Namo tassa bhagavato arahato sammāsambuddhassa

Introduction to 3.7.4: Indriyabhāvanāsutta - 

Mastering the Sense-faculties

‘‘Rūpesu saddesu atho rasesu,

Gandhesu phassesu ca rakkha indriyaṃ;

Ete hi dvārā vivaṭā arakkhitā,

Hananti gāmaṃva parassa hārino¹’’.

“In visible objects, sounds and smells,

Tastes and tangible objects - safeguard the sense faculties!

Because if those doors are open and remain unguarded,

Like robbers in a village - they will cause devastation.”

‘‘Rūpesu saddesu atho rasesu,

Gandhesu phassesu ca rakkha indriyaṃ;

Ete hi dvārā pihitā susaṃvutā,

Na hanti gāmaṃva parassa hārino’’.²

“In visible objects, sounds and smells,

Tastes and tangible objects - safeguard the sense faculties!

Because if those doors are closed and remain well protected,

They, like robbers a village - can cause no harm.”

     At one time, when the Buddha was staying at Sāvatthi³ in the Jetavana-park of Anāthapiṇḍika, after having gone for alms with Ānanda the two of them spent their day meditating in the Eastern Park of the palace of Migāramāta. Having taken a bath there towards the evening the Venerable Ānanda suggested to visit the nearby and pleasant hermitage of the Brahmin Rammaka⁴. A number of Bhikkhus had met there⁵ and were discussing Dhamma. The Buddha waited for the discussion to end and then knocked on the door and was warmly welcomed and invited to sit down on a prepared seat. Inquiring about the topic of their discussion⁶, he approved of their talk by mentioning that for those having left the householders life when meeting together, two things were proper activities; To either talk about Dhamma: ‘Sannipatitānaṃ vo, bhikkhave, dvayaṃ karaṇīyaṃ – dhammī vā kathā, ariyo vā tuṇhībhāvo’’- or meditate together in silence.

     Then he explained what should be pursued as noble search and avoided as ignoble search: Dvemā, bhikkhave, pariyesanā – ariyā ca pariyesanā, anariyā ca pariyesanā. He explained that ‘ignoble search’ (being oneself subject to birth, aging, sickness etc. one seeks what is similarly bound to be subject to birth, aging, sickness etc.) would focus on objects of attachment. Then he delivered a detailed description of what in opposition to the first was: ‘noble search’. This would focus on security from bondage (nibbāna). He then described in full and inspiring detail how he himself had been successful in his own search and had reached full liberation from all bondage and suffering so all beings could follow his example:

‘Apārutā⁷ tesaṃ amatassa dvārā,

Ye sotavanto pamuñcantu⁸ saddhaṃ’⁹

‘Open for those are the doors of the deathless

Let those intend on hearing deliver their faith!’

     The Buddha concluded his narrative and elucidation of his own liberation with the strong warning, not to fall in the traps of Māra. As he himself had realised the profoundness and unfathomability of the Dhamma for those beings¹⁰, who were bound to lust he pointed to the following pitfalls of the dominating influence of sensual pleasures:

     ‘‘Pañcime, bhikkhave, kāmaguṇā. Katame pañca? Cakkhuviññeyyā rūpā iṭṭhā kantā manāpā piyarūpā kāmūpasaṃhitā¹¹ rajanīyā, sotaviññeyyā saddā…pe… ghānaviññeyyā gandhā… jivhāviññeyyā rasā… kāyaviññeyyā phoṭṭhabbā iṭṭhā kantā manāpā piyarūpā kāmūpasaṃhitā rajanīyā. Ime kho, bhikkhave, pañca kāmaguṇā.” – “There are, O’ Bhikkhus, five constituents of sensual pleasure! What are the five? There are objects of vison, cognizable to the eye that are desired, agreeable, pleasing, delightful, accompanied by sensual pleasure and stimulating lust; there are objects of sound, cognizable to the ear that are desired……; there are objects of odour, cognizable to the nose that are desired……; there are objects of taste, cognizable to the tongue that are desired……; there are tangible objects, felt by the body that are desired, agreeable, pleasing, delightful, accompanied by sensual pleasure, stimulating lust. These are, O’ Bhikkhus, the five constituents of sensual pleasure!

     “Ye hi keci, bhikkhave, samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā ime pañca kāmaguṇe gathitā¹² mucchitā¹³ ajjhopannā¹⁴ anādīnavadassāvino¹⁵ anissaraṇapaññā paribhuñjanti, te evamassu veditabbā – ‘anayamāpannā¹⁶ byasanamāpannā yathākāmakaraṇīyā pāpimato’.” – “Because those recluses and Brahmins, Bhikkhus, who are enjoying these five constituents of sensual pleasure, are bound, tied and enthralled, not aware of the danger in them and do know no escape from them. Regarding those it should be understood: ‘They have fallen into misfortune, they are bound to destruction and the Evil One may deal with them according to his liking!’”

