Saṃyuktāgama, Volume 1 (4)

Original text:如是我闻。一时。佛住舍卫国祗树给孤独园。尔时。世尊告诸比丘。于色不知不明。不断不离欲。心不解脱者。则不能越生老病死怖。如是受想行识。不知不明。不断不离欲贪。心不解脱者。则不能越生老病死怖。比丘。于色若知若明。若断若离欲。则能越生老病死怖。诸比丘。若知若明。若离欲贪。心解脱者。则能越生老病死怖。如是受想行识。若知若明。若断若离欲贪。心解脱者。则能越生老病死怖。时。诸比丘闻佛所说。欢喜奉行。

Explanation: The World-Honored One said to the bhikkhus that if one does not understand the aggregate of form, is not clear about it, cannot eradicate the view that the aggregate of form is the self, and cannot abandon craving for the aggregate of form—still clinging to the aggregate of form—then one cannot transcend the terror of birth, aging, sickness, and death.

Conversely, if one can truly understand the aggregate of form, can clearly perceive its true characteristics, can eradicate the view of self regarding the body of the aggregate of form, and can abandon craving for the aggregate of form, then one can transcend the terror of birth, aging, sickness, and death, will never again fear the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death, will extinguish the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death, and attain the bliss of nirvāṇa.

Among these, "knowing" (知) is a rough understanding of the aggregate of form—understanding that it is impermanent, empty, suffering, and non-self, that it arises and ceases and changes, and does not long endure. "Clarity" (明) is being clear—a more subtle understanding of the impermanence, emptiness, and suffering nature of the aggregate of form, its characteristic of arising and ceasing and change, and its non-self nature. "Eradication" (断) is eradicating the view that the aggregate of form is the self. "Abandoning craving" (离欲) refers to the third fruit after attaining the first dhyāna, where craving and desire for the aggregate of form are eradicated and one is free from sensual craving. After abandoning craving, the mind is liberated from the aggregate of form, no longer bound by it, and has the capacity to extinguish the aggregate of form entirely, leave the three realms, and attain liberation.

The World-Honored One continued to say to the bhikkhus that if one cannot properly recognize the aggregates of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness—does not understand them, is not clear about them, and does not realize their true characteristics of impermanence, suffering, emptiness, and non-self—then one cannot abandon craving for the aggregates of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness. If craving is not eradicated, one cannot transcend the terror of birth, aging, sickness, and death, and will continue to undergo the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death thereafter; because craving for feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness is not eradicated, suffering arises from craving.

Conversely, if one can truly understand the aggregates of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness, clearly recognize their true characteristics, and realize that the aggregates of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness are impermanent, empty, suffering, and non-self, one will eradicate the view of self that takes these aggregates as the self, and will then be able to abandon craving for them. In this way one can transcend the terror of birth, aging, sickness, and death, and will never again undergo the suffering of birth, aging, sickness, and death. Because craving has been eradicated, one can break free from the bondage of the aggregates of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness, leave the three realms, attain liberation from birth and death, and gain the bliss of nirvāṇa.

To cultivate this dharma, one must first be able to know the aggregate of form roughly, and then know and understand it in finer detail. This requires meditative concentration and contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā). Only by contemplating within meditative concentration—"raising one eye high"—can one see the aggregate of form clearly, recognize it, and realize its true characteristics of impermanence, emptiness, suffering, and non-self. "Raising one eye high" involves the deliberation (manasikāra) of the manas; the mind consciousness must also stand at a certain height, observing while detached from the physical body, with the mind not stuck to the physical body. In this way one can view and observe the physical body objectively and impartially, recognize the essential problems of the physical body, and one's understanding will be vastly different from before. In this way, eradicating the view of self and realizing the fruits will be relatively easier.

"Raising one eye high" means lifting the mind out, isolating it, not mixing it together with the five appropriating aggregates—this is also called introspection (反观). Introspection easily gives rise to wisdom, makes it easy to recognize objective facts, and makes it easy to discover new continents. Raising one eye high and glaring with one eye is meditative concentration; it can isolate old cognitive patterns and give birth to wisdom. Morning after morning, evening after evening, with prolonged practice over time, one overturns former mistaken cognition and gains the wisdom of liberation.

Recognizing a problem is not difficult; changing one's views is the hardest. The view held since beginningless kalpas—that form, feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness are the self and what belongs to the self—is deeply rooted and has become habitual; even when one understands the impermanence of the five aggregates, one cannot change the manas's old views. One must engage in long-term contemplative practice, introspection, and deliberation within meditative concentration, striving to thoroughly clarify this matter and striving to overturn the original views and concepts. Once a breakthrough point is found, there is great hope of eradicating the view of self regarding the entire five appropriating aggregates. A fortress must be breached bit by bit; at the start one must not be overly greedy in one's aims, lest one's strength fall short of one's ambitions.