The Discourse on the Adaptation of Conditioned Genesis Connected with Emptiness

Thus have I heard. Once the Buddha was staying in Kalandaka’s bamboo grove at Rājagrha.

Then, the World-Honored One (the Buddha) said to a monk coming from another tradition, “I have transcended doubt, got away from uncertainty, dug out the thicket of evil views, and will turn back no more. Since the mind has nothing to which to attach, where could there be a self?

“The Buddha offers the Dharma, offers the teaching on the adaptation of conditioned genesis connected with emptiness, a holy and supramundane truth.

“That is to say: Because this is, that is; because this is, that arises.

“That is to say: Conditioned ignorance, formations arise; conditioned by formations, consciousness arises;

conditioned by consciousness, name and material form arise; conditioned by name and material form, the six sense-spheres arise;

conditioned by the six sense-spheres, [sensorial and mental] contact arises;

conditioned by contact, feeling arises;

conditioned by feeling, craving arises; conditioned by craving, attachment arises;

conditioned by attachment, becoming arises; conditioned by becoming, birth arises;

conditioned by birth arises the suffering of aging, death, sorrow and affliction. 

Thus is the origin of this whole mass of suffering. And in the same way is the cessation of this whole mass of suffering.”

He taught like that, but the monk still had doubt and uncertainty.

He could not at first gain the perception that is to be gained, obtain the perception that is to be obtained, achieve the perception that is to be achieved.

The Buddha then asked the monk, “Why does someone after having listened to this dharma, find that sorrow, regret, loss and obstacles arise in his mind?

“Profound indeed is this, namely conditioned genesis; even more profound, more difficult to see is this, namely the extinction of all attachment, the destruction of craving, the fading away of desire, the cessation of all suffering: nirvāna.

“These two dharmas are namely the compounded and the uncompounded.

“The compounded is arising, persisting, changing, passing away. The uncompounded is not arising, not persisting, not changing, not passing away.

“Monks, this is to say: All formations [compounded things] are suffering, and nirvāna is the cessation of all suffering.

“When the causes of suffering are there, suffering arises; when the causes cease, suffering ceases.

“All routes are cut off, all continuums cease. The cessation of the continuums is called the ending of suffering.

“O monks! What is it that ceases? It is any remaining suffering. When this ceases, there is coolness, tranquility, namely the extinction of all attachment, the destruction of craving, the fading away of desire, the cessation of all suffering, nirvāna.”

When the Buddha had finished this discourse, all the monks, having heard what the Buddha said, were delighted and put it into practice.

~Samyukta Agama 293

Another Translation in the Plum Village Tradition

This is what I have heard:

At that time the Buddha was staying in the Bamboo Grove in the city of Rajagriha and he gave this teaching:

I have overcome all doubt, removed all hesitation, uprooted the thorns of wrong views, so that they cannot arise again. Once your mind is no longer attached to anything at all, where can you find a separate self? And I have taught you, the itinerant bhikshus coming from another country, I have demonstrated to you the Dharma door of skilful adaptation of conditioned genesis that helps to connect with emptiness. This is a Dharma door that has been practiced by the holy, good and most excellent practitioners. I have said: Because this is, that is; because this arises, that arises. This means that dependent on ignorance there are formations, dependent on formations there is consciousness, dependent on consciousness there is the psych-soma, dependent on the psyche-soma are the sense organs and objects, dependent on the sense organs and objects is contact, dependent on contact is feeling, dependent on feeling is craving, dependent on craving is grasping, dependent on grasping is becoming, dependent on becoming is birth, dependent on birth are old age, death, anxiety, grief and suffering. From that this whole mass of suffering arises. (With the absence of ignorance, there are no formations ……. (and so on until) and from that this whole mass of suffering is destroyed.)

This is how I have taught but you itinerant monks coming from another country still doubt and have hesitation. Because you have not yet realized the insight that you need to realize, have not harvested the insight that you need to harvest, have not seen for yourselves the insight that you need to witness, when I finished the teaching you worried, you felt sad, you had regrets, were in obscurity, lost your direction and had many obstacles on your way ahead.

Why is this, bhikshus? The teaching on conditioned genesis is very deep and hard to see. And deeper and harder to see is the abandoning of all grasping that leads to the ending of all craving and desire and the realization of the state of freedom that comes with the silencing of notions, namely nirvana. There are two kinds of objects of mind: conditioned objects of mind and unconditioned objects of mind. Conditioned objects of mind are born, endure for a while, change and come to an end. Unconditioned objects of mind are not born, do not endure for a while, do not change and do not come to an end.

Bhikshus, that is why it is said that to be caught in conditioned objects of mind (formations) is suffering, but when you arrive at the freedom of the silencing of all notions you can enjoy nirvana. The reason why there is suffering is because there is the making of suffering. When the causes for suffering have ended there is the end of suffering. When the paths that lead to suffering have been cut off, once the continuous stream of suffering has ended, that is the ending of suffering.

O monks! What is it that comes to an end? It is the residue of the different kinds of suffering. Once that is ended there is a state of coolness and silence. That is the ending of all grasping, the end of craving. It is a state of no desire, freedom and nirvana.

After the monks heard the Buddha give this teaching they were happy and put it into practice.

~Samyuktagama 293