2.

Commentary on the Triad of Feeling

1. In the feeling triad, these phenomena - the three feelings, materiality, and Nibbāna - are not obtained; therefore "dependent on one aggregate, two aggregates" and so on was stated. "At the moment of conception, with pleasant feeling" was stated by way of conception with root. Since unpleasant feeling is not obtained at conception, the inclusion of conception was not made in the second section. In the third section, "at the moment of conception" was stated by way of conception with root. The remainder here and in the conditions beyond this proceeds according to the canonical text itself. Everywhere three and three sections were stated. Therefore it was said "by way of root three" etc. "by way of non-disappearance three."

6. But in the correlation of conditions, because of the absence of resultant unpleasant feeling with root, "in resultant two" was stated in the method based on root. In the correlations together with predominance and so on also, in resultant only two. Why? Because of the absence of predominance, meditative absorption, and path in resultant unpleasant feeling. And with whichever in the correlation two modes are obtained in resultant, in the correlation together with resultant, in those also only two.

10. In the negative, by way of non-prenascence, in the immaterial sphere and at conception, due to the absence of unpleasant feeling, two turns have come. By way of the not dissociated too, due to the absence of suffering in the immaterial sphere, only two. However, the conditions beginning with conascence that encompass all immaterial states fall away in this negative section. Why? Because a mental state associated with feeling is not attained without conascence and so on dependent on what is associated with feeling, and because it arises without the postnascence condition as well.

17. But in the correlation of conditions, "by non-prenascence one" was stated with reference to the immaterial sphere and also to conception associated with rootless neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant feeling. "By non-kamma two" was stated by means of volition associated with rootless functional states. For dependent on mental states associated with pleasant feeling and neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant feeling, rootless functional volitions associated with those feelings arise. By non-root condition, by non-resultant too, the same method applies. "By the not dissociated one" was stated by way of adverting in the immaterial sphere. By this method, the reckoning should be understood in all the correlations.

25-37. In the positive-negative, the conditions obtained in the negative remain from the negative side only. In the negative-positive, all those beginning with conascence that comprehend material phenomena remain only in conformity, not from the negative side. But since there is no predominance for a rootless arising of consciousness, the predominance condition does not stand in conformity. But in the section on the dependent and so on, postnascence is simply not obtainable in conformity, therefore it is excluded. And those that are obtained here in conformity have been combined even by interchanging them together with those obtained from the negative side. Among those, three, two, and one - there are just three delimitations of turns; they should be observed as appropriate everywhere. And that which was stated in the section on the dependent - the same method of explanation applies also in the section on the conascence and so on.

38. But in the section on questions, "of associated aggregates" means of the aggregates associated together with that, or by those very roots, or by pleasant feeling and so on.

39. "For one who is remorseful" means first, regarding giving and so on, being remorseful thus: "Why was this done by me? It was badly done by me. It would be better if it had not been done." But regarding the decline of meditative absorption, being remorseful thus: "My meditative absorption has declined. I have indeed suffered a great loss." "Delusion arises" means delusion associated with hate. Likewise, "referring to delusion" means just delusion associated with hate.

45. "Life-continuum associated with pleasant feeling for life-continuum associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant feeling" means the subsequent life-continuum reckoned as registration, for the root life-continuum. "For emergence" means for registration or for the life-continuum. For both of these are called "emergence" because of having emerged from wholesome-unwholesome impulsion. "The functional for emergence" - here too the same method applies. "Fruition for emergence" means consciousness of fruition for the life-continuum. For one is called emerged from fruition through the life-continuum. In the places where "emergence" occurs later too, the same method applies.

46. "Aggregates associated with unpleasant feeling" means unwholesome aggregates associated with displeasure. "For emergence associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant feeling" means for the visiting life-continuum reckoned as registration, or for the root life-continuum associated with equanimity. But if the root life-continuum is accompanied by pleasure, and there is no cause for the arising of registration, then unwholesome resultant with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant feeling arises indeed in an object other than the object of impulsion. For that too is called "emergence" because of having emerged from impulsion. The descriptions of conascence condition and so on are of manifest meaning only. For there is nothing here that could not be understood by the method stated below, therefore it should be thoroughly discerned.

