4👑☸ Cattāri Ariya-saccaṃ 四聖諦

saṅkhārā

saṅkhārā

fabrications

STED 5k = 5 khandhas = 5 aggregates STED 5uk = 5 upādana khandhas = 5 clingable aggregates

1. Saṅkhārā as part of 5uk

In SN 22.56, saṅkhārā operates in reference to 6 sense bases, with “intention”, cetanā.

SN 22.56 with cetanā + Duties of 4NT applied

(thanissaro trans.)

♦ “katame ca, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā?	"And what are fabrications?
chay-ime, bhikkhave, cetanā-kāyā —	These six classes of intention —
rūpa-sañ-cetanā,	intention with regard to form,
sadda-sañ-cetanā,	intention with regard to sound,
gandha-sañ-cetanā,	intention with regard to smell,
rasa-sañ-cetanā,	intention with regard to taste,
phoṭṭhabba-sañ-cetanā,	intention with regard to tactile sensation,
dhamma-sañ-cetanā.	intention with regard to ideas:
ime vuccanti, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā.	these are called fabrications.
phassa-samudayā saṅkhāra-samudayo;	From the origination of contact comes the origination of fabrications.
phassa-nirodhā saṅkhāra-nirodho.	From the cessation of contact comes the cessation of fabrications.
ayam-eva ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo	And just this noble eightfold path
saṅkhāra-nirodha-gāminī paṭipadā,	is the path of practice leading to the cessation of fabrications...
seyyathidaṃ — sammādiṭṭhi ... pe ... sammāsamādhi.	that-is, -- right-view... right concentration.

SN 22.79 ‘saṅkhārā’ in noun and verb form

♦ “kiñ-ca, bhikkhave, saṅkhāre vadetha?	"And-why, monks, (are) fabrications called (that)?
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharontīti kho, bhikkhave,	(because) 'fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate ***, monks.
tasmā ‘saṅkhārā’ti vuccati.	therefore 'fabrications' (they are) called.
kiñca saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharonti?	what fabricated-things -- **** -- [are] fabricated?
(1.) rūpaṃ rūp-attāya	(1.) form [for the sake of] form-ness,
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharonti,	(those) fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate,
(2.) vedanaṃ vedan-attāya	(2.) feelings [for the sake of] feeling-ness,
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharonti,	(those) fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate,
(3.) saññaṃ saññ-attāya	(3.) perceptions[for the sake of] perception-hood,
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharonti,	(those) fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate,
(4.) saṅkhāre saṅkhār-attāya	(4.) fabrications [for the sake of] fabrication-hood,
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharonti,	(those) fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate,
(.5) viññāṇaṃ viññāṇ-attāya	(5.) consciousness [for the sake of] consciousness-hood,
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharonti.	(those) fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate,
saṅkhatam-abhi-saṅkharontīti kho, bhikkhave,	(because) 'fabricated-things--****--(they)-fabricate ***, monks.
tasmā ‘saṅkhārā’ti vuccati.	therefore 'fabrications' (they are) called.

SN 22.79 fluent translation by thanissaro and bodhi

thanissaro trans.	bodhi trans.
"And why do you call them 'fabrications'?	“And why, bhikkhus, do you call them volitional formations?
Because they fabricate fabricated things,	‘They construct the conditioned,’ bhikkhus,
thus they are called 'fabrications.'	therefore they are called volitional formations.
What do they fabricate as a fabricated thing?	" And what is the conditioned that they construct?
For the sake of form-ness,	They construct conditioned form as form;
they fabricate form as a fabricated thing.
For the sake of feeling-ness,	" they construct conditioned feeling as feeling;
they fabricate feeling as a fabricated thing.
For the sake of perception-hood...	they construct conditioned perception as perception;
For the sake of fabrication-hood...	they construct conditioned volitional formations as volitional formations;
For the sake of consciousness-hood,	they construct conditioned consciousness as consciousness.
they fabricate consciousness as a fabricated thing.
Because they fabricate fabricated things,	‘They construct the conditioned,’ bhikkhus,
they are called fabrications. [3]	therefore they are called volitional formations.

