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“Rāhula, what do you think? Are forms…Is eye-consciousness …[279]…Is eye-contact…Is anything comprised within the feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness that arise with eye-contact as condition permanent or impermanent?”1326—“Impermanent, venerable sir.”—“Is what is impermanent suffering or happiness?”—“Suffering, venerable sir.”—“Is what is impermanent, suffering, and subject to change fit to be regarded thus: ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’?”—“No, venerable sir.”

4–8. “Rāhula, what do you think? Is the ear permanent or impermanent?…Is the nose permanent or impermanent?…Is the tongue permanent or impermanent?…Is the body permanent or impermanent?…Is the mind permanent or impermanent?…Are mind-objects…Is mind-consciousness…Is mind-contact…Is anything comprised within the feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness that arise with mind-contact as condition permanent or impermanent?”—“Impermanent, venerable sir.”—“Is what is impermanent suffering or happiness?”—“Suffering, venerable sir.”—“Is what is impermanent, suffering, and subject to change fit to be regarded thus: ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’?”—“No, venerable sir.”

9. “Seeing thus, Rāhula, a well-taught noble disciple becomes disenchanted with the eye, disenchanted with forms, disenchanted with eye-consciousness, disenchanted with eye-contact, and disenchanted with anything comprised within the feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness that arise with eye-contact as condition.

“He becomes disenchanted with the ear…He becomes disenchanted with the nose…He becomes disenchanted with the tongue…He becomes disenchanted with the body…He becomes disenchanted with the mind, disenchanted with mind-objects, disenchanted with mind-consciousness, disenchanted with mind-contact, [280] and disenchanted with anything comprised within the feeling, perception, formations, and consciousness that arise with mind-contact as condition.

10. “Being disenchanted, he becomes dispassionate. Through dispassion [his mind] is liberated. When it is liberated there comes the knowledge: ‘It is liberated.’ He understands: ‘Birth is destroyed, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more coming to any state of being.’”

That is what the Blessed One said. The venerable Rāhula was satisfied and delighted in the Blessed One’s words. Now while this discourse was being spoken, through not clinging the venerable Rāhula’s mind was liberated from the taints. And in those many thousands of deities there arose the spotless immaculate vision of the Dhamma: “All that is subject to arising is subject to cessation.”1327

Chachakka Sutta

The Six Sets of Six

1. THUS HAVE I HEARD. On one occasion the Blessed One was living at Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s Park. There he addressed the bhikkhus thus: “Bhikkhus.”—“Venerable sir,” they replied. The Blessed One said this:

2. “Bhikkhus, I shall teach you the Dhamma that is good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end, with the right meaning and phrasing; I shall reveal a holy life that is utterly perfect and pure,1328 that is, the six sets of six. Listen and attend closely to what I shall say.”—“Yes, venerable sir,” the bhikkhus replied. The Blessed One said this:

(SYNOPSIS)

3. “The six internal bases should be understood. The six external bases should be understood. The six classes of consciousness should be understood. The six classes of contact should be understood. The six classes of feeling should be understood. The six classes of craving should be understood.

(ENUMERATION)

4. (i) “‘The six internal bases should be understood.’ So it was said. And with reference to what was this said? There are the eye-base, the ear-base, the nose-base, the tongue-base, the body-base, and the mind-base. So it was with reference to this that it was said: ‘The six internal bases should be understood.’ This is the first set of six. [281]

5. (ii) “‘The six external bases