Five Aggregates

Venerable Tissa, the nephew of the Lord’s father, spoke to a number of monks and said: “Friends, my body is as if drugged, things have become dim to my eyes, and the Dharma is no longer clear to me. Sloth and laziness possess my mind and I live the holy life without joy. I waver in the teachings.” So, those monks went to the Lord and told him what Tissa had said, and the Lord addressed one monk saying: “Go, monk, and in my name tell Tissa to come and speak to me.” So that monk did as he was asked and when Tissa came, the Lord said to him: “Is it true as they say that your body is as if drugged, that things have become dim to your eyes, that the Dharma is no longer clear to you, that sloth and laziness possess your mind, that you live the holy life without joy, and that you waver in the teachings?” 

“That is true, Lord.” 

“Now concerning this, what do you think, Tissa? If one is not free from lust, desire, affection, thirst, fever and craving, then when the body alters and changes do not grief, sorrow, suffering, lamentation and despair arise?” 

“Yes, Lord.” 

“And is it not the same with feeling, perception, mental constructs and consciousness?" 

"Yes, Lord.” 

“Well said, Tissa! Well said! Now what do you think? If one is free from lust, desire, affection, thirst, fever and craving, then when the body alters and changes then do grief, sorrow, suffering, lamentation and despair arise?”

“No Lord.” 

“And is it the same with feeling, perception, mental constructs and consciousness?” 

“It is, Lord.” 

“Well said, Tissa! Well said! Now, what do you think? Are the body, feeling, perception, mental constructs and consciousness permanent or impermanent?” 

“They are impermanent, Lord.” 

“So, seeing this, the instructed noble disciple turns away from these five aggregates. Turning away from them, passions fade, and with the fading of passions, he is free and he knows: ‘Rebirth is destroyed, the holy life has been lived, what has had to be done is done; there is no more of this.’ Suppose there are two men, one a skilled traveller and the other not. And the unskilled traveller asks the way from the skilled one. He replies: ‘Yes, my good man, this is the way. Continue for a while and you will see a fork in the road. Take the right hand path. Go on a little, and you will come to a forest. Continue for a while more, and you will come to a marshy swamp. Go a little further, and you will see a great cliff. Go further still and you will see a beautiful stretch of open ground.’ 

I use this parable to illustrate my meaning, and this is the meaning. The man unskilled in travel represents ordinary people, and the man skilled in travel represents the Tathāgata, the Noble One, the fully enlightened Buddha. The fork in the road is the state of wavering, the left fork being the false eightfold path and the right fork being the Noble Eightfold Path. The thick forest is ignorance, the marshy swamp is desires, and the great cliff is irritation and despair. The delightful stretch of open ground is Nirvāṇa. So be of good cheer, Tissa! Be of good cheer! I will counsel you, I will support you, and I will instruct you.” 

~ Saṃyutta Nikāya III, 106.