5.1. Vedanā
You may have noticed that everything we are dealing with here is a part of the standard explanation of paṭiccasamuppāda, the chain of causation or dependent origination.
... viññāṇapaccayā nāmarūpaṃ, nāmarūpapaccayā saḷāyatanaṃ, saḷāyatanapaccayā phasso, phassapaccayā vedanā, vedanāpaccayā taṇhā ...
... dependent on consciousness there are mental and physical phenomena, dependent on mental and physical phenomena there are the six sense fields, dependent on the six sense fields there is phassa, dependent on phassa there is vedanā, depending on vedanā, there is craving ...
--- SN12.1 paṭiccasamuppādasuttaṃ
So now we turn to examine the relationship between phassa—contact, a conditioned conscious experience—and vedanā. Let's return to the chachakkasuttaṃ for an explanation.
cakkhuñca paṭicca rūpe ca uppajjati cakkhuviññāṇaṃ, tiṇṇaṃ saṅgati phasso, phassapaccayā vedanā, sotañca paṭicca sadde ca uppajjati sotaviññāṇaṃ, tiṇṇaṃ saṅgati phasso, phassapaccayā vedanā, ghānañca paṭicca gandhe ca uppajjati ghānaviññāṇaṃ, tiṇṇaṃ saṅgati phasso, phassapaccayā vedanā, jivhañca paṭicca rase ca uppajjati jivhāviññāṇaṃ, tiṇṇaṃ saṅgati phasso, phassapaccayā vedanā, kāyañca paṭicca phoṭṭhabbe ca uppajjati kāyaviññāṇaṃ, tiṇṇaṃ saṅgati phasso,phassapaccayā vedanā, manañca paṭicca dhamme ca uppajjati manoviññāṇaṃ, tiṇṇaṃ saṅgati phasso, phassapaccayā vedanā. cha vedanākāyā veditabbā’ti – iti yaṃ taṃ vuttaṃ, idametaṃ paṭicca vuttaṃ. idaṃ pañcamaṃ chakka
Dependent on the eye and forms, eye consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is phassa. Dependent on phassa, there is vedanā.
Dependent on the ear and sounds, ear consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is phassa. Dependent on phassa, there is vedanā.
Dependent on the nose and smells, nose consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is phassa. Dependent on phassa, there is vedanā.
Dependent on the tongue and tastes, tongue consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is phassa. Dependent on phassa, there is vedanā.
Dependent on the body and tangible sensations, body consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is phassa. Dependent on phassa, there is vedanā.
Dependent on the mind and mental phenomena, mind consciousness arises. The meeting of the three is phassa. Dependent on phassa, there is vedanā.
It was with reference to this that it was said, "The six classes of vedanā should be known." This is the fifth group of six.
--- MN148 chachakkasuttaṃ
You'll notice I've left vedanā untranslated, because so many translations can cause confusion and misunderstanding about vedanā.
Vedanā comes from the root √vid, which has the meaning 'to know, sense, or feel'. It has the -anā suffix which creates feminine abstract process nouns, the process of doing something abstract. But before giving a definitive meaning, perhaps it's useful to discuss what vedanā is not, so that we can clearly understand what it is.
Vedanā is sometimes translated as 'emotion'. It's definitely not an emotion like anger or sadness, it is much simpler than that.
Vedanā in Sanskrit texts can often mean 'perception'. That is completely unrelated to the Buddhist use of the word.
In modern Indic languages, vedanā can even mean 'pain' or even 'agony'. Again, that's not the primary meaning found in ancient Buddhist texts.
Vedanā is sometimes translated as 'feeling' or 'sensation', which is getting warmer, but is misleading in that vedanā is not a feeling or sensation in the body, it is entirely mental.
So what is vedanā, and how does the word get used in the context of the early discourses? Here's a useful definition: In immediate response to every single instance of phassa, conscious sense experience, there is a pleasant, unpleasant or neutral feeling tone in the mind. Obviously there is no English word that covers the full range of this definition, so perhaps it's best to leave the word untranslated to minimise confusion.
