Meditation On The Fourth Attribute Of True Duhkha, Selfless

So today we'll do a meditation to investigate the notion of a self-supporting,

Substantially existent self.

This is related to the fourth attribute of true dukkha,

Mainly looking at our own aggregates,

Our own body and mind,

As an example of true dukkha.

And the first attribute was impermanence,

So contemplating how our aggregates,

Our body and mind are impermanent,

Constantly changing.

The second was unsatisfactory,

Or dukkha,

That there's just a lot of dukkha,

A lot of unsatisfactoriness,

Having this set of aggregates as body and mind.

And the third attribute,

It's called empty,

There we look at how our aggregates,

Our body and mind,

Are empty of,

Or lacking,

A permanent,

Unitary,

Independent self.

It's the kind of self or soul that non-Buddhist systems,

Philosophy,

Religion believe in.

And so today we'll look at the fourth attribute,

Which is called selfless.

And what that means is our aggregates,

Our body and mind,

Are empty of,

Or lacking,

This other kind of self,

Which is called self-supporting,

Substantially existent self.

It's a long list of words there.

That it's the kind of self,

We all have it actually innately,

Instinctively.

We all have this instinctive sense of a self that is like a controller or boss,

The thing that kind of controls our body and mind and directs our actions and our thoughts and so on.

So according to Buddhism,

Everybody,

Even animals and babies,

Have instinctively,

Intuitively,

This sense of a self.

It's already there when we're born.

We don't have to be taught by anybody.

So what we're going to do in this meditation is to investigate that sense of self,

Try to recognize that sense of self in our experience,

And then explore our body and mind,

Our aggregates,

To see if we can find something that is that self.

Because if it does exist,

It seems to exist,

But if it does exist,

We should be able to find it when we look for it.

We should be able to point to something that is the self.

We're going to search through our body and mind to see if we can find it.

So let's start by getting settled.

So sit in a comfortable but conducive position for meditation.

Try to keep your back straight,

But at the same time,

Be comfortable and relaxed,

Not tight or tense.

And check your mind,

Your state of mind.

If there are thoughts running around in your mind,

Like,

Left over from what you were doing earlier today or yesterday or any time in the past,

Let go of those thoughts.

Put them aside for now.

Or there may be thoughts about later,

Things you're going to do later today or tonight,

Tomorrow,

Or any other time in the future.

Put those thoughts aside as well.

Just let your mind,

Your awareness be in the present,

Right here where you are and right now at the present moment.

And spend a few moments being aware of your breathing,

Coming in and going out to really help your mind settle down and be in the present.

Now let's bring into our mind a positive motivation for doing this meditation.

So doing this kind of meditation is beneficial for ourselves to free our minds from mistaken conceptions and disturbing emotions that can arise from those conceptions.

So it helps to ease our own suffering and the causes of suffering.

But it's best if we can think beyond our own self and have the wish to benefit others.

But to really benefit others,

We do need to work on ourselves,

Free our minds from disturbing mistaken thoughts and emotions.

But still we can think we're doing this,

We're doing this work on ourselves in order to be of greater benefit to others so that we have more wisdom,

More compassion,

More love,

More knowledge of how to help others with their problems so that they too can relieve their suffering,

Be free of their suffering and its causes and find greater peace and happiness.

So see if you can have that as your motivation for doing this meditation.

And let's begin.

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So now,

See if you can get in touch with this sense of I,

Self,

Me,

That seems to be somewhere inside of us.

We feel like it's in there somewhere and it seems to play a role of being the director,

The boss,

The one in charge of our life and our body and our mind.

When our body and mind are calm and relaxed,

It's more difficult to recognize this sense of self.

But when we get aroused,

Emotionally stirred up,

At that time it's easier to recognize that sense of self.

So see if you can recall an experience where somebody was insulting you or accusing you of something you didn't do,

Blaming you for something you were not responsible for,

Just behaving in a really annoying way or in an unjust way,

Behaving in a very unjust way towards you.

And in your response,

You had this strong feeling of I coming up and feeling angry or defensive,

Feeling you have to stand up for yourself and retaliate in some way to what this person is doing or saying.

So that kind of situation is one in which our sense of self,

The innate sense of self,

I can arise most clearly and strongly.

So see if you can remember an experience like that or if you can't remember something like that,

Try to remember some other experience where you had a strong sense of self or I coming up and kind of asserting itself.

Moved.

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We should be able to find it.

We should be able to analyze it and understand its nature,

What it is,

Where it is,

How it exists.

And there's two possible places where we could do this investigation and try to find this I.

One is within our aggregates of body and mind.

