A Discourse on Dependent Origination

A Discourse onDependent Origination

Venerable Mahsi Saydaw

Translated byU Aye Maung

Buddha Ssannuggaha OrganizationMahsi Translation Commiee, Rangoon


Venerable Mahsi SaydawOf Burma

Translated byU Aye Maung

Edited byBhikkhu Pesala

First published by:Buddhassana Nuggaha OrganizationMarch 1982

Online Edition August 2013Published by:Association for Insight Meditation3 Clion WayAlpertonMiddlesex HA0 4PQ

Copyright 2013Bhikkhu Pesala

The Association for Insight Meditation was set up in September 1995 forthe purpose of organising insight meditation reeats in the Burmese adition.The Association also aims to publish books and booklets on SatipahnaVipassan meditation to promote understanding of the late Venerable MahsiSaydaws sle of teaching and practice.

If you would like information about the Associations other publicationsor reeats please contact Bhikkhu Pesala via the associations web site:www.aimwell.org.

iii

Editors ForewordThe late Venerable Mahsi Saydaws discourse on Dependent Origination

was delivered in several sections to meditators practising intensively at hismeditation cene in Rangoon. The tapes were meticulously anscribed, thenanslated into English by U Aye Maung. His anslation was rst publishedin March 1982, and reprinted in Penang in 1989.

This new edition has been prepared with the aim of making it moreaccessible by removing Pi words wherever possible, and by simpliingthe English. Although many changes have been made to the originalanslation, they are mostly grammatical ones. The main content of theVenerable Saydaws discourse has been carefully preserved, but it is nowmuch easier to read than it was. A lot of eort has also gone into improvingthe peseing and layout. I am indebted to Christine Fitzmaurice-Glendiningfor her help with the grammar. U Hla Kyaing, Barry Durrant and AndrewCrowe also made many helpful suggestions.

I have added a few footnotes and illusations to clari the text where Ithought it would be helpful. I have updated the index to help the readerlocate topics of particular interest more quickly. It also serves as a glossaryof the Pi terms used in this book.

This 2013 edition has been updated with bookmarks and cross-referencesfor convenient reading as a PDF le, while browsing online. Some minoreditions were made and some more footnotes were added.

As with all the Venerable Saydaws discourses, this teaching is not justfor the sake of academic knowledge. Although some theoretical knowledgeis very helpful for progress in meditation, the Saydaw sessed theimportance of gaining personal experience of the uths taught by the Buddhathrough the practice of insight meditation.

Only insight into the ue nature of ones own body and mind will putan end to the cycle of suering, and insight can come about only throughdeep concenation. Again, concenation is dependent on constant anduninterrupted mindfulness (sati), which requires sustained eort to observeall mental and physical phenomena. In short, one must practise insightmeditation systematically and arduously until nibbna is reached, which isthe only way to put an end to suering. Wishing or hoping is of lile usewhen it comes to the arousing of insight. Intellectual knowledge gained byreading books may be a help, but only if it inspires us to practise and gainpersonal experience of the Dhamma. If our knowledge remains at theintellectual level, and is not applied on the practical level, it will not lead to

iv Editors Foreword

insight. As the Docine of Dependent Origination teaches, if the conditionsare not present, the results cannot arise.

In the words of the Buddha, What should be done by a teacher for hisdisciples out of compassion has been done. There are roots of ees and empplaces. Meditate, monks, do not be remorseful later.

There are many meditation cenes and monasteries, reeats, andmeditation classes. Find a place near you that is conducive to the develop-ment of concenation and insight. It could be anywhere it doesnt haveto be a sacred place, just reasonably quiet and isolated. Learn the correctmethod om a meditation teacher, or om books if no suitable teacher isavailable. Then invest sucient time and eort to get some results.

Bhikkhu PesalaSeven Kings, LondonAugust 2013

v

ContentsEditors Foreword..............................................................................................iiiVenerable Mahsi Saydaw in 1982................................................................viii

Importance of the Doctrine.......................................................................................1Reections of the Bodhisaa..............................................................................1Beyond Reasoning and Speculation...................................................................3Dhamma is Only for the Wise............................................................................3Dhamma is Profound.........................................................................................4What is Ignorance?..............................................................................................6

Ignorance of the Origin of Suering...........................................................8Ignorance of the Cessation of Suering and the Path.................................9

Right View........................................................................................................10

From Ignorance, Mental Formations Arise.............................................................12Unwholesome Kamma.....................................................................................13Rejection of Good Kamma Means Bad Kamma...............................................16Ignorance and Illusion......................................................................................16

From Mental Formations, Consciousness Arises....................................................21How Mental Formations Lead to Rebirth........................................................22Eternalism and Annihilationism......................................................................23Deathbed Visions..............................................................................................26

The Story of Mahdhammika....................................................................27

From Consciousness, Mind and Matter Arises.......................................................31Spontaneous Rebirth........................................................................................33Sasedaja Beings..............................................................................................34Active-consciousness........................................................................................34

Active-consciousness of the Mind-door.....................................................37Follow-Up Active-consciousness...............................................................38

Consciousness and Mental Properties..............................................................38Summary of Process of Rebirth.................................................................39The Story of Venerable Cakkhupla...........................................................42The Elders Verdict......................................................................................43Pure Thought and Happiness....................................................................44

From Mind and Matter, the Six Sense-Bases Arise......................................................47Materiali and Sense-bases..............................................................................47All Phenomena Are the Eects of Causes.........................................................48The Buddhas High Regard for Practice............................................................51The Absuseness of the Docine.....................................................................53

vi Contents

From the Six Sense-Bases, Contact Arises...............................................................56The Nature of Contact.......................................................................................56

The Mudulakkhaa Jtaka.........................................................................56

From Contact, Feeling Arises..................................................................................59Freedom om Doubt........................................................................................59The Origin of Rebirth-consciousness................................................................61Auditory Consciousness...................................................................................62Neual Feeling.................................................................................................64Tactile Consciousness........................................................................................66The Four Primary Elements..............................................................................66Mind-door and Consciousness.........................................................................71Review of the Anterior Life-Cycle....................................................................74

From Feeling, Craving Arises..................................................................................76Craving and the Cycle of Existence..................................................................77The Extinction of Craving.................................................................................78

The Story of Venerable Mahtissa..............................................................79The Story of a Parrot..................................................................................80Contemplation and Extinction...................................................................80Cuing O at the Foundation...................................................................81

Delements and Unmindfulness......................................................................82Thoughts and Tactile Impressions.............................................................83Three Kinds of Craving..............................................................................84

From Craving, Attachment Arises..........................................................................85Aachment to Sensual Pleasures......................................................................85Aachment to Wrong Views.............................................................................86Aachment to Rituals.......................................................................................91

The Story of Korakhaiya..........................................................................92Aachment to Belief in the Soul.......................................................................94

From Attachment, Becoming Arises.......................................................................96The Story of Meaka................................................................................97Puppharaa Jtaka....................................................................................98Right and Wrong Good Intentions............................................................98

From Becoming, Birth Arises.................................................................................100Four Kinds of Kamma....................................................................................100

The Story of Ajtasau.............................................................................101Habitual and Death-Proximate Kamma..................................................102

From Birth, Aging, Death, Grief, etc., Arise..........................................................104The Story of Subrahma.............................................................................106

Contents vii

Excessive Aachment..............................................................................107

Attachment to Views as the Cause of Rebirth........................................................108Superstition and Unfavourable Rebirth.........................................................108Fanaticism or Religious Aachment..............................................................111Aachment to Rituals......................................................................................112Aachment to Belief in the Soul......................................................................112

The Story of the Householder Ugga.........................................................114Insight Meditation and Aachment...............................................................115

The Three Periods in the Cycle of Existence..........................................................117Distinction Between Mental Formations and Becoming................................117Knowledge for Insight Practice......................................................................118Present Eects Due to Past Causes.................................................................118The Arahants Outlook on Life........................................................................120Removing the Present Causes........................................................................120Not Annihilation but Extinction of Suering.................................................121

The Story of Venerable Yamaka................................................................121The Famous Saying of Bhikkhu Vajir..................................................122

Other Aspects of Dependent Origination..............................................................124Three Cycles....................................................................................................124

Four Points to Bear in Mind.....................................................................125The Wrong View of Venerable Sti...........................................................125Distinctive Character of Each Phenomenon............................................126Absence of Siving...................................................................................127Relationship of Cause to Eect................................................................127

The Attribute of Araha........................................................................................129Cuing O the Cycle of Delements.............................................................130The Aibutes of the Buddha..........................................................................130

The Story of Baka Brahm........................................................................131Sammsambuddha..................................................................................132The Fame of the Buddha..........................................................................133The Four Noble Truths in Brief................................................................133Sammsambuddha and Buddhahood.....................................................134

A Summary of Dependent Origination..................................................................136Index...............................................................................................................139Index of Proper Names...................................................................................143

The Mahsi Saydaws Publications......................................................................144

Venerable Mahsi Saydaw in 1982

1


Importance of the Doctrine

THE docine of Dependent Origination (Paiccasamuppda) is cenal toBuddhism. While the Bodhisaa was reecting deeply on the natureof existence, he realised the uth about Dependent Origination, andaained enlightenment. Before he became the Buddha in his nal existence,he pondered aging and death as did every other Bodhisaa. For it wasonly aer he had seen the misery of aging, disease, and death that herenounced the world in search of the deathless.

