Two Major Kinds of Obstacles on the Spiritual Path (EN subtitles)
This is an excerpt from the fifth talk of "The Net of Sensual Love Sutra" series, given by Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh in Plum Village's Upper Hamlet, Pháp Vân (Dharma Cloud) Temple, Still Water Meditation Hall, on May 16, 2010.
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🔔 Video transcript
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"[T]here are 2 kinds of obstacles that keep us from entering the Door of the Ultimate. The first kind of obstacle is 'obstacles of afflictions.' Phiền não chướng in Vietnamese, i.e. 'obstacles of afflictions,' 煩 惱 障 in Chinese, or kleśā-varaṇa in Sanskrit. They’re exhilaration, dispiritedness, anger, hate, disappointment, etc. [...]
"The second kind is 'obstacles of knowledge' (sở tri chướng, jñeyā-varaṇa in Sanskrit, 所 知 障 in Chinese).
"Sở tri (jñeyā, 所 知) means what we’ve already learned and/or known. Phiền não (kleśā, 煩 惱) means afflictions, pain, or suffering. They are two kinds of obstacles (āvaraṇa): obstacles of afflictions and obstacles of knowledge. [...]
"Well, in Buddhism, the Buddha showed us the method to overcome obstacles of afflictions and knowledge to go into the ultimate. We don’t have to knock on the door saying, 'Sésame, ouvre-toi.' We only need to practice right mindfulness (niệm 念), right concentration (định 定), and insights (tuệ 慧). i.e. smṛti, samādhi, and prajñā in Sanskrit, respectively.
"These are Three Trainings, i.e. tam học in Sino-Vietnamese (triśikṣā in Sanskrit, 三 學 in Chinese). These 3 subjects are called śikṣā in Sanskrit, meaning 'learning' or 'training.' This is the Triple Science of the Buddha."
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✩ Full talk's original title: “Chiếc Lưới Ái Ân - Bài 5—Ngày 16 tháng 05 năm 2010” / "2010-05-16-TNH-VNM-Chiếc Lưới Ái Ân-05.mp4"
✩ Full talk originally posted:
. Vietnamese transcripts by Làng Mai, date posted unknown;
. Vietnamese videos by Thich Nhat Hanh Archive Library Team, date posted unknown.
✩ Full talk given: on May 16, 2010, Plum Village's Upper Hamlet, Pháp Vân (Dharma Cloud) Temple, Still Water Meditation Hall
✩ Excerpt's length: 09 minutes 10 seconds
✩ Watch the full talk with English subtitles and transcript here.
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REFERENCES (Resources used to translate this Dharma talk): Please kindly refer to the video transcript link for the full list.
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Republished on the Plum Village App with kind permission of Thich Nhat Hanh's Talks channel 🙏