How does practicing restraint and performing actions of merit purify the mind?












2















I just don't understand how morally good actions, can reliably change the state of mind positively over time, in the case where the mind state is negative. For example, let's say there was a hypothetical girl who wanted to purify her mind, but was always agitated, resentful and frustrated. How would practicing the five precepts, make her calm and peaceful?










share|improve this question









New contributor




Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.

























    2















    I just don't understand how morally good actions, can reliably change the state of mind positively over time, in the case where the mind state is negative. For example, let's say there was a hypothetical girl who wanted to purify her mind, but was always agitated, resentful and frustrated. How would practicing the five precepts, make her calm and peaceful?










    share|improve this question









    New contributor




    Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
    Check out our Code of Conduct.























      2












      2








      2








      I just don't understand how morally good actions, can reliably change the state of mind positively over time, in the case where the mind state is negative. For example, let's say there was a hypothetical girl who wanted to purify her mind, but was always agitated, resentful and frustrated. How would practicing the five precepts, make her calm and peaceful?










      share|improve this question









      New contributor




      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.












      I just don't understand how morally good actions, can reliably change the state of mind positively over time, in the case where the mind state is negative. For example, let's say there was a hypothetical girl who wanted to purify her mind, but was always agitated, resentful and frustrated. How would practicing the five precepts, make her calm and peaceful?







      sila






      share|improve this question









      New contributor




      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.











      share|improve this question









      New contributor




      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.









      share|improve this question




      share|improve this question








      edited 4 hours ago







      Tom













      New contributor




      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.









      asked 4 hours ago









      TomTom

      113




      113




      New contributor




      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.





      New contributor





      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.






      Tom is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.






















          4 Answers
          4






          active

          oldest

          votes


















          1














          Well, it seems obvious to me now, but it wasn't always, that our immoral impulsive behavior, both of possessive type and of repulsive type, comes from emotional hangups, so giving in to those hangups feeds them, or creates circumstances that feed them indirectly. So, if this immoral behavior comes from the mind, then by managing behavior we learn to control what?



          Anyone who tried the precepts knows they are impossible to keep without paying attention to one's mind and emotions. Precepts force us to control our external behavior, which requires controlling our mind, that's it. No magic.






          share|improve this answer

































            0














            Adhearing to the precepts will only have a positive effect on your mental states if you are currently breaking them. If the girl is always agitated because she is a chronic liar, the precepts will help her. If she is always agitated because she doesn't like her desk job, the precepts will not help her.



            What the precepts attempt to prevent are common actions that lead almost always to distracting mental states.



            The precepts are a guideline of things you can abstain from to make practicing the cultivation of concentration and wisdom easier. Your meditation sessions will not be as fruitful if you are constantly worried about getting caught in your lie.






            share|improve this answer































              0














              loosely, as i understand it,



              There are two things going on;




              1. Behavioral conditioning; formation of inclinations and tendencies. The way this occurs can be explained in terms of formation, dismantling and the strengthening of neural formations.

              2. Tweaking the range of possible experiences; consequent direction of one's reality to the supposedly desirable states which happen to have certain pre-requisite causes and conditions. The decisions we make direct us to certain experiences, thus if we aim at specific experiences we ought to bring about the requisite conditions to inevitably bring about the desired outcome.


              When one is set on attaining the yet-unattained one usually relies on external guidance as to how to bring about the yet-unattained. In case of the precepts their purpose and result is non-regret, non-regret as ie regret of not following directions, here is an example;



              'Person A' is convinced that there exists a 'Place' and that he needs to go to the 'Place' asap as it was a matter of life and death.



              However he does not know where it is and how to get there.



              'Person A' asks 'Person B' and is told the directions.
              'Person A' directs himself to the destination by following the path as it was proclaimed.



              Then 'Person A' gets an idea to deviate from the Path and subjectively speaking if his goal is to get to the 'Place' asap, if he was to deviate from the Path, it would absolutely compromise his objective and bring about regret and remorse for wrong-doing. It is wrong here because it is against the objective, if achieving the objective is desired then it is discerned as good, failure is discerned as bad, therefore what leads to failure is bad and what is bad is a cause for remorse and regret.




              “Sir, what is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics?” “Ānanda, having no regrets is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics.”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of having no regrets?”



              “Joy is the purpose and benefit of having no regrets.”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of joy?”



              “Rapture …”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of rapture?”



              “Tranquility …”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of tranquility?”



              “Bliss …”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of bliss?”



              “Immersion …”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of immersion?”



              “Truly knowing and seeing …”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of truly knowing and seeing?”



              “Disillusionment and dispassion …”



              “But what’s the purpose and benefit of disillusionment and
              dispassion?”



              “Knowledge and vision of freedom is the purpose and benefit of
              disillusionment and dispassion.



