29. Purification of Defilements
By Luang Pu Thate Desaraṅsī
June 2, 1985
I will speak about meditation practice. Every person who practices meditation desires for their mind to be complete, pure, and clean – every single one of them. They practice day and night, practicing all the time. But those who practice incorrectly end up deluded, accumulating even more defilements. Some people, thinking back and forth, arouse their effort, then take that very thing as an object, and thus only accumulate defilements, piling up mounds within – not purifying defilements. Purification of defilements requires removing, withdrawing – that is what is called meditation.
The Buddha taught that meditation means abandoning, letting go, withdrawing – that is called meditation. If one does not let go, does not withdraw, does not cease, does not abandon, it becomes accumulation. It remains just like that. No matter how much one practices, it stays just like that – there is no abandoning, no withdrawing. Know your own affairs. Why have we come to practice this meditation? What are we doing at this time? What do we want? Only then do we gradually practice meditation. Which points must we purify? Which points must we abandon, let go, release – both externally and internally.
External factors are the things surrounding us: our clothing, food and drink, dwelling place and bedding, medicine for curing ailments – all of these things. These are the factors surrounding us. We must purify them by seeing them clearly at all times. When our mind becomes infatuated with those things – with robes and cloth – if they are necessary, we need not accumulate them. We need to wear clothes, to cover our bodies. That is merely for covering the body. Do not be deluded, infatuated, or heedless over whether we get raw or fine goods, nor be dissatisfied if we don't get good things. These things cause us to become defiled. Defilements surround us – all of them.
As for food and drink that we consume – do we choose? Do we choose whether food is good or not? Observe your mind. If you still choose, looking here and there – this is good, that is not good; this suits my taste, that does not; this is delicious, that is not – you are still swaying about seeking. That will cause your mind to become defiled, cause your mind not to be clear. This is also most necessary. We must eat every day; we must take care and be thorough.
As for lodgings, dwelling places, mats and pillows – we use them, we take care of them, we know how to keep them. Not using them and then just throwing them away, letting go of all carelessness, not knowing how to be mindful and preserve things. This is an expression from within. If our mind is preoccupied and cluttered, it becomes cluttered accordingly. If our mind is clear, it becomes clear accordingly. External things reflect the internal. When we use them and dwell in them, are we pleased or displeased? Delighted or not delighted with our dwelling? Dwelling in the forest at the foot of a tree is excellent. Look anywhere – nothing is ours at all. Only a rain umbrella and a mosquito net, then folded up and put away. The place to lie down is just grass or banana leaves – not considered as ours. To have that is very good.
Living in a hut is the same. But a hut or lodging is not the same as dwelling at the foot of a tree – not done that way. Those things are not owned by anyone. Here, we have fled (to the monastery), but there are still people taking care of them, others who are possessive. They are not possessive in a harmful way – just for us to dwell in. But others can also dwell in them. We must keep and preserve them, know how to use them properly.
Regarding electricity – watch it appropriately, use it in moderation. Sometimes you get absorbed in reading a book and fall asleep, not waking up until nearly dawn. In the past, I used to walk around the monastery grounds. Monks and novices didn't have much mindfulness to take care. But now I don't go around anymore, I don't leave my hut. I don't know which hut leaves the light on, which hut turns it off – I don't know. They have a great time! No caution, no preservation, no admonishing one another. So they leave it on all the time – fun indeed!
As for medicines that we take to cure illnesses – we don't take them for enjoyment or pleasure. We take them merely to cure diseases. Not constantly chewing medicine until becoming addicted, like chewing betel with tobacco, or taking herbal tonics or Chinese patent medicines, for example.
Therefore, all defilements surround us. If you wish to purify your defilements, you must purify this group first – see this group clearly first, then purify that. When you have purified them, there is nothing to cling to or get entangled with. The mind becomes clear and clean. That is called truly purifying the mind. A clean mind without defilements clinging. A mind that is clear at all times. That is called genuine purification of defilements. A mind that is clear, clean, without any worries or entanglements – that is a pure mind. That is called samadhi. And this samadhi is not far away – it is purifying everything. When we purify everything, the mind becomes clear and clean. This reaches purification of the four necessities – specifically, the defilements regarding the four necessities become clear and clean.
Purification of other defilements is the same. When what clings to one's mind no longer entangles or involves, the mind becomes clear and clean. The mind becomes samadhi. This mind being samadhi arises from purifying as described above. When the mind is clean and pure, it is free from all worries and entanglements. A clear, clean mind – this is called gradual purification. Sometimes, when purifying the mind – regardless of what we purify or what object – if we purify with single-minded courage regarding that specific thing, that specific object, the mind gathers inward. It becomes free from all those worries and entanglements, completely free. It gathers inward without realizing it. That is one kind of "mind."
The "mind" that has no worries or entanglements – I explain it as the "heart": the neutral essence, that which does not think or ponder, that has no object. It is neutral, just still. That reaches the true heart. That is called the "original mind" or the "final mind" (carima-citta). That mind is the original. The original mind is clear by nature, ordinary. Some people wonder: If the mind is already clear, why must we come to purify defilements again? We purify that which is defiled – that is the other thing. What would the mind purify? The true heart does not need purifying. It is the "mind" (the defiled consciousness) that we purify. It is like clouds, like the sky, that come to obscure the sun and moon, making them dim. We purify that thing instead. Why would we purify the sun and moon? They are not defiled. Purify that which obscures – then you reach the sun and moon, you reach the heart. Keep it clear and clean at all times.
If that mind were defiled, no one could purify it. No one could make the mind clear. Like iron, like lead ore – no matter how much you scrape off its impurities, it will never become as clear and clean as before. But if it is a gem, once you remove the dirt, it becomes clear and clean all the time. The mind is the same. Therefore, the mind that is clear and clean is the original mind. That is said to be undefiled.
However, there is another aspect: for the arising of skillful means and wisdom, there is yet another stage. One's own skillful means arise – another stage entirely. First reach that point. Then various skillful means, discernment, and proficiency will arise. Then gradually further skillful means and discernment will arise. That then depends on each person, on oneself. It cannot be spoken of; you cannot talk about it. What can be spoken of is the purification of the mind – the matter of purifying the mind as explained above. As for the "heart," that is original and cannot be explained. But for those with skillful means and wisdom, they must purify it themselves.