The most important practice is "to know suffering and abandon its cause."
What is called suffering? This body and mind are called suffering. Therefore, our duty is to understand our body and mind. If we do not focus on understanding our own body and mind, thinking only about how to meditate to calm the mind or how to sit for the mind to become bright, it has nothing to do with knowing suffering. What is called suffering is our body and mind. If suffering is not in the body, it is in the mind. The Buddha did not teach us to run away from suffering or to abandon suffering; he told us to know suffering. For example, if we know suffering, knowing it in our body, this body must age, it must get sick, it must die. This is the truth of the body. If we know suffering, we know the truth; this body must age, get sick, and die, there is no escape. No matter how good you are at meditating, the body still ages, gets sick, and dies. No matter how good you are at walking meditation, the body still ages, gets sick, and dies. Even if you are good at entering deep meditative states, you still must age, get sick, and die.
The things we try to practice are not in line with knowing suffering. They tend to involve avoiding suffering or trying to get rid of suffering. If we know suffering, like continually understanding our body, the mind can accept the truth. Over time, the mind will accept that our misunderstandings and ignorance cannot withstand our mindfulness and wisdom. There is mindfulness continuously aware in the body; there is no need to think about how to sit, how to breathe, or how to walk. Know the truth of it; our body is continually oppressed by suffering. Sitting is suffering, lying down is suffering, walking is suffering, being hungry is suffering, being thirsty is suffering, needing to urinate or defecate is suffering, getting sick is suffering. The truth of the body is that it is continually oppressed by suffering.
If our mind can accept this, the body is not something special. The body is a mass of suffering. If the mind sees this, accepts it, then when the body ages, the mind feels it is normal. When the body gets sick, the mind feels it is normal. When the body dies, the mind feels it is normal. Dhamma is not something mysterious; Dhamma is profound but not secretive; it is openly apparent. Our body, does it suffer? Does it truly age? Does it truly get sick? Does it truly die? These are truths. Dhamma is the truth.
If our mind can accept the truth, our mind will no longer suffer because of the body. The body's aging is just the body's matter. The body's sickness is just the body's matter. The body's death is just the body's matter. Our duty is simply to take care of the body as best as we can. But when we have taken full care and can no longer preserve it, we let go. For example, if we are ill, we go to see a doctor. When the doctor has done everything, and there is no chance of survival, the mind should not be sorrowful. The mind accepts the truth: the body is only temporary. This is where Dhamma resides, where the mind accepts the truth and thus does not suffer.
The same goes for our minds. Our minds are constantly seeking happiness, always running away from suffering. We desire, some people want to be rich, want to be good-looking, want to succeed in various ways, thinking that these will bring happiness. They think that being rich will bring happiness, that having a good family will bring happiness, that having status, fame, and honor will bring happiness. People compete for these things, compete for benefits, positions, fame, recognition, praise, and happiness. In the end, it's really a competition for wealth, benefits, status, and praise.
Some people go through hardship, thinking it will bring them a good reputation in history, even after they die, wanting to be remembered and praised. This desire is what deceives us into working harder than necessary. If we want a lot of money, will we use it all if we have ten billion yuan? No, we won't. If we have a lot of money, we can only eat one meal a day. If we have five thousand outfits, we can only wear one at a time. If we have multiple houses, we can only live in one at a time. Our mind's desires keep wanting this and that, thinking it will bring happiness, but they create burdens for us, making us weary, striving for unnecessary happiness.
Now, if we practice mindfulness and learn to know the body and mind, observing our own mind, we will see that the happiness that arises in our mind is temporary. Is there a lasting happiness in the mind? There is: Nibbana, but we have never seen it. We keep seeking in this world, wanting happiness, struggling to do this and that, not doing this or that, wanting happiness. But if we frequently observe our mind, we will realize that the happiness that arises in our mind is only temporary.
