The Lost Citadel

I HEAR TELL:

Once upon a time Bhagava, Savatthi-town come-a revisit'n.
There he says to the Beggars gathered round:

"A world of woe!" he says,
"Woe is the World!
To me, Beggars, while still a youth with coal black hair,
not yet The SammaSamBuddhassaman,
still a bodhisattva,
came the thought:
This is a world of woe!
Summed up,
coming down to aging, sickness and death,
grief and lamentation,
pain and misery
and despair!"

"Here in this world we have
getting born and dying,
reaching lofty states
and being laid low,
but where can we find the escape
from all this Du K-kha?"

"To me, Beggars," he says,
"came the thought:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to aging and death?'"

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have birth,
there also we have aging sickness and death,
grief and lamentation,
pain and misery
and despair.'

Birth exists here
in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves
that Birth is necessary for the existence of all this pain.
Without "Birth" we would have no Aging, Sickness and Death,
Grief and Lamentation,
Pain and Misery
and Despair."

"But what can we do to escape Birth?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Birth?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have "Being",
there also we have Birth.'

"Being" exists here
in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves
that "Being" is necessary for the existence of Birth.
Without "Being" we would have no birth
of any sort
by any sort of individuality
whether in Hell
or as a Ghost
or as a Deamon
or as Man
or as a God
or in some wholly mental state."

"But what can we do to escape "Being"?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to "Being"?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have "Upkeep",
there also we have "Being".'

Upkeep exists here
in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves
that upkeep is necessary for the existance of being.
Without the continual upkeep of pleasure-seeking,
effort to be,
or effort to escape painful circumstances,
we would have no "Being"
whether as a being in Hell
or as a Ghost
or as a Deamon
or as Man
or as a God
or as a wholly mental being."

"But what can we do to escape upkeep?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Upkeep?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have "Hunger and Thirst,"
both literal and figurative,
there also we have "Upkeep".'

"Hunger and Thirst" exists here
in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves
that Hunger and Thirst is necessary for the existance of Upkeep.
Without Hunger and Thirst for pleasures,
without the Hunger and Thirst for being,
without the Hunger and Thirst for Escape from painful circumstances,
we would have no Upkeep of pleasure-seeking,
effort to be
or effort to escape painful circumstances."

"But what can we do to escape "Hunger and Thirst"?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Hunger and Thirst?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have the experience
of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain,
there also we have Hunger and Thirst.'

The experience of sensations
of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain
is a thing that exists here in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves
that these sensations are the reason for the existance of Hunger and Thirst.
Without the experience
of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain
we would have no Hunger and Thirst for pleasures,
Hunger and Thirst for being,
Hunger and Thirst for escape from painful circumstances."

"But what can we do to escape the experience of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to the experience of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have Contact
in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object,
there also we have the experience of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain.'

Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object
exists here in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves that Contact
in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object
is necessary for the existance
of the experience of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain.
Without Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object
we would have no experience of sensations of pleasure or pain or neither pleasure nor pain."

"But what can we do to escape Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses,
there also we have Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object.'

Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses
exists here in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves that Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses
is necessary for the existance of Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object.
Without Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses
we would have no Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object."

"But what can we do to escape Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have Named Form,
there also we have Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses.'
Named Form exists here in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves that Named Form
is necessary for the existance of Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses.
Without Named Form
we would have no Envelopment in Experience through the Six Senses."

"But what can we do to escape Named Form?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Named Form?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have Individualized Consciousness,
there also we have Named Form.'
Individualized Consciousness exists here in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves that Individualized Consciousness
is necessary for the existance of Named Form.
Without Individualized Consciousness,
we would have no Named Form."

"But what can we do to escape Individualized Consciousness?"

"Then this thought occurred to me:
'What is there here,
that gives rise to Individualized Consciousness?

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we have Named Form,
there also we have Individualized Consciousness.'
Named Form exists here in front of our eyes
and we can see for ourselves that Named Form
is necessary for the existance of Individualized Consciousness.
Without Named Form
we would have no Individualized Consciousness."

