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Carrying Oursleves Forward - Diana Clark

The following talk was given by Diana Clark at Insight Meditation Center in Redwood City, CA on February 20, 2024. Please visit the website www.audiodharma.org for more information.

Carrying Oursleves Forward

Good evening, and welcome. It's nice to see you all on this windy, rainy day. I think it makes us happy that it rains after having gone through that drought.

I am going to continue this series of talks exploring concepts like efforting, making things happen, determination, and resolve. I'm touching on some of the lists and stories that aren't commonly spoken about. They are definitely in the suttas, but not discussed as often. In subsequent talks, I'll address some of the dangers of what I'm talking about, but right now we're just going to explore the movement toward an aspiration. When we have an inspiration, how do we carry it through? What gets in the way, and how can we find our way to what's important and meaningful to us?

Very briefly, I started this series talking about the five factors of endeavoring: confidence, vitality, integrity, energy, and wisdom. The following week, I gave a talk on setting an aspiration and having the resolve to pursue it, using the story of Prince Bodhi¹. He didn't want to make any effort toward his goals and instead hoped the Buddha would do all the work, which didn't work out so well for him.

Last week, I discussed why we fail to follow through on the things our hearts are set on. I pointed out another quality the Buddha emphasized: khanti², which translates to both tolerance and patience. The reason we don't do things is that they are hard and they take time. It's not a secret, though I think we all secretly hope for some hidden teaching that will make a difference. Even the idea of khanti—tolerance and patience—is exactly what gets cultivated in small, mundane, everyday settings. We don't wait until the really hard stuff arrives; instead, we start where it's easy.

The Story of Kasi Bharadvaja

Tonight, I'm going to start with a brief story about the farmer Kasi Bharadvaja³. It was the first day of the planting season, the time of year when they prepare to plant the crops. Kasi Bharadvaja was a Brahmin—a priest in the Brahmanical tradition—and was hosting a large festival and ritual to start the planting season. This makes sense; the entire community depended on the crops surviving, as they couldn't easily import food from other places.

A description of this festival from around 800 years after the time of the Buddha fills in some fascinating details: There were 3,000 oxen present. Their horns were capped with gold, their hooves were capped with silver, and they were adorned with fragrant flower garlands. There were 500 people, all wearing clean white clothes, garlands, and flower garnishes. Kasi Bharadvaja, the head priest leading the festival, had bathed, trimmed his beard, and anointed himself with fragrant scents. He wore twenty rings—two on each finger—along with earrings, a turban on his head, and a garland around his neck. He performed a ritual offering of milk and rice to the 500 people preparing to guide the 3,000 oxen. You can imagine the immense effort that went into preparing for something like this.

As it happened, the Buddha was nearby and sensed that Kasi Bharadvaja could find some more freedom. He approached as if on alms round. Imagine Kasi Bharadvaja, who just completed this grand ritual to feed all these people, seeing the Buddha—a wanderer wearing simple robes and carrying a begging bowl, looking for a meal.

Kasi Bharadvaja was a little bit irked. He said, "I plow and sow, ascetic. And having plowed and sown, I eat. You too must plow and sow, and having plowed and sown, you can eat." He was essentially saying there is no free ticket; we have to do the work, and we reap the benefits of the work we've done.

The Buddha replied, "I too, Brahmin, plow and sow. And having plowed and sown, I eat."

The Brahmin questioned him: "But we don't see your yoke, your plow, or your oxen. If you're really a farmer, why aren't you participating in this festival? Where are all your implements and animals?"

As often happens in the suttas when an important conversation is occurring, Bharadvaja decided to speak in verse. He challenged the Buddha: "You claim to be a farmer, but we do not see your plowing. Tell us about your plowing so that we can understand your farming."

The Buddha gave several descriptions of how he farms. He explained that he plows with wisdom. His blade is wisdom, which cuts through defilements. Rather than severing the roots of weeds in the earth, it severs the roots of unskillful behaviors in the mind.

He declared: "Energy is my beast of burden, carrying one toward security from bondage. It goes ahead without turning back, to where one does not sorrow."

