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<< Click to Display Table of Contents >> A Sensory Input Triggers (Distorted) Saññā and Pañcupādānakkhandha |
January 18, 2025
A sensory experience in anyone starts by triggering (distorted) kāma saññā. A puthujjana‘s mind automatically and instantaneously attaches to that kāma saññā based on existing pañcupādānakkhandha. Thus, attachment is to pañcupādānakkhandha, not pañcakkhandha. A puthujjana (average human) never experiences pañcakkhandha.
Purāṇa and Nava Kamma Stages
1. In this series of posts, we discuss how the mind of a puthujjana automatically and instantaneously attaches to the kāma saññā generated by ANY sensory input and falls into kāma bhava. Then, Puthujjana’s mind will automatically go through several more steps, increasing the level of attachment at each step, i.e., contributing to the “growth of viññāṇa.”
▪We discussed the first two steps in the “growth of a viññāṇa” in the previous post, “Sandiṭṭhiko – What Does It Mean?.”
▪Depending on the specific sensory input, the level of attachment may reach the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in Paṭicca Samuppāda.
▪The strength of kamma accumulated until the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step is weak. Such kammic energies cannot lead to future births. Kamma accumulation up to the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step is called the “purāṇa kamma” stage. Here, “purāṇa” means “initial” and NOT “old.”
▪If the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step is reached, potent/strong kamma accumulation (which can bring future rebirths) will happen consciously via kāya, vacī, and mano (abhi)saṅkhāra. This is the “nava kamma” stage. Here, “nava” means “new.”
Sensory Input Triggers Attachment to Pañcupādānakkhandha
2. A puthujjana’s mind is contaminated by every sensory input starting at the “purāṇa kamma” stage (even though only weak kamma accumulation occurs here). Specifically, mind contamination starts at the first step of the bahiddha viññāṇa stage, where the mind is first exposed to the sensory input. Along with the (distorted) saññā, “hidden defilements” are in bahiddha viññāṇa of a puthujjana.
•Even though no abhisaṅkhāra arises at the bahiddha viññāṇa stage, the mind is not pure since it is covered by ten saṁyojana (or four anusaya).
•Therefore, the mind of a puthujjana automatically attaches to the sensory input and generates saṅkappa with “mano (abhi)saṅkhāra” in the immediate second stage of ajjhatta viññāṇa.
•We discussed those steps in the previous post, “Sandiṭṭhiko – What Does It Mean?.”
•It is critical to note that pañcupādānakkhandha associated with a puthujjana plays a role even in the first two steps, although the mind has not yet progressed to the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step.
Potent Kamma Accumulation in the “Nava Kamma” Stage
3. Whether or not the mind contamination process advances to the “nava kamma” stage (i.e., to the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in Paṭicca Samuppāda) depends on whether the sensory input is strong enough to generate “kāma guṇa” at the latter stage of the “purāṇa kamma” stage.
▪Automatic “kāma guṇa” generation in the mind occurs if the sensory input is appealing. It also depends on the “state of the mind” at that time; for example, the consumption of alcohol will enhance the generation of lustful thoughts.
▪If “kāma guṇa” arises in mind, that generates taṇhā and the “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in Paṭicca Samuppāda, and the mind will advance to the nava kamma stage. See “Kāma Guṇa – Origin of Attachment (Taṇhā).”
▪That is when strong kamma accumulation occurs consciously with speech and bodily actions involving mano, vacī, and kāya (abhi)saṅkhāra. Kammic energy generated in this stage can bring future rebirths.
Contamination of Mind – Snowball Analogy
4. We can consider the “snowball effect” as a rough analogy for the kamma accumulation process. A snow speck may start at the top of a snow-covered mountain. Initially, it may coalesce with a few more specks and may begin to grow in size. But most of them “get stuck” somewhere and will not grow. This is analogous to a mind stopping at the “purāṇa kamma” stage and not proceeding to the “nava kamma” stage.
▪However, a few snow specks may develop into larger snowballs. As they gather more weight, they start going down the mountain, gathering speed, collecting more snow, and becoming larger. By the time it reached the bottom, it could have grown significantly. That is analogous to what happens in the “nava kamma” stage.
▪In this analogy, each sensory input is like a speck of snow. It always is a “tiny snowball,” whether or not it ends up as a large one. But most stop in the purāṇa kamma stage, and we don’t even notice them. However, we will become aware of it if it enters the “nava kamma” stage.
▪In summary, “weak kamma accumulation” in the “purāṇa kamma” stage is automatic, and the “strong kamma accumulation” in the “nava kamma” stage happens consciously (while we are aware.)