All living beings want to avoid these misfortunes but they cannot escape.These misfortunes pursue them relentlessly om one existence to the nextin a perpetual process of birth, aging, and death. For example, the fate ofchickens and ducks is terrible. Some are eaten while still in the eggs. Evenif they hatch, they live for just a few weeks, and are killed as soon as theyput on sucient weight. They are born only to be killed for humanconsumption. If it is the fate of living beings to be repeatedly killed like this,then it is a very gloomy and ightful prospect. Nevertheless, chickens andducks seem content with their lot in life. They apparently enjoy life quacking, crowing, eating, and ghting with one another. They may thinkthat they have plen of time to enjoy life, though in fact they may live forjust a few days or months.

The span of human life is not very long either. For someone in their iesor sixties their youth may seem as recent as yesterday. Six or seven yearson earth is a day in the life of a deva. The life of a deva is also very brief inthe eyes of a Brahm, who may live for the duration of the world system.However, even the lifespan of a Brahm, who outlives hundreds of worlds,is insignicant compared to eterni. Celestial beings, too, eventually haveto die. Although they are not subject to disease and marked senili, age tellson them imperceptibly in due course.

Reections of the BodhisaaReecting on the cause of aging, the Bodhisaa aced back the chain of

Dependent Origination om the end to the beginning. He found that aging(jar) and death (maraa) have their origin in birth (jti), which in turn isdue to becoming (bhava). Becoming stems om aachment (updna), which

2 Importance of the Docine

is caused by craving (tah). Craving arises om the feeling (vedan) producedby contact (phassa), which in turn depends on the six sense-bases (sayatana)such as the eye and visual form. Sense-bases are the product of mind andmaer (nmarpa), which depend on consciousness (via). Consciousnessis, in turn, dependent on mind and maer (nmarpa). The full Pi texts onDependent Origination aibute consciousness to mental formations(sakhr), and mental formations to ignorance (avijj). However, theBodhisaas reection was conned to the interdependence of mind andmaer. In other words, he reected on the correlation between consciousnessand mind and maer, leaving out of account the formers relationship to pastexistence. We may assume, therefore, that for meditators, reection on thepresent life will suce for the successful development of insight.

Concerning the correlation between consciousness, and mind and maer,the Bodhisaa reasoned, This consciousness has no cause other than mindand maer. Mind and maer produce consciousness, and consciousnessarises om mind and maer. So, om the correlation between consciousness,and mind and maer, birth, aging, and death arise there may be successivebirths or successive deaths. Moreover, consciousness causes mind and maer,and mind and maer give rise to the six sense-bases. Dependent on thesense-bases contact arises, contact leads to feeling, feeling gives rise to craving,which develops into aachment, and aachment results in rebirth. This, inturn, leads to aging, death, anxie, grief, and other kinds of mental andphysical suering.

Then the Bodhisaa reected on the reverse order of DependentOrigination. Without consciousness, mind and maer could not arise;without mind and maer, the sense-bases could not arise; and so on. Breakingthe rst link in the chain of causation eradicates the suering that hasconstantly beset us throughout sasra. Aer this reection on DependentOrigination in its forward and reverse orders, the Bodhisaa contemplatedthe nature of the aggregates of aachment. Then he aained the successiveinsights and uition on the Noble Path, and nally became a fully enlightenedBuddha. Every Bodhisaa aains supreme enlightenment aer suchcontemplation. They are not taught how to practise, but because of theirperfections (pram) accumulated through innumerable lifetimes, they cancontemplate in this way and so aain enlightenment.

Dhamma is Only for the Wise 3

Beyond Reasoning and SpeculationWhen the Buddha was rst considering whether or not to teach, he

thought, This uth that I have realised is very profound. Though it issublime and conducive to inner peace, it is hard to understand. Since it issubtle and not accessible to mere intellect and logic, it can be realised onlyby the wise. Great thinkers om all cultures have thought deeply abouteedom om the misery of aging, disease, and death, but such eedomwould mean nibbna, which is beyond the scope of reason and intellect. Itcan be realised only by practising the right method of insight meditation.Most great thinkers have relied on intellect and logical reasoning to conceivevarious principles for the well-being of humani. As these principles arebased on speculations, they do not help anyone to aain insight, let alonethe supreme goal of nibbna. Even the lowest stage of insight, namely,analytical knowledge of body and mind (nmarpa-pariccheda-a), cannotbe realised intellectually. This insight dawns only when one observes themental and physical process using the systematic method of seing upmindfulness (satipahna), and when, with the development of concenation,one distinguishes between mental and physical phenomena for example,between the desire to bend the hand and the bent hand, or between the soundand the hearing. Such knowledge is not vague and speculative, but vividand empirical.

The Pi texts say that mind and maer are constantly changing, and thatwe should observe their arising and passing away. However, for the beginnerin meditation, this is easier said than done. One has to exert senuous eortto overcome mental hindrances (nvaraa). Even eedom om such hin-drances only helps one to distinguish between mind and maer; it does notensure insight into the process of their arising and passing away. This insightis aained only on the basis of song concenation and keen perceptiondeveloped through the practice of mindfulness. Constant mindfulness of thearising and passing away of phenomena leads to insight into their character-istics of impermanence (anicca), unsatisfactoriness (dukkha), and not-self(anaa). However, this is merely a lower stage of insight, which is still farom the Path and its Fruition. So, the Dhamma is described as somethingbeyond logic and intellect.

Dhamma is Only for the WiseThe Dhamma is subtle (nipuo) and can be realised only by the wise

(paitavedanyo). Here the wise refers to those who have wisdom relating


to insight, the Path, and nibbna. The Dhamma has nothing to do with thesecular knowledge possessed by world philosophers, religious leaders,writers or great scientists. However, anyone can realise it if they contemplatemental and physical phenomena at the moment they arise. If they passprogressively through the stages of insight, they will aain the Noble Pathand its Fruition.

When the Buddha considered the nature of living beings, he found thatmost were immersed in sensual pleasures. Of course, there were a fewexceptions like his ve former companions in the forest reeat, or the twobrahmins who were later to become the chief disciples of the Buddha. Mostpeople, however, regard the enjoyment of pleasure as the supreme goal inlife. Ordinary men and devas esteem such pleasure because they have nosense of the higher values, such as deep concenation, insight, and nibbna.They are like children who delight in playing with their toys the whole day.Sensual pleasures do not appeal to Buddhas and Arahants. A person whodelights in sensuali may be compared to villagers living in a remote ruralarea. To ci-dwellers these places seem totally destitute, with poor food,coarse clothing, primitive dwellings, and muddy footpaths, but the villagersare happy, and never think of leaving. Similarly, pleasure-seekers are soenamoured with their families, iends, and possessions that they cannotthink of anything more noble and feel ill at ease without the stimulus of senseobjects. It is hard for them to appreciate the subtle, profound docine ofDependent Origination, and nibbna.

Dhamma is ProfoundThe Buddhas teaching has lile aaction for the majori since it is

diameically opposed to sensuali. Even an ordinary sermon, let alone adiscourse on nibbna, is unpopular if it has no sensual appeal. People donot seem to be interested in our teaching, and no wonder, for it lacksmelodious recitation, anecdotes, jokes, and similar aactions. It is acceptableonly to those who have practised meditation or who are earnestly seekingspiritual peace and eedom om the delements (kilesa). It is a mistake todeprecate the suas by confusing them with talks containing stories andjokes. Discourses such as the Anaalakkhaa Sua and the SatipahnaSua dier om popular sermons in that they are profound. The docineof Dependent Origination belongs to the Sua Piaka, but it can be classiedas Abhidhamma because it is explained in the analytical way pical of theAbhidhamma Piaka. Since this teaching also uses the analytical method,

Dhamma is Profound 5

some people confuse it with the Abhidhamma and cannot follow it, muchless aain the Path and nibbna, which it emphasises. Dependent Originationis hard to comprehend because it concerns the correlation between causesand eects. Before the Buddha proclaimed this teaching, it was dicult tounderstand that no self exists independently of the law of causation.

The Commentaries also point out the absuse character of the docine.According to them, four subjects are very profound: the Four Noble Truths,the nature of a living being, the nature of rebirth, and Dependent Origination.

