Summary: The Saṅkhārayamaka is the sixth book of the Yamaka. It applies the paired-question method to the three types of formations (saṅkhāra): bodily formations (kāyasaṅkhāra), verbal formations (vacīsaṅkhāra), and mental formations (cittasaṅkhāra). By testing these categories against one another, it clarifies the exact boundaries of what constitutes a "formation" in the Abhidhamma system (Yam 6).
Canonical locus
The Saṅkhārayamaka follows the book of truths, focusing on the dynamic aspect of conditioned existence. It opens by testing the relationship between the general term "body" and the specific technical term "bodily formation." (Yam 6)
Yam 6.1 (ya6.1.1:3.1)
Kāyo kāyasaṅkhāro?
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"Is the body [always] a bodily formation?"
Analysis: Formations vs. Their Bases
The Yamaka's core method is not to assert tautologies, but to test whether related categories are perfectly identical. For formations, it analyzes the precise definitions of the three types: (Yam 6)
- Bodily formation: The in-and-out breaths.
- Verbal formation: Thought-conception (vitakka) and discursive thinking (vicāra).
- Mental formation: Perception (saññā) and feeling (vedanā).
By asking questions like "Is the body bodily-formation?", the text demonstrates that the physical body (kāya) is distinct from the kāyasaṅkhāra (the breathing process that conditions the body). The bidirectional logic ensures that students do not confuse the basis of an action with the formative process itself. (Yam 6)
Textual notes
- This book is essential for understanding the Abhidhamma's view on meditation and the cessation of formations (e.g., in nirodha-samāpatti).
- It highlights the specific roles of factors like vitakka and vicāra as the "pre-requisites" for speech.