Reducing Desires Is Necessary for Cultivating Meditative Concentration Well

When an arhat reaches the end of life, the manas no longer gives rise to mental engagement (manaskāra) toward any dharma, nor does the volitional mental factor operate; none of the five universally present mental factors manifest. In this way, the tathāgatagarbha cannot discern the mental activities of the manas and cannot transmit the seeds of consciousness to the manas, and thus the manas ceases. If our manas continuously engages with all dharmas—engaging without interruption, deliberating and discerning without cease—then the tathāgatagarbha will continuously give rise to the six consciousnesses, and our bodily, verbal, and mental actions will manifest without stop. The manas only gives rise to mental engagement toward dharmas it finds interesting; the more things it finds interesting, the more mental engagement there is, and the mind consciousness becomes extremely busy. Then there is no way to become tranquil, and meditative concentration (samādhi) cannot be successfully cultivated.

If we wish to cultivate meditative concentration well, we must reduce our desires for worldly dharmas and not be interested in any worldly dharma. By minimizing our indulgence in worldly pleasures, when renunciation arises, meditative concentration can be cultivated very quickly. If one always has initial application and sustained examination (vitarka-vicāra) toward certain people and matters, harbors anger, or has craving and attachment, it shows that the manas's grasping is unceasing, its mental engagement unceasing, its deliberation unceasing, and the thoughts of the six consciousnesses are unceasing. In that case, meditative concentration cannot be successfully cultivated. When worldly desires are reduced, the desire-realm concentration easily appears; with less craving, or no craving, for worldly dharmas, heavenly states will manifest. If one always feels that everything in the human world is wonderful and always delights in the people, affairs, objects, and principles of the human world, the mind will not attain concentration. Reduce greed and desire, do not be too concerned with yourself, do not let your thoughts constantly revolve around yourself, try to let go of yourself, and keep the Path and your practice in your heart—then meditative concentration will easily appear.

Cultivating meditative concentration is also cultivating the mind. Subduing the afflictions of greed, anger, and delusion is cultivating the mind; cultivating the mind is cultivating concentration. When the mind becomes tranquil, meditative concentration appears. Those who cannot cultivate meditative concentration well certainly have too many worldly matters in their minds that they cannot set aside, so the six consciousnesses continuously give rise to thoughts and cannot settle on a single object. Therefore, to cultivate meditative concentration well, one should frequently examine one's own mind to see what is inside, and try to expel all the people, matters, and things one cannot let go of. Then the six consciousnesses will become tranquil, and concentration will arise.

No matter what we do each day, the mind should abide on one dharma with no other thoughts—or let other thoughts be fainter—and once dealt with, discard them. Worldly affairs only need to be dealt with perfunctorily; do not take them too seriously. When cultivating concentration, as long as we can gather in our thoughts and grasp less at worldly dharmas, concentration in motion will certainly be cultivated successfully. The mind should be kept as isolated as possible from worldly dharmas: matters may be handled, but once done, discard them; do not let the mind grasp at them, and think about things less. In this way, concentration will easily appear. One should strive to achieve this: every day, apart from sleeping, no matter when and no matter what one is doing, the mind should abide on one dharma—whether recollecting the Buddha (buddhānusmṛti), reciting mantras, reciting sūtras, engaging in contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā), investigating Chan, investigating a huatou, or investigating a gong'an. Over time, comfortable feelings will naturally arise in body and mind, and meditative concentration will appear.