Part IV
The 10th Question
Part 2
The Destruction of the Corruptions
And again, with your settled-down heart pure all round, clean all round, unspotted, shut off from the stench, grown soft and workable, steadfast, unshakably fixed, bend down the mind to the conjuration of the knowledge of the destruction of the āsavas, the corrupting influences.
Normally, this Dhamma (unit of the teaching), that is, The Gradual Course and the instructions on developing the mind, goes right into the destruction of the āsavas: the destruction of pleasure-seeking; existing, becoming, living, being; and blindness, essentially saying "he destroys wanting, living, and blindness."
While this is reasonable as an instruction for someone face-to-face with the Buddha, who, having heard in some way or another all of what has preceded in this Course, having been, as it were, lifted by hand to this point, it is a reasonable assumption that this course taught here has had somewhat less powerful result — so essentially this section is going to start again using the Tenth Question as the structure.
The Tenth Question describes the Asikkha path: The Path taken by one who is no longer seeking: The walk that is both seen and lived. The destruction of the āsavas entails "seeing" this path as it really is, and then letting go.
The Tenth Lesson
Dasa Nāma Kim? What is ten?
What ten concepts, when used to see things to their root with penetrating knowledge, and to understand them in their broadest limits, such that their disgusting nature is seen as it really is and one has released them in their entirety, can bring one to the uttermost freedom of detachment?
Dasah'angehi samannagato araha ti pavuccati.
Dasa = ten, a complete sphere [hold two hands up palms facing with fingertips of opposing hands touching], or a complete circle [hold two hands up palms out connecting thumbs and forefingers].
Any Beggar with ten fingers can call himself an arahant.
What Ten?
1. Sammā Diṭṭhi: Consummate View
This is from a discussion of vitaka and vicara, (the internal dialogue):
AP: "The dialogue I perceive appears to be behind the apparent division of peoples, and, if that division is a always a product of ignorance, how can that division be seen clearly?"
It is what is at the root of the dialogue that is the cause of the apparent division of peoples. That is: the clinging to views, of peoples.
When you say "ignorance", I hear you thinking about what you have heard about Buddhism through the literature. In fact, what the Buddha refers to as ignorance: (That is: Avijja = blindness); is a very specific thing: It is the blindness to the truth of The Four Aristocratic Truths, or Consummate View. To see how view masters the common man and causes the divisions between groups, first master Consummate View:
This is all painful ugly ukky k-kha.
The source of that k-kha is hunger/thirst.
To end the k-kha, end the hunger/thirst.
This is the way: Consummate View, Consummate Principles, Consummate Talk, Consummate Works, Consummate Lifestyle, Consummate Self-Control, Consummate Mind, Consummate Serenity, Consummate Vision, and Consummate Detachment.
From Consummate View, all other views are seen clearly.
(Recommended side trip to The Brahma Gala Sutta Excerpts on Views)
Consummate View in detail
Remember: Consummate View, 'diṭṭhi', is the "working hypothesis." You are experiencing pain and decide you need to change; this system tells you "this is the way to look at it so as to end that pain"; you adopt this view in order to test it.
This is dukkha [Pain; du-du, uk uk, ka kha]:
Birth is dukkha
aging is dukkha
death is dukkha
grief and lamentation are dukkha
pain and misery are dukkha
despair is dukkha.
Not to get what is wished for is dukkha.
In sum: The Five Bound-up Stockpiles are a heap of dukkha.
Birth is the descent into the womb, growth and outcome in being born, the regrouping in a new being of the stockpiles, the appearance of the six-fold sense spheres of such and such a being in this or that habitat for beings.
Aging is the adding to the length of life lived, the deterioration, the falling apart, the rotting away, the withering, wrinkling, the diminishment of the remainder of the lifespan, the getting old of the six-fold sense spheres of such and such a being in this or that habitat for beings.
Death is the fall away, the fall out, the ending, the vanishing, the death, the dying, the finishing of the lifespan, the breaking up of the stockpiles, the laying down of the body, of such and such a being in this or that habitat for beings.
Grief is the condition of inner sadness, heartbreak, heartache, state of missing and regret, woe, and affliction, the grief, feeling bad, wretchedness, state of woe, and unhappiness of such and such a being experiencing some loss or tragedy.
Lamentation is the outward expression of mourning, sadness, heartbreak, heartache, state of missing and regret, woe, and affliction, grief, feeling bad, wretchedness, state of woe, and unhappiness of such and such a being experiencing some loss or tragedy.
Pain [dukkha] is feeling physical pain, bodily pain, pain arising from contact with the body, the being bodily affected by something painful of such and such a being.
Misery is feeling mental pain, pain in the mind, pain arising from contact with the mind, the being affected in mind by something painful of such and such a being.
Despair is the condition of having given up hope, dejection, despondency, depression, of such and such a being.
Not getting what is wished for is in reference to the case when such and such a being wishes: "O,O,O If only I were not subject to birth, aging and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery, and despair!" for such is not to be had by wishing.
In sum: The Five Bound-up Stockpiled Piles of Dukkha are a heap of Dukkha means:
Form is dukkha,
sensation is dukkha,
perception is dukkha,
own-making is dukkha,
consciousness is dukkha.
This means that though these things are not in-and-of themselves dukkha, to the degree they are grasped at by an individual, they result in dukkha.
This is the Consummate View of dukkha.
This is dukkha-samudaya, the origin of dukkha:
The origin of dukkha is in that taṇhā (hunger and thirst) leading to rebirth, confounded with lust and self indulgence, seeking pleasure here and there, that is:
the taṇhā for
[kama-c-chanda] sense pleasures,
[bhava] existing, being, becoming, living, and
[vibhava] un-becoming, (escape from the unpleasant).
