"One bad Brick" - The fault finding mind

Ajahn Brahm always talk about this. His famous simile of the “brick wall” with the “one bad brick.” I always wondered where doest it fit in the scheme of things in Dhamma. I found this very beautiful sutta called Thyodhamma Sutta. I thought I would share it with you.This is how it goes:

Thayodhamma sutta (Abandon three things at a time).

To abandon

1. Birth

2. Old age

3. Death

You have to abandon

1. Greed (passion)

2. Hatred

3. Delusion

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Personality view

2. Doubt

3. Rituals and observances

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Drowsiness of the mind

2. Following the wrong path

3. Unwise consideration

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Unmindfulness

2. Unawareness

3. Mental distraction

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Dislike to see the noble ones

2. Dislike to hear the noble teachings

3. FAULT-FINDING MIND (upaarambha citta)

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Conceit

2. Unrestraint

3. Immorality

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Lack of confidence

2. Dislike to listen to others

3. Laziness

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Unfriendliness

2. Disobedience

3. Bad friends

To abandon the above three you have to abandon

1. Shamelessness

2. Fearlessness

3. Non-diligence

You can see how something very basic such as following the five precepts can lead to enlightenment. The shame and the fear for unwholesome deeds as well as the diligence to prevent or get rid of unwholesome deeds can be considered as the first three "stepping stones" in this path. This is basically morality or following the precepts.

To listen to MP3 of Thyodhamma Suttahttp://www.gautamabuddha.ca/bana/english/14_Kitariri_Sutta.MP3(In the link it should read Thayodhamma sutta, not Kitagiri sutta)