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Not-Self at the Six Sense Doors

MN 148, the Chachakka Sutta — set 4, Not-Self and Dependent Arising

Reading time: about 18 min · 3,105 words

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Before you read

Six sixes: the six senses, their objects, the knowing that arises from each, the contact, the felt experience, and the wanting that follows. Thirty-six items, taken one at a time.

Then the same ground again, showing that not one of them can be a self, because each is visibly arising and passing while you look at it.

It is mechanical by design, and at this point in the reading order that is exactly the value. You already know the pattern; what this text offers is watching it hold everywhere, without a single exception.

Translation

Opening

So I heard.

At one time the Buddha was staying at Sāvatthī in Jeta's Grove, in Anāthapiṇḍika's monastery.

There the Buddha addressed the bhikkhus: "Bhikkhus."

"Bhante," they replied.

The Buddha said this:

"Bhikkhus, I will teach you a dhamma good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end, meaningful and well-worded. I will make known the complete and purified spiritual life, namely: the six sets of six.

Listen carefully, attend well, and I will speak."

"Yes, bhante," they replied.

The Buddha said this:

The Six Sets of Six

"The six internal sense fields are to be known. The six external sense fields are to be known. The six classes of knowing are to be known. The six classes of contact are to be known. The six classes of felt experience are to be known. The six classes of ignorant wanting are to be known.

"'The six internal sense fields are to be known': that was said.

What did that refer to?

The eye sense field, the ear sense field, the nose sense field, the tongue sense field, the body sense field, and the mind sense field.

"'The six internal sense fields are to be known': that was said because of this.

This is the first set of six.

"'The six external sense fields are to be known': that was said.

What did that refer to?

The form sense field, the sound sense field, the smell sense field, the taste sense field, the tangible sense field, and the dhamma sense field.

"'The six external sense fields are to be known': that was said because of this.

This is the second set of six.

"'The six classes of knowing are to be known': that was said.

What did that refer to?

Dependent on eye and visible forms, eye-knowing arises.

Dependent on ear and sounds, ear-knowing arises.

Dependent on nose and smells, nose-knowing arises.

Dependent on tongue and tastes, tongue-knowing arises.

Dependent on body and tangibles, body-knowing arises.

Dependent on the thinking mind and dhammas, mind-knowing arises.

"'The six classes of knowing are to be known': that was said because of this.

This is the third set of six.

"'The six classes of contact are to be known': that was said.

What did that refer to?

Dependent on eye and visible forms, eye-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact.

Dependent on ear and sounds, ear-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact.

Dependent on nose and smells, nose-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact.

Dependent on tongue and tastes, tongue-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact.

Dependent on body and tangibles, body-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact.

Dependent on the thinking mind and dhammas, mind-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact.

"'The six classes of contact are to be known': that was said because of this.

This is the fourth set of six.

"'The six classes of felt experience are to be known': that was said.

What did that refer to?

Dependent on eye and visible forms, eye-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience.

Dependent on ear and sounds, ear-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience.

Dependent on nose and smells, nose-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience.

Dependent on tongue and tastes, tongue-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience.

Dependent on body and tangibles, body-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience.

Dependent on the thinking mind and dhammas, mind-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience.

"'The six classes of felt experience are to be known': that was said because of this.

This is the fifth set of six.

"'The six classes of ignorant wanting are to be known': that was said.

What did that refer to?

Dependent on eye and visible forms, eye-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience. With felt experience as condition, ignorant wanting.

The same pattern applies for ear and sounds, nose and smells, tongue and tastes, and body and tangibles.

Dependent on the thinking mind and dhammas, mind-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, felt experience. With felt experience as condition, ignorant wanting.

"'The six classes of ignorant wanting are to be known': that was said because of this.

This is the sixth set of six."

Not-Self Across the Sixes

"If anyone were to say, 'the eye is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of the eye are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of the eye are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'the eye is self.'

So the eye is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'visible forms are self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of visible forms are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of visible forms are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'visible forms are self.'

So the eye is not-self; visible forms are not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'eye-knowing is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of eye-knowing are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of eye-knowing are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'eye-knowing is self.'

So the eye is not-self; visible forms are not-self; eye-knowing is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'eye-contact is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of eye-contact are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of eye-contact are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'eye-contact is self.'

So the eye is not-self; visible forms are not-self; eye-knowing is not-self; eye-contact is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'felt experience is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of felt experience are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of felt experience are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'felt experience is self.'

So the eye is not-self; visible forms are not-self; eye-knowing is not-self; eye-contact is not-self; felt experience is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'ignorant wanting is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of ignorant wanting are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of ignorant wanting are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'ignorant wanting is self.'

So the eye is not-self; visible forms are not-self; eye-knowing is not-self; eye-contact is not-self; felt experience is not-self; ignorant wanting is not-self.

