The Great Discourse on the Wheel of Dhamma

FIVE GROUPS OF GRASPING AT THE MOMENT OF EATING

At the moment of knowing the taste through eating, there is clearly the tongue, the taste and the consciousness of the taste. In this consciousness of the taste is comprised the pleasant or unpleasant feeling of the taste, recognition or remembering the taste, exercise of the will and tuming the attention towards the object to accomplish the task of eating and just knowing of the taste.

Failure to note as eating, eating at the moment of eating and to see the phenomenon of eating as it truly is results in attachment to it as I, mine, etc. Because of the possibility of such attachments, the tongue, the taste and the conscidusness of taste are known as upadanakkhandhd.

To recapitulate:

(1) At the moment of eating, the tongue and the taste are

rupa-upadanakkhandhd..

(2) The pleasant or unpleasant feeling of taste is vedand-

upadanakkhandha.

(3) Recognising or remembering the taste is sannd-

upadanakkhandhd.

(4) Exercise of the will to taste and to tum the attention

towards the object of taste is sankhdra-updddnak-

khandhda.

(5) Just knowing of the taste is vinndn-upddanakkhandhd.

While eating the food, preparing a morsel of the food in the hand, bringing it up and putting itm the mouth, and chewing it; all these actions are concemed with knowing the sensation of touch; knowing the taste on the tongue while chewing the food, however, is consciousness of the taste. Thus, noting the taste on every occasion of eating the food has to be carried out to see as they really are, the five groups of ndma and rupa which manifest themselves at the time of tasting and to remain at the stage of just tasting so’ that no attachment to it as I, mine, permanent, pleasant, good etc., can arise.

FIVE GROUPS OF GRASPING AT THE MOMENT OF TOUCHING

The sense of touch encompasses a wide field. Throughout the whole body of a person, wherever flesh and blood are in good condition, is diffused ka@yapasdda rupa, the sentient surface, which gives the sense of touch. Both inside the body, in the flesh, in the blood, in muscles, bones etc, and outside the body, on the skin, this sensitive principle lies spread out not leaving an area the size of a pin-point.

Wherever this sensitive principle exists, the sense of touch may be felt. At the moment of touching, the sensitive principle which has the ability to seize the material tactile body is prominent. It becomes evident as the site of impact but not as any form or shape. Likewise, the sensitive parts of ear, nose and tongue become evident as sites of impact where sense of hearing. smell and taste are developed.

Also prominent at the moment of impact is the material tactile body, which may be any of the three elements: pathavi, tejo or vayo. The hardness, roughness, smoothness and softness one feels is pathavi; the heat felt or the warmth or cold is tejo; stiffness, pressure or motion is vGyo. Such sensations of touch may arise as a result of friction between different elements in the body; or through contact, outside the body, with clothing, bedding, seats, earth, water, wind, fire or heat of the sun. Such impacts produce very vivid sensations of touch. The consciousness of touch comprises of pleasant or unpleasant feeling perception of the impact, exercise of the will and bending of the mind to accomplish the act of touching and just knowing that a contact has been established. The feeling of pleasure or unpleasantness is especially vivid. Physical pain is the feeling of suffering (dukkhavedand) which arises through disagreeable contacts.

_ Failure to be mindful at the moment of touch and to see the reality as it truly is, results in the development of attachment as I, mine etc., towards all these objects which become prominent at the time of touching. Accordingly, the site of touch, the sentient surface

(sensitive principle), the feeling of touch and knwoing that a contact has been made, are called upadanakkhandhds.

Mnemonic note:

(1) At the moment of touching, the sentient surface and the

impact of the touch are rupa-upadanokkhandha.

(2) The pleasant or unpleasant feeling of touch is vedand-

updd@nokkhandhd.

(3) Recognising or remembering the touch is sannd-

upadanokkhandhda.

(4) Exercising the will and tuming the attention to accom-

plish the act of touching is sankhdra-upaddanokkhandhda.

(S) Just knowing that a contact has been made is vinndn-

updadanokkhandhda.

Practice of noting the bodily postures such as going standing, sitting, sleeping, bending,stretching, moving, nsing and falling, etc. is made just to be mindful of these Groups of Grasping. When noting these body postures, the specially perceptible element of vavo which causes stiffness, pressure and motion, is seen as it truly is, just a matenal body rupa without any power of cognition. The knowing mind which takes note of the body postures is also seen as it truly is, consciousness, nGma, which cognizes an object. Thus at every occasion of noting, there is always a pair: rupa, the object which is taken note of and ndma, the knowing mind which takes note of it. After perceiving this fact exactly and clearly, there follows the knowledge of cause and effect. There is the ‘going posture’ because of the desire to go. Then perceiving clearly that rupa, the object noted and ndma, the knowing mind, arise and vanish, arise afresh and vanish again at the very moment of noting, realization comes to the yogi that these phenomena are transient, painful, distressing and are happening according to their own nature and are therefore not controllable, anatta. Because of this realization or conviction, there is no longer any attachment on going, standing, sitting etc., as | or mune.

