Conditionality of Consciousness

“Bhikkhus, consciousness is reckoned by the particular condition dependent upon which it arises. When consciousness arises dependent on the eye and forms, it is reckoned as eye-consciousness; when consciousness arises dependent on the ear and sounds, it is reckoned as ear-consciousness; when consciousness arises dependent on the nose and odors, it is reckoned as nose-consciousness; when consciousness arises dependent on the tongue and flavors, it is reckoned as tongue-consciousness; when consciousness arises dependent on the body and tangibles, it is reckoned as body-consciousness; when consciousness arises dependent on the mind and mind-objects, it is reckoned as mind-consciousness. Just as fire is reckoned by the particular condition dependent on which it burns - when fire burns dependent on logs, it is reckoned as a log fire; when fire burns dependent of faggots, it is reckoned as a faggot fire; when fire burns dependent on grass, it is reckoned as a grass fire; when fire burns dependent on cowdung, it is reckoned as a cowdung fire; when fire burns dependent on chaff, it is reckoned as a chaff fire; when fire burns dependent of rubbish, it is reckoned as a rubbish fire - so too, consciousness is reckoned by the particular condition dependent on which it arises. When consciousness arises dependent on the eye and forms, it is reckoned as eye-consciousness…when consciousness arises dependent on the mind and mind-object, it is reckoned as mind-consciousness.

General questionnaire on being

“Bhikkhus, do you see: ‘This has come to be’? - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, do you see: ‘Its origination occurs with that as nutriment’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, do you see: ‘with the cessation of that nutriment, what has come to be is subject as cessation’? - “Yes, venerable sir.”

“Bhikkhus, does doubt arise when one is uncertain thus: ‘Has this come to be or not;? - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, does doubt arise when one is uncertain thus: ‘Does its origination occur with that as nutriment or not’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, does doubt arise when one is uncertain thus: ‘With the cessation of that nutriment, is what has come to be subject to cessation or not‘?” - “Yes, venerable sir.”

“Bhikkhus, is doubt abandoned in one who sees as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: “This has come to be’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - Bhikkhus, is doubt abandoned when in one who sees as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: ‘Its origination occurs with that as nutriment’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, is doubt abandoned in one who sees as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: ‘With the cessation of that nutriment, what has come to be is subject to cessation’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.”

“Bhikkhus, are you free from doubt here: ‘This has come to be’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - Bhikkhus, are you free from doubt here: ‘Its origination occurs with that as nutriment‘?” “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, are you free from doubt here: ‘With the cessation of that nutriment, what has come to be is subject to cessation’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.”

“Bhikkhus, has it been seen well by you as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: ‘This has come to be’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, has it been seen well by you as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: “Its origination occurs with that as nutriment’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, has it been seen well by you as it actually is with proper wisdom thus: ‘With the cessation of that nutriment, what has come to be is subject to cessation’?” - “Yes, venerable sir.”

“Bhikkhus, purified and bright as this view is, if you adhere to it, cherish it, treasure it, and treat it as a possession, would you then understand the Dhamma that has been taught as similar to a raft, being for the purpose of crossing over, not for the purpose of grasping?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Bhikkhus, purified and bright as this view is, if you do not adhere to it, cherish it, treasure it, and treat is as a possession, would you then understand the Dhamma that has been taught as similar to a raft, being for the purpose of crossing over, not for the purpose of grasping?” - “Yes, venerable sir.”

Nutriment and dependent origination

“Bhikkhus, there are these four kinds of nutriment for the maintenance of beings that already have come to be and for the support of those about to come to be. What four? They are: physical food as nutriment, gross or subtle; contact as the second; mental volition as the third; and consciousness as the fourth.”

