a . Atita.m naanvaagameyya

This phrase helps us to understand the significance of the Buddha's constant advice to "let-go" the past. The exposition clearly reveals that it is not so much the mere recollection of the past that is the bondage, as the element of delight (nandi) or desire-and-lust (chandaraaga) [5] one finds therein. It is the tendency to retrace, revive, relive, and relish the past that has to be eliminated and hence there comes in the necessity of detachment even with regard to thought processes. [6]

There is, however, a notion in some philosophers — notably in Krishnamurthy — that it is the faculty of memory as such, that is to be blamed for man's psychological bondage. [7] In an attempt to "die to the past" he seems to regard memory as the villain-of-the-piece and advocate its obliteration while stressing the necessity of awareness. This contrasts with the Buddhist approach inasmuch as sati, which is a term for awareness or "mindfulness," [8] is also the usual term for "memory." Thus, one comes across the following standard definition of satindriya (the spiritual faculty of mindfulness) in the Paali canon:

And what, monks, is the faculty of mindfulness? Herein, monks, a noble disciple is mindful and is endowed with the highest prudence in mindfulness; he is one who remembers and recollects even what is done or said long ago. This, monks, is called the faculty of mindfulness.

— S V 197

This recognition of the essential relationship between mindfulness and memory is understandable, since the keenness of the one naturally leads to the clarity of the other. The denial of its rightful place to the faculty of memory in the complex scheme of mental functions, might even give rise to a schizophrenic condition. The noble disciple, therefore, would not unscrupulously contradict himself or claim to have "forgotten" what he has said and done earlier, on the flimsy ground of his devotion to the practice of "moment-to-moment awareness." On the contrary, he might, without inhibition, even develop his faculty of memory to such a degree that he could recollect his past lives and experiences in all their major and minor details (saakaara.m sa-uddesa.m pubbenivaasa.m anussarati [Saama~n~naaphala Sutta, D I 81]). What he aims at by his diligent practice of mindfulness is mastery over the pathways of thought currents, as the concluding lines of Vitakkasa.n.thaana Sutta (Discourse on the Adjustment of Thoughts) of the Majjhima Nikaaya make it clear:

This monk is called, monks, "a master of the pathways of thought modes" (vasii vitakkapariyaayapathesu), and whatever thought he wishes to think, that he thinks; whatever thought he does not wish to think, that he does not think. He has cut off craving, turned back the fetter and by fully understanding conceit, put an end to Ill.

— M I 122

The most distinctive feature of the Buddha's solution to the intricate problem of mindfulness and memory is the emphasis on detachment. The elimination of the element of delight was the essential condition to be fulfilled, and to this end he oriented his exhortations to the monks so that often the finale turns out to be: "Impermanent, O monks, are formations. Unstable, O Monks, are formations. Unsatisfying, O monks, are formations; so much so, monks, that this is enough for one to turn away from all formations; enough to get detached from them; enough to seek release from them." [9] The theme of impermanence runs even through his contemplation of mountains and rivers, which, for the average man, offer beautiful landscapes and lasting landmarks. Indeed, this emphasis on utter detachment based on the contemplation of universal impermanence is not so marked in other systems of thought purporting to solve the above problem; even in Krishnamurthy, too much stress is laid, for instance, on the beauty of "marvelous" mountains, trees, rivers, and sunsets. [10]

It is also significant that the Buddhist scheme of mind-training, while recognizing the role of mindfulness or awareness in the field of sense-restraint, assigns the function of transcendence to the faculty of wisdom (pa~n~naa). As such, it does not find itself in the awkward position of being "anti-memory" and "pro-awareness." Though sati is helpful in temporarily stemming the swift currents of craving flowing in through the six sense-doors, the ultimate deliverance of the mind is a matter for the penetrative faculty of pa~n~naa — whetted, as it were, on the three signata. Pa~n~naa is the "dam" wherefrom all currents turn back.

	Yaani sotaani lokasmi.m Ajitaati bhagavaa
	Sati tesa.m nivaara.na.m
	Sotaana.m sa.mvara.m bruumi
	Pa~n~naayete pithiyyare.
	

	Whatever streams there are in the world, Ajita,
	— So said the Lord,
	Mindfulness keeps them in check.
	This I say is the restraint of streams
	But by wisdom are they dammed.
	