This 1s how attachment is cut otf in accordance with the Maha Satipatthana Sutta which says, "There is no more attachment on. any thing of the world, namely, the material body or the five aggregates". To be thus free from attachment, mindfulness on the body, the feeling, the mind and the mental objects has to be developed.

Painful feelings such as stiffness, feeling hot, acheing, itching etc., become evident at the location of impact. Failure to note the distress as it occurs and to see its true nature results in attachments: I feel stiff, I feel hot, I feel painful, I am distressed. It is to avoid such attachments that mindful noting of the distressful feeling has to be made to realize its true nature. Continuous and close watching of the painful feelings will reveal clearly how painful feelings of stiffmess. hotness, aches appear to come up affresh in the body one after another i succession. Then personal conviction will come that these painful feelmgs come imto existence for a moment only and then vanish away and that they are, therefore, of impermanent nature. They are no longer grasped at as I, mine, permanent. One becomes free from attachments. Hence this need for mindful note taking.

FIVE GROUPS OF GRASPING AT THE MOMENT OF THINKING

Mental activities such as thinking, imagining are very extensive in scope and of frequent occurrence. In waking moments, the mind is almost constantly active. Even in the absence of any attractive, pleasant objects in one's surroundings, imagination creates them to appear as if in real existence. The hindrances, namely, sensual desires, ill-will, sloth and torpor, restlessness and worry, skeptical doubts are concemed with such mental activities. So are the thoughts or reflections on lust, ill-will ‘and cruelty (kama: vitakka, vyapada vitakka and vihimsa vitakka). Unless these mental activities are mindfully noted as they occur, they are liable to be identified as self (atta), a living entity. Hence it is very important to note each mental activity as it occurs.

When carefully anaiysed, mental activities are also five aggregates of grasping, updddanakkhandhds. Thiukmg may be accompanied by a happy feeling (somanassa) or an unpleasant feeling (domanassa); ot thinking may arise accompanied by neither pleasant nor unpleasant feeling but a neutral feeling (upekkhd vedand). When there is no mindfulness on these three types of feeling as they occur, they are liable to be grasped at as "I feel pleasant, I feel fine, I feel miserable, I feel bad. I feel neither pleasant nor unpleasant". For this liability of causing such attachments, these three types of feeling are known as vedand-upddanakkhandhd.

Then, there is also evident Sannd, sense-perception which recognises the object on which the mind is dwelling. This sannd is specially pronounced when trying to remember facts to speak about or when engaged in making calculations in checking accounts. Conceming this sannd, wrong notions may arise 'I remember. I have good memory’. Hence it is called sannd-upddanakkhandhd.

At the moment of thinking or exercising imagination, there comes into noticeable action, phassa, clear awareness of the presence of the object; vitakka, mental inclination towards the object; manasikara, fixing the attention on the cbject; cetand, which incites and urges, ‘Let it be this wise, let it be that wise’. The role of cetand is especially pronounced when, for stance, an important matter happens to come up in the mind at the dead of night and it cannot be attended to. The driving urge of cetand 'Go now and tell him' is very prominent. That immoral thoughts are accompanied by lobha, dosa etc., and moral thoughts by alobha, adosa, amoha, sadhd, sati etc., is clearly discemed.

The mental concomitants phassa, cetand and manasikdra are inciting agents responsible for arising of thoughts (ideas, imaginations, concepts) ‘one after another in succession. They are also at the back of every act of speaking and body movements such as going, standing, sitting, sleeping, bending, stretching etc. The incitement, the urge concemed with each mental, vocal or physical activity is sankhdra which condition an act by prompting, inducing,

directng etc. This conditioning role of sankhdra may result in its being identified as a person or a living entity and wrongly cleaved to as I. The notion 'I think, I speak, I go, I do' is wrong attachment to this conditioning 'sankhdra’. Such attachment is known as clinging to karakatta, attachment to performing-self. Therefore the sankharas namely phassa, cetand, manasikdra etc., are called sankhara-upGdanakkhandhda.

