Page 15 - Because I know, I can let go

Chapter 1

The Five Aggregates

At present, because the aggregates aren’t well enough known there’s

no real understanding of Buddhism, so take an interest and get to
know them. In Buddhism the five aggregates are an important
matter, but nobody much sees them in that way, it’s not considered
necessary to really understand them and just knowing them by

name is considered to be enough, consequently there’s no real
understanding of Buddhism, the essence of which is that those five
aggregates are anattā, are ‘not-self.’

But if the aggregates aren’t well enough understood then how can it
ever be known that they’re anattā? It can’t be known, which means
that anattā won’t be properly understood either, and when there’s no
proper understanding of anattā then there’s no way that Buddhism

- which teaches the anattā that other systems don’t - can be rightly
comprehended.

So, the five aggregates are anattā. Remember this, it’s at the heart

of Buddhism, be it Theravada, Mahayana, or Zen Buddhism. The
Mahayana forms of the religion, although they have many elements,
don’t leave out this teaching: take a look at the important Mahayana
suttas, they’ll range over anything, like the heavens and such, but in

the end will come down to the five aggregates being anattā. Even
Zen, which is the most adventurous of the various forms of Buddhism,
contains texts which deal with this matter.

Remember, the five aggregates are anattā, this is the essence, the
heart of Buddhism, and is something we ought to be interested in.

...I can let go 15