Saṃyuktāgama (289), Part One

(1) Original text: 如是我闻。一时。佛住王舍城迦兰陀竹园。尔时。世尊告诸比丘。愚痴无闻凡夫于四大身厌患。离欲背舍。而非识。所以者何。见四大身。有增有减。有取有舍。而于心意识。愚痴无闻凡夫不能生厌。离欲解脱。所以者何。彼长夜于此保惜系我。若得若取。言是我我所相在。是故愚痴无闻凡夫。不能于彼生厌。离欲背舍。

Explanation: The Buddha told the bhikṣus: Worldly beings whose minds are foolish and deluded, who have heard and seen nothing of the dharma of liberation, can give rise to a mind of weariness toward the material body composed of the four great elements, can depart from the various desires for the material body, and can turn their backs on it and abandon it, no longer cherishing or being mindful of the material body. But this is not so with the conscious mind—they cannot depart from desire for it or turn their backs on it and abandon it. Why is this so? Because worldly beings can see that the material body composed of the four great elements undergoes increase and decrease, is impermanent, and is not fixed and unchanging; therefore they can grasp at the material body and can also relinquish it.

But toward their own mind consciousness and manas, foolish worldly beings who have heard and seen nothing cannot give rise to a mind of weariness, cannot depart from desire and attain liberation. Why is this so? Because throughout the long night of birth and death, they especially cherish their own mind consciousness, taking the conscious mind as the self and thereby generating bondage; they have gains and graspings, saying that this is the self, that it belongs to the self, that the self is within the consciousness, that the consciousness is within the self, and that the self and the consciousness exist in mutual dependence. Therefore, foolish worldly beings who have heard and seen nothing are unable to grow weary of the conscious mind and depart from desire for it, and cannot turn their backs on it and abandon it.

The Buddha used such terms as "foolish worldly beings who have heard and seen nothing." Although some people do not like to hear this, the Buddha was not cursing anyone; the Buddha was stating a fact—worldly beings are indeed foolish and have heard and seen nothing. Not having heard the true dharma, with deep and heavy ignorance, is what it means to be foolish and without hearing; if one has heard and seen [the dharma], one will break through foolishness and become wise.

The material body is relatively easy for sentient beings to see through, because its arising, ceasing, and change are relatively obvious. The material body arises from the combination of the four great element seeds of earth, water, fire, and wind. The earth element has the property of solidity; substances such as muscles, bones, sinews, hair, nails, teeth, and skin all have solidity and thus contain the earth element seed. Without solidity, one could not walk, stand, sit, or lie down. The water element has the property of moisture; the skin on the body's surface, the internal organs, blood, sweat, urine, and so forth all have wetness and all contain the water element seed. The fire element has the property of warmth; there is temperature both inside and outside the body—this is the fire nature, containing the fire element seed. After a person dies, the fire element is gone, and the corpse is ice-cold. The wind element has the property of movement; the breath, the flow of blood, and the circulation of the meridians are all functions of the wind nature and contain the wind element seed. Without the wind nature, blood could not flow, and food and drink could not flow, be digested and absorbed, or be excreted.

All material form is formed by the combination of earth, water, fire, and wind in certain proportions. Whichever component predominates, the substance takes on that nature as its main characteristic. When the proportions of combination differ, the substances formed differ, and the organs of each part of the body also differ. Not only our material body, but all matter in the universe and world is composed of the four great elements; when the proportions of their combination differ, the substances formed differ. The six sense objects of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma are all composed of the four great elements and all belong to material form; it is only that their forms of manifestation differ, and the conscious minds that recognize material form are accordingly different. The seeds of the four great elements exist within the tathāgatagarbha, and the tathāgatagarbha delivers the seeds of the four great elements to form the material body; therefore the material body is born from the tathāgatagarbha.

The increase and decrease of the body—such as becoming fat or thin, the implantation and removal of bodily organs—these changes of increase and decrease show that this body is something false and unreal. Seeing through the arising-ceasing and mutability of the material body, one can give rise to a mind of weariness, can also depart from desire and turn one's back on it and abandon it, no longer wishing to comply with it or to cherish and protect it, feeling that the body does not matter—it is just a false bag of skin, not the real self.