2. Saṅkhārā as part of 12ps: kāya, vacī, citta

.	.

SN 12.2 (link 2)

♦ “katame ca, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā?	"And-what, monks, (are) fabrications?
tayo-me, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā —	(there are) three-of-these, **********, fabrications:
kāya-saṅkhāro,	bodily-fabrications,
vacī-saṅkhāro,	verbal-fabrications,
citta-saṅkhāro.	mental-fabrications,
ime vuccanti, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā.	This (is) called, *********, fabrications.

MN 44 samādhi context

(Fabrications: bodily, voice, mind)

♦ 463. “kati panāyye, saṅkhārā”ti?	“Now, lady, what are-fabrications?”
♦ “tayo-’me, āvuso visākha, saṅkhārā —	“These three-fabrications, friend Visākha:
kāya-saṅkhāro, vacī-saṅkhāro, citta-saṅkhāro”ti.	bodily-fabrications, vocal-speech-fabrications, & mental-fabrications.”
♦ “katamo panāyye, kāya-saṅkhāro,	“But what are bodily-fabrications?
katamo vacī-saṅkhāro,	What are vocal-speech-fabrications?
katamo citta-saṅkhāro”ti?	What are mental-fabrications?”
♦ “assāsa-passāsā kho, āvuso visākha, kāya-saṅkhāro,	“In-&-out-breaths are bodily-fabrications.
vitakka-vicārā vacī-saṅkhāro,	Directed thought-&-evaluation are vocal-speech-fabrications.
saññā ca vedanā ca citta-saṅkhāro”ti.	Perceptions & feelings are mental-fabrications.”
♦ “kasmā panāyye, assāsapassāsā kāya-saṅkhāro,	“But why are in-&-out breaths bodily-fabrications?
kasmā vitakka-vicārā vacī-saṅkhāro,	Why are directed thought-&-evaluation vocal-speech-fabrications?
kasmā saññā ca vedanā ca citta-saṅkhāro”ti?	Why are perceptions & feelings mental-fabrications?”
♦ “assāsa-passāsā kho, āvuso visākha, kāyikā	“In-&-out breaths, ***, (are) bodily;
ete dhammā kāyap-paṭi-baddhā,	these dhamma-[things] (are) bound-up-with-the-body,
tasmā assāsa-passāsā kāya-saṅkhāro.	That’s why in-&-out breaths are bodily-fabrications.
pubbe kho, āvuso visākha,	prior to [vocalizing speech], friend Visakha,
vitakketvā vicāretvā	(one) directs-thoughts (and) evaluates [those very thoughts],
pacchā vācaṃ bhindati,	afterwards, vocal-speech breaks-out,
tasmā vitakka-vicārā vacī-saṅkhāro.	Therefore directed-thought-&-evaluation are vocal-speech-fabrications.
saññā ca vedanā ca cetasikā	Perceptions & feelings are mental;
ete dhammā cittap-paṭi-baddhā,	these dhamma-[things] (are) bound-up-with-the-mind.
tasmā saññā ca vedanā ca citta-saṅkhāro”ti.	Therefore perceptions & feelings (are) mental-fabrications.”

