What are the bases for doubt, mindfulness, equanimity, and rapture of SN 46.51 - Nutriment?

Q & A
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This sutta lists activities that increase and decrease the five hindrances and the seven factors of awakening. But there are sections where it seems to give a circular answer by saying “X is the basis of X”. Which things are the basis for doubt, mindfulness, rapture, and equanimity?

And what, bhikkhus, is the nutriment for the arising of unarisen doubt and for the increase and expansion of arisen doubt? There are, bhikkhus, things that are the basis for doubt: frequently giving careless attention to them is the nutriment for the arising of unarisen doubt and for the increase and expansion of arisen doubt.

Which things are the basis for doubt?

And what, bhikkhus, is the nutriment for the arising of the unarisen enlightenment factor of mindfulness and for the fulfilment by development of the arisen enlightenment factor of mindfulness? There are, bhikkhus, things that are the basis for the enlightenment factor of mindfulness: frequently giving careful attention to them is the nutriment for the arising of the unarisen enlightenment factor of mindfulness and for the fulfilment by development of the arisen enlightenment factor of mindfulness.

Which things are the basis for mindfulness?

And what, bhikkhus, is the nutriment for the arising of the unarisen enlightenment factor of rapture and for the fulfilment by development of the arisen enlightenment factor of rapture? There are, bhikkhus, things that are the basis for the enlightenment factor of rapture: frequently giving careful attention to them is the nutriment for the arising of the unarisen enlightenment factor of rapture and for the fulfilment by development of the arisen enlightenment factor of rapture.

Which things are the basis for rapture?

“And what, bhikkhus, is the nutriment for the arising of the unarisen enlightenment factor of equanimity and for the fulfilment by development of the arisen enlightenment factor of equanimity? There are, bhikkhus, things that are the basis for the enlightenment factor of equanimity: frequently giving careful attention to them is the nutriment for the arising of the unarisen enlightenment factor of equanimity and for the fulfilment by development of the arisen enlightenment factor of equanimity.

Which things are the basis for equanimity?

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In chapter 5 of SN you will also find the way to denourishing the hidrances in case you are curious.

As for the problem in question, it’s just as the sutta say. There are things that are basis for doubt. For example one might think in this way : “So many people in the world are materialist or idealist. What if they are right and I am wrong” or “What is Buddha was just another random philosopher” - or different kinds of such thoughts. One might think in another way “I’ve found many thing in Buddha teachings to be true while all others have been wrong. So I will have confidence in him till the end” or “materialism has been refuted. Idealism is not even based on logic. So why am I having doubts ?” - and in this way develop the faith faculty. A stream enterer is said to poses unwavering confidence in the Buddha because of discovering there is no self. All others say there is a self, Buddha did not. Imagine a bushman seen a car for the first time and thinking it is pushed foreword by a mysterious force or by some spirit. After somebody explains him how it works, the bushman examines it etc. - then he will understand there is no spirit pushing the car. If somebody would come today at you and tell you that cars are pushed by a mysterious force, would you have doubts about this ? It is the same with self view. And because there is only Buddha who figured this out and all others look like bushman not knowing how cars work, he has strong confidence in the Buddha and would never take another teacher.

By giving careless attention to thoughts that are a basis for doubt, the hidrance of doubt will increase. By giving attention to thoughts that are a basis for faith, the faculty of faith is been developed. Even though one knows a thing for sure through logical deduction, he might still have doubt in it. For example if a person holds the wrong view that there is no objective truth and spends a lot of time attending in this way, he will develop extreme doubt and skepticism and will be reluctant to believe things even though they are clearly proven by logic and reason. Faith or doubt are tendencies that are developed through constantly giving attention to things that are a basis for their development. In the same way an alcoholic increases his tendency to drink by constantly thinking how good he would feel if he were to drink, instead of thinking of how bad he would feel afterwards or how bad it damages him on the long term.

Things that are not listed there explicitly are difficult to describe in a succint way, such as these things that are a basis for doubt.

