English
when ignorance, craving, clinging, and kamma have arisen, not abandoned, in this existence, starting from rebirth-linking, streams of form, and streams of feeling, perception, mental formations, and consciousness arise. Until the time of death, moment by moment, by way of various clusters, they arise and generate. But when these, in that very existence, have ceased by way of being abandoned, those streams of form and mind cease. In another existence, they again attain cessation, called non-arising. Here, however, just as when water exists, fish, as it were, exist; when it does not exist, they do not exist. Thus, when kamma-born mind-and-matter exists, other mind-and-matter exist. When it does not exist, they do not exist. Thus, all other (mind-and-matter), having been included in the kamma-born, the arrangement of arising and ceasing by way of kamma is understood. This should be seen. Thus, by way of the causes of ignorance, craving, clinging, and kamma, the arising, ceasing, and continuity of the five aggregates occurs. But by way of kamma, even those arising in this existence, starting from rebirth-linking, moment by moment, having indeed received the support of physical nutriment, just as the existing streams of form continue, new, new streams of form arise. But not having received it, they cease. In that stream, they again attain cessation within one existence, called non-arising. Just as existing streams are cut off, are broken, or disappear. But feeling, perception, and mental formations, in external objects, when they come into range, having indeed received contact with the object, being six-doored, wholesome, unwholesome, resultant, or functional, arise. New, new streams appear. But not having received it, they cease. They do not form a stream. And consciousness, and co-arisen mind, and base-matter, when existing, indeed exists. When ceasing, it ceases. By way of moment, thus, not having regarded the causes of the kind mentioned, merely the continuity of mind-and-matter... By moment. Here, by the word 'moment', the continuity of form and the continuity of name, as stated in the knowledge of comprehension, should also be understood. For the knowledge of disciples cannot grasp the arising or passing away of name and form by moment. Just as in the deep darkness of night, inside a cave, a great mass of darkness arises. But for one lighting a lamp, the lamp's light in a single moment spreads throughout the entire cave and arises. The mass of darkness vanishes. There is the arising of light. The passing away of darkness. Again, when the lamp is extinguished, there is the arising of the mass of darkness. The passing away of light. In the same way, in the body, by various seasons, by various foods, by various thoughts, by various postures, by various efforts, seeing clearly the arising of the arising-aspects and the passing away of the passing-away-aspects of various continuities, and observing them – this is the meaning. For one who thus observes, who has attained the state of an ardent meditator, when the knowledge of arising and passing away is sharp and strong, ten kinds of obstructive phenomena, called defilements of insight, arise. To show these, the verse beginning "obhāsa" (light) was spoken. Therein, "obhāsa" (light) is the radiance of the body arising from the insight-mind. "Pīti" (joy) is the fivefold joy associated with the insight-mind. "Passaddhi" (tranquillity) is twofold tranquillity. "Adhimokkha" (resolution) is resolution of faith. "Paggaha" (exertion) is energy. "Sukha" (happiness) is mental pleasure. "Ñāṇa" (knowledge) is insight-knowledge. "Upaṭṭhāna" (mindfulness) is mindfulness. "Upekkhā" (equanimity) is equanimity of mind and equanimity of attention. "Nikanti" (attachment) is subtle craving that clings to insight along with light and so on. This alone, however, is truly a defilement of insight. But light and the others are called defilements because they are the basis for it. For when these arise, (one thinks): "Alas, never before has such a light arisen in me. Such joy... ...such equanimity has arisen before. Surely I have attained the path. I have attained the fruit." Thus, with such delight, the perception of the path in what is not the path, and the perception of the fruit in what is not the fruit, arises. Then some inexperienced meditator... Having abandoned the right path, he wanders about, distracting himself by way of conceit. But the wise one, having immediately regained his senses, perceives the mind's inclination in these lights and so on: "This is mine, this I am, this is my self." And indeed, a supramundane state is not the basis for such an inclination. Surely, a defiling state has arisen in me. That, growing, will cause me to fall from the door of liberation, and yoke me to the door of the round of rebirths. "Well then, having applied the three characteristics to those very (lights and so on), and having purified the delight, I shall follow the