This Individualized Consciousness,
this Double-Knowing-Knowing
or "knowing as an individual"
is delimited by Named Form.

To have Consciousness as an individual
it is necessary to have Named Form
and it is not necessary to have anything more
than Named Form
to have Consciousness as an individual.
It is only to this point
that there is that which is understood to be "a being,"
"a being born"
"aging, sickness and death,
grief and lamentation,
pain and misery,
and despair."

What I saw, Beggars, was that to have consciousness as an individual
it is necessary to have Named Form;

To have Named Form
it is necesssary to have consciousness as an individual;

To have envelopment in experience through the six senses
it is necessary to have Named Form;

To have contact between consciousness, sense organ and sense object
it is necessary to have envelopment in experience through the six senses;

To have sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain
it is necessary to have contact between consciousness, sense organ and sense object;

To have hunger and thirst for pleasures, being, and escape from unpleasant circumstances
it is necessary to have sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain;

To have upkeep in the form of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape unpleasant circumstances
it is necessary to have hunger and thirst for pleasures, being, and escape from unpleasant circumstances;

To have being
in any realm of being
as any sort of being
it is necessary to have upkeep
in the form of pleasure-seeking,
effort to be
and effort to escape unpleasant circumstances;

To have birth in any realm of being as any sort of being
it is necessary to have the possibility of "being"
in some realm of being as some sort of being;

To have aging, sickness and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery, and despair
it is necessary to have birth
in some realm of being
as some sort of being.
This is what gives rise to this whole mess of Dukkha.

"What I saw, Beggars was what had not been known before:
the idea that "this thing is co-generating!"

This Dukkha is a thing that is co-generated!

And at that I saw the light,
I got the point,
I had discovered the key and gained the wisdom:
'things are co-generated!'

§

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate Aging, sickness and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery and despair?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have birth in any realm of being as any sort of being,
there also we do not have Aging, sickness and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery and despair.'
It would take the elimination of Birth in any realm of being as any sort of being
to eliminate Aging, Sickness and Death, Grief and Lamentation, Pain and Misery and Despair.

Without birth in any realm of being as any sort of being
there would be nothing to give rise to Aging, sickness and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery and despair."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate birth in any realm of being as any sort of being?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have being in any realm of being as any sort of being, there also we do not have birth in any realm of being as any sort of being.'
It would take the elimination of being in any realm of being as any sort of being to eliminate birth in any realm of being as any sort of being."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate being in any realm of being as any sort of being?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have upkeep of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape from unpleasant circumstances,
there also we do not have being in any realm of being as any sort of being.'
It would take the elimination of upkeep of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape from unpleasant circumstances to eliminate being in any realm of being as any sort of being."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate upkeep of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape from unpleasant circumstances?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances,
there also we do not have upkeep of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape from unpleasant circumstances.'
It would take the elimination of hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances to eliminate upkeep of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape from unpleasant circumstances."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain,
there also we do not have hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances.'
It would take the elimination of sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain to eliminate hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object,
there also we do not have sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain.'
It would take the elimination of Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object to eliminate sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have envelopment in experience through the six senses,
there also we do not have Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object.'
It would take the elimination of envelopment in experience through the six senses to eliminate Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate envelopment in experience through the six senses?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have individualized consciousness,
there also we do not have envelopment in experience through the six senses.'
It would take the elimination of individualized consciousness to eliminate envelopment in experience through the six senses."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate envelopment in experience through the six senses?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have Named Form,
there also we do not have envelopment in experience through the six senses.'
It would take the elimination of Named Form to eliminate envelopment in experience through the six senses."

At that point, Beggars, came the thought:
'What would it take to eliminate Named Form?'

"Studiously etiologically examining the matter, Beggars,
I could see:
'Where we do not have individualized consciousness,
there also we do not have Named Form.'
It would take the elimination of individualized consciousness to eliminate Named Form."

