Nāma and rūpa, understanding the characteristic which we are used to talk about

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Robert: Ajahn, talking about the object appearing clearly and relating to what I was going to say, I saw a comment recently on the Tīka to the Visuddhimagga and it might be interesting, and it says that a dhamma, having its own nature as sabhāva is profound, is gambhīra, but a paññatti is not, and I think it means that concepts are... We sort of know concepts, like tables chairs and people, but very hard to know, the actual dhammas, the realities. And I think that, as you're saying, it's all about pañña. And obviously only when a Buddha arises can that sort of understanding of realities be known.

A. Sujin: That's why when there is the understanding of the absolute truth, one can see that at moment of knowing something as plate and food and so on, it's the moment of thinking with memory or sañña. That's why there can be the moment of understanding sañña even right now, intellectually, that it has to be there at any moment with citta, no matter what citta experiences, sañña is there, but citta is not sañña ,it cannot perform the function of sañña, and sañña cannot perform the function of citta. That's why they go together, one is the chief in experiencing, even the slightest difference in the object, from moment to moment. And sañña, since citta experiences that, must remember that. But when there is no understanding of that which experiences, how can there be letting go the idea of something there, or "I see" or "I hear"?

That's why, because of the arising and falling so very rapidly, it forms up the shape and form which is taken as nimitta, something there. Because only one dot on the paper cannot be any shape, no mountain no water and no people at all, in what we take for that when we paint, but just from moment to moment it arises and falls way so very rapidly, just like the fire stick, it can be of a round shape or whatever, as we move it, but actually it's just only one, but the rapidity of the succession conditions the shape and form and sañña marks it and remembers it, so that is nimitta of that which arises and falls away. Even there is no word, even baby or anyone, snake or bird, must have the idea of the shape and form because sañña marks and remembers the shape and form, the nimitta, and when it's known as something, that is paññatti. When there's no nimitta there cannot be paññatti, when there's no paramattha dhamma arising and falling away so very rapidly, there cannot be nimitta. But since what is there is just as it is, from the arising and falling away so very very rapidly, the shape and form is there for sañña to mark and remember it as nimitta of everything, that's why without the Teachings of the Buddha who knows that everyone lives in the world of nimitta, not understanding the truth of how come nimitta to be such and such? There must be paramattha dhamma.

And [with] only one arising and falling away there cannot be nimitta, but since the rapidity conditions the shape and form to appear, to be marked as nimitta, and from the memory, sañña marking it, it is known as something. Even dogs and cats know what is there, by nimitta. So from nimitta there can be the paññatti, it makes [itself] known as something there, from sañña, paññatti. Until there is the understanding: what is there now is paññatti, from shape and form, so they make [themselves] known as flowers and things. In truth only the rapidity of the arising and falling away of nāma and rūpa and gone, never to return, only once in samsara.

So we can understand what is meant by paññatti, because of nimitta. No matter what is seen or heard or smelled or tasted, we live in the world of nimitta and paññatti, not understanding the truth that actually there's no one and no thing at all. It's just like a dream, there are so many things in a dream but when one wakes up, nothing at all. So now, ignorance is there, it does not understand what is there until pañña begins to develop too, waking up little by little, to understand the truth of actually what Buddha said about anatta, suññata is so true. And that can be directly experienced clearer and clearer, by the development of pañña itself, from intellectual understanding. What is there now, just now, it's not the same one, not the same one as it's been before. For example, we just talk and then look and see something, and then talk and think about the word, and what about the moment of seeing, what is there? Never the same, but it's not known because of the nimitta and the memory of that paññatti as something. And without the intellectual understanding, how can there be the understanding of the truth, what can lead to such understanding, without the words from the Enlightened One, from his enlightenment, to show the way, which is now. This is the way to understand what the Buddha enlightened, and what he taught, about whatever is there as it is, in the past, present and future, no one can change the truth at all.

So it is just normal life, ordinary life, but understanding begins to hear more, study more, understand more, develop more, little by little, by conditions, by parami, all kinds of parami. And now it is parami, when there is understanding, with viriya, with khanti with sacca, with adhitthāna, all are there now, unknown, until only one reality appears as object, at that very moment. So there has to be the understanding the characteristic which we are used to talk about, the nāma and the rūpa, but that's just the word, but the characteristic of that which now experiences whatever is there, no matter through what doorway. There must be that reality which arises to experience, so it's different from other mental factors which arise together with it, but it's not that which is the chief of experiencing the characteristic of the object, but since it experiences is the main or the chief of experiencing. So the other mental factors which share the same object, arising together experiencing the object together, but citta experience is so clear, in the sense of it can know the difference in the object, no matter it's so very slightly different. So the other cetasika arise, so that it can like or dislike, or perform the function of remembering or vitakka or phassa or whatever is there, but not the main or the chief of experiencing, as citta.

So they arise together and citta performs its function and the other cetasikas also experience that object together with citta, but they cannot perform the function of citta, but since the citta performs that function, the other cetasikas can experience it by way of their characteristic and their own function, and it is this moment, now.

It's impossible to understand the truth without understanding what is there now as it is, different characteristics, by conditions. Suññata, no more, after it has arisen it falls away instantly, but the next one succeeds very rapidly, hindering the truth of that which is gone as: it's no more, because it appears instantly after that.

And this is the condition for the development of understanding, to understand the difference between intellectual understanding and direct understanding, and when conditions are right, unexpectedly, it's there, to have more confidence of the truth that actually no one at all. So how can there be anyone who can make anything arise or who can control anything? Impossible. And this is meant [by] patience to understand the truth, little by little. Because without understanding, is it possible to understand that which is there, as clear as one has learned about it? That which experiences.

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Video image: Sāma jātaka #540, Sanchi, inner face of the left pillar of the west gateway of stūpa 1