And this taṇhā begins and is found in the material things which give pleasure that are downbound to the world and to which we are attached, that is the:
[Loka] Spheres of the visible, hearable, smellable, tasteable, touchable, and knowable,
[Viññāṇa] Consciousness of sight, sound, scent, taste, touch, and ideas,
[Samphasso] Contact, touch, stimulation of sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mind,
[Samphassaja vedana] Sensation arising from the stimulation of sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mind,
[Saññā] Perception of sights, sounds, scents, tastes, touches and ideas,
[Sancetana] Intentions with regard to sights, sounds, scents, tastes, touches and ideas,
[Taṇhā] Hunger and thirst for sights, sounds, scents, tastes, touches and ideas,
[Vitakka] Thinking in words about sights, sounds, scents, tastes, touches and ideas,
[Vicara] The reliving, re-evaluation, reworking in pictures and feelings of sights, sounds, scents, tastes, touches and ideas.
This is the Consummate View of the origin of dukkha.
This is the dukkha-nirodha, the ending of Dukkha:
The ending of dukkha is in the ending of taṇhā, letting it go, giving it up, putting it away, eradicating it, eliminating it, burning it off, burning it up, burning it out, causing it to cease, becoming disenchanted with it, renouncing it, freedom from it, utter objective detachment towards it.
This is the Consummate View of the ending of dukkha.
This is the way to accomplish the ending of dukkha:
Consummate View, Consummate Principles, Consummate Talk, Consummate Works, Consummate Lifestyle, Consummate Self-Control, Consummate Mind, and Consummate Serenity.
This is the high view of the way to accomplish the ending of dukkha.
2. Sammā Sankappa: Consummate Principles
Sankappa: [PED] thought, intention, purpose, plan.
san = one's own, kappa = fit and proper.
"Principles"; what is fit and proper given one's point of view.
Nekkhamma-sankappa, the principle of letting go;
a-vyapada-sankappa, the principle of non cruelty (no mental pain),
a-vihimsa-sankappa, the principle of non-harm (no physical pain).
Discussion in footnote of PTS: The Dialogues of the Buddha; Vol II; Sattipaṭṭhana Suttanta, pp345:
"Nekkhamma: Burnouf derives this word from nis+karma; Oldenberg from nis+kama, and Childers from nis+kramya. These three derivations would give the meaning respectively as having no karma, being devoid of lust, and going forth from home. Daraminpola explains it here as meaning either the second or the third. No doubt Oldenberg is right as to the derivation. But Daraminpola is also right if we take his as exegetical, not philological. The fact is that the derivation had been, from very early times, forgotten or confused; and the connotation of the word was renunciation generally, with special reference to these two kinds. It never had anything to do with karma."
I derive the word from 'ni ka ma;' Put down shit making; dump shit; leave the out house; no more work; dump pleasure seeking; end kamma.
A-vyapada: a = no; vya = via; apada = the not path; vyapada = wrath, cruelty, inflicting mental pain.
A-vihimsa: a = no; vihimsa = violence, (can you hear it? What? The sound of the violinsa (from a skit on Saturday Night Live); inflicting physical pain, put'n a hurt on.
3. Sammā Vaca: Consummate Talk
Consummate Talk in detail
"Letting go of lies and deception,
live abstaining from intentional untruth.
Be a straight-talker,
one whose word can be counted on,
one whose word can be trusted,
dependable,
no deceiver of the world.
Letting go of malicious speech,
do not repeat in one place what is heard in another place
to the disadvantage of anyone.
Make peace between those with differences
and encourage the peace of those who are friends.
Rejoicing in peace,
loving peace,
delighting in peace,
be one whose words speak up for peace.
Letting go harsh language,
abstain from from abusive speech.
Speak words that are blameless,
pleasing to the ear,
agreeable,
penetrating to and vibrating in the heart,
urbane,
words that charm and enchant the people.
Letting go of idle talk,
know the right time to speak,
say only what is true and to the point,
speak about the Dhamma and discipline,
words to be treasured,
well-reasoned,
well-defined,
connected with the goal.
Low Talk
Train yourself to abstain from low talk, such as:
Talk of kings and ministers of state,
robbers and thieves,
the horrors of war and battle;
talk of food, drink, clothes, beds, garlands and perfumes;
talk of cities, towns, villages,
relationships, men and women,
heroes and villains;
gossip at the corner,
over the back fence,
or at the well
talk of those alive or of those who are departed;
talk comparing differences between this and that;
speculative talk about creation,
existence or non-existence.
Wrangling Phrases
Abstain from argument and contention, using such phrases as:
'You clearly don't understand this doctrine and discipline, whereas I do.'
You should, in stead, cite the suttas and explain the passage.
'How could someone suchas you understand this doctrine and discipline?'
You can explain the difficulty in understanding a doctrine for a person without any knowledge or experience of it.
'What you are saying is wrong. What I am saying is right.'
You can show where what you are saying is in accordance with sutta, or in accordance with the logic of the argument, or accepted conditions, etc., whereas what he is saying is not. i.e., deal with the issues, not the person.
'What I am saying is consistent, what you are saying is not.'
You can present him with his contradictory views and ask for an explanation, or you can explain how two views of yours he thinks are contradictory are in fact not in contradiction.
'You have said last what should have been said first and first what should have been said last!'
Mostly the order will not matter. Where the order is instructive or critical you can explain why.
'What you have argued for so long has been refuted!'
Probably many times if it is incorrect and therefore to point this out is useless talk.
'Your challenge has been met and you have been defeated!'
If this is the case it does not need to be said.
'How will you get out of this one?
Answer me that one, you!'
You can ask without the implied triumph of the winner.
Kaccha
Fit to Dialogue With
It may be determined from debating experience, beggars, whether or not a man is say'n something or just talking.
If, beggars, a man, asked a direct question does not answer similarly with a direct answer;
asked an analytical question does not answer analytically;
asked a counter-question question, does not answer with a counter-question;
and does not stand aside from a question that should be put aside;
in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has just been talking.
