Complacency is one of Mara's favourite tricks, especially for meditators. After a couple of years of practice a lot of things change, life will be better. You managed to let go of some of the major Dukkha that you have, some of your anger, fear or whatever else and things will be pretty good. Yeah, things are pretty good and they are so good, that, well, you don't really need meditation anymore because things are good. So, the TV gets turned on a bit more than it used to, magazines are read more often. We are a friendlier person, a kinder person and we get stuck. Mara loves that one, really it does because this is great, things are stuck. Mara was getting beaten up for two years but now Mara gets in control by tricking us into complacency, not wanting to work anymore because things are okay.
The Ten Parami Reflection, we did the other day, is a great one to destroy complacency. It's great. Do it from time to time, it's not something you do every day, you don't have to. Once a month at the most, but do it from time to time and really try to think up some ways to increase your Paramis. Maybe sometimes you think of only one thing during the whole period. That's fine. Get at least one new thing to do each time you do it. It destroys complacency, that means we are always looking for something, in some way to improve our spiritual growth, to be happier, to be more friendly and kind and to let go of anger and so on. Working on and developing the Ten Paramis is extremely important for us.
Complacency sometimes needs strong remedies such as going to a good friend who can get us motivated again, give us a "kick." That's why good friends, Kalyanamittas, are important. You remember when I talked about Ananda and the Buddha saying, "A 100% practice is to have a good, kind, wise spiritual friend." A good friend will not allow you to be complacent. A good friend will tell you off, "Hey, you are stuck." A good friend will help you in this way, help you to defeat complacency. Keep those good friends handy, keep them close by.
During retreat we are not the kind of teachers who will spoil you. You know there are some teachers who will just give you methods that will make you happy and content, and they do not want you to work because if you are happy and content. That's fine, you feel great and they feel great. What else do you want to do? We don't care if you are happy and content while you sit. It's okay for everyone once in a while, but we want you to work, because if you work then you are going to have more courage, and be more contented in your normal life, looking for ways each experience can help you grow in compassionate understanding. That's different, that's true deep growth.
Good teachers who will push you and encourage you to expand your limits, good friends who will do the same, they will help you to stop complacency.