Satipatthanavibhango - Abhidhammabhajaniyam

2. Abhidhammabhājanīyaṁ
The Section Derived from the Abstract Teaching

[01: Paṭhamanayo]
[The First Method] This heading, and Dutiyanayo below, do not appear in the texts, but are inserted by the editor for clarity’s sake.

[374]

Cattāro Satipaṭṭhānā:
Four Ways of Attending to Mindfulness:

Idha bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati,
Here a monk dwells contemplating (the nature of) the body in the body,

vedanāsu vedanānupassī viharati,
he dwells contemplating (the nature of) feelings in feelings,

citte cittānupassī viharati,
he dwells contemplating (the nature of) the mind in the mind,

dhammesu dhammānupassī viharati.
he dwells contemplating (the nature of) things in (various) things.

[375]

Kathañ-ca bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati?
And how does a monk dwell contemplating (the nature of) the body in the body?

Idha bhikkhu yasmiṁ samaye lokuttaraṁ jhānaṁ bhāveti,
Here a monk, at whatever time, develops the supermundane absorption, Aṭṭhasāliṇī defines absorption in this context as: ekacittakkhaṇikaṁ appanājhānaṁ; full absorption for (just) one mind moment.

niyyānikaṁ apacayagāmiṁ,
which leads out, Aṭṭhasāliṇī: lokato niyyāti vaṭṭato niyyātīti niyyānikaṁ, niyyāti vā etenāti niyyānikaṁ ... yathā ca pana tebhūmakakusalaṁ vaṭṭasmiṁ cutipaṭisandhiyo ācināti vaḍḍhetī ti ācayagāmī nāma hoti: na tathā idaṁ; leads out of the world, leads out of the round, or leads out of this (suffering), is what leads out means ... wholesome deeds in the round of the three worlds accumulate and increase passing away and relinking and is (therefore) known as increasing: but not this. which goes to decrease (of rebirth),

diṭṭhigatānaṁ pahānāya, paṭhamāya bhūmiyā pattiyā,
to abandonment of wrong views, to the attainment of the first ground, Aṭṭhasāliṇī: tassā paṭhamāya bhūmiyā pattiyā ti, sotāpattiphalasaṅkhātassa paṭhamassa sāmaññaphalassa pattatthāya paṭilābhatthāyā ti, evam-ettha attho veditabbo; that attainment of the first ground means for the acquisition, for the attainment of the first fruit of the ascetic life, which is reckoned to be the fruit of Stream-Entry, this is how the meaning should be understood.

vivicceva kāmehi, ...pe...vivicca akusalehi dhammehi,
(where,) quite secluded from sense desires, ...pe...secluded from unwholesome things,

savitakkaṁ, savicāraṁ, vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ,
having thinking, reflection, and the happiness and rapture born of seclusion,

paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati,
he dwells, having attained the first absorption, Upasampajja viharati is a periphrastic construction giving durative sense, but is possibly used conventionally here as the attainment itself only lasts for one mind-moment.

dukkhapaṭipadaṁ dandhābhiññaṁ kāye kāyānupassī,
with difficulty in practice I interpret dukkha here as meaning difficulty, as there can be no question of painful feeling while in absorption. It is odd that there are no ellipsis markers here because in Dhammasaṅgaṇī, there are four ways of progressing on the Path, of which difficulty in practice and slow deepening of knowledge is only one; the others are: difficulty in practice and quick deepening of knowledge (khippābhiññā); ease in practice (sukhapaṭipadaṁ) and slow deepening of knowledge; and ease in practice and quick deepening of knowledge. We have to understand that they are included though, as the same would apply for them too. and slow deepening of knowledge, and he contemplates (the nature of) the body in the body, Again here it is clear that the supermundane mindfulness is being said to occur within the first absorption itself, which would rule out any sort of absence of thought in that state, rather it seems to indicate an increased power of thought, fully absorbed in the mindfulness practice, which here is body contemplation, but which may be, as we shall see below, any of the four objects of mindfulness.

yā tasmiṁ samaye sati anussati Sammāsati Satisambojjhaṅgo,
and that which at that time is mindfulness, recollection, Thai marks an ellipsis passage here and below, which would mean including the following at this point: paṭissati sati saraṇatā dhāraṇatā apilāpanatā asammussanatā sati Satindriyaṁ Satibalaṁ. Right Mindfulness, the Mindfulness factor of Complete Awakening,

Maggaṅgaṁ Maggapariyāpannaṁ:
the Path factor, and what belongs to the Path:

idaṁ vuccati ‘satipaṭṭhānaṁ.’
this is said to be ‘attending to mindfulness.’

Avasesā dhammā satipaṭṭhānasampayuttā.
(Also) the rest of the things associated with the ways of attending to mindfulness. The only way to interpret this phrase, which occurs at the end of each section is that it means that there may be other mental factors that have not been enumerated here, which are concomitant with the practice of mindfulness, i.e. the list is not exhaustive, but indicative.

[376]

Kathañ-ca bhikkhu vedanāsu vedanānupassī viharati?
And how does a monk dwell contemplating (the nature of) the feelings in the feelings?