Just as the Brahmin uses an ox to pull a heavy blade that breaks up the earth, the Buddha uses the plow of wisdom. Instead of oxen, it is energy or effort that propels this blade forward. "Energy is my beast of burden." And I try not to think of the Rolling Stones song when I hear this, right? [Laughter]

The next line, "Carrying one toward security from bondage," refers to Nibbana⁴. Awakening is the security from bondage. What holds us back? What are the things we get tied up with or pushed around by? Finding security means no longer being pushed around by our incessant desires, our attempts to escape reality, or our concerns about looking good and remaining comfortable all the time.

The third line says, "It goes ahead without turning back." This is in contrast to the Brahmin's plow, which reaches the end of the field and must turn around, going back and forth, season after season. I appreciate that the Buddha says his plow of wisdom only goes forward. It's not like you regress in practice. Yes, we might have insights we temporarily forget, or periods of stress where we lack access to our greatest capacities, but the path itself goes forward. It never goes backward. Every moment of mindfulness, listening to a Dharma talk, behaving ethically, or offering compassion and kindness supports this movement toward greater freedom. Once you've learned to read, you can't unlearn how to read. Awakening operates the same way.

The final line, "To where one does not sorrow," points to Nibbana. In some ways, this is what we all want: to not have sorrow.

The Four Iddhipadas (Bases of Power)

Energy is what helps this blade move forward. Sometimes our energy is low, but we can borrow energy by practicing with others. Doing things in a community can be a tremendous support for wherever we are in our practice. But how do we keep this effort (viriya) going? We might have some initial inspiration that motivates us, but what continues to motivate us after it has gotten difficult, tedious, or boring, and our enthusiasm has petered out?

I'd like to discuss another list that points to an answer. It features a remarkably long word—let's see if I have it memorized: chanda-samādhi-padhāna-saṅkhāra-samannāgata⁵. It’s a single word composed of about forty letters, formed by sticking multiple concepts together. Because it's such a long word with so many parts, it invites many different interpretations, especially since it's never explicitly explained in the suttas.

This collection of four qualities is known as the iddhipadas⁶. This term is translated in various ways: roads to success, bases of power, or foundations of potency. While some teachers and scholars relate them specifically to the cultivation of samādhi (collectedness), Dharma teacher James Baraz⁷ applies them wonderfully to motivation. He suggests we can understand the four iddhipadas as four distinct temperaments. Different people are motivated in different ways. If we understand what naturally motivates us, we can protect and cultivate that inner flame. As writer Maria Popova⁸ notes, "We are each born with a wilderness of possibility within us. Who we become depends on how we tend to our inner garden."

Let's look at the four iddhipadas to help tend our inner garden:

1. Chanda⁹: Zeal or enthusiasm. This is a spirit of adventure—a feeling of "Let's just go for it!" Some people feel this intense enthusiasm for sports teams, spending time in nature, or fighting for an activist cause. When I first discovered this practice, I certainly felt an intense chanda. The teachings resonated with me, and I had a voracious appetite to learn and explore. We should ask ourselves: Where do we have that zeal in our lives? Is there a way we can nurture it for our spiritual practice?

2. Viriya¹⁰: Energy, effort, or perseverance. This is the inner strength and resolve to finish what you've started, even when enthusiasm wanes. For me, this shows up on long retreats. After months of practice, the mind naturally rebels: "Am I still here? I can't believe I have two more months." But viriya steps in: "I started this, and I'm going to finish. Even if I feel unmotivated right now, it won't last forever." Notice when you have this dogged determination in your life. Honor it, respect it, and allow that little flame of determination to glow brightly.

3. Citta¹¹: Mind or heart. Here, we can emphasize the heart—specifically, the experience of being profoundly touched by the Dharma. It’s like falling in love with the practice after getting a flicker or a glimpse of peace and freedom you didn’t know existed. It fuels an intense, heartfelt desire to go in that direction. When we touch this, the goal isn't to rigidly recreate a past experience, but to focus on the energy of that heartfelt wish itself. You might wonder if Buddhists are supposed to be "down on desire." However, Ananda once explained to a practitioner that the desire for Nibbana is a necessary vehicle; just as your desire to visit a park naturally falls away once you arrive at the park, the desire for Nibbana falls away upon awakening.

