English
in the manner beginning with "Indeed, this world has fallen into trouble, it is born, it ages, it dies." The teaching that proceeds from the middle to the beginning is to show the sequence of cause and effect from the past, going beyond the past, in accordance with the establishment of the basis of nutriment. The teaching that proceeds from the middle to the end is to show the future from the arising of the causes of the future in the present. Among these, the direct teaching from the beginning, which is said to show the arising of things through their respective causes and to show the order of origination to the disciple who is confused about the causes of arising, should be understood as being presented here. Why is ignorance mentioned first here? Is ignorance the root cause of the world without a cause, like the primal matter of the naturalists? No, it is not without a cause. "With the arising of the taints, there is the arising of ignorance," It is said to be the cause of decay. But is there a way it could be a root cause? What is that? Being the head in the round of existence. For when the Blessed One speaks of the round, He makes two things the head: Ignorance or craving for existence. As he said: "No first beginning of ignorance is evident, monks, 'Before this there was no ignorance, then it came to be.' Thus it is said, monks, Yet it is evident, 'Conditioned by this, ignorance arises.'" Or craving for existence, as he said: "No first beginning of craving for existence is evident, monks, 'Before this there was no craving for existence, then it came to be.' Thus it is said, monks, Yet it is evident, 'Conditioned by this, craving for existence arises.'" Why then, when speaking of the round, Does the Blessed One make these two things the head? Because they are the special causes of deeds leading to good and bad destinies. Ignorance is the special cause of deeds leading to bad destinies. Why? Because the ordinary person, overcome by ignorance, Like a cow tormented by the heat of the sun and the blow of a stick, Drinks hot water, though tasteless and harmful, Due to the pain of torment, So too, overcome by the torment of defilements, He undertakes many kinds of deeds leading to bad destinies, Such as killing, Though tasteless and harmful, Leading to bad destinies and downfall. Craving for existence, however, is the special cause of deeds leading to good destinies. Why? Because the ordinary person, overcome by craving for existence, Like the cow described above, Drinks cool water, with relish and relief from torment, Due to thirst for cool water, So too, free from the torment of defilements, He undertakes many kinds of deeds leading to good destinies, Such as abstaining from killing, With relish and relief from the torment of bad destinies, Leading to good destinies. Among these things that are the head of the round of existence, In some places the Blessed One teaches a doctrine with one thing as its root, That is to say: "Thus, monks, from ignorance as a condition comes sa Conditioned by ignorance, activities arise, conditioned by activities, consciousness arises. Thus and so forth. Likewise, "When, monks, one dwells contemplating enjoyment in things that are fit for clinging, craving increases, conditioned by craving, clinging arises." Thus and so forth. Sometimes, it is rooted in both, as follows: "For the fool, monks, veiled by ignorance, yoked to craving, thus this body has come into being. Thus, this body and external name-and-form, this is the pair, conditioned by the pair is contact, the six sense bases by which the fool, touched, experiences pleasure and pain." Thus and so forth. In those various teachings, "conditioned by ignorance, activities arise," here, this is to be understood as a teaching rooted in a single factor, namely ignorance. Thus, at least here, the decision should be known from the difference in the teachings. 'In meaning', in the meaning of the terms such as ignorance, as follows: In the sense of being unfit to fulfill, wrongdoing of body and so on is called 'unfound'; that is, unfound. That which finds that unfound is ignorance. Opposite to that, good conduct of body and so on is called 'found'. That which does not find that found is ignorance. It makes unknown the sense of a heap of the aggregates, the sense of a base of the sense bases, the sense of emptiness of the elements, the sense of truth of the truths, the sense of dominion of the faculties is ignorance. Also, it makes unknown the fourfold meaning of suffering and so on, stated in terms of oppression and so on, is ignorance. It drives beings in the round of rebirth without beginning, in all abodes of beings, states of existence, and stations of consciousness is ignorance. In things that do not exist in the ultimate sense, such as women and men, it drives, and in things that do exist, such as the aggregates, it does not drive is ignorance. Moreover, ignorance is also a covering of the object and the support of eye-consciousness and so on, and of the conditioned and dependently arisen phenomena. That which, being conditioned, a result comes to be is a condition. 