STREAM ENTRY FOR LAYPEOPLE - by Bhikkhu Anīgha 

• Then the Blessed One gave the householder Upāli progressive instruction, that is, talk on giving, talk on virtue, talk on the heavens; he explained the *danger, degradation, and defilement in sensual pleasures and the blessing of renunciation. When he knew that the householder Upāli’s mind was ready, receptive, free from hindrances, elated, and confident,* he expounded to him the teaching special to the Buddhas: suffering, its origin, its cessation, and the path. Just as a clean cloth with all marks removed would take dye evenly, so too, while the householder Upāli sat there, the spotless immaculate vision of the Dhamma arose in him: “All that is subject to arising is subject to cessation.” Then the householder Upāli saw the Dhamma, attained the Dhamma, understood the Dhamma, fathomed the Dhamma; he crossed beyond doubt, did away with perplexity, gained intrepidity, and became independent of others in the Teacher’s Dispensation. Then he said to the Blessed One: “Now, venerable sir, we must go. We are busy and have much to do.” “You may go, householder, at your own convenience.” Then the householder Upāli, having delighted and rejoiced in the Blessed One’s words, rose from his seat, and after paying homage to the Blessed One, keeping him on his right, he left to return to his own house." ―MN 56 • These three similes occurred to me spontaneously, never heard before. Suppose there were a wet sappy piece of wood lying in water, and a man came with an upper fire-stick, thinking: ‘I shall light a fire, I shall produce heat.’ What do you think, Aggivessana? Could the man light a fire and produce heat by taking the upper fire-stick and rubbing it against the wet sappy piece of wood lying in the water?” “No, Master Gotama. Why not? Because it is a wet sappy piece of wood, and it is lying in water. Eventually the man would reap only weariness and disappointment.” “So too, Aggivessana, as to those contemplatives and brahmins who still do not live bodily withdrawn from sensual pleasures, and whose sensual desire, affection, infatuation, thirst, and fever for sensual pleasures has not been fully abandoned and subdued internally, even if those good recluses and brahmins feel painful, racking, piercing feelings due to exertion, *they are incapable of knowledge and vision and supreme enlightenment*; and even if those good recluses and brahmins do not feel painful, racking, piercing feelings due to exertion, *they are incapable of knowledge and vision and supreme enlightenment.* This was the first simile that occurred to me spontaneously, never heard before. ―MN 36 •“What, bhikkhus, are the five shackles in the heart that he has not severed? Here *a bhikkhu is not free from lust, desire, affection, thirst, fever, and craving for sensual pleasures,* and thus his mind does not incline to ardour, devotion, perseverance, and striving. As his mind does not incline to ardour, devotion, perseverance, and striving, that is the first shackle in the heart that he has not severed. “Again, a bhikkhu is not free from lust, desire, affection, thirst, fever, and *craving for the body* ...As his mind does not incline to ardour…that is the second shackle in the heart that he has not severed. “Again, a bhikkhu is not free from lust, desire, affection, thirst, fever, and *craving for form*…As his mind does not incline to ardour…that is the third shackle in the heart that he has not severed. [...] “Bhikkhus, that any bhikkhu who has not abandoned these five wildernesses in the heart and severed these five shackles in the heart should come to growth, increase, and fulfilment in this Dhamma and Discipline-*that is impossible.* ―MN 16 •“Bhikkhus, without having abandoned these five obstructions, hindrances, encumbrances of the mind, states that weaken wisdom, [=*sensual desire*, aversion, ...] it is impossible that a bhikkhu, with his powerless and feeble wisdom, might know his own good, the good of others, or the good of both, or realize a superhuman distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones. ―AN 5.51 •“Bhikkhus, (1) for one deficient in virtuous behavior, (2) right composure (samādhi) lacks its proximate cause. When there is no right composure, for one deficient in right composure, (3) the knowledge and vision of things as they really are lacks its proximate cause. ... (4) disenchantment and dispassion lack their proximate cause. ...(5) the knowledge and vision of liberation lacks its proximate cause. “Suppose there is a tree deficient in branches and foliage. Then its shoots do not grow to fullness; also its bark, softwood, and heartwood do not grow to fullness. So too, for one deficient in virtuous behavior, right composure lacks its proximate cause. When there is no right composure … the knowledge and vision of liberation lacks its proximate cause. ―AN 5.24 •And what is the nutriment for ignorance? It should be said: the five hindrances. The five hindrances, too, I say, have a nutriment; they are not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for the five hindrances? It should be said: *the three kinds of misconduct.* The three kinds of misconduct, too, I say, have a nutriment; they are not without nutriment. And what is the nutriment for the three kinds of misconduct? It should be said: *non-restraint of the sense faculties.* ―AN 10.61 •“And how, bhikkhus, is there nonrestraint? There are, bhikkhus, forms _[sounds, etc.]_ cognizable by the eye that are desirable, lovely, agreeable, pleasing, sensually enticing, tantalizing. If a bhikkhu seeks delight in them, welcomes them, and remains holding to them, he should understand this thus: *‘I am declining away from wholesome states. For this has been called decline by the Blessed One.’* [...] -SN 35.98

