20. Dukkha By Venerable Amatha Gavesi
20. Dukkha By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, the subject of the discourse today is Dukkha, Suffering. It is one of the truths Buddha realized and of all the truths the most important. Why I say most important because the other truths like the cause of suffering, cessation of suffering and the path leading to the cessation of suffering, they are all outcome of suffering or connected with suffering. Buddha defines suffering in the Dhammacakka…
19. Consciousness and Suffering
19. Consciousness and Suffering By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, the subject of the discourse today is; Consciousness is Dukkha, suffering. Consciousness is the cause of suffering. Cessation of consciousness is the cessation of suffering. And the path leading to the cessation of suffering is the path leading to the cessation of consciousness. You are aware having learned Dhamma up to now, that the formation of activities committed by the 6 sense bases are by…
18. Karma By Venerable Amatha Gavesi
18. Karma By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, the subject of the discourse is Karma. Buddha defines karma as ‘cetanāham bhikkhave kammam vadāmi’, as a volition one create before the act of karma is created. That is your state of mind that make you to commit the act. That is important in karma and that state of mind is called Volition. Volition can be weak can be strong. Volition becomes weak when it is mixed…
17. Five Grasping Groups
17. Five Grasping Groups By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, the subject to the discourse today – the 5 aggregates. In another word – the 5 grasping groups. This is a difficult subject for one to understand. No clear definition of the 5 grasping groups have been given anywhere to cover the entire subject, but there are certain references. And one such reference appears in the Maha-hatthipadopama Sutta, The Big Footprint of the Elephant, in…
16. Desire & The 4 Foundations of Mindfulness
16. Desire & The 4 Foundations of Mindfulness By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 17/10/1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, the subject of the discourse today is the 4 foundations of mindfulness. Buddha having attained Buddhahood, having realized the truth, having found a clear path for the attainment of Nibbana, expected any devotees to develop himself in 3 things. The 3 things are, any devotee must have at least virtue in the observance of the 5 precepts, that’s the least. Base…
15. The All and Desire
15. The All and Desire By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, Buddha said, this is everything. What is everything? Your eyes, your ears, your nose, your tongue, your body and your mind, this is everything. And Buddha further said if there is any person who says that there is more than these in this world, he said it is just careless use of words only. Because there is nothing beyond this in the world, that…
14. Nirodha and Desire
14. Nirodha and Desire By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable Bikkhus, brothers and sisters, Buddha refers to 2 ways of achievement, 2 ways of overcoming your defilements and attaining Nibbana. One way is called the ceto-vimutti and the other way is called the paññā-vimutti. Ceto-vimutti is, develop your mind to higher states of samadhi, your absorptions. And live in those states, as a results of prolong living in those states, your mind gain the freedom or mind get rid…
13. The Four Noble Truths Are Within & Desire
13. The Four Noble Truths Are Within & Desire By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, Brothers and Sisters, the subject of the discourse today is in the phantom of body you possess and the consciousness there lies suffering. In the phantom of body and consciousness you possess, there lies the cause of suffering. In the phantom of body and consciousness you possess there lies the cessation of suffering. In the phantom of the body and consciousness you…
12. Path to Once Returner & Non Returner
12. Path to Once Returner & Non Returner By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkus, Brothers and Sisters, the next subject in Vipassana is to deal with the balance 2 fetters, that is attachment and aversion. In regard to your analyzing body and mind, the activity clearly and also how all activities are done by cause and effect and you finally practice arising and passing away. Once you have completed these 3 exercises, if you have done it…
11. Ten Fetters and Stream Entry
11. Ten Fetters and Stream Entry By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers and sisters, subject of the discourse today is how one with his development within gives up the fetters which tie him down to the life of births and deaths. These fetters are divided into 2 groups according to their activities. The first 5 fetters are known as “orambhagiya-samyojana” which means that the first 5 fetters push you down, press you down to a…
10. Five Hindrances
