalama had passed away seven days ago. And that's funny, because a lot of the time, the Devas will tell the Buddha, and ironically he's also thinking that at the same time, so there will be two lines there, the devatas told him, and then he had the knowledge also. So that's interesting. I always think, then it occurred to the Blessed One, Alara Kalama was of great intelligence. If he had heard this Dhamma, he would have understood it quickly. And like Chandaratna Bante was saying on this particular retreat, it said that, well, technically he was reborn in an arupa jhana, so he's actually... you can't reach him, there's no sense base, there's no, like, anyway, that's what they say, they're still mined, so I guess he could maybe reach by mind. But it's kind of like he's landlocked in his amazing arupa state. Mind luck.

Then it occurred to the Blessed One, Udaka Rama's son was of great intelligence. If he had heard this Dhamma, he would have understood it quickly. See, we see here all kinds of really interesting karmic link with his previous teacher, like seven days he's passed and now he's just passed on last night. I mean, these are kind of really interesting coincidences of karma that put him in very special conditions again, where these great teachers are not there anymore. Then it occurred to the Lord, now to whom should I teach this Dhamma? Who will understand this Dhamma quickly? Then it occurred to the Lord, that group of five monks who waited on me when I was self-resolute in striving were very helpful.

Suppose I were to teach Dhamma first to the group of five monks, then it occurred to the Blessed One, but where is the group of five monks staying at present? Then the Blessed One, with Deva vision, purified and surpassing that of men, saw the group of five monks at Benares, at Isipatana in the Deer Park. This is where the previous retreat was held.

Then the Lord, the Blessed One, having stayed at Uruvala for as long as he found suiting, set out on tour to Benares, so Baranasi. Upaka, a naked ascetic, saw the Blessed One going along the high road between Gaya and the tree of awakening. Seeing him, he spoke thus to the Blessed One. Your reverence, your sense faculties are quite pure, your complexion very bright, very clear. On account of whom have you, your reverence, gone forth? Or who is your teacher? Or whose Dhamma do you profess?

When this had been said, the Blessed One addressed Upaka, the naked ascetic, in verses. Victorious over all, omniscient am I. Among all things undefiled, leaving all, through the death of craving freed, by knowing for myself, whom should I follow? For me there is no teacher, one like me does not exist. In the world with its devas, no one equals me. In the world, the teacher supreme am I. I alone am all awakened. Become cool am I. Nibbana attained.

To turn the Dhamma wheel, I go to Kasi's city. Beating the drum of the deathless in a world that's become blind. According to what you claim, your reverence, you ought to be victor of the unending. Upaka said, "Like me they are victors indeed, who have won the destruction of the cankers. Vanquished by me are evil things, therefore am I, Upaka, a victor."

Again, I have goosebumps reading the beating the drum of the deathless. That's always something that kind of triggers me. close to these places and picturing the Buddha like this is such a lion's roar that nobody's just kind of able to understand just yet you know so like nobody's still like not experienced Dhamma enough to understand what he's talking about like he's just kind of out of his brains because he's basically talking about he doesn't have a teacher which is like almost like time or something like that and it's because the teacher here is even like almost placed higher than than than God itself because the teacher is the one who shows the way to God basically shows the way to to spiritual life to everything so the guru is like is like even more than than anything else so to say that one has discovered all this by himself and doesn't have a teacher is quite Quite next level, I would say, for the Buddha.

When this had been said, Upaka, the naked ascetic, having said, It may be so, your reverence, having shaken his head, went off taking a different road. So, there you go. He's not really convinced. And that just happens a lot. That's why we have to be careful about the things we say when we experience amazing things in meditation, and things like that. It's not that everybody's gonna understand, or can't say, well, of course maybe we wouldn't say it like that. But yeah, even thinking about attainments and things like that, I'm thinking sometimes it has the reverse effect on people. So the Buddha here didn't really gain a follower, that's for sure.