              “Mendicants, an ethical person, who has fulfilled ethical conduct,
              need not make a wish: ‘May I have no regrets!’ It’s only natural that
              an ethical person has no regrets. When you have no regrets you need
              not make a wish: ‘May I feel joy!’ It’s only natural that joy springs
              up when you have no regrets. When you feel joy you need not make a
              wish: ‘May I experience rapture!’ It’s only natural that rapture
              arises when you’re joyful. When your mind is full of rapture you need
              not make a wish: ‘May my body become tranquil!’ It’s only natural that
              your body becomes tranquil when your mind is full of rapture. When
              your body is tranquil you need not make a wish: ‘May I feel bliss!’
              It’s only natural to feel bliss when your body is tranquil. When you
              feel bliss you need not make a wish: ‘May my mind be immersed in
              samādhi!’ It’s only natural for the mind to be immersed in samādhi
              when you feel bliss. When your mind is immersed in samādhi you need
              not make a wish: ‘May I truly know and see!’ It’s only natural to
              truly know and see when your mind is immersed in samādhi. When you
              truly know and see you need not make a wish: ‘May I become
              disillusioned and dispassionate!’ It’s only natural to become
              disillusioned and dispassionate when you truly know and see. When
              you’re disillusioned and dispassionate you need not make a wish: ‘May
              I realize the knowledge and vision of freedom!’ It’s only natural to
              realize the knowledge and vision of freedom when you’re disillusioned
              and dispassionate.




              If she was only keeping precepts she would not experience the consequences of not following the precepts.



              Even tho our reality is subjective and relative as in one's head is big in relation to the head of an ant but is small in relative to an elephant's head, there are also absolutes, ie if one's head is blown off to pieces conditions one will absolutely die.



              Similarly one can know that eventho there are many different states called happiness and the discernment of happiness is subjective there is also absolute happiness and everyone can agree that not experiencing unhappiness is happiness and the escape from suffering is pleasant.



              Therefore absolutely everyone is interested in the absolute removal of what can be discerned as gross in light of what is supreme.



              Therefore when there are to that extent absolutes of good and bad, decision making associated with the ultimate good even at the level of mere morals and conventions will have higher expectation than the consequences of the unfavorable decisions.



              The consequences will be as they will be regardless of the subjective perspective and one's understanding of them which may or may not be in accord with objective reality.






              share|improve this answer

































                0














                All of the three or ten kinds of merits have the function to straighten right view. Once a gross healing and cleaning has reached, right view could be attained, the good Dhamma heard, seen by one self and as a result the path would develop, once the Noble eightfold path is reached, it's fruits in gaining liberation will appear naturaly, on it's given cause.



                And as mentioned in another answer, it's function is to gain a clean stand, good selfestimate, by cleaning and become rightly free of remorse, able to access borderlands to the Noble Domain. If not having done merits on what should one build on a good and required stand/state?



                As the Buddha told, merits are that what beings establish in auspicious states, states where they could be able to access the path to freedom, go on beyound.



                (Note: this is given for doing merits, not for trade, exchange or stackes to bind and stay bound)






                share|improve this answer








                New contributor




                Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                Check out our Code of Conduct.





















                  Your Answer








                  StackExchange.ready(function() {
                  var channelOptions = {
                  tags: "".split(" "),
                  id: "565"
                  };
                  initTagRenderer("".split(" "), "".split(" "), channelOptions);

                  StackExchange.using("externalEditor", function() {
                  // Have to fire editor after snippets, if snippets enabled
                  if (StackExchange.settings.snippets.snippetsEnabled) {
                  StackExchange.using("snippets", function() {
                  createEditor();
                  });
                  }
                  else {
                  createEditor();
                  }
                  });

                  function createEditor() {
                  StackExchange.prepareEditor({
                  heartbeatType: 'answer',
                  autoActivateHeartbeat: false,
                  convertImagesToLinks: false,
                  noModals: true,
                  showLowRepImageUploadWarning: true,
                  reputationToPostImages: null,
                  bindNavPrevention: true,
                  postfix: "",
                  imageUploader: {
                  brandingHtml: "Powered by u003ca class="icon-imgur-white" href="https://imgur.com/"u003eu003c/au003e",
                  contentPolicyHtml: "User contributions licensed under u003ca href="https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/"u003ecc by-sa 3.0 with attribution requiredu003c/au003e u003ca href="https://stackoverflow.com/legal/content-policy"u003e(content policy)u003c/au003e",
                  allowUrls: true
                  },
                  noCode: true, onDemand: true,
                  discardSelector: ".discard-answer"
                  ,immediatelyShowMarkdownHelp:true
                  });


                  }
                  });






                  Tom is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.










                  draft saved

                  draft discarded


















                  StackExchange.ready(
                  function () {
                  StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fbuddhism.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f31705%2fhow-does-practicing-restraint-and-performing-actions-of-merit-purify-the-mind%23new-answer', 'question_page');
                  }
                  );

                  Post as a guest















                  Required, but never shown

























                  4 Answers
                  4






                  active

                  oldest

                  votes








                  4 Answers
                  4






                  active

                  oldest

                  votes









                  active

                  oldest

                  votes






                  active

                  oldest

                  votes









                  1














                  Well, it seems obvious to me now, but it wasn't always, that our immoral impulsive behavior, both of possessive type and of repulsive type, comes from emotional hangups, so giving in to those hangups feeds them, or creates circumstances that feed them indirectly. So, if this immoral behavior comes from the mind, then by managing behavior we learn to control what?