62. Now, in order to show by way of counting, having summarised all the turns obtained in each and every condition, it was said beginning with "by way of root three." Therein, all the threes should be understood by way of the three pure terms. By way of object nine, with a single root and a single ending. By way of predominance five: by way of connascent predominance, three unmixed; and by way of object predominance, "associated with pleasant for one associated with pleasant, associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant for one associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant" - two, those should not be counted. But "associated with pleasant for neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant, associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant for pleasant" - these two should be counted - thus five. By proximity and contiguity seven: pleasant for two, likewise unpleasant, neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant for all three - thus seven. By way of decisive support nine: that associated with pleasant is a condition for one associated with pleasant by all three decisive supports; for one associated with unpleasant by natural decisive support only; for one associated with equanimity by all three; that associated with unpleasant is a condition for one associated with unpleasant by proximity and natural decisive supports; for one associated with pleasant by natural decisive support; for one associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant in two ways; that associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant is a condition for one associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant in all three ways; likewise for one associated with pleasant; for one associated with unpleasant by proximity and natural decisive supports - thus nine. But here, by the distinction of conditions, there are nine natural decisive supports, seven proximity decisive supports, and four object decisive supports - thus twenty decisive supports. But here prenascence and postnascence are cut off. For neither prenascent nor postnascent immaterial phenomena are conditions for immaterial phenomena.

By way of action eight: that associated with pleasant is a condition for one associated with pleasant in both ways; for one associated with unpleasant only as asynchronous; likewise for the other. That associated with unpleasant is a condition for one associated with unpleasant in both ways; for one associated with pleasant there is not; for the other only as asynchronous; that associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant is a condition for one associated with neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant in both ways; for the others only as asynchronous - thus eight. But here, by the distinction of conditions, eight are asynchronous and three are conascent - thus eleven kamma conditions. And just as prenascence and postnascence, so too the dissociated condition is cut off here. For immaterial phenomena are not a dissociated condition for immaterial phenomena. By absence and by disappearance, seven are similar to proximity. Thus here there are five numerical delimitations: three, five, seven, eight, and nine. By virtue of those, in the correlation of conditions, the reckoning should be understood by removing the excess and what is not obtainable in the correlations together with the lesser enumeration.

63-64. Object is not obtained together with root, likewise proximity and so on. "By way of predominance two" means two remaining after setting aside the suffering term. For indeed there is no root associated with suffering that is a predominant; therefore it is not obtained and is removed. In the remaining two also, the same method applies. Thus in the root-rooted there are only two numerical delimitations; by virtue of those, six combinations are stated. Among those, the first is stated by way of states that are non-resultant, dissociated from knowledge, and without predominance; the second is for those very same that are resultant; the third and fourth are for those very same that are associated with knowledge; the fifth is by way of non-resultant with predominance and non-delusion; the sixth is by way of resultant with predominance and non-delusion. Or the first is by way of all roots, the second by way of all resultant roots, the third by way of all non-delusion roots, the fourth by way of all resultant non-delusion roots. The fifth is by way of all with predominance and non-delusion, the sixth by way of all with predominance, resultant, and non-delusion.

66. "By way of predominance four in the object-rooted section" means by way of object predominance: pleasant for pleasant, for neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant; neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant for neither-unpleasant-nor-pleasant, for pleasant - thus four. By way of decisive support also, four were stated by way of object decisive support. Now here, the combinations are just one only. In the predominance-rooted and so on also, having thoroughly considered all that which is obtainable and that which is not obtainable by the very method stated above, the reckoning of comparison-combinations should be understood.

83-87. In the negative, having extracted the conditions from the conformity in the very manner stated in the triad of wholesome, by way of the turns obtained therein, by way of counting from the negative side, "by non-root nine" - nine turns were shown in all conditions. Those should be shown by extracting the canonical text by way of the nine answers of the one-root to the one-ending, by the method beginning with "a mental state associated with pleasant feeling is a condition for a mental state associated with pleasant feeling by way of non-root condition - having given a gift with consciousness associated with pleasant feeling" and so on. However, here in the correlation of conditions, by non-root condition... etc. "by way of non-decisive support eight" - this should be understood by way of asynchronous kamma condition. For weak kamma is not a decisive support for resultant. However, it is a condition only by way of asynchronous kamma condition. The remainder here in the positive-negative and the negative-positive, by way of the turns obtained through the combination of those various conditions, can be counted in the very manner stated above, therefore it has not been elaborated.

Commentary on the Triad of Feeling.