Introduction
The mind that is sent outwards is the origin of suffering (Samudaya).
The result of the mind that is sent outwards is suffering (Dukkha).
The mind that sees the mind clearly is the path (Magga).
The result of the mind that sees the mind clearly is the cessation of suffering (Nirodha).
The article above is the Noble Truths of the Mind (Ariyasacca), a precious Dhamma of Ajahn Dune Atulo which leads to the observation of the mind. Many times, the attempt to 'fix' our minds with numerous practices only leaves us more agitated and exhausted. Ajahn Dune Atulo pointed to a much simpler way. He taught that the mind itself is the Buddha. All of our suffering arises from nothing other than... the attempt to chase after what is already within us. This Dhamma talk, therefore, is not about adding anything new... but is an invitation for us to 'stop' conditioning and worry, to allow the true Buddha to manifest on its own.
This reading is an English translation of the original teachings from the book 'The Mind is the Buddha' by Ajahn Dune Atulo.
Please find a quiet moment, let your mind be at ease, and allow these Dhamma teachings to guide your heart.
Mind (Citta) is Buddha.
All Buddhas and all sentient beings are nothing other than the One Mind (Eka-citta). Beyond this One Mind, nothing whatsoever exists.
This One Mind, which is without beginning, is unarisen and indestructible. It is neither green nor yellow, and it has no form or appearance. It is not included among things that exist and do not exist, and it cannot be judged as new or old. It is neither long, short, large, nor small, for it transcends all boundaries, measurements, names, traces, and comparisons.
This One Mind is the very thing that is right before our eyes. Yet, if we try to apply reason to define what it is, we immediately fall into error. It is like boundless emptiness, which cannot be fathomed or measured.
Only this One Mind is Buddha. There is no distinction between Buddha and all sentient beings. It is merely that sentient beings cling to corporeality (Rūpadhamma) and, because of that, they seek Buddhahood (Buddhabhāva) externally. This external seeking is precisely what causes them to miss Buddhahood. To do this is like using what is Buddha to search for Buddha, and using Mind to grasp Mind.
Even if they exert their utmost effort for an entire eon, they will not attain Buddhahood. They do not know that if they merely cease their conceptual fabrications and abandon the anxiety of seeking, Buddha will appear directly before them. This is because Mind is Buddha, and Buddha is all living things. This reality, when it appears in ordinary beings, is not small; when it appears in Buddhas, it is not great.
Chapter 2: The Trap of External Seeking
Regarding the practice of the six Perfections (Pāramitā) , the countless similar observances, or the accumulation of immeasurable merit like the sands of the Ganges River: consider this, if we are already complete in the fundamental truth in all circumstances—that is, if we are the One Mind or one with all Buddhas—then we should not try to add anything to what is already complete by engaging in those meaningless observances, should we? When the opportunity arises to act, do so, and when the opportunity passes, simply remain at peace.
If we have not decisively realized that Mind is the Buddha, or if we still firmly cling to various forms of corporeality, to various observances, and to various methods of accumulating merit, then our line of thought remains mistaken and is not at all in accord with that Path.
Only this One Mind is Buddha. There is no other Buddha anywhere else, no other mind anywhere else. It is radiant and faultless, just like emptiness—it has no form or phenomena whatsoever. When we use our Mind to conceptually fabricate and dream, it is like abandoning the essential substance and binding ourselves to corporeality, which is like a husk. The eternally existing Buddha is not the Buddha of clinging.
The practice of the six Perfections and the performance of countless similar observances with the intention of becoming a Buddha is a step-by-step practice. However, the eternally existing Buddha, as mentioned, is not a Buddha attained through such gradual practice. The matter is simply to awaken and open one’s eyes to the One Mind, and there is nothing to attain. This is the true Buddha. Buddha and all sentient beings are this One Mind; there is nothing else besides this.
Chapter 3: The Nature of Emptiness
Mind is like emptiness, within which there is no confusion or any imperfections. As can be seen when the sun passes through emptiness, it illuminates all four corners of the world; for when the sun rises, it brightens the entire earth, yet true emptiness itself does not become brighter, and when the sun sets, emptiness does not become darker. The phenomena of light and darkness alternate, but the nature of emptiness itself remains unchanged. The Mind of a Buddha and of all sentient beings is likewise.
