[Pa33anger]

Hello again Woodscooter

I can only suggest to avoid Thanissaro's translation. In my opinion, in respect to the fourth iddhipada, adhere to the translations 'investigation' or 'circumspection'.

I personally have not studied the Iddhipada-Vibhanga Sutta in detail and, as I previously said, much of it is about the development of psychic power.

However, the beginning of the Iddhipada-Vibhanga Sutta is within our reach, which is about developing an open, unhampered, brightened mind.

This is one of the four mental developments (along with jhana, mindfulness & clear-comprehension and vipassana) described in the Samadhi Sutta, as follows:

And what is the development of [mind using] concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the attainment of knowing & seeing?

There is the case where a monk attends to the perception of light and is resolved on the perception of daytime [at any hour of the day]. Day [for him] is the same as night, night is the same as day. By means of an awareness open & unhampered, he develops a brightened mind.

This is the development of concentration that, when developed & pursued, leads to the attainment of knowing & seeing.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipit....041.than.html Thus, returning to your inquiry about how all four iddhipada are used, and basing your inquiry on developing a brightened mind, we can use the simile of cleaning & polishing a round glass or crystal vase.

The crystal vase is handled & looked upon with love & care (chanda); cleaning & polishing the vase require energy or exertion (viriya); attention, concentration or focus (citta) is required, so the vase is not dropped & broken; and circumspection, investigation or meticulous inspection (vimamsa) is required to ensure the entire vase is sparkling clean, that is, the top, the bottom, within, without, all sides and all parts.

A brightened unhampared open mind is developed or polished the same way. One requires zeal & motivation (chanda), application & effort (viriya) and focus of mind (citta) to inspect (vimamsa) the mind, in front (of one's face), behind (one's skull), above (one's head), below (throughout the body) and to the sides, to ensure the mind remains free open unhampered & bright in every direction.

With metta

Element