“Now, bhikkhus, these four kinds of nutriment have what as their source, what as their origin, from what are they born and produced? These four kinds of nutriment have craving as their source, craving as their origin; they are born and produced from craving. And this craving has what as its source…? Craving has feeling as its source…And this feeling has what as its source…? Feeling has contact as its source…And this contact has what as its source…?contact has the six fold base as its source…And this six fold base has what as its source…? The six-fold base has mentality-materiality as its source…And this mentality-materiality has what as its source…? Mentality-materiality has consciousness as its source…And this consciousness has what as its source…? Consciousness has formations as its source…And these formations have what as their source, what as their origin, from what are they born and produced: formations have ignorance as their source, ignorance as their origin; they are born and produced from ignorance.

Forward exposition on arising

“So, bhikkhus, with ignorance as condition, formations [come to be]; with formations as condition, consciousness; with consciousness as condition, mentality-materiality; with mentality-materiality as condition, the six fold base; with the six fold base as condition, contact; with contact as condition, feeling; with feeling as condition, craving; with craving as condition, clinging; with clinging as condition, being; with being as condition, birth, with birth as condition, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair come to be. Such is the origin of this whole mass of suffering.

Reverse order questionnaire on arising

“ ‘With birth as condition, ageing and death’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, do ageing and death have birth as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“ ‘Ageing and death have birth as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘with birth as condition, ageing and death.’”

“ ‘With being as condition, birth’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, does birth have being as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Birth has being as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With being as condition, birth.’”

“ ‘With clinging as condition, being’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, does clinging have craving as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Clinging has craving as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With feeling as condition, craving.’”

“ ‘With contact as condition, feeling’: so it was said Now, bhikkhus, does feeling have contact as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Feeling has contact as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With contact as condition, feeling.’”

“ ‘With the six fold base as condition, contact’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, does contact have the six fold base as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Contact has the six fold base as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case. ‘With the six fold base as condition, contact.’”

“ ‘With mentality-materiality as condition, the six fold base’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, does the six fold base have mentality-materiality as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case”?

“The six fold base has mentality-materiality as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With mentality-materiality as condition, the six fold base.’”

“ ‘With consciousness as condition, mentality-materiality’: so it was said. Now bhikkhus, does mentality-materiality have consciousness as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Mentality-materiality has consciousness as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With consciousness as condition, mentality-materiality.’”

“ ‘With formations as condition, consciousness’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, does consciousness have formations as conditions or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“consciousness has formations as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With formations as condition, consciousness.’”

“ ‘With ignorance as condition, formations’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, do formations have ignorance as condition or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Formations have ignorance as condition, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With ignorance as condition, formations.’”

Recapitulation on arising

“Good, bhikkhus. So you say thus, and I also say thus: ‘When this exists, that come to be; with the arising of this, that arises.’ that is, with ignorance as condition, formations, [come to be]; with formations as condition, consciousness; with consciousness as condition, mentality-materiality; with mentality-materiality as condition, the six fold base; with the six fold base as condition, contact; with contact as condition, feeling; with feeling as condition, craving; with craving as condition, clinging; with clinging as condition, being; with being as condition, birth; with birth as condition, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair come to be. Such is the origin of this whole mass of suffering.

Forward exposition on cessation

“But with the remainder less fading away and cessation of ignorance come cessation of formation; with the cessation of formations, cessation of consciousness; with the cessation of consciousness, cessation of mentality-materiality; with the cessation of mentality-materiality, cessation of the six fold base; with the cessation of six fold base, cessation of contact; with the cessation of contact, cessation of feeling; with the cessation of feeling, cessation of craving; with the cessation of craving, cessation of clinging, with the cessation of clinging, cessation of being; with the cessation of being, cessation of birth; with the cessation of birth, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair cease. Such is the cessation of this whole mass of suffering.

Reverse order questionnaire on cessation

“ ‘With the cessation of birth, cessation of ageing and death’: so it was said. Now, bhikkhus, do ageing and death cease with the cessation of birth or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Ageing and death cease with the cessation of birth, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: “With the cessation of birth, cessation of ageing and death.’”