                  Anyone who tried the precepts knows they are impossible to keep without paying attention to one's mind and emotions. Precepts force us to control our external behavior, which requires controlling our mind, that's it. No magic.






                  share|improve this answer






























                    1














                    Well, it seems obvious to me now, but it wasn't always, that our immoral impulsive behavior, both of possessive type and of repulsive type, comes from emotional hangups, so giving in to those hangups feeds them, or creates circumstances that feed them indirectly. So, if this immoral behavior comes from the mind, then by managing behavior we learn to control what?



                    Anyone who tried the precepts knows they are impossible to keep without paying attention to one's mind and emotions. Precepts force us to control our external behavior, which requires controlling our mind, that's it. No magic.






                    share|improve this answer




























                      1












                      1








                      1







                      Well, it seems obvious to me now, but it wasn't always, that our immoral impulsive behavior, both of possessive type and of repulsive type, comes from emotional hangups, so giving in to those hangups feeds them, or creates circumstances that feed them indirectly. So, if this immoral behavior comes from the mind, then by managing behavior we learn to control what?



                      Anyone who tried the precepts knows they are impossible to keep without paying attention to one's mind and emotions. Precepts force us to control our external behavior, which requires controlling our mind, that's it. No magic.






                      share|improve this answer















                      Well, it seems obvious to me now, but it wasn't always, that our immoral impulsive behavior, both of possessive type and of repulsive type, comes from emotional hangups, so giving in to those hangups feeds them, or creates circumstances that feed them indirectly. So, if this immoral behavior comes from the mind, then by managing behavior we learn to control what?



                      Anyone who tried the precepts knows they are impossible to keep without paying attention to one's mind and emotions. Precepts force us to control our external behavior, which requires controlling our mind, that's it. No magic.







                      share|improve this answer














                      share|improve this answer



                      share|improve this answer








                      edited 2 hours ago

























                      answered 3 hours ago









                      Andrei VolkovAndrei Volkov

                      39.3k331112




                      39.3k331112























                          0














                          Adhearing to the precepts will only have a positive effect on your mental states if you are currently breaking them. If the girl is always agitated because she is a chronic liar, the precepts will help her. If she is always agitated because she doesn't like her desk job, the precepts will not help her.



                          What the precepts attempt to prevent are common actions that lead almost always to distracting mental states.



                          The precepts are a guideline of things you can abstain from to make practicing the cultivation of concentration and wisdom easier. Your meditation sessions will not be as fruitful if you are constantly worried about getting caught in your lie.






                          share|improve this answer




























                            0














                            Adhearing to the precepts will only have a positive effect on your mental states if you are currently breaking them. If the girl is always agitated because she is a chronic liar, the precepts will help her. If she is always agitated because she doesn't like her desk job, the precepts will not help her.



                            What the precepts attempt to prevent are common actions that lead almost always to distracting mental states.



                            The precepts are a guideline of things you can abstain from to make practicing the cultivation of concentration and wisdom easier. Your meditation sessions will not be as fruitful if you are constantly worried about getting caught in your lie.






                            share|improve this answer


























                              0












                              0








                              0







                              Adhearing to the precepts will only have a positive effect on your mental states if you are currently breaking them. If the girl is always agitated because she is a chronic liar, the precepts will help her. If she is always agitated because she doesn't like her desk job, the precepts will not help her.



                              What the precepts attempt to prevent are common actions that lead almost always to distracting mental states.



                              The precepts are a guideline of things you can abstain from to make practicing the cultivation of concentration and wisdom easier. Your meditation sessions will not be as fruitful if you are constantly worried about getting caught in your lie.






                              share|improve this answer













                              Adhearing to the precepts will only have a positive effect on your mental states if you are currently breaking them. If the girl is always agitated because she is a chronic liar, the precepts will help her. If she is always agitated because she doesn't like her desk job, the precepts will not help her.



                              What the precepts attempt to prevent are common actions that lead almost always to distracting mental states.



                              The precepts are a guideline of things you can abstain from to make practicing the cultivation of concentration and wisdom easier. Your meditation sessions will not be as fruitful if you are constantly worried about getting caught in your lie.







