Untitled in the source — Sāmaññavagga — the third chapter of the Elevens
Setting
None stated in the source
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
The same cowherd simile and eight contemplations, now crossed against the six kinds of feeling born of contact
Length
~1 minute to read; stands for forty-eight discourses
Fifth of ten categories
Feeling, the fifth step in this chapter's ten-part analytical sequence, and the point dependent origination flags as decisive
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — the same established pattern, one category over
Why this discourse
The same eleven-factor cowherd simile and eight contemplations apply to the six kinds of feeling that arise specifically from contact — feeling born of eye contact, ear contact, nose contact, tongue contact, body contact, and mind contact — forty-eight further discourses (AN 11.214–261).
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
The identical cowherd simile and eight contemplations now apply to the six kinds of feeling born of contact — through the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind — the fifth of this chapter's ten categories.
Why feeling matters more than the others
In the dependent origination chain this sequence echoes, feeling is the specific link where craving takes hold or does not: contact conditions feeling, and feeling conditions craving, making the contemplations applied here — especially observing feeling as impermanent — a point of real leverage, not simply one more category in a mechanical series.
Named for its cause, not itself
Each of the six feelings in this page's list is named for the contact that gives rise to it — ‘feeling born of eye contact’, not simply ‘eye feeling’ — making explicit the causal link between the fourth category (contact) and this fifth one.
The same forty-eight, at the sequence's midpoint
Six kinds of feeling times eight contemplations gives forty-eight discourses, matching AN 11.214 through AN 11.261 exactly — the fifth of ten categories, marking roughly the midpoint of this chapter's full ten-category sequence.
Key terms
cakkhusamphassajā vedanāya, sotasamphassajā vedanāya — “feeling born of eye contact”, “feeling born of ear contact” — the first two of the six feelings, each explicitly named for its causal source.
vedanā — “feeling” — the fifth step in this chapter's sequence, and the pivotal link in dependent origination where craving may or may not take hold.
manosamphassajā vedanāya — “feeling born of mind contact” — the sixth and final feeling, completing the list.
taṇhā — not named directly here, but “craving”, the link feeling conditions in the dependent origination chain this category echoes.
aniccānupassī...paṭinissaggānupassī — the same eight contemplations from AN 11.22–29, again left entirely implicit.
The text
The compressed text in full: the same pattern, now applied to the six kinds of feeling born of contact. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Six kinds of feeling, the same pattern
§1… “… feeling born of eye contact … feeling born of ear contact … feeling born of nose contact … feeling born of tongue contact … feeling born of body contact … feeling born of mind contact …
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Self-check quiz
6 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 6
What category does this page address?
Correct: B. The fifth step in this chapter's analytical sequence.
Question 2 of 6
According to the guide, why does feeling carry special significance in this sequence?
Correct: B. A point of real leverage, not merely a mechanical step.
Question 3 of 6
How is each of the six feelings named?
Correct: B. Making explicit the causal link between contact and feeling.
Question 4 of 6
How many discourses does this page stand for?
Correct: C. 6 × 8 = 48, matching AN 11.214 through AN 11.261.
Question 5 of 6
Where does this category fall in this chapter's ten-category sequence, according to the guide?
Correct: B. The fifth of ten categories in the full sequence.
Question 6 of 6
Where is this compressed passage set?
Correct: B. No location is given for this compressed passage.
