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මුල් සිංහල වීඩියෝව සඳහා Play කරන්න
Can Death Be Conquered? (Sitha 05) | Thiththagalle Anandasiri Thero
Similarly, people are dying naturally everywhere in other countries as well. Then there are those who die from poisons. What are these poisons made of? Those who die in this way are not people who have understood the meaning of life. Most people think that life is about seeking the truth, but those monks in the forest hermitage were renunciants who had given up worldly things to seek the truth of life. In contrast, other people spend their lives engaged in external, worldly affairs, and their lives come to an end in the midst of it all. However, do they—or any of you listening to this—ever for a moment think, "Death could come to me in the next moment"? No. If you knew you were going to die in a week, what would you do today? Would you be preparing to go to a wedding? If you knew you were going to die in 24 hours, would you be getting ready to go to a wedding? You wouldn't, would you? Instead, you would prepare for the final journey that you must take in this life, the one that is just a breath away.
However, those who learn they are dying, perhaps from a disease like cancer, know their time is coming to an end in a matter of months. They know that their life force is running out. What happens to them then? Their lives, which were once directed outward, begin to turn inward, toward themselves. Whose side are most people on? They are focused on the external world, aren't they? They are trying to conquer the world, trying to win. But in the end, what does every person who has conquered anything need? To be turned to soil. And what about every person who has lost? They too need to be turned to soil. Yet, most people have not discovered the reality of life.
During the time the Buddha was alive, there was a queen named Sāmāvatī. She was the wife of a provincial king in India named Udena. She had five hundred ladies-in-waiting. What did this group of people want? While living in a palace, they listened to the Dhamma and she became a devout disciple of the Buddha. Because of this, as she spent her life contemplating the Dhamma and seeking the truth of life, a group of people who were angry with her did something. What did they do, do you think? They locked the palace, trapping all 500 of them inside so they could not escape, and set it on fire. They were burned to death.
What happened? They were burned. Does this kind of thing not happen today? Don't you see it in the news? While inside a building, a fire breaks out and they are burned, and the building collapses. So, these kinds of things have always happened in the world. But when it happened, most of those people did not die with what? With defiled minds. They had found life.
It is just like this. Do we prefer to eat sweet things, or do we prefer to drink bitter medicinal tonics? What do we like? Do we prefer to eat sugar, or do we prefer to drink something like a bitter brew? We don't like that, do we? In the same way, this life is a chase after pleasure. For the person who keeps eating sugar, what eventually happens? Has anyone ever heard of a person who got sick from drinking a bitter brew? Or have you heard of a person who got well after drinking a medicinal tonic, even if it was bitter? Yes. But have you heard of people who ate sugar and developed diabetes and other diseases? You have, haven't you?
It is the same. Without seeking the truth of this life, seeking the truth requires some dedication. It is something people feel lazy about. It is uninteresting. They don't like it. The mind shrinks from it. Now, in this world, if you were asked to listen to a sermon versus listen to a song and dance, which would you prefer? You would prefer the latter, wouldn't you? You would prefer to eat whatever you please, without listening to Dhamma. You understand what is being said. In the same way, when seeking the truth of life, the mind shrinks away. What happens? It feels no delight. The mind doesn't blossom. However, people feel a delight in chasing after some goal, some pleasure. They like it, just like eating sugar. The whole world is like that.
So, as this happens, what suddenly occurs? We hear news of some kind of accident, a natural disaster, or some other catastrophe. A bus crashes. In a country like Sri Lanka, on average, about 10 people die from accidents each day. That means more than 3,600 people die each year. The number of people who become disabled is even higher. So today, on this Poya day, about 10 people will have died in accidents. And when the police say 10 have died, the number is likely even higher.
So, in this way, when we hear the news from Sri Lanka or abroad, what do we see most often? Something has happened somewhere. Someone has died somewhere. That becomes breaking news. But the people watching it—most of them—do not think, "The bus that I travel on could also crash one day." Or, "The train I take could derail." Why is that? Just like the desire we have for eating sugar, just like the desire to eat delicious food, we see things in our future that we want to accumulate. We see things to be won. We think we can be happy with those things. But a person who is happy cannot be found. Even if happiness is found, it is temporary and soon disappears. Isn't that so?