“ ‘With the cessation of being, cessation of birth’… ‘With the cessation of clinging, cessation of being’… ‘With the cessation of craving, cessation of clinging’… “with the cessation of feeling, cessation of craving’… ‘With the cessation of contact, cessation of feeling… ‘With the cessation of the six fold base, cessation of contact’… ‘ With the cessation of mentality-materiality, cessation of the six fold base’… ‘With the cessation of consciousness, cessation of mentality-materiality’… ‘With the cessation of formations, cessation of consciousness’… ‘With the cessation of ignorance, cessation of formations’: so it was said. Now bhikkhus, do formations cease with the cessation of ignorance or not, or how do you take it in this case?”

“Formations cease with the cessation of ignorance, venerable sir. Thus we take it in this case: ‘With the cessation of ignorance, cessation of formations.’”

Recapitulation of cessation

“Good, bhikkhus. So you say thus, and I also say thus: ‘When this does not exist, that does not come to be; with the cessation of this, that ceases.’ That is, with the cessation of ignorance comes cessation of formations; with the cessation of formations, cessation of consciousness; with the cessation of consciousness, cessation of mentality-materiality; with the cessation of mentality-materiality, cessation of the six fold base; with the cessation of the six fold base, cessation of contact; with the cessation of contact, cessation of feeling; with the cessation of feeling, cessation of craving; with the cessation of craving, cessation of clinging; with the cessation of clinging, cessation of being; with the cessation of being, cessation of birth; with the cessation of birth, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair cease. Such is the cessation of this whole mass of suffering.

Personal knowledge

“Bhikkhus, knowing and seeing in this way, would you run back to the past thus: ‘Were we in the past? Were we not in the past? What were we in the past? How were we in the past? Having been what, what did we become in the past?’?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Knowing and seeing in this way, would you run forward to the future thus: ‘Shall we be in the future: Shall we not be in the future? What shall we be in the future: How shall we be in the future: Having been what, what shall we become in the future?’?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Knowing and seeing in this way, would you now be inwardly perplexed about the present thus: ‘Am I? Am I not? What am I? How am I? Where has this being come from? Where will it go?’?” - “No, venerable sir.”

“Bhikkhus, knowing and seeing in this way, would you speak thus: ‘The Teacher is respected by us. We speak as we do out of respect for the Teacher’?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Knowing and seeing in this way, would you speak thus: ‘The Recluse says this, and so do [other] recluses, but we do not speak thus’?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Knowing and seeing in this way, would you acknowledge another teacher?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Knowing and seeing in this way, would you return to the observances, tumultuous debates, and auspicious signs of ordinary recluses and brahmins, taking them as the core [of the holy life]?” - “No, venerable sir.” - “Do you speak only of what you have known, seen, and understood for yourselves?” - “Yes, venerable sir.”

“Good, bhikkhus, so you have been guided by me with this Dhamma, which is visible here and now, immediately effective, inviting inspection, onward leading, to be experienced by the wise for themselves. For it was with reference to this that it has been said: ‘Bhikkhus, this Dhamma is visible here and now, immediately effective, inviting inspection, onward leading, to be experienced by the wise for themselves.’

The round of existence: conception to maturity

“Bhikkhus, the conception of an embryo in a womb takes place through the union of three things. Here, there is the union of the mother and father, but it is not the mother’s season, and the being to be reborn is not present - in this case there is no conception of an embryo in a womb. Here, there is the union of the mother and father, and it is the mother’s season but the being to be reborn is not present - in this case there is no conception of an embryo in a womb. But when there is the union of the mother and father, and it is the mother’s season, and the being to be reborn is present, through the union of these three things the conception of an embryo in a womb takes place.

“The mother then carries the embryo in her womb for nine or ten months with much anxiety, as a heavy burden. Then, at the end of the nine or ten months, the mother gives birth with much anxiety, as a heavy burden. Then, the child is born, she nourishes it with her won blood; for the mother’s breast milk is called blood in the Noble One’s Discipline.

“When he grows up and his faculties mature, the child plays at such games as toy ploughs, tipcat, somersaults, toy windmills, toy measures, toy cars, and a toy bow and arrow.