If, beggars, a man, asked a direct question answers similarly with a direct answer;
asked an analytical question answers analytically;
asked a counter-question question, answers with a counter-question;
and stands aside from a question that should be put aside;
in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has been say'n something.
It may be determined from debating experience, beggars, whether or not a man is say'n something or just talking.
If beggars, a man asked a reasonable question, does not stick to set conditions, does not stick to conclusions, does not stick to known experience, does not stick to the point, in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has just been talking.
If beggars, a man asked a reasonable question, sticks to set conditions, sticks to conclusions, sticks to known experience, sticks to the point, in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has been say'n something.
It may be determined from debating experience, beggars, whether or not a man is say'n something or just talking.
If beggars, a man asked a reasonable question, retorts with another on another turns the discussion to externals gets upset, angry and unresponsive in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has just been talking.
If beggars, a man asked a reasonable question, does not retort with another on another does not turn the discussion to externals does not get upset, angry and unresponsive in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has been say'n something.
It may be determined from debating experience, beggars, whether or not a man is say'n something or just talking.
If beggars, a man asked a reasonable question, berates, crushes, derides, and fault-finds, in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has just been talking.
If beggars, a man asked a reasonable question, does not berate, does not crush, does not deride, and does not fault-find, in this case, beggars, it can be said that that man has been say'n something.
It may be determined from debating experience, beggars, whether or not a man is well-grounded or not well-grounded.
He who does not lend ear, beggars is not well-grounded; he who lends ear is well-grounded.
He who is well-grounded is cognizant of one thing, comprehends one thing, lets go one thing, is eye-witness to one thing.
He who is cognizant of one thing, comprehends one thing, lets go one thing, is eye-witness to one thing, touches the highest freedom.*
This is the point, beggars, of talk, this is the point of meditation, this is the point of being well-grounded, this is the point of listening to the experienced, that is to say the hearts release from getting involved.
When reasoned talk by arrogance is blocked,
by ignoble bias, carelessness, and bickering back and forth,
And each in the others confusion, errors, and perplexity takes delight,
not then does the aristocrat debate.
If he would talk, the wise man knows the time and speaks directly to the Dhamma goal
talking talk, well-grounded, unfaltering, and modest,
uninvolved, unhesitant, and without injury.
Contributing without complaint as best he knows,
not glad to catch up one who slips,
not seeking to reprove nor finding fault not berating,
not crushing, not speaking misdirected thoughts.
Knowing, attained to vision, recollected
Thus the Aristocrat counsels
and such the way he speaks.
Thus the clever speak without hypocrisy.
— AN 3 67
[*] What things?
'This is Pain'; 'The origin of pain is thirst'; 'the end of pain is the ending of that thirst'; This is The Way.
Lying
Lying, Beggars,
if made an habitual practice,
brings one to Hell
of trifling consequence
is the fact that it leads to madness
in the here and now.
Beggars! A man might steal to feed his family or from his own hunger, and a man might kill in an uncharacteristic fit of rage or from self defense, but from the liar any form of behavior can be expected. [The liar, having no grounding in the truth, has no basis for moral compunction in any other area and is capable of any kind of act for unpredictable reasons. As such the lie, laying the groundwork for all kinds of bad deeds, is held to be of more powerful bad kamma than is killing or theft.]
4. Sammā Kammanta: Consummate Works
Abstaining from intentional taking of life,
abstaining from intentional theft,
and not giving up one's ethical conduct under the influence of pleasure seeking —
in acts of mind, word-thought-and-speech, and body.
Recommended side trip to two suttas
The Short Analysis of Kamma
The Great Analysis of Kamma
5. Sammā Ajiva: Consummate Lifestyle
Consummate Lifestyle is the style or process of living in accordance with this system:
Identifying an element of one's lifestyle that is clearly seen by one's self as low, harmful, detrimental to one's self or others one abandons it, lets it go, drops it, renounces it, restrains it, eradicates it.
[This section is best left "in brief." It is a matter of style. For a little more thorough-going treatment see How To Judge From Personal Experience.]
6. Sammā Vayama: Consummate Self-Control
PED has: Vi+a+yam. That meaning being 'un-not-restraint' usually translated "effort or exertion." I make it from 'via yam'; through restraint, or controlled effort or exertion. > vayamama: to control an animal using reins. In any case, I fudge saying it means "To make an effort and exert one's energy to...
Restrain low conditions that are present in this visible thing,
Refrain from low conditions that are not yet present in this visible thing,
Retain high conditions that are present in this visible thing, and
Obtain high conditions that are not yet present in this visible thing.
Readers in the Suttas will also encounter these same four named "The Controlling Power of Effort" and "Commendable Effort".
Commendable Effort
— AN 4 13
I HEAR TELL
Once upon a time the Lucky man, Vajji-land revisiting, Bhaṇḍagāma village.
There Bhagava said:
There are, beggars, these four commendable efforts.
What four?
Here beggars, a beggar
generates desire,
rouses his heart,
seeks out the energy and self-control
to prevent the arising
of bad, unskillful things
not yet arisen;
generates desire,
rouses his heart,
seeks out the energy and self-control
to let go of
bad, unskillful things
that have arisen;
generates desire,
rouses his heart,
seeks out the energy and self-control
to give rise to
skillful things
not yet arisen;
generates desire,
rouses his heart,
seeks out the energy and self-control
for the non-confusion,
increased standing,
and completely fulfilled development of
skillful things
that have arisen.
These then beggars, are the four commendable efforts.
