In vipassanā practice, effort (viriya) always should take one object. As example, the impermanence of physical phenomenon (rūpa object) or the impermanence of mind (nama object). Instead seeing many things or objects, e-g like light, color, images, it becomes restlessness (uddhacca). But the yogi can take these things as right effort and thinks that his practice is on the right track. What about on samatha practice? It also should stay with the meditation object, e-g the breath. Becoming restless is wasting time.
Viriya and samādhi must take an object only. The object of restlessness can be lobha or dosa (greed or anger). Therefore, viriya and the object are different. Viriya makes effort on the object without taking pleasure or displeasure. Viriya must stay with the impermanent object. If other things arise, it’s uddhacca.
On talking about samatha and vipassanā practices; e-g for samatha, during contemplation on loathsomeness (asubha), the mind should be stay with the object of loathsomeness and should not go out. Then it’s viriya. Except the asubha object, if many objects come in, then it becomes restless. Viriya makes effort on an object (Sayadaw gave an example of using a gun.) If you are aiming a gun without moving is viriya, if shaking then it’s uddhacca.), if too much effort it becomes restless. In this case making adjustment with samādhi. If viriya and samādhi become level out the practice will take short period of times. Over viriya the mind becomes restless. Over samādhi becomes sleepy and wasting times. (Sayadaw gave example of over viriya and samādhi with the stories of Sona and Mahā Mogallana. Because over viriya and samādhi that the practice can’t develop. Some yogis become low spirits and make conclusion on many reasons. They are thinking that don’t have the paramis and doubt about the practice. In reality, they don’t have a teacher and don’t know how to adjust them. Connection with this, faith (saddha) and wisdom (paññā) have to be adjusted. These 4-factors becoming level out can discern impermanence. Without that can’t realize the Dhamma. No faith can’t finish a task, over faith become tanhā, and over paññā become cunning. Sāriputta had to practice for 2 weeks because of over paññā and more contemplation was needed. Mahā-Mogallana took only a week to finish his practice.
T3 Kukkucca is remorse and worry, a kind of sorrow. Uddhacca and kukkucca are together, because if one of them arises the other also follows. Remorse and worry are more important than restlessness. If you are practicing or not, never think about them. I haven’t done wholesome things yet or my works are not finished yet. Don’t think about it. Let it go. The mind is restless so it appears. If not, they don’t arise. The mind not want to stay on an object is uddhacca. Both of them arise in everyone. It comes in near death as an asanna-kamma (kammas appear to the mind near death). (Sayadaw told the story of Queen Mallika.) It’s the kamma of near death and rebirth. Even though people had done a lot of wholesome, it’s a dangerous one. During dying don’t think anything, just contemplate impermanence. (For this point Sayadaw gave the story of Ven. Phugguna as an example.) It’s liked someone in drowning. This person near drowning will use all his energy in swimming. It’s the same, a dying person contemplate impermanence will put all his efforts for contemplation. Now, you are sitting in meditation, and getting up and going here and there. At near death only has the practice for rely on, so you put full effort in it. And then can become a sotāpanna to arahant. Phugguna became an anagamin.
Without the help of the Buddha and teachers (i.e, Buddhists) and investigated about the world created wrong views (outside the teachings of the Buddha). These wrong views became knowledge. Later human beings without investigation and checking these wrong views and following them wrongly. The Buddha declared that his teachings were not hearing from others, but from his own practice and direct experience, and then taught to others. There are 8 causes for wrong views. Therefore, in this life you are the supporter of the Triple Gems (i.e Buddha, Dhamma & Sangha) and don’t be satisfied only with it. Next life can be fallen into the hells. Also can be born as dogs, cows, chickens and pigs. In the human world, parents and teachers teaching to us are wrong views. Traditions and cultures are also wrong views. These things are only concern with human beings. Even in this human plane the chances to have right view is very little. No need to talk about other planes. Believe in the law of kamma (kammasakata sammādiṭṭhi) also can’t dispel wrong views. (Wrong views connect with the self). In the 5 kinds of right views, it’s only the first one. Therefore, I have to tell you to observe the khandhas. Also it’s very rare for someone to observe or contemplate the khandhas. Only the vipassanā yogi investigates them.
