  
THE GREAT DISCOURSE ON THE ANATTALAKKHA¤A SUTTA
PART SEVEN
(Delivered on the full moon day of Wægaung, the 8th waxing day of Wægaung, and the 8th waxing day of Tawthalin 1325 M.E.)
PREFACE
During the past weeks, we have finished with that portion of the Anattalakkha¼a Sutta which deals analytically with the anicca, dukkha, anatta nature of the rþpas in eleven aspects. We have now come to the part which deals with eleven aspects of vedanæ analytically.
2. VEDANÆ ANALYTICALLY STUDIED IN ELEVEN ASPECTS
"Yæ kæci vedan, atøtænægatapaccuppannæ ajjhattan væ bahiddhæ væ olarika væ Sukhumæ væ hina væ panita væ yæ dure santike væ sabbæ vedanæ, 'netam mama neso hamasmi na meso attati Eva metam yathæbhþtam sammappaññaya dathabban."
Whatever vedanæ, whether past, future or present, internal or external; gross or fine; inferior or superior; far or near; should be seen with own knowledge, as they truly are that 'This is not mine; This I am not; This is not myself."
This is the exhortation to contemplate on vedanæ analytically under eleven headings so as to bring out the anicca, dukkha, anatta characteristics of vedanæ. Here past vedanæ means the sensations experienced in previous existences as well as those experienced days, months, years ago in this life time. There are also those experiences in the earlier part of today, of these, it is obvious that the vedanæs of the past existences had all ceased to exist; but to those with strong attachment to atta, it would not to be so obvious because they hold to the view that the self that had experienced the sensations of the previous existence keeps on experiencing the sensations now. In their view, they do not think all the sensations of the earlier times in the present existence have all perished and ceased. They believed that the self that had enjoyed these sensations before is still enjoying them now.
VEDANÆ CONTEMPLATED ON WITH REGARD TO THREE ASPECTS OF TIME
While the Yogø who is ever watchful is contemplating on the rising and falling, if unpleasant vedanæ such as stiffness, hotness, pain etc., appears, he takes note of them. When thus noted, the unbearable vedanæ gets less and less painful and then vanishes away. When the concentration is specially strong, it will be seen that each pain passes away with each noting. Perceiving thus, it is realized with one's own personal knowledge that vedanæ which experiences sensations is not everlasting, does not even endure even for about a second, incessantly arising and vanishing. Not to say of the vedanæs of the previous experiences, even vedanæs of the present existence, which had arisen earlier in the life, are non-existent now. The vedanæ which manifested only a moment ago is also no longer in existence now. All these are realized by the observing Yogø who sees also that the pleasant, unpleasant or neutral sensations, which are being experienced just at the moment are also arising and vanishing, arising and vanishing all the time. Hence it can be visualized that vedanæs which are coming up in the future too will arise and vanish away at the moment of arising. We shall recapitulate by reciting;
1. The vedanæ of the past has ceased in the past; it does not come over to the present. As it has ceased and terminated now, it is impermanent. Being impermanent, it is not pleasant, not dependable. It is merely dreadful, pure suffering. The unbearable dukkha vedanæ is dreadful too because it is oppressing. Not being a controlling authority (sæmi), a permanent entity (nivæsø), one who experiences the sensations (vedanæ), it is not self with any essence, just the phenomena of Non-self.
2. The vedanæ of the present will perish away and cease now. It will not reach the future. As it is ceasing and vanishing, it is impermanent. As it is impermanent, it is dreadful suffering. It is pure suffering also because it is unbearable. Not being a controlling authority, a permanent entity etc, it is not self with any essence, just the phenomenon of Non-self.
3. The vedanæ which will come into being in the future will cease to exist then and there. It will not be carried over to any further future existence. Because it will perish away and cease, it is impermanent. As it is impermanent, it is dreadful suffering. Not being a self with any essence, it is just a phenomenon of Non-self.
This is how vedanæ is contemplated on with regard to three aspects of time. Now we shall recite how we reflect while contemplating on it.
1. The feelings of stiffness, hotness, pain and discomfort which was experienced a moment ago did not reach the present moment of comfortable feeling. It passed away at the moment of feeling stiff, hot, painful and unbearable. As it passed away in this manner, it is impermanent. And because it is impermanent, and unbearable, it is dreadful suffering. The comfortable feeling of a moment ago did not reach the present moment of intense discomfort. It passed away at that very moment of feeling comfortable and is, therefore, impermanent. Since it is impermanent, it is dreadful suffering. All the feelings, pleasant or unpleasant are not self with any essence, just the phenomena of Non-self.
2. The pleasant or unpleasant vedanæs of the present cease and vanish, cease and vanish even while they are being noted and are, therefore, impermanent, suffering, just the nature of anatta.
3. The pleasant or unpleasant vedanæs of the future too will cease and vanish at the moment of their arising. They are, therefore, impermanent, suffering, just the nature of Anatta.
This is how vedanæs of the past, present and future are considered as they manifest themselves at the moment of taking note of them. There is also this method of reflecting on the vedanæs of the past and the future by contemplating on the vedanæs of the present. We shall recite:
"Just as there are impermanent vedanæs, pleasant, unpleasant, neutral, which cease and perish even while they are being noted, there have been similar vedanæs before, perishing away at the moment of their coming into being and are therefore of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta. The vedanæs which will come into being in future will also pass away at the moment of arising and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta."
