PART II ~~~~ ~~ SELECTED TEXTS ~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~ Texts 1_3: Translated by Edward Conze Text 4: Translated by Nyanaponika Mahathera Text 5: Translated by Bhikkhu Nanamoli 1. THE FIVE FACULTIES ~~ ~~~ ~~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ (a) From the Milindapanha The king said: "Is it through wise attention that people become exempt from further rebirth?"--"Yes, that is due to wise attention, and also to wisdom, and the other wholesome //dharmas//."--"But is not wise attention the same as wisdom?"--"No, Your Majesty. Attention is one thing, and wisdom another. Sheep and goats, oxen and buffaloes, camels and asses have attention, but wisdom they have not."--"Well put, Venerable Nagasena." The king said: "What is the mark of attention, and what is the mark of wisdom?"--"Consideration is the mark of attention, cutting off that of wisdom."--"How is that? Give me a simile."--"You know barley-reapers, I suppose?"--"Yes, I do."--"How then do they reap the barley?"--"With the left hand they seize a bunch of barley, in the right hand they hold a sickle, and they cut the barley off with that sickle."--"Just so, Your Majesty, the yogin seizes his mental processes with his attention, and by his wisdom he cuts off the defilements."--"Well put, Venerable Nagasena." The king said: "When you just spoke of 'the other wholesome dharmas,' which ones did you mean?"--"I meant morality, faith, vigour, mindfulness and concentration."--"And what is the mark of morality?"--"Morality has the mark of providing a basis for all wholesome dharmas, whatever they may be. When based on morality, all the wholesome dharmas will not dwindle away."--"Give me an illustration."--"As all plants and animals which increase, grow, and prosper, do so with the earth as their support, with the earth as their basis, just so the yogin, with morality as his support, with morality as his basis, develops the five cardinal virtues, i.e. the cardinal virtues of faith, vigour, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom." "Give me a further illustration." "As the builder of a city when constructing a town first of all clears the site, removes all stumps and thorns, and levels it; and only after that he lays out and marks off the roads and cross-roads, and so builds the city, even so the yogin develops the five cardinal virtues with morality as his support, with morality as his basis." The king said: "What is the mark of //faith//?"--"Faith makes serene, and it leaps forward."--"And how does faith make serene?"--"When faith arises it arrests the five hindrances, and the heart becomes free from them, clear, serene and undisturbed."--"Give me an illustration."--"A universal monarch might on his way, together with his fourfold army, cross over a small stream. Stirred up by the elephants and horses, by the chariots and infantry, the water would become disturbed, agitated and muddy. Having crossed over, the universal monarch would order his men to bring some water for him to drink. But the king would possess a miraculous water-clearing gem, and his men, in obedience to his command, would throw it into the stream. Then at once all fragments of vegetation would float away, the mud would settle at the bottom, the stream would become clear, serene and undisturbed, and fit to be drunk by the universal monarch. Here the stream corresponds to the heart, the monarch's men to the yogin, the fragments of vegetation and the mud to the defilements, and the miraculous water-clearing gem to faith." "And how does faith leap forward?"--"When the yogin sees that the hearts of others have been set free, he leaps forward, by way of aspiration, to the various fruits of the holy life, and he makes efforts to attain the yet unattained, to find the yet unfound, to realize the yet unrealized."--"Give me an illustration."--"Suppose that a great cloud were to burst over a hill-slope. The water then would flow down the slope, would first fill all the hill's clefts, fissures, and gullies, and would then run into the river below, making its banks overflow on both sides. Now suppose further that a great crowd of people had come along, and unable to size up either the width or the depth of the river, should stand frightened and hesitating on the bank. But then some man would come along, who, conscious of his own strength and power, would firmly tie on his own loin-cloth and jump across the river. And the great crowd of people, seeing him on the other side, would cross likewise. Even so the yogin, when he has seen that the hearts of others have been set free, leaps forward, by aspiration, to the various fruits of the holy life, and he makes efforts to attain the yet unattained, to find the yet unfound, to realize the yet unrealized. And this is what the Lord has said in the Samyutta Nikaya: By faith the flood is crossed, By wakefulness the sea; By vigour ill is passed; By wisdom cleansed is he." "Well put, Nagasena!" The king asked: "And what is the mark of //vigour//?"