— Sn v.1035

b . Nappa.tika"nkhe anaagata.m

As in case of the past, so with regard to future too, it is the "delight" or "desire-and-lust" that gives rise to yearning or anxiety. The aspiration for acquisition is the condition for delight in this case, and in being delighted one is yearning for the future (see part II). A simple expression of choice and wish in regard to future courses of action in the everyday life of the arahant is not altogether denied. But it is the attitude which makes all the difference between such expressions and the hankerings and forebodings of a worldling relating to an uncertain future. The arahant, as his epithet taadi (such-like) suggests, is endowed with the highest adaptability and resilience, due to his penetration into suchness (tathataa). For him, anxiety and yearning with their corollaries vexation and disappointment, simply do not exist.

	Alattha.m yad ida.m saadhu — naalattha.m kusala.miti'
	ubhayeneva so taadi — rukkha.mva pa'tinivattati
	

If he does get anything (i.e., alms) he thinks: "It is well," and if he does not get anything, then also he thinks: "It is good." In both circumstances he is "such"; and he turns back like one who went up to a tree (in search of fruits).

— Sn v.712

c . Asamhira.m asamkuppa.m

The stable and steady nature of the emancipated mind [11] is indicated by these two terms. Together they form an epithet of Nibbaana [12] that might be of interest to the student of psychology and ethics, in particular. Though it does not occur in the canonical list of 33 epithets of Nibbaana (S IV 368 ff.), it is represented there by the term dhuva.m (the stable-state). Its significance, however lies mainly in the nuances it conveys through the twin terms.

Asa.mhiira (grd. of sa.m + vhr) is a word often used in the Paali canon to enhance the sense of stability conveyed by a positive term such as thito (firm) [13] or cheko (expert). [14] The immovability, the ir-removability, the ability to stand one's ground, [15] are some of the shades of meaning associated with the word. Hence sa.mhiirati (pass.) when used in the positive sense as in the prose section of the sutta, would suggest the tendency to get attracted, enticed or drawn into. In this specific context, the twenty types of personality-view (sakkaayadi.t.thi) are interpreted as so many ways of being drawn into involvement in regard to present phenomena. By contrast, therefore, asa.mhira.m, in its reference to Nibbaana, seems to emphasize the total absence of lust or attachment in that state of supreme mental repose.

Asa.mkuppa.m, too, basically carries with it overtones of stability, since the gerundive kuppa has such meanings as "movable; shakable; excitable; irritable." Not infrequently the verb kuppati is used with little or no emotional coloring, mostly with reference to the behavior of inanimate things; and then it is simply "disturbance" or "shaking." [16] But in the context of mental states, it is often associated with the impulses of irritation or anger, particularly when prefixed with sa.m. And here, too, the same nuances are evident. The stability of Nibbaana as a psychological state is as much due to the absence of repulsion as to that of attraction.

Out of the three roots of evil — greed (lobha), hate (dosa), and delusion (moha) — the first two indicate the polarization of those psychological forces known as "formations" (sankhaaraa). Formations themselves spring from delusion or ignorance [17] which manifests itself primarily as personality-views. "Herein, monks, the uninstructed ordinary man... looks upon form as self. That very 'looking upon' (samanupassanaa), monks, is a formation (sankhaaro) " (S III 96). In normal perception, it obtains as "attention" (manasikaara) which, as a rule, is impelled by desire or interest (chanda). The world of discrete objects over which the range of perception extends, is the result of this beam of attention, switched on, as it were, by interest. "All phenomena, friends, are rooted in desire (or interest); all phenomena are born of attention; all phenomena arise from contact..." (A V 106). The keener the interest, the keener the attention; and both these factors introduce a certain degree of tension into the perceptual situation, whereby all other relative "distractions" are forcibly "ignored." This tension, force, stress, or strain involved in the process, renders all perception more or less artificial and synthetic. [18] Even in the most elementary form of perception, ignorance and craving are already implicit. "...But what is the cause, the arising, the origin and the source of that formation? To the uninstructed ordinary man touched by a feeling born of 'ignorance-contact,' monks, there arises craving; born thereof is that formation. Thus, monks, even that formation is impermanent, compounded, dependently arisen. That feeling too...That contact too... That ignorance too is impermanent, compounded, dependently arisen" (S III 96f.). In the very act of attending, perception becomes blighted with an artificiality which estranges one from reality.

Since it is the formations themselves that are revealed in sense-perception as attitudes of greed and hatred, delusion as the seed-bed of formations, may rightly be regarded as the apex which sustains both types of attitudes. This shows that in order to transcend the above polarization, delusion too must be eliminated, together with the formations springing therefrom. The two terms in our epithet apparently do not say anything about this "tertium-quid," but it is already implicit in them as we have shown above. As such, the epithet may be said to refer to that paradoxical samaadhi peculiar to Buddhas and Arahants, which is known as aanantarika [19] (immediacy) or arahattaphala samaadhi. Some salient features of this concentration find mention in the following canonical passages.

