Right Thought Sammā Saṅkappa

Right Thought (Sammā Saṅkappa) is the second training aggregate of the Noble Eight Fold Path. It is conditioned and moulded by Right Understanding (Sammā Dițțhi)  of bipolar reality of  the conventional truth (sammuti sacca) and the ultimate Truth (paramattha Sacca). Right thought of the conventional truth pertains to the knowledge of kamma (cause) and Vipāka (effect). The knowledge of Kamma-vipkāka is the knowledge of the moral law of reciprocity or accountability – one reaps what one has sown.

With this Right Thought, a practising Buddhist  adheres to the Five Precepts (Pañcasīlas). The Precepts morally restrain one Buddhists  from committing the following five grave vices or offences : They are killings, thefts, sexual misconduct, untruthfulness and self-intoxications. This is merely mundane  Right Thought as the carnal self or false self is directed and empowered by self-centric ego. Self-centric ego is illusively imposed by mental conceptualizations and obsessions rooted in false thought which is the negation of Right Thought (Sammā Saṅkappa). False thought is rooted in wrong view of substantial ontology. Wrong substantial view is  resulted from Ignorance (Avijjā) of ultimate Reality of dynamic process becoming (santāna bhava) of  all empirical phenomena. Every empirical phenomenon is empty of self, ego, intrinsic nature or permanent substance. In other words, no phenomenon exists as an independent or separate entity. Self-identity or other identity through defining or designated sign, mark or characteristic is just mere appearance mentally fabricated by human intellectual conceptualization. Intellectual conceptualization is mere mental construct (papañca) or false imagination of the unreal and illusive.

Supramindane Right Thought is born from the complete annihilation of the self-centric ego. The complete annihilation of self-centric ego is generated from consummate execution of the four foundations of mindfulness (cattāri satipațțhāna)   and clear awareness without grasping (upādāna) upon the five aggregates (pañcakkhandhā) as this is I; this is mine; this belongs to me. Grasping is either attachment or aversion directed by illusory self-centric ego. Satipațțhāna can only be consummated if and only if the ultimate Reality of Anattā (Insubstantiality; Selflessness; Egolessness) is intuitively discerned. Anattā reveals that every empirical phenomenon is conditioned from the  dynamic process becoming as a result of the unity of a main cause (hetu) and a set of contigent conditions (paccayas). Succinctly put, the dynamic process becoming is Process Thought  of the dependently co-arisen (pațiccasamuppanna) Unity of contigent cause and conditions .

‘Dynamic’ reflects Impermanence (Anicca); ‘Process becoming’ mirrors Insubstantiality (Anattā); ‘Unity of contigent cause and conditions’ connotes Dependent Co-arising (Pațiccasamuppāda). ‘Process Thought’ denotes ‘Devoid of discrete entities’.

Process Thought is Right Thought of ontology of Insubstantiality. Psychologically, Right Thought is the pure and infinite consciousness of a liberated person who may be an Arahant, Paccekabuddha, Bodhisattva or Buddha. Ethically, Right Thought is freedom from greed, hatred and delusion. Socially, Right Thought engenders non-discriminative and boundless lovingkindness (mettā), compassion (karuṇā) , appreciative joy (muditā) and equanimity (upekkhā) towards others .

 Neuro-spiritually  put, Right Thought is the utility of the right-brain function  of intuitive discernment of the true nature of the world (dhammatā) rather than employing the false thought of the left-brain function of intellectual or conceptual understanding of the phenomenal world. The phenomenal world  is merely an Appearance. Appearance is illusive and unreal. Reality can only be discerned through supramundane  Right Thought derived from intuitive discernment of Anattā  and Pațiccasamuppāda.

Neuro-spiritualists discover that the left-brain deals with intellectual reasoning or conceptualization and right brain deals with intuitive wisdom. All religions including Buddhism, of course,  pinpoints the false thought through the operation of the intellectual or conceptual left-brain function. Whoever perceives beings or things substantially and reifies them as discrete entities utilizes the intellectual or conceptual left-brain function. Left brain conceives  parts or multiplicity instead of unity due to false thought of mental fabrications rooted in substantial view of ontology. Thus. substantial conceptualizations are mental fabrications. Mental fabrications lead to mental obsessions and grasping upon any object perceived as a discrete entity separate from the perceiver dualistically. A discrete entity does not exist ultimately . Grasping, directed and empowered by self-centric ego, is the root of human vexation or anguish.

  Whoever perceives all phenomena as dynamic process becoming resulted from unity of contigent conditions shifts one’s left-brain function to the right brain circuitry. Neuro-scientists and neuro-spiritualists have convincingly corroborated that the complete silence of the chatter of the human mind is located in the right-brain circuitry. The complete silence or appeasement  of the human consciousness is Nibbāna located in the inner Heart of Man- the right brain. Nibbāna  is the product  Right Thought which is mental emancipation (vimutti). When Right Thought is consummated , the remaining six aggregates of the Noble Eight Fold Path are also manifested as Right Speech, Right Actions,Right Livelihood, Right Efforts, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration.

The word ‘Right’ connotes ‘Perfect’ or ‘Consummate’ because all actions performed and guided from supramundane Right Thought  are pure and therefore cankerless. Right Thought is purified by effacing the illusively superimposed self-centric ego through false thought rooted in ignorance or wrong view of ontology. Right Thought is the light which illuminates the entire Buddha Path of the Noble Eight Fold Path so that one is not  derailed from living the Truth of Dhamma.

 Dhamma is  Right Thought constructed upon supramundane Right Understanding of the Three Universal Characteristics (Tilakkhaṇas) of Impermanence (Anicca), Suffering (Dukkha) and Insubstantiality (Anattā)  and the Four Noble Truths  (Cattāri Ariya Saccāni). Right Thought is liberative Wisdom (Paññā). It enables the wise to think rightly, to do rightly and to speak rightly. Right Thought directed by Right View conditions right speech, right actions, right livelihood, right efforts, right mindfulness and right concentration. In other words, Right Thought led by Right View consummates the entire Buddhist Noble Eight Fold Path which is the complete or comprehensive Buddha Path. This Path  shepherds the Buddhists towards the  communal refuge in the inner Heart of Man – the pure and infinite consciousness of the Buddha-mind  of an Arahant, Pacceka-buddha or Bodhisattva – the Man perfected .