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Six Things Examined

AN 6.63, the Nibbedhika Sutta — set 5, Advanced and Reference Texts

Reading time: about 11 min · 1,976 words

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Before you read

One analytical frame, applied six times. For each of sensuality, felt experience, recognition, the outflows, action, and dissatisfaction, the text asks the same six questions: what it is, where it comes from, how it varies, what it results in, how it ceases, and the way leading to its ceasing.

The line most often quoted from it sits in the section on action: intention is what action is. What gets done by body, speech, and mind follows from that.

The uniform structure makes this an unusually good text for comparison. Six different subjects, and because everything else is held constant, you can see exactly where they differ.

Translation

The Setting

"Bhikkhus, I will teach you the penetrating exposition of the teaching. Listen carefully and pay close attention. I will speak."

"Yes, Bhante," the bhikkhus replied.

The Buddha said this:

What the Exposition Covers

"And what is the penetrating exposition of the teaching, bhikkhus?

Sensuality should be understood; where sensuality comes from should be understood; the differences among kinds of sensuality should be understood; the result of sensuality should be understood; the quenching of sensuality should be understood; and how to quench sensuality again should be understood.

Felt experience should be understood, and so on through to how to quench felt experience again.

Recognition should be understood, and so on through to how to quench recognition again.

The outflows should be understood, and so on through to how to quench the outflows again.

Action should be understood, and so on through to how to quench action again.

Dissatisfaction should be understood, and so on through to how to quench dissatisfaction again.

Sensuality

'Sensuality should be understood; where sensuality comes from should be understood; the differences among kinds of sensuality should be understood; the result of sensuality should be understood; the quenching of sensuality should be understood; and how to quench sensuality again should be understood.' That is what was said. Why was it said?

There are these five strands of sensuality, bhikkhus:

  • visible forms known by the eye that are wished for, loved, agreeable, delightful, charming, and bound up with sensuality;
  • sounds known by the ear that are wished for, loved, agreeable, delightful, charming, and bound up with sensuality;
  • smells known by the nose, the same;
  • tastes known by the tongue, the same;
  • tangibles known by the body that are wished for, loved, agreeable, delightful, charming, and bound up with sensuality.

But these are not sensuality, bhikkhus. In the noble discipline these are called the strands of sensuality:

The passion in a person's attitude is their sensuality. The pretty things in the world are not sensuality. The passion in a person's attitude is their sensuality. The pretty things stand just as they are in the world, and the wise remove the desire for them.

And where does sensuality come from?

Bhikkhus, contact is where sensuality comes from.

And what are the differences among kinds of sensuality?

Sensuality for visible forms is one thing, sensuality for sounds another, for smells another, for tastes another, for tangibles another. This is called the differences among kinds of sensuality.

And what is the result of sensuality?

When someone wants something, they bring into being a state of being that matches it, one that shares in benefit or one that shares in harm. This is called the result of sensuality.

And what is the quenching of sensuality?

Bhikkhus, the quenching of contact is the quenching of sensuality. And this noble eightfold path is how to quench sensuality again: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, right unification of mind.

When a noble disciple understands sensuality this way, understands where it comes from this way, understands the differences among its kinds this way, understands its result this way, understands its quenching this way, and understands how to quench it again this way, then they understand this penetrating spiritual life as the quenching of sensuality.

'Sensuality should be understood, and so on through to how to quench sensuality again.' That is what was said, and this is why it was said.

Felt Experience

'Felt experience should be understood, and so on through to how to quench felt experience again.' That is what was said. Why was it said?

There are these three kinds of felt experience, bhikkhus: pleasant feeling, painful feeling, and mixed feeling.

And where does felt experience come from?

Bhikkhus, contact is where felt experience comes from.

And what are the differences among kinds of felt experience?

There is worldly pleasant feeling and unworldly pleasant feeling; worldly painful feeling and unworldly painful feeling; worldly mixed feeling and unworldly mixed feeling. This is called the differences among kinds of felt experience.

And what is the result of felt experience?

When someone feels something, they bring into being a state of being that matches it, one that shares in benefit or one that shares in harm. This is called the result of felt experience.

And what is the quenching of felt experience?

Bhikkhus, the quenching of contact is the quenching of felt experience. And this noble eightfold path is how to quench felt experience again: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, right unification of mind.

When a noble disciple understands felt experience this way, and so on through to how to quench it again, then they understand this penetrating spiritual life as the quenching of felt experience.

'Felt experience should be understood, and so on through to how to quench felt experience again.' That is what was said, and this is why it was said.

Recognition

'Recognition should be understood, and so on through to how to quench recognition again.' That is what was said. Why was it said?

