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The Discourse on Training (Book of Nines): Using the Foundations of Mindfulness to Support Weakened Virtue
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The Discourse on Training (Book of Nines): Using the Foundations of Mindfulness to Support Weakened Virtue

Sikkhādubbalyāni

Killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying and drinking alcohol are five things that weaken the training. The Buddha gives the way to abandon them: develop the four foundations of mindfulness. Not just renewing the resolve to keep the precepts, but training mindfulness until you catch covetousness and displeasure in time.

7 points

In the Sikkhā Sutta of the Chapter on the Foundations of Mindfulness in the Book of Nines of the Aṅguttara Nikāya, the Buddha says there are five weaknesses of the training: killing living beings, taking what is not given, sexual misconduct, false speech, and liquor, wine and intoxicants that cause heedlessness.

He then says that to abandon these five, one should develop the four foundations of mindfulness: contemplating the body as a body, feelings as feelings, mind as mind and phenomena as phenomena, ardent, clearly comprehending and mindful, removing covetousness and displeasure for the world.

The other discourses in the same chapter follow the same pattern, developing the four foundations of mindfulness to abandon the five hindrances, the five strands of sensual pleasure, the five aggregates subject to clinging, the fetters, the five kinds of stinginess, the five kinds of mental barrenness and the five mental bondages. This discourse was addressed to monks, but the five items it names match the five precepts of lay people.

  1. 1

    Five things that weaken the training Pañcimāni bhikkhave sikkhādubbalyāni

    Killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, false speech and drinking intoxicants that cause heedlessness are called the weaknesses of the training: they weaken the whole of one's self-training.

    Applying it in daily life

    See the five precepts as the foundation of all practice. If concentration or meditation isn't progressing, look back at this foundation first.

  2. 2

    The way to abandon them is to develop the foundations of mindfulness Pahānāya cattāro satipaṭṭhānā bhāvetabbā

    The Buddha says that to abandon these five, one should develop the four foundations of mindfulness. He does not only say to refrain, but to train the inner tool that makes refraining really possible.

    Applying it in daily life

    If there is a precept you break repeatedly, besides renewing your resolve, add a few minutes of mindfulness practice each day alongside it.

  3. 3

    Contemplating the body as a body Kāye kāyānupassī viharati

    The first foundation is contemplating the body as a body, knowing what is happening in the body as it is.

    Applying it in daily life

    Practise knowing the body's signs of anger, such as clenched hands or a hot face. Knowing the body in time helps stop violent actions before they happen.

  4. 4

    Contemplating feelings, mind and phenomena Dhammesu dhammānupassī viharati

    The other three are contemplating feelings as feelings, mind as mind, and phenomena as phenomena. The discourse abbreviates them with "etc." in the same form as the body.

    Applying it in daily life

    When you want to lie to escape discomfort, try knowing that an unpleasant feeling has arisen and that the mind is looking for a way out. Just seeing it in time leaves room to choose the truth.

  5. 5

    Ardent, clearly comprehending, mindful Ātāpī sampajāno satimā

    Every foundation in the discourse comes with three qualities: ardour, clear comprehension and mindfulness.

    Applying it in daily life

    Set a mindfulness reminder on risky days, such as before a party or a money negotiation, and briefly review which precept you will take special care with today.

  6. 6

    Removing covetousness and displeasure Vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṃ

    The aim of the foundations of mindfulness here is to remove covetousness and displeasure for the world. In real life, such wanting and resentment are often the driving force behind breaking precepts.

    Applying it in daily life

    When you want what belongs to someone else or are very displeased with someone, take it as a warning that your virtue is at risk, and return to the breath or the sensations in the body for a moment.

  7. 7

    The same method works for other things Satipaṭṭhānavaggo

    The discourses that follow in the same chapter use the four foundations of mindfulness to abandon the hindrances, sensual pleasures, stinginess, mental barrenness and mental bondages, showing that the foundations of mindfulness are a general tool for many problems of the mind.

    Applying it in daily life

    When you find a habit you want to change, you needn't look for a new method each time. Use the same principle: know the body, know feelings, know the mind, and know the states arising.

Try it in daily life

Many people keep the precepts by resolve, then slip on days when they are tired, angry or strongly wanting something. This discourse shows that virtue needs mindfulness to support it, because the moments when a precept breaks are usually the moments when mindfulness has slipped.

Mindfulness in daily life can start small: knowing that your hand is reaching for another glass, knowing that discomfort is about to turn into a lie, or knowing that the mind wants something that is not yours.

If you have already slipped, the way of this discourse is to return to developing mindfulness rather than sinking into self-blame. Catching it even a little sooner next time is progress.

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