The Tree of Enlightenment

CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
e orm and ormless pheres
I n Chapter 33 I introduced several schemes for classifying consciousness
that may be difficult to grasp, particularly for newcomers
to Abhidharmic studies. Hence there are two additional
points I would like to make as we proceed with our discussion.
First, to acquire understanding, one needs to cultivate
(1) study, (2) consideration, and (3) meditation. It is not enough
just to hear or read about the classifications of consciousness: one
needs to consider exactly how they function, exactly what their
meaning is. From my own experience, these schemes of classification
will not begin to make sense until one spends some time
running them back and forth in one’s mind. Finally, after study
and consideration, one can use them in one’s meditation.
Second, to understand these classifications, it helps to consider
a more concrete and accessible model. Suppose you want to
know how many people are likely to watch daytime television in
Singapore. You might classify the population into employed and
unemployed; again, you might divide the unemployed group into
English-speaking and Chinese-speaking, so you know how many
are likely to watch English programs compared to Chinese ones.
You might divide the population into male and female, or into
school-going and non-school-going, and the school-going group
into those who attend English schools and those who attend
Chinese schools. Given a certain group of factors – in this case,
the individual people who make up a population – there are many
ways to classify them depending on what you want to find out.
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