--"Vigour props up, and, when propped up by vigour, all the wholesome dharmas do not dwindle away."--"Give me a simile."--"If a man's house were falling down, he would prop it up with a new piece of wood, and, so supported, that house would not collapse." The king asked: "And what is the mark of //mindfulness//?"--"Calling to mind and taking up." "How is calling to mind a mark of mindfulness?"--"When mindfulness arises, one calls to mind the //dharmas// which participate in what is wholesome and unwholesome, blamable and blameless, inferior and sublime, dark and light, i.e. these are the four applications of mindfulness, these the four right efforts, these the four roads to psychic power, these the five cardinal virtues, these the five powers, these the seven limbs of enlightenment, this is the holy eightfold path; this is calm, this insight, this knowledge and this emancipation. Thereafter the yogin tends those //dharmas// which should be tended, and he does not tend those which should not be tended; he partakes of those //dharmas// which should be followed, and he does not partake of those which should not be followed. It is in this sense that calling to mind is a mark of mindfulness."--"Give me a simile."--"It is like the treasurer of a universal monarch, who each morning and evening reminds his royal master of his magnificent assets: 'So many elephants you have, so many horses, so many chariots, so much infantry, so many gold coins, so much bullion, so much property; may Your Majesty bear this in mind.' In this way he calls to mind his master's wealth." "And how does mindfulness take up?"--"When mindfulness arises, the outcome of beneficial and harmful //dharmas// is examined in this way: 'These //dharmas// are beneficial, these harmful; these //dharmas// are helpful, these unhelpful.' Thereafter the yogin removes the harmful //dharmas//, and takes up the beneficial ones; he removes the unhelpful //dharmas//, and takes up the helpful ones. It is in this sense that mindfulness takes up."--"Give me a comparison."--"It is like the invaluable adviser of a universal monarch who knows what is beneficial and what is harmful to his royal master, what is helpful and what is unhelpful. Thereafter what is harmful and unhelpful can be removed, what is beneficial and helpful can be taken up." The king asked: "And what is the mark of //concentration//?"--"It stands at the head. Whatever wholesome //dharmas// there may be, they all are headed by concentration, they bend towards concentration, lead to concentration, incline to concentration."--"Give me a comparison."--"It is as with a building with a pointed roof: whatever rafters there are, they all converge on the top, bend towards the top, meet at the top, and the top occupies the most prominent place. So with concentration in relation to the other wholesome //dharmas//."--"Give me a further comparison."--"If a king were to enter battle with his fourfold army, then all his troops--the elephants, cavalry, chariots and infantry--would be headed by him, and would be ranged around him. Such is the position of concentration in relation to the other wholesome //dharmas//." The king then asked: "What then is the mark of //wisdom//?"--"Cutting off is, as I said before, one mark of wisdom. In addition it illuminates."--"And how does wisdom illuminate?"--"When wisdom arises, it dispels the darkness of ignorance, generates the illumination of knowledge, sheds the light of cognition, and makes the holy truths stand out clearly. Thereafter the yogin, with his correct wisdom, can see impermanence, ill, and not-self."--"Give me a comparison."--"It is like a lamp which a man would take into a dark house. It would dispel the darkness, would illuminate, shed light, and make the forms in the house stands out clearly."--"Well put, Venerable Nagasena." //Milindapanha//, pp. 51-62 (b) From the Akshayamati Sutra The five faculties are faith, vigour, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom. Here what is //faith//? By this faith one has faith in four //dharmas//. Which four? He accepts the right view which assumes renewed becoming in the world of birth-and-death; he puts his trust in the ripening of karma, and knows that he will experience the fruit of any karma, that he may have done; even to save his life he does not do any evil deed. He has faith in the mode of life of a Bodhisattva, and, having taken up this discipline, he does not long for any other vehicle. He believes when he hears all the doctrines which are characterized by the true, clear, and profound knowledge of conditioned co-production, by such terms as lack of self, absence of a being, absence of a soul, absence of a person; and by emptiness, the signless and the wishless. He follows none of the false doctrines, and believes in all the qualities (//dharmas//) of a Buddha, his powers, grounds of self-confidence, and all the rest; and when in his faith he has left behind all doubts, he brings about in himself those qualities of a Buddha. This is known as the virtue of faith. His //vigour// consists of his bringing about (in himself) the //dharmas// in which he has faith. His //mindfulness// consists in his preventing the qualities which he brings about by vigour from being destroyed by forgetfulness. His //concentration// consists in his fixing his one-pointed attention on these very same qualities. With the faculty of //wisdom// he contemplates those //dharmas// on which he has fixed his one-pointed attention, and penetrates to their reality. The cognition of those //dharmas// which arises in himself and which has no outside condition is called the virtue of wisdom. Thus these five virtues, together, are sufficient to bring forth all the qualities of a Buddha. //Akshayamati Sutra// (quoted in //Shikshasamuccaya//). 2. THE RESTRAINT OF THE SENSES ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~ (a) From Ashvaghosha's Saundaranandakavya By taking your stand on mindfulness you must hold back from the sense-objects your senses, unsteady by nature. Fire, snakes, and lightning are less inimical to us than our own senses, so much more dangerous. For they assail us all the time. Even the most vicious enemies can attack only some people at some times, and not at others, but everybody is always and everywhere weighed down by his senses. And people do not go to hell because some enemy has knocked them down and cast them into it; it is because they have been knocked down by their unsteady senses that they are helplessly dragged there. Those attacked by external enemies may, or may not, suffer injury to their souls; but those who are weighed down by the senses suffer in body and soul alike. For the five senses are rather like arrows which have been smeared with the poison of fancies, have cares for their feathers, and happiness for their points, and fly about in the space provided by the range of the sense-objects; shot off by //Kama//, the God of Love, they hit men in their very hearts as a hunter hits a deer, and if men do not know how to ward off these arrows, they will be their undoing; when they come near us we should stand firm in self-control, be agile and steadfast, and ward them off with the great armour of mindfulness. As a man who has subdued his enemies can everywhere live and sleep at ease and free from care, so can he who has pacified his senses. For the senses constantly ask for more by way of worldly objects, and normally behave like voracious dogs who can never have enough. This disorderly mob of the senses can never reach satiety, not by any amount of sense-objects; they are rather like the sea, which one can go on indefinitely replenishing with water. In this world the senses cannot be prevented from being active, each in its own sphere. But they should not be allowed to grasp either the general features of an object, or its particularities. When you have beheld a sight-object with your eyes, you must merely determine the basic element (which it represents, e.g. it is a sight-object), and should not under any circumstances fancy it as, say, a "woman" or a "man." But if now and then you have inadvertently grasped something as a "woman" or a "man," you should not follow that up by determining the hairs, teeth, etc., as lovely. Nothing should be subtracted from the datum, nothing added to it; it should be seen as it really is, as what it is like in real truth. If you thus try to look continually for the true reality in that which the senses present to you, covetousness and aversion will soon be left without a foothold. Coveting ruins those living beings who are bent on sensuous enjoyment by means of pleasing forms, like an enemy with a friendly face who speaks loving words, but plans dark deeds. But what is called "aversion" is a kind of anger directed towards certain objects, and anyone who is deluded enough to pursue it is bound to suffer for it either in this or a future life. Afflicted by their likes and dislikes, as by excessive heat or cold, men will never find either happiness or the highest good as long as they put their trust in the unsteady senses. //Saundaranandakavya//, xiii, 30-56 (b) From the Prajnaparamita The Lord: When he practises the perfection of meditation for the sake of other beings his mind becomes undistracted. For he reflects that "even worldly meditation is hard to accomplish with distracted thoughts, how much more so is full enlightenment. Therefore, I must remain undistracted until I have won full enlightenment." ... Moreover, Subhuti, a Bodhisattva, beginning with the first thought of enlightenment, practises the perfection of meditation. His mental activities are associated with the knowledge of all modes when he enters into meditation. When he has seen