That simile of the sticks is one of my favourites. There's even another layer to it, which ties in very well with what is said here: if the sticks are thoroughly dry and well seasoned internally, they can get soaked by rain but will dry out easily within a matter of days if put into dry conditions. (Just like the mind of the stream enterer which remains internally 'dried out' from sensuality even if they engage in it externally to a degree.) Yet if the log is still fresh, sappy and green internally, you can't make fire with it even if it is dry on the outside - and it takes a solid year or even two to thoroughly dry out, after it is cut. (Like the puttujhana's mind which is still internally full of the 'sap' of sense-desire even when not engaging with sensuality externally.)

Not valuing sensuality is something that happens in increments and it grows and deepens with continued self reflection, honesty, and contemplation. I think the Sotapanna has reached the point where they just know that sensuality is a losing game, and they know why this is the case, but they must still close the gap between that relatively new understanding and their every intention. The only way to close that gap and to have right view at the absolute forefront of the mind is to exercise sense restraint.

These points are SO clarifying! I’ve never heard these things talked about. Thank you so much. Metta!

Some years ago when i was upset because a customer owed me money and the anger i felt was so strong that i let go of the fact that i was owed money and i was focused on the anger as the problem. Reflected on the state of anger its self as harmful to me in general and i turned to the buddhas teaching. Around that time on one unforgettable night i sat crossed legged in my living room and was mindful of breathing. After sometime this blue light collected in front my face with my eyes closed. Soon after it collected my vision zoomed into it 3x like a telescope and out of that space burst out an 8 spoked wheel that started spinning literally. In some suttas it says the immaculate dhamma eye arose in some. That is the most literal accurate description of what of what i experienced but i didnt fully understand craving or unwholesome states. Yet before then i felt like i knew somthing vaugly about self identy was bad and i spent nights trying to remember something i felt i forgot and then the eightfold reminded me. I think i knew this before somehow

I hope we'll get more of your teachings. It's nice to hear other hillside hermitage monks.

Very helpful talk. If one struggles with finding a method to restrain ones automatic bad mental thought habits do this = imagine the bad thought to be an evil person that is looking for signs of fear in you and he wants to attack you if you show signs of fear and what would you do? ofcourse you would not show any signs of fear and arise manly vigour and faith inside yourself and the same way you do to your bad thought,mind and pressure. So arise manly vigour and faith and press against the thought,mind and pressure and stop thinking and the bad thought and pressure will cease and for the first time in your life you have faith in yourself because now you know how to control your thought, mind and pressure and it will never be able to overwhelm you anymore in a vicious circle as it did when you didnt have faith in yourself and didnt know the "how and what to do" to control your mind and stayed indecisive and kept sinking in the mud of your automatic bad mental thought habits. Ones bad thought habits will become weaker and weaker untill they ceases all together. Now one have by default a peaceful and happy state and also one have faith in oneself and it is easy and natural to say no to ones desire. I understood the Venerable Anigha to say that even when we clean up the bad thought mental habits and have peace and happiness by default while that is everything a Laymen wants for sure but from a Monks perspective that is still not Nibbana from the Buddhas teaching which requires to also deal with the delighting in the possiblity of sensuality.

