The Five Aggregates

Cover

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Title Page, Copyright

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Table of Contents

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pp. iii-iv

List of Tables

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pp. v-

Acknowledgements

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pp. vii-

Although most books are attributed to one single author, various individuals and many factors contribute to the development of any manuscript. As the theory of dependent origination suggests, there is no initial cause (or authorship), but merely a succession of inter-dependent events that are responsible for what comes into being. ...

Foreword

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pp. ix-x

In Buddhist philosophy, the theory of the five aggregates (pañcakkhandhā) of realities, or real occurrences known as "principles" (dhamma), is the analysis of what elsewhere is often called the "problem" of matter and mind. In Buddhism, to separate these would be to produce a dilemma like the familiar one of "body" and "soul" ...

Abbreviations

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pp. xi-xii

Introduction

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pp. 1-14

The following study presents a detailed analysis of each of the five aggregates (pañcakkhandhā); its primary intention is to establish how the Theravāda tradition views their interaction. It therefore attempts to clarify the fundamentals of Buddhist psychology by analyzing one of the earliest classifications ...

1 The Concept of Khandha

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pp. 15-30

Buddhism differs from other religions in that no room is allotted for an ultimate reality corresponding to the concept of "self." Most Buddhist traditions view the entire universe (and the individual as well) as composed of different, irreducible phenomena (dhamma). Although these phenomena serve as a common ...

2 The Rūpakkhandha

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pp. 31-50

At first glance, the sutta literature defines the rūpakkhandha—the material aggregate—in a concise and clear manner. "What is this material 'clinging-aggregate'? The four primary elements (mahābhūta') and secondary matter (upādārūpa). The four primary elements consist of earth, water, fire and air."¹ ...

3 The Vedanākkhandha

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pp. 51-76

The whole of the rūpakkhandha, as we saw in the previous chapter, is contained by "the six sense-organs" (saḷāyatana) and contact (phassa). According to the formula of the paṭiccasamuppāda, phassa is a necessary condition for the arising of vedanā (sensation). The principal difference between contact and vedanā...

4 The Saññākkhandha

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pp. 77-90

As we saw in the previous chapter, vedanā is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for the arising of craving (taṇhā). Craving depends not only on the occurrence of sensation, but also on the occurrence of a particular type of saññā. My aim in this chapter is twofold: first, to circumscribe the meaning of ...

5 The Saṅkhārakkhandha

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pp. 91-112

My purpose in this chapter is, primarily, to uncover the basic meaning that links the various contexts in which the term appears; and, secondarily, to arrive at a precise interpretation of saṅkhārakkhandha and its function with respect to the theory of dependent origination. I will not attempt to find one English ...

6 The Viññāṇakkhandha

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pp. 113-126

In the traditional enumeration of the aggregates, viññāṇa is fifth and is commonly translated as "consciousness." As with the previous four aggregates, six kinds of viññāṇa exist, with each designation dependent upon the sense organ through which the faculty performs its function.¹ Therefore, we find viññāṇa associated ...

7 Interrelation of the Aggregates

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pp. 127-146

In the previous chapters we discussed each of the five aggregates separately, without attempting to establish a detailed correlation between them. However, simply understanding the purport of these aggregates gives us merely a superficial insight into Buddhist psychology. The knowledge that rūpa is equated with ...

Conclusion

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pp. 147-150

Although many scholars have referred to the five aggregates in their works on Buddhism, none have thoroughly explained their respective functions. By clarifying the importance of this previously untreated subject, this study has circumscribed the meaning and the role of each of the five aggregates and has established ...

Glossary

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pp. 151-154

Bibliography

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pp. 155-162

Index

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pp. 163-166