Keep the Crazy People Home
October 03, 2023
When you get the mind to settle down and stay with one object, like the breath, it’s said to be a vihā**ra-dhamma, which literally means a home for the mind. And as with any home, you want to make it comfortable. You also want to be very careful about who you let in, who you let out. We go through the day looking at this and listening to that, and the question is: Who’s doing the looking, who’s doing the listening? Is it your discernment that’s doing it or is it your greed, aversion, or delusion?
If you think about the mind being like a committee, you have to realize that some of the committee members are kind of crazy. So you don’t let them out. When I was a child, we had a great aunt who lived in the family home next door. She was kind of crazy, so she stayed in her room and she wasn’t let out of the house. That way, the whole neighborhood could be at peace.
In the same way, you want to make sure your neighborhood is at peace. If you have any crazy members of your committee, don’t let them out. At the same time. you have to be very careful about who you let in—and, when you open the door, who’s opening the door. Sometimes the crazy people open the door and let their crazy friends in. So you have to be in charge in opening and closing the door—examining who’s coming in and also examining who’s going out.
This is the duty of mindfulness. You may say that’s a lot of work, opening and closing the doors like that. But remember, you’re trying to make this a comfortable home to be in, so that it’s a good place to stay, and you want to protect it so that it stays good, so that you’re working from a sense of well-being and you’re increasing your sense of well-being. The less trouble you allow into the house, the less trouble you let out of the house.
So be very careful as you go through the day. As you’re looking at something, remember your foundation should be the breath. Stay with your foundation. And as for any other thoughts that might come up about why you want to look at something or listen to something, be very careful about your reasons. It’s not that the Buddha doesn’t want you to look or listen at all, but you have to have a clear sense of what in the mind wants to do the looking and the listening. Sometimes it’s one of the crazy members. And the crazy members will then bring their friends back home.
So be very careful as you go through the day. Try to maintain your awareness of the breath as much as you can. It may be too much to ask to keep aware of when it’s coming in and going out, but be aware of the quality of the breath energy in your body. Make sure that it feels open, relaxed, at ease. And then protect it.
This is called restraint of the senses, and also restraint of your thoughts, words, and deeds. We don’t like the word restraint. We feel that we’re being hemmed in. But remember, the Buddha taught that restraint is a form of goodwill: goodwill for yourself, goodwill for the neighborhood. You want everybody to be happy, so you don’t let the troublemakers get together, because when they get together, they increase their strength. Try to keep them apart and you can have some peace at home and all around you.