(saññā-vedayita-nirodha-samāpatti)

♦ 464. “kathaṃ panāyye, saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpatti hotī”ti?	“Now, lady, how does the attainment of the cessation of perception & feeling come about?”
♦ “na kho, āvuso visākha, saññāvedayitanirodhaṃ samāpajjantassa bhikkhuno evaṃ hoti — ‘ahaṃ saññāvedayitanirodhaṃ samāpajjissan’ti vā, ‘ahaṃ saññāvedayitanirodhaṃ samāpajjāmī’ti vā, ‘ahaṃ saññāvedayitanirodhaṃ samāpanno’ti vā.	“The thought does not occur to a monk as he is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling that ‘I am about to attain the cessation of perception & feeling’ or that ‘I am attaining the cessation of perception & feeling’ or that ‘I have attained the cessation of perception & feeling.’
atha khvāssa pubbeva tathā cittaṃ bhāvitaṃ hoti yaṃ taṃ tathattāya upanetī”ti.	Instead, the way his mind has previously been developed leads him to that state.”
♦ “saññāvedayitanirodhaṃ samāpajjantass panāyye, bhikkhuno katame dhammā paṭhamaṃ nirujjhanti — yadi vā kāya-saṅkhāro, yadi vā vacī-saṅkhāro, yadi vā citta-saṅkhāro”ti?	“But when a monk is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling, which things cease first: bodily fabrications, verbal fabrications, or mental fabrications?”
“saññāvedayitanirodhaṃ samāpajjantassa kho, āvuso visākha, bhikkhuno paṭhamaṃ nirujjhati vacī-saṅkhāro, tato kāya-saṅkhāro, tato citta-saṅkhāro”ti.	“When a monk is attaining the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visākha, verbal fabrications cease first, then bodily fabrications, then mental fabrications.”1
♦ “kathaṃ panāyye, saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhānaṃ hotī”ti?	“Now, lady, how does emergence from the cessation of perception & feeling come about?”
♦ “na kho, āvuso visākha, saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahantassa bhikkhuno evaṃ hoti — ‘ahaṃ saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahissan’ti vā, ‘ahaṃ saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahāmī’ti vā, ‘ahaṃ saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhito’ti vā.	“The thought does not occur to a monk as he is emerging from the cessation of perception & feeling that ‘I am about to emerge from the cessation of perception & feeling’ or that ‘I am emerging from the cessation of perception & feeling’ or that ‘I have emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling.’
atha khvāssa pubbeva tathā cittaṃ bhāvitaṃ hoti yaṃ taṃ tathattāya upanetī”ti.	Instead, the way his mind has previously been developed leads him to that state.”
♦ “saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahantassa panāyye, bhikkhuno katame dhammā paṭhamaṃ uppajjanti — yadi vā kāya-saṅkhāro, yadi vā vacī-saṅkhāro, yadi vā citta-saṅkhāro”ti?	“But when a monk is emerging from the cessation of perception & feeling, which things arise first: bodily fabrications, verbal fabrications, or mental fabrications?”
“saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahantassa kho, āvuso visākha, bhikkhuno paṭhamaṃ uppajjati citta-saṅkhāro, tato kāya-saṅkhāro, tato vacī-saṅkhāro”ti.	“When a monk is emerging from the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visākha, mental fabrications arise first, then bodily fabrications, then verbal fabrications.”
♦ “saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhitaṃ panāyye, bhikkhuṃ kati phassā phusantī”ti?	“When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, lady, how many contacts make contact?”
“saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhitaṃ kho, āvuso visākha, bhikkhuṃ tayo phassā phusanti — suññato phasso, animitto phasso, appaṇihito phasso”ti.	“When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visākha, three contacts make contact: contact with emptiness, contact with the signless, & contact with the undirected.”2
♦ “saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhitassa panāyye, bhikkhuno kiṃninnaṃ cittaṃ hoti kiṃpoṇaṃ kiṃpabbhāran”ti?	“When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, lady, to what does his mind lean, to what does it tend, to what does it incline?”
“saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhitassa kho, āvuso visākha, bhikkhuno vivekaninnaṃ cittaṃ hoti, vivekapoṇaṃ vivekapabbhāran”ti.	“When a monk has emerged from the cessation of perception & feeling, friend Visākha, his mind leans to seclusion, tends to seclusion, inclines to seclusion.”3

