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Even if an ordinary foe is temporarily defeated in battle, they may be able to retreat and escape to another land for immediate safety. Because their army has not been entirely destroyed, they will lick their wounds and slowly regroup and regain their strength. They may elicit help from other opponents of ours and then make fresh plans to return and raid our lands or fight us again on the battlefield. But, Śāntideva tells us, the defiled mental states are not like this. | Even if an ordinary foe is temporarily defeated in battle, they may be able to retreat and escape to another land for immediate safety. Because their army has not been entirely destroyed, they will lick their wounds and slowly regroup and regain their strength. They may elicit help from other opponents of ours and then make fresh plans to return and raid our lands or fight us again on the battlefield. But, Śāntideva tells us, the defiled mental states are not like this. | ||
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Śāntideva taunts the afflictions, calling them pathetic and miserable. | Śāntideva taunts the afflictions, calling them pathetic and miserable. His reasoning is that, unlike external enemies, the defilements have little power against being cast out by their antidote, the eye of wisdom. He reminds us that they can be cut away at their very root and prevented from ever arising again. | ||
One very important point here is that the afflictions have a faulty foundation. They are based on a mistaken perception, and when that mistake is fully comprehended, this newfound wisdom can then drive the afflictions away forever. It is similar to the moment when we see through a magician's trick and understand that we have been deceived all along. This connects with the topic of the third of the four noble truths [LINK to glossary], the truth of the cessation of suffering [LINK to glossary]. | One very important point here is that the afflictions have a faulty foundation. They are based on a mistaken perception, and when that mistake is fully comprehended, this newfound wisdom can then drive the afflictions away forever. It is similar to the moment when we see through a magician's trick and understand that we have been deceived all along. This connects with the topic of the third of the four noble truths [LINK to glossary], the truth of the cessation of suffering [LINK to glossary]. | ||
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