There are these six kinds of recognition, bhikkhus: recognition of visible forms, of sounds, of smells, of tastes, of tangibles, and of dhammas.

And where does recognition come from?

Bhikkhus, contact is where recognition comes from.

And what are the differences among kinds of recognition?

Recognition of visible forms is one thing, recognition of sounds another, of smells another, of tastes another, of tangibles another, of dhammas another. This is called the differences among kinds of recognition.

And what is the result of recognition?

Recognition results in how things get spoken of, I say. However someone recognizes a thing, that is how they speak of it: 'I recognized it that way.' This is called the result of recognition.

And what is the quenching of recognition?

Bhikkhus, the quenching of contact is the quenching of recognition. And this noble eightfold path is how to quench recognition again: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, right unification of mind.

When a noble disciple understands recognition this way, and so on through to how to quench it again, then they understand this penetrating spiritual life as the quenching of recognition.

'Recognition should be understood, and so on through to how to quench recognition again.' That is what was said, and this is why it was said.

The Outflows

'The outflows should be understood, and so on through to how to quench the outflows again.' That is what was said. Why was it said?

There are these three outflows, bhikkhus: the outflow of sensuality, the outflow of becoming, and the outflow of ignorance.

And where do the outflows come from?

Ignorance, bhikkhus, is where the outflows come from.

And what are the differences among the outflows?

There are outflows that lead to hell, outflows that lead to the animal realm, outflows that lead to the realm of ghosts, outflows that lead to the human world, and outflows that lead to the deva world. This is called the differences among the outflows.

And what is the result of the outflows?

When someone is caught in ignorance, they bring into being a state of being that matches it, one that shares in benefit or one that shares in harm. This is called the result of the outflows.

And what is the quenching of the outflows?

The quenching of ignorance, bhikkhus, is the quenching of the outflows. And this noble eightfold path is how to quench the outflows again: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, right unification of mind.

When a noble disciple understands the outflows this way, and so on through to how to quench them again, then they understand this penetrating spiritual life as the quenching of the outflows.

'The outflows should be understood, and so on through to how to quench the outflows again.' That is what was said, and this is why it was said.

Action

'Action should be understood, and so on through to how to quench action again.' That is what was said. Why was it said?

Intention, bhikkhus, is what I call action. A person intends, and then acts — by body, by speech, by mind.

And where does action come from?

Bhikkhus, contact is where action comes from.

And what are the differences among kinds of action?

There is action to be experienced in hell, action to be experienced in the animal realm, action to be experienced in the realm of ghosts, action to be experienced in the human world, and action to be experienced in the deva world. This is called the differences among kinds of action.

And what is the result of action?

I say the result of action is of three kinds, bhikkhus: in this very life, on being reborn, or on some later occasion. This is called the result of action.

And what is the quenching of action?

Bhikkhus, the quenching of contact is the quenching of action. And this noble eightfold path is how to quench action again: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, right unification of mind.

When a noble disciple understands action this way, and so on through to how to quench it again, then they understand this penetrating spiritual life as the quenching of action.

'Action should be understood, and so on through to how to quench action again.' That is what was said, and this is why it was said.

Dissatisfaction

'Dissatisfaction should be understood; where dissatisfaction comes from should be understood; the differences among kinds of dissatisfaction should be understood; the result of dissatisfaction should be understood; the quenching of dissatisfaction should be understood; and how to quench dissatisfaction again should be understood.' That is what was said. Why was it said?

Birth is dissatisfaction; ageing is dissatisfaction; illness is dissatisfaction; death is dissatisfaction; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, and despair are dissatisfaction; wanting something and not getting it is dissatisfaction; in brief, the five clung-to heaps are dissatisfaction.

And where does dissatisfaction come from?

Ignorant wanting, bhikkhus, is where dissatisfaction comes from.

And what are the differences among kinds of dissatisfaction?

There is dissatisfaction that is severe and dissatisfaction that is slight; there is dissatisfaction that fades slowly and dissatisfaction that fades quickly. This is called the differences among kinds of dissatisfaction.

And what is the result of dissatisfaction?

Bhikkhus, someone overcome by dissatisfaction, their mind consumed by it, grieves, wears themselves out, wails, beats their chest and cries, and loses their bearings. Or else, overcome by dissatisfaction, their mind consumed by it, they go searching outside: 'Who knows one phrase, two phrases, for the quenching of this dissatisfaction?'

Dissatisfaction results in bewilderment, I say, or in searching. This is called the result of dissatisfaction.

And what is the quenching of dissatisfaction?

The quenching of ignorant wanting, bhikkhus, is the quenching of dissatisfaction. And this noble eightfold path is how to quench dissatisfaction again: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, right unification of mind.

