How, then, do we cut off self-grasping ? It keeps arising again and again, which is very troublesome. The method of training here is somewhat different from the previous four. One should sit cross-legged and begin analytical contemplation: Is the body “I”? Is the left hand “I” ? No. If it were cut off and thrown on the ground, the left hand would no longer be “I.” By extending this reasoning—hair, eyes… there is not a single part of the body that can be identified as “I.”
You must reflect in this way repeatedly; doing it once or twice is far from sufficient. Continue until your mind directly feels that the body has nothing to do with “I”—it is merely a tool, a puppet being manipulated. One should often directly experience that the body is a false appearance; even if there were an “I,” it would have nothing to do with the body. Gradually, the realization of selflessness with respect to form will be accomplished.
Next, contemplate feeling in the same way. To what extent should this contemplation go? All pleasure and pain are merely the mind’s pleasure and pain—there is no “I” within them. It is the mind that undergoes suffering, the result of ignorance in truth, there is no “I” that suffers. Reflect until the sense of individuality and control is relinquished. It sounds simple, but in practice, it is extremely difficult.
The same applies to the aggregate of perception. Either bring it to rest through meditative concentration, or directly observe it: there is actually no “I” thinking—there is only the movement of mind. Replace the notion of “I” with “mind.”
One of the simplest methods is precisely to replace “I” with “mind.” Yet the mind itself cannot be found as a substantial entity; it has no true subject. Therefore, the mind also does not possess an “I.” As mentioned earlier, the mind cannot be located—it has no position, no direction, no temporal boundary. It is merely awareness and luminosity—where, then, could an “I” be found within it?
However, within this seemingly constant awareness and luminosity, there is ignorance. Ignorance forcibly produces a direct sense of individuality and control—this is called self-grasping. In fact, at the conceptual level, people do not usually think about “self-grasping.” If you ask someone on the street who has never studied Buddhism what “self-grasping” is, they would not even know the term. But do they have it? Yes—their mind directly clings to a self.
The aggregate of formations is the same. When various emotions arise, tell yourself that this is merely the mind in motion—there is no “I” stirring things up. Reflect on this, and directly observe that it is actually a form of mistaken cognition. Whether cognition is mistaken or correct, it is still cognition. From the standpoint of pure awareness, there is neither error nor correctness. How does one abide in that standpoint? It is to remain in bare awareness, without thought or judgment. If one could truly do this, it would already be the realization of Dzogchen. For now, we are not capable of it. In short, formations are simply movements of the mind—they contain no “I.”
As for the aggregate of consciousness, as mentioned earlier, the “I” within it is nothing but the mind’s mistaken ignorance and attachment. After resolving form, feeling, perception, and formations, how does one resolve consciousness? When the mind directly realizes how it has been generating the sense of individuality and control—and recognizes this as entirely erroneous (a non-conceptual, awareness-based understanding)—at that moment, one realizes that manas (the afflicted mind) is merely a false function of consciousness. This is also what a stream-entry Arhat realizes. The mind directly understands this and abides in it. If one does not continue further practice, one will ultimately become an Arhat.
When the mind no longer experiences a sense of individuality or control, all afflictions transform into the natural movements of the mind. Greed, anger, ignorance, pride, and doubt all disappear. “Faith” then becomes a kind of faith that is no longer a mental factor.
What is meant by faith that is not a mental factor? For example, if I now tell you that there is liberation and that the Three Jewels exist, your belief is merely a thought. But once you truly realize it, do you still need to think about it? It is simply so—it requires no further thought. At that point, it is no longer a mental factor. There is no longer the issue of belief or disbelief—thus, even “faith” disappears.
Similarly, mental factors such as shame and remorse also disappear. When self-grasping is gone, the sense of individuality vanishes, and everything centered around that individuality dissolves. Afflictions are completely eliminated.
This is extremely profound—can it be accomplished? Yes, it can. The method is: in the preliminary stage, one must vigorously cultivate bodhicitta, and then proceed with the analytical contemplation I have described.
What I have just explained is rather general. In reality, you must repeatedly observe your own body and mind, searching to see whether any part of them possesses individuality or control. You will discover that, both internally and externally—whether material or mental—there is no “I” whatsoever. Once this becomes a firm certainty and direct awareness, and you continue to practice within that awareness, the self-grasping within the manas consciousness will be eliminated, and all afflictions will thereby be cut off.
—Excerpted and compiled from The Arising and Remedies of Afflictions
This article is a preliminary translation draft and has not yet been reviewed or proofread by the speaker.
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