Five hindrances
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In the
Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...
tradition, the five hindrances ( Sinhala: ''පඤ්ච නීවරණ pañca nīvaraṇa'';
Pali Pali () is a Middle Indo-Aryan liturgical language native to the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or ''Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of ''Theravāda'' Buddhism ...
: ') are identified as mental factors that hinder progress in
meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally cal ...
and in our daily lives. In the
Theravada ''Theravāda'' () ( si, ථේරවාදය, my, ထေရဝါဒ, th, เถรวาท, km, ថេរវាទ, lo, ເຖຣະວາດ, pi, , ) is the most commonly accepted name of Buddhism's oldest existing school. The school' ...
tradition, these factors are identified specifically as obstacles to the
jhāna In the oldest texts of Buddhism, ''dhyāna'' () or ''jhāna'' () is a component of the training of the mind ('' bhavana''), commonly translated as meditation, to withdraw the mind from the automatic responses to sense-impressions, "burn up" th ...
s (stages of concentration) within meditation practice. Within the
Mahayana ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...
tradition, the five hindrances are identified as obstacles to
samatha ''Samatha'' (Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' (Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of the ...
(tranquility) meditation. Contemporary
Insight Meditation ''Samatha'' (Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' (Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of the ...
teachers identify the five hindrances as obstacles to mindfulness meditation. The five hindrances are: # Sensory desire (''
kāma ''Kama'' (Sanskrit ) means "desire, wish, longing" in Hindu, Buddhist, Jain, and Sikh literature.Monier Williamsकाम, kāmaMonier-Williams Sanskrit English Dictionary, pp 271, see 3rd column Kama often connotes sensual pleasure, sexua ...
cchanda''): seeking for pleasure through the five senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and physical feeling. # Ill-will (''vyāpāda''; also spelled ''byāpāda''): feelings of hostility, resentment, hatred and bitterness. # Sloth-and-torpor (''
thīna Thīna (Sanskrit styāna, स्त्यान​; pi, थीन) is a Buddhist term that is translated as "sloth". ''Thīna'' is defined as sluggishness or dullness of mind, characterized by a lack of driving power. In the Theravada tradition, ' ...
-
middha Not to be confused with ''surname Middha'', the 68,736th most widespread family name on earth peforebears.io Middha (Sanskrit: मिद्ध; Pali: मिद्ध ; Tibetan phonetic: ''nyi'') is a Buddhist term that is translated as "torpor", "d ...
''): half-hearted action with little or no effort or concentration. # Restlessness-and-worry (''
uddhacca Auddhatya (Sanskrit; Pali: ''uddhacca''; Tibetan phonetic: ''göpa '') is a Buddhist term that is translated as "excitement", "restlessness", etc. In the Theravada tradition, ''uddhacca'' is defined as a mental factor that is characterized by disq ...
-
kukkucca Kaukritya (Sanskrit; Pali: ''kukkucca''; Tibetan phonetic: ''gyöpa'') is a Buddhist term that is translated as "regret", "worry", etc. In the Theravada tradition, ''kukkucca'' is defined as worry or remorse after having done wrong; it has the char ...
''): the inability to calm the mind and focus one's energy. # Doubt ('' vicikiccha''): lack of conviction or trust in one's abilities.


Etymology

According to Gil Fronsdal, the Pali term ''nīvaraṇa'' means covering. Fronsdal states that these hindrances cover over: the clarity of our mind, and our ability to be mindful, wise, concentrated, and stay on purpose. According to Rhys Davids, the Pali term ''nīvaraṇa'' (Sanskrit: ''nivāraṇa'') refers to an obstacle or hindrance only in the ethical sense, and is usually enumerated in a set of five.


