The perfection of Wisdom (from the book by Sujin Boriharnwanaket)

The Perfection of Wisdom
The Commentary to the “Basket of Conduct” defines the perfection of
wisdom as follows:
“Wisdom (paññå) has the characteristic of penetrating the real specific
nature (of dhammas), or the characteristic of sure penetration, like the
penetration of an arrow shot by a skilful archer; its function is to illuminate
the objective field, like a lamp; its manifestation is non-confusion, like a
guide in a forest; concentration or the four (noble) truths, is its proximate
cause.”
Through the study of the Dhamma we gradually come to have more
understanding of the vicissitudes of the world, of gain and loss, honour
and dishonour, praise and blame, wellbeing and pain. We shall
understand that the pleasant “worldly conditions” of gain, honour,
praise and wellbeing only lead to dukkha, suffering, if there is no paññå
that knows the causes and their appropriate results in life. If someone
truly sees the value of paññå and intends to develop kusala, he will not
wish for pleasant sense objects as result, but he will aim for the growth
of paññå until it has become keen and accomplished to the degree that
it can completely eradicate defilements. Satipatthåna, right
understanding of the mental phenomena and physical phenomena of
our life, cannot be developed without paññå. No matter how many
other excellent qualities someone may have, his defilements cannot be
eradicated if paññå does not develop and becomes keener, if paññå
does not clearly see the true nature of the realities that are naturally
appearing. Thus, we should see the incomparable value of paññå and
we should apply ourselves to its development so that it can become fully
accomplished. If we develop satipaììhåna time and again, paññå will be
gradually accumulated so that it becomes keener, and reaches the
degree of a perfection which realizes the four noble Truths.

We read in the “Khuddhaka Nikåya” in the Commentary to the “Basket
of Conduct”, the “Conduct of Yudañjaya”, about the beginning of the
development of paññå during the life the Bodhisatta was young.

“In his life when the Bodhisatta was Yudañjaya, he was the eldest son of the
King and had the rank of the viceroy. He fulfilled every day mahå-dåna 1
, the
giving of an abundance of gifts. One day when he visited the royal park he
saw the dewdrops hanging like a string of pearls on the tree-tops, the grasstips, the end of the branches and on the spiders’ webs.
The prince enjoyed himself in the royal park and when the sun rose higher all
the dewdrops that were hanging there disintegrated and disappeared. He
reflected thus: ‘These dewdrops came into being and then disappeared.
Evenso are conditioned realities, the lives of all beings; they are like the
dewdrops hanging on the grass-tips.’ He felt a sense of urgency and became
disenchanted with worldly life, so that he took leave of his parents and
became a recluse.”
From this story we can learn that people have different degrees of
understanding. We may see dew drops hanging on grass-tips, but who
has paññå to the degree of causing a sense of urgency and
disenchantment when he compares his own life with the evanescent
dew?
We read:
“The Bodhisatta realized the impermanence of the dewdrops and made this
predominant in accumulating a sense of urgency and disenchantment; it
arose once and then became a condition leading to its arising very often.”
When right understanding with a sense of urgency arises we should not
let it pass by without paying attention to it. We should reflect on the
conditions for this sense of urgency so that it can arise more often. The
thought of death and impermanence can be a condition for further
developing the perfections.

The Commentary to the “Conduct of Yudañjaya” explains about the
beginning of paññå in that life of the Bodhisatta. We read:
“By offering mahå-dåna before he retired from the world and by his giving up
of the kingdom he fulfilled the perfection of giving.
By his restraint in action and speech he fulfilled the perfection of síla.
By his going forth from worldly life and by his attainment of jhåna he fulfilled
the perfection of renunciation.
In that life he began to develop paññå by wise consideration of
1 The word mahå-dåna is mostly used for the great offering of gifts to the Sangha.
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impermanence so that eventually the higher powers (abhiññås) could be
attained; he developed paññå which could distinguish the dhammas that
were beneficial from those that were not beneficial for the development of
generosity and so on. In that way he fulfilled the perfection of paññå.
By energy for the accomplishment of what was beneficial in all his
undertakings he fulfilled the perfection of energy.
By patience associated with paññå (ñåùa khanti) and by endurance
(adhivasana khanti) he fulfilled the perfection of patience.
By not speaking wrongly, not deviating from what he had promised, he
fulfilled the perfection of truthfulness.
By his unshakable determination in all that he undertook and observed, he
fulfilled the perfection of determination.
By the power of the divine abiding of loving-kindness, thinking only of the
benefit of all beings, he fulfilled the perfection of loving-kindness.
By his evenmindedness towards beings’ contrarious behaviour, and by the
divine abiding of equanimity, he fulfilled the perfection of equanimity.
These are the ways by which he fulfilled the ten perfections.”

The perfection of paññå is essential for the development of the other
perfections in the right way. We should remember that the goal of the
development of the perfections is paññå which penetrates the four
noble Truths. Since its development to that degree takes an endlessly
long time, paññå, in its turn, is also dependent on the other perfections.
We can notice in this life that someone who has developed the
perfections will be inclined to listen to the Dhamma, whereas someone
who has not developed the perfections does not see the benefit of the
development of paññå and does not want to listen to the Dhamma.
Even though there is still opportunity to listen to the true Dhamma, he
is not interested in listening.
A person who has already developed the perfection of paññå to a
certain extent, wishes to understand and to know the true nature of
realities, no matter where he is born, or even if he is born into a family
where there is wrong view. We read in “The Questions of Piògiya”
(Cúlaniddesa of the “Khuddhaka Nikåya”) that the Brahmin Piògiya
who was hundred and twenty years old asked the Buddha:
“I am old and weak, I have lost my beauty, and moreover, my eyesight and
my hearing are not clear. Meanwhile, Lord Buddha, may I not go astray, may
the Lord explain the Dhamma that he penetrated, the Dhamma that makesan end to birth and old age.”

A person with paññå would not ask for anything else but hearing the
true Dhamma which makes an end to birth and old age. Although
Piògiya was hundred and twenty years old, he wanted to listen to the
true Dhamma. He had accumulated paññå to such degree that he saw
the benefit of listening to the Dhamma. We read further on:
“The Buddha said to the Brahmin Piògiya: ‘People are intoxicated, they are
oppressed by physical phenomena, rúpas. It can be seen that people are
disturbed because of rúpas. Therefore, Piògiya, you should not be neglectful,
you should give up clinging to rúpas so that you will not be reborn.’ ”