Desire to See the Truth
One day, a frog met a centipede and curiously asked, "Brother Centipede, I find it difficult to walk with four legs, how do you decide which leg to move first with so many legs?" After hearing this, the centipede replied, "Little brother Frog, I've always walked this way without ever thinking about which leg to move first. Let me think about it and get back to you." After pondering for a few minutes and attempting to walk while thinking, the centipede ended up lying down and said to the frog, "Please don't ask this question to other centipedes. We've always walked this way, but now that you've asked which leg to move first, I don't know anymore and can't even walk. What should I do?"
As the story illustrates, although walking seems like an active effort, the various movements involved are subconscious. You only need the intention to walk, and you will naturally take steps forward. During this process, you don't need to consciously contract specific muscles, bend your knees to a certain degree, move your legs a certain distance, or decide whether to sidestep or turn first.
This is the nature of the mind and body; once learned, there's no need for deliberate control. It's like riding a bicycle; if you're used to riding a bike and then try to ride a tricycle, even if you consciously control the direction, it will still veer off course.
These subconscious movements mean you don't know or need to know what you'll do next. For example, during walking, when you lift your foot, you might think the next step is to push your foot forward, but in reality, to balance, your body will first tilt or lean forward. These are involuntary actions, and because they are involuntary, you only realize what you've done after the action is completed. Observing from this perspective, you'll find that almost all movements during walking are realized afterward.
When you want to walk, various corresponding body movements begin to occur subconsciously. As these movements happen, proprioception occurs, and after proprioception, you can recall what movements your body just made. In this process, you only need to walk slowly, focus on your body, and continuously recall what movements your body just made.
Breathing is also a subconscious action. Although you might initially try to control your breathing consciously, this control will soon make your breathing very uncoordinated until you let your body take over. Similarly, you only need to focus on your breathing and continuously recall what movements your breathing just made.
So, is the purpose of doing this to see the true nature of movements or breathing? No, the main purposes are:
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Majjhima Nikaya 118: "These four foundations of mindfulness, in the hearts of the noble disciples, bind their minds, control the joy of home, remove the desire of home, stop the fatigue of home, make them enjoy the right Dharma, and practice the holy precepts."
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Samyukta Agama 1171: "If one practices the mindfulness of the body well, with or without mindfulness of form, seeing desirable forms does not lead to attachment, and seeing undesirable forms does not lead to aversion; for sounds, smells, tastes, tactile sensations, and mental objects, not seeking desire for agreeable mental objects and not generating aversion for disagreeable mental objects. Therefore, monks! You should diligently practice and often dwell in mindfulness of the body."
Majjhima Nikaya 118: "You should observe the inner body as a body, not contemplating desires associated with desires."
These are the purposes of the establishment of mindfulness. If you can observe and recollect in this focused manner, then you will not temporarily wish to return to the secular world to enjoy various entertainments in meditation halls, meditation camps, or after ordination. If you can immerse yourself completely, then you can temporarily distance yourself from the five desires and eliminate the five hindrances.
Your mind will thus generate joy, and observing and recollecting the emotions of joy in the mind is the second stage of the four establishments of mindfulness, "Observe the feelings as feelings, do not think of non-feeling related thoughts." Observing and recollecting the mind states is the third stage of the four establishments of mindfulness, "Observe the mind as the mind, do not think of non-mind related thoughts."
Gradually, you will see the Dharma, initiating the fourth stage of the four establishments of mindfulness, "Observe the Dharma as Dharma, do not think of non-Dharma related thoughts." The so-called Dharma refers to the true meaning represented by the majority of terms and principles in the scriptures, such as the five desires, five hindrances, five aggregates, six sense bases, seven factors of enlightenment, Noble Eightfold Path, eighteen elements, dependent origination, the links of dependent origination, the Four Noble Truths, greed, anger, ignorance, etc. At this point, the path to enlightenment has just begun.
Saṃyukta Āgama 215: "Pūrṇa! If the eye sees a form, and there is awareness of the form, awareness of the desire for the form, knowing as it truly is the internal eye consciousness desiring the form, this is called directly seeing the Dharma."
Saṃyukta Āgama 262: "All phenomena are empty, tranquil, unattainable, exhausted of desire, detached from desire, Nirvana. To know and see thus is called seeing the Dharma."
Saṃyukta Āgama 306: "Listen carefully, contemplate well, I shall explain to you. There are two things. What are the two? Eye and form are the two... To know and see thus is called seeing the Dharma."
Madhyama Āgama 30: "If one sees dependent origination, one sees the Dharma; if one sees the Dharma, one sees dependent origination."
When you see the Dharma, know the Dharma, and discern the Dharma, you will increasingly understand the Dharma; how the Dharma arises and ceases; what kind of Dharma is accompanied by joyful emotions, what kind of Dharma is accompanied by sorrowful emotions; what kind of Dharma is beneficial, what kind of Dharma is harmful; how to cultivate beneficial Dharma and distance from and eliminate harmful Dharma, etc. This is the factor of enlightenment of investigation of Dharma.
Eliminating harmful Dharma and increasing beneficial Dharma; preventing harmful Dharma and cultivating beneficial Dharma. This is the factor of enlightenment of diligence.
As beneficial Dharma is cultivated and harmful Dharma is eliminated, you will detach from desire, from unwholesome Dharma, be aware and observant, depart from the generation of joy, and attain the first, second, third, and fourth jhānas and even liberation.