English
it should be seen that this is said with reference to that. Designation means... Showing, establishing: These are two meanings. Making manifest them is explaining. There, by "material aggregate... ...the faculty of knowing, released in time," and so forth, "this is so-named, this is so-named," making each its own part, this understanding itself is explaining. It is not like the placing of beds and so forth, which are to be designated, a connection of place. But this statement of agency, "designation indeed shows and establishes," is to be understood as made with reference to the designation, being an existing thing or an instrument, being the cause for those various phenomena being seen and established. By the phrase "existing designation" and so forth, referring to its absence in the Pāli, he says "by what is outside the Pāli" and so forth. "Of the wholesome and unwholesome" means "like the wholesome and unwholesome." The meaning of "of what exists" is "of what is." Its meaning is "of what has come into being." Or, the meaning is "of what is existing, of what has come into being." Showing that very meaning, he says "of what has come into being." Thereby, he rejects the state of non-existence. Similarly, regarding "of what does not exist": Just as wholesome states and so forth exist by their nature as wholesome and unwholesome, and contact and so forth exist by their nature as feeling and so forth, similarly, regarding what does not exist, the apprehension "woman, man" arises by taking certain phenomena as its basis. Removing those, the meaning is "of what has not come into being," due to the absence of the nature of woman and so forth, which is distinct from those. But as for what some say regarding its meaning, "of what does not exist in that aspect, but exists in another aspect," what needs to be said there has already been said in the "pair of designations." Even when there is no existing nature, following worldly convention, and with a mind free from clinging, there is the possibility of apprehending "woman, man." Therefore, he says, "of what is established merely by worldly convention." But the fifth truth and so forth, apprehended with a mind full of clinging, are not established by their nature, nor by convention. Therefore, it is said, "not to be apprehended in any aspect." Among those, in this [section]... ... "are obtained," in this treatise, it is said with reference to the presence of the three in their own nature. But the teachers' views should be reconciled without contradicting the commentary's method as stated. Therefore, the meaning is: "This is a concept by way of being conceptualized," because it does not exist by nature, it is a concept merely by way of being conceptualized. Indeed, even that which is conceptualized, if it has its own nature, does not obtain the name "concept" from another, due to obtaining its name from its ultimate reality. But that which has no nature does not obtain a name by its own nature, due to the absence of nature. It obtains the name "concept" by way of being merely conceptualized by names like "being" and so on. And beings and so on are without nature. For there is no nature of that which has its own nature that is not found as one with or different from form and so on. A kirīṭa is a crown. One who has it is a kirīṭī (crowned). And in this teaching of the masters, there should be a complete reconciliation, as it must be with an unblemished characteristic. Indeed, it is appropriate to say that "second" and "third" and such types of comparative concepts and deposited concepts belong to all six concepts, due to the prominence of what is to be counted. And the others, as appropriate, belong to those respective concepts. But thinking that there is no such thing as a number like "second," "third," "two," "three," and so on, he said that the concepts of aggregates and continuity are concepts of non-existence, and the other comparative concepts, as demonstrated, are concepts of non-existence by way of non-existence: "The rest belong to the side of non-existence and to the side of non-existence by way of non-existence." He considers only the comparative and deposited concepts like "second," "third," "two," "three," and so on to be concepts of non-existence by way of non-existence. For that which is conceptualized by referring to "first" and so on, and by depositing "one" and so on, that number does not exist at all. And similarly with continuity concepts. For "eighty" and "one who is eighty" do not exist. He said "some concepts of planes" referring to concepts like the sense-sphere and so on. For the intention is that the sense-sphere and so on are phenomena with their own nature. But if "sense-desire" (kāma) is taken as a place, this can be a concept of existence by way of non-existence, in action. When the aggregates of existence are grasped, there is designation by what exists and what does not exist. Just as the designation of a person as 'speaker', by the action called speech or by the volition giving rise to speech, falls into the category of designation by what exists and what does not exist; so too, the designation of persons etc. as 'thin' or 'fat', by means of the bodily configuration which is a form-base, should be a designation by what exists and what does not exist. Or, the designation 'configuration', when the form-base is not grasped, is a designation of what does not exist by means of what does not exist. However, designations like 'form' and 'contact' are designations of what exists. They should be included in the designation of function, by way of the function of being afflicted etc., or in the designation of individual phenomena, by way of the name of the individual phenomenon. And when designations of what exists and what does not exist are stated, the others, which arise by way of their mixture, are also considered stated. This teaching of the master should be understood as all-encompassing. 2. Explaining the meaning of "as far as the five aggregates" and so on, he says "by whatever designation" and so on. Therein, "as far as the five aggregates" means: "as far as the form aggregate... to the consciousness aggregate," this is the designation of the aggregates as aggregates. "By this much is the designation of the aggregates as aggregates." Having thus constructed the Pāli phrase, this meaning should be understood as stated by way of summary and detail. For the meaning of "as far as the five aggregates" and "the designation of the aggregates as aggregates" is shown by "by whatever designation, in summary, the five aggregates" and so on. And for "as far as the form aggregate" and so on, it is shown by "in detail, the form aggregate" and so on. Therein, "form aggregate... to consciousness aggregate" is merely an example of the detailed enumeration. By this, even what is not stated is all included. Thus, "therein also, the form aggregate is of the sense-sphere" and so on, is stated. Or, this is the construction of the meaning of the Pāli here: "Yāvatā" (as far as) should be connected with all the words: "As many as are the five aggregates, so many are the designations of the aggregates as aggregates." "As much as is the detailed enumeration of the five aggregates and their subdivisions, such as the form aggregate and so on, so much is the designation of the aggregates as aggregates." The divisions of the concept of aggregates are shown by the divisions of things stated in other treatises. This method applies to "as far as the sense-bases" and so on. 7. "By a single part" means by way of mere designation. The explanation of the matrix is finished. 2. Explanation of the exposition. 1. Explanation of the exposition of the single item. 1. "The jhana factors are indeed liberation" - with this intention, he says, "by the mental body co-arisen with liberation." For by "faith" and so on, he first explains the meaning of being endowed. And by "touched by contact" and so on, the second meaning, that of touching by contact, is stated, and by the others, other causal meanings. For being endowed, touching, and being a cause are indeed called "touching." Again, explaining the first meaning, because it is difficult to understand, he says "therein" and so on. "Excluding those factors, the remaining fifty-odd phenomena" - here, feelings and the faculty of joy are included, so he says, "there are four aggregates." If so, since happiness is to be touched by feelings and the faculty of joy, and since these three are not different, does its touching occur by that alone? No, it does not occur, because the attainment of the state of contemplation is stated by way of being felt and being dominant. Or, "excluding those factors" - the plural is used because there are many factors. But in each of them, the application should be made, "excluding initial application" and so on. There, with the application "excluding happiness," the remaining aggregates are three; in the others, four. And in all applications, including the three, it is said, "there are four aggregates." 2. He who is liberated from some defilements by timeless liberation, and by the attainment of the support of timeless liberation, and by temporal liberation in a superior way, he is indeed one liberated in time. For he, thus liberated, a jhana-attainer, a trainee, one who does not return from the form and formless realms, and is thus liberated from sensual desire and so on, is worthy to receive the designation of "one liberated in time." But an ordinary person, a jhana-attainer, is of a nature to return, because sensual desire and so on arise again A liberated one is not called so, he is not worthy of the designation of temporary liberation, therefore he is not spoken of as "temporarily liberated." But for an Arahant, there are no unexhausted defilements from which he might be liberated. For him, the eight liberations are merely pleasant abidings in this very life.