Seven Points of Mind Training

Point 6 : Disciplines of Mind Training

29: Abandon poisonous food.

Point Six : Abandon poisonous food.

Commentary :

If the practice of egolessness begins to become just another way of building up your ego - building your ego by giving up your ego - it is like eating poisonous food; it will not take effect. In fact, rather than providing an eternally awakened state of mind, it will provide you with death, because you are holding on to your ego. So if your reason for sitting or doing postmeditation practice or any other kind of practice is self-improvement, it is like eating poisonous food. "If I sit properly, with the greatest discipline and exertion, then I will become the best meditator of all" - that is a poisonous attitude.

This is a very powerful slogan for us. It means that whatever we do with our practice, if that practice is connected with personal achievement, which is called "spiritual materialism," or the individual glory that we are in the right and others are wrong, and we would like to conquer their wrongness or evil because we are on the side of God and so forth - that kind of bullshit or cow dung is regarded as eating poisonous food. Such food may be presented to us beautifully and nicely, but when we begin to eat it, it stinks.