The Moral conduct that is free from any Wrong View - Dittinca Anupagamma Silava

The Buddha recognised three wrong views in the worldly existences.

1.   The first is the view that obstructs becoming in higher realms as well as attaining enlightenment (nirvana). It’s called Saggavarana and Maggavarana,  the former conceals happy destinations, sugathi  while the latter, maggavarana, conceals enlightenment.

This view, said to be the view of the  Materialists (or Nihilists), is identified as the ‘established wrong view’,  Niyatha Micca Ditti, that destines one to lower realms, i.e  four states of deprivation ( sathra apaya).

Key beliefs of the person with a definite wrong view are,

•          No benefit in offering alms
•          No purpose in caring for parents
•          There is no merit or demerit in deeds
•          There aren’t any ascetics who preach dhamma
•          Beings do not pass from one existence to the other.
•          No spontaneous becoming i.e. becoming of gods, brahmas and hungry ghosts etc.

Materialists believe that when the body or the material form 'dies' nothing moves to another existence, hence no rebirth.

2.   The second wrong view does not obstruct Happy States (sugathi) but conceals enlightenment, and is known as saggavarana novena but maggavarana Ditti in the script.Those who maintain this view (Eternalists) believe there is a continuous ‘soul’ (athma) moving from one becoming to another and correspondingly accept the opposite to those of Materialist believers noted above.

They believe that,

•          There is benefit in giving alms
•          There is benefit in looking after parents
•          There are merits and demerits in deeds and so on.

Buddha has said that in comparison to the previous view this is favourable as people with this view will honour righteous living knowing the merits of good deeds and evils of bad deeds in terms of future becoming, either in a Happy State or a state of deprivation.

3.   The third view commonly grasped by lay believers is the Personality View or Sakkaya Ditti. This is a view that does not obstruct reaching Happy States or the path to enlightenment. If it does obstruct, no being can attain enlightenment or reach Happy States.

Two former views, the Materialist and Eternalist (Sassatha and ucceda) are framed within the Personality view. Discarding personality (or identity) view will make one free from all wrong views, satisfying a requisite to become a stream winner.

The scripts identify 20 ways of grasping personality View. i.e in four ways for the  5 aggregates (4x5=20). The four ways of holding onto Personal View can be summarised as,

1.       Considering 5 aggregates as soul- e.g. Form (feeling, perception etc.) is me

2.       Soul having possession of 5 aggregates - e.g. Form belong to me

3.       Aggregates are in the soul- e.g. Form is within me

4.       Soul is within Aggregates - e.g. I am in the form.

‘We need to closely examine how we can discard wrong views, is it that we gain the Clear view or insight vision first by discarding the wrong views or is it that we gain the clear view first in order to discard the wrong views?, In other words do we remove darkness to see light or will the darkness disappear when light is lit.’ The right way, stresses Ven Sudassana, is to bring light in pushing the darkness away. Darkness is the wrong view and the Light is the clear view or insight. Pursuance of the clear view is fundamental to remove wrong views and to reach the path to Enlightenment.

The ‘Personality' View or Sakkaya Ditti  is also the view though which the defilements are formed.

‘Personality’ relating to Sakkaya in pali are also identified as the five clinging aggregates and refers to the state of arising eye contact, ear contact & nose contact etc. ‘This is the sate of not knowing, the unconscious state’.

View or Ditti, does not belong to the former but occurs at the mind consciousness, mano vinnana, level. In Abhidhamma terms this is the state of forming javana. The grasping of aggregates (skandas) as I, me and mine occur here confirming the formation of view.

What is ‘seen’ is different to what is ‘known’, says Ven Sudassana. For instance ten people will see a man as the same person, at the state of eye contact, but will know him probably as 10 different people at the ‘knowing’ state. Another will see him as a father, one as a brother, a friend, a son and so on.

‘This is our journey of moving from Unknown to Known, the cycle that we cannot avoid.’

The state of seeing (former) is not defined, avyakruthe, as it is not identified as having merit or de-merit.

At this point, the first thought that has arisen is already spent on the function of capturing the presence of an object; say an object with colour. This state, known as arising of ‘eye consciousness’ is similar to an image being reflected on a mirror, nothing more is known about it. Notwithstanding, the process does not end here but will proceed to the state of ‘knowing ‘. The next thought arises as soon as the former ceases, deciding an object is being seen which is followed by thoughts that confirm the object upon which the karma is formed leading to ‘prapanca’. The above repetitive thought formation is described in the explanation of a ‘thought process’ in Abhidhamma and is a ‘rule of mind’ – a Citta niyama. In recapping what is described in ‘Madhupindika Sutra’ it is a rule that what is seen is perceived, what is perceived is determined and what is determined is contemplated on, resulting in grasping as me, mine & my-self (prapanca).

