Summary: The nayamukhamātikā is the third matrix in the Dhātukathā. It provides a set of terms that function as "doors" or gateways for applying the fourteen methods of relational analysis. (Dhk 1.3)
Canonical locus
The Dhātukathā introduces this matrix after the subject list of the internal matrix, providing the specific angles from which the methods can be applied. (Dhk 1.3)
Dhk 1.3 (dt1.3:1.1)
Tīhi saṅgaho, tīhi asaṅgaho, catūhi sampayogo, catūhi vippayogo.
>
"Inclusion by three [categories], non-inclusion by three, association by four, dissociation by four."
Analysis
The nayamukhamātikā organizes the "entry points" for the relational logic of the text. While the abbhantaramātikā lists what is being analyzed, the nayamukhamātikā refines how the methods are initially engaged. (Dhk 1.3)
This matrix ensures that the analysis is not just a flat list but a multi-dimensional testing of how terms relate to one another through the specific logical gateways defined by the Abhidhamma tradition. (Dhk 1.3)
Textual notes
- The word mukha (door/mouth/face) implies that these terms are the ways in which the methods "face" the subject matter.
- It represents the intermediate layer of organization between the raw data and the high-level methods.