Buddhism Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

, ''āyatana'' (

Pāli Pāli (, IAST: pāl̤i) is a classical Middle Indo-Aryan language of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely studied because it is the language of the Buddhist ''Pāli Canon'' or '' Tipiṭaka'' as well as the sacred language of '' Therav� ...

;

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

: आयतन) is a "center of experience" or "mental home," which create one's experience. The term ' (Pāli; Skt. ') refers to six cognitive functions, namely sight, hearing, smelling, tasting, body-cognition, and mind-cognition. ''Āyatana'' may refer to both ordinary experience and the chain of processes leading to bondage, as to awakened experience centered in detachment and meditative accomplishment. The Buddhist path aims to relocate one from the ordinary, sensual centers of experience to the "mental home" of the purified, liberated awareness of the jhanas. Traditionally, the term ''āyatana'' is translated as "sense base", "sense-media" or "sense sphere," due to the influence of later commentators like

Buddhaghosa Buddhaghosa was a 5th-century Sinhalese Theravādin Buddhist commentator, translator, and philosopher. He worked in the great monastery (''mahāvihāra'') at Anurādhapura, Sri Lanka and saw himself as being part of the Vibhajyavāda schoo ...

. The ' are traditionally understood as referring to the five senses and the mind.

Etymology

''Āyatana'' (

;

: आयतन) is a

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

term that does not have a single definition or meaning. The standard PTS Pāli-English Dictionary by Davids & Stede (1921) gives the following meanings of ''āyatana'': #. stretch, extent, reach, compass, region; sphere, locus, place, spot; position, occasion #. exertion, doing, working, practice, performance #. sphere of perception or sense in general, object of thought, sense-organ & object; relation, order While ''āyatana'' is usually translated as "base" or "sphere," or more specifically as "sense field," "sense base", "sense-media" or "sense sphere," according to Ellis, "these are inadequate translations because they are based on later Buddhist traditions and commentarial literature and not on an historical understanding of the term." In Vedic literature ''āyatana'' is "used for a regular place, position, etc. occupied by a person." In some Upanishads it has the meaning of a "dwelling place" or "resort," or a "resting place for the mind," indicating that ''āyatana'' means "the place in which experience happens" or a "center of experience." According to Ellis, "center of experience" or "mental home" is a more adequate interpretation than "base" or "sphere." Ellis notes that ''āyatana'' in the suttas most commonly appears as a compound, namely ''saḷāyatana'' or ''cha phassāyatanā'', the "six āyatanas of sensual experience." According to Ellis, "This context is so dominant that translators like Bodhi and Walshe translate ‘sense bases’ even if the Pāli texts only mentions ''āyatana'', and not ''saḷāyatana''." Ellis further notes that ''saḷāyatana'' is traditionally interpreted anatonomically, and understood as referring to the five senses and the mind. Yet, according to Olivelle, ''saḷāyatana'' refers to cognitive functions, and therefor are understood by Ellis as referring to sight, hearing, smelling, tasting, body-cognition, and mind-cognition. The ''saḷāyatana'' are related to the ''

indriya ''Indriya'' (literally "belonging to or agreeable to Indra") is the Sanskrit and Pali term for physical strength or ability in general, and for and specifically refers to the ''five spiritual faculties'', the five or six sensory faculties, and the ...

'', the five senses and the mind; the ''indriya'' become ''saḷāyatana'' when they are distorted by a defiled mind. ''Indriya'' also refers to the five spiritual facultues, which are used to

In the Pali Canon

Throughout the

Pali Canon The Pāḷi Canon is the standard collection of scriptures in the Theravada Buddhism, Buddhist tradition, as preserved in the Pāli language. It is the most complete extant Early Buddhist texts, early Buddhist canon. It derives mainly from t ...

, the ''saḷāyatana'' are referenced in hundreds of discourses. In these diverse discourses, the sense bases are integrated in various mnemonic lists.

