Chapter 10 - Cutting Off At The Foundation

These five psycho physical resultants or phenomena occur ceaselessly one after another and comprise what we call man, deva or living being. These are conventional terms that refer in fact to the collection of the five nama rupa elements. There is no solid, monolithic and permanent being. The only reality is the arising and passing away of nama rupa and for the mindful yogi, this insight means the extinction of craving, clinging, kamma, rebirth, suffering - a chain of consequences that might result from feeling in the case of common people.

This is the way to the cessation of the wheel of life (Paticcasamuppada) through the elimination of its key link viz., tanha as conditioned by feeling. In order to prevent tanha from arising as the result of vedana, at every moment of seeing the yogi should focus on every phenomenon that arises from six senses. Here, the most obvious of these sense contacts is the tactile sensation that concerns gross primary elements (Mahabhuta) and it is necessary for the beginner to start contemplation with it.

This way is in accord with the Buddhas teaching in Satipatthana sutta, “Gacchanto va gacchamiti pajanati: (the yogi) knows that he is walking when he walks.” How does he know it? He knows it as he notes mentally “walking, walking”. He practises mindfulness, too, when he stands, lies, bends his arms, or does anything else. When there is no bodily action or movement to be noted, he should direct his attention to the abdominal rising and falling. He should also note any thought, or mental activity and any feeling that may arise in him. In short, he must be mindful of all the psycho physical phenomena that arise from the six senses. As concentration develops, such mindfulness leads to insight into anicca, dukkha and anatta, an insight that leaves no room for craving. With the extinction of craving, there is also an end to clinging, and rebirth with all its attendant suffering. This is the way to the cessation of samsaric existence or life cycle through the elimination of its root cause, namely, craving.

Today, science and technology have created machines which we cannot run or stop running without a knowledge of their modus operandi. Those who know the secret can operate them by manipulating their key plugs. In the same way, the keynote of the life cycle as described by the doctrine of Paticcasamuppada is that tanha is caused by vedana, but this is true only if vedana is coupled with two kinds of latent tendencies (anusaya) viz., Santananusaya and arammananusaya. The Arahats are free from these tendencies and so, although they have feelings, their craving is extinct. This extinction of craving leaves no room for new kamma, neutralizes old kamma, and there is no more rebirth after their parinibbana.

But ordinary people have potential defilements which means not the existence of evil desires lying latent somewhere but only the possibility of their arising under certain circumstances. Hence, the Pali term santananusaya kilesa for this tendency. This potential kilesa may become greed, hatred, ignorance and other evils in the case of those who fail to contemplate the nama rupas and so become subject to the illusions of permanency, happiness and ego entity. This kilesa which may arise from sense objects in the absence of vipassana insight is called arammananusaya kilesa.