SN 43.1

Kāyagatāsati sutta: Mindfulness of the Body

Kāyagatāsatisutta

Paṭhamavagga

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At Sāvatthī.

“Mendicants, I will teach you the unconditioned and the path that leads to the unconditioned. Listen …

In Vedic usage, something that is saṅkhata (Sanskrit saṁskṛta, “conditioned”) has been worked through a process (saṅkhāra) that shapes it into its “completed” or “perfected” form (eg. Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 7.1.2.6). To be saṅkhata is to be “equipped” for battle (Rig Veda 8.33.9) or “prepared” for the ritual (Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 8.6.1.1). When natural language is “refined” through meticulous grammar, it becomes saṅkhata, or as we say today, “Sanskrit”. Linguistically, it is a past participle, describing something that has been made into this form. But it also conveys the sense of something “readied” or “energized” or “charged” and thus fit for purpose, “potent” to perform its function. The Buddha inverts the Vedic value system, positioning the “unconditioned” Nibbāna as independent of Vedic or other rituals of “potentization”. Asaṅkhata conveys the sense of “unworked” (as a natural gem), or “unconsecrated” (by Vedic rites) and thus implies a raw or natural state. In Pali, asaṅkhata is used as an adjective describing something; but that something is unstated as the referent is empty. So whereas in English we say, “the unconditioned”, in Pali it is just “unconditioned” and does not imply an existent state or reality that is unconditioned. The prefix saṁ is sometimes said to mean “together” yielding the sense “compounded”, but usage suggests the primary sense of saṁ here is “good, well, perfect”. Nor does saṅkhata convey the sense “created” or “fabricated”, but rather “processed”. This aligns with the Buddhist rejection of creation from nothing. Existence is an ongoing process, inheriting what was made in the past, processing and potentizing it and thereby shaping the future. The English word “conditioned” conveys these senses quite well, implying something dependent on conditions, shaped into a specified state, or prepared for a given purpose.

And what is the unconditioned? The ending of greed, hate, and delusion. This is called the unconditioned. And what is the path that leads to the unconditioned? Mindfulness of the body. This is called the path that leads to the unconditioned.

So, mendicants, I’ve taught you the unconditioned and the path that leads to the unconditioned. Out of sympathy, I’ve done what a teacher should do who wants what’s best for their disciples. Here are these roots of trees, and here are these empty huts. Practice absorption, mendicants! Don’t be negligent! Don’t regret it later! This is my instruction to you.”

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