forms with his eye, he does not seize upon them as signs of realities which concern him, nor is he interested in the accessory details. He sets himself to restrain that which, if he does not restrain his organ of sight, might give him occasion for covetousness, sadness or other evil and unwholesome //dharmas// to reach his heart. He watches over the organ of sight. And the same with the other five sense-organs--ear, nose, tongue, body and mind. Whether he walks or stands, sits or lies down, talks or remains silent, his concentration does not leave him. He does not fidget with his hands or feet, or twitch his face; he is not incoherent in his speech, confused in his senses, exalted or uplifted, fickle or idle, agitated in body or mind. Calm is his body, calm is his voice, calm is his mind. His demeanour shows contentment, both in private and public.... He is frugal, easy to feed, easy to serve, of good life and habits; though in a crowd he dwells apart; even and unchanged, in gain and loss; not elated, not cast down. Thus in happiness and suffering, in praise and blame, in fame and disrepute, in life or death, he is the same unchanged, neither elated nor cast down. And so with foe or friend, with what is pleasant or unpleasant, with holy or unholy men, with noises or music, with forms that are dear or undear, he remains the same, unchanged, neither elated nor cast down, neither gratified nor thwarted. And why? Because he sees all //dharmas// as empty of marks of their own, without true reality, incomplete and uncreated. //Prajnaparamita//, ch. 68. (c) From the Visuddhimagga This is the morality which consists in the restraint of the senses: "//Here someone: (1) having seen a form with his eye, does not seize on its general appearance, or the (accessory) details of it. That which might, so long as he dwells unrestrained as to the (controlling) force of the eye, give occasion for covetous, sad, evil and unwholesome //dharmas// to flood him, that he sets himself to restrain; he guards the controlling force of the eye, and brings about its restraint. And likewise (2) when he has heard sounds with the ear, (3) smelled smells with the nose, (4) tasted tastes with the tongue, (5) touched touchables with the body, (6) cognized mind-objects (//dharmas//) with the mind.//" (M.i,180). //Having seen a form with his eye//: when he has seen a form with the visual consciousness which is capable of seeing forms, and which in normal language is usually called the "eye," though it actually is its tool. For the Ancients have said: "The eye cannot see forms because it is without thought; thought cannot see forms because it is without eye. When the object knocks against the door (of sight) one sees with the thought which has eye-sensibility for its basis." In the expression "one sees with the eye," only accessory equipment is indicated, just as one may say, "one shoots with a bow" (and not "with an arrow"). Therefore, the meaning here is: "having seen form with visual consciousness." //He does not seize on its general appearance// (lit. "the sign"): he does not seize on its appearance as man or woman, or its appearance as attractive, etc., which makes it into a basis for the defiling passions. But he stops at what is actually seen. //He does not seize on the details of it//: he does not seize on the variety of its accessory features, like the hands or feet, the smile, the laughter, the talk, the looking here, the looking away, etc., which are in common parlance called "details" (//anubyanjana//) because they manifest the defiling passions, by again and again (//anu anu//) tainting with them (//byanjanato//). But he seizes only on that which is really there, i.e. the impurity of the 32 parts of the body) like Mahatissa, the Elder, who lived on Mount Cetiya. Once that Elder went from Mount Cetiya to Anuradhapura, to gather alms. In a certain family the daughter-in-law had quarrelled with her husband, and adorned and beautified like a heavenly maiden, she left Anuradhapura early in the morning, and went away to stay with some relatives. On the way she saw the Elder, and, as her mind was perverted, she gave a loud laugh. The Elder looked to see what was the matter; he acquired, at the sight of her teeth (-bones), the notion of repulsiveness (impurity), and thereby reached Arahatship.... The husband who ran after her on same road, saw the Elder, and asked him whether he had by any chance seen a woman. The Elder replied: "Whether what went along here Was a man or a woman, I do not know. But a collection of bones is moving Now along this main road." //That which might//, etc.: that which might be the reason, or that non-restraint of the faculty of the eye which might be the cause, why in this person, when he //dwells// without having restrained the faculty of the eye with the gate of mindfulness, i.e. when he has left the door of the eye open, such //dharmas// as