Wholesome Limit of Sense Perception with Reference to the Madhupi ṆḌikasutta and the Bāhiyasutta

Abstract

It is necessary to explore the limits of knowledge, within the bounds of the subject of Buddhist epistemology. Here, wholesome deeds are recognized as the limit of knowledge. All the objects kusala’ grasped by the five senses are not wholesome. But we need a filter to distinguish between the wholesome and unwholesome sense objects or defilements. This is similar to a strainer or a filter, cleaning the fine mud particles making water impure. This study is about to find the limitations of sense perception of Buddhist theory of knowledge. Here, I am going to discover that place where should be fixed that filter to make pure mind and sense knowledge reference with to Madhupiṇḍikasutta, in Majjhimanikāya. This is a textual study. I refer to the Pali canon and commentaries as primary sources and recent academic publications as secondary sources for this research. Among all these sources, canonical discourses will be my main focus. Specially in this study, Madhupiṇḍikasutta, Mahāvedallasutta, Mahāhatthipadopamasutta in the Majjhimanikāya Lokasutta in the Saṃyuttanikāya, in Anuruddhamahāvitakkasutta and Koţţhitasutta in the Aṅguttaranikāya, Dvayatānupassanāsutta in the Suttanipāta, Papañcakhayasutta in the Udānapāli are important. All in all, this will be a critical and analytical study based on these sources. We cannot stop the visual consciousness formed by the contact of eye with the object. Therefore, the instance of ‘contact and feeling’ can be considered as the first and foremost place set the wholesomeness boundary of the process of sense knowledge. For this, the Bāhiyasutta in the Udānapāli can be taken as the basis. We have been discussing the wholesomeness boundary of the sense perception process. There we have made a strainer that can filter wholesomeness and unwholesomeness, and found the place to set it up in the sense perception process is in between vedanā and saññā. The causative factor for the arising of proliferation is ignorance