At the state of contact, not knowing the object, judgements cannot be made as to the wholesome or unwholesome nature of it and therefore cannot form opinion based on likes and dislikes, to create defilements of greed, hatred or delusion. However, the beings are not spared from proceeding to the subsequent kamma formation state and thus there is no help within the worldly existence to evade this process. If there is any help within the worldly existences, The Eight Laws Relating to the Vicissitude of Life, Ashta loka dharma, will not to be and hence no need for a Buddha to be born.  The only possibility within the mundane state is to move up or down within the limits of the three existences, Sensuous, Material and Non-material, in accordance with the merits (kusal) and demerits (akusal) achieved through ‘good’ or ‘bad’ deeds. Deeds (kamma) with wholesome volitions result in merit, and deeds with unwholesome volitions result in demerit. However, there is no escape from suffering, i.e. decay and death. Buddhas emerge to self-realise this reality and to show the world the way out of this misery.

Results, Vipaka, in the sensuous world are experienced through the sensory capacity gained due to old kamma and can only process limited level of data. For e.g, the human eye can only see a limited portion of the colour spectrum which is considered as adequate to interact in this existence, kama bhumi. Each being experiences according to the aggregates individually formed by them in this manner. Human beings who are born in the sensuous existence are rewarded with and possess compatible senses to share the experiences of that existence as a result of doing deeds of common nature, previously.

If we are happy with the capacity of our senses there is no change and thus we will continue to dwell & experience what is offered here.

Beings in the material existence rejects pleasures in the sensuous world and those in the In-material existence reject the pleasures in the material world. An Arhat is the one who rejects all, who has moved beyond the worldly existences.

As Buddha has said volition (Chetana) itself is the kamma and if ones wish is to possess a bunch of aggregates similar to what you have now in the next existence that’s what you will get and the resultant experiences will not be different to what you have now. Suffering!

Meditation helps to elevate the sensory capacity to a superior level.

If one begins to meditate on the Form as a thing composed of four great elements he will be able to release his attachments to form, to a degree. As he proceeds, he will not identify things or persons strictly by accepted norms, say as Father, brother, son etc. This will be beneficial to some extent, and will acquire merits. The drawback in this approach, in terms of absolute liberation, is that he has already determined the form before he decide to explore it, for e.g. the body is recognised before meditating on it as a thing compose of hair, nails flesh etc. The error has been already been made here in accepting the form before beginning to meditate.

On the other hand if one begins to see that the Form only as an image formed in the mind, with insight, he will begin to identify name aspect in the name-matter composition rather than matter alone. Pursuing his view in this manner, the way he sees will gradually change and his vision will be cleared influencing the result, vipaka. The notion that the object seen is the one definitely present out there will fade away and he will not continue to grasp the name-matter form, produced by contact. He realises that feeling, perception and formation belong to the mind and not to the object, he sees that when name - matter separate, mind and mental factors (citta and chaithasiks) cease - the aggregates ( skandas) cease to exist, hence,  anathma. There is nothing to hold onto, to remember or to come back in search of.  Now, as the volition (kamma) alter the result (vipaka) change as well, to experience beyond the worldly state, at a supermundane state. His sensory capacities are elevated to make him free of the mundane existence towards complete liberation, ultimately to a state of bliss. No more suffering, or decay and death.

Ditthiñca anupagamma silava
Dassanena sampanno
Kamesu vineyya gedham
Na hi jatu gabbhaseyyam punar eti'ti

Karaneeya metta Sutra

The one with a moral conduct free from wrong views

And, with a clear vision (insight)

Can discard sense desires

The one who does so will not return to a womb (will not be reborn)

One needs to eliminate all wrong views to achieve clear view, dittinca anupagamma, in its efforts to discard craving and be free from sensuous existences.

Notwithstanding, the one with the moral conduct falling short of the full insight will not discard craving. He may suppress it temporarily but will come back again. One who does with a vision, without erroneous views, will not return, will be anagami, or arhat.

As the view gets clearer he will not see self in aggregates or will not see self as one associating aggregates.

Gaining clear view (or the right view) in this manner and discarding wrong views is, ‘understanding the things as they are in the world’ - the yathabutha nana dassana.