First, it is hard to accept the uths about suering, its cause, its cessation,and the way to its cessation. Appreciating these uths is hard enough; it isstill harder to teach them to other people. Secondly, it is hard to understandthat a living being is just a psychophysical process without any abiding self,and that this process is subject to the law of kamma, which determines onesfuture according to ones actions. Thirdly, it is hard to see how rebirth takesplace because of delements and kamma, without the ansfer of mind andmaer om a previous life. Lastly, Dependent Origination is hard tocomprehend fully, because it embraces the above three absuse teachings.Its forward order concerns the rst two noble uths, the nature of a livingbeing and rebirth, while its reverse order encompasses the other two uths.So the docine is very dicult to grasp or to teach. Explaining it to one whohas aained the Path and nibbna, or to one who has studied the Tipiaka,may be easy. However, it will not mean much to someone who has neitherinsight nor scriptural knowledge.

The writer of the Commentary on Dependent Origination was qualiedto explain it because he had perhaps aained the lower stages of the Path.At least, he must have had a thorough knowledge of the Tipiaka. He probablysessed its profundi so that it might be studied more seriously, comparinghis dicul in explaining it to the plight of a man who has jumped into theocean and cannot touch the boom. He says that he wrote the exegesis basedon the Tipiaka and the old Commentaries handed down by oral adition.The same may be said of my teaching. Since the docine is hard to explain,one should pay special aention to it. If one follows the teaching supercially,one will understand nothing, and without a reasonable knowledge of thedocine one is bound to suer in many existences.

The substance of the teaching is as follows: Dependent on ignorance(avijj) mental formations (sakhr) arise. From mental-formations rebirth-consciousness (via) arises. Consciousness gives rise to mind and maer(nmarpa). From mind and maer, the six sense-bases (sayatana) arise.


From the six sense-bases, contact (phassa) arises. Contact causes feeling(vedan), feeling leads to craving (tah), and om craving, aachment(updna) results. Aachment produces becoming (bhava), and om becomingbirth (jti) arises. Finally, birth leads to aging (jar), death (maraa), grief(soka), lamentation (parideva), pain (dukkha), sorrow (domanassa), and despair(upysa). In this way the whole mass of suering arises.

What is Ignorance?According to the Buddha, avijj is ignorance of the Four Noble Truths:

the uths about suering, its cause, its cessation and the way to its cessation.In a positive sense avijj implies misconception or illusion. It makes us takewhat is false and illusory as ue and real. We are led asay, and so avijj issometimes called ignorance regarding the way of practice. In this sense itdiers om ordinary ignorance. If someone does not know the name of aman or a village, it does not necessarily mean that they are deluded, whereasbeing ignorant of Dependent Origination means more than merely notknowing. Avijj is more like the delusion of a person who has lost all senseof direction and so thinks that east is west or that north is south. The personwho does not understand the uth of suering has an optimistic view of life,although life is full of pain and sorrow (dukkha). It is a mistake to search forthe uth of suering in books as it is to be found in ones own body and mind.Seeing, hearing, and all other psychophysical phenomena arising om thesix senses are unsatisfactory because they are impermanent (anicca), unreliable(aniyata), and do not comply with ones wishes (ana). Life may end at anymoment and so it is full of pain and suering. However, this dukkha cannotbe realised by those who regard existence as blissful and satising. Theireorts to secure what they believe are pleasant sense-objects, such as beautifulsights, melodious sounds, delicious food and so forth, are due to theirillusions about life. This ignorance is like the green eyeglass that makes ahorse eat dry grass. Similarly, living beings are immersed in sensuali becausethey see everything through rose-tinted glasses, harbouring illusions aboutthe pleasant nature of sense-objects, and about mind and maer.

A blind man could easily be deceived by a condence ickster who oeredhim a worthless garment, saying that it was an expensive one. The blind manwould believe him and would like the garment very much. However, if herecovered his sight, he would be disillusioned and would throw it away at

The term dukkha covers all that is dicult to bear. Unsatisfactoriness is usedas the anslation in most places. (Editors note)

What is Ignorance? 7

once. In the same way, an ignorant person enjoys life as long as he or she isoblivious to impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and not-self, but becomesdisenchanted when insight reveals the odious nature of existence.

Inospection of mind and maer, or insight meditation, is dierent omacademic knowledge. Insight meditation means thoroughly observing andceaselessly contemplating all the psychophysical phenomena that comprisethe sense-objects and sense-consciousness. As concenation develops, onerealises how all phenomena arise and instantly vanish, which leads to a fullunderstanding of their nature. Delusion blinds us to reali only because weare unmindful. Unmindfulness leads us to believe in the illusions of a man,a woman, a hand, a leg, etc., in the conventional sense. We do not know thatseeing, for instance, is merely a psychophysical process that arises andvanishes, and that it is impermanent, unsatisfactory, and not-self. Since mostpeople do not meditate, they die without knowing anything about mind andmaer. The ue nature of the psychophysical process can be realised onlyby a mindful person. However, this insight does not occur initially whenconcenation is undeveloped. Delusion, which is the usual state of mind,precedes contemplation so the beginner does not gain a clear insight intomind and maer. It is only through steadfast practice that concenation andperception develop and lead to insight knowledge. If, for example, whilepractising mindfulness, one feels an itch, one is barely aware of being itchy.One does not think that it is the hand, the leg, or any other part of the bodythat is itchy. The thought I feel itchy, regarding oneself as the victim ofitchiness, does not occur. Only the continuous sensation of itchiness is known.This sensation does not remain permanently, but passes away as soon as onenotes it. The observing mind promptly notes every phenomenon as it occurs,leaving no room for the illusion of hand, leg, and so forth.

Delusion dominates the unmindful person blinding him or her to theunsatisfactoriness of all sense-objects, concealing pain behind pleasure. Avijjmeans both ignorance of the uth and the misconception that distorts reali.Since they do not know the uth of suering, people seek pleasant sense-objects. Thus ignorance leads to eort and karmic activi (sakhr). Accordingto the scriptures, mental formations arise because of ignorance, but betweenthem there are the two links of craving and aachment. Ignorance leads tocraving, which develops into aachment. Craving and aachment stem omthe desire for pleasure and are explicitly mentioned in the middle part of thedocine of Dependent Origination. When the past is fully described, ignorance,craving, aachment, kamma, and mental formations are all included.


Ignorance of the Origin of SueringPeople do not know that craving is the cause of suering. On the conary,

they believe that aachment makes them happy, that without aachmentlife would be dreary. So they constantly seek pleasant sense-objects: food,clothing, companions, and so forth. Without these objects of aachment theyfeel ill at ease, and nd life dull. For ordinary people, life without aachmentwould be wholly without enjoyment. It is craving that conceals theunpleasantness of life and makes it seem agreeable, but for the Arahant, whohas eradicated craving, indulgence is impossible. He is always bent onnibbna, the cessation of suering.

Craving cannot exert much pressure on meditators when they becomeabsorbed in the practice, so some do not enjoy life as much as they did before.On returning om the reeat they grow bored at home and feel ill at easein the company of their families. To other people, meditators may seemconceited, but in fact their behaviour is a sign that they have lost interest inthe everyday world. However, if they cannot overcome sensual desire, thisboredom is temporary and they usually re-adjust to domestic life in duecourse. Their families need not worry over this mood or behaviour for it ishard to become thoroughly disenchanted with household life. Meditatorsshould check to see just how much they are disenchanted with life. If thedesire for pleasure lingers, they are still in the grip of craving.

Without craving, people feel discomted. In association with ignorance,craving blinds them to suering and creates the illusion of happiness. Sothey antically seek sources of pleasure. Consider, for example, peoplesfondness for lms and plays. These entertainments cost time and moneybut craving makes them irresistible, although they seem oublesome to onewho has no interest in them. A more obvious example is smoking. Thesmoker enjoys inhaling the tobacco smoke, but to the non-smoker it is a kindof self-inicted suering. Non-smokers are ee om all the oubles thatbeset the smoker. They lead a relatively careee and happy life because theydo not crave for tobacco. Craving as the source of suering is also obviousin the habit of betel-chewing. Some people enjoy it, although it is aoublesome habit.

Like the smoker and the betel-chewer, people seek to grati their craving,and this eort is the basis of rebirth, which leads to aging, disease, and death.Suering, and craving as its cause, are evident in everyday life, but it is hardto accept these uths because they are profound. One cannot realise themthrough mere reection but only through the practice of insight meditation.

