Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi is free of all ‘loka saññā,’ and thus, avijjā cannot be triggered while a mind is in Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi. Any living being in the kāma loka, rupa loka, or arupa loka is born with corresponding kāma saññā, rupa loka saññā, or arupa loka saññā. That is why the goal of cultivating Satipaṭṭhāna is to free the mind from whichever saññā category one’s mind can be attached to.
September 27, 2025
Avijjā Is Measured by the Number of Unbroken Saṁyojana
1. The number of unbroken saṁyojana indicates the ‘level of avijjā‘ left in a mind. A puthujjana has all ten saṁyojana intact, and an Arahant would have none left. A Sotapanna and a Sakadāgāmi would have seven left, and an Anāgāmi has five unbroken saṁyojana left. See “Conditions for the Four Stages of Nibbāna.”
- Even if all ten saṁyojana are left in the mind, avijjā is not displayed automatically. Avijjā must be triggered by the ‘(distorted) saññā‘ associated with the sensory input to initiate kamma accumulation.
- Since any sensory input comes in with a (distorted) saññā, the initial attachment will occur for ANY sensory input.
- After that, the mind may undergo a series of more steps and begin accumulating strong kamma, depending on some other conditions. We discussed those steps in “Growth of Pañcupādānakkhandha – ‘Anusotagāmi’” for the kāma loka.
- Therefore, the initial step (Step 1 in the above post) occurs regardless of the sensory input. For example, just seeing the blue sky or a blade of grass (anything in the world) is enough to trigger that initial attachment in the kāma loka. Only the minds of Arahants and Anāgāmis will remain the ‘kāma dhātu‘ state and not enter ‘kāma loka.’
- The following chart (taken from “Growth of Pañcupādānakkhandha – ‘Anusotagāmi’“) shows Step 1 and the subsequent steps in the attachment in kāma loka.’
Download/Print: “Growth of Pañcupādānakkhandha“
Initial Attachment Depends Only on the ‘Rāga Saṁyojana‘
2. The critical point is that Step 1 will occur without exception if the specific “rāga saṁyojana‘ is not eliminated. A living being born in the kāma, rupa, or arupa loka will attach with the kāma rāga, rupa rāga, or arupa rāga saṁyojana in Step 1. (The chart above illustrates the process for the kāma loka. All three lokās are shown in #8 of “Four Noble Truths: Connection to Anusotagāmi/Paṭisotagāmi.”)
- The reason for that is the following: The corresponding ‘saññā‘ to trigger that attachment will automatically arise. That (distorted) ‘saññā‘ is built into all sentient beings!
- As I have explained in many posts, ‘kāma saññā‘ is inherent in anyone born in the kāma loka. Thus, if the kāma rāga saṁyojana remains intact, Step 1 of the attachment process will take place without exception. Thus, it will not occur only for an Arahant or Anāgāmi.
- For a rupa loka Brahma, Step 1 will occur unless ‘rupa rāga saṁyojana‘ is broken. For an arupa loka Brahma, Step 1 will occur unless ‘arupa rāga saṁyojana‘ is broken.
- A human who has cultivated a jhāna, for example, ‘lives in’ rupa loka while in the jhāna. If the ‘rupa rāga saṁyojana‘ remains unbroken, then that mind will be attached to the ‘jhānic experience.’ However, if an Arahant who has cultivated a jhāna gets into that jhāna, their minds will not attach to the jhānic experience.
Subsequent Attachment Steps
3. Step 2 of the attachment process (see the chart above) depends on the type of sensory input and also the mindset present at that specific moment. Seeing the sky or a blade of grass is unlikely to cause further attachment in Step 2. However, seeing a gold ring on the road is likely to cause attachment to it. Thus, unlike Step 1, Step 2 will occur only in some situations.
- Steps 3 and 4 that lead to the accumulation of strong kammic energies (with rāga, dosa, or moha) will occur only if the sensory input induces ‘strong attachment.’
