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"I'll guard the gold,
and you go Yoga Class."
"Indians never attack at night,"
said the Indian. "I'll guard the gate
an you go s l e e e e e p e e d e e p e e s l e e p e e"
These 4 should not be dealt with
Carelessly simply because they are young:
A crown prince
A poisonous snake
A fire
A sorcerer's apprentice
— SN 3:1
These are the senses:
Sight
Hearing
Smell
Taste
Touch
Knowing
These are what are here called
the Doors to the Senses:
The Eye
The Ear
The Nose
The Tongue
The Body
The Mind
The experience of sense awareness arises as a consequence of contact.
Contact is the simultaneous presence of sense organ with it's appropriate stimulus and consciousness.
A visual object comes within the scope of the eye, and the result is sensation associated with the sight (experienced as pleasant, unpleasant, or not-unpleasant-but-not pleasant); perception and consciousness.
A previous act of identification with the activities that started the process [intent to create personal experience coupled to deeds of body, speech and mind] puts a sort of 'mark of ownership' on the consequences and it is identifying (claiming, recognizing) these markers that results in the experience known as "My sight", or "I am seeing."
Arising from this experience comes liking or disliking depending on the sensation and whether or not one's original intent was to creat worldly experience or to escape the world.
Both liking and disliking, are, in the Pali, forms of wanting and lead to action that repeats the cycle and results in an outcome determined by kamma.
For this reason, the beggar trains himself to be wary of sights, sounds, scents, flavors, touches, and thoughts.
Being aware of the danger,
he guards "The Doors of the Senses"
and when an object of sense
comes into the range
of an organ of sense,
he neither pays attention to its general appearance
nor to it's details.
— He is aware of it, but does not 'think about' it
or dwell on the sensation associated with it
or take delight in it
or react to it's influence
or say to himself 'sensing, sensing, sensing'.
Here the practice of the time called "The OneMealMan Practice", will be described in order to provide an idea of how the modern practitioner might modify his own eating habits in order to further his Dhamma progress:
In this case
a beggar eats one meal a day,
after sunup,
before high noon.
The original practice consisted of two styles, called "Hard Man" and "Soft Man".
Hard Man practice
was the practice of eating
at one sitting
from the contents of one bowl.
The meal is done,
no matter how much was eaten,
if the beggar rose up from eating
(hand-out bowl clean —
we would say get up from the table).
In the Soft Man Practice
(which was the practice adopted by Gotama),
a beggar could eat several bowls full
at several sittings
and even take one bowl full
back to his residence
for eating later,
provided all eating was completed
before high noon.
The Buddha's usual actual practice,
we can gather from his own statements
and descriptions found in the Pali,
was to eat one bowl full at one sitting.
Occasionally he would take additional food,
which is why he would be described as practicing
"Soft Man Style".
At one time he pointed out:
"It is not because I am austere
in my eating practices
that those who follow me
respect me as they do,
for there are those
whose practices are far more austere than mine,
it is because I teach a higher Dhamma
that they respect me as they do."
Modifications were made to both practices at the request of laymen wishing to make good kamma.
These were that a beggar of either style could, if he had such, drink a beverage and eat a piece of bread or pastry upon rising up before going on his begging rounds.
All beggars ate whatever they wished that was allowable that was placed in the bowl.
There was, at one time, a huge dispute over what was and what was not proper to eat.
The dispute was begun by the infamous Buddhist bad guy, Devadatta, who tried to institute the practice of not eating flesh. (He wanted to prove himself more austere than Gotama).
The dispute threatened to disrupt the Order, and so Gotama laid out the rules of what was proper to "accept" in a formula he called "The Threes:"
Flesh was acceptable if
It was not
1. Seen
2. Heard
3. Suspected
To have been
1. Killed by one's self
2. Requested to have been killed by one's self
3. Known by a beggar to have been killed specifically for him.
An individual could be a vegetarian if he wished,
but there was no bad kamma
(and no rule)
associated with eating something
"killed on speculation"
by a butcher or hunter
or found dead, etc.
It is the intent that is the important thing,
and in such a case
there is no intent
(that is, by the beggar,
or by another for that specific beggar
that that beggar is aware of).
It is possible to adopt the One-Meal-Man practice and be quite fat and happy,
but one should approach this sort of diet with good sense.
There is a reasonable period of adjustment of a few weeks during which there will be for some a fair to middling battle with desire for food.
(and this desire may re-surface from time-to-time usually in association with other unrelated changes)
A six month or so period follows during which there is considerable weight loss
(especially for people who are overweight)
and during this time one should be careful not to exceed one's limits.
This is a practice that was intended to provide adequate sustenance to a beggar whose desire to bring kamma to an end had already caused him to become a homeless wanderer, willing to die if necessary, to achieve his goals.