AN 4.233 four kinds of karma

233. Vitthārasutta	233. karmas in Detail
“Cattārimāni, bhikkhave, kammāni mayā sayaṃ abhiññā sacchikatvā paveditāni.	“monks, I declare these four kinds of karmas, having realized them with my own insight.
Katamāni cattāri?	What four?
Atthi, bhikkhave, kammaṃ kaṇhaṃ kaṇha-vipākaṃ;	(1) There are dark karmas with dark results;
atthi, bhikkhave, kammaṃ sukkaṃ sukka-vipākaṃ;	(2) bright karmas with bright results;
atthi, bhikkhave, kammaṃ kaṇha-sukkaṃ kaṇha-sukka-vipākaṃ;	(3) dark and bright karmas with dark and bright results; and
atthi, bhikkhave, kammaṃ akaṇhaa-sukkaṃ akaṇhaa-sukka-vipākaṃ kammakkhayāya saṃvattati.	(4) neither dark nor bright karmas with neither dark nor bright results, which lead to the ending of karmas.

(1. There are dark karmas with dark results; )

Katamañca, bhikkhave, kammaṃ kaṇhaṃ kaṇha-vipākaṃ?	And what are dark karmas with dark results?
Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco"	Here, monks, someone
sabyābajjhaṃ kāya-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti,	with-hurtful, bodily-co-doings (he) does [a deed],
sabyābajjhaṃ vacī-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti,	with-hurtful, vocal-co-doings (he) does [a deed],
sabyābajjhaṃ mano-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti.	with-hurtful, mental-co-doings (he) does [a deed],
So sabyābajjhaṃ kāya-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā, sabyābajjhaṃ vacī-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā, sabyābajjhaṃ mano-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā sabyābajjhaṃ lokaṃ upapajjati.	Having done these co-doings, they’re reborn in a hurtful world,
Tamenaṃ sabyābajjhaṃ lokaṃ upapannaṃ samānaṃ sabyābajjhā phassā phusanti.	where hurtful contacts touch them.
So sabyābajjhehi phassehi phuṭṭho samāno sabyābajjhaṃ vedanaṃ vediyati ekanta-dukkhaṃ, seyyathāpi sattā nerayikā.	Touched by hurtful contacts, they experience hurtful feelings that are exclusively painful—like the beings in hell.
Idaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave, kammaṃ kaṇhaṃ kaṇha-vipākaṃ.	These are called dark karmas with dark results.

(2. bright karmas with bright results )

Katamañca, bhikkhave, kammaṃ sukkaṃ sukka-vipākaṃ?	And what are bright karmas with bright results?
Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco abyābajjhaṃ kāya-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti, abyābajjhaṃ vacī-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti, abyābajjhaṃ mano-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti.	It’s when someone makes pleasing co-doings by way of body, speech, and mind.
So abyābajjhaṃ kāya-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā, abyābajjhaṃ vacī-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā, abyābajjhaṃ mano-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā abyābajjhaṃ lokaṃ upapajjati.	Having made these co-doings, they’re reborn in a pleasing world,
Tamenaṃ abyābajjhaṃ lokaṃ upapannaṃ samānaṃ abyābajjhā phassā phusanti.	where pleasing contacts touch them.
So abyābajjhehi phassehi phuṭṭho samāno abyābajjhaṃ vedanaṃ vediyati ekanta-sukhaṃ, seyyathāpi devā subhakiṇhā.	Touched by pleasing contacts, they experience pleasing feelings that are exclusively happy—like the gods replete with glory.
Idaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave, kammaṃ sukkaṃ sukka-vipākaṃ.	These are called bright karmas with bright results.

