清淨道論 白話全本 · 冊17Visuddhimagga · Complete Vernacular · Vol. 17

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 Dependent Origination and Dependently Originated Phenomena—Establishing the Distinction from the Discourses 〔CSCD §570–571〕

Chapter 17: Explanation of the Soil of Wisdom

Discussion of Dependent Origination

Now, among the phenomena spoken of thus—“phenomena divided into aggregates, bases, elements, faculties, truths, dependent origination, and so forth are the soil”—which constitute the soil of this wisdom, what remains is dependent origination together with the dependently originated phenomena¹ included by the expression “and so forth.” The sequence for explaining them has therefore been reached.

Here, first it should be understood that the phenomena beginning with ignorance are dependent origination. For this was said by the Blessed One:

“Bhikkhus, what is dependent origination? Bhikkhus, with ignorance as condition, formations; with formations as condition, consciousness; with consciousness as condition, name-and-form; with name-and-form as condition, the six bases; with the six bases as condition, contact; with contact as condition, feeling; with feeling as condition, craving; with craving as condition, clinging; with clinging as condition, becoming; with becoming as condition, birth; with birth as condition, aging-and-death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair arise. Thus there is the origin of this whole mass of suffering. Bhikkhus, this is called dependent origination.”

The phenomena beginning with aging-and-death, however, should be understood as dependently originated phenomena. For this was said by the Blessed One:

“Bhikkhus, what are dependently originated phenomena? Bhikkhus, aging-and-death is impermanent, conditioned, dependently originated, subject to exhaustion, subject to dissolution, subject to fading away, subject to cessation. Bhikkhus, birth … up to (expanded as above) … becoming … clinging … craving … feeling … contact … the six bases … name-and-form … consciousness … formations … bhikkhus, ignorance is impermanent, conditioned, dependently originated, subject to exhaustion, subject to dissolution, subject to fading away, subject to cessation. Bhikkhus, these are called dependently originated phenomena.”

The brief meaning here is this: “dependent origination” should be understood as the conditioning phenomena; “dependently originated phenomena” are phenomena produced by those respective conditions. If asked how this is to be known: from the Blessed One’s words. For in the Discourse Teaching Dependent Origination and Dependently Originated Phenomena, the Blessed One [said]:

“Bhikkhus, what is dependent origination? Bhikkhus, with birth as condition, aging-and-death. Whether Tathāgatas arise or do not arise, that element stands just so: the stability of Dhamma, the fixed order of Dhamma, specific conditionality. The Tathāgata fully awakens to it and directly realizes it. Having fully awakened to and directly realized it, he tells, teaches, designates, establishes, reveals, analyzes, and makes it plain, and he says, ‘See.’ Bhikkhus, with birth as condition, aging-and-death. Bhikkhus, with becoming as condition, birth … up to (expanded as above) … bhikkhus, with ignorance as condition, formations. Whether Tathāgatas arise … up to (expanded as above) … makes it plain, and says, ‘See.’ Bhikkhus, with ignorance as condition, formations. Thus, bhikkhus, the suchness there, the not-unsuchness, the non-otherness, and the specific conditionality—bhikkhus, this is called dependent origination.”

§2 The Characteristic, Function, Manifestation, and Four Synonyms of Dependent Origination 〔CSCD §572–573〕

Thus, when teaching dependent origination, the Blessed One used such synonyms as “suchness” to say that the conditioning phenomena themselves are dependent origination. Therefore dependent origination should be understood to have the characteristic of being the condition for phenomena beginning with aging-and-death, the function of binding to suffering, and the manifestation of the wrong path.

This [dependent origination] is called “suchness” because each particular phenomenon arises only from its respective conditions, neither more nor fewer; it is called “not-unsuchness” because once the conditions have entered into conjunction, there is no non-arising, even for a moment, of the phenomena produced from them; it is called “non-otherness” because the conditions for one phenomenon do not give rise to a different phenomenon; and it is called “specific conditionality” because it is the condition for the phenomena beginning with aging-and-death described above, or the collection of those conditions.

Here is the meaning of the expression [specific conditionality]: the conditions for these [phenomena] are “these conditions”; precisely these conditions are “specific conditionality.” Or the collection of these conditions is “specific conditionality.” Its [grammatical] characteristic here should be sought in grammatical science.

§3 Refuting Two Other Views—Mere Arising and the Modification of Formations 〔CSCD §574–576〕

Some say: “The arising that occurs dependently and rightly, without regard for such causes as primordial nature and a primal self imagined by outsiders, is dependent origination.” Thus they maintain that mere arising is dependent origination. That does not hold. Why? Because it has no basis in a discourse, conflicts with the discourses, cannot establish the profound method, and breaks grammar.

For no discourse says, “Mere arising is dependent origination.” Whoever calls that [mere arising] “dependent origination” incurs a conflict with the Padesavihāra-sutta². How so? From such words about the Blessed One as “Then the Blessed One, in the first watch of the night, attended to dependent origination in forward and reverse order,” attention to dependent origination was his abiding immediately after full awakening; and partial abiding was an abiding in a portion of that [abiding]. As it is said: “Bhikkhus, I abided in a portion of that abiding in which I dwelt immediately after full awakening.” There he dwelt by seeing the modes of conditions, not merely by seeing arising. As it is said: “I understand thus: there is what is felt with wrong view as condition, there is what is felt with right view as condition, and there is what is felt with wrong intention as condition.” All should be expanded in this way. Thus whoever calls mere arising “dependent origination” incurs a conflict with the Padesavihāra-sutta. Likewise, there is conflict with the Kaccānagotta Sutta.

For the Kaccānagotta Sutta also says: “Kaccāna, for whoever sees the origin of the world as it really is with right wisdom, the nonexistence with respect to the world does not occur.” Forward dependent origination, because it is the condition for the world, is shown under [the name] “the origin of the world” for the eradication of the annihilation view; mere arising is not. Seeing mere arising cannot eradicate the annihilation view, but seeing the uninterrupted continuity of conditions can. For when conditions do not cease, their results do not cease. Thus whoever calls mere arising “dependent origination” also incurs a conflict with the Kaccānagotta Sutta.

“Because the profound method cannot be established”: the Blessed One said, “Ānanda, this dependent origination is profound and appears profound.” What is called profound is fourfold³, as we shall explain below; those four are absent from mere arising. Moreover, [the teachers] explain dependent origination as adorned with four methods, and that tetrad of methods is also absent from mere arising. Thus, because the profound method cannot be established, mere arising is not dependent origination.

“Because grammar is broken”: the word paṭicca accomplishes its meaning when it is used with the same agent and an action prior in time. For example, “Dependent upon the eye and forms, eye-consciousness arises.” Here, however, when it is joined to the action-noun “arising,” it falls into grammatical breakdown because there is no common agent, and it accomplishes no meaning. Thus mere arising is not dependent origination because grammar is broken.

Someone here may say: “We shall connect it with the word ‘exists’ and say ‘dependent origination exists.’” That is incorrect. Why? Both because the connection does not occur and because it entails the fault that arising itself must arise. “Bhikkhus, I shall teach you dependent origination. And what, bhikkhus, is dependent origination? … up to (expanded as above) … bhikkhus, this is called dependent origination.” In none of these passages does the word “exists” connect with any clause; nor does arising “exist.” If it did, arising itself would require a further arising.

Others hold: “The state of these conditions is specific conditionality; and what is called ‘state’ is the mode in which ignorance and the rest serve as causes when formations and the rest appear. The concept ‘dependent origination’ applies to that modification of formations.” Their position also does not hold. Why? Because [the discourse] calls ignorance and the rest [themselves] causes. For the Blessed One said: “Therefore, Ānanda, this itself is the cause of aging-and-death, this its source, this its origin, this its condition, namely birth … up to (expanded as above) … [this is the cause] of formations, namely ignorance.” Thus it was stated that ignorance and the rest themselves are the causes, not their modifications. It should therefore be understood that the earlier statement, “‘Dependent origination’ should be understood as the conditioning phenomena,” was rightly made.

§4 Four Explanations of the Term “Dependent Origination” and the Two Extremes It Blocks 〔CSCD §577–580〕

Here, because of the verbal shadow cast by the term “dependent origination,” the perception may arise that what is spoken of is arising itself. That perception should be quieted by taking the meaning of the expression in the following way. For the Blessed One:

This expression is applied in two ways to the collection of phenomena that proceeds from it; and this [collection of causes] is its condition, so it is spoken of figuratively by the name of the result.

For the expression “dependent origination” is understood in two ways in regard to this collection of phenomena that proceeds through conditionality. Because, when understood, it leads to welfare and happiness, “the wise ought to understand it”—hence paṭicco [what ought to be understood]. And when it arises, it arises conjointly and rightly, neither separately nor causelessly—hence samuppādo [co-arising]. Thus it is both “what ought to be understood” and “co-arising,” so it is “dependent origination.” Again, because it “arises conjointly,” it is “co-arising”; and it occurs dependent upon, without rejecting, the conjunction of conditions—thus too it is “dependent origination.” This collection of causes is its condition, and because it is the condition for it, this [collection] too receives the name—just as in the world sugar that conditions phlegm is called “phlegm-sugar,” and in the Teaching the arising of Buddhas, which conditions happiness, is called “the arising of Buddhas is happiness.” It should likewise be understood that the term “dependent origination” is applied figuratively by the designation of the result.

Or:

Because it proceeds facing one another, this collection of causes is called paṭicco; and because it produces [phenomena] in conjunction, it is called samuppādo.

The collection of causes indicated under the heading of each cause beginning with ignorance, for the manifestation of formations and the rest, is called paṭicco because, in accomplishing a common result and through completeness, the factors of the assemblage proceed facing one another. And this [collection] produces only conjoined phenomena that operate inseparably from one another, so it is also called samuppādo. Thus it is both “proceeding facing one another” and “co-arising,” so it is “dependent origination.”

Another method:

Because this conditionality, depending mutually, produces phenomena equally and together, the Sage has therefore spoken thus here.

Among the conditions indicated under the headings of ignorance and the rest, those conditions that produce a particular phenomenon beginning with formations would be incapable of producing [it] if they did not depend upon one another or if they lacked one another. Therefore this conditionality, depending mutually, produces phenomena equally and together, not piecemeal and not in temporal sequence. Thus the Sage, skilled in speech that follows the meaning, spoke in this way here—that is, he spoke precisely of “dependent origination.”

And when he spoke thus:

By the first word, the absence of eternalism and the rest [was shown]; by the last, the destruction of annihilationism and the rest; by the two together, the principle was shown.

“By the first word”: since the occurrence of occurring phenomena depends upon a conjunction of conditions, the word paṭicca, which displays the conjunction of conditions, shows the absence of eternalism, causelessness, the doctrine of unequal causes, the doctrine of a controlling lord, and the other varieties beginning with eternalism. For what use would a conjunction of conditions have for what is eternal or what operates causelessly and so forth? “By the last word”: since phenomena arise when conditions are conjoined, the word samuppāda, which displays the arising of phenomena, refutes annihilationism, nihilism, and the doctrine of non-action; thus it shows the destruction of annihilationism and the rest. For when phenomena repeatedly arise in dependence upon preceding conditions, where could there be annihilation, nihilism, or the doctrine of non-action? “By the two together”: the complete expression “dependent origination” shows the middle way, because the respective phenomena arise without breaking the continuity of their respective conjunctions of conditions; it shows the abandonment of the statements “the agent is the experiencer” and “the agent is one, the experiencer another”; it shows non-adherence to local idiom and not overrunning conventional designation. Thus this principle is shown. This, first, is the meaning of the expression “dependent origination” itself.

§5 The Expositor’s Difficulty and Four Modes of Teaching 〔CSCD §581–583〕

When the Blessed One taught dependent origination, he established the canonical text in the form “with ignorance as condition, formations,” and so forth. Anyone explaining its meaning must enter the circle of the Vibhajjavādins⁴, without misrepresenting the Ācariyas, departing from the school’s own tenets, drawing in another school’s tenets, opposing the discourses, or failing to accord with the Vinaya; the expositor must look to the great authorities, illuminate the Dhamma, gather the meaning, and repeatedly turn that same meaning over and indicate it through various other methods. Only thus can its meaning be explained. Moreover, explaining the meaning of dependent origination is intrinsically difficult. As the ancient teachers said:

Truth, being, rebirth-linking, and the modes of conditions— these four phenomena are hard to see and exceedingly hard to teach.

Thus, having weighed that the meaning of dependent origination is not easily explained except by those who have attained learning in the canon and direct attainment, [the Commentator says]:

Today I wish to explain the modes of conditions, yet I find no footing, like a person sunk in the sea. But this Teaching is adorned with many modes of exposition, and the path of the earlier teachers continues unbroken. Therefore, relying upon these two, I shall begin to explain its meaning—listen with collected minds.

For the earlier teachers said:

Whoever should listen to me with earnest regard would gain distinction in the sequence; having gained distinction in the sequence, that person would go where the King of Death cannot see.

Thus, in “with ignorance as condition, formations” and the rest, the determination should first be understood from the outset “by difference in teaching, by meaning, by characteristic and the rest, by the onefold and the rest, and by the determination of the factors.”

Here, “by difference in teaching”: the Blessed One’s teaching of dependent origination is fourfold, like the way four vine gatherers take hold of a vine—from the beginning or from the middle to the end, and likewise from the end or from the middle to the beginning.

Among four vine gatherers, a person may first see only the root of the vine, cut it at the root, drag the whole vine out, take it away, and put it to use. In the same way, the Blessed One teaches dependent origination from beginning to end with the words, “Thus, bhikkhus, with ignorance as condition, formations … up to (expanded as above) … with birth as condition, aging-and-death.”

Another among those people may first see the vine’s middle, cut it there, drag out only the upper half, take it away, and put it to use. In the same way, the Blessed One teaches from the middle to the end with the words, “As he delights in, welcomes, and remains holding to that feeling, delight arises. Delight in feelings is clinging. With his clinging as condition, becoming; with becoming as condition, birth.”

Another among those people may first see the vine’s tip, seize the tip, follow it all the way to the root, take the whole vine away, and put it to use. In the same way, the Blessed One teaches dependent origination from the end to the beginning with the words, “‘With birth as condition, aging-and-death’—so it has been said. But is aging-and-death conditioned by birth, bhikkhus, or not? How do you regard this?” “Venerable sir, aging-and-death is conditioned by birth. We regard it thus: with birth as condition, aging-and-death.” “‘With becoming as condition, birth’ … up to (expanded as above) … ‘with ignorance as condition, formations’—so it has been said. But are formations conditioned by ignorance, bhikkhus, or not? How do you regard this?”

Another among these people may first see only the vine’s middle, cut it there, descend toward the root, take it away, and put it to use. In the same way, the Blessed One teaches from the middle to the beginning with the words, “Bhikkhus, what is the source of these four nutriments? What is their origin, their birth, their production? These four nutriments have craving as source, craving as origin, craving as birth, craving as production. What is the source of craving? … feeling … contact … the six bases … name-and-form … consciousness … what is the source of formations? … up to (expanded as above) … formations have ignorance as source … up to (expanded as above) … ignorance as production.”

Why, then, does he teach thus? Because dependent origination is wholly excellent and because he himself has attained mastery of teaching. Dependent origination is wholly excellent; from whatever point it is approached, it leads to penetration of the principle. And because the Blessed One possesses the four kinds of fearlessness and the discriminations, and because he has attained the fourfold profundity, he has mastery of teaching. Since he has attained mastery of teaching, he teaches the Dhamma by various methods.

More specifically, it should be understood that his forward teaching beginning at the beginning occurs when he sees people to be guided who are confused about the differentiation of the causes of occurrence, in order to show how phenomena occur through their own respective causes and to show the order of arising. The reverse teaching beginning at the end occurs when he contemplates the world fallen into hardship in such terms as “This world has indeed fallen into hardship: it is born, ages, dies, passes away, and is reborn,” and, in conformity with his preliminary penetration, in order to show the causes that he himself realized for each kind of suffering beginning with aging-and-death. The teaching from the middle to the beginning conforms to the determination of the conditioning of nutriment, carries the inquiry back as far as the past, and then, beginning from the past, shows the sequence of cause and result. The teaching from the middle to the end begins with the source in the present of the causes of the future and shows the future. Of these, the forward teaching that begins at the beginning, stated in order to show people to be guided who are confused about the causes of occurrence how phenomena occur through their own respective causes and to show the order of arising, is the mode established here.

§6 Why Ignorance Is Placed First and the Two Heads of the Teaching of the Round 〔CSCD §584–586〕

Why, then, is ignorance placed first here? Is ignorance, like the primordial nature of those who hold the doctrine of primordial nature, a causeless root cause of the world? It is not causeless. For the cause of ignorance was stated in the words, “With the origin of the influxes⁵ there is the origin of ignorance.” There is, however, a method according to which it may be called a root cause. What is that? Its position as head in the teaching of the round⁶.

For when the Blessed One teaches the round, he does so by making either of two phenomena its head. Sometimes ignorance: as it is said, “Bhikkhus, a first point of ignorance is not discerned such that ‘before this ignorance did not exist, and afterward it came to be.’ Though this is said, bhikkhus, nevertheless it is discerned that ‘ignorance has this as condition.’” Sometimes craving for becoming⁷: as it is said, “Bhikkhus, a first point of craving for becoming is not discerned such that ‘before this craving for becoming did not exist, and afterward it came to be.’ Though this is said, bhikkhus, nevertheless it is discerned that ‘craving for becoming has this as condition.’”

Why does the Blessed One make these two phenomena the head when teaching the round? Because they are the distinctive causes of kamma leading to good and bad destinations. Ignorance is the distinctive cause of kamma leading to a bad destination. Why? A worldling overwhelmed by ignorance is like an ox for slaughter, tormented by the suffering of fire and blows, driven by distress to drink hot water that is both tasteless and harmful. In the same way, the worldling initiates various kinds of kamma leading to a bad destination, beginning with killing, which is tasteless because of the heat of defilement and harmful because it casts the worldling into a bad destination. Craving for becoming, however, is the distinctive cause of kamma leading to a good destination. Why? A worldling overwhelmed by craving for becoming is like the ox described above, which, thirsting for cool water, drinks cool water that is both tasty and relieves its distress. In the same way, the worldling initiates various kinds of kamma leading to a good destination, beginning with abstaining from killing, which is tasty because free of the heat of defilement and relieves the distress of suffering in bad destinations by bringing the worldling to a good destination.

Of these phenomena that serve as the heads of the teaching of the round, the Blessed One sometimes gives a teaching rooted in a single phenomenon. For example: “Thus, bhikkhus, formations have ignorance as their proximate support; consciousness has formations as its proximate support,” and so forth. Likewise: “Bhikkhus, craving grows in a person who abides contemplating gratification in phenomena subject to clinging; with craving as condition, clinging,” and so forth. Sometimes he also gives a teaching rooted in both. For example: “Bhikkhus, the body of a foolish person, obstructed by ignorance and conjoined with craving, has come to be thus. So there are this body and external name-and-form—this is the pair. Dependent upon the pair there is contact, precisely the six bases; touched by them, the fool experiences pain and pleasure,” and so forth. Of these teachings, it should be understood that “with ignorance as condition, formations” here is a teaching rooted in the single phenomenon of ignorance. Thus, first, the determination here should be understood by difference in teaching.

§7 The Mode of Meaning—The Meanings of the Twelve Factors 〔CSCD §587〕

“By meaning” means by the meanings of such terms as ignorance. For example, because it is not fit to be fulfilled, bodily misconduct and the rest are called “what should not be obtained,” meaning what ought not to be acquired. Ignorance obtains what should not be obtained, and is therefore “ignorance.” Conversely, bodily good conduct and the rest are called “what should be obtained”; ignorance does not obtain what should be obtained, and is therefore “ignorance.” It also makes unknown the meaning of aggregate as mass, base as domain, element as empty, faculty as dominance, and truth as suchness, and is therefore “ignorance.” It also makes unknown the four meanings of suffering and the rest stated as oppression and so forth, and is therefore “ignorance.” In beginningless saṃsāra it drives beings through all births, destinations, existences, stations of consciousness, and abodes of beings, and is therefore “ignorance.” It runs toward women, men, and the rest, which do not ultimately exist, but does not run toward aggregates and the rest, which do exist, and is therefore “ignorance.” Further, because it conceals the bases and objects of eye-consciousness and the rest, together with dependent origination and dependently originated phenomena, it is “ignorance.”

That dependent upon which a result comes is a “condition.” “Dependent upon” means neither leaving nor rejecting; “comes” means both arises and occurs. Further, the meaning of condition is the meaning of assistance. It is both ignorance and a condition, hence “ignorance-condition.” Therefore, “with ignorance as condition.”

They form what is conditioned, and so they are “formations.” Further, formations are twofold: formations conditioned by ignorance and formations to which the word “formation” is applied. Of these, the three—meritorious formation, demeritorious formation, and imperturbable formation—and the three—bodily formation, verbal formation, and mental formation—make six formations conditioned by ignorance. All of them are nothing but mundane wholesome and unwholesome volitions.

Conditioned formation, formed formation, formation that forms, and formation as exertion: these four are formations to which the word “formation” is applied. Of these, all phenomena with conditions spoken of in “Formations are indeed impermanent” and similar passages are called “conditioned formations.” The commentaries⁸ say that the material and immaterial phenomena of the three planes produced by kamma are “formed formations”; they too are included in the sentence “Formations are indeed impermanent,” but no separate locus for them is discerned. Wholesome and unwholesome volition in the three planes is called a “formation that forms”; its locus is discerned in such passages as “Bhikkhus, this person fallen into ignorance forms a meritorious formation.” Bodily and mental energy is called a “formation as exertion”; it occurs in such passages as “He went as far as the force of the exertion carried him and then, as though struck by an axle, came to a halt.”