Having perceived by oneself how the vedanæs in our person, perish away, there remains the task of considering by inference the vedanæs in other people, the vedanæs in the whole world. We shall recite thus:
"Just like the vedanæs in oneself which cease and vanish even while they are being noted, the vedanæ in other people, the vedanæs in the whole world will also cease and vanish. They too, are therefore of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta."
We have sufficiently dealt with how vedanæ is contemplated on with regard to three aspects of time. We shall go on considering the contemplation of the internal and external vedanæs.
CONTEMPLATING ON THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL VEDANÆS
"Just as rþpa is considered in two aspects, internal and external, the internal rþpa not becoming as external rþpa and vice versa, so also vedanæ should be considered in two aspects, internal and external," states the Visuddhimagga. The vedanæ from inside does not reach outside; the vedanæ from outside does not reach inside. In this way, it should be contemplated on. The question arises here: Does it mean vedanæ from inside one's person not reaching the body of an external person; and other people's vedanæ not reaching one's person. But nobody believes that one's vedanæ gets to other persons and other person's vedanæ gets to oneself. So this manner of contemplation is not meant here. It should be regarded that what is meant here is change of object, internal to external and vice versa.
When vedanæ that has arisen dependent on an internal object is replaced by vedanæ that has arisen dependent on an external object, ordinarily people think that the internal vedanæ has become an external one. Conversely when pleasant or unpleasant feelings conditioned by an external object get replaced by pleasant or unpleasant feelings dependent on an internal object, people think that the external vedanæ has become an internal vedanæ. Similarly, the vedanæ arising from an object far away changes to one dependent on a near object, people think that vedanæ has moved from a far distance to one closely. And vice versa. What is meant here, therefore, is change of objects external and internal, far and near, dependent on which feelings arise.
The Yogø engaged in noting the phenomena of næmas and rþpas as they occur, takes note of the pain etc., when an unpleasant feeling arises in the body. While doing so, if the mind passes on to an external object and feelings of happiness or sorrow with regard to that external object, these feelings should be noted as happiness or sorrow etc. Thus during all this time of careful noting, the original feeling of unpleasantness does not reach outside. It ceases and perishes internally. Then attention is switched on to an external object which causes the arising of new vedanæ. The Yogø thus understands these phenomena. He fully understands also when the reverse process takes place; that is, the original feeling of happiness etc., arising from an external object ceases and new feeling of pain etc., is experienced internally.
(4&5). The internal vedanæ does not reach outside; the external vedanæ also does not reach inside. Respective vedanæs arise and cease at the respective moments of becoming and are thus of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
CONTEMPLATING ON THE COARSE AND FINE VEDANÆS
While experiencing the gross sensations of pain etc., if one begins to feel subtle ones, ordinary people believe that the gross sensations have changed into subtle ones. From experiencing subtle pains, when the feeling becomes very grossly painful, the belief is that the subtle pains have grown into gross pains. The watchful Yogø, however, sees with every note taking that painful sensations perish away, part by part section by section and, therefore, knows that the subtle pains have not changed into gross ones; nor the gross ones have ever changed into subtle ones. The old vedanæs perish away and get replaced by new ones arising in their place, mere nature or impermanence. He realizes all this by his own knowledge.
(6&7) Gross pains etc., do not become subtle pains etc., and vie versa. They perish away at the respective moments of arising. Thus vedanæ is of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
CONTEMPLATION AS INFERIOR OR SUPERIOR VEDANÆ
The painful sensation on the body is regarded as inferior form of vedanæ, whereas fine, pleasant sensations are regarded as superior kinds of vedanæ. Likewise, unhappiness, sorrow, dejection, sadness are inferior vedanæs, happiness, gladness etc., are of superior kinds. In other words feeling angry, depressed and unhappy is inferior vedanæ; feeling happy is superior vedanæ. But here even, happiness with delighting in sensuous objects of worship such as the Buddha etc., is superior. As the experiencing of vedanæs change from one type to another, ordinary people think the inferior vedanæ has become a superior one, or the superior vedanæ has changed into one of inferior type. But the Yogø perceives that the vedanæs perish away even while they are being noted and, therefore, knows that superior vedanæ does not become the inferior one; nor the inferior becomes the superior. They perish away at the moment of their arising and are, therefore, impermanent.
(8&9). The painful feeling of inferior vedanæ does not become the happy feeling of superior vedanæ. Neither does the superior vedanæ become the inferior vedanæ. They perish away at the moment of their arising and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
CONTEMPLATION ON VEDANÆS, FAR AND NEAR
We have already dealt with considerations of vedanæs, far and near (10&11). Feelings arising from far away objects do not become feelings dependent on near objects; feelings with regard to near objects do not become feelings concerned with distant object. They perish away at the moment of experiencing and hence are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
We have considered classifications of vedanæs under eleven headings. We will go on to similar exposition on Saññæ, Perception.
3. SAÑÑÆ, PERCEPTION, CLASSIFIED UNDER ELEVEN HEADS
The Blessed One said "Yæ kæci saññæ atøtænægatæpaccuppannæ, .... p .... santike væ sabbæ saññæ netam mama ... p ... yathæbhþtam Sammappaññaya dathabban."
"Whatever saññæ, whether past, future or present; internal or external; gross or fine; inferior or superior; far or near should be seen with own knowledge, as they truly are that 'That is not mine, This I am not, This is not my self."