Internal and external ''āyatana''

The ''āyatana'' are further refined as six internal ''āyatana'' and six corresponding external ''āyatana''. Together they form: :* sight ('eye') and visible objects :* hearing ('ear') and sound :* smelling ('nose') and odor :* tasting ('tongue') and taste :* body-cognition ('body') and touch :* mind-cognition ('mind') and dharmas (mental objects)

Five skandhas

Based on these six pairs of ''āyatana'', a number of mental factors arise, as described in the five skandhas. Thus, for instance, when the auditive cognitive function ('the ear') is triggered by sound, the associated consciousness (Pali: '' '') arises. With the presence of these three elements ('' dhātu'') – hearing function, sound and hearing function-related consciousness – "contact" ('' phassa'') arises, which in turn is apprehended as a pleasant or unpleasant or neutral "feeling" or "sensation" (''

vedanā ''Vedanā'' (Pāli and Sanskrit: वेदना) is an ancient term traditionally translated as either "feeling" or "sensation." In general, ''vedanā'' refers to the pleasant, unpleasant and neutral sensations that occur when our internal sen ...

''). With feeling, "craving" (') (or aversion) arises. (See Figure 1.) Such an enumeration can be found, for instance, in the "Six Sextets" discourse (''Chachakka Sutta'', MN 148), where the "six sextets" (six sense organs, six sense objects, six sense-specific types of consciousness, six sense-specific types of contact, six sense-specific types of sensation and six sense-specific types of craving) are examined and found to be empty of self. The ''saḷāyatana'' are included in the

Twelve Nidanas Twelve or 12 may refer to: * 12 (number) * December, the twelfth and final month of the year * Dozen, a group of twelve. Years * 12 BC * AD 12 * 1912 * 2012 Film * ''Twelve'' (2010 film), based on the 2002 novel * ''12'' (2007 film), by Russia ...

, a list compiled of several sublists including the five skandhas, which describes the process of becoming.

"The All"

In a discourse entitled, "The All" ( SN 35.23), the Buddha states that there is no "all" outside of the six pairs of the ''saḷāyatana''. In the next codified discourse (SN 35.24), the Buddha elaborates that the All includes the first five aforementioned sextets (sense organs, objects, consciousness, contact and sensations). References to the All can be found in a number of subsequent discourses. In addition, the

Abhidhamma The Theravada Abhidhamma tradition, also known as the Abhidhamma Method, refers to a scholastic systematization of the Theravāda school's understanding of the highest Buddhist teachings ( Abhidhamma). These teachings are traditionally believed ...

and post-canonical Pali literature further conceptualize the ''saḷāyatana'' as a means for classifying ''all'' factors of existence.

"Aflame with lust, hate and delusion"

In "The Vipers" discourse (''Asivisa Sutta'', SN 35.197),

the Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha (),* * * was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist lege ...

likens the internal ''saḷāyatana'' to an "empty village" and the external ''saḷāyatana'' to "village-plundering bandits." Using this metaphor, the Buddha characterizes the "empty" sense organs as being "attacked by agreeable & disagreeable" sense objects. Elsewhere in the same collection of discourses ( SN 35.191), the Buddha's Great Disciple Sariputta clarifies that the actual

suffering Suffering, or pain in a broad sense, may be an experience of unpleasantness or aversion, possibly associated with the perception of harm or threat of harm in an individual. Suffering is the basic element that makes up the negative valence (psyc ...

associated with sense organs and sense objects is not ''inherent'' to these ''saḷāyatana'' but is due to the "fetters" (here identified as "desire and lust") that arise when there is contact between a sense organ and sense object. In the "

Fire Sermon Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion reaction when the fuel ...

" (''Adittapariyaya Sutta'', SN 35.28), delivered several months after the Buddha's awakening, the Buddha describes all ''saḷāyatana'' and related mental processes in the following manner: :"Monks, the All is aflame. What All is aflame? The eye is aflame. Forms are aflame.

Consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is awareness of a state or object, either internal to oneself or in one's external environment. However, its nature has led to millennia of analyses, explanations, and debate among philosophers, scientists, an ...

at the eye is aflame. Contact at the eye is aflame. And whatever there is that arises in dependence on contact at the eye – experienced as pleasure, pain or neither-pleasure-nor-pain – that too is aflame. Aflame with what? Aflame with the fire of passion, the fire of aversion, the fire of delusion. Aflame, I tell you, with birth, aging & death, with sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs."

Liberation

The Buddha taught that, in order to escape the dangers of the ''saḷāyatana'', one must be able to apprehend the ''saḷāyatana'' without defilement. In "Abandoning the Fetters" ( SN 35.54), the Buddha states that one abandons the fetters "when one knows and sees ... as impermanent" (Pali: ''anicca'') the 'saḷāyatana'' objects, sense-

consciousness Consciousness, at its simplest, is awareness of a state or object, either internal to oneself or in one's external environment. However, its nature has led to millennia of analyses, explanations, and debate among philosophers, scientists, an ...

, contact and sensations. Similarly, in "Uprooting the Fetters" (SN 35.55), the Buddha states that one uproots the fetters "when one knows and sees ... as nonself" (''anatta'') the aforementioned five sextets. To foster this type of penetrative knowing and seeing and the resultant release from suffering, in the

Satipatthana Sutta The ''Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta'' ( Majjhima Nikaya 10: ''The Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness''), and the subsequently created Mahāsatipaṭṭhāna Sutta (Dīgha Nikāya 22: ''The Great Discourse on the Establishing of Mindfulness'' ...

( MN 10) the Buddha instructs monks to meditate on the ''saḷāyatana'' and the dependently arising fetters as follows: :"How, O

bhikkhus A ''bhikkhu'' (, ) is an ordained male in Buddhist monasticism. Male, and female monastics (''bhikkhunī''), are members of the Sangha (Buddhist community). The lives of all Buddhist monastics are governed by a set of rules called the pratimok� ...

, does a bhikkhu live contemplating mental object in the mental objects of the six internal and the six external sense-bases? :"Here, O bhikkhus, a bhikkhu understands the eye and material forms and the fetter that arises dependent on both (eye and forms); he understands how the arising of the non-arisen fetter comes to be; he understands how the abandoning of the arisen fetter comes to be; and he understands how the non-arising in the future of the abandoned fetter comes to be. 'In a similar manner:''He understands the ear and sounds ... the organ of smell and odors ... the organ of taste and flavors ... the organ of touch and tactual objects ... the consciousness and mental objects.... :"Thus he lives contemplating mental object in mental objects ... and clings to naught in the world." In the

Four Noble Truths In Buddhism, the Four Noble Truths (; ; "The Four Arya (Buddhism), arya satya") are "the truths of the noble one (the Buddha)," a statement of how things really are (Three marks of existence, the three marks of existence) when they are seen co ...

, one of many summaries of the Buddhist path to liberation, '' dukkha'' ('suffering') is observed to arise with craving (Pali: '' ''; Skt.: ', lit. 'thirst'). In the chain of

Dependent Origination A dependant (US spelling: dependent) is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income and usually assistance with activities of daily living. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included ...

, craving arises with sensations when the ''saḷāyatana'' is activated by contact. To detach from ''tanha'' and ''dukkha'', one should develop awareness ('' sati'' (mindfullness) and ''

sampajañña ''Sampajañña'' (Pāli; Skt.: ''saṃprajanya'', ''samprajnata'', Tib: ''shes bzhin'') is a term of central importance for meditative practice in all Buddhist traditions. It refers to "The mental process by which one continuously monitors one ...

'' (clear comprehension)) of the chain of events triggered by the ''saḷāyatana'', and practice restraint and detachment (''sammā-vāyāma'' ( right effort) and ''

dhyana Dhyana may refer to: Meditative practices in Indian religions * Dhyana in Buddhism (Pāli: ''jhāna'') * Dhyana in Hinduism * Jain Dhyāna, see Jain meditation Other *''Dhyana'', a work by British composer John Tavener Sir John Kenneth ...

