PART III

(Delivered on the 5th waxing of  Tagu, 1328 M.E. and on the 14th waning of Tagu, 1329 M.E.)

My last lecture deals with meditation on næma, mind and on rþpa, matter, as subject to the law of anicca, impermanence, dukkha, suffering. I shall now speak about the same subject in relation to the law of anatta, insubstantiality. But before going into the matter, let me explain to you what atta, self or ego, is.

THE DOCTRINE OF ATTA

The doctrine of Atta, self or essential self, is widely accepted in India. It is mentioned in the Hindu scriptures that the living atta arises in the body of an individual by the time he or she is conceived in his or her mother’s womb. Our own country-men are influenced by this idea of a kind of animus or living spirit residing in our bodies, acting as a moral governor of the world and a dispenser of the fruits of our actions. It is believed that it has the power to regulate our actions according to our wishes. This kind of atta is called Sæmi atta.

Sæmi means owner or overlord. The self, as an overlord, commands things to happen. When I, the self, will myself to go, I go. When I will myself to eat, I eat. When I will myself to sit, I sit, and so on. I am the SELF. The SELF belongs to me. This notion recognizes individuality which is termed Sakkæya from which is formed the compound word, Sakkæya di¥¥hi, the heretical view of individuality. It accepts the existence of ego; and so it is also known as Atta di¥¥hi. But Buddha taught us as follows in Anatta Lakkha¼æ Sutta.

            Rþpam bhikkhave anattæ, Rþpañca hidam bhikkave attæ abhavissa, nayidam rupam æbædhæya samvatteyya.

            Labbhetha ca rþpam evam me rþpam hotu, evam me rþpam mæ ahositi.

            Yasmæ ca kho bhikkhave rþpam anattæ, tasmæ rþpam æbædhæya samvattati.

            Na ca labbhati rþpe evam me rþpam hotu.

            Evam me rþpam mæ ahositi.

- - - Sayæ U Pe Maung Tin’s
Translation

So matter, in reality, cannot satisfy our wishes and desires regarding what we want to be or what we do not want to be. Even so, feeling, perception, mental formations and consciousness are not the self to whom one can make the request: “Let matter behave thus for me; let matter not behave thus for me.” They all tend to sickness or decay unable to give satisfaction to our wants and desires.

Anatta is a compound word consisting of Na and Atta, meaning not-self. But our learned teachers of old render it as “Incapable of governing,” following the Myanmar usage. It has been rendered thus because they would like to stress the meaning conveyed by Sæmi atta the self that behaves like a lord who governs.

Earlier I told you that matter should be regarded as an utter stranger to you. This is in agreement with what Sølavanta Sutta has to say. It emphasizes the fact that a devotee should understand the nature of Rþpa which cannot be overloaded because it is Anatta. If you have a friend, you may request him to do something for you; and he will certainly oblige. But you cannot do this to a perfect stranger.

Those believing in the doctrine of Self assume that a living substance takes up its perpetual abode inside their bodies till they die. When death takes place the spirit leaves the body of the deceased either through the nose or through the mouth. This view of self or Atta is termed Nivasø atta.

The egoists also believe that when the material body is destroyed, the resident self discards its old home to find a new one. It is so infinitesimal that it can pierce through thick walls, they say. Buddha enjoins us not to look for it in matter, feeling, perception, mental formations and consciousness. Only when this notion of ego making matter or Rþpa its home is thrown overboard, can a devotee see reality.

That all mental, verbal and physical activities are caused by Atta is another form of egoism known as Karaka atta. An egoist of that category thinks: “I see, I hear, I go, I stand or I sit, because I am being all the time prompted by the self.” But a meditating yogø who notes with mindfulness the phenomena of seeing, hearing, etc., as they arise understands that no self exists that prompts anybody. Actions just take place as matter and mind correlate each other, the one being the cause while the other the effect. It is with a view to let the yogø realize the true nature of the phenomena that he is encouraged to meditate on conditioned things. Remember the instruction: Note that you are going when you go and apply to all your physical actions like bending or stretching your body, etc.

When you are feeling miserable or happy, you might think that it is yourself that is feeling miserable or happy. This stems from a sense of clinging to the idea of self; and this kind of egoism is called Vedaka atta.

