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Without Papiyan,

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the Buddha could not have achieved enlightenment.

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In the last two episodes,

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we discussed Sakra and Papiyan, the Demon King.

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Sakra represents the pinnacle of good karma.

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Papiyan is the gatekeeper who prevents you from seeing that ceiling.

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After those two episodes were released,

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someone followed up with a question.

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It was an excellent question.

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He asked,

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"Why does Papiyan live at the very top of the Six Heavens of the Desire Realm?"

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"Shouldn't he live at the very bottom?"

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"Shouldn't the most evil things be in hell?"

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"Why is he instead in the highest heaven?"

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Behind this question lies a massive misunderstanding.

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Let's break it down.

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Hello,

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everyone.

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I am Wang Lijie.

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Think about it:

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Is there only one form of desire?

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You're hungry and want to eat;

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that is desire.

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You want a promotion and a raise;

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that is desire.

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You can't stop scrolling through short videos;

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that is desire.

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These desires are all obvious;

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you can recognize them at a glance.

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But there's another kind of desire,

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one you can hardly recognize.

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You meditate until you reach a state of great peace,

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and a thought arises in your heart:

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"I want to stay here forever."

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That is desire.

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You help many people,

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and they call you a living Buddha.

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You feel a warmth inside,

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as you enjoy the feeling of being needed.

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That is desire.

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You practice for ten years,

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and finally feel that you're different from before.

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You say to yourself,

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"I have let go."

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The sense of satisfaction from "having let go" itself

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is desire.

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The Six Heavens of the Desire Realm are ordered from bottom to top,

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not by the intensity of desire,

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but by its degree of subtlety.

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In the lowest level, the Heaven of the Four Great Kings,

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desire is at its coarsest,

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similar to the human world.

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There is physical contact

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and tangible pleasure.

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The higher you go,

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the more refined desire becomes.

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In the third level, the Yama Heaven,

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a hug is enough.

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In the fourth level, the Tushita Heaven,

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holding hands brings satisfaction.

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In the fifth level, the Nirmanarati Heaven,

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it's a shared smile.

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By the sixth level, the Paranirmita-vasavartin Heaven,

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a single glance is enough.

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One doesn't even need to create their own joy;

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they just enjoy what others have created.

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Consider this direction of evolution.

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Desire isn't getting stronger;

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it's becoming more invisible.

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Papiyan lives at the top level,

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not because he is the most evil.

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On the contrary,

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within the logic of the Desire Realm,

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he is the most successful.

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He successfully evolved desire into its ultimate form.

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What is the ultimate form?

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It is a desire that doesn't look like a desire;

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it's the desire that makes you feel you've already transcended desire.

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Let me give you an example you might have experienced.

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If someone tells you

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That your greed for money is a desire,

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you would nod in agreement.

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If someone told you

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that your lust is a desire,

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you would admit it.

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But if someone told you

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that your calm sense of having seen through it all,

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or your sense of superiority in being more awake than others,

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is itself a desire—

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what would be your first reaction?

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You would feel uncomfortable.

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You would tell yourself,

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"No,"

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"this is different."

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It is exactly this "difference"

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that placed Papiyas on the highest throne of the Desire Realm.

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He isn't the strongest desire;

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he is the desire best at hiding.

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He doesn't live where you can recognize him;

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he lives where you think you have already transcended.

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This is the true design logic of the Six Heavens of the Desire Realm.

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It isn't a building ranging from good to bad;

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it's a series of filters ranging from coarse to fine.

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With each higher level,

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a visible desire is filtered out,

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revealing one that is invisible.

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By the time you reach the sixth level,

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what remains

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is completely invisible to the naked eye.

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You need wisdom to illuminate it.

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Think of it like the difficulty design of a game.

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Enemies in the first level are red;

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you see them from afar

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and can strike them immediately.

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Enemies in the second level can turn invisible;

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you have to search carefully.

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Enemies in the third level disguise themselves as your teammates.

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In the final level,

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the enemy disguises itself as your own internal monologue.

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You won't even suspect your own thoughts.

