DEPENDENT CO-ARISING

Tan Chao Khun Upālī Guṇūpamājahn

avijjā paccayā saṅkhārā, saṅkhāra-paccayā viññāṇan'ti

Now I will explain the aspects of conditionality in dependent co-arising,

which is the structure of the path of vipassanā, according to the verse that I have
highlighted at the beginning. It goes: avijjā, saṅkhārā, viññāṇa, nāma-rūpa,
āyatana, phassa, vedanā, taṇhā, upādāna, bhava, jāti, jarā, maraṇa. There are thirteen
aspects, but the Buddha put jarā and maraṇa together as one. Thus there are
twelve, because he included avijjā as one of the aspects. If we take out avijjā,
making it the presiding chief, counting only from saṅkhārā and viññāṇa as the
aspects, we are bound to have twelve aspects – we don't have to join jarā and
maraṇa. In the same way that the Buddha took the body as the presiding chief,
and head-hair, body-hair – up to the brain – as the thirty-two aspects of the
body, if we count only saṅkhārā up to maraṇa as twelve – it is absolutely
appropriate and right to have them as the aspects of avijjā.
Now I will distinguish things, starting with avijjā and saṅkhārā: 8 avijjā, 3
saṅkhārā, 6 viññāṇa, 2 nāma-rūpa, 6 āyatana, 6 phassa, 6 vedanā, 6 taṇhā, 4 upādāna,
2 bhava, 2 jāti, 2 jarā and 2 maraṇa.
Now I will distinguish the 8 avijjā, according to the phrase 'avijjā aṭṭha-
vatthukā' – avijjā has 8 manifestations: pubb'ante añaṇam – not knowing one's
beginning, apar'ante añaṇam – not knowing one's end, pubb'antāpar'ante añaṇam –
not knowing both one's beginning and end, dukkhe añaṇam – not knowing
suffering, dukkha-samudaye añaṇam – not knowing the cause that gives rise to
suffering in all its fullness, dukkha-nirodhe añaṇam – not knowing the cessation of
suffering, dukkha-nirodha-gāminī-paṭipadāya añaṇam – not knowing the means
leading to the cessation of suffering, paṭicca-samuppāde añaṇam – not knowing
dependent co-arising: that is, the states that rely on each other for their arising.
Ayaṃ vuccati avijjā – this is what the Buddha called 'avijjā'. It has 8
characteristics, modes and aspects like this.
Now I will explain all eight characteristics of avijjā, enough to serve as a
path of contemplation for meditators – those who aspire to the path of vipassanā.
If anyone investigates and has a sense of clarity arise, they will experience the
arising of a lot ease in the mind because of the ending of doubt in this path.
The first point, which is not knowing one's beginning, is not knowing jāti
– birth. That is, knowing only appaṭicchanna-jāti – the birth that is not concealed:
namely, being delivered out of the womb of your mother. This is called 'not
knowing birth'. It is the characteristic of one aspect of avijjā. As for paṭicchanna-
jāti – that is, the birth that is concealed – it is, namely, the 4 stages of being born.
That is, when still a kalala-ambuda (a 'mud-cloud'), the Buddha called this the
'saṃsedaja (impregnation) stage of birth'. At the moment when one becomes a
ghaṇapesi (a 'congealed lump'), the Buddha called this the 'aṇḍaja
(ovule/embryonic) stage of birth'. When the five extremities have become
differentiated – that is, when the head, arms and legs are formed – the Buddha
called this the 'jalambuja (foetal) stage of birth'. When one comes out at delivery,
the Buddha called this the 'upapātika (appearance) stage of birth' [release birth].
Once delivered, it is bound to be called the 'upapātika stage of birth' from then
on until the day we die. All four stages of birth here are the beginning. It is the
characteristic of inherent suffering. It is dukkha-sacca. You should understand
that it is present at all times. This paṭicchanna-jāti is the first element of vijjā.