But he told the truth. Then the Blessed One, walking on tour in due course, approached Benares, the deer park at Isipatana, the group of five monks. The group of five monks saw the Blessed One coming in the distance and, seeing him, they agreed amongst themselves, saying, Your reverences, this recluse Gautama is coming. He lives in abundance. He is wavering in his striving. He has reverted to the life of abundance. He should neither be greeted nor stood up for, nor should his bowl and robe be received. All the same, a seat may be put out. He can sit down if he wants to. again. But as the Blessed One gradually approached this group of five monks, so the group of five, not adhering to their own agreement, having gone towards the Lord, having received His bowl and robe, one made ready a seat, one brought water for washing the feet, a footstool, a footstand.

He was sitting down, washed his feet. Further, they addressed the Blessed One by name and with the epithet of "your reverence." So even when seeing them, his karma was just too strong that they couldn't bear just not actually greeting him. One spoke thus to the group of five monks: "Do not, monks, address a truth finder by name, and with the epithet your reverence. A truth finder, monks, is a perfected one, a fully awakened one. Give here, monks, the deathless has been found. I instruct, I teach Dhamma, going along in accordance with what has been said and joined, having soon realized here and now by your own direct knowledge that supreme goal of the Brahma faring, for the sake of which young men from a family rightly go forth from home into homelessness, you will abide in it."

When this had been said, the group of five monks spoke thus to the Blessed One: to a state of further men, to the eminence of truly Aryan vision and knowledge by this conduct, by this course, by this practice of austerities. So how can you now come to a state of a further men, to the eminence of the truly Aryan vision of knowledge when you live in abundance, are wavering and striving, and having reverted to a life of abundance? How can you break through to awakening if you didn't even break through to awakening while you were almost dead trying? And now you're just eating a little bit, probably one meal a day, and now how can you ever attain awakening? You're just eating, and you're like, I don't know, I don't know what else he was doing, but that, I think, was probably just about it. When this had been said, the Blessed One spoke thus to the group of five monks.

And the second time the group of five monks spoke again, the same, to the Lord. And now he's kind of saying, okay, I'll just draw some lines here. Five monks listened to the Blessed One, gave ear to Him, and aroused their minds for profound knowledge. Then the Blessed One addressed the group of five monks, saying, These two dead ends, monks, should not be followed by one who has gone forth. Which two? That which is among sense pleasures, addiction to attractive sense pleasures, the villager of the average man, un-Aryan, not connected with the goal. And that which is addiction to self-torment, ill, un-Aryan, not connected with the goal. So basically, indulging in, engaging the mind in the senses all the time and finding a certain kind of relief from that.

Actually a double-edged sword, or self-torturing, basically, which was the tapas that the Jains were practicing at that time. Now, monks, without adopting either of these two dead ends, there is a middle course, fully awakened to by the truth finder, making for vision, making for knowledge, which conduces to calming, to direct knowledge, to awakening, to Nibbana. And what, monks, is the middle course fully awakened to by the truth finder, making for vision, making for knowledge, which conduces to calming, direct knowledge, to awakening, to Nibbana? Basically, he's convinced the ascetics, the five ascetics, and he's delivering the first discourse of Dhamma that he will deliver, which results in that group of five understanding the Dhamma for the first time. And this I will be reading from my own translation, which is a little tricky.

Taking birth is troublesome. Aging is troublesome. Diseases are troublesome. Death is troublesome. Coming upon undesired things is troublesome. Being separated from desired things is troublesome. Not getting what one wants is troublesome. In brief, the five fabrics of the ego are indeed troublesome. What are the five fabrics of the ego, the five aggregates? Just to see if you're following. Being born, illness, and aging, sickness, yes. That's more like the result of the five fabrics, the five aggregates, the skandhas. Yes, skandhas: the body, perception, feeling, mental activities or formations, and consciousness. So all these, the Buddha is saying, all these are troublesome. So then we learn to calm them down. I need to find myself again. There we go. Then, monks, understanding the cause of what is troublesome is conducive to awakening.