What I saw, Beggars, was that Named Form is eliminated
when individualized consciousness is eliminated;

Individualized consciousness is eliminated
when Named Form is eliminated;

Envelopment in experience through the six senses is eliminated
when Named Form is eliminated;

Contact in the form of the coming together of Consciousness, Sense Organ and Sense Object is eliminated
when envelopment in experience through the six senses is eliminated;

Sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain are eliminated
when contact is eliminated;

Hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances is eliminated
when sensations of pleasure and pain and of neither pleasure nor pain are eliminated;

The Upkeep of pleasure-seeking, effort to be and effort to escape from unpleasant circumstances is eliminated
when hunger and thirst for pleasures, hunger and thirst for being, and hunger and thirst for escape from unpleasant circumstances is eliminated;

Being in any realm of being as any sort of being is eliminated
when upkeep is eliminated;

Birth in any realm of being as any sort of being is eliminated
when being in any realm of being as any sort of being is eliminated.

Aging, sickness and death, grief and lamentation, pain and misery and despair are eliminated
when birth in any realm of being as any sort of being is eliminated.
This is how this whole Dukkha mess is eliminated!

"What I saw, Beggars was what had not been known before:
the idea that
"it can be eliminated!"
This Dukkha is a thing that can be eliminated.
And at that I saw the light,
I got the point,
I had discovered the key and gained the wisdom:
'these things can be eliminated!'

In the same way as if a man who was crossing through the jungle
were to come across an ancient path,
one walked by the Old Timers,
and taking that path,
traveling along that path a while,
he were to come across an ancient citadel,
the fortified inner city of some Ancient King,
complete with pleasure gardens,
orchards, ponds, and ancient ruins
...a really splendid old place.

Then, taking this discovery to the King,
and describing its wonders
and swearing to being an eye-witness to it's existance,
he begs of the king that he restore this citadel to it's former glory.
And that the king does,
and thereafter that citadel becomes populous
and comes to growth and prosperity
as in Ancient Times Gone By.

In the same way, Beggars,
I have seen an Ancient Path traversed by Old-Time Men of Knowledge
in Days Gone By.
And what is that path?
It is this very Aristocratic Eight-Dimensional High Way, that is:
High Views,
High Principles,
High Talk,
High Works,
High Lifestyle,
High Self Control,
High Mental Preparation,
and High Getting High.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know aging and death,
I came to know what gives rise to aging and death,
I came to know what eliminates aging and death,
I came to know the way to the ending of aging and death.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know birth,
I came to know what gives rise to birth,
I came to know what eliminates birth,
I came to know the way to the ending of birth.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know being,
I came to know what gives rise to being,
I came to know what eliminates being,
I came to know the way to the ending of being.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know upkeep,
I came to know what gives rise to upkeep,
I came to know what eliminates upkeep,
I came to know the way to the ending of upkeep.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know hunger and thirst,
I came to know what gives rise to hunger and thirst,
I came to know what eliminates hunger and thirst,
I came to know the way to the ending of hunger and thirst.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know sensations,
I came to know what gives rise to sensations,
I came to know what eliminates sensations,
I came to know the way to the ending of sensations.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know contact,
I came to know what gives rise to contact,
I came to know what eliminates contact,
I came to know the way to the ending of contact.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know envelopment in the six senses,
I came to know what gives rise to envelopment in the six senses,
I came to know what eliminates envelopment in the six senses,
I came to know the way to the ending of envelopment in the six senses.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know Named Form,
I came to know what gives rise to Named Form,
I came to know what eliminates Named Form,
I came to know the way to the ending of Named Form.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know individualized consciousness,
I came to know what gives rise to individualized consciousness,
I came to know what eliminates individualized consciousness,
I came to know the way to the ending of individualized consciousness.

Traveling that Path, Beggars,
I came to know the confounding of the personal world,
I came to know what gives rise to the confounding of the personal world,
I came to know what eliminates the confounding of the personal world,
I came to know the way to the ending of the confounding of the personal world.

What I came to know, Beggars,
I taught to the Beggars,
to the Sisters,
to the laymen and laywomen,
that is to say,
this living of a god-like life has been made known by me,
and has become great and prosperous and has spread far and wide.