'' ('meditation')). Ellis notes that ''āyatana'' may also refer to the various stages of meditation ('' jhana''), and "even the state of liberated Buddhist masters is termed ''āyatana''."' As such, they are also a "center of experience" or "mental home," in which our normal states of mind are abandoned and one relocates in the purified, liberated awareness of the jhanas.

In post-canonical Pali texts

The '' Vimuttimagga'', the ''

Visuddhimagga The ''Visuddhimagga'' (Pali; English: ''The Path of Purification''; ), is the 'great treatise' on Buddhism, Buddhist practice and Theravāda Abhidhamma written by Buddhaghosa approximately in the 5th century in Sri Lanka. It is a manual condens ...

'', and associated Pali commentaries and subcommentaries all contribute to traditional knowledge about the ''saḷāyatana''.

Understanding sense organs

When the Buddha speaks of "understanding" the eye, ear, nose, tongue and body, what is meant? According to the first-century CE Sinhalese meditation manual, ''Vimuttimagga'', the sense organs can be understood in terms of the object sensed, the consciousness aroused, the underlying "sensory matter," and an associated primary or derived element that is present "in excess." These characteristics are summarized in the table below. The compendious fifth-century CE ''

'' provides similar descriptors, such as "the size of a mere louse's head" for the location of the eye's "sensitivity" (Pali: ''pasāda''; also known as, "sentient organ, sense agency, sensitive surface"), and "in the place shaped like a goat's hoof" regarding the nose sensitivity ( Vsm. XIV, 47–52). In addition, the Visuddhimagga describes the sense organs in terms of the following four factors: :* characteristic or sign (''lakkhaa'') :* function or "taste" (''rasa'') :* manifestation (''paccupahāna'') :* proximate cause (''padahāna'') Thus, for instance, it describes the eye as follows: :Herein, the eye's characteristic is sensitivity of primary elements that is ready for the impact of visible data; or its characteristic is sensitivity of primary elements originated by kamma sourcing from desire to see. Its function is to pick up n objectamong visible data. It is manifested as the footing of eye-

. Its proximate cause is primary elements born of kamma sourcing from desire to see. In regards to the sixth internal ''āyatana'' of mind (''mano''), Pali subcommentaries (attributed to Dhammapāla Thera) distinguish between consciousness arising from the five physical ''saḷāyatana'' and that arising from the primarily post- canonical notion of a "life-continuum" or "unconscious mind" (''bhavaga-mana''): :"Of the consciousness or mind aggregate included in a course of cognition of eye-consciousness, just the eye-base ot the mind-baseis the 'door' of origin, and the xternal sensebase of the material form is the visible object. So it is in the case of the others hat is, the ear, nose, tongue and body sense bases But of the sixth sense-base the part of the mind base called the life-continuum, the unconscious mind, is the 'door' of origin...."

The roots of wisdom

In the fifth-century CE exegetical ''Visuddhimagga'',

identifies knowing about the ''saḷāyatana'' as part of the "soil" of liberating

wisdom Wisdom, also known as sapience, is the ability to apply knowledge, experience, and good judgment to navigate life’s complexities. It is often associated with insight, discernment, and ethics in decision-making. Throughout history, wisdom ha ...

. Other components of this "soil" include the aggregates, the faculties, the

and

Related Buddhist concepts

* Aggregates (Pali, ''khandha''; Skt., ''skandha''):
In a variety of suttas, the aggregates, elements (''see below'') and ''saḷāyatana'' are identified as the "soil" in which craving and clinging grow. In general, in the

, the aggregate of material form includes the five material sense organs (eye, ear, nose, tongue and body) and associated sense objects (visible forms, sounds, odors, tastes and tactile objects); the aggregate of consciousness is associated with the sense organ of mind; and, the mental aggregates (sensation, perception, mental formations) are mental sense objects.
Both the aggregates and the ''saḷāyatana'' are identified as objects of

mindfulness Mindfulness is the cognitive skill, usually developed through exercises, of sustaining metacognitive awareness towards the contents of one's own mind and bodily sensations in the present moment. The term ''mindfulness'' derives from the Pali ...