Some of the little scraps of verse found throughout the Suttas are considered by me to be the oldest examples of Dhamma. Other examples are clearly later inserts. I think the best practice is to take them as separate utterances, unrelated, for the most part, to the text. As far as I can see, they do not contradict the Dhamma, but they often do not relate to the material in the text. The tradition of the time was to debate using the form and style of one's opponent, and debate using verse was and still is a popular style. The general rule as I gather it from the suttas is to use the same form as is used by the challenger — 'nothing you can do can upset me, or cause me to lose my balance or control of my mastery of mind.' A spirit of one-upmanship which is almost incomprehensible today. Some of these debates in the suttas had deadly consequences — some were hilarious. One who did not answer the reasonable question of a Buddha, asked three times in succession, would find his head split into seven parts — there comes a point, when faced with the real truth while holding on to a false truth, that the mind breaks apart on the ego holding it together — the reasonable aspects of the mind simply fly off.
— p.p.
"From the Realm of Mara, Destroyer of Beings
by commendable effort freed,
thrown off the fear of birth and death,
Mara and his weaponry.
From the Captor's power escaped
well, happy, undisturbed is he."
Restraint
— see AN 4 14
There are four efforts:
The effort to restrain,
the effort to let go,
the effort to develop,
and the effort to protect.
The effort to restrain: conscious of a sense object with an organ of sense, do not dwell on it's characteristics or nature.
Dwelling on it's characteristics or nature, liking and disliking develop followed by desire and disappointment.
The effort to abandon: do not dwell on sensual, angry, or cruel thoughts that arise, let them go, eject them, end them, and take measures to prevent them from arising again.
The effort to develop: Develop the dimensions of self awakening that are:
mind,
Dhamma investigation,
energy,
enthusiasm,
impassivity,
serenity,
detachment,
that are rooted in solitude,
in calm,
in ending
and letting go.
In this paragraph we get a look at the heavy duty meditator at work. The commentary here suggests this "concentration mark" (samādhi-nimmita) is what is called "the reflex image", the mental image of an object off of which one has gotten High. I believe it should be understood in it's purer form as an object fit to remind one of the eventual fate of living beings. Generally speaking the Buddha does not suggest the use of devices for reaching serenity (getting high) or for working magic, but there are several places in the Suttas where meditating on "breathing", "the foul" or "death" is suggested and in The Book of the Ones, at least, he commends the use of kasinas or "concentration devices." What we have in this paragraph possibly an older form of the use of concentration devices. In practice what happens is that one wanting, say, to go through a wall imagines a hole in the wall and walks through it. This over time became the practice of using a board with a hole in it (the kasina) to focus (develop the ability to vividly imagine the hole), and the mental image of the hole became the samādhi-nimmita. In other words the practice went from spontaneous generation of whatever was needed to a concretized formula. This is important to at least consider in that once one has opened the doors to the realm of magical occurrences, the speed with which one reacts to situations is of utmost importance in assuring one's safety under attack, or in coming to the assistance of some other being under attack.
— p.p.
The effort to protect: protect, guard, nurture any sign of extraordinary advancement in samādhi practice such as the vision of the skeleton, the idea of the worm-eaten corpse, the black-and blue corpse, the spongiform corpse, the bloated corpse.
Beggars!
These four types of person are found in the World.
What four?
The type that relies on the outcome of his effort,
not on the outcome of his past deeds.
The type that relies on the outcome of his past deeds,
not on the outcome of his effort,
The type that relies on both the outcome of his effort
and the outcome of his past deeds, and
The type that relies on neither the outcome of his effort
nor the outcome of his past deeds.
"Get Resolve" set up to fit on a single page, suitable for printing out to be used as a memory device.
"Beggars, I have realized two things:
Not to be content when things are going well, and not to give up when it is a struggle.
And how does one not give up when it is a struggle?
By resolving: "Let my skin and flesh and blood dry up while I wither to the bone if only I can hang on long enough to win what may be won by the strength of a man, by the energy of a man, by the effort of a man."
By my energetic effort, Beggars, I won unsurpassable freedom from bondage.
And you, too, Beggars, do not be content when things are going well, and do not give up when it is a struggle, but resolve: "Let my skin and flesh and blood dry up while I wither to the bone if only I can hang on long enough to win what may be won by the strength of a man, by the energy of a man, by the effort of a man.
Similes
In the same way, beggars, as a man with his turban on fire makes effort to unravel that turban so as to escape the fire, in the same way, beggars, do not be lax in effort!
In the same way, beggars, as a man trapped in a house on fire, struggles to escape the blaze, in the same way, beggars, do not be lax in effort!
The Simile of the Raft
Beggars! I Will teach you by the simile of the raft that Dhamma is for crossing over, not for keeping.
Beggars! In the same way as a man going along The High Way might see a river, with frightening dangers on this side, while the other side is safe and secure, but there is no bridge, no ferry, and no boat with which to cross.
He might think: "Here I am going along the High Way and come upon a river, with frightening dangers on this side, while the other side is safe and secure, but there is no bridge, no ferry, and I have no boat with which to cross; suppose I gather together what limbs, and twigs, and leaves, and grass I can find and bind them together with reeds to make a raft and making effort with hands and feet cross over from here to the beyond."
And then, Beggars, he might, using what limbs, and twigs, and leaves, and grass he could find bind them together with reeds and make a raft and making an effort with hands and feet cross over from here to the beyond.
Then, here on the further bank, it might occur to him: "This raft I have pieced together has been very useful to me, suppose I were to lift this raft up onto my head or shoulder and carry it around as I go on about my business?"
What do you think, beggars, would that man be doing what ought to be done with that raft?
In the same way, beggars, this Dhamma is for crossing over, not for keeping. You beggars should let go of even high mental objects, not to mention low ones.
[This famous simile occurs in MN 22.]
7. Sammā Sati: Consummate Mind
Live in a body,
In sensations,
In the heart,
And in the Dhamma,
seeing bodies,
sensations,
the heart,
and the Dhamma,,
as they really are,
seeing how they come to be,
seeing how they burn out,
living above it all,
careful (Appamāda,)
insightful and calmed down,
overcoming any hunger and thirst that may appear,
downbound to nothing at all in the world.