So, the story of Sāmāvatī and her 500 companions is not like the deaths of others. It is a different kind of story. What makes it different? In that palace, King Udena had another consort named Māgandiyā. She was angry with the Buddha. The reason for her anger was that, before she became King Udena’s consort, she had met the Buddha. Her parents, seeing the Buddha, thought he would be a suitable husband for their beautiful daughter and offered her to him. But the Buddha, having no interest in such things, said, "I would not want to touch this bag of filth even with my foot." She did not understand his words and developed a deep hatred, a hatred that she carried with her until the day she died. Who was this? Māgandiyā.
After that, what she wanted was not a marriage, but a way to take revenge on the Buddha. The best way to do that, since she was a beautiful woman, was to use her beauty to become King Udena's consort. Then, after she arrived there, what happened? She saw this group of women who had taken refuge in the Buddha and were exploring the path of Dhamma that the Blessed One taught. This fueled her hatred even more.
Now, imagine if one of you is angry with me. But then you meet someone who speaks well of me. What happens then? Does your anger toward that person increase or not? It increases. That is what she wanted. So, she stayed there, thinking, "I will teach you all a lesson, and I will teach the Buddha a lesson." She formed her own group and befriended them. At a time when King Udena had gone to another city, to another country—just as when the president leaves, the prime minister is in power—at a time when she had power, she told her followers, "They are in that palace, listening to sermons. What are they doing? Make sure they cannot come out, and burn them to death." Now, in today's world, there are stories of being burned to death. Power is like that. You understand.
So, it was done just as she commanded. But at that moment, Sāmāvatī was a woman of great wisdom (paññā). She said, "Now, in this world, what are we to do now? An ordinary person would think, 'Who did this? When I die and come back, I will teach them a lesson.'" They might think of becoming a demoness to drink their blood. But she did not do that. She told her friends, "Do not create any hatred toward anyone." Toward whom? Toward Māgandiyā. "For if she feels hatred, whose problem is that? When we hate someone, whose problem is it? Does the hatred belong to the person we hate, or to our own mind?"
If we drink poison from a bottle, and say, "You will die, someone else will die," who dies first? The one we think will die, or we ourselves? We die, don't we? That is what it means to have hatred. When we hate someone, the poison is within us. The toxins are inside us. So then, what happens? Who are we destroying? When we have hatred for someone, we cannot speak well of them, can we? We cannot think well of them. But who is destroyed first? The mind that holds the hatred. Māgandiyā's story illustrates this.
Therefore, this is not a world where we should go about hating those who set fires. Why? Because we are all going to die anyway. If we corrupt our own minds, who suffers the misfortune? We do. Death will come no matter what. So do not be troubled. Instead, contemplate the words the Buddha taught about life, about loving-kindness (mettā). Investigate (vicakkhaṇā). That means, contemplate. So, following her instructions, what did that group of women do at that moment? The Buddha heard the news. When he heard it, he spoke a verse of joy. Normally, when one hears of a death, does one speak a verse of joy? One expresses sorrow. But what did the Buddha do? He spoke a verse of joy, an udāna gāthā (a solemn utterance) which is found in the Udāna Pāli, saying, "This is what happens to those who are bound by attachment, and this is what happens to those who are not bound."
The monks brought the news. As soon as they did, the Buddha expressed his joy. That is correct, for it was an occasion that warranted a verse and a discourse. He then spoke several other verses about the nature of the mind. At that time, when this incident happened, it would have been the news of the week, wouldn't it? Just as it would be today. In those days, the news spread like wildfire throughout King Udena’s country and the surrounding regions of India. "Five hundred people have been burned to death," they said. So, who came? The king returned. He summoned his royal men and said, "Find out who did this."
The investigation began. When they investigated, who was found to be the main culprit? It was the team led by Māgandiyā. The king was at a loss. What could he do? It was a problem concerning the queen. So, punishment had to be given. When the entire group that carried out the act was found, in those days, under the law, for such a crime, the punishment was death. The king or president would set a date for the execution. Or, they would be imprisoned for life, with no date of death. In those times, the punishment prescribed by the royal constitution for such an act was that they were to be plowed. Half of their bodies were to be buried in the ground. Then, a plow was to be tied to elephants, and the elephants were to be made to run in opposite directions. The crowd would gather in the field to watch. That was the punishment.