- I discussed those steps in “Growth of Pañcupādānakkhandha – ‘Anusotagāmi’.” It is a good idea to review it. The description is for the ‘kāma loka.’
Variety of Saññā Is Highest in Kāma Loka
4. Loka Saññā comes in three major categories: kāma saññā, rupa loka saññā, and arupa loka saññā. Sentient beings in kāma, rupa, and arupa lokās are all born with specific types of “distorted or viparita saññā,” also known as “saññā vipallāsa.” That is the reason why attachment to sensual pleasures, jhānic pleasures, and arupa samāpatti pleasures is difficult to overcome.
- The number or types of ‘loka saññā‘ present in the 11 realms of kāma loka is the highest. All six types of major ‘saññā categories’ (rupa saññā for rupa in kāma loka, sadda saññā, rasa saññā, gandha saññā, poṭṭhabba saññā, and dhamma saññā) are present in kāma loka. There are many types of saññā associated with each category (rupa saññā, for example, includes saññā for recognizing numerous sights, such as people, animals, buildings, and vegetation, among others).
- ‘Kāma assāda‘ or ‘sensual pleasures with close contact’ with taste, smell, and touch (and with related sights and sounds) are present only in kāma loka, and they have the strongest types of associated ‘loka saññā‘ (for sex, tasty foods, and enticing sights, sounds, and smells). These are called “nānatta saññā‘ or a ‘wide variety of saññā.’
Fewer Number of Saññā in Rupa and Arupa Loka
5. In the sixteen Brahma realms in ‘rupa loka,’ the mind experiences a smaller number of saññā. In these realms, ‘jhānic saññā‘ is present. Those are savitakka, savicāra, piti, sukha, and ekaggatā. As one moves up to higher rupa loka realms, the number of saññā decreases, and so does the associated ‘stress’ or ‘suffering.’ By the fourth jhāna, the four of the ‘jhānic saññā‘ mentioned above have been eliminated or suppressed, and one experiences only ekaggatā.
- In the ‘arupa loka‘ (four arupa Brahma realms), only the mind is present, and most of the time, the mind is focused on only one saññā. For example, in the Ākāsānancāyatana and Viññāṇañcāyatana realms, the mind is focused on infinite space and infinite viññāṇa, respectively. These are the ‘arupa loka samāpatti‘ with the least stress! The least stress (suffering) is experienced in those highest Brahma realms.
- We discussed the above in “Saññā In Kāma, Rupa, and Arupa Loka.”
Anariya Yogi in a Jhāna Does Not Experience Kāma Saññā
6. An anariya yogi has all ten saṁyojana intact. So, why is it that they do not experience kāma saññā while in a jhāna, even though the kāma rāga saṁyojana is not eliminated?
- Any mind can be in only one of the three ‘lokās‘ in the world at any time: kāma loka, rupa loka, and arupa loka.
- However, a mind and move from the kāma loka to rupa loka (i.e., a jhāna) if it can be brought close to a critical point (between Step 1 and Step 2) of the sequential attachment process discussed in #2 and #3 above; also see the above chart. This process of “moving the mind toward the kāma dhātu stage’ is called paṭisotagāmi. See “Paṭisotagāmi – Moving Toward Satipaṭṭhāna Bhumi and Nibbāna.”
- This is achieved by stopping strong kamma generation in the ‘nava kamma‘ stage and by avoiding tempting sensory inputs. Ancient anariya yogis, like Alāra Kālāma, lived in forests, away from sensory distractions. There were no women, tasty foods, nice fragrances, luxury houses, etc. (called ‘nimitta‘ or sensory attractions) to trigger the kāma rāga.
- A Noble Person above the Sotapanna stage can get close to the critical point by cultivating Satipaṭṭhāna, as we will discuss later.
