Questions tagged [pratityasamutpada]

Pratītyasamutpāda (Sanskrit:प्रतीत्यसमुत्पाद; Pali: पटिच्चसमुप्पाद paṭiccasamuppāda) is commonly translated as dependent origination or dependent arising. A central concept in the Buddhist tradition that all things arise in dependence upon multiple causes and conditions. The term is also used to refer to a specific application of this general principle — namely the twelve links of dependent origination.

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Misunderstanding of the Buddha’s words on karma

I have often seen the Anguttara Nikaya 4.77 being quoted as in this post against pondering on the precise workings of karma. My question: is there a misunderstanding of the Buddha’s words thus ...
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“The āsava are the saṅkhāra that are encoded with ignorance [avijjā]”

Given that awakening is accomplished by the destruction of the āsava, understanding what precisely the āsava are (and what they are not) is a key to unraveling the mystery of the Buddha's teaching. At ...
Alex Ryan's user avatar
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What is the source and meaning of this quote of the Buddha's: "Everything rests upon the tip of intention"?

I've heard this quote in a few places, attributed to the Buddha. Prominently, Tara Brach uses it. It varies sometimes: "Everything rests on the tip of one's motivation." “Everything rests ...
yellow-saint's user avatar
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What is mainly uncovered by Analyzing Causes? Anicca or Dukkha or Anatta?

The Abhidhamma Commentary says: Anicca-characteristic is hidden due to "Non-contemplation of the Rising and falling." Dukkha-characteristic is hidden due to "Shifting of the Postures.&...
Blake's user avatar
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Questions about Chogyam Trungpa's unique presentation of the five skandhas?

I've recently begun reading the new book Cynicism and Magic - Intelligence & Intuition on the Buddhist Path by Chogyam Trungpa. This is my first book by this renowned teacher. In Chapter 3 of this ...
Yeshe Tenley's user avatar
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What exactly is the suffering of self views?

I read the following in the worldly internet: What exactly is the suffering of self views? What exactly is the suffering of self views?
Dhamma Dhatu's user avatar
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If the chain of dependent origination (Pratītyasamutpāda) ends, then isn't the last part independent?

Dependent Origin or Pratītyasamutpāda is defined as It states that all dharmas (phenomena) arise in dependence upon other dharmas And then there are these 12 causes one after another, each depending ...
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What does "becoming" mean in the phrase "the 10 fetters of becoming"?

From Wikipedia's Sutta Pitaka's list of ten fetters: The Pali canon's Sutta Pitaka identifies ten "fetters of becoming". sakkāya-diṭṭhi vicikicchā sīlabbata-parāmāsa kāmacchando vyāpādo ...
Alex Ryan's user avatar
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Abhidhamma vs Sutta: Did the Buddha teach about the birth of things?

The Abhidhamma acknowledges the Suttas define 'birth' ('jati') as follows: The Section Derived from the Discourses 1.11. Definition of Birth PTS cs 235 Herein, what is ‘with continuation as ...
Dhamma Dhatu's user avatar
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Abhidhamma cross-referenced with Sutta: Can nama arise without rupa? Is nama four aggregates?

Abhidhamma appears to say nama can arise without rupa in dependent origination, as follows: PTS cs 243 With ignorance as condition there is a (volitional) process, with a (volitional) process as ...
Dhamma Dhatu's user avatar
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The Nature of Viññāṇa as a Nidāna in the Cycle of Paṭiccasamuppāda

In the cycle of paṭiccasamuppāda, if we start from avijjā, the next nidāna is that of saṅkhāra which in turn conditions the origin of viññāṇa, loosely termed as consciousness. This viññāṇa in turn ...
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Lokuttara Paṭicca-samuppāda and the Spiral Path

The doctrine of paṭicca-samuppāda, or dependent arising, forms one of the core teachings of the Buddha. The Theravāda commentarial text Nettipakaraṇa divides the applications of this doctrine into two ...
Sushil Fotedar's user avatar
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How could one know that Nibbana is the cessation of consciousness if there is no consciousness?

How could one know that Nibbana is the cessation of consciousness if there is no consciousness? I can't see how one could know.
Angus's user avatar
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What is (re)born? Did the Buddha explicitly state that it is "the mental idea of the self" that is reborn?