1. Monks, in such a manner should a monk examine (with insight) that his consciousness will — while thus examining — neither be distracted or dissipated outwardly nor be established inwardly and not grasping, he would not be vexed. When, monks, one's consciousness is neither distracted nor dissipated outwardly, nor established inwardly and when he, grasping naught, is not vexed, there will be no arising or origination again of birth, decay, death and suffering.

   — M III 223 (Uddesavibha"nga Sutta)

2. Sister, that particular concentration which is neither "turned-toward" nor "turned-outward," which is not a form of restraint forcibly held in place by formations — a concentration which is stable owing to the fact of emancipation and is one of contentment owing to its stability wherein owing to contentment, one is not vexed — that concentration, sister, has been made known by the Lord as that which has knowledge (of arahanthood) as its fruit (a~n~naphalo).

   — A IV 428

One can form an idea of the range of meaning covered by the terms asa.mhira.m and asa.mkuppam, in the context of these two passages. The reference to a non-establishment of consciousness inwardly (ajjhatta.m asa.n.thita.m — see A ) would readily call to mind the definition of sa.mhiirati in the Bhaddekaratta Sutta in terms of the twenty types of personality-views, while the expression "neither turned toward" (no ca abhinato — see B ) suggests the absence of an introvert attitude which is not totally unrelated to the nuances of the term in question. Similarly, the phrase "... his consciousness will neither be distracted or dissipated outwardly" (bahiddhaa cassa vi~n~naa.na.m avikkhi.t.ta.m avisa.ta.m — see A ) and the expression "nor turned outward" (na caapanato — see B ) have much in common with asa.mkuppa.m, though they stress, in particular, the absence of an extreme extrovert attitude. The negation of the aforementioned "tertium-quid," finds expression in these two passages in the words: "not grasping, he would not be vexed (anupaadaaya naparitasseyya — see A ) and perhaps more clearly, in the rather unwieldy compound which we sought to render by: "...(that particular concentration) which is not a form of restraint forcibly held in place by formations" (na sasa"nkhaaraniggayhavaaritavato — see B ). This latter expression seems to suggest, by contrast, that any makeshift compromise between the two extremes of "attraction" and "repulsion"; of "sympathy" and "antipathy"; of "settling" and "distraction" (raaga-dosa; anunayapa.tigha; sa.mkhitta-vikkhitta) — such as obtain in any worldly type of concentration — is necessarily accompanied by mental synergies or formations (sankhaaraa). These formations exercise such a rigorous control over the concentration so much so that it might be called a state of pent-up tension or stress, however subtle it may appear. Hence, like all other phenomena which partake of a concocted and compound character, worldly concentration, even at its best, can yield only a "peace-dependent-on-irritability" (kuppapa.ticcasanti; Sn v.784). That extraordinary concentration of the arahant, however, has eliminated even this tertium-quid by the utter appeasement of all formations (sabbasa.mkharasamatha) and is therefore known as the "unexcitable (or unshakable) deliverance of the mind" (aakuppaacetovimutti). The appeasement of mental formations is accompanied by the relinquishment of all "assets" or "substrata" (sabbuupadhipa.tinissaggo) which arrest and sustain attention. Yet this paradoxical concentration does not lapse into a dull lethargy since it has as its quasi-object of attention the very Nibbaanic peace of the cessation of formations. [20] For instance at A V 321 one finds the Buddha giving the following explanation in response to Venerable AAnanda's query concerning the possibility and nature of such a concentration:

Herein, AAnanda, a monk attends thus: "This is peace, this is excellent, that is to say, the appeasement of all formations, the relinquishment of all assets (or substrata), the destruction of craving, dispassion, cessation, Nibbaana." Thus is it, AAnanda, that there could be such an attainment of concentration for a monk, in which he would not attend to the eye, nor to a form, nor to the ear, nor to a sound, nor to the nose, nor to a smell, nor to the tongue, nor to a flavor, nor to the body, nor to a tangible, nor to earth, nor to water, nor to fire, nor to air, nor to the sphere of infinity of space, nor to the sphere of infinity of consciousness, nor to the sphere of nothingness, nor to the sphere of neither-perception-nor-non-perception, nor to this world, nor to a world beyond. And whatever is seen, heard, sensed, cognized, attained, sought after and traversed by the mind, even to that he does not attend. But nevertheless, he does attend.

