English
Thus, there are thirteen consciousnesses in terms of meritorious formation, twelve in terms of demeritorious formation, and four in terms of imperturbable formation, totaling twenty-nine consciousnesses. Thus, the Blessed One, as if holding the wholesome and unwholesome consciousnesses that cause the arising of countless beings in countless world-systems in a great scale, or measuring them by putting them in a tube, discerned them with his omniscient knowledge and showed only twenty-nine. Now, showing the three doors of action through which countless beings in countless world-systems accumulate wholesome and unwholesome actions, he said, "What is bodily formation?" beginning with "bodily intention." There, "bodily intention" means the twenty consciousnesses, namely the eight wholesome sense-sphere consciousnesses and the twelve unwholesome consciousnesses, that arise from the body-door after producing bodily expression. It is also appropriate to say that the twenty wholesome and unwholesome consciousnesses arise, causing the act of taking and striking at the body-door. "Verbal intention" means the same twenty consciousnesses that arise from the speech-door after producing verbal expression. It is also appropriate to say that the twenty consciousnesses arise, causing jaw movement and speech differentiation at the speech-door. Here, the supernormal consciousness is not a condition for the consciousness of another. are not included. Just as the consciousness of attainment, so too the consciousness of distraction is not. Therefore, that too must be removed from the conditionality of consciousness. But all that are caused by ignorance are included. "Mind-volition" means all twenty-nine volitions that arise at the mind-door without giving rise to either expression. Thus, the Blessed One showed the door of volitional action, that countless beings in countless world-systems, accumulating wholesome and unwholesome actions, accumulate them through these three doors. But the connection of these two triads with each other should be understood. How? The meritorious activity, for one abstaining from bodily misconduct, could be bodily formation, for one abstaining from verbal misconduct, could be verbal formation. Thus, the eight wholesome consciousnesses of the sense-sphere are both meritorious activity and bodily formation and verbal formation. But the thirteen consciousnesses arising at the mind-door are both meritorious activity and mental formation. The demeritorious activity, in the course of bodily misconduct, could be bodily formation, in the course of verbal misconduct, could be verbal formation, having abandoned the two doors, in the course of the mind-door, it could be mental formation. Thus, demeritorious activity is both bodily formation and verbal formation and mental formation. Bodily formation, however, could be meritorious activity, could be demeritorious activity, but not imperturbable activity. So too verbal formation. Mental formation, however, could be meritorious activity, could be demeritorious activity, could be imperturbable activity. These are called formations conditioned by ignorance. How is this to be known – that these formations are conditioned by ignorance? Because they exist in the presence of ignorance. For one whose ignorance, known as unknowing, regarding suffering and so on, is not abandoned, that one, through unknowing about suffering, in the past and so on, grasps the suffering of samsara as happiness, and undertakes all three kinds of formations that are the cause of it, and through unknowing about the origin, even the defilements of craving that are the cause of suffering, thinking of the formations as the cause of happiness, undertakes them, and in Moreover, being ignorant of the cessation of suffering, due to ignorance on the path and in the place that is not the cessation of suffering, he perceives the cessation of suffering, and perceiving the path to cessation in sacrifices, immortality, and the like, which are not the path, he, desiring the cessation of suffering, engages in the three kinds of formations through sacrifices, immortality, and the like. Furthermore, due to his unabandoned ignorance of the four noble truths, not knowing as suffering the accumulation of merit, which is especially fraught with the misery of birth, aging, disease, death, and many other evils, he undertakes the meritorious formation, a kind of mental, verbal, and bodily activity, for the attainment of that, like a celestial nymph desiring a mirage; and not seeing the suffering of change and the lack of satisfaction in that meritorious result, which is considered happiness, and which ultimately generates great torment, he undertakes the meritorious formation in the same way as described above, like a moth falling into the flame of a lamp, and like one greedy for a drop of honey licking a sword blade smeared with honey. And not seeing the danger in the enjoyment of sensual