On "unskillful and skillful sight known by the eye"

Q & A
1

What is the true meaning of “unskillful and skillful sight known by the eye” according to the texts? The word “sight” caught my attention…
From DN 21:2.5.3 and 2.5.4

2

I think part of the confusion might be from the translation. Using Venerable Sujato’s translation on Sutta Central might be helpful.

What is meant is that some sights are unskillful, as they arouse desire and other sights are skillful, as they don’t arouse desire.

That section of the sutta is about what kinds of things one should cultivate and what kinds of things one should not cultivate.

The question in the sutta is “How does a mendicant practice for restraint of the sense faculties?”

The Buddha addresses restraining the six sense faculties of:

sights known by the eye
sounds known by the ear
smells known by the nose
tastes known by the tongue
touches known by the body
ideas known by the mind

Beginning with sights known by the eye (forms one willfully looks at), The Buddha describes each sense faculty in turn.

"There are two kinds of sight known by the eye: that which you should cultivate and that which you should not cultivate.”

"You should not cultivate the kind of sights known by the eye which causes unskillful qualities to grow while skillful qualities decline.

And you should cultivate the kind of sights known by the eye which causes unskillful qualities to decline while skillful qualities grow."

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3

There are two types of eye:

  1. the eye indriya
  2. the eye of wisdom

We should cultivate the sights known by the eye of wisdom.
We should not cultivate the sights known by the eye indriya.

Majjhima Nikāya 43
“Neyyaṁ panāvuso, dhammaṁ kena pajānātī”ti?
“Neyyaṁ kho, āvuso, dhammaṁ paññācakkhunā pajānātī”ti.

“How do you understand something that can be known?”
“You understand something that can be known with the eye of wisdom.”
SuttaCentral

Linked Discourses 56.63
… “Evameva kho, bhikkhave, appakā te sattā ye pana ariyena paññācakkhunā samannāgatā; atha kho eteva bahutarā sattā ye avijjāgatā sammuḷhā …pe….

“… the sentient beings who have the noble eye of wisdom are few, while those who are ignorant and confused are many. …”
SuttaCentral