This is the exhortation to contemplate on saññæ under eleven headings such as past, present or future, analytically so as to bring on the anicca, dukkha, anatta characteristics of saññæ. Here past saññæ means the perceptions experienced in the previous existences as well as those perceptions of a few months ago in this life time and those experienced only recently. Of these past perceptions, it is obvious that perceptions of previous existences had long ceased to exist. But to those with strong attachment to self, atta, it would not be so obvious because they hold to the view that the same self that recognized and remembered things in the previous existences is still keeping on recognizing and remembering things now. All acts of recognizing have been done and is being done by the single self, the same self. In this life time too, what was recognized in young days or very recently is the work of the same self, the single self right through out.
The Yogø who is ever watchful of the phenomenon of rising and falling etc at the moment of touching, thinking, hearing, seeing etc., finds the perception of sound at once disappears when noted as hearing, hearing; the perception of sight vanishes when noted as seeing, seeing; so also the perception of thoughts, ideas disappears as soon as they are noted as thoughts or ideas. Observing thus, realization comes through personal knowledge that perception is not everlasting; it does not last even one second and has the nature of ceasing incessantly. Not to say of the saññæs; perceived in previous existences, even for the present life, perception experienced in the past moments are no longer existent now. They have all ceased and vanished; thus the Yogø can decide for himself. Even the perception that had occurred only a moment ago has passed away now. So also have perished, the saññæs that are presently being manifested in the acts of seeing, hearing, touching, happening at the moment. They all keep on arising, vanishing, arising and vanishing. Thus it can be concluded that perception coming up in the future will also disappear at each moment of their becoming.
1. The saññæ of the past has ceased in the past; it does not come over to the present. As it has ceased and terminated now, it is impermanent. Being impermanent, it is dreadful suffering. Not being a controlling authority, a permanent entity, one who recognizes and remembers things, it is not self with any essence, but just a phenomenon of Non-self.
2. The saññæ of the present life will perish away and cease now. It will not reach the future existence. As it is ceasing and vanishing, it is impermanent. As it is impermanent, it is dreadful suffering. Not being a self with any essence, it is just a phenomenon of non-self.
3. The saññæ which will come into being in the future will cease to exist then and there. It will not be carried over to any further future existence. It is, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
This is how saññæ is considered with regard to three aspects of time. We shall recite how they are considered while contemplating on them.
1. The saññæ which recognized the visible form, sound etc., a moment ago, does not reach the present moment. It disappeared even while recognizing. Therefore, it is of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta.
2. The saññæ which is recognizing and remembering things now also perishes away while actually recognizing. Therefore, it is of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta.
3. The saññæ which will recognize things in the future will also vanish at the time of recognizing them and is, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta.
Basing on the knowledge of the saññæ which manifests at the time of noting, saññæs of the past and the future, and of the whole world can be considered by inference.
Just like the impermanent saññæs which are perishing even while being noted now, so also the saññæs of the past also had vanished away at the time of occurrence and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta. Likewise the saññæs coming up in the future will also disappear at respective moments of occurrence and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta. The saññæs in one's person, in other people, in the whole world also perish and vanish at the respective moments of arising and are all of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
That the saññæ which recognizes and remembers things is impermanent and is quite obvious if we just reflect on how easily we have forgotten what we have studied or even learnt by heart. We shall recite how to reflect on the internal and external aspect of saññæ.
(4&5). The saññæ with regard to one's own person does not reach the moment of perceiving the external objects. The saññæs on the outside bodies also do not last till the internal objects are perceived. They perish away at the respective moments of their arising and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
The saññæs with regard to desire and craving, with regard to anger and transgression, with regard to conceit, wrong view, doubts and misgivings, all these unwholesome saññæs are of the gross type. Saññæs with regard to devotional piety towards the Blessed One etc., saññæs with regard to Dhamma discourse, with regard to good advice and instructions from teachers and parents. These are fine subtle types of saññæs, wholesome saññæs of superior types. The gross types belong to the inferior class of saññæs. In other words, recognition of prominent, coarse objects is coarse saññæs; recognition of fine objects is subtle saññæ. We shall recite how we consider these coarse and fine saññæs.
(6&7). Coarse saññæs do not reach the moment of occurrence of fine saññæs. Fine saññæs do not reach the moment of occurrence of coarse saññæs. They vanish at the respective moment of occurrence and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
We shall also recite how we consider the inferior and superior type of saññæs.
(8&9). The inferior saññæ does not reach the moment of occurrence of superior saññæ; so also the superior saññæ does not reach the moment of occurrence of inferior saññæ. They vanish at the respective moments of occurrence and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
Thinking about the distant objects, fine objects and recognizing, remembering them is called saññæ of the far distance. Recognizing the coarse objects, near objects, objects in one's person is called the near saññæ.
(10&11). The distant saññæ does not reach the moment of occurrence of near saññæ; the near saññæ also does not reach the moment of occurrence of distant saññæ. They vanish at the moment of arising and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
We have finished enumeration of saññæ under eleven heads. We will go on to considering the aggregates of sa³khæra.
4. SA£KHARAKKHANDHÆ UNDER ELEVEN HEADS
The Blessed One stated: " Ye keci sa³khæra atøtænægatapaccuppanna ajjhattam væ bahidhæ væ olærikæ væ sukhumæ væ hina væ panitæ væ ye dure væ santike væ sabbe sa³khæra netam mama, neso hamasmi na meso attæti evametam yathæbhþtam sammappaññaya dæthabbam."