pleasures and the like, which have painful consequences, and being overcome by defilements due to the perception of pleasure, he engages in demeritorious formations, even those that occur through the three doors, like a fool playing with excrement, and like one wanting to die eating poison. And not understanding the suffering of the change of formations in the immaterial results, he engages in the imperturbable formation, which is a mental formation, due to the perversions of permanence and the like, like one lost in direction going on a path towards a goblin city. Thus, since the existence of formations is only due to the presence of ignorance, not due to its absence, therefore it should be understood that these formations are conditioned by ignorance. And it was said, "Monks, being ignorant, one who is overcome by ignorance performs meritorious formations, performs demeritorious formations, and performs imperturbable formations. But when, monks, ignorance is abandoned in a bhikkhu, and knowledge has arisen, then, through the fading away of ignorance and the arising of knowledge, he does not perform meritorious formations." Here one might say: "Let us accept for now that 'ignorance is the condition for formations.' But But what should be said? "How is it a condition for which formations?" Therein, this is said: It is a condition for merit, In two ways, but manifold; For the latter of others, it Is considered a condition in one way. There, "for merit in two ways" means it is a condition in two ways: as object-condition and as dependence-condition. For, when contemplating the destruction and passing away of ignorance, it is an object-condition for meritorious volitional formations in the sense sphere; when generating knowledge of the realm of form with super-knowledge consciousness, it is a dependence-condition for both of them when one fulfills giving and other meritorious bases of action in the sense sphere and generates form-sphere jhānas in order to transcend ignorance; likewise, when, deluded by ignorance, one desires the attainments of the realms of sense-desire and form, and performs those very meritorious deeds. "But manifold for the latter of others" means it is a condition in manifold ways for demeritorious volitional formations. How? For, when, with ignorance as its basis, greed and other defilements arise, it is an object-condition; when one esteems and savors it, it is a condition by way of object-domination, object-dependence; when, deluded by ignorance, one sees no danger and commits offenses such as killing, it is a dependence-condition; for the second javana and so on, it is a condition by way of contiguity, immediate contiguity, immediate dependence, repetition, absence, and disappearance; when one does anything unwholesome, it is a condition in manifold ways by way of root, co-nascence, reciprocity, dependence, association, presence, and non-disappearance. "It is considered a condition in one way for the latter" means it is considered a condition in one way for imperturbable volitional formations, only as a dependence-condition. But its state of being a dependence should be understood in the same way as stated for meritorious volitional formations. Here one might ask: "Is ignorance alone a condition for formations, or are there other conditions as well?" Furthermore, if it is only one, then the doctrine of a single cause is incurred. But if "there are other conditions besides ignorance for formations," then the statement of a single cause is not appropriate? It is not inappropriate. Why? Because: Not one from one here, nor not-one from not-one is one; There is a result, but there is meaning in showing result from one cause. For from one cause here, there is not one result, nor not-one. Nor is there one from many causes. But from many causes, there is only many. Just as from many causes, such as season, earth, seed, and water, there is seen to arise a manifold result, such as sprout, form, smell, taste, and so on. But this showing of result from a single cause, such as "Conditioned by ignorance are volitional formations, conditioned by volitional formations is consciousness," there is meaning, there is purpose. For the Blessed One, in some places because of prominence, in some places because of obviousness, in some places because of uniqueness, and in accordance with the skill in teaching and the capacity of those to be trained, shows only one cause or one result; for "Conditioned by contact is feeling" he speaks of only one cause and result. For contact is the principal cause of feeling, because feeling is determined by contact. And feeling is the principal result of contact, because contact is determined by feeling. "Diseases arise from phlegm" he speaks of one cause because of obviousness. Here phlegm is obvious, not karma and so on. "Whatever unwholesome states there are, monks, all are rooted in unwise attention" he speaks of one cause because of uniqueness;