Saṁyojana Can Be Eliminated Only While in Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi
7. Once that critical point between Step 1 and Step 2 is reached, the mind can proceed in one of two ways. The mind can move to the ‘Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi‘, or it can progress to the first jhāna in rupa loka. An anariya yogi‘s mind can take only the second option. (The mind of a Noble Person could go either way. If their mind gets to the jhāna, they can reach the ‘Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi‘ from the jhānic state.)
- The two possible outcomes are shown in the chart below.
Download/Print: “Overcoming Kāma Saññā – Satipaṭṭhāna Bhumi or Jhāna“
- Thus, the anariya yogi‘s mind will ‘come back’ to kāma loka once out of the jhāna. Whether their minds are in kāma loka or the jhāna, their kāma rāga saṁyojana remains intact. Even the mind of a Sotapanna, if it gets into the jhāna, will still have the kāma rāga saṁyojana intact. However, they can enter the ‘Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi‘ from rupa loka (jhāna) and break that saṁyojana to become an Anāgāmi.
- For details, see “Overcoming Kāma Saññā – Satipaṭṭhāna Bhumi or Jhāna.”
- Critical point: A saṁyojana can be broken/eliminated only while in the ‘Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi.‘ The ‘Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi‘ is common to all three lokās, and can be entered from any of them.
Only Those Above the Sotapanna Stage Can Enter Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi
8. From the above discussion, it should be clear that an anariya yogi (puthujjana) cannot enter the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi.
- A puthujjana enters the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi for the time at the moment of attaining the Sotapanna stage. Even a Sotapanna Anugāmi cannot.
- However, it is guaranteed that a Sotapanna Anugāmi will attain the Sotapanna stage before their death. See “Khandha Sutta (SN 25.10).”
Types of Saññā Different in Kāma, Rupa, and Arupa Lokās
9. We know that beings in a given loka would have corresponding sense faculties. In the kāma loka, all six sensory faculties are present, and that makes many types of ‘saññā‘ to be experienced; in particular, six types of primary ‘saññā types’ are available (rupa saññā corresponding to sights through dhamma saññā corresponding to memories). Then, there are many types of saññā within each category: sights of people, various types of trees, animals, and so on, and similarly, for numerous types of foods in the ‘rasa saññā‘ category. In fact, that is how we identify different sights, tastes, sounds, and so on. These ‘multitude of saññā‘ are called ‘nānatta saññā.’
- In the rupa loka, beings do not have dense bodies; they only have a manomaya kāya, which consists of just a few suddhāṭṭhaka (fundamental units of matter in the Buddha Dhamma), smaller than an atom in modern science. Thus, they cannot eat, smell, or touch; those sense faculties are missing in the rupa loka. Still, they can see and hear with different mechanisms without eyes or ears. Of course, they can think with their minds. Furthermore, they spend most of the time in jhānic states with a few specific types of saññā highlighted in #5 above.
- In the four realms of the arupa loka, a living being (an arupa Brahma) is only a single suddhāṭṭhaka! That is the seat of the mind for Brahma. They can only think, and only memories come to mind.
- When a human yogi is experiencing a jhāna, their mind is temporarily separated from the kāma loka. That is why they don’t ‘feel the physical body.’ It is as if they only have the manomaya kāya, i.e., the gandhabba temporarily detaches from the physical body, even if it does not ‘come out.’ Some yogis can separate their manomaya kāya out of the physical body, and that is called ‘astral travel’ these days. They likely had cultivated jhāna in previous lives.
- By the way, the subject of jhānās is not comprehensible to anyone but a Buddha (‘jhānavisayo acinteyyo‘), as stated in the “Acinteyya Sutta (AN 4.77).” That is why we cannot figure out why only some people can easily get into jhānās. However, since one can get to the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi from kāma loka, it is not necessary to cultivate a jhāna.
External Environments in Kāma, Rupa, and Arupa Lokās
10. The external environment in the three lokās is also vastly different, because it induces different types of saññā with different types of sense faculties.
- In kāma loka, the environment provides all six types of sensory inputs.