It's been asserted by some knowledgeable individuals that the Buddha explicitly identified "the mental idea of the self" as what is (re)born in samsara and has done so in suttas spelling out ...
Yeshe Tenley's user avatar
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Difference between the Scientific Law of Causality and the Buddhist Law of Conditionality

What is the difference between the scientific law of causality and the Buddhist law of conditionality (Paṭiccasamuppāda)? I am not convinced with the way Ven. Bikkhu Bodhi, for example, has drawn the ...
Sushil Fotedar's user avatar
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Why ancient Prasangika buddhist Chandrakirti claimed "There is no chariot which depends on its parts"?

Today during reference checking I arrived at this wiki page, where the famous ancient Prasangika buddhist Chandrakirti claimed "There is no chariot which depends on its parts"? But per the ...
Double Knot's user avatar
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What are Buddhist views about free will? Does the concept of free will vs determinism even apply? Is it a question with a wrong assumption? [duplicate]

There are mainly 3 western views: Free Will is real & I believe in it. Free Will is an illusion but I live my life assuming it is real because it is a healthy assumption. A compatibilist that ...
Luv's user avatar
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What is the meaning of “becoming, birth, old age & death” in the 12 links?

Finding resources to better understand the meaning of the 12 links of dependent origination has been challenging for me. The best resource I've been able to find to decipher the meaning thus far is ...
Alex Ryan's user avatar
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Dependent Origination: causes vs conditions?

I suspect that I am not alone in having a fuzzy understanding of precisely what the difference is between a ”cause” and a “condition” in the Buddha's teachings on Dependent Origination. A concrete ...
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Meditations on Paṭiccasamuppāda

While meditating on Dependent Origination, I have come to understand certain things that I hesitatingly put forth here: Though the links in the chain of Dependent Origination are cyclical in nature, ...
Sushil Fotedar's user avatar
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Why is “nibbana” considered to be “unconditioned”?

I’m aware that a similar question has been asked before: How is Nibbana unconditioned? However, I’m looking for an answer (1) in the language of science that is (2) clear and comprehensible to readers ...
Alex Ryan's user avatar
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Is dependent co-arising an "IF AND ONLY IF A THEN B" relation?

"IF AND ONLY IF A THEN B" means if you get B you get A, if you get A you get B, if you don't get B you don't get A, and if you don't get A you don't get B. Does dependent co-arising have the ...
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What are Sensuality, Strings of Sensuality, and Fermentation of Sensuality?

Can someone explain sensuality, strings of sensuality, and fermentation of sensuality thoroughly? I want to know, What is it? The main cause for it. The result of it. Where it lies in the dependent ...
Damith's user avatar
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'Antarabhava' existence between rebirth and the death

Does a state called "Antarabhava" an existence between death and rebirth exist? Traditional Theravada sources, highly respected scholars and texts in Abhidhamma directly decline this as ...
ArbitraryChoices's user avatar
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Dependent Origination, 'here-&-now' & 11th & 12th link

On this site there are some users who claim that birth & death are mental phenomena, while other people argue that it's something physical. Contextually, the Buddha lived in a time where other ...
Val's user avatar
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Understanding Saṅkhāra in dependent origination as *choices* of body, speech and mind?

Continuing to try to understand Dependent Origination from my own reading of the suttas as well trying to grok the understanding of other skilled practitioners and I've come across an interesting ...
Yeshe Tenley's user avatar
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Did Buddha explain Dependent Origination as an upaya or skillful means? If so, why?

Inspired by this answer... Is the specific formulation of Dependent Origination in the early buddhist texts an upaya and/or skillful means? If so, how approximate is it? Are there other conceptual ...
Yeshe Tenley's user avatar
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Do visual objects have karma?

According to Nagarjuna, the second causal link (sankhara, motivations) and the tenth causal link (bhava, gestation) are two karmas through which sentient beings trigger seven sufferings identified ...
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Where is ignorance, and why does it not end with death?

Where is ignorance, and why does it not end with death? Can we experience it? Does it have to be actively conditioning formations for us to experience it, or can we know this nidana even when freed ...
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Misconception about remembering past lives?

I have been digging really deep into the philosophy of Buddha. What I have come to know is that Buddha has never talked about remembering past lives in any original text. If he has then please let me ...
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Tanhā Jālinī Sutta and Self-Views

This answer by Suminda Sirinath S. Dharmasena noted the self-views, in the Tanhā Jālinī Sutta, that promote clinging to a self. I wish here to verify my understanding, namely that these views are ...
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How to interpret "cessation"?

Throughout the suttas, we find the following stock passage: "Now from the remainderless fading & cessation of that very ignorance comes the cessation of fabrications. From the cessation of ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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How does dependent origination and the skandhas fit together?