Nor are these all. There are many other formations to which the word “formation” is applied, as in “Friend Visākha, when a bhikkhu enters the cessation of perception and feeling, verbal formation ceases first, then bodily formation, then mental formation.” Among them, no formation fails to be included among conditioned formations. From here onward, the terms in “with formations as condition, consciousness” and the rest should be understood in the manner already stated.

Among the terms not yet explained: it cognizes, so it is “consciousness”; it bends, so it is “name”; it is deformed, so it is “form”; it extends upon what comes and leads what has been extended, so it is a “base”; it contacts, so it is “contact”; it feels, so it is “feeling”; it thirsts, so it is “craving”; it clings, so it is “clinging”; it becomes and brings into becoming, so it is “becoming”; being born is “birth”; growing old is “aging”; through it beings die, so it is “death”; sorrowing is “sorrow”; lamenting is “lamentation”; it pains, so it is “pain,” or it digs twice by way of arising and persistence, and so it is “pain”; a bad state of mind is “grief”; powerful weariness is “despair.”

“Arise” means are produced. Nor is “arise” to be connected only with sorrow and the rest; it should be connected with every clause. Otherwise, when “with ignorance as condition, formations” is said, what they do would not be discerned. But when “arise” is connected, ignorance is both ignorance and a condition, hence “ignorance-condition”; therefore, “with ignorance as condition, formations arise.” Thus the conditioning and the conditioned are determined. This is the method throughout.

“Thus” points out the method indicated. It shows that [the mass of suffering originates] only from causes beginning with ignorance, not from creation by a controlling lord and the rest. “This” means what has been described above. “Whole” means unmixed or entire. “Mass of suffering” means an accumulation of suffering, not a being and not pleasure, beauty, and the rest. “Origin” means production. “There is” means arises. Thus the determination here should be understood by meaning.

§8 The Mode of Characteristics, the Mode of Classification, and Determination of the Factors 〔CSCD §588–590〕

“By characteristic and the rest” means by the characteristics and the rest of ignorance and the other factors. For example: ignorance has unknowing as its characteristic, delusion as its function, concealment as its manifestation, and the influxes as its proximate cause. Formations have forming as their characteristic, accumulation as their function, volition as their manifestation, and ignorance as their proximate cause. Consciousness has cognizing as its characteristic, precedence as its function, rebirth-linking⁹ as its manifestation, and formations as its proximate cause, or basis and object as its proximate cause. Name has bending as its characteristic, association as its function, inseparability as its manifestation, and consciousness as its proximate cause. Form has deformation as its characteristic, dispersion as its function, the indeterminate as its manifestation, and consciousness as its proximate cause. The six bases have base as their characteristic, seeing and the rest as their function, the nature of basis and door as their manifestation, and name-and-form as their proximate cause. Contact has contacting as its characteristic, striking as its function, concurrence as its manifestation, and the six bases as its proximate cause. Feeling has experiencing as its characteristic, enjoyment of the flavor of the object as its function, pain and pleasure as its manifestation, and contact as its proximate cause. Craving has cause as its characteristic, delight as its function, insatiability as its manifestation, and feeling as its proximate cause. Clinging has grasping as its characteristic, not releasing as its function, the consolidation of craving and view as its manifestation, and craving as its proximate cause. Becoming has kamma and kamma-result as its characteristic, bringing into becoming and becoming as its function, the wholesome, unwholesome, and indeterminate as its manifestation, and clinging as its proximate cause. The characteristics and the rest of birth and the other factors should be understood in the manner stated in the “Explanation of the Truths.” Thus the determination here should also be understood by characteristic and the rest.

“By the onefold and the rest”: here ignorance is onefold because it has the nature of unknowing, not seeing, delusion, and the rest. It is twofold by non-practice and wrong practice, and likewise by prompted and unprompted. It is threefold by association with the three feelings, fourfold according to penetration of the four truths, and fivefold by concealing the dangers of the five destinations. But by way of door and object, all immaterial phenomena should be understood as sixfold.

Formations are onefold because they have such natures as having influxes and being phenomena with result. They are twofold as wholesome and unwholesome; likewise as limited and exalted, inferior and middling, fixed in wrongness and not fixed. They are threefold as meritorious formation and the rest, fourfold as leading to the four kinds of birth, and fivefold as leading to the five destinations.

Consciousness is onefold because it has such natures as mundane resultant. It is twofold as with roots and without roots, and so forth. It is threefold as included in the three existences, as associated with the three feelings, and as without roots, with two roots, and with three roots. By birth and destination it is fourfold and fivefold.

Name-and-form is onefold because it depends on consciousness and has kamma as condition. It is twofold as having an object and having no object, threefold as past and so forth, and fourfold and fivefold by birth and destination.

The six bases are onefold as the place of birth and convergence. They are twofold as great-element sensitivity and consciousness and the rest, threefold by objects that have arrived, not arrived, or are neither, and fourfold and fivefold as included in birth and destination. In this way the onefold and other classifications of contact and the rest should also be understood. Thus the determination here should also be understood by the onefold and the rest.

“And by determination of the factors”: sorrow and the rest are stated here to show that the wheel of becoming¹¹ is unbroken. For they arise in a fool struck by aging-and-death. As it is said: “Bhikkhus, when an uninstructed worldling is touched by a painful bodily feeling, he sorrows, grows weary, laments, beats his breast and cries, and becomes confused.” For as long as these occur, ignorance occurs; thus again there is “with ignorance as condition, formations,” and the wheel of becoming is joined. Therefore, after gathering sorrow and the rest together with aging-and-death in a single grouping, it should be understood that the factors of dependent origination are exactly twelve. Thus the determination here should also be understood by determination of the factors.

This, first, is the brief account here.

Notes

¹ Dependently originated phenomena (paṭiccasamuppannā dhammā): the term paired with “dependent origination”; the treatise explains it as the phenomena born from their respective conditions, that is, aging-and-death and the rest on the side of what is produced.

² Partial abiding (padesavihāra): the name of the cited discourse. The treatise uses it to establish that the abiding immediately after full awakening was attention to dependent origination, while partial abiding was an abiding in a portion of that abiding.

³ Four profundities: the treatise itself marks them as “to be explained later.” Their exposition as the profundities of meaning, phenomenon, teaching, and penetration occurs in the unit on the wheel of becoming in this chapter.

⁴ Circle of the Vibhajjavādins (vibhajjavādimaṇḍala): the circle which, according to the treatise, an expositor should enter; this is the first of ten requirements for explaining dependent origination.

⁵ Influx (āsava): the proximate cause of ignorance. The final unit of this chapter further establishes the four influxes as causes of sorrow and the rest.

⁶ Teaching of the round (vaṭṭakathā): the treatise’s own designation for the subject of this chapter, the teaching of the saṃsāric round. It establishes only two heads for that teaching: ignorance and craving for becoming.

⁷ Craving for becoming (bhavataṇhā): craving directed toward becoming. It is the second head of the teaching of the round, and the treatise makes it the distinctive cause of kamma leading to good destinations.

⁸ Commentary (aṭṭhakathā): an ancient commentary on the canonical text. This unit cites its determination of “formed formation,” while noting that a separate canonical locus cannot be discerned.

⁹ Rebirth-linking (paṭisandhi): the first consciousness in a lifetime. This unit establishes it as the manifestation of consciousness; its detailed explanation appears in the unit on formations as condition for consciousness in this chapter.

¹⁰ “Explanation of the Truths”: the section of this treatise explaining the four truths. The treatise itself notes that the characteristic, function, manifestation, and proximate cause of birth, aging, death, and the rest were stated there and are not repeated in this chapter.

¹¹ Wheel of becoming (bhavacakka): the overall name for the subject of this chapter, first occurring in this unit. Its three times, twenty modes, three links, four groupings, and three rounds are explained in detail in the final unit of this chapter.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 The Range of Ignorance—Unknowing in Relation to the Four Truths and Eight Fields 〔CSCD §561〕

Discussion of the Clause “With Ignorance as Condition, Formations”

The detailed method is as follows. “Ignorance”: according to the method of the discourses, it is unknowing in regard to four fields beginning with suffering; according to the Abhidhamma method, it is [unknowing] in regard to eight fields when the past limit and the rest are included. For it is said: “Here, what is ignorance? Unknowing in regard to suffering … up to (expanded as above) … unknowing in regard to the path of practice leading to the cessation of suffering; unknowing in regard to the past limit; unknowing in regard to the future limit and in regard to the past and future limits; unknowing in regard to specific conditionality and dependently originated phenomena.”

Here, although ignorance arises with all the remaining fields as its object, apart from the two supramundane truths¹, what is intended here nevertheless applies only by way of concealment². For when it arises it remains concealing the truth of suffering and does not allow its function and characteristic as they really are to be penetrated. Likewise, it remains concealing origin, cessation, and path; the past five aggregates called the past limit; the future five aggregates called the future limit; both of these called the past and future limits; and specific conditionality together with the dependently originated phenomena called “specific conditionality and dependently originated phenomena.” It does not allow the function and characteristic here as they really are to be penetrated thus: “This is ignorance; these are formations.” Therefore it is called “unknowing in regard to suffering … up to (expanded as above) … unknowing in regard to specific conditionality and dependently originated phenomena.”

§2 The Detailed Division of Formations—Twenty-Nine Volitions and Formations through the Three Doors 〔CSCD §592〕

“Formations”: six were stated earlier in brief—the three beginning with the meritorious and the three beginning with bodily formation. Here, in detail, meritorious formation consists of the eight wholesome sense-sphere volitions that occur through giving, virtue, and the rest, together with the five wholesome fine-material-sphere volitions that occur through development, making thirteen volitions. Demeritorious formation consists of the twelve unwholesome volitions that occur through killing and the rest. Imperturbable formation consists of only the four wholesome immaterial-sphere volitions that occur through development. Thus the three kinds of formation make twenty-nine volitions³.

Of the remaining three, bodily volition is bodily formation, verbal volition is verbal formation, and mental volition is mental formation. This triad is stated to show how meritorious formation and the rest occur through the doors at the moment kamma is accumulated. The eight wholesome sense-sphere volitions and twelve unwholesome volitions that produce bodily intimation and occur through the body door make exactly twenty volitions, and are called “bodily formation.” Those very [volitions], when they produce verbal intimation and occur through the speech door, are called “verbal formation.” The volition of direct knowledge is not included here because it does not become a condition for the subsequent consciousness. As with the volition of direct knowledge, so too with the volition of restlessness [which does not become a condition for consciousness]. Therefore, when the conditionality of consciousness is discussed, that volition too should be removed; with respect to ignorance as condition, however, all of these are [formations conditioned by ignorance]. All twenty-nine volitions that do not produce either intimation and arise at the mind door are “mental formation.” Thus this latter triad is included within the former triad; in meaning, therefore, ignorance’s conditionality should be understood only with respect to meritorious formation and the rest.

§3 How Formations Are Known to Arise from Ignorance—Four Aspects of Unknowing the Truths and Six Similes 〔CSCD §593〕

A question may arise here: how is it known that “these formations have ignorance as their condition”? Because they exist when ignorance exists. A person whose unknowing called ignorance in regard to suffering and the rest has not been abandoned first grasps the suffering of saṃsāra with the perception of pleasure, through unknowing in regard to suffering and the past limit and the rest, and initiates the three kinds of formation that are its cause. Through unknowing in regard to origin, that person takes formations—which, furnished with craving, are actually the cause of suffering—to be the cause of pleasure, and initiates them. Through unknowing in regard to cessation and the path, that person perceives a distinguished destination that is not the cessation of suffering as the cessation of suffering, and perceives sacrifices, immortality observances, austerities⁴, and the rest, which are not the path to cessation, as the path to cessation. Aspiring to the cessation of suffering, that person therefore initiates the three kinds of formation through sacrifices, immortality observances, austerities, and the rest as avenues.

Further, because that person’s ignorance of the four truths has not been abandoned, and especially because the suffering called the result of merit—which is interspersed with the many dangers of birth, aging, sickness, death, and the rest—is not known as suffering, that person initiates meritorious formation, divided into bodily, verbal, and mental formations, in order to attain it—like somebody desiring celestial nymphs who leaps from a cliff. Not seeing the suffering of change that gives rise to great burning when that result of merit, regarded as pleasure, comes to an end, or its meager gratification, that person initiates the meritorious formation described above which conditions it—like a moth plunging into a lamp flame, or somebody greedy for a drop of honey licking the edge of a knife smeared with honey. Not seeing the dangers entailed by results in the enjoyment of sensual pleasures and the rest, that person, through the perception of pleasure and because overwhelmed by defilements, initiates demeritorious formation occurring through the three doors—like a foolish child playing with excrement, or somebody seeking death eating poison. And not understanding the suffering of change in formations among immaterial results, that person, through the perversions beginning with permanence, initiates imperturbable formation, which is mental formation—like a person who has lost direction taking the road toward a city of goblins.

Thus, because the existence of formations occurs precisely through the existence of ignorance, not through its nonexistence, it should be understood that “these formations have ignorance as their condition.” This too was said: “Bhikkhus, an unwise person fallen into ignorance forms a meritorious formation, forms a demeritorious formation, and forms an imperturbable formation. But when a bhikkhu’s ignorance has been abandoned and true knowledge has arisen, then, through the fading away of ignorance and the arising of true knowledge, he no longer forms a meritorious formation.”

Notes

¹ The two supramundane truths (lokuttaraṃ saccadvayaṃ): the truths of cessation and path. The treatise itself specifies that they are not objects of ignorance but are only concealed by it.

² Concealment (paṭicchādana): the meaning of ignorance adopted in this chapter. Beyond the two methods, the treatise itself establishes the criterion of selection and takes ignorance only by way of concealment.

³ Twenty-nine volitions (ekūnatiṃsa cetanā): the total of the three formations—thirteen meritorious, twelve demeritorious, and four imperturbable.

⁴ Sacrifice, immortality observance, and austerity: three non-paths grasped by those who do not know the path truth; together with the “distinguished destination,” they exemplify what appears through unknowing in regard to the truths of cessation and path.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 General Statement of the Twenty-Four Conditions 〔CSCD §594〕

Discussion of the Conditions of the Paṭṭhāna

A question arises here. Granted first that “ignorance is the condition for formations”; yet it should also be stated: for which formations is it a condition, and in what manner is it a condition?

This is now to be stated. The Blessed One taught twenty-four conditions¹: “root condition, object condition, predominance condition, proximity condition, contiguity condition, conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, decisive-support condition, prenascence condition, postnascence condition, repetition condition, kamma condition, result condition, nutriment condition, faculty condition, jhāna condition, path condition, association condition, dissociation condition, presence condition, absence condition, disappearance condition, and nondisappearance condition.”

Here, it is both a root and a condition, and so is a “root condition”—that is, it is a condition by being a root, a condition through the nature of a root. The same method applies to object condition and the rest.

§2 Root Condition 〔CSCD §595〕

Here the term hetu has three senses: a member of speech, a cause, and a root. In such worldly expressions as “proposition and reason,” hetu denotes a member of speech. In the Teaching, in such expressions as “phenomena born from a cause,” it denotes a cause. In such expressions as “three wholesome roots, three unwholesome roots,” it denotes a root—and this is what is intended here.

As for the word “condition,” its meaning is this: because something comes dependent upon it, it is a “condition”; the meaning is that it occurs without relinquishing it. For when a phenomenon remains or arises without relinquishing another phenomenon, the first is called a condition for the second. In terms of characteristic, a condition has assistance as its characteristic: when a phenomenon assists another phenomenon’s persistence or arising, the first is called a condition for the second. Condition, root, cause, source, birth, production, and the rest are one in meaning but different in expression. Thus “root” is so called in the sense of root, while “condition” is so called in the sense of assistance. In brief, a phenomenon that assists in the sense of a root is a root condition.

The intention of the commentators is that it makes the wholesome and the rest possess the nature of wholesomeness and the rest, like rice seed in relation to rice and like a jewel’s color in relation to a jewel’s radiance. But if so, its being a root condition for the materiality originated by it could not be established, for it does not make those [material phenomena] possess the nature of wholesomeness and the rest, yet it is not the case that it is not their condition. For it is said: “Roots are conditions, by root condition, for phenomena associated with roots and for materiality originated by them.” Moreover, the indeterminate nature of rootless minds is already established without this [root], while the wholesome nature and the rest of rooted minds depends on wise attention and the rest, not on an associated root. And if associated roots possessed wholesomeness and the rest by their intrinsic nature, then non-greed, which among associated phenomena depends on a root, would have to be invariably wholesome or invariably indeterminate. But since it can be either, wholesomeness and the rest must be sought separately among roots just as among associated phenomena.

There is no contradiction, however, if the root-meaning of roots is taken not as “making something possess the nature of wholesomeness and the rest,” but as “making it well established.” For phenomena that have obtained root condition are firm and well established like trees whose roots have grown, while rootless [phenomena] are not well established, like duckweed of the sesame-seed kind and the rest. Thus “assisting in the sense of a root” should be understood to mean that a phenomenon which assists by making something well established is a root condition.

§3 Object, Predominance, Proximity, and Contiguity Conditions 〔CSCD §596–598〕

Among the conditions that follow, a phenomenon that assists by being an object is object condition. Although its exposition begins with “the visible-form base [is a condition] for the eye-consciousness element,” it concludes, “Whatever mental and mental-factor phenomena arise with reference to any phenomenon, that phenomenon is a condition for those phenomena by object condition”; consequently, there is no phenomenon that is not [capable of being an object condition]. Just as a weak person can rise and stand only by clinging to a staff or rope, so mental and mental-factor phenomena arise and stand only by taking visible form and other objects. Therefore every phenomenon that becomes an object of mind and mental factors should be understood as object condition.

A phenomenon that assists in the sense of chiefship is predominance condition; it is twofold as conascent and object predominance. From such statements as “predominance of zeal is a condition by predominance condition for phenomena associated with zeal and for materiality originated by it,” four phenomena—zeal, energy, mind, and investigation—should be understood as predominance conditions, but not simultaneously. When mind occurs with zeal as its yoke and chief, only zeal is predominant then, not the others; the same method applies to the rest. A phenomenon accorded weight by immaterial phenomena as they occur is their object predominance. Thus it is said: “Whatever mental and mental-factor phenomena arise while giving weight to any phenomenon, that phenomenon is a condition for those phenomena by predominance condition.”

A phenomenon that assists by proximity is proximity condition². A phenomenon that assists by contiguity is contiguity condition. This pair of conditions has been elaborated in many ways, but the essence here is this. The fixed order of mind—“after eye-consciousness, mind element; after mind element, mind-consciousness element,” and so forth—is accomplished only through each preceding mind and in no other way. Therefore a phenomenon capable of causing an appropriate arising of mind immediately after itself is proximity condition. Hence it is said: “Proximity condition: the eye-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it are conditions by proximity condition for the mind element and the phenomena associated with it,” and so forth. Whatever is proximity condition is also contiguity condition. Here there is only a difference in expression, as between “accumulation” and “continuity,” and as between such pairs as “designation” and “term”; in meaning there is no difference.

The commentators, however, hold that “proximity condition is proximity in meaning, while contiguity condition is proximity in time.” This view conflicts with such statements as “For somebody emerging from cessation [attainment], the wholesome mind of the base of neither-perception-nor-non-perception is a condition by contiguity condition for fruition attainment.” They further say here: “The capacity of phenomena to originate has not declined; phenomena simply do not arise contiguously because they are obstructed by the strength of development.” But this statement itself establishes the absence of proximity in time. For there, owing to the strength of development, there is no proximity in time—and that is exactly what we say. Since there is no proximity in time, [on their view] the status of contiguity condition cannot be established, because their position is that contiguity condition consists in proximity in time. No adherence should therefore be made. The difference here should be accepted only in expression, not in meaning. How so? Since “there is no interval between these [minds],” they are proximate; because there is no pause and they are thoroughly proximate, they are contiguous.

§4 Conascence, Mutuality, and Support Conditions 〔CSCD §599–601〕

A phenomenon that, while itself arising, assists by causing another to arise together with it is conascence condition—like a lamp in relation to its light. It is sixfold by way of the immaterial aggregates and the rest. As it is said: “The four immaterial aggregates are conditions for one another by conascence condition. The four great elements [are conditions] for one another; at the moment of descent into the womb, name and form [are conditions] for one another; mind and mental factors [are conditions] for mind-originated materiality; the great elements [are conditions] for derived materiality; material phenomena are sometimes conditions and sometimes not conditions for immaterial phenomena by conascence condition.” This last statement refers specifically to the heart-basis³.

A phenomenon that assists through mutual arising and support is mutuality condition—like a tripod whose poles support one another. It is threefold by way of the immaterial aggregates and the rest. As it is said: “The four immaterial aggregates are conditions for one another by mutuality condition. The four great elements, and name and form at the moment of descent into the womb, are conditions for one another by mutuality condition.”

A phenomenon that assists in the mode of a dwelling place and in the mode of a support is support condition—like earth for a tree and cloth for a painting. It should be understood by the method stated for conascence [condition], beginning, “The four immaterial aggregates are conditions for one another by support condition.” The sixth portion here is distinguished thus: “The eye base is a condition for the eye-consciousness element … up to (expanded as above) … ear … nose … tongue … the body base is a condition by support condition for the body-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it. The materiality in dependence upon which the mind element and mind-consciousness element occur is a condition by support condition for the mind element and mind-consciousness element and for the phenomena associated with them.”