Ignorance of the Cessation of Suering and the Path 9

Ignorance of the Cessation of Suering and the PathAvijj also means ignorance of the cessation of suering and the Path

leading to it. These two uths are also profound. The uth of the cessation ofsuering (nirodhasacca) concerns nibbna, which can be realised only by theNoble Path. The uth of the Path (maggasacca) is known with certain onlyby the meditator who has aained nibbna. No wonder, then, that many peopleare ignorant of these uths. Ignorance of the end of suering is widespread,so world religions describe the supreme goal in diverse ways. Some say thatsuering will cease automatically in due course. Some regard sensual pleasureas the highest bliss and reject the idea of future life. This varie of beliefs isdue to ignorance of the real nibbna. Even among Buddhists some hold thatnibbna is a realm or sort of paradise, and many arguments are put forwardabout it. These various views show how hard it is to understand nibbna.

Nibbna is the total extinction of the incessant psychophysical processthat occurs because of conditions. So, according to Dependent Origination,ignorance, mental formations, etc., produce mind and maer and so forth.This causal process involves aging, death, and other misfortunes. If ignoranceis extinguished by the Noble Path, so are its eects. This complete extinctionof suering is nibbna. For example, a lamp that is refuelled will keep onburning, but if it is not refuelled the ame will go out. Likewise, for themeditator on the Noble Path who has aained nibbna, all the causes suchas ignorance have become extinct and so have all the eects such as rebirth.This means the total extinction of suering (nibbna), which one mustunderstand and appreciate before realising it.

The idea of nibbna does not appeal to those with a song craving forlife. To them, the cessation of the psychophysical process would mean nothingless than death. Nevertheless, intellectual acceptance of nibbna is necessarybecause aainment of the supreme goal depends upon ones wholeheartedand persistent eort.

Knowledge of the Path to the end of suering is also vital. Only a Buddhacan proclaim the right path; it is impossible for anyone else to do so, whetherthey are a deva, a Brahm, or a human being. Nevertheless, speculationsabout the right path abound. Some advocate ordinary morali such as love,aluism, patience or chari, while others sess the practice of mentalabsorption (jhna). All these practices are commendable, for they lead torelative well-being in the celestial realms and can be helpful to aain nibbna.They do not, however, ensure eedom om suering, for on their own theyare not sucient to aain nibbna.


Some resort to self-mortication such as fasting, nakedness, and so forth;while others worship deities or animals, or live like animals. From theBuddhist point of view all these are slabbataparmsa, which refers to anypractice not concerned with the Noble Eightfold Path.

The Noble Eightfold Path comprises right view, right thought, rightspeech, right action, right livelihood, right eort, right mindfulness, andright concenation. The path is of three kinds: the basic path, the preliminarypath, and the Noble Path. Of these, the Noble Path is the most vital. However,this path should not be the primary objective of the meditator nor does itrequire one to spend much time and energy on it. For when insight on thepreliminary path matures, insight on the Noble Path occurs for a thought-moment. Though it requires much time and eort to produce re by iction,ignition takes just a moment. Similarly, the insight on the Noble Path isinstantaneous but it presupposes much development of insight on thepreliminary path.

Right ViewVipassan is the insight that occurs at every moment of contemplation.

One who notes all psychophysical phenomena becomes aware of their uenature. Thus one focuses aention on the bending of ones arms or legs anddiscerns the elements of rigidi and motion. This means right viewconcerning the element of motion (vyodhtu). Lack of mindfulness will giverise to false perceptions like: It is a hand, It is a man, and so forth. Onlythe mindful meditator sees things as they really are. The same may be saidof right view regarding sensations in the body, e.g. heat or pain, and mentalactivities, e.g. imagination or intention. When the mind becomes steady andcalm, one nds that mental and physical phenomena arise and vanish, andso one gains insight into their ininsic nature. Right view implies rightthought and other associated states on the Path. Insight on the Path occursat every moment of contemplation. With the perfection of insight into thethree characteristics, one realises nibbna. So, if nibbna is to be realisedright now, the practice of insight meditation is essential. One who cannot yetpractise meditation should focus on the path that is the basis of insightpractice. This basic path means doing meritorious deeds motivated by thebelief in kamma. In other words, they should practise chari, morali, andmeditation with the aspiration to aain nibbna.

All the paths the basic, the preliminary, and the Noble Path form theeightfold path leading to nibbna. In particular, one must recognise the Noble

Right View 11

Path as the dhamma that is to be sought aer, cultivated, and revered. Suchan aitude is a prerequisite for senuous eort in meditation. One must fullyappreciate the value of insight meditation and know how to practise it.

Some people are ignorant of the way to nibbna. Furthermore, theybelile the nibbna-oriented meritorious deeds of others. Some deprecatethe teaching and practice of others though they themselves have neverpractised insight meditation eectively. Some criticise the right methodbecause they are aached to their own wrong method. All these people havemisconceptions about the right path. It is ignorance not to know that chari,morali, and meditation lead to nibbna and it is ignorance too, to regardthem as harmful to ones interests. The most harmful ignorance is ignoranceof, and illusion about, the right method of contemplation.

Ignorance of the right path is the most terrible form of ignorance. It makesits victims blind to meritorious deeds and creates illusions, preventing themom aaining even human happiness or divine bliss, let alone the NoblePath and nibbna. Yet most people remain steeped in ignorance, unmindfulof the need to devote themselves to chari, morali, and meditation.

12

From Ignorance, Mental Formations Arise

SENSUAL PLEASURE is the source of happiness for most people.Nibbna as the extinction of mind and maer is undesirable and theway to it appears arduous and painful. So people seek to grati theirdesire through bodily, verbal, and mental action. Some of these actions maybe ethical and others may be dishonest. Good people practise chari, morali,and meditation for their well-being aer death, while others resort to deceitor robbery to become rich.

A synonym for kamma is sakhr (mental formations). Mental formationsare of three pes: physical, vocal, and mental. Mental formations presupposevolition (cetan). The function of volition is to conceive, to urge or to incite.As such it is the basis of all wholesome and unwholesome actions such asalmsgiving or killing. The meditator knows its nature empirically throughcontemplation.

There is another threefold classication of mental formations: meritoriouskammas with favourable results (pubhisakhr), demeritorious kammaswith unfavourable results (apubhisakhr), and imperturbable kamma(nejbhisakhr) that leads to arpa-jhna (lit. immobile jhna). Rpa-jhnaand all the wholesome actions having karmic results in the sensual realmare classied as pubhisakhr. Pua literally means something thatcleanses or puries. Just as one washes the dirt o the body with soap, sowe have to rid ourselves of karmic impurities through chari, morali, andmeditation. These meritorious deeds are conducive to well-being andprosperi in the present life and aer death.

Another meaning of pua is the abili to full the desire of the doer.Meritorious deeds help to full various human desires, e.g. the desire forhealth, longevi, wealth, and so forth. If a meritorious deed is motivatedby the hope for nibbna, it leads to a life that is conducive to ones goal.Otherwise, it may ensure happiness and well-being until the end of oneslast existence. Abhisakhra is the eort to do something for ones ownwell-being. It has wholesome or unwholesome karmic results. Sopubhisakhra is a meritorious deed with a benecial karmic result. Inthe sensual sphere (kmvacara) there are eight pes of meritorious deedsand ve pes in the ne-material sphere (rpvacara). All these may besummarised as of three kinds: chari, morali, and meditation.

Giving chari gladly is done with a wholesome consciousness, whichis karmically very uitful. So the donor should rejoice before, during, andaer the act of giving. This kind of chari is said to be very eective. The

Unwholesome Kamma 13

donor may also give chari with indierence, but if the mind is clear the acthas high karmic potential. Any charitable act that is based on the belief inkamma is rational. It bears uit as rebirth with no predisposition to greed,ill-will, and delusion. An act of chari without recognition of its moral valueis wholesome but unintelligent. Thus it will lead to a rebirth with no greatintelligence. It may bear good karmic uit in everyday life but it does notmake the donor intelligent enough to aain the Path in the next life.

One person may do a meritorious deed without being prompted by others(asakhrika-kusala). Another may do so only when prompted (sasakhrika-kusala). Of these two kinds of meritorious deeds, the former is more uitfulthan the laer. When we multiply the four kinds of meritorious deeds bythese two aibutes, we have a total of eight pes of wholesome consciousnessin the sensual sphere. Whenever we do a meritorious deed, we are urged todo so by one of these wholesome states. When we practise meditation, wehave to begin with these eight pes of wholesome consciousness.

If it is samatha meditation, one can aain rpvacara-jhna whenconcenation is well-developed. Jhna means total concenation of the mindon an object of mental aining. Samatha jhna is concenation for bareanquilli. Jhnic concenation is like a ame burning in still air. Accordingto the Sua Piaka, the rpvacara jhna has four levels; according to theAbhidhamma it has ve levels. The ve ne-material wholesome pes ofconsciousness (rpakusala-cia) are associated with the ve jhnas. They areaccessible only through the practice of samatha that leads to jhna. Meritoriouskamma includes the eight wholesome pes of sense-sphere consciousnessand the ve jhnas.

