Nama rupa

Nama rupa

• 1.
  Panca Khandha (Five Aggregates)   
• 2.
  Five Aggregates -Panca Khandha    The Buddha taught that the human being is made up of five aggregates (Panca Khandha) - Nama (feeling; perception; mental formations; consciousness) and Rupa (matter)
• 3.
  Five Aggregates -Panca Khandha    Human   Matter  (Rupa)  Mind  (Nama)                                  Element Of Extension  Sensation or Feeling  C e (Earth) Pathavi  Vedana  t a Element Of Cohesion  s Perception Sanna  (Water) Apo  i k a Element Of Heat (Heat)  Mental Formations  Tejo  Sankhara  C Element Of Motion (Wind)  i Consciousness  Vinnana  Vayo  t t a
• 4.
  Nama (Mind) Citta Cetasikas Consciousness  (Vinnana) 50 cetasikas The mind is made up of two components – Citta & Cetasikas. The function of the Citta (or Consciousness) is to be aware of the  external or mental object. The Cetasikas ‘add’ meaning into the object.  It is the cetasikas  that ‘colour’ our mind and give meaning to the object.  Wholesome  states like compassion & equanimity are created by cetasikas.   Unwholesome states like hatred, greed, delusion are also created  by cetasikas too.
• 5.
  Nama (Mind) Citta Cetasikas Consciousness (Vinnana) Sensation or Perception Mental Feeling (Sanna) Formations (Vedana) (Sankhara) 1 cetasika 1 cetasika 50 cetasikas The cetasikas are in turn classified into 3 Total – 52 cetasikas Aggregates – Feeling; Perception and Mental Formations.
• 6.
  Mental Aggregate ofConsciousness - Vinnana Consciousness does not recognise an object. It is only a sort of awareness – awareness of the presence of an object. In the above example, the physical object strikes the eyes. The eye consciousness becomes aware that a colour object has struck the eyes. It doesn’t know what the object is. Or if a sound wave strikes the ears, the hearing consciousness becomes aware than a sound strikes the ears. It doesn’t know what the sound is.
• 7.
  Mental Aggregate ofPerception - Sanna It is perception that recognises objects whether physical or mental. A box of jewels!! Perception acts like a memory to us. In the above example, the mind remembers from the shapes and colours of the objects that it is a Box of Jewels. If it is sound, the memory remembers that the sound is English or Mandarin, etc and understands the sound.
• 8.
  Mental Aggregate ofSensation - Vedana These are all our sensations or feelings - pleasant or unpleasant or neutral, experienced through the contact of physical and mental organs with the external world. What precious jewels!! I am going to be rich!! Because of past memories, the mind immediately forms a feeling for the object – either pleasant, unpleasant or neutral. For example, if we don’t like noisy people and we meet a noisy person, the ‘unpleasant’ feeling will arise immediately.
• 9.
  Mental Aggregate ofMental Formations - Sankhara In this group are included all volitional activities (both good and bad) or kamma. I must take it. Nobody is watching me.. Greed The last mental aggregate is the most important – it is here that kamma is generated. In the above example, the person is overcome by Greed because of the pleasant feeling generated by Vedana. Or if he meets a noisy person, he feels angry immediately because of the unpleasant feeling generated by Vedana.
• 10.
  Mental Aggregate ofMental Formations - Sankhara The Sankhara group is made up of 50 types of mental formations. Examples: Delusion, ignorance, dullness Compassion Greed, attachment, sensuous Sympathetic joy desire Understanding of things as they Conceit, pride really are Hatred, anger, aversion Worry, scruples, remorse Envy, jealousy Wish, desire or will Sceptical doubt, perplexity Etc, etc, etc. Faith, confidence These are basically your mental states – Equanimity, mental balance whether wholesome of unwholesome. Right speech Wholesome states generate good kamma; Right action unwholesome states generate bad kamma.
• 11.
  Consciousness (Citta) At theblink of an eye, billions of consciousness would have started and fallen away. Each unit of consciousness consists of 3 instants (khana). They are: Arising/genesis – uppada Static/development – thiti Cessation/dissolution - bhanga Arising Static Cessation Arising Static Cessation
• 12.
  In the aboveexample, at the split of a second, the eyes are presented with an array and different shade of colours – from the trees; stream, goat, bird, dog, butterfly, etc. The objects keep changing every second – the animals move; the water flows; the leaves sway, etc. Billions of these light rays will be striking the eyes every moment.
• 13.
  At the samesplit of a second, the ears are presented with an array and different tone of sounds – from the swaying trees; stream, goat, bird, dog, etc. The sounds keep changing every second too. Billions of these sound waves will be striking the ears every moment.
• 14.
  The eye andear consciousness are only aware of colour and sound. They do not know what these objects are.
• 15.
  To know whatthese objects are, Vedana, Sanna and Sankhara will have to come in and play their roles. The person then recognises the river, trees, rock, goat, bird, butterfly, dog, etc. He also recognises the sound and which animals produce the sound. If he is a nature lover, he will have a pleasant feeling being with nature and that will generate wholesome states of mind.