[For the detailed discussion of this subject, see Part 2: The Great Master's Satisfaction Pastures and related Satipatthana Resources]
8. Sammā Samādhi: Consummate Serenity
Get High on the appreciation of the peace and calm of solitude,
get high on getting high,
get high with ease, on the sweet sensations of ease,
get high off the all roun,
clean clear through,
bright shiny,
radiance
of detachment.
[For the detailed discussion of this, see Part 3: Consummate Getting High and the various discussions in the DhammaTalk, Sitting Practice section].
9. Sammā Vijja: Consummate Vision
Note on Terminology: As much as the presentation here of this system in English is unorthodox, I have very rarely deviated from a basis in the orthodox Pāḷi. When there is a deviation, as will occur here, it is necessary to point this out so that the reader can judge for himself the merits of so doing.
The last two dimensions of the Aristocratic Multi-dimensional Path when found with ten dimensions usually have "sammā ñaṇa" and "sammā vimutti" as the final two folds. The presentation here is based on using "sammā vijja" and "sammā upekkha".
On this issue see: the definition of ñaṇa as "tiso vijjā" at Vin III.91 (which, however, PED doubts is genuine); and S V.x.ii#16, pp 335 (PTS: Monks b, V.295; WP: Bhikkhus 2, II.1786) where the term "vijja-vimutti" is used and Woodward translates "knowledge and release".
The choices made here are synonyms and do not conflict with the intent of the suttas, and the meanings as described are the same as the suttas. These choices were made in order to clearly delineate in this presentation of the Dhamma a three-stage process that is not clear in most presentations of the system:
The pre-Streamwinner (sometimes characterized as a Streamwinner) can know the Dhamma and have a clear intellectual understanding of it's principles without having any vision of what it really means. I call this "knowledge," or "book knowledge" and for this I use the Pāḷi: "ñaṇa".
The post-Streamwinner, pre-Arahant, can have knowledge of the Dhamma and see how it works and what it really means, but has not yet attained its goals. I call this having "knowledge and vision" or "knowing and seeing" (ñaṇa and dassana) and this is also sometimes called "The Eye of Dhamma" or sometimes "The Ear of Dhamma"
The Arahant knows the Dhamma, sees it as it really is, and has attained its' goal.
In English, this requires three terms: one for the knowledge, one for the seeing as it is, and one for the attained state.
In the suttas there is a very broad (and sometimes confusing) use for the term "ñaṇa" such that I feel justified in confining it to the lowly "Book Knowledge" or the "knowledge" as described above.
This leaves me needing a single term for the condition following sammā samādhi which describes one who knows and sees, as really is; the diṭṭha of Sammā Diṭṭhi (the problem solved in the suttas by using "ñaṇa", which leaves us asking where did the dassana of the post-Streamwinner pre Arahant go?)
This is the point of the 9th dimension; Sammā Diṭṭhi (sammā #1) is the theoretical knowledge, sammā #9 is actually knowing it by seeing it, as is evidence by the fact that it is, in this position put in terms of the paṭicca samupada. So I have used vijja (vision); I could have used diṭṭha, or dassana but vijja fits in more with my magical take on the system.
I have used "upekkha" as the final term over "vimutti" (freedom) in the belief that "upekkha," translated as "detachment," more clearly points out the need for the final step of letting go in order to attain vimutti, or Nibbāna, or being akalika (outside Time), or having brought a final end to dukkha. Upekkha is also the term used most frequently in this function in suttas that are not describing the actual Asikha Pada or Magga.
'Upekkha' has this problem: it is most frequently translated 'equanimity'. This is just wrong. Equanimity is a state of mind in a being still attached to the world and upekkha when it is used is being used as a term for the Arahant. It means 'detached.'
I hope readers will accept these changes as conditioned by the particular needs of the English language and not as any indication that the original instruction may be lacking.
And finally: Why make the change in the Pāḷi at all? Why not just use the English terms I want and leave the Pāḷi and say: that's how I am translating the terms ñaṇa and vimutti? Because it is the effort here to create a bridge between our English understanding and the original Pāḷi. This way the original Pāḷi remains accessible to those doing their dhamma vicaya.
— p.p.
And again, either from The Fourth Knowing, or from the Realm of Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception, or from wherever, rising above that condition, enter the Sannā-Vedayita-Nirodha jhāna, The Ending of Sensation-Perception, and after emerging from there, having attained the settled-down heart, pure all round, clean all round, unspotted, shut off from the stench, grown soft and workable, steadfast, unshakably fixed, bend down the mind to the conjuration of the knowledge and vision of things as they really are:
See:
"This body of mine, is made of material,
made with solidity, liquidity, heat and motion,
born of mother and father,
rebuilt by so and so much rice and curry,
at its heart inconsistent,
subject to being rubbed down,
rubbed out,
washed up
and dried out,
and in this,
is this consciousness of 'my self',
on this does this consciousness of 'my own' depend!
In the same way as if there were a clear bright gem
of the first water,
with eight facets,
masterfully cut,
without flaw,
most excellent in every way,
and through it were strung a blue,
or orange
or red
or white thread.
Any man with eyes in his head that could see
could see that the one
was bound up in the other.
And Again, see the Corrupting Influences [āsavas]
as they really are,
see:
This is what is meant by "pain".
This is what is meant by "the origin of pain".
This is what is meant by 'the ending of pain'.
This is what is meant by 'the way leading to the end of pain'.
See:
This is what is really meant by "wanting;"
this is what is really meant by "rebirth;"
this is what is really meant by 'blindness'.
This is what is really meant by "the origin of wanting;"
this is what is really meant by "the origin of rebirth;"
this is what is really meant by "the origin of blindness."
This is what is really meant by "the ending of wanting;"
this is what is really meant by "the ending of rebirth;"
this is what is really meant by "the ending of blindness."
