‘On Knowledge of Beginnings’

There comes a time, Vāseṭṭha, when, sooner or later after a long period, this world contracts. At a time of contraction, beings are mostly born in the heavenly realm (Ābhassara Brahmā world). And there they dwell, mind‑made, feeding on excitement, self‑luminous, moving through the air, glorious—and they stay like that for a very long time.

But sooner or later, after a very long period, this world begins to expand again. At a time of expansion, the beings from the heavenly realm (Ābhassara Brahmā world), having passed away from there, are mostly reborn in this world. Here they dwell, mind‑made, feeding on excitement, self‑ luminous, moving through the air, glorious—and they stay like that for a very long time.

At that period, Vāseṭṭha, there was just one mass of water, and all was darkness, blinding darkness. Neither moon nor sun appeared, no constellations or stars appeared, night and day were not distinguished, nor months and fortnights, no years or seasons, and no male and female, beings being reckoned just as beings.

And sooner or later, after a very long period of time, savoury earth spread itself over the waters where those beings were. It looked just like the skin that forms itself over hot milk as it cools. It was endowed with color, smell and taste. It was the color of fine ghee or butter, and it was very sweet, like pure wild honey.

Then some being of a greedy nature said: “I say, what can this be?” and tasted the savoury earth on its finger. In so doing, it became taken with the flavor, and craving arose in it. Then other beings, taking their cue from that one, also tasted the stuff with their fingers. They too were taken with the flavor, and craving arose in them. So they set to with their hands, breaking off pieces of the stuff in order to eat it. And the result of this was that their self‑luminance disappeared. And as a result of the disappearance of their self-luminance, the moon and the sun appeared, night and day were distinguished, months and fortnights appeared, and the year and its seasons. To that extent the world re‑evolved.

And those beings continued for a very long time feasting on this savoury earth, feeding on it and being nourished by it. And as they did so, their bodies became coarser, and a difference in looks developed among them.

Some beings became good‑looking, others ugly. And the good‑looking ones despised the others, saying: “We are better‑looking than they are.” And because they became arrogant and conceited about their looks, the savoury earth disappeared. At this, they came together and grieved, crying: “Oh that flavor! Oh that flavor!” And so nowadays when people say: “Oh that flavor!” when they get something nice, they are repeating an ancient saying without realizing it.

And then, when the savory earth had disappeared, a fungus cropped up, in the manner of a mushroom. It was of a good color, smell, and taste. It was the color of fine ghee or butter, and it was very sweet, like pure wild honey. And those beings set to and ate the fungus. And this lasted for a very long time. And as they continued to feed on the fungus, so their bodies became coarser still, and the difference in their looks increased still more. And the good‑looking ones despised the others … And because they became arrogant and conceited about their looks, the sweet fungus disappeared. Next, creepers appeared, shooting up like bamboo… , and they too were very sweet, like pure wild honey.

And those beings set to and fed on those creepers. And as they did so, their bodies became even coarser, and the difference in their looks increased still more … And they became still more arrogant, and so the creepers disappeared too. At this, they came together and grieved, crying: “Oh, our creeper’s gone! What have we lost!” And so now today when people, on being asked why they are upset, say: “Oh, what have we lost!” they are repeating an ancient saying without realizing it.

And then, after the creepers had disappeared, rice appeared in open spaces, free from powder and from husks, fragrant and clean‑grained. And what they had taken in the evening for supper had grown again and was ripe in the morning, and what they had taken in the morning for breakfast was ripe again by evening, with no sign of reaping. And these beings set to and fed on this rice, and this lasted for a very long time. And as they did so, their bodies became coarser still, and the difference in their looks became even greater. And the females developed female sex‑organs, and the males developed male organs. And the women became excessively preoccupied with men, and the men with women. Owing to this excessive preoccupation with each other, passion was aroused, and their bodies burnt with lust. And later, because of this burning, they indulged in sexual activity.