The second point, which is not knowing one's end, means not knowing
maraṇa – death. One knows only appaṭicchanna-maraṇa – the death that is not
concealed: namely, with the end of breathing one has to go into a coffin. Just
that much. This mode of death, being in the future, is an affair of samudaya. It is
vibhava-taṇhā. Knowing only this appaṭicchanna-maraṇa is called 'not knowing
death' – that is, not knowing one's end. It is one aspect of avijjā. As for
paṭicchanna-maraṇa – namely, death that is concealed – it is the present-moment
death, present every moment, every in-and-out breath. That is, on whatever day
we are born, death is there from that day onward: namely, disappearance. That
is, being a child – a boy or a girl – within us has simply disappeared. This is
symbolic – it allows us to know that we always have maraṇa within us. This
paṭicchanna-maraṇa is one's end. It is the second vijjā.
The third point, that describes not knowing either one's beginning or
one's end, means not knowing the in-between – that is, not knowing aging. One
only knows appaṭicchanna-jarā – the aging that is not concealed: that is, someone
who is established in the last phase of life, losing their hair and breaking their
teeth, for example. This mode of aging is in the future – it is also an affair of
vibhava-taṇhā. It is samudaya. One knows only appaṭicchanna-jarā: this is called
'not knowing aging'. It is an aspect of avijjā. As for aging that is an affair of vijjā,
this means aging in the present moment. This is called 'paṭicchanna-jarā' – aging
that is concealed. That is, ever-present aging, every moment, every in-and-out
breath – namely, change in the physical body. That is, the growth of the physical
body, constantly differing from its previous state, starting right from the first
coming into connection with consciousness until the day of one's death. This
here is our in-between. It is the substance of momentary arising, momentary
establishment, and momentary destruction. Knowing one's beginning as birth,
knowing one's end as death, knowing one's in-between as aging – all comes
together as one, as the substance of the present moment at all times. It is the
third vijjā.
The fourth point, which is not knowing suffering, is not knowing the
birth, aging and death which are in the present moment. This is called 'not
knowing suffering'. It is one aspect of avijjā. If one knows this, it is the ability to
comprehend suffering – thus it is the fourth vijjā.
The fifth point, which is not knowing the cause that gives rise to suffering
in all its fullness, means not knowing the birth, aging and death that are in the
past and future – which is knowing that they are the substance of samudaya.
That is, they are kāma-taṇhā, bhava-taṇhā and vibhava-taṇhā – the understanding
that birth is in the past, and that aging and death are in the future, and oneself –
being in the present here – is currently free of aging and death. It transforms
into bhava-taṇhā, not knowing oneself. This is called 'not knowing samudaya'. It
is an aspect of avijjā. Coming to know the birth, aging and death that are in the
past and future – that they are worldly perceptions – is called 'knowing
samudaya'. It is the fifth vijjā.
The sixth point, which is not knowing cessation, is not knowing the
countenance of craving – that is, the birth, aging and death that exist in the past
and future are kāma-taṇhā, bhava-taṇhā and vibhava-taṇhā. (Thinking) Oneself
free of birth, aging and death transforms into bhava-taṇhā – not knowing
oneself – but the countenance of craving isn't known by the person who intends
to extinguish it: this is called 'not knowing dukkha-nirodha'. It is one aspect of
avijjā. When the states which are in the present moment – that is, the real birth,
aging and death – are seen clearly by a meditator within themselves, the birth,
aging and death in the past and future, which are an affair of samudaya – that is,
kāma-taṇhā, bhava-taṇhā and vibhava-taṇhā – cease. This is called 'dukkha-
nirodha'. This is something called 'knowing the cessation of suffering'. It is the
sixth vijjā.
 The seventh point, which is not knowing the means to enable that
cessation of suffering, means not knowing birth, aging and death – these modes
as suffering, these modes as the origin, these modes as cessation, these modes as
the path. This is called 'someone not knowing the means to enable the cessation
of suffering'. It is an aspect of avijjā. When you come to know clearly that the
birth, aging and death which are in the present moment are the substance of the
truth of suffering, the birth, aging and death that are in the past and future – an
affair of samudaya – cease. That very cessation of samudaya is called 'the
cessation of suffering'. The discernment that knows suffering, knows its origin
and knows its cessation is the factor of 'right view' – it is the path. This is
knowing the means that lead to the cessation of suffering. It is the seventh vijjā.