I’m having trouble seeing whether the idea of the five skandhas is meant to fit within dependent origination in any way, or whether the two theories are meant to be applied as complements to each ...
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In Dependent Co-Arising, is Dukkha a Sankhara, a Vedana, both, or none?

How should I understand dukkha (in all its amplitude and semantic complexity), if I want to see it through the lens of Dependent Co-Arising? Where is it classified, apart from the final nidana? Is ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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7 answers
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I had a no-self experience, why is it a good state?

I've been meditating for about 4 months without (seemingly) getting somewhere up till about 2 weeks ago when something clicked for me after watching some interviews and talks from Gary Weber and ...
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Is ignorance a kammically active volitional formation, or a kammically passive fruit of past kamma?

As the title indicates, I'm not sure how to classify 'avijja' in Dependent Co-arising: Is it a volitional formation which produces a certain kind of vipaka, or is it a vipaka in itself? In Bhikkhu ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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Is it correct that dependent origination will cease to exist if one doesn't have 12 nidanas?

From Pratītyasamutpāda - Wikipedia: dependent origination refers to nothing else but the process of mental conditioning as described by the twelve nidanas So to check if my understanding is ...
Ooker's user avatar
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Nature of dependent origination, and is Buddhism non-duality?

Is dependent arising meant for us to understand the arising of suffering -- or is it also meant to describe how phenomena in the outside World arise dependent on other conditions (for instance how ...
beginner3's user avatar
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Is continuity just causation?

Is continuity just causation? When a fire is caused by a spark, is that the same kind of continuity as there is in the dependent origination of the skandhas, just with different causes and effects?
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What does 'Ignorance' mean in Dependent Co-Arising?

A while ago I wrote a question here about the relation between dukkha and the sense of self (whether from identity view, from conceit or both). There, most answers said that, indeed, that sense of ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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5 answers
153 views

A few questions about "becoming"

How is "becoming" (bhava) defined in the context of Dependent Co-arising? If there is craving, will that craving always result in "becoming"? Is there something like craving without "becoming"? ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
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9 answers
382 views

Are all forms of Dukkha related to a sense of self?

A few days ago I started reading books about Paticcasamuppada because I realized how little and shallow was my understanding on this capital matter. Despite getting the gist of it, I still have ...
Brian Díaz Flores's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
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Dependent origination and the living arahat

In the 12 nidānas or 12 links of dependent origination, it's clear that the arahat has overcome craving, clinging and ignorance. Craving (tanha), clinging (upādāna) and ignorance (avijjā) have ...
ruben2020's user avatar
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Does Viññāṇa generate Nāmarūpa in the sense that would make "uploading concsciousness" impossible?

Does Viññāṇa generate Nāmarūpa in the sense that would make "uploading concsciousness" to a computer impossible? I was reading this question on philosophy.stack I'd suspect that it's impossible to ...
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2 answers
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This consciousness turns back; it doesn't go further than name-and-form

In SN 12.65, we read about the cyclic relationship between consciousness and name-and-form, which has been asked in this question. However, this sutta also has the curious phrase in bold below. What ...
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What is the duality of body and external name-and-form?

What is the duality of body and external name-and-form? What is the difference between the two? What is the relationship between the two? From the Balapandita Sutta (SN 12.19) (translated by Bhikkhu ...
ruben2020's user avatar
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'Sankhara' Dependent Origination: Bhikkhu Analayo vs Bhikkhu Thanissaro. Which is right?

About 'sankhara' in Dependent Origination as found in SN 12.2 of the Pali suttas, Bhikkhu Analayo said the following: Bhikkhu Thanissaro said the following: Which is right and why? Bhikkhu Analayo ...
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How can we use the triple round model to understand dependent origination?

In the Visuddhimagga (but not in the suttas) and possibly other commentaries, we can find the triple round model, which can be used to explain dependent origination (paticcasamuppada). The first ...
ruben2020's user avatar
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How does an arahant know that ignorance won't return/re-arise after death?

The earlier aspects that now seem less relevant imo: ---How can it be known that ignorance won't return/re-arise and why won't it return/re-arise if there is no consciousness after death? ---...
Angus's user avatar
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Regarding Nicca and Anicca natures of Avidya and Prajna

If Tanha (Craving) is caused by Avidya (Ignorance), and Avidya is originated and sustained by Tanha, then the origination of Avidya is part of a recursive cycle with no beginning. Yet Prajna (Wisdom) (...
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