If we view a Buddha as expressing the appearance of what is pure, radiant, and enlightened, or if we view sentient beings as expressing the appearance of what is foolish, dark, and in a state of stupor, these thoughts and feelings, which arise from clinging to corporeality, will hinder us from the highest knowledge. Even if we have practiced for countless eons, like the sands of the Ganges, there is only this One Mind. There is not even a single particle to cling to, because that Mind itself is the Buddha.
When we, as seekers on this Path, do not open our eyes to what is essential—namely, this Mind—we will obscure that very Mind with our own conceptual fabrications. We will seek Buddha outside of ourselves. We will continue to cling firmly to corporeality, to the intoxicating practice of 'merit-making', and to other similar things. All of this is perilous, and is by no means the way that leads to that highest knowledge.
The essence of this supreme reality, internally, is like a plank of wood or a stone, meaning it is devoid of movement. Externally, it is like emptiness, meaning it is without boundaries or obstacles. It is neither mental (Nāmadhamma) nor corporeal (Rūpadhamma). It has no specific location, no form, and can never disappear.
This Mind does not cling to conceptual thoughts. It exists apart, utterly unconnected with corporeality. Therefore, all Buddhas and all sentient beings are likewise. If we can merely succeed in freeing ourselves from conceptual thoughts, we will achieve everything.
The true Dhamma is Mind itself; apart from that, there is no Dhamma at all. This Mind is the Dhamma; apart from that, it is not Mind. But Mind, in itself, is not a mind; and yet, it is also not a not-mind. When we say that Mind is not a mind, it is precisely this which signifies something that truly exists. This something transcends words. Let go of all thinking and explanation entirely. Then, it can be said that the channel of words has been cut off, and the behavior of the Mind has been utterly abolished.
This Mind is the pure Buddha-womb (Buddhayoni), inherently present in everyone. All beings that have feelings and thoughts and can move, as well as all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, are all of this one nature; there is no difference at all. All differences arise only from our mistaken thoughts, which lead us to ceaselessly construct all kinds of Kamma.
The original nature of our Buddhahood, in ultimate reality, is something without so much as a single particle of a self. It is emptiness, something present everywhere, tranquil, and unadulterated. It is a luminous and mysterious peace. Mysterious, and in that alone, it is complete.
Enter deeply into this very thing by opening our own eyes to it. This very thing before us is that very thing, in its fullest, most complete, and ultimate measure. There is nothing beyond this.
Mind is the Buddha, the supreme reality. It encompasses all things within itself, from the fully enlightened Buddhas at the highest extreme, down to the lowest species of beings—creatures that crawl on their chests and various insects—at the lowest extreme. All these things share equally in the nature of Buddhahood, and all things are of the same substance as the One Mind. Therefore, all beings are intrinsically connected and of the same substance as the Buddha at all times. If we can merely succeed in understanding our own Mind and, through that understanding, discover our own true nature, then it is certain that there is nothing whatsoever that we need to seek.
Chapter 4: The Stillness of No-Thought
Our Mind, if we can keep it truly still, completely abstaining from even the slightest thought-movement of the mind, its true essence will manifest as emptiness. Then we will find that it is something formless. It occupies no space anywhere, not even a single point. It does not fall into the classification of being a kind of 'existence' or 'non-existence' in any way whatsoever. This is because this is something we cannot perceive through the sense doors. For the Mind, which is the true nature of human beings, is the womb or origin which no one has brought into being and which can never be destroyed.
In reacting to various environments, it transforms itself into various phenomena. For convenience of speech, we refer to Mind as 'intelligence'. But when it is not responding to the environment—that is, when it is not functioning as the intelligence that thinks and creates—it is something that cannot be spoken of, let alone be defined by the categories of 'being' or 'non-being'.
Furthermore, even when it performs the function of creating things in response to the law of cause and effect, it remains something that is imperceptible through the sense doors: the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind. If we know this truth, we must remain in absolute stillness within a state of nothingness. At that moment, we are truly walking the path of the Buddhas. Therefore, we should cultivate the Mind to abide in absolute nothingness.
