Glosses: Intention
67 excerpts, 4:06:30 total duration
9. “What is the difference between awareness and consciousness?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Knowing itself] [Consciousness] // [Aggregates] [Sense bases] [Volitional formations] [Volition] [Conditionality] [Discernment]
1. Comment: Sometimes pervading the body with rapture can take the mind away from the meditation object. Contributed by Ajahn Kaccāna. [Rapture] [Mindfulness of breathing] [Concentration]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Tranquility] [Volition] [Nature of mind] [Unification]
Reference: Collected Teachings of Ajahn Chah, p. 309, “Tranquility and Insight.”
2. “How is nama-rupa usually defined?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Consciousness] [Aggregates] // [Volition]
Sutta: SN 12.67: Sheaves of reeds. [Similes]
5. “How do you understand the description of fabrication in SN 22.79?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volitional formations] // [Aggregates] [Proliferation] [Ajahn Chah]
Reading: Bhikkhu Bodhi’s footnote to SN 22.79, The Connected Discourses of the Buddha p. 1071. [Translation] [Pāli] [Volition]
5. “MN 44.14 defines perception and feeling as mental formations. I thought those were just conditional arising on account of contact (MN 109.9)?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Perception] [Feeling] [Volitional formations] [Conditionality] [Contact] // [Pāli]
Ajahn Buddhadasā‘s translation of the Ānāpānasati Sutta (MN 118; Chanting Book translation) translates cittasaṅkhāra as the mental conditioner. [Ajahn Buddhadāsa] [Translation] [Mindfulness of breathing]
Reference: Mindfulness with Breathing by Ajahn Buddhadāsa, p. 72.
Follow-up: “The bodily fabrication doesn’t seem to involve volition, but vitakka and vicāra do.” [Body/form] [Volition] [Directed thought and evaluation] [Aggregates]
Comment: In the Ānāpānasati Sutta, much of the practice is intentionally calming different saṅkhāras. [Tranquility] [Mindfulness of body]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno.
5. “Can you speak about the people who sell these things [intoxicants] versus those who make them?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Intoxicants] [Commerce/economics] [Right Livelihood] // [Kamma] [Volition]
Story: A clerk at an organic food store asks about selling wine. Told by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo.
10. Comments about meat eating. [Food] [Killing] [Craving] [Vegetarianism] [Right Livelihood]
Response by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volition] [Human]
2. “Could you clarify the difference between perception (sañña), mental formations (saṅkhāra) and consciousness (viññana)?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Perception ] [Volitional formations] [Consciousness] // [Memory] [Mindfulness] [Translation] [Volition] [Sense bases]
1. “A question regarding the 5 precepts. In daily life, I am really good about keeping #1, 2, 3 and 5; but somehow I found that the precept #4 is really hard. I find myself lying everyday such as: ‘Do I look good?’ → Yes, of course. ‘Do you want to eat some more?’ → No, thanks, I’m full (but in fact the food didn’t taste good). Or speaking at a wrong time, speaking too long, too short, too harsh or speaking with a wrong tone of voice. This is the hardest one for me. Kindly advise. Thank you.” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Five Precepts] [False speech ] [Right Speech ] // [Monastic life] [Precepts ] [Pāli] [Learning]
Quote: “The function of the precepts in terms of practice is to provide a mirror so we can understand our own intentions and volitions.” [Volition]
1. “What are the consequences of breaking a precept?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Precepts ] // [Pāli] [Learning] [Volition] [Ajahn Chah]
The root of hiri and otappa. [Conscience and prudence ] [Translation] [Truth] [Kamma] [Respect]
10. “Can you repeat the aspect of sankharas other than mental volitional energy?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volitional formations ] // [Nibbāna] [Aggregates] [Volition]
Reference: Amaravati Chanting Book, p. 13
4. “How shall we listen to the Dhamma talks [read during Winter Retreat]?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Hearing the true Dhamma] [Ajahn Ṭhānissaro] [Learning] // [Volition]
5. “In trying to create separation between self and the khandas, are there other tools that can help around the act of becoming?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Aggregates] [Self-identity view] [Becoming] // [Knowing itself] [Volition] [Tranquility] [Investigation of states]
1. “In working with the breath, when I try to spread well-being throughout the body, it seems to diminish. How do I discern whether to maintain this feeling or go back to the more intense feeling?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Rapture] // [Concentration] [Volition]
11. “If someone spreads a harmful story about another that is untrue, but has convinced her/himself it is true (including her/his own embellishments), does this break the fourth precept?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Malicious speech] [False speech ] // [Precepts] [Ajahn Chah] [Volition] [Truth] [Nature of mind]
Quote: “The precepts are there for training as opposed to making a legal decision or character judgement.”