That is, this craving or thirst, this wanting, which is the very fuel for taking action, propelled by seeking happiness in always wanting. Seeking happiness and attachment in trifling material things. That is, wishing for sensory stimulation, wishing for things to happen and wishing for things not to happen. Or this could also be said as wishing to become someone or to become something in the future, or wishing to not become anything. This whole thing stops. He's saying these are just agitating the mind. And now, the release from that. The flip side of the formidable truth, the upside.

Then, monks, understanding the release from what is troublesome is conducive to awakening, that is, the complete appeasement and release from that very discontent, giving it up, letting it go, releasing it and unlatching from it. Then, monks, understanding the practice which leads to the release from what is troublesome is conducive to awakening, that is, this eight-spoked path of the awakened, which is wise understanding, wise attitude, wise speech, wise behavior, wise livelihood, wise practice, wise awareness, and wise meditation.

When I realized this is troublesome, I began to understand a Dhamma unheard before. Vision arose, understanding arose, discernment arose, awareness arose, clarity arose. And when I realized this truth is to be continually understood, I began to understand the Dhamma unheard before. Vision arose, understanding arose, discernment arose, awareness arose, and clarity arose. When I realized this truth is continually understood, now this was just acknowledging the truth. And then understanding this has to be continuously understood. And now he's seeing that it has been. So now he's gaining quite a lot of deeper understanding here about the first noble truth.

So when we wise practice, so that's how we came up with that. Because if he didn't see it in the present tense, like fully abandoned in him, then he wouldn't be awakened. When I realized this is the release from what is troublesome, I began to understand the Dhamma unheard before. Truth is to be experienced. And so that's interesting. So now he sees this is the release from that very suffering, from the cause of the suffering and from the suffering, from the troublesome.

And this truth is to be experienced. So we have to experience that. We have to experience the end of it. So we have to experience joy and clarity that comes from mental development. That's what this sutta is basically pointing to every step of the way. When I realized this truth is experienced, so now he knows, right now he's experiencing that, I began to understand that Dhamma unheard before, vision arose, understanding arose, discernment arose, awareness arose, and clarity arose.

When I realized this is the practice leading to the release of what is trouble, I began to understand the Dhamma unheard before. When I realized this truth should be developed. Now it's going even one step further and pointing at the path, and see how the Four Noble Truths are so intimately connected with wise practice, the fourth noble truth. And that's what I love about the sutta, is that it's really together. Like the four noble truths, which is the deepest teaching of the Buddha, really with dependent origination, but dependent origination is in the four noble truths anyways. And also wise practice, which is what we need to do. It's like the practical down-to-earth instructions. So the four noble truths is just the understanding, but then what do we do? And this sutta actually plugs it all together, where the Buddha puts the practice with the understanding.

So when I realized this truth should be developed, then this is the path that we need to develop to actually experience the release from that troublesomeness in the mind. I began to understand the Dhamma unheard before. When I realized this truth is developed, talking about his own awakening, I began to understand the Dhamma unheard before, vision arose, understanding arose, discernment arose, awareness arose, and clarity arose.

So long as my knowledge and direct experience of these four awakened understandings, as they truly are, each turning threefold, in these 12 modes, because there's four Noble Truths, there are three modes of them, three ways in just realizing what it is, what needs to be done with it, and to see that fully accomplished in himself, basically. So, as they truly are, each turning threefold in these 12 modes total, had not become clear, I did not declare having fully awakened with perfect, unrivaled, knowledge and understanding in this world of devas and maras and brahmas, this generation of samanas and brahmanas with its kings and people.