Buddha taught us meditation on the three Vedanæs or feelings of pleasure, pain and indifference which are all subject to the law of Anicca, etc., because he wanted us as his devotees to break ourselves away from Vedaka atta. But deviationists, during their flights of imagination, propound that meditation must be directed only on indifference or equanimity of the mind and that the other two Vedanæs should not be subjected to meditation. This teaching goes against the tenets of Buddhism. Those who accept this way of thinking will be deprived of the knowledge about the reality of pain and pleasure. Upekkhæ, equanimity, is a state of mind which cannot be easily felt and understood. So the meditator may not be a able to contemplate it. The result will be that he will be at sea buffeted by Anusaya kilesæ, predisposition for defilements. Under such circumstances he will unwittingly be depriving himself of the benefits bestowed by the Sæsanæ.

A serious study of the above four categories of belief in Atta will reveal that only insight-meditation on conditioned things or Næmarþpa with reference to the three marks of Anicca, Dukkha and Anatta can bring about the eradication of wrong views of self. A casual analysis of this material body into its components is not enough. The discovery, while meditating, of the apparent disappearance of Rþpa, form, is also not enough; for although the concept of materiality seems to be abnegated, the mind still keeps a stronghold on its object. Atta still remains at the bottom. In such a case the meditator would like to think; “It is I who meditate. It is I who gain knowledge. I feel happy.” This means that he is still clinging to feeling, perception, mental formations and consciousness as his self.

To do away with the idea of self and gain proper knowledge of Anatta, meditation on the lines hitherto suggested is essential.

In contemplating the five aggregates of clinging, with an awareness of their being subject to the law of Anicca, etc., a yogø must view them as (1) impermanent and therefore (2) unsatisfactory. They must also be looked upon as (3) a disease or (4) a festering sore. He must know that they give pain (5) as a thorn in the side does, that they are (6) conductive to unwholesome actions which produce unwholesome results, that they behave (7) like utter strangers and that therefore, are ungovernable, and that they are (8) like an ague that oppresses the patient, and that they are (9) catastrophic in that they are subjected to perpetual decay and death. It must also be remembered also that they are (10) void and useless and (11) not self.

Every individual considers himself a living being possessing a physical body which is so tangible and real that no amount of self-analysis entailing dissection of its entity into tiny parts can dissuade him from the notion that Atta or self or living substance does not exist. I think, so I am, he maintains. But with a meditating yogø firmly convinced in the impermanent nature of all compound things, the idea of self subsides. Every time he notes the mind-object and the noting mind with due awareness, he discovers that both dissolve at the very moment of his noting them. He now sees Anatta.

This knowledge of anatta grows in three stages. Firstly, the recognition of the aggregates of clinging as non-ego constitutes the realization of the truth about unsubstantiality, anatta. Secondly, this will give rise to the knowledge that, in this phenomenal world, things happen of their own accord, without any agency that controls or governs them. This is called anatta-lakkha¼æ, characteristic of anatta. Having discovered this sign of unsubstantiality or impersonality a yogø continues meditating on the five aggregates of clinging, keeping an eye on the eleven ways by which anatta is to be contemplated, and acquires, finally, anattænupassanæ ñæ¼a, insight into the nature of non-ego.

MEDITATION ON THE THREE MARKS

All things considered, the eleven view-points in connection with meditation enumerated in the foregoing will convey to the meditator the meaning of the three marks of anicca, dukkha and anatta. But the idea of anicca, impermanence, is hard to be assimilated for the following reasons. Firstly, it is very seldom that one becomes mindful of the rise and fall of næmarþpa. Everything in the phenomenal world appears to be continually happening. In other words, all becomings are continuous. That continuity conceals the true fact that all conditioned things are in a state of flux. Under such circumstances the characteristic of Anicca remains submerged under the false view of eternity. It is only with the right understanding that the idea of a continuum of all phenomena that can be found in nature can be destroyed. When a yogø meditates on the characteristic of anicca, the true nature of impermanence reveals itself. This is in a accordance with the saying of Visuddhi Magga to the effect that what has not arisen before arises now and disappears the next instant. This phenomenon is like a flash of lightning. The flash as one sees it was not there before. But it has now appeared. At the next moment it is gone! It is indeed anicca; but it is hard to be visualized because the law of continuity covers up the truth about the transient nature of the flash. This cover-up is made possible by the fact that we are unable to note properly the arising and dissolution of næmarþpa as they occur.

The truth about the impermanent nature of conditioned things cannot be realized by mere process of thinking about the khandhas, aggregates of mind and matter, and of reciting that they arise and pass away. One must contemplate what one sees, or hears, or smells, or tastes or touches every time contact is established between the sense-bases and the sense-objects. This is in accordance with the injunction: Note that you go when you go. All physical behaviour that one exerts must be made known to consciousness. Pain, pleasure and indifference must be recognized at every moment they arise. When consciousness arises along with craving, it must also be noted with mindfulness. One must try to be aware of the upsurgence of desire and lust the instant they rear their heads. Consciousness must be able to grasp its object the moment it appear.

