The bare six-item list plus the compressed formula reference, matching SN 25.3–6's own treatment
Length
Under a minute to read
Northern parallel
A rough counterpart may exist in the Chinese Saṃyukta-āgama (T99), though this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — brief and familiar by this point in the sequence
Why this discourse
The seventh step, and the last link this saṃyutta examines before reaching craving itself: intention (cetanā) regarding each of the six sense objects — the volitional response perception can give rise to, standing immediately upstream of the craving SN 25.8 will name next.
Reading guide
Six intentions, one for each sense object
"Intention regarding sights is impermanent, decaying, and perishing. Intention regarding sounds, intention regarding smells, intention regarding tastes, intention regarding touches, and intentions regarding ideas are impermanent, decaying, and perishing" — framed by object exactly as SN 25.6's perceptions were, continuing that discourse's own phrasing pattern rather than SN 25.4 and 25.5's "born of" construction.
Volition, the pivot before craving
Where perception merely recognizes, intention already moves toward response — cetanā is elsewhere defined in the Nikāyas as karmically significant precisely because it is volitional, a mental act with a direction, distinct from the more passive registering that feeling and perception represent.
One step from the sequence's own climax
This discourse is the last of the standard contact-feeling-perception-intention chain this saṃyutta has walked through one link at a time since SN 25.4; SN 25.8 will name craving itself, the point where the entire chain most directly threatens to perpetuate further rebirth if left unexamined.
The same compressed treatment, unchanged
As with the three discourses before it, only the six-item list and the formula's opening words survive in the source, the full three-tier conclusion still carried by memory from SN 25.1 and 25.2.
Key terms
cetanā — intention — the volitional response to perceived experience, the subject of this discourse and the pivot before craving
rūpasañcetanā — intention regarding sights — the first of the six intentions named, framed by object as at SN 25.6
taṇhā — craving — the very next link in this saṃyutta's sequence (SN 25.8), the point the entire chain has been building toward
peyyāla — an elision mark — continuing this saṃyutta's compression pattern from SN 25.3–6
sotāpanno avinipātadhammo niyato sambodhiparāyano — a stream-enterer, not liable to be reborn in the underworld, assured, destined for awakening — this saṃyutta's standing conclusion
The text
The complete discourse as bilara-data preserves it: the six intentions named impermanent, then the formula's opening words alone. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1At Sāvatthī. “Mendicants, intention regarding sights is impermanent, decaying, and perishing. Intention regarding sounds, intention regarding smells, intention regarding tastes, intention regarding touches, and intentions regarding ideas are impermanent, decaying, and perishing. Someone who has faith and confidence in these teachings is called a follower by faith. …”
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Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 10
What six items does this discourse declare impermanent?
Correct: A. Framed by object, continuing SN 25.6's own phrasing pattern.
Question 2 of 10
What distinguishes intention from perception in the standard analytical chain?
Correct: A. Cetanā is elsewhere defined as karmically significant precisely because of its volitional character.
Question 3 of 10
What position does this discourse occupy in this saṃyutta's sequence?
Correct: A. SN 25.8 will name craving next, the point the chain has been building toward.
Question 4 of 10
Why is craving, examined next, significant in this chain?
Correct: A. The climax this saṃyutta's sequence has been building toward since SN 25.4.
Question 5 of 10
How does this discourse's framing compare to SN 25.6's own?
Correct: A. Intention regarding sights, sounds, and so on, matching perception's own phrasing.
Question 6 of 10
Where is this discourse set?
Correct: A. Matching the setting of most discourses in this saṃyutta.
Question 7 of 10
How does this discourse's compression compare to SN 25.3–6's own?
Correct: A. The six-item list plus the formula's opening words, unchanged since SN 25.3.
Question 8 of 10
What discourse examines the link that follows intention in this sequence?
Correct: A. Reaching the sequence's own climax before moving to two final, broader categories.
Question 9 of 10
What is the first of the six intentions named in this discourse?
Correct: A. Followed by intention regarding sounds, smells, tastes, touches, and ideas.
Question 10 of 10
What does this discourse trust the reader to supply, given its own compression?
Correct: A. Supplied by memory from this saṃyutta's own opening two discourses.