What was it for? For the great crime committed by Māgandiyā and her group. They were all buried in pits. While the people watched, that was their punishment. What happened? The plows were tied to the elephants and the elephants were agitated. Then, the plows would run in every direction across that field, and as they ran, they would be torn to pieces and die. Now, how did they die? They died with hatred. With whom? With the person who had done them no wrong, the Buddha, and his disciples.
How did Sāmāvatī’s group die? They repelled all hatred. As they were about to let hatred enter their minds, they repelled it. So, there are two kinds of death. Now, if ordinary people like yourselves were to face such a situation, if you were to face a sudden attack by someone, what do you think would happen to you? Would your mind be calm or agitated? What would you think? If you are on a bus, and it crashes and you are about to die, will you be calm or agitated? There would be a great sense of loss, wouldn't there? Why? Because there is no mindfulness (sati). What is missing? Mindfulness. So, if one has not investigated, this is how ordinary people behave in the world. It is a normal thing. What kind of thing is it? It is life. But if one has investigated one's own mind, if one has investigated oneself, it does not happen that way.
Now, in that incident at the hermitage, the chief monk said that a few of the venerable monks who were there survived. Several passed away, but how did the others survive? We don't have the details, but what we can say is that they did not speak with agitation. They knew. Why? Because they had already been developing mindfulness of death. Mindfulness of death means understanding that death is coming. Before it comes, what must be done with this mind? The mind must be understood. The mind must be realized. If that is done, then that person is special.
Reflecting on both these incidents, the Buddha spoke another verse. This was not an udāna gāthā. The one he spoke at the time of the incident was an udāna gāthā. I will give a discourse on that on another day. It is a verse that requires about an hour of explanation. But here, in the Dhammapada, there are a few verses related to this. In that context, the Blessed One taught about heedfulness (appamāda). Someone asked, "What is heedfulness?" Let's see you answer. What is heedfulness? No one is answering. You must speak up. What is it? Someone stands up and asks, and if all of you shouted the answer, that would not be right either. Let me recite the verse. "Appamādo amataṃ padaṃ, pamādo maccuno padaṃ. Appamattā na mīyanti, ye pamattā yathā matā." What is the meaning? Heedfulness is the path to the Deathless (amata). What is the next line? "Pamādo maccuno padaṃ" – Heedlessness is the path of the Lord of Death. "Appamattā na mīyanti" – The heedful never die. And those who are heedless, it is as if they are already dead. This verse was spoken in relation to these two incidents.
Here you have a heedless group and a heedful group. The heedful ones perform wholesome actions. Performing wholesome actions means directing the mind toward a hopeful state. They investigate the mind. And so, by contemplating the Dhamma that the Buddha showed, wisdom (paññā) arises, and what happens? They cross over the cycle of birth and death (saṃsāra).
The heedless person is like one stuck in the mud. The person in the mud is always looking for the faults of others. They do not investigate themselves. They waste their lives, day after day, Poya after Poya. They let external things enter their minds. The Blessed One said that ordinary life is just this much: a form is seen by the eye, a sound is heard by the ear, a smell is perceived by the nose, a taste by the tongue, a touch by the body, and a mental object by the mind. Beyond this, there is nothing. What did he say? Beyond this, there is no part of life. Look, it is only the form seen by the eye. What is it? With the eye, nothing more can be done than seeing. With the ear, only sounds can be heard. The nose is for perceiving smells. The tongue is for knowing tastes. The body is for feeling touch. The mind is for receiving mental objects. Is there anything in our lives beyond this? We can become kings, we can become powerful, we can be poor, we can be rich, we can be educated, we can be uneducated. Can any of us do anything beyond this? With the eye, you can only see. With the ear, you can only hear.
So, what does the person stuck in the mud do? They chase after this. They only want to see forms. Their entire life is about seeing forms. They plan and strive to see forms. They plan and strive to hear sounds. In the end, when the sounds are all that is left, they are gone. They plan and strive to experience smells. Now, even our parents, what do they strive for? They tell their children, "Do something with your life." In this Dhamma, even with all the effort put into learning the letters of the Dhamma, this is all that is received. Now, have our mothers received anything more than this? We too have only received this much. No matter how much we gain, this is all there is. Even if one becomes the president, does he have anything beyond this? What the eye sees is only this much. What the ear hears is only this much. It is in the mind that one thinks all sorts of things: "I am the president," "I am poor," "I don't have this," "I don't have that."
