Body In COVID Lockdown - Mind Released In Loving Kindness

Many struggle in the endless COVID lockdowns. Ajahn Dhammasiha reminds us that only our physical body can be locked down by the government. Our mind remains free. Ultimately, we dwell in consciousness, not in a house or apartment. Unconditional loving kindness to all beings ('Mettā') is a beautiful, joyful and bright 'dwelling place' our mind is free to inhabit any time, even in lockdown.

Chanting for sharing of good karma is included at the end, with a free Amaravati version played in the background.

Transcript

A lockdown.

We say we are in lockdown if the government is introducing a lockdown for the coronavirus stay at home order,

Or however it is called.

Basically it is a lockdown of the physical body.

What we can confine,

Incarcerate or imprison is only the physical body.

The mind still has got the freedom to go here and there to think this or that,

To have this or that emotion.

So strictly speaking a lockdown is for the physical body.

But on the other hand mentally what we are really locked down in is consciousness.

Because can you get out of your consciousness?

Can you get out of your mind?

That is altogether impossible.

Regarding a physical lockdown of our body,

We all have moved out of one body and taken on a new one with each new rebirth countless times.

So any physical lockdown of the body,

Any imprisonment,

Even if it was for a lifetime,

Would end at death anyhow and the mind connects with a new body unless one has attained Nibbana.

But on the other hand the fact that we are locked down in consciousness and we can't get out of our own mind,

That is going to continue again even beyond a new life,

How could we possibly get out of our mind?

So once we are in lockdown we obviously want to make ourselves as comfortable as possible,

Isn't it?

Regarding physical lockdown,

What would you prefer?

Being locked down in a cold,

Damp,

Dark,

Tiny cellar in a basement cell without any access to proper daylight,

Cold,

Damp,

Never miserable?

Or in a hundreds of square meters large penthouse on top of a big skyscraper with beautiful views,

5G reception,

Plasma screen,

Butler service,

Concierge,

Library,

All mod cons?

I think most people would very much prefer being locked down in the penthouse with all mod cons,

Views,

Lots of space.

Because if you are in lockdown it is much better to be in a nice place.

But how much more does it apply to our mind where we are always in lockdown?

It's not any government where we are locked down in conscious experience,

Can't get out of our own mind.

So if you are smart we will make an effort to make that lockdown as pleasant as possible by turning our mind into a beautiful dwelling place.

And one very beautiful dwelling place is exactly a metta,

This is why it's called Brahma Vihara.

Now vihara is a dwelling place.

This is why the Padi term vihara is also used for monasteries,

Because by definition any dwelling place where a monk or nun is living,

That becomes a monastery.

So a dwelling place for a monk or nun,

That is a monastery.

Vihara,

Brahma is one of the very high devas,

One of the deities which have abandoned central desire,

At least for the time being.

And other unwholesome states are reborn in one of the samadhi realms,

So to speak.

From developing samadhi they are reborn in Brahma Loka,

Where the lifespan can exceed even eons.

Brahma Vihara is a dwelling place for that kind of very pure being.

So as we are always stuck in our own mind,

As we are always stuck in consciousness,

Locked down in consciousness,

It is a good idea to turn that lockdown into the most beautiful place we can imagine and an extremely beautiful one is the quality of unconditional goodwill to all beings without distinction,

A non-judgmental,

Non-discriminating,

Wishing well to absolutely everyone.

And when we develop that intention in our mind,

It will be connected with a very beautiful Vedana,

A very beautiful feeling,

With an exquisitely pleasant,

Uplifting,

Buoyant feeling to wish well to absolutely everyone without distinction.

And it turns our mind into a very bright dwelling place,

Radiant,

Bright,

Beautiful,

And is suffused with joy,

Happiness,

Pleasant feelings,

Gladness.

And ultimately when we look at these two different locations,

Dwelling places where we can be stuck,

One with the physical body,

One with the mind,

Which one is ultimately more important,

The mind is a more important one,

As someone who has really fully developed loving-kindness,

Even if you put them into a basement cell,

Into a prison cell,

Even into a dungeon,

They may not be much affected because primarily we live in our mind and if the mind is in a beautiful,

Bright,

Radiant,

Joyful place,

Which is suffused with joy,

Bliss,

Rapture and happiness,

Then it doesn't really matter so much if the body is in a dungeon.

