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Meritorious actions

      2 Non-meritorious actions

      3 Unfluctuating actions

      Meritorious and non-meritorious intentions can each be subdivided into those that are throwing karma, those that are completing karma and those that are karma whose results are experienced in the same life. These three types of action are explained in detail in Joyful Path of Good Fortune.

      CONTACT

      DEFINITION OF CONTACT

      The definition of contact is a mental factor that functions to perceive its object as pleasant, unpleasant or neutral.

      Whenever our mind cognizes an object, it perceives it as pleasant, unpleasant or neutral. This is the function of the mental factor contact. If contact perceives an object as pleasant, pleasant feelings will develop, and if contact perceives the object as unpleasant, unpleasant feelings will develop. Thus, contact makes the development of feelings possible, which is why it precedes feeling in the serial order of the twelve dependent-related links.

      FUNCTION OF CONTACT

      Besides perceiving objects as pleasant, unpleasant or neutral, contact also functions to give rise to feelings. For example, if in the first moment of a tongue consciousness tasting tea the mental factor contact associated with that consciousness perceives the tea as pleasant, we will subsequently develop a pleasant feeling.

      DIVISIONS OF CONTACT

      There are six types of contact:

      1 Contact associated with eye consciousness

      2 Contact associated with ear consciousness

      3 Contact associated with nose consciousness

      4 Contact associated with tongue consciousness

      5 Contact associated with body consciousness

      6 Contact associated with mental consciousness

      ATTENTION

      DEFINITION OF ATTENTION

      The definition of attention is a mental factor that functions to focus the mind on a particular attribute of an object.

      An eye consciousness, for example, is moved towards the general entity of an object by the mental factor intention, but it is the mental factor attention which focuses that consciousness on a particular attribute of that object. Intention is said to be like a horse travelling along a road, while attention is said to be like the reins that direct the horse. Thus, a ­primary mind focuses on the general entity of its object through the power of the mental factor intention, and on particular attri­butes of the object through the power of attention.

      FUNCTION OF ATTENTION

      Attention has four functions: (1) to focus the mind on a particular object, (2) to fix the mind on that object, (3) to prevent the mind from moving from the object, and (4) to serve as a basis for mindfulness and concentration. Without the mind being focused and fixed on an object through the power of attention there is no possibility of developing mindfulness and concentration. Every mind has a certain degree of attention, though some minds, such as non-ascertaining perceivers, have very weak attention, whereas others, such as those that occur when we are in an agitated state, have ­unstable attention that flits from one object to another. To develop concentration we need both strong and stable attention.

      DIVISIONS OF ATTENTION

      There are two types of attention:

      1 Correct attention

      2 Incorrect attention

      Correct attention is an attention whose engaged object exists, and incorrect attention is an attention whose engaged object does not exist. All wrong awarenesses have incorrect attention.

      There is another twofold division of attention:

      1 Appropriate attention

      2 Inappropriate attention

      The former is the same as correct attention and the latter is the same as incorrect attention.

      Attain permanent liberation from the sufferings

       of samsaric rebirth

The Five Object-ascertaining Mental Factors

      The five object-ascertaining mental factors are:

      1 Aspiration

      2 Firm apprehension

      3 Mindfulness

      4 Concentration

      5 Wisdom

      They are called ‘object-ascertaining’ mental factors because the objects of these mental factors are necessarily particular objects.

      ASPIRATION

      DEFINITION OF ASPIRATION

      The definition of aspiration is a mental factor that focuses on a desired object and takes an interest in it.

      Aspiration, desire and wish are synonyms. Thus, we are reading this book because we developed an aspiration, a desire, or a wish to do so.

      FUNCTION OF ASPIRATION

      The main function of aspiration is to induce effort. For example, if we lack the aspiration to receive teachings or to meditate we will put no effort into these activities. All tasks, whether worldly or spiritual, must be preceded by aspiration if we are to apply ourself to them. The success of our actions depends upon how much effort we put into them; and the stronger our aspiration, the stronger our effort will be. If our aspiration is weak our effort will also be weak; and if we completely lack aspiration we will do nothing at all.

      It is most important to cultivate appropriate aspirations. For example, at the beginning of each meditation in the Lamrim teachings there is an explanation of the benefits of doing that meditation and the disadvantages of not doing it. The purpose of these explanations is to help us to develop the aspiration to engage in the meditation.

      DIVISIONS OF ASPIRATION

      There are four types of aspiration:

      1 Wishing to meet an object

      2 Wishing not to be separated from an object

      3 Wishing to obtain an object

      4 Wishing to be released from an object

      Each of these can be virtuous, non-virtuous or neutral, depending upon its motivation. Examples of the first are wishing to meet Spiritual Guides, Buddhas or Bodhisattvas; or wishing to meet our family and friends. Examples of the second are wishing not to be separated from our Spiritual Guides or our Dharma practice; or wishing not to be separated from our friends, our possessions or our home. Examples of the third are wishing to attain Dharma realizations such as renunciation, bodhichitta and wisdom; or wishing to obtain material possessions, high status, good reputation or other worldly achievements. Examples of the fourth are wishing to be free from samsara, the two obstructions, or self-cherishing and other non-virtuous minds; or wishing to escape from people or situations we dislike.

      Every sentient being develops many aspirations each day, but they are all included within either the aspiration to obtain happiness or the aspiration to be free from unhappiness. There is no one who does not have these two aspirations; they are our basic wishes from which all our other wishes arise. Even tiny insects have these two wishes and strive to fulfil them. Unfortunately ordinary beings do not know the real causes of happiness and suffering, and so in their pursuit of happiness they often bring suffering upon themselves, and in striving to avoid suffering often increase it.

      There is also a twofold division of aspiration:

      1 Mistaken aspirations

      2 Non-mistaken aspirations

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