Beyond this, the person in the mud thinks there is something else in the world. That is why they investigate those things. That is why they are called the heedless ones. What is heedlessness? However, through this very process, if our mind works with mindfulness, that is called heedfulness. What is heedfulness? This is the way. If one investigates the way one is trapped within this, that person is called heedful. That is, they are not heedless. What are they not? They are not heedless. They are not in the mud. They are wise (paññāvanta).
The Blessed One said that Sāmāvatī did not direct her mind toward external objects. She did not go thinking about Māgandiyā. Where did she search? She searched within her own mind. "Who am I?" she investigated. When one investigates that, what happens to them? The Buddha said that such people never die. They do not die. Why do they not die? That is a deep teaching. They do not die because the one who says "I" dies is the one who was there.
Now, the person in the mud, who wants to rule this world? Who do they think they are? The people we call "in the mud" in this world are those without wisdom. Who do they want to become? They want to rule. That means they think, "There is someone called 'I'." And for that "I," they strive. Some have ancestral pride, some have pride in their caste. There are various attachments. They acquire land, vehicles. These people, who have they acquired these things for? For us? For the neighbor? For whom do they think this? "I need this much wealth, I need this much property." They are trying to increase their own hoard. What did I say? Ordinary people in the mud try to do this even through unrighteous means. Or they try to do it by working hard. Either way, in the end, they become trapped by what they have acquired. Even if they have acquired it correctly, they think, "Now I have this much property, I have this much wealth."
Now, who has worked hard their whole life? Who have they built up? They have built up a self-image. What have they built up? And now, will they die or not? After they have built themselves up, once their breath is gone, they cannot be rebuilt. Then that person dies. They are murdered. Any person with a self-image can be struck down in an instant. The moment the self-image is hit, it falls. The person in the mud can be brought down at any time.
Now, after death, when a death occurs in our village, the village officer comes and gives a death certificate. When someone dies, they come and see if it was a natural death. They issue a death certificate. Now, the way the Blessed One issued a death certificate is very simple. "If you do not seek reality, if you do not develop mindfulness, if you are without wisdom, what are you? Even if you are alive, you are like a corpse." So, being alive again is a strange thing. This means that an ordinary person, even while alive, is equal to being dead. That is what the verse says.
Māgandiyā and her followers did not die from being trampled by elephants. Their death occurred because of that hatred, because they were living in a state of unmindfulness. They had no mindfulness. But Sāmāvatī and her group, even as they were being burned by fire, the Buddha said they could not be killed. They never die. "Na mīyanti" – they do not die. A wise person, or a heedful person, does not die on any day. Why do they not die? They come to the realization, after investigation, that this "I" is something that arises when the mind connects with an external object. When they come to that deep realization, when they arrive at that wisdom, what happens? They become one with the deathless Dhamma. When one becomes one with the deathless Dhamma, who is there to die? How can they be killed? Not even by fire, not by anything, can they be killed.
That is the deep teaching in that verse. So, because of that, the lesson for us to take into our lives is this: now, if we take an animal, animals are never able to investigate this Dhamma. What can they do after being born? They can play. Have you seen puppies play? Kittens play. In the same way, they too can go to school. In Australia, there are dogs that can count. Is that right? They can even be sent to school. Then what happens? They can eat and drink. Then sexuality. That too is possible. They can have children. After that, what comes? They grow old and die. That is the ordinary world of an animal. In between, they acquire things, this and that, there is fear. There are fights. Now, people are born. When people are born in the world, they have done the same thing. There is a difference between animals and humans. They are born, they play, they eat and drink, they go to school, they get married, they have children, they grow old and die. In addition, they suffer more than dogs and cats. Why? They have to pay electricity bills, water bills, taxes. Dogs do not have these troubles. In the meantime, people think that being a human is better than being a dog because they don't have to pay rent. But what is the specialty? They get a mind. They get a mind that can think. They get a mind that can investigate. But they don't make use of it. They live like animals. Why? That enjoyment of eating sugar, that pleasure, in the same way, they go after this pleasure and do not think deeply about life.