§5 Decisive-Support Condition—Object, Proximity, and Natural Decisive Support 〔CSCD §602〕

In the expression “decisive-support condition,” the word’s meaning is first as follows. Because [a result] occurs dependent upon it, it is relied upon by its own result and not rejected—therefore it is a “support.” Just as powerful distress (āyāso) is called “despair” (upāyāso), so a powerful support is called “decisive support”—this is a designation for a powerful cause. Thus a phenomenon that assists by being a powerful cause should be understood as decisive-support condition.

It is threefold: object decisive support, proximity decisive support, and natural decisive support. Of these, object decisive support is stated without distinction from object predominance according to such methods as: “Having given a gift, undertaken virtue, and performed the observance, a person reviews it while giving weight to it; reviews former good conduct while giving weight to it; after emerging from jhāna, reviews the jhāna while giving weight to it; trainees review change-of-lineage while giving weight to it and review purification while giving weight to it; after emerging from the path, trainees review the path while giving weight to it.” Here, when mind and mental factors arise while giving weight to an object, that object is necessarily powerful among objects. Thus object predominance is so called in the sense that it should be accorded weight, while object decisive support is so called in the sense of a powerful cause. Their difference should be understood thus.

Proximity decisive support too is stated without distinction from proximity condition according to such methods as “Each preceding wholesome aggregate is a condition by decisive-support condition for each subsequent wholesome aggregate.” Yet in the laying down of the matrix there is a difference in presentation: proximity [condition] occurs according to such methods as “The eye-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it are conditions by proximity condition for the mind element and the phenomena associated with it,” whereas decisive support [condition] occurs according to such methods as “Each preceding wholesome phenomenon is a condition by decisive-support condition for each subsequent wholesome phenomenon.” But in meaning even that [difference] comes down to unity. Even so, proximity should be understood in terms of “the capacity to cause an appropriate arising of mind immediately after itself,” whereas proximity decisive support should be understood in terms of “the preceding mind’s powerful role in causing the subsequent mind to arise.” Mind may arise without some particular phenomenon among root condition and the rest, but mind never arises without an immediately preceding mind; it is therefore a powerful condition. Thus proximity condition is so called by way of causing an appropriate arising of mind immediately after itself, while proximity decisive support is so called by way of powerful causality. Their difference should be understood thus.

As for natural decisive support, a natural “decisive support” is “natural decisive support.” What is called “natural” is faith, virtue, and the rest accomplished in a person’s own continuum, or climate, food, and the rest habitually used. Or it is a decisive support by its very nature, and so a “natural decisive support”; the meaning is that it is unmixed with object [decisive support] and proximity [decisive support]. Its divisions as natural decisive support should be understood in various ways according to such methods as: “Depending on faith, a person gives a gift, undertakes virtue, performs the observance, produces jhāna, produces insight, produces the path, produces direct knowledge, and produces attainment. Depending on virtue, learning, generosity, and wisdom, a person gives a gift … up to (expanded as above) … and produces attainment. Faith, virtue, learning, generosity, and wisdom are conditions by decisive-support condition for faith, virtue, learning, generosity, and wisdom.” Thus these beginning with faith are both natural and, in the sense of powerful cause, decisive supports; therefore they are called “natural decisive support.”

§6 Prenascence, Postnascence, Repetition, Kamma, and Result Conditions 〔CSCD §603–607〕

A phenomenon that assists by having arisen earlier and presently existing is prenascence condition. It is elevenfold by way of the bases and objects at the five doors and the heart-basis. As it is said: “The eye base is a condition by prenascence condition for the eye-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it. Ear … up to (expanded as above) … nose, tongue, body base, visible form, sound, odor, flavor, and tangible-object base are conditions by prenascence condition for the body-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it. Visible form, sound, odor, flavor, and tangible-object base [are conditions] for the mind element. The materiality in dependence upon which the mind element and mind-consciousness element occur is a condition by prenascence condition for the mind element and for the phenomena associated with it. [That materiality] is sometimes a condition and sometimes not a condition by prenascence condition for the mind-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it.”

An immaterial phenomenon that assists by supporting material phenomena born earlier is postnascence condition—like a young vulture’s intention to seek food in relation to its body. Thus it is said: “Later-born mind and mental factors are conditions by postnascence condition for this earlier-born body.”

A phenomenon that assists immediately following [phenomena] through repetition, making them proficient and powerful, is repetition condition—like each preceding effort in studying texts and the rest. It is threefold by way of wholesome, unwholesome, and functional impulsions⁴. As it is said: “Each preceding wholesome phenomenon is a condition by repetition condition for each subsequent wholesome phenomenon. Each preceding unwholesome [phenomenon] … up to (expanded as above) … functional indeterminate phenomena are conditions by repetition condition for subsequent functional indeterminate phenomena.”

A phenomenon that assists through the nature of an activity called the mind’s exertion is kamma condition. It is twofold by way of wholesome and unwholesome volition belonging to a different moment and all conascent volition. As it is said: “Wholesome and unwholesome kamma is a condition by kamma condition for resultant aggregates and materiality made by kamma. Volition is a condition by kamma condition for the phenomena associated with it and for materiality originated by it.”

A resultant phenomenon that assists through the effortless and peaceful nature [of the result], in bringing about an effortless and peaceful nature, is result condition. During occurrence it is a condition for materiality originated by it; at rebirth-linking it is a condition for materiality made by kamma; and everywhere it is a condition for associated phenomena. As it is said: “A single resultant indeterminate aggregate is a condition by result condition for three aggregates and for mind-originated materiality … up to (expanded as above) … at the moment of rebirth-linking, a single resultant indeterminate aggregate is [a condition] for three aggregates and for materiality made by kamma. Three aggregates [are conditions] for a single aggregate. Two aggregates are conditions by result condition for two aggregates and for materiality made by kamma. The aggregates are conditions by result condition for the basis.”

§7 Nutriment, Faculty, Jhāna, and Path Conditions 〔CSCD §608–611〕

The four nutriments⁵, which assist in the sense of supporting material and immaterial phenomena, are nutriment condition. As it is said: “Physical nutriment is a condition by nutriment condition for this body. Immaterial nutriments are conditions by nutriment condition for the phenomena associated with them and for materiality originated by them.” In the Question Section⁶ it is further said: “At the moment of rebirth-linking, resultant indeterminate nutriments are conditions by nutriment condition for the aggregates associated with them and for materiality made by kamma.”

The twenty faculties, excluding the femininity and masculinity faculties, which assist in the sense of dominance, are faculty condition. Here the eye faculty and the rest are conditions only for immaterial phenomena, while the remaining faculties are conditions for both material and immaterial phenomena. As it is said: “The eye faculty is a condition for the eye-consciousness element … up to (expanded as above) … ear … nose … tongue … the body faculty is a condition by faculty condition for the body-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it. The material life faculty is a condition by faculty condition for materiality made by kamma. The immaterial faculties are conditions by faculty condition for the phenomena associated with them and for materiality originated by them.” In the Question Section it is further said: “At the moment of rebirth-linking, resultant indeterminate faculties are conditions by faculty condition for the aggregates associated with them and for materiality made by kamma.”

The seven jhāna factors, distinguished as wholesome and the rest, which assist in the sense of contemplation, excluding the pair of pleasurable and painful feeling in the two sets of five consciousnesses⁷, are jhāna condition. As it is said: “The jhāna factors are conditions by jhāna condition for phenomena associated with jhāna and for materiality originated by them.” In the Question Section it is further said: “At the moment of rebirth-linking, resultant indeterminate jhāna factors are conditions by jhāna condition for the aggregates associated with them and for materiality made by kamma.”

The twelve path factors, distinguished as wholesome and the rest, which assist in the sense of leading out from here or there, are path condition. As it is said: “The path factors are conditions by path condition for phenomena associated with the path and for materiality originated by them.” In the Question Section it is further said: “At the moment of rebirth-linking, resultant indeterminate path factors are conditions by path condition for the aggregates associated with them and for materiality made by kamma.” It should be understood that these two conditions—jhāna and path—are not found in the two sets of five consciousnesses or in rootless minds.

§8 Association, Dissociation, Presence, Absence, Disappearance, and Nondisappearance Conditions 〔CSCD §612–615〕

Immaterial phenomena that assist through association consisting in “same basis, same object, same arising, same cessation” are association condition. As it is said: “The four immaterial aggregates are conditions for one another by association condition.”

Material phenomena are dissociation condition for immaterial phenomena, and immaterial phenomena for material phenomena, by assisting through not proceeding to the same basis and the rest. It is threefold as conascent, postnascent, and prenascent. For it is said: “Conascent wholesome aggregates are conditions by dissociation condition for mind-originated materiality. Postnascent wholesome aggregates are conditions by dissociation condition for this prenascent body.” In the conascence analysis of the indeterminate clause, it is further said: “At the moment of rebirth-linking, resultant indeterminate aggregates are conditions by dissociation condition for materiality made by kamma. The aggregates [are conditions] for the basis. The basis is a condition by dissociation condition for the aggregates.” Prenascent [dissociation condition] should be understood only by way of bases such as the eye faculty. As it is said: “The prenascent eye base is a condition for eye-consciousness … up to (expanded as above) … the body base is a condition by dissociation condition for body-consciousness. The basis [is a condition] for resultant indeterminate aggregates and functional indeterminate aggregates … up to (expanded as above) … the basis [is a condition] for wholesome aggregates … up to (expanded as above) … the basis is a condition by dissociation condition for unwholesome aggregates.”

A phenomenon that assists another phenomenon that is likewise [present] by supporting it, through the nature of “presence” characterized by presentness, is presence condition. Its matrix is laid down sevenfold by way of immaterial aggregates, great elements, name-and-form, mind and mental factors, great elements, bases, and basis. As it is said: “The four immaterial aggregates are conditions for one another by presence condition; the four great elements [are conditions for one another]; at the moment of descent into the womb, name and form [are conditions] for one another. Mind and mental factors [are conditions] for mind-originated materiality. The great elements [are conditions] for derived materiality. The eye base is a condition for the eye-consciousness element … up to (expanded as above) … the body base … up to (expanded as above) … the visible-form base … up to (expanded as above) … the tangible-object base is a condition by presence condition for the body-consciousness element and the phenomena associated with it. The visible-form base … up to (expanded as above) … the tangible-object base [is a condition] for the mind element and the phenomena associated with it. The materiality in dependence upon which the mind element and mind-consciousness element occur is a condition by presence condition for the mind element and mind-consciousness element and for the phenomena associated with them.”

In the Question Section, conascence, prenascence, postnascence, nutriment, and faculty [these five] are also laid down. Conascence is shown according to such methods as “A single aggregate is a condition by presence condition for three aggregates and for materiality originated by it.” Prenascence is shown by way of the prenascent eye and the rest. Postnascence is shown by way of later-born mind and mental factors as conditions for this earlier-born body. Nutriment and faculty are shown thus: “Physical nutriment is a condition by presence condition for this body. The material life faculty is a condition by presence condition for materiality made by kamma.”

Immaterial phenomena that have ceased contiguously and assist immaterial phenomena arising after themselves by giving them an opportunity to arise are absence condition. As it is said: “Mental and mental-factor phenomena that have ceased contiguously are conditions by absence condition for present mental and mental-factor phenomena.”

Those very [phenomena], because they assist through having disappeared, are disappearance condition. As it is said: “Mental and mental-factor phenomena that have disappeared contiguously are conditions by disappearance condition for present mental and mental-factor phenomena.”

It should be understood that the very phenomena which are presence conditions, because they assist through not having disappeared, are nondisappearance condition. This pair [of conditions] was taught through mastery of teaching or with reference to people to be guided who are to be trained in this way—just as, after the dyad “rootless,” the dyad “dissociated from a root” was also taught.

Notes

¹ Twenty-four conditions (catuvīsati paccayā): the full list of conditional relations the Commentator draws from the Paṭṭhāna, from root condition through nondisappearance condition. This unit explains the character of each in turn; the question “in what manner” one factor conditions another uses these as its instruments.

² Proximity and contiguity conditions (anantarapaccaya・samanantarapaccaya): this edition retains two distinct names, while the Commentator himself determines that “here the difference is only in expression”; in meaning the two are not different.

³ Heart-basis (hadayavatthu): the materiality on which the mind element and mind-consciousness element depend. The sixth part under conascence condition in this unit refers specifically to this.

⁴ Impulsion (javana): a position in the cognitive process that receives an object and makes kamma. Its types are enumerated individually in the unit on the consciousness aggregate in the chapter on the aggregates.

⁵ Four nutriments (cattāro āhārā): this unit divides them into two classes, physical nutriment and immaterial nutriments. The former conditions this body; the latter condition their associated phenomena and the materiality they originate.

⁶ Question Section (pañhāvāra): a division of the Paṭṭhāna which, after the matrix has been laid down, further expands its allocations through questions and answers. This unit cites it under five conditions—nutriment, faculty, jhāna, path, and presence—to supplement the account.

⁷ Two sets of five consciousnesses (dvipañcaviññāṇa): the wholesome-resultant and unwholesome-resultant classes of the five consciousnesses of eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body, making ten. They are enumerated individually in the unit on the consciousness aggregate in the chapter on the aggregates.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 In How Many Ways among the Twenty-Four Conditions Ignorance Conditions Formations 〔CSCD §616〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Ignorance as Condition, Formations”

Thus, among these twenty-four conditions, this ignorance—

is a condition for meritorious [formations] in two ways, and for the others in many ways;

for the last [formations], it is said to be a condition in a single way.

Here, “a condition for meritorious [formations] in two ways” means that it is a condition in two ways: by object condition and by decisive-support condition. For when [a practitioner] contemplates ignorance in terms of exhaustion and dissolution, ignorance is a condition by object condition for sense-sphere meritorious formations²; when a mind accompanied by delusion is known with a direct-knowledge mind, [ignorance is a condition by object condition] for fine-material-sphere [meritorious formations]. For a person who, in order to transcend ignorance, fulfills sense-sphere bases of meritorious deeds such as giving and produces fine-material-sphere jhānas, ignorance is a condition by decisive-support condition for both. The same applies to a person who, because bewildered by ignorance, aspires to attainments in sense becoming and fine-material becoming and performs those meritorious [formations].

“For the others in many ways” means that it is a condition for demeritorious formations in many ways. How? When greed and the rest arise with ignorance as their object, ignorance is a condition by object condition; when a person gives it weight and relishes it, by object-predominance and object decisive-support conditions; for a person bewildered by ignorance who, seeing no danger, kills living beings and so forth, by decisive-support condition; for the second impulsion³ and the rest, by proximity, contiguity, proximity-decisive-support, repetition, absence, and disappearance conditions; for a person committing any unwholesome act, by root, conascence, mutuality, support, association, presence, and nondisappearance conditions. Thus it is a condition in many ways.

“For the last [formations], it is said to be a condition in a single way” means that for imperturbable formations it is said to be a condition in only a single way, by decisive-support condition. Its nature as decisive support should be understood according to the method stated for meritorious formations.

§2 Why the Presentation of a Single Cause and a Single Effect Is Faultless 〔CSCD §617〕

A question arises here: is this ignorance alone the condition for formations, or are there other conditions? What difficulty is there here? If it alone is [the condition], the theory of a single cause follows; but if there are other [conditions], the presentation of a single cause in “with ignorance as condition, formations” cannot be established.

It is not that it cannot be established. Why? Because—

here no single effect arises from a single [cause], nor do many [effects arise from a single cause], nor does a single [effect arise] from many [causes];

yet the presentation of a single cause and a single effect has its meaning.

For here there is no single effect from a single cause, nor are there many [effects from a single cause]; nor is there a single effect from many causes. What comes from many causes is only many [effects]. Thus, from the many causes called climate, earth, seed, and water, the many effects called the visible form, odor, flavor, and the rest of a “sprout” are seen to arise. Yet the presentation of a single cause and a single effect made in “with ignorance as condition, formations; with formations as condition, consciousness” has meaning and purpose.

For the Blessed One sometimes presents only a single cause or a single effect because it is principal, sometimes because it is conspicuous, sometimes because it is distinctive, and also in accordance with his mastery in teaching and with those to be guided. “With contact as condition, feeling” states a single cause and effect because they are principal: contact is the principal cause of feeling, since feeling is determined in accordance with contact; and feeling is the principal effect of contact, since contact is determined in accordance with feeling. “Illnesses originate in phlegm” states a single cause because it is conspicuous: here phlegm is conspicuous, while kamma and the rest are not. “Bhikkhus, whatever unwholesome states there are, all have unwise attention as their root” states a single cause because it is distinctive: unwise attention is distinctive to the unwholesome, while the basis, object, and the rest are shared.

Therefore it should be understood that, although other causes of formations such as basis, object, and conascent phenomena exist here, ignorance is still presented as a cause of formations: first, because it is principal, since according to the two statements “Craving grows in a person who contemplates gratification” and “With the arising of ignorance, there is the arising of the influxes,” it is also the cause of other causes of formations such as craving; second, because it is conspicuous, according to “Bhikkhus, an unwise person fallen into ignorance also forms a meritorious formation”; and third, because it is distinctive. By this statement that answers the [difficulty concerning] the presentation of a single cause and a single effect, it should be understood that such a presentation everywhere has a purpose.

§3 How Unwholesome Ignorance Can Condition Meritorious and Imperturbable Formations 〔CSCD §618〕

A question arises here: even so, ignorance invariably bears undesirable results and is blameworthy. How, then, can it be established as a condition for meritorious and imperturbable formations? A neem seed does not produce sugarcane.

Why could it not be established? For in the world—

the contrary and the noncontrary, and likewise the similar and the dissimilar,

are established as conditions for phenomena; yet those [phenomena] are not simply their results.

For in the world, conditions for phenomena are established as contrary or noncontrary in place, nature, function, and so forth. A preceding mind is a place-contrary condition for a subsequent mind; prior training in crafts and the like is likewise [a place-contrary condition] for the later practice of crafts and the like. Kamma is a nature-contrary condition for materiality; milk and the rest are likewise [nature-contrary conditions] for curds and the rest. Light is a function-contrary [condition] for eye-consciousness; sugar and the rest are likewise [function-contrary conditions] for liquor and the rest. The eye, visible form, and the rest, however, are place-noncontrary conditions for eye-consciousness and the rest. Earlier impulsions and the rest are nature-noncontrary and function-noncontrary [conditions] for later impulsions and the rest.

Just as contrary and noncontrary conditions are established, so too are similar and dissimilar conditions. The materiality called climate and nutriment is a similar condition for materiality; rice seed and the rest are likewise [similar conditions] for rice fruit and the rest. Materiality is a dissimilar condition for the immaterial, and the immaterial for materiality; cow hair, reverse-growing hair, horn, curds, sesame flour, and the rest are likewise [dissimilar conditions] for thatch grass, arrow grass, fragrant grass, and the rest. The phenomena that have these contrary, noncontrary, similar, and dissimilar conditions are not simply the results of those conditioning phenomena.

Thus it should be understood that although ignorance invariably bears undesirable results in terms of its result and is blameworthy in its own nature, as appropriate it is nevertheless a condition for all these meritorious formations and the rest by way of conditions that are contrary or noncontrary in place, function, and nature, and by way of similar and dissimilar conditions. Its conditionality has already been stated according to the method beginning: “A person whose unknowing called ignorance in regard to suffering and the rest has not been abandoned first grasps the suffering of saṃsāra with the perception of pleasure, through unknowing in regard to suffering and the past limit and the rest, and initiates the three kinds of formation that are its cause.”

§4 Delusion in Five Fields and the Simile of a Person Blind from Birth 〔CSCD §619〕

There is also another method—

Whoever is bewildered about death and rebirth, about saṃsāra, about the characteristics of formations,

and about dependently originated phenomena,

forms these three kinds of formation; therefore,

ignorance is the condition for those three [formations].

If asked, how does a person bewildered about these things form these three kinds of formation?

First, a person bewildered about death does not take death as “the breakup of the aggregates everywhere is death,” but speculates, “A being dies,” “A being passes into another body,” and so forth.

A person bewildered about rebirth does not take rebirth as “the manifestation of the aggregates everywhere is birth,” but speculates, “A being is born,” “A new body has manifested for a being,” and so forth.

For a person bewildered about saṃsāra, saṃsāra is explained thus—

“The succession of aggregates, elements, and bases,

proceeding uninterruptedly, is called saṃsāra”;

but that person does not take it thus and instead speculates, “This being goes from this world to another world and comes from another world to this world,” and so forth.

A person bewildered about the characteristics of formations does not take the formations’ individual characteristics and common characteristics⁴, but speculates that formations are self, belong to self, are permanent, are pleasant, and are pure.

A person bewildered about dependently originated phenomena does not take the occurrence of formations and the rest through ignorance and the rest, but speculates: “Whether the self knows or does not know, that very self acts and causes action. It takes birth at rebirth-linking; atoms, a sovereign deity,⁵ and the rest fashion a body for it in the form of the kalala and subsequent stages and bring its faculties to completion. Once its faculties are complete, it contacts, feels, craves, clings, and becomes connected [to a future becoming]. It then comes to be in another becoming”; or speculates, “All beings are transformed by destiny, circumstance, and nature.”

