..Undertaking the Commitment to Abstain from Taking What is Not Given*
The Buddha said: Taking what is not given is unhealthy. Refraining from
taking what is not given is healthy. (MN 9) Abandoning the taking of what
is not given, one abstains from taking what is not given; one does not take
by way of theft the wealth and property of others. (MN 41) One practices
thus: “Others may take what is not given, but I will abstain from taking
what is not given.” (MN 8)
He also said: On thinking a mental object with the mind, one does not
grasp at its signs and features. Since if one left the mind faculty
unguarded, unwholesome states of covetousness and grief might intrude, one
practices the way of restraint and guards the mind faculty in that way. (MN
51)
Are you using your mind as a tool to think thoughts, or does it feel like
your mind is driving the thoughts you think and you have little control
over the process? Mindfulness is a way of re-establishing a sense of
empowerment in the midst of our thinking processes. It is not a matter of
suppressing thoughts but of influencing how much you grasp onto or resist
the processes of your mind. Non-grasping is a form of protection.
Practice watching what arises and passes away in your mind as a kind of
parade that marches by, without getting stuck on the content of each
thought. Watch it approach, but then let it recede. Each thought is
different, each is interesting, but there is no reason to grab hold of any
thought and try to hang onto it or prevent it from leaving. Take what is
given, but refrain from making more of what is happening by holding on.
From Reverend Helen at www.reddingzen.com