Unwholesome KammaUnwholesome kamma is the opposite of wholesome kamma. These

immoral deeds lead to lower realms and misfortunes in human life such asugliness, inrmities, and so forth. The immoral pes of consciousness areof twelve kinds: eight rooted in greed (lobha), two rooted in ill-will (dosa),and two rooted in delusion (moha).

Those rooted in greed may be accompanied by wrong view or not. Theymay be joyful or indierent, and they may be prompted (sasakhrika) orunprompted (asakhrika). The combination of these three factors gives a totalof eight dierent pes of unwholesome consciousness rooted in greed. Everygreed-based kamma is motivated by one of these eight pes of consciousness.

14 From Ignorance, Mental Formations Arise

The pes of consciousness rooted in ill-will are of two kinds: unpromptedand prompted. Consciousness rooted in ill-will is the source of anger,dejection, fear, and disgust.

Doubt (vicikicch) and restlessness (uddhacca) are the two pes ofconsciousness rooted in delusion. Doubt means doubt about the Buddha,his teaching, his disciples, morali, concenation, a future life, and so forth.Restlessness refers to the wandering mind that is disacted. Unless resainedby meditation, the mind is seldom calm and usually wanders. However,unlike the other eleven unwholesome pes of consciousness, restlessnessdoes not lead to the lower realms. Even with a favourable rebirth, theunwholesome kammas usually have bad eects such as ill-health. Thesetwelve unwholesome kammas are called apubhisakhr.

Everywhere, people wish to be happy, so they sive to gain prosperiin the present life and aer death. However, it is usually greed and ill-willthat motivate their activities. Wholesome consciousness is conned to thosewho have wise iends, who have heard their teaching and who think rationally.

Some go morally asay, being misled by their selsh teacher. In thelifetime of the Buddha, a lay Buddhist abused virtuous monks. On his deathhe became a hungry ghost (peta) in the laine of the very same monasteryhe had donated to the Sagha. He told Venerable Moggallna about hismisdeed when the laer saw him with his divine eye. What a terrible fatefor a man who had materially supported the Sagha for his well-being inthe aerlife, but was misguided to the lower realm by his teacher. This showsthat the person whose company we seek should possess not only deepknowledge but also an honest character.

The mark of a virtuous person is abstinence om any act, speech orthought that is harmful to others. Those who keep company with wise iendsor virtuous bhikkhus have the opportuni to hear the genuine Dhamma. Ifthey think wisely, their reasoning will lead to moral actions, speech, andthoughts. On the other hand, corrupt teachers or iends, false teachings,and improper thoughts may lead to moral disaster. Some who at rst hadan unblemished character were later ruined by corrupt thoughts. They wereconvicted of the, robbery or misappropriation and their former goodreputation was irreparably damaged. All their suering had its origin in theillusion of happiness. Conary to their expectations, they found themselvesin ouble when it was too late. Some misdeeds do not produce immediatekarmic results but they ripen in due course and lead to suering. If reibutiondoes not follow the evildoer in this life, it overtakes him in the aerlife. Such

Unwholesome Kamma 15

was the fate of the donor who became a hungry ghost for his malicious words.His teacher who had misguided him fared worse aer his death. He occupieda place below his former pupil and had to live on his excreta. The karmicresult of his misdeed was ightful. He had commied it for his own endsbut it backred and he had to suer terribly for it.

Some native people make animal sacrices to gods for abundant harvest,health or safe. These primitive beliefs still prevail among some townspeople.Some people worship the Chief Nat as if he were the Buddha. Others killanimals to feed guests for religious almsgiving. Even some ignorantBuddhists have doubts about this practice. Whatever the aim of the donor,killing has bad karmic results and it is not a skilful deed despite the beliefof the killer to the conary.

A skilful deed bears the hallmark of moral puri. Killing or hurting livingbeings cannot be morally pure in any sense. The victims face death or endureill-eatment only because they cannot avoid it, and will surely retaliate if theycan. Victims oen pray for vengeance and so the killer is killed in the nextexistence or has to suer some other reibution for his or her misdeed. Manyinstances of the consequences of killing are found in the Buddhist scriptures.

Some long for human or celestial life and devote themselves to chari,morali, and meditation. Their meritorious deeds lead to well-being in futurelives and so full their wishes. However, every life is subject to aging anddeath, and human life is accompanied by ill-health and mental suering.Some crave for the Brahm realm and practise jhna. They may live happilyfor aeons as Brahms, but when life has run its course they will be reborn ashuman beings or devas. Any demeritorious deed that they then do may leadto the lower realms. So even the glory of the Brahm-life is an illusion.

The illusion of happiness is not conned to ordinary people. The illusion(vipallsa) and ignorance (avijj) that make suering seem like happinesslinger at the rst two stages of the Noble Path, and even the Non-returnerstill mistakenly regards the ne-material and immaterial realms as blissful.So meritorious deeds are the aim of the Noble Ones at the rst three stagesof the Path. However, ordinary people are beguiled by all four illusions, andthus they regard the impermanent as permanent, suering as happiness, theimpersonal as personal, and the unpleasant as pleasant. Because of thismisconception and ignorance, every bodily, verbal or mental action leads towholesome or unwholesome kamma. Wholesome kamma only arises omintention coupled with faith, energy, mindfulness, etc. Le to itself, the mindis liable to produce unwholesome kamma.


Rejection of Good Kamma Means Bad KammaSome people misinterpret the Arahants anscendence of kamma and

say that we should avoid doing meritorious deeds. For an ordinary person,the rejection of wholesome kamma means the upsurge of unwholesomekamma, just as the exodus of virtuous people om a ci leaves only foolsand rogues, or the removal of useful ees is followed by the growth of uselessgrass and weeds. One who rejects meritorious deeds is bound to dodemeritorious deeds that will lead to rebirths in the lower realms, om whereit is hard to return to the human world. The Arahants lack of wholesomekamma means only that his or her actions are karmically unproductive dueto the extinction of ignorance. The Arahants do revere the elders, teach theDhamma, give alms, help others who are in dicul and so forth. However,due to their full comprehension of the Four Noble Truths and the eradicationof ignorance their actions do not have any karmic eect. So the Arahants donot generate wholesome kamma, but they do not avoid meritorious deeds.

An ordinary person who does not care for meritorious deeds because ofignorance and wrong views, will accumulate only unwholesome kammas.In fact, the lack of any desire to do good is a sign of abysmal ignorance thatmakes the Noble Path and nibbna very remote. One only becomes inclinedtowards meritorious deeds as ignorance loses its hold on the mind. ASeam-winner is more interested in doing good than an ordinary person.Those at the higher stages of the Path have an increasing desire to give updoing things irrelevant to the Path and devote more time to meditation. So,meritorious deeds should not be confused with demeritorious deeds andpurposely avoided. Every action rooted in ignorance means either wholesomeor unwholesome kamma. Without wholesome kamma all ones deeds willbe unwholesome kamma.

Ignorance and IllusionTruth and falsehood are mutually exclusive. If one does not know the uth,

one accepts falsehood, and vice-versa. Those who do not know the Four NobleTruths have misconceptions about suering which, posing as happiness,deceives and oppresses them. Apart om craving, which gives some pleasurewhen gratied, everything in the sensual realm is suering. Though allsense-objects are subject to ceaseless change and are unreliable, to the ignorantperson they seem desirable and pleasant. People are nostalgic about what theyregard as happy days in the past, and optimistic about their future. Becauseof their misconception, they long for what they consider to be enjoyable and

Ignorance and Illusion 17

satising. This is the cause of their suering but they do not realise it. On theconary, they think that their happiness depends on the fullment of theirdesires, so they see nothing wrong with their desire for pleasure. Unfortunately,the uths about the end of suering and the way to it are alien to most people.Some who learn these uths om others or accept them intellectually do notappreciate them. They do not care for nibbna or the way to it, thinking thatthe way is beset with many hardships and privations.

The hope for happiness is the motive for human action. Actions in deed,speech or thought are called kamma or sakhr. I have referred above tothe three kinds of sakhr. The two kinds of wholesome kamma comprisethe rst kind: i.e. the eight wholesome kammas of the sensual sphere andthe ve wholesome kammas in the ne-material sphere. We have alsomentioned two kinds of wholesome kamma or consciousness: one associatedwith intelligence and the other divorced om it. In the practice of insight themeditators mind is intelligent if one becomes aware of the ue nature ofmind and maer through contemplation. It is not intelligent if one just recitesPi words while contemplating supercially. As for morali, a sense ofmoral values is intelligent if it is associated with the belief in the law ofkamma; otherwise it is unintelligent.

