Ch. 5 - On Nāma (Mentality)
Nama Kammatthana, Reviewing the Aggregates of Mentality
The Feeling Aggregate
The Perception Aggregate
The Volitional Formations Aggregate
The Consciousness Aggregate
All of these Five Aggregates Arise and Pass Away
[This discourse was given on a six week Vipassanā retreat and investigates the mentality aggregate, looking at what the mind is made up of, to break down the compactness of our mental experience.]
Nama Kammatthana, Reviewing the Aggregates of Mentality
We continue our investigation of the aggregates of mind and matter that is the preparatory work which we must complete before the practice of vipassanā. Having come to review materiality as it is, so that we might come to the sure knowledge – this is materiality, this is its cause, this is its arising and this is its passing away. The material aggregate having been known by us, we turn to the investigation of the mental states that come to know materiality itself.
The Buddha reviewed the way in which an object comes to be known in the mind. Noticing first that it was dependent upon contact at one of the sense doors. Without contact from an object impinging at one of our sense doors – eye, ear, nose, tongue, body or at the heart base directly (as contact directly in the mind as a mental object), without this contact there was no way an object would come to be known, would appear within our awareness.
The Feeling Aggregate
He noted the contact, and thereafter noted that dependent upon this contact, this impinging at the sense doors, there arises within us a feeling, marking, or as a sign of, this contact. The Buddha reviewed this feeling that was produced by contact from the impinging of various objects at the sense doors and recognised two kinds of feeling – that feeling which is produced in the mind as a mental feeling and that feeling which is produced in the body. Feeling itself, however, is nāma. It is mentality, it is not materiality. Materiality itself does not feel.
The Buddha reviewed these feelings and recognised that there are inherently three types of feeling that one experiences in the mind and in the body. There is that group of feelings that are pleasant and enjoyable, those feelings that are neutral and those that are unpleasant.
When the Buddha reviewed feelings in this way, every time that any object was perceived he reviewed the feeling that it produced in the mind and in the body as pleasant, neutral or unpleasant. And he reviewed feelings in this way, coming to know the second aggregate of clinging, that aggregate of feelings that we cling to or that we shrink away from.
And he reviewed them all as conditionally arising, for without contact there is no feeling. Contact was the condition for the arising of feeling. And he reviewed them all as momentarily coming into being. At the point of contact, feeling arises. In the absence of that contact this feeling passes away. And he reviewed this aggregate of feeling as impermanent. And he came to know the second of the five aggregates of clinging.
The Perception Aggregate
As he reviewed further, this continuum of mental processes that constituted the mind and the experience of the mind, he came to identify perception as the next aggregate of clinging. Perception is the point of recognition, registration of the objects that appear in the sense doors or directly in the mind. Perception of visual objects, perception of mental objects, objects of sound, of taste, of smell, felt or tangible objects. Perception is the way the mind apprehends the characteristics and appearance of the objects it encounters, and it also is a highly conditioned process. And this perception sets off in itself a chain of associative ideas, thoughts, reflections, views which all come into play, becoming a mass of fog, a mirage-like smoke of illusion and confusion.
These perceptions are inherently rooted in wise attention or unwise attention. The Buddha realised that it is unwise attention that perceives the materiality in the body as my hand, my finger, my arm, my head and fails to review with wise attention, perceiving this as four elements, this is its proximate cause, its arising and its passing away. It is this unwise attention, which causes unwise perception, that is one of the causes for the coming to view and the clinging to objects.
The Buddha reviewed this perception aggregate, separating out this perception rooted in wise attention which sees things as they are and this perception, rooted in unwise attention, which fails to see things as they are. Wise attention, the perception of things as they are, produces insight knowledge, the understanding of arising and passing away and the cutting off of attachment. Perception, rooted in unwise attention, perceiving the compactness of things, and causing the grouping of things together, produces the tendency to identify, associate with and cling to objects of formation. In this way the Buddha reviewed the aggregate of perception.
