Different state of mind during dhamma talk

Would you like to see for yourself @Sunset_Limited, as to which category you fall into by reading INVERTED SUTTA – AN 3.30 . The following is an extract obtained from The Book of Threes – 30 -The Numerical Discourses of the Buddha – A Translation of the Anguttara Nikaya – Bhikkhu Bodhi .

There are three kinds of persons found existing in the world. The person with inverted wisdom, the person with lap-like wisdom, and the person with wide wisdom…. The first person often goes to listen to Dhamma from the bhikkhus. They reveal to him the perfectly complete and pure spiritual life – the Dhamma. But while sitting in his seat, this person would not pay attention to this advice. Just as, when a pot is turned upside down, the water that had been poured into it runs off and does not remain there, so too such people never take in the Dhamma. This is called the person with inverted wisdom.

And what of the person with lap-like wisdom? This person too often goes to listen to Dhamma from the bhikkhus. The bhikkhus reveal to him the perfectly complete and pure spiritual life – the Dhamma. While sitting in his seat, this person would attend to that talk, but after leaving the monastery he would not apple this teaching to his daily life - Just as, when a person has various food stuffs strewn over his lap, if he loses his mindfulness when rising from that seat, he would scatter them all over. This is called the person with lap-like wisdom.

Then there is the person with wide wisdom. This person, just like the first two, often goes to listen to Dhamma from the bhikkhus. The bhikkhus reveal to him the perfectly complete and pure spiritual life – the Dhamma. While sitting in his seat, this person would attend to that talk. After he has risen from his seat, again he attends to that talk. Just as, when a pot is kept upright, the water that had been poured into it stays there and does not run off, so too, some person would live in accordance with the Dhamma. This is called the person with wide wisdom.

Wisdom will not just unfold. You have to work towards it and then it will unfold by degrees. Firstly you have to be committed to this path, and the liking for Dhamma should far exceed your liking for all other things, if you want to develop a mind that is concentrated, cleared of disturbance and distraction. Concentration is achieved through the training in the higher consciousness, which brings the calm and collectedness needed to develop wisdom. Specially when it comes to Dhamma it is not easy to retain for long what you have heard, if you do not put this new found insights into practice right away. While at it, in order for the mind to be unified in concentration, a check must be placed on the unwholesome dispositions which ordinarily dominate its workings.

Unwholesome dispositions of body and speech disperse ones attention and scatter it among other unwanted concerns. They will rule by way of body and speech as bodily and verbal deeds, if they are not kept in check. So you will have to restrain your sense faculties, to prevent them from becoming tools of the defilements. For it you will have to train in moral discipline. Then the path evolves through its three stages, with moral discipline as the foundation for concentration, concentration the foundation for wisdom, and wisdom towards reaching liberation.

Has anyone experienced moments like being in a state of restlessness during a dhamma talk?

The 5 Hindrances can surface any time. It is not necessarily in meditation. It can happen during Dhamma Talks, while working, etc. So Restlessness-worry being one of it can arise any time.

A sense of relieved, moment of temporary escape but yet the mind is actively running wild, almost gone into a state where one feels like tearing.

This is the nature of the mind. Do not analyse and this is what I expect of my mind, this is what do not expect of the mind, this is I do not care where by generating pleasant, unpleasant and neutral sensations followed by craving, aversion and ignorance.

I wonder could it be due to the stress and sorrow the person going through, therefore the person entered into such state of mind.

Stress and sorrow generally co exists with unwholesome mind state. This can lead to hindrances arising.

I always thought during dhamma talk, one's mind supposed to be calm and steady or somewhat shielded from any harmful agent from the outside world. Anyone mind to share?

If you have wise attention (equanimous and seeing the 3 universal characteristics), then only then you get shielded from any harmful agent from the outside world.