But those who saw them indulging threw dust, ashes or cow‑dung at them, crying: “Die, you filthy beast! How can one being do such things to another!” Just as today, in some districts, when a daughter‑in‑law is led out, some people throw dirt at her, some ashes, and some cow‑dung, without realizing that they are repeating an ancient observance. What was considered bad form in those days is now considered good form.

And those beings who in those days indulged in sex were not allowed into a village or town for one or two months. Accordingly, those who indulged for an excessively long period in such immoral practices began to build themselves dwellings so as to indulge under cover.

Now it occurred to one of those beings who was inclined to laziness: “Well now, why should I be bothered to gather rice in the evening for supper and in the morning for breakfast? Why shouldn’t I gather it all at once for both meals?” And he did so. Then another one came to him and said: “Come on, let’s go rice‑gathering.” “No need, my friend, I’ve gathered enough for both meals.” Then the other, following his example, gathered enough rice for two days at a time, saying: “That should be about enough.” Then another being came and said to that second one: “Come on, let’s go rice‑gathering.” “No need, my friend, I’ve gathered enough for two days.” (The same for 4, then 8 days).

However, when those beings made a store of rice and lived on that, husk‑powder and husk began to envelop the grain, and where it was reaped it did not grow again, and the cut place showed, and the rice grew in separate clusters.

And then those beings came together grieving: “Wicked ways have become widespread among us: at first we were mind‑made, feeding on excitement … (all events repeated down to the latest development, each fresh change being said to be due to ‘wicked and unwholesome ways’) … and the rice grows in separate clusters. So now let us divide up the rice into fields with boundaries.” So they did so.

Then, Vāseṭṭha, one greedy‑natured being, while watching over his own plot, took another plot that was not given to him, and enjoyed the fruits of it. So they seized hold of him and said: “You’ve done a wicked thing, taking another’s plot like that! Don’t ever do such a thing again!” “I won’t”, he said, but he did the same thing a second and a third time.

Again he was seized and rebuked, and some hit him with their fists, some with stones, and some with sticks. And in this way, Vāseṭṭha, taking what was not given, and condemning, and lying, and punishment, took their origin.

Then those beings came together and grieved the arising of these evil (unwholesome) things among them; taking what was not given, condemning, lying and punishment. And they thought: “Suppose we were to appoint a certain being who would show anger where anger was due, punish those who deserved it, and banish those who deserved banishment! And in return, we would grant him a share of the rice”

So they went to the one among them who was the handsomest, the best‑looking, the most pleasant and capable, and asked him to do this for them in return for a share of the rice, and he agreed.

“The People’s Choice” is the meaning of Mahā‑Sammata, which is the first regular title to be introduced. “Ruler Of The Fields” is the meaning of Khattiya, the second such title. And “He Gladdens Others With Teachings” is the meaning of Rājā, the third title to be introduced.

This, then, Vāseṭṭha, is the origin of the class of Khattiyas, in accordance with the ancient titles that were introduced for them. They originated among these very same beings, like ourselves, no different, and in accordance with Teachings, not otherwise.

Teachings are the best thing for people, in this life and the next as well.

Then some of these beings thought: “Evil things have appeared among beings, such as taking what is not given, condemning, lying, punishment and banishment. We ought to put aside evil and unwholesome things.” And they did so. “They Put Aside Evil And Unwholesome Things” is the meaning of Brāhmin, which is the first regular title to be introduced for such people.

They made leaf‑huts in forest places and meditated in them. With the smoking fire gone out, with pestle cast aside, gathering almsfood for their evening and morning meals, they went away to a village, town or royal city to seek their food, and then they returned to their leaf‑huts to meditate. People saw this and noted how they meditated. “They Meditate” is the meaning of Jhāyaka, which is the second regular title to be introduced.