                              share|improve this answer












                              share|improve this answer



                              share|improve this answer










                              answered 3 hours ago









                              w33tw33t

                              1995




                              1995























                                  0














                                  loosely, as i understand it,



                                  There are two things going on;




                                  1. Behavioral conditioning; formation of inclinations and tendencies. The way this occurs can be explained in terms of formation, dismantling and the strengthening of neural formations.

                                  2. Tweaking the range of possible experiences; consequent direction of one's reality to the supposedly desirable states which happen to have certain pre-requisite causes and conditions. The decisions we make direct us to certain experiences, thus if we aim at specific experiences we ought to bring about the requisite conditions to inevitably bring about the desired outcome.


                                  When one is set on attaining the yet-unattained one usually relies on external guidance as to how to bring about the yet-unattained. In case of the precepts their purpose and result is non-regret, non-regret as ie regret of not following directions, here is an example;



                                  'Person A' is convinced that there exists a 'Place' and that he needs to go to the 'Place' asap as it was a matter of life and death.



                                  However he does not know where it is and how to get there.



                                  'Person A' asks 'Person B' and is told the directions.
                                  'Person A' directs himself to the destination by following the path as it was proclaimed.



                                  Then 'Person A' gets an idea to deviate from the Path and subjectively speaking if his goal is to get to the 'Place' asap, if he was to deviate from the Path, it would absolutely compromise his objective and bring about regret and remorse for wrong-doing. It is wrong here because it is against the objective, if achieving the objective is desired then it is discerned as good, failure is discerned as bad, therefore what leads to failure is bad and what is bad is a cause for remorse and regret.




                                  “Sir, what is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics?” “Ānanda, having no regrets is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics.”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of having no regrets?”



                                  “Joy is the purpose and benefit of having no regrets.”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of joy?”



                                  “Rapture …”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of rapture?”



                                  “Tranquility …”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of tranquility?”



                                  “Bliss …”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of bliss?”



                                  “Immersion …”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of immersion?”



                                  “Truly knowing and seeing …”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of truly knowing and seeing?”



                                  “Disillusionment and dispassion …”



                                  “But what’s the purpose and benefit of disillusionment and
                                  dispassion?”



                                  “Knowledge and vision of freedom is the purpose and benefit of
                                  disillusionment and dispassion.



                                  “Mendicants, an ethical person, who has fulfilled ethical conduct,
                                  need not make a wish: ‘May I have no regrets!’ It’s only natural that
                                  an ethical person has no regrets. When you have no regrets you need
                                  not make a wish: ‘May I feel joy!’ It’s only natural that joy springs
                                  up when you have no regrets. When you feel joy you need not make a
                                  wish: ‘May I experience rapture!’ It’s only natural that rapture
                                  arises when you’re joyful. When your mind is full of rapture you need
                                  not make a wish: ‘May my body become tranquil!’ It’s only natural that
                                  your body becomes tranquil when your mind is full of rapture. When
                                  your body is tranquil you need not make a wish: ‘May I feel bliss!’
                                  It’s only natural to feel bliss when your body is tranquil. When you
                                  feel bliss you need not make a wish: ‘May my mind be immersed in
                                  samādhi!’ It’s only natural for the mind to be immersed in samādhi
                                  when you feel bliss. When your mind is immersed in samādhi you need
                                  not make a wish: ‘May I truly know and see!’ It’s only natural to
                                  truly know and see when your mind is immersed in samādhi. When you
                                  truly know and see you need not make a wish: ‘May I become
                                  disillusioned and dispassionate!’ It’s only natural to become
                                  disillusioned and dispassionate when you truly know and see. When
                                  you’re disillusioned and dispassionate you need not make a wish: ‘May
                                  I realize the knowledge and vision of freedom!’ It’s only natural to
                                  realize the knowledge and vision of freedom when you’re disillusioned
                                  and dispassionate.




                                  If she was only keeping precepts she would not experience the consequences of not following the precepts.



                                  Even tho our reality is subjective and relative as in one's head is big in relation to the head of an ant but is small in relative to an elephant's head, there are also absolutes, ie if one's head is blown off to pieces conditions one will absolutely die.



                                  Similarly one can know that eventho there are many different states called happiness and the discernment of happiness is subjective there is also absolute happiness and everyone can agree that not experiencing unhappiness is happiness and the escape from suffering is pleasant.



                                  Therefore absolutely everyone is interested in the absolute removal of what can be discerned as gross in light of what is supreme.



                                  Therefore when there are to that extent absolutes of good and bad, decision making associated with the ultimate good even at the level of mere morals and conventions will have higher expectation than the consequences of the unfavorable decisions.



                                  The consequences will be as they will be regardless of the subjective perspective and one's understanding of them which may or may not be in accord with objective reality.






