English
the four kinds of post-natant conditions are taken, the remaining twenty conditions are not found. But among all twenty-three material aggregates, the four great elements are causes for each other in five ways: by the four great co-arisen, and by mutuality. For the co-arisen derivative material forms, they are causes in four ways: by the four great with those co-arisen. Food-materiality, by way of food condition, is a condition for all internal materiality-groups, both co-arisen and not co-arisen. Among the nine kamma-born materiality-groups, life-faculty materiality, by way of faculty condition, is a condition only for co-arisen materialities. Thus, internal material phenomena are conditions for internal material phenomena in seven ways. External material phenomena, however, are conditions for the two external temperature-born materiality-groups in five ways. The method of conditioning among materiality-groups is concluded. Here, the meaning of the word Paṭṭhāna should be explained. "Paṭṭhāna" means "principal condition." Here, "principal" means "foremost," and "condition" means "cause." So it is said to be a foremost condition, a primary condition, a certain condition. And that certain condition should be spoken of in relation to that which certainly arises from a condition. Indeed, that which arises from a condition is of two kinds: that which arises from a primary condition, and that which arises from a resultant condition. Here, that which arises from a primary condition is called that which arises from a root condition. That which arises from a resultant condition is called that which arises from a sequential condition. Here, only that which arises from a root condition is called that which certainly arises from a condition. For when its condition is present, it certainly arises, it does not not arise. That which arises from a sequential condition, however, is called that which may or may not arise from a condition. For even when that condition is present, it may arise, or it may not arise. Here, in relation to that which certainly arises from a condition, that condition is called a certain condition. It is this that is explained in this great treatise. Therefore, this group of twenty-four conditions and this great treatise are called Paṭṭhāna. Here, for a certain man, greed arises for wealth and grain. Driven by that greed, he gets up, goes to the forest, and in a certain place, he makes fields, he makes dwellings, he makes gardens. As these prosper, that man obtains much wealth and grain, he himself enjoys it, he supports his children and wife, he performs merits, and he will experience the fruits of merit in the future. Here, co-arisen with greed The arisen mind-and-matter are called principal-condition-arisen. From then on, as long as one experiences the results of merit in future existences, so long are the successive results that have arisen called concomitant-condition-arisen of that greed. Among these two condition-arisen, only the principal-condition-arisen is stated in the Paṭṭhāna. The concomitant-condition-arisen, however, should be explained by the Suttanta method. Therein, the Suttanta method is: "When this exists, that comes to be; with the arising of this, that arises" – such is the method of conditionality. Furthermore, greed, hatred, and delusion – these three phenomena – are indeed the root causes for the ruin of the entire sentient world, the conditioned world, and the spatial world. Non-greed, non-hatred, and non-delusion – these three phenomena – should be stated as the root causes for prosperity. This method should be understood appropriately in all Paṭṭhāna conditions. And this being so, all worldly occurrences in the world, together with the principal-condition-arisen of these twenty-four conditions, are indeed concomitant-condition-arisen – this should be understood. Thus far, the exposition of the outline of Paṭṭhāna, delimited by three sections – the explanation of the meaning of conditions, the classification of conditions by their nature, and the method of connecting conditions – is completed. This exposition of the outline of conditions was made by the Great Elder, resident of the Ledi forest monastery in the city of Monywa, in the country of Myanmar.