For example, when we love someone, we want to pursue them, thinking that if we have them as a partner, we will be happy. After getting together, if we marry them, we think we will be happy. But after a while, the happiness fades, and we feel indifferent. Happiness disappears, and we desire something else. We think that having children will bring happiness, having heirs. Chinese people often want a son, thinking that having a son will bring happiness. When they have a son, they feel happy, but then a myriad of responsibilities follow. And the child may not turn out as hoped. We cannot command or control that our child must be academically excellent, intelligent, good, or caring towards parents. We live with these daydreams, seeking happiness daily, dreaming of happiness, thinking that if we have this, we will be happy; if we get that, we will be happy.
Some people have been married for a long time, arguing daily, thinking that if they can divorce, they will be happy. See, it's always about thinking that if we get this, we will be happy; if we achieve this, we will be happy. But that never exists in the world because our mind constantly changes. If we continually observe our mind, we will know that the happiness people in the world crave is only temporary, there is no lasting happiness.
Or we detest suffering. When we meet someone we dislike, our mind suffers; it feels hatred. Can we command the hatred to go away? No, we can't. Whenever we see this person, we feel hatred, anger, and discomfort. It's uncontrollable. But if we practice mindfulness, we will see that anger, hatred, and discomfort are also temporary, just like happiness and comfort. Think about how much suffering we have been through in life, but notice that all suffering is temporary. It comes and goes.
Therefore, the Buddha taught us to continually observe the body and mind to see the truth of the body: this body is constantly oppressed by suffering; it is not truly ours; we cannot command it. If the mind accepts this truth, whatever happens to the body, the mind does not suffer. If we learn about our own mind, we will see that everything that passes into our mind is temporary. The happiness that passes into our mind is temporary; the suffering that passes into our mind is temporary; the satisfaction and dissatisfaction are temporary. We work ourselves to exhaustion, striving for good temporary things, and they don't stay with us. If we practice mindfulness and continually see the truth in our minds, we will realize we are deceived into striving for wealth, status, praise, and various joys, which are not permanent. They only stay temporarily.
The core of practice is knowing your own body and mind.
Thus, learning Dhamma is not just about sitting meditation, walking meditation, or controlling the mind and body in specific ways. True Dhamma practice involves learning to see the truth of the body and the truth of the mind. If we see the truth of the body, we will let go of attachment to it, realizing that it is not something special or extraordinary. Therefore, whatever happens to the body, we will not suffer. If we understand the truth of the mind, that everything that enters our awareness is merely temporary, the mind will lose its hunger and restlessness, and it will not suffer. The mind suffers because it desires this and that.
So, when we say "know suffering," we mean "abandon the cause of suffering." The cause of suffering is craving or desire. If we continually understand the truth of the body, we will abandon foolish desires. The foolish desires related to the body include the desire not to age, not to get sick, and not to die. The foolish desires related to the mind include the desire to be happy forever and never experience suffering. If we learn about the body and mind and understand the truth, these desires will cease.
For example, we want to be happy forever. How much happiness have we experienced in life? It comes and goes, doesn't it? This is its truth; it is impermanent. The suffering we detest—can we stop it from coming? We can't. This is its truth. If our mind can accept the truth, then whether happiness or suffering arises, the mind will not be deluded. When happiness comes, the mind is not complacent, knowing it is temporary. If it passes away, we do not regret it. When suffering comes, we are not disheartened, knowing it is a natural occurrence that will eventually pass. We don't need to do anything; it will pass on its own.
Everything comes and goes, passes by like a dream. Our lives are like a dream day by day. If we see things this way, the world becomes like a dream—dreaming of happiness, dreaming of suffering. When we wake up, it is all empty; there is nothing. So, we are always deluded in a world of thoughts and dreams. Whenever we wake up, we find that everything is empty; there is nothing. Everything that arises eventually ceases. Therefore, when happiness arises, we are not delighted, knowing it will not last. When suffering arises, we are not troubled, knowing it will also pass. Nothing is permanent.
