Ajahn Lee Dhammadaro

Ajahn Lee Dhammadaro

Normally, our hearts can hardly ever sit still. They have to think about all kinds of thoughts and ideas, both good and bad. When good things happen, we keep them to think about. When bad things happen, we keep them to think about. When we succeed or fail at anything, we keep it to think about. This shows how impoverished the mind is. When it thinks about things it likes, it develops sensual craving. When it thinks about things that are possible, it develops craving for possibilities. When it thinks about things that are impossible, it develops craving for impossibilities, all without our realizing it. This is called unawareness. 

It’s because of this unawareness that we have thoughts, judgments, and worries that form the wellspring for likes, dislikes, and attachments. 

Sometimes the things we think about can come true in line with our thoughts; sometimes they can’t. While there’s at least some use in thinking about things that are possible, we like to go to the effort of thinking about things that are out of the question. I.e., when certain things are no longer possible, we still hold onto them to the point where we feel mistreated or depressed. We keep trying to get results out of things that can no longer be. When our hopes aren’t satisfied, we latch onto our dissatisfaction; when they are satisfied, we latch onto our satisfaction. This gives rise to likes and dislikes. We latch onto thoughts of the future and thoughts of the past. Most of us, when we succeed at something, latch onto our happiness. 

When we don’t succeed, we latch onto our disappointment. Sometimes we latch onto things that are good—although latching onto goodness leaves us some way to crawl along. Sometimes we actually latch onto things that are clearly bad.

 

- Ajahn Lee Dhammadaro (Wat Asokaram)

28 March 2023