The Six Stains Along The Way ( Written as message for Centre for Buddhist Studies, Ferozepur)

Speaking Tree newspaper 13.11.2011 BEWARE OF THE SIX STAINS!

In recent times pursuit of spirituality has become a ‘cool’ thing to do. Young and not so old are seen taking various paths in the hope of ‘instant’ nirvana! We even have a large number of dedicated channels on spiritual dvelopment in the visual media. Self-help books disappear off the shelves before they can be replaced! Everything right in this, so long as the seeker seeks the right teacher, the right path and generates the right motivation.

At the initial stages there is great enthusiasm with the pupil seen putting in dedicated practice to reason out the difference between the relative and absolute world. He/she derives happiness in contemplating the mind. A feeling of encouragement set in when small gains are visible. This is when the danger period sets in and great caution needs to be exercised in identifying and overcoming what are termed as the Six Stains. Here they are, caution the Masters:

Pride is displayed by believing oneself to be superior to the teacher. This is to be shunned. This is not to say that the teacher cannot be questioned. Ofcourse one can do so and if the teacher is compassionate, he/she will dispel with your queries in the manner most patient and comforting. However, as there is a great deal of unlearning to be done at this stage, to take the nurtured mind back to its root nature, the stain of pride needs to be overcome quickly by accepting the explanation put forth by the trained teacher.

Lack of faith arises when the seeker falls short of total trust he/she ought to have in the teacher and his teachings and transmissions. Absence of faith blocks the door to freedom from suffering. Remember, ones faith in the teachings and path is the basis of what we will achieve. If the extent of our faith is high, medium or low the corresponding results will be high, medium or low. If there is no faith, there will be no result.

Lack of effort shows up a few months into the practice when our worldly tasks begin to become overwhelming. We are able to devote less and less time, energy and mind space to our daily practices. Eg: our late night parties prevent us from waking up early for meditation, or even if we do, our mind is dull and dark with lack of sleep and results are often mediocre, or maybe our office work, physical workout schedules keeps us from evening practices and so on.

External distractions are perhaps the most difficult to stave off. This samsara is full of distractions and attractions. Remember to an un-trained mind, external stimuli can be sensational, disturbing, arousing & seductive. The mind is gullible and thoughts can deceive easily. If we don’t catch hold of the situation soon, we are sure to suffer in our gains. This does not mean that we do nothing for our entertainment. However, it is important to limit ones aspirations & desires.

Internal upheavals are caused when we focus too much of our attention inwards by pandering to the whims, wants and needs of our five senses. Their needs are limitless and the mind is constantly tormented by the them for satiation and gratification. They are like hungry beasts that are never satisfied. Constantly satisfying them becomes an endless ordeal for us. This augurs no good for consolidating our position on enslaving the truant mind.

Discouragement sets in endangering the entire process. Sometimes lessons or teachings can be long and tiresome. The teacher makes every effort for you to get the exact meaning and words correctly. This tends to discourage the evil mind which wants to wander away chasing something more attractive!

The Way of Awakening is not easy. Nor is it unachievable. It is his/hers who has the most endeavour. And it must be remembered most vividly that, it is only in the human realm, with its advantages and freedoms, that spiritual trajectory is possible. It is only here that we have the opportunity to come across the Dharma teachings and therefore a good chance for liberation or atleast rebirth in higher realm.

Labour on, dear seekers! Prayers and good luck be with you.

Girish Deshpande,
The author is a Pune based Dharma practitioner
lamagirish@gmail.com