                                  share|improve this answer






























                                    0














                                    loosely, as i understand it,



                                    There are two things going on;




                                    1. Behavioral conditioning; formation of inclinations and tendencies. The way this occurs can be explained in terms of formation, dismantling and the strengthening of neural formations.

                                    2. Tweaking the range of possible experiences; consequent direction of one's reality to the supposedly desirable states which happen to have certain pre-requisite causes and conditions. The decisions we make direct us to certain experiences, thus if we aim at specific experiences we ought to bring about the requisite conditions to inevitably bring about the desired outcome.


                                    When one is set on attaining the yet-unattained one usually relies on external guidance as to how to bring about the yet-unattained. In case of the precepts their purpose and result is non-regret, non-regret as ie regret of not following directions, here is an example;



                                    'Person A' is convinced that there exists a 'Place' and that he needs to go to the 'Place' asap as it was a matter of life and death.



                                    However he does not know where it is and how to get there.



                                    'Person A' asks 'Person B' and is told the directions.
                                    'Person A' directs himself to the destination by following the path as it was proclaimed.



                                    Then 'Person A' gets an idea to deviate from the Path and subjectively speaking if his goal is to get to the 'Place' asap, if he was to deviate from the Path, it would absolutely compromise his objective and bring about regret and remorse for wrong-doing. It is wrong here because it is against the objective, if achieving the objective is desired then it is discerned as good, failure is discerned as bad, therefore what leads to failure is bad and what is bad is a cause for remorse and regret.




                                    “Sir, what is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics?” “Ānanda, having no regrets is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics.”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of having no regrets?”



                                    “Joy is the purpose and benefit of having no regrets.”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of joy?”



                                    “Rapture …”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of rapture?”



                                    “Tranquility …”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of tranquility?”



                                    “Bliss …”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of bliss?”



                                    “Immersion …”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of immersion?”



                                    “Truly knowing and seeing …”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of truly knowing and seeing?”



                                    “Disillusionment and dispassion …”



                                    “But what’s the purpose and benefit of disillusionment and
                                    dispassion?”



                                    “Knowledge and vision of freedom is the purpose and benefit of
                                    disillusionment and dispassion.



                                    “Mendicants, an ethical person, who has fulfilled ethical conduct,
                                    need not make a wish: ‘May I have no regrets!’ It’s only natural that
                                    an ethical person has no regrets. When you have no regrets you need
                                    not make a wish: ‘May I feel joy!’ It’s only natural that joy springs
                                    up when you have no regrets. When you feel joy you need not make a
                                    wish: ‘May I experience rapture!’ It’s only natural that rapture
                                    arises when you’re joyful. When your mind is full of rapture you need
                                    not make a wish: ‘May my body become tranquil!’ It’s only natural that
                                    your body becomes tranquil when your mind is full of rapture. When
                                    your body is tranquil you need not make a wish: ‘May I feel bliss!’
                                    It’s only natural to feel bliss when your body is tranquil. When you
                                    feel bliss you need not make a wish: ‘May my mind be immersed in
                                    samādhi!’ It’s only natural for the mind to be immersed in samādhi
                                    when you feel bliss. When your mind is immersed in samādhi you need
                                    not make a wish: ‘May I truly know and see!’ It’s only natural to
                                    truly know and see when your mind is immersed in samādhi. When you
                                    truly know and see you need not make a wish: ‘May I become
                                    disillusioned and dispassionate!’ It’s only natural to become
                                    disillusioned and dispassionate when you truly know and see. When
                                    you’re disillusioned and dispassionate you need not make a wish: ‘May
                                    I realize the knowledge and vision of freedom!’ It’s only natural to
                                    realize the knowledge and vision of freedom when you’re disillusioned
                                    and dispassionate.




                                    If she was only keeping precepts she would not experience the consequences of not following the precepts.



                                    Even tho our reality is subjective and relative as in one's head is big in relation to the head of an ant but is small in relative to an elephant's head, there are also absolutes, ie if one's head is blown off to pieces conditions one will absolutely die.



                                    Similarly one can know that eventho there are many different states called happiness and the discernment of happiness is subjective there is also absolute happiness and everyone can agree that not experiencing unhappiness is happiness and the escape from suffering is pleasant.



                                    Therefore absolutely everyone is interested in the absolute removal of what can be discerned as gross in light of what is supreme.



                                    Therefore when there are to that extent absolutes of good and bad, decision making associated with the ultimate good even at the level of mere morals and conventions will have higher expectation than the consequences of the unfavorable decisions.



                                    The consequences will be as they will be regardless of the subjective perspective and one's understanding of them which may or may not be in accord with objective reality.






                                    share|improve this answer




























                                      0












                                      0








                                      0







                                      loosely, as i understand it,



                                      There are two things going on;




                                      1. Behavioral conditioning; formation of inclinations and tendencies. The way this occurs can be explained in terms of formation, dismantling and the strengthening of neural formations.