'Conditioned by' means not without that; that is, not rejecting that. 'Comes to be' means both arises and proceeds. Moreover, the sense of assistance is the sense of condition. And ignorance is that condition, thus ignorance Because of ignorance. Therefore, because of ignorance. They construct the constructed, thus, constructs. Moreover, because of ignorance, constructs. And the constructs that come with the term "constructs," thus, two kinds of constructs. Therein, meritorious, demeritorious, and imperturbable constructs, these three. Bodily, verbal, and mental constructs, these three. These six are constructs because of ignorance. All of them are merely mundane wholesome and unwholesome volitions. Constructed construct, constructed construct, constructing construct, and effort-constructing construct, these four are constructs that come with the term "constructs." Therein, all conditioned phenomena mentioned in "Impermanent, indeed, are constructs," etc., are called 'constructed constructs.' The form and formless phenomena of the three realms produced by karma are called 'constructed constructs' in the commentaries. These also are included in "Impermanent, indeed, are constructs." However, their specific place of origin is not evident. But the wholesome and unwholesome volitions of the three realms are called 'constructing construct.' Its place of origin is evident in "This person, monks, immersed in ignorance, if he constructs merit," etc. But physical and mental effort is called 'effort-constructing construct.' It appears in "As far as the course of construction goes, having gone that far, I think he stood as if struck by an ax." Not only these, but also others, "For a monk attaining the cessation of perception and feeling, friend Visakha, first ceases verbal construct, then bodily construct, then mental construct," etc., in this way, there are many constructs that come with the term "constructs." Among them, there is no construct that is not included in the constructed construct. What is said hereafter, "Because of constructs, consciousness," etc., should be understood in the same way as described. It knows the unsaid, thus, consciousness. It bends, thus, name. It is broken, thus, form. It extends the income, It leads to connection, therefore it is connection. It touches, therefore it is contact. It feels, therefore it is feeling. It thirsts, therefore it is craving. It grasps, therefore it is grasping. It becomes and causes to become, therefore it is becoming. Generation is birth. Decay is aging. They die by this, therefore it is death. Lamenting is sorrow. Bewailing is lamentation. It causes suffering, therefore it is suffering; or it divides in two as arising and ceasing, therefore it is suffering. The state of being depressed is displeasure. Intense effort is distress. They come into being, they arise. And not only with sorrow and the like, but the word "they come into being" should be connected with all the terms. Otherwise, when it is said, "Conditioned by ignorance are volitional formations," it would not be clear what they are doing. But with the connection of "they come into being," it is established that "ignorance and that which is a condition, is the condition of ignorance; therefore, conditioned by ignorance, volitional formations come into being," thus the arrangement of condition and conditioned is made. This is the method everywhere. Thus, it is an example of the method shown. By that, it shows that it is by causes such as ignorance and the like, not by the creation of a lord and the like. Of this, of the aforementioned. Entire, unmixed or complete. Aggregate of suffering, a mass of suffering, not a being, not happiness, pleasantness, and the like. Origin is arising. It is, it comes into being. Thus, the decision should be understood here in meaning. 'From characteristic, etc.' From the characteristic, etc., of ignorance and the like, that is to say: Ignorance has the characteristic of unknowing, the function of confusion, the manifestation of concealment, the proximate cause of the taints. Volitional formations have the characteristic of constructing, the function of exertion, the manifestation of intention, the proximate cause of ignorance. Consciousness has the characteristic of cognizing, the function of preceding, the manifestation of rebirth, the proximate cause of volitional formations, or the proximate cause of object and base. Name has the characteristic of bending, the function of association, the manifestation of inseparability, the proximate cause of consciousness. Form has the characteristic of disintegrating, the function of scattering, the manifestation of the undefined, the proximate cause of consciousness. The six sense bases have the characteristic of sense bases, the function of seeing, etc.