It's not just the form that is seen by the eye. A foolish person thinks that many things can be done with the eye. It is only when they hear a sermon like this that they understand that only a sound is heard by the ear. Otherwise, they think, "With these five senses, I can do so many great things." They do not understand that only a mental object comes to the mind. So, they struggle and struggle to grasp this world, and in the end, they die empty-handed. They die with nothing.
But in between, wise people like Sāmāvatī are also born on this earth. When they are born, their wisdom is great. They understand more than ordinary people. They realize that life is empty. "Living this way, I will become helpless. I need to find out who I am. I need to find out what this life is. What is this eye? What is this seeing?" When they investigate, they encounter the Buddha's Dhamma. When they go seeking, they meet the Dhamma. When they meet the Dhamma, their life becomes even more blissful. Having been born as a blissful human being, they do not remain as an animal. They do not die as a human. They go to an even more sublime state, where they can completely extinguish the mind. They find a path. That is, they become a person who never dies again.
Now, in this world, everyone has this. I saw the President of Russia. He was talking with the President of China. They are now in their 70s. They are talking about how to live for 150 years. There was a video that was leaked. They are saying that they can transplant organs, transplant young organs, and live like that. Why? They have power. They have money, like the President of Russia. They have great power. China's president is the same. America is the same. The five powerful nations are not going to change, are they? It will always be them. So now they see death approaching. What do they see? When they see death, they look for a way to live without dying. So, on this earth, is there a way to live without dying? Is there? Yes or no? Is there? What do you say? Is there a way to live without dying? What did you say? The President of Russia and the President of China are looking for a way to live without dying, but have they found it? Before this, didn't you say there is? There is a way to live without dying in this world. That is what the Buddha discovered for the world. One can become deathless (ajara-amara). What does that mean? One can conquer death.
The path that conquers death is what one must find. Whoever finds it does not need to transplant organs. It is oneself who must vitalize one's own organs. The one who found the way to live without dying did not need to transplant organs. That is why in this universe there is a way to live without dying, to become deathless. But the one in the mud cannot become deathless. To whom is it possible? Not to the one in the mud. They must become wise. They investigate what is wholesome. They must become like Sāmāvatī and her group. Now, for them, no matter how much they were provoked, only their bodies could be burned. Even if the body can be set on fire, no one can set the mind on fire. But for the one in the mud, if the body is set on fire, the mind also catches fire. When a bus crashes and the body is broken into pieces, for the person in the mud, their mind is also broken into pieces. For the wise person, nothing happens to their mind. The mind is cooled. What happens to the mind? Now, for an ordinary person, when something bad happens, their body is destroyed, and their mind is also destroyed. But for the wise person, when something bad happens, only the body is destroyed. Nothing happens to the mind. The mind becomes deathless (ajara-amara). What does it become? It becomes deathless. Nibbāna.
So, on this earth, the dream that those people have, to do something truly great, to live without dying, is not just a thought. There is a process for it. One must be dedicated. One must bring forth wisdom (paññā). What must be brought forth? So, how does one bring forth wisdom? Wisdom is brought forth by listening to the teachings that create wisdom. When one listens to those teachings, what happens? As it enters the mind, one investigates it. Through investigation, wisdom arises. When wisdom arises, one is cooled. One realizes.
Now, what is realized? Now, for everyone, even if I give a discourse that is a little deep, everyone wants to gain something for themselves in this world. Now, these children, they want to get a life for themselves, they want to pass their exams. There is nothing wrong with that. That is the nature of the ordinary world. One makes oneself the center and plays one's game. One tries to play the game to get ahead. Is that right? But now, one of them who has acquired things for themselves comes to listen to the Dhamma. When they listen to the Dhamma, they now want to become deathless. Who does? Themselves. Why? Because of the habit of accumulating things for oneself. The victory is for oneself. Then they are misled. Now, this Dhamma is not for accumulating things for oneself. It is for making oneself deathless. So, when one finds out who "I" am, the result is that name. If there is an "I," that "I" will die. If there is someone called "I," they will cease to exist. Only when the "I" is not there, when it has become one with the deathless Dhamma, is there nothing to be found. They are not born. Now, it is not just from death that one is saved. One is saved from birth as well.
