********
What is Yoniso Manasikara?
Yoniso manasikara means to apply the mind skillfully, or wise reflection. It is thinking in terms ofcausal relations, such as the consequences of thoughts and actions, or by way of problem-solving, inorder to help us to see things as they really are, leading to wiser decisions. Ultimately, it is theconscious use of thought to bring the mind to peace.Yoniso means, literaly, "to the womb". The meaning is, getting to the core or essence of the matter,doing something with understanding of the pith and substance, understanding cause and effect,understanding the heart of the matter.As for translating manasikara, it simply means to keep something in mind.(manasi = in the mind, kara = made, done.)
In Buddhist texts, yoniso manisaka is listed among the four “virtues conducive to growth,”
These are:1) Association with a wise friend (such as a parent or teacher)2) Listening to good teaching3) Wise reflection4) Practicing in accordance with good teaching.As such, yoniso manisaka cultivates mindfulness and full awareness, which, in turn, are the
conditions for the arising of ‘Right View,’ or understanding the true nature of the Four Noble Truths
and the law of kamma.
Yoniso manasikara
—
wise reflection
“The emptying of the mind of thoughts, or concentration of the mind on just one thing.”
It is clear that concentration, by itself, does not guarantee the development of wisdom. Buddhaattributed to the application and accomplishment of wise attention as a key factor needed toprogress through each stage of awakening and to fully realize the Dhamma.In a balanced practice, concentration and mindfulness are important tools to develop and use. Thepoint is that we must know how to use them wisely and this is where wise reflection helps greatly.With wise reflection we can develop a balanced practice with right view, which will guide the otherfactors of the noble eightfold path, and bring us to deeper wisdo
m and peace. “Right view comesfirst.”
Etymology Yoniso comes from the Sanskrit
„yoni‟
meaning
“the womb or origin
(place of birth).”
Manasikara means
“directing the mind or attention.‟‟
So yoniso manisaka means literally “directing the attention to the core or essence ofthe matter.”
As the Buddha has taught:
“With regard to internal factors, I do not perceive any other single factor as helpful as wisereflection in doing so much benefit for one in training, who has not attained the heart’s
goalbut remains intent on the unsurpassed safety from bondage. One who reflects wisely
abandons what is unskillful and develops what is skilful.” (It 16)
There is a good exposition about the difference between wise keeping-in-mind and unwise keeping-in-mind:"Bhikkhus! In the world the ignorant worldling, who is not in the habit of seeing the Ariyas,who is not proficient in the dhamma of the Ariyas and who is not trained and disciplined in thedhamma of the Ariyas, who is not in the habit of seeing the Virtuous, who is not proficient inthe dhamma of the Virtuous and who is not trained and disciplined in the dhamma of theVirtuous, does not know the factors which should be considered attentively and the factorswhich should not be considered attentively.Not discriminating the factors which should be considered attentively from the factors whichshould not be considered attentively, he considers attentively the factors which should not beconsidered and does not consider attentively the factors which should be considered.If we consider how hate arises in our mind for example, we read that the Buddha advises his Monksto guard their senses. When the senses are unguarded the mind can easily and frequently come intocontact with disagreeable objects of sight, sound, touch, taste or hearing. When the mind comesinto contact with a disagreeable object such as these aversion or dislike will arise as a direct result.By this means hate is prompted to arise in our minds even when we are intending to abandon hate
Wisdom and Yoniso Manasikara
Most Buddhists would agree that the practice of Yoniso Manasikara would improve the one’s ability
to see beyond that is to see. That a wise reflection would indeed help one to understand the fournoble truth, see beyond the eight fold path thus ultimately helping the self in attaining Nirvana.
“Venerable Prayut Payutto writes, ‘Yoniso manasikara directly precedes wisdom. It acts as a
link between sati, mindfulness, and panya, wisdom. It is that which guides the stream ofthought in such a way that wisdom is able to get do
wn working and achieving results.”
--Neil Amas, Director of Panyaden School
Hate and negative impacts of unwise attention
If our attention moves to a disagreeable mental object again hate will arise at the same time. Ouruntrained mind has the tendency to dwell on disagreeable objects such as memories of anunpleasant experience in our recent past or the loss of something of importance.These habits are another means responsible for causing arising of aversion or hate. Another namefor this attention we are giving to unfruitful objects of the senses or mind is unwise attention. At
that time if we ask our self “where does ou
r hate come from?
“How does hate arise in our mind?”
we can get a better view of the situation.
The unwholesome mental state is coming from unwise attention we are giving to particular objectsof our senses or mind
. The same processes of mind occur with the arising of sense desire and greed.Unwise attention is also a cause for the arising these unwholesome mental states. We canappreciate the importance of developing wise attention when we understand some of the outcomesof unwise attention.
“Many peop
le today think that freedom and unrestraint are synonyms and that the taming ofthe self is a hindrance to self -development. In the teaching of the Buddha however it is quitedifferent. The self must be subdued and tamed on right lines if it is to become truly well.The Buddha, The Tamed, teaches the Dhamma for the purpose of taming the human heart(mind). The tamed mind has the property of being calm, and when concentrated that calmmind can see things as they really are. (Pali: samahito yatha bhutum paj
anati)”
--
“Buddha Dhyana Dana Review Volume 9 Number 2, 1999, P. 10.
Awareness plus right attitude, and wise contemplation equals success
Feeling good is not enough to help a person attain a certain success in finding his path. Even if theperson is happy because he won a lottery or the person is helpful but only when his/her crush isaround, it is not enough. We must have the right attitude added in our day to day activities andconsciousness. While doing so, we must also recognize that we all have wrong attitudes.
“ We all have wrong attitudes; we cannot help having them. So do not try to have the right
attitude, try to recognize if you have the wrong or the right attitude instead. It is important tobe aware when you have right attitudes, but it is even more important to recognize andinvestigate your wrong attitudes. Try to understand your wrong attitudes; find out how theyaffect your practice, and see how they make you feel. So watch yourself and keep checking to
see what state of mind you are practicing with. “
--- Sayadaw U Tejaniya on Right Attitude
No comments:
Post a Comment