Saṃjñā

 The Five Aggregates (pañca khandha)
according to the Pali Canon.
 
 
form (rūpa)
  4 elements
(mahābhūta)		  
 
    ↓
    contact
(phassa)
    ↓ ↑
 
consciousness
(viññāna)
 
 
 
 
 
→
←
 
 
 
←
  mental factors (cetasika)  
 
feeling
(vedanā)
 
 
 
perception
(sañña)
 
 
 
formation
(saṅkhāra)
 
 
 
 
 Source: MN 109 (Thanissaro, 2001)  |  diagram details

Saṃjñā (Sanskrit; Devanagiri: संज्ञा) and sañña (Pāli; Devanagiri: सञ्ञा) can be translated as "perception" or "cognition."

Contents

In the Early Buddhist literature

In the early Buddhism Theravadin texts of the Nikayas/Āgamas, saṃjñā/sañña is the third of the Five Aggregates (Skt.: skandha; Pali: khandha) which can be used to skillfully delineate phenomenological experiences during meditation.[1] Whether as one of the Five Aggregates, meditative concentration (samādhi) on the passing and rising (P. vipassana, S. vipaśyanā) of sañña can lead to mindfulness (P.sati, S. smṛti), clear comprehension (P. sampajanna, S. samprajaña) enlightenment and Arhantship (see Table).

In the Pali Canon, sañña is frequently defined as:

"It perceives blue, it perceives yellow, it perceives red, it perceives white."[2]

In post-canonical Pali commentaries, the Visuddhimagga likens sañña to "a child without discretion."[3]

See also

Notes

  1. ^ See, for instance, the Satipatthana Sutta.
  2. ^ Thanissaro (2001).
  3. ^ Buddhaghosa (1999), p. 436.

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