(3. dark and bright karmas with dark and bright results? )

Katamañca, bhikkhave, kammaṃ kaṇha-sukkaṃ kaṇha-sukka-vipākaṃ?	And what are dark and bright karmas with dark and bright results?
Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi kāya-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti, sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi vacī-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti, sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi mano-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharoti.	It’s when someone makes both hurtful and pleasing co-doings by way of body, speech, and mind.
So sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi kāya-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā, sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi vacī-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā, sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi mano-saṅkhāraṃ abhi-saṅkharitvā sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi lokaṃ upapajjati.	Having made these co-doings, they are reborn in a world that is both hurtful and pleasing,
Tamenaṃ sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi lokaṃ upapannaṃ samānaṃ sabyābajjhāpi abyābajjhāpi phassā phusanti.	where hurtful and pleasing contacts touch them.
So sabyābajjhehipi abyābajjhehipi phassehi phuṭṭho samāno sabyābajjhampi abyābajjhampi vedanaṃ vediyati vokiṇṇa-sukha-dukkhaṃ, seyyathāpi manussā ekacce ca devā ekacce ca vinipātikā.	Touched by both hurtful and pleasing contacts, they experience both hurtful and pleasing feelings that are a mixture of pleasure and pain—like humans, some gods, and some beings in the underworld.
Idaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave, kammaṃ kaṇha-sukkaṃ kaṇha-sukka-vipākaṃ.	These are called dark and bright karmas with dark and bright results.

(4. neither dark nor bright karmas with neither dark nor bright result )

Katamañca, bhikkhave, kammaṃ akaṇhaa-sukkaṃ akaṇhaa-sukka-vipākaṃ kammakkhayāya saṃvattati?	And what are neither dark nor bright karmas with neither dark nor bright results, which lead to the ending of karmas?
Tatra, bhikkhave, yamidaṃ kammaṃ kaṇhaṃ kaṇha-vipākaṃ tassa pahānāya yā cetanā, yamidaṃ kammaṃ sukkaṃ sukka-vipākaṃ tassa pahānāya yā cetanā, yamidaṃ kammaṃ kaṇha-sukkaṃ kaṇha-sukka-vipākaṃ tassa pahānāya yā cetanā—	It’s the intention to give up dark karmas with dark results, bright karmas with bright results, and both dark and bright karmas with both dark and bright results.
idaṃ vuccati, bhikkhave, kammaṃ akaṇhaa-sukkaṃ akaṇhaa-sukka-vipākaṃ kammakkhayāya saṃvattati.	These are called neither dark nor bright karmas with neither dark nor bright results, which lead to the ending of karmas.
Imāni kho, bhikkhave, cattāri kammāni mayā sayaṃ abhiññā sacchikatvā paveditānī”ti.	These are the four kinds of karmas that I declare, having realized them with my own insight.”

3. Saṅkhārā as all conditioned things

.	.

Books and Essays on Sankhara

B. Thanissaro book on using Sankharas to realize nirvana

🔗Mirror of Insight 1 | Two Truths? {EBT doesn't talk about 'relative' and 'ultimate' truths} 2 | Two Dilemmas {How can nirvana of un-fabricated (a-saṅkhata) be realized when you rely on sankhara of desire for becoming or desire for non-becoming?} 3 | The Varieties of Fabricated ( Saṅ-khārā s) Experience {sankhara as 5uk aggregates, 3 types of sankhara in 12ps, etc.} 4 | The Mirror of Insight {Using sankharas skillfully, such as 9 meditative attainments in SN 36.11 to realize end of sankhara} (My comments summarizing contents of chapters of book are in curly braces { })

