The Buddha Project Five aggregates and the omnipresent mental factors
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- This topic has 11 replies, 5 voices, and was last updated 6 months, 3 weeks ago by
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Dear Venerable,
I have been grappling with my understanding of the five aggregates in relation to the five omnipresent mental factors, as there is some overlap in terms (such as feeling). My sense is that the five aggregates speak to the broader context of all human experience while the 5 omnipresent mental factors speak more to our personal experience, but I am not sure that is correct. How should I reflect on these two important topics?
Thank you,
Maureen
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Hi Maureen,
These are two different lists for two different purposes.
The omnipresent mental factors are five aspects of all minds, among 51, that give basic explanation of how awareness functions.
The five aggregates are a comprehensive description of a psycho-physical being, but from a meditators perspective.I can highly recommend:
Approaching the Buddhist Path: The Library of Wisdom and Compassion, by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Ven. Thubten Chodron
…as a source to investigate these basic topics deeper
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Dear Ven. Gendun,
I can’t really find the words, although it’s clear that there’s a strong relationship between the aggregates and the omnipresent mental factors. It seems to me that the 5 aggregates are (sense) manifestations of the experience (of the mind) while the omnipresent mental factors are actions of the mind perceiving the experience. Am I on the right path?
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Ik denk, dat de aggregaten door ons worden waargenomen, onderscheiden en gevoeld met behulp van de vijf alom tegenwoordige mentale factoren.
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Dear Ven. Gendun,
I can’t tell you how grateful I am that you are sharing your wisdom and experience in such a generous and accessible way. I am overjoyed to join this training.
This is a very tricky question to think about. I think that Form arises from one or more of the 4 elements and the Consciousnesses arise from the other aggregates coming into Contact with particular Forms. Mental factors arise when Consciousness comes into Contact with the other aggregates. Contact / Perception leads to Feeling which, due to Mental Formations, leads to Intention, which directs Attention.
Is this on the right track at all?
With profound gratitude,
Sara Caldwell -
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