path of insight as it occurred." Thus, he first comprehends those very lights and so on. "This light of mine is impermanent in the sense of perishing, suffering in the sense of fear, non-self in the sense of being without essence," and so on — this is the meaning of his contemplation. Thus, having comprehended those lights and so on, which are defilements for insight, obstructing states, and by way of that comprehension, having exhausted the delight in them, for one who stands thus, the arisen knowledge of distinguishing the characteristics of the path and non-path is called the purification of knowledge and vision of what is path and not path. Because of being purified from the stain of perceiving path in the non-paths, the lights and so on, and from the stain of delight as stated. For that knowledge, even with the delight in them suppressed, from the hindrance of lights and so on, is indeed very pure. [245] But in the Vibhāvaniya: Without stating separately the comprehension of the hindrance of lights and so on by way of impermanence and so on, it is said that the purification of knowledge and vision of what is path and not path is merely by knowing what is path and not path. That does not agree with the commentary. "Thus for one liberated from hindrances" — having comprehended thus, for one liberated from those hindrances, the defilements of insight, "up to conformity" — up to the knowledge of conformity. "Having applied the three characteristics" — is the connection. "Having reached the maturity of insight" — having attained the state of equanimity regarding formations, and by attaining the state of the three doors to liberation, and by attaining the state of being a condition for the division of the seven noble persons, due to having reached the maturity of insight knowledge. "Now absorption will arise" — is the connection at the moment of saying this. And that absorption is the absorption of the stream-entry path. Two or three insight-thoughts: For the sharp-witted, two insight-thoughts. For the dull-witted, three insight-thoughts. "Whatever" (yaṃkiñci) means any one of the three characteristics, whatever it may be. "The culmination, attained, the conformity, equanimity regarding formations" (yāsikhāpattāsānulomāsaṅkhārupekkhā) means the equanimity regarding formations that has reached its peak, accompanied by conformity knowledge. This is called "insight leading to emergence" (vuṭṭhānagāminivipassanā), so is the connection. It is said that the knowledge of equanimity regarding formations and the knowledge of conformity —these two knowledges— are called "insight leading to emergence." This is a statement about fully mature insight. And here, "emergence" (vuṭṭhāna) means the path. For it emerges from the sign of formations, which is the object of insight-knowledge, or from its own nature as the basis of fetters. It also causes that person endowed with it to emerge from the state of a worldling, and from the cycle of existence by abandoning the origin and ceasing to revolve. Therefore, it is called "emergence." "Leading to emergence" (vuṭṭhānagāminī) means that by which one necessarily goes to emergence. Thus, the "leading to emergence" nature of these two knowledges should be understood. "Thereafter" (tatoparaṃ) means after the occurrence of two or three insight-thoughts, having taken Nibbāna as the object, being in the position of the path's advertence, and by being its forerunner, having made Nibbāna itself the object. And for that very reason, it does not obtain the name "insight." "Overcoming the lineage of worldlings" (puthujjana gottamabhibhavantaṃ) shows this meaning: "lineage becomes, overcomes" (gottaṃ bhavati abhibhavatīti gotrabhu). Here, "lineage" (gottaṃ) means the state of a worldling, which is the non-noble state characterized by the complete accumulation of defilements. "Attaining the noble lineage" (ariyagottamabhisambhontaṃ) shows this meaning: "lineage becomes, reaches" (gottaṃ bhavati pāpuṇātīti gotrabhu). And "lineage" (gottaṃ) means the noble state, characterized by the purity from those defilements. The path enters the absorption-process —this is the connection. "Comprehending the truth of suffering" (dukkhasaccaṃparijānanto) means knowing by thoroughly understanding the nature of the three planes of existence as exclusively suffering. And here, "comprehending" (parijānanaṃ) should be understood as the abandonment of delusion, which conceals the suffering nature of these things. Abandoning the truth of origin. He abandons the origin truth, which is craving, existing as latent tendencies in one's mind-stream, by making it not turn back, either partially or completely. "Realizing the cessation truth" means making Nibbāna, which is called cessation, direct and manifest in one's mind-stream, like the moon disc shining in the middle of the sky, by virtue of the non-arising nature again of either a part or the whole of the defilement-cycle, or the future result-cycle.