Looking for its cause, he noted that this perception arises dependent on feeling. It does not arise upon its own. When feeling arises, perception arises. This feeling is a conditioning factor for the arising of perception. This perception having arisen, dependent upon feeling, is momentary, is transient, arises and passes away. In this way he reviewed the third aggregate of clinging, the aggregate of perception. Noting that when the mind was rooted in ignorance, unwise attention, it produces that perception of objects to which the mind is inclined to cling. Noting that perception, rooted in wise attention, that perceives the true nature of things, their conditioned arising, their impermanence and their passing away, produces in the mind a tendency to let go and cut off clinging.
This was how the Buddha reviewed perception, recognising that direct perception simply apprehends things as they are, resting always in the knowledge and direct awareness that this is transient, this is conditionally arising, this is momentarily passing away. It was this coming to direct perception of the truth of things that opened the door to his awakening. So the perception aggregate is key. How we perceive things will determine whether we remain enslaved in our attachment to them or whether we are able to free ourselves.
The Volitional Formations Aggregate
In continuing to review the mind, the Buddha came next to the investigation of the fourth aggregate of clinging. In this mental chain which constitutes the knowing of an object, he perceived that feeling and perception are the cause for the appearance in the mind of some kind of volitional response or wilful response or reaction to the object. How we react or respond to those objects that impinge directly upon our sense doors or that arise directly in the mind, is itself conditioned by feeling and perception. How we have perceived an object, and how we feel about it determines how we react to it.
He reviewed this aggregate of volitional formations or saṅkhārā, reactions within the mind. He noticed that this perception that was rooted in unwise attention, that came to views about this object, that clung to ideas and associations about this object and failed to see it at its fundamental level, produced in him a tendency to react with craving, clinging, attachment or aversion, ill will. This unwise attention, failing to perceive directly the true nature of this object, produced in him either a tendency to cling or a tendency to seek to avoid.
He realised that this aggregate of volitional formations, this saṅkhārā aggregate, was the very point at which the kammic force associated with the coming to know an object, arises. This liking for, this desire to cling to, or this disliking, this aversion to, is the very kammic energy itself. “It is the volition that I call kamma, bhikkhus. Having willed, I act.” This is how the Buddha described kamma itself. It is the fourth aggregate of clinging. The aggregate of saṅkhārā which constitutes that force or volition which becomes kamma.
And the Buddha reviewed the aggregate of saṅkhārā, volitional reactions in this way. He came to know that the arising of this volitional response is dependent utterly upon perception and this perception may be rooted in wise attention or unwise attention. When wise attention appears in the mind the object is apprehended directly as it is, known to be transient, seen to be conditionally arising, seen to be impermanent. This wise attention produces in the mind a chain of wholesome volitional responses, that are not rooted in greed, that are not rooted in aversion, that cut off the arising of unwholesome kamma. And he gained his first insight into what might be the cause for the cessation of suffering.
And he continued to review in this way and he noticed that that perception which was rooted in unwise attention, that came to associate, create ideas about and identify with objects, was the cause for the arising of unwholesome states that produce kamma. Perceiving this is my hand, my arm, my body, that this is my mother, my friend, my enemy, this is my car, my house, and not perceiving material forms as the four elements, not perceiving mental forms as nothing but the arising and passing of mental states that are transient and conditionally arising, not perceiving these formations with wise attention, is the cause for our clinging to states.
We cling only to those objects about which we fail to break down the perception of compactness. If we investigate things, come to see them with wise attention, we do not have the tendency to cling to them.
And so the Buddha reviewed these first four aggregates which constituted this idea that he called ‘me’. The aggregate of material states that becomes the body. The aggregate of feeling that becomes the conditioning cause for the aggregate of perception. The aggregate of perception that becomes the conditioning cause for the aggregate of volition, reaction. And he started to gain his insight into this causal chain of Dependent Origination.
He started to understand for himself, “There is nothing that I have thus far come to perceive, which upon investigation can be said to be permanent in any way, to sustain itself for anything more than an instant. Nor can it be said that any of these states of mind and body that I have come thus far to perceive, are inherently there. Each and every one of them has a cause that becomes the condition for its arising. Only in the presence of this cause does it arise. In the absence of that cause it does not arise”.
