Pali Term: Sati

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Assaji
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by Assaji »

Hi Billymac,
I don't think anyone disputes that the definition of sati is "to remember" or "remembering".
I would dispute it. First, sati isn't a verb. Second, in the definition, sati means 'remembrance', in the sense of 'bearing in mind' and 'ability to remember'.

Katamañca, bhikkhave, satindriyaṃ? Idha, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako satimā hoti paramena satinepakkena samannāgato, cirakatampi cirabhāsitampi saritā anussaritā.

"And what is the faculty of remembrance? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is endowed with memory, highly meticulous, remembering & able to call to mind even things that were done & said long ago."

Indriya-Vibhanga sutta, (SN V 197-8 )

Definition of REMEMBRANCE
1 : the state of bearing in mind
2 a : the ability to remember

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/remembrance
Billymac29 wrote:How would the definition of "remembrance" fit into the beginning of ananapanasati?
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu araññagato vā rukkhamūlagato vā suññāgāragato vā nisīdati pallaṅkaṃ ābhujitvā, ujuṃ kāyaṃ paṇidhāya, parimukhaṃ satiṃ upaṭṭhapetvā
Here a monk, having gone into the forest, or to the foot of a tree, or to an empty room, sits down cross-legged, keeps his body upright and setting mindfulness to the fore...

saying "..setting 'remembrance' to the fore.." makes no sense in english!!


"Setting mindfulness to the fore" doesn't make much sense as well.

However, when we take into account the original meaning of 'parimukham', the commentarial explanation makes perfect sense:

Pakatiassāsapakatipassāse nissāya uppannanimittampi assāsapassāsāti nāmaṃ labhati. Upaṭṭhānaṃ satīti taṃ ārammaṇaṃ upecca tiṭṭhatīti sati upaṭṭhānaṃ nāma.

'Sati upaṭṭhāna' means that 'sati', having approached, stays on that object-support (ārammaṇa) (i.e. the representation (nimitta) which has arisen due to natural in-and-out-breath).

Patisambhidamagga-Atthakatha 2.509

I have already given you this quote. If you don't understand it, please do ask questions, otherwise there's not much I can do.
Buddha's teaching is a non-trivial science, with some complicated notions.
Considering no one on here is a linguistics expert (and from the sight of some interpretations, not very skilled in reading comprehension [at least in english]), we shouldn't be making such outlandish statements saying certain people are right and others are wrong.


I agree that, since this forum is dedicated to Pali language, the claims should be substantiated by Pali glosses, and there should be no outlandish statements. And the posts should be read carefully.

As Mike wrote, "this area is intended to be for technical discussion of Pali, not discussion of meditative experience."
So by using 'remembering' we are just using the closest meaning we have in english. He has said it doesn't give the word justice or it's truest meaning.
Surely 'remembering' (instead of 'remembrance') does not fit well, for example, in:

Atthi kāyo'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

"Or his remembrance that 'There is a body' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.

Atthi vedanā ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya paṭissatimattāya.

Or his remembrance that 'There are feelings' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.

Atthi cittanti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

Or his remembrance that 'There is a mind' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.

Atthi dhammā'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti. Yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

Or his remembrance that 'There are mental qualities' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind."

Maha-satipatthana sutta, DN 22

Seyyathāpi bhikkhave gimhānaṃ pacchime māse sabbasassesu gāmantasambhatesu gopālako gāvo rakkheyya. Tassa rukkhamūlagatassa vā abbhokāsagatassa vā satikaraṇīyameva hoti: etaṃ gāvoti. Evameva kho bhikkhave satikaraṇīyameva ahosi: ete dhammāti.

"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply maintains remembrance of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply maintained remembrance of 'those mental qualities.'

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html
danieLion
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by danieLion »

Hi Dmytro,

Does sati have a verb form? An adjective form?
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Assaji
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by Assaji »

Hi Daniel,
danieLion wrote:Does sati have a verb form?
Sarati - http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philol ... :3849.pali
danieLion wrote:An adjective form?
Satimant - http://dsal.uchicago.edu/cgi-bin/philol ... :2995.pali

There's a verse in Suttanipata with an example of application in practice:

‘‘Athāparaṃ pañca rajāni loke, yesaṃ satīmā vinayāya sikkhe;
Rūpesu saddesu atho rasesu, gandhesu phassesu sahetha rāgaṃ.