                                      2. Tweaking the range of possible experiences; consequent direction of one's reality to the supposedly desirable states which happen to have certain pre-requisite causes and conditions. The decisions we make direct us to certain experiences, thus if we aim at specific experiences we ought to bring about the requisite conditions to inevitably bring about the desired outcome.


                                      When one is set on attaining the yet-unattained one usually relies on external guidance as to how to bring about the yet-unattained. In case of the precepts their purpose and result is non-regret, non-regret as ie regret of not following directions, here is an example;



                                      'Person A' is convinced that there exists a 'Place' and that he needs to go to the 'Place' asap as it was a matter of life and death.



                                      However he does not know where it is and how to get there.



                                      'Person A' asks 'Person B' and is told the directions.
                                      'Person A' directs himself to the destination by following the path as it was proclaimed.



                                      Then 'Person A' gets an idea to deviate from the Path and subjectively speaking if his goal is to get to the 'Place' asap, if he was to deviate from the Path, it would absolutely compromise his objective and bring about regret and remorse for wrong-doing. It is wrong here because it is against the objective, if achieving the objective is desired then it is discerned as good, failure is discerned as bad, therefore what leads to failure is bad and what is bad is a cause for remorse and regret.




                                      “Sir, what is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics?” “Ānanda, having no regrets is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics.”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of having no regrets?”



                                      “Joy is the purpose and benefit of having no regrets.”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of joy?”



                                      “Rapture …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of rapture?”



                                      “Tranquility …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of tranquility?”



                                      “Bliss …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of bliss?”



                                      “Immersion …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of immersion?”



                                      “Truly knowing and seeing …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of truly knowing and seeing?”



                                      “Disillusionment and dispassion …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of disillusionment and
                                      dispassion?”



                                      “Knowledge and vision of freedom is the purpose and benefit of
                                      disillusionment and dispassion.



                                      “Mendicants, an ethical person, who has fulfilled ethical conduct,
                                      need not make a wish: ‘May I have no regrets!’ It’s only natural that
                                      an ethical person has no regrets. When you have no regrets you need
                                      not make a wish: ‘May I feel joy!’ It’s only natural that joy springs
                                      up when you have no regrets. When you feel joy you need not make a
                                      wish: ‘May I experience rapture!’ It’s only natural that rapture
                                      arises when you’re joyful. When your mind is full of rapture you need
                                      not make a wish: ‘May my body become tranquil!’ It’s only natural that
                                      your body becomes tranquil when your mind is full of rapture. When
                                      your body is tranquil you need not make a wish: ‘May I feel bliss!’
                                      It’s only natural to feel bliss when your body is tranquil. When you
                                      feel bliss you need not make a wish: ‘May my mind be immersed in
                                      samādhi!’ It’s only natural for the mind to be immersed in samādhi
                                      when you feel bliss. When your mind is immersed in samādhi you need
                                      not make a wish: ‘May I truly know and see!’ It’s only natural to
                                      truly know and see when your mind is immersed in samādhi. When you
                                      truly know and see you need not make a wish: ‘May I become
                                      disillusioned and dispassionate!’ It’s only natural to become
                                      disillusioned and dispassionate when you truly know and see. When
                                      you’re disillusioned and dispassionate you need not make a wish: ‘May
                                      I realize the knowledge and vision of freedom!’ It’s only natural to
                                      realize the knowledge and vision of freedom when you’re disillusioned
                                      and dispassionate.




                                      If she was only keeping precepts she would not experience the consequences of not following the precepts.



                                      Even tho our reality is subjective and relative as in one's head is big in relation to the head of an ant but is small in relative to an elephant's head, there are also absolutes, ie if one's head is blown off to pieces conditions one will absolutely die.



                                      Similarly one can know that eventho there are many different states called happiness and the discernment of happiness is subjective there is also absolute happiness and everyone can agree that not experiencing unhappiness is happiness and the escape from suffering is pleasant.



                                      Therefore absolutely everyone is interested in the absolute removal of what can be discerned as gross in light of what is supreme.



                                      Therefore when there are to that extent absolutes of good and bad, decision making associated with the ultimate good even at the level of mere morals and conventions will have higher expectation than the consequences of the unfavorable decisions.



                                      The consequences will be as they will be regardless of the subjective perspective and one's understanding of them which may or may not be in accord with objective reality.






                                      share|improve this answer















                                      loosely, as i understand it,



                                      There are two things going on;




                                      1. Behavioral conditioning; formation of inclinations and tendencies. The way this occurs can be explained in terms of formation, dismantling and the strengthening of neural formations.

                                      2. Tweaking the range of possible experiences; consequent direction of one's reality to the supposedly desirable states which happen to have certain pre-requisite causes and conditions. The decisions we make direct us to certain experiences, thus if we aim at specific experiences we ought to bring about the requisite conditions to inevitably bring about the desired outcome.