meditation Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, "discursive thinking", achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state, while not judging the meditat ...

in the

. In terms of pursuing liberation, meditating on the aggregates eradicates self-doctrine and wrong-view clinging while meditating on the ''saḷāyatana'' eradicates sense-pleasure clinging. *

(Pali: '; Skt.: ''pratitya-samutpada''):
As indicated in Figure 2 above, the six ''saḷāyatana'' (Pali; Skt.: ') are the fifth link in the Twelve Causes (''nidāna'') of the chain of Dependent Origination and thus likewise are the fifth position on the

Wheel of Becoming The bhavachakra (Sanskrit language, Sanskrit: भवचक्र; Pali language, Pāli: ''bhavacakka''; Classical Tibetan, Tibetan: སྲིད་པའི་འཁོར་ལོ, Wylie: ''srid pa'i 'khor lo'') or wheel of life is a visual te ...

(''bhavacakra''). The arising of the six ''saḷāyatana'' is dependent on the arising of material and mental objects (Pali, Skt.: ''nāmarūpa''); and, the arising of the six ''saḷāyatana'' leads to the arising of " contact" (Pali: ''phassa''; Skt.: ''sparśa'') between the ''saḷāyatana'' and

(Pali: '; Skt.: ''visjñāna'') which results in pleasant, unpleasant and neutral

feelings According to the '' APA Dictionary of Psychology'', a feeling is "a self-contained phenomenal experience"; feelings are "subjective, evaluative, and independent of the sensations, thoughts, or images evoking them". The term ''feeling'' is closel ...

(Pali, Skt.: ''vedanā''). *Elements (Pali, Skt.: ''dhātu''):
The eighteen elements include the twelve ''saḷāyatana''. The eighteen elements are six triads of elements where each triad is composed of a sense object (the external ''saḷāyatana''), a sense organ (the internal ''saḷāyatana'') and the associated sense-organ-consciousness ('). In other words, the eighteen elements are made up of the twelve ''saḷāyatana'' and the six related sense-consciousnesses. *

Karma Karma (, from , ; ) is an ancient Indian concept that refers to an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptively called ...

(Skt.; Pali: ''kamma''):
In a Samyutta Nikaya discourse, the Buddha declares that the six internal senses bases (eye, ear, nose, tongue, body and mind) are "old kamma, to be seen as generated and fashioned by volition, as something to be felt."Bodhi (2005b), pp. 1211–12. See als
Thanissaro (1997a).
/ref> In this discourse, "new kamma" is described as "whatever action one does now by body, speech, or mind." In this way, the internal ''saḷāyatana'' provide a link between our volitional actions and subsequent perceptions.

Notes

References

Sources

;Primary * * * Bodhi, Bhikkhu (trans.) (2000b). ''The Connected Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Samyutta Nikaya''. (Part IV is "The Book of the Six Sense Bases (Salayatanavagga)".) Boston: Wisdom Publications. . * Bodhi, Bhikkhu (2005a). ''In the Buddha's Words: An Anthology of Discourses from the Pali Canon''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. . * Bodhi, Bhikkhu (18 Jan 2005b). ''MN 10: Satipatthana Sutta (continued)'' (MP3 audio file) n this series of talks on the Majjhima Nikaya, this is Bodhi's ninth talk on the Satipatthana Sutta. In this talk, the discussion regarding the sense bases starts at time 45:36]. Available on-line at http://www.bodhimonastery.net/MP3/M0060_MN-010.mp3. *