Thus speculating while blinded by ignorance, that person is like somebody blind who travels upon the earth, going by a path or a nonpath, over high ground or low ground, over even ground or uneven ground. In the same way, that person forms meritorious, demeritorious, and imperturbable formations.

Therefore this is said—

“Just as a person blind from birth, without a guide,

sometimes travels by the path and sometimes by a wrong path,

so too a foolish person, wandering in saṃsāra without a guide,

sometimes performs merit and sometimes also demerit.

But when that person knows the Dhamma and directly comprehends the truths,

then, through the calming of ignorance, that person will fare in peace.”

This is the detailed account of the clause “with ignorance as condition, formations.”

Notes

¹ Twenty-four conditions: their complete list and individual explanations appear in this chapter’s unit on the twenty-four conditions of the Paṭṭhāna; this unit applies them only to the relation between ignorance and formations.

² Meritorious, demeritorious, and imperturbable formations (puññābhisaṅkhāra・apuññābhisaṅkhāra・āneñjābhisaṅkhāra): the three kinds of formation—meritorious formation is wholesome volition in the sense and fine-material spheres, demeritorious formation is unwholesome volition, and imperturbable formation is wholesome volition in the immaterial sphere. They are enumerated in this chapter’s unit on the clause “with ignorance as condition, formations.”

³ Impulsion (javana): a position in the cognitive process that receives an object and makes kamma. Its types are enumerated individually in the unit on the consciousness aggregate in the chapter on the aggregates.

⁴ Individual characteristic and common characteristic (sabhāvalakkhaṇa・sāmaññalakkhaṇa): the former is a phenomenon’s particular nature, the latter the characteristic common to phenomena. Here a person bewildered about these two characteristics conceives formations as self, belonging to self, permanent, pleasant, and pure.

⁵ Atoms and a sovereign deity (aṇuissara): agents conceived by a person bewildered about dependently originated phenomena; here they are said to “fashion a body and bring its faculties to completion.”

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 Thirty-Two Resultant Consciousnesses—Which Formation Produces Which Consciousness 〔CSCD §620〕

Detailed Account of “With Formations as Condition, Consciousness”

In the clause “with formations as condition, consciousness,” “consciousness” is sixfold, beginning with eye-consciousness. Of these, eye-consciousness is twofold: wholesome resultant¹ and unwholesome resultant. Ear-, nose-, tongue-, and body-consciousness are likewise. Mind-consciousness consists of two mind elements², wholesome resultant and unwholesome resultant; three rootless³ mind-consciousness elements; eight rooted sense-sphere resultant minds; five fine-material-sphere [resultant minds]; and four immaterial-sphere [resultant minds]—twenty-two in all. Thus all thirty-two mundane resultant consciousnesses⁴ are comprised by these six kinds of consciousness. Supramundane [resultant consciousnesses] are not taken because they do not fit the discourse on the round⁵.

Someone may ask here, “How can it be known that consciousness of the kinds stated above has formations as its condition?”—because when no kamma has been accumulated there is no result. This [consciousness] is resultant, and a result does not arise when no kamma has been accumulated. If it did arise, every result would arise for every person; but they do not arise. It should therefore be understood that this consciousness has formations as its condition.

If asked which consciousness has which formation as its condition: first, with sense-sphere meritorious formation⁶ as condition, there are the five wholesome-resultant consciousnesses beginning with eye-consciousness, and among mind-consciousness, a single mind element, two mind-consciousness elements, and eight great sense-sphere resultants—sixteen in all. As it is said: “Because sense-sphere wholesome kamma has been performed and accumulated, resultant eye-consciousness has arisen … ear … nose … tongue … body-consciousness … resultant mind element has arisen. Mind-consciousness element accompanied by joy has arisen. Mind-consciousness element accompanied by equanimity has arisen. Accompanied by joy and associated with knowledge. Accompanied by joy, associated with knowledge, and prompted. Accompanied by joy and dissociated from knowledge. Accompanied by joy, dissociated from knowledge, and prompted. Accompanied by equanimity and associated with knowledge. Accompanied by equanimity, associated with knowledge, and prompted. Accompanied by equanimity and dissociated from knowledge. Accompanied by equanimity, dissociated from knowledge, and prompted.”

With fine-material-sphere meritorious formation as condition, there are five fine-material-sphere resultants. As it is said: “Because that same fine-material-sphere wholesome kamma has been performed and accumulated, the resultant [mind] ‘quite secluded from sensual pleasures, [enters] the first jhāna’ … up to (expanded as above) … ‘[enters] and dwells in the fifth jhāna.’” Thus, with meritorious formation as condition, consciousness is twenty-onefold.

With demeritorious formation as condition, there are the five unwholesome-resultant consciousnesses beginning with eye-consciousness, a single mind element, and a single mind-consciousness element—seven kinds of consciousness. As it is said: “Because unwholesome kamma has been performed and accumulated, resultant eye-consciousness has arisen … ear … nose … tongue … body-consciousness … resultant mind element and resultant mind-consciousness element have arisen.”

With imperturbable formation as condition, there are four immaterial resultants—four kinds of consciousness. As it is said: “Because that same immaterial-sphere wholesome kamma has been performed and accumulated, the resultant [mind] ‘through the complete surmounting of perceptions of form, accompanied by the perception of the base of infinite space’ … up to (expanded as above) … ‘infinite consciousness’ … up to (expanded as above) … ‘nothingness’ … up to (expanded as above) … ‘accompanied by the base of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, through abandoning pleasure and pain, [enters] and dwells in the fourth jhāna.’”

§2 Consciousness in Occurrence—Thirteen Only in Occurrence, Nineteen Also at Rebirth-Linking 〔CSCD §621〕

Having thus understood which consciousness has which formation as condition, its occurrence should now be understood as follows: all this [consciousness] occurs in two ways, as occurrence and as rebirth-linking⁷. Of these, the two sets of five consciousnesses [making ten], the two mind elements, and the rootless mind-consciousness element accompanied by joy—these thirteen occur only in occurrence within five-aggregate becoming⁸. The remaining nineteen occur, as appropriate, both in occurrence and at rebirth-linking in the three kinds of becoming.

How? First, the five wholesome-resultant consciousnesses beginning with eye-consciousness occur for a person born through wholesome or unwholesome result whose faculties have matured in sequence. Taking agreeable or moderately agreeable visible form and the other objects that have entered the range of the eye and the rest, and depending on eye-sensitivity and the rest, they perform the functions of seeing, hearing, smelling, tasting, and touching. The five unwholesome resultants are the same, except that their objects are disagreeable or moderately disagreeable; this is the only difference. All ten have fixed doors, objects, bases, positions, and functions.

Afterward, immediately following wholesome-resultant eye-consciousness and the rest, the wholesome-resultant mind element takes their very object, depends upon the heart-basis⁹, and occurs performing the function of receiving. Immediately following the unwholesome-resultant [consciousnesses], the unwholesome-resultant [mind element] does the same. These two have variable doors and objects, fixed bases and positions, and fixed functions.

The rootless mind-consciousness element accompanied by joy, immediately following the wholesome-resultant mind element, takes its very object, depends upon the heart-basis, and performs the function of investigating. Further, at a powerful object in any of the six doors, for sense-sphere beings, mostly at the end of impulsion¹⁰ associated with greed, it interrupts the life-continuum process¹¹ and occurs once or twice as registration¹² upon the object taken by impulsion—so it is said in the commentary to the Majjhima Nikāya. In the Abhidhamma commentary, however, two cognitive processes are given at registration. This mind receives two names: “registration” and “rear life-continuum.” It has variable doors and objects, a fixed basis, and variable position and function. Thus these thirteen should first be understood as occurring only in occurrence within five-aggregate becoming.

Among the remaining nineteen, none fails to occur at the rebirth-linking appropriate to itself. In occurrence, first, the two rootless mind-consciousness elements—wholesome resultant and unwholesome resultant—perform four functions: in the five doors, investigating immediately after the wholesome-resultant and unwholesome-resultant mind elements; in the six doors, registration in the manner stated above; after the rebirth-linking they themselves have given, life-continuum when no arising of mind interrupts the life-continuum; and death at the end [of a becoming]. Thus they occur with a fixed basis but variable door, object, position, and function.

The eight rooted sense-sphere minds perform three functions according to the method stated above: registration in the six doors; life-continuum after the rebirth-linking they themselves have given, when no arising of mind interrupts the life-continuum; and death at the end [of a becoming]. Thus they occur with a fixed basis but variable door, object, position, and function.

The five fine-material-sphere [resultants] and the four immaterial-sphere [resultants] perform two functions: life-continuum after the rebirth-linking they themselves have given, when no arising of mind interrupts the life-continuum; and death at the end [of a becoming]. Among them, the fine-material-sphere [resultants] have fixed basis and object but variable position and function; the others, the immaterial resultants, have a fixed basis and a fixed object but variable position and function. Thus all thirty-two kinds of consciousness occur in occurrence with formations as their condition. There the respective formations condition them by kamma condition and decisive-support condition.

§3 Four Questions about Rebirth-Linking—Twenty Rebirth-Linkings, Nineteen Minds, Their Places, and Their Objects 〔CSCD §622〕

The statement “among the remaining nineteen, none fails to occur at the rebirth-linking appropriate to itself” is difficult to understand because it is too concise. Therefore, to show the detailed method, it is said: how many kinds of rebirth-linking are there? How many rebirth-linking minds are there? Through what, and where, does rebirth-linking occur? What is the object of rebirth-linking?

Including non-percipient rebirth-linking, there are twenty kinds of rebirth-linking. There are the nineteen rebirth-linking minds of the kinds stated above. Of these, rebirth-linking in bad destinations occurs through the unwholesome-resultant rootless mind-consciousness element. Through the wholesome-resultant [rootless mind-consciousness element], there is rebirth-linking among humans for those born blind, born deaf, born insane, born mute, as eunuchs, and so forth. Through the eight rooted sense-sphere resultants, there is rebirth-linking among sense-sphere devas and meritorious humans. Through the five fine-material-sphere resultants, [there is rebirth-linking] in the fine-material brahmā world. Through the four immaterial-sphere resultants, [there is rebirth-linking] in the immaterial world. Whatever consciousness gives rebirth-linking, and wherever it does so, that is called the “rebirth-linking appropriate” to it. In brief, rebirth-linking has three kinds of object: past, present, and not-to-be-stated¹³. Non-percipient rebirth-linking has no object.

Of these, rebirth-linking in the bases of infinite consciousness and neither-perception-nor-non-perception has only a past object. The ten sense-sphere [rebirth-linkings] have a past or present object. The remaining [rebirth-linkings] have only a not-to-be-stated object. Rebirth-linking thus occurring upon these three kinds of object occurs immediately after a death mind with a past object or a not-to-be-stated object, and there is no death mind with a present object. It should therefore be understood how, according to a good or bad destination, rebirth-linking with any of three kinds of object occurs immediately after death with either of two kinds of object.

§4 At the Juncture of Death and Rebirth—Modes of Rebirth-Linking in Good and Bad Destinations 〔CSCD §623–627〕

That is to say, first, for a person dwelling in a sense-sphere good destination who has performed evil kamma, in accordance with the statement “at that time they hang over him” and the rest, when he lies on his deathbed, the evil kamma he has accumulated or a sign of kamma¹⁴ enters the range of the mind door. Immediately after an impulsion process arises taking it as object and ends in registration, a death mind arises taking the life-continuum’s object. When that has ceased, a rebirth-linking mind belonging to a bad destination, bent by the power of unabandoned defilements, arises taking as object that very kamma or sign of kamma which entered the range. This is rebirth-linking with a past object immediately after death with a past object.

For another person, at the time of death, through kamma of the kind stated above, a sign of a bad destination—such as the visible form of flames in a hell—enters the range of the mind door. After his life-continuum has arisen and ceased twice, three classes of process mind arise taking that object: a single adverting, five impulsions whose force has grown weak because death is near, and two registrations. After that, a single death mind takes the life-continuum’s object. By this point eleven mind moments¹⁵ have passed. Then a rebirth-linking mind arises on that same object, whose lifespan has five mind moments remaining. This is rebirth-linking with a present object immediately after death with a past object.

For another person, at the time of death, an inferior object that becomes a cause of greed and the rest enters the range at any of the five doors. At the end of determining¹⁶, which has arisen in sequence, five impulsions and two registrations arise, their force having grown weak because death is near. After that, a single death mind takes the life-continuum’s object. By this point two life-continuums, adverting, seeing, receiving, investigating, determining, five impulsions, two registrations, and a single death mind—fifteen mind moments—have passed. Then a rebirth-linking mind arises on that same object, whose lifespan has a single mind moment remaining. This too is rebirth-linking with a present object immediately after death with a past object. Thus, first, these are the modes in which rebirth-linking in a bad destination with a past or present object occurs immediately after death in a good destination with a past object.

For a person dwelling in a bad destination who has accumulated blameless kamma, that blameless kamma or its sign enters the range of the mind door in the manner stated above. Thus the bright side should be substituted for the dark side, and everything else should be understood according to the preceding method. These are the modes in which rebirth-linking in a good destination with a past or present object occurs immediately after death in a bad destination with a past object.

For a person dwelling in a good destination who has accumulated blameless kamma, in accordance with the statement “at that time they hang over him” and the rest, when he lies on his deathbed the blameless kamma he has accumulated or its sign enters the range of the mind door. This applies only to a person who has accumulated blameless sense-sphere kamma. For a person who has accumulated exalted¹⁷ kamma, only a sign of kamma enters the range. Immediately after an impulsion process arises taking it as object and ends in registration, or consists purely of impulsion, a death mind arises taking the life-continuum’s object. When it has ceased, a rebirth-linking mind belonging to a good destination, bent by the power of unabandoned defilements, arises taking as object that very kamma or sign of kamma which entered the range. This is rebirth-linking with a past or not-to-be-stated object immediately after death with a past object.

For another person, at the time of death, through blameless sense-sphere kamma, a sign of a good destination enters the range of the mind door: the visible form called a mother’s womb in the human world, or the visible form called a park, mansion, wish-fulfilling tree, and the like in the deva world. For that person a rebirth-linking mind arises immediately after the death mind according to the sequence shown for a sign of a bad destination. This is rebirth-linking with a present object immediately after death with a past object.

For another person, at the time of death, relatives say, “Dear one, this offering to the Buddha is being made for you; let your mind become serene,” and present at the five doors a visible-form object consisting of garlands, banners, and the like; a sound object consisting of hearing Dhamma, a musical offering, and the like; an odor object consisting of incense, perfume, and the like; or they say, “Dear one, taste this; it is a gift to be given on your behalf,” and present a flavor object consisting of honey, molasses, and the like; or they say, “Dear one, touch this; it is a gift to be given on your behalf,” and present a tangible object consisting of Chinese cloth, Somāra cloth, and the like. For that person, at the end of determining which has arisen in sequence upon the visible-form object and the rest that entered the range, five impulsions and two registrations arise, their force having grown weak because death is near. After that, a single death mind takes the life-continuum’s object; at its end, a rebirth-linking mind arises upon the same object, which remains for a single mind moment. This too is rebirth-linking with a present object immediately after death with a past object.

For another person dwelling in a good destination who has attained an exalted [mind] through the jhāna of the earth kasiṇa and the rest, at the time of death any of sense-sphere wholesome kamma, a sign of kamma, or a sign of destination; a sign such as the earth kasiṇa; or an exalted mind enters the range of the mind door. Or at either the eye or the ear, a sublime object that becomes a cause for the arising of the wholesome enters the range. For that person, at the end of determining which has arisen in sequence, five impulsions arise, their force having grown weak because death is near. Those bound for an exalted plane have no registration, so immediately after impulsion a single death mind arises taking the life-continuum’s object. At its end, a rebirth-linking mind belonging to any good destination in the sense sphere or an exalted plane arises taking any of the objects that appeared. This is rebirth-linking with any of a past, present, or not-to-be-stated object immediately after death in a good destination with a not-to-be-stated object.

According to this method, rebirth-linking immediately after an immaterial death should also be understood. These are the modes in which rebirth-linking with a past, not-to-be-stated, or present object occurs immediately after death in a good destination with a past or not-to-be-stated object.

For a person dwelling in a bad destination who has performed evil kamma, in the manner stated above that kamma, a sign of kamma, or a sign of destination [enters the range] at the mind door; or at the five doors an object that becomes a cause for the arising of the unwholesome enters the range. Then, at the end of the death mind that arises in sequence for that person, a rebirth-linking mind belonging to a bad destination arises taking any of those objects. These are the modes in which rebirth-linking with a past or present object occurs immediately after death in a bad destination with a past object. By this point, the occurrence of all nineteen kinds of consciousness by way of rebirth-linking has been shown.

§5 Kamma’s Two Conditions and the Divisions of Rebirth-Linking—Mixed, Sexed, and Material Decads 〔CSCD §628–630〕

All of this is as follows:

What occurs at rebirth-linking proceeds through kamma in two ways; through the divisions beginning with mixed, its divisions begin with twofold.

For when these nineteen kinds of resultant consciousness occur at rebirth-linking, they proceed through kamma in two ways. In each case the kamma that produces a particular [consciousness] is its condition by asynchronous kamma condition¹⁸ and by decisive-support condition. For it has been said: “Wholesome and unwholesome kamma is a condition for result by decisive-support condition.” It should be understood that [consciousness] occurring thus also has divisions beginning with twofold through the divisions beginning with mixed.

That is, although this [consciousness] occurs in a single way as rebirth-linking, it is twofold as mixed or unmixed with materiality; threefold according to sense becoming, fine-material becoming, and immaterial becoming; fourfold according to the four modes of birth—egg-born, womb-born, moisture-born, and spontaneously born; fivefold according to destination; sevenfold according to station of consciousness; and eightfold according to abode of beings.

Of these:

What is mixed is twofold according to sex, and what is sexed therein is again twofold; together with the first, at minimum there are two or three decads.

“What is mixed is twofold according to sex”: here the rebirth-linking consciousness mixed with materiality, which arises outside immaterial becoming, arises in fine-material becoming without the sex called the femininity or masculinity faculty; in sense becoming, except for the rebirth-linking of a person born a eunuch, it arises together with sex. Thus it is twofold as sexed or sexless.

“What is sexed therein is again twofold”: whatever is sexed arises together with either female sex or male sex and is therefore only twofold.

“Together with the first, at minimum there are two or three decads”: here, of the dyad “mixed and unmixed,” rebirth-linking consciousness mixed with materiality is the first. Together with it, at the minimum, two decads arise—the basis decad and body decad—or three—the basis decad, body decad, and sex decad. Below this there is no smaller amount of materiality. Materiality arising at this minimum measure, in the two modes of birth called egg-born and womb-born, arises under the designation “kalala”¹⁹ and is the size of clarified butter lifted by a single fiber of newly grown wool. Here the presence or absence of the modes of birth should be understood according to destination.

For among these [modes of birth]:

In hell and among devas other than earth-dwelling devas, modes of birth do not occur; the first three are absent, while in three destinations all four occur.

Here, the word “and” in “and among devas” [shows that] just as the first three modes of birth do not occur in hell and among devas other than earth-dwelling devas, so too they do not occur among petas consumed by thirst—this should be understood. They are only spontaneously born. But in the remaining three destinations called the animal realm, the peta realm, and the human realm, and among the earth-dwelling devas excluded above, all four modes of birth occur. Of these:

Among fine-material [brahmās] there are thirty and nine; at the upper limit there are seventy material phenomena; among the moisture-born and spontaneously born, at the lower limit there may be thirty.

First, among spontaneously born fine-material brahmās, thirty-nine material phenomena arise together with rebirth-linking consciousness through four groups: the eye decad, ear decad, basis decad, and life nonad. Apart from fine-material brahmās, among other moisture-born and spontaneously born beings, at the upper limit there are seventy [material phenomena] through the seven decads of eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, basis, and sex; among devas these are always present. Here visible form, odor, flavor, nutritive essence, the four great elements, eye-sensitivity, and life—this group of materiality measuring ten material phenomena is called the “eye decad.” The rest should be understood likewise. At the lower limit, for a being born blind and deaf, without a nose, and sexless, thirty material phenomena arise through the tongue decad, body decad, and basis decad. Between the upper and lower limits, the variations should be understood as appropriate.

§6 Similarity and Difference between Death and Rebirth, Continuity without Self—Neither Identical nor Different 〔CSCD §631〕

Having understood this, again:

By aggregates, object, destination, roots, feeling, rapture, applied thought, and sustained thought, the distinction between difference and nondifference in death and rebirth-linking should be fully understood.

The meaning is that rebirth-linking, twofold as mixed or unmixed, and the death immediately preceding it should be understood as different or not different according to these aggregates and the rest.

How? Sometimes, immediately after an immaterial death with four aggregates, rebirth-linking likewise has four aggregates and does not differ even in object. Sometimes, after [death] with a non-exalted external object, [rebirth-linking] has an exalted internal object. This method applies first only in the immaterial planes. Sometimes, immediately after an immaterial death with four aggregates, there is sense-sphere rebirth-linking with five aggregates. Sometimes, immediately after a sense-sphere or fine-material-sphere death with five aggregates, there is immaterial rebirth-linking with four aggregates. Thus after death with a past object there is rebirth-linking with a present object; after a certain death in a good destination, a certain rebirth-linking in a bad destination; after rootless death, rooted rebirth-linking; after death with two roots, rebirth-linking with three roots; after death accompanied by equanimity, rebirth-linking accompanied by joy; after death without rapture, rebirth-linking with rapture; after death without applied thought, rebirth-linking with applied thought; after death without sustained thought, rebirth-linking with sustained thought; after death without applied or sustained thought, rebirth-linking with applied and sustained thought. The corresponding opposites should also be applied as appropriate.

