Saṅkappa rāgo purisassa kāmo. Gatha explanation & concepts in the vipassana practice

Textual Scholarship
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Dear kalyāṇa-mittatā!

We have published a translation of a Dhamma desana by Venerable Rakwane Gnanaseeha, the abbot of Chittaviveka Monastery in Sri Lanka, dedicated to the explanation of the gāthā: “Saṅkappa rāgo purisassa kāmo.”

This talk explores the nature of concepts from the perspective of the orthodox Theravāda tradition — with a strong emphasis on their practical implications.
It presents a unique Sri Lankan interpretation of vipassanā practice, and to the best of my knowledge, there are almost no materials on this topic in languages other than Sinhala (apart from Bhante’s book).

This teaching is especially relevant today, in times of global conflict. Bhante’s reflections on his homeland offer a deeply grounded perspective that helps us see the world — and our minds — more clearly.

May this Dhamma support you in the path to freedom from all suffering!

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Saṅkapparāga, what an interesting word!

The aṭṭhakathā say:

saṅkapparāgoti saṅkappavasena uppannarāgo.

that is “saṅkapparāgo is lust (-rāga) which arose (uppanna-) due to (-vasena) thought/intention (saṅkappa-)” or in short “thought-arisen lust” or “intention-arisen lust”.

Similarly the aṭṭhakathā also say:

saṅkapparāgoti saṅkappitarāgo.

i.e. “saṅkapparāgo means saṅkappitarāgo“ whereas the ṭīkā say:

saṅkappitarāgoti subhādivasena saṅkappitavatthumhi rāgo.

i.e. “saṅkappitarāgo is lust (rāgo) for the intended (saṅkappita) object (vatthu) due to (-vasena) beauty (subha)”

It’s important to note that the -ita part of saṅkappita indicates a past participle, i.e. an action which was performed, in this case ‘thought out’, ‘intended’.

It’s true that sometimes saṅkappa could be translated as ‘concept’, but that not the same as what paññatti means in Buddhism. In fact the ‘concepts’ the article talks about are the kind of concepts which can be said to be paññatti. The Abhidhammatthasaṅgaha defines 8 groups or types of concepts.

Digging deeper the ṭīkā also say:

nimittānubyañjanāni saṅkappeti etenāti saṅkappo, tathāpavatto lobho, tato balavā rañjanaṭṭhena rāgo, saṅkappanavaseneva pavatto tatopi balavataro saṅkapparāgoti.

This cool commentary snippet describes the progression:
saṅkappa 🡒 lobha 🡒 rāga 🡒 saṅkapparāga

The PEA (Pāḷi English Abhidhāna) defines (nimittānubyañjana - Pāḷi English Abhidhāna) nimittānubyañjanāni as having to do with signs and characteristics of men/women, their beautiful features which give rise to defilements.

So the ṭīkā basically say - when you start thinking of pleasant stuff that’s called ‘thinking’ (saṅkappa) which gives rise to greed (lobha), but when taking delight there is strong lust (rāga), but even stronger than that is the saṅkapparāga which arises only due to thought. Saṅkappana here suggests achieving something through deliberate thought.

So the intentionality, the deliberateness of the thinking is the key, the act of thinking is the key, because it’s deliberate.

The linguistic and commentary journey aside, one of the best known uses of saṅkappa of course is sammāsaṅkappa (most widely translated as “right resolve” or “right thought”). It just makes no sense translating it as “right concept”.

In summary, for me, saṅkapparāga means “intentioned lust” or “intention of lust” rather than “love for concepts”.

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