Some examples of vedanā
Think of the warm sun on your skin on a cold day. Notice the feeling in the mind in response to that. The pleasantness that most people experience is sukha-vedanā, a pleasant feeling tone in response to the bodily experience.
What's your least favourite food? Imagine tasting that now. Take a look at your mind, the unpleasantness of the experience is dukkha-vedanā, an unpleasant feeling tone in response to the mental experience.
But by far the most common response to experiences is adukkham-asukha-vedanā, a neither-pleasant-nor-unpleasant feeling tone in response to an experience. This is sometimes call neutral vedanā.
Notice what kind of mental feeling, pleasant, unpleasant or neither, you have associated with the following:
The sight of a sunset The sight of mud The site of food in the dustbin The sound of techno The sound of dogs barking The sound of farting The smell of old books The smell of fish The smell of wet grass The taste of pineapple The taste of paprika The taste of celery The sensation of knee pain The sensation of goosebumps The sensation of an ice-cold shower The thought of your mother The thought of the next meal The thought of tax returns
Every person has a different response to these stimuli. No one is responding to an objective world, everyone is responding to their own subjective experience. It's no wonder that people have wildly divergent responses and opinions when presented with the identical stimulus.
These feelings in the mind in response to sense experience are so subtle that most people are only ever aware of the most extreme pleasant and unpleasant vedanā, but with practice it is possible to fine tune awareness to notice ever more subtle vedanā, and even learn to distinctly recognise the neutral ones, or more correctly, the absence of pleasantness and unpleasantness.
All meditation on vedanā starts with identifying the three types within experience. For example, the Mahāsatipaṭṭhānasutta in Majjhima Nikāya begins the analysis of vedanā with:
kathañca pana, bhikkhave, bhikkhu vedanāsu vedanānupassī viharati? idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sukhaṃ vā vedanaṃ vedayamāno sukhaṃ vedanaṃ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti, dukkhaṃ vā vedanaṃ vedayamāno dukkhaṃ vedanaṃ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti, adukkhamasukhaṃ vā vedanaṃ vedayamāno adukkhamasukhaṃ vedanaṃ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti
And how does a monk remain among vedanā, following vedanā? Experiencing a comfortable vedanā, one knows, "I am experiencing a comfortable vedanā." Experiencing an uncomfortable vedanā, one knows, "I am experiencing an uncomfortable vedanā." Experiencing a neither-uncomfortable-nor-comfortable vedanā, one knows, "I am experiencing a neither-uncomfortable-nor-comfortable vedanā."
--- MN10 mahāsatipaṭṭhānasuttaṃ, vedanānupassanā
So let's spend some time tuning into the comfort or discomfort, the pleasantness or unpleasantness of every sense experience.
This is something that you may never have really paid attention to before, so in the beginning it might be difficult. But don't give up, with practice it becomes easier and easier. In time, more and more subtle vedanā become apparent.
With practice and repetition, vedanā becomes a very reliable object of meditation. SO much so that, after the body, it is the next theme of contemplation in the Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta. By itself it is a theme that is capable of taking one all the way to the final goal of liberation.
phasse, bhikkhave, āhāre pariññāte tisso vedanā pariññātā honti. tīsu vedanāsu pariññātāsu ariyasāvakassa natthi kiñci uttarikaraṇīyanti vadāmi.
When the fuel of phassa is fully understood, then the three types of vedanā are fully understood. When the three types of vedanā are fully understood, I say, for a disciple of the Noble One, there is nothing more to be done.
-- SN12.63 puttamaṃsūpamasuttaṃ
Meditation on vedanā
Transcript
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*Continue with this for the day. Don't move on until the vedanā of every experience are clear to you.
Q&A
Q: Do you have any questions or doubts at this point?