10. Five Hindrances By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkhu, Brothers & Sisters, the discourse today also will deal with the general subject. After that I intend giving you instructions in regard to various defilements you will have to overcome by Insight Knowledge in practicing certain aspects of meditation. For example, to give up the idea that there is a being in you, i.e. Sakkayaditti – a personality feeling that you have. You have to differentiate between mind…
9A. Five Stages of Giving Up The Sankharas (1)
9A. Five Stages of Giving Up The Sankharas (1) By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, Brothers and Sisters, in view of the departure tomorrow of several of you, I decided to deliver this Discourse so that those who have developed to higher states will be careful in maintaining those conditions with mindfulness. Even an Arahant is mindful, you will understand the importance of mindfulness even in those who have developed to a very high states. You can’t…
8. Five Factors By Venerable Amatha Gavesi
8. Five Factors By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkhus, brothers & sisters, today I will deal with the five factors which promote your attainment. The five factors are your devotion, your effort, your mindfulness, your samadhi and your development of wisdom. These are general factors which helps you ride along the effort you made to reach the goal. This must be promoted in your mind, not that purposefully done but with the correct approach made to develop…
7. The World is your 6 Sense Base
7. The World is your 6 Sense Base By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bikkhus, brothers and sisters, Buddha said “I will not speak about Nibbana to a person who has not seen the end of the world.” That is the subject of the discourse today. I repeat that statement again, “I will not speak to a person about Nibbana unless he has seen the end of the world.” In previous discourses, I have at length dwelt on…
6. Samadhi in the Development of the Path
6. Samadhi in the Development of the Path By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: Year 1994 Venerable Bhikkus, brothers and sisters, the topic of my discourse today is Samadhi. What is Samadhi? Samadhi is concentration of the mind or bringing the mind to one pointedness. If that is the object of samadhi, what is the condition of the normal mind? The normal mind is a scattered mind, always busily engaged in while you are awake to catch objects that attract the…
5. Sankhara, Desire & Its End
5. Sankhara, Desire & Its End By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 11/10/1994 Venerable Bikkhus, brothers and sisters, the most difficult to grasp and understand is the first noble truth of Dukkha. It is a difficult deep philosophy and need a lot of concentration to understand. That is why you felt in the first picture I gave you, you found difficult to grasp the subject clearly, but listening to the talk I gave you this morning many times, you will be…
4. Importance of Mindfulness
4. Importance of Mindfulness By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 1994 Venerable bhikkhus, brothers & sisters, the subject of the discourse today is mindfulness. Mindfulness plays a very vital role in the development of the person who practices his philosophy along the path to gain his liberation. We refer to mindfulness as an ordinary term and in compliance to this state of mind, we just be mindful and is not given that due recognition it deserves to be given. You have…
Formations By Venerable Amatha Gavesi
3. Formations By Venerable Amatha Gavesi Dated: 09/10/1994 Venerable bhikkhus, brothers & sisters, the subject of the discourse today is Formations. Volitional of activity you call it, in other aspect. In the dependent origination, Buddha clearly analyses the wordling; in that analysis he has clearly indicated that if a worldling has been misled completely as a result of his ignorance of formation of volitional activities he commits. That is the starting point of his cause for delusion. The dependent origination…
THE NOBLE EIGHT FOLD PATH
THE NOBLE EIGHT FOLD PATH Brothers and Sisters, Buddha by attainment to Buddhahood, not only realised the truth, he also realised the path that has helped others to follow and realise the same truth. That path is the Four Noble Truths, which Buddha realised. It has eight links: 1. Right Speech 2. Right Conduct 3. Right Livelihood 4. Right Effort 5. Right Mindfulness 6. Right Concentration/Samadhi 7. Right Views (Realisation of Four Noble Truths) 8. Right thoughts.…
Unique Nature of Buddhist Philosophy
Tape 1 – Unique Nature of Buddhist Philosophy (Dharma Talk by Ven A Gavasi on 8.10.94 ) Brothers & Sisters, thephilosophy preached by Buddha is unique, it is unique because Buddha found the solutions to suffering by the human being and that solution lies in the human beings and not outside. For 40 years, he lives the life of a prince about 30 years and after that he left the palace and search for the cause of Dukka. …