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That is the ultimate difficulty.

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Papiyas doesn't live in hell,

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because the suffering in hell is visible at a glance;

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you know it's not where you want to be.

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Papiyas lives on the highest level of heaven,

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because everything there is so perfect,

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so good that you have absolutely no reason to leave.

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The best cage isn't one that makes you suffer;

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it's the one that makes you comfortable.

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Alright,

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now that we've broken down this issue,

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I want to address something even more piercing.

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In your life,

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is there anyone playing the role of Papiyas for you?

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I'm not talking about fake masters who obviously scan you for money;

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that's too crude

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to be called Papiyas.

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Papiyas operates at a much higher level.

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I'm talking about those you truly admire—

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venerable monks whose teachings move you to tears,

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sages whose every word strikes you as profoundly true,

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teachers who make you feel you've finally found your direction.

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You follow a master to practice;

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he teaches you many things,

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you make great progress,

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and you feel deeply grateful.

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All of this is real;

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I don't deny it.

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But one day,

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a thought quietly arises in your mind:

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"It's fine as long as I follow my master."

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"The master will show the way;"

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"I don't need to search for it myself anymore."

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This thought

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is Papiyas.

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Note,

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I'm not saying your master is Papiyas.

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Your master may be a truly realized practitioner.

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The problem isn't with the master;

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it's with that thought in your heart that says, "it's enough just to follow."

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Papiyan never needs to appear in person.

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Remember?

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He resides in the Sixth Heaven,

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enjoying the pleasures created by others.

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He only needs to borrow the image of the person you trust most,

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and install a "that's enough" button in your mind.

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Think about it.

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How did the Buddha himself attain Enlightenment?

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First, he followed Alara Kalama,

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learning the Dimension of Nothingness.

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This was one of the top meditative achievements in India at the time.

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The Buddha soon reached the same state as his teacher.

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Alara Kalama appreciated him greatly,

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saying, "You are now the same as I am.

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Stay here,

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and let us lead the students together."

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The Buddha left.

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Then he followed Uddaka Ramaputta,

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learning the Dimension of Neither Perception nor Non-Perception.

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This was a level higher than the Dimension of Nothingness,

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the highest state worldly meditation could reach.

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The Buddha soon reached that too.

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Uddaka Ramaputta was even more direct,

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offering him the leadership of the entire community.

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The Buddha left again.

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Both teachers were true masters.

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What they taught was real,

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and the Buddha did learn real things from them.

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But the Buddha did not stop.

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He didn't think that just following a master was enough.

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He saw clearly in his mind that

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this was not the end.

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If the Buddha had stopped before either teacher,

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there would be no enlightenment under the Bodhi tree.

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Those two teachers weren't fakes,

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and their teachings weren't wrong.

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But the thought that following them was "enough" —

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if that thought had taken root in the Buddha's mind,

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that thought itself would be Papiyan.

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Have you ever, in front of someone you trust,

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unconsciously switched off your own judgment?

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Have you given up the urge to keep questioning just because they were right?

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Have you, after staying in a community, a circle,

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or a school of thought for a long time,

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begun to feel that "our way is the only right way"

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and there's no need to look elsewhere?

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Every force that makes you stop exploring,

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no matter what it wears —

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monk's robes,

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a business suit,

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or a scientist's white coat —

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is, at that moment, performing the function of Papiyan.

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Let me be more precise.

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Papiyan's function is not to deceive you.

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It is to make you stop at a certain "correct" position.

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That position might indeed be very good;

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the Dimension of Nothingness is great,

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and Neither Perception nor Non-Perception is even better.

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But "good" is not the same as "there."

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The moment you stop there,

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that location turns from a signpost into a cage.

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Some might say,

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"Are you teaching people to disrespect their masters,

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or to trust no one?"

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No.

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When the Buddha left his two teachers,

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he did not negate them.

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He simply did not treat them as the finish line.

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You can be grateful to someone,

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you can learn from someone,

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while maintaining a clear awareness that,

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"This is not the end.

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I must keep going."