- Rupa loka Brahmās have environments devoid of most things we are used to. There is no vegetation, animals, or any ‘solid objects.’ They mainly live in meditative states, but can, of course, communicate with others. There are suttās that describe Buddha’s visits to the Rupa Loka Brahma realms; see, for example, #12 of “Anidassana Viññāṇa – What It Really Means.”
- In arupa loka, no ‘rupa‘ above the suddhāṭṭhaka level are present. Their minds are, most of the time, in samādhi, focused on a single saññā!
Only One Rāga Saṁyojana Is Effective While in a Given Loka
11. Now, we can see why certain types of rāga saṁyojana cannot be triggered while in a specific loka. Out of the three types of ‘rāga saṁyojana‘ (kāma rāga saṁyojana, rupa rāga saṁyojana, arupa rāga saṁyojana), only one is effective while in a specific loka.
- For example, arupa loka Brahmās are unable to ‘take in’ five of the six major categories of saññā mentioned in #4 above, since they have only the mind. Therefore, any type of ‘kāma saññā‘ associated with cannot trigger their kāma rāga saṁyojana! In fact, their minds are usually focused on just a single saññā, as mentioned in #5 above. Rupa above the suddhāṭṭhaka stage are absent there (dhammā grasped by the mind is just energy below the suddhāṭṭhaka stage), and that is why it is called ‘arupa loka.’
- Even in the rupa loka (where the visual and auditory sense faculties are present in addition to the mind), the types of saññā they experience are limited, since their world is also devoid of living beings with ‘solid bodies’ (like ours or animals) or solid objects (like vegetation).
- Kāma loka is the extreme, characterized by the presence of most types of saññā, as discussed above. Here, most living beings have solid bodies and have all six sensory faculties. However, they cannot experience ‘jhānic saññā‘ of rupa loka Brahmās or the ‘arupa samāpatti saññā‘ of arupa loka Brahmās.
12. Therefore, each loka and the living beings in it arise via Paṭicca Samuppāda to be able to experience their own unique set of saññā.
- In the kāma loka, the available types of saññā are associated with the ‘kāma rāga and paṭigha samyojanas.’ (Since paṭigha is also present with kāma rāga, both types can be triggered by sensory inputs in the kāma loka). Normally, they cannot experience the types of saññā present in the rupa loka or arupa loka.
- In the same way, rupa loka Brahmās cannot experience ‘kāma saññā‘ or ‘arupa loka saññā‘, and arupa loka Brahmās cannot experience ‘kāma saññā‘ or ‘rupa loka saññā‘.
- However, once the corresponding saññā (kāma rāga saññā, rupa rāga saññā, or arupa rāga saññā) is triggered, that leads to triggering other types of ‘unbroken saṁyojana’ for an anariya (i.e, a puthujjana). Let us discuss that now.
Triggering a Rāga Saṁyojana Leads to Triggering Other Unbroken Saṁyojana
13. As we have discussed in many posts, a sensory input lands the mind in the ‘dhātu state’ of the corresponding loka.
- For a living being in the kāma loka, the mind lands in the ‘kāma dhātu‘ state, where it automatically receives the corresponding ‘kāma saññā.’
- Unless the kāma rāga (and paṭigha) samyojanas have been broken, the mind will automatically attach to that kāma saññā. That will simultaneously trigger any of the other unbroken seven saṁyojana (i.e., except for the rupa rāga and arupa rāga saṁyojana) when entering ‘kāma loka.’ Only the mind of an Arahant or an Anāgāmi will stay in the ‘kāma dhātu‘ state and NOT enter ‘kāma loka.’
- Once in the ‘kāma loka,’ the mind will continue to attach to the sensory input in a series of steps discussed in many posts; see, for example, “Growth of Pañcupādānakkhandha – ‘Anusotagāmi’” and “Purāna and Nava Kamma – Sequence of Kamma Generation.” That can be analyzed with Paṭicca Samuppāda or as the ‘growth of the pancupadanakkdhandha.”
