Saṃyuktāgama, Volume 12 (285): Part Three

(3) Original Text: "Bhikkhus, what do you think? For instance, a lamp burns and gives light dependent on the oil and the wick. If oil and wick are repeatedly added, will that lamp burn brightly for a long time?" They replied: "Yes, Venerable Sir." "Similarly, Bhikkhus, when one grasps at form, relishes it, becomes attached to it, and cherishes it, one becomes bound by craving. Due to the increase of craving, grasping arises. Grasping conditions existence. Existence conditions birth. Birth conditions aging, death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, and suffering. Thus arises this entire mass of suffering."

Explanation: The Buddha said: "Bhikkhus, what do you think? For example, a lamp burns and gives light by depending on the conditions of lamp oil and a wick. If oil and wick are repeatedly added, will that lamp's light last for a long time?" The bhikkhus replied: "Yes, Venerable Sir." "Bhikkhus, similarly, if you grasp at form, become immersed in it and cannot free yourselves, constantly recalling and dwelling on form, you will become bound by craving. Due to the continuous increase of craving for form, grasping arises. Because of grasping at form, the karmic seeds for future existence are planted, leading to the continuous arising of existence in the three realms in the future. Due to the existence in the three realms, sentient beings are born. With birth comes aging, sickness, death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, and suffering. Thus, the greatest suffering of the world accumulates."

Original Text: "At that time, I again thought thus: 'With the absence of what is there the absence of this aging, sickness, and death? With the cessation of what does aging, sickness, and death cease?' Immediately, with right contemplation, I gave rise to immediate insight, knowing truly and without interruption: 'Without birth there is no aging, sickness, and death. With the cessation of birth, aging, sickness, and death cease.' Again, I thought thus: 'With the absence of what is there the absence of birth? With the cessation of what does birth cease?' Immediately, with right contemplation, I gave rise to immediate insight, knowing truly and without interruption: 'Without existence there is no birth. With the cessation of existence, birth ceases.'"

Explanation: The Buddha said: "At that time, I again gave rise to this doubt: 'What, when absent, causes the absence of aging, sickness, and death? What, when ceased, causes aging, sickness, and death to cease?' After this doubt arose, I immediately entered into right contemplation. Following right contemplation, I gave rise to immediate insight, knowing truly and without interruption that without birth there is no aging, sickness, and death; when birth ceases, aging, sickness, and death cease. I again gave rise to this doubt: 'What, when absent, causes the absence of birth? What, when ceased, causes birth to cease?' I immediately entered into right contemplation. Following right contemplation, I gave rise to immediate insight, knowing truly and without interruption that when existence in the three realms is absent, birth is absent; when existence ceases, birth ceases."

This is the reverse tracing of the twelve links of dependent origination, also called going against the stream (of samsara). The previous section was the forward tracing, following the flow of birth and death. Although it appears to be reasoning on the surface, it is actually profound contemplation, not superficial intellectual deduction. Practitioners with deep meditative absorption (dhyāna) and profound doubt cannot engage in superficial intellectual reasoning; it is the mental faculty (manas) deeply contemplating and investigating within meditation. Forward tracing reveals the flow leading to birth, aging, sickness, and death. Reverse tracing reveals how to extinguish birth, aging, sickness, and death, and thereby attain liberation. By identifying the root cause of birth, aging, sickness, and death and severing it at its source, birth, aging, sickness, and death are cut off.