B.Bodhi primer on Sankhara

Anicca Vata Sankhara by Bhikkhu Bodhi © 2005 Anicca vata sankhara — "Impermanent, alas, are all formations!" — is the phrase used in Theravada Buddhist lands to announce the death of a loved one, but I have not quoted this line here in order to begin an obituary. I do so simply to introduce the subject of this essay, which is the word sankhara itself. Sometimes a single Pali word has such rich implications that merely to sit down and draw them out can shed as much light on the Buddha's teaching as a long expository article. This is indeed the case with the word sankhara. The word stands squarely at the heart of the Dhamma, and to trace its various strands of meaning is to get a glimpse into the Buddha's own vision of reality. The word sankhara is derived from the prefix sam, meaning "together," joined to the noun kara, "doing, making." Sankharas are thus "co-doings," things that act in concert with other things, or things that are made by a combination of other things. Translators have rendered the word in many different ways: formations, confections, activities, processes, forces, compounds, compositions, fabrications, determinations, synergies, constructions. All are clumsy attempts to capture the meaning of a philosophical concept for which we have no exact parallel, and thus all English renderings are bound to be imprecise. I myself use "formations" and "volitional formations," aware this choice is as defective as any other. However, though it is impossible to discover an exact English equivalent for sankhara, by exploring its actual usage we can still gain insight into how the word functions in the "thought world" of the Dhamma. In the suttas the word occurs in three major doctrinal contexts. One is in the twelvefold formula of dependent origination (paticca-samuppada), where the sankharas are the second link in the series. They are said to be conditioned by ignorance and to function as a condition for consciousness. Putting together statements from various suttas, we can see that the sankharas are the kammically active volitions responsible for generating rebirth and thus for sustaining the onward movement of samsara, the round of birth and death. In this context sankhara is virtually synonymous with kamma, a word to which it is etymologically akin. The suttas distinguish the sankharas active in dependent origination into three types: bodily, verbal, and mental. Again, the sankharas are divided into the meritorious, demeritorious, and "imperturbable," i.e., the volitions present in the four formless meditations. When ignorance and craving underlie our stream of consciousness, our volitional actions of body, speech, and mind become forces with the capacity to produce results, and of the results they produce the most significant is the renewal of the stream of consciousness following death. It is the sankharas, propped up by ignorance and fueled by craving, that drive the stream of consciousness onward to a new mode of rebirth, and exactly where consciousness becomes established is determined by the kammic character of the sankharas. If one engages in meritorious deeds, the sankharas or volitional formations will propel consciousness toward a happy sphere of rebirth. If one engages in demeritorious deeds, the sankharas will propel consciousness toward a miserable rebirth. And if one masters the formless meditations, these "imperturbable" sankharas will propel consciousness toward rebirth in the formless realms. A second major domain where the word sankharas applies is among the five aggregates. The fourth aggregate is the sankhara-khandha, the aggregate of volitional formations. The texts define the sankhara-khandha as the six classes of volition (cha cetanakaya): volition regarding forms, sounds, smells, tastes, tactile objects, and ideas. Though these sankharas correspond closely to those in the formula of dependent origination, the two are not in all respects the same, for the sankhara-khandha has a wider range. The aggregate of volitional formations comprises all kinds of volition. It includes not merely those that are kammically potent, but also those that are kammic results and those that are kammically inoperative. In the later Pali literature the sankhara-khandha becomes an umbrella category for all the factors of mind except feeling and perception, which are assigned to aggregates of their own. Thus the sankhara-khandha comes to include such ethically variable factors as contact, attention, thought, and energy; such wholesome factors as generosity, kindness, and wisdom; and such unwholesome factors as greed, hatred, and delusion. Since all these factors arise in conjunction with volition and participate in volitional activity, the early Buddhist teachers decided that the most fitting place to assign them is the aggregate of volitional formations. The third major domain in which the word sankhara occurs is as a designation for all conditioned things. In this context the word has a passive derivation, denoting whatever is formed by a combination of conditions; whatever is conditioned, constructed, or compounded. In this sense it might be rendered simply "formations," without the qualifying adjective. As bare formations, sankharas include all five aggregates, not just the fourth. The term also includes external objects and situations such as mountains, fields, and forests; towns and cities; food and drink; jewelry, cars, and computers. The fact that sankharas can include both active forces and the things produced by them is highly significant and secures for the term its role as the cornerstone of the Buddha's philosophical vision. For what the Buddha emphasizes is that the sankharas in the two active senses — the volitional formations operative in dependent origination, and the kammic volitions in the fourth aggregate — construct the sankharas in the passive sense: "They construct the conditioned; therefore they are called volitional formations. And what are