The five root-elements which constitute consciousness (Viññāṇa) are empty, and the four elements of the physical body (Rūpakāya) are not what constitute our self. The true Mind is formless and has no coming or going. Our original nature is a single thing which has no beginning at birth and no end at death, but is a single, unbroken whole, and is devoid of any movement whatsoever in the very depths of its entirety.
Our Mind and the things that surround us are one and the same. If we can truly understand this, we will attain clear seeing and knowing in a single flash. At that moment, we will no longer be entangled in the three worlds. We will be transcendent of the world, with not even the slightest inclination towards rebirth. We will be only our true self, completely devoid of conceptual fabrications, and one with that supreme reality. We will attain a state where nothing further can be fabricated. Therefore, this is the fundamental Dhamma right here.
Perfect Enlightenment (Sammāsambodhi) is the name for clearly seeing that no dhamma is not void. If we understand this truth, of what use can illusions be to us?
Philosophy (Prajñā) is enlightenment; enlightenment is the original, formless Mind. If we can understand that the doer and what is done—that Mind and corporeality (Rūpa-nāma)—are one and the same, that understanding itself will lead us to a profound and mysterious realization beyond words. And through this very realization, we will open our own eyes to the true Dhamma.
Our true Dhamma does not disappear from us even when we are deluded by ignorance (Avijjā), nor is it regained when we are enlightened. It is the nature of Suchness (Bhūtattathatā). In this nature, there is neither ignorance nor Right View (Sammādiṭṭhi). It is merely emptiness. It is the true substance of the One Mind. This being so, how can the various mental (Nāmadhamma) and corporeal (Rūpadhamma) phenomena created by our Mind be external to that emptiness?
Fundamentally, emptiness is devoid of the dimensions of occupying space—it is devoid of defilements, devoid of Kamma, devoid of ignorance, and devoid of Right View. We must understand with clarity that in reality, there is nothing at all: no ordinary humans, no Buddhas. For within this emptiness, nothing is contained, not even the smallest strand of hair that could be perceived through the dimensions or laws of occupying space. It depends on nothing and clings to nothing. It is a spotless beauty, something that stands by itself, the uncreated supreme reality. It is truly a jewel beyond all valuation. If we can separate this "detached form" through knowledge (vijjā), the path (magga), and Mind (citta), then cause must be abandoned and effect must be relinquished. When this is done, the debt is extinguished, and one is freed from the cause of arising.
Chapter 5: Origin of the Cycle: Form & Mentality
Living and non-living things in the universe are countless; in sum, there are only two kinds: form and mentality (Rūpa-nāma). The original mentality is the emptiness of the universe. When they pair together, they become the cause for the arising of ignorance, giving rise to the cause of creation. Wherever there is form, there must be mentality. Wherever there is mentality, there must be form. Form and mentality combine, causing a reaction that continuously changes and gives rise to time. That is, forms are mutually attractive, which is the cause for them to move and rotate on their own axis according to conditions. For form to be able to move, there must be mentality—emptiness intervening between forms—thus allowing form to move.
When the nature of phenomena is like this, all objects, matter, and living and non-living things must change, exhibiting the Three Characteristics (Tilakkhaṇa) of arising, ceasing, and continuing at every moment of mind, never ceasing to remain in the present. Mind-Consciousness also arises from the form-mentality of the universe; because it is illusory and deceptive, it causes people to become deluded. From non-living form-mentality, it changes into living form-mentality. From living form-mentality, it becomes living form-mentality with Mind-Consciousness. Then, Mind-Consciousness changes and separates, leaving only empty mentality devoid of form. This is the pinnacle of the deception of form-mentality.
The root cause for the arising of the universe's form-mentality is the cause for the arising of various worlds and countless stars, for there is no end. Various worlds of form-mentality cause the arising of plant form-mentality. Plant form-mentality causes the arising of mobile animal form-mentality, which are called living things. In reality, whether form-mentality is living or non-living, it can move, because having form and mentality as cause and effect leads to an inherent reaction that causes continuous movement and change. We do not see this with our physical eyes, so we call them non-living things. When the form-mentality of a plant changes into the form-mentality of an animal, it is the starting point of animal life and the cause for the arising of Mind-Consciousness. The display of movement causes Kamma to arise.