“Bahiddha Viññāṇa” – Arising of Viññāṇa Due to External Sensory Input
5. “Bahiddha” comes from “bāhira” + “iddha,” where “bāhira” is external and “iddha” means “get established.” Note that “iddhi” is different and means “supernormal powers.”
▪The meaning of “iddha” as “established” is in the “WebLink: suttacentral: Gavesī Sutta (AN 5.180)” and “WebLink: suttacentral: Cetiya Sutta (SN 51.10).”
▪Thus, “bahidda saññā” is a saññā that arises due to external sensory inputs and automatically gets “established” or ‘manifested’ in a sentient being’s mind.
▪Therefore, the “bahidda viññāṇa” that arises with “bahidda saññā” is established in mind!
“Ajjhatta Viññāṇa” – Arising of Next Level of Viññāṇa With Attachment to “Bahiddha Saññā”
6. In the next step, the “bahiddha saññā” evolves into “ajjhatta saññā.”
▪Here, “ajjhatta” comes from “ajjha” + “atta” where “ajjha” means “oneself” and “atta” means “beneficial/meaningful.”
▪Those below the Anāgāmi stage (who have not fully grasped how “bahiddha saññā” (in the kāma loka) arises, would automatically be attached to that “bahiddha saññā,” thinking it would benefit oneself.
▪Also see “Taṇhā – Result of Saññā Giving Rise to Mind-Made Vedanā.”
Arahants’ Bahiddha Viññāṇa Is “Diṭṭhe Diṭṭhamattaṁ Bhavissati”
7. The bahiddha and ajjhatta stages are associated with the pañcupādānakkhandha.
▪The six types of sensory inputs lead to a defilement-free state of the mind for an Arahant. Therefore, even the first stage is not called “bahiddha.”
▪As the Buddha explained to Bāhiya in the “WebLink: suttacentral: Bāhiya Sutta (KN Ud 1.10),” those mental states are “ ‘diṭṭhe diṭṭhamattaṁ bhavissati, sute sutamattaṁ bhavissati, mute mutamattaṁ bhavissati, viññāte viññātamattaṁ bhavissatī’ti.”
▪The translation in the link is: “In the seen will be merely the seen; in the heard will be merely the heard; in the thought will be merely the thought; in the known will be merely the known.”
▪That translation is OK, but a more descriptive translation is: “One will see without any defilements (even though the sight has embedded distorted saññā); one will hear without any defilements (even though the sound has embedded distorted saññā); one will taste, smell, and touch (which are bundled together under “muta” in the above verse) without any defilements (even though those have embedded distorted saññā).”
▪The mind of an Arahant will stay at this level. It will never get to the ajjhatta stage, and neither the purāṇa kamma nor the nava kamma stages do not arise in the mind of an Arahant. In other words, Paṭicca Samuppāda does not operate for an Arahant.
8. Thus, the mind of a puthujjana ALWAYS starts with “barely noticeable” abhisaṅkhārās, which are automatically generated due to the saṁyojana/anusaya associated with that mind. Once in the bahiddha viññāṇa stage, it will never stop there; it will immediately get to the ajjhatta viññāṇa stage.
▪On the other hand, an Arahant’s mind WILL NOT generate any abhisaṅkhāra (i.e., will not get into even the purāṇa kamma stage because all saṁyojana/anusaya have been removed from that mind.
▪That is why a sensory event for an Arahant is fully characterized by “ ‘diṭṭhe diṭṭhamattaṁ bhavissati, sute sutamattaṁ bhavissati, mute mutamattaṁ bhavissati, viññāte viññātamattaṁ bhavissatī’ti.”
▪They will see, hear, taste, smell, and feel touch sensations just like a puthujjana (including the distorted saññā associated with them) but will never generate any attachment or repulsiveness for them. Rāga, dosa, moha, or other defilements (like jealousy, anger, etc.) do not arise in response to sensory input.
Attachment Is to Pañcupādānakkhandha, Not Pañcakkhandha
9. In the “WebLink: suttacentral: Mahāpuṇṇama Sutta (MN 109),” the Buddha clearly stated that attachment is to pañcupādānakkhandha, and NOT pañcakkhandha:
▪“Yo kho, bhikkhu, pañcasu upādānakkhandhesu chandarāgo taṁ tattha upādānan’ti” OR “The desire and greed for the five grasping aggregates is the grasping there.”
▪Furthermore, @marker 8.1, a bhikkhu asks the Buddha “Kittāvatā pana, bhante, khandhānaṁ khandhādhivacanaṁ hotī’ti?” OR “Bhante, what is the scope of the term ‘aggregates’ as applied to these (“five grasping”) aggregates?”
