Rebirth- Malimbada Thero's Dhamma talk
Victorious
Grim Veteran
Hi folks.
@upekka has translated a classical Sri Lankan Dhamma talk for you guys on @federicas request. It is in relation to the civil rebirth thread we had going just now... 
. The text is too long so I have split it into several posts. Do not know if the beginners category is the best but I think listening to or reading a dhamma talk is a very good start for a beginner.
Here you go:
When we listen to Dhamma talks we have to have a concentrated mind.
This is not only when we listen to Dhamma talks, but also before start of meditation or any worshipping we do, like offering flowers, offering joss-sticks, offering oil-lamps etc. in front of a Buddha statue, we have to be mindful or must have a concentrated mind.
Meditation develops one's mind. But even before meditation begins, one has to have a concentrated mind.
How can we do that?
Using a very simple method we can gain the mindfulness or the concentrated mind.
First of all we have to have a correct position of the body. Whatever the position we are in now is alright for 'loving-kindness meditation', 'Buddhanussathi' etc.
But for 'Anapanasathi' meditation we have to have a special posture. We must sit on the floor, or can sit on a chair, but we must have a straight back (spine). One could think 'Now I am old, I cannot sit staight on the floor or sit in a chair with a straight back, so how can I do Anapanasathi?
That is why, we must practice Anapanasathi before we get old.
But there are other meditation practices we can do too.
For 'Tranquil Meditation' (to get one-pointedness) there are other meditation methods.
There are 40 types of such meditation methods, they are called 'Kammattana' (kamatahan). So we all can practice one of them, irrespective of our age.
Now I am not trying to explain the facts related to meditation. What I am trying to say is any skilful deed needs to be done with a concentrated mind.
Even closing the eyes for meditation should be done with mindfulness (concentrated mind). If we look in front of us and close our eyes it gives pain in the forehead.
-so keep the neck straight.
-send the eyes to the end of the nose tip
-close the eyes slowly
Do not close the eyes tightly, if so there will be pain in the eyes
Likewise when our eyes close slowly, our eyes get the first comfort (not suffering).
If we have pain in the eyes or pain in the forehead that means our position is wrong. If we do meditation wrong way we get wrong results. So it should be done correctly.
Having closed eyes, now is the time to get the concentration of the mind.
Count from 1 to 20.
It is very easy therefore it is difficult to get the concentration of the mind.
Because we can either do it mindfully or we can do it automatically.
Instead we count 20 to 1. 20, 19, 18, 17, etc.
Then count from 15 to 1. 15,14,13,12 etc.
then count from 10 to 1. 10, 9, 8, 7 etc.
then count from 5 to 1. 5, 4, 3, etc.
Now the mind is limited to five numbers and mind get concentrated. But so far we have not done meditation. We have just tried to get 'samadhi', the concentration of the mind.
After getting this “samadhi' we take a meditation object (kamatahan) to meditate on. - loving-kindness as a meditation object or ana-pana-sati as a meditation object. Unless we take a meditation object to meditate on, just getting a concentrated mind is not meditation. Concentrated mind is 'samadhi'
Developing the 'concentrated mind' is meditation.
So having a concentrated mind, listen to this Dhamma talk.
Comments
Lord Buddha says
-non delay leads to Nibbana
-delay leads to death
-those who do not delay, do not die
-those who do delay are like dead
even though they are still alive
So we must practice non-delay
Do not think that our time has passed. 'we' can't do anything now, because we are old. Do not think just offering flowers, joss-sticks, oil-lamps in front of Buddha statues, or reciting stanzas is enough.
This is the meaning of delay.
Therefore never think like that.
When we come to old age, we are matured in life. Have lots of life experiences.
We have good understanding of the life. Because of that we do not see the world as we saw it when we were children or young adults. Our experiences help us to see the world with our understanding. We can use those experiences to observe the world with a better perspective. we can gain more and more understanding of the life and we must make an effort to be more skillful in our lives.
