The Wholesome Mental Factors

Rendered from chapter 8 of “The Mind and its Functions” by Geshe Rabten  

Consider the eleven positive qualities of the mind that cause the omnipresent, object-ascertaining and variable mental factors to likewise take on a wholesome aspect and, as a result, produce peace and wellbeing for oneself and others:

1. Faith: the joyous state of mind free from the turmoil of the root and proximate afflictions
2. Self-respect: to avoid evil for reasons of personal conscience
3. Consideration for Others: to avoid evil for the sake of others
4. Detachment: the remedy for attachment to conditioned existence 
5. Non-hatred: bears the characteristics of loving kindness 
6. Non-bewilderment: acts as remedy for ignorance 
7. Enthusiasm: acts as remedy for laziness 
8. Suppleness: to enable the mind to apply itself to a wholesome object 
9. Conscientiousness: to cherish the accumulation of what is wholesome 
10. Equanimity:  leaving the mind in rest upon that wholesome 
11. Non-violence: without any intention to cause harm

Through constantly striving to cultivate them they will become firmly rooted in the mind thus naturally counteracting the negative mental factors and leading one to a liberating vision of reality.

Since these eleven wholesome mental factors never occur simultaneously in any one primary state of mind, we may wonder at what times and in which combinations they do occur. We can classify six distinct occasions for their occurance:

1. At times of having belief, faith occurs.
2. At times of turning away from evil, self-respect and consideration for others occur.
3. At times of engaging in virtue, detachment, non-hatred, non-bewilderment and enthusiasm occur.
4. At times of freeing oneself from attachment by worldly means, suppleness occurs.
5. At times of freeing oneself from attachment by non-worldly means, conscientiousness and equanimity occur.
6. At times of benefitting others, non-violence occurs.

“Heedfullness is the path of the Deathless, 
heedlessness is the path to death. 
The heedfull do not die, 
the heedless are already dead.” 
- The Dhammapada (2.21)