                                      When one is set on attaining the yet-unattained one usually relies on external guidance as to how to bring about the yet-unattained. In case of the precepts their purpose and result is non-regret, non-regret as ie regret of not following directions, here is an example;



                                      'Person A' is convinced that there exists a 'Place' and that he needs to go to the 'Place' asap as it was a matter of life and death.



                                      However he does not know where it is and how to get there.



                                      'Person A' asks 'Person B' and is told the directions.
                                      'Person A' directs himself to the destination by following the path as it was proclaimed.



                                      Then 'Person A' gets an idea to deviate from the Path and subjectively speaking if his goal is to get to the 'Place' asap, if he was to deviate from the Path, it would absolutely compromise his objective and bring about regret and remorse for wrong-doing. It is wrong here because it is against the objective, if achieving the objective is desired then it is discerned as good, failure is discerned as bad, therefore what leads to failure is bad and what is bad is a cause for remorse and regret.




                                      “Sir, what is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics?” “Ānanda, having no regrets is the purpose and benefit of skillful ethics.”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of having no regrets?”



                                      “Joy is the purpose and benefit of having no regrets.”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of joy?”



                                      “Rapture …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of rapture?”



                                      “Tranquility …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of tranquility?”



                                      “Bliss …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of bliss?”



                                      “Immersion …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of immersion?”



                                      “Truly knowing and seeing …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of truly knowing and seeing?”



                                      “Disillusionment and dispassion …”



                                      “But what’s the purpose and benefit of disillusionment and
                                      dispassion?”



                                      “Knowledge and vision of freedom is the purpose and benefit of
                                      disillusionment and dispassion.



                                      “Mendicants, an ethical person, who has fulfilled ethical conduct,
                                      need not make a wish: ‘May I have no regrets!’ It’s only natural that
                                      an ethical person has no regrets. When you have no regrets you need
                                      not make a wish: ‘May I feel joy!’ It’s only natural that joy springs
                                      up when you have no regrets. When you feel joy you need not make a
                                      wish: ‘May I experience rapture!’ It’s only natural that rapture
                                      arises when you’re joyful. When your mind is full of rapture you need
                                      not make a wish: ‘May my body become tranquil!’ It’s only natural that
                                      your body becomes tranquil when your mind is full of rapture. When
                                      your body is tranquil you need not make a wish: ‘May I feel bliss!’
                                      It’s only natural to feel bliss when your body is tranquil. When you
                                      feel bliss you need not make a wish: ‘May my mind be immersed in
                                      samādhi!’ It’s only natural for the mind to be immersed in samādhi
                                      when you feel bliss. When your mind is immersed in samādhi you need
                                      not make a wish: ‘May I truly know and see!’ It’s only natural to
                                      truly know and see when your mind is immersed in samādhi. When you
                                      truly know and see you need not make a wish: ‘May I become
                                      disillusioned and dispassionate!’ It’s only natural to become
                                      disillusioned and dispassionate when you truly know and see. When
                                      you’re disillusioned and dispassionate you need not make a wish: ‘May
                                      I realize the knowledge and vision of freedom!’ It’s only natural to
                                      realize the knowledge and vision of freedom when you’re disillusioned
                                      and dispassionate.




                                      If she was only keeping precepts she would not experience the consequences of not following the precepts.



                                      Even tho our reality is subjective and relative as in one's head is big in relation to the head of an ant but is small in relative to an elephant's head, there are also absolutes, ie if one's head is blown off to pieces conditions one will absolutely die.



                                      Similarly one can know that eventho there are many different states called happiness and the discernment of happiness is subjective there is also absolute happiness and everyone can agree that not experiencing unhappiness is happiness and the escape from suffering is pleasant.



                                      Therefore absolutely everyone is interested in the absolute removal of what can be discerned as gross in light of what is supreme.



                                      Therefore when there are to that extent absolutes of good and bad, decision making associated with the ultimate good even at the level of mere morals and conventions will have higher expectation than the consequences of the unfavorable decisions.



                                      The consequences will be as they will be regardless of the subjective perspective and one's understanding of them which may or may not be in accord with objective reality.







                                      share|improve this answer














                                      share|improve this answer



                                      share|improve this answer








                                      edited 1 hour ago

























                                      answered 2 hours ago









                                      12315461231546

                                      1,01729




                                      1,01729























                                          0














                                          All of the three or ten kinds of merits have the function to straighten right view. Once a gross healing and cleaning has reached, right view could be attained, the good Dhamma heard, seen by one self and as a result the path would develop, once the Noble eightfold path is reached, it's fruits in gaining liberation will appear naturaly, on it's given cause.