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Hi @jared

Doubt:

He dwells with a mind obsessed and oppressed by ill will, … by dullness and drowsiness … by restlessness and remorse … by doubt, and he does not understand as it really is the escape from arisen doubt. Harboring doubt within, he meditates, cogitates, ponders, and ruminates.
(escape is the removal of desire and interest (chandarāgavinayo chandarāgappahāna) - SN 22.82)
AN 11.9

There are two ways to read the meaning of these two suttas.
Either you see doubt as coming from the sequence: ill will > dullness and drowsiness > restlessness and remorse.

Or you see the “reasons to escape”, (namely chanda & raga,) as bringing doubt.

Or you might as well consider rāga (interest) as the start of the all sequence (see SN 46.56).

Enlightenment factor of mindfulness:

Mindfulness being essentially the recollection of the Teaching - Anything that is relevant to that can be considered.

Mindfulness must be called up (asammuṭṭhā) and geared up (upaṭṭhitā) with the following, for instance:
There is the following question in SN 54.13:

And how, Ananda, are the four establishments of mindfulness developed and cultivated so that they fulfil the seven factors of enlightenment?
And the answer is:
Contemplating the body in the body.

As for the rest, namely enlightenment factor of rapture (pītisambojjhaṅgassa) and enlightenment factor of equanimity (upekkhāsambojjhaṅgassa) - they are brought by the previous enlightenment factors, as shown in the preceding sutta SN 54.13:

  • Dwells contemplating the body in the body - on that occasion, mindfulness (recollection of the Teaching) that is remembered and geared up, exists (is) in that bhikkhu.

  • Dwelling thus mindfully, he discriminates that Dhamma with discernment, examines it, makes an investigation of it.

  • While he discriminates (vicinati) the phenomena/dhamma with discernment, goes about (vicarati), and engages into investigating it (parivīmaṃsamāpajjati), there is firm and unshaken energy.

  • When his energy is firm, there arises in him a rapture free from sensual desire (spiritual).

  • For one whose mind is uplifted by rapture the body becomes tranquil (serene) and the mind becomes tranquil.

  • Serenity of body and pleasure of mind (sukhino cittaṃ) brings concentration in him.

  • With a well concentrated mind, there is equanimity.

Therefore, energy (gotten from investigating the dhamma,) is the “thing” to give attention to.
And again, a concentrated citta is the “thing” to give attention to, so as to get equanimity.
Things that have to do with energy bring rapture, and things that have to do with concentration bring equanimity.

However, “yoniso manasikāra” means that you have to go back to the origin (yoni).
You have to “produce with your mind” (manasi-kāra) from the origin (yoniso).
Here producing (karoti) with the mind (mano) particularly means that you have to reflect from the beginning - you have to reflect (produce with the mano,) on how these things have come to be (yathābhūta - according to what have become).

Therefore, if we consider doubt, and the sequence: ill-will >> dullness and drowsiness >> restlessness and remorse >> doubt - it is from ill-will that you should reflect (produce with the mind); not just from restlessness and remorse.

The same applies with rapture, for instance. You have to reflect way back to mindfulness.
Rapture comes way back from contemplating the body in the body. Not just by giving attention (manasikara) to energy-things.

The “things” to frequently giving attention to, are all the things that come in the sequence.

Obviously, you have to widen the scope of these sequences.
For instance, in SN 46.2, the āhāra of energy are the element of arousal, the element of endeavour, the element of exertion. It is not just the investigation of the phenomena that is the thing that is the basis for energy; but this investigation must be accompanied by arousal, endeavour and exertion.
All these are the things that are closely related to rapture (but not the only ones, if we consider the all sequence, since sati).

Idem for equanimity.
Concentration must be accompanied by the the sign of serenity, and the sign of nondispersal.

It’s a all shebang of “things”; with one thing to be found at the origin (yoni); and from which everything cascades - and all these things count.

IMHO
Metta.

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But the part about 5 hidrances is not to be understood in a sequence like the one about rapture. They exist individually and one can be very lazy but have no problems with ill will. Or one can have a lot of ill will and sensual desire but not be lazy at all. There is even a sutta explaining how every hidrance should be dealt with individually:

(iii. The denourishment of the hindrances)

“And what, bhikkhus, is the denourishment that prevents
unarisen sensual desire from arising and arisen sensual desire
from increasing and expanding? There is, bhikkhus, the sign of
foulness: frequently giving careful attention to it is the denourishment
that prevents unarisen sensual desire from arising and
arisen sensual desire from increasing and expanding.