"Whatever sa³khæra, whether past, future or present; internal or external; gross, or fine; inferior or superior, far or near, should be seen with own knowledge, as they truly are, that This is not mine, This I am not, This is myself."
This is the exhortation to contemplate on sa³khæra under eleven headings such as past, present or future etc, analytically so as to bring out the anicca, dukkha, anatta characteristics of sa³khæras.
Here it should be noted there are many Dhammas classified under sa³khærakkhandhæ. We have already stated before that apart from vedanæ and saññæ, the remaining fifty kinds of mental concomitants come under the classification of sa³khærakkhandhæ. To brief, these are the motivating forces enabling production of physical, vocal and mental activities.
They are responsible for the four bodily positions of going, standing, sitting and lying down. It is as if they are giving the commands, 'Now go; now stand, now sit down'. They also bring about actions of bending, stretching, moving, smiling etc as if they are issuing orders 'to bend, stretch, smile, laugh or cry. It is also these sa³khæras which are causing vocal actions as if they are ordering, 'now say this. They are also responsible for acts of thinking, seeing, hearing, etc.
Thus the sa³khæras of the past existences ... the wish to go, stand or speak ... could not come over to the present existence. Could they? Didn't they all perish and pass away, then and there. It is obvious, of course, that the desire to do, take or think, in previous existence, had all ceased and vanished now. But those who cling firmly to the belief, "It is I who is doing all actions; all actions are being done by me", are attached to the idea of a single self, "It is I who had done all the actions in the previous existence; the doer in the present existence is also I," For them, holding on to this Atta clinging, 'the doer I' is everlasting.
The Yogø, who is ever watching the rise and fall, if itchy feeling is felt, during the course of noting, in some places, notes 'itching, itching; while noting thus, if the desire to scratch the itchy spot arises, he notes at once, 'want to scratch, want to scratch'. Then the sa³khæra, namely the desire to scratch, is seen to be disappearing every time it is noted. Also while noting, 'stiff, stiff' because of the feeling of stiffness, if the desire to bend or stretch appears, it has to be noted. Thus the sa³khæras namely the desire to bend, to stretch, change posture, perish when noted, vanish when noted, keep on perishing. In this manner, sa³khæras of wishing to change, to talk and think are seen to be ceasing and perishing away.
CONTEMPLATING ON SA£KHÆRAS IN THREE ASPECTS OF TIME
For the Yogø who keeps on meditating, not to say of the sa³khæras of the past existences, the presently forming sa³khæras are seen to be perishing incessantly; thus perceiving, he knows the sa³khæras of past existences have not come over to the present, the present sa³khæras will also not go over to the future; the future sa³khæras will also not move over to the future of much later time. They vanish away at the moment of arising. He realizes, therefore, with his own knowledge that sa³khæras are impermanent, suffering and of the nature of Anatta.
We shall recite how sa³khæras are considered with regard to three aspects of time:
1. The sa³khæras of the past (desiring to do) ceased to exist in the past. They do not reach the present moment. Consequently, they are of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta.
2. The sa³khæras of the present moment (desiring to do) will not extend into the future. As they are perishing and vanishing away now, they are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
3. The sa³khæras which will arise in the future (desiring to do) will not go over to the future of much later time. They will perish and decay at the moment of their arising and are therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
This is how sa³khæras manifesting as desire to go, desire to do, talk etc., are considered with regard to three aspects of time. We shall recite how they are treated when contemplating on them.
1. The desire of a moment ago to step out with the right foot does not reach the moment of desiring to step out with the left foot. The desire of a moment ago to step out with the left foot does not reach the moment of desiring to step out with right foot. It perishes and vanishes away at the respective moments of arising and is, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta. Similarly, the sa³khæras of the past do not reach the present moment. They perished away at the moment of their arising and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
2. The presently forming sa³khæras of desiring to do or of careful noting do not reach the next moment. They keep on perishing and decaying as they are forming and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
3. The sa³khæras which will arise in the future concerning the desire to do and careful noting, will also perish and decay without reaching the future of a much later moment. They are, consequently, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
Basing on the knowledge of the sa³khæras which occur at the time of noting, the sa³khæras of the past, and the future and of the whole world can be considered by inference in this manner:
Just like the impermanent sa³khæras of wishing to do and of knowing the noting, which are perishing even while being noted now, so also had the sa³khæras of the past vanished at the time of occurrence and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta. Likewise, the sa³khæras of the coming future such as wishing to do etc., will also disappear at the respective moments of occurrence and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta. The sa³khæras of one's own person or in other people and the whole wide world also perish and vanish, just like the sa³khæras which are being noted at the present moment. They are all of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
THE INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL ASPECTS OF SA£KHÆRAS
The method of differentiation between the internal and external sa³khæras is the same as the one we have described vedanæs and saññæs. The sa³khæra of thinking on an internal object is the internal sa³khæra. The developed concerning an external object is the external sa³khæra, that is, thinking of acquiring external animate or inanimate things or bring destruction to them is external sa³khæra.
(4&5) The sa³khæras concerning intention to do an internal action come to termination and perish before reaching the moment of thinking of an external action. Therefore they are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta. Similarly with respect to sa³khæras concerning an external action.