— A V 321

Transcending all polarities characteristic of the phenomenal consciousness, the emancipated one thus attains to the highest possible state of mental equilibrium which is "immovable and non-irritable" and in which he meditates, as it were, "thought-less."

	Passaddhakaayo suvimuttacitto
	asa"nkharaano satimaa anoko
	a~n~naaya dhamma.m avitakkajhaayii
	na kuppati na sarati na thiino
	Eva.mvihaari bahulo'dha bhikkhu
	Pa~ncoghati.n.no atariidha cha.t.tha.m
	Eva.m jhaayi.m bahula.m kaamasa~n~naa
	paribaahiraa honti aladdhaayo tanti...
	

	In body relaxed — in mind well freed,
	Concocting not,[21] mindful, abode-less.[22] 
	Well-knowing the Norm, he muses "thought-less"[23] 
	Gets not excited, yearns not, drowses not
	The monk thus abiding always, has here itself
	Crossed the five floods — yea, the sixth as well.[24] 
	And from him who thus ever in rapt meditation bides
	Are debarred all percepts of sense — they catch him not.
	

— S I 126

Unto them that stand mid-stream, O Kappa, — so said the Lord, When the frightful floods flow forth To them in Decay and Death forlorn An island, Kappa, I shall proclaim. Owning naught — grasping naught, The isle is this — none else besides. "Nibbaana" — that's how I call that isle Wherein is decayed Decay, and Death — is dead.

— Sn vv.1093-94

End Notes

1 .

That the ambiguity in the Paali words pure ("before" or "in front") and pacchaa ("after" or "behind") can at times be effectively trenchant, is well depicted by the episode cited in the DhpA in connection with this verse. The acrobat Uggasena was standing on a bamboo-pole when the Buddha addressed him in this verse, and hence it must have come to him as a powerful paradox penetrating deep into his now-concentrated mind, as he stood there precariously balanced on the bamboo-pole — a question of life and death for him. No wonder that he attained arahanthood then and there.

2 .

Though he observes that "there is apparently no example of ratti from this root in Paali (cf. Skt. rakti), " the expression " bhaaddekaarattiyo gaathaa " occurring in the Mahaakaccaana- and Lomasaka"ngiya-bhaddekaratta suttas may very well be regarded as the required example. Cf. na viraagaratto — not attached to detachment (Sn v.795).

3 .

Cf.: (i) bhadro purisaajaaniyo — a good thoroughbred of a man (A IV 400); (ii) bhadramukha — auspicious-faced (as a form of address; S I 74); (iii) bhaddako vataaya.m bhikkhu — indeed, this is an ideal ("nice") monk (S II 210); (iv) saavaka yuga.m... agga.m bhaddayuga.m — a pair of disciples...the chief and ideal Pair (D II 5).

4 .

This exposition of the summary with reference to the twelve sense-bases was later commended and ratified by the Buddha since it does not contradict his own exposition in terms of the five aggregates.

5 .

"Mind is not the bondage for ideas, ideas are not the bondage for the mind; but whatever desire-and-lust that arises therein dependent on them both — that is the bondage therein" (S IV 163, Ko.t.thika Sutta). See also reference to Migajaala Sutta above (Introduction).

6 .

Cf. Baahiya Sutta, Ud p.8: vi~n~naate vi~n~naatamatta.m bhavissati — in the thought, there will be just the thought.

7 .

See, for instance, "Talks by Krishnamurthy in Europe 1965" (Authentic Report), p.95.

8 .

Sati, though usually rendered by "mindfulness," covers, in general, the shades of meaning represented by its twin: sampaja~n~na (awareness, clear-comprehension).

9 .

D II 198; A IV 100.

10 .

"Talks by Krishnamurthy," p. 39.

11 .

Cf. thita.m citta.m vippamutta.m — the mind is firm and well released (A III 379); thitacittassa taadino — of the such-like one, firm in mind (D II 157).

12 .

Asa.mhira.m asa"nkuppa.m yassa natthi upamaa ki~nci — the immovable and non-irritable, for which there is no comparison anywhere (Sn v.1149); asa.mhiira.m asa.mkuppa.m citta.m aamodayaamaha.m — I rejoice in a mind which is immovable and non-irritable (Thag v.649).

13 .

Cf. vinaye kho pana .thito hoti asa.mhiiro — in regard to discipline, he is firmly established, is immovable (A IV 141). See also S I 193; Thag v.1243; Iti 77f.