This which has obtained its conditions, being mere dhammas, approaches another becoming; it does not transmigrate here from there, nor does it occur without a cause from there.

Thus it is said: this which has obtained its conditions, being merely material and immaterial dhammas, arises and approaches another becoming; it is not a being, not a living principle. Nor does it transmigrate here from a past becoming, and it does not appear here apart from causes coming from that [past becoming]. We shall explain this through the evident sequence of a human death and rebirth-linking.

For in a past becoming, a person nearing death naturally or through violence cannot endure the massed blades of the deathbed feelings, which are unbearable and sever the bonds of every major and minor limb and joint. As that person’s body gradually withers like a green palmyra leaf placed in the sun, the faculties beginning with the eye cease. When the body faculty, mind faculty, and life faculty remain established only at the heart-basis, consciousness dependent upon the heart-basis remaining at that moment occurs taking as its object either the kamma called a formation that has obtained its remaining conditions—heavy, habitual, proximate, or previously performed—or the object it has caused to appear, called a sign of kamma or a sign of destination. As that consciousness occurs, because craving and ignorance have not been abandoned, craving inclines it toward that object whose danger ignorance conceals, and conascent formations hurl it. Inclined by craving and hurled by formations along the continuity, it relinquishes its former basis, like a person crossing a ditch by holding a rope tied to a tree on the near bank; whether relishing or not relishing the later basis originated by kamma, it occurs solely through conditions beginning with object.

Here the former is called “death” because it falls away; the latter is called “rebirth-linking” because it links to another becoming and so forth. It should be understood that this has neither come here from a former becoming nor appeared apart from causes from there such as kamma, formations, inclination, and object.

Here echo and the rest may serve as examples; through the bond of continuity²⁰, there is neither identity nor difference.

Here, to illustrate both that this consciousness has not come here from a former becoming and that it arises with what belonged to the past becoming as its cause, phenomena such as echo, lamp, seal, and reflected image may serve as examples. Just as echo, lamp, seal, and shadow have sound and the rest as their causes without coming from elsewhere, so too does this mind.

Here, through the bond of continuity, there is neither identity nor difference. For if, when there is a bond of continuity, there were absolute identity, curds could not arise from milk. If there were absolute difference, curds would not depend upon milk. The same method applies to every cause and what arises together from a cause. If it were otherwise, all worldly discourse would be destroyed, and that is undesirable. Therefore neither absolute identity nor absolute difference should be adopted here.

§7 The Result Is Neither Another’s nor from Another; the Experiencer Is Only a Convention; Formations Condition Because They Have Been Done 〔CSCD §634–635〕

Someone asks here: if there is appearance without transmigration in this way, then since the aggregates in this human body have ceased and the kamma that conditions the result does not go there, that result would belong to another and come from another; and since there is no experiencer, whose would that result be? Therefore this arrangement is unsatisfactory. Here this is said:

This result in a continuity neither belongs to another nor comes from another; the working upon seeds²¹ establishes this meaning.

Because a result arising in a single continuity is established there after absolute identity and difference have been rejected, it neither “belongs to another” nor comes “from another.” The working upon seeds establishes this meaning. For after work has been done upon mango seeds and the rest, a distinctive result that has obtained its conditions arises later in that seed’s continuity. It neither belongs to other seeds nor arises because of work upon other seeds; yet neither those seeds nor that work reach the result’s position. The correspondence should be understood in the same way. This meaning should also be understood through spells, crafts, medicines, and the like that are applied to a young body and later yield a result in the mature body and the rest.

As to the statement “since there is no experiencer, whose would that result be?”—here:

Solely through the arising of a result, the conventional designation “experiencer” is established; just as through the arising of fruit there is the conventional designation “the tree bears fruit.”

For solely through the arising of a tree’s fruit, which is a part of the phenomena called a tree, it is said “the tree bears fruit” or “the tree has borne fruit.” In the same way, solely through the arising of a result of pain or pleasure called experience, which is a part of the aggregates called a deva or a human, it is said “the deva experiences” or “the human experiences,” or “that person is happy” or “that person is in pain.” Thus there is no separate meaning here called an experiencer.

If someone says, “Even so, do these formations condition the result while existent, or while nonexistent? If while existent, their result should exist only at the moment when they occur; if while nonexistent, they should constantly bear fruit before and after their occurrence”—that person should be told:

These condition because they have been done, and they do not constantly bear fruit; the example of a guarantor and the rest should be understood here.

For formations condition their own result solely because they have been done, not because they exist or do not exist. As it is said: “Because sense-sphere wholesome kamma has been done and accumulated, resultant eye-consciousness has arisen,” and so forth. Having conditioned their appropriate result, they do not bear fruit again because it is a result. To illustrate this meaning, the example of a guarantor and the rest should be understood. In the world, when a person becomes guarantor for the delivery of someone’s property, purchases goods, or incurs a debt, the mere performance of that act is the condition for the delivery of that property and the rest—not the act’s existence or nonexistence. After the property has been delivered and the rest, that person is no longer liable. Why? Because the delivery and the rest have been done. In the same way, formations condition their own result solely because they have been done; after giving their result as appropriate, they do not bear fruit again. By this point, the occurrence with formations as condition of rebirth-linking consciousness, which occurs in two ways as mixed or unmixed, has been shown.

§8 Allocation within Three Kinds of Becoming, Four Modes of Birth, Five Destinations, Seven Stations of Consciousness, and Nine Abodes of Beings 〔CSCD §636–637〕

Now, in order to dispel bewilderment concerning all those thirty-two resultant consciousnesses:

By way of rebirth-linking and occurrence, among the kinds of becoming and the rest, it should be understood which consciousnesses these formations condition and how they condition them.

Here “the kinds of becoming and the rest” means the three kinds of becoming, four modes of birth, five destinations, seven stations of consciousness²², and nine abodes of beings. The meaning is that it should be understood which resultant consciousnesses these [formations] condition in rebirth-linking and occurrence among these kinds of becoming and the rest, and how they condition them.

Of these, first the meritorious formations. Meritorious formation distinguished as the eight sense-sphere volitions is, in general, a condition in two ways—as asynchronous kamma condition and decisive-support condition—for nine resultant consciousnesses at rebirth-linking in good destinations of sense becoming. Meritorious formation distinguished as the five fine-material-sphere wholesome volitions is a condition for five [resultant consciousnesses] only at rebirth-linking in fine-material becoming.

Sense-sphere [meritorious formation] of the kind stated above is, in the same two ways according to the method already stated, a condition in occurrence, but not at rebirth-linking, for seven limited resultant consciousnesses other than the rootless mind-consciousness element accompanied by equanimity in good destinations of sense becoming. That very [formation] is likewise a condition for five resultant consciousnesses in occurrence, but not at rebirth-linking, in fine-material becoming. In bad destinations of sense becoming it is likewise a condition for all eight limited resultant consciousnesses in occurrence, but not at rebirth-linking. In hell it becomes a condition when an agreeable object is encountered during occasions such as Mahāmoggallāna Thera’s journey through hell; among animals and powerful petas, agreeable objects are indeed obtainable.

That very [formation] is likewise a condition for all sixteen wholesome-resultant consciousnesses in both occurrence and rebirth-linking in good destinations of sense becoming. In general, meritorious formation is likewise a condition for ten resultant consciousnesses in both occurrence and rebirth-linking in fine-material becoming.

Demeritorious formation distinguished as the twelve unwholesome volitions is likewise a condition for a single consciousness at rebirth-linking but not in occurrence in bad destinations of sense becoming; for six [consciousnesses] in occurrence but not at rebirth-linking; and for all seven unwholesome-resultant consciousnesses in occurrence and at rebirth-linking.

In good destinations of sense becoming it is likewise a condition for those same seven in occurrence but not at rebirth-linking. In fine-material becoming it is likewise a condition for four resultant consciousnesses in occurrence but not at rebirth-linking. This is by way of seeing a disagreeable visible form and hearing [a disagreeable] sound in the sense sphere; in the brahmā world there are no so-called disagreeable visible forms and the rest. The same applies in the sense-sphere deva world.

Imperturbable formation is likewise a condition for four resultant consciousnesses in occurrence and at rebirth-linking in immaterial becoming.

Thus, first, it should be understood which consciousnesses these formations condition, and how they condition them, by way of rebirth-linking and occurrence among the kinds of becoming. According to this same method, it should also be understood among the modes of birth and the rest.

Here this is merely an indication of the doorway from the beginning. Among these formations, first, meritorious formation gives rebirth-linking in two kinds of becoming and produces all its own result; likewise in the four modes of birth beginning with egg-born, in the two destinations called devas and humans, and in the four stations of consciousness called diverse in body and diverse in perception, diverse in body and unified in perception, unified in body and diverse in perception, and unified in body and unified in perception. In the abode of non-percipient beings it forms materiality only; therefore it gives rebirth-linking and produces all its own result in only four abodes of beings. Thus, in these two kinds of becoming, four modes of birth, two destinations, four stations of consciousness, and four abodes of beings, it is a condition, according to the method stated above and as possible, for twenty-one resultant consciousnesses in rebirth-linking and occurrence.

Demeritorious formation ripens by way of rebirth-linking only in a single kind of becoming, sense becoming; in the four modes of birth; in the remaining three destinations; in the single station of consciousness called diverse in body and unified in perception; and in the same single abode of beings. Therefore, in a single kind of becoming, four modes of birth, three destinations, a single station of consciousness, and a single abode of beings, it is a condition according to the method stated above for seven resultant consciousnesses in rebirth-linking and occurrence.

Imperturbable formation ripens by way of rebirth-linking only in a single kind of becoming, immaterial becoming; in a single mode of birth, spontaneous birth; in a single destination, the deva destination; in the three stations of consciousness beginning with the base of infinite space; and in the four abodes of beings beginning with the base of infinite space. Therefore, in a single kind of becoming, a single mode of birth, a single destination, three stations of consciousness, and four abodes of beings, it is a condition according to the method stated above for four consciousnesses in rebirth-linking and occurrence. Thus:

By way of rebirth-linking and occurrence, among the kinds of becoming and the rest, it should be understood which consciousnesses these formations condition and how they condition them.

This is the detailed account of the clause “with formations as condition, consciousness.”

Notes

¹ Result (vipāka): consciousness that is the result of kamma, possessing the nature of result but no power to make kamma. All thirty-two consciousnesses explained in this unit are resultant.

² Mind element and mind-consciousness element (manodhātu・manoviññāṇadhātu): the former has receiving as its function, while the latter has investigating and other functions. In occurrence, this unit determines in each case whether their doors, objects, bases, positions, and functions are fixed or variable.

³ Rootless and rooted (ahetuka・sahetuka): rootless resultants lack resultant roots such as non-greed; rooted resultants are associated with them.

⁴ Thirty-two mundane resultant consciousnesses (bāttiṃsa lokiyavipākaviññāṇāni): the five consciousnesses of eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body are each twofold, making ten, and mind-consciousness adds twenty-two, making thirty-two. These are precisely the consciousnesses explained in this unit.

⁵ Discourse on the round (vaṭṭakathā): the mode of teaching the round headed by ignorance and craving for becoming, established in this chapter’s “General Account of Dependent Origination.” It governs what is included here, so supramundane resultant consciousnesses are excluded.

⁶ Meritorious, demeritorious, and imperturbable formations (puññābhisaṅkhāra・apuññābhisaṅkhāra・āneñjābhisaṅkhāra): the three formations, enumerated as twenty-nine volitions in this chapter’s unit on the clause “with ignorance as condition, formations.”

⁷ Occurrence and rebirth-linking (pavatti・paṭisandhi): the latter is the first mind of a lifetime; the former is the entire continuity that follows.

⁸ Five-aggregate becoming (pañcavokārabhava): becoming complete with both material and mental aggregates, namely sense becoming and fine-material becoming [apart from the non-percipient devas].

⁹ Heart-basis (hadayavatthu): the materiality upon which the mind element and mind-consciousness element depend.

¹⁰ Impulsion (javana): a position in the cognitive process that receives an object and makes kamma. This unit states that only five impulsions occur near death because their force has grown weak.

¹¹ Life-continuum (bhavaṅga): the uninterrupted continuity of mind within a becoming, occurring like a river when no other arising of mind interrupts it.

¹² Registration (tadārammaṇa): the position at the end of a cognitive process that occurs taking impulsion’s object as its object, and is therefore so called. This unit itself also gives it the name “rear life-continuum” (piṭṭhibhavaṅga).

¹³ Not-to-be-stated object (navattabbārammaṇa): an object that cannot be called past or present, such as the counterpart signs of jhāna.

¹⁴ Sign of kamma and sign of destination (kammanimitta・gatinimitta): two of the three objects that appear near death. The former is the object present when kamma was performed; the latter is a sign of the destination in which rebirth is about to occur.

¹⁵ Mind moment (cittakkhaṇa): the period in which a mind arises, persists, and ceases once. This unit uses it to count individually the minds at the juncture of death and rebirth.

¹⁶ Determining (voṭṭhabbana): the position that determines the object after investigating.

¹⁷ Exalted (mahaggata): the mind and kamma of the fine-material and immaterial spheres; this unit also calls the plane toward which they tend the “exalted plane.”

¹⁸ Asynchronous kamma condition (nānākkhaṇikakammapaccaya): kamma and its result occur at different moments, yet kamma remains a condition. Its characteristic is established in this chapter’s unit on the twenty-four conditions of the Paṭṭhāna.

¹⁹ Kalala (kalala): the earliest material stage of an embryo, measured here as clarified butter lifted by a single fiber of newly grown wool.

²⁰ Bond of continuity (santānabandha): successive phenomena are connected as a single stream. This chapter also uses this meaning in the units on the detailed account of ignorance conditioning formations and on the wheel of becoming to block the notion that a being transmigrates.

²¹ Working upon seeds (bījānaṃ abhisaṅkhāro): actions such as cultivation applied to seeds. The unit on the wheel of becoming likewise uses the simile of seed and sprout to show the mutual dependence of becoming and birth.

²² Stations of consciousness and abodes of beings (viññāṇaṭṭhiti・sattāvāsa): modes in which beings persist and dwell, the former seven and the latter nine. Earlier this unit gives the classification “eightfold according to abodes of beings,” but here gives “nine abodes of beings”; the Commentator does not explain the numerical difference.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 Analysis of Name-and-Form—The Three Aggregates of Name, and the Four Great Elements and Derived Materiality of Form 〔CSCD §638〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Consciousness as Condition, Name-and-Form”

In the clause “with consciousness as condition, name-and-form”—

　　By the analysis of name-and-form, by its occurrence among the kinds of becoming and the rest,

　　by its inclusion, and by the method of conditions, the determination should be understood.

“By the analysis of name-and-form”: here, “name,” because it bends toward the object, consists of the three aggregates beginning with feeling; “form” consists of the four great elements and materiality derived from the four great elements. Their analysis has already been stated in the exposition of the aggregates. Thus, first, the determination here should be understood by the analysis of name-and-form.

§2 Occurrence among the Kinds of Becoming and the Rest—The Number of Dhammas in Name-and-Form at Rebirth-Linking 〔CSCD §638〕

“By its occurrence among the kinds of becoming and the rest”: here, “name” occurs in all kinds of becoming, modes of birth, destinations, stations of consciousness, and remaining abodes of beings, except for a single abode of beings¹; “form” occurs in two kinds of becoming, four modes of birth, five destinations, the first four stations of consciousness, and five abodes of beings.

When this name-and-form occurs thus, at the moment of rebirth-linking for womb-born beings without sex and for egg-born beings, two heads of continuity² arise on the material side through the basis decad and the body decad, together with the three immaterial aggregates. It should therefore be understood that, in detail, for them there are twenty material dhammas on the side of materiality plus three immaterial aggregates: these twenty-three dhammas are “name-and-form with consciousness as condition.” But by “taking what has not already been taken”³, nine material dhammas are removed from a single head of continuity, leaving fourteen [dhammas]. For beings with sex, the sex decad is added, making thirty-three; for them too, by “taking what has not already been taken,” eighteen material dhammas are removed from two heads of continuity, leaving fifteen [dhammas].

Among spontaneously born beings, for the brahmā-host devas and the rest, at the moment of rebirth-linking four heads of continuity arise on the material side through the eye decad, ear decad, basis decad, and life-faculty nonad, together with the three immaterial aggregates. It should therefore be understood that, in detail, for them there are thirty-nine material dhammas on the side of materiality plus three immaterial aggregates: these forty-two dhammas are “name-and-form with consciousness as condition.” But by “taking what has not already been taken,” twenty-seven dhammas are removed from three heads of continuity, leaving fifteen [dhammas].

In sense-sphere becoming, for the remaining spontaneously born beings, or among moisture-born beings who possess sex and whose bases are complete, at the moment of rebirth-linking seven heads of continuity arise on the material side, together with the three immaterial aggregates. It should therefore be understood that, in detail, for them there are seventy material dhammas on the side of materiality plus three immaterial aggregates: these seventy-three dhammas are “name-and-form with consciousness as condition.” But by “taking what has not already been taken,” fifty-four dhammas are removed from six heads of material continuity, leaving nineteen [dhammas]. This is the maximum. At the minimum, for beings who lack this or that head of material continuity, the appropriate number should be reduced in each case; in this way the concise and detailed counts of “name-and-form with consciousness as condition” at rebirth-linking should be understood.

For immaterial beings, there are only the three immaterial aggregates; for non-percipient beings, on the material side there is only the life-faculty nonad. This, first, is the method at rebirth-linking.

§3 The Number of Dhammas in Name-and-Form during Occurrence—Ninety-Seven Dhammas and the Mutual Support of the Four Origins 〔CSCD §638〕

During occurrence, wherever materiality occurs, at the moment when the rebirth-linking mind is present, a pure octad⁴ originated by temperature arises from the temperature that occurs together with the rebirth-linking mind. The rebirth-linking mind, however, does not originate materiality. Like a person who has fallen from a cliff and cannot become a condition for another person, it is weak because its basis is weak and therefore cannot originate materiality.

After the rebirth-linking mind, beginning with the first life-continuum, a mind-originated pure octad arises. When sound appears, after the moment of rebirth-linking, there is a sound nonad originated by both the temperature then occurring and mind. For womb-born beings who live on physical food, in accordance with the statement, “Whatever rice, drink, and food the mother consumes, the person in the womb lives there through that,” when the body is pervaded by the food swallowed by the mother, [a food-originated pure octad arises]. For spontaneously born beings, when they first swallow the saliva in their own mouths, a food-originated pure octad arises. Thus, at the maximum, the food-originated pure octad and the temperature-originated and mind-originated [pure octads], together with two nonads, make twenty-six kinds. Adding the seventy kinds originated by kamma, stated above as arising three times at each mind moment, gives ninety-six kinds of materiality; with the three immaterial aggregates, this makes ninety-nine dhammas in brief.

Or, because sound is not fixed and appears only at certain times, when those two [sound nonads] are removed, these ninety-seven dhammas should be understood, as applicable, as “name-and-form with consciousness as condition” for all beings. For whether they are asleep, heedless, eating, or drinking, these [dhammas] occur day and night with consciousness as condition. Their condition of having consciousness as condition will be explained below.

The kamma-born materiality here, although it is the first to become established among the kinds of becoming, modes of birth, destinations, [consciousness] stations, and abodes of beings, cannot stand unless supported by the materiality of the other three origins; nor can the materiality of those three origins stand unless supported by it. Like bundles of reeds set against each other in the four directions, which do not fall even when struck by the wind, and like the cargo of a broken vessel that, though battered by waves, gains a footing somewhere in the great ocean, these two sides stand without falling only by supporting each other. They continue for one year, two years … up to (expanded as above) … up to a hundred years, until those beings’ lifespan or merit is exhausted. Thus the determination here should be understood by occurrence among the kinds of becoming and the rest.

§4 Inclusion—A Single Term Encompassing Name, Form, and Name-and-Form 〔CSCD §639〕

“By inclusion”: in occurrence and rebirth-linking in immaterial becoming, and during occurrence in five-aggregate becoming⁵, only “name” has consciousness as condition; everywhere among non-percipient beings, and during occurrence in five-aggregate becoming, only “form” has consciousness as condition; everywhere in five-aggregate becoming, “name-and-form” has consciousness as condition. All of this—“name,” “form,” and “name-and-form”—is included under “name-and-form” by the method of retaining a single remainder where part has the same form⁶. Thus it should be understood as “name-and-form with consciousness as condition.”

If it is said that this is untenable because non-percipient beings have no consciousness, it is not untenable. For:

　　The consciousness that is the cause of name-and-form is held to be twofold:

　　resultant and non-resultant; therefore this account is indeed tenable.

The consciousness that is the cause of name-and-form is held to be twofold, divided into resultant and non-resultant. Among non-percipient beings, this [materiality], because it is originated by kamma, is materiality conditioned by the formative consciousness⁷ that occurred in five-aggregate becoming. Likewise, during occurrence in five-aggregate becoming, at moments of wholesome and other minds there is materiality originated by kamma. Therefore this account is indeed tenable. Thus the determination here should be understood by inclusion.

§5 The Door of Conditions—Resultant Consciousness in Nine Ways, Formative Consciousness in One 〔CSCD §640〕

“By the method of conditions”: here,

　　Resultant consciousness is a condition for name in nine ways,

　　for basis-materiality in nine, and for the remaining materiality in eight.