Thinking of doing a rough action is sa³khæra of coarse type; contemplating on doing fine, subtle deeds is sa³khæra of fine type.
(6&7) Sa³khæras of coarse types do not become sa³khæras of fine types. And vice versa. They perish at the moments of arising and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
CONTEMPLATING ON INFERIOR OR SUPERIOR TYPES OF SA£KHÆRAS
All kinds of thinking about and doing bad deeds are inferior sa³khæras. Thinking of and doing meritorious deeds are superior sa³khæras. Of the meritorious deeds, act of keeping precepts is superior to acts of giving charity; meditation is superior to keeping precepts and insight meditation is superior to concentration meditation.
(8&9) Inferior sa³khæras do not reach the moment of arising of superior sa³khæras; superior sa³khæras too do not reach the moment of arising of inferior sa³khæras. They perish at the respective moments of their arising and are therefore of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
The sa³khæras of charitable deeds do not reach the moment of arising of the sa³khæras of keeping precepts. And vice versa. The cetanæ sa³khæras of keeping precepts do not reach the moment of arising of sa³khæras of meditation. And vice versa. The cetanæ sa³khæras of the development of concentration meditation do not reach the moment of arising of sa³khæras of insight meditation and vice versa. They all vanish at the moment of their arising and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
Contemplation on sa³khæras of unwholesome and wholesome deeds is very subtle. But the constantly meditating Yogø can know by his own personal knowledge how these sa³khæras keep on vanishing at the respective moments of arising. For instance, while noting the rise and fall of abdomen, if thinking about wanting and desiring arises, the Yogø notes that phenomenon as wanting, desiring. When noted thus, thinking about wanting and desiring vanishes before reaching the moment of wholesome deed of noting. The Yogø who has advanced to the stage of bha³ga ñæ¼a knows this phenomenon rightly and well. When Yogø feels glad having as his object the act of charity, he should note, 'glad, glad'. When noted in this way, the Yogø who has reached the stage of bha³ga ñæ¼a sees clearly the sa³khæra of the wholesome deed of contemplating on charity vanishes before reaching the moment of noting. In addition, while noting the rise and fall, when random thought arises, it should be noted. When noted thus, the sa³khæra of noting the rise and fall vanishes without reaching the moment of rising of the random thought; the sa³khæra of random thought also vanishes without reaching the moment of noting it as a random thought. In this manner, the Yogø perceives each and every sa³khæra perishing away before it reaches the moment of rising of another sa³khæra. If the Yogø does not perceive the phenomena in the way described, it must be said that he has not yet reached the stage of development of that type of ñæ¼a.
(10&11). Sa³khæras of thoughts arising from distant objects do not reach the moment of thoughts on near objects; vice versa. They all vanish at the respective moments of their arising and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
We have finished enumeration of sa³khæras under eleven heads. We shall go on considering the exposition on viññæ¼a, mind, or consciousness.
5. MIND OR CONSCIOUSNESS CONSIDERED UNDER (11) HEADS
The Blessed One said, "Yam kiñci viññæ¼an atøtænægatapaccuppa-nnam ajjattam væ bahidhæ væ olærikæ væ sukhumam væ hinam væ panitam yam dþre santike væ sabban viññæ¼an netam mama neso hamasmi na meso attæti eva metam yathæbhþtam sammapannaya dathabban."
"Whatever viññæ¼a, whether past, future or present; internal or external; gross or fine; inferior or superior; far or near should be seen with own knowledge, as they truly are, that 'This is not mine, This I am not, This is not my self."
This is the exhortation to contemplate on consciousness under eleven heads such as past, present etc analytically so as to bring out the anicca, dukkha, anatta characteristics of consciousness.
We have already explained in part VI of these discourses that contemplating on anicca is same as contemplating on 'This I am not'; contemplating on dukkha is same as contemplating on 'This is not mine' and contemplating on anatta and contemplating on 'This is not myself' are the same.
Of the four aggregates of næma, it must be said that viññæ¼a, consciousness or mind is the most prominent. The mental concomitants such as desire, hatred are described as mind in every day language; desiring mind, liking mind, hating mind. In the Commentaries too expositions are given first on mind; then only they are followed by cetasikæs as their concomitants. Here also we propose to elaborate on mind to a considerable extent.
The past Viññæ¼a may be the mind which had existed in previous lives; it may also be the mind which had occurred during the younger days or the mind which had happened since then during all those intervening days, months or years. Even if we take today, there was the mind which had arisen prior to the present moment. Amongst all these possible types of past viññæ¼as that the mind of the past existences has not come over to the present life, that it had ceased in those existences, should be very obvious to those members of the Buddhist faith who have taken an interest in spiritual matters.
But for those with strong attachment to Atta, it is not easy for such knowledge and understanding to arise in them. Because these people with Atta attachment hold to the view that viññæ¼a, consciousness is Soul, Self, a living entity. When the old body of past existences broke up and perished, the viññæ¼a of these past existences left the old body and transmigrated to the new body of the present life. It has remained there since conception in the mother's womb till the present time; will reside there till the time of death when it will leave again to a fresh body in a new existence. This belief has been fully described in the story of Sæti in part IV of this discourse.
