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Basic Buddhist Teachings 03 - Five Minds, Six Minds, Three Practices - Practice
Mental formations, or “mental concomitants,” are the current contents of the mind, manifesting in every moment. There are two main groups:
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Universal (sarvatraga – universally present):
- contact (xúc)
- attention (tác ý)
- feeling (thọ)
- perception/ideation (tưởng)
- volition/determination (tư)
-
Particular:
- desire/intention (dục)
- determination/resolve (thắng giải)
- remembrance/mindfulness (niệm)
- concentration (định)
- wisdom/understanding (tuệ)
Each mental formation can be wholesome, unwholesome, or neutral.
A key factor is appropriate attention (yoniso-manasikāra), which is the opposite of inappropriate attention, to recognize and “replace the peg” (vitakka-saṇṭhāna) of unhelpful intentions. Applied in the meditation on the breath (Anapanasati), mindfulness is expressed through six miracles:
- to be present – bringing body and mind together
- to acknowledge the presence of the other
- to relieve suffering
- to nurture
- to look deeply (quán chiếu)
- to see/insight (tuệ) → to transform (chuyển hóa)
Part of the following collection
Universal Mental Formations, Particular Mental Formations, and the Structure of the Ten Principal Mental Formations