Saṃyukta Āgama (354)

Original text:如是我闻。一时。佛住舍卫国祇树给孤独园。尔时。世尊告诸比丘。若诸沙门婆罗门。于六入处。不如实知。而欲超度触者。无有是处。触集触灭。触灭道迹超度者。无有是处。如是超度受爱取有。生老死者。无有是处。超度老死集老死灭。老死灭道迹者。无有是处。

若沙门婆罗门。于六入处如实知。六入处集。六入处灭。六入处灭道迹如实知。而超度触者。斯有是处。如是超度受爱取有。生老死者。斯有是处。乃至超度老死灭道迹者。斯有是处。佛说是经已。诸比丘闻佛所说。欢喜奉行。

Explanation: The World-Honored One told the bhikṣus that if śramaṇas and brāhmaṇas do not truly know the six sense bases (ṣaḍāyatana) as they really are, it is impossible for them to transcend contact; it is impossible to transcend the arising of contact, the cessation of contact, and the path to the cessation of contact. Likewise, it is impossible to transcend feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, and aging-and-death; it is impossible to transcend the arising of aging-and-death, the cessation of aging-and-death, and the path to the cessation of aging-and-death. If śramaṇas and brāhmaṇas truly know the six sense bases as they really are, and truly know the arising of the six sense bases, the cessation of the six sense bases, and the path to the cessation of the six sense bases, then it becomes possible to transcend contact, and only then is it possible to transcend the arising of contact, the cessation of contact, and the path to the cessation of contact. Likewise, after truly knowing contact, the arising of contact, the cessation of contact, and the path to the cessation of contact, it becomes possible to transcend feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, and aging-and-death, and only then is it possible to transcend the arising and cessation of feeling, craving, grasping, existence, birth, and aging-and-death, as well as the path to their cessation.

In cultivating the dharma of the twelve links of dependent arising, if one cannot truly know and truly realize a preceding link, then the subsequent link and all the links after it cannot be transcended, and one cannot truly know and truly realize them, because the preceding link is the cause and condition of the subsequent link. If the preceding one does not pass through, naturally one cannot pass through the subsequent one, nor all the links after it. Therefore, in practice one must engage in contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) of one dharma at a time, in proper sequence, with patience; one must not be impatient and skip stages. Otherwise, not a single dharma can be realized, and one cannot truly know it.