That means within this collection of physical and mental components that make us up as a person.

So that's one possibility.

The other possibility is somewhere outside of ourselves,

Outside of this collection of physical and mental components,

Our aggregates.

So we'll start with the first possibility that seems to be the most reasonable one.

That's where we feel it.

We feel a sense of I here,

Inside of us.

So let's start with our body.

That's the easiest place to consider.

Think about the different parts of your body.

Our body,

We have one body,

Yes,

But it's not just one thing.

It's a collection of many different parts.

So contemplate the different parts that make up your body.

You can start from the skin and go in,

Start from the top and go down.

You can do this investigation as you want,

But just try to think of as many different parts of your body that you are able to.

And ask yourself if any of those parts is this I.

Can you point to any part of your body and say that is this I which is the boss,

The controller of everything else about me and about my life.

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Now some of you might think the brain is the I.

I am my brain.

Others might think no,

I'm my heart.

My heart is me.

So if you do think you can point to some part of your body like the brain or the heart and think that that is this I,

And investigate that possibility more carefully,

Think about what that part of your body,

That organ is made of.

It itself is made up of parts.

Like cells,

Molecules,

Atoms.

These are very subtle parts.

And on a grosser level there is tissue and blood vessels with blood flowing through.

Maybe muscles,

Maybe some bone.

Think more carefully about that part of the body.

And what makes it up,

What it's made of.

And then ask yourself,

Does this really correspond with my sense of self,

My sense of I?

Who I think I am,

How I think I exist?

Is it really that mass of physical matter?

Is that how I see myself?

How I see myself?

So,

In addition to the body,

The parts of the body,

We also have our mind,

Which is a non-material,

Non-physical.

But our mind too is made up of parts.

There's many different types of experiences in our mind.

And the mind is changing all the time.

New thoughts,

Perceptions,

Memories arising and passing all the time.

So think about the different parts of your mind.

Memories,

Different emotions,

Some are positive,

Some are negative.

Sensory experiences like seeing,

Hearing,

And so on.

Knowledge,

Skills,

Things you know,

Things you're able to do.

Think about the different aspects of the mind,

The different parts of the mind.

And ask yourself if you can point to any one of those and say,

That is the I,

That is me.

Okay.

Okay.

If we do think we can point to some part of the mind and say,

That is I,

That is me,

The problem there is that there's nothing fixed and permanent in our mind.

Every experience in our mind is momentary.

It only lasts a moment and then it's gone.

So anything we point to in our mind and try to say,

That's me,

It's going to be gone the next moment.

Doesn't really correspond with how you see yourself.

And then you might think,

Okay,

I can't find my I in my body and I can't find it in my mind,

But it still feels like it's there.

So maybe it's something else other than the body,

Other than the mind.

So if you have that idea,

Then look at that more carefully.

What is it?

If it's not the body or any part of the body,

It's not the mind or any part of the mind,

What is it?

What kind of phenomena is this I?

So far we've been searching within our aggregates of body and mind.

That's the first possible place to find the I.

The other place is outside of our body and mind,

Separate from our body and mind.

So if that was the case,

If the I was something separate from the body and mind,

Then your aggregates,

Your body and mind could be in one place,

Like sitting where you are right now,

And your I could go somewhere else.

You could go to the mall,

You could go to the beach in Tel Aviv,

You could go to Jerusalem,

You could go somewhere else and do something else,

Leaving your body and mind sitting there in the human spirit campus.

So is that possible?

So you may feel the need to have more time to do this sort of investigation.

We have to end now,

But feel free to continue this exploration on your own.

In fact,

It's something we need to keep asking ourselves,

Keep exploring again and again.

And slowly it becomes more clear that the I that seems to be so solid,

So real,

Existing there on its own,

Isn't so real and solid.

And in fact,

It's just something fabricated by our mind.

And that doesn't mean we don't exist at all.

We do have our body and our mind and we have a conventional I that is just labeled,

Just named,

Kind of convenient way of referring to ourselves.

So that I does exist,

Works and eats and sleeps and plays and meditates.

And that I can follow the spiritual path and reach enlightenment and benefit others.

So that kind of I does exist,

But the I existing on its own independently,

Like a boss,

A controller of our body and mind,

Kind of I doesn't really exist,

But this is something we need to discover on our own.

So let's mentally dedicate the merit,

The positive energy of doing this meditation,

Since we started with an altruistic intention,

Wanting to benefit others.

Let's share the positive energy with others.

May it help them be free of suffering and its causes,

Help them achieve happiness and its causes and help them eventually to reach full enlightenment Buddhahood.

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