This is what is really meant by 'the path leading to the ending of wanting, rebirth, and blindness'.
And see:
Downbound Confounded Rebounding Conjuration
This is Downbound Confounded Rebounding Conjuration going in the forward and reverse directions:
Aka: Paṭicca-Samuppada = Rebounding Conjuration;
Nidana Paccay'akara = Downbound Rebounding'Own-making.
Downbound: When you are down, it is what is keeping you down;
when you are up it is what drags you down.
Nidana; ni = down, dana = given, bound.
Confounded (own-made): Saṅkara, the "akara" of paccay'akara — The own-making (confounding) of the individual and his world through acts of mind, speech, and body.
Rebounding (repercussing): paṭicca: the bouncing back of a thing.
Conjuration: samuppada: sam = one's own or with; uppada = up path — own or self-rising — an admittedly unconventional translation for this term; usually "uprising" or "origination".
— p.p.
Downbound Blindness [avijja:] Rebounds Bound up in Confounding [own-making saṅkhara; the making of one's own world by identification with the intent connected with acts of mind, speech, and body, that is, kamma; or stated in terms of the consequence: the identified-with result of deeds of mind, speech and body.]
Downbound own-making rebounds bound up in consciousness [viññāṇa:] re-knowing-knowing; knowing that one is knowing.
Downbound consciousness rebounds bound up in named form [nāma/rūpa,] face-name, phenomena, identity/entity.
Downbound named form rebounds bound up in the six-fold sense realm [salayatana]: the eye and sights, ear and sounds, nose and scents, tongue and tastes, body and touches, mind and dhammas.
Downbound, the six-fold sense realm rebounds bound up in contact [phassa:] touch.
Downbound Contact rebounds bound up in sensation [vedana].
Downbound sensation rebounds bound up in hunger/thirst [Taṇhā] wanting.
Downbound hunger/thirst rebounds bound up bound up [upadana], grasping, given over to going after, upkeep, getting involved, going after getting, fueling.
Downbound bound up, the rebound is being bound up in existence [bhava], also > behavior, becoming, living as some form of being in some place of being.
Downbound existence rebounds bound up in birth [jati]: born this, burning this, and to jump > jete > jet.
Downbound birth rebounds bound up in [jaramarana]
aging, sickness and death
grief and lamentation
pain and misery, and
despair.
And the reverse is true:
Cut down blindness cuts down own-making
cut down own-making cuts down consciousness
cut down consciousness cuts down named form
cut down named form cuts down the six-fold-sense-realm
cut down the six-fold sense realm cuts down contact
cut down contact cuts down sensation
cut down sensation cuts down hunger and thirst
cut down hunger and thirst cuts down being bound up
cut down being bound up cuts down existing
cut down existing cuts down birth
cut down birth cuts down jaramarana,
aging, sickness and death
grief and lamentation
pain and misery, and
despair.
A great deal of confusion has resulted from the attempt to force this formula into the idea of "cause and effect". At one point I made a chart of who it was that was ultimately responsible for me knowing who. I found that 99% of the people I knew depended upon my first having met a certain friend at college, in turn, my going to this college depended upon my uncle, in turn knowing my uncle depended upon my having had a particular person as my mother, a particular person as my father. That sort of dependent association is what is intended here, not cause and effect.
And this is how it is to be understood in the "backwards-up" manner. Put in the form of questions and answers which is the way it is often found in the suttas:
Could there be any aging, sickness, death; grief and lamentation; pain and misery; and despair if there were no birth of any sort, by any sort of being in any sort of realm of being?
No, there could not be any aging, sickness, death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery and despair if there were no birth of any sort by any being in any realm of being.
Therefore aging, sickness, death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery and despair arise in dependence on birth.
Could there be any birth of any sort, by any sort of being in any sort of realm of being, if there were no living of any kind by any kind of being in any sort of realm of being?
No, there could not be any birth, by any being, in any realm of being, if there were no existing of any kind by any kind of being in any realm of being.
Therefore birth arises in dependance on existing.
Could there be any existing of any kind by any kind of being in any sort of realm of being if there were no "Going after getting existence" by any kind of being in any sort of realm of being?
No, there could not be any existing of any kind by any being in any realm of being if there were no "going after getting existence" by any being in any realm of being.
Therefore existence arises in dependance on going after getting.
Could there be any going after getting if there were no wanting to get?
No, there could be no going after getting if there were no wanting.
Therefore going after getting arises in dependance on wanting.
- - - -side trip- - - -
Do you recognize that insofar as we have spoken of existence as "Any kind of being in any realm of being," as being a condition which must be eliminated in order to eliminate aging, sickness and death; grief and lamentation; pain and misery; and despair, that what we have said is that existence as any kind of being in any realm of being is in essence and outcome, simply pain?
Do you recognize this as The First Truth?
Do you recognize that what has been said here is that aging, sickness and death; grief and lamentation; pain and misery; and despair arise in dependence on wanting?
Do you recognize this as The Second Truth?
- - - -end side trip- - - -
Could there be any kind of wanting (wanting to get pleasure, wanting to end pain, wanting to exist, wanting to live again, wanting to end existence) if there were no experience of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain at any one of the six organs of sense?
No, there could not be any kind of wanting if there were no experience of sensations of pleasure, pain or neither pleasure nor pain at any one (or more) of the six organs of sense.
Therefore wanting arises in dependance on sensation.
Could there be any experience of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain at any of the six organs of sense if there were no contact of any kind by any organ of sense with any object of sense?
No, there could not be any experience of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain at any of the six sense organs if there were no contact by any organ with any object.
Therefore sensation arises in dependance on contact.
Could there be any contact of any organ of sense with any object of sense if there were no sense organs?
No, there could not be any contact of any organ of sense with any object of sense if there were no sense organs.
Therefore contact arises in dependance on the sixfold realm of the senses.