　　Formative consciousness is a condition for materiality in one way;

　　the remaining consciousness, as appropriate, conditions this or that [name-and-form].

Whether at rebirth-linking or during occurrence, resultant consciousness—whether rebirth-linking consciousness or another resultant consciousness—is a condition in nine ways for what is called resultant “name,” whether mixed with form or unmixed with it: by conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, association condition, result condition, nutriment condition, faculty condition, presence condition, and nondeparture condition.

At rebirth-linking, it is a condition for basis-materiality in nine ways: by conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, result condition, nutriment condition, faculty condition, dissociation condition, presence condition, and nondeparture condition. Apart from basis-materiality, it is a condition for the remaining materiality by the other eight of these nine, with mutuality condition removed.

Formative consciousness, for the materiality of non-percipient beings or for kamma-born materiality in five-aggregate becoming, is a condition in only one way according to the Suttanta method: by decisive support. All remaining consciousness, beginning with the first life-continuum, should be understood as conditioning this or that name-and-form as appropriate. Were its method of conditions to be shown in detail, the entire discussion of the Paṭṭhāna would have to be elaborated, so we do not undertake it here.

Someone may ask here: how can it be known that “name-and-form at rebirth-linking has consciousness as condition”? From scripture and from reasoning. In scripture, the fact that feeling and the rest have consciousness as condition is established in many ways by the method beginning, “dhammas that turn in accordance with mind.”

By reasoning:

　　From mind-born materiality seen here, it is established

　　that consciousness is also a condition for unseen materiality.

When mind is bright or not bright, corresponding forms are seen to arise. What is unseen may be inferred from what is seen; therefore, from the mind-born materiality seen here, it should be understood that consciousness is also a condition for the unseen materiality at rebirth-linking. For even that kamma-originated [materiality] is stated in the Paṭṭhāna to have consciousness as condition, just like mind-originated [materiality]. Thus the determination here should be understood by the method of conditions.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with consciousness as condition, name-and-form.”

Notes

¹ Abode of beings (sattāvāsa): a category of places where beings dwell, counted here together with the kinds of becoming, modes of birth, destinations, and stations of consciousness in tracing the occurrence of name-and-form; its list appears in the consciousness-aggregate unit of the Aggregates chapter.

² Head of continuity (santatisīsa): the initial group in a material continuity; all the counts of material dhammas in this unit use it as their unit.

³ Taking what has not already been taken (aggahitaggahaṇa): the calculation used here—repeated material dhammas are not counted twice, so the twenty-three dhammas become fourteen by this method.

⁴ Pure octad (suddhaṭṭhaka): the smallest material group; this unit uses it for the forms originated by temperature, mind, and food, while the addition of sound makes a sound nonad.

⁵ Five-aggregate becoming (pañcavokārabhava): becoming in which all five aggregates are present, as distinct from immaterial becoming, with only three immaterial aggregates, and non-percipient becoming, with materiality alone.

⁶ Method of retaining a single remainder where part has the same form (ekadesasarūpekasesanaya): a method of using a single word to encompass multiple items with an identical form; this unit uses “name-and-form” to encompass “name,” “form,” and “name-and-form.”

⁷ Formative consciousness (abhisaṅkhāraviññāṇa): non-resultant consciousness, contrasted with resultant consciousness; this unit takes it as a condition for the materiality of non-percipient beings and for kamma-born materiality in five-aggregate becoming.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 Boundaries of Name-and-Form and the Six Bases—Two Verses of Summary 〔CSCD §641〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Name-and-Form as Condition, the Six Bases”

In the clause “with name-and-form as condition, the six bases”—

　　Name is the three aggregates; form should be understood as the great elements, physical bases, and the rest;
　　what has been reduced to a single remainder¹ conditions what has likewise [been so reduced].

In the name-and-form that conditions the six bases, “name” refers to the three aggregates beginning with feeling. “Form” consists of the four great elements, the six physical bases, and the life faculty, all included within the same continuity; thus it should be understood as “the great elements, physical bases, and the rest.” The name-and-form in which “name,” “form,” and “name-and-form” have been reduced to a single remainder and collectively called “name-and-form” is the condition for the six bases in which “the sixth base²” and “the six bases” have been reduced to a single remainder and collectively called “the six bases.” Why? Because in immaterial [becoming] only name is a condition, and it is a condition only for the sixth base, not for the others. For it is said in the Vibhaṅga: “With name as condition, the sixth base.”

Someone may ask here: how can it be known that “name-and-form is the condition for the six bases”?—because the latter exists only when name-and-form exists. When this or that name and form exists, this or that base exists, and not otherwise. This property of “when that exists, this exists³” will become clear below in the method of conditions. Therefore:

　　At rebirth-linking or during occurrence, what conditions what,
　　and how it conditions it—the discerning should understand it thus.

The explanation of its meaning follows.

§2 Name as a Condition for the Six Bases—How Many Ways in Immaterial and Five-Aggregate Becoming 〔CSCD §641〕

　　In immaterial [becoming], name alone, at rebirth-linking and during occurrence,
　　is a condition in seven and six ways at the minimum.

How so? First, at rebirth-linking, at the minimum⁴, name conditions the sixth base in seven ways: by conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, association condition, result condition, presence condition, and nondeparture condition⁵. Here, some [mental dhammas] also condition it by root condition and some by nutriment condition, and thus condition it in other ways as well; from this, the maximum and minimum should be understood.

During occurrence, resultant [name] conditions it according to the same method. The remaining [name], at the minimum, conditions it by six of the stated conditions, with result condition removed. Here too, some [mental dhammas] also condition it by root condition and some by nutriment condition, and thus condition it in other ways as well; from this, the maximum and minimum should be understood.

　　In another becoming, name is likewise a condition at rebirth-linking;
　　for the sixth base [it is so], and for the other bases it conditions in six ways.

Outside immaterial [becoming], in another kind of five-aggregate becoming, at rebirth-linking that resultant name, accompanied by the heart-basis, conditions the sixth mind-base in seven ways at the minimum, just as stated for immaterial [becoming]. Accompanied by the four great elements, it conditions the remaining five bases beginning with the eye base in six ways: by conascence, support, result, dissociation, presence, and nondeparture. Here too, some [mental dhammas] also condition them by root condition and some by nutriment condition, and thus condition them in other ways as well; from this, the maximum and minimum should be understood.

　　During occurrence it is likewise so: result conditions result;
　　non-result conditions the non-resultant sixth base in six ways.

During occurrence in five-aggregate becoming, as at rebirth-linking, resultant name conditions the resultant sixth base in seven ways at the minimum. Non-resultant [name] conditions the non-resultant sixth base in six ways at the minimum, with result condition removed from those [seven]. The maximum and minimum here should be understood according to the method stated.

　　There, resultant [name] conditions the remaining five bases
　　in four ways; the non-resultant is stated in precisely the same way.

During occurrence there, for the remaining five bases beginning with the eye base, other resultant name that depends on eye-sensitivity and the rest conditions them in four ways: by postnascence condition, dissociation condition, presence condition, and nondeparture condition. Non-resultant [name] is stated in precisely the same way as resultant [name]. Thus it should first be understood which base name alone conditions, and how, at rebirth-linking or during occurrence.

§3 Form as a Condition for the Six Bases—Basis, Great Elements, Life Faculty, and Nutriment 〔CSCD §641〕

　　Form here, in immaterial becoming,
　　does not condition even a single base; but in five-aggregate becoming [it does].

　　On the side of form, at rebirth-linking the basis conditions the sixth base in six ways;
　　without distinction, the great elements condition the five bases in four ways.

On the side of form, at rebirth-linking, basis-materiality conditions the sixth mind-base in six ways: by conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, dissociation condition, presence condition, and nondeparture condition. Without distinction, both at rebirth-linking and during occurrence, the four great elements condition whichever of the five bases beginning with the eye base arises from them in four ways: by conascence condition, support condition, presence condition, and nondeparture condition.

　　Life [faculty] conditions these [five bases] in three ways, and nutriment does so during occurrence;
　　the five bases condition the sixth in six ways, while the basis conditions the [remaining mind-base] in five.

At rebirth-linking and during occurrence, the material life [faculty] conditions the five bases beginning with the eye in three ways: by presence, nondeparture, and faculty. Nutriment conditions them in three ways—by presence, nondeparture, and nutriment—but only during occurrence in the nutritionally sustained body of beings who live on food, not at rebirth-linking. The five bases beginning with the eye base condition the sixth mind-base insofar as it is called eye-consciousness, ear-consciousness, nose-consciousness, tongue-consciousness, or body-consciousness, in six ways: by support, prenascence, faculty, dissociation, presence, and nondeparture, during occurrence and not at rebirth-linking. Apart from the five consciousnesses, basis-materiality conditions the remaining mind-base⁶ belonging to that same [sixth base] in five ways: by support, prenascence, dissociation, presence, and nondeparture, only during occurrence and not at rebirth-linking. Thus it should be understood which base form alone conditions, and how, at rebirth-linking or during occurrence.

§4 Name-and-Form Together as a Condition for the Six Bases 〔CSCD §641〕

　　And throughout, the discerning should understand
　　which base the two, name and form, condition, and how.

That is, at rebirth-linking in five-aggregate becoming, the name-and-form called the three aggregates and basis-materiality conditions the sixth base by conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, result condition, association condition, dissociation condition, presence condition, nondeparture condition, and so forth. Here only the doorway is shown. Because the whole can be fitted according to the method stated, its detailed explanation is not shown here.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with name-and-form as condition, the six bases.”

Notes

¹ Reducing to a single remainder (katekasesa): the Commentator’s method of inclusion—“name,” “form,” and “name-and-form,” and likewise “the sixth base” and “the six bases,” are each encompassed by a single term.

² Sixth base (chaṭṭhāyatana): the mind base; the Commentator expressly states that in immaterial becoming this alone is the object of name.

³ When that exists, this exists (tabbhāvabhāvitā): the Commentator’s answer to “How is name-and-form known to condition the six bases?”—when that dhamma exists, this dhamma exists.

⁴ Maximum and minimum (ukkaṃsāvakaṃsa): the framework for the Commentator’s count—the number of conditions has a maximum and a minimum, and each passage in this unit first gives the minimum.

⁵ For individual explanations of the conditions listed in this unit—conascence, mutuality, support, association, result, presence, nondeparture, root, nutriment, prenascence, postnascence, faculty, dissociation, and the rest—see this chapter’s unit on the twenty-four conditions of the Paṭṭhāna.

⁶ Remaining mind-base (avasesamanāyatana): the mind base apart from the five consciousnesses; basis-materiality conditions it in five ways.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 With the Six Bases as Condition, Contact—Thirty-Two Contacts and the Inclusion of Internal and External Bases 〔CSCD §642〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With the Six Bases as Condition, Contact”

In the clause “with the six bases as condition, contact”—

　　In brief, contact is only sixfold, beginning with eye-contact;
　　in detail, like consciousness, they are thirty-two.

In brief, contact with the six bases as condition consists of eye-contact, ear-contact, nose-contact, tongue-contact, body-contact, and mind-contact—only these six contacts beginning with eye-contact. In detail, five contacts beginning with eye-contact are wholesome resultants, five are unwholesome resultants, making ten; the remaining contacts associated with the twenty-two mundane resultant consciousnesses are twenty-two. Thus, like the consciousness stated in the account of formations conditioning consciousness, there are thirty-two contacts in all¹.

As for the six bases that condition these thirty-two kinds of contact, here:

　　The discerning accept that the internal eye and the rest together with the sixth base,
　　and also the six external [bases], are “the six bases.”

First, those who maintain that “this is a discourse on the occurrence of what is appropriated²” and take only what is included in each being’s own continuity as condition and conditioned, relying on the canonical wording “with the sixth base as condition, contact,” maintain that in immaterial [becoming] the sixth base conditions contact, while elsewhere all are included and the six bases condition contact. Thus, applying the method of retaining a single remainder where part has the same form³, they maintain that the internal eye and the rest together with the sixth base are “the six bases.” For both “the sixth base” and “the six bases” are spoken of simply by the name “six bases.”

Those who take only the conditioned as included in a single continuity, while allowing the condition to extend to a different continuity, include even the external [bases] in order to show every base that conditions contact. They maintain that the internal [bases] together with the sixth and the six external bases are “the six bases.” For these too—“the sixth base” and “the six bases”—when reduced to a single remainder, are spoken of simply by the name “six bases.”

Someone objects here: a single contact does not arise from all the bases, nor do all contacts arise from a single base; yet “with the six bases as condition, contact” speaks of only a single [contact]. Why? The answer is this: it is indeed so—a single [contact] does not arise from all [the bases], nor do all [contacts] arise from a single [base]. Nevertheless, a single [contact] does arise from many [bases]. Eye-contact, for example, arises from the eye base, the visible-form base, the mind base called eye-consciousness, and the remaining associated dhamma base. Everything should be fitted in this way as appropriate. Therefore:

　　Though this contact is single, it arises from many bases—thus
　　the Such One has shown it here by a singular expression.

“By a singular expression” means that through the singular expression “with the six bases as condition, contact,” the Such One⁴ has shown that “a single contact arises from many bases.” Among the bases:

　　The five [condition it] in six ways, the next single [base] in nine, and the six external bases as appropriate;
　　their conditionhood for this [contact] should be explained.

This is the explanation: first, the five bases beginning with the eye base condition the five kinds of contact beginning with eye-contact in six ways: by support, prenascence, faculty, dissociation, presence, and nondeparture⁵. Next, a single resultant mind base conditions the various kinds of resultant mind-contact in nine ways: by conascence, mutuality, support, result, nutriment, faculty, association, presence, and nondeparture. Among the external [bases], the visible-form base conditions eye-contact in four ways: by object, prenascence, presence, and nondeparture. The sound base and the rest likewise condition ear-contact and the rest. For mind-contact, those [external bases] and the dhamma base are likewise conditions, with some serving only by object condition. Thus the conditionhood of the six external bases for this [contact] should be explained as appropriate.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with the six bases as condition, contact.”

§2 With Contact as Condition, Feeling—Eighty-Nine Feelings and Thirty-Two Resultant Feelings 〔CSCD §643〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Contact as Condition, Feeling”

In the clause “with contact as condition, feeling”—

　　By way of the door, feeling is only sixfold—beginning with what is born of eye-contact;
　　by analysis, they should be understood as eighty-nine.

In the Vibhaṅga too, this statement is made by way of the door as only six feelings: “Feeling born of eye-contact. Ear … nose … tongue … feeling born of body-contact … feeling born of mind-contact.” By analysis, because they are associated with eighty-nine minds, they should be understood as eighty-nine.

　　But among these feelings, those intended here
　　are said to be only the thirty-two associated with resultant minds.

　　Among them, at the five doors contact conditions five [feelings] in eight ways;
　　for the remaining feelings it does so in one way; at the mind door it is likewise.

At the five doors, eye-contact and the rest condition the five feelings based on eye-sensitivity and the rest in eight ways: by conascence, mutuality, support, result, nutriment, association, presence, and nondeparture. For the remaining sense-sphere resultant feelings that occur at receiving, investigating, and registration⁶ in each respective door, eye-contact and the rest condition them in only one way, by decisive support.

“At the mind door it is likewise”: at the mind door, the contact called conascent mind-contact conditions the sense-sphere resultant feelings occurring at registration in the same eight ways. It likewise conditions the three-plane resultant feelings occurring as rebirth-linking, life-continuum, and death. For those sense-sphere feelings occurring at registration in the mind door, mind-contact associated with mind-door adverting conditions them in only one way, by decisive support.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with contact as condition, feeling.”

§3 With Feeling as Condition, Craving—Six Cravings, Eighteen, Thirty-Six, and One Hundred Eight 〔CSCD §644〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Feeling as Condition, Craving”

In the clause “with feeling as condition, craving”—

　　By the division beginning with craving for visible form, six cravings are shown here;
　　each of them should be understood as threefold according to its mode of occurrence.

In this clause, just as a son is named after his father “a merchant’s son” or “a brahmin’s son,” the Vibhaṅga names and shows six cravings according to their objects: “Craving for visible form. For sound … odor … flavor … tangible objects … craving for dhammas.”

Each of these cravings should be understood as threefold according to its mode of occurrence: craving for sensuality, craving for becoming, and craving for non-becoming. In the case of craving for visible form: when it occurs relishing a visible-form object that has entered the eye’s range through sensual enjoyment, it is called craving for sensuality. When it occurs toward that same object together with the eternalist view that “[it is] lasting and eternal,” it is called craving for becoming, because greed accompanied by eternalist view is called craving for becoming. When it occurs toward that same object together with the annihilationist view that “[it] is cut off and perishes,” it is called craving for non-becoming, because greed accompanied by annihilationist view is called craving for non-becoming. The same method applies to craving for sound and the rest. Thus there are eighteen cravings.

There are eighteen in relation to internal visible form and the rest, and eighteen in relation to external [visible form and the rest], making thirty-six. Thus there are thirty-six past, thirty-six future, and thirty-six present cravings—one hundred eight cravings⁷. If they are summarized again, there are six by way of the objects beginning with visible form, or only three by way of craving for sensuality and the rest. This is how they should be understood.

These beings relish the feeling that arises dependent on visible form and the other objects, just as a wet nurse relishes a child and conceives possessiveness toward the child. Because they conceive possessiveness toward feeling, they greatly honor those who give the objects beginning with visible form—painters, musicians, perfumers, cooks, weavers, compounders of medicines, physicians, and the rest. It should therefore be understood that all this [craving] is craving with feeling as condition.

　　Because what is intended here is resultant pleasant feeling,
　　it is only one and, in only one way, conditions craving.

“In one way” means that it conditions only by decisive-support condition. Or, because:

　　The unhappy long for pleasure, and the happy desire still more;
　　equanimity, because of its peaceful nature, is also called pleasure.

　　Therefore all three feelings become conditions for craving;
　　“With feeling as condition, craving”—so the Great Seer said.

　　Yet even with feeling as condition, it does not arise without latent tendency;
　　therefore it does not arise in the brahmin who has lived the holy life.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with feeling as condition, craving.”

Notes

¹ Thirty-two (bāttiṃsa): the detailed count of contact; the Commentator expressly makes it parallel to the thirty-two mundane resultant consciousnesses stated in the account of formations conditioning consciousness.

² Discourse on the occurrence of what is appropriated (upādiṇṇakapavattikathā): the first group’s position, which confines both condition and conditioned to each being’s own continuity.

³ Method of retaining a single remainder where part has the same form (ekadesasarūpekasesanaya): the method of inclusion shared by the two groups—“the sixth base” and “the six bases” are encompassed by a single term.

⁴ Such One (tādī): the Commentator’s designation of the Buddha.

⁵ For individual explanations of the conditions listed in this unit—support, prenascence, faculty, dissociation, presence, nondeparture, conascence, mutuality, result, nutriment, association, object, decisive support, and the rest—see this chapter’s unit on the twenty-four conditions of the Paṭṭhāna.

⁶ Receiving, investigating, and registration (sampaṭicchanasantīraṇatadārammaṇa): three positions within a single door; contact conditions the feeling at these positions in one way, by decisive support.

⁷ The calculation of one hundred eight cravings—six to eighteen to thirty-six to one hundred eight—is the basis for the next unit; when craving hardens it is sensuality-clinging. See this chapter’s detailed account of craving conditioning clinging.

⁸ Latent tendency (anusaya): the final verse uses its presence or absence to determine whether feeling can condition craving—when latent tendency is absent, feeling may be present but craving does not arise.

⁹ Brahmin who has lived the holy life (brāhmaṇassa vusīmato): the close of the final verse—although an arahant has feeling, there is no craving.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 Analysis of the Meaning of the Four Kinds of Clinging 〔CSCD §645〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Craving as Condition, Clinging”

In the clause “with craving as condition, clinging”—

　　Clinging is fourfold; it should be explained by analysis of meaning,
　　by dhamma in brief and in detail, and by order.

This is the explanation: clinging to sensuality, clinging to views, clinging to virtues and practices, and clinging to a doctrine of self—first, these are the four kinds of clinging. Their meanings are analyzed as follows. It takes up sensuality, which is called an object, and is therefore clinging to sensuality; or it is both sensuality and clinging, and is therefore clinging to sensuality. “Clinging” means firmly grasping. Here the prefix meaning “near”¹ carries the sense of firmness, as in “great anguish,” “very near,” and the like. Likewise, the view is both a view and clinging, and is therefore clinging to views. Or it takes up a view and is therefore clinging to views, for in such statements as “the self and the world are eternal,” a later view takes up an earlier view. Likewise, it takes up virtues and practices and is therefore clinging to virtues and practices. Or those virtues and practices are themselves both virtues and practices and clinging, and are therefore clinging to virtues and practices, for such practices as cow virtue and cow observance are themselves clinging when held to with the thought, “Purification comes in this way.” Likewise, because something is spoken through it, it is “doctrine,” and because something is taken up through it, it is “clinging.” What is spoken and taken up?—self. Clinging to a doctrine of self is “self-doctrine clinging.” Or it takes up as self merely the doctrine of self, and is therefore clinging to a doctrine of self. This, first, is the analysis of their meanings.