- During that complex process, all the other unbroken saṁyojana will help contaminate the mind and contribute to it.
Example – A Puthujjana in Kāma Loka
14. Consider a puthujjana who has all ten saṁyojana intact. They will attach automatically with the kāma rāga saṁyojana (rupa rāga and arupa rāga saṁyojana cannot be triggered while in the kāma loka, as discussed above).
- The initial attachment to the ‘kāma saññā‘ brought in by the sensory input will trigger all eight unbroken saṁyojana (except for the rupa rāga and arupa rāga saṁyojana, as mentioned above). This occurs in Step 1, as mentioned in the above post. In this step 1, cakkhu indriya becomes cakkhu āyatana (same as “cakkhu” in most suttās), and cakkhu viññāṇa arises after going through the “bahiddha viññāṇa” and “ajjhatta viññāṇa” stages. Simultaneously, the mind prepares its version of the external rupa. This is the “cakkhu viññeyya rupa” (meaning “the rupa generated by cakkhu viññāṇa.”)
- Then, in Step 2, the mind attaches to that “mind-made rupa” (“cakkhu viññeyya rupa“) based on one’s gati at that moment.
- If the “state of mind” (or one’s gati) at that moment is conducive to pursuing that “mind-made rupa,” initial kāma rāga elevates to kāmacchanda, where the mind (still subconsciously) begins generating more sukha vedanā (known as “samphassa–jā–vedanā“), entering Step 3.
- If the mind proceeds to Step 3, potent kamma accumulation can occur in the latter stages; it is advisable to read that post to refresh the mind.
- The steps in the attachment process are discussed in “Growth of Pañcupādānakkhandha – ‘Anusotagāmi’.”
Example – A Sotapannaa in Kāma Loka
15. Now, consider the case of a Sotapanna. Since they have kāma rāga saṁyojana intact, they will also go through the same steps as a puthujjana. The only difference is that a Sotapanna will attach only with five saṁyojana (kāma rāga, paṭigha, māna, uddhacca, avijjā), since the first three saṁyojana have been broken for them.
- A critical point to understand is the role played by the kāma saññā.
- Anyone born in the kāma loka will automatically receive the ‘kāma saññā‘ triggered by the sensory input.
- However, Arahants and Anāgāmis who have eliminated the kāma rāga (and paṭigha) saṁyojana will not attach to that sensory event. Thus, they will remain in ‘kāma dhātu‘ and not enter ‘kāma loka‘; see the above charts. For others, entering ‘kāma loka‘ will trigger the initiation of pañcupādānakkhandha (the same as Paṭicca Samuppāda process), which could lead to the generation of potent kamma.
Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi Allows One to Think Clearly
16. As discussed above, one can enter the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi from any of the three lokās: kāma loka, rupa loka, or arupa loka.
- Even if many of any ‘rāga saṁyojana’ may not be broken, the mind is free of any defilements while inside the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi. That is because a defilement process can be triggered ONLY by a ‘distorted saññā‘ and those are absent while the mind is inside Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi. Another way to say that: Sammā Sati is fully effective while the mind is in Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi.
- This is why the Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi is sometimes called Tadaṅga Nibbuta (“momentary or temporary Nibbāna”). It is also called Sappabhāsa Citta (lower version of the “defilement-free” pabhassara citta, see “Uncovering the Suffering-Free (Pabhassara) Mind“) in many suttās and Paccupaṭṭhita Sati in the Mahā Satipaṭṭhāna Sutta.
- In fact, the term Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi does not appear in the suttās. Since it is referred to by many different terms (mentioned above and others), I considered using this term. Bhūmi means a ‘place’ or a ‘territory,’ so Satipaṭṭhāna Bhūmi can be used to refer to the ‘mental place’ where one has Sammā Sati. I will provide details in an upcoming post.