Could the sixfold realm of the senses exist without named form? [Named Form because what is being described is the identification or naming of a form. Without a form there is no name, without a name a form has no identification].
No, the sixfold realm of the senses could not exist without named forms.
Therefore the Sixfold Realm of the Senses arises in dependance on Named Form.
Could there be any named forms without consciousness (awareness of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, touching, and ideas)?
No, there could not be any named forms of any sort whatsoever if there were no consciousness.
Therefore named form arise in dependance on consciousness.
Could there be any arising of consciousness of experience through the senses if there were no identification (implanting of "self" awareness by way of the intent to create experience for the self) with the doing of acts of mind, word-thought-and-speech, or body?
Remember: consciousness is not the self. The self does not possess consciousness. The self is not in consciousness. Consciousness is not an aspect of self. The self is not a consciousness that continues from one life to the next. Self-consciousness arises as a result of conditions. An individual, with belief in self, conscious, with desire, acting on that desire with the mind by wishing or willing or intending, through word-thought-and speech, or with bodily actions, thinking "I will be...or I will get" puts together by such acts the named forms and consciousness that results in awareness (consciousness as an individuality) of sense experience in the future conjoined with the idea of "me" or "my".
No, there could not be any arising of individualized consciousness of experience through the senses if there were no identification with doing acts of mind, word-thought-and speech, or body.
Therefore individualized consciousness arises in dependance on own-making, personalization, confounding, identification.
Could there be any arising of own-making of any sort whatsoever if it were not for blindness by individuals as to the correctness of this formula and it's implications?
No, there could be no arising of own-making of any sort whatsoever if it were not for blindness by individuals as to the outcome.
Therefore own-making arises in dependance on blindness.
Therefore this is the ending of aging and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery, and despair, that is, ending blindness.
- - - -side trip- - - -
This is The Third Truth.
- - - -end side trip- - - -
And this is the Way:
Knowing and Seeing and behaving in accordance with the idea that:
This is Pain [Dukkha]: Birth, aging, sickness and death; grief and lamentation, pain and misery, and despair; not getting what is wished for; in a word, the five bound-up stockpiled piles of Dukkha.
This is the Origin of Pain: That wanting which is connected with living, connected to delight and attachment: that is: wanting sense experience; wanting to live; wanting to live again or wanting to end living.
This is the Ending of Pain: The stopping of that wanting which is connected with living is the ending of Pain.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Detachment
This is Aging and Death [jaramarana]: Old Age, aging, decrepitude, broken teeth, graying hair, wrinkly skin, the dwindling of the life-span, the collapse of the sense organs, the fading, fading away, the dropping from this existence of this or that being in this or that class of beings.
This is the Origin of Aging and Death: Birth is the Origin of Aging and Death.
This is the ending of Aging and Death: The ending of Birth is the stopping of Aging and Death
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment
This is Birth [jati]: conception, birth, production, appearance, descent into living, coming out, of this or that being in this or that realm of being.
This is the Origin of Birth: Existing is the origin of birth.
This is the ending of birth: The ending of existing is the ending of Birth.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment
This is existing [bhava]: There are these three forms of existing (for these in greater detail see Lesson Nine).
[1] Existence characterized by focus on living in the senses.
[2] Existence in the rūpa-jhāna-spheres characterized by form, rather than by desires.
[3] Existence in the arūpa-jhānaspheres characterized by focus on the mental only.
This is the Origin of existing: Getting Bound Up in, Grasping (going after getting).
This is the ending of existing: Letting go of getting bound up.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment
This is getting bound up, grasping (going after getting) [upadana]:
[1] getting bound up in sense-experience,
[2] getting bound up in points of view;
[3] getting bound up in rites and rituals;
[4] getting bound up in the self.
This is the origin of getting bound up: hunger and thirst. Wanting is the origin of getting bound up.
This is the ending of getting bound up: Getting rid of, letting go of hunger and thirst, wanting, is the ending of getting bound up.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment
This is hunger and thirst, Wanting [taṇhā,]: hunger and thirst for seeing visible objects, hearing sounds, smelling scents, tasting tastes, anna toucha evera Eve ana Anna ana Nanna ana Vanna ana onan ona fo Eva, and thinking about it after (anyone actually read this far? My apologies. This comes from the way I learned this material ... i.e., this is the "way I heard it"; but for the purists: touching objects, and thinking about ideas.)
This is Origin of hunger and thirst: sensation is the origin of hunger and thirst.
This is the ending of hunger and thirst: Ending sensation is the end to hunger and thirst.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is sensation [vedana]: The pleasant, unpleasant, or neither-pleasant-nor-unpleasant sensations that arise from the contact of eye and visible object; ear and sound; nose and scent; tongue and taste; body and touches; the mind and mental objects.
This is the origin of sensation: touch, contact, is the origin of sensation.
This is the Ending of sensation: ending touch, contact, is the end to sensation.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is touch, contact [phassa]: contact of eye with visible object; contact of ear with sound; contact of nose with scent; contact of tongue with taste; contact of body with touch; contact of mind with idea (this doesn't let most of you off, by the way, just because you never indulge in actually using your minds; ideas are not your own and come from without and are at the root of all your activities).
This is the origin of touch: the six-fold realm of the senses is the origin of touch.
This is the ending of touch: the ending of the six-fold realm of the senses is the ending of touch:
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is the six-fold realm of the senses [salayatana]: the eye and sight; the ear and sound; the nose and scents; the tongue and tastes; the body and touch; the mind and ideas.
This is the origin of the six-fold realm of the senses: named form is the origin of the six-fold realm of the senses.
This is the ending of the six-fold realm of the senses: the ending of named form is the ending of the six-fold realm of the senses.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is named form [nāma/rūpa], (nomen)name/(phe)face, named form:
sensation, perception, intent, touch, investigation are considered nama;
pathavi, apo, tejo and vayo (earth, water, firelight, and wind) and that which is confounded from them are considered rupa.