The Consciousness Aggregate
And thereafter the Buddha continued his investigation of mental states, coming to review the fifth aggregate – the aggregate of consciousness itself; consciousness, this experience that knows an object. This eye-consciousness that knows visual objects. This nose-consciousness that knows smells. This tongue-consciousness that knows taste. This ear-consciousness that knows sounds. This body-consciousness that knows tangible objects as a felt experience. And mind-consciousness itself, that comes to know mental objects directly in the mind-door.
He realised that it was consciousness that brought objects into awareness. He reviewed this aggregate of consciousness. How is it? Upon what does it arise? And he came to see directly that consciousness itself arises only dependent upon the base that is its support and upon contact with an object to be known. The eye-consciousness arises only dependent upon the kamma-produced materiality in the base of the eye, that becomes the eye base. In the absence of this kammic energy which produces the kamma-produced materiality in the eye, there is no basis for sight and visual objects are not apprehended. Eye-consciousness does not appear.
Likewise with all the consciousness bases. He perceived that this consciousness arises utterly dependent upon the kamma that is the producing cause for its support. And this kamma is rooted in clinging, desire for and attachment. And in the absence of that clinging, the kamma that produces the eye-base, ear-base, nose-base and so on does not come into being. With the absence of these bases for its support, consciousness itself does not arise. In this way he reviewed consciousness as the fifth aggregate of clinging that constitutes this continuum of processes that we call ‘self’. And so he began to see more clearly the causal chain for the arising of things that he came to call Dependent Origination.
All of these Five Aggregates Arise and Pass Away
He reviewed the qualities of consciousness, moment to moment. Sometimes, consciousness is exalted, of a high and pure quality, concomitant with noble mental states, the absence of clinging and the presence of wise attention. And at other times ignoble consciousness arises, shrunken, full of ignorance, the tendency to attachment, craving, clinging and aversion, and unwise attention.
And so the Buddha sat that night of his awakening, reviewing the constituent parts of what he perceived himself to be. And he came to the sure knowledge that this being that I have called me, is nothing more than the momentary arising of these five aggregates of clinging, this aggregate of material states that I call the body and these aggregates of mental states of feelings, perceptions, volitional reactions and consciousness itself that I have called my mind.
My pride, my conceit, my sense of self has caused me to cling to this body as mine and has caused me to cling to this mind as mine and identify with it. And this has been the cause of my suffering. For it is sure, it is without doubt, that each and all of these five aggregates will pass away. This ‘me’ that I have clung to, is subject to old age, sickness and death. It is this clinging that is the cause of suffering. And it is the absence of this clinging that leads to the cessation of suffering.
With this reflection he began his practice of what we now call vipassanā. And so in stages arose in him that insight which cut off the residual attachment to the sense of self. His preparation was the diligent and ardent investigation of all conditioned states so that he could come to the sure knowledge – this is materiality, and this is mentality. Both materiality and mentality and their states have entirely been known by me.
Reviewing materiality internally and externally he came to know that it is all dependently arising. He knew what were its causes, he knew what was its passing away. He came to the sure knowledge that these aggregates of feeling, of perception, of volitional reactions and consciousness itself, constitute this experience of mental processes that he had called mind. And this mind is nothing more than the arising and passing of these four aggregates. It has been known by me, internally and externally.
With this knowledge that this is materiality and this is mentality, the knowledge of mind and matter arose within the Buddha and everywhere he cast his mind throughout the universe, he could see nothing but these material states and these mental states arising. At this point the Buddha knew that conditioned states were known by him. All that remained for him was to continue to review them, perceiving them with wise attention, knowing them as they are, until he cut through all ignorance and came to know them, came to know their nature, came to know their causes, came to know their passing away.
It was at this point that the Buddha came to the understanding of Dependent Origination which was the crowning jewel of his insight that night, which opened the doorway beyond conditioned states to the unconditioned state of Nibbāna, where conditioned states come to cessation. This is how we must practise our vipassanā.
In our next talk, we will investigate this law of Dependent Origination that finally breaks down the perception of self, the idea that this is me, this is mine, I am this, and leads us to the sure understanding of anatta, the absence of any inherent self. But to begin with it is enough to start to review the impermanence, the arising and passing away of states. In this way we should practise, with the understanding of them as five aggregates – one aggregate of material states and four aggregates of mental states.