If there is someone called "I," they will die, and be reborn. But if the one called "I" becomes one with the deathless Dhamma, they are not born, and they do not die. They are freed on both sides, becoming deathless (ajara-amara). So, when listening to this Dhamma, it is the same. "Ah, I must see Nibbāna. I must become a wise person." So they go, trying to understand this with force. Now, who is it? When one tries to understand by force, what happens? Who is it that is trying to understand? The self. What is it trying to understand? To make the self deathless. Right. Something is gained. No matter how one does it, it is a very subtle knot.
Now, if any of you understood this Dhamma, the task is flawed. If you understood, it is flawed. So, what is the method? I will tell you the method. Now, you all have studied physics, haven't you? There are equations. What are they? In your physics, there is s = ut + ½at². Isn't that so? There is still v = u + at, isn't there? There are two. Right. So, with equations like that, we get information. We are told to find 's'. Who is told to find it? "Find s." Then we are not going to do our own thing. We look at what 'u' is. Ah, 'u' is 5. What is 't'? Ah, that is also given. The other two as well. Now, can't we find 's'? So, what did we do? Did we go looking for an equation to answer it, or did we substitute into the one that was there? So, what did we do? When we substituted into the one that was there, the problem was solved. The Buddha's teaching is just like that.
The Buddha has given a teaching. Our task is not to find out if it is right or wrong, or how that teaching came to be. When we contemplate it, wisdom arises. That is, an answer is found. The answer is freedom on both sides. What comes? So, what is there? There is a substitution. A substitution is there. There is no answer that one must give for it. If you try to understand it for yourself, you will understand something. But even if you understand, what comes of it? That understanding is not wisdom. It is something that comes back to that same state of being in the mud. It is something that "I" have received. Something that "I" have received.
Now, when we are walking on this earth, how do we know that we are walking on this earth? How do we know that this earth exists? For example, when you are asleep, do you know that you are sleeping on this earth? How do you know that this earth exists? If not for a form seen by the eye, a sound heard by the ear, a smell perceived by the nose, a taste on the tongue, a touch on the body, or a mental object in the mind, how can we say that we are on the earth? From these six directions, if a mental object does not arise, how can we say that we are on the earth? How can you say, "I am walking on the earth?" Where are you all sitting now? Where are you sitting? Where? Are you sitting now? Can you say that without thinking? You cannot say it without thinking. Can you even understand it yourself without thinking? Now, think and tell me, where are you sitting? Where are you? I can't hear you. You are sitting on the floor. Now, did you say that after thinking or without thinking? Even if you thought about it, you are sitting on the floor. On what are you sitting? A mat. Now, you could say that all of this was thought, couldn't you? If you don't think, how can you say you are not sitting on a chair? You are not sitting on a box.
Now, do you understand that there is a problem with this earth we are walking on? Are we really walking on the earth, or is this something that appears in our minds? Now, you have been thinking your whole lives, "This earth exists. And on that earth, we are walking." Even if we die, does the earth exist or not? Now, we think that even if we die, we will become soil on this earth. That is how we think. We think like that. So, is the earth real or a delusion? Now, this mat you are sitting on, is it real or a delusion? If you think, it is real. What is real? If you think, it is real. If you cannot imagine it, you cannot say what is there. Do you now understand that this earth, this sky, all of it exists with a mental object? So, when we take that mental object, we feel, "Ah, it is I who am walking on this earth. It is I who sees that sky. It is I who am listening." For every one of these things, to bring forth the self, an external object is needed. What is needed? An external object is needed. Without the help of an external object, the self cannot be brought forth.
Now, have you ever thought like this? That this is how it happens. You all think, you chase after the object. "Ah, the earth is there. I am walking on the earth. The sky is there. I am going to the sky." That is how it is. How do we feel the earth? How do we see the sky? We do not investigate that, do we? Now, the person in the mud, the heedless person, does not investigate. Let alone investigate, they do not even think about it. Let alone think, they do not even get to hear such a Dhamma. Even if they hear it, they cover their ears. "Oh my, what is this I am hearing? What is this I am hearing?" they think. Isn't that so?
So, because of that, the reality of life is that one must seek that reality. When one seeks reality, the one who seeks is not found. When reality is found, one only becomes deathless. But there is no one who becomes deathless. What did I say? It is from death that one can be saved, but there is no one who is saved. So, a Buddha appears in the world and brings this message to the world. And if a person takes that message into their own mind and investigates it, and brings forth wisdom, and becomes free, then that person is truly fortunate. Every person who is not like that is like the life of that animal. They ate, they drank, they got married, had children, fought, did this and that, paid the electricity bill, the water bill, and died. That's all. A life equal to that of an animal. Two equal things.