SEIZE THE MOMENT OF OCCURRENCE

The true nature of næma and rþpa can be known only when one can seize the moment of occurrence of the phenomenon and meditate on it. In the analogy of the flash of lightning, it is only when one looks at it the moment of its occurrence that one knows its origination and dissolution and understands its true nature. The following three points may, therefore, be noted.

1. Note the phenomenon as it arises to know its true nature.

2. When its true nature is known, origination and dissolution will become apparent.

3. Only when one can appreciate the rise and fall of the khandhas can one gain knowledge about anicca.

When one fails to observe the phenomenon at the time of its occurrence, one is inclined to think that it is continuous. There appears to be no hiatus in the chain of events. This is santati paññatti, law of continuity. Influenced by this law one belabours under the notion of I and thinks that one’s ego is a permanent entity that enables one to say,“ I hear. I see. It is I who think and know.”

A swarm of white ants moving in a file presents to the eye as a long and unbroken line; but a close look into it would reveal that each individual insect is unrelated to the other. A meditating yogø does not see any phenomenon as a continuous chain of events. He sees that it has its precedence and subsequence which are separate and distinct. What one saw in the past is not what one sees now. The sense-impression gained a moment ago is not the same as that being received now. One is entirely distinct and separate from the other. These remarks apply to all other phenomena connected with the sense of hearing, touching, thinking and the like. For, as each phenomenon arises, dissolution follows. When this characteristic is known, aniccænupassanæ ñæ¼a is developed.

FOUR POSTURES CONCEAL DUKKHA

The four postures or iriyapathas are walking, sitting, standing and lying down. They help to make the body comfortable. When thus comforted, the body fails to recognize pain and suffering. The characteristic of dukkha, says Visuddhi Magga, is covered up by the lack of mindfulness of the nature of its oppressive tendencies and also by the four postures contributing to that negligence. If one bends his mind on the oppressive nature of dukkha to the exclusion of comfort created by the four postures, pain and suffering will be revealed in all its ignominy.

We rarely regard ordinary physical discomforts as pain and suffering because we can correct them by changing our postures, that is, by taking exercises. So we fail to realize the oppressive nature or dukkha which, however, is always there, lurking.

A meditator is constantly aware of his physical behaviour. His mind is always alert. So he can take note of the fact that he is seeing, hearing or touching. As he is occupied with meditating on the rise and fall of his belly, he may feel tired, or hot or painful. He notes all these sensations. Then he may want to correct his posture to relieve discomfort. He notes the desire that grows in him. Then he may make efforts to correct his posture. He notes his efforts. Or he may endure all discomforts, concentrating his mind on the feeling of tiredness. He notes his endurance. Ultimately tiredness disappears. He then gains the knowledge that his physical body is after all a mass of suffering; and this knowledge is called dukkhænupassanæ ñæ¼a.

APPARENT SOLIDITY COVERS UP ANATTA

Dhætus, elements, that go to make næma, mind, and rþpa, matter are divisible and analyzable. But an ordinary individual, being unmindful of this nature, belabours under the notion called gha¼apaññatti which takes conditioned things are one indivisible whole, solid and substantial; and this concept of solidity covers up the true nature of anatta, unsubstantiality. A meditating yogø, being able to analyse the composition of næma-rþpa comes to the understanding that it has no substance whatsoever.

One of the characteristics of anatta is ungovernability. The self cannot be made to bend to our will. We cannot dictate it to be thus or not to be thus. All are rendered impotent under its tutelage. Those who are not used to meditation cherish the impression that they see things because they possess the will to see them. For example, when they exercise their will to hear, they can hear; when they exercise their will to bend or stretch their bodies, they can bend or stretch their bodies; or when they exercise their will to think, they can think. The self, they presume, is the governor of all their actions and arbiter of their destiny. To a meditating yogø, however, all things appear to him as mere næmarþpa which just arises and passes away because it is its nature to arise and pass away. Actions follow their own natural course and no self can manipulate them. The eye contacts the eye-object, and seeing takes place. You may not have the desire to see. You may not make any attempt at seeing. But you cannot help seeing the object when it comes into contact with the eye. The same may be said with reference to the phenomena of hearing, touching and thinking. You may wish that only pleasant things happen, and that all such pleasant things abide by you forever. But since you do not have the power to control or govern what you consider your self, nothing goes according to your wish. For those who fail to meditate in the way that has been suggested, the notion a solidity of the aggregates of mind and matter dominates the nature of unsubstantiality of all conditioned things.

