pain and suffering, and devoid of anything that can be identified
as “self”.
visuddhi: Perfect purity of mind. The pure nature of a mind that has
completely transcended all mental defilements. That is, the state of
Absolute Purity experienced by an Arahant.
wisdom (paññã): The term wisdom denotes an active, incisive applica-
tion of the principles of cause and effect for the purpose of probing,
examining, and analyzing physical and mental phenomena, as they
arise and cease, so as to see them for what they really are: inherently
impermanent and unstable, bound up with pain and suffering, and
devoid of anything that can be identified as “self”. As it is used in
Buddhism, wisdom implies much more than just sound judgement.
Wisdom is a faculty that searches, probes, compares, and investigates
the workings of body and mind in light of the fundamental princi-
ples of truth in order to gain a decisive advantage over the defiling
elements (kilesas) that obscure their true nature and the true nature
of the one who knows them.
Although inductive reasoning is initially very much a part of the
practice of wisdom, insights based solely on it are still superficial.
As the faculty of wisdom develops and becomes more introspective,
its skills become increasingly more subtle, while its insights become
more intuitive in nature. Only when meditative insight penetrates
deeply can the root causes of the mind’s discontent be truly exposed,
uprooted, and destroyed.
In general, wisdom is the proactive complement to the quies-
cence of samãdhi. Both work together in tandem to ensure that the
task of eradicating the kilesas is accomplished with maximum effi-
ciency. Both are essential aspects of the path leading to the cessa-
tion of all suffering.
yakkha: Ogres. A special class of powerful non-human beings who often
have cruel and murderous temperaments.
jacob rumans
(Jacob Rumans)
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