The first generation of animals created only bad Kamma. Animals ate animals, and there was anger, greed, and delusion according to the external and internal conditions that impacted them. The Kamma displayed by animals involves the five senses of eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body, which interact with the five objects of form, sound, smell, taste, and touch. These then impress, contain, record, and photograph themselves onto atomic forms, which are subtle forms (Sukhummarūpa) latent in emptiness. We cannot see them with our eyes. These forms, latent in the emptiness that intervenes between the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body completely.
When this first generation of animals died, having only bad Kamma, it caused them to be reborn in order to repay the debt of the bad Kamma they had created. But the animals, once reborn, would not agree to repay the debt; instead, they increased the debt exponentially, continuing even to this present life. Therefore, by the power of the bad Kamma impressed upon the five piles of subtle forms, along with the male and female genders which are subtle forms attached to those five piles, they will spin and coalesce into a spherical atomic form (Rūpaparamaṇū), maintaining its shape by continuous, unceasing rotation. This forms an abode (Guhā) for the Mind to dwell within, called form-consciousness or "detached form," because it is detached from the empty mentality—the emptiness that separates the coarse forms of the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body—which is itself a subtle form latent in emptiness. Form-consciousness (Rūpa-viññāṇa) thus has life and endures far longer than the coarse form. Bad Kamma guards it, keeping it rotating in that form. No deity can kill it; only Nibbana can dissolve this form-consciousness.
The manifestation of Kamma in animals, impressed upon the five piles of subtle forms—which consist of the five piles of the forms of the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body—is, when combined, called Mind. Thus, the Mind's "office" is attached to the five piles of consciousness, forming the central workplace of the Mind. This then connects with the external eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body, which serve as the Mind's channels of communication. Therefore, Mind and Consciousness are not the same. Mind is the knower, the one that thinks and conceives. Consciousness, on the other hand, is the abode for the Mind to dwell in and the vehicle that carries the Mind to rebirth or wherever it may go. It is the life-sustaining subtle form (Jīvīsikkha-rūpa)—a subtle form detached from the coarse form. It contains the forms of the male-female genders, and the forms of the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body, all held within a malevolent consciousness, thereby causing the continuation of future existences.
When an animal dies, the coarse physical body of that existence ceases according to its lifespan. The true life, however—the atomic form-consciousness—does not die or disintegrate. It must be reborn into various realms according to conditions, a cycle that rotates continuously. It is this true life, the detached form or Consciousness, rotating on its own axis, that causes the Mind to arise and cease continuously, ready to receive external and internal events that impact the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind. The Mind will then change according to the impacting conditions, accumulating good or bad as its capital, causing arising and ceasing, so that the Mind continues to fabricate until the bad Kamma that caused its arising is exhausted. Then, the true life—the detached form-Consciousness—will cease its rotation. The subtle form "form-consciousness," which arose from bad Kamma accumulated continuously since the very first birth, will disintegrate and separate, unable to maintain its form. It will disperse. The good Dhamma of the Mind that was attached to the Consciousness will also disperse with the atomic form, leaving only the emptiness that intervenes in every space of the atomic form. Therefore, without the atomic form, that emptiness is pure and luminous, merging with the original pure and luminous emptiness of the universe to become one. This is called "Nibbāna."
Chapter 6: The Buddha’s Final Extinction
When the Lord Sammāsambuddha had brought the life of Buddhism into being, making it fully complete as was His wish, the Buddha then abandoned the craving for non-existence (Vibhavataṇhā) and entered Nibbana with no remainder (Anupādisesanibbāna). He became one who had extinguished every craving, one who was utterly extinguished. The characteristics of the Buddha's Nibbana with no remainder are as follows: First, He entered deeply and completely into meditative absorption (Jhāna) until reaching the cessation of perception and feeling (Saññāvedayitanirodha), meaning He entered cessation at the deepest level, beyond the immaterial absorptions (Arūpajhāna). In that first phase, He had not yet definitively extinguished the aggregates; He merely entered to perform the process of attaining Nibbana, or cessation, for the very last time in His life. To put it simply, it was to enter into that which He had created and diligently established as a path, as an example, for one final time—something which could be said to have arisen from His willingness to dwell with subtle suffering (Dhuli-dukkha), a subtle suffering that ordinary humans with coarse minds are too coarse to perceive as suffering.