HOW MIND ARISES IN SUCCESSIVE EXISTENCES
As the Yogø know by their own personal knowledge, mind is something that does not last even for a second; it is incessantly arising and vanishing. How it arises and vanishes had also been described in the processes of cognition on page, ... of this book. As explained there, for each existence, at the approach of death, Maranasanna vøthi consciousness arisen holding on to kamma, sign of kamma or sign of destiny as object. This is how it arises; (Refer to page ...) From the life continuum, Bhava³ga consciousness arises the sense door consciousness, the Avajjana citta, which apprehends the sensation. This citta reflects on a good or bad action he has performed during his life time; or it may be a sign or symbol associated with the good or bad action or symbol of place in which he is destined to be reborn. After this citta has ceased holding on to the said object, the active consciousness javana arises for five times. As the cessation of javana consciousness, holding on to the same object still, the registering consciousness of Tadælambana happens for two thought moments, at the end of which Bhava³ga consciousness appears lasting for one or two thought moments. After that the consciousness or mind comes to termination for that particular existence and therefore the last Bhava³ga citta is known as Cuti citta, death consciousness.
As soon as the cuti citta ceases, depending on the wholesome or unwholesome kamma which manifested itself at the death's door, and holding on to the objects that appeared just prior to death, the new consciousness arises in the new existence. This consciousness is called the relinking consciousness or patisandhe citta which forms a linkage with the past existence. As this pa¥isundhe citta ceases, a series of Bhava³ga citta arises. When visible forms, sounds etc., present themselves as objects at the doors of eyes, ears etc., the series of Bhava³ga citta cease and sense door consciousness followed by sense consciousness such as eye consciousness, ear consciousness etc., arise continuously. This is actually what is happening when you see, hear, etc., According to this process of arising of consciousness, mind appears one by one in a continuous series, fresh mind arising then vanishing. The cuti citta of last existence had ceased then and there. The consciousness of the present life is the new one that has arisen afresh, conditioned by previous kamma. Every citta is fresh arising, not a renewal of the old one.
Therefore, the Yogø, who watches the phenomenon of rise and fall, takes note of a thought when it makes its appearance. When thus noted by him, his thought, or the thinking mind at once disappears. Perceiving this phenomenon, he concludes that death means the termination of the continuity of mind after the last cuti citta has ceased. And new becoming means, just like the present mind arising afresh all the time, the first arising of a fresh series of mind in a new place in a new existence. And bhava³ga citta is the continuous arising, depending on its kammic force, of similar fresh mind starting with the very first mind at the moment of conception. The mind which knows the phenomenon of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, thinking etc., is the mind that arises afresh from the life continuum. In this way the Yogø knows how mind arises and perishes and from this personal experiences he can make inferences about the death consciousness, cuti citta, and relinking consciousness, patisandhe citta.
LAW OF DEPENDENT ORIGINATION IS KNOWN THROUGH KNOWLEDGE
OF ROUND OF KAMMA AND ROUND OF KAMMA RESULT
Here, knowing that fresh mind arises conditioned by kamma amounts to knowing the Law of Dependent Origination through the knowledge of round of kamma and round of kamma result. Therefore we find in Visuddhimagga: "Having discerned the conditions of næma, rþpa in this way (that there is no doer, nor one who reaps the deed's results. just phenomena arising from cause and effect rolling on by means of the round of kamma and round of kamma result, and having abandoned uncertainty (Is there Soul, self? Why has self arisen? -- pondering in this manner), about the three periods of time, then all past, future and present Dhammas are understood by him in accordance with knowledge of death and rebirth linking processes.
Here, in this manner of discernment, "by means of the round of kamma" includes also causes such as avijjæ, ta¼hæ, upædam and sa³khæra. In addition, by discerning the first rebirth linking consciousness that have arisen in between in the course of one existence become known. Also by knowing all the consciousness with respect to the present life, the consciousness with respect to the past and future existences could also be discerned. Knowing the mind is knowing the mental concomitants that accompany the mind and also the material base on which mind is dependent. Therefore Visuddhimagga has said, as quoted above, 'all past, future and present Dhammas are understood by him.'
CONTEMPLATION OF MIND WITH REGARD TO THREE ASPECTS OF TIME
As Yogø knows in this way that starting from rebirth consciousness continuous series of mind arises and vanishes, it is clear to him that the mind of previous existences had ceased then and there and does not reach this existence. It is clear also that the minds of the present existence cease at the respective moments of their becoming. Therefore the Yogø is in a position to discern all the past, future and present minds with his personal knowledge. We shall recite how we discern them:
1. The consciousness of the past does no reach the present; it had ceased then and there. It is therefore of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
2. The consciousness of the present life does not go over to the next existence. It is ceasing and vanishing away presently and is therefore of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
3. The consciousness of the future life will not reach the future of a much later existence. It will cease and perish at the moment of its becoming and is therefore of the nature of anicca, dukkha, anatta.
This is how consciousness is considered roughly with respect to three periods of time. To the Yogø who keeps on noting the rise and fall of the abdomen, if thoughts arise while thus noting, he notes the fact thus: 'thinking, thinking'. In this way the thoughts vanish away. When he hears he notes, 'hearing, hearing' and the ear consciousness disappears instantly. He does not think like the ordinary person that he keeps on hearing for a long time. He finds that he hears intermittently; hearing, disappearing, hearing, disappearing, the ear consciousness vanishes in successive of sections.