covetousness, etc., //flood// him, i.e. pursue and submerge him. //That he sets himself to restrain//: he sets himself to close this faculty of the eye with the gate of mindfulness. And one who sets himself to do that, of him it is said that he //guards the controlling force of the eye//, and //brings about its restraint//. But it is not with reference to the faculty of the eye itself that there is restraint or non-restraint (i.e. it does not apply to the initial stage of the impact of stimulus on the eye), and it is not concerning the eye considered as a sensitive organ that mindfulness arises, or the lack of it. But it is at (the stage of the apperception of the object, with such and such a meaning and significance, and the volitional reaction to it, which is technically known as) the "impulsive moment," that there is lack of restraint, if and when immorality arises then, or lack of mindfulness, or lack of cognition, lack of patience or laziness. Nevertheless one speaks of the non-restraint of the sense of sight. And why? Because when the mind is in that condition, also the door (of the eye) is unguarded. The situation can be compared with that of a city: when its four gates are unguarded, then, although in the interior of the city the doors of the houses, the storerooms and private rooms are well guarded, nevertheless all the property in the city is actually unguarded and unprotected, and robbers can, once they have entered through the city gates, do whatever they like. In the same sense also the door (of the eye) is unguarded when, in consequence of the arising of immorality, etc., there is lack of restraint at the "impulsive moment." But when morality, etc., arise at that moment, then the door (of sight) also is guarded. Just again as with the city: When the city-gates are well guarded, then, although in the interior the doors of the houses, etc., are unguarded, nevertheless all the property in the city is actually well guarded and well protected; for the city-gates being closed, robbers cannot enter. Just so also the door (of the eye) is guarded when morality, etc., arise at the "impulsive moment." The same explanation applies to: when he has heard sounds with the ear, etc. The restraint of the senses thus consists, in short, in the avoiding of the seizing of the general appearance, etc., of sight-objects, etc., which lead to one's being pursued by the defiling passions. And it should be achieved through mindfulness. For it is effected by mindfulness, in so far as the sense-organs when they are governed by mindfulness, can no longer be influenced by convetousness, etc. Therefore, we should remember the "Fire Sermon" (S.iv,168) which says: "It were better, monks, if the eye were stroked with a heated iron bar, afire, ablaze, aflame, than that one should seize on either the general appearance or the details of the forms of which the eye is aware." The disciple should achieve a thorough restraint of the senses, in that, by unimpaired mindfulness, he prevents that seizing on the general appearance, etc., which makes the consciousness which proceeds through the door of the eye, etc., with forms, etc., for its range (province), liable to be flooded (influenced) by covetousness, etc. And one should become like Cittagutta, the Elder, who lived in the great Kurandaka Cave. In that cave there was a delightful painting which showed the seven Buddhas leaving for the homeless life. One day numerous monks were wandering about in the cave, going from lodging to lodging. They noticed the painting and said: "What a delightful painting, Venerable Bhikkhu!" The Elder replied: "For more than sixty years, brethren, I have lived in this cave, and I have never known whether there is a painting here or whether there is not. Today only I have learned it from you people, who use your eyes." For all that time during which the Elder had lived there, he had never lifted up his eyes and looked more closely at the cave. At the entrance to the cave there was a large ironwood tree. To that also the Elder had never looked up; but he knew that it was in flower when each year he saw the filaments which had fallen down on the ground. All the sons of good family who have their own welfare at heart should, therefore, remember: "Let not the eye wander like forest ape, Or trembling wood deer, or affrighted child. The eyes should be cast downwards; they should look The distance of a yoke; he shall not serve His thought's dominion, like a restless ape." Visuddhimagga, I, 42, 53-59, 100, 104-5, 109 3. THE CONTROL OF THE MIND ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~ From the Majjhima Nikaya and Commentary The Sutta on the Composition of Ideas:[27] //If, whilst attending to a certain sign, there arise, with reference to it, in the disciple evil and unwholesome ideas, connected with greed, hate or delusion, then the disciple: I. should, by means of this sign (= cause, occasion) attend