Then direct knowledge and experience came. Unshakeable is my liberation. This is the final birth. There is no more rebirth from now on. This is what the awakened one said. Glad at heart, the group of five monks rejoiced in his words. And while this speech was given, the flawless, stainless vision of the Dhamma arose in the Venerable Kondanya. He directly saw and understood, whatever is of a nature to become, all of it is also of a nature to cease. Once the wheel of Dhamma was set turning by the Buddha, and this is it, this is the wheel turning now, because Kondanya has understood, and he is the first one who will start turning the wheel. Basically, the earth devas exclaim that in Varanasi, in the deer park sanctuary at Isipatana, the Awakened One has set rolling the wheel of Dhamma, which cannot be turned back by any samana or brahmana, any deva or mara or brahma, or anyone in this world.

Then the earth devas, having heard this celestial claim, the devas of the four great kings exclaimed the same thing. Then the 33, the group of 33 devas, then the Yama devas, the Tusita devas, the Nimmanarati devas, the Paranimmitavasavatti devas, and the Brahmic body of devas exclaimed, in the sanctuary at Isipatana, the Awakened One has set rolling the wheel of Dhamma, which cannot be turned back by any Samana or Brahmana, any Deva or Mara or Brahma, or anyone in this world.

And at that moment, in that instant, without delay, the news resounded all the way to the Brahmic plains, and this 10,000 world system shook, trembled, and quaked. And a measureless, illustrious radiance manifested in the world, surpassing even the radiance of the brightest devas. And the awakened ones spoke these inspired verses: Kondanya sees, Kondanya sees. And from then, the Venerable Kondanya came to be known as Kondanya, the one who sees. And so this closes the awakening of the Buddha, from one tree to another, experiencing the bliss of liberation. And actually wording for the first time his understanding, his awakening. So I think we have a good picture. And you got to hear a little bit of a Thai in the background, so that's good.

On top of that. Yeah. Yeah, I just... The three, is it like the Buddha has the attainment? And then, what's it? The three? Yes. So basically, it's first of all, it's recognizing what the actual truth is at the very beginning, whether it's hey, this is troublesome, or this is the cause of what is troublesome. Just that's just like the acknowledgement, like just figuring out just that. And then the second mode is what to do with that, what to do about it. It's like there's a problem and then there's a solution, kind of thing, or there's like this is suffering, or like this is troublesome, this should be continually understood, like this should be continually like this template should be continually applied, basically, to see. And for us in the practice, in direct meditation practice, it's really awareness of body, you know, how to stay like always very conscious of how body reacts to things.

And when we experience these tensions, we directly know. We directly know. That's how we can continually know this. So if as soon as there's tension, we can know. This is troublesome. And then, of course, it goes deeper than that, but and then the third one was basically for him. So remember at the beginning he said, as long as I did not see these things like this, in these, in this complete way, in these three modes, each completely 12, I didn't claim to be awakened, basically. So he knew about these things and he kind of worked

with it, but as long as, and that's the third mode, as long as he did not see the completion of that in himself, he didn't declare that he was awake. So basically, first is to acknowledge, to recognize what that truth is. Second is, okay, what do we do with this, what to do. The first one is to be continually aware of it. The second one is give it up, to give up the cause. The third one is to experience, to experience the release. Because the third noble truth is the release or the cessation of what is troublesome, so one has to experience that. So that's what to do with that truth. And then, and then the fourth noble truth is the path, and that needs to be developed.

And then the third mode for each of those is seeing that this was fully, perfectly done by him, basically. And then he said, I'm awake. Does that answer? When somebody attains a certain understanding, a certain level, and certain ones of the aggregates fall away, and then they have the attainment, but they don't necessarily have the fruit of it yet, because there's that place where they still need to... and so I just wondered if that was kind of another tie and another layer that was part of what Buddha was saying. So basically, Buddhas, their awakening is different. Like for us, he's declared four levels of awakening, basically, but for Buddhas there's no stream and tree... there's no, because he's the first one to find it, so he has to completely figure it out on his own. So he doesn't get to hear the Dhamma and become a stream enterer, for example. So these levels of path and fruition for him, they don't work, because he's the first one. So for him there is, like, one path and one fruition, which is basically being a Bodhisatta and then being a Buddha, and that's it.