Likewise when noting the touch consciousness, it is seen disappearing quickly. When concentration is specially strong, the eye consciousness rises and vanishes, rises and vanishes in quick succession. Nose consciousness and taste consciousness should be considered in a similar away. The noting mind is also perceived to be alternately noting and disappearing. In short, with every noting, the object noted as well as the knowing mind keeps on arising and vanishing is pairs.
To the Yogø who is thus perceiving the phenomena very clearly, the eye consciousness does not reach the moment of noting, thinking, hearing; it vanishes at the instant of seeing. Hence he realizes it is impermanent. Similarly, noting mind, thinking mind, hearing mind do not reached moments of noting, thinking and hearing. Hence, the Yogø realizes they are impermanent. We shall recite how they are contemplated upon.
1. The eye consciousness, ear consciousness, touch consciousness and thinking mind etc., which appeared a moments ago do not reach the present moments of seeing, hearing etc. They perished away and ceased and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
2. The eye consciousness, ear consciousness, touch consciousness and thinking mind which are presently arising do not reach the next of seeing hearing etc. They are vanishing and ceasing now and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
3. The eye consciousness, ear consciousness etc., which will arise in future will not reach the moment next to that future instant. They will perish away and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
Knowing in this way personally how consciousness arises and vanishes in one's body, it came inferred that, just like the consciousnesses which have been noted, all the consciousness which remain to be noted, consciousness in other people, in the whole world, all consciousnesses are arising and vanishing.
It can be concluded by inference that just as those consciousness which have been noted and are found to be impermanent, consciousness in other people will also be constantly ceasing and perishing. Those in the whole world too will be ceasing and perishing. Therefore, all consciousnesses are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
We have considered all types of consciousnesses, but there remains consideration of consciousnesses from some other aspects as internally, externally etc.
CONSIDERATION OF CONSCIOUSNESS INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY
(4&5). The consciousness which already has an internal object does not reach an external object; the consciousness which has external object does not reach an internal object. While being fixed on the respective objects, the consciousness perishes and ceases and is, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
CONSIDERATION OF CONSCIOUSNESS AS GROSS OR FINE
Angry mind is coarse; other types of mind are fine compared to it. Amongst angry minds, that which is violent enough to commit murder, to torture others, cause destruction to other's properties, to speak abusive, threatening language is coarse; ordinary irritated mind is fine, subtle. Greedy mind is soft compared to angry mind; but the greedy mind which is intense enough to steal other's properties, to commit wrong acts, to use low, vulgar language is coarse. Ordinary desire or wish is fine. Deluded mind (ignorant mind) compared to greedy mind and angry mind is mild; but the ignorant mind which finds fault with and shows disrespect to true Buddha, true Dhamma and true Sanghæ is coarse. Ordinary doubting mind, perplexed mind (dispersed) is subtle. More subtle than all these Akusala cittas are the kusala cittas. And amongst the kusala cittas, gladness and heartiness are coarse; kusala citta which is unruffled and tranquil is fine.
The Yogø who is engaged in constant noting perceives, while noting the arising and vanishing of coarse as well as fine minds, that the coarse mind does not reach the moment of arising of fine mind and the fine mind does not reach the moment of arising of the coarse mind. They vanish at the respective moments of their arising.
CONTEMPLATION ON MIND
While the Yogø contemplating on the rise and fall, if the mind arises with lust, he notes it as mind with lust, with desire. This is knowing the mind with lust as it truly is, "sa rægam væ cittam sa rægam cittamti pajænæti," in accordance with Satipa¥hæna Sutta. When noted thus, the mind with lust ceases and is followed by a continuous stream of mind made up of kusala citta of noting and the kiriyæ citta, vipæka citta and kusala javana citta which are concerned with ordinary acts of seeing, hearing etc. These kusala citta, kiriya citta and vipæka citta are noted as they arise, seeing, hearing, touching, knowing etc. This is knowing the mind without lust, kusala citta, kiriya citta, vipæka citta and abyækata citta, as it truly is, in accordance with, "vitaragan væ cittam vitaragan cittamti pajænæti" of Satipa¥hæna Sutta. Noting and knowing the mind with lust as well as the mind without lust in this manner is contemplation of the mind with mindfulness.
For your edification and general knowledge, we wish to touch upon the exposition given in the Commentary. The Commentary defines the mind with lust as eight kinds of consciousness accompanied by greed. This is then the enumeration of lustful minds. Thus if the mind is lustful, it must be one of the eight consciousness rooted in attachment. But, here, just considering that eight kinds of consciousness rooted in attachment is known as saraga, mind with lust, does not amount to the contemplation on mind with mindfulness.
Further vitaraga, mind without lust is defined as mundane kusala citta and abyækata citta. In addition the commentary states that because it is the object for consideration by Vipassanæ ñæ¼a, Supra mundane citta is not classified as vitaraga, mind without lust, vitadosa, mind without ill-will etc. Neither of the two kinds of consciousness is ill-will and the two rooted in delusion is also classified as mind without lust.
At one time when we had no knowledge of meditation, we were assailed by doubt why the consciousness rooted in ill-will and that rooted in delusion were not classified as mind without lust. Only when we had acquired knowledge through the practice of meditation did we realize and understand how correct and natural was the Commentary exposition. Because, when the mind with lust is contemplated on and noted, it at once ceases and in its place arise only kusala citta, kiriya, vipæka and abyækata citta; it is not usual for ill-will and delusion to arise then. Therefore at that time only the kusala citta which is involved in noting or the vipæka abyækata, avijjana abyækata citta involved in acts of seeing etc., and the kusala javana citta only are contemplated on. Thus the definition of vitaraga, mind without lust, as kusala abyækata citta is very natural and is in keeping with what the Yogøs find through personal experiences.