When you're struggling for quite some time to understand the Dhamma (on the level of the Right View), while still not being fully free from the sensual, I reckon you, kind of, have to wait a few years (maybe 2 or 3) for the whole addiction to wear off (weaken) sufficiently enough (the coarse stuff first) for you to be able to see all the subtler ways in which you keep yourself addicted (and thus sabotage or slow down the breaking out of the addiction). While in that state, it really helps to hear the same thing (from someone who knows it, of course) but using slightly different wording or analogies. The progress is really slow and in small steps, so this can give a tiny insight that can be quite noticeable. This very slight improvement in understanding is important as it can motivate a person, rather than just feeling like nothing is really happening. Let Bhante Anīgha keep up his writings (and talks) in the future as well.

14:15 interesting conclusion. i have always took this as a sign that the Buddha's presence and way of teaching had a profound impact on people which you simply can't get by just looking up dhamma on the internet. the Buddha frequently displayed talent as a teacher and i wouldn't be surprised if he was also great at paying close attention to the effect his words have on people's minds. also i am pretty certain that some people believe that he had supernatural powers when it comes to establishing a deeper mental connection with a person in front of him. although i also definitely see your point that nowadays the average person's mind may be more defiled in some cases. there's a large spectrum for these, but sensuality and linear, meaningful intellectual thinking are often not very balanced in people nowadays, not established through education nowadays.

I wonder if there are Buddhist Monasteries in this world that teach the path as presented? In a few months I will free myself from legal obligations with the matter I have accumulated, then I follow in the footsteps of the Buddha.

For me everything is layed down marvelously in the essay ,, what the JHĀNAS really are" . It's really a phenomenal and brief summary of what the training is and how to conduct it. As you say, the mind of the puthujjana inevitably leans towards pleasures and leans away from displeasures. The cause of a mind leaning towards pleasures and away from displeasures is the grasping at and identifying with the arisen feeling.(as well as with the other aggregates) And then the arisen pleasant or unpleasant feeling becomes the subsequent cause of the concurrent desire. The difference to someone with right view , who has abandoned the assumption that his aggregates are his personality or that his personality is in the aggregates, is that the one with right view is not able anymore to react to the arisen feeling i.e. to lean towards a pleasant feeling and to lean away from a unpleasant feeling. Simply because he has discerned that by grasping at and identifying with the arisen feeling one will automatically develop desire in regards to the arisen feeling. He discerns feelings as they arise and does not touch them as if they were burning coals. He can't regard the arisen feeling as ,,mine" anymore , not because he chooses not to do so, but because a ,,self"- protective mechanism kicks in not allowing him to do so, which is the consequences of him having understood that the moment he grasps at and identifies with a arisen feeling he will get injured. It's similar to someone who won't pick up a piece of burning coal not because he chooses not to do so but it is simply impossible to deliberately do such a stupid act of self inflicted injury. This is the consequence of the understanding that the aggregates are empty of self, me and mine. And this is the meaning of inwardly having abandoned the valuing of sensuality due to the right view, as opposed to someone who does not have the right view, therefore still values sensuality inwardly and so can only make efforts to practice sense restraint externally. Someone with right view can never again indulge in sensuality the same way as he used to do as a puthujjana. Though his knowledge can be obscured at times when pain or prospect of pleasure seem overwhelming he is unable to go back to the path of forgetfulness.

Thank you, Bhante! 🙏🏿🙏🏿🙏🏿 Is it possible to receive direct intructions from the Monks in the Hermitage?

First time seeing you Face to face venerable. Sadhu Sadhu Sadhu ....

The Gradual Teaching: Generosity, Virtue, Heaven, Drawbacks, Renunciation, and finally the Four Noble Truths.

How 3rd noble truth arise? Yonisomanasikara is to Direct the mind to the place to introspect Follow by Sampanjanna is on that place there one must continue focusing it.

