Attha

The Buddha said we should know both Dhamma and its attha, its purpose. In some cases we know the purpose because we read about it. We hear that it’s for the sake of the end of suffering. For release. For freedom. But to really know the attha, you’ve got to find it inside.

The Dhamma is there for you to use: the teachings the Buddha gave, the teachings of the ajaans. All good teachings are meant to be used as tools. So we use them right here, right now, whatever is appropriate. This is why we develop mindfulness. That’s so that we can hold everything in the mind. We may not be able to hold it all, all at once, but at least we have a good sorting system whereby when a particular problem comes up, we can remember, “Oh, I had this problem before: That worked the last time. Or that didn’t work the last time.” If it didn’t work the last time, try to find something new.

But try to have your experience, the knowledge you’ve gained from the practice, at your fingertips. This requires that you pay a lot of attention to what you’re doing. And you can get pretty single-minded. There are a lot of things that we can know about in the world that are really not worth knowing. They just clutter up the mind and distract us.

So try to simplify things as much as you can so that you can use the Dhamma for its genuine purpose and not get waylaid. After all, the Buddha taught for a purpose. When he hesitated at the beginning of his career, wondering whether it would be worth it or not, the hesitation came from the question: Would it accomplish anything? Would it just be useless effort on his part? But then, when he saw that there would be people who would benefit, that’s when he decided to teach.

So it’s for our benefit that the teachings are there. Learn how to use them well. You learn how to use them for their intended purpose so you can know the attha inside—not just hear about it but have the actual reality inside yourself. So learn how to use the teachings wisely, and you’ll find that they actually deliver the benefit that the Buddha promised.