     The Buddha then compares these Bhikkhus with a forest deer, bound and laid down on a heap of snares so any hunter could deal with it according to his own liking. But those Bhikkhus, who are not relishing these five constituents of sensual pleasure, are neither bound, tied nor infatuated, fully aware of the danger in them and knowing the escape from them: ‘…… ime pañca kāmaguṇe agathitā amucchitā anajjhopannā ādīnavadassāvino nissaraṇapaññā paribhuñjanti, te evamassu veditabbā – ‘na anayamāpannā na byasanamāpannā na yathākāmakaraṇīyā pāpimato’ – they have not fallen into misfortune, they are not bound to destruction and the Evil One cannot do with them as he likes!’ These Bhikkhus are compared to a deer that walks free through the forest without any fear, it stands, sits and lies down without any fear because it is out of the hunter’s range. Those Bhikkhus are destined to develop the jhānas and bound to reach the higher stages.

     This reference here is mentioned as an introduction to the present sutta. The Indriyabhāvanāsutta itself emphasizes and clarifies the procedure of a meditator to train oneself in the section of the Saṃvarappadhāna¹⁷ in a more detailed way. On the base and by means of developing equanimity any input that arises through any of the sense-organs gets quickly extinguished, it is neither enjoyed, nor disliked and not followed up. Whenever any desirable vision, sound, fragrance, flavour, palpable feeling on the body or thought in the mind arise – they are considered to be manāpa–pleasant, agreeable and satisfying. Correspondingly whatever is considered amanāpa–undesirable presents itself as unpleasant, disagreeable and unsatisfactory. Similarly there are visions, sounds, fragrances, and flavours, palpable feelings on the body or thoughts in the mind that are of apparent neutral and indifferent nature which are manāpāmanāpa–neither agreeable nor disagreeable¹⁸. For an experienced meditator, who manages simply to observe these arising, staying and finally passing inputs through any of the sense-doors, manages to keep them in the background of his recognizing sensorium but determines to mainly focus on the reactions that any of these inputs will have on his body-level as arising, staying and passing sensations without losing the focus - his equanimity will get firmly established and developed: ‘Tatha yadidaṃ upekkhāti yā esā vipassanupekkhā nāma, esā santā esā paṇītā, atappikāti¹⁹ attho. Iti ayaṃ bhikkhu cakkhudvāre rūpārammaṇampi iṭṭhe ārammaṇe manāpaṃ, aniṭṭhe amanāpaṃ, majjhatte manāpāmanāpañca cittaṃ, tassa rajjituṃ vā dussituṃ vā muyhituṃ vā adatvāva pariggahetvā vipassanaṃ majjhatte ṭhapeti.’²⁰ – ‘Thus this equanimity is the equanimity of Vipassana which is peaceful, sublime and inaccessible to suffering. This is the meaning. Here a Bhikkhu encounters a desired object through the eye-sense-door, a pleasant object, a disagreeable object, a neutral neither agreeable nor disagreeable object, not having given any leeway to pleasure, annoyance nor bewilderment but by having resorted to Vipassana he establishes himself in a neutral state.’

     This ‘neutral state’ is described as²¹: Vipassanaṃ majjhatte ṭhapetīti anukkamena²² vipassanupekkhaṃ nibbattetvā taṃ saṅkhārupekkhaṃ pāpetvā²³ ṭhapeti - in succession of produced equanimity of insight and thus caused to attain and maintain equanimity with mental conditioned formations: saṅkhārupekkhaṃ.

     The Buddha then concludes the sutta by pointing out to the higher training of a - sekho hoti pāṭipado – who gets disgusted, embarrassed and repelled by whatever arises: So tena uppannena manāpena uppannena amanāpena uppannena manāpāmanāpena aṭṭīyati harāyati jigucchati. The Buddha then terminates with the description of someone - ariyo hoti bhāvitindriyo - having reached the state of Arahanthood. Such a person can consider, whatever arises in the way he wants, perceiving repulsive in unrepulsive or vice versa, and by avoiding both, the repulsive as well as the unrepulsive he remains absorbed in equanimity²⁴, fully aware with constant thorough understanding of impermanence: Sace ākaṅkhati – ‘paṭikūlañca appaṭikūlañca tadubhayaṃ abhinivajjetvā upekkhako vihareyyaṃ sato sampajāno’ti, upekkhako tattha viharati sato sampajāno.

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