In Pali Literature


In the Pali Canon

In the
Pali Canon The Pāli Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from the Tamrashatiya school. During th ...
's Samyutta Nikaya, several discourses juxtapose the five hindrances with the
seven factors of enlightenment In Buddhism, the Seven Factors of Awakening (Pali: ''satta bojjhagā'' or ''satta sambojjhagā''; Skt.: ''sapta bodhyanga'') are: * Mindfulness ('' sati'', Sanskrit ''smrti''). To maintain awareness of reality, in particular the teachings ('' ...
(''bojjhanga''). For instance, according to SN 46.37,
the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...
stated: Anālayo underlines: Anālayo further supports this by identifying that, in all extant Sanskrit and Chinese versions of the
Satipatthana Sutta The Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta ( Majjhima Nikaya 10: ''The Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), and the subsequently created Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Dīgha Nikāya 22: ''The Great Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), are ...
, only the five hindrances and seven factors of enlightenment are consistently identified under the ''dhamma'' contemplation section; contemplations of the
five aggregates (Sanskrit) or (Pāḷi) means "heaps, aggregates, collections, groupings". In Buddhism, it refers to the five aggregates of clinging (), the five material and mental factors that take part in the rise of craving and clinging. They are also ...
, six
sense base A sense is a biological system used by an organism for sensation, the process of gathering information about the world through the detection of stimuli. (For example, in the human body, the brain which is part of the central nervous system rec ...
s and Four Noble Truths are not included in one or more of these non-Pali versions. In terms of gaining
insight Insight is the understanding of a specific cause and effect within a particular context. The term insight can have several related meanings: *a piece of information *the act or result of understanding the inner nature of things or of seeing intu ...
into and overcoming the Five Hindrances, according to the
Satipatthana Sutta The Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta ( Majjhima Nikaya 10: ''The Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), and the subsequently created Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Dīgha Nikāya 22: ''The Great Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), are ...
, the Buddha proclaimed: Each of the remaining four hindrances are similarly treated in subsequent paragraphs. The Buddha gives the following analogies in the ''Samaññaphala Sutta'' ( DN 2, "The Fruits of the Contemplative Life"): Similarly, in the ''Sagārava Sutta'' ( SN 46.55), the Buddha compares sensual desire with looking for a clear reflection in water mixed with
lac Lac is the resinous secretion of a number of species of lac insects, of which the most commonly cultivated is ''Kerria lacca''. Cultivation begins when a farmer gets a stick that contains eggs ready to hatch and ties it to the tree to be infes ...
, turmeric and dyes; ill will with boiling water; sloth-and-torpor with water covered with plants and algae; restlessness-and-worry with wind-churned water; and, doubt with water that is "turbid, unsettled, muddy, placed in the dark."