When ill-will arises in the course of noting the rise and fall, that has to be noted. The ill-will vanishes at once and in its place there arises kusala citta of the act of noting the abyækata and kusala javana citta of acts of seeing etc. The Yogø knows this mind without ill-will by noting it too. When the mind with delusion, that is, doubtful mind, distracted mind appears, they are noted as usual and they disappear. In its place there arise kusala citta of the act of noting, the abyækata and kusala javana citta of acts of seeing etc. The Yogø knows this mind without delusion, vitamoha, by noting.
Further when sloth and torpor make their appearance while noting the rise and fall, these have to be noted as 'sloth', 'torpor'. These vanish away at once and mindfulness arise in their place. This is noted by the Yogø before he reverts to the rise and fall.
Again, while engaged in noting of rise and fall, if distraction and restlessness appear, it is noted as 'distraction', 'restlessness', 'thinking', etc. When noted thus, restlessness disappears, the mind remains still, tranquil, This state of mind is also to be noted.
When the concentration is good and the mind rests still on the object under contemplation, this quiet mind is also known automatically. When restlessness appears then, it is noted and the mind becomes still again. All these changes in the state of mind are heedfully noted; the mind which is noted and contemplated on is called vimutta, free of defilements. The mind which misses (remains) to be noted and contemplated upon is avimutta, not free of defilements. The Yogø takes note of all these states of mind.
This is how mind is contemplated on as taught by the Blessed One in the Satipa¥hæna Sutta. According to this mind contemplation practice, mind with lust and desire, with ill-will, distracted mind, restless mind are all of coarse variety. When free of those coarse mind, there arise in their place kusala citta and abyækata citta which are fine minds. Therefore, the Yogø engaged in watching the phenomena presently taking place perceives that the coarse mind does not reach the moment of fine mind etc.
CONTEMPLATION AS GROSS OR FINE
(6&7). The coarse mind does not reach the moment of arising of the mind; the fine mind does not reach the moment of arising of coarse mind. They cease and vanish at the respective moments of their arising and are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
Classification of mind according to inferior and superior status is similar to classification of inferior and superior sa³khæras. We shall recite thus:
(8&9). The inferior akusala citta does not reach the moment of arising of kusala abyækata citta; the superior kusala citta also does not reach the moment of arising of the inferior akusala citta. They cease and vanish away at the moments of their respective arising and are, therefore, of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta. The kusala citta of charitableness does not reach the moment of arising of kusala citta of moral precepts or of meditation. The kusala citta of moral precepts of meditation does not reach the moment of arising of kusala citta of charitableness. The kusala citta of moral precepts does not reach the moment of arising of kusala citta of meditation; and vice versa. The concentration meditation citta does not reach the moment of insight meditation; the insight meditation citta also does not reach the moment of concentration meditation. They all cease and pass away at the respective moments of their arising.
The ordinary person not used to noting the phenomena of seeing, hearing etc thinks that when he looks at a near object, after looking at a distant object, the mind which sees the distant object comes closer and nearer to him, when he looks at a distant object after seeing a near object, he thinks the mind which sees the near object has gone away to a distance. Similarly when a sound is heard from nearby while a distant sound is being heard, it is presumed that the mind which hears the distant sound has moved nearer; when a sound is heard from a distance while a nearby sound is being heard, it is presumed that the mind which hears the nearby sound has moved away to a distance. From smelling a distant smell, when internal odour is smelt, it is thought the mind from afar has come nearer. While smelling odour of one's body, when odour from outside is smelt, the mind which is nearby appears to have gone afar.
While touching sensation is being felt at a distance, for instance, on the feet, when another touching sensation is felt on one's breast or chest, the distant sensation appears to have moved closer; and vice versa. While thinking of distant object, one thinks of a nearby object and it appears that the distant mind has come nearer; and vice versa. (From seeing a distant object, if a nearby sound is heard, a nearby smell is smelt etc, it appears that the distant seeing mind has moved nearer to become hearing mind or tasting mind etc.,) In short, it is the general belief that there is only one permanent mind; the same mind is believed to know every thing near and far.
The Yogø who notes every phenomenon of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching and thinking knows with his own knowledge that the mind from afar does not come nearer; the mind close by also does not go afar. At respective moments of their arising, they pass away. We shall recite thus:
(10&11). The mind that is conscious of acts of seeing, hearing, thinking etc., in the far distance does not come nearer; the mind that is conscious of acts of seeing, hearing, thinking etc., near by does not go afar. At respective moments of their arising, they all vanish away and, hence, are of the nature of anicca, dukkha and anatta.
We have finished consideration of consciousness under eleven heads. We shall recapitulate how these are contemplated on and bring our discourse to a close.
"All consciousness, whether past, future or present internal or external gross or fine, inferior or superior; far or near should be seen with own knowledge as they truly are: 'This is not mine, This I am not, This is not my self.'
By virtue of having given respectful attention to this discourse on Anattalakkha¼a Sutta, may you all attain and realize soon, the Nibbæna, by means of the Path and Fruition of your own wish.
Sædhu! Sædhu! Sædhu!
End of the Seventh Part of the Discourse
On
The Anattalakkha¤a Sutta.
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