Understanding Kilesa and Its Influence on the Mind : หน้า 21/47

Kilesa is an element that soils the mind, invading it with great intensity to override the rational and, if allowed to, is ultimately the cause of mental suffering. Kilesa does not reveal its insidious intrusion to the human eye, but when the mind is viewed through the Dharma its shield of invisibility is removed and its destructive potential is laid bare. Kilesa lays dormant in the kamma of the mind at birth. It is like an implanted microchip or computer virus that is constantly waiting to seize any opportunity to flourish, contaminate and overpower the pure elements of mind as they arise and develop. Unlike the physical body, kilesa does not die with the body but continues within the kamma of the astral human spirit to be born again in the appropriate realm. The power that we allow kilesa to exert over our minds may be likened to the power of a jailer to place in us a cell of his choice in this prison of life. Should we be reckless regarding the kilesa that will try to influence negatively our thoughts and actions, we will unavoidably suffer the consequences. Kilesa clouds the mind, drawing it into a darkened cave to be manipulated like a puppet for its own ends. The true cause of suffering, it has immense power to turn virtuousness into evilness, delude the mind with wrong perception, and deceive the senses as to what is good and what is bad. By dividing kilesa into three categories we may more closely examine the nature of its intrusive defilements on the mind. Greed — If unchecked, greed fills the human mind with an overwhelming irrational desire to have more, and an insatiable hunger or craving that leads to immoral thoughts and actions to achieve extravances bourn our physical and mental requirements. We try endlessly to fill our bottomless glass while suffering an unquenchable thirst. We resort to any means — cheating, robbing, or even in the extreme to killing — just to feed our greed, but we will never be able satisfy this mind-manipulating demon. From a desire for material things, craving develops into a greed that consumes the mind, and decisions are made to do whatever it takes to fulfill that greed. Although those actions may finally harm us, by then we do not care. Only through awareness combined with generosity can we combat this suffering. By the giving of alms, support to others, donations and charitable TRAINING THE TRAINERS 40