Conduit to "rebirth"?

Hi , this appear to be confusing , bhavanetti being translated as conduit to rebirth ?
Where does “rebirth” came from ?

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From DPD, for example:

bhavanetti

fem. Conduit to existence; channel to becoming

This fits in context with rebirth.

I have read the phrase desire, greed, relishing, and craving , attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendencies used in many suttas. I reads to refer to things leading to self-views:

The Realized One has given up any desire, greed, relishing, and craving for the form element; any attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendencies. He has cut it off at the root, made it like a palm stump, obliterated it, so it’s unable to arise in the future.

Rūpadhātuyā kho, gahapati, yo chando yo rāgo yā nandī yā taṇhā ye upayupādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā te tathāgatassa pahīnā ucchinnamūlā tālāvatthukatā anabhāvaṅkatā āyatiṁ anuppādadhammā.

That’s why the Realized One is called a migrant with no shelter.

Tasmā tathāgato ‘anokasārī’ti vuccati.

SN 22.3

But if—when it comes to this attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendency—you don’t get attracted, grasp, and commit to the thought, ‘my self’,

Tañcāyaṁ upayupādānaṁ cetaso adhiṭṭhānaṁ abhinivesānusayaṁ na upeti na upādiyati nādhiṭṭhāti: ‘attā me’ti.

SN 12.15

“Rādha, when you cling, strongly cling, to desire, greed, relishing, and craving for form, then a being is spoken of.

“Rūpe kho, rādha, yo chando yo rāgo yā nandī yā taṇhā, tatra satto, tatra visatto, tasmā sattoti vuccati.

When you cling, strongly cling, to desire, greed, relishing, and craving for feeling …

Vedanāya …

perception …

saññāya …

choices …

saṅkhāresu …

consciousness, then a being is spoken of.

viññāṇe yo chando yo rāgo yā nandī yā taṇhā, tatra satto, tatra visatto, tasmā sattoti vuccati.

SN 23.2

“Rādha, any desire, greed, relishing, and craving for form; and any attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendencies—

“Rūpe kho, rādha, yo chando yo rāgo yā nandī yā taṇhā ye upayupādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā—

this is called the conduit to rebirth.

ayaṁ vuccati bhavanetti.

SN 23.3

They hear the Realized One or their disciple teaching Dhamma for the uprooting of all grounds, fixations, obsessions, insistences, and underlying tendencies regarding views; for the stilling of all activities, the letting go of all attachments, the ending of craving, fading away, cessation, extinguishment.

So suṇāti tathāgatassa vā tathāgatasāvakassa vā sabbesaṁ diṭṭhiṭṭhānādhiṭṭhānapariyuṭṭhānābhinivesānusayānaṁ samugghātāya sabbasaṅkhārasamathāya sabbūpadhipaṭinissaggāya taṇhākkhayāya virāgāya nirodhāya nibbānāya dhammaṁ desentassa.

They don’t think,

Tassa na evaṁ hoti:

‘Whoa, I’m going to be annihilated and destroyed! I won’t even exist any more!’

‘ucchijjissāmi nāmassu, vinassissāmi nāmassu, nassu nāma bhavissāmī’ti.

They don’t sorrow and wail and lament, beating their breast and falling into confusion.

So na socati na kilamati na paridevati na urattāḷiṁ kandati na sammohaṁ āpajjati

MN 22

How does the venerable know and see regarding these six interior and exterior sense fields so that your mind is freed from defilements by not grasping?’

Kathaṁ jānato panāyasmato, kathaṁ passato imesu chasu ajjhattikabāhiresu āyatanesu anupādāya āsavehi cittaṁ vimuttan’ti?

For a mendicant with defilements ended it is in line with the teaching to answer:
Khīṇāsavassa, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno vusitavato katakaraṇīyassa ohitabhārassa anuppattasadatthassa parikkhīṇabhavasaṁyojanassa sammadaññāvimuttassa ayamanudhammo hoti veyyākaraṇāya:

‘I understand that my mind is freed through the ending, fading away, cessation, giving away, and letting go of desire and greed and relishing and craving; attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendency for the eye, sights, eye consciousness, and things knowable by eye consciousness.

‘cakkhusmiṁ, āvuso, rūpe cakkhuviññāṇe cakkhuviññāṇaviññātabbesu dhammesu yo chando yo rāgo yā nandī yā taṇhā ye ca upāyūpādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā tesaṁ khayā virāgā nirodhā cāgā paṭinissaggā vimuttaṁ me cittanti pajānāmi.

MN 112

Hi thanks . I dont know much of Pali .
But isnt this would be equating becoming with rebirth ? In the parallel the translation by analayo is flow of becoming .

Hi , sorry , i am not sure what you want to convey .

Hi. I am trying to say it reads to be the conduit (netti) for the belief in “I am”:

They hear the Realized One or their disciple teaching Dhamma for the uprooting of all grounds, fixations, obsessions, insistences, and underlying tendencies regarding views; for the stilling of all activities, the letting go of all attachments, the ending of craving… They don’t think… I am going to be annihilated and destroyed! I won’t even exist any more!’

MN 22

  • Bhava = becoming “I am”

  • Netti = supports (for “I am”) = desire, greed, relishing, craving , attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence and underlying tendencies

netti

  1. fem. conduit; channel [√nī + *tti]
  2. fem. guideline; outline; map [√nī + *tti]
  3. fem. craving [√nī]
  4. fem. guide; conductor; support [√nī]

The sutta you posted says the bhavanetti is “desire, greed, relishing, craving , attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence and underlying tendencies”.

Not sure what’s behind your interest in the translation of this particular passage.

Even if it could be shown to be imprecise as in a doctrinal bias, I am afraid that this by itself would not at all change the “general weather situation” in EBT doctrinal interpretation.

Hi thanks . Maybe i dont quite understand the language here . I suppose the craving is the channel of becoming or the flow of becoming however which i dont get is , if the meaning somehow similar to channel of rebirth . :thinking:

How I would go about researching your excellent question is to put bhavanetti in the SuttaCentral search engine (searching the discourses section, not Discuss and Discover). Then I would look at 5 or 6 examples of other places it occurs, with the translations.

Likewise I would put rebirth in the search engine and see what Pali terms are used.

I would review all available English translations, plus any other non-English translations I might understand.

Then I’d share my research.

However, you seem like you’d be up for this yourself :grinning: . Then you’re on your way to being a Pali student! It’s fun to start down this path. Let us know what you find!

:pray:t2: :elephant:

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Hi,

In the passage you cited, clearly related to Dependent Origination, birth (jāti) is pointing to rebirth.
After all, since in this DO sequence there is already a being who has been born, with senses, contact, craving etc. the “birth” listed later in the sequence is pointing to the next birth, i.e. rebirth.

Admittedly, it can seem a bit unclear why birth, old age, death is listed at the end of the sequence. But, in short, understanding it as rebirth can clarify things.

Perhaps the source of your confusion are the translations becoming and rebirth. Many translators translate bhava as becoming, but Venerable Sujato translates it as rebirth. So the bhavanettisutta doesn’t have anything to do with the conduit of becoming, if there is such a thing.

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