The Central Conception of Buddhism and the Meaning of the Word "Dharma" c4: II. Skandhas

The Central Conception of Buddhism and the Meaning of the Word "Dharma" c4

Language: English

II. Skandhas

c4.1

The simplest classification of all elements of existence is represented by a division into five groups of elements: (1) matter, (2) feelings, (3) ideas, (4) volitions and other faculties, and (5) pure sensation or general consciousness.¹ If we realize that the group of matter represents no other matter than sense-data, that a soul is excluded and replaced by feelings, ideas, volitions, and pure sensation, we cannot but be surprised that from under a cover of Oriental terminology an epitome of matter and mind emerges which very nearly approaches the standpoint of modern European science.

c4.2

¹ The reasons for these renderings of the terms *rūpa*, *vedanā*, *samjñā*, *samskāra*, and *vijñāna* will be given later on.

c4.3

Three of these groups, namely, feelings, ideas, and pure sensation, contain one element (*dharma*) each. They are, nevertheless, called groups because they include feelings, etc., as past, present, and future, proximate and remote, external and internal, morally pure or impure, etc.² The group of matter includes ten elements, ten different varieties of sense-data.³ The group of volitions, etc., includes fifty-eight elements, various mental faculties and general forces.⁴

c4.4

² *Ab. K.*, i, 20.

c4.5

³ *Ibid.*, i, 14.

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⁴ All the *samskāras* except *vedanā* and *samjñā*, *ibid.*, i, 15. The three eternal elements—*asamskrta*—are not included in the *skandhas*, *ibid.*, i, 22. Together with *avijñapti-rūpa* this will make seventy-five elements in all.

c4.7

The physical elements of a personality, including its outer world—the external objects—are represented in this classification by one item—matter;¹ the mental ones are distributed among the four others.

c4.8

¹ Among the physical elements there is one called *avijñapti* which broadly corresponds to what we might call the moral character of a person: for some special reasons it is entered by the Sarvāstivādins in their physical class (*rūpa*), but other schools include it in mind (*Ab. K.*, i, 11). In the *āyatana* and *dhātu* classifications it is included not in the physical items, but in the general class *dharmāḥ*, i.e. *āyatana* or *dhātu* No. 12. In the following account we leave this special element unnoticed, cf. Appendix II, under Matter.

c4.9

For "Matter and Mind" the old, pre-Buddhistic term *nāma-rūpa* is used, where *rūpa* represents the elements of matter and *nāma* includes the four mental classes.

c4.10

But the most general division of all elements is into matter (*rūpa*), mind (*citta-caitta*), and forces (*saṃskāra*). The fourth group (*saṃskāra-skandha*), which includes mental faculties and general forces, is here split into two parts; the mental faculties are then united to all other mental groups, and are brought under the head of mind: the general forces or energies receive a separate place (*citta-viprayukta-saṃskāra*).² This threefold division is very popular and known in Mongolia and Tibet to every schoolboy.³

c4.11

² Or a slightly differing fivefold division: *rūpa*, *citta*, *caitta*, *viprayukta-saṃskāra*, and *nirvāṇa*; cf. *Ab. K.*, ii, 22, and Appendix II.

c4.12

³ *Zugs-ces-ldan-min-ḥdu-byed*.

Cites (1)

Abhidharmakośa — Vasubandhu, Sanskrit