Sayadaw U Tejaniya Quotes - September 2025

Recently Jessica Mui has been forwarding some teachings and quotes from Sayadaw U Tejaniya via some of the HKIMS community groups. Here are these sharings collated from September.

"Adjust and Apply as Conditions Require" 7 Sep 2025

After donation of the late Shwe Oo Min Sayadaw Gyi’s Birthday

"When the mind stays inside, it's better. It feels secure and grounded. Only pay attention to the outside when necessary; stay more inside. If it does that, it's better. Because the mind isn't working well internally, it's wandering around thinking about external things, paying attention to the outside. If it's working well inside, it doesn't reside in the external environment.

Right now, while sharing the donation money, it's also like that. I keep the mind only on the task of handing out the envelopes. I am knowing the mind again. And most importantly, I am holding the primary awareness of being mindful. The awareness of “Donation is happening, there are many people here” is not very strong. Mind only aware of the task of handing out the envelopes. I take one envelope from the stack in my hand and put it into the bag held by each Sayalay (Nuns) who comes in front of me. The mind only focus on that. The mind does not scatter towards other matters; it is gathered and settled. It was also like this when I was practicing in the market. The mind just stayed inside.

If it's necessary to pay attention to the environment, then one should. But right now, there's no problem even if I don't pay attention externally, so it's not needed. Therefore, I just stay inside. For matters like crossing the road, I would still be inside, but I would also pay attention externally if necessary. Right now, I'm leaning more towards the side of mindfulness. The mind is doing the work of awareness, and the mind also knows that it's working, so the mind just stays inside. Paying attention outwardly is not much. Usually, my mind would be scattered, knowing the entire environment.

Paying attention only when needed is important. The wisdom orders: 'Only pay attention when necessary, don't when it's not needed.' Normally, it just habitually pays attention to everything, needed or not. I noticed one young yogi. When he is talking to someone, his mind is always outwards and scattered. He cannot focus on the person he is talking to. If someone walks by, he looks. Every time he hears a door open or close, he turns to look. His mind follows and latches onto every sense object it encounters, however unimportant or unnecessary, and it becomes scattered. Actually, when talking, the mind should gradually become collected, focusing on the matter of conversation, rather than being scattered about the environment. But now, because it's a habit, he cannot collect his mind; he can't gather it. His mind just wanders onto every object it meets.

Without concentration (samādhi), it's just like that. The power of focus is weak. This morning, while meditating, I thought about concentration: if it's needed, then mind must work on it. 'When needed' is the key point. If the meditation practice has momentum, then it's not needed. But when it's weak, then you must strengthen it again. You can't always be rigid. You have to look at the situation, the time, and the condition, and do what is necessary when it's needed. Having wisdom means that depending on the situation, you use either “samatha” (concentration) or “vipassanā”  as needed. You become skilled in both and then use whichever is appropriate where needed. When I was practicing in the market, the wisdom was weak. Because the wisdom wasn't strong, I had to use a lot of “samatha” power. A wise person doesn't cling to any one method. They look at the situation, the time, and the condition, and then adjust accordingly. If you always keep it rigid and uniform according to a fixed formula, wouldn't the intellect become dull?"

“Are you sure you are aware” 7 Sep 2025

Sayadaw: If you repeatedly check whether there is awareness, if you know that there is awareness, then you are very sure that there is awareness. If you only look at the object, you are not sure whether you are aware or not, right? You can get carried away by the object; you can lose it. When I ask yogis, "Are you sure you are aware?", they can't answer anymore. To be sure, you must know again that you are aware. If you know continuously without losing awareness, if you know again that you are aware, then you know for sure that you are aware, and you can say it. If you know continuously that you are aware, you are very sure yourself that you are not losing awareness.

When you ask yogis if they are aware, they tend to answer, "I am aware something." Then, if I ask again, "Are you sure you are aware?", they are no longer sure. Why? Because they only know the object. To be sure that you are aware, you must know again that you are aware. That's why in my book it is written, "Is it a superficial knowing? Or is it a clear and precise knowing?"