Gha¼apaññatti, concept of solidity, manifests itself in four ways, namely, (1) Santati ghæna, (2) Samþha ghæna, (3) Kicca ghæna and (4) Æramma¼a ghæna.

SANTATI GHÆNA

I have dealt with the concept of continuity called Santati paññatti which is related to santati ghæna. When one looks at an object, one sees its image for the space of one thought-moment after which it disappears and recedes into the past. Then the next image immediately fills the vacuum thus caused giving one the impression that the past is linked with the present to form a chain of continuity, thus giving rise to the appearance of the sameness of the object under study. This leads to the belief that the phenomenal world is unchanging and stable. This is santati ghæna,

When we see a thing, hear the sound it makes and think about it, the acts of seeing, hearing and thinking are separate and distinct. What we have just seen or heard or thought about is quite different from what we are seeing or hearing or thinking about now. But to an ordinary individual the entire process of seeing, etc., is continuous and the object appears to exist as one entity throughout the time. From this nature of the process the assumption of the existence of self or ego that sees, hears or thinks arises. Hence we say, “I see; I hear; I think,” as if this I remains stable and permanent throughout. Such an assumption stands in the way of a non-meditating individual in the realization of the truth about anatta. But a yogø noting the arising and passing away of næmarþpa gains a clear knowledge of impermanence and unsubstantiality. The exercise of the knowledge about this anicca and anatta dispels all concepts of continuity and solidity.

SAMÞHA GHƤA

All factors of consciousness combine together to give us an impression of wholeness or entirety. Eye-consciousness, ear-consciousness, nose-consciousness, tongue-consciousness and touch-consciousness conspire together to give us the notion that they collectively together to give us the notion that they collectively go into the making of an individual who stands whole and solid. That is to say that all næmas and rþpas in the domain of sa³khæra, volitional activities, constitute individuality or personality. An ordinary man without insight-knowledge thinks, “I see; I hear; I think,” however much he has learned from books that matter is divisible into its components. When a mindful observer looks at himself he comes to the understanding that the eye-basis, the eye-object, the eye-consciousness and the feeling of pleasure derived from seeing are all separate and distinct from one another functionally. One who fails to note seeing as its occurs would rather prefer to formulating the idea in his mind that all these functions combine to produce the solid state of atta; and he would say to himself, “This physical body which possesses the eye constitutes I; the hands and feet that I now see are mine; the subject who experiences pleasure of the sight is also myself.” Matter coalesced into a mass gives us the impression of wholeness or entirety which then is mistaken for solidity that is identified as an individual. This is called samþha ghæna.

A meditating yogø who has acquired the knowledge of udayabbaya and bha³ga can understand correctly that the eye-basis, the eye-object and the eye-consciousness are separate and distinct and that they are subject to change or decay. When the concept of entity or individuality is destroyed, the truth about anatta is revealed; and the enlightenment is called anattænupassanæ ñæ¼a.

KICCA GHƤA

Eye-consciousness does the function of visual cognition and ear-consciousness of aural cognition. But non-meditating individuals take it that it is their own self that does these functions as a consequence of which they see things. The all pervading idea of I works them up to the rise of ego, which they regard as the prime mover. In the phenomenon of seeing, the eye-basis does the function of receiving the image that the eye-object supplies. Then the eye-consciousness takes over to do the job of discernment. When these different functions are viewed together as a whole, the concept of ego-entity that enjoys the sights and sounds during the phenomena arises; and this concept is called kicca ghæna, concept of solidity created by functions that merge together.

A Vipassanæ yogø can differentiate these functions performed by the sense-basis, the sense-object and the mine-consciousness in all what takes place. As concentration develops, he is able to distinguish næma from rþpa by such differentiation of functions and eventually he arrives at the understanding that after all they dissolve together. This shows the futility of atta. All conditioned things are immaterial or unsubstantial. In this way anattænupassana ñæ¼a, analytical knowledge about not-self, is developed.

ÆRAMMA¤A GHƤA

Seeing occurs when the mind dwells on the eye-object; hearing when it dwells on the ear-object; smelling when it dwells on the nose-object; tasting when it dwells on the tongue-object; touching when it dwells on the tangible-object; and thinking when it dwells on the mind-object. In all these phenomena the sense-objects are varied and many; but the subject appears to be one and the only individual for all the actions relating to seeing, etc., are created by him. This is the concept of solidity conjured up by a combined force of many different sense-objects. It is called Æramma¼a ghæna.