                                          And as mentioned in another answer, it's function is to gain a clean stand, good selfestimate, by cleaning and become rightly free of remorse, able to access borderlands to the Noble Domain. If not having done merits on what should one build on a good and required stand/state?



                                          As the Buddha told, merits are that what beings establish in auspicious states, states where they could be able to access the path to freedom, go on beyound.



                                          (Note: this is given for doing merits, not for trade, exchange or stackes to bind and stay bound)






                                          share|improve this answer








                                          New contributor




                                          Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                          Check out our Code of Conduct.

























                                            0














                                            All of the three or ten kinds of merits have the function to straighten right view. Once a gross healing and cleaning has reached, right view could be attained, the good Dhamma heard, seen by one self and as a result the path would develop, once the Noble eightfold path is reached, it's fruits in gaining liberation will appear naturaly, on it's given cause.



                                            And as mentioned in another answer, it's function is to gain a clean stand, good selfestimate, by cleaning and become rightly free of remorse, able to access borderlands to the Noble Domain. If not having done merits on what should one build on a good and required stand/state?



                                            As the Buddha told, merits are that what beings establish in auspicious states, states where they could be able to access the path to freedom, go on beyound.



                                            (Note: this is given for doing merits, not for trade, exchange or stackes to bind and stay bound)






                                            share|improve this answer








                                            New contributor




                                            Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                            Check out our Code of Conduct.























                                              0












                                              0








                                              0







                                              All of the three or ten kinds of merits have the function to straighten right view. Once a gross healing and cleaning has reached, right view could be attained, the good Dhamma heard, seen by one self and as a result the path would develop, once the Noble eightfold path is reached, it's fruits in gaining liberation will appear naturaly, on it's given cause.



                                              And as mentioned in another answer, it's function is to gain a clean stand, good selfestimate, by cleaning and become rightly free of remorse, able to access borderlands to the Noble Domain. If not having done merits on what should one build on a good and required stand/state?



                                              As the Buddha told, merits are that what beings establish in auspicious states, states where they could be able to access the path to freedom, go on beyound.



                                              (Note: this is given for doing merits, not for trade, exchange or stackes to bind and stay bound)






                                              share|improve this answer








                                              New contributor




                                              Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                              Check out our Code of Conduct.










                                              All of the three or ten kinds of merits have the function to straighten right view. Once a gross healing and cleaning has reached, right view could be attained, the good Dhamma heard, seen by one self and as a result the path would develop, once the Noble eightfold path is reached, it's fruits in gaining liberation will appear naturaly, on it's given cause.



                                              And as mentioned in another answer, it's function is to gain a clean stand, good selfestimate, by cleaning and become rightly free of remorse, able to access borderlands to the Noble Domain. If not having done merits on what should one build on a good and required stand/state?



                                              As the Buddha told, merits are that what beings establish in auspicious states, states where they could be able to access the path to freedom, go on beyound.



                                              (Note: this is given for doing merits, not for trade, exchange or stackes to bind and stay bound)







                                              share|improve this answer








                                              New contributor




                                              Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                              Check out our Code of Conduct.









                                              share|improve this answer



                                              share|improve this answer






                                              New contributor




                                              Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                              Check out our Code of Conduct.









                                              answered 1 hour ago









                                              Samana JohannSamana Johann

                                              1




                                              1




                                              New contributor




                                              Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                              Check out our Code of Conduct.





                                              New contributor





                                              Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                              Check out our Code of Conduct.






                                              Samana Johann is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                              Check out our Code of Conduct.






















                                                  Tom is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.










                                                  draft saved

                                                  draft discarded


















                                                  Tom is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.













                                                  Tom is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.












                                                  Tom is a new contributor. Be nice, and check out our Code of Conduct.
















                                                  Thanks for contributing an answer to Buddhism Stack Exchange!


                                                  • Please be sure to answer the question. Provide details and share your research!

                                                  But avoid



                                                  • Asking for help, clarification, or responding to other answers.

                                                  • Making statements based on opinion; back them up with references or personal experience.


                                                  To learn more, see our tips on writing great answers.




                                                  draft saved


                                                  draft discarded














                                                  StackExchange.ready(
                                                  function () {
                                                  StackExchange.openid.initPostLogin('.new-post-login', 'https%3a%2f%2fbuddhism.stackexchange.com%2fquestions%2f31705%2fhow-does-practicing-restraint-and-performing-actions-of-merit-purify-the-mind%23new-answer', 'question_page');
                                                  }
                                                  );

                                                  Post as a guest















                                                  Required, but never shown





















































                                                  Required, but never shown














                                                  Required, but never shown












                                                  Required, but never shown







                                                  Required, but never shown

































                                                  Required, but never shown














                                                  Required, but never shown












                                                  Required, but never shown







                                                  Required, but never shown







                                                  Popular posts from this blog

                                                  Knooppunt Holsloot

                                                  Altaar (religie)

                                                  Gregoriusmis