Idha bhikkhu yasmiṁ samaye lokuttaraṁ jhānaṁ bhāveti,
Here a monk, at whatever time, develops the supermundane absorption,

niyyānikaṁ apacayagāmiṁ,
which leads out, which goes to decrease (of rebirth),

diṭṭhigatānaṁ pahānāya, paṭhamāya bhūmiyā pattiyā,
to abandonment of wrong views, to the attainment of the first ground,

vivicceva kāmehi, ...pe...vivicca akusalehi dhammehi,
(where,) quite secluded from sense desires, ...pe...secluded from unwholesome things,

savitakkaṁ, savicāraṁ, vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ,
having thinking, reflection, and the happiness and rapture born of seclusion,

paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati,
he dwells, having attained the first absorption,

dukkhapaṭipadaṁ dandhābhiññaṁ vedanāsu vedanānupassī,
with difficulty in practice and slow deepening of knowledge, and he contemplates (the nature of) the feelings in the feelings,

yā tasmiṁ samaye sati anussati Sammāsati Satisambojjhaṅgo,
and that which at that time is mindfulness, recollection, Right Mindfulness, the Mindfulness factor of Complete Awakening,

Maggaṅgaṁ Maggapariyāpannaṁ:
the Path factor, and what belongs to the Path:

idaṁ vuccati ‘satipaṭṭhānaṁ.’
this is said to be ‘attending to mindfulness.’

Avasesā dhammā satipaṭṭhānasampayuttā.
(Also) the rest of the things associated with the ways of attending to mindfulness.

[377]

Kathañ-ca bhikkhu citte cittānupassī viharati?
And how does a monk dwell contemplating (the nature of) the mind in the mind?

Idha bhikkhu yasmiṁ samaye lokuttaraṁ jhānaṁ bhāveti,
Here a monk, at whatever time, develops the supermundane absorption,

niyyānikaṁ apacayagāmiṁ,
which leads out, which goes to decrease (of rebirth),

diṭṭhigatānaṁ pahānāya, paṭhamāya bhūmiyā pattiyā,
to abandonment of wrong views, to the attainment of the first ground,

vivicceva kāmehi, ...pe...vivicca akusalehi dhammehi,
(where,) quite secluded from sense desires, ...pe...secluded from unwholesome things,

savitakkaṁ, savicāraṁ, vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ,
having thinking, reflection, and the happiness and rapture born of seclusion,

paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati,
he dwells, having attained the first absorption,

dukkhapaṭipadaṁ dandhābhiññaṁ citte cittānupassī,
with difficulty in practice and slow deepening of knowledge, and he contemplates (the nature of) the mind in the mind,

yā tasmiṁ samaye sati anussati Sammāsati Satisambojjhaṅgo,
and that which at that time is mindfulness, recollection, Right Mindfulness, the Mindfulness factor of Complete Awakening,

Maggaṅgaṁ Maggapariyāpannaṁ:
the Path factor, and what belongs to the Path:

idaṁ vuccati ‘satipaṭṭhānaṁ.’
this is said to be ‘attending to mindfulness.’

Avasesā dhammā satipaṭṭhānasampayuttā.
(Also) the rest of the things associated with the ways of attending to mindfulness.

[378]

Kathañ-ca bhikkhu dhammesu dhammānupassī viharati?
And how does a monk dwell contemplating (the nature of) things in (various) things?

Idha bhikkhu yasmiṁ samaye lokuttaraṁ jhānaṁ bhāveti,
Here a monk, at whatever time, develops the supermundane absorption,

niyyānikaṁ apacayagāmiṁ,
which leads out, which goes to decrease (of rebirth),

diṭṭhigatānaṁ pahānāya, paṭhamāya bhūmiyā pattiyā,
to abandonment of wrong views, to the attainment of the first ground,

vivicceva kāmehi, ...pe...vivicca akusalehi dhammehi,
(where,) quite secluded from sense desires, ...pe...secluded from unwholesome things,

savitakkaṁ, savicāraṁ, vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ,
having thinking, reflection, and the happiness and rapture born of seclusion,

paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati,
he dwells, having attained the first absorption,

dukkhapaṭipadaṁ dandhābhiññaṁ dhammesu dhammānupassī,
with difficulty in practice and slow deepening of knowledge, and he contemplates (the nature of) things in (various) things,

yā tasmiṁ samaye sati anussati Sammāsati Satisambojjhaṅgo,
and that which at that time is mindfulness, recollection, Right Mindfulness, the Mindfulness factor of Complete Awakening,

Maggaṅgaṁ Maggapariyāpannaṁ:
the Path factor, and what belongs to the Path:

idaṁ vuccati ‘satipaṭṭhānaṁ.’
this is said to be ‘attending to mindfulness.’

Avasesā dhammā satipaṭṭhānasampayuttā.
(Also) the rest of the things associated with the ways of attending to mindfulness.

[379]

Tattha katamaṁ satipaṭṭhānaṁ?
What herein are the ways of attending to mindfulness?