However, some of those beings, not being able to meditate in leaf‑huts, settled around towns and villages and compiled books. People saw them doing this and not meditating. “Now These Do Not Meditate” is the meaning of Ajjhāyaka, which is the third regular title to be introduced.

At that time, it was regarded as a low designation, but now it is the higher. This, then, Vāseṭṭha, is the origin of the class of Brāhmins in accordance with the ancient titles that were introduced for them. Their origin was from among these very same beings, like themselves, no different, and in accordance with Teachings, not otherwise.

Teachings are the best thing for people in this life and the next as well.

And then, Vāseṭṭha, some of those beings, having paired off, adopted various trades, and this “Various” is the meaning of Vessa, which came to be the regular title for such people. This, then, is the origin of the class of Vessas, in accordance with the ancient titles that were introduced for them. Their origin was from among these very same beings …

And then, Vāseṭṭha, those beings that remained went in for hunting. “They Are Base Who Live By The Chase”, and that is the meaning of Sudda, which came to be the regular title for such people. This, then, is the origin of the class of Suddas in accordance with the ancient titles that were introduced for them. Their origin was from among these very same beings …

And then, Vāseṭṭha, it came about that some Khattiya, dissatisfied with his own Teachings, went forth from the household life into homelessness, thinking: “I will become an Ascetic.” And a Brāhmin did likewise, a Vessa did likewise, and so did a Sudda. And from these four classes the class of Ascetics came into existence.

Their origin was from among these very same beings, like themselves, no different, and in accordance with Teachings, not otherwise.

Teachings are the best thing for people, in this life and the next as well.

And, Vāseṭṭha, a Khattiya who has led a bad life in body, speech, and thought, and who has wrong view will, in consequence of such wrong views and deeds, at the breaking‑up of the body after death, be reborn in a state of loss, an ill fate, the downfall, the hell‑state. So too will a Brāhmin, a Vessa or a Sudda.

Likewise, a Khattiya who has led a good life in body, speech, and thought, and who has Right View will, in consequence of such Right View and deeds, at the breaking‑up of the body after death, be reborn in a good destination, in a heaven‑state. So too will a Brāhmin, a Vessa or a Sudda.

And a Khattiya who has performed deeds of both kinds in body, speech, and thought, and whose view is mixed will, in consequence of such mixed views and deeds, at the breaking‑up of the body after death, experience both pleasure and pain. So too will a Brāhmin, a Vessa or a Sudda.

And a Khattiya who is restrained in body, speech, and thought, and who has developed The Seven Factors of Enlightenment, will attain to Final Nibbāna (Final Enlightenment) in this very life. So too will a Brāhmin, a Vessa or a Sudda.

And, Vāseṭṭha, whoever of these four castes, as a Monk, becomes an Arahant who has destroyed the taints (fetters), done what had to be done, laid down the burden, attained to the highest goal, completely destroyed the fetter of existence, and become liberated by the highest wisdom, he is declared to be chief among them in accordance with Teachings, and not otherwise.

Teachings are the best thing for people, in this life and the next as well.

The Khattiya’s best among those who value clan;

He with knowledge and conduct is best of gods and men.

(Reference: DN 27)

In this Teaching from Gotama Buddha, he shares a story of creation and how the world comes to be.

Final Nibbāna

Final Nibbāna, or Final Enlightenment, is when someone attains Enlightenment and dies. This is referred to as Final Enlightenment.

During one’s life, the mind can be trained to attain Enlightenment. The mind will reside peaceful, calm, serene, and content with joy - permanently. The mind will no longer experience any mental pain associated with unwelcomed emotions, thoughts, ideas, or any sort of discontentedness of mind. All discontentedness such as sadness, anger, frustration, irritation, annoyance, guilt, shame, fears, boredom, loneliness, shyness, jealousy, resentment, stress, anxiety, etc. will be completely eliminated from the mind.

