This guided meditation provides suggestions that bring attention to several of the 14 unwholesome mind conditioners. It is intended to complement the Dharma talk of the same evening entitled “Reviewing The Unwholesome Mind Conditioners”, which can be found in the archives of this site.
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Continuing the review of the 52 cetasikas, those factors that condition the formations of personality, the focus of this talk is on what are termed the Occasional or Particular Cetasikas. These mind conditioning functions appear in most moments of self-organization, but may be absent or “disabled” when associated with certain unwholesome mind conditioning functions. During the review, the interactions between the Occasional Cetasikas and the Universal Cetasikas is described, as these provide a foundational condition that can be aligned with either wholesome or unwholesome mind conditioning functions. This talk was accompanied by a “Guided Mind Conditioner Contemplation”, recorded the same night and posted in the archives.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: THE OCCASIONAL MIND CONDITIONERS
For further review of the entire listing of the cetasikas, this document is: CETASIKAS POSTER
Next week’s talk will review the Unwholesome cetasikas.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:07:47 — 124.1MB)
This guided meditation reviews the Universal and Occasional mind conditioning functions that may be investigated while practicing mindfulness of breathing meditation. It is intended to accompany the Dharma talk entitled “The Occasional Mind Conditioners” recorded the same evening.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 44:57 — 82.3MB)
Continuing a review of the 52 cetasikas, conditioning factors in the mind, the focus for this talk are each of the 7 Universal Mind Conditioners: Feeling, Perception, Contact, Volition, Concentration, Vitality and Attention. These factors participate in every moment of consciousness, whether the mind manifests wholesome or unwholesome self-organizations. Understanding the function of these mind conditioners conceptually creates the conditions that support direct identification of them as impersonal while practicing mindfulness of breathing meditation, and this insight reveals the non-self characteristic of human personality.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Reviewing The Universal Mind Conditioners
Here is the document that shows all 52 of the cetasikas: CETASIKAS POSTER
The focus for the next talk will be what are called the Particular or Occasional Cetasikas.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 45:42 — 83.7MB)
This Dharma talk is a continuation of reviews regarding the Fourth Foundation of Mindfulness, particularly focusing on the 4th of the 5 Aggregates, the Mind Conditioning Factors called Cetasikas. The talk provides a generalized view of how Buddhism describes those mental constituents that form a subjective experience of a self. The intention of this review is to create an understanding of the general characteristics of the several categories of cetasikas: Universal, Particular, Unwholesome and Wholesome. These categories will be reviewed in more detail over the course of several subsequent Dharma talks. During the talk, a chart of the cetasikas was provided during the Zoom meeting through screen sharing; here is that document for future reference: CETASIKAS POSTER
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Overview of the Mind Conditioning Factors
The focus for the next talk with be the Universal cetasikas.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 41:10 — 75.4MB)
This talk continues a review of the contemplations found in the Fourth Foundation of Mindfulness, namely the Five Aggregates. An overview of the interactions between Form, Feeling, Perception, Mind Conditioning Factors and Consciousness is provided, relating the aggregates to the other Foundations of the Four Foundations of Mindfulness Discourse, using several quotes from Analayo’s “Satipatthana–The Direct Path To Realization”. Also included is a brief review of the next contemplation, the Six Sense Bases, as these are represented by the Form aggregate. Because this contemplation provides a key insight into the concept of Dependent Origination, several subsequent Dharma talks will provide a review of the Mind Conditioning Factors, numbering 52 in the commentaries, and called Cetasikas, because of the key function these factors provide in Dependent Origination. After reviewing the cetaskikas the Dependent Origination concept will then be considered. The Cetasikas and Dependent Origination are not described in the Four Foundations of Mindfulness Discourse, but understanding how they operate is a key component in the process of Awakening.
Here are the notes prepared for this talk: Understanding The Five Aggregates
An important book that analyses the Five Aggregates entitled “The Five Aggregates–Understanding Theravada Psychology and Soteriology” by Matthieu Boisvert can be downloaded in .pdf format here: The-Five-Aggregates-Understanding-Theravada-Psychology-Soteriology (Soterilogy is the study of salvation).
Next week’s talk will focus on beginning a review of the Cetasikas with the “Universal Mind Conditioners”, which function in every moment of consciousness.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:00:14 — 110.3MB)