The Five Aggregates of Clinging (Upādānakkhandhā)
Saṁyutta Nikāya — Khandhavāra Vagga (Volume 3, p. 235) 10. Puṇṇama Sutta (Excerpt selected to illustrate that the Five Aggregates arise dependent on conditions — they are saṅkhāra.)
The Arising of the Five Aggregates
“Venerable Sir, what is the cause and condition for the appearance of the form aggregate (rūpa-kkhandha), the feeling aggregate (vedanā-kkhandha), the perception aggregate (saññā-kkhandha), the formations aggregate (saṅkhāra-kkhandha), and the consciousness aggregate (viññāṇa-kkhandha)?”
The Blessed One replied:
- “Bhikkhu, The four great elements (mahā-bhūta-rūpa) are the cause and condition for the arising of the form aggregate (rūpa-kkhandha), which is a saṅkhāra (a conditioned formation).
- Contact (phassa) is the cause and condition for the arising of the feeling aggregate (vedanā-kkhandha), which is a saṅkhāra.
- Contact (phassa) is the cause and condition for the arising of the perception aggregate (saññā-kkhandha), which is a saṅkhāra.
- Contact (phassa) is the cause and condition for the arising of the formations aggregate (saṅkhāra-kkhandha) — meaning all mental formations other than form, feeling, perception, and consciousness.
- Name-and-form (nāma-rūpa) is the cause and condition for the arising of the consciousness aggregate (viññāṇa-kkhandha), which is a saṅkhāra.”
The Ending of Identity View (Sakkāya-diṭṭhi)
“Venerable Sir, how does identity view cease?”
The Blessed One said:
“Bhikkhu, in this Dhamma and Discipline, an Ariyan disciple — one who has heard, who has seen the Noble Ones, who is skilled in the Noble Dhamma, who has met true persons (sappurisa), and is well-instructed in their teachings —
does not view form (rūpa) as self, does not view self as possessing form, does not view form as in self, nor self as in form.
Likewise, he does not view feeling (vedanā) as self, nor self as possessing feeling, nor feeling in self, nor self in feeling.
He does not view perception (saññā) as self, nor self as possessing perception, nor perception in self, nor self in perception.
He does not view formations (saṅkhārā) as self, nor self as possessing formations, nor formations in self, nor self in formations.
He does not view consciousness (viññāṇa) as self, nor self as possessing consciousness, nor consciousness in self, nor self in consciousness.
Bhikkhu, in this way identity view (sakkāya-diṭṭhi) ceases.”
The Ending of the Āsavas
Pāli Canon, Royal Thai Edition, Volume 23
The Buddha said:
“Bhikkhus, the destruction of the taints (āsavā) may occur through relying on the first jhāna, or the second jhāna, or the third, or the fourth, or the sphere of infinite space (ākāsānañcāyatana), and so on… or through the sphere of neither-perception-nor-non-perception (nevasaññā-nāsaññāyatana).
Bhikkhus, when I say, ‘The ending of the taints may occur through the first jhāna,’ on what basis do I say this?
In this Dhamma and Discipline, a bhikkhu, secluded from sensual pleasures… enters and abides in the first jhāna.
In that very jhāna, he contemplates the phenomena that are present — form (rūpa), feeling (vedanā), perception (saññā), formations (saṅkhārā), consciousness (viññāṇa) — as:
- impermanent (anicca),
- suffering (dukkha),
- a disease,
- a boil,
- a dart,
- misery,
- an affliction,
- alien,
- decaying,
- empty,
- not-self (anattā).
He steadies his mind upon these truths. Then he inclines the mind toward the Deathless (amata-dhātu), thinking:
‘This is peaceful, this is sublime — the stilling of all saṅkhāras, the relinquishing of all attachments, the destruction of craving, dispassion, cessation, Nibbāna.’
Remaining in that first jhāna, he may attain the complete destruction of the taints.
If he does not reach the complete destruction of the taints in this life, he becomes spontaneously born (opapātika) in that realm and attains final Nibbāna there, without ever returning to this world — for the five lower fetters (orambhāgiya-saṃyojana) have vanished through his joy and confidence in that Dhamma.
The Buddha concluded with a simile:
“Bhikkhus, just as a skilled archer or his apprentice, after much training, is able to shoot far, shoot unerringly, and shatter great targets — so too, a bhikkhu who enters the first jhāna, contemplates form, feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness as impermanent, suffering, empty, and not-self, and then turns the mind toward the Deathless — such a bhikkhu reaches the end of the taints, or, if not in this life, is reborn in a higher realm and attains final Nibbāna there.”