A yogø who has developed insight knowledge is fully aware that seeing and hearing by one individual are two different phenomena although he sees the object simultaneously as he hears it making the sound. Confining himself to only one phenomenon - - seeing for instance - - he is able to appreciate the fact that what he saw a moment ago is not the same as that he is now seeing. What is more, he is able to understand that the eye-object that he is meditating upon dissolves at the very moment of his meditation. To him, therefore, the many processes of seeing, hearing etc., are not attributable to an individual. They are just the manifestations of various aspects of the phenomenon. This way of thinking virtually destroys the notion of solidity, and leads one to the knowledge of anatta.

Let me say it on the authority of Visuddhi Magga Mahæ¥økæ that the characteristic of anatta becomes apparent when the concept of solidity created by elements that combine to make a compound is shattered. The dhammas of næma-rþpa act or react on one another to combine themselves into a solid mass. One who has no background knowledge about sa³khæra, volitional activities, takes this compound mass as one whole or entity. This kind of notion is called samþha ghæna. In this manner he considers dhammas that can be functionally differentiated as one whole or entity. The eye-basis, the eye-object and the eye-consciousness are separate and distinct. Ordinary individuals, however, take all these different dhammas as one complete whole. This concept is kicca ghæna. There are also other dhammas, such as sense-bases, which can be classified into basic qualities by dint of their different inclinations towards their sense-objects. But an ordinary individual takes them as one entity. This idea of solidity springing from such a notion is called Æramma¼a ghæna. But when insight meditation is called into aid, the idea of entity or solidity breaks up, bursting like a foam touched by hand. Then realization arises that all dhammas take place in the course of nature without any agency prompting them and that they just take place to dissolve. These four ghænas as explained conspire together to create the view of self; and when their nature is duly noted with mindfulness, the characteristic of anatta becomes known.

ANATTA, REAL AND APPARENT

When matter is analysed and broken down into its components, the idea of materiality usually disappears. Some would like to think that when this knowledge of disappearance arises anatta ñæ¼a is established. But this casual knowledge cannot lead one to the conviction of the doctrine of unsubstantiality, for although materiality in its physical sense has been discarded it still clings to the individual in its spiritual sense. If the idea of materiality still remains in his consciousness, he will not be able to visualize anatta. In the formless realm Brahmas possess no physical body; but as they still retain consciousness, they regard it as their self. So they cannot conceive anatta. One may be able to do away with the idea of body but one still clings to the idea of mind. It must be remembered that even when one has attained paññatti or conceptual knowledge about anatta, one may not become firmly established in the paramattha or real knowledge about it. It is only when one meditates on the rise and fall of the khandhas, the aggregates of mind and matter, to gain a personal and practical experience of their nature of ungovernability that one can say with certainty that he knows what unsubstantiality is. Outside the Sæsanæ, rishis like Sarabha³ga, a Bodhisatta, could expound anicca and dukkha but not anatta, as it is very difficult to explain. Buddha himself had to explain anatta to the group of five monks by first introducing the subject of anicca and dukkha.

But the law of anicca that people outside this Sæsanæ know is highly elementary. When a pot is broken one is reminded that it is subject to the law of impermanence. When one stumbles and gets hurt, one would exclaim to himself that life is all suffering. But such revelations are all paññatti knowledge which can hardly be improved upon unless the absolute truth about anicca and dukkha is visualized through insight-meditation.

But one should not lose heart. In the first Sutta of Nava Nipæta of A³guttara Nikæya it anatta can also be known. The commentaries also explain that once anicca is known, dukkha and anatta can be recognized.

ADVANTAGES OF MEDITATION

What, it may be asked, are the advantages of meditation on the three marks? Regarding this, note what Særiputtaræ said:

            Friend Ko¥¥hika! While a Bhikkhu, accomplished in morality, is noting the five aggregates of clinging with mindfulness with reference to their inherent nature of impermanence, suffering and unsubstantiality, he comes within sight of the Fruition of Sotæpatti magga. Meditation therefore offers him the opportunity to become a Sotæpanna.

In my next lecture I shall deal with this subject about stream-winners. Now I conclude with the usual prayer.

May you all, who have listened to this discourse on Sølavanta Sutta attain Nibbæna having realized the nature of the five aggregates of clinging through the practice of insight-meditation!

Sædhu!    Sædhu!    Sædhu!