Five hindrances explained

See also: Asava and Taį¹‡hā. In the Buddhist tradition, the five hindrances (; Pali: ) are identified as mental factors that hinder progress in meditation and in daily life. In the Theravada tradition, these factors are identified specifically as obstacles to the jhānas (stages of concentration) within meditation practice. Contemporary Insight Meditation teachers identify the five hindrances as obstacles to mindfulness meditation.

Within the Mahayana tradition, the five hindrances are obstacles to samadhi. They are part of the two types of obstructions (Sanskrit: āvaraį¹‡a), i.e. the obstacles to Buddhahood. The two types of obstructions are afflictive obstructions (Sanskrit: kleśāvaraį¹‡a, which include the standard five hindrances) and cognitive obstructions (jƱeyāvaraį¹‡a, which can only be removed by bodhisattvas).[1]

The classic list of five hindrances is:

  1. Sensory desire (kāmacchanda): seeking for pleasure through the five senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and physical feeling.
  2. Ill-will (vyāpāda; also spelled byāpāda): feelings of hostility, resentment, hatred and bitterness.
  3. Sloth-and-torpor (thīna-middha): half-hearted action with little or no effort or concentration.
  4. Restlessness-and-worry (uddhacca-kukkucca): the inability to calm the mind and focus one's energy.
  5. Doubt (vicikiccha): lack of conviction or trust in one's abilities.

Etymology

According to Gil Fronsdal, the Pali term nÄ«varaį¹‡a 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 nÄ«varaį¹‡a (Sanskrit: nivāraį¹‡a) 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's Samyutta Nikaya, several discourses juxtapose the five hindrances with the seven factors of enlightenment (bojjhanga). For instance, according to SN 46.37, the Buddha stated:

Anālayo underlines:

Anālayo further supports this by identifying that, in all extant Sanskrit and Chinese versions of the Satipatthana Sutta, only the five hindrances and seven factors of enlightenment are consistently identified under the dhamma contemplation section; contemplations of the five aggregates, six sense bases and Four Noble Truths are not included in one or more of these non-Pali versions.

In terms of gaining insight into and overcoming the Five Hindrances, according to the Satipatthana Sutta, the Buddha proclaimed:

Each of the remaining four hindrances are similarly treated in subsequent paragraphs.

The Buddha gives the following analogies in the SamaƱƱaphala 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, 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

method of
suppression		path of
eradication
sensual
desire		first jhana based
on bodily foulness		nonreturning or
arahantship
ill willfirst jhana based
on metta		nonreturning
sloth and
torpor		perception of lightarahantship
restlessness
and worry		serenity (samatha)arahantship and
nonreturning
doubtdefining of phenomena
(dhammavavatthāna)		stream-entry
The Pali commentary's methods
and paths for escaping the hindrances.
According to the first-century CE exegetic Vimuttimagga, the five hindrances include all ten fetters: 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:

According to Buddhaghosa's fifth-century CE commentary to the Samyutta Nikaya (), one can momentarily escape the hindrances through jhanic suppression or through insight while, as also stated in the Vimuttimagga, one eradicates the hindrances through attainment of one of the four stages of enlightenment (see Table 1).

The five mental factors that counteract the five hindrances, according to the Theravada tradition:

  1. vitakka ("applied thought", "coarse examination") counteracts sloth-torpor (lethargy and drowsiness)
  2. vicāra ("sustained thought", "precise investigation") counteracts doubt (uncertainty)
  3. pīti (rapture, well-being) counteracts ill-will (malice)
  4. sukha (non-sensual pleasure) counteracts restlessness-worry (excitation and anxiety)
  5. ekaggatā (one-pointedness, single-pointed attention) counteracts sensory desire

Mahāyāna

Mahāyāna Buddhist thought focuses on the concept of the āvaraį¹‡as (Sanskrit, ā€œobstructionā€ or ā€œhindranceā€; Tibetan: sgrib pa; Chinese: zhang) refers to impediments on the path to Buddhahood. Mahāyāna Buddhism recognizes two primary types of āvaraį¹‡a:

Afflictive obstructions hinder liberation, while cognitive obstructions block omniscience. Buddhas alone transcend both, achieving complete insight into all objects of knowledge. In Yogācāra sources, cognitive obstructions are linked to mistaken perceptions and conceptualizations. These are addressed through advanced practices on the Bodhisattva path, including mastery of the six perfections (pāramitās).

According to Xuanzang's Cheng Weishi Lun (VijƱaptimātratāsiddhi), there are ten specific āvaraį¹‡as which correspond to the stages of the Bodhisattva path (daśabhÅ«mi). These are:

  1. Obstruction of common delusions (prithagjanatvāvaraį¹‡a): Overcome through generosity.
  2. Obstruction of deluded conduct (mithyāpratipattyāvaraį¹‡a): Addressed by morality.
  3. Obstruction of dullness (dhandhatvāvaraį¹‡a): Resolved with patience.
  4. Obstruction of subtle afflictions (sÅ«kį¹£makleśasamudācārāvaraį¹‡a): Countered by effort.
  5. Obstruction of the lesser nirvāį¹‡a ideal (hÄ«nayānaparinirvāį¹‡Ävaraį¹‡a): Overcome through meditative absorption.
  6. Obstruction of coarse characteristics (sthÅ«lanimittasamudācārāvaraį¹‡a): Addressed by wisdom.
  7. Obstruction of subtle characteristics (sÅ«kį¹£manimittasamudācārāvaraį¹‡a): Overcome by expedient means.
  8. Obstruction of continued activity in the immaterial realm (nirnimittābhisaį¹ƒskārāvaraį¹‡a): Resolved through vows.
  9. Obstruction of reluctance to save others (parahitacaryākāmanāvaraį¹‡a): Countered by spiritual power.
  10. Obstruction of incomplete mastery over all phenomena (dharmasvāśitāpratilambhāvaraį¹‡a): Addressed by omniscience.

See also

References

Works cited

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Buswell, Robert E; Lopez, Donald S. The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, p. 83-84. Princeton University Press, Nov 24, 2013.

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