#59 AFTER A LONG PERIOD IN THE STAGE OF RIGHT ENDEAVOUR, MINDFULNESS EMERGES

#59 - ACCORDING TO THE MEDITATION PRACTICE SEQUENCE, AFTER A LONG PERIOD IN THE STAGE OF RIGHT ENDEAVOUR, MINDFULNESS EMERGES, AND THE PRACTITIONER ENTERS THE STAGE OF RIGHT MINDFULNESS, BUT IT IS NOT YET RIGHT ECSTASY. HOW CAN THIS BE EXPLAINED FURTHER?
Answer: Each stage of inner cultivation is an arduous process and not easy to accomplish. For example, transforming an unwholesome mind into one mixed with good intentions is extremely challenging because those with malevolent tendencies are often reluctant to give them up. Therefore, helping these people transform their mind is incredibly difficult. And if they fail to change, they may end up in hell after death. Similarly, for someone whose mind is a mix of good and bad intentions, how long does it take for them to achieve a purely wholesome mind with perfect morality? A person whose mind is filled with distracting thoughts must practice the correct method during the stage of Right Endeavour to develop mindfulness that controls the mind's disturbances. Achieving this takes a lot of time and effort. Even when mindfulness becomes more frequent, the mind may still fluctuate between calm and unrest. The practitioner must continue his practice until mindfulness becomes stronger and more consistent, enabling continuous control over the mind. Although this stage of Right Mindfulness is more relaxed and comfortable, it still requires diligent practice. Even with deep mindfulness, it doesn’t mean that one immediately enters the Right Ecstasy. The journey from having strong mindfulness, where the mind is still somewhat fluctuating, to achieving the Right Ecstasy is not a short one. This is why the Buddha considered Right Mindfulness to be a crucial component of the Noble Eightfold Path. When the practitioner enters the First Jhana (the first level of Right Ecstasy), it is already an achievement. The mind naturally settles in meditation and the practitioner no longer needs to exert effort. From here, depending on the accumulated merit of the practitioner, the depth of concentration in meditation will gradually increase until it is fully perfected, as long as no actions are taken that might diminish merit along the way.
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