It was not designed for a modern family man working long hours or doing manual labor or who was under a great deal of stress.
After this period of adjustment the body will return to a normal healthy weight and the energy level will be high and there will be a substantial improvement in one's feelings of well being.
At this point it is possible to work long hours, do manual labor and keep up with the strongest of them or work under great stress without problems.
It is during the period of adjustment that caution should be taken.
One meal or many meals,
all are advised to eat moderately,
Not for the pleasure of taste
Not out of habit
Not to fill time
Not for good looks
Not for show of wealth,
But only just sufficient to keep the body going a little further on
This Way, thinking:
"By this moderate eating practice
I will bring old kamma to conclusion
and set going no new kamma,
and I will have sufficient sustenance,
while living blamelessly."
Some of the benefits of moderate eating are:
One wants little
In times of scarcity one is prepared
The body is healthy: One has few illnesses and recovers from illnesses quickly
One's time is not wasted in slavery to the belly
The mind is clear and alert
One is of little trouble to one's supporters
Content with little
Like a bird on the wing
That takes with him only his wings
As he flies
So the beggar, beggars
Takes only his bowl and robes
And goes whithersoever he will
For the sake of those wishing to adjust their own habits of wakefulness, here is the Pali ideal:
During the day, pace back and forth and sit, clearing the mind of distracting mental states.
During the first watch of the night, pace back and forth and sit, clearing the mind of distracting mental states.
During the MAJJHIMA (Middle/Magic) watch of the night, lie down in the lion posture (on the right side, with the head supported by the right arm, and with the legs one on top of the other so that one foot is over the other) and, clearly conscious and wide awake, focus the mind on the time of rising up again.
During the last watch, after rising up, pace back and forth and sit, clearing the mind of distracting mental states.
The Buddha was said to have slept only rarely, on occasions when he was ill,
or when he was very old, during the hottest part of the day.
From the Maha-Assapura-Sutta, MAJJHIMA NIKAYA, I #39 Pali Text Society Translation by I.B. Horner, pp 326 ff;
Reprinted with the Permission of the Pali Text Society which holds the copyright.
[An example of The Pali Text Society Translations. This is not the entire SUTTA. I include the beginning as an example of how all "true" Buddhist spells begin. When first cast, the spells had no names, when set down in the Pali, the titles come at the end.]
Greater Discourse at Assapura
Thus have I heard:
At one time the Lord was staying among the Angas;
a township of the Angas was called Assapura.
While he was there the Lord addressed the monks, saying:
"Monks."
"Revered one," these monks answered the Lord in assent.
The Lord spoke thus:
"Recluses, recluses," so the people know you, monks,
and you, on being asked: 'Who are you?'
should acknowledge:
'We are recluses.'
Such being your designations, monks,
such being your vocations,
thus you should train yourselves."
And what, monks, are the things to be done by recluses?
Thinking:
"We will become endowed with modesty and fear of blame
... our bodily conduct must be perfectly pure, clear, open, and without defects, controlled
... our conduct in speech must be perfectly pure, clear, open, without defects, controlled
... our conduct in thought must be perfectly pure, clear, open, and without defects, controlled
... our mode of living must be perfectly pure, clear, open, and without defects, controlled
... but not on account of this
will we exalt ourselves or disparage others'
— thus you must train yourselves, monks
... But ...
I protest to you, monks,
I declare to you, monks:
While you are aiming at recluseship,
fall not short of the goal of recluseship
if there is something further to be done.
And what, monks, is there further to be done?
Thinking:
'We must be guarded as to the doors of the sense-organs;
having seen a material shape with the eye
we are not entranced by the general appearance,
we are not entranced by the detail;
for if one had the organ of vision uncontrolled,
coveting and dejection,
evil unskilled states of mind,
might predominate.
We will fare along for its control,
we will guard the organ of sight,
we will come to control over the organ of sight.
Having heard a sound with the ear
... [Here the repetition is not included by the translator, in other places it is omitted from the original Pali. In a time when there was no written teaching repetition was a useful device for aiding the memory, in writing it is more likely to stimulate skipping, nevertheless, as it is very often that the meaning of the sutta is conveyed in the parts that are repeated, so it is recommended here that suttas be presented complete, or what is called in 'rolled out' form.]
Having heard a sound with the ear ...
having smelt a smell with the nose ...
having savored a taste with the tongue ...
having felt a touch with the body ...
having cognized a mental object with the mind
we are not entranced by the general appearance,
we are not entranced by the detail;
for if one had the organ of mind uncontrolled,
coveting and dejection,
evil unskilled states of mind,
might predominate.
We will fare along for its control,
we will guard the organ of mind
we will come to control over the organ of mind'
— this is how you must train yourselves, monks. ...
And what, monks, is there further to be done?
