The Buddha's Similes for the Hindrances
The Buddha was a master of simile and metaphors. He said repeatedly that the similes and metaphors he gave are useful for the purpose of understanding something that's not so obvious.
The bowl of water similes
One set of similes regards the hindrances' effect on the mind. The Buddha compares the mind to a bowl of water where a person who wants to see their own reflection looks into the bowl of water. If the bowl of water is clear and calm, this person will be able to see themselves clearly.
| Meaning | Simile |
|---|---|
| A calm mind, able to know itself | A clear, still bowl of water in which a person can see their reflection. |
| Sensual desire | A bowl of water made opaque and unreflective with dye. |
| Aversion | A bowl of water that is heated until it is boiling and bubbling, and no reflection can be seen. |
| Dullness and drowsiness | Water that is stagnant and overgrown with algae. |
| Restlessness and worry | Water that is stirred and made turbulent with wind, again, such that no reflection can be seen. |
| Doubt | A bowl of water in a dark place and that is murky so that no reflection can be seen in it. |
This simile points to the potential of our minds to be clear, to be reflective, to have the capacity to understand, to be well, to be at ease. And the clarity of the mind gets obstructed by these energies of these five patterns, these five hindrances.
The dramatic similes for the hindrances
| Meaning | Simile |
|---|---|
| Sensual desire | Being in debt. |
| Aversion | Sickness and pain. |
| Dullness and drowsiness | Imprisonment. |
| Restlessness and worry | Slavery. |
| Doubt | Being lost in a desert. |
So if the quality of our lives and our true wellbeing is important to us, then it becomes almost an imperative to really get to know these energies. Not out of a sense of fear or aversion, but out of a sense of concern for our true well-being, which we know has something to do with the quality of our minds, with the quality of our capacity for wellbeing and our capacity to see clearly.
How we meet the hindrances
The basic principle of dealing with these hindrances that the Buddha points out is to attend to them wisely. This wise attention in Pāli is called yoniso manasikāra, and we will talk about how to attend wisely to each of these hindrances. Yoniso manasikāra is a kind of wise reflection involving all aspects of our ability to relate wisely. It has something to do with our capacity to think, our capacity to pay attention in a certain way, and it has something to do with our basic attitude, with our basic intentions in life. We will explore this as we continue with the theme of these hindrances.