Answer by Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena for How to remove Dullness of mind, without setting meditation, in regular activity?

Dullness of mind is associated with sloth and torpor. When this happens you feel:

• sleepy or drowsy
• heavy

This itself is a sensation. Concentrate on the impermanence or arising and passing of this sensation. When you have this Ignorance dominates and to overcome this when sensation arises contemplate is impermanence, dispassion, ending and letting go as per advise in Pacalā Sutta. Similar advice is also found in Avijja Pahana Sutta 2, Pahāna Sutta, etc. As in the case of Pacalā Sutta you can note this but best is to avoid mental verbalisation of which is discussed in section 4 Note on noting in Giri-m-ananda Sutta commentary by Piya Tan which takes a more lenient stance; S.N. Goenka like the Thai Forest Tradition on silent noting take a more hard stance on verbalisation or visualisation which I feel is right.

"Nothing is worth clinging to"

When this was said, the venerable Mahā Moggallāna said this to the Blessed One:

"In what way, bhante, in brief, is a monk freed through the destruction of craving, that is, one who has reached total perfection, the total security from bondage, the total holy life, the total consummation, the highest amongst gods and humans?"

"Here, Moggallāna, the monk has learned that nothing is worth clinging to. And, Moggallāna, a monk has learned that nothing is worth clinging to, thus: he directly knows all things [he directly knows the nature of the all]. Having directly known the nature of all things, he fully understands all things.

Having fully understood all things, he knows whatever feelings there are, whether pleasant, painful or neither painful nor pleasant. As regards to those feelings, he dwells contemplating impermanence in them; he dwells contemplating dispassion [fading away of lust] in them; he dwells contemplating ending (of suffering) in them; he dwells contemplating letting go (of defilements).

When he dwells contemplating impermanence in them, contemplating dispassion in them, contemplating ending in them, contemplating letting go, he does not cling to anything in the world. Not clinging, he is not agitated; being not agitated, he himself surely attains nirvana

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