Inner Strength - Access to Insight

65will imbibe nothing but pleasure—and there’s no pleasure higher than that of themind at peace. Thus rapture is water for using, for bathing the body and mind;whereas pleasure is drinking water specifically for the mind.So whoever has the discernment to distill fresh water from salt water willexperience ease and wellbeing. This is our first distillery. The second distillery iswhere we take the water from the first and distill it to even greater purity. This isthe same as when they refine sugar: After the first stage it still contains somealcohol, so they have to refine it a second time. This stands for developing insightmeditation, something very refined—so refined that nobody else can see it. Youcan stand and practice insight meditation, sit and practice insight meditation, youcan lie down, you can even be giving a Dhamma talk and practice insightmeditation: The mouth speaks, the mind thinks of its topic—when you think ofsomething to say, or thoughts simply arise within the mind, there’s noattachment to bodily fabrication, i.e., the processes of the body; no attachment toverbal fabrication, i.e., the thoughts that fabricate words for other people to hear.There’s no attachment to your words, and your mind doesn’t run out after them.As for thoughts that arise from ignorance and craving, you know themimmediately for what they are. The mind in that state isn’t involved in bodilyfabrication, verbal fabrication, or mental fabrication. The mind is then releasedfrom all fabrications.All fabrications that arise simply change and then disband. This is true ofbodily fabrications, verbal fabrications, and mental fabrications. When you seethese things in terms of their common characteristics, when you see them asinconstant, constantly spinning around; stressful, hard to bear; and not-self,beyond your control, then whether you’re standing, sitting, lying down,performing physical work, or speaking—even when you’re just sitting andthinking alone by yourself—you’ll find all things good and noble flowing to youat all times. This is called practicing insight meditation.A person like this can then set up an enormous distillery, turning the water ofthe sea into clouds. When the water of the sea has been turned into clouds,they’ll float through the sky. Wherever people are suffering from hardships, thewater in the clouds will come raining down, watering the land where people liveso that they can grow food conveniently. In the same way, when people havereleased their hearts from the power of worldliness, their goodness is like clouds.When the clouds turn into rain, the rainwater will help good people live inhappiness and wellbeing. This is one of the benefits that comes from those whohave developed discernment.So I ask that all of you make a mental note of these three maxims:1) Caulk your boat.2) Set up a mast, unfurl your sails so that they catch the wind, and then stockyour boat with provisions by practicing generosity.3) Learn how to take salt water and distill it into fresh.Whoever can give rise to these skills within themselves will, at the very least,become good people. If they’re not heedless, and make a continual effort, theywill be able to take the mind beyond all becoming.