Some people say that an intelligent act of chari must involve thecontemplation of the impermanence, unsatisfactoriness, and impersonaliof the donor, the recipient, and the oering. This view is based on theAhaslin (an Abhidhamma Commentary), which mentions the contempla-tion on impermanence aer giving alms. However, the reference is tocontemplation aer the act of chari, not before, nor while doing it. Moreover,the reason is not to make the act intelligent but to create wholesome kammain insight practice. If by intelligent almsgiving is meant only the chari thatpresupposes such contemplation, all the other chari of non-Buddhistswould have to be classied as unintelligent, which would be absurd. Theaccounts of almsgiving by Bodhisaas do not mention contemplation nordid the Buddha insist on it as a prerequisite to chari. The scriptures sayonly that the karmic potential of chari depends on the spiritual maturiof the recipient and this is the only teaching that we should consider inalmsgiving. If the donor and the recipient are regarded as mere mind andmaer subject to impermanence, they will be on an equal footing. The actof chari would then lack inspiration and much karmic potential. In fact,the object of almsgiving is not insight contemplation but the benets accruingto the donor. So the Buddha pointed out which recipients can make


almsgiving immensely benecial and he sessed the importance of rightreection (i.e. belief in kamma).

Viskh, a well-known female disciple, once asked the Buddha forpermission to make eight kinds of lifelong oering to the Sagha: 1)bathingrobes for the monks, 2)food for guest-monks, 3)food for avelling monks,4)food for sick monks, 5)food for monks aending sick monks, 6)medicinefor sick monks, 7)rice-gruel for the Sagha, and 8)bathing robes for the nuns.The Buddha asked Viskh what benets she hoped to obtain in oeringsuch things. The substance of Viskhs reply was as follows: At the end ofthe Rains, monks om all parts of the couny will come to see the BlessedOne. They will tell him about the death of certain monks and ask him abouttheir rebirth and stages on the Noble Path that the deceased monks hadaained. the Blessed One will reveal their spiritual aainments. I will thenapproach the visiting monks and ask them whether their late fellow-monkshad ever visited Svah. If they say yes, I will conclude that the Noble Onemust have used one of my oerings. This recollection of my wholesomekamma will ll me with joy. It will be conducive to peace, anquilli, andself-development.

It is noteworthy that the reference is not to the contemplation on theimpermanence of the deceased monks but to their spiritual aainments.Importance is aached to the contemplation that leads to ecstasy and ainingin self-development. So, the most appropriate object of contemplation inoering alms is the noble quali of the recipient. For example, when layingowers at a shrine one might reect on the noble character of the Buddha;when oering food to a monk one might think of his pure mode of life, andso forth.

Teaching or listening to the Dhamma is a wholesome kamma and it isan intelligent kamma if the Dhamma is understood. Every meritorious deedbased on the belief in kamma is an intelligent kamma. Without it, ameritorious act is wholesome but unintelligent, e.g. when children worshipthe Buddha image, in imitation their parents, or when people who reject thebelief in kamma are helpful, polite, and charitable.

Few people are ee om personali-belief. The belief dominates thosewho do not know that life is a psychophysical process lacking a soul or person.Among those who have some knowledge of Buddhist scriptures, the beliefis weak, but their academic knowledge does not help them to overcome itcompletely. Meditators who have had a clear insight into the ue nature ofmind and maer through contemplation are usually ee om personali-

Ignorance and Illusion 19

belief. Yet they may revert to it if they stop contemplating before they aainthe Path. As for ordinary people, the personali-belief is deeply rooted. Thismakes them think that it is the self or the personali that is the agent ofwhatever they do or feel or think. Again, those who believe in total extinctionaer death, rejecting a future life and karmic results, have unwholesomeconsciousness rooted in annihilationist beliefs.

Consciousness rooted in ill-will is of two kinds: prompted andunprompted. Anger, envy, anxie, grief, fear, and haed are a few of themany kinds of ill-will.

Consciousness rooted in delusion comprises doubt and restlessness.Doubts about the Buddha, nibbna, the docine of not-self, and so forth aretermed vicikicch. The mind is subject to uddhacca whenever it wandershere and there restlessly.

Thus unwholesome kamma comprises eight pes of greed-basedconsciousness, two pes of haed-based consciousness, and two pes basedon delusion. It is opposed to wholesome kamma, which serves to puri themind and leads to favourable rebirths with fortunate karmic results.Unwholesome kamma deles the mind and leads to unfavourable rebirthswith unpleasant karmic results.

People do unskilful deeds wishing for happiness. They kill, steal, rob orgive false evidence for their own advantage. Even those who kill their parentsdo so to achieve their own aims. For example, Prince Ajtasau killed hisfather to become king. Misguided by his teacher, Devadaa, he concludedthat he would rule longer if he killed his father and usurped the throne. Forhis great crime of parricide (and the murder of a Seam-winner at that), hewas seized with remorse that caused him physical suering as well. Later,he was killed by his own son and was reborn in hell, where he is nowsuering terribly for his misdeed.

In the time of Kakusandha Buddha, the Mra called Ds did his utmostto harm the Buddha and the Sagha. Failing to achieve his aim, he tookpossession of a man and stoned the chief disciple of the Buddha. For thishorrible crime he instantly landed in Avci, the lowest of the thir-one realms.As a Mra he had dominated others, but in Avci he lay prosate under theheels of the guardians of hell. He had hoped to rejoice over the fullment ofhis scheme, but now he had to suer for his unwholesome kamma. This isue of evildoers all over the world.

It is also the hope for happiness that motivates the other two pes ofaction: meritorious kamma and imperturbable kamma. Imperturbable


kamma (nejbhisakhr) means the four wholesome pes of consciousnessof the immaterial sphere. nej means equanimi or self-possession. Aloud noise nearby may disturb a meditator who is absorbed in rpa-jhna,but arpa-jhna is invulnerable to such disactions. Arpa-jhna is of fourkinds according to its object:

1. the realm of innite space (ksnacyatana),2. the realm of innite consciousness (viacyatana),3. the realm of nothingness (kicayatana), and4. the realm of neither perception nor non-perception (nevasa-

nsayatana).These four jhnas are the kammas that lead to the four immaterial realms.

Demeritorious kamma leads to the four lower realms; meritorious kammaleads to human, celestial, and rpa-Brahm realms. People do these threekinds of kammas for their well-being and, as a result, consciousness arises.With consciousness as condition, mind and maer, the six senses, contact,feeling, and so forth arise.

21

From Mental Formations, Consciousness Arises

IGNORANCE leads to mental formations, which in turn causeconsciousness. Because of wholesome or unwholesome kammas in theprevious life, the seam of consciousness arises, beginning withrebirth-consciousness in the new life. Immoral deeds may, for example, causerebirth-consciousness to arise in one of the four lower realms. Aer that theseam of consciousness called bhavaga arises. This functions continuouslyunless the six kinds of thought-process consciousness occur when seeing,hearing, smelling, tasting, touching or thinking. In other words, bhavaga isa kind of subconsciousness that occurs during sleep and between momentsof active-consciousness. We die with this subconsciousness and it is thencalled decease-consciousness (cuti-cia). So the rebirth-consciousness, thesubconsciousness, and the decease-consciousness result om the kamma ofthe previous life.

The ve kinds of consciousness associated with the ve unpleasantsense-objects such as unpleasant visual-consciousness, auditory conscious-ness, etc., are due to unwholesome kamma. So too are 1) the consciousnessthat adverts to these ve sense-objects and 2)the investigating-consciousness(santraa). Altogether, seven pes of consciousness stem om unwholesomekamma. As for imperturbable kamma, because of the four pes of immaterial-sphere consciousness the resultant consciousness arises in the four immaterialrealms. Rebirth-consciousness arises in the beginning, subconsciousnessruns in the middle, and decease-consciousness occurs at the end of existence.

Similarly, because of the ve pes of ne-material consciousness, vepes of resultant consciousness arise in the ne-material realms. Then eightgreat resultants, which correspond to eight wholesome kammas in the sensualrealm, form the rebirth, subconsciousness, and decease-consciousness in thehuman world and six celestial realms. They also register pleasant sense-objects aer the seven impulse-moments (javana) that occur on seeing,hearing, etc. Also due to wholesome kamma of the sensual realm are theve kinds of consciousness associated with ve pleasant sense-objects, theregistering-consciousness, the joyful investigating-consciousness, and theindierent investigating-consciousness. So, resultant consciousness is ofthir-two kinds: four of the immaterial realm, ve of the ne-material realm,seven unwholesome resultants, and sixteen wholesome resultants in thesensual realm. All these thir-two are resultants of mental formations.

