Controlling emptiness

Some notes I have used several years ago:

“In general, moral discipline is a virtuous determination to abandon any non-virtuous action. For example, if by seeing the disadvantages of killing, stealing, or sexual misconduct we make a firm decision to refrain from such actions, this is moral discipline.”

Keeping pure moral discipline is a great way to create happiness for the future and to create a strong confident mind right now. Real training of the mind takes discipline. Like a wild elephant that can be tamed. Distractions will lessen and the mind will become more peaceful. It’s this control also which will cease delusions and distractions. You have to see the benefit of doing it and start making ordinary things routine by adding in purification practice and combining this with other practices.

Pure, meaningful habits that give structure and foundation and a protection from suffering are to be cherished as best friends, like a spiritual guide, each one of them guiding you to the unsurpassed.

Simply not performing certain actions is not moral discipline or restraint. Since babies don’t kill, steal or lie. When understood that certain actions are harmful and a determination is present then our actions are for a reason or purpose guided by intention and lasts for the duration of restraint.

What is the point of promising not to kill if you already do not kill?

The very basis or start of purification is to realise that we have experienced with our mind, previous lives. With the happiness and suffering that we experienced leaving potentials on our very subtle mind. Our previous death was a substantial cause of our birth. Other causes such as our mother’s egg and fathers sperm are secondary causes. If we harbour doubts of this then our purification will not be as powerful as we could make it, therefore we should establish the logical reasons of inference within our mind that reveal the truth of this point.

Have a good look at mind vs brain, cause and effect and form and formless.

Then, with the understanding that you have killed before in the past and hold potentials within your mind to experience that suffering, you can actually purify the effects similar to the cause and create new habits. The actual seed can be purified fully by a realization of emptiness. The realization of death, impermanence, precious human life and so forth will arise indirectly from such restraint. As you cannot see those potentials it does not mean that they are not there.

How do you remove potentials that you cannot see taste or touch?

Potentials to experience suffering states of mind are either existent in our mind or non-existent in our mind, they cannot be both and they cannot be something different.  They either exist or do not exist. They have not been created by people merely as an intellectual thing. Everything is mere appearance, other than that, things exist conventionally by name and so forth. The experience or arising of such karma has been experienced and has ceased but the potentials have not.

Analogy: you have seen the film in the cinema but the potential to see the film again exists as it will come out on DVD. But it wont be the same.

If they do not exist in our mind, then there is no potential for the mind of suffering to arise. Since the only place we can experience suffering is in our mind then potentials must exist somehow. Suffering does not come from external things since these things are devoid of inherent existence.

Regret, cleanses the potentials.

Reliance, on living beings/buddhas (Bodhichitta/compassion) also purifying

Opponent power – virtuous action that actually opposes the negative energy/pattern

Promise – creates by way of intention a new path, new potentials, new way of thinking, a different pattern of perception and experience – analogy: mala: promise is like the thread of the mala and the others are like the beads.

Most of the potentials have not ripened yet and may not ripen yet which is why that when we actively engage in purification we may feel as if nothing is happening. But something is happening. What is happening?

On a gross level you realise you are not your delusions. You are ceasing actions that perpetuate suffering.

There should be an element of understanding of emptiness, motivated by Bodhichitta, to destroy the seeds since this is the only way the seeds can be destroyed and uprooted. Finally, we want all our actions and experiences to be known as empty. So we experience emptiness all the time. This is how to do it. We recognize all the effects of our actions as empty, the suffering we will experience as empty and the person who creates and experiences as empty. Pure mind.

Imagine if all your exchanges with others could be completely purified and you sow the seeds of emptiness and Bodhichitta at the same time. This is totally possible with training. If you practice a special purification practice with certain promises for each person or a specific promises then your cherishing can really do some damage to your self grasping. Usually it’s just not powerful enough. Each being can be a meditation.

You need to start practicing restraint using different times throughout the day to strengthen your realizations and strengthen your mental muscles. This is extremely beneficial. You also need to use times of rest for purification so you are actively practicing restraint during these times also and whilst asleep. This may appear quite lazy but it’s not. An active control of actions is what it’s all about. Thread your actions with virtue. Practice everything with virtue, especially emptiness.