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Gratitude and dependence are two different things.

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Learning and stopping are two different things.

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Zen Buddhism later put this even more bluntly.

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Linji Yixuan had a saying:

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"If you meet a Buddha, kill the Buddha.

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If you meet a Patriarch, kill the Patriarch."

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This phrase has terrified many people.

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How could one kill the Buddha?

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But think carefully:

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What is it that Linji said to kill?

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It's not the Buddha himself.

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It's the thought in your mind that turns the Buddha into an idol or an object of dependence,

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a reason why you no longer need to walk the path yourself.

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If the Buddha in your heart becomes a wall,

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blocking your own line of sight,

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then that wall is Papiyan.

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If the sutras you recite become a placebo,

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stopping you from questioning what lies behind the words,

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then that placebo is Papiyan.

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If your practice circle becomes a comfortable cocoon,

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where everyone reinforces and validates each other,

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and no one questions anymore,

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then that cocoon is Papiyan's palace in Paranirmita-vasavartin.

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How do you distinguish between learning and depending?

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There's a simple test.

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Try to mentally object to

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a specific view of someone you respect most.

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If you find you can't do it,

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not because they're right or you lack a counter-argument,

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but because you feel an internal fear,

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a certain sense of "not daring to,"

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then you must be alert.

266
00:09:08,625 --> 00:09:09,214
That inhibition

267
00:09:09,465 --> 00:09:11,073
is Papiyan's rope.

268
00:09:11,424 --> 00:09:14,474
True learning empowers you to walk on your own;

269
00:09:14,945 --> 00:09:18,033
dependence makes you increasingly afraid to lose your crutch.

270
00:09:18,304 --> 00:09:18,494
Alright.

271
00:09:18,904 --> 00:09:19,663
Having said all this,

272
00:09:19,664 --> 00:09:21,433
you might feel a bit uncomfortable.

273
00:09:21,904 --> 00:09:23,594
So, I'll provide one final twist.

274
00:09:23,985 --> 00:09:24,974
Is Papiyan inherently evil?

275
00:09:25,504 --> 00:09:27,433
Return to that night beneath the Bodhi tree.

276
00:09:27,705 --> 00:09:29,394
Without Papiyan's challenge,

277
00:09:29,424 --> 00:09:31,094
how could the Buddha's enlightenment be verified?

278
00:09:31,664 --> 00:09:33,394
Papiyan sent his three daughters,

279
00:09:33,465 --> 00:09:35,714
representing craving, discontent, and lust.

280
00:09:35,904 --> 00:09:37,313
The Buddha recognized each one.

281
00:09:37,544 --> 00:09:39,344
Papiyan sent eight armies,

282
00:09:39,345 --> 00:09:42,313
representing fear, sloth, doubt, and hypocrisy.

283
00:09:42,384 --> 00:09:43,833
The Buddha saw through them all.

284
00:09:44,024 --> 00:09:45,423
Without these tests,

285
00:09:45,424 --> 00:09:47,754
enlightenment would just be a quiet inner feeling.

286
00:09:47,865 --> 00:09:49,433
It hasn't been stress-tested.

287
00:09:49,544 --> 00:09:52,264
Feeling calm in a quiet room

288
00:09:52,264 --> 00:09:53,433
is not true meditative stability.

289
00:09:53,784 --> 00:09:56,673
Maintaining that peace in a chaotic market—

290
00:09:56,825 --> 00:09:58,274
that is true stability.

291
00:09:58,784 --> 00:10:00,673
Papiyan is that marketplace.

292
00:10:01,144 --> 00:10:04,793
He creates noise, distractions, and temptations,

293
00:10:04,985 --> 00:10:08,874
to see if your peace is real or just a product of your environment.

294
00:10:09,184 --> 00:10:10,014
Papiyan's appearance

295
00:10:10,264 --> 00:10:12,714
is precisely the quality control phase of enlightenment.

296
00:10:13,144 --> 00:10:14,254
You think you've let go?

297
00:10:14,784 --> 00:10:14,974
Fine.