The same pattern applies for ear, sounds, ear-knowing, ear-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for nose, smells, nose-knowing, nose-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for tongue, tastes, tongue-knowing, tongue-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; and for body, tangibles, body-knowing, body-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting.

If anyone were to say, 'mind is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of mind are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of mind are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'mind is self.'

So mind is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'dhammas are self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of dhammas are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of dhammas are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'dhammas are self.'

So mind is not-self; dhammas are not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'mind-knowing is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of mind-knowing are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of mind-knowing are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'mind-knowing is self.'

So mind is not-self; dhammas are not-self; mind-knowing is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'mind-contact is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of mind-contact are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of mind-contact are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'mind-contact is self.'

So mind is not-self; dhammas are not-self; mind-knowing is not-self; mind-contact is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'felt experience is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of felt experience are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of felt experience are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'felt experience is self.'

So mind is not-self; dhammas are not-self; mind-knowing is not-self; mind-contact is not-self; felt experience is not-self.

If anyone were to say, 'ignorant wanting is self,' that would not hold.

The arising and vanishing of ignorant wanting are evident.

If the arising and vanishing of ignorant wanting are evident to someone, it would follow: 'My self arises and vanishes.'

So it would not hold to say: 'ignorant wanting is self.'

So mind is not-self; dhammas are not-self; mind-knowing is not-self; mind-contact is not-self; felt experience is not-self; ignorant wanting is not-self."

The Way Leading to the Arising of Identity

"Bhikkhus, this is the way leading to the arising of identity:

they regard the eye like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard visible forms like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard eye-knowing like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard eye-contact like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard felt experience like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard ignorant wanting like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

The same pattern applies for ear, sounds, ear-knowing, ear-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for nose, smells, nose-knowing, nose-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for tongue, tastes, tongue-knowing, tongue-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; and for body, tangibles, body-knowing, body-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting.

They regard mind like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard dhammas like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard mind-knowing like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard mind-contact like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard felt experience like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'

They regard ignorant wanting like this: 'This is mine, I am this, this is my self.'"

The Way Leading to the Quenching of Identity

"Bhikkhus, this is the way leading to the quenching of identity:

they regard the eye like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard visible forms like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard eye-knowing like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard eye-contact like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard felt experience like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard ignorant wanting like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

The same pattern applies for ear, sounds, ear-knowing, ear-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for nose, smells, nose-knowing, nose-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for tongue, tastes, tongue-knowing, tongue-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; and for body, tangibles, body-knowing, body-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting.

They regard mind like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard dhammas like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard mind-knowing like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard mind-contact like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard felt experience like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'

They regard ignorant wanting like this: 'This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.'"

Pleasant, Painful, and Mixed Feeling: The Untrained Pattern

"Dependent on eye and visible forms, eye-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, there is felt experience as pleasant, painful, or mixed.

When pleasant feeling touches them, they delight in it, they affirm it, and they keep taking it personally.

The underlying tendency toward passion lies underneath that.

When painful feeling touches them, they grieve, they wear themselves out, they wail, they beat their chest and cry, and they lose their bearings.

The underlying tendency toward resistance lies underneath that.

When mixed feeling touches them, they do not discern that feeling's arising and vanishing, gratification, danger, and escape as they have come to be.

The underlying tendency toward ignorance lies underneath that.

Bhikkhus, if they have not abandoned the underlying tendency toward passion in pleasant feeling, have not driven out the underlying tendency toward resistance in painful feeling, have not uprooted the underlying tendency toward ignorance in mixed feeling, have not abandoned ignorance, and have not brought up knowledge, there is no possibility that they will make an end of dissatisfaction in this very life.

The same pattern applies for ear and sounds, nose and smells, tongue and tastes, and body and tangibles.

Dependent on the thinking mind and dhammas, mind-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, there is felt experience as pleasant, painful, or mixed.

When pleasant feeling touches them, they delight in it, they affirm it, and they keep taking it personally.

The underlying tendency toward passion lies underneath that.

When painful feeling touches them, they grieve, they wear themselves out, they wail, they beat their chest and cry, and they lose their bearings.

The underlying tendency toward resistance lies underneath that.

When mixed feeling touches them, they do not discern that feeling's arising and vanishing, gratification, danger, and escape as they have come to be.

The underlying tendency toward ignorance lies underneath that.

Bhikkhus, if they have not abandoned the underlying tendency toward passion in pleasant feeling, have not driven out the underlying tendency toward resistance in painful feeling, have not uprooted the underlying tendency toward ignorance in mixed feeling, have not abandoned ignorance, and have not brought up knowledge, there is no possibility that they will make an end of dissatisfaction in this very life."

Pleasant, Painful, and Mixed Feeling: The Trained Pattern

"Dependent on eye and visible forms, eye-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, there is felt experience as pleasant, painful, or mixed.

