A question on different translations of Six Sets of Six - Eye-feeling vs feeling

Q & A
1

Pali

Evaṁ passaṁ, bhikkhave, sutavā ariyasāvako cakkhusmiṁ nibbindati, rūpesu nibbindati, cakkhuviññāṇe nibbindati, cakkhusamphasse nibbindati, vedanāya nibbindati, taṇhāya nibbindati. Variant: cakkhusmiṁ → cakkhusmiṁpi (sya-all, km)

Bhante Sujato translation

Seeing this, a learned noble disciple grows disillusioned with the eye, sights, eye consciousness, eye contact, feeling, and craving.

And in this version of Bhikkhu Bodhis’ translation Bhikkhu Bodhi - Chachakka Sutta (MN#148) : The Six Sets of Six

"Seeing thus, bhikkhus, a well-taught noble disciple becomes disenchanted with the eye, disenchanted with forms, disenchanted with eye-consciousness, disenchanted with eye-contact, disenchanted with eye-feeling, disenchanted with eye-craving.

The Pali doesn’t seem to support there being “eye-feeling” and “eye-craving”. Is this implied from other suttas? Why did Bhikkhu Bodhi choose to translate it like this?

Also, I notice the Bhikkhu Bodhi suttacentral translation of MN 148 does not have eye-craving.

1 Like
2

It’s a well known set of categories applied to the six senses in Abhidharma texts. Feeling and craving are two of the six sets of six. I.e., visual feeling to mental feeling and visual craving to mental craving.

3

Bikkhu Bodhi has 6 videos (You Tube) on Majjhima Nikaya 148, but they deal mainly with the self. In video 5, 24 min. he reads the relevant passage.

Context: Video 1, Feeling 25m:

Whether clinging or craving arises depends on mindfulness.