However, a being is unable to completely transcend physical pain while in the human form. This is impossible. While the mind can be developed to not react with anger, sadness, hostility, aggression, or other discontent feelings upon experiencing physical pain, nonetheless, physical pain will still be experienced by the mind.

The mind can eliminate all cravings/desires/attachments while in the human form and during this life to experience Enlightenment. But while still alive, a being cannot eliminate the connection between the body and the mind. The mind is still connected to physical body during life. Therefore, the mind will still experience physical pain but the mind will experience it differently in the Enlightened mental state versus in the unEnlightened mental state.

In the unEnlightened mental state, when the mind experiences physical pain, one can become angered, frustrated, irritated, annoyed, hostile, aggressive, resentful, fearful, and experience other discontent feelings. This is due to the mind craving permanent health, permanent comfort, and permanent pleasant feelings from the body. It is impossible for the body to experience permanent comfort due to The Universal Truth of Impermanence.

The pain associated with the physical body is an important aspect of the mind that needs to exist in order for a being to function in the world. If a being did not experience physical pain, they would be unable to remove the physical body from harm when too close to a heat source or another problematic situation arose. The sensation of physical pain experienced by the mind helps a being understand, potential damage will occur or has occurred and therefore, seek a remedy to the physical pain. This is why we choose to step away from a heat source. The mind is alerted that the physical body is experiencing pain and the being takes action to resolve the situation. This is beneficial and needed during life.

In these situations, an unEnlightened mind will oftentimes experience discontentedness associated with the craving for permanent comfort of the physical body. When there is physical pain, the unEnlightened mind becomes discontent.

An Enlightened mind has been deeply trained to the point that it understands physical pain is impermanent, and that allowing the mind to become discontent due to physical pain, does not help to eliminate the physical pain.

Discontentedness at times of physical pain could actually make the situation worse.

For example, if one was bitten by a poisonous snake and became agitated, overactive, and uncalm, this would increase respirations of the lungs and heart functions creating conditions for the poison to more rapidly move through the body causing more significant injury and damage with an increased risk of potential death. Through training the mind to reside unagitated and calm, an individual can decrease the harm to the body and improve their ability to survive an injury such as a snake bite because the poison will not permeate in the body as rapidly when the mind is calm. Through the mind remaining calm during physical injuries, a being increases their ability to resolve the situation with a positive outcome.

When an Enlightened mind experiences physical pain, the mind can continue to reside peaceful, calm, serene, and content with joy despite the physical injury, damage, or pain. This is an added benefit experienced by an Enlightened mind producing improved outcomes in situations where physical pain is experienced.

Nonetheless, there is still physical pain for an Enlightened being but it is just that the mind will not react to the pain and instead, respond to resolve the situation finding a solution. The physical pain associated with existence will continue for the remaining time of existence even for an Enlightened being. But, they will not experience mental anguish or any type of discontentedness associated with the physical pain. The Enlightened mind does not relate to the pain in the same way as the unEnlightened mind which will oftentimes become discontent due to physical pain.

It is not until the physical body dies, described by Gotama Buddha as “the breakup of the body”, that the body and mind completely separate. From that point, not only has one transcended discontentedness their entire life due to the attainment of Enlightenment, but the being will then experience the complete elimination of all pain including physical pain. This is referred to as Final Enlightenment or Final Nibbāna.

Enlightenment is experienced during life and the mind has transcended all emotional pain and suffering. But, the physical pain will remain, because it is needed to make wise decisions concerning the physical body during times of injury. The Enlightened mind will have physical pain but will have acquired an improved way of responding to the physical pain rather than reacting to it.

Once a being has attained Enlightenment and dies, there is no longer any physical pain because the separation of the body and mind has occurred, therefore one has attained Final Enlightenment. All pain both mental and physical has been completely eliminated - permanently.

It is possible for an unEnlightened being to experience Enlightenment and Final Enlightenment at the time of death. The being would have experienced discontentedness their entire life but at the time of death, they would immediately experience Enlightenment and Final Enlightenment no longer experiencing rebirth through The Cycle of Rebirth.