14 .

Cf. vinaye kho pana cheko hoti asa.mhiiro — in regard to discipline, he is expert and immovable (Vin. II 96).

15 .

Cf. asa.mhiiroti na sakkaa gahitagahana.m vissajjaapetu.m — immovable: i.e., one cannot dislodge him from a stand point he has taken (in regard to a point of Discipline) [AA (Comm. on ref, at A IV 141)].

16 .

Cf. M I 185 ff.; A III 101; Vin III 47.

17 .

Avijjaa paccayaa sa.mkhaara — from ignorance as condition, formations (come to be). S II Nidaana Sa.myutta (passim).

18 .

What is true of perception is true of all "formations" born of ignorance. When the scientist perceives of conceived matter as "energy in a form of stress," he is probably bringing out some shades of meaning of the elusive term sa.mkhaaraa. But what is not so easily realized is the fact that it is his own perception and conception — guided as they are by interest and attention — which primarily accounts for this "energy" and "stress." At whatever level of perception he stops to take his bearings and formulate his theory, it becomes for him the "point of contact" (phassa) from which arises the "thing" to be observed, while his interest and attention, design, conglomerate, and agglutinate that "thing" under observation. It is only when the beam of attention is switched off, as it were, by the utter withdrawal of "interest" as in the case of the emancipated ones, that the truth of voidness (su~n~nataa) will be realized.

Duddasa.m ananta.m naama — na hi sacca.m sudassana.m pa.tividdhaa ta"nhaa — jaanato passato natthi ki~ncana.m Hard to see is the "endless" Not easy 'tis to see the truth Pierced through is craving And naught for him who knows and sees.

— Ud 80

19 .

Ya.m buddhase.t.tho pariva.n.nayii suci.m Samaadhimaanantarika~n~namaahu Samaadhinaa tenaa samo na vijjati

That pure concentration which the Supremely Awakened One extolled and which they call "Immediacy" — a concentration comparable to that there does not exist.

— Sn v.226 (Ratana Sutta)

The significance of the term anantarika as applied to this unique samaadhi, could best be illustrated by the following utterance of Venerable AAnanda:

While seeing in whatever manner, friend, there comes to be the immediate destruction of influxes (anantaraa aasavaana.m khayo hoti) — that is the highest (way of) seeing. While hearing in whatever manner there comes to be the immediate destruction of influxes — that is the highest hearing. While being happy in whatever way there comes to be the immediate destruction of influxes — that is the highest happiness. While perceiving in whatever manner there comes to be the immediate destruction of influxes — that is the highest perception. Being in whatever state there comes to be the immediate destruction of influxes — that is the highest (form of) existence.

— A III 202 (Bhaddaji Sutta)

20 .

Nibbaana becomes the highest state of peace (paramaa santi) for the arahant, due to his appeasement of all formations.

Rahadova mivaatova — anejo vuupasammati Like the lake — when there's no breeze, Urge-less, he is fully appeased.

— Iti 92

Cf. Schopenhauer: "The world can appear in its true color and form, in its complete and correct significance, only when the intellect, freed from willing, moves freely over objects, and yet is energetically active without being spurred on by the will. This is certainly contrary to the nature and destiny of the intellect; thus it is to a certain extent unnatural and for this reason, exceedingly rare. But it is precisely in this that the true nature of genius lies; and in this alone does that stage occur in a high degree and for some time, whereas in the rest it appears only approximately and exceptionally..."

— The World as Will and Representation (II 381-82), as quoted in Schopenhauer and Buddhism, by Bhikkhu Ñaanajiivako, Wheel Publication No. 144-46, p. 66.

21 .

Asa"nkharaano: The appeasement of formations is meant.

22 .

Anoko: Cf. S III 9f. — "The form element, householder, is an abode for consciousness... the feeling-element... the perception-element... the formations-element, householder, is an abode for consciousness..."

23 .

Avitakkajhaayi: The Commentary (SA) takes this to be a reference to the fourth jhaana. The term, however, has a deeper significance when applied to the unique concentration of the arahant. It suggests not the mere absence of thought-activity (which is the common characteristic of all jhaanas except the first), but the complete demolition of the whole edifice of the percept-concept structure with its subject-object duality.

Cf. Avitakka-samaadhi (Ud 71); avitakka.m samaapanno (Thag v.999); avitakkassa laabhini (Thig v.75); jhaayati anupaadaano (Thag vv.843-861).

24 .

I.e., the floods of defilements flowing in through the six sense-doors.