First Faith Then Wisdom | 24 May 2024
by Ajahn Anan
Ajahn Anan emphasizes the importance of mindfulness, generosity (dāna), moral conduct (sīla), and meditative concentration (samādhi) as foundations for wisdom and spiritual growth. He compares cultivating samādhi to lifting a knife, where mindfulness and wisdom naturally accompany concentration. Through mindfulness, one sees the impermanent, unsatisfactory, and non-self nature of existence, leading to wisdom. Ajahn Anan underscores the value of pure-hearted giving, both material and intangible, such as letting go of anger and ill-will, as higher forms of dāna. He warns of mental obstacles like craving and ill-will, likening them to old, harmful friends. Instead, we should nurture new friends like mindfulness and effort to steady the mind. He reflects on life’s impermanence, comparing it to a dew drop that evaporates under the sun, urging heedfulness in practice. By giving, practicing sīla, and cultivating samādhi with faith, wisdom will naturally arise.
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