Why Do We Sometimes Feel More Restless the More We Practice? Three Lessons from the Dhammapada

Have you ever sat in meditation while your mind kept jumping like a fish out of water? You try to be diligent, but the harder you strive, the more restless you become? There is a story in the Dhammapada that can explain this.

The Forest Fire and the Occasion for Realization

During the time when the Buddha was still alive, a bhikkhu, after receiving a meditation method from the Buddha, went up a mountain to practice. He sat in meditation diligently, yet his mind could not enter deep meditative concentration. Seeing time pass without progress, he returned to ask the Buddha for a different method. Along the way, a fierce forest fire broke out. He hurried up a bare hill and stood in the midst of a sea of flames. Looking at the forest being consumed by fire, he suddenly realized that this body, this mind, was also dense with faults, ignorance, and fetters, just like that forest. He wished that the fire of wisdom would burn it all away. In that very moment, the intense emotion allowed him to enter meditative concentration, and the Buddha, knowing this from afar, recited a verse:

"Delighting in heedlessness, the bhikkhu fears heedlessness. Advance like a blazing fire, burning away fetters great and small."

He attained realization right at that moment, without needing to ask for a new topic. The method the Buddha had given was suitable all along; only the conditions were not yet complete. Sometimes, conditions require a moment of urgency, a strong emotion within ourselves.

Do Not Imitate Others: The Lesson on Conditions

Also during the Buddha's time, there was a bhikkhuni who practiced for twenty-five years without attaining realization. In despair, she went to hang herself. But just as she put her head into the noose, she suddenly attained realization! She recited a verse: "Twenty-five years I left my family, living simply, never gaining a single moment of purity, my mind always restless." Teacher Chân Quang warns:

"We should not imitate the conditions of others. Just trust that we need to practice steadily, slowly, and surely!"

Those who recklessly imitate others may die without attaining the path. It is like hearing that someone won the lottery, but the many people who keep buying tickets without winning are never mentioned. Each person has their own conditions, and no two are alike.

When We Rush to Judge Others

There was a bhikkhu named Nigamava Sisa, born into wealth, who lived near his hometown. He did not travel far; he simply held his alms bowl, received it full of offerings from relatives, and returned to practice. Other bhikkhus slandered him, saying he still clung to his family and craved delicious food. The Buddha knew this and questioned him in front of everyone. The bhikkhu replied: "I live simply and modestly. Once my bowl is full, I cannot ask for more. I do not need much; my life is very pure." The Buddha praised him as a true disciple of the Tathagata, then told a story of a past life: a parrot who lived simply, and when the branch it perched on broke, it gently moved to a bare branch and remained at peace. The teacher said:

"We often assign to others the faults that arise from our own thoughts."

When we see someone entering the kitchen outside of mealtime, we think they are sneaking food. When we see someone wearing fine clothes coming to hear the dharma talk, we think they have not truly let go. But their hearts may be different. Life becomes unsettled and disturbed by mutual accusations. Those who have practiced long do not rush to judge anyone, and because of this, their surroundings remain peaceful, and their own minds find practice easier.

The Lesson from Bhikkhu Meghiya: Why Must We Obey?

There was a bhikkhu named Meghiya who noticed his mind became pure when sitting near the Buddha, and he believed that if he just went to a quiet, solitary place, he would attain realization. He asked permission, but the Buddha told him not to go, because at that time the others had gone out for alms, the Buddha was alone, and the disciple's responsibility was to stay and attend to his teacher. Meghiya insisted on his own way and left. For a whole month, his mind grew more and more restless, and he had no choice but to return in repentance. The Buddha taught:

"A disciple must know how to obey the teacher. Especially in a case where everyone has gone away, and I tell you not to leave me alone!"

Meghiya's mind was like a fish thrashing when thrown onto the shore. By leaving the Buddha, he lost the opportunity to perform merit and create blessings from merit to subdue his mind. Teacher Chân Quang emphasizes:

"Without merit, the mind cannot be subdued."

Many people feel they are practicing well through their service, and then abandon their work to sit in meditation, only to find restlessness. But abandoning the work means letting go of the merit being created, and the mind immediately becomes restless.

The Noble Eightfold Path: The Only Path to Peace

A layperson asked: "Is there any teaching higher than the Noble Eightfold Path?" The teacher affirmed absolutely not. All methods and scriptures, no matter how wonderful, are contained within the Noble Eightfold Path. The Buddha said:

"The Noble Eightfold Path is the only way to the peace of the deathless."

The Noble Eightfold Path has a logical order: right action comes first, creating merit to support right livelihood, and only then come right effort, mindfulness, and meditative concentration. If you wish to do wholesome work but cannot, that is a lack of merit. Buddhists often understand the Noble Eightfold Path only superficially, practicing in a shallow way. We should constantly reflect and examine every thought, word, and deed to see which part of the path it belongs to.

Closing Words

Practice is not about running away or imitating anyone. Return to yourself, keeping your mind like a skilled craftsman straightening an arrow shaft. Do not insist on your own way; trust in the teacher and create blessings from merit each day. Then peace and stillness will arrive on their own, like a gift of the heart.