to another sign which is more wholesome; II. or he should investigate the peril of these ideas: "Unwholesome truly are these ideas! Blameworthy are these ideas! Of painful result are these ideas!"; III. or he should pay no attention to these ideas; IV. or he should attend to the composition of the factors which effect these ideas; V. or, with teeth clenched and tongue pressed against the gums, he should by means of sheer mental effort hold back, crush and burn out the (offending) thought. In doing so, these evil and unwholesome ideas, bound up with greed, hate or delusion, will be forsaken and disappear; from their forsaking thought will become inwardly settled and calm, composed and concentrated. This is called the effort to overcome.// The Commentary says: I. Unwholesome ideas may arise with reference to beings--be they desirable, undesirable, or unconsidered--or to things, such as one's possessions, or things which annoy, like stumps or thorns. The wholesome counter-ideas which drive them out arise from the following practices, which are directly opposed to them: Greed about beings: Meditation about the repulsiveness of the body. Greed about things: Attention to their impermanence. Hate for beings: The development of friendliness. Hate for things: Attention to the elements: which of the physical elements composing the thing am I angry with? Delusion about beings and things: (1) When he has, in his general bewilderment, neglected his duties to a teacher, he wakes himself up by doing some tiresome work, such as carrying water. (2) When he has been hazy in attending to the teacher's explanation of the doctrine, he wakes himself up by doing some tiresome work. (3) He removes his doubts by questioning authorities. (4) At the right time he listens respectfully to the Dharma. (5) He acquires the skill in distinguishing between correct and faulty conclusions, and knows that "this is the reason for that, this is not the reason." These are the direct and correct antidotes to the faulty ideas. II. He investigates them with the power of wisdom, and rejects them like a snake's carcass. III. He should not remember those ideas, not attend to them, but become one who is otherwise engaged. He should be like someone who, not wanting to see a certain sight-object, just closes his eyes; when these ideas arise in his mind, he should take hold of his basic subject of meditation, and become engaged in that. It may help him to break the spell of intruding thoughts and to occupy his mind otherwise, if he recites with great faith a passage from the Scriptures, or reads out a passage in praise of the Buddha or Dharma; or he may sort out his belongings, and enumerate them one by one: "these are the scissors," "this is the needle," etc.; or he should do some sewing; or he should do some good work for a given period of time. And after that he should return to his basic subject of meditation. IV. He should analyse the conditions for these ideas and ask himself: "What is their cause, what their condition, what the reason for their having arisen?" V. He should put forth great vigour, and with a wholesome thought he should hold back an unwholesome one. //Majjhima Nikaya, No. 20, and Papancasudani (Summary)// 4. THE BUDDHA'S SAYINGS ON THE FACULTIES ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ (Indriya Samyutta) ~~~~~~~~ ~~~~~~~~ From the Samyutta Nikaya (a) At their Best There are these five faculties, monks: the faculty of faith, the faculty of vigour, the faculty of mindfulness, the faculty of concentration and the faculty of wisdom. Where can the faculty of faith be seen (at its best)? In the four characteristic qualities of a stream-winner.[28] Where can the faculty of vigour be seen (at its best)? In the four right efforts.[29] Where can the faculty of mindfulness be seen (at its best)? In the four foundations of mindfulness.[30] Where can the faculty of concentration be seen (at its best)? In the four meditative absorptions.[31] Where can the faculty of wisdom be seen (at its best)? In the Four Noble Truths.[32] //Sutta 8// (PTS, iv,196) (b) The Measure of Achievement By accomplishment and perfection in the five faculties one is an Arahant. If the faculties are weaker, one is a non-returner; if they are still weaker, one is a once-returner, or a stream-winner, or a Dhamma-devotee (//dhammanusarin//), or a faith-devotee (//saddhanusarin//). Thus, monks, through the difference of faculties, there is difference of result; and the difference of results makes for the difference of individuals. //Sutta 13// Thus, monks, he who practises the five faculties to their perfection, wins to perfection (of Arahantship). He who practises them partially, wins a partial result. Not barren (of results), I say, are the five faculties. //Sutta 14// But he who is entirely, in any degree and respect, without these five faculties, stands outside, in the class of ordinary men (puthujjana). //Sutta 18//(iv,200-202) (c) Rooted in Experience Thus I have heard. On one occasion when the Exalted One lived in the Eastern Cottage at Savatthi, he addressed the Venerable Sariputta as follows: "Do you believe, Sariputta, that the faculty of faith, if cultivated and regularly practised, leads to the Deathless, is bound for the Deathless, ends in the Deathless; that the faculty of vigour ... the faculty of mindfulness ... the faculty of concentration ... the faculty of wisdom, if cultivated and regularly practised, leads to the Deathless, is bound for the Deathless, ends in the Deathless?" "Herein, O Lord, I do not follow the Exalted One out of faith. Those by whom this is unknown, unseen, uncognized, unrealized and unexperienced by wisdom, they will herein follow others out of faith. But those by whom this is known, seen, cognized, realized and experienced by wisdom, they have no uncertainty, no doubt about it that these five faculties, if cultivated and regularly practised, lead to the Deathless, are bound for the Deathless, end in the Deathless. By me, O Lord, it has been known, seen, cognized, realized and experienced by wisdom and I have no uncertainty, no doubt about it that the faculty of faith ... the faculty of vigour ... the faculty of mindfulness ... the faculty of concentration ... the faculty of wisdom, if cultivated and regularly practised, leads to the Deathless, is bound for the Deathless, ends in the Deathless." "Well said, Sariputta, well said," spoke the Lord (and he repeated in approval the words of the Venerable Sariputta). //Sutta 44// (iv,220) (d) Wisdom, the Crowning Virtue--1 It is through cultivating and regularly practising one faculty that a canker-free bhikkhu makes known his knowledge (of final attainment):[33] "Ceased has rebirth, fulfilled is the holy life, the task is done, nothing further remains after this." Which is the one faculty? The faculty of wisdom. In a noble disciple endowed with wisdom, faith that goes along with it, is firmly established; vigour that goes along with it, is firmly established; mindfulness that goes along with it, is firmly established; concentration that goes along with it, is firmly established. This, monks, is the one faculty through the cultivating and regularly practising of which, a canker-free bhikkhu makes known his knowledge (of final attainment): "Ceased has rebirth, fulfilled is the holy life, the task is done, nothing further remains after this." //Sutta 45// (iv,222) (e) Wisdom, the Crowning Virtue--II Just as among all heartwood fragrances that of the red sandalwood is deemed best, so, monks, among states that partake of enlightenment the faculty of wisdom is deemed best, namely, for the purpose of enlightenment. Which, monks, are the states partaking of enlightenment? The faculty of faith is a state partaking of enlightenment and it leads to enlightenment. The faculty of vigour ... the faculty of mindfulness ... the faculty of concentration ...the faculty of wisdom is a state partaking of enlightenment and it leads to enlightenment. And among them, the faculty of wisdom is deemed best, namely, for the purpose of enlightenment. //Sutta 55// (iv,231) (f) The Acme of Faith Thus I have heard. On one occasion, the Exalted One dwelt among the Anga people, at Apana, a town of the Angas. There the Exalted One addressed the Venerable Sariputta as follows: "A noble disciple, Sariputta, who has single-minded confidence in the Perfect One, can he have uncertainty or doubt concerning the Perfect One's dispensation?" "A noble disciple, Lord, who has single-minded confidence in the Perfect One, cannot have uncertainty or doubt concerning the Perfect One's dispensation. "Of a noble disciple endowed with faith it can be expected, Lord, that he will live employing his vigour to the overcoming of unsalutary states and the acquisition of salutary states, energetic, with strenuous exertion, unremittingly applying himself to things salutary. This vigour of his, O Lord, is his faculty of vigour. "Of a noble disciple who is endowed with faith and employs his vigour, it can be expected, Lord, that he will be mindful, equipped with the highest mindfulness and circumspection, and that he remembers well and keeps in mind what has been done and said long ago. This mindfulness of his, Lord, is his faculty of mindfulness. "Of a noble disciple who is endowed with faith, employing his vigour, keeping his mindfulness alert, it can be expected, Lord, that making the highest relinquishment (Nibbana) his object, he will obtain concentration, will obtain unification of mind. This concentration of his, Lord, is his faculty of concentration. "Of a noble disciple endowed with faith, vigour and mindfulness, and whose mind is concentrated, it can be expected, Lord, that he will know this: 'Without a conceivable beginning and end is this round of existence; no first beginning can be perceived of beings