298
00:10:15,225 --> 00:10:16,474
Let me test you.

299
00:10:16,865 --> 00:10:17,974
You think you're no longer afraid?

300
00:10:18,585 --> 00:10:18,774
Fine.

301
00:10:19,065 --> 00:10:21,073
Let me create a fear for you to see.

302
00:10:21,424 --> 00:10:22,533
You think you've seen through it all?

303
00:10:22,908 --> 00:10:23,585
Fine.

304
00:10:23,585 --> 00:10:26,823
I'll give you a seemingly perfect reason to stop,

305
00:10:26,825 --> 00:10:27,953
and see if you actually stop.

306
00:10:28,384 --> 00:10:30,114
Each time you unmask Papiyan,

307
00:10:30,225 --> 00:10:32,234
your enlightenment deepens by one level.

308
00:10:32,865 --> 00:10:34,313
Each time you fail to see through him,

309
00:10:34,345 --> 00:10:36,153
you realize you still have a blind spot.

310
00:10:36,784 --> 00:10:39,994
Papiyan won't let you pass just because you are sincere.

311
00:10:40,465 --> 00:10:42,994
He won't waive the inspection because you've practiced for twenty years.

312
00:10:43,424 --> 00:10:45,874
He specifically targets your weakest point.

313
00:10:46,384 --> 00:10:47,614
If your weakness is fear,

314
00:10:47,945 --> 00:10:49,073
he brings fear.

315
00:10:49,424 --> 00:10:51,433
If your weakness is a craving for tranquility,

316
00:10:51,465 --> 00:10:53,354
he hints that "this is enough."

317
00:10:53,705 --> 00:10:55,714
If your weakness is dependence on authority,

318
00:10:55,825 --> 00:10:58,433
he'll have you meet someone seemingly worthy of total trust.

319
00:10:58,664 --> 00:11:01,714
Papiyan is the toughest quality inspector on the path of practice.

320
00:11:01,985 --> 00:11:04,874
Just as you need resistance to build muscle when working out.

321
00:11:05,184 --> 00:11:08,073
In spiritual practice, you need Mara to grow wisdom.

322
00:11:08,264 --> 00:11:09,663
Practice without resistance

323
00:11:09,664 --> 00:11:11,313
is like lifting weightless dumbbells.

324
00:11:11,384 --> 00:11:13,754
Lifting them ten thousand times won't build strength.

325
00:11:14,105 --> 00:11:16,833
There's a noteworthy detail in the Pali Canon.

326
00:11:17,264 --> 00:11:18,374
After the Buddha attained enlightenment,

327
00:11:18,705 --> 00:11:20,193
Mara did not disappear.

328
00:11:20,585 --> 00:11:23,874
He appeared repeatedly throughout the Buddha's 45 years of teaching.

329
00:11:24,105 --> 00:11:26,193
He appeared before the Buddha's disciples,

330
00:11:26,345 --> 00:11:28,033
before the bhikkunis,

331
00:11:28,065 --> 00:11:30,673
and even directly approached the Buddha to speak.

332
00:11:30,985 --> 00:11:31,994
But every single time,

333
00:11:32,065 --> 00:11:35,433
the Buddha and his disciples responded in the same way.

334
00:11:35,985 --> 00:11:36,693
Not by attacking,

335
00:11:37,144 --> 00:11:38,153
nor by driving him away,

336
00:11:38,585 --> 00:11:39,673
but with a single phrase:

337
00:11:40,225 --> 00:11:40,614
"Mara,

338
00:11:40,985 --> 00:11:42,114
I see you."

339
00:11:42,304 --> 00:11:42,894
Recognized,

340
00:11:43,105 --> 00:11:44,394
not eliminated.

341
00:11:45,065 --> 00:11:45,894
What does this mean?

342
00:11:46,745 --> 00:11:50,394
It means enlightenment isn't a state without Mara；

343
00:11:50,825 --> 00:11:54,234
enlightenment is the ability to recognize Mara at any moment.

344
00:11:54,945 --> 00:11:56,033
Desire still exists.

