The Four Preparatory Practices and Four Roots of Goodness of Wisdom Developed through Cultivation

Does the contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) of the four foundations of mindfulness have any relationship to the Four Noble Truths? In the process of contemplating the four foundations of mindfulness, each foundation of mindfulness must be contemplated in light of the principles of the Four Noble Truths; combined together, this constitutes the contemplation of sixteen aspects of practice. When the sixteen aspects are contemplated in full, one will attain four kinds of wisdom states, which are the four roots of goodness. These four roots of goodness are warmth (ūṣma-gata), summit (mūrdhan), patience (kṣānti), and the supreme worldly dharma (laukikāgra-dharma), also called the four aids to enlightenment (nirvedha-bhāgīya). This is the stage that must be passed through before seeing the path. The four aids and the four roots of goodness belong to wisdom cultivated through meditation (bhāvanāmayī-prajñā); before this belongs to the wisdom of hearing and the wisdom of reflection, which are relatively shallow and have not yet been steeped into the manas. Only when it has been steeped into the manas, so that the manas is touched and changed, becoming compliant with suffering, emptiness, impermanence, and non-self, and the conformative stage of decisive discernment (nirvedha-bhāgīya) is initiated, does one possess wisdom cultivated through meditation. Only with wisdom cultivated through meditation, when it is complete and full, can one see the path. Therefore the four aids to enlightenment are extremely important; everyone should understand this, and I will gradually expound some of the dharma in this regard.

Another theory that needs to be perfected for everyone is the thirty-seven aids to enlightenment. I will explain it in a bit more detail, so that each person knows whether they are cultivating the thirty-seven aids to enlightenment, and to what degree they have cultivated them. Finally, I will also speak about which of the coarser afflictions of the desire realm need to be eliminated through meditative concentration (samādhi) in the process of cultivation before seeing the path. Subtle afflictions can only be eliminated after seeing the path; before seeing the path they cannot be eliminated, and the afflictions of the form realm are even more impossible to eliminate. With this, the dharma of the Small Vehicle is basically more or less sufficient, and there is no need to expound more.

In cultivation, in fact ninety percent of the time is spent on one's own diligent practice, with very little time used for hearing the dharma and absorbing theoretical views to guide one's practice, so as not to go astray onto wrong or divergent paths. When the theoretical views absorbed are more or less sufficient, it is entirely a matter of individual single-minded diligent practice. Spending more time studying theory would only delay matters. Therefore, going forward, I do not wish to expound too much dharma, lest it delay everyone's actual practice. If in the future I discover there are still theoretical deficiencies, I will slowly supplement them. Specifically, actual practice should be the main focus; theory only needs to be sufficient. Being greedy for more is of little use and merely wastes time.

During the stage of cultivating the four aids to enlightenment, because the manas has been effectively steeped, both body and mind will undergo change: the mind becomes purer than before, afflictions become lighter, and bodily, verbal, and mental actions are transformed. Only in this way can one gradually accord with the qualities of mind and conduct of the sages after seeing the path, and only then can one see the path. Therefore it is not the case that when one's body and mind have changed and afflictions have lightened, one has already seen the path and realized the fruit—that is still far off. As for those who constantly doubt whether they have awakened or not within the Mahāyāna dharma: if they have not cultivated these dharmas, or have not cultivated them to completion and fullness, then from now on let this doubt be severed—there is no need to doubt; you have not awakened, not even an interpretive awakening. Some people, after awakening, show little change in body, mind, and world compared to before awakening, or no change at all, having merely gained a bit more in terms of views; and some do not even have sufficient views. Such people have not cultivated the thirty-seven aids to enlightenment, have not cultivated the four aids to enlightenment, and are merely at the stage of hearing and reflection. Such a misunderstanding is simply enormous. Why would such a misunderstanding arise?