The Doctrine of the Buddha (Part 2)

When the Venerable Mahākaccāyana said, "If you noble ones wish to hear, I will expound," he proceeded to teach the Truth of the Dhamma practice. When the eye and a visible form meet, visual consciousness arises. When the sensitive part of the eye (eye-base) and a visible form come into contact, visual consciousness arises on the eye-base. Cakkhuviññāṇa is simply visual consciousness. Whenever seeing occurs, understand that it happens solely due to these two causes: the eye and the visible form. After seeing comes contact (phassa). Then, conditioned by contact, feeling (vedanā) arises. After feeling arises, it’s not merely feeling; there is also recognition (saññā). One recognizes, "This is red, this is blue," and so on. Thus: seeing leads to contact; contact leads to feeling; feeling leads to recognition; recognition leads to thinking (vitakka). Only when thinking becomes established do craving (taṇhā), conceit (māna), and wrong view (diṭṭhi) arise. For example: when the eye meets gold, visual consciousness of gold arises. Seeing leads to contact; contact leads to feeling; feeling leads to recognition; recognition leads to mental proliferation. After mental proliferation arises, craving comes: the craving to desire it, the craving to buy it. Then, thinking, "I like this," is wrong view. Thinking, "No matter the cost, I can afford it," is conceit. Thus, one of the three—craving, conceit, or wrong view—follows. When it follows, then: craving conditions clinging (upādāna); clinging conditions becoming (bhava); becoming conditions birth (jāti). The cycle turns. The present life connects causally to future lives. This happens because papañca (mental proliferation) arises. It is papañca —mental proliferation following thought—that arises. When papañca arises, saṃsāra continues. The visible form we call "gold" is itself the Truth of Suffering (dukkha sacca). The sensitive eye-base is the Truth of Suffering. The visual consciousness is the Truth of Suffering. Before papañca arises, contemplate the arising and passing away within any one of these three. By observing their impermanence in this way, papañca subsides. When papañca subsides, craving, conceit, and wrong view subside. The three factors that expand saṃsāra cease. Therefore, if you prefer the visual consciousness, contemplate its arising and passing away. If you prefer the visible form, contemplate that. If you prefer the eye-base, contemplate that. Simply contemplate what feels suitable. Contemplating visual consciousness is cittānupassanā (mindfulness of mind). Contemplating the visible form and eye-base is kāyānupassanā (mindfulness of body), which is contemplating materiality. If you wish to contemplate visual consciousness, observe its arising and passing away. Then craving, conceit, and wrong view will not arise. When they do not arise, doubt (vicikicchā)—thoughts like "What will become of me?"—also ceases; doubt dies. Visual consciousness is the Truth of Suffering—arising and passing away. The act of contemplation is the Truth of the Path (magga sacca). Understand with kicca ñāṇa (knowledge of function) that arising and passing away is the Truth of Suffering (dukkha sacca). Be aware that you are contemplating with kicca ñāṇa. When you contemplate with kicca ñāṇa, thoughts and mental proliferation cease. When they cease, you become certain: "My doctrine is the doctrine that cuts off craving." Therefore, by contemplating the arising and passing away of consciousness, craving, conceit, and wrong view do not arise. Papañca ceases, and dependent origination (paṭiccasamuppāda) is cut off. It is these three—craving, conceit, and wrong view—that cause the great chain of dependent origination to stretch and spin on. They cause many lives to continue. Now, when you contemplate arising and passing away with kicca ñāṇa, the Path (magga) destroys craving, conceit, and wrong view right at the mind’s root. They all perish there because the Path destroys them. It is the kicca ñāṇa—the knowledge that discerns arising and passing away—that destroys them. Similarly, when auditory consciousness arises, contemplate its arising and passing away to prevent papañca. Contemplating arising and passing away yields kicca ñāṇa. Kicca ñāṇa is simply knowing: "This is disintegrating, this is perishing" (vipariṇāmaṭṭho). Visual consciousness disintegrates and perishes. Auditory consciousness disintegrates and perishes. It’s not perishing without disintegrating; it disintegrates and perishes. This is kicca ñāṇa. It arises, and having arisen, ceases. Thus, knowing this disintegration and perishing is kicca ñāṇa. Therefore, whenever any consciousness arises—be it visual, auditory, greedy mind in the belly, angry mind, or deluded mind—contemplate it with kicca ñāṇa. Disintegration is the Truth of Suffering. Knowing disintegration is kicca ñāṇa. Kicca ñāṇa itself is the Truth of the Path (magga sacca). When kicca ñāṇa, the Truth of the Path, arises, papañca ceases. Papañca means expansion: when craving arises, it expands into clinging, kamma, birth, aging, and death. When conceit arises, it expands through sensual clinging (kāmupādāna) to kamma, birth, aging, and death. When wrong view arises, it expands through wrong-view clinging (diṭṭhupādāna) and kamma governed by wrong view to birth, aging, and death. Thus, papañca gives rise to three types of dependent origination. The Truth of the Path cuts off these three chains. Therefore, the Buddha declared: "The doctrine that cuts off craving is my doctrine." By following this doctrine that cuts off craving, papañca ceases and dependent origination is severed. When you contemplate, your dependent origination is cut off. It ceases for the person who knows arising and passing away, knows disintegration (vipariṇāma), knows decay and perishing, and possesses kicca ñāṇa. Whenever any consciousness arises, simply know with kicca ñāṇa: "It has disintegrated and perished again." Disintegration and perishing is the Truth of Suffering. The knowing mind is kicca ñāṇa, the Truth of the Path. By contemplating like this, papañca ceases. Papañca can also be called the dhamma that multiplies the perils of aging, sickness, death, and falling into the lower realms (apāya) in saṃsāra. By contemplating, these papañca cease. The Buddha also taught: "The cessation of papañca is Nibbāna" (papañca nirodho nibbānaṃ). The cessation of these three (taṇhā, māna, diṭṭhi) is Nibbāna. Nibbāna is the absence of papañca. Kicca ñāṇa causes papañca to cease. Therefore, whenever any consciousness arises—whatever mind arises—practice cittānupassanā (mindfulness of mind). The object of contemplation is the Truth of Suffering. The kicca ñāṇa that contemplates is the Truth of the Path. What ceases is papañca. To make this papañca cease, you must do it yourself with your own kicca ñāṇa. Where there is no papañca, there is Nibbāna. Where does cessation occur? It ceases immediately after the contemplating knowledge. The contemplating knowledge arises, and simultaneously, papañca ceases. If, through repeated practice, you can no longer see the arising and passing away phenomena—if no mind arises to be seen—then kata ñāṇa (knowledge of completion) arises. When Nibbāna becomes apparent, the knowledge that sees Nibbāna is called kata ñāṇa. Thus: The knowledge that understands the Five Aggregates (khandhas) is sacca ñāṇa (knowledge of truth). The knowledge that discerns the subtle arising and passing away is kicca ñāṇa (knowledge of function). When you persistently contemplate until arising and passing away cease, papañca also ceases. When you realize the cessation of suffering (dukkha) ahead, kata ñāṇa (knowledge of accomplishment) arises. One can reach Nibbāna using these three knowledges. Venerable Koṇḍañña and 84,000 deities ascended using these three knowledges. First, they understood with sacca ñāṇa. Then, they developed it with kicca ñāṇa. Soon after developing it, papañca was abandoned, Nibbāna was realized, and kata ñāṇa was attained. Therefore, kata ñāṇa is the knowledge that sees Nibbāna. Venerable Dr. Ashin Parami See also: http://myakyunthar.blogspot.com/?m=1