the conditioned things they construct? They construct the body, feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness; therefore they are called volitional formations" (SN XXII.79). Though external inanimate things may arise from purely physical causes, the sankharas that make up our personal being — the five aggregates — are all products of the kammically active sankharas that we engaged in our previous lives. In the present life as well the five aggregates are constantly being maintained, refurbished, and extended by the volitional activity we engage in now, which again becomes a condition for future existence. Thus, the Buddha teaches, it was our own kammically formative sankharas that built up our present edifice of personal being, and it is our present formative sankharas that are now building up the edifices of personal being we will inhabit in our future lives. These edifices consist of nothing other than sankharas as conditioned things, the conditioned formations comprised in the five aggregates. The most important fact to understand about sankharas, as conditioned formations, is that they are all impermanent: "Impermanent, alas, are formations." They are impermanent not only in the sense that in their gross manifestations they will eventually come to an end, but even more pointedly because at the subtle, subliminal level they are constantly undergoing rise and fall, forever coming into being and then, in a split second, breaking up and perishing: "Their very nature is to arise and vanish." For this reason the Buddha declares that all sankharas are suffering (sabbe sankhara dukkha) — suffering, however, not because they are all actually painful and stressful, but because they are stamped with the mark of transience. "Having arisen they then cease," and because they all cease they cannot provide stable happiness and security. To win complete release from suffering — not only from experiencing suffering, but from the unsatisfactoriness intrinsic to all conditioned existence — we must gain release from sankharas. And what lies beyond the sankharas is that which is not constructed, not put together, not compounded. This is Nibbana, accordingly called the Unconditioned — asankhata — the opposite of what is sankhata, a word which is the passive participle corresponding to sankhara. Nibbana is called the Unconditioned precisely because it's a state that is neither itself a sankhara nor constructed by sankharas; a state described as visankhara, "devoid of formations," and as sabbasankhara-samatha, "the stilling of all formations." Thus, when we put the word sankhara under our microscope, we see compressed within it the entire worldview of the Dhamma. The active sankharas consisting in kammically active volitions perpetually create the sankhara of the five aggregates that constitute our being. As long as we continue to identify with the five aggregates (the work of ignorance) and to seek enjoyment in them (the work of craving), we go on spewing out the volitional formations that build up future combinations of aggregates. Just that is the nature of samsara: an unbroken procession of empty but efficient sankharas producing still other sankharas, riding up in fresh waves with each new birth, swelling to a crest, and then crashing down into old age, illness, and death. Yet on it goes, shrouded in the delusion that we're really in control, sustained by an ever-tantalizing, ever receding hope of final satisfaction. When, however, we take up the practice of the Dhamma, we apply a brake to this relentless generation of sankharas. We learn to see the true nature of the sankharas, of our own five aggregates: as unstable, conditioned processes rolling on with no one in charge. Thereby we switch off the engine driven by ignorance and craving, and the process of kammic construction, the production of active sankharas, is effectively deconstructed. By putting an end to the constructing of conditioned reality, we open the door to what is ever-present but not constructed, not conditioned: the asankhata-dhatu, the unconditioned element. This is Nibbana, the Deathless, the stilling of volitional activities, the final liberation from all conditioned formations and thus from impermanence and death. Therefore our verse concludes: "The subsiding of formations is blissful!" Publisher's note The Buddhist Publication Society is an approved charity dedicated to making known the Teaching of the Buddha, which has a vital message for people of all creeds. Founded in 1958, the BPS has published a wide variety of books and booklets covering a great range of topics. Its publications include accurate annotated translations of the Buddha's discourses, standard reference works, as well as original contemporary expositions of Buddhist thought and practice. These works present Buddhism as it truly is — a dynamic force which has influenced receptive minds for the past 2500 years and is still as relevant today as it was when it first arose. Buddhist Publication Society P.O. Box 61 54, Sangharaja Mawatha Kandy, Sri Lanka ©1999 Buddhist Publication Society. You may copy, reformat, reprint, republish, and redistribute this work in any medium whatsoever, provided that: (1) you only make such copies, etc. available free of charge and, in the case of reprinting, only in quantities of no more than 50 copies; (2) you clearly indicate that any derivatives of this work (including translations) are derived from this source document; and (3) you include the full text of this license in any copies or derivatives of this work. Otherwise, all rights reserved. Documents linked from this page may be subject to other restrictions. BPS Newsletter cover essay no. 43 (3rd mailing, 1999). Last revised for Access to Insight on 16 June 2011. How to cite this document (a suggested style): "Anicca Vata Sankhara", by Bhikkhu Bodhi. Access to Insight (Legacy Edition), 16 June 2011, http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/bps-essay_43.html .

