When I first start to learn meditation, with the goal of awakening, my teacher gave me only 2 books to read
    1) satipathanna by bikkhu analayo
    2) seeing that frees by Rob Burbea.
    .
    I re look at satipathanna Sutta again today.
    the Buddha says.
    “In this way he remains focused internally on the body in and of itself . . . This is how a monk remains focused on the body in and of itself.”
    “ In and of itself. “
    Wow. The secret is already there in the sutta. Some translations are not that clear..
    .
    The Buddha meant -
    One should practise knowing the body from the perspective of “the body knowing the body”,
    Not from “you” knowing the body.
    And the whole sutta is worded like that.
    In short——- > The body knows
    The sound knows
    The sight sees
    The touch knows
    This is made clear in master thich nhat hant translation and commentary , others not so much, they overlook this part a lot.
    Everyone serious about awakening should take a look at thich nhat hant’s commentary.
    .
    .
    .
    The satipathanna sutta is pretty much the enlightened state of the Buddha.
    There is no mention of a self.
    It is irrelevant.
    Just these aggregates knowing itself in itself by itself.
    Freely.
    .
    .
    .
    And at the end of the sutta
    A bold promise is made-
    With this practise one could get enlightenment as fast as 7 days.
    Just like the bold statement Mahasi Sayadaw made in his treatise.
    Don’t read all the 1000 plus sutra.
    Read and fully practise this one and you will have the realisation of the Buddha.
    If you need one whole life to actualise this sutta, do it. Don’t divert . It is enlightenment.
    Actualise it.
    Buddha didn’t teach anything for you to memorise and debate.
    He wanted to wake you up.
    It was a manual and instruction.
    Homage to the Blessed one.
    Who taught so clearly and so directly.
    Homage to master Thich nhat hant,
    Who fully present to us the Buddha’s intent
    ❤️

    9 Comments


    Jachym Jerie
    Are you recommending the Analayo version or the one by tnh? If the latter what's the title?


    Yin Ling
    Jachym Jerie analayo one is very dry, it’s a scholars perspective, less experential, it was tough reading.
    Thich nhat hant one is the best , he always teaches experentially, even though he is such an eminent scholar , he is also a great practitioner.
    If you are a practitioner you would want to read thict NH
    I have thich nhat hant awakening of the heart which he comments on a few landmark sutra and satipatthana is one of them,
    Not sure if he has a specific one for this sutta.
    I am so grateful for master thich nhat hant 🙂


  • Lee Shi Han
    Can you awaken without reading anything?


    Yin Ling
    Good Q hahah. Depends also on level of awakening.
    There are cases of ppl like eckhart tolle and Byron Katie who seems to wake up suddenly due to intense depression
    But their accoutn of awakening is not the enlightenment taught by the Buddha. It is midway perhaps
    For me imo it is v hard. I haven’t hear of anyone who come to the truth without gruelling work bec the truth is too radical and the conditioning too deep.
    Then again i also cannot say a blanket impossible it is just super rare


  • Sam Roff
    Have you read Joseph Goldstein's 'Mindfulness: a practical guide to Awakening' Yin? I believe A recommends it. Found it to be a wonderful commentary on the Sattipathanna. Although I might revisit it because I read it in a phase of very much intellectualising. Or Thich Nhat Hahns book.
    Is this the one you're talking about btw? https://www.amazon.com/Transformation.../dp/1888375620
    Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness
    AMAZON.COM
    Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness
    Transformation and Healing: Sutra on the Four Establishments of Mindfulness


    Yin Ling
    I had the “awakening of the heart”, this looks good as well will download . All TNH BOOKS are good hehe.
    Yup A made me study Joseph Goldstein book mainly the awakening factors part, I forgot about satipathanna inside haha I will revise thanks for that reminder 🙂 🙂


  • Sam Roff
    You're very welcome!


  • Ng Xin Zhao
    Read this last year. Now it made sense and gels with what you kept on saying, don't have subject and object.
    SUTTACENTRAL.NET
    suttacentral.net | 502: Bad gateway
    suttacentral.net | 502: Bad gateway


    Yin Ling
    Ng Xin Zhao yeah I think the Buddha is talking about the split of subject object here.
    There’s no split just dependent arising. Each sensation just dependently arise from many conditions being eye consciousness, eye, object, light, sun, karma etc etc
    The 12 ayatanas and 18 dhatus teaching talked about this - many conditions brought to arising of one “thing/ sensation” and hence becusse it dependent arise like that the “thing” does not even exist out there.
    Super radical once understsnd 😂
    It is a shocking teaching from the Buddha and I’m not sure if ppl gets what he is getting at.

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