So, where does the life of an animal and the life of a human differ? It is in the mind. In what does it differ? In the mind. An animal can never practice what is called yoniso manasikāra (wise attention). What is yoniso manasikāra? The way of contemplating with wisdom. An animal cannot contemplate the path that gives rise to wisdom. That is, it cannot substitute into the words spoken by a Buddha. A cat can never do that. So, the people in this world are also like animals. They can never practice yoniso manasikāra. They have the ability, but they do not even try. As I said before, they are like those who run after sugar. Eating sugar and making their lives sick, they waste their time chasing after pleasure. Sometimes, every person who dies in these sudden accidents might have had the ability to practice yoniso manasikāra. But they did not meet a true spiritual friend. One cannot practice yoniso manasikāra by learning physics. You cannot learn it by learning chemistry. You cannot learn it from math or biology. To learn it, one must learn the teaching of the Buddha. Only by doing the teaching that the Buddha showed does yoniso manasikāra arise.
It's not just by listening to a sermon on TV today that yoniso manasikāra happens. That will just tell you how to wear a robe nicely. Or it will say things in the way a song is sung. That's not it. Or it will be something that gives some pleasure. Listening to those things will not lead to yoniso manasikāra. Yoniso manasikāra is the way this mind works. I gave you that small piece about the earth, didn't I? That small piece. That was given to you to practice yoniso manasikāra. That small piece, what was it? It is a message from the Buddha. If a wise person hears that message, for them, yoniso manasikāra happens. If yoniso manasikāra happens, wisdom (paññā) arises. If wisdom arises, they are liberated. That means they become deathless (ajara-amara). They are saved from both birth and death.
So, this does not have to happen all at once. For a wise person who is dedicated, it requires great patience. And with desire, now, becoming deathless is not an easy thing, is it? To speak of it is easy. It is not an easy thing. It is not something that can be done with laziness. It is not something that a person with strong craving for the five sensual pleasures can do. It requires dedication. It requires an investigation of the wholesome. It requires service to others. It is in such a person that this wisdom arises.
So, if any person wants to, look at the Buddha. In his countless lives, he performed immeasurable wholesome deeds. Having done that, he was born into a royal family. And even after being born there, he was not deathless, was he? What happened? For six years, he practiced austerities, went to various teachers, listened to their wrong teachings, and then had to find the path for himself. If he had been content with his kingship at that time, he would have died. He would have died just like an ordinary king dies. He had to find the truth. It was the same for the Venerable Sāriputta. In his youth, he saw the futility of life and, realizing that there must be something more, he went in search of the truth, going to various teachers. Then he found it.
It is the same today. If any person wants the truth, they can find it. Otherwise, one can spend one's entire life in a lie. One can live being deceived. But to find it, one must be dedicated. When one makes that dedication, one encounters the message of the Buddha. When one encounters it, one's life becomes fortunate.
There are young people here. This message is heard by thousands of young people. That is why you must understand this life. There is no harm in living your life, but just take a look: what is seen by the eye is only a form, isn't it? What is heard by the ear is only a sound. We are running after something very empty. Because of that, do we go on and die having gained nothing? Or do we awaken our spiritual potential, attain supreme bliss (paramānanda), and attain ultimate release (parama vimutti)? That is what we must seek in this life. So, if that happens, your life will be blessed. Otherwise, it will just be another animal body that has wasted its time and died.
Right. May the Triple Gem bless you all. May you be well.
Original Source (Video):
Title: මරණය ජය ගත හැකිද ? | Thiththagalle Anandasiri Thero | Maranaya Jayagatha Hakida(Sitha 05)
https://youtu.be/KkVWoT1dIZI?si=elhs7AlxX19c70Wr
Disclaimer
The translations shared on this blog are based on Dhamma sermons originally delivered in Sinhalese. They have been translated into English with the help of AI (ChatGPT & Gemini AI), with the intention of making these teachings more accessible to a broader audience.
Please note that while care has been taken to preserve the meaning and spirit of the original sermons, there may be errors or inaccuracies in translation. These translations are offered in good faith, but they may not fully capture the depth or nuance of the original teachings.
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