The eighth point, which is not knowing the states that condition and rely
on each other in arising, is not knowing dependent co-arising. This means not
knowing that oneself is avijjā. One must thus transform into volitional
fabrications. Relying on just those volitional fabrications, one then has to take
on many names: cognisance, sentient-form, sense-bases, contact, sensation,
craving, appropriation, being, birth, aging and death. When one still has the
perspective, the knowledge, the understanding, that one's self is a volitional
fabrication – is cognisance, is aging, is death – however much, this is called 'the
modes of avijjā still existing in one's self' just that much. You should know that
our self is true avijjā, because the Buddha presented these twelve kinds of states
as the modes of avijjā. It's the substance of past perceptions. They're all birth.
They're all samudaya. He thus described the not knowing of dependent co-
arising as one aspect of avijjā.
When a meditator comes to know and apprehend the affairs of volitional
fabrications – that is, that the Buddha meant volitional fabrications of goodness,
volitional fabrications without goodness, and imperturbable volitional
fabrications – namely, mental characteristics. Volitional fabrications of
goodness implies beautiful mental characteristics; volitional fabrications
without goodness implies unwholesome mental characteristics; imperturbable
volitional fabrications implies añña-samānā mental characteristics.
 As for the 6 cognisances, this means cognisance starting with visual
cognisance... The 2 aspects of sentient-form mean sentience and form. The 6
sense-bases mean the sense-bases starting with the visual sense-base... The 6
contacts mean sense-contact starting with visual contact... The 6 sensations
mean sensation that arises starting from visual contact... The 6 cravings mean
the craving that depends on contact for its arising, starting with visual contact...
The 4 aspects of appropriation start with the appropriation of sensuality... The 2
aspects of being mean sensual being and upapatti ('apparitional') being. The 2
aspects of birth mean concealed birth and unconcealed birth. The 2 aspects of
aging mean concealed aging and unconcealed aging. The 2 aspects of death
mean concealed death and unconcealed death.
The truth is that these states of samudaya, from avijjā to aging and death,
are altogether the nature of fabricated states. They are merely conventional.
Know them all as just that much. That which receives all of those conventions is
the natural state that is unfabricated – that is, it is dhamma-ṭhiti: the necessity of
Dhamma at the unfabricated level.
As for all of those natural states that are fabrications, they are anattā – not
one's self. If you know equal to this, they simply cease. What is bound to remain
is just the natural state that is unfabricated. If you look at reality following the
way of the noble truths, you will see only suffering. If you look at reality in the
way of Nibbāna, birth, aging and death, which are conventional suffering, won't
exist anymore because birth, aging and death are the affairs of fabrications.
When you know equal to fabrications, birth, aging and death simply cease. What
is bound to remain is exclusively just a transcendent state. Those who know rely
on using designations, speaking in accordance with the world, not in opposition
to the world. Their substance is called 'vijjā'. The modes of avijjā, such as
volitional fabrications and cognisance, for example, completely cease. This is the
state of cessation. It is called the eighth vijjā in this way.
When avijjā, volitional fabrications, aging and death are conditioning and
relying on each other, this is called 'the flow of samudaya still carrying on'. It is
the substance of a cause. The result of samudaya is the substance of suffering:
namely, soka – sorrow and disappointment; parideva – out of one's mind with
despondency and lament; domanassa – disheartened and offended; upāyāsa –
choked and distressed; sambhavanti – they are fully present because of suffering,
with samudaya as the initial cause.
When the flow of samudaya, starting with avijjā, ceases without remainder,
this is called 'cessation'. The nature of what still remains is called 'vijjā'. It is the
path: that is, the substance of a cause. The result of vijjā is the substance of the
cessation of suffering: namely, soka parideva domanassa upāyāsa nirujjhanti. They
cease without remainder, because these sufferings cease without remainder
with vijjā – that is, the path – as the cause.
I have explained the types of dependent co-arising – both in the manner
of samudaya and the manner of nirodha – enough to serve as a path of
contemplation for the assembly of followers of the Buddha – those who aspire to
the method of vipassanā. Just this much is enough to serve as an instructive
illustration.
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