One Who Resides in The Teachings

Here, a Monk learns The Teachings - the discourses, mixed prose and verse, explanations, verses, inspired spoken phrases, quotations, birth stories, amazing accounts, and questions-and-answers - but he does not pass the day [solely] in learning The Teachings. He does not neglect seclusion but devotes himself to internal serenity of mind. It is in this way that a Monk is one who resides in The Teachings.

Thus, Monk, I have taught the one absorbed in learning, the one absorbed in communication, the one absorbed in recitation, the one absorbed in thought, and the one who resides in The Teachings.

Whatever should be done, Monks, by a compassionate Teacher out of compassion for his disciples, aspiring for their welfare, that I have done for you.

These are the feet of trees, Monks these are empty huts.

Meditate, Monks, do not be complacent, lest you regret it later.

This is my instruction to you.

(Reference: AN 5.71)

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares how one can learn The Teachings but to fully and deeply understand a Practitioner needs to spend time alone “devoted to internal serenity of mind”.

All too often, the discontent unEnlightened mind wants to fill its time with people, activities, and things to occupy it ensuring there is no boredom or loneliness setting in. Instead, The Buddha is suggesting that one spends time alone reflecting and developing “serenity of mind” including meditation.

If one only ever learned The Teachings intellectually but failed to reflect and implement The Teachings into a life practice, they would not be “residing in The Teachings”. A Practitioner needs to step away from time-to-time allowing what they learned to deeply soak into the mind, while using the acquired wisdom to practice The Teachings to acquire more wisdom, in the application of these Teachings in daily life.

Gotama Buddha encourages Students to “not be complacent” as in doing so, one would “regret it later”.

Gotama Buddha never used guilt, shame, or fear to encourage people to learn and practice his Teachings. His Teachings are to eliminate guilt, shame, and fear among other discontent feelings, so he would not be interested to produce guilt, shame, and fear in the mind of his Students.

He humbly accepted invitations to teach based on people’s interest to host him in their village or home. He held regular talks people could attend at Temples to learn and then apply The Teachings in their daily life.

He explains that he shared these Teachings “out of compassion for his disciples, aspiring for their welfare”.

What I feel he might be pointing to here as “regret it later” is that if one lacks the determination, dedication, and diligence to learn, reflect, and practice The Teachings to include meditation, a Practitioner could surely “regret this later” through continuing to experience discontentedness and being reborn.

Here he is providing clear guidance that one needs to meditate in order to attain Enlightenment. One would not be able to attain Enlightenment without meditation. But, one would not be able to attain Enlightenment with only meditation either. A Practitioner will need to learn, reflect, and practice The Teachings in daily life to be able to “reside in The Teachings”.

It is when the mind is fully soaked into The Teachings that a Practitioner can readily apply The Teachings in daily life and experience the results.

Can you explain complacency and how to eliminate it from the mind?

Complacency is a hindrance to Enlightenment and will obstruct an individual from attaining this mental state.

Complacency is experienced in the mind where it is dull, lethargic, and unmotivated, it will hinder a Practitioner from the attainment of Enlightenment.

Complacency includes: being disinterested to learn and practice The Teachings of The Buddha. This can be experienced as a disinterest to read books, come to classes, seek guidance from a Teacher, meditate, etc. The Buddha describes complacency to the point where, if the mind experiences an unwholesome thought/idea/feeling and the Practitioner does nothing about it, then the mind is complacent. What a Practitioner is taught to do on The Path to Enlightenment is to “cut off and let go” of all unwholesome thoughts/ideas/ feelings, therefore, if one does nothing about an unwholesome thought/idea/feelings, the mind is complacent.

Again, this will hinder an individual from the attainment of Enlightenment, which is a purification of the mind.

If the mind is unEnlightened, then there is the fetter/taint/pollution of mind described as ignorance (unknowing of true reality) still in the mind. A Practitioner does not understand things as they truly are, the mind lacks wisdom of The Natural Laws of Existence. This is an all encompassing pollution of mind and is the last one that will be eliminated from the mind prior to Enlightenment.

As long as one’s mind is unEnlightened, it does not have the needed wisdom to attain Enlightenment because it is not yet practicing The Teachings (i.e. The Natural Laws of Existence), thus, there is ignorance, confusion, misunderstanding, misperception, a lack of wisdom, or “the unknowing of true reality” still in the mind. Ignorance is eliminated through learning, reflecting (i.e. independently verifying), and practicing The Teachings of The Buddha to acquire wisdom. Wisdom is just the opposite of “the unknowing of true reality” and will eradicate the mind’s fetter/taint/pollution of mind described as ignorance.

While ignorance is involved in all the fetters/taints/pollutions, the fetters that are directly involved in complacency are “Doubt” and “Sensual Desire”.

The mind doubts The Teachings of The Buddha and their ability to guide an individual to Enlightenment. And, the mind is having sensual desire, in that, it is holding on to certain things with craving/desire/attachment being unmotivated to learn and practice The Teachings while also indulging in unwholesome thoughts/ideas/feelings.

Doubt (Elimination of doubts about The Teachings and the ability of them to attain Enlightenment. Confidence in The Buddha, The Teachings, The Community, your Teacher, and your own ability to attain Enlightenment.)

Sensual desire (Elimination of the desire for pleasures from The Six Sense Bases: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and the mind.)

There is a remedy, or solution to eliminate complacency, that can be implemented to ensure the mind is able to overcome this obstacle and continue its journey to Enlightenment.

The solution is to practice The Eight Fold Path to include, the Enlightenment factors of investigation, energy, and joy from The Seven Factors of Enlightenment. The Enlightenment factors of investigation, energy, and joy are just the opposites of the dullness, lethargy, and lack of motivation that exists in the mind during the time of complacency. Some older texts use the phrase “sloth and torpor” for complacency but, “complacency” is a much better way to understand this aspect of the unEnlightened mind with language we use today.

Investigation: (Dedicated examination, exploration, research, study, and questioning to learn The Teachings.)

Energy: (Effort, determination, ambition, initiative, motivation, vigor, and enthusiasm; willingness to do something.)

Joy: (Pleased and delighted not associated with any specific object; unconditioned gladness; the Practitioner is not attaining it by craving/desire/attachment.)

Meditate, Monks, do not be complacent, lest you will regret it later. This is my instruction to you. (Reference: SN 43.1)

You can learn more about complacency and its remedy using these resources.

Volume 1 - Chapter 3 and the recorded classes where I teach The Five Hindrances, this is one of those.

Free Books - The Words of The Buddha

https://www.buddhadailywisdom.com/freebuddhabooks

The Five Hindrances & The Seven Factors of Enlightenment

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t6VKPshUn0