When I started to teach meditation, I kept asking one of Shwe Oo Min Sayadaw's students, "Are you aware? Are you sure you are aware?" When I asked him that, the yogi replied, "Only when you ask, Venerable Sir, I do realize I wasn't truly aware. I only thought I was. It just felt like I knew but I wasn't sure. And so, the yogi became aware by himself that he was not actually aware but only thought he was. He thought he was being aware and knowing, but thinking and knowing are not the same, right?

Another yogi thought he was being aware while he was eating. Later, when awareness returned, he realized and know that he had not been aware a moment ago. Why did he think that? It's because he thought, "I will eat with awareness," just before eating. He knew that thought, "I will eat with awareness." But, even while he was eating, he actually didn't eat with awareness. When awareness returned, he clearly knew by himself that he had not been aware earlier. Even though he thought, "I will eat with awareness," and didn't actually eat with awareness, just having that thought made him think he was aware. Therefore, if you are aware, you must know clearly and precisely that you are aware.

“The right view comes only from staying on the knowing-mind side” 13 Sep 2025

Saydaw: No matter what you know, no matter what you are aware of, you should be glad. You need to understand and comprehend this. Don't complain about what is happening. The yogi is mindful, so they know what is happening. But instead of being glad about knowing, they complain about what is happening. The nature of ordinary people is like this; when something happens, they tend to complain and blame the experience.

If you stay on the side of knowing-mind for a long time, if you are investigating the nature of the knowing mind more, you appreciate more on knowing mind. The late Yawgi Sayadaw (Shwe Oo Min Saw) told me when I was young, "No matter how bad the experience is, no matter how bad the mind is, be glad if you know it." Since that time, I just stayed on the side of knowing. I stopped paying attention to the side of the object; let the object be whatever it wants to be. You can't control what is happening; you can't do anything about it. The only thing you can do, which is related to you, is the side of knowing. Therefore, just appreciate knowing more.

Being able to know is something to be happy about. Knowing with awareness is a wholesome mind (kusala citta); it is wisdom (ñāṇa). Knowing the object as it is, in its true nature, is "Right View" (sammā diṭṭhi). Instead of being happy about what should be appreciated, people cannot be happy because they no longer see the side of awareness. They forget that they are practicing meditation, and instead just become aware of and study about what is happening, getting entangled with, "I want this to happen, I want that to happen, I want it to be like this, I want it to be like that."

Someone who stays at the side of the object (the content) a lot has many such desires and aversions. A person who is always investigating the side of knowing understands the benefit of knowing and becomes more and more skilled in how to practice. That is why I say, stay on the side of knowing.

Once the object and the knowing mind separate, you just stay on the side of knowing. Beginners in practice have to focus on the object because the object and the knowing mind are not yet separate for them. Once those two separate, you must come to the side of the knowing mind. Until you come to the side of the mind, your meditation practice will not become skilled. When people practice meditation, they look at the object, they look at the sensation, but they don't come to the side of the knowing mind. Because they don't come to the side of the knowing mind, their wisdom does not mature. The complete picture does not appear. Understanding only comes when there is a complete picture. If you only know the side of the object and don't know the mind that is working, the view is not complete, and so wisdom also does not mature.

Therefore, there is the object and the mind. I ask yogis from the very beginning of their practice if they know these two natures. As the yogi practices, if the knowing mind and the being known object separate and they can discern it, I instruct them to turn to the side of the knowing mind. Most people are just concentrating on the side of the object, and trying to make something happen.

Meditation is the work of the mind, so if you want to become skilled, you will only become skilled by understanding the mind. Therefore, stay on the side of knowing. Appreciate knowing. What is the difference between knowing and not knowing? How is it when mindfulness is present? How is it when mindfulness is lost? You will understand more by investigating these little things.

“Aware more when you are alone” 15 Sep 2025

Yogi: As soon as I returned to my room, closed the door, and heard the ‘click’ of the lock, I didn't know anything that followed. I continuously lost mindfulness.

Sayadaw: That is precisely why I keep asking you to be aware of the details, to know the details. I often ask yogis: 'After you close the door and walk away, what do you do next?' 'How do you enter the room?' 'You enter the room and close the door; after closing it, what do you do next?' Like this, one thing after another, you must keep reminding yourself: 'After this is done, what will I do? Do I know what I am doing next? Am I continuously aware of what I am doing?' You have to keep reminding yourself like this. Only then will mindfulness continue and carry on.