Sotapanna now sees the aggregates are not self through it is known by sotapanna ,still there are subject to repeating torment of samsara cycle conventional truth of anicha,dukkha,anatha.They the Sotapanna, sakadagami anagami are still opress by these phenomenor force of nature until their existence ends upon dissolution of this nama rupa when their attainment is Arahat As long as any of the 4 saint still carries these nama rupa,,they will be subject to these nature uncomfortable force of anicha,dukkha,anatha. Suki hotu. Buddhang saranam gacchami

God bless you for your efforts to educate 😊 honestly, it is appreciated and critical. Some don't live near anything Buddhist.

I believe I was listening to a fellow American am I correct? And great job Venerable

Thank you, I really needed to hear this message.

So here's a theory that might explain things further. In the last 200 years or so, life expectancy has nearly doubled because our hygiene and health services have drastically improved. There was a time, not so long ago, when the medical community laughed at a doctor who suggested that it might be a good idea to wash your hands before you operate on someone (so yeah, it was rough back then). Technology also took off since the Industrial Revolution, and our lives became much more enriched (sensually). We toned down the obvious large-scale super-violent wars and formed larger communities (and became more prone to taking lazy safety in the masses). Cities became much more organized and civilized, and many things are taken care of automatically (you're not likely to see a random corpse decomposing in the streets for days or someone throwing a bucketful of excrement and urine on your head, through the window). All in all, living conditions have become much more pleasant and easy, and we embraced them carelessly and cluelessly. Today, there's hardly a minute where an average person is not entertained by something sensual. In fact, an average person (not even rich) has better conditions than an average king back then. While back in the day of the Buddha, none of this was in place. Not having all these things available, they were not spoiled by them and addicted to them. Furthermore, if they were not addicted to heavy sensuality (and various comforts), but only engaged with it rarely when circumstances allowed, they were, on average, genuinely much less interested in it as well (it was much more out of their everyday reach, and they didn't have as much time for it). Also, the variety of sensuality was much lesser, and those fewer options were much less dazzling. A person of today would probably be bored sick with their entertainments. And all this, likely, had been the status quo for many thousands of years prior (for many rebirths before Buddhas' arrival). Also today, whole teams of experts are specifically designing and constantly improving their products to maximize our pleasure circuits activations (in the brain) to literally hook us on whatever they're selling. So things are way more interesting than they would be naturally. So, back then, when they came to talk to the Buddha, they could easily, for a couple of minutes at least, genuinely drop all interest in all things sensual (i.e., temporarily abandon sensuality), which freed their minds long enough for the Dhamma to click (Stream-Entry). Today we cannot do the same because we are literally heavy addicts (not speaking metaphorically). All the anxiety and depressions of today are the result of this great general addiction. Based on all the research that has been done on addiction, we know that addictions are very easy and fast forming. Things that are addictive (general sensuality included), that are highly rewarding in the dopamine sense, only a couple of engagements can be enough to hook you. And we have had at least two whole human lives (in these modern nice conditions) to do it and to do it real good. Finally, that's why it is necessary to almost aim for full Anāgāmi right at the start, i.e., we need to OVERSHOOT TO COMPENSATE for the gap (between us today and them back then). We need to completely abstain for a few years to weaken the addiction to sensuality just enough to gain the ability to, for a moment, genuinely drop all interest in it, to be able to see the Dhamma (get the Right View). And this is actually great news! It means that if you get really serious and do ti right (practice consistently), that Great Stream-Entry is actually achievable within a couple of years of training (Ajahn Chah estimates within first 5 years).

🙏🙏🙏 Great teaching.

I guess I will put myself out there and speak from my first hand experience as I am not a monk I can say these things .I am not seeking validation. I had been practicing meditation since I was 14 and got serious after I turned 30 I would read the suttas understanding most of them I had been holding the 8 precepts for 3 months.prior and the 5 precepts years before then I did not have any realizations until I had one single moment of pure renunciation After that my mind/consciousness was changed forever I no longer had any doubt in the teachings And could understand the ones that were confusing me previously As a consequence I can no longer fully enjoy sensual pleasures Something in my head is constantly telling me that even if I play cards with friends or seeing a movie that none of that is leading me to nibanna and infact leading me away . It almost feels shameful to do those things now. What I guess what I'm trying to say is that it does take quite some effort perhaps years but now I feel like I have done something meaningful with this life. Thank you for the video

As long as the fuels of the 5 aggregates continue to be attached ignorancely by us...birth,sickness ageing,death will be endless. Buddhang saranam gacchami

Yonisomanasika is to bring the mind and place it there. Sampanjanna keep focus on it with upeka. This way is known as clear comprehension is the correct way to practiced Satipatthana

Thank you very much Bhante, this video is already changing my life combined with your latest short essay 🙏🙏

It is in this way of clear comprehension that finally make the mind becomes really obedient. Obedient mind is upeka mind.The mind that now can focus easily.