§2 The Dhammas of the Four Kinds of Clinging—In Brief and in Detail 〔CSCD §645〕

As to dhamma in brief and in detail: first, clinging to sensuality is stated in brief as the hardening of craving², because it has come down thus: “What here is clinging to sensuality? Whatever desire for sensuality, lust for sensuality, delight in sensuality, craving for sensuality, affection for sensuality, fever for sensuality, infatuation with sensuality, and engrossment in sensuality—this is called clinging to sensuality.” “Hardening of craving” means the later craving that arises firmly with the earlier craving as decisive-support condition. Some say: “Craving seeks an object not yet obtained, like a thief stretching out a hand in the dark; clinging takes hold of an object already obtained, like that same thief seizing the goods. These two dhammas are opposed by fewness of wishes and contentment, and they are likewise roots of the dukkha of seeking and guarding.” The remaining three kinds of clinging are, in brief, only views.

In detail, clinging to sensuality is the hardening of the craving divided into one hundred eight kinds stated above for visible form and the rest³. The wrong view concerning ten matters⁴ is clinging to views. As it is said: “What here is clinging to views? ‘There is no giving, no sacrifice … up to (expanded as above) … having directly known, they proclaim’—whatever view of this kind … up to (expanded as above) … distorted grasp, this is called clinging to views.” Taking up the idea “purification comes through virtues and practices” is clinging to virtues and practices. As it is said: “What here is clinging to virtues and practices? ‘Purification through virtue, purification through observance, purification through virtues and practices’—whatever view of this kind … up to (expanded as above) … distorted grasp, this is called clinging to virtues and practices.” The identity view concerning twenty matters⁵ is clinging to a doctrine of self. As it is said: “What here is clinging to a doctrine of self? Here, an uninstructed ordinary person … up to (expanded as above) … untrained in the teaching of good persons, regards form as self … up to (expanded as above) … distorted grasp, this is called clinging to a doctrine of self.” This is the dhamma in brief and in detail.

§3 Three Orders of the Four Kinds of Clinging—Arising, Abandoning, and Teaching 〔CSCD §645〕

As to “by order,” the order here is threefold: order of arising, order of abandoning, and order of teaching. Of these, because in beginningless saṃsāra there is no [point of which it can be said], “This is its first arising,” the order in which the defilements arise is not stated in the definitive sense⁶. In a qualified sense, within a single becoming, attachment to eternalist and annihilationist views usually begins with grasping at self. Thereafter, for a person who holds “this self is eternal,” there is clinging to virtues and practices for the purification of the self; for a person who holds “[the self] is annihilated” and disregards the world beyond, there is clinging to sensuality. Thus first comes clinging to a doctrine of self, then clinging to views, clinging to virtues and practices, and clinging to sensuality. This is their order of arising within a single becoming.

Here, clinging to views and the other [two] are abandoned first because they are to be abandoned by the stream-entry path; clinging to sensuality comes later because it is to be abandoned by the arahant path. This is their order of abandoning.

Among these, clinging to sensuality is taught first because its range is broad and because it is evident. It has a broad range because it is associated with eight minds, while the remaining kinds are associated with four and therefore have a narrower range. Moreover, because people for the most part delight in ālaya⁷, clinging to sensuality is evident, while the others are not. Or, because clinging to sensuality leads to many agitations over auspicious signs and the like in order to obtain sensual pleasures, and those are that person’s views, clinging to views comes next. When that [clinging to views] is divided, it is twofold as clinging to virtues and practices and clinging to a doctrine of self. Of these two, clinging to virtues and practices can be known even by seeing the actions of a cow or the actions of a dog⁸; because it is gross, it is taught first. Clinging to a doctrine of self is subtle and therefore comes last. This is their order of teaching.

§4 In How Many Ways Craving Conditions the Four Kinds of Clinging 〔CSCD §645〕

　　Here craving conditions the first [kind of clinging] in only one way;
　　for the remaining three it conditions in seven or eight ways.

Among the four kinds of clinging stated in this way, craving for sensuality conditions the first, clinging to sensuality, in only one way, by decisive support, because [clinging to sensuality] arises in objects in which craving delights. It conditions the remaining three in seven ways: by conascence, mutuality, support, association, presence, nondeparture, and root⁹; or in eight ways with decisive support included. When it conditions through decisive support, it is only non-conascent.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with craving as condition, clinging.”

Notes

¹ Prefix meaning “near” (upasaddo): the Commentator explains that in the term upādāna, this prefix carries the sense of firmness, as in expressions for “great anguish” and “very near.”

² Hardening of craving (taṇhādaḷhatta): the brief meaning of clinging to sensuality—the later craving that arises firmly with the earlier craving as decisive-support condition.

³ For the individual steps in the calculation of craving divided into one hundred eight kinds—six to eighteen to thirty-six to one hundred eight—see this chapter’s unit containing the detailed accounts of the six bases conditioning contact, contact conditioning feeling, and feeling conditioning craving.

⁴ Wrong view concerning ten matters (dasavatthukā micchādiṭṭhi): the detailed meaning of clinging to views; its ten matters are the list in the quoted passage from “there is no giving, no sacrifice” through “having directly known, they proclaim.”

⁵ Identity view concerning twenty matters (vīsativatthukā sakkāyadiṭṭhi): the detailed meaning of clinging to a doctrine of self; the quotation presents it through such statements as “regards form as self.”

⁶ Definitive and qualified senses (nippariyāyena・pariyāyena): the Commentator’s qualification—the order in which defilements arise is stated only in a qualified sense, not in a definitive sense.

⁷ Ālaya (ālayarāmatā): here it carries only the Commentator’s sense of “delighting,” referring to what people delight in; it has the same form but a different referent from “storehouse consciousness” in Chinese Yogācāra.

⁸ Actions of a cow and actions of a dog (gokiriya・kukkurakiriya): the reason clinging to virtues and practices is gross and is therefore taught first.

⁹ For individual explanations of the conditions listed in this unit—decisive support, conascence, mutuality, support, association, presence, nondeparture, and root—see this chapter’s unit on the twenty-four conditions of the Paṭṭhāna.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 The Meaning of Becoming—Kamma-Becoming and Rebirth-Becoming 〔CSCD §646〕

Detailed Account of the Clause “With Clinging as Condition, Becoming”

In the clause “with clinging as condition, becoming”—

　　The determination should be understood by meaning, by dhamma, by the purpose of repeating becoming, by division and inclusion,
　　and by what conditions what.

Here, because it comes to be, it is “becoming.” It is twofold: kamma-becoming and rebirth-becoming¹. As it is said: “Becoming in two ways: there is kamma-becoming, and there is rebirth-becoming.” Of these, kamma itself is becoming and is therefore kamma-becoming; likewise, birth itself is becoming and is therefore rebirth-becoming. Here, “birth” is “coming to be,” and so it is “becoming.” As for kamma, just as the arising of buddhas is called “bliss” because it is a cause of bliss, kamma should be understood to be called “becoming” by a figurative designation through the result², because it is a cause of becoming. Thus, first, the determination here should be understood by meaning.

§2 The Dhammas of Becoming—The Volitions of Kamma-Becoming and the Nine Kinds of Rebirth-Becoming 〔CSCD §647〕

As to dhamma: first, kamma-becoming in brief is volition, together with greed and the other dhammas associated with volition that are called kamma. As it is said: “What here is kamma-becoming? Meritorious formation, demeritorious formation, and imperturbable formation³, whether of a limited plane or of an exalted plane—this is called kamma-becoming. All kamma that leads to becoming is also kamma-becoming.” Here, “meritorious formation” is thirteen volitions, “demeritorious formation” is twelve [volitions], and “imperturbable formation” is four volitions. The phrase “whether of a limited plane or of an exalted plane” refers to the lesser and greater results of those volitions. The phrase “all kamma that leads to becoming” refers to greed and the other dhammas associated with volition.

Rebirth-becoming in brief is the aggregates born of kamma; by analysis it is ninefold. As it is said: “What here is rebirth-becoming? Sense-sphere becoming, fine-material becoming, immaterial becoming; percipient becoming, non-percipient becoming, neither-percipient-nor-non-percipient becoming; one-aggregate becoming, four-aggregate becoming, five-aggregate becoming—this is called rebirth-becoming.” Becoming that is called sense-sphere is sense-sphere becoming; the same method applies to fine-material and immaterial becoming. The becoming of percipient beings, or a becoming in which there is perception, is percipient becoming; the opposite is non-percipient becoming. Because it lacks gross perception but has subtle [perception], it is neither-percipient; because it is not without perception, it is neither-percipient-nor-non-percipient becoming. Becoming mixed with the single aggregate of form is one-aggregate becoming; or a becoming that has one aggregate is one-aggregate becoming. The same method applies to four-aggregate and five-aggregate becoming. Of these, sense-sphere becoming consists of five appropriated aggregates⁴; fine-material becoming likewise. Immaterial becoming consists of four [aggregates]; percipient becoming of five; non-percipient becoming of one appropriated aggregate; neither-percipient-nor-non-percipient becoming of four. One-, four-, and five-aggregate becoming consist respectively of one, four, and five appropriated aggregates, just as their names state. Thus the determination here should also be understood by dhamma.

§3 The Purpose of Repeating Becoming 〔CSCD §648〕

“By the purpose of repeating becoming”: although the same meritorious formations and the rest stated in the exposition of formations are stated in the exposition of becoming, the former are past kamma serving as condition for rebirth-linking here, while these are present kamma serving as condition for future rebirth-linking. Thus the repetition has a purpose. Or, above, only volition was called “formation,” according to the method “What here is meritorious formation? Wholesome volition in the sense sphere,” and so forth; here, because of the phrase “all kamma that leads to becoming,” the dhammas associated with volition are included. Above, only kamma that conditions consciousness was called “formation”; here, kamma that produces non-percipient becoming is also included. Why say more? In “with ignorance as condition, formations,” only wholesome and unwholesome dhammas were stated; in “with clinging as condition, becoming,” because rebirth-becoming too is included, wholesome, unwholesome, and indeterminate dhammas are stated. Thus this repetition has a purpose in every respect. The determination here should also be understood by the purpose of repeating becoming.

§4 The Division and Inclusion of Becoming—Twenty-Four, Twelve, Six, Three, Two, and One 〔CSCD §649〕

“By division and inclusion” means the division and inclusion of becoming with clinging as condition. Kamma performed for birth in sense-sphere becoming with clinging to sensuality as condition is kamma-becoming; the aggregates it produces are rebirth-becoming. The same method applies to fine-material and immaterial becoming. Thus, with clinging to sensuality as condition, there are two kinds of sense-sphere becoming together with the percipient and five-aggregate becomings included within it⁵; two kinds of fine-material becoming together with the percipient, non-percipient, one-aggregate, and five-aggregate becomings included within it; and two kinds of immaterial becoming together with the percipient, neither-percipient-nor-non-percipient, and four-aggregate becomings included within it. Together with what is included, this makes six kinds of becoming. Just as clinging to sensuality conditions six kinds of becoming together with what is included, each of the remaining kinds of clinging does likewise. Thus, by division and together with what is included, clinging conditions twenty-four kinds of becoming.

By inclusion, kamma-becoming and rebirth-becoming are combined as one. Thus, with clinging to sensuality as condition, and together with what is included, there is a single sense-sphere becoming; the same applies to fine-material and immaterial becoming, making three kinds of becoming. The same applies to each of the remaining kinds of clinging. Thus, by inclusion and together with what is included, clinging conditions twelve kinds of becoming. Again, without distinguishing among the kinds of clinging, kamma that leads to sense-sphere becoming with clinging as condition is kamma-becoming, and the aggregates it produces are rebirth-becoming; the same method applies to fine-material and immaterial becoming. Thus, with clinging as condition and together with what is included, there are two sense-sphere becomings, two fine-material becomings, and two immaterial becomings—by another method of inclusion, six kinds in all. Or, without taking the distinction between kamma-becoming and rebirth-becoming, and together with what is included, there are three kinds according to sense-sphere becoming and the rest. Without taking the distinction among sense-sphere becoming and the rest, there are two kinds according to kamma-becoming and rebirth-becoming. Without taking even the distinction between kamma and rebirth, there is only one becoming according to the “becoming” of “with clinging as condition, becoming.” Thus the determination here should be understood by the division and inclusion of becoming with clinging as condition.

§5 Which Clinging Conditions Which Becoming—Six Examples and the Several Modes of Condition 〔CSCD §650〕

“And by what conditions what” means that the determination here should also be understood from which clinging conditions which [becoming]. Which [clinging], then, conditions which [becoming]?—any clinging is indeed a condition for any becoming. For an ordinary person is like someone mad: without examining “this is suitable, this is unsuitable,” depending on any clinging, aspiring to any becoming, that person performs any kamma. Therefore the view stated by some, “clinging to virtues and practices does not produce fine-material or immaterial becoming,” should not be accepted; the position “every clinging produces every becoming” should be accepted.

That is, someone here, by hearsay or according to what has been seen, thinks, “Sensual pleasures are abundant among the great khattiya families and the rest in the human world, and in the six sense-sphere deva worlds.” Wishing to obtain them, deceived by hearing what is not true Dhamma and the rest, that person thinks, “By means of this kamma, sensual pleasures will be fulfilled,” and depending on clinging to sensuality performs bodily misconduct and the rest. Through the fulfillment of misconduct, that person is reborn in a bad destination. Or, aspiring to sensual pleasures visible here and now⁶ and guarding those already obtained, that person depends on clinging to sensuality and performs bodily misconduct and the rest; through the fulfillment of misconduct, that person is reborn in a bad destination. There, the kamma that causes arising is kamma-becoming; the aggregates born of kamma are rebirth-becoming; percipient becoming and five-aggregate becoming are included within them.

Another person, whose understanding has grown through hearing the true Dhamma and the rest, thinks, “By means of this kamma, sensual pleasures will be fulfilled,” and depending on clinging to sensuality performs bodily good conduct and the rest. Through the fulfillment of good conduct, that person is reborn among devas or humans. There, the kamma that causes arising is kamma-becoming; the aggregates born of kamma are rebirth-becoming; percipient becoming and five-aggregate becoming are included within them. Thus clinging to sensuality conditions sense-sphere becoming together with its divisions and what it includes⁷.

Another person hears, “In fine-material and immaterial becoming, sensual pleasures are more abundant than these,” or arrives at that conception independently. Depending solely on clinging to sensuality, that person develops attainments of the fine-material and immaterial spheres, and through the power of those attainments is reborn in a brahmā world of the fine-material or immaterial sphere. There, the kamma that causes arising is kamma-becoming; the aggregates born of kamma are rebirth-becoming; percipient, non-percipient, neither-percipient-nor-non-percipient, one-aggregate, four-aggregate, and five-aggregate becoming are included within them. Thus clinging to sensuality also conditions fine-material and immaterial becoming together with their divisions and what they include.

Another person takes up the annihilationist view, “This so-called self is well annihilated when it is annihilated in a complete sense-sphere becoming or in any fine-material or immaterial becoming,” and performs kamma leading there. That kamma is kamma-becoming; the aggregates born of kamma are rebirth-becoming; percipient becoming and the rest are included within them. Thus clinging to views conditions sense-sphere, fine-material, and immaterial becoming together with their divisions and what they include.

Another person, through clinging to a doctrine of self, takes up the view, “This so-called self is happy and free from fever in a complete sense-sphere becoming or in any fine-material or immaterial becoming,” and performs kamma leading there. That kamma is kamma-becoming; the aggregates it produces are rebirth-becoming; percipient becoming and the rest are included within them. Thus clinging to a doctrine of self conditions all three kinds of becoming together with their divisions and what they include.

Another person, depending on clinging to virtues and practices, thinks, “For the person who fulfills this virtue and observance, bliss reaches fulfillment in a complete sense-sphere becoming or in any fine-material or immaterial becoming,” and performs kamma leading there. That kamma is kamma-becoming; the aggregates it produces are rebirth-becoming; percipient becoming and the rest are included within them. Thus clinging to virtues and practices conditions all three kinds of becoming together with their divisions and what they include. This is how the determination here should be understood by what conditions what.

Which becoming, then, does [clinging] condition, and in what manner?

　　Clinging should be understood as decisive-support condition for fine-material and immaterial becoming;
　　for sense-sphere becoming, it also conditions by conascence and the rest.

For fine-material and immaterial becoming, for only the wholesome kamma within the kamma-becoming included in sense-sphere becoming, and for all rebirth-becoming, all four kinds of clinging condition in only one way, by decisive support⁸. In sense-sphere becoming, for unwholesome kamma-becoming associated with themselves, they condition by conascence condition, mutuality condition, support condition, association condition, presence condition, nondeparture condition, and root condition. For what is dissociated, they condition only by decisive support.

　　This is the detailed account of the clause “with clinging as condition, becoming.”

Notes

¹ Kamma-becoming and rebirth-becoming (kammabhava・upapattibhava): the two divisions of becoming—kamma itself is becoming and is kamma-becoming; birth itself is becoming and is rebirth-becoming.

² Figurative designation through the result (phalavohāra): the reason kamma is called “becoming”—because it is the cause of becoming, it is called by the name of its result.

³ For the counts of volitions in meritorious, demeritorious, and imperturbable formations—thirteen, twelve, and four—see this chapter’s unit on the clause “with ignorance as condition, formations.”

⁴ Appropriated aggregate (upādiṇṇakkhandha): the aggregates included within the various kinds of rebirth-becoming; the Commentator counts them individually as five, four, and one.

⁵ What is included (antogadha): the key term in the calculation of becoming—the other kinds of becoming included within a particular kind.

⁶ Directly visible sensual pleasures (sandiṭṭhika kāma): the sensual pleasures sought by someone who aspires to them in the present life.

⁷ Together with divisions and what is included (sappabheda・sāntogadha): the Commentator’s summary expression—a particular clinging conditions a particular becoming together with its divisions and what is included within it.

⁸ The number of ways clinging conditions becoming follows the same form as the number of ways craving conditions clinging; see this chapter’s detailed account of craving conditioning clinging.

The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.

§1 With Becoming as Condition, Birth; with Birth as Condition, Aging-and-Death, Sorrow, and the Rest 〔CSCD §651〕

Detailed Account of “With Becoming as Condition, Birth” and the Rest

In “with becoming as condition, birth” and the clauses that follow, the determination of birth and the rest should be understood according to the method stated in the explanation of the truths.¹ Here, however, “becoming” intends only kamma-becoming.² For that is a condition for birth; rebirth-becoming is not. It conditions birth in two ways, as kamma condition and decisive-support condition.

Here someone might ask: How can it be known that “becoming is the condition for birth”?—Because even when the external conditions are equal, differences such as inferiority and superiority are seen. Even when the external conditions—father, mother, semen, blood, food, and the rest—are equal, differences such as inferiority and superiority are seen among beings, even among twins. That difference is not causeless, since it is not present at all times in all beings; nor does it have a cause other than kamma-becoming, since there is no other cause within the continuities of the beings produced by it. Therefore it has kamma-becoming alone as its cause. For kamma is the cause of the differences among beings as inferior and superior and the rest. Thus the Blessed One said: “Kamma distinguishes beings, that is, as inferior and superior.” Therefore it should be known that “becoming is the condition for birth.”

And because, when there is no birth, there is no aging-and-death and there are no dhammas such as sorrow; when there is birth, there are aging-and-death and dhammas such as sorrow—in a foolish person touched by the dukkha phenomenon called aging-and-death, whether connected with aging-and-death, or touched by this or that dukkha phenomenon while unconnected with aging-and-death. Therefore this birth should be understood as a condition both for aging-and-death and for sorrow and the rest. It conditions them in only one way, at the limit of decisive support.

　　This is the detailed account within “with becoming as condition, birth” and the clauses that follow.

§2 Four Things about the Wheel of Becoming—Ignorance Established by Sorrow and the Rest, Beginning Unknown, without Maker or Experiencer, Twelvefold Emptiness 〔CSCD §652〕

Discourse on the Wheel of Becoming

Because sorrow and the rest are stated here at the end, the ignorance stated at the beginning of this wheel of becoming in the words “with ignorance as condition, formations” should be understood thus—

Ignorance is established by sorrow and the rest; this wheel of becoming has an unknown beginning; it is without maker and experiencer, and is empty with twelvefold emptiness.

—and it should be understood to occur constantly and continuously.

How, then, is ignorance established here by sorrow and the rest? How does this wheel of becoming have an unknown beginning? How is it without maker and experiencer? How is it empty with twelvefold emptiness?—Here sorrow, grief, and despair are not dissociated from ignorance, and what is called lamentation belongs to someone deluded. Thus, when they are established, ignorance is established. Moreover, it is said: “With the arising of the taints comes the arising of ignorance.” And these dhammas beginning with sorrow arise from the arising of the taints.

How so? First, when separated from the objects of sensual pleasure, sorrow arises from the arising of the taint of sensual desire.⁵ As it is said—

For that person who desires sensual pleasures, in whom desire has arisen, if those sensual pleasures decline, he suffers as though pierced by an arrow.

And as it is said: “From sensual desire, sorrow is born.”

All these dhammas also arise from the arising of the taint of views. As it is said: “While he remains obsessed with ‘I am form; form is mine,’ sorrow, lamentation, dukkha, grief, and despair arise through the change and alteration of form.”

Just as they arise from the arising of the taint of views, so too they arise from the arising of the taint of becoming. As it is said: “Even those devas who are long-lived, beautiful, rich in pleasure, and dwell for a long time in lofty mansions become fearful, frightened, and stirred after hearing the Tathāgata teach the Dhamma.”—like devas who, seeing the five portents,⁶ are terrified by fear of death.

