Dependent Co-Arising
"This arises depending on that"
Characteristics
objectivity = reality, wysiwyg
necessity = when conditions are right, events will happen without fail
invariability = no variance in events when conditions are the same
no accidents, nothing produced from single cause, no independent status of things, nothing is permanent
Conditional structure of our situation now:
Why do we suffer misery and pain; old age and death? Because we are born and are subject to be born (jati).
Why are we born? Because we are in a process of becoming (bhava).
Why are we in becoming? Because of clinging or attachment (upādāna).
Why do we cling to the objects of this world? Because of our craving, the thirst for enjoyment (tanhā).
Why do we have this craving? Because of feeling (vedanā).
Why do we have this feeling? Because of contact (phassa).
Why do we have this contact? Because of the six sense faculties (salāyatana).
Why do we have the six sense-spheres? Because of the psycho-physical organism (nāma-rūpa).
Why do we have this psycho-physical organism? Because of consciousness (viññāna).
Why do we have consciousness? Because of mental formations (sankhāra).
Why do we have mental formations? Because of ignorance (avijjā).
"One who sees the dependent arising sees the Buddha’s teaching, and he who sees the Buddha’s teaching sees the dependent arising."
Middle Way Approach
Avoids extremes of:
Self-causation - eternalism
External-causation - determinism or annihilationism
Both self and external causation - half by oneself and half by another
Neither - accidentalism
5 Functional Laws
I. Season law (utu-niyāma) – physical laws
II. Seed law (bīja-niyāma) – biological laws
III. Mind law (citta-niyāma) – psychological laws
IV. Action law (kamma-niyāma) – moral laws
V. Phenomenal law (dhamma-niyāma) – phenomenal laws
Oil-lamp remains burning depending on the wick, oil, container, oxygen, temperature and so forth. All these factors are essential for the oil lamp to remain in burning. They could be causes or conditions.