Why do you think the Buddha asked that monks not speak about their personal experiences with Stream Entry to the lay folks?

I thought a stream enterer could not stray from the path. I thought a stream enterer was incapable of breaking a precept.

🙏

The way for laypeople to attain stream entry is to just continually note their emotions in daily life. Use daily life as your meditation object. When you are angry, note, "This is anger." When you are thinking, note, "This is thinking." When you are dull and distracted, note, "This is dullness and distraction." And just keep doing this every day while keeping the 5 precepts.

One thing I really don't understand is that if attaining sotapana is such a life changing thing, how would anyone after that go back to a lifetime of drinking . If one is drunk, then by definition, it isn't in control, so it can do all kinds of wrongdoing. Also, how do we know that people back in Buddhas' time were so much more developed than people are now? As far as I know, India was back then quite a brutal world with wars and killing on a daily basis, and human life was not very precious . How does one get spiritually developed in such an environment . I think this context matters. Am I wrong?

I do not agree, even sotapanna's will still have sense desire to a large degree. Hindrances can temporarily be removed while listening to discourses from ariya''s If you have the merits for it and live a decently moral life, understanding the dhamma is enough. Just like what happened in the sutta's is happening now aswell, many lay people are attaining stream entry from listening to sermons.

Are Ajahn Maha Buha's teachings included here because something is off a bit. 🙏

Why did Ajahn Chah call Sotapanna "fish sauce"? Ajahn Sumedho, when asked about that, said something like "because it's just a label to give the practice some flavor". What is the Bhantes' opinion on this topic?

I’m not sure I agree. A sotapanna removes ditthi vipalasa but still has sanna vipalasa, which is to say that despite understanding the lack of value of sense pleasures, they still perceive them as such. Someone can only be dispassionate to the extent that you seem to be describing when they completely remove kama raga, which aliens upon becoming an amagami.

I think you may be putting the cart before the horse here. You cannot simply decide not to value sense pleasures, the very presence of desire is evidence that the mind values what it is craving. Even the idea of restraint implies that you are controlling yourself form engaging in something, if there is a need to do that then clearly there is attachment. You actually need some level of insight in order to see the suffering that is generated by indulging in sense pleasures. Once you see this, the letting go will happen automatically, just like someone who realises they are holding onto a hot coal will let go of the coal. This isn't to say that there is no benefit in applying sense restraint, the benefit here is that it allows you to generate a strong conviction in the teachings which is hard to do if you are actively seeking comfort and delighting in sense pleasures.

25:50 In the Pali Canon and other early Buddhist texts, an arahant is someone who has attained full enlightenment and is thus free from all defilements, including sensual desire. The state of arahantship is characterized by the complete eradication of the ten fetters, which include sensual desire (kāmacchanda) and attachment to form (rūparāga) and formless realms (arūparāga). There is no account in the early Buddhist scriptures of an arahant returning to sensuality, as this would contradict the very definition of arahantship. Once a person has attained arahantship, they are considered to have eradicated all forms of craving and attachment, which means they would not revert to a state of sensuality. The Theravada tradition, which holds the Pali Canon as its doctrinal core, maintains that an arahant is incapable of backsliding into a less advanced spiritual state. This is a fundamental aspect of the Theravada understanding of enlightenment. Other schools of Buddhism may have different interpretations, but the concept of an arahant returning to sensuality is generally not supported in the traditional texts.

these guys are stuck chasing their own tails. They made it way too complicated. And if the world itself was not a doom driven wasteland, any child can “get it”, many already have. beatles say, love is all you need, it’s like you got lost in the colon of your own mind, now you are afraid to freaking smell things well, no wonder

Great dhamma talk! Thank you, Bhante! 🙏🙏🙏