Why?
Whatever we earned lands, houses, vehicles, money or even our own children we can not take with us when we have to leave this world. Even if we like or do not like , know or do not know, we have to give up everything in this world and we have to go alone in this journey. At least, the body that we called 'mine' and 'my' cannot be taken with us. That is the Truth. All material things and every relationships we have, have to be given up, when we leave this world.
But whatever taken into mind we can carry with us. Only the things that we take into our mind can be taken with us. What are the things that we can take into our minds?
Skillful thoughts/unskillful thoughts, kusal/ akusal, good/ bad, good behaviour/ bad behaviour. Whatever good is skillful and whatever bad is unskillful.
If we take skillful things with us then we can be reborn in a good place (Sukgathi)
If we take bad things with us we will be reborn in a bad place (Dukgathi)
There are 31 plains to be born,
20 Brahma world
6 Deva worlds -
1. Chaturmaharajika
2. Thavathimsa
3. Yama
4. Thusitha
5. Nimmanarathi
6. Paranimmitha wasavarthi
1 human world- we are born to human world now
4 Dukgathi -
1. Hell (niraya)
2. Animal world (thirisan)
3. Hungry Ghost world (petha)
4. Envious devas (asura)
If we are skillful we will be reborn in kama sukgath
If we are unskillful we will be reborn in kama dukgathi
Whether we will be skillful or unskillful is our own doing
One day we all die.
Buddha says
We all are afraid of punishment and death.
We all like our life and like to live.
So we all afraid of death and like to live
Irrespective of the fact that we like to live, do we die or not?
We all die.
When?
We do not know.
What do you think?
Is it good to know when you are going to die?
If we know we can get ready for it, do not we?
Or how many times we would die before the exact date of death if we know the date?
It is better not to know when we are going to die. If you knew, no one would sit here and listen to this talk. It is better not to know the date we die and die whenever the time comes. That is why we are happy now. This is the worldlings way.
When we are going to die, there will be the last thoughtful moment, the last citta which is called chuti-citta. There are three characteristics in chuti-citta.
kamma - something we usually do come as our last thought; good thought or bad thought
That is why we must practice skilful deeds. Then that will be carved in the mind. That is why practising skillful deed is necessary.
kamma nimitta - a part of a kamma, for example, we went to a temple and offered flowers in front of a Buddha statue. At our death bed, instead of the temple and offering flowers in front of Buddha statue, just the flowers comes into mind as the last thought. The 'flowers' is the kamma nimitta
gathi nimitta - Gathi is birth. Every one of us can see the next birth. It is in dukgathi or sukgathi. That is the nature. Some people die with crying and unhappy and some die with smiling and happy.
Once I gave a Dhamma talk about impermanence of life and sajjayana (chanting) pirith (stanza) at a death bed of a gentleman who was the father of a gentleman that I know. This was happened one week before his death. The gentleman I know phoned me and told that he was going home because his brother informed him that their father was very fragile and very ill and it seemed that their father was at his last moments. I told him to take care. He talked to me after he went home.
In short, the father asked him to lift him. It seemed it could not be done because dad was very, very fragile and ill. But he had a clear mind talked very well. The son lifted his father. It was a miracle. Dad sat down on the bed and put his legs down. He didn't fall back to the bed. Dad said to his son “Son, bring those lotus flowers to me”.
Son phoned and told me about it because they thought dad's mind was not clear at the time and he was coming to end of his life. I told him 'don't think like that, if your father seems ok in his mind, explain to dad, at this moment there is no lotus flowers to be seen, if his dad insists, he could try and bring some'
Three four times dad said the same thing. Then dad talked to his wife 'it is useless to tell him, can you bring those lotus flowers to me', and a few seconds passed and dad fell down to son's lap. He fell down and was dead.
See how fortunate he is. He surely saw those flowers. That was the gathi nimitta. No doubt he is in sukgathi (is born in a happy plain). There is nothing more to be said about that, it is for sure.
