![]() Again, by the destruction of ignorance, which consists in the complete absence of lust, the samskaras are destroyed; by the destruction of the samskaras, consciousness is destroyed; by the destruction of consciousness, name and form are destroyed; by the destruction of name and form, the six provinces are destroyed; by the destruction of the six provinces, contact is destroyed; by the destrcution of contact, sensation is destroyed; by the destruction of sensation, thirst is destroyed; by the destruction of thirst, attachment is destroyed; by the destruction of attachment, becoming is destroyed; by the destruction of becoming, birth is destroyed, by the destruction of birth, old age and death, grief, lamentation, suffering, dejection and despair are destroyed. Such is the cessation of this whole mass of suffering in Pratityasamutpada. It is based on the truths that man is bound to the wheel of life, and it is possible for him to release himself from these bonds by arresting the transitive character of causation. A view similar to this theory of the wheel of causation is suggested in the Upanishads. The wheel of causation is at times distinguished into elements derived from the past life, those from the present and those of the future. |