Pheṇapiṇḍa Sutta (3)
On the Five Aggregates likened to a Sponge
[242] At one time the Blessed One was dwelling on the bank of the Ganges at Ayodhā. There He called the bhikkhus together and said:
“Bhikkhus, the Ganges carries along great masses of sponge. A man with clear vision inspects such a mass closely and carefully. When he inspects it closely, the sponge appears empty — hollow, void of solid essence. How could there be any substantial kernel in that sponge? Even so, bhikkhus, any rūpa whatsoever — whether past, future, or present; internal or external; coarse or subtle; inferior or superior; far or near — when you inspect that rūpa closely, it will appear empty, hollow, lacking any substantial core. How could there be any essence in rūpa?
[243] Again, when a large rain-drop falls into a pool, a water-bulb rises and then ceases. A man with clear vision inspects that water-bulb closely. When he inspects it closely, the water-bulb appears empty — hollow, void of substance. How could there be any core to that water-bulb? Even so, bhikkhus, any vedanā whatsoever — past, future, or present; internal or external; coarse or subtle; inferior or superior; far or near — when you inspect that vedanā closely, it will appear empty, hollow, lacking any substantial core. How could there be any essence in vedanā?
[244] Again, in the last month of the hot season at midday the sun’s glare shimmers and flashes. A man with clear vision inspects that shimmer closely. When he inspects it closely, the glare appears empty — wholly unsubstantial. How could there be any core in that sun-glare? Even so, bhikkhus, any saññā whatsoever — past, future, present; internal or external; coarse or subtle; inferior or superior; far or near — when closely inspected, saññā appears empty and without essence.
[245] Again, a man in search of heartwood goes into the forest with a sharp cutting implement. He sees a young, straight banana trunk, not yet hardened by the central shoot. He cuts the base, trims the tip, strips off the sheathing layers — yet finds no solid heartwood. Where, then, is the kernel of that banana trunk? A man with clear vision inspecting the banana-trunk sees it as hollow and empty — without core. Even so, bhikkhus, any saṅkhāra whatsoever — past, future, or present; far or near — when inspected closely, appears empty and lacking any substantial core. How could there be any essence in saṅkhāra?
[246] Again, a conjurer or an assistant performs magic at a crossroads. A man with clear vision inspects the trick closely. When he inspects it closely, the magic appears empty — illusory, without reality. How could there be any substance in that trick? Even so, bhikkhus, any viññāṇa whatsoever — past, future, or present; internal or external; coarse or subtle; inferior or superior; far or near — when inspected closely, appears empty and unsubstantial.
When a noble disciple, having heard this, sees thus, he becomes disenchanted with rūpa, with vedanā, with saññā, with saṅkhārā, and with viññāṇa. Being disenchanted, he is freed from clinging; freed from clinging, his mind is liberated; when liberated, he knows: ‘I am liberated.’ He knows clearly: ‘Birth is ended, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no further becoming of this kind.’
The Blessed One, the Well-Gone One, then spoke this verse:
[247] “The Buddha — sun-origin of the generations — likened rūpa to a sponge, vedanā to a water-bulb, saññā to a shimmering sun-glare, saṅkhārā to a banana-trunk, and viññāṇa to a conjurer’s trick. If a bhikkhu inspects the five khandhas with clear insight, the five khandhas will appear empty and hollow to him. Thus is the teaching—three things to be abandoned—which the Blessed One, wise over the world, when addressing the body, set forth. Look upon the body that has been left behind. When age, fever and viññāṇa depart from this body, then that body is abandoned, lying there without mind — food for beasts. Such continuity is like a conjurer’s trick, which fools dwell on in delusion. The Tathāgata says: the five khandhas are executioners; there is no essence in them. A bhikkhu who has aroused effort, who is mindful and self-possessed, should examine the khandhas thus by day and by night. If he longs for the deathless (Nibbāna), let him abandon all saṅyojanas, make a refuge for himself, conduct himself as one whose head is on fire.”
End of the Pheṇapiṇḍa Sutta (3)
Short Pāli Glossary (concise · intensive)
- khandha (khandhā / aggregates) — the five groups (rūpa, vedanā, saññā, saṅkhārā, viññāṇa) that comprise experience; here often rendered five khandhas or five aggregates.
- rūpa — material form; physical phenomena.
- vedanā — feeling-tone (pleasant / painful / neutral).
- saññā — perception, recognition, labeling.
- saṅkhārā — volitional formations, mental fabrications, conditioned activities.
- viññāṇa — consciousness; bare awareness of an object.
- paccavekkhaṇa — close inspection; careful observation (related verb used here: “inspect closely”).
- pheṇapiṇḍa — sponge (used as an image for insubstantiality).
- pāyāsa / sūriya-pahāra terms (glare, shimmer) — used here as imagery for saññā (sun-glare = ephemeral).
- saṅyojana — fetters, bonds that tie beings to saṃsāra.
- nibbāna (Nibbāna) — the unconditioned, deathless; goal of the path.
- arahant / Tathāgata / Bhagavā — honorific titles for the Buddha (used contextually).
- anupassanā / yoniso manasikāra — attentive, wise contemplation / investigation (method implied by “inspect closely”).