Just as they arise from the arising of the taint of becoming, so too they arise from the arising of the taint of ignorance. As it is said: “Bhikkhus, that fool experiences three kinds of dukkha and grief here and now.”

Thus, because these dhammas arise from the arising of the taints, the occurrence of these dhammas establishes the taints that are causes of ignorance. Once the taints are established, ignorance too is established, since it occurs when they are present as conditions. In this way it should be understood first that ignorance is established here by sorrow and the rest.

And because, after ignorance has thus been established through the presence of conditions, the sequence again proceeds “with ignorance as condition, formations; with formations as condition, consciousness,” there is no end to the succession of cause and result. Therefore the twelve-linked wheel of becoming, occurring through the connection of cause and result, is established as having an unknown beginning.

If it is asked: In that case, does not the phrase “with ignorance as condition, formations” conflict with the fact that it does not state a beginning?—It does not state a temporal beginning. It states the principal dhamma. For ignorance is principal among the three rounds. By grasping ignorance, the remaining round of defilement and kamma and the rest bind a fool, just as when a snake is grasped by the head, the rest of its body coils around the arm. When ignorance is cut off, there is release from them, just as when a snake’s head is cut off, the bound arm is freed. As it is said: “With the remainderless fading away and cessation of ignorance comes the cessation of formations,” and so forth. Thus the statement concerns the principal dhamma whose grasping brings bondage and whose relinquishment brings release; it does not state that dhamma as a temporal beginning. In this way the wheel of becoming should be understood as having an unknown beginning.

Because formations and the rest occur from causes such as ignorance, this wheel is without another maker of saṃsāra imagined as “Brahmā, Mahābrahmā, the Highest, the Creator,” and it is also without a self imagined as “this self of mine is the speaker and the experiencer,” an experiencer of pleasure and pain. Thus it should be understood as without maker and experiencer.

And because ignorance, being a dhamma that arises and ceases, is empty of permanence; being defiled and defiling, empty of purity; being oppressed by arising and ceasing, empty of pleasure; and, because its occurrence depends on conditions, empty of a controlling self—so too are formations and the remaining links. Or ignorance is not a self, does not belong to a self, is not in a self, and does not possess a self; so too are formations and the remaining links. Therefore this wheel of becoming should be understood as empty with twelvefold emptiness.

§3 The Wheel’s Two Roots, Three Times, and Assignment of Links 〔CSCD §653〕

Having known it thus, further—

Its roots are ignorance and craving; it has the three times beginning with the past; within them, the links stated in their own form are two, eight, and two.

It should be understood that the two dhammas ignorance and craving are the roots of this wheel of becoming.

The wheel is twofold: by drawing in the past,⁷ it is rooted in ignorance and ends with feeling; by continuation into the future, it is rooted in craving and ends with aging-and-death. Of these, the former is stated for a person of view-temperament and the latter for a person of craving-temperament. Ignorance leads a person of view-temperament through saṃsāra, while craving leads a person of craving-temperament through saṃsāra. Or the first is stated to eradicate annihilationism, because it shows that the causes do not cease before the arising of their results; the second to eradicate eternalism, because it shows the aging-and-death of what has arisen. Or the former is stated with reference to womb-born beings, because it shows gradual occurrence; the latter with reference to spontaneously born beings, because it shows simultaneous arising.

The three times of this wheel are past, present, and future. Of the links that occur in their own form in the canonical text, the two links “ignorance and formations” belong to the past; the eight links beginning with consciousness and ending with becoming belong to the present; and the two links birth and aging-and-death belong to the future. This is how they should be understood.

§4 Three Joints, Four Groupings, Twenty Modes, and Three Rounds 〔CSCD §654〕

Further—

This wheel has three joints, preceded by cause, result, and cause, and fourfold grouping; with twenty modes as its spokes, it turns through three rounds without coming to rest.

It should also be understood thus.

Here, between formations and rebirth-linking consciousness there is a joint called a cause-result joint; between feeling and craving there is a joint called a result-cause joint; and between becoming and birth there is a cause-result joint. Thus it should be understood as having three joints⁸ preceded by cause, result, and cause.

According to the definition of the beginnings and ends of the joints, it has four groupings. Namely: ignorance and formations are the first grouping; consciousness, name-and-form, the six bases, contact, and feeling are the second; craving, clinging, and becoming are the third; and birth and aging-and-death are the fourth. Thus it should be understood as having fourfold grouping.⁹

Five causes in the past, a group of five results now; five causes now, a group of five results in the future.

With these twenty modes called spokes, it should be understood as “having twenty modes as its spokes.”¹⁰

Here, “five causes in the past”: the two, ignorance and formations, have already been stated. But because an ignorant person craves, a person who craves clings, and that person’s clinging conditions becoming, craving, clinging, and becoming are also included. Thus it is said: “In the former kamma-becoming, delusion is ignorance, accumulation¹¹ is formations, hankering is craving, approach is clinging, and volition is becoming—these five dhammas in the former kamma-becoming are conditions for rebirth-linking here.”

Here, “in the former kamma-becoming” means in the earlier kamma-becoming, when kamma-becoming was being performed in a past life. “Delusion is ignorance”: the delusion at that time regarding dukkha and the rest, through which a deluded person makes kamma, is ignorance. “Accumulation is formations”: these are the prior volitions of the person making that kamma, as when someone, after arousing the thought “I will give a gift,” spends a month or a year preparing the requisites for giving. The volition when the gift is placed in the recipients’ hands is called “becoming.” Or the volitions in the first six impulsions under a single advertence are called “accumulation is formations,” while the seventh¹² is “becoming.” Or any volition may be becoming, and the associated accumulations are called formations. “Hankering is craving”: the delight and aspiration for the result and for rebirth-becoming in the person making kamma is called craving. “Approach is clinging”: the approach, taking, and adherence that conditions kamma-becoming and occurs in such modes as “Having done this, I will enjoy sensual pleasures in such-and-such a place” or “I will be annihilated” is called clinging. “Volition is becoming”: this means that the volition stated at the end of accumulation is becoming.

“A group of five results now”: consciousness through feeling are precisely those found in the canonical text. As it is said: “Rebirth-linking here is consciousness, descent is name-and-form, sensitivity is base, what is contacted is contact, and what is felt is feeling—these five dhammas here in rebirth-becoming have the kamma formerly performed as their condition.” Here, “rebirth-linking is consciousness”: because it arises in the mode of linking to another becoming, it is called rebirth-linking, and it is consciousness. “Descent is name-and-form”: the descent of material and immaterial dhammas into the womb—as though arriving and entering—is name-and-form. “Sensitivity is base”: this is stated with reference to the five bases beginning with the eye. “What is contacted is contact”: the contact that arises while touching its object is contact. “What is felt is feeling”: the resultant experience that arises either together with rebirth-linking consciousness or together with contact conditioned by the six bases is feeling. This is how the meaning should be understood.

“Five causes now”: craving, clinging, and becoming are stated in the canonical text. When becoming is included, its preliminary formations or the formations associated with it are included; when craving and clinging are included, the ignorance associated with them, or the ignorance through which a deluded person makes kamma, is also included. Thus there are five. Therefore it is said: “Here, because the bases have matured, delusion is ignorance, accumulation is formations, hankering is craving, approach is clinging, and volition is becoming—these five dhammas here in kamma-becoming are conditions for future rebirth-linking.” Here, “because the bases have matured” shows the delusion of a person with mature bases at the time of making kamma. The rest of the meaning is clear.

“A group of five results in the future”: these are the five beginning with consciousness. They are stated by the single term “birth”; aging-and-death is the aging-and-death of those same five. Therefore it is said: “Future rebirth-linking is consciousness, descent is name-and-form, sensitivity is base, what is contacted is contact, and what is felt is feeling—these five dhammas in future rebirth-becoming have the kamma performed here as their condition.” Thus the wheel has twenty modes as its spokes.

As for “it turns through three rounds without coming to rest”: formations and becoming are the round of kamma,¹³ ignorance, craving, and clinging are the round of defilement, and consciousness, name-and-form, the six bases, contact, and feeling are the round of result. Thus the wheel of becoming has three rounds through these three rounds; so long as the round of defilement is not cut off, it does not come to rest because its conditions remain uncut, and it keeps turning because it revolves again and again.

§5 Derivation from the Truths and the Two Functions of the Links 〔CSCD §655–656〕

As this wheel turns—

It should be understood as appropriate by derivation from the truths, by function, by prevention, by similes, and by the divisions of profundity and principle.

Here, because the Analysis of the Truths states that wholesome and unwholesome kamma without distinction belong to the truth of origin, formations with ignorance as condition derive from the second truth and are the second truth. Consciousness with formations as condition derives from the second truth and is the first truth. Name-and-form and the rest through resultant feeling, with consciousness and the rest as conditions, derive from the first truth and are the first truth. Craving with feeling as condition derives from the first truth and is the second truth. Clinging with craving as condition derives from the second truth and is the second truth. Becoming with clinging as condition derives from the second truth and is the pair consisting of the first and second truths. Birth with becoming as condition derives from the second truth and is the first truth. Aging-and-death with birth as condition derives from the first truth and is the first truth. Thus, first, the wheel should be understood as appropriate by derivation from the truths.

Here ignorance both deludes beings regarding things and is a condition for the appearance of formations. Formations both form the conditioned and are conditions for consciousness. Consciousness both discerns a thing and is a condition for name-and-form. Name and form support each other; name-and-form is a condition for the six bases. The six bases both occur in their respective fields and are conditions for contact. Contact both touches its object and is a condition for feeling. Feeling both experiences the taste of its object and is a condition for craving. Craving both lusts after dhammas that can be lusted after and is a condition for clinging. Clinging both takes up dhammas that can be clung to and is a condition for becoming. Becoming both casts beings into various destinations and is a condition for birth. Birth both generates the aggregates, since it occurs by bringing them forth, and is a condition for aging-and-death. Aging-and-death both presides over the maturation and breakup of the aggregates and is a condition for the appearance of another existence, since it serves as the basis for sorrow and the rest. Therefore the wheel should also be understood as appropriate by the twofold function occurring in every clause.

§6 Preventing Wrong Views and Twenty-Four Similes 〔CSCD §657–658〕

Here “with ignorance as condition, formations” prevents a view of a maker; “with formations as condition, consciousness” prevents a view of a transmigrating self; “with consciousness as condition, name-and-form,” by showing the analysis of the basis imagined as “self,” prevents the perception of a compact whole; and “with name-and-form as condition, the six bases” and the clauses that follow prevent such views as “A self sees … and so forth (as stated above) … knows, touches, feels, craves, clings, becomes, is born, ages, and dies.” Thus the wheel of becoming should also be understood as appropriate by the prevention of wrong views.

Here, because ignorance does not see the individual and general characteristics of dhammas, it is like a blind person; formations with ignorance as condition are like the blind person’s stumbling; consciousness with formations as condition is like the fall of someone who has stumbled; name-and-form with consciousness as condition is like the appearance of a boil on someone who has fallen; the six bases with name-and-form as condition are like pustules caused when the boil bursts; contact with the six bases as condition is like the striking of the boil’s pustules; feeling with contact as condition is like the pain of the strike; craving with feeling as condition is like the wish to remedy the pain; clinging with craving as condition is like taking an unsuitable remedy through the wish to remedy the pain; becoming with clinging as condition is like applying the unsuitable remedy that was taken; birth with becoming as condition is like the alteration appearing in the boil through the application of the unsuitable remedy; aging-and-death with birth as condition is like the boil bursting through the alteration.

Or here ignorance overpowers beings through non-practice and wrong practice, like a film covering the eyes. A fool overpowered by it binds himself with formations that produce renewed becoming, like a cocoon-making worm with strands of its cocoon. Consciousness taken up by formations gains a footing in destinations, like a prince supported by a minister who gains a footing in his kingdom. Through construing the sign of rebirth, consciousness produces name-and-form of many kinds at rebirth-linking, like an illusionist producing an illusion. The six bases established in name-and-form reach growth, increase, and fullness, like a woodland established in good soil. Contact arises from the impingement of the bases, like fire from rubbing fire-sticks together. Feeling appears in a person touched by contact, like burning in a person touched by fire. Craving grows in a person who feels, like the thirst of a person drinking salt water. A thirsty person desires the various kinds of becoming, like someone thirsty for drink; that is clinging. Through clinging, a person takes up becoming, like a fish swallowing a hook through greed for bait. When becoming is present, birth occurs, like a sprout when a seed is present. For someone born, aging-and-death are inevitable, like the fall of a tree that has grown. Thus the wheel of becoming should also be understood as appropriate through these similes.

§7 Four Profundities—Meaning, Dhamma, Teaching, and Penetration 〔CSCD §659〕

Because the Blessed One, referring to profundity in meaning, dhamma, teaching, and penetration,¹⁴ said, “This dependent arising is profound, Ānanda, and appears profound,” the wheel of becoming should also be understood as appropriate by the divisions of profundity.

Here, aging-and-death does not fail to occur from birth, nor does it occur from some other cause apart from birth, and it arises from birth in precisely this way. Because the meaning of arising with birth as condition is hard to understand, the meaning of aging-and-death as born and arisen from birth as condition is profound. Likewise, the meaning of birth as born and arisen with becoming as condition … and so forth (as stated above) … through the meaning of formations as born and arisen with ignorance as condition is profound. Thus this wheel of becoming is profound in meaning; this is the profundity of meaning here. For the result of a cause is called “meaning.” As it is said: “Knowledge of the result of a cause is discrimination of meaning.”

Because it is hard to understand in what mode and under what circumstances ignorance conditions particular formations, the conditional meaning of ignorance in relation to formations is profound. Likewise, the conditional meaning of formations … and so forth (as stated above) … through birth in relation to aging-and-death is profound. Thus this wheel of becoming is profound in dhamma; this is the profundity of dhamma here. For a cause is called “dhamma.” As it is said: “Knowledge of a cause is discrimination of dhamma.”

Because its teaching must proceed in different ways for different reasons, the teaching too is profound; no knowledge other than omniscient knowledge gains a footing there. Thus in some suttas it is taught in forward order, in some in reverse order, in some in both forward and reverse order, in some beginning from the middle and proceeding forward or backward, in some as three joints and four groupings, in some as two joints and three groupings, and in some as one joint and two groupings. Therefore this wheel of becoming is profound in teaching; this is the profundity of teaching.

And because the nature of ignorance and the other links—through penetrating which they are rightly penetrated according to their individual characteristics—is hard to fathom, it is profound; therefore this wheel of becoming is profound in penetration. Here the meanings of ignorance as unknowing, not seeing, and non-penetration of the truths are profound; the meanings of formations as forming, accumulation, with lust, and without lust; of consciousness as empty, inactive, non-transmigrating, rebirth-linking, and manifestation; of name-and-form as conascent, separable, inseparable, bending, and changing; of the six bases as predominance, world, door, field, and possession of a domain; of contact as touching, impingement, meeting, and convergence; of feeling as experiencing the taste of the object, pleasure, pain, neutrality, and soulless experience; of craving as delighting, adherence, stream, creeper, river, and the hard-to-fill ocean of craving; of clinging as taking, grasping, fixation, adherence, and hard to cross; of becoming as accumulation, forming, and casting into births, destinations, stations of consciousness, and abodes of beings; of birth as birth, full birth, descent, production, and manifestation; and of aging-and-death as exhaustion, decay, breakup, and change—all are profound. This is the profundity of penetration here.

§8 Four Principles and the Chapter Close 〔CSCD §660–661〕

Because there are here four principles of meaning—the principle of unity, the principle of diversity, the principle of non-activity, and the principle of specific conditionality—the wheel of becoming should also be understood as appropriate by the divisions of principle.

Here the uninterruptedness of the continuum in the sequence “with ignorance as condition, formations; with formations as condition, consciousness,” like a seed arriving at the state of a tree through becoming a sprout and so forth, is called the principle of unity. Seeing it rightly, a person abandons annihilationism through understanding the continuum’s non-interruption by the connection of cause and result. Seeing it wrongly, a person adopts eternalism by grasping as unity the non-interruption of a continuum occurring through the connection of cause and result.

The definition of ignorance and the rest according to each link’s own characteristic is called the principle of diversity. Seeing it rightly, a person abandons eternalism by seeing the arising of ever-new dhammas. Seeing it wrongly, a person adopts annihilationism by grasping what falls within a single continuum as diversity, as though the continuum had been broken.

The absence of activity such as “formations must be produced by me from ignorance,” or “consciousness must be produced by us from formations,” is called the principle of non-activity. Seeing it rightly, a person abandons self-view by understanding the absence of a maker. Seeing it wrongly, a person adopts the view of no action by failing to grasp the causal efficacy of ignorance and the rest, established by the regularity of their own natures even though there is no such activity.

From causes such as ignorance, only their corresponding effects such as formations arise, just as curd and the rest arise from milk and the rest, and not other effects: this is called the principle of specific conditionality. Seeing it rightly, a person abandons causelessness and the view of no action by understanding a result in accordance with its conditions. Seeing it wrongly, a person adopts causelessness and determinism¹⁵ by failing to grasp the occurrence of results in accordance with their conditions and imagining that anything can arise from anywhere. Thus this wheel of becoming—

should be understood as appropriate by derivation from the truths, by function, by prevention, by similes, and by the divisions of profundity and principle.

For this wheel is bottomless because it is exceedingly profound, and hard to cross because of its thicket of many principles. Without the sword of wisdom well sharpened on the excellent whetstone of concentration—

unless the wheel of becoming, crushing ceaselessly like a thunderbolt-wheel, is split, no person escapes the fear of saṃsāra, even in a dream.

For the Blessed One also said: “This dependent arising is profound, Ānanda, and appears profound. Ānanda, through not awakening to and not penetrating this Dhamma, this generation has become like a tangled skein, like a knotted ball of thread, like matted muñja grass, unable to pass beyond bad destinations, states of deprivation, ruin, and saṃsāra.” Therefore a person practicing for the welfare and happiness of self or others should abandon all remaining duties—

Here in the profound distinctions of the modes of conditions, the wise should always train mindfully until they gain a footing.

In the Visuddhimagga, composed for the joy of good people,

in the section on the development of wisdom,

called the Explanation of the Ground of Wisdom,

the seventeenth chapter is complete.

Notes

¹ Explanation of the truths: the chapter on the truths in the preceding part of this treatise; the treatise states that the determination of birth, aging-and-death, sorrow, and the rest has already been given there and so does not repeat it here.

² Kamma-becoming and rebirth-becoming (kammabhava・upapattibhava): kamma-becoming is the kamma produced, while rebirth-becoming is the resultant becoming produced; their distinction appears in this chapter’s unit on the detailed account of clinging conditioning becoming, and the present unit takes only kamma-becoming as the condition for birth.

³ Wheel of becoming (bhavacakka): the collective name for the whole formed by the twelve links turning through the connection of cause and result; the name first appears in this chapter’s general account of dependent arising, while its proper explanation occurs here.

⁴ Twelvefold emptiness (dvādasavidhasuññatā): the treatise establishes permanence, purity, pleasure, and self in relation to each of the twelve links, saying that every link is empty of all four.

⁵ Taint of sensual desire, taint of views, taint of becoming, and taint of ignorance (kāmāsava・diṭṭhāsava・bhavāsava・avijjāsava): the four taints; this unit cites sources in turn to establish that sorrow and the rest arise from the arising of these four.

⁶ Five portents (pubbanimittāni): the five signs of decline that appear before a deva’s death.

⁷ Drawing in the past and continuation into the future (pubbantāharaṇa・aparantasantāna): the two spans associated with the wheel’s two roots—the span rooted in ignorance draws in the past and ends with feeling, while the span rooted in craving shows continuation into the future and ends with aging-and-death.

⁸ Three joints (tisandhi): the three connections between formations and rebirth-linking consciousness, between feeling and craving, and between becoming and birth.

⁹ Fourfold grouping (catubhedasaṅgaha): the twelve links gathered into four groups according to the beginnings and ends of the joints—ignorance and formations; consciousness through feeling; craving, clinging, and becoming; birth and aging-and-death.

¹⁰ Twenty modes as spokes (vīsati ākārāra): each of the four groupings is opened into five, yielding twenty; these are likened to the spokes of a wheel.

¹¹ Accumulation, hankering, approach, descent, and sensitivity (āyūhanā・nikanti・upagamana・okkanti・pasāda): alternate names in the passage on the twenty modes for formations, craving, clinging, name-and-form, and base.

¹² The seventh [impulsion]: the treatise counts six or seven impulsions under a single advertence; the volitions of the first six are called “accumulation is formations,” while the volition of the seventh is called “becoming.” The exposition of the twenty-nine volitions classed as formations appears in this chapter’s unit on the clause “with ignorance as condition, formations.”

¹³ Round of kamma, round of defilement, and round of result (kammavaṭṭa・kilesavaṭṭa・vipākavaṭṭa): the three rounds—formations and becoming are the round of kamma; ignorance, craving, and clinging are the round of defilement; consciousness through feeling are the round of result.

¹⁴ Four profundities: meaning, dhamma, teaching, and penetration; this chapter’s general account of dependent arising earlier stated, “Profundity is fourfold; we shall discuss it later,” and the present unit gives that proper explanation.

¹⁵ Determinism (niyatavāda): the view that all arising is fixed and does not accord with conditions; this unit groups it with causelessness as a view taken by those who fail to grasp “the occurrence of results in accordance with their conditions.”

¹⁶ Thunderbolt-wheel (asanivicakka): like a wheel of lightning, ceaselessly crushing; the unit uses it as a simile for the wheel of becoming.