Abandoning

~ By Ajahn Jayasāro ~

The Buddha encouraged his disciples ‘Whatever is not yours, abandon it; abandoning it will lead to your long-lasting welfare and happiness.’

This is an intriguing statement that raises a number of questions. For example, how can you give up what is not yours in the first place? And what does it mean exactly to say that something is ‘yours’ or ‘not yours’?

The answer to the first question is that we can give things up that don’t belong to us in the case that we have stolen them from others. Or else – and this is the relevant case here – when we mistakenly believe them to be ours. The Buddha is teaching the abandonment of a false sense of ownership.

Ownership is not a natural truth; it is a concept. It is defined by power over the ‘owned’. The Buddha is pointing out that we assume ownership over our bodies, feelings, memories and perceptions, thoughts and emotions, and our sense consciousness. But, in fact, on close observation, we can see that we do not possess the kind of power over them worthy of the term ‘ownership’. Believing that we own the five aggregates that constitute the body and mind is the basic delusion that fuels our suffering. Letting go of attachment to that concept brings true happiness

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"Food for the Heart", a series of Dhamma teachings handwritten weekly is posted on the Buddhadāsa Indapañño Archives page with Ajahn's kind permission.

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For other teachings by Ven. Ajahn Jayasāro, please visit the Panyaprateep Foundation website.