22 From Mental Formations, Consciousness Arises

How Mental Formations Lead to RebirthIt is very important, but hard to understand, how mental formations

lead to rebirth-consciousness. The Venerable Ledi Saydaw pointed outthat this aspect of Dependent Origination leaves much room for misunder-standing. One must distinguish between the cessation of decease-conscious-ness of the old life and the immediate arising of rebirth-consciousness inthe new life. This arising of rebirth-consciousness is the result of wholesomeor unwholesome kammas by living beings who are not yet ee omdelements. Lack of clear understanding usually leads to the belief ineternalism (sassatadihi), or the belief in annihilation aer death(ucchedadihi), which is held by modern materialists. The belief in annihi-lation is due to ignorance of the cause-and-eect relationship. To see howignorance leads to mental formations is not too dicult. How thesense-bases, contact, feeling, craving, etc., form the chain of causation isalso self-evident. However, the emergence of a new existence followingdeath is not apparent, hence the belief that there is nothing aer death.Learned people whose reasoning is based on faith usually accept theteaching that mental formations lead to rebirth-consciousness. However,it does not lend itself to a purely rational and empirical approach, so todayit is being challenged by the materialistic view of life.

The way that rebirth takes place is unmistakable to one who has practisedinsight meditation. One nds that consciousness arises and passes awayceaselessly. This is what one discovers by experience, not what one learnsom ones teachers. Of course one does not know this much initially. Onediscovers this fact only when one aains knowledge by comprehension(sammasana-a) and knowledge of arising and passing away (udayabbaya-a). The general idea of the death and rebirth of mental units dawns withthe development of knowledge by discerning conditionali (paccaya-pariggaha-a), but it is sammasana-a and udayabbaya-a that removeall doubt about rebirth. From these insights, one realises that death meansthe cessation of the last moment of consciousness in one life, and that rebirthmeans the arising of the rst moment in the next life. This is similar to thearising and cessation of consciousness that one notes during meditation.

Those who do not have insight miss the point. They believe in a permanentsoul or self and identi it with the mind. This belief is rejected by those whohave a sound knowledge of Abhidhamma, but it lingers in some peoplebecause of aachment to it in their previous lives. Even the meditator whoseknowledge is immature sometimes feels tempted to accept it.

Eternalism and Annihilationism 23

Eternalism and AnnihilationismFor ordinary people who are wedded to the personali-belief, death

means either the extinction of a person or displacement of a person to anotherexistence. The former misconception is called ucchedadihi or the belief inannihilation, the laer is called sassatadihi or the belief in the ansmigrationof the soul. Others believe that consciousness develops spontaneously withthe growth and maturation of the body. This belief is called ahetukadihi,or the view of no root-cause. Some have misconceptions about the cycle ofdeath and rebirth. They regard the body as the temporary home of thelife-principle, which passes on om one life to another. Though thedisintegration of the body is undeniable, some people believe in itsresurrection and so eat it with respect. These views conrm the VenerableLedi Saydaws statement that the causal link between mental formationsand consciousness lends itself to misinterpretation. Buddhists are notnecessarily ee om these misconceptions, but because of their faith in thedocine of not-self they do not harbour the illusions so blindly as to harmtheir insight practice. So even without a thorough knowledge of the natureof death and rebirth, they can enlighten themselves through contemplation.

For example, shortly aer the parinibbna of the Buddha, VenerableChanna practised insight meditation but made lile progress because of hispersonali-belief. Then while he listened to Venerable nandas discourseon Dependent Origination, he contemplated, overcame his illusion andaained Arahantship. Again, in the time of the Buddha, Venerable Yamakabelieved that the Arahant was annihilated aer death. Venerable Sripuasummoned him and taught him. While following the discourse, VenerableYamaka meditated and achieved liberation. So those who have faith in theBuddha need not be disheartened, for if they meditate zealously andwholeheartedly they will become enlightened.

Because of their ignorance and doubt about the process of rebirth, orbecause of a leaning towards annihilationist beliefs, some people questionthe possibili of a life aer death. This question presupposes a soul (aa) orlife-force in a living being. Materialism rejects the idea of a soul but theself-illusion is implicit in its dierentiation of the living om the dead. Thequestions of those who accept the self explicitly or implicitly are hard toanswer om the Buddhist point of view. If we say that there is a future life,they will conclude that we support the personali-belief. However, Buddhismdoes not categorically deny the future life, so the Buddha refused to answersuch questions. Moreover, producing sucient evidence to convince people


is dicult. Psychic persons can point out hell or the celestial realms butsceptics will dismiss such exhibitions as black magic or deception. So theBuddha did not arm the future life directly, but said that without theextinction of delements the psychophysical process continues aer death.

The question of an aerlife does not admit of an intellectual approach.It is to be answered only through certain practices that enable a meditatorto gain psychic powers. They can then see the virtuous who have arisen inthe celestial realms, and the immoral who are suering in the lower worlds.Their vision is as clear as that of an observer directly opposite two houseswatching people pass om one house to the other. Such meditators can easilynd the person whom they want to see among the many living beings of thehigher and lower realms.

Insight meditators can also aain psychic powers; no teaching rules outthis possibili. Some meditators have had paranormal contact with the otherworld, but such gis are rare since they depend on intense concenation, sothe easier way is to practise for insight. The problem of life becomes fairlyclear when the knowledge by discerning conditionali discloses the natureof death and conception. It becomes even clearer when one aains knowledgeby comprehension, knowledge of arising and passing away, and knowledgeof dissolution (bhaga-a). Then one can see vividly how the consecutiveunits of consciousness arise and pass away ceaselessly. One sees, too, howdeath is the passing away of the last unit of consciousness followed byconception, or the arising of the rst unit in a new existence. However, thisinsight is still vulnerable. It is only when one aains the stage of a Seam-winner that one becomes wholly ee om all doubts about future life.

The ouble is that people want to ask about such maers instead ofpractising meditation. Some seek the verdict of Western scientists andphilosophers while others accept the teaching of those who are reputed tobe Arahants with psychic powers. Instead of relying on other people, however,the best thing is to seek the answer through insight meditation. With theknowledge of arising and passing away, one can clearly see how, aer a unitof consciousness has passed away, a new one arises aached to a sense-object.From this one can infer how life begins with rebirth-consciousness, whichis conditioned by aachment to an object in the nal moment of the precedinglife. Before death, the continuous seam of consciousness depends on thephysical body, with one moment of consciousness following anotheruninterruptedly. Aer death, the body disintegrates and the seam ofconsciousness shis to a new physical process elsewhere. This may be

Eternalism and Annihilationism 25

compared to light in an elecic bulb, which is maintained by the continuousow of elecici. When the bulb is burnt out, the light goes out but theelecic potential still remains. Light reappears when the old bulb is replacedwith a new one. Here, the bulb, elecici, and light are all changing physicalprocesses, and we should be mindful of their ansience.

The Commentary illusates the process of rebirth with the analogies ofan echo, a ame, the impression of a seal, and a reection in a mirror. Anecho is the reection of a sound produced by the impact of sound waves ona hard surface. However, though the sound is the cause of the echo, thesource of the sound does not move to the source of the echo. When we lookat a mirror, our face is reected in it, but although they are causally related,we do not confuse the reection with our face. If a burning candle is usedto light another one, the ame of the second candle is obviously not the ameof the rst one, but it is not unrelated to the rst ame either. Lastly, the sealleaves an impression that is like its face, but it is not the face, and theimpression cannot occur without the seal either.

These analogies help to clari the nature of rebirth. When a person is dying,their kamma, the signs and visions related to it, or visions of their future lifeappear. Aer death, rebirth-consciousness arises, conditioned by one of thesevisions. So rebirth does not mean the ansfer of the decease-consciousness toanother life. However, since it is conditioned by deathbed visions, it is rootedin ignorance and craving, which form the decisive links in the chain of causation.Thus rebirth-consciousness is not the consciousness of the dying person but itis causally related to the previous life. Any two consecutive units of conscious-ness are separate but, since they belong to the sameseam of consciousness,we speak of the same individual for the whole day, the whole year or the wholelifetime. Likewise, we can speak of the decease- and rebirth-consciousness asbelonging to one individual, and we can say that a person has been rebornwithout implying the ansfer of mind and maer. We speak of a person onlybecause rebirth depends upon a seam of causally related mental units.

So it is annihilationism to believe that we are annihilated at death, andthat we have nothing to do with a previous life. Most Buddhists are ee omthis view. As the two consecutive lives are causally related, one can speakof them as belonging to one person, but we should not adopt the eternalisticview that rebirth means the ansfer of the personali to a new existence.

One who has mature insight does not harbour either belief. He or she isfully aware of the rising and passing away of mental units in the present lifeand of their causal relations. This insight leaves no room for the illusions of


immortali or annihilation. The nature of consciousness is evident even tothose who think objectively. Joy may be followed by dejection and vice versa,or a serene mind may give way to irritation. These changing states ofconsciousness clearly show its heterogeneous nature. Moreover, mental statesmay be associated through similari, as, for example, the intention to do acertain thing at night may occur again in the morning. The mental states aredistinct but causally related. Those who understand this relationship betweentwo consecutive mental states can see that the same relationship holds uebetween those separated by death.

