This is Part 3, and the final part of the Awakening of Great Beings Series. Last time, we looked at the Third Awakening, this time we investigate the Fifth Awakening.
The fifth awakening is “not to neglect mindfulness.†It is also called “to maintain right thought.†This helps you to guard the dharma so you won’t lose it. It is called “to maintain right thought or “not to neglect mindfulness.â€The Buddha said, “Monks, for seeking a good teacher and good help, there is nothing like not neglecting mindfulness. If you practice this, robbers of desire cannot enter you. Therefore, you should always maintain mindfulness in yourself. If you lose it, you will lose all merits. When your mindfulness is solid, you will not be harmed even if you go into the midst of the robbers of the five sense desires. It is like wearing armor and going into a battlefield; there is nothing to be afraid of. It is called ‘not to neglect mindfulness.”
Now that is somewhat flowery because it’s couched in metaphor. The point is to be totally aware, whether you’re reading a book, or preparing a meal, or drinking a glass of water, or sitting in zazen.(from ZenTalks).
For me, an image from White Collar Zen is evoked, that “The mind is a citadel that needs to be protected by the soldiers (senses).” That by remaining mindful at our sense gates, we keep our armor on, preventing attack. That as long as we remain mindful of what’s at hand, we are limitless, and can enter places that may otherwise evoke the three poisons.
The way all the awakenings grow on each other is a really beautiful thing. Hopefully the snap shot I’ve displayed over these 3 parts shows that too. In the First Awakening we try to become unattached from desires, in the Third Awakening we take comfort in who we are, and abide in serenity. Now at the Fifth Awakening we put our armor on and go back into the world. We don’t work in isolation here, our awakenings all overlap and help everything and one all around it.
Even if in one moment, for one time, we remain mindful at a time or place where we were previously not mindful, we have awoken from slumber. The awakening has begun and will continue to develop, sometimes slow, sometimes fast, the result, however, is guaranteed. We will reach full awakening, we will all realise our already present enlightenment, we will realise our already present Buddha Nature.
As always, I’d love to turn this into a conversation and hear your input and ideas, and how this teaching speaks to you. Please feel free to leave a comment.
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