This is the origin of named form: consciousness is the origin of named form.
This is the ending of named form: ending consciousness is the ending of named form.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is consciousness [viññāṇa]: vi > two fingers > 2: re; na > "no", the single most-heard word of any human being during the first year of life. > know > ñāṇa > to know knowledge; Re-knowing-knowledge; awareness of knowing, consciousness, re-cognition.
Don't try to get scientific about this word in the sense that western philosophers get scientific about trying to figure out what consciousness is, where it occurs in the brain, and so forth. This is a word that was invented by men for the phenomena they recognized in themselves of being aware of things: awareness of seeing, awareness of hearing, awareness of smelling, awareness of tasting, awareness of touch, awareness of thought.
This is the origin of consciousness: identification with/own-making of the outcomes of deeds of mind, speech and body.
This is the ending of consciousness: the ending of identification, the with/own-making of the outcomes of deeds of mind, speech, and body.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is own-making [saṅkhara] san = one's own; kha = shit; ara = all around: Identification with and own-making of deeds of mind, speech, and body.
This is the origin of own-making: blindness is the origin of own-making.
This is the ending of own-making: ending blindness is the ending of own-making.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
This is blindness [avijja] a = no; vijja = vision): not seeing pain, not seeing the origin of pain, not seeing the ending of pain, not seeing the way to the ending of pain.
This is the origin of blindness: The corrupting influences (āsavas) are the origin of blindness.
This is the ending of blindness: the ending of the corrupting influences is the ending of blindness.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
These are the corruptions:
[1] Wanting
[2] Existing
[3] Blindness
This is the origin of the corrupting influences: blindness is the origin of the corruptions.
This is the ending of the corrupting influences: ending blindness is the ending of the corruptions.
This is the Way: Consummate View; Consummate Principles; Consummate Talk; Consummate Works; Consummate Lifestyle; Consummate Self-Control; Consummate Mind; Consummate Serenity; Consummate Vision; and Consummate Objective Detachment.
Remember "... though the outward form of him who has won the truth stands before you, that which binds it to rebirth has been cut in twain. So long as his body shall last, so long do gods and men behold him. On the dissolution of the body, beyond the end of his life, neither gods nor men shall see him".
Well, don't despair!
"He who sees The Four Truths, Beggars, sees Downbound Confounded Rebounding Conjuration.
He who sees Downbound Confounded Rebounding Conjuration sees Dhamma.
He who sees Dhamma, sees Me (The Buddha)."[1]
10. Sammā Upekkha: Consummate Objective Detachment
So seeing, with your settled-down heart pure all round, clean all round, unspotted, shut off from the stench, grown soft and workable, steadfast, unshakably fixed;
having emerged from the burning known as the ending of perception and sensation, reflect:
"All those higher mental states which I have achieved to this point were own-made in mind, made up from parts, reached by abandoning the states that went before, and so were subject to ending. But this realm of the ending of sensation-perception is also own-made in mind, made up of parts, reached by abandoning the states that went before, and so is also subject to ending. But if I were to go on confounding mental states beyond this, those states too would be own-made, and I might well end up more bound up than before. How about if I were to abandon this own-making of mental states?"
And with that,
abandoning the further own-making of mental states,
utterly and completely detached from everything conceivable whatsoever,
awake to the uttermost freedom of mind,
and in freedom seeing freedom,
know "I am free"
and know:
"Left behind is rebirth.
Lived is the best of lives.
Done is duty's doing.
No further hither and further.
No more it'n-n-at'n for me."
In the same way as if
high in some mountain crag,
there were a pool of deep, clear, calm, transparent water,
and a man, standing at the edge,
who had eyes in his head that could see,
could see in that pool,
sand and pebbles and empty shells and
small rocks and large boulders,
and schools of small fish
and now and again
some large fish moving around.
He would know:
"This is a pool of deep, clear, calm, transparent water,
and I can see in that pool
sand and pebbles and empty shells and
small rocks and large boulders,
and schools of small fish
and now and again
some large fish moving around."
And, beggars, a sight higher and sweeter than this there is not.
— DN 2 § 97
3,
2,
1,
[SNAP FINGERS]
[HERE ENDS THE PALI LINE]
[1]This statement is made based on a combination of three statements found in various places in the Nikayas:
Bhikkhu Thanissaro translation:
"Friends, just as the footprints of all legged animals are encompassed by the footprint of the elephant,
and the elephant's footprint is reckoned the foremost among them in terms of size;
in the same way, all skillful qualities are gathered under the four noble truths.
Under which four?
Under the noble truth of stress,
under the noble truth of the origination of stress,
under the noble truth of the cessation of stress,
and under the noble truth of the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress."
and:
"Whoever sees paṭicca samuppāda sees the Dhamma;
whoever sees the Dhamma sees paṭicca samuppāda."
Majjhima Nikaya #28: Maha-hatthipadopama Sutta [MN 28](Simile of the Great Elephant's Footprint) (see: ATI: The Great Elephant Footprint Simile, Bhk. Thanissaro, trans.)
plus:
"He who sees Dhamma sees me
he who sees me sees Dhamma."
— [SN 3.22.87] Samyutta Nikaya III: Khandhavagga I: Khandhasamyutta, iv: The Elders: 5: Vakkali.
[ The Gradual Course ] [ I. Nidana ] [ II.Dana — Giving ] [ II.Sila — Ethical Culture ] [ III. Jagarianuyoga — Self Discipline ] [ The Second Lesson ] [ The Third Lesson ] [ The Fourth Lesson ] [ The Fifth Lesson ] [ The Sixth Lesson ] [ The Seventh Lesson ] [ The Eighth Lesson ] [ TheGreatMastersSatisfactionPastures ] [ HighGetnHigh ] [ The 10th Question I ] [ The 10th Question II ]
