Opening and closing happens everywhere, even with breathing. Discharging creates space for enjoyment, spontaneity and flexibility. Eventually even energy must be relinquished, so we practice recollection of death using the brahma viharas to expand awareness, closure with no regret, the deathless.
Understanding suffering is like loosening a tangled ball of threads. The Indriyas help us find balance and navigate even the most subtle mind states that arise.
Sacred images can brighten the mind and allow helpful energies to arise. We can summon the indriya through this means. With devotional practice, we dislodge the self from its center point, revealing the energy of spiritual desire (chanda).
We deepen our relationship with the Indriya’s qualities in our body, revealing our normal worldly patterns and finding our center. An experience of jealousy is described as an example.
Discernment is easily biased by the five aggregates, especially mental constructions such as uncertainty and ‘not quite right yet’. Contemplating citta we can understand suffering rather than adopt a notion of solving it.
Developing facility with the indriya – faith, energy, mindfulness, collectedness and discernment – supports awareness of skilful states flowing and fulfilling themselves within a mindful embodiment.
Self massage helps body awareness arise. With mental intention, alternately directing and releasing activation energy around the body, we increase connectivity and provide a broad basis for mindfulness.
The mind is a delicate and responsive instrument. Balancing faith and effort, sati uses gentleness and patience and we learn what is peaceful and natural.
Hindrances can be cleared through ‘mindful direct awareness’ – sati sampajañña. Such working through what blocks the potential of citta, demands humility, since it is not one’s personal self doing the work. Body is a key and potent resource.
