CH21: Khandha Paṭicca-samuppāda (Present-Aspect Practice Map)

At-a-glance: Present Flow • Six Doors • Five Aggregates

A. Definition & place in DO

• Khandha Paṭicca-samuppāda = the present-aspect teaching that tracks one lived moment through the six doors (eye→mind), showing how the five aggregates (pañcakkhandhā) assemble and tip at C2.

• Standard door formula (sixfold):
  “Cakkhuñca paṭicca rūpe ca uppajjati cakkhu-viññāṇaṁ; tiṇṇaṁ saṅgati phasso; phassa-paccayā vedanā; vedanā-paccayā taṇhā; taṇhā-paccayā upādānaṁ; upādāna-paccayā bhavo; bhava-paccayā jāti; jātippaccayā jarāmaraṇaṁ…” (parallels across the six doors per SN 12.1, with definitions in SN 12.2).

• Place on the wheel: starts inside Present Effect (saḷāyatana → phassa → vedanā), then shows the Present Cause ignition (taṇhā → upādāna → (kamma)bhava) and the Future Effect projection (jāti → jarāmaraṇa).

• Five aggregates in the moment: rūpa (material) + vedanā (feeling) + saññā (perception) + saṅkhāra (intention/formation) + viññāṇa (consciousness) (see SN 22).

• Mogok emphasis: the workable cut is at vedanā → taṇhā (C2)—seeing feeling as vipāka ends the escalation.

B. Mechanism (how the present-aspect unfolds)

• Six-door ignition: Base + object + matching consciousness → contact (phassa) → feeling (vedanā).

• Aggregate stack at the door:

  • Rūpa: visible form/sound/…/idea presents.

  • Viññāṇa: knowing at that door.

  • Vedanā & Saññā: tone and recognition co-arise within nāma.

  • Saṅkhāra: micro-intention begins to lean (if unexamined).

• Tilt or cool:

  • Tilt: vedanā → taṇhā → upādāna → (kamma)bhava (C2 then toward C3).

  • Cool: treat vedanā as just result; taṇhā doesn’t form; the stack starves (SN 12.1).

• Rounds overlay: Vipāka (phassa→vedanā) → may trigger Kilesa (taṇhā→upādāna) → builds Kamma (bhava) → later Vipāka (jāti→jarāmaraṇa).

C. Practice (micro-drills, 1–3 minutes)

1. Door→Contact→Tone (Six-Door Rep, 90 sec)
   For the next stimulus, name door + object once (“ear—sound”), then “contact,” then one word for tone (pleasant/painful/neutral). Stop. Feel the space before any lean.

2. Five-Aggregate Deconstruction (2 min)
   Take a tiny episode (notification ping). Point to each aggregate once: rūpa (vibration/sight), viññāṇa (knowing), vedanā (tone), saññā (label “message”), saṅkhāra (urge to check). Finish with: “processes, not self.”

3. C2 Brake Live (3 min)
   When tone spikes, whisper: “vipāka felt.” Scan jaw/chest/hands and loosen. If a pull/push/fog forms, name “taṇhā” once; let upādāna fail to ignite. Re-note the tone changing on its own.

D. Cross-links

• Ch13–15: Saḷāyatana → Phassa → Vedanā (present-effect detail).

• Ch16–18: Taṇhā → Upādāna → (Kamma)bhava (present-cause ignition).

• Ch19–20: Jāti → Jarāmaraṇa (future-effect sequel).

• Ch22: Six Doors & Five Aggregates (classroom one-pager).

Sources

SN 12.1; SN 12.2; SN 22 (Khandha-saṁyutta); SN 35 (Saḷāyatana-saṁyutta); SN 36 (Vedanā-saṁyutta).

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QR Footer (left → right)

• Audio QR-CH21-AUD1 — “Six-Door present-aspect walkthrough.” (Alt: “QR to audio: khandha present-aspect practice”)

• Video QR-CH21-VID1 — Live demo: Door→Contact→Tone→(Stop at C2). (Alt: “QR to video: present-aspect Mogok timing”)

• Slides QR-CH21-PPT1 — Aggregates-at-the-door diagram set. (Alt: “QR to slides: khandha PS deck”)

• Prompt QR-CH21-PRM1 — Five-Aggregate Deconstruction card. (Alt: “QR to prompt: processes, not self”)

Next: Ch22 — Six Doors & Five Aggregates: “No Being, Only Aggregates.”