Deathbed VisionsConsciousness in the new existence occurs in two modes: as rebirth-

consciousness and as the consciousness that ows on during the whole life.Altogether, rebirth-consciousness is of nineteen kinds: one in the lower realms,nine in the sensual realms of human beings and devas, ve in the ne-material Brahm realms, and four in the immaterial Brahm realms. As forthe other resultant mental states that occur during the rest of life, they numberthir-two. These enumerations will be meaningful only to those who havestudied the Abhidhamma. To a dying person, there appears a ashback ofa deed they have done in life (kamma), or the surrounding conditionsassociated with the act (kammanimia), or a vision of their future life(gatinimia). Kamma may assume the form of a ashback about the past oran hallucination in the present. On his deathbed, a sherman may talk as ifhe were catching sh, or a man who has oen given alms may think that heis giving alms. Many years ago, I led a group of pilgrims om Shwebo tovisit pagodas in Mandalay and Rangoon. An old man in the group diedshortly aer our return to Shwebo. He died muering the words that werereminiscent of his experience during the pilgrimage. The dying person alsohas visions of the environment in which karmic deeds were done. One maysee robes, monasteries, bhikkhus or Buddha images relating to acts of chari;or weapons, murder scenes or victims relating to a murder. Then one seesvisions of what one will nd in the aerlife. For example, one might seehell-re or demons if one is destined to be born in hell, but celestial beingsor mansions if one is to pass on to celestial realms. Once a dying brahminwas told by his iends that a vision of ames portended the Brahm realm.He believed them and died only to nd himself in hell. Wrong views arevery dangerous. It is said that some people tell their dying iends to visualisetheir acts of killing a cow for chari, believing that such acts are benecial.

The Story of Mahdhammika 27

The Story of MahdhammikaIn Svah at the time of the Buddha, ve hundred lay-supporters each had

500 followers, all of whom practised the Dhamma. The eldest of them,Mahdhammika, the head of all the lay-supporters, had seven sons and sevendaughters who also followed the teaching of the Buddha. As he grew old, hebecame sick and weak. He invited the monks to his house and, while listeningto their recitation of the Dhamma, saw a chariot arriving to take him to thecelestial realm. He said to the devas, Please wait. The monks stopped recitingas they thought that the dying man was addressing them. His sons and daughterscried, believing that he was babbling for fear of death. Aer the monks departure,he came round, and told his children to throw a garland of owers up into theair. They did as they were told and the garland remained hanging in the air. Thelay-supporter said that the garland revealed the position of the chariot omTusita heaven. Aer advising his children to do skilful deeds for rebirth inheavenly realms, he died and was reborn in Tusita. This is how the vision of thecelestial realm appears to the virtuous man on his deathbed. A layman inMoulmein said, just before he died, that he saw a magnicent building. This,too, may have been a vision of the celestial realm. Some people who are to bereborn as human beings have visions of their future parents, house, etc., on theirdeathbed. A Saydaw in Moulmein was killed by robbers. Three years later achild om Mergui came to Moulmein and identied by name the Saydawswith whom he said he had lived in his previous life. He said that the robbersstabbed him when they did not get the money. He then ran away to the jewhere he got into a boat, reached Mergui, and dwelt in the home of his parents.The ight, journey by boat, etc., were perhaps visions of the Saydaws aerlife.

Flashbacks of karmic acts and visions of a future life occur even in casesof sudden death. According to the Commentary, they occur even when a yis crushed with a hammer. Nuclear weapons can reduce a big ci to ashesin a ash. From the Buddhist point of view, these weapons have appearedbecause of the unwholesome kamma of their potential victims. Those whoare killed by these bombs also see ashbacks and visions. This may soundincredible to those who do not understand how the mind works, but itpresents no dicul to one who contemplates psychophysical phenomena.It is said that in the twinkling of an eye units of consciousness arise and passaway by the billion. Meditators who have aained the knowledge of arisingand passing away know empirically that hundreds of mental units arise anddissolve in a moment. So they have no doubt about the possibili ofashbacks and visions in those who meet violent and sudden death.


Consciousness is always focused on objects. We oen recall what wehave done, and think of the celestial realm or human socie. If a person whohas done meritorious deeds dies with these thoughts, they will be reborn asa celestial or human being. Visions of the future life on ones deathbed arecalled gatinimia. Visions of objects associated with kamma are called

kammanimia. References to these deathbed phenomena are to be found notonly in the Commentaries, but also in the Tipiaka. In the Blapaita Suathe Buddha speaks of deathbed visions of wholesome or unwholesome deeds.He likens them to the shadow of a mountain dominating the plains in theevening. Once I saw a dying woman who showed great fear as if she wereface to face with an enemy who was out to eat her cruelly. She wasspeechless. Her relatives ied to comfort her, but in vain. Perhaps she washaving a foretaste of her unhappy future because of unwholesome kamma.

So one must do wholesome kamma that will produce agreeable imagesat the moment of death or visions of a favourable aerlife. If the meritoriousdeed is rational, songly motivated and one of the eight kinds of sense-spheremeritorious deeds, the resultant consciousness will be one of the four kindsof rational consciousness. The rebirth is then associated with non-delusionand as such takes place with three root-conditions: wisdom, goodwill, andgenerosi. A person reborn with these innate tendencies can aain absorp-tion and psychic powers if they practise anquilli meditation, or the NoblePath and nibbna if they devote themselves to insight meditation. Virtuousacts that are motivated by the desire for nibbna lead to such favourablerebirths and nally to the Path and nibbna through contemplation or hearinga discourse.

If the motivation is weak, or if it is a meritorious deed divorced om thebelief in kamma, the result is one of the four kinds of unintelligentconsciousness. The rebirth is then called a two-root-condition rebirth, whichis accompanied by generosi and goodwill, but lacks wisdom. A personreborn in this way cannot aain absorption or the Noble Path as they lackthe innate intelligence for it. If the meritorious deed is unintelligent andhalf-hearted, the result will be a favourable rebirth without wholesome roots,by reason of which one is likely to have defective sense faculties. So whenyou do a meritorious deed, you should do it with zeal (chanda), and withnibbna as your objective. If you set your heart on nibbna, the meritoriousdeed will lead you to it, and the zeal with which you do such a deed willensure a rebirth with wholesome roots. Praying for such a noble rebirth isnot necessary because you are assured of it if you do meritorious deeds

The Story of Mahdhammika 29

intelligently and zealously. However, if you lack zeal in doing good, theresult will be a rebirth with only generosi and goodwill.

Some people say that chari and morali generate wholesome kamma,which, being rooted in ignorance, leads to rebirth and suering in sasra.This is a mistaken view that stems om lack of knowledge. If the practice ofchari and morali is motivated by the desire for nibbna, it will ensurethe noblest rebirth and lead to the supreme goal. It was due to chari andmorali that Venerable Sripua and other disciples of the Buddha nallyaained nibbna. The same may be said of Solitary Buddhas (Paccekabuddha).

The Bodhisaa, too, aained supreme enlightenment in the same wayby praying that his meritorious deeds conibute to the aainment ofomniscience. Here, a rebirth with three wholesome roots involved in thegenesis of Buddhahood is of two kinds: consciousness associated with joyand consciousness associated with equanimi. Again each of these two pesof consciousness is of two kinds: prompted and unprompted. The Bodhisaasrebirth-consciousness was powerful, zealous, and unprompted. Accordingto ancient Commentaries, it was joyful consciousness. Since the Bodhisaahad innite loving-kindness for all living beings, and song loving-kindnessis usually coupled with joy, the Bodhisaas rebirth-consciousness must havebeen tinged with joy. However, the ancient Sri Lankan authori VenerableMahsiva suggested that the Bodhisaas rebirth-consciousness was accom-panied by equanimi. In his view, the Bodhisaas mind was rm andprofound, therefore equanimi rather than joy must have been the charac-teristic of his rebirth-consciousness. In any event, his rebirth-consciousnesshad its origin in a meritorious deed motivated by the desire for supremeenlightenment. Thus, although the intelligent wholesome kammas lead torebirth, they do not prolong the cycle of existence. On the conary, theyconibute to liberation om sasra.

Consciousness of any kind, whether rebirth-consciousness or otherwise,is only momentary. It lasts for just three instants: arising (upda), being (hiti),and dissolution (bhaga). According to the Commentaries, these mental unitsarise and pass away by the billion in the blinking of an eye. Each unit is soansient that it does not last even a billionth of a second. The cessation ofrebirth-consciousness is followed by the seam of subconsciousness, whichows ceaselessly unless it is interrupted by an active cognitive process(cia-vthi), the kind of mental activi involved in seeing, hearing, and soforth. The seam of subconsciousness lasts throughout life, its origin beingmental formations, as with rebirth-consciousness. Its duration, too, depends

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A Discourse on Dependent Origination

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