References
	https://dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=23&t=5909

every reference to vaci-sankhara (17 hits)
	https://notesonthedhamma.blogspot.com/2019/08/every-occurrence-of-vaci-san-khara.html
	Summary
	vaci sankhara summary, 17 suttas
	3ss = 3 sankharas: kaya, vaci, citta.
	DN 18: coarse 3ss have not been pacified (passadhi).
	after listening to Dharma and practicing it, 3ss are pacified
	(vaci-sankhara pacified corresponds to 2nd jhana,
	kaya sankhara pacified corresponds to 4th jhana,
	citta sankhara pacified corresponds to sanna vedayita nirodha)
	also sukha (pleasure) and so-manassa (mental-happiness), pamojja (altruistic mirth) arise as result.
	MN 9: 3ss caused by ignorance, 8aam leads to their cessation.
	MN 43: difference between dead man and monk in sanna-vedayita-nirodha attainment - 3ss have ceased (nirodha) and pacified (passaddhi) in both, but in monk, there is still heat, vitality, and indriya faculties are exceptionally clear.
	MN 44: what are 3ss, why are they 3ss
	what order do 3ss cease for nirodha attainment
	no thoughts (pronoun iti) can occur during attainment
	what order do 3ss revive emerging from nirodha attainment
	MN 57: 3ss action (kamma and fruit, rebirth) corresponds to 3ss by way of vacīsaṅkhāraṃ abhisaṅkharoti, (mano instead of citta).
	MN 117: samma sankappo defined to include vitakka and vaci-sankahra among other terms.
	SN 12.2: 12ps links, sankhara defined as 3ss
	SN 12.25: same as MN 9: 3ss caused by ignorance, 8aam leads to their cessation. (recheck)
	SN 12.27: same as MN 9: 3ss caused by ignorance, 8aam leads to their cessation.
	SN 12.28: same as MN 9: 3ss caused by ignorance, 8aam leads to their cessation.
	SN 12.33: same as MN 9: 3ss caused by ignorance, 8aam leads to their cessation.
	SN 41.6 same as MN 44
	AN 3.23: same or similar to MN 57
	AN 4.171: ?
	AN 4.233: same or similar to MN 57
	AN 4.234: same or similar to MN 57
	AN 6.44: vacīsaṅkhārā uppajjanti.
	Take another person who is angry and conceited, and from time to time has the impulse to speak inappropriately.
	Notes of interest
	If you search summary above for MN 57, and AN 6.44, it will identify the suttas that link kamma (karma, action, fruit, rebirth) to the 3 sankharas.
	B. Sujato is wrong again 🤦
	Therefore B. Sujato's vaci-sankhara of "placing the mind and keeping it connected" can not work, as the mind glued to a visual nimitta would not have the karmic potency to cause rebirth in hell or heaven, etc.

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