Therefore we must make an effort to bring up a good thought at the last moment of our life. But just thinking is not enough. We have to work on it.
Then we die.
After death what happens?
You are born in another place.
What do you get after chutti-citta?
It is patisandhi-citta.
Some people think that in between chuti-citta (the last thought of this life) and patisandhi-citta there is another Bava (becoming). In between this Bava and next Bava there is another Bava; namely there is Anthara-Bava.
That is a complete wrong belief.
If there is an Anthara-Bava, we cannot understand the Cause and Effect (Dependent Origination) Teaching. Always there is a cause and effect, and effect itself is the cause for next effect. If there is Anthara-Bava, this cause and effect link breaks.
Why?
There should be this Bava and next Bava. If we take Anthra-Bava concept, we put another Bava in between this Bava and next Bava. It breaks the chain of cause and effect.
Born in this Bava and die then born in another Bava. But if we think there is Anthara-Bava, the meaning of dependently arising cannot be understood. Therefore in Theravada Buddhism, Anthara-Bava concept is not accepted.
Some people say 'During my operation I could see what was happening (NDE)'
Afterwards, they explained what happened during the operation. Newspapers published such stories. Even the Doctors say 'yes, this is what we have done, that is true'. But the story is true here and there, not that the whole story is true.
Actually what was happening?
You know how a light-bulb work? When the switch is on, the light bulb gives the light continually. But actually the light is on and off. We cannot see the process because the frequency is too fast. When a person is given anaesthetic the same process happens to his consciousness. It comes and goes very fast.
Even if a person naturally becomes unconscious the same process happens. It goes and comes very quickly and goes again and comes back very quickly for a certain period of time. But if the consciousness is lost, it cannot be brought back. When the consciousness comes back for a short period it can see, hear, smell and know and whatever the consciousness see, hear, smell or know the things happening around him and caved them in the mind.
When the person becomes normal he can bring back such memories in the mind. So he says 'I saw what has happened because, I could see what was happening since I was up in space.
Actually he was not up in space and observed but the conscious moments helped the mind to remember what had seen, smelt or heard and reminds them later.
After a person is dead and gone chuti-citta does not come back to the same dead body. People do not know what is/has happened, so they express their experience as they have seen them form up in space. It is a wrong understanding of the actual happening. Therefore, at one's death bed, after the last thoughtful moment, the chuti-citta happens, and then patisandhi-citta happens without any thing in the middle. If we accept the Anthara-Bava, then chain of consciousness (citta -vinnana) cannot be taken a true.
Some people say 'I stayed 3 months, 6 months in the space to find a suitable womb'. This is not Anthara-Bava, it is another Bava. Such Bava may be short like few seconds to many months or a year, according to one's kamma-vipaka (cause and effect in the big picture).
Therefore if we take Anthara-Bava into consideration we cannot explain 'samsara'.
After this Bava, there will be next Bava. There is chutti-citta and then pati-sandhi-citta.
If someone die with unconsciousness what will happen to chuti-citta? Eventhough one is unconscious there is no problem for chuti-citta to arise. There is no consciousness but there is the mind (citta)
Take the citta (mind) as a room and consciousness is its door. Thought comes to mind and goes from mind. Consciousness opens the door to thoughts that come into the mind and closes the door when thoughts go from the mind. Consciousness identifies the thoughts as good and bad. When one is unconscious thoughts are not known by the consciousness
Therefore even one dies without consciousness citta does not vanish, citta is there. Then the last moment of this life chuti-citta happens and the first moment of the next life patisandhi-citta happens. The mind is there even though consciousness is lost.
In the consciousness there are two characteristics.
These two are the activities of the consciousness.
So even though there is no consciousness, there is citta, therefore there is no problem to die at the end of this life span and to be born in the next life.
Is that 'I' am born' - this belongs to sasratha ditti (self-view)
NO.