hastening and hurrying on (through this round of rebirths), enveloped in ignorance and ensnared by craving. The entire fading away and cessation of this very ignorance which is a mass of darkness, this is the state of peace, this is the state sublime, namely, the quiescence of all formations, the relinquishment of all subtrata of existence, the extinction of craving, dispassion, cessation, Nibbana.' This wisdom of his, Lord, is the faculty of wisdom. "The noble disciple who has faith, after thus striving again and again, after thus applying mindfulness again and again, after thus concentrating his mind again and again, is now fully convinced: 'These teachings which before I had only heard, I now dwell in their personal experience, and having penetrated them with wisdom, I now see them (myself).' This faith of his, Lord, is his faculty of faith." "Well said, Sariputta, well said," spoke the Exalted One (and he repeated in approval the words of the Venerable Sariputta). //Sutta 50// (iv,225ff.) 5. THE BALANCE OF THE FACULTIES ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~~ ~~ ~~~ ~~~~~~~~~ From the Visuddhimagga [According to the //Visuddhimagga//, the balance of the faculties (//indriya-samatta//) is one of the ten kinds of skill in absorption (//appana-kosalla//), and it is one of the seven things that lead to the arising of the enlightenment factor "investigation of (material and mental) phenomena" (//dhammavicaya-sambojjhanga//).] Imparting balance to the faculties is the equalizing of the controlling faculties of faith, vigour, mindfulness, concentration and wisdom. For if the faith faculty is strong and the others weak, then the vigour faculty cannot perform its function of exerting, the mindfulness faculty its function of attending to the object, the concentration faculty its function of excluding distraction, the wisdom faculty its function of seeing. So the (excessive) strength of the faith faculty should be reduced by reflecting on the phenomenal nature (of faith and its objects), and by not paying attention to what has caused the excessive strength of the faith faculty. Then if the //vigour faculty// is too strong, the faith faculty cannot perform its function of convincing, nor can the rest of the faculties perform their several functions. So in that case the excessive strength of the vigour faculty should be reduced by cultivating (the enlightenment factors of) tranquillity, concentration and equanimity. So, too, with the other factors, for it should be understood that when any one of them is too strong the others cannot perform their several functions. However, what is particularly recommended is the balancing of faith with wisdom, and concentration with vigour. For one who is strong in faith and weak in wisdom places his confidence foolishly in an unworthy object. One strong in wisdom and weak in faith errs on the side of cunning and is as hard to cure as a sickness caused by medicine. But with the balancing of the two, faith and wisdom, a man has confidence only in a deserving object. If there is too much of concentration and too little of vigour, the mind will be overpowered by indolence to which concentration inclines. But if vigour is too strong and concentration too weak, the mind will be overpowered by agitation to which vigour inclines. But concentration coupled with vigour cannot lapse into indolence, and vigour coupled with concentration cannot lapse into agitation. So these two should be balanced; for absorption comes with the balancing of the two. Again (concentration and faith should be balanced). One working on concentration needs strong faith, since it is with such faith and confidence that he reaches absorption. As to (the balancing of) concentration and wisdom, one working on concentration (i.e. who practises tranquillity; //samatha//) needs strong one-pointedness of mind, since that is how he reaches full absorption; and one working on insight (//vipassana//) needs strong wisdom, since that is how he reaches penetration of (the phenomena's) characteristics; but with the balancing of the two he reaches full absorption as well. Strong mindfulness, however, is needed in all instances; for mindfulness protects the mind from lapsing into agitation through faith, vigour and wisdom, which tend to agitation, and from lapsing into indolence through concentration, which tends to indolence. So it is as desirable in all instances as a seasoning of salt in all curries, as a prime minister in all the king's business. Hence it is said (in the commentaries): "It was declared by the Exalted One that 'mindfulness, indeed, is of universal use.' Why? Because the mind has mindfulness as its refuge, and mindfulness is manifested as protection, and there is no exertion and restraint of the mind without mindfulness." //Visuddhimagga//, (pp.129-30) Adapted from Bhikkhu Nanamoli's translation: //The Path of Purification//, pp.135-36