9. “Was sati, vedana, jhana part of the religious climate current at the Buddha’s time? How revolutionary was he seen to be then? Do we know?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [History/Early Buddhism] [Buddha/Biography] [Mindfulness] [Feeling] [Jhāna] // [Four Noble Truths] [Aggregates] [Culture/India ] [Kamma] [Volition]
7. “Do thoughts by themselves have karmic consequences?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno and Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Kamma] [Directed thought and evaluation] // [Perception] [Feeling] [Volition] [Self-identity view]
Sutta: MN 56: Upāli
Follow-up: “Is it good kamma to decide not to act on an unskillful thought?” [Skillful qualities]
Story: A person talks with Ajahn Liem, analyzing their consistently bad thoughts and obsessions. He replies, “If you see a pile of excrement, why would you want to stick your nose in it?” Told by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Ajahn Liem] [Unskillful qualities] [Similes] [Fierce/direct teaching] [Culture/Thailand] [Thai Forest Tradition]
Comment: I think my problem is that my nose is already in there, and I don’t want to realize that I’m so stupid that it’s hard to get it out. [Delusion]
3. “What is the role of confession and other tools for recifying offenses?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Vinaya] [Confession] // [Ajahn Chah] [Volition] [Kamma] [Dhamma]
6. “When we accidentally break the Eight Precepts, once we realize it, what’s the proper response in the mind?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Eight Precepts] // [Volition] [Virtue] [Renunciation]
4. “I struggle with restlessness. I always want to be doing something, and I often end up doing several things at the same time so it’s draining and not enjoyable. It’s very difficult to stop, and when I stop, I don’t know what to do, so I might grab my iPhone, clean stuff....Could you talk about restlessness and how to do nothing if that’s actually possible?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Restlessness and worry ] [Pace of life] [Technology] // [Volition] [Mindfulness of mind] [Simplicity] [Present moment awareness] [Impermanence]
11. “How to deal with self-blame due to losing a loved one to suicide?” Answered by Ajahn Karuṇadhammo. [Suicide] [Guilt/shame/inadequacy] // [Volition] [Proliferation] [Relinquishment] [Western psychology] [Forgiveness]
Quote: “People who commit suicide leave their skeletons in other people’s closets.” — Steven Levine.
10. “We can control unwholesome acts of body and speech through precepts, but whatever pops up in the mind we mostly can’t control. But how is kamma formed in the mind? Should we control that thing or should it be let go?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Precepts] [Nature of mind] [Kamma] // [Suffering] [Relinquishment] [Ajahn Chah] [Volition]
Sutta: MN 19: Two Kind of Thought
2. “What about the cow that killed the arahant Bahiya (Ud 1.10)?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro. [Animal] [Kamma] [Rebirth] // [Human] [Volition]
1. “When we immerse and lose ourselves in a book or movie, is this the craving or thirst for non-being?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro. [Craving not to become ] // [Kamma] [Volition] [Restlessness and worry]
Sutta: AN 6.63.33: Kamma is intention.
2. “I’ve been noticing during meditation that my mind goes a lot into planning. Can you consider this bhavataṇha?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro. [Becoming] [Proliferation] // [Volition] [Discernment] [Ajahn Amaro] [Habits] [Amaravati] [Building projects] [Suffering]
2. “Is it possible to have a wholesome action that is unskillful, like saying the truth at the wrong time?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Skillful qualities] [Unskillful qualities] // [Kamma] [Volition]
8. “What does volitional formations mean?” Answered by Ajahn Pasanno. [Volitional formations] // [Pāli] [Volition]
1. “What is the Pāli term that [the Buddha] uses for volitional formations [in SN 12.64]?” Answered by Ajahn Amaro and Ajahn Pasanno. [Pāli] [Volitional formations] // [Volition] [Nutriment]