When wholesome states arise, we are aware of them. Even wholesome states are temporary. So, we do not become obsessed with merit or crave it. Many people think that doing a lot of merit—donating a lot of money to the monks—will bring great merit and that life will be good, full of eternal happiness, and that they will attain enlightenment (Nirvana). Enlightenment and Nirvana are not attained through monetary donations but through seeing the truth of the body and mind. This body is a heap of suffering. The mind is not something special. If we can let go, then we will be free from suffering. The body is suffering; letting go of the body means being free from suffering. The mind is suffering; it is not permanent. If we do not cling to the mind, we will not suffer because of it anymore.
Therefore, the Buddha's teachings revolve around the concept of knowing suffering—knowing the body as it is and the mind as it is. Continuously observe, whether standing, walking, sitting, or lying down. The body stands, walks, sits, lies down, changes postures, breathes in, breathes out, eats, excretes, drinks water, and urinates, all to escape suffering continuously. In reality, it is always under pressure from suffering.
The mind seeks happiness because it wants to escape suffering. The truth is that the mind never gives us satisfaction or completeness; it is always lacking and incomplete. The hunger in our mind is never-ending. What does it hunger for? It wants the body and mind to be happy; it wants the body and mind to be free from suffering. All our desires boil down to wanting the body and mind to be happy and free from suffering. If we see the truth, that the body is suffering and the mind is suffering, we realize that they are not something special. We use them temporarily and do not cling to them, and we will not suffer because of the body and mind. But if we do not see the truth of the body and mind and still cling to them, desires will arise.
Desire is the cause of suffering. What do we desire? We desire the body and mind to be happy, free from suffering. For example, why do we want to be rich? Oh, so that our body can be comfortable, so we can buy things to eat and use. See, in the end, wanting to be rich is because we want the body to be happy. We want large numbers in our bank account for peace of mind; this is wanting the mind to be happy.
Therefore, observe carefully; our desires are rooted in love for the body and mind, a kind of unwise love that does not understand the truth of the body and mind. Hence, the Buddha taught us to know suffering continuously. At some point, we will abandon the cause of suffering, abandon desire. We will no longer desire that the body must be immortal, must always be young, and must always be strong. This is an innocent desire. When we understand the truth, develop wisdom, and understand the truth of the body, innocent desires about the body will no longer exist. If we understand the truth of the mind, innocent desires about the mind will no longer exist. For example, wanting the mind to be happy forever and thinking that doing this or that will bring happiness, continuously striving, but never finding happiness. When we know suffering, the body is suffering, the mind is suffering; we will abandon the cause of suffering, which is desire.
When we practice meditation diligently, questioning what is correct, what is right, we will see that what lies behind is desire—desire to be free from suffering, desire to have only happiness. We think every day about what is correct, what is good, thinking that way. How should we sit to be correct? How should we sit to be good? How should we control the mind to be correct? How should we control the mind to be good? We are only focusing on the surface of practice. The essence of practice is knowing our own body and mind, continuously observing and understanding its truth, not watching to make suffering go away, but until the mind accepts the truth. This body is a heap of suffering. The mind is not what we want it to be; it is constantly changing. Happiness is not lasting; suffering is not lasting. Wholesome and unwholesome states are not lasting. Thus, the mind does not cling to anything; the mind does not cling to the mind. This is how the mind becomes free from suffering.
Therefore, it is not a problem whether to control the mind in meditation or how to do walking meditation correctly. If meditation leads to forgetting the body and mind, then it is not knowing suffering and is not correct. Walking meditation, too, if we force the body and mind, it is not knowing suffering. We are forcing the body and mind, not understanding the body and mind as they are, which is not correct. Therefore, when teachers say it is not correct, we try something else, report again, and it is still not correct because we are doing this and that, neglecting the knowledge of our own body and mind.
If we grasp the principles firmly, practice will not be difficult, and we will see changes in ourselves in no time. From experiencing a lot of suffering, we will experience less. From long periods of suffering, the duration will shorten. With good practice, eventually, we will not suffer. Suffering may reside in the body, but our mind will no longer experience suffering.
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