345
00:11:56,465 --> 00:11:57,634
Fear still exists.

346
00:11:58,225 --> 00:12:00,193
That voice saying "enough" still exists.

347
00:12:00,784 --> 00:12:02,994
But you have gained a mirror in your heart.

348
00:12:03,544 --> 00:12:05,394
This mirror is mindfulness.

349
00:12:05,985 --> 00:12:06,933
When Mara comes,

350
00:12:07,225 --> 00:12:08,274
you shine the light on him.

351
00:12:08,384 --> 00:12:09,094
Once recognized,

352
00:12:09,465 --> 00:12:11,433
he loses his control over you.

353
00:12:11,904 --> 00:12:12,494
He's still there,

354
00:12:13,105 --> 00:12:14,754
but he's powerless against you.

355
00:12:14,945 --> 00:12:16,413
A world without Mara

356
00:12:16,664 --> 00:12:17,833
would not need a Buddha.

357
00:12:18,184 --> 00:12:19,254
It is precisely because of Mara

358
00:12:19,585 --> 00:12:21,193
that enlightenment has meaning.

359
00:12:21,384 --> 00:12:23,073
It's because someone blocks your path

360
00:12:23,144 --> 00:12:24,994
that walking through is called liberation.

361
00:12:25,345 --> 00:12:27,913
This logic is the same as your immune system.

362
00:12:28,024 --> 00:12:29,573
Why is your immune system strong?

363
00:12:30,024 --> 00:12:32,274
Not because you've never encountered viruses.

364
00:12:32,465 --> 00:12:33,514
Quite the opposite—

365
00:12:33,544 --> 00:12:36,754
it's because you've been exposed to countless germs since childhood.

366
00:12:36,865 --> 00:12:41,033
Your body identifies, fights, and remembers them time and again.

367
00:12:41,384 --> 00:12:43,634
A child raised in a sterile room

368
00:12:43,664 --> 00:12:45,754
has the weakest immune system.

369
00:12:46,184 --> 00:12:47,553
Enlightenment is the same.

370
00:12:47,705 --> 00:12:50,384
A practitioner never tested by Mara

371
00:12:50,384 --> 00:12:53,114
has an enlightenment that can't withstand a breeze.

372
00:12:53,904 --> 00:12:55,474
Truly solid enlightenment

373
00:12:55,504 --> 00:12:59,033
must be forged through repeated testing by Mara.

374
00:12:59,304 --> 00:13:00,793
Think about your own experience.

375
00:13:01,065 --> 00:13:02,293
What made you grow the most?

376
00:13:02,544 --> 00:13:03,933
Smooth sailing or adversity?

377
00:13:04,504 --> 00:13:06,234
What truly made you see yourself?

378
00:13:06,264 --> 00:13:08,933
Praise from others, or those unexpected blows?

379
00:13:09,585 --> 00:13:11,754
What made you realize you still had blind spots?

380
00:13:11,784 --> 00:13:12,933
The peace of meditation,

381
00:13:13,105 --> 00:13:16,134
or those moments in life that suddenly knocked you back to square one?

382
00:13:16,945 --> 00:13:17,614
Those moments

383
00:13:17,985 --> 00:13:19,514
are Mara at work.

384
00:13:20,024 --> 00:13:21,114
He has no malice.

385
00:13:21,465 --> 00:13:23,073
He is just doing his quality inspection.

386
00:13:23,585 --> 00:13:24,634
And his inspection

387
00:13:24,705 --> 00:13:27,354
is the only standard for whether you can pass.

388
00:13:27,625 --> 00:13:29,214
So at this point in the trilogy,

389
00:13:29,465 --> 00:13:30,634
the picture is complete.

390
00:13:30,825 --> 00:13:31,813
Sakra tells you

391
00:13:32,225 --> 00:13:33,793
that good karma has a ceiling.

392
00:13:34,184 --> 00:13:35,274
That is the first lesson.

393
00:13:35,825 --> 00:13:38,673
Most people are stuck on this lesson for life.

