Becoming a Sage at Peace - Stillness Amidst the Currents of Construing

Stillness Amidst the Currents

From the movements of mind to the turnings of thought, contemplative traditions have devised myriad metaphors for the makings of mental mischief. Such contemplative traditions also point toward a means out of this madness, by returning to an original state of stillness.



Here we turn to stillness as a source of solace, stability, security, and strength. While we draw from the early Buddhist tradition in this case, such emphasis on stillness stretches across contemplative traditions of antiquity up to the present. We wish to encourage further probing of this topic from the various traditions that address it. Each deserves to be heard.

On the subject of stillness, we first wish to invite contemplation of the following passage from the Pāli Canon's "Dhātuvibhaṅga Sutta," purportedly spoken by the historical Buddha some two and half millennia ago to a group of contemplatives-in-training in the township of Rājagaha while the Buddha was wandering the Magadhan lands of present-day northern India.



We are asked to reflect thus:

"'He has been stilled where the currents of construing do not flow. And when the currents of construing do not flow, he is said to be a sage at peace.' Thus was it said. With reference to what was it said? 'I am' is a construing. 'I am this' is a construing. 'I shall be' is a construing. 'I shall not be'... 'I shall be possessed of form'... 'I shall not be possessed of form'... 'I shall be percipient'... 'I shall not be percipient'... 'I shall be neither percipient nor non-percipient' is a construing. Construing is a disease, construing is a cancer, construing is an arrow. By going beyond all construing, he is said to be a sage at peace." (MN 140, trans. Thanissaro Bhikkhu)

Stilled where the currents of construing do not flow...



Stillness is an inner quality of imperturbable mental fortitude. Such stillness, by nature of being where the currents of construing do not flow, is sagely. Such stillness, by virtue of going beyond all construing, is peace.

While such stillness amidst the currents, even where the currents cease resists being put into words, we offer an attempt at understanding its purport, based on both the text itself and direct experience in contemplative practice.

Currents of Construing

It is said that one is stilled where the currents of construing do not flow. What does this image of "currents" tell us? What does "construing" entail?



An unusual feature within this passage is the word "construing," which doesn't usually appear in everyday vocabulary. Even more unusual is the depiction of such construing in the form of "currents," which conjures the image of flowing water. Except this water isn't simply flowing smoothly; it's churning in torrents. Such churning, as we've discussed in our explication of Patañjali's Yoga Sutras, characterizes the mind on the move, as it races from thought to thought, churning out imaginative ideation seemingly without end. While there is a time and place for such imaginative ideation, for it to continue unrelentingly, wreaking havoc upon the psyche through maladaptive self-reference, is an unpleasant reality for far too many.



Construing actually has a story behind it. Translators have rendered it in various ways. For instance, where Thanissaro Bhikkhu uses "construing," Ajahn Sujato uses "indentification" while Bhikkhu Bodhi uses "conceiving." The Pali is maññati, which also means "to imagine" and occurs in the "Dhātuvibhaṅga Sutta" in the form maññassavā and maññassave, both containing variations of the appended term assava, as well as maññitametaṃ, a compound of maññitaṃ + etaṃ.

Rather than getting bogged down in terminology, however, we merely wish to draw attention to the process in question, the process of conjuring ideas from the imagination, a process which has even been associated with illusion. "I am..." is a construing. "I shall be..." is a construing. "I shall not be..." is a construing. Such construing is likened to a disease, a cancer, an arrow. The harm inflicted through such construing occurs on account of ego-obsession. Why must our thoughts orbit incessantly around this "I"?

The essential piece to note with regard to such construing is that the "currents" of construing do not flow in the sage at peace. The waters are stilled. The mind grows calm and clear. How does one achieve this sagely stillness? How does one achieve such peace?

Becoming a Sage at Peace

A sage at peace is thus one who has brought the "currents of construing" to a stand-still. She is no longer tossed about by the churning current, no longer tossed about by the waves of thought that previously surged and ran rampant through the mind. Yet it should also be noted that for the sage at peace, stillness can be found even in the midst of movement.

Movement captures our attention, captivating the mind and holding it captive in chaos. Movement hogs the spotlight. Movement takes center stage.



Without a backdrop of stillness, we would not be capable of perceiving movement.

The rushing torrents of a mighty river move faster than we can register them, sweeping away our attention, turning it into a blur of movement. Yet the banks of the river, its basin, its foundation, are still and unmoving. Yes, technically the coursing of water erodes them slowly but surely. Everything is in constant flux. Yet even embedded in these changes is an undercurrent of stillness.

When we examine the mind, it seems to be rushing between thought formations in rapid fire. We thereby confuse the mind for the thoughts that race through it. If we're captivated and held captive by these thoughts, then the stillness beyond them remains outside our scope. The stream of thoughts running wildly through our minds can seem relentless, like a tumbling avalanche of thoughts cascading down to crush us beneath their weight.



How does one go about becoming a sage at peace under such avalanche-like torrents of thought, as depicted by the image of the currents of construing? Such a process can be halted simply through abstention. When any thought centered on some interpretation of "self" arises, thoughts like "I'm not good enough" or "I'm better than him" or other such comparative statements that orbit around ego, do not engage with it. Likewise, do not repress it. There is no use in stamping it down. Weeds trampled retain their roots. Such repressed thoughts will resurface with a vengeance.

Rather, maintain a watchful eye over the process of arising and subsiding.

When such a thought arises, watch it closely. Scrutinize it. Do not feed it. Do not fuel it. Watch it fade. Watch it dissolve. When we cease giving intrusive thoughts power, when we cease to nurture them, they wilt away. The currents dry up on their own. Where the currents of construing do not flow, she is said to be a sage at peace.

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