▪The Buddha explains that each aggregate (khandha) is eleven types. For example, the viññāṇa aggregate defined at marker 8.6 is: “Yaṁ kiñci viññāṇaṁ—atītānāgatapaccuppannaṁ ajjhattaṁ vā bahiddhā vā, oḷārikaṁ vā sukhumaṁ vā, hīnaṁ vā paṇītaṁ vā, yaṁ dūre santike vā—ayaṁ viññāṇakkhandho.”
▪Thus, the ajjhatta and bahiddha viññāṇa we discussed above are two of the eleven types of viññāṇa in viññāṇakkhandha. I will discuss those terms in detail in another post.
Even an Arahant Experiences “Distorted Saññā”
10. Anyone born with a physical human body will experience the “distorted saññā” upon experiencing sensory inputs. As explained above, they would not attach to the “distorted saññā” because their minds have eliminated all sansāric bonds or saṁyojana.
▪The suffering-free (and “distorted saññā”-free) pabhassara mind is experienced for the first time upon attaining Arahant phala, i.e., when becoming an Arahant. See “Recovering the Suffering-Free Pure Mind.”
▪Some Arahants (especially those who have cultivated jhāna and samāpatti) can get into “Arahant-phala samādhi” and experience it for as long as they desire.
▪That Arahant-phala samādhi is different from nirodha samāpatti, where an Ubhatovimutti Arahant can get into “anupadisesa Nibbāna” (ceasing of cittās) for seven days at a time. In contrast, in Arahant-phala samādhi, pure cittās (associated with the suffering-free pabhassara mind) arise, with which they are aware of being alive but do not experience the external world.
▪See “My Additional Comments” at the end of the post “Kalahavivāda Sutta – Origin of Fights and Disputes” and “Sammā Samādhi – How to Define It?”
11. During other times, an Arahant would experience sensory inputs like any other human, including puthujjana, i.e., they also experience the “distorted saññā” (for example, the sweetness of honey or the smell of a fragrance.) This is stated in the “WebLink: suttacentral: Nibbānadhātu Sutta (KN Iti 44)”: “Their five sense faculties remain. So long as they live normal lives (i.e., while not in “nirodha samāpatti” or jhāna or samāpatti) they continue to experience the agreeable and disagreeable, to feel pleasure and pain.” “Experiencing the agreeable and disagreeable” means that “distorted saññā” arises in them. For details, see # 9 of “Sensory Inputs Initiate “Creation of the World” or ‘Loka Samudaya’.”
▪With Abhidhamma, it is easier to explain why the mind of an Arahant is not always in the suffering-free pabhassara state.
▪Anyone born a human lives with a “bhavaṅga state” associated with that birth as a human. Any given person’s physical body and mental body (gandhabba) arise to maintain that “bhavaṅga state” until the end of human existence (during which one may be born with a physical body numerous times.)
▪Whenever a sensory input comes in, the mind detaches from that “bhavaṅga state” and starts focusing on the sensory input. When the mind detaches from the “bhavaṅga state,” it maintains the need to receive the “distorted saññā” associated with the sensory input.
12. That process is described in the post “Citta Vīthi – Processing of Sense Inputs.” As explained there, it takes three thought moments (AB, BC, BU) for the mind to detach from the “bhavaṅga state” and focus on the sensory input.
▪Once a mind latches onto a sensory input, at least 17 cittās flow in a citta vīthi. The moment up to the votthapana citta (V) represents the “purāṇa kamma” stage.
▪The decision to pursue the sensory input happens at the votthapana citta. The “taṇhā paccayā upādāna” step in Paṭicca Samuppāda occurs at that time, and if that decision is made, then seven javana cittās flow.
▪If upādāna does not happen, there will not be any javana (J) cittās generated; that means the mind will not get into the “nava kamma” stage to generate potent kammic energies.
▪Those who have some knowledge of Abhidhamma should now be able to make the connections.
▪Since Abhidhamma was not taught to the populace at the time of the Buddha, any mention of the “bhavaṅga state” is absent in the suttās; see “Abhidhamma – Introduction.”
How to Stop Triggering the “Purāṇa Kamma” Stage?
13. Even for those who don’t have an Abhidhamma background, it should be clear how an Arahant would experience the “distorted saññā.” Essentially, that happens because the mind of an Arahant also starts at the “bhavaṅga state,” and it is inherently associated with the “distorted saññā.”
▪Since the mind of a puthujjana ALWAYS goes through the “purāṇa kamma” stage, how can a puthujjana ever stop that from happening?
▪That process is the cultivation of Satipaṭṭhāna.
▪Even before describing the details of the “purāṇa kamma” and “purāṇa kamma” stages, it could be a good idea to discuss an overview of the Satipaṭṭhāna. I should probably do that in the next post unless there are issues with this post requiring further explanation. Please post comments in the forum.