Continuing in samsara or realizing nirvana, hence, escaping samsara, depends upon what we connect with. To be bound down to samsara, i.e., connecting with it, means we only see our psychophysical organism (the five aggregates/skandhas)—not what this organism is not or what transcends it. We take our physical shape, the first aggregate, all the way to consciousness, the fifth aggregate, as comprising our totality. We may further believe that after our psychophysical organism dies, that's it. There is no more.
On this same track, nirvana means connecting, precisely, with what transcends the five aggregates, including even consciousness, reaching the undying. We get a flavor for this from the following passage from the Mahāpuṇṇama Sutta (M. iii. 20):
"Seeing it thus, monks, the instructed disciple of the pure ones turns away from material shape, he turns away from feeling, turns away from perception, turns away from the habitual tendencies, turns away from consciousness; turning away he is detached; by his detachment he is freed; in freedom there is the knowledge that he is freed and he comprehends: Destroyed is birth, brought to a close the Brahma-faring, done is what was to be done, there is no more being such or so."
One can completely turn away and detach from the aggregates only because one has never been an aggregate, although the present condition seems otherwise. Yes, these aggregates appear to be mine, or the same, appear to be my self or ātman. But appearances are deceiving especially when we believe that our psychophysical body is our totality and we haven't the slightest clue of what lies beyond it if anything.
Short of connecting with the transcendent, we remain deluded because we continually connect with the aggregates which are never other than conditioned; which are in samsara. They represent the limit of what we know. However, we cannot be content to stay here. This is the burning house of the triple world (Chapter III) of which the Lotus Sutra speaks. The flames haven't reached us yet, but they soon will.
Great information! Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Steve Lassoff | April 05, 2015 at 04:52 PM