“That’s how such an endless cycle is formed and carries on.”

 The Teachings of Ajahn Suchart.

14th May, 2022

“That’s how such an endless cycle is formed and carries on.”

“As long as there still remain craving and desire in one’s heart, all the happiness and pleasures from sight, sound, odour, taste, and touch—no matter how much—will be fleeting. They are temporary—only last while experiencing them. After that, there will be even more craving to experience such pleasures, just as we’ve experienced them from the day that we were born up until now. We have yet to feel enough and satisfied. We still constantly crave to see forms, hear sounds, taste flavours, smell odours, and feel touches.

This is a delusion—to think that experiencing these sensual pleasures would bring happiness. Little did you know that you’ve already become a slave of your sensual craving. That is, if you somehow don’t manage to consume or experience such sensual pleasures when you’re longing for them, i.e., sexual/sensual craving (rāga-taṇhā or kāma-rāga), you’ll suffer and feel discontent. You’ll have to find a way to experience pleasing sights, sounds, odours, tastes, and touch. After being content for a while, another craving will reoccur; that’s how such an endless cycle is formed and carries on.

Even after you die, your mind still holds onto these cravings, and so it will search for these sensual contacts in the next realm and existence. You will have to be reborn in a sensual realm where sentient beings can experience such sensual pleasures. This can range from the heavenly realm of devas, that of humans, that of animals, that of ghosts, that of demons, to that of evil/hell beings; they are the places for sentient beings that are still attached to and have desires for sensual pleasures. As long as your craving for sensual contact has not been curbed and eliminated, you’ll still be bound to be reborn in this endless cycle.

The type of realm in which you will be reborn depends on how you sought out your sensual pleasures. 

You would be reborn in the realm of happiness after you die if you sought pleasures out in a skilful way—with good and pure intentions: not through killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and substance abuse. You may be reborn in the heavenly realm of devas or in the human realm.

But if you sought out the sensual pleasures in an unskilful way—with wrong intentions: through killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying and substance abuse, you will then be reborn in those four lower realms of animals, ghosts, demons, and evil/hell beings. Your mistaking of sensual experiences and pleasures through sights, sounds, odours, tastes, and touch for happiness will subject you to the endless cycle of rebirth and death in these sensual realms.”

“Essential Teachings”

By Ajahn Suchart Abhijāto

www.phrasuchart.com

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