What happens once one attains Enlightenment and dies experiencing Final Enlightenment is an undeclared Teaching of Gotama Buddha. He did not teach what is next other than an Enlightened being will not experience any further existence in The Cycle of Rebirth.

There are other Teachings from Gotama Buddha in this book series related to how to ensure The Teachings of a Buddha are sustained in the world. Chapters 33 and 34 in the book “Foundation in The Teachings” (Volume 3) provides these Teachings and an explanation of these Teachings.

What Happens at Death?

After we die does the body become soil to the earth or after death what remains? Isn’t there spirit or energy which exist inside our body? Isn’t there some sort of energy?

No, at the time of death the body and mind separate and then there is "break up of the body".

The body was described by Gotama Buddha through The Four Elements of Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water.

Essentially, the physical body is described and classified into these Four Elements.

Earth: The solids of the body. (hair, teeth, nails, bones, etc.)

Wind: The movement of bodily functions. (Circulation, movement of bile, etc.)

Fire: The temperature of the body.

Water: The liquids of the body. (urine, saliva, blood, pus, tears, etc.)

The physical body is nothing more than these four elements coming together with a mind or consciousness. The joining of the body and the mind creates a person.

Once the body and mind separate, the body will deteriorate remaining as these four elements but without a mind or consciousness.

What you are looking at when you see the body is a unique collection of these four elements that is always in a state of change and upon death, the body will continue that change and configuration but it will still be just these four elements.

The body will progressively deteriorate and depending whether there is burial or cremation, will determine how quickly the process of change occurs.

Through burial, the process is much slower. Cremation accelerates the process of change of these four elements.

What happens to the mind upon death?

If the mind is not yet Enlightened, (i.e. the mind has not yet attained Enlightenment), then there is rebirth into one of The Five Realms.

Heavenly Realm

Human Realm

Afflicted Spirits Realm

Animal Realm

Hell Realm

Heavenly, Afflicted Spirits, and Hell realms are formless realms. (i.e. there is no physical form).

Human and Animal realms are form realms, (i.e. there is physical form).

Rebirth is not instantaneous and upon rebirth there is a completely new existence with a new form or formless existence and a new consciousness, (i.e. a new mind).

The new mind will have residual memories of past lives and unextinguished craving/desire/attachment from past lives. The residual memories of past lives may potentially be recalled as the mind awakens towards Enlightenment more and more.

If someone attains Enlightenment what happens to the mind? Does it disappear?

If the mind has experienced Enlightenment during the human or heavenly existence or at death, (i.e. Enlightenment can be attained during an existence in the human or heavenly realm or at death in those realms but not in the lower realms), the body and mind separate and what happens next is an "undeclared" Teaching.

To attain Enlightenment, the mind needs to get to the point where there is no craving/desire/attachment (i.e. mental longing with a strong eagerness) to know what is next.

An Enlightened mind is experiencing so much peace, calm, serenity, and contentedness with joy that is permanent, the mind is not going to care what is next.

An Enlightened mind has already extinguished all fears including the fear of death, therefore, the mind is so peaceful and does not fear death so what happens next, the Enlightened mind does not care.

Having attained Enlightenment, you will know that you are already experiencing complete and utter peacefulness so if there is something next after death for an Enlightened being, it is either as good as you are currently experiencing or better.

And, if there is nothing next, then, ok, you are "done".

Either way, the mind needs to "let go" of wanting to know what is next and just focus on learning and practicing The Teachings with guidance on The Path to Enlightenment to experience Enlightenment in this life now that you are human.

Is the mind or soul/spirit the same thing?

No they are not.

There is no Teaching from The Buddha that there is or is not a soul/spirit. This is not a Teaching he shared. He left The Teaching on a soul/spirit as "undeclared".