When pleasant feeling touches them, they do not delight in it, do not affirm it, and do not keep taking it personally.

The underlying tendency toward passion does not lie underneath that.

When painful feeling touches them, they do not grieve, do not wear themselves out, do not wail, do not beat their chest and cry, and do not lose their bearings.

The underlying tendency toward resistance does not lie underneath that.

When they are touched by mixed feeling, they discern that feeling's arising and vanishing, gratification, danger, and escape as they have come to be.

The underlying tendency toward ignorance does not lie underneath that.

Bhikkhus, if they have abandoned the underlying tendency toward passion in pleasant feeling, have driven out the underlying tendency toward resistance in painful feeling, have uprooted the underlying tendency toward ignorance in mixed feeling, have abandoned ignorance, and have brought up knowledge, there is the possibility that they will make an end of dissatisfaction in this very life.

The same pattern applies for ear and sounds, nose and smells, tongue and tastes, and body and tangibles.

Dependent on the thinking mind and dhammas, mind-knowing arises. The meeting of the three is contact. With contact as condition, there is felt experience as pleasant, painful, or mixed.

When pleasant feeling touches them, they do not delight in it, do not affirm it, and do not keep taking it personally.

The underlying tendency toward passion does not lie underneath that.

When painful feeling touches them, they do not grieve, do not wear themselves out, do not wail, do not beat their chest and cry, and do not lose their bearings.

The underlying tendency toward resistance does not lie underneath that.

When they are touched by mixed feeling, they discern that feeling's arising and vanishing, gratification, danger, and escape as they have come to be.

The underlying tendency toward ignorance does not lie underneath that.

Bhikkhus, if they have abandoned the underlying tendency toward passion in pleasant feeling, have driven out the underlying tendency toward resistance in painful feeling, have uprooted the underlying tendency toward ignorance in mixed feeling, have abandoned ignorance, and have brought up knowledge, there is the possibility that they will make an end of dissatisfaction in this very life."

Disenchantment, Fading, and Release

"Bhikkhus, seeing this, a learned noble disciple becomes disenchanted with the eye, with visible forms, with eye-knowing, with eye-contact, with felt experience, and with ignorant wanting.

The same pattern applies for ear, sounds, ear-knowing, ear-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for nose, smells, nose-knowing, nose-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; for tongue, tastes, tongue-knowing, tongue-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting; and for body, tangibles, body-knowing, body-contact, felt experience, and ignorant wanting.

They become disenchanted with mind, with dhammas, with mind-knowing, with mind- contact, with felt experience, and with ignorant wanting.

As they grow disenchanted, their passion fades. Through its fading, they are released.

When it is released, there is the knowledge: 'It is released.'

They discern: 'Birth is worn away, the spiritual life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more of this state of being.'"

That is what the Buddha said.

The bhikkhus were glad and welcomed what the Buddha had said.

And while this exposition was being spoken, the minds of sixty bhikkhus were released from the outflows through not taking anything personally.

Words used in this translation (26)
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.
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.
dhamma
Depending on the sentence, either the Buddha's teaching or simply a thing, quality, or state of affairs. These texts use one word for both, and each passage makes clear which it means.
disenchantment
A cooling of fascination with ordinary experience -- not depression, but the natural next step once you see clearly how things actually work.
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.
escape
This project's rendering of "nissaraṇa". It is the real way out of whatever the text is discussing, unlike the false escapes an untrained mind reaches for. In SN 36.6 the escape is from being stuck in a feeling; in Ud 8.3 it is from everything born, made, and conditioned.
fading
The fading away of attraction and investment in experience, as passion cools.
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.
form
This project's rendering of "rūpa" -- the physical, material aspect of experience, one of the five heaps.
gratification
This project's rendering of "assāda": the real satisfaction something offers, which is why people hold on to it. The texts pair it with that thing's danger and the escape from it, so you see all three together.
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.
knowing
This project's rendering of "viññāṇa" (often translated "consciousness") -- bare awareness of an object through one of the senses or the mind.
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.
not-self
This project's rendering of "anattā". It does not claim that you don't exist. It says that, when you actually look, nothing in experience holds up as a fixed self you could own.
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.
resistance
A reflexive pushing-away from what's unwanted, arising automatically in response to unpleasant feeling.
spiritual life
The Buddhist path of practice as a whole -- not just a set of beliefs, but a whole way of living.
thinking mind
This project's rendering of "mano": the part of mind that thinks and registers ideas. These texts count it as a sixth sense, alongside the eye, ear, nose, tongue, and body.
This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self
A three-part formula these texts use to work through attachment to any piece of experience. It means: not owned by me, not identical with me, and not a fixed self underlying me.
underlying tendency
A reactive pattern that isn't necessarily active right now but is ready to reassert itself given the right conditions -- lying underneath rather than gone.
Source and corrections