Dr. Priyantha Navarathne
The man, who is said to be suffering from mental stress, rapidly modifies the world’s natural environment and fosters an artificial one for the sake of the betterment of life. Even though, in the present day, humans have no regard for nature, animals adore nature and live in harmony with it. But from the time of the Enlightened One, natural forests were chosen by monks to practice meditation to progress in the path for liberation.
Why did they choose the forest?
Why did the Buddha encourage his disciples to live in forests?
What significance does the forest have for mental development?
The series titled “Dhamma Talks in Forests” uses conversations with forest monks to attempt to address the problems raised above.
The discussion, which provides the basis for this article, was conducted between the author (questioner) and a forest monk (answerer) and took place at a rural forest monastery in Sri Lanka.
Q: “Venerable Sir, what is the importance of forest life for mental development?”
A: “It helps us to concentrate our mind successfully as there are no unnecessary disturbances in the forest.”
Q: “Which kind of disturbances are you talking about venerable sir?”
A: “In the forest, mostly what we see is green space. Additionally, we can see animals and some primitive objects that belong to our monastery such as a walking path, a small hut (kuti), etc. But, when you go out into society can you count the things that you see? Every object you see in society makes thoughts and makes records in your mind. Here, I explained what happens with your eye. The same thing happens with other sensory faculties too.”
Q: “Venerable sir, I came to this monastery this morning. I can see what you mentioned earlier about this premise. External vision is limited here. But, my mind recalls lots of things from beyond this forest. Have you ever had a similar experience?”
A: “Why not, the same did happen to me when I started my forest life around 10 years ago. This may happen to anyone until he gets adapted to the forest environment. At present, you are mind full but we are mindful.”
Q: “Very interesting venerable sir, can I please know the difference between these two, being mind full and mindful?”
A: “Certainly, now, your mind is full of thoughts. You agreed that within this premise you can see the same things that I see. But additionally, you recall many things from your past or the future. It means that although your physical body is here, your mind is not here. That is why I told you that you are mind full. As a result of that, you cannot touch this natural environment with your mind successfully. As I said, we too had the same experience at the beginning. That is the nature of our mind. But after a certain period we can naturally and effortlessly anchor ourselves in awareness in the present moment. That is why I told you that we are mindful.”
Q: “I came here from the general society, and I already feel a difference. When you go to the society, how do you feel it?”
A: “We go to the society for alms, Pindapata. We maintain mindfulness during that period. Sometimes, we must visit crowded places like hospitals as well. Even in such situations, we try our best to maintain mindfulness. But the noise in those places wears us out. So, we intend to return to the forest as soon as possible. Our great intention is to attain Nibbana. This forest facilitates us to reach this goal.”
Q: “Does it mean if somebody tries to attain Nibbana he should have a forest life or that Nibbana can only be perceived by obtaining a forest life?”
A: “No, anyone can try to attain Nibbana at any place. But you can comfortably achieve your target in a place with fewer disturbances. Let me give you an example. Two people are on a journey to reach the same destination. One person selects the highway where there are no or very few disturbances. The other person selects the normal route which has many disturbances. Although both people can reach the destination, who will easily finish the journey?”
Q: “Thank you very much venerable sir for the excellent explanations.”