4. Vīmaṃsā¹²: Investigation or curiosity. This is the motivation of exploring one's inner mental and emotional life. It's the realization of, "Wow, I had no idea all of this was going on in my mind!" It’s like visiting a natural history museum. We aren't necessarily trying to solve a massive problem; we are simply fascinated by what we discover. While not everything we find is pleasant—we often uncover our impatience or ill will—this curiosity allows the practice to meet us exactly where we are. For me, studying the suttas and learning Pali is driven by vīmaṃsā. It's deeply interesting, fun, and gives me new ideas for my own practice and for supporting others.

These four iddhipadas—chanda, viriya, citta, and vīmaṃsā—might be obscure to some, but they belong to the 37 Wings to Awakening¹³. They are required for awakening according to the Buddha's teachings, acting as vital supports for our movement toward Nibbana and greater freedom.

Q&A

Question: Could you discuss the third iddhipada, citta, a bit more? It is kind of eluding me. Diana Clark: I focused on the "heart" translation of citta—the heart's desire, or falling in love with the practice as a way to find the energy to continue. However, since the word means both mind and heart, another valid interpretation focuses on the mind, specifically awareness. Simply knowing what is happening and being truly present for our lives provides its own vital energy. It's the feeling of living life fully, rather than being lost in the past or the future.

Question: Would it be fair to think of these qualities as starting a virtuous circle? Diana Clark: Absolutely. They are all virtuous circles. We might mix a little enthusiasm, a little effort, a little love, and a little curiosity together in a cauldron to help us go forward. We all have these qualities within us, but James Baraz was pointing out that some are more naturally accessible to us than others. It's about recognizing which temperament works best for you and cherishing it as a primary support for making effort.

Question: This is my first time here, thank you for the talk. What sutta are the iddhipadas referenced in? Also, I'm currently doing the Majjhima Nikaya study that you and Gil Fronsdal published at the Sati Center. It's interesting to me that viriya (energy) shows up in virtually all the Buddhist lists. Why the duplication? And regarding chanda, in my experience, the pleasantness of practice—the pleasure not of the senses—is a huge motivation that wasn't deeply mentioned. Diana Clark: Welcome! The iddhipadas are detailed in a whole chapter of the Samyutta Nikaya¹⁴, appropriately called the Iddhipada chapter. Regarding the pleasure of practice, we could definitely say that falls under citta—you've had a taste of something beautiful and you're going after it!

As for why viriya appears everywhere: thousands of years ago, a prominent philosophical debate was whether human beings had agency or if gods controlled us like pawns in a predetermined universe. The Buddha heavily emphasized viriya to make it clear that there is no room for complete passivity. You have to put in the effort. Undoing deep behavioral patterns takes real work.

Question: What are the 37 Wings to Awakening, and what specific role do the iddhipadas play within them? Diana Clark: The 37 Wings to Awakening (or aids to enlightenment) are foundational lists of qualities required for awakening. The exact role of the iddhipadas depends on who you ask. They can be interpreted specifically around samādhi (concentration)—such as concentrated effort—or more broadly around motivation. It's fascinating because they are never explicitly explained in the suttas in full detail, which is why different Dharma teachers have different interpretations, and many skip over them entirely.

Question: I have a big problem with procrastination. Do you have any tips? Diana Clark: I recently learned something insightful about procrastination and a lack of motivation, but it isn't coming to my mind right now! I'll look into it and talk about it next Monday. We all struggle with it to some extent. The Buddha didn't speak about "procrastination" specifically, though he did talk extensively about practicing with a sense of urgency. For now, a helpful tool is observing what actually does give you energy in life. Notice what motivates you naturally, and see if you can borrow some of that energy to help overcome procrastination.

Thank you all. You're welcome to come up and talk to me if you have more questions. Otherwise, I wish you safe travels home and enjoy the rain!