394
00:13:39,225 --> 00:13:41,673
They think being a "good person" is the end goal.

395
00:13:42,184 --> 00:13:43,433
Mara tells you

396
00:13:43,544 --> 00:13:46,433
there’s a force preventing you from seeing that ceiling.

397
00:13:46,865 --> 00:13:48,033
That is the second lesson.

398
00:13:48,585 --> 00:13:50,714
Even fewer people reach this stage,

399
00:13:51,105 --> 00:13:55,073
because recognizing Mara requires admitting an uncomfortable fact:

400
00:13:55,424 --> 00:13:57,193
the sense of security you've always believed in...

401
00:13:57,264 --> 00:13:58,913
might actually be a cage.

402
00:13:59,225 --> 00:14:00,953
And today, this third lesson,

403
00:14:00,985 --> 00:14:03,754
is the hardest in the trilogy to swallow.

404
00:14:04,065 --> 00:14:05,953
The force that prevents you from seeing

405
00:14:06,065 --> 00:14:09,153
is exactly what helps you develop the ability to see.

406
00:14:09,544 --> 00:14:11,793
Your opponent is your teacher.

407
00:14:12,225 --> 00:14:14,514
Your obstacle is your textbook.

408
00:14:14,945 --> 00:14:17,104
That voice in your heart saying "enough"

409
00:14:17,105 --> 00:14:18,384
isn't there to destroy you;

410
00:14:18,384 --> 00:14:19,673
it's there to test you.

411
00:14:19,865 --> 00:14:22,193
There must have been moments in your life

412
00:14:22,585 --> 00:14:24,464
where you thought you had figured it all out,

413
00:14:24,465 --> 00:14:25,953
only for something to happen,

414
00:14:26,144 --> 00:14:28,474
and all that clarity shattered instantly.

415
00:14:28,904 --> 00:14:31,193
That moment of shattering was painful,

416
00:14:31,345 --> 00:14:32,453
but looking back later,

417
00:14:32,784 --> 00:14:33,754
you will realize

418
00:14:33,784 --> 00:14:35,193
that it was that very shattering

419
00:14:35,264 --> 00:14:39,234
that allowed you to see what was hidden beneath the shell

420
00:14:39,264 --> 00:14:40,474
of what you thought you had understood.

421
00:14:41,065 --> 00:14:42,293
Clarity that has never been shattered

422
00:14:42,625 --> 00:14:43,634
isn't true clarity;

423
00:14:44,024 --> 00:14:45,433
it's self-hypnosis.

424
00:14:45,865 --> 00:14:46,774
Without a ceiling,

425
00:14:47,065 --> 00:14:48,594
you wouldn't know where to go.

426
00:14:48,865 --> 00:14:49,774
Without a gatekeeper,

427
00:14:50,065 --> 00:14:51,553
you wouldn't know where the door is.

428
00:14:51,904 --> 00:14:52,693
Without Mara,

429
00:14:53,065 --> 00:14:54,714
the Buddha could not have attained enlightenment.

430
00:14:55,105 --> 00:14:57,394
Finally, I want to leave you with a question.

431
00:14:57,705 --> 00:15:00,874
The next time the voice saying "enough" rises in your heart,

432
00:15:01,144 --> 00:15:02,673
don't be quick to listen to it,

433
00:15:02,865 --> 00:15:04,634
and don't be quick to fight it.

434
00:15:04,985 --> 00:15:06,474
Try the Buddha's method.

435
00:15:06,784 --> 00:15:07,374
Quietly,

436
00:15:07,664 --> 00:15:08,453
say to it:

437
00:15:09,024 --> 00:15:10,313
"I recognize you."

438
00:15:10,784 --> 00:15:13,594
Then observe what changes within your heart.

439
00:15:13,985 --> 00:15:15,433
That change itself

440
00:15:15,544 --> 00:15:18,073
is proof that practice is happening.

441
00:15:18,424 --> 00:15:19,134
I am Wang Lijie.

442
00:15:19,465 --> 00:15:20,407
See you next time.