Understanding Defilements and Dhamma in Buddhism : หน้า 108/164

Meticulous with a Dharma Messenger If we are not mindful, then defilements become even more apparent to us. We must bring together concentration, effort, and meditation. They must all come together. The Buddha eradicated His own defilements by first recollecting his past lives. Suppose we imagine a perfect sphere like the world. As the sun comes up, the brightness slowly chases the darkness away until it becomes noon and then there is brightness all around. But as the sun sets, darkness comes again. The light chases the dark away. To get rid of defilements, we must live in the light. If we had the power, we could stop the sun and make the world bright all of the time, but that would not be fair to the people who live on the other side of the world because they would be in darkness all of the time. So we need to meditate and bring each individual’s light into the world. We need to put the world in the middle of the sun and have brightness all of the time, for everyone. The origin of Buddhism sought to answer this question. After His enlightenment, the Buddha realized that the human being was composed of three things. not two. The body + the mind + Dhamma. Here, Dhamma has many meanings. Usually, Buddhists know only one meaning and that is the teachings of the Buddha. But the word means 'pure nature’ that exists within each human being that is discoverable through meditation. So. What is Dhamma? It is pure nature that exists within the human body. If we can still the mind, then we can attain and be one with our pure nature – the Dhamma. And, if we can be pure with the Dhamma, we can be pure permanently. And Dhamma has another name: Nibbana within the human body. But you have to train yourself to see it. The monks who come to ordain want to attain this Dhamma. The mind is invisible to the human eyes, but you can see it with your inner eyes. The Dhamma has many levels: Nibbana is the most pure. It is the duty of each Buddhist to discover the Dhamma by him/herself. But don’t ask me why – it just is. Just nature. Q: What do we need to know about defilements? A: Just like the river is filled with fish, if we don’t get rid of bad habits, our mind will be filled with defilements. We are attracted to defilements like fish to water. If our mind is under the power of defilements, the mind loses the ability to clean itself. The mind travels out of the body and travels to attach itself to defilements. 107