The Tree of Enlightenment

hindrances and absorptions, are present in our minds, and it is
a question of whether we allow the hindrances to dominate or
develop the factors of intensification so that they begin to dominate
our minds. is is a very important battle because as long as
the hindrances predominate we are very likely to see the results
in this life and in the next life, in the form of rebirth in unfavorable
or miserable states. But if our minds are raised by cultivating
the five factors of absorption, we reach a higher level of
development in both this life and the next.
Once we have intensified and elevated the power of our
minds by developing the five factors of absorption, we can motivate
and direct our minds in a particular direction. is is done
through the five controlling faculties: faith, energy, mindfulness,
concentration, and wisdom (see Chapter 40). It has been said
that, to practice the Dharma, two things are essential: (1) faith
and (2) wisdom. Wisdom is the main thing, while faith is the
prerequisite. In some non-Buddhist traditions, faith means blind
adherence, but in the Buddhist tradition, faith means confidence
in the possibility of success. In other words, if we do not believe
we can succeed, there will be no chance of achieving success no
matter what we try to do. In this sense spiritual practice without
faith is like a burned seed that will never put forth the seedling
of spiritual progress, no matter how rich the soil or how carefully
we tend it.
Faith and wisdom are the first and last of the five controlling
faculties. Together with the remaining three faculties of energy,
mindfulness, and concentration, they are present in the Noble
Eightfold Path (see Chapter 5, Chapter 6 and Chapter 7). Energy,
mindfulness, and concentration correspond to the three factors
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