When a noble disciple understands dissatisfaction this way, understands where it comes from this way, understands the differences among its kinds this way, understands its result this way, understands its quenching this way, and understands how to quench it again this way, then they understand this penetrating spiritual life as the quenching of dissatisfaction.

'Dissatisfaction should be understood; where dissatisfaction comes from should be understood; the differences among kinds of dissatisfaction should be understood; the result of dissatisfaction should be understood; the quenching of dissatisfaction should be understood; and how to quench dissatisfaction again should be understood.' That is what was said, and this is why it was said.

Bhikkhus, this is the penetrating exposition of the teaching."

The ninth discourse is finished.

Words used in this translation (28)
becoming
This project's rendering of "bhava" -- the settling of experience into a way of being that feels like somebody being something. Often translated "existence."
Bhante
A respectful way of addressing a senior monastic, roughly "venerable sir." Left untranslated because English has no natural equivalent.
bhikkhus
Buddhist monks -- those who have left household life to practise full time. The Buddha's usual way of addressing the assembly, roughly "friends" in force.
birth
This project's rendering of "jāti": birth, coming into being. In the dependent-arising sequence, ageing and dying depend on it. In MN 141 the word appears once in its everyday sense instead, in a simile about a mother.
body
The physical body, as distinct from speech and the mental side of experience.
clung-to heaps
The five categories experience gets sorted into and then grasped as "me" or "mine" -- body, feeling, recognition, mental activity, and awareness. Not clinging to the categories themselves, but to the sense of ownership placed on top of them.
contact
This project's rendering of "phassa" -- the meeting of a sense, its object, and the knowing of it. A technical link in the dependent-arising sequence, not physical touch specifically.
dissatisfaction
This translation's rendering of "dukkha," the Buddhist term for the unsatisfying, unstable quality of ordinary experience. Often translated "suffering," but that can sound more dramatic than the everyday sense of things not quite being right.
felt experience
This project's rendering of "vedanā", often translated "feeling". It is the immediate pleasant, painful, or mixed tone of an experience, before any story we build on top of it.
ignorance
This project's rendering of "avijjā" -- not general stupidity, but specifically not seeing how dissatisfaction works and how it ends. The first link in the dependent-arising sequence.
ignorant wanting
Wanting something you can't have right now. This project's rendering of "taṇhā", often translated "craving". We call it ignorant because it comes from not seeing clearly; ordinary, sensible wanting is something else.
mixed feeling
A felt experience that is neither clearly pleasant nor clearly unpleasant. Rendered "mixed" rather than "neutral" to keep it an active third register rather than a flat absence of feeling.
noble disciple
Someone who has had the breakthrough into the path and so is no longer merely an ordinary person. It does not mean noble by birth, and does not require being a monastic.
noble eightfold path
The eight-part practice these texts teach: right view, right attitude, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right remembering, and right unification of mind.
outflow
This project's rendering of "āsava" -- a deep-running habit that keeps seeping out and driving behaviour. Often translated "taint" or "defilement."
outflows
This project's rendering of "āsavā" -- deep-running habits that keep seeping out and driving behaviour, classically sensuality, becoming, and ignorance. Often translated "taints" or "defilements."
quenching
An extinguishing image for dissatisfaction and its causes going out. Different Pali words use this image on different pages, so the exact scope comes from the sentence.
recognition
This project's rendering of "saññā" (often translated "perception") -- the mind's act of identifying and labeling what it encounters.
right action
Acting without harming -- a factor of the eightfold path.
right attitude
This project's rendering of the path factor usually translated "right intention" -- the underlying motivation a person brings to their actions.
right effort
Effort that is well aimed: heading off what is unhelpful and building up what helps -- a factor of the eightfold path.
right livelihood
Making a living in a way that does not depend on harming or deceiving anyone -- a factor of the eightfold path.
right remembering
This project's rendering of the path factor usually translated "right mindfulness" -- keeping what actually matters in view, moment to moment, rather than losing track of it.
right speech
Speech that is truthful, kind, timely, and worth saying -- a factor of the eightfold path.
right unification of mind
The path factor in which the mind gathers together and becomes unified, supported and directed by the rest of the noble path. The thinking mind and the heart work as one whole; nobody forces them into a trance.
right view
Seeing how experience and practice actually work -- the first factor of the eightfold path. "Right" here means well-aimed and accurate, not morally righteous.
spiritual life
The Buddhist path of practice as a whole -- not just a set of beliefs, but a whole way of living.
world
A word whose scope shifts with the teaching. It can mean the lived world we build through the senses and the mind, or the wider physical cosmos. The surrounding passage shows which sense it has.
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