What Paccekabuddha is, it might help you in your understanding, that also. Paccekabuddha. Paccekabuddha. Yes, yes. Paccekabuddha. Yes. Well, it's just that there's different kinds of Buddhas, and a Buddha that can actually teach. Buddhas are all people that understand and break through to full awakening on their own, without the help of another Buddha, for example.

But Paccekabuddhas, they can only do it for themselves. They cannot teach. They only know enough for themselves, basically, so that they'll break through to awakening, but they won't know how to teach it. Or they might, but it's not going to be very elaborate. It's going to be like, yeah, just do it. And that's not super helpful. And then there's Sammasambuddhas, which do the same thing, but for them it takes a lot longer. That's what they say anyways. That's what the texts say. It takes eons and eons and eons of purification. And at some point they break through to understanding by themselves, and they have so much knowledge, they have so much wisdom accumulated from what they've done, that when they awaken they've tried so many things that they know exactly how everything works, basically, so they're able to teach it really well, and they know it in and out, kind of thing. So that's the difference between Paccekabuddha and Sammasambuddha, so the differences within, inside the different Buddhas even.

Even Sammasambuddhas were not all the same. At the beginning of the Patimokkha, for example, the Venerable Mahamoggallana or Venerable Sariputta asked, Bhante, Bhagavan, why is there some Buddhas that their sasana, their dispensation, lasted very shortly and some lasted very long? He says, well, those who didn't put down the vinaya, didn't put down a Patimokkha, their teaching did not last very long. It didn't endure, because there is nothing tying the teaching together. So it just everybody kind of did their own thing and it got lost, basically. It got tainted really quickly, and nothing to hold it together. But in that definition, well, at first, that means that it's quite different from one sasana to another.

And our Buddha is said, Gautama Buddha is supposed to be a wisdom Buddha. So our Buddha is even a special Buddha for all Buddhas because he was very wise. He did lay down a very good vinaya, a Patimokkha, and that's why we have this 2,600 years after. This is the reason why teaching is still alive. It's been transformed in many ways, but we still can access the core of it. So that's just amazing.

And just the way that he was, that he acted, not all Buddhas did that. Some Buddhas would just stay in the forest and stay with tigers, and really not conducive places for lay people, for example, to go and learn the Dhamma. Or even for monks. Even for monks it was scary. So, but some of them were like really kind of... it reminds me of Dzogchen, kind of thing, like really intense Himalayan practice, like cutting through all the fetters kind of thing. But yeah, so even the Buddhas are different.

But this story is quite... I get goosebumps every time I read it. When I first stumbled upon it in the Mahavagga, I was just so impressed by how beautiful that story is. Him going to beat the drum of the deathless and the generation that's become blind, and so much gratitude. So much gratitude, and yeah, that person was definitely amazing. Yeah, so I hope that was enjoyable.

Give you a little bit. Share some merits and then we can go our ways. May suffering ones be suffering free and the fear struck fearlessly. May the grieving shed all grief and may all beings find relief. May all beings share these merits that we have thus acquired for the acquisition of all kinds of happiness. May beings inhabiting space and earth, devas and nagas of mighty powers. Well, I wish you all the best. It was really good to see you all.

So lovely. Thank you so much. Yes, let's keep up to date. Let's see what everyone is doing. Slowly, we're going to start preparing for Canada pretty soon over here. I think there will be more communications. And so, yeah, very good. Enjoy life. One day, as soon as you know, when you are coming to Bangalore, please let us know. Oh, yes, yes. We will also plan accordingly. Oh, very good, very good. That would be nice to catch you on the tour. Yes, man. Yes, very good. Very good, very good. Terwan Salanay, take care, take care. Say hi to both, all of your family. Yes, okay.