And then there are in the world the five kinds of dust for whose dispelling, mindful he should train: with regard to forms, sounds, tastes, smells, & tactile sensations he should conquer passion.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html

Mahaniddesa explains satimā here as 'endowed with sati'.

Satīmāti yā sati anussati paṭissati sati saraṇatā dhāraṇatā apilāpanatā asammussanatā satindriyaṃ satibalaṃ sammāsati satisambojjhaṅgo ekāyanamaggo – ayaṃ vuccati sati. Imāya satiyā upeto samupeto upagato samupagato upapanno samupapanno samannāgato. So vuccati satimā.
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badscooter
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by badscooter »

Dmytro wrote:Hi Billymac,
I don't think anyone disputes that the definition of sati is "to remember" or "remembering".
I would dispute it. First, sati isn't a verb. Second, in the definition, sati means 'remembrance', in the sense of 'bearing in mind' and 'ability to remember'.

Katamañca, bhikkhave, satindriyaṃ? Idha, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako satimā hoti paramena satinepakkena samannāgato, cirakatampi cirabhāsitampi saritā anussaritā.

"And what is the faculty of remembrance? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is endowed with memory, highly meticulous, remembering & able to call to mind even things that were done & said long ago."

Indriya-Vibhanga sutta, (SN V 197-8 )

Definition of REMEMBRANCE
1 : the state of bearing in mind
2 a : the ability to remember

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/remembrance
Yes "remember", "remembering", "remembrance" all have the same root word 'mem' which comes from the word meminisse which means to remember. It is also present in words like memory, memorandum, memento, etc..
Remember:
1: to bring to mind or think of again
2 archaic
a : bethink; b : remind
3a : to keep in mind for attention or consideration
b : reward
4: to retain in the memory
5: to convey greetings from
6: record, commemorate

intransitive verb
1: to exercise or have the power of memory
2: to have a recollection or remembrance
— re·mem·ber·abil·i·ty noun
— re·mem·ber·able adjective
— re·mem·ber·er noun
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/remember

With many synonyms to replace and interchange words with.
"And what is the faculty of remembering? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is endowed with memory, highly meticulous, remembering & able to call to mind even things that were done & said long ago."
or
"And what is the faculty of awareness? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is endowed with memory, highly meticulous, aware & able to call to mind even things that were done & said long ago."
or
"And what is the faculty of recollection? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is endowed with memory, highly meticulous, recollecting & able to call to mind even things that were done & said long ago."
see? Just because you put a word you like to use in the sutta does not mean that is the only way one can say it. I could go on and on with synonyms and be perfectly acceptable.
"whatever one frequently thinks and ponders upon will be the inclination of one's mind"
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badscooter
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by badscooter »

Dmytro wrote:Hi Billymac,
Billymac29 wrote:How would the definition of "remembrance" fit into the beginning of ananapanasati?
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu araññagato vā rukkhamūlagato vā suññāgāragato vā nisīdati pallaṅkaṃ ābhujitvā, ujuṃ kāyaṃ paṇidhāya, parimukhaṃ satiṃ upaṭṭhapetvā
Here a monk, having gone into the forest, or to the foot of a tree, or to an empty room, sits down cross-legged, keeps his body upright and setting mindfulness to the fore...

saying "..setting 'remembrance' to the fore.." makes no sense in english!!


"Setting mindfulness to the fore" doesn't make much sense as well.
sure it does! :) having your awareness of the present moment as priority. Bringing yourself to the present situation.
However, when we take into account the original meaning of 'parimukham', the commentarial explanation makes perfect sense:
As discussed elsewhere, parimukhaṃ is located in areas of the suttas without any mentioning of the breath or breathing so to interpret the use as not 'in front of the mouth or nose' (anatomical) is a valid one. However, if one chooses to use the commentarial view that is perfectly fine but it still needs rephrasing because "setting 'remembrance' to the front of the mouth or nose..." still does not make sense in english.
Dmytro wrote:
Considering no one on here is a linguistics expert (and from the sight of some interpretations, not very skilled in reading comprehension [at least in english]), we shouldn't be making such outlandish statements saying certain people are right and others are wrong.
I agree that, since this forum is dedicated to Pali language, the claims should be substantiated by Pali glosses, and there should be no outlandish statements. And the posts should be read carefully.