And this process of bringing one’s own mind to the cessation of perception and feeling (Saññāvedayitanirodha) is a process that only the Peerless Perfectly Enlightened One (Anuttara Sammāsambuddha), the supreme teacher in the world, discovered. He unfolded it and revealed it to the world of beings that they might practice accordingly. After experiencing this final state, He returned to the initial state, the First Jhāna (Paṭhamajhāna), and then made the final decision to extinguish the various aggregates one by one. The consciousness-aggregate (Viññāṇakkhandha) of life and body had ceased long before entering the First Jhāna (Paṭhamajhāna), because the aggregate of mental formations (Saṅkhārakkhandha), or the mental formations (Saṅkhāradhamma) of the first level, must be extinguished first for the consciousness-aggregate to cease. Therefore, no trace of that coarse consciousness-aggregate remained.
The Buddha began by extinguishing the inner aggregate of mental formations, or the mental formations that can give rise to the craving for non-existence (Vibhavataṇhā), at the first level, then ascended to the Second Jhāna (Dutiyajhāna). Then He extinguished the perception-aggregate (Saññākkhandha) and ascended to the Third Jhāna (Tatiyajhāna). When He extinguished the innermost aggregate of mental formations, or the mental formations, one more time, He then ascended to the Fourth Jhāna (Catutthajhāna), leaving only the feeling-aggregate (Vedanākkhandha) as the last of life. That is the characteristic of the final stage of utter cessation.
When the Buddha had extinguished all of the final great aggregate of mental formations, He then extinguished the feeling-aggregate—which is the consciousness-aggregate (Cittakkhandha) or mentality-aggregate (Nāmakkhandha) containing the inner Mind (Citta), that is, the Bhavanga consciousness (Bhavaṅga-citta)—first. Then He emerged from the Fourth Jhāna and, at that very moment, extinguished His truly final consciousness-aggregate or mentality-aggregate. It is right here that He entered Nibbāna. He did not enter Nibbāna within any jhāna or samāpatti. When He emerged from the Fourth Jhāna, the consciousness-aggregate or mentality-aggregate ceased simultaneously; nothing remained. This means He extinguished the feeling-aggregate in a state of awakened mind, the normal process of consciousness (Vīthicitta) of a human, fully complete with mindfulness and clear comprehension, not overcome by any other state. It was a deliberate state, not allowing any other state to overcome or delude Him in any way. It was a state that was fully His own.
When the truly final feeling-aggregate was utterly destroyed, He became pure, completely free from all mental formations and from all seeds of the consciousness-aggregate or mentality-aggregate within Him. Nothing remained. He left behind only the form-aggregate (Rūpakkhandha), which certainly cannot have life, for form is not life. If mentality ceases, it is merely a solid thing, a lump of matter. That, indeed, is the sequence of jhānas that the Venerable Anuruddha followed with his jhāna-mind, truly observing the method of cessation—cessation by Mind, with the Buddha Himself being the one who extinguished it.
All of the Buddha's teachings mentioned here are simply for the purpose of cultivating the Buddha-mind to blossom forth so that it becomes apparent to us. We merely need to make it empty of all the various conceptual fabrications, which invariably lead to continuous arising and ceasing, and lead sentient beings and other worlds to suffering and distress completely. That alone is enough. Then we have no need for methods of practice for enlightenment or anything of that sort whatsoever.
All of the Buddha's teachings have this one single objective: to carry us beyond the realm of thought. Now, if we stop thinking and succeed in stopping our thoughts, the benefit of all the Dhammas that the Buddha taught is this: being able to practice until one can stop the very behavior of conceptual fabrication, so that nothing can concoct the Mind into thinking according to the power of defilements and craving any longer. That Mind, empty of fabrications and all thoughts, is itself the Dhamma, or the Buddha, or the original true nature in its suchness. If we can understand these matters deeply, human words cannot sway or reveal them.
Enlightenment is to have nothing to recollect. One who is enlightened does not say that they know anything, because this is beyond words.