A teaching assistant in a class I am taking describes the path of awakening in its most simplified form like this:
1. Abandon the hindrances
2. Establish mindfulness
3. Cultivate the awakening factors.
In his book Mindfulness, A Practical Guide to Awakening, Joseph Goldstein quotes the Buddha saying a similar thing. The Buddha is referencing all the Buddhas that have come before which lends great weight to this passage:
“All those Arahant Buddhas of the past attained to supreme enlightenment by abandoning the five hindrances, defilements of the mind which weaken understanding, having firmly established the four foundations of mindfulness in their minds, and realized the seven factors of awakening as they really are.”
We have been introduced to the hindrances in these past months. We have also gained some understanding of the four foundations of mindfulness - mindfulness of the body, of feelings, of the mind, and of the way things are, the dharmas. The seven factors of enlightenment are found in mindfulness of the dharmas or the way things are as are the five hindrances.
The importance of the seven factors of enlightenment on the path toward freedom from suffering cannot be overstated. Venerable Analayo in Satipatthana*: The Direct Path of Realization (p.233) says this: "Just as a river inclines and flows toward the ocean, so the awakening factors incline toward Nibbana.” Nibbana translates to awakening or enlightenment or realization.
*Four Foundations of Mindfulness
A river inclining and flowing toward the ocean is drawn by gravity. There is an inevitability about this progress of the water within the river banks. This inevitability is also indicated in the seven factors of enlightenment. Cultivating each factor in turn creates the conditions for the arising of the next factor which creates the conditions of the next factor and so on. These factors are called forward leaning because their cultivation inclines the mind towards enlightenment.
This forward leaning or gravitation pull gives another flavor to the phrase of being “on the path.” Our practice, our contemplations, our investigations, our study, our conversations with teachers and each other incline our minds towards realization, towards freedom just as the river inclines and flows towards the ocean.
What are these seven factors? They are first and foremost mindfulness, then investigation arises, then energy, joy, tranquility, contemplation, and equanimity. These seven factors sound very appealing and they are. Part of the dynamic that occurs here is that the experiences of these seven factors incline towards joy and happiness, contentment and tranquility. Equanimity is the ultimate peaceful state. These are considered unworldly pleasures and serve to attract the mind - perhaps even compensate the mind initially - for abandoning the more worldly pleasures of the senses. Cultivation of mindfulness by itself sets up conditions for the arising of all the other factors culminating in equanimity.
How do we cultivate these seven factors of enlightenment?
Venerable Analayo (p.234) explains the process of this cultivation as indicated in the Buddha’s teachings as follows:
"Contemplation of the awakening factors proceeds similarly to the contemplation of the hindrances: first, awareness turns to the presence or absence of the mental quality in question, and then to the conditions for its presence or absence. However, while in the case of contemplating the hindrances, awareness is concerned with conditions for their future non-arising, with the awakening factors the task is to know how to develop and firmly establish these beneficial mental qualities.”
The first task is to become aware of the presence or absence of each awakening factor. Is mindfulness present? Investigation? Energy? Joy? Tranquillity? Concentration? Equanimity? The second stage is to become aware of the conditions that are necessary for its presence or that prevented its arising. In the case of conditions necessary for each arising, the previous factor needs to be present for the next factor to arise. These will not necessarily arise in our awareness in a neat progressive order. If we are aware of investigation, for instance, energy is usually present. Joy may be subtle and, if not looked for, then overlooked. But tranquillity may be more easily noticed.
On the Barre Center for Buddhist Studies website, Venerable Analayo offers guided meditation what interweaves his guidance of the Satipatthana Sutta - the Four Foundations of Mindfulness - with the seven awakening factors to help us investigate the presence or absence of these factors in our own experience.