5.4. Three Types of Vedanā

As always, come back to your senses.

Let's begin with open awareness. Simply experience whatever is naturally occurring right now.

You should be familiar with the types of experiences that you have through the six sense channels.

And you should be familiar with analysing those experiences in various ways.

Now we're going to note or label each experience according to the type of vedanā.

There are only three types, pleasant, unpleasant, and neutral.

Or if you prefer, comfortable, uncomfortable and neither.

Or in Pāḷi, sukha, dukkha and adukkham-asukha.

This experience you are having right now, what channel is it on? What is the vedanā?

If an experience is not obviously pleasant or unpleasant, label it as neutral and move on to the next experience. In time, you may be able to distinguish more subtle levels of pleasantness and unpleasantness, but for now, if you cannot distinguish anything, label it as neutral and move on.

For a while, pay attention to the sense of sight.

When looking at something, any beauty that you might perceive is closely associated with pleasant vedanā.

Any ugliness that you might perceive is closely associated with unpleasant vedanā.

But most experiences are neither pleasant nor unpleasant, so label them as neutral for now.

What are the things around you that you find pleasing, just by looking at them? What is displeasing, just from looking? Move from object to object, and notice the small differences in vedanā between each object. Tune in to these subtle differences.

Spend some time labelling the vedanā associated with seeing.

Take a listen to the sounds in your environment.

Which of them are pleasant? Even if there is very subtle enjoyment, notice that.

Which of the sounds are unpleasant, even in the most subtle way?

Notice how vedanā changes from object to object.

Notice how some objects seem to have no vedanā. Label those as neutral and move on.

Don't get stuck on any one experience.

Spend some time labelling the vedanā associated with hearing.

Tune into the smells in your environment.

Even subtle smells can have very strong vedanā.

And strong smells can have very weak vedanā.

Which smells are pleasing to you? Which ones are displeasing? Which smells are you indifferent to?

Spend some time labelling the vedanā associated with smelling.

When you have something in your mouth to eat or drink, pay attention to the pleasantness or unpleasantness of every flavour.

It's normal that flavours that you like will invoke sukha vedanā.

It's normal that flavours that you dislike will be associated with dukkha vedanā.

Pay attention to all the vedanā when you are tasting.

Spend some time labelling the vedanā associated with tasting.

Tune into bodily experience.

From the top of your head to the tips of your toes, there are a wealth of physical sensations to experience, and each one has associated vedanā.

Notice all the physical sensations in your face.

Some of them may be unpleasant, like a tight brow or tightness around the eyes.

Some of them may feel good, like smiling cheeks or the lips.

Many of them will be neutral. Note them as such.

Move your awareness through your body, noticing the comfort or discomfort associated with every tangible sensation.

Notice how, when the vedanā is neutral, the tendency is to ignore the experience. Pay special attention to those experiences.

Keep notice vedanā everywhere in your body, wherever you put your attention.

Spend some time labelling the vedanā associated with physical feelings.

Now we come to the mind. Pay attention to all the mental phenomena that you experience.

Notice the general mood of mind, the colour of the sky, so to speak. Does that have pleasant, unpleasant or neutral vedanā?

Notice how some thoughts are comfortable, some are extremely uncomfortable. Some are totally neutral. In any case, note the vedanā.

It's strange how we often like to ruminate on thoughts, even those with strong dukkha vedanā.

Think of somebody or something that you really don't like. Notice the discomfort in the mind. There is disliking because of the unpleasant vedanā. We'll explore this in more detail shortly.

Can you bring a thought to mind which immediately creates pleasant vedanā?

Just think of something or somebody that you love. The reason you love that is because of the associated pleasant vedanā. Not the other way around.

Keep noticing a world of vedanā in the mind.

Spend some time labelling the vedanā associated with mental phenomena.

Come back to open awareness, naturally occurring experiences.

Keep paying attention to the vedanā of every prominent experience, especially as you change posture later and move around. Keep noting the three types of vedanā.

This is the satipaṭṭhāna practice of vedānupassanā, following the vedanā of every experience and using that as a basis to sustain your mindfulness.

If you keep paying attention to vedanā, you will be rewarded for your efforts with some extremely pleasant physical and mental experiences. Even in that case, don't get distracted, keep noting that this is just pleasant vedanā.

If you ever get tired of the analysis, notice the dukkha-vedanā which are present in the mind. That's what you really are disliking. Nevertheless, give yourself a rest if needed, just come back to knowing the experiences themselves, and let your energy gather there. Once you are ready, start noting the vedanā of every experience again.

Build up your stamina, to be able to do this exercise for longer and longer, until eventually you can sustain this awareness of vedanā throughout the day.

Every single experience has vedanā. This exercise will help you tune into this subtle world of experience and become sensitised to that.

These subtle aspects of experience are very often below the level of conscious experience for most people. You could say subliminal or subconscious. What we're practising here is to bring them up into the light of conscious awareness.

Doing this will allow you to see what you're really responding to and reacting to. Never the world out there. Everyone and everything that you like and dislike, love and hate is in response to these subtle vedanā, these are are the true masters of your whole life.

Keep practising, keep noting the vedanā of every experience.

These subtle mental phenomena are what shape your response to life's experiences. Without knowing vedanā, and in time mastering your response to vedanā, you really are just a puppet of vedanā, responding like a robot, with desire for pleasant vedanā, with aversion to unpleasant vedanā, and being indifferent to and ignoring all neutral vedanā.

Please keep training yourself, day and night, to know this subtle mental force of vedanā which shapes your entire life.

Keep noting every experience through the six sense channels as pleasant, unpleasant or neutral.

sukha, dukkha, adukkhamasukha vedanā