English
For when the action is not fixed, the door too is not fixed. Kāmāvacara wholesome: Discourse on the doors Discourse on the door of bodily action Now, for the purpose of clarifying this meaning, in this place, in the Great Commentary, the discourse on the doors is spoken. Therein, three actions, three action-doors, five consciousnesses, five consciousness-doors, six contacts, six contact-doors, eight restraints, eight restraint-doors, eight controls, eight control-doors, ten wholesome courses of action, ten unwholesome courses of action: this much is called the laying down of the matrix of the discourse on the doors. Therein, although three actions are mentioned first, having set them aside, first of all, the three action-doors are divided and shown. Which three? The door of bodily action, the door of verbal action, the door of mental action. Therein, the body is fourfold: derived, arisen from nutriment, arisen from temperature, arisen from mind. Therein, the eight materiality arisen from action, from the eye-base, etc., up to the life-faculty, that is, the four elements, color, odor, taste, nutritive essence, are materiality arisen from action, this is called the derived body. The same eight arisen from nutriment are called the body arisen from nutriment. The eight arisen from temperature are called the body arisen from temperature. The eight arisen from mind are called the body arisen from mind. Among these, the door of bodily action is not the name of the derived body, nor of the others. But among the eight materialities arisen from mind, there is one intimation, this is called the door of bodily action. Referring to which it was said: "What is that materiality, bodily intimation? That which, of a wholesome mind, or an unwholesome mind, or an indeterminate mind, is an advance Of one going forth or turning back, Of one looking ahead or looking around, Of one contracting or stretching out, The body's stiffening, steadying, and steadiness, The intimation, the intimating, and the intimated, This is that form, body-intimation. For the mind arising, thinking, "I will go forward, I will turn back," generates form. Therein, the earth element, water element, fire element, air element, the color, odor, taste, and nutritive essence dependent on them—among these eight aggregates of form, the mind-produced air element steadies, maintains, moves, causes to go forward, and causes to turn back the form-body born with it. Therein, in a single attention-process, among the seven impulsions, the air element produced by the first thought can only steady and maintain the form-body born with it, but cannot move it further. The same method applies to the second and subsequent thoughts. However, the air element produced by the seventh thought, having obtained the support-condition of the air element produced by the preceding six thoughts, can steady, maintain, move, cause to go forward, cause to turn back, cause to look ahead, cause to look around, cause to contract, and cause to stretch out the form-body born with it. Thus, going comes to be, returning comes to be, going and returning come to be. It brings about the possibility of saying, "He went a league, he went ten leagues." Just as, in a cart to be pulled by seven yokes, the oxen yoked to the first yoke can only steady and maintain the yoke, but do not turn the wheels; the same method applies to the second and subsequent yokes; but when oxen are yoked to the seventh yoke, and a skilled driver sits on the pole, takes the reins, and whips the oxen with the goad starting from the very first, then all, becoming of one strength, both maintain the pole and turn the wheels. They bring about the possibility of saying, "Having taken the cart, they went ten leagues, twenty leagues"—even so. This should be understood. There, the body produced by mind is not expression, but there is a form-modification capable of being a condition to support, maintain, and move the body of materiality born together with the element of wind produced by mind; this is called expression. It is not produced by mind like the eight material qualities. However, just as decay and death are due to the nature of impermanence and so on, it is said, "Decay and death, monks, are impermanent, conditioned," so too, because of being the expression of material qualities produced by mind, it is also called produced by mind. Because it makes known, it is called expression. What does it make known? A bodily action. For example, one standing in the range of sight raises a hand or foot, or moves the head or eyebrow; this form of the hand and so on is cognizable by the eye. But expression is not cognizable by the eye, it is only cognizable by the mind. For with the eye, one sees only the color object vibrating as a modification of the hand and so on. But with the mind-door consciousness, one thinks and knows, 'I think this one is doing this and that.' Just as in the forest during the hot season, at a water source, people tie palm leaves and so on to the top of a tree, thinking, 'By this sign, they will know that there is water here,' or they raise a flag at the entrance to a liquor shop, or the wind strikes and moves a tall tree, or bubbles rise above as fish move in the water, or grass and leaves are raised at the end of the path taken by a great flood. There, seeing the movement of palm leaves, flags, branches, bubbles, grass, and leaves, even though not seen with the eye, one knows with mind-consciousness, 'There will be water here, there will be liquor, this tree will have been struck by the wind, there will be fish in the water, the flood will have gone after overflowing this much space.' Just so, expression is not cognizable by the eye, it is only cognizable by the mind. For with the eye, one sees only the color object vibrating as a modification of the hand and so on. He sees only the object of the eye. But, with the mind-door consciousness, thinking of the intimation, he knows, 'This person, I think, is having this and that done.' Not only because of intimating is it called intimation. But also because of being knowable, it is called intimation. For this is evident to others, even to animals. For there, gathered jackals, crows, cattle, and so on, when a stick or clod is taken and a striking gesture is shown, knowing 'This one intends to strike us,' they flee in whatever way. But there is a time when it is not evident to another who is behind a wall or enclosure. Although at that moment it is not evident, because it is evident to those who are facing it, it is called intimation. But when the body arises from consciousness and moves, does that which arises from three causes move or not move? It also moves in the same way. It is of the same nature, following it. Just as when water is flowing, dry sticks, grass, leaves, and so on, which have fallen into the water, also become of the nature of the water, going when it goes, stopping when it stops – this should be understood in this way. Just so, among the forms arising from consciousness, intimation should be understood as the door of bodily action. But that volition which is accomplished at that door, by which one kills a living being, takes what is not given, engages in sexual misconduct, abstains from killing living beings, and so on, this is called bodily action. Thus, when there is another party, the body is the door, and the volition accomplished at that door should be established as bodily action, 'wholesome or unwholesome.' But when there is no other party, it should be established only after filling in the triad 'indeterminate.' There, just as a city gate stands in the place where it is made, not moving even a finger's breadth from one place to another, but a great crowd passes through that gate, just so, the door does not move from door to door, but action moves because it arises at each door. Therefore, the ancients said – Actions move at the door, Not the doors that move; Therefore, by the doors, actions Are distinguished from each other. There, even by action, the door... It obtains the name "door," even the action through the door. Just as the places of arising of consciousness, etc., obtain the names "consciousness-door," "contact-door," "non-restraint-door," and "restraint-door," so too, the place of arising of bodily action obtains the name "bodily-action-door." The same method applies to verbal and mental action-doors. Just as deities dwelling in various trees obtain names according to those trees, such as "silk-cotton-tree deity," "bastard teak deity," "neem tree deity," and "phandana tree deity," so too, an action done through the body-door obtains the name "bodily action" according to the door. The same method applies to verbal and mental actions. Here, the body is one thing, the action another, but because it is done by the body, it is called "bodily action." Therefore, the commentary masters said: An action done by the body, Is called bodily action; The body and bodily action, Are distinct from each other. An action done by a needle, Is called needle action; The needle and needle action, Are distinct from each other. An action done by an axe, Is called axe action; The axe and axe action, Are distinct from each other. An action done by a person, Is called personal action; The person and personal action, Are distinct from each other. Just so. An action done by the body, Is called bodily action; The body and bodily action, Are distinct from each other. In this case, neither the distinction of the door is justified, nor the distinction of the action. How so? Because verbal action also occurs through bodily intimation, due to the statement that "actions move through the door," therefore its distinction as a bodily-action-door is not justified. And bodily action also occurs through verbal intimation, therefore its distinction as bodily action is not justified. 'No, it is not unjustified.' Why?