“When he grows up and his faculties mature [still further], the youth enjoys himself provided and endowed with the five cords of sensual pleasure, with forms cognizable by the eye…sounds cognizable by the ear…odors cognizable by the nose…flavors cognizable by the tongue…tangibles cognizable by the body that are wished for, desired, agreeable and likeable, connected with sensual desire, and provocative of lust.

The continuation of the round

On seeing a form with the eye, he lusts after it if it is pleasing; he dislikes it if is unpleasing. He abides with mindfulness of the body unestablished, with a limited mind, and he does not understand as it actually is the deliverance of mind and deliverance by wisdom wherein those evil unwholesome states cease without remainder. Engaged as he is in favoring and opposing, whatever feeling he feels - whether pleasant or painful or neither-painful-nor-pleasant-he delights in that feeling, welcomes it, and remains holding to it. As he does so, delight arises in him. How delight in feelings is clinging. With his clinging as condition, being [comes to be]; with being as condition, birth; with birth as condition, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair come to be. Such is the origin of this whole mass of suffering.

“On hearing a sound with the ear…On smelling an odor with the nose.. On tasting a flavor with the tongue…On touching a tangible with the body…On cognizing a mind-object with the mind, he lusts after it if it is pleasing; he dislikes it if it is unpleasing…Now delight in feelings is clinging. With his clinging as condition, being [comes to be]; with being as condition, birth; with birth as condition, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair come to be. Such is the origin of this whole mass of suffering.

The ending of the round: The gradual training

“Here, bhikkhus, a Tathagata appears in the world, accomplished, fully enlightened…he purifies his mind from doubt.

“Having thus abandoned these five hindrances, imperfections of the mind that weaken wisdom, quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unwholesome states, he enters upon and abides in the first jhana…With the stilling of applied and sustained thought, he enters upon and abides in the second jhana…With the fading away as well of rapture …he enters upon and abides it the fourth jhana…which has neither-pain-nor-pleasure and purity of mindfulness due to equanimity.

The ending of the round: Full cessation

“On seeing a form with the eye, he does not lust after it if it is pleasing; he does not dislike it if it is unpleasing. He abides tie mindfulness of the body established, with an immeasurable mind, and he understands as it actually is the deliverance of mind and deliverance by wisdom wherein those evil unwholesome states ceases without remainder. Having thus abandoned favoring and opposing, whatever feeling he feels, whether delight in that feeling, welcome it, or remain holding to it. As he does not do so, delight in feelings ceases in him. With the cessation of his delight comes cessation of clinging; with the cessation of clinging, cessation of being; with the cessation of being cessation of birth; with the cessation of birth, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair cease. Such is the cessation of this whole mass of suffering.

“On hearing a sound with the ear…On smelling an odor with the nose…On tasting a flavor with the tongue…On touching a tangible with the body…On cognizing a mind-object with the mind, he does not lust after it if it is pleasing; he does not dislike it if it is unpleasing…With the cessation of his delight comes cessation of clinging; with the cessation of clinging, cessation of being; with the cessation of being; cessation of birth; with the cessation birth, ageing and death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, grief, and despair cease. Such is the cessation of this whole mass of suffering.

Conclusion

“Bhikkhus, remember this deliverance through the destruction of craving as taught in brief by me. But the bhikkhu Sati, son of a fisherman, is caught up in a vast net of craving, in the trammel of craving.”

That is what the Blessed One said, The bhikkhus were satisfied and delighted it the Blessed One’s words.

The source for the above material:
MN 38 Mahatanhasankhaya Sutta: The Greater Discourse on the Destruction of Craving.
Copyright © Bhikkhu Bodhi 1995, 2001. Reprinted from The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikaya. With permission from Wisdom Publications, 199 Elm Street, Somerville, MA 02144 U.S.A.

Related Topics (links):
Analysis of Dependent Co-arising
Dependent Originaiton