7.
The Discourse on Conditions
27.
He was dwelling at Sāvatthī, etc.
"With ignorance as condition, monks, activities;
with activities as condition, consciousness; etc.
Thus is the origin of this whole mass of suffering.
"And what, monks, is ageing and death? Whatever ageing, decaying, broken teeth, grey hair, wrinkled skin, deterioration of life span, maturing of the faculties of those various beings in those various orders of beings - this is called ageing. Whatever passing away, decease, breaking up, disappearance, death, dying, making of time, breaking up of the aggregates, discarding of the body of those various beings from those various orders of beings; this is called death. Thus this ageing and this death. This is called, monks, ageing and death. From the origin of birth is the origin of ageing and death; from the cessation of birth is the cessation of ageing and death. It is just this noble eightfold path that is the practice leading to the cessation of ageing and death. That is: right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.
"And what, monks, is birth? Etc. And what, monks, is existence? And what, monks, is clinging? And what, monks, is craving? And what, monks, is feeling? And what, monks, is contact? And what, monks, is the six sense bases? And what, monks, is mentality-materiality? And what, monks, is consciousness?
"And what, monks, are activities? There are these three activities, monks - bodily activity, verbal activity, mental activity. These are called, monks, activities. From the origin of ignorance is the origin of activities; from the cessation of ignorance is the cessation of activities. It is just this noble eightfold path that is the practice leading to the cessation of activities. That is: right view, etc. right concentration.
"Since, monks, a noble disciple thus understands condition, thus understands the origin of condition, thus understands the cessation of condition, thus understands the practice leading to the cessation of condition. This is called, monks, a noble disciple who is accomplished in right view, and also accomplished in vision, and also has arrived at this Good Teaching, and also sees this Good Teaching, and also is endowed with a learner's knowledge, and also is endowed with a learner's true knowledge, and also has attained the stream of the Teaching, and also is a noble one of penetrative wisdom, and also stands having reached the door to the Deathless." The seventh.