According to the Buddha, he used his knowledge and found out that in all the unwholesome dhammas, there were no dhammas had greater fault than wrong views. There are no unwholesome dhammas it can’t do. It also depends on the khandhas. Don’t take this lightly. If not, you can’t come out from the round of existence. Do the practice quickly. Even the Baka Brahma took the khandhas as Nibbāna. He said that his khandha was never old, sick and dead. Making prayers to beg for the khandhas is wrong view. Some people don’t want to listen to the sacca dhammas. They are liked dogs and not afraid the stones but to the sound. Not afraid the khandhas but to the sound of Dhamma. Craving and wrong view are together. If you have the khandhas you have wrong view. It is latent in the khandhas. Only noble beings are free from it. Don’t know how to investigate developing wrong view. Knowing how to investigate develop the anatta nyan (knowledge of not-self) and leading to Nibbāna. In the world human beings doing all the things are for the welfare of the khandhas. If khandhas develop, wrong views also develop. There is nothing more foolish than making prayers for the khandhas. These are going to the planes of misery. Only by knowing the Noble Truth that will not get the khandhas.
Without the help of the Buddha and teachers, investigation and thinking develop miccha-diṭṭhi. As example in other religions, the investigation is based on ignorance (avijjā). Miccha-diṭṭhi is more dangerous than the 5-Heavy Kammas. Even the world is destroyed these hell beings are moved to another place to continue their suffering.
All worldly knowledge harmful to others is miccha-nyan, except harmless.
Wrong view and tanhā are together. After entering the steam diṭṭhi is destroyed and 1/4 of the tanhā also abandoned. The meanings of phassa have 2: contact and meeting.
(4)Sañña develop wrong views : Pure perception does not develop wrong views; such as, just seeing, just hearing..etc. But with concept wrong views come in, e-g I see a woman.
(5) Thinking develop wrong views : Vitakka means thinking the sense objects. Thinking without knowledge and about the things should not be think about are develop wrong views. (Things should not be think about are as an e-g the world is finite or infinite? The 10 questions the Buddha never answered in his time.) Thinking must go together with nyan. Therefore 2 kinds of vitakka, nyan must has vitakka. Of the 2 wisdom factors; samma-diṭṭhi (right view) is nyan, and samma-sankappa (right thought) is vitakka. Buddhists converted into other faiths are thinking without nyan. Therefore, taking the wrong views as right views and converted to them. The wrong view of other faiths was coming from people who did not have the ability of knowledge to think and created doctrines. Kamma and samatha also develop wrong views, e-g celestial beings (devata) and Brahmas. Only vipassanā cannot stick with wrong views.
Take impermanence (anicca) as permanence (nicca), suffering (dukkha) as happiness (sukka), not-self (anatta) as self (atta) and loathsomeness (asubha) as beauty (subha). These are examples of unwise attentions. Making dāna with the enrichment of vipassanā will go up higher & higher and not fall down again. (This point was emphasized by Sayadaw very often in his talks on dāna and merits practices which most Buddhists making for the sake of wealth and good rebirths; i-e unwise attention.) After you go up because of sharp wisdom faculty will only continue to go up higher. With ordinary dāna and smatha and after their power are finished will fall down again.
(8)By listening to wrong teachings develop wrong views: A Buddhist or someone listens or reads the Christian teaching and becomes a Christian. Actually, most Buddhists have wrong views (no need to mention other faiths), so easily to accept other teachings. If they really understand or know what is right or wrong views, it will not happen. So Buddhist monks have the duties to explain these things to them.
