The Nairobi Meditation and Dhamma Study Group was together again on Sunday for a wonderful meditation and then, after a break for some ’spiritual tea and cookies’, we continued with our discussion of the Chachakka Sutta — The Discourse of Six Sets of Six as part of our continuing study of the Dhamma Discourses of the Buddha. Actually, we reviewed §16 through §27 and spent our time in a wonderful discussion about identity, how we acquire it and live by it and how ultimately, it’s an illusion. The Buddha said…
- Now this is the way leading to the formation of identity. One regards the internal base (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’. One regards the external object (form, sound, odour, flavour, tangible, thought) as ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’. One regards consciousness (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’. One regards contact (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’. One regards experience (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’. One regards craving (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’.
Of course, a great part of our identity comes from the ‘external objects’ of the mind — our thoughts and in particular, our memories. But, no matter where this ‘identity’ comes from, we need to recognise the illusion of it and the truth that in fact ‘I’ am an ever changing collection of aggregates or aspects of body, mind and consciousness. And so, the Buddha reminds us…
- Now this is the way leading to the cessation of identity. One regards the internal base (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self’. One regards the external object (form, sound, odour, flavour, tangible, thought) as ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self’. One regards consciousness (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self’. One regards contact (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self’. One regards experience (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self’. One regards craving (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, mind) as ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self’.
We will be continuing with the Chachakka Sutta when the Nairobi Meditation and Dhamma Study Group gets together next. Please feel free to share your thoughts in the comments and I hope you’ll be back with us to continue this study of the Dhamma Discourses of the Buddha.