, Bhadantācariya (trans. from Pāli by Bhikkhu Ñāṇamoli) (1999). ''The Path of Purification: Visuddhimagga''. (Chapter XV is "The Bases and Elements (Ayatana-dhatu-niddesa)".) Seattle, WA: BPS Pariyatti Editions. . * , Bhikkhu (trans.) & Bodhi, Bhikkhu (ed.) (2001). ''The Middle-Length Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Majjhima Nikāya''. Boston: Wisdom Publications. . * Rhys Davids, Caroline A.F. ( 900 2003). ''Buddhist Manual of Psychological Ethics, of the Fourth Century B.C., Being a Translation, now made for the First Time, from the Original Pāli, of the First Book of the Abhidhamma-Piaka, entitled Dhamma- (Compendium of States or Phenomena)''. Whitefish, MT: Kessinger Publishing. * * Soma Thera (trans.) (1999). ''The Discourse on the Arousing of Mindfulness'' ( MN 10). Available on-line a
Satipatthana Sutta: The Discourse on the Arousing of Mindfulness
* Soma Thera (2003). ''The Way of Mindfulness: English translation of the Satipahāna Sutta Commentary''. Kandy, Sri Lanka:

Buddhist Publication Society The Buddhist Publication Society (BPS) is a publishing house with charitable status, whose objective is to disseminate the teachings of Gautama Buddha. It was founded in Kandy, Sri Lanka, in 1958 by two Sri Lankan lay Buddhists, A.S. Karunaratn ...

. . * Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1993). ''Adittapariyaya Sutta: The Fire Sermon'' ( SN 35.28). Available on-line a
Adittapariyaya Sutta: The Fire Sermon
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997a). ''Kamma Sutta: Action'' ( SN 35.145). Available on-line a
Kamma Sutta: Action
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997b). ''Kotthita Sutta: To Kotthita'' ( SN 35.191). Available on-line a
Kotthita Sutta: To Kotthita
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1997c). ''Suñña Sutta: Empty'' ( SN 35.85). Available on-line a
Suñña Sutta: Empty
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998a). ''Chachakka Sutta: The Six Sextets'' ( MN 148). Available on-line a
Chachakka Sutta: The Six Sextets
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998b). ''Loka Sutta: The World'' ( SN 12.44). Available on-line a
Loka Sutta: The World
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998c). ''Maha-salayatanika Sutta: The Great Six Sense-media Discourse'' ( MN 149). Available on-line a
Maha-salayatanika Sutta: The Great Six Sense-media Discourse
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (1998d). ''Yavakalapi Sutta: The Sheaf of Barley'' ( SN 35.207). Available on-line a
Yavakalapi Sutta: The Sheaf of Barley
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2001a). ''Pahanaya Sutta: To Be Abandoned'' ( SN 35.24). Available on-line a
Pahanaya Sutta: To Be Abandoned
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2001b). ''Sabba Sutta: The All'' ( SN 35.23). Available on-line a
Sabba Sutta: The All
* Thanissaro Bhikkhu (trans.) (2004). ''Asivisa Sutta: Vipers'' ( SN 35.197). Available on-line a
Asivisa Sutta: Vipers
*Upatissa, Arahant, N.R.M. Ehara (trans.), Soma Thera (trans.) and Kheminda Thera (trans.) (1995). ''The Path of Freedom (Vimuttimagga)''. Kandy, Sri Lanka: Buddhist Publication Society. . * Vipassana Research Institute (VRI) (trans.) (1996). '': The Great Discourse on Establishing Mindfulness'' (Pali-English edition). Seattle, WA: Vipassana Research Publications of America. . ;Secondary * * * Hamilton, Sue (2001). ''Indian Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction''. Oxford: Oxford University Press. . * Matthews, Bruce (1995). "Post-Classical Developments in the Concepts of Karma and Rebirth in Theravāda Buddhism," in Ronald W. Neufeldt (ed.), ''Karma and Rebirth: Post-Classical Developments''. Delhi, Sri Satguru Publications. (Originally published by the State University of New York, 1986). . * Rhys Davids, T.W. & William Stede (eds.) (1921–5). ''The Pali Text Society's Pali–English Dictionary''. Chipstead: Pali Text Society. A general on-line search engine for the PED is available at http://dsal.uchicago.edu/dictionaries/pali/.

External links

"Salayatana Vagga – The Section on the Six Sense Bases"
of the Samyutta Nikaya, on www.accesstoinsight.org
'āyatana' in context
suttacentral
Indriya and Āyatana – Big Difference
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ayatana Twelve nidānas Eighteen dhātus Sanskrit words and phrases