People tend to be even more unmindful when they are alone. When alone, they think, 'Now I can relax and behave as I want,' so they release their awareness. Then, the continuity of awareness is completely lost. The time when you are alone is the time you must practice more diligently. The time when you are alone is the time you should practice even more. Think in this opposite way. People's nature is such that when they are alone, they think, 'Now I can relax, I'm free,' and they tend to let go of everything. In truth, that is the time you must practice more carefully and diligently. Since there are fewer environmental distractions, you should practice more.

You must continuously ask yourself, 'Do I know what I am doing? Do I know what I am doing?' and live like that. You have to guide your practice, guide your awareness, in that way. People's nature is to pretend and control themselves when outside—they restrain themselves in the Dhamma hall. But as soon as they return to their own room, they just let go. So in the Dhamma hall, they are a 'good yogi' practicing well.

A yogi's habit is such that when they are outside, due to the environment, they are already controlling themselves. But when they are about to be alone, they don't restrain themselves anymore and want to let their mindfulness slip. So when that time comes, you must be extra careful. When you are alone, practice more diligently. Later, it will become the opposite. Your mindfulness will be better when you are alone.

So, I found that I practice more diligently when I am alone, then when I enter my room, the practice becomes even stronger. Over time, this pattern becomes established. When I have nothing else to do and am free, if I am then mindful, it becomes a habit. When I was practicing in the market, sometimes when work became too much, mindfulness would be lost. But when I was free, I would be mindful again; as soon as I was free, I would repeatedly be mindful. As soon as I stopped working, awareness would automatically return. If I have nothing to do outside, the awareness is working inside. Over time, it becomes a habit. Sometimes, when I have nothing else to do, the mind just stays inside. It is aware and abiding—that is the best. In life, living with awareness is the most meaningful. Not being aware is truly unfortunate.

“Meditation is not yet finished just because the defilement has disappeared” 18 Sep 2025

Sayadaw: People look at the defilement (kilesa) and when it disappears, they become satisfied. Meditation is not yet finished just because the defilement has disappeared. We should continue to investigate. If you become satisfied when the defilement disappears and stop practicing, you won't gain true understanding. People get stuck in a cycle: "Next time they encounter this object again, the defilement will arise again, then they look at the defilement again, and if it disappears, they will be satisfied and stop the practice." They are just revolving in this cycle.

The reason for asking you to look again is so that you can compare and know the two different views: the view of the object while the defilement is present and the view when the defilement is no longer present. It's not to make you look just to make the defilement disappear. If there is no defilement, the wisdom (ñāṇa) has a chance to arise. Once wisdom (ñāṇa) arises, then later, regarding that object, defilement will no longer arise. If insight has not yet arisen, if you haven't yet truly understood, then every time you encounter this object, this defilement will keep arising. If defilement arises, first contemplate the defilement itself. When the defilement subsides, bring the object back to mind and look at it again. How did you perceive the object while the defilement was present? Now that the defilement has lessened or is no longer present, how do you perceive the object? If you ask yourself these kinds of questions, it will become clear. The next time this object comes, you will be calm. It won't affect you at all.

In my case, before, whenever I went to Chinatown, I would have a feeling of regret, thinking, "I did bad things in Chinatown before and was quite terrible. I was really bad back then." While thinking like that, one day it suddenly dawned on me: "The thought is just a thought; it has nothing to do with me." From that time on, whenever I go to Chinatown, nothing happens. If you don't have the right view—the understanding that "what is happening is not me"—and instead hold a wrong view, then defilement arises. So, firstly look at the defilement. After defilement subsides, return to the object. You must inquire by asking things like, "Why is this happening?" "What is this object?" When it becomes clear in the mind, then wisdom has a chance to arise. The point is to contemplate for insight to arise, not to make defilement disappear. Right now, people are satisfied when defilement disappears. The truth is, when the defilement is no longer present, when it becomes clear in the mind, you must take up the object again and look at it.

Rain retreat robe offering - July 2025