True Devotion : The Importance of Meditation Practice
- by S. N. Goenka

(The following is a discourse given by Goenkaji at the Sambodhi Viharaya, Colombo, Sri Lanka in the evening on Buddha Purnima, the full moon day of Vesaka, 12 May 2006. It has been adapted for the Newsletter.)

Most Venerable Bhikkhu Sangha and Dhamma friends:

Today, on this auspicious day, every devotee of the Buddha has to generate mettā, karuṇā, love, compassion, goodwill for everyone, for all beings. “May all beings be happy, be peaceful, be liberated from their miseries.”

This mettā bhāvanā should be very strong, very effective. It will be strong only when you purify your mind. “I must be happy and peaceful myself to express and wish happiness to others. How can I wish happiness for others if my mind is agitated, if I have no peace within me?”

The Buddha gave a wonderful path. He taught how to purify the mind, not just at the surface level but at the depth, at the root level. When you generate mettā and karuṇā with a pure mind, it is very effective.

The path of purification that the Buddha gave to the world, to humanity, is universal. It is not limited to a particular community. The Buddha’s teaching is not meant only for those who call themselves Buddhists; it is for one and all.

The teaching is not to convert people from one organized religion to another organized religion; it is to convert them from misery to happiness, from bondage to liberation.

I keep on remembering the Buddha’s words. To those who were not his followers, he says, “I am not interested to make you my disciples. I am not interested to snatch you from your teachers. I have discovered a path which will help you to come out of all your miseries. Come, give it a trial. Give it a trial just for seven days and see the results.”

I do the same. I tell people of the world, of different communities, “Come and give it a trial for ten days and see the result. If you find it is good for you and good for others, then only accept it. Give it a trial.”

This is what my teacher told me, “You are miserable, the people around you are miserable. Come, try this technique.” And I accepted and I tried the technique for ten days, and I got wonderful results.

The Buddha’s teaching gives results here and now, akāliko, wonderful results. When a few people from different communities give it a trial, the word starts spreading that it is so good.

The technique that the Buddha gave is totally non-sectarian. Anybody and everybody can practice and get the same result. One has to spare ten days and join a camp with a congenial atmosphere, with an experienced teacher and learn the technique.

You are asked to sit comfortably with eyes closed, back and neck straight and to just start observing the breath, nothing but breath. Pure breath, bare breath.

You are asked not to interfere with the natural flow of the breath. If it is deep, it is deep. If it is shallow, it is shallow. If it is passing through the left nostril, it is passing through the left nostril; if it is passing through the right nostril, it is passing through the right nostril. Just observe. Do nothing. Just observe the reality as it is — yathā bhūta.

Do not use any word or any mantra. No verbalization. When you observe breath, observe only breath, nothing but breath, which is the same for everybody. It is neither Hindu nor Muslim nor Buddhist nor Christian.

You should also not use any visualization or imagination. Observe the breath as it is.

The Buddha wants us to concentrate on a small area at the centre of the upper lip so that we will be successful. You are aware of the breath, you are aware of this area. Within three days, a student who comes to the course starts feeling some sensation or the other in this area.

From the fourth day onwards, one starts experiencing different types of sensations from the top of the head to the tips of the toes. Very soon, one starts realizing that these sensations are not merely related to the body, they are strongly related to the mind also.

When you generate anger, there are bound to be sensations of heat, palpitation, tension etc. which make you miserable. Similarly, whatever impurity arises in the mind, it arises with a sensation in the body.

These are not mere sermons. One starts experiencing the truth, “I am making myself miserable by generating some defilement or the other in the mind.” This becomes so clear at the experiential level.

Whether one is a Hindu or a Muslim or a Christian or a Buddhist, everyone wants to come out of misery. Nobody wants to live a miserable life. The Buddha gave us a way to come out of misery by eradicating the defilements of the mind.

People from different communities keep coming to the courses because the teaching is so rational, so scientific and so non-sectarian and result-oriented.

When one generates anger, you cannot label it as Hindu anger or Muslim anger or Christian anger. Anger is anger and the misery that you experience because of this negativity cannot be labelled as Hindu misery or Muslim misery or Christian misery. Misery is misery. The way that is given to come out of misery also cannot be given any label; it is universal. Anybody who practices it comes out of misery because one comes out of negativity.

The happiness that one experiences, the peace that one experiences, the harmony that one experiences cannot be labeled as Buddhist peace or Buddhist harmony. This peace, this harmony is universal. Anybody who practices the Buddha’s teaching will experience the same peace and harmony.

The Buddha’s teaching is so wonderful, so non-sectarian that people from all the religions of the world are attending Vipassana courses. The result that they get makes a big change in their outlook.

Hundreds of thousands of people around the world have taken Vipassana. They practice sīla, they practice samādhi, they practice paññā. Let them call themselves by any name, I don’t care. They are the real followers of the Buddha. They are practicing the Noble Eightfold Path.

Sri Lanka is the land of Buddha Dhamma. I know all of you are devotees of the Buddha. Many of you must have been practicing Vipassana. Those who have not practiced, I invite you, come, ehi-passiko. Give me ten days of your life and get the good results of what the Buddha taught.

Everyone gets benefit, little or more, according to the effort one makes.

So on this auspicious day, I would like you to make a decision that you will practice Vipassana. This is the practical teaching of the Buddha. It is good to have devotion towards the Buddha; it is good to understand the Buddha at the intellectual level; but only the understanding at the experiential level will give the real benefit.

So practice the Buddha’s teaching of Vipassana and be happy, be peaceful, be liberated.

Bhavatu sabba maṅgalaṃ — May all beings be happy!