Then at the: moment of thinking, there is evident also consciousness of the act of thinking Burmese people regard consciousness and mental concomitants together as just mind, cifta. This consciousness of the act of thinking is very commonly viewed as soul, ego, atta for which reason consciousness is also knwon as

In addition, at the moment of thmking, the material body which provides the base for thinking is also so evident that the uninformed people believe it is the material body which is thinking. For this reason, the material body which provides the base for thinking is known as rupa-upadddnakkhandhd.

The object of thought may be material, rupa mental, ndma, or pannati, name, idea (notion, concept). These also serve as objects of attachment. The matenal object belongs to rupaupadaGnakkhandha. The mental object is classified under the four categories of the ndma-upadanakkhandhd. Pannati may be included in the material or mental group of grasping which ever it corresponds. For instance, in 'Yam piccham na labhati’ 'tampi dukkham' ‘not getting what one wants is suffering’ ‘not getting what one wants' is neither material nor mantal; just pannati. The commentarial note in Mula Tika on this pomt says that the desire for the unattainable should be taken as dukkha.

We have made a complete analysis of the five groups of grasping which become evident at the moment of thinking. To recapitulate:-

(1) The material body which forms the basis of thinking

at the moment of thinking is rupa-upadanakkhandhdé.

(2) The pleasant or unpleasant feeling of thinking is vedand-

upadanakkhandhd.

(3) Recognising or remembering the object of thoughit 1s

sanna-updddnakkhandhd.

(4) Mental urging and inclination to accomplish the act of

thinking, saying or doing is sankhdra-upadanakkhandha.

(5) Just being conscious of thinking is vinnan-updddnak-

khandhd.

It is very importnat to realize the true nature of thought by being mindful of it every time thinking occurs. Failing to take note of it and thus failing to recognize its real nature will lead to attachment to it as I, mine, permanent, pleasant, good, etc. The majority of people in these days are almost constantly clinging to these mental objects. Such attachments give rise to active processes for becoming, in accordance with 'updda@napaccaya bhavo' of the Law of Dependent Origination, Paticca Samuppada. And in every state of new becoming, there awaits old age. disease, death followed by sufferings of sorrow, lamentation pain. gnef and despair.

If, however, mindfulness is developed on each occurence of a thought, its real nature of impermanence, painfulness and insubstantiality, (anicca, dukkha, anatta) will become evident. Having thus known its true nature, no attachment to it arises; hence no active processes for new becoming take place. And when there is no new becoming, the mass of suffering represented by old age, disease, death, sorrow, lamentation etc. is completely eliminated. This cessation of suffering as a result of mindfulness on each thought as it occurs is momentary. But if the practice of noting every thought is continued, gaining temporary cessation on each noting, by the time the Ariya magga becomes fully developed, the mass of suffering will have been completely eradicated. Thus while being occupied with the exercise of noting rising, falling, sitting, touching, if any thought or idea intervenes, it should be noted as eee he bere ee we have made above will demonstrate Sang seater wana we have made above will demonstrate

clearly that what becomes prominent at the six moments of seeing. hearing, smelling, tasting and touching and thinking are merely five groups of grasping To common people who cannot practise this exercise of noting, at the moment of seeing. the subject which sees is obviously some substantial body; the extemal object which is seen is also obviously a woman, a man, a substantial body. Likewise with the phenomena of hearing, etc In reality, however, there is no such substance or mass to form a physical body, only the five groups of grasping. Nothing exists except at the six moments of seeing, hearing etc. They become evident only at the six moments and what become evident then are also just the five groups of grasping.

SUFFERING BECAUSE OF THE FIVE GROUPS OF GRASPING

Dreadful sufferings of new becoming, old age. death, sorrow, grief, etc., arise because of the five groups of grasping. So long as these five groups of grasping exist, dreadful sufferings of beconring. getting old, death, etc., will persist. Therefore the five groups of grasping are themselves dreadful suffering. In short, because there is physical body. rupa. physical and mental sufferings dependent upon rupa arise. Because there is the knowing mind, nama, physical and mental sufferings based on it, arse. Therefore, rupa and nama constituting the five groups of grasping are dreadful suffering.

In other words, the unbearable physical and mental distresses are dreadful intrinsic sufferings known as dukkha-dukkha. Every one fears them. Thus, dukkha vedand, feelmg of pain, otherwise upddanakkhandhd is the real Truth of suffering.

Pleasant sensations in the body and mind are agreeable, delightful, enjoyable while they last, but when they vanish, they are replaced by discomfort, dissatisfaction which of course is suffering. This kind of suffering, known as viparindma dukkha, comes about through change or conversion from a pleasant state or condition to something different and is terrible. To the Anyas, the Noble Ones, pleasant sensations are like the ogress, who bewitchde people with