Dhamma with Ajahn Sujin

[Roti] Ajahn, my question is what do you mean by life, anything that it's not bhavanga? [A. Sujin] So now we're talking about the other citta which does not perform the function of bhavanga, right? So, what we take for life is that which experiences the object and rupa conditioned by that which experiences the object, too. So what is life? Without that which experiences, can it be life? Door, cupboard, bed, window, is it life or it's not life? It cannot experience anything at all. [Roti] So bhavanga is not life... [A. Sujin] It is, because it is citta. The kamma conditions vipaka and vipaka is the word for that which experiences an object. Even kamma conditions the rupa, like the hadaya vatthu and bhava rupa at moment of birth, but it cannot experience the object. That's why when we talk about life, it's that which experiences the object, including that which is conditioned by that which can experience an object, [for] which we use the word kamma. So...

[Tam T.] In the satipatthana, is the seeing part of the kaya [anupassana]? [A. Sujin] While one is sitting and there is seeing, what can be the object of satipatthana? This is a question, please. While one is sitting, lying down or doing something, what can citta or what can sati be aware of, with understanding of that object? What can be the object? [Tam T.] Like when you're sitting down the body is touching... [A. Sujin] Yes, but can there be the other object instead of [the] body? [Tam T.] I don't know the answer. [A. Sujin] Because you think about the word about rupa about seeing and so on, but the truth is that the rupa cannot experience anything at all and at moment of seeing the reality which arises and sees has no rupa at all, it just arises to experience. So no matter while one is sitting, doing something, cooking and so on, can anything be object of awareness? When there is understanding. But when there's no understanding no condition to u...

[A. Sujin] And what is the important [one] now? [T. Tam] Yes sometimes I think it's pleasant feeling we are always looking for it. [A. Sujin] That's why when everything is so pleasant, the source or the main faculty is that which arises and feels, so any kind of feeling is very important. The importance of what is there is indriya, so great, like without it that moment cannot be such and the other realities just follow it because when everything is fine, it's so pleasant by that kind of feeling. So, is any kind of feeling not important? That's why we learn to understand what's meant by indriya, the main faculty, or it's so very important, right then. And at the moment of pleasant feeling or indifferent feeling. What is there too as indriya? But different indriya, what else is there as indriya? At moment when feeling is indriya, what else is indriya? At that very moment? It is also citta because citta performs its function and it is the main faculty [...

[Tam B] Ajahn, last time you were talking about indriya, can you explain a little bit about that? [A. Sujin] Would Khun Sarah just talk a little bit about the meaning of the word indriya in English, what's that. [Sarah] Indriya is like the leader, usually in English is translated as faculty, it's the leader in its own function. [A. Sujin] And when we understand the reality which is indriya we can understand the meaning of indriya because it's not just the word. So, how many realities are indriya? [Sarah] 22 indriya, 22 leading faculties. [A. Sujin] So, when we understand [them] one by one we can understand more about the meaning of indriya. For example, shall we talk about just one at a time, one by one, what is the first one? [Sarah] The first one is the eye base, the cakkāyatana, cakkhu, the eye sense. [A. Sujin] So we can see that, as there is a reality which is conditioned to arise to experience, it cannot arise without conditions, so, one condition,...