As Mike wrote, "this area is intended to be for technical discussion of Pali, not discussion of meditative experience."
I agree with the Pali glosses, however, since this is being interpreted in english I think rules of the english language should be adhered to. That includes the use of synonyms, and contextual understanding.

Also, if one is going to give a true definition of the term then I believe one has to take into account the way the term is used in all contexts, forms, and understandings...... including meditation practices.
Dmytro wrote:Surely 'remembering' (instead of 'remembrance') does not fit well, for example, in:

Atthi kāyo'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

"Or his remembrance that 'There is a body' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.

Atthi vedanā ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya paṭissatimattāya.

Or his remembrance that 'There are feelings' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.

Atthi cittanti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

Or his remembrance that 'There is a mind' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.

Atthi dhammā'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti. Yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

Or his remembrance that 'There are mental qualities' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind."

Maha-satipatthana sutta, DN 22

Seyyathāpi bhikkhave gimhānaṃ pacchime māse sabbasassesu gāmantasambhatesu gopālako gāvo rakkheyya. Tassa rukkhamūlagatassa vā abbhokāsagatassa vā satikaraṇīyameva hoti: etaṃ gāvoti. Evameva kho bhikkhave satikaraṇīyameva ahosi: ete dhammāti.

"Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply maintains remembrance of 'those cows.' In the same way, I simply maintained remembrance of 'those mental qualities.'
Sure it does... :)
Atthi kāyo'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

"Or remembering that 'There is a body' is established to the extent of bare knowledge & continuous remembering.
or
Atthi kāyo'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

"Or his awareness that 'There is a body' is established to the extent of bare knowledge & continuous awareness.
or
Atthi kāyo'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

"Or recollecting that 'There is a body' is established to the extent of bare knowledge & continuous recollection.
or
Atthi kāyo'ti vā panassa sati paccupaṭṭhitā hoti, yāvadeva ñāṇamattāya patissatimattāya.

"Or his remembrance that 'There is a body' is established to the extent of knowledge & bearing in mind.
these all adhere to the english rules of comprehension.

One is allowed to replace words in context and keep meaning or matter.
Last edited by DNS on Sun Mar 31, 2013 4:19 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: personal attack removed.
"whatever one frequently thinks and ponders upon will be the inclination of one's mind"
danieLion
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by danieLion »

In MN 105 the Buddha "defines" mindfulness/sati as a probing knife with no mention of it's recollective function.

What say you to this, Dmytro?
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by Polar Bear »

"He is mindful, able to remember & recollect what was done & said a long time ago.
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html
http://www.dharmasalon.net/Writings/Min ... wisdom.pdf

http://www.dharmasalon.net/Audio/BMIMC% ... ulness.MP3

Remembrance really is a good translation for sati. In meditation, sati is remembering to stay aware/alert (sampajanna) of an aspect of experience in the present, e.g. remembering to stay aware of breathing as it is occurring in your experience.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/auth ... endas.html

John Peacock thinks "recollection of the present moment" is probably the best translation for sati and it is pretty good although sati does sometimes have to do with recollecting/remembering the past as shown above.
"I don't envision a single thing that, when developed & cultivated, leads to such great benefit as the mind. The mind, when developed & cultivated, leads to great benefit."

"I don't envision a single thing that, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about such suffering & stress as the mind. The mind, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about suffering & stress."
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by Polar Bear »

danieLion wrote:In MN 105 the Buddha "defines" mindfulness/sati as a probing knife with no mention of it's recollective function.

What say you to this, Dmytro?
Actually, it's just called a probe not a knife.
The surgeon would cut around the opening of the wound with a knife and then would probe for the arrow with a probe.

"I have given this simile to convey a meaning. The meaning is this: the wound stands for the six internal sense media; the poison, for ignorance; the arrow, for craving; the probe, for mindfulness; the knife, for noble discernment; the surgeon, for the Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html
In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison. Of course, I suppose in this case sati may also be covering not just remembrance but also sampajanna whereas in more detailed descriptions the Buddha separates the two.