Instead of 'me' is there 'another person is born', in another place -this belongs to uchcheda ditti (physical-view)
NO
Lord Buddha rejected both the self-view and physical-view.
Ajitha Kesakambala believed physical-view.
Pakuda Kachchayana belived self-view.
It is neither 'I' be born nor 'another person' be born.
naca so -naca anno
'I' involve but there are some more parts added to 'I'
What goes from 'I', chuti-citta goes from 'I'
We say 'goes' for sake of easy to understand. We do not see 'chuti-citta' is going.
A child to be conceived in a mother's womb need three factors.
1. matharaca utun hoti -mother's menstruation or she has necessary condition
2. matha pitharocha sanni patita hoti- intercourse of a mother and a father
3. gandhabba patti pati hoti - (vinnana) patisandhi-citta's arrival
From the second factor an element (dhathu) stays in mother's womb.
Now there is an element (beeja) in a mother's womb but still there is no vinnana. There is a form (Rupa).
Is there a life in this form?
Yes, there is a life. It is not dead.
Is it a being?
No
Why is it not a being?
Because vinnana didn't connect.
When the element is in the womb without vinnana it is just a form, not a being.
There is a seed which is not dead. Until vinnana comes it is not a being.
When the vinnana comes it becomes a being.
Now 'nama' adds to 'form', Nama-Rupa (mentality and materiality).
4 nama and 1 form =5 clinging aggregates
form, feeling, perception, volition and consciousness
Now there is a being.
This is the way we are born.
That five aggregates of clinging, we call a 'child'
Then after 7, 8, or 10 months the child comes to this world.
The stanza used to worship mother 'dasa mase urekathava..'
The first birth is into mother's womb, the second birth is to this world.
Some mothers do not know whether vinnana comes to the wombs or not. Sometime mother never knows, there was a child in her womb. That is because his life span is very short like few seconds, few minutes, few days or few months. After one month only a mother can know that there is a child in her womb.
Life span for each child is different. In culla-kamma-vibanga-sutta Lord Buddha explains how the span of life would be decided. It depends on how we involve in skillful/unskillful deeds. If one does not kill, harm others, but help they would get a long life span. That is what we have to do now.
What 'we' have now health, wealth, family, education, beauty, mental states etc. depends on our past activities.
Now we are born in a kama-sukgathi. We are lucky enough to listen (read) Dhamma and walk through the Path, because we have done skillful things in our previous life times. We must take the full advantage of this human life with other facilities (health, wealth, education etc. and Dhamma) we have now. All we have now is things that we ourselves earned with our own effort.
Learn and Practice Dhamma more and more. Develop skillfulness up to the maximum. Without being skilful it is not possible to become Enlightened. We must do good deed and be skillful to develop mind (citta). We have to have inner development. Do not delay.
Only the inner development helps to increase the skillfulness. From that way only one can be liberated.
You have come a long way, (a human being and have health etc. and Dhamma) and go forward with effort to increase the skillfulness.
Do not delay. Be liberated.
(Appamado Amatha Padam)
Lord Buddha always say so and His last word also the same.
Waya Dhamma Sankhara - Appamadena sampadetha
whatever arises will cease
Do not delay to be skillful. Make an effort to be skillful.
@Victorious. Thank you so much for the translation. I shall be returning to it several times.
No no no. @grackle its all upekkas work! Thank her I just posted it.
Upekka is a bit uncomfortable with the technical stuff. Thats why.
But she was bloody fast at translating I will tell you!
One important thing in this Dhamma talk I would like to point out is the emphasis on concentration applied to whatever cultivation you are doing. It is very important.
Thanks to @upekka and @Victorious! I too will spend time reading and going over this.
@Victorious. I most humbly extend my thanks to@upekka.
thanks victorious, merits to you and federica
welcome grackle and Hamsaka
welcome everyone comes to this thread and merits to you all