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Basic Buddhist Teachings 16 - Five Fears and Their Circumstances
Thay shares the joy of welcoming Elder Nun Diệu Trí—a venerable abbess of 84 years—to attend the Great Precepts Transmission Ceremony, while emphasizing the spirit of continuation and enriching the Buddhist tradition: preserving the ancient essence while also integrating the elements of contemporary society, science, and the spirit of democracy.
The focus of the Dharma talk is the five particular mental formations—five mental factors that are indeterminate, which can be wholesome or unwholesome:
- Chanda (intention, desire)
- Adhimokṣa (decision)
- Smṛti (mindfulness)
- Samādhi (concentration)
- Prajñā (understanding, discernment)
Thay goes deeply into chanda: from the needs and desires of body and mind, the wholesome and unwholesome seeds in the store consciousness (for example, addiction to drugs or the aspiration to understand, to love), to the ways of watering these seeds so that desire arises strongly.
The method of mindfulness practice is proposed: when a need arises, do not suppress it but recognize it, smile to it, and look deeply into its near and distant roots; cherish and nourish wholesome desires, and at the same time, transform unwholesome desires. In this way, mindfulness, concentration, and insight are cultivated, and each person can develop the mind of awakening and bring happiness to themselves and to all beings.