:namaste:
"I don't envision a single thing that, when developed & cultivated, leads to such great benefit as the mind. The mind, when developed & cultivated, leads to great benefit."

"I don't envision a single thing that, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about such suffering & stress as the mind. The mind, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about suffering & stress."
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by tiltbillings »

polarbuddha101 wrote: In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison.
Which would keep one's practice solely in the realm of conceptual thinking.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by badscooter »

polarbuddha101 wrote:
danieLion wrote:In MN 105 the Buddha "defines" mindfulness/sati as a probing knife with no mention of it's recollective function.

What say you to this, Dmytro?
Actually, it's just called a probe not a knife.
The surgeon would cut around the opening of the wound with a knife and then would probe for the arrow with a probe.

"I have given this simile to convey a meaning. The meaning is this: the wound stands for the six internal sense media; the poison, for ignorance; the arrow, for craving; the probe, for mindfulness; the knife, for noble discernment; the surgeon, for the Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened.

http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka ... .than.html
In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison. Of course, I suppose in this case sati may also be covering not just remembrance but also sampajanna whereas in more detailed descriptions the Buddha separates the two.

:namaste:
In this case it says mindfulness is the probe.... Which means mindfulness, sati, is the tool used for investigation.
"whatever one frequently thinks and ponders upon will be the inclination of one's mind"
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by Polar Bear »

tiltbillings wrote:
polarbuddha101 wrote: In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison.
Which would keep one's practice solely in the realm of conceptual thinking.
That doesn't follow. This isn't the whole of the practice.
"I don't envision a single thing that, when developed & cultivated, leads to such great benefit as the mind. The mind, when developed & cultivated, leads to great benefit."

"I don't envision a single thing that, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about such suffering & stress as the mind. The mind, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about suffering & stress."
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by tiltbillings »

polarbuddha101 wrote:
tiltbillings wrote:
polarbuddha101 wrote: In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison.
Which would keep one's practice solely in the realm of conceptual thinking.
That doesn't follow. This isn't the whole of the practice.
It does follow from the small bit that you said, and, of course, it is not the whole of the practice.
>> Do you see a man wise [enlightened/ariya] in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.<< -- Proverbs 26:12

This being is bound to samsara, kamma is his means for going beyond. -- SN I, 38.

“Of course it is happening inside your head, Harry, but why on earth should that mean that it is not real?” HPatDH p.723
danieLion
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by danieLion »

Hey, you're not Dmytro! ;)
polarbuddha101 wrote:
danieLion wrote:In MN 105 the Buddha "defines" mindfulness/sati as a probing knife with no mention of it's recollective function.

What say you to this, Dmytro?
Actually, it's just called a probe not a knife....
:oops:
polarbuddha101 wrote:In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison. Of course, I suppose in this case sati may also be covering not just remembrance but also sampajanna whereas in more detailed descriptions the Buddha separates the two.

:namaste:
There's no mention of remembering. Where did you get that from? In fact, the text makes it clear that the probing is for current craving, not remembered craving.
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by danieLion »

polarbuddha101 wrote:
tiltbillings wrote:
polarbuddha101 wrote: In this case, sati would be remembering to see craving as an arrow, ignorance as a poison and then remembering to use discernment and the dhamma to remove the arrow and the poison.
Which would keep one's practice solely in the realm of conceptual thinking.
That doesn't follow. This isn't the whole of the practice.
This topic is not about the whole of the practice. It's about sati.
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Re: Pali Term: Sati

Post by Polar Bear »

danieLion wrote: There's no mention of remembering. Where did you get that from? In fact, the text makes it clear that the probing is for current craving, not remembered craving.
Right, but you have to remember that what you're trying to do is look for current craving. If you forget that you're probing for craving then you'll stop probing for it. In other words, you have to keep in mind that you're trying to look for and then abandon craving and follow the eightfold path.
"I don't envision a single thing that, when developed & cultivated, leads to such great benefit as the mind. The mind, when developed & cultivated, leads to great benefit."

"I don't envision a single thing that, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about such suffering & stress as the mind. The mind, when undeveloped & uncultivated, brings about suffering & stress."
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