So if we are externally locked down due to the restrictions on the virus,

The one way of almost escaping that is simply putting our mind into a bahma vihava,

Into a divine abode,

And then it doesn't really matter so much where the body is.

In fact,

Now if we can really absorb and unify the mind in samadhi,

We may not even be aware anymore of our physical dwelling place.

If someone is in a dungeon,

The moment their heart attains samadhi,

They will have no awareness even of that external environment.

If someone is incarcerated in prison,

If they were able to attain samadhi,

To unify their mind in samadhi,

It would be at that moment for the mind impossible to even perceive and be aware of the external prison environment,

Or that the mind is aware in samadhi,

The internal bliss and the internal freedom.

So the limitless abode of loving kindness is a beautiful place where we can attain freedom even if the body is incarcerated.

It is also known as upper manya vihara.

Upper manya means boundless,

Limitless,

Infinite,

Without any limitations,

Without any restrictions,

Because our loving kindness is supposed to be infinite spatially,

Pervading the whole universe.

It is also meant to be boundless,

Limitless in terms of what kind of beings.

If we truly develop loving kindness,

Then we include everyone,

Whether they like us or they hate us,

Whether they are good or bad,

Whether they are Buddhist or Christian or no religion or whatever,

Saints or sinners,

Enlightened or deluded,

Liberated abhans,

And evil demons,

That has no distinction.

It is also boundless,

Limitless in terms of classes of beings.

So we can achieve this boundless freedom even in external conservation.

So I think loving kindness is just an excellent way of addressing lockdown blues and depression or feeling upset and irritated.

When we are in lockdown,

It is quite easy here in Brisbane,

It is supposed to be only three days,

And so here in the monastery being locked down on 85 acres next to a national park is not really locked down anyhow.

But many people in this world are in a much tougher condition.

And say,

Even in my country where I was born,

Like Germany,

Similar to England,

Britain,

In winter it is often dark and grey and dizzy,

And actually no snow,

But a few degrees overcast,

Say in the Netherlands,

David is from the Netherlands,

And you have got these weeks of overcast and the sun in winter hardly gets over the horizon,

Dark until 8 and by 4 pm it is already dark again.

And then additionally being locked down,

Maybe not on a big property or house,

But just a fairly small apartment or flat,

And it is quite easy that the mind can get depressed or melancholic or upset and feeling confined.

And loving kindness is just an excellent meditation for countering that.

Even if we can't get to the level of really having this rapture and bliss and limitless freedom of full samadhi,

Or even just developing a little bit of loving kindness,

Even just the preliminary steps never immediately brighten and uplift the mind,

We feel so much happier.

And even just the reflection,

Once we remind ourselves of where our body is,

That this is secondary,

What is primarily determining our own well-being,

Where our mind is,

Once we see that opening and we realize that primarily we live inside our mind,

Inside consciousness,

And we already feel kind of set free and liberated,

Because we realize all we have to do is making mind consciousness bright and happy.

And then any physical lockdown may not fully wear us down anymore.

So far I have your comments on overcoming the lockdown internally by dwelling inside our mind in loving kindness,

In the divine abode.

And then the other we are locked down for however long.

It doesn't matter so much because the mind is in a different place,

In a place of joy,

Brightness,

Happiness,

In a place of developing the emotion,

The intention of unconditional goodwill to all beings.

Now let's come to the resolution of aspiration.

May the highest gods and evil forces,

Celestial beings,

Guardian spirits of the earth,

And the Lord of death,

May those who are friendly,

Indifferent or hostile,

May all beings receive the blessings of my life,

May they soon attain the threefold bliss,

And realize the deathless through the goodness that arises from my practice,

And through this act of sharing,

May all desires and the fetchments quickly cease,

And all harmful sakes of mind,

Until I realize nip on earth in every kind of birth,

May I have an upright mind with mindfulness and wisdom,

Austerity and greed,

May the forces of illusion not take hold,

Nor weaken my resolve,

The Buddha is my excellent refuge,

And surpasses the protection of the lama,

The solitary Buddha is my reward,

The slanderer is my supreme support,

Through the supreme power of all beings,

May darkness and delusion be disturbed.

And we pay respects to Buddha Dhamma and Sangha.

Arahang Sangha Sambhutto Bhagavat Mutham Bhagavantam Nabi Radhe Svakkhato Bhagavatadam Nambhana Samhita Supatipanno Bhagavato Savakasangho Sangham Nambami

Reviews

Great reframe, thank you🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