Transcendental Dependent Origination

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continued from here: Transcendental Dependent Arising by Ajahn Brahmali

Proximate Cause

1 At Sāvatthī. “Bhikkhus, I say that the destruction of the taints is for one who knows and sees, not for one who does not know and does not see. For one who knows what, for one who sees what, does the destruction of the taints come about? ‘Such is form, such its origin, such its passing away; such is feeling … such is perception … such are volitional formations … such is consciousness, such its origin, such its passing away’: it is for one who knows thus, for one who sees thus, that the destruction of the taints comes about. sn.ii.30

2 “I say, bhikkhus, that the knowledge of destruction in regard to destruction has a proximate cause; it does not lack a proximate cause. And what is the proximate cause for the knowledge of destruction? It should be said: liberation.

3 “I say, bhikkhus, that liberation too has a proximate cause; it does not lack a proximate cause. And what is the proximate cause for liberation? It should be said: dispassion.

4 “I say, bhikkhus, that dispassion too has a proximate cause; it does not lack a proximate cause. And what is the proximate cause for dispassion? It should be said: revulsion.

5 “I say, bhikkhus, that revulsion too has a proximate cause; it does not lack a proximate cause. And what is the proximate cause for revulsion? It should be said: the knowledge and vision of things as they really are.

6 “I say, bhikkhus, that the knowledge and vision of things as they really are too has a proximate cause; it does not lack a proximate cause. And what is the proximate cause for the knowledge and vision of things as they really are? It should be said: concentration.

7 “I say, bhikkhus, that samadhi too has a proximate cause… [SN12.23]

It must be clear that aggregates (developing wisdom) must be seen after development of jhana for there to be release.

Without the development of wisdom there cannot be release.

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Indeed.:anjal:

Knowledge without wisdom is like a car without gasoline/petrol.

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…a mendicant sees and contemplates any kind of consciousness at all—past, future, or present; internal or external; coarse or fine; inferior or superior; near or far—examining it carefully. And it appears to them as completely void, hollow, and insubstantial. For what substance could there be in consciousness? SN22.95

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Intellectual understanding is like the top of an iceberg protruding the surface of the ocean. Direct experience is like all the rest of the iceberg beneath the water. When both are understood the whole of the iceberg is realized.

Much mettā :heart:

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Nibbidampāhaṃ, bhikkhave, saupanisaṃ vadāmi, no anupanisaṃ

English seems to really struggle with translating nibbida as a single word. Even in Bhante Sujato’s translation, we still have an emotional tinge of sadness.

I say that disillusionment has a vital condition. --SN12.23/en/sujato

Looking at German, however, we can have an unemotional translation:

Aber auch der Widerwille, behaupte ich, ihr Bhikkhus, hat seine Voraussetzung, ist nicht ohne Voraussetzung. --SN12.23/de/geiger

Here Widerwillen roughly corresponds here to “unwillingness to consider something as producing any useful outcome for anybody”.

Therefore I’m really excited about Widerwillen. :laughing:

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Interesting. Nibbida is most definitely a tricky one. I share your sentiment with the German translating of it, but not knowing German the word is foreign to me.

In the vastness of English there must a closer analog… Maybe not…

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It might seem that when there are no defilements there’s no ignorance -but this isn’t correct as when people are calm they would be automatically enlightened. It would be possible to become enlightened by getting rid of craving by performing austerities like the Niganthas.

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Aye. It’s in its anusaya state or latent state.

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