From post-canonical Pali literature

According to the first-century CE exegetic ''
Vimuttimagga __NOTOC__ The ''Vimuttimagga'' ("Path of Freedom") is a Buddhist practice manual, traditionally attributed to the Arahant Upatissa (c. 1st or 2nd century). It was translated into Chinese in the sixth century as the ''Jietuo dao lun'' 解脫道論 ...
'', the five hindrances include all ten
fetters Legcuffs are physical restraints used on the ankles of a person to allow walking only with a restricted stride and to prevent running and effective physical resistance. Frequently used alternative terms are leg cuffs, (leg/ankle) shackles, foot ...
: sense desire includes any attachment to passion; ill will includes all unwholesome states of hatred; and, sloth and torpor, restlessness and worry, and doubt include all unwholesome states of infatuation. The Vimuttimagga further distinguishes that "sloth" refers to mental states while "torpor" refers to physical states resultant from food or time or mental states; if torpor results from food or time, then one diminishes it through energy; otherwise, one removes it with meditation. In addition, the Vimuttimagga identifies four types of doubt: * doubt regarding
self The self is an individual as the object of that individual’s own reflective consciousness. Since the ''self'' is a reference by a subject to the same subject, this reference is necessarily subjective. The sense of having a self—or ''selfhood ...
is a hindrance to
tranquility Tranquillity (also spelled tranquility) is the quality or state of being tranquil; that is, calm, serene, and worry-free. The word tranquillity appears in numerous texts ranging from the religious writings of Buddhism, where the term ''passaddhi'' ...
; * doubt regarding the
Four Noble Truths In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (Sanskrit: ; pi, cattāri ariyasaccāni; "The four Arya satyas") are "the truths of the Noble Ones", the truths or realities for the "spiritually worthy ones". three worlds is a hindrance to
insight Insight is the understanding of a specific cause and effect within a particular context. The term insight can have several related meanings: *a piece of information *the act or result of understanding the inner nature of things or of seeing intu ...
; * doubt regarding the Triple Gem is a hindrance to both tranquility and insight; * doubt regarding places and people is a hindrance to "non-doctrinal" things; * doubt regarding the Tipitaka, Discourses is a hindrance to solitude. According to
Buddhaghosa Buddhaghosa was a 5th-century Indian Theravada Buddhist commentator, translator and philosopher. He worked in the Great Monastery (''Mahāvihāra'') at Anurādhapura, Sri Lanka and saw himself as being part of the Vibhajjavāda school and in t ...
's fifth-century CE commentary to the Samyutta Nikaya ('), one can momentarily escape the hindrances through jhanic suppression or through
insight Insight is the understanding of a specific cause and effect within a particular context. The term insight can have several related meanings: *a piece of information *the act or result of understanding the inner nature of things or of seeing intu ...
while, as also stated in the ''Vimuttimagga'', one eradicates the hindrances through attainment of one of the
four stages of enlightenment The four stages of awakening in Early Buddhism and Theravada are four progressive stages culminating in full awakening (''Bodhi'') as an Arahant (SN 22.122). These four stages are Sotāpanna, Sakadāgāmi, Anāgāmi, and Arahant. The oldest ...
(see Table 1). The five mental factors that counteract the five hindrances, according to the Theravada tradition: # '' vitakka'' ("applied thought," "coarse examination") counteracts sloth-torpor (lethargy and drowsiness) # '' vicāra'' ("sustained thought," "precise investigation") counteracts doubt (uncertainty) # ''
pīti ''Pīti'' in Pali (Sanskrit: ''Prīti'') is a mental factor (Pali:''cetasika'', Sanskrit: ''caitasika'') associated with the development of '' jhāna'' (Sanskrit: ''dhyāna'') in Buddhist meditation. According to Buddhadasa Bhikkhu, ''piti'' i ...
'' (rapture, well-being) counteracts ill-will (malice) # '' sukha'' (non-sensual pleasure) counteracts restlessness-worry (excitation and anxiety) # ''
ekaggatā Ekaggatā (Pali; Sanskrit: '' ekāgratā'', एकाग्रता, "one-pointedness") is a Pali Buddhist term, meaning tranquility of mind or one-pointedness, but also "unification of mind." According to the Theravada-tradition, in their reint ...
'' (one-pointedness, single-pointed attention) counteracts sensory desire


See also

*
Five Thieves In Sikhism, the Five Thieves (Punjabi: ਪੰਜ ਚੋਰ ''paja cōra''), also called the five vices (Punjabi: ਪੰਜ ਬੁਰਾਈਆਂ ''paja burā'ī'āṁ''), are the five major weaknesses of the human personality at variance with its ...
(in Sikhism) *
Five faults and eight antidotes The five faults and eight antidotes are factors of samatha meditation identified in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition. The five faults identify obstacles to meditation practice, and the eight antidotes are applied to overcome the five faults. This syst ...
*
Five precepts The Five precepts ( sa, pañcaśīla, italic=yes; pi, pañcasīla, italic=yes) or five rules of training ( sa, pañcaśikṣapada, italic=yes; pi, pañcasikkhapada, italic=yes) is the most important system of morality for Buddhist lay peo ...
*
Pāramitā ''Pāramitā'' (Sanskrit, Pali: पारमिता) or ''pāramī'' (Pāli: पारमी), is a Buddhist term often translated as "perfection". It is described in Buddhist commentaries as noble character qualities generally associated wit ...
(the virtues, either six or ten)


Notes


References


Citations


Works cited

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Further reading

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External links

* Ajahn Dhiravamso (2008), ''The Five Hindrances'' hamma talk video Serpentine:
Bodhinyana Monastery Bodhinyana is a Theravada Buddhist monastery in the Thai Forest Tradition located in Serpentine, about 60 minutes' drive south-east of Perth, Australia. History The monastery was built in the 1980s and gained interest from Perth media over tim ...
. Retrieved December 8, 2008 from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6xpcD0Y3x7Y
Dealing with the Five Hindrances, by Sayalay SusilaWhat are the Five Hinderances?
{{Authority control Buddhist philosophical concepts Buddhist meditation