Thinking:
'We must be moderate in eating,
carefully reflecting must we eat,
not for fun
or pleasure
or adornment
or beautifying,
but just enough for maintaining this body
and keeping it going,
for keeping it from harm,
for furthering the Brahma-faring;
with the thought:
'I am destroying old feeling,
and I must not allow new feeling to arise,
so that there will be blamelessness for me
and living in comfort'
— thus must you train yourselves. ...
And what, monks, is there further to be done?
Thinking:
'We must be intent on vigilance;
during the day,
pacing up and down,
sitting down,
we must cleanse the mind
of obstructive mental objects;
during the first watch of the night,
pacing up and down,
sitting down
we must cleanse the mind of obstructive mental objects;
during the middle watch of the night,
we must lie down on our right side
in the lion posture,
placing one foot on the other,
mindful,
clearly conscious,
attending to the thought of getting up again;
during the last watch of the night,
rising,
pacing up and down,
sitting down,
we must cleanse the mind of obstructive mental objects'
— thus, monks, must you train yourselves.
This sutta goes on to describe the other things that are further to be done:
and I protest to you, friends,
I declare to you,
while you are aiming at the destruction of DUKKHA,
fall not short of the destruction of DUKKHA,
if there is something further to be done.
And what is further to be done?
The development of satisfaction and clear consciousness,
the elimination of involvement with:
Wanting,
Anger,
Sloth and torpor,
Fear and trembling,
and doubt.
The attainment of High Getting High,
the recollection of former habitations,
the knowledge of the outcome of kamma,
the knowledge and vision of the destruction of The ASAVAS:
Sense Pleasure,
Living,
Blindness
and,
in the freedom from the ASAVAS,
the knowledge that one is free,
and the comprehension that birth is left behind,
the best life has been lived,
duty's doing is done,
and that there is no more being
any kind of an "it" in any place of "atness" left for one.
— AN: The Book of Ones
Beggars!
I see no other single sight
By which a man's mind is more enslaved
Than by that of a woman
Indeed, beggars,
The sight of a woman
Obsesses a man's mind.
§
Beggars!
I see no other single sound, scent, taste or touch
By which a man's mind is more enslaved
Than by that of a woman
Indeed, beggars,
The sound, scent, taste and touch of a woman
Obsesses a man's mind
§
Beggars!
I see no other single sight
By which a woman's mind is more enslaved
Than by that of a man
Indeed, beggars,
The sight of a man
Obsesses a woman's mind.
§
Beggars!
I see no other single sound, scent, taste or touch
By which a woman's mind is more enslaved
Than by that of a man
Indeed, beggars,
The sound, scent, taste and touch of a man
Obsesses a woman's mind
— AN: The Book of Ones
The mind, beggars, is pure,
but is defiled by corruption from without.
This the uneducated common man
does not understand as it really is.
Because he does not understand this,
the uneducated common man
makes no effort to cultivate the mind,
I say
§
The mind, beggars, is pure,
and can be cleansed of corruptions
that came from without.
This the well tamed,
well trained,
well educated
student of the Aristocrats understands
as it really is.
Thus there is
for the well tamed,
well trained,
well educated
student of the Aristocrats
cultivation of the mind,
say I
— AN: The Book of Ones
Beggars!
I see no other single thing
Of more power to cause
The arising of good conditions
Not yet in the here and now, or
The subsidence of bad conditions
Already in the here and now, as
energetic effort
In the beggar that makes energetic effort
good conditions not yet in the here and now appear, and
bad conditions in the here and now disappear
— AN: The Book of Ones
Beggars!
I see no other single thing
Of more Power to cause
The arising of good conditions
Not yet in the here and now, or
The subsidence of bad conditions
Already in the here and now, as
Wanting little
In the beggar that wants little
Good conditions not yet in the here and now appear, and
Bad conditions in the here and now disappear
— AN: The Book of Ones
Beggars!
I see no other single thing
Of more power to cause
The arising of good conditions
Not yet in the here and now, or
The subsidence of bad conditions
Already in the here and now, as
Contentment
In the beggar that is content
Good conditions not yet in the here and now appear, and
Bad conditions in the here and now disappear
— AN: The Book of Ones
Beggars!
I see no other single thing
Of more power to cause
The arising of good conditions
Not yet in the here and now, or
The subsidence of bad conditions
Already in the here and now, as
Studious etiological examination
In the beggar that gives studious etiological examination to things
Good conditions not yet in the here and now appear, and
Bad conditions in the here and now disappear
— AN: The Book of Ones
Beggars!
I see no other single thing
Of more power to cause
The arising of good conditions
Not yet in the here and now, or
The subsidence of bad conditions
Already in the here and now, as
objective detachment
In the beggar who is objectively detached
Good conditions not yet in the here and now appear, and
Bad conditions in the here and now disappear
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