The Three Kinds of Full Understanding

The development of satipaṭṭhāna is the development of paññā leading to the realization of the noble Truths. In the course of the development of insight, three degrees of full understanding, pariññā, can be discerned: full understanding of the known, ñāta pariññā, full understanding as investigation, tīraṇa pariññā, and full understanding as abandoning, pahāna pariññā.

Full understanding of the known, ñāta pariññā, is paññā realizing the characteristics of nāma and rūpa that appear as non-self. Insight of the first stage, which clearly discerns the difference between the characteristics of nāma and of rūpa, nāma-rūpa-pariccheda-ñāṇa, is the basis for the further development of paññā. Full understanding of the known is paññā that applies the knowledge gained at the moment of this stage of insight, and it begins at this stage. Paññā should continue to investigate over and over again the characteristics of other kinds of nāma and rūpa, in addition to those realized at the moment the first stage of insight knowledge arose. Only then can nāma and rūpa be clearly understood as they are.

Full understanding as investigation, tīraṇa pariññā, is paññā that thoroughly investigates nāma and rūpa, without preference for any particular nāma or rūpa, without selection of them. Paññā realizes the characteristics of realities as they appear through all six doors and thus it can see them as only dhammas. When paññā clearly realizes that all nāma and rūpa are equal, in as far as they are only dhammas, it becomes more accomplished. Thus it can realize the fourth stage of insight, knowledge of the arising and falling away of nāma and rūpa. Full understanding of investigation begins at this stage.

The third kind of full understanding is full understanding of abandoning, pahāna pariññā. When paññā investigates the dissolution of nāma and rūpa and it can clearly realize this, the stage of insight can be reached which is Knowledge of dissolution, bhaṅga ñāṇa. From then on, paññā begins to become more detached from nāma and rūpa. Paññā becomes detached because it sees more clearly the disadvantage and danger of nāma and rūpa. Full understanding of abandoning begins at the stage of Knowledge of dissolution and continues up to Path knowledge, magga ñāṇa, when enlightenment is attained.

In our daily life, there are more conditions for akusala dhammas than for awareness and understanding of the characteristics of the dhammas that naturally appear. Akusala dhammas arise very often and therefore it is necessary to cultivate the thirty-seven factors leading to enlightenment, bodhipakkhiya-dhammas. These factors which lead to the realization of the four noble Truths are, as we have seen, the four satipaṭṭhānas, the four right efforts (sammappadhānas), the four bases of success (iddhi-pādas), the five spiritual faculties (indriyas), the five powers (balas),the seven factors of enlightenment (bojjhangas) and the eight factors of the noble eightfold Path.

The factors that lead to enlightenment should be developed over and over again for a long time; they can only be gradually accumulated. Nobody can cause the arising of paññā just by a particular way of behaviour or by particular activities. Paññā can be developed naturally, in one’s daily life, by awareness of the characteristics of realities, which are non-self, which arise because of their appropriate conditions and then fall away very rapidly. There can be awareness of what appears at this very moment through the eyes, the ears, the nose, the tongue, the bodysense or the mind-door. Does one know at this moment what satipaṭṭhāna exactly is? Does one know that what is appearing now through the senses or the mind-door is a paramattha dhamma, non-self? If this is not known, paññā of the level of intellectual understanding should first be developed. It is necessary to listen to the Dhamma the Buddha taught so that people would have right understanding of the characteristics of realities that appear. The Buddha taught the Dhamma so that people would have right understanding in conformity with the truth that he had realized when he attained Buddhahood. One should have correct understanding of the practice, which is the development of paññā. Only the right cause can bring the right result, that is, paññā that sees realities as they are, as impermanent, dukkha and anattā. Paññā should realize that realities that arise and fall away are dukkha, unsatisfactory, not leading to happiness, and paññā should penetrate the nature of anattā of the realities appearing at this moment. There is no other way to know realities as they are but satipaṭṭhāna, which time and again is aware, studies and investigates the characteristics of the dhammas appearing right now. In this way, wholesome qualities, sobhana cetasikas, are accumulated and can thus be a condition for paññā to become more accomplished, so that the different stages of insight can be reached.

The Sammāsambuddha had accumulated the perfections for four incalculable periods and hundred thousand aeons. From the time the Buddha Dīpaṅkara proclaimed him to be a Sammāsambuddha in the future, he developed all the perfections from life to life. He came to see and listened to twenty-four former Buddhas during his past lives before he attained Buddhahood. In his last life, while sitting under the Bodhi tree, he penetrated the four noble Truths and attained successively the stages of enlightenment of the sotāpanna, the sakadāgāmī, the anāgāmī and finally the stage of the arahat, and thereby became the Sammāsambuddha with incomparable wisdom. He attained Buddhahood in the last vigil of the night of the full moon, in the month of Vesākha.

The Buddha’s chief disciples were the venerable Sāriputta who was pre-eminent in wisdom and the venerable Moggallāna who was pre-eminent in supernatural powers. They had developed paññā during one incalculable period of time and hundred thousand aeons. In his last life, Sāriputta attained the stage of the sotāpanna after he had listened to the Dhamma which Assaji explained to him. When Sāriputta explained to Moggallāna the Dhamma he had heard from Assaji, Moggallāna attained the stage of the sotāpanna. Later on, they both became arahats. The disciples who were pre-eminent in different ways, such as Kassapa, Ānanda, Upāli and Ānuruddha, had cultivated paññā for hundred thousand aeons. In the Buddha’s time, there were many people who had cultivated paññā to the degree that they could penetrate the four noble Truths and attain enlightenment. The time just before the Buddha had passed away was the most favourable time for the development of paññā. The period from his parinibbāna until the present time is not all that long, but still, the present time is less favourable for the realization of the noble Truths. For the realization of the noble Truths the right conditions have to be present, which are study and understanding of the Dhamma and the right way of practice. Only the right cause, the development of paññā, can bring the right result.

Before the Buddha’s enlightenment, people could develop samatha even to the degree of realizing supernatural powers. They could perform miracles but they could not eradicate defilements. When the Buddha attained supreme enlightenment and taught the Dhamma he had penetrated, many people could realize the noble Truths. People who had formerly developed samatha to the degree of jhāna could, if they also had developed satipaṭṭhāna, realize the noble Truths. Thus, two kinds of ariyans can be discerned: those who had not developed jhāna, who were “sukkha vipassaka”, and those who had developed jhāna.

The ariyan with “mere insight,” who is sukkha vipassaka, attains enlightenment without jhānacitta as basis or proximate cause. For him jhānacitta cannot serve as object of insight since he has not attained jhāna. It is true that the lokuttara citta which clearly realizes nibbāna is firmly established on nibbāna with strong concentration, just like the attainment concentration, appanā samādhi, which is firmly fixed on the object of the different stages of jhānacitta. However, the ariyan who is sukkha vipassaka does not have proficiency in jhāna and he cannot attain it. When cittas are counted as eighty-nine, the lokuttara cittas of those who did not develop jhāna, who are sukkha vipassaka, are taken into account.

The ariyan who has developed jhāna can attain magga-citta and phala-citta with jhāna as basis or proximate cause but he must acquire “masteries,” vasīs, of jhāna. In that case, jhānacitta can be the object of mahā-kusala citta accompanied by paññā that investigates and realizes its true nature, and then enlightenment can be attained. The ariyan who attains enlightenment with magga-citta and phala-citta accompanied by jhāna factors of the different stages of jhāna is delivered from defilements by paññā and by calm associated with the different stages of jhāna. When cittas are counted as one hundred twenty-eight, the lokuttara cittas of the ariyan who has developed jhāna are included.