T1 Investigation of things and phenomena seems liked the knowledge and developing doubt. Knowledge can make a decision but doubt can’t, and the mind becomes liked a fork road (Two states of mind and can’t make decision). Without the power or ability to think become doubt. Must approach a teacher. Knowledge and doubt both have the nature of investigation in similarity. Doubt comes in for the hindrance of contemplation of impermanence. If it’s arising, then contemplate it. Destroy it with knowledge. (Talked about the 8-doubts). Vicikicca is ignorance (avijjā). It can be a hindrance for the realization of Dhamma. After investigation and doing the practice and without the practice are quite different. Knowledge do the job after investigation and not becoming doubt. If you have doubt, approaching a teacher and clear up the doubt. If we don’t have faith in the truth of the teaching, these teachings will disappear first (He gave an example of doubt.). I am practicing quite a long time now. Why I’m still not realize the dhamma yet? In reality defilements come in and the yogi doesn’t know it and has doubt. Only you can clear up all the defilements come in and will realize the Dhamma.
T2 Regarding to the past life, we have doubt – where I came from? What happened to me in the past? It’s the investigation of the past. Without the ability to think is thinking with wrong views. In reality only mind & body happened before. This is never wrong. Any kind of thinking with a person or living being is leading to doubt. Thinking rightly is knowledge. Other faiths are thinking in the ways leading to wrong views and doubts, and after death fall into the planes of misery. It’s very frightening. Even some Buddhists died with wrong views and doubts. If you know that only mind & body exist is the middle knowledge or you are on the middle way. Identity view, permanent view and annihilation view are overcome. No.(6)doubt is what happen to me after die ? If you don’t realize Nibbāna, only mind & body arise and only mind & body pass away. With knowledge (nyan) come in become magga (vipassanā knowledge), if knowledge can’t come in and have doubt. No.(7)doubt is where I came from and where I’ll go ? All these people never practice. If you become a sotāpanna, you will only take rebirth not more than 7-times. If becoming an arahant, will know that no more birth again. They don’t have any doubt. No.(8)doubt is doubt in the teaching of Dependent Arising. The Buddha only discovered it and gave a name to it. Originally it’s natural procedure (sabhava niyama), and arising in all living beings. Therefore, have doubt on the Dependent Arising is not on Theory, but on one’s own khandha process.
Not only listening to the talks of outsiders (other faiths) has wrong views, but also listening to the Buddhist teachings has wrong views. As example, regarding to dāna, if I do it, I will get the result. This is kammasakata nyan. It can’t transcend the planes of asava (taints). It’s inside the province of the taint of view (ditthasava). The wholesomeness of dāna (merits of dāna) is called tainted merits (Asavakusala Dhamma) and can’t realize Nibbāna without knowledge (nyan). Therefore, whatever merits you are doing using knowledge together. The Buddha taught conventional truth was for the Kammasakata Nyan. He taught the ultimate truth (paramatha sacca) for the purpose of Path and Fruit Knowledges. Therefore, with care and not incline towards one sided. If inclining towards one sided become extreme. We must distinguish between the province of kamma and nyan. The province of kamma is 31-realms of existence. The province of nyan is transcending the 31-realms of existence. When we are doing merits must lead by knowledge. In this way, kammasakata nyan is following behind the leading sacca nyan. Without these knowledges, beings are wandering around the 31-realms of existence. Therefore, doing merits and goodness not let it leading by tanhā samudaya but knowledge. In this way, it will directly give the result to Nibbāna. If your causes are not good so the results. In life everytime we encounter difficulties and inconveniences, don’t complain as don’t have the good results, but knowing as our causes are not good. When encounter family problems and social problems become stress but don’t complain. It’s only the beginning and more dukkha will come. You will still have to encounter the dukkha of old age, sickness and death. To get the scales of knowledge must listen to Sacca Dhamma. In this way when you are listening to talk, you can distinguish right and wrong.