“And what, bhikkhus, is the denourishment that prevents
unarisen ill will from arising and arisen ill will from increasing
and expanding? There is, bhikkhus, the liberation of mind
through lovingkindness: frequently giving careful attention to it
is the denourishment that prevents unarisen ill will from arising
and arisen ill will from increasing and expanding.

“And what, bhikkhus, is the denourishment that prevents
unarisen sloth and torpor fromarising and arisen sloth and torpor
from increasing and expanding? There are, bhikkhus, the element
of arousal, the element of endeavour, the element of exertion: frequently
giving careful attention to them is the denourishment that
prevents unarisen sloth and torpor from arising and arisen
sloth and torpor from increasing and expanding.

“And what, bhikkhus, is the denourishment that prevents
unarisen restlessness and remorse from arising and arisen restlessness
and remorse from increasing and expanding? There is,
bhikkhus, peacefulness of mind: frequently giving careful attention
to it is the denourishment that prevents unarisen restlessness
and remorse from arising and arisen restlessness and
remorse from increasing and expanding.

“And what, bhikkhus, is the denourishment that prevents
unarisen doubt from arising and arisen doubt from increasing
and expanding? There are, bhikkhus, wholesome and unwholesome
states, blameable and blameless states, inferior and superior
states, dark and bright states with their counterparts: frequently
giving careful attention to them is the denourishment that prevents
unarisen doubt from arising and arisen doubt fromincreasing
and expanding

SN 46.51

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Indeed in SN 46.51 (not SN 54.1 - please edit), wholesome and unwholesome states, blameable and blameless states, inferior and superior states, dark and bright states, are the things to reflect (give attention to) from their origin.
It is what I called earlier “widening the scope of the sequences”.
Thanks for the reference.

That does not forbid the sequential approach. As I said before, the escape from arisen doubt (AN 11.9 & SN 22.82) is the removal of chanda (desire) & rāga (interest).
Isn’t the escape the ultimate thing?

Again, read SN 46.56.
There is as much of a sequence in “The cause of knowledge and vision” (compare with SN 54.13, or look at the sequence summarized above), than in the “The cause for lack of knowledge and vision”.
The latter starts with kāmarāga - the former with sati.

Does (s)he?

Metta.

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Thanks. I wandered why I can’t find a link to post

That does not forbid the sequential approach. As I said before, the escape from arisen doubt (AN 11.9 & SN 22.82) is the removal of chanda (desire) & rāga (interest).

I do not see that been claimed in those suttas so I do not know the context.

Again, read SN 46.56.
There is as much of a sequence in “The cause of knowledge and vision” (compare with SN 54.13, or look at the sequence summarized above), than in the “The cause for lack of knowledge and vision”.
The latter starts with kāmarāga - the former with sati.

Yes but not in the case of 5 hidrances. Some things are sequential such as what you have quoted in your first message. Other things are not sequential and developed in parallel.

Does (s)he?

If you claim sloth and topor and all other hidranes depend on ill will and that they are sequential, that means ISIS fighters should have problems with laziness. But that is not the case. Also, there are many corrupt milionaires in the world who might have problems with ill will or sensual desire but no problems with laziness at all. The 5 hidrances are not sequential. They depend on their nutriment. The nutriment for sloth and topor is not ill will or sensual desire. The nutriment for sloth and topor is constantly paying attention to lazy streaching, drowiness after means, lethargy etc. While the denourishment is constantly paying attention to the element of endavour, element of exertion etc.

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@dxm_dxm
I guess we should ask these pirates how they live; and what propels them. :neutral_face:

The nutriment for sloth and topor is constantly paying attention to lazy streaching, drowiness after meals, lethargy etc. While the denourishment is constantly paying attention to the element of endavour, element of exertion etc.

I agree.
Still, that does not rule out the sequence scheme.

Metta.

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