According to the principle of Pratītyasamutpāda (Dependent Origination), consciousness gives rise to the six senses. It is specifically emphasized that these are six senses, not fewer, such as three or two. This teaching is central to Buddhist philosophy, which asserts that the six senses (sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mind) are essential for experiencing the world and forming the basis of perception and cognition.
In the Buddhist tradition, plants are not considered to possess consciousness. However, other Indian traditions, such as Hinduism and Jainism, hold different views. For instance, Jainism teaches that there are beings with varying numbers of sense organs, ranging from one to five. According to Jain philosophy, some organisms have only one sense organ (touch), while others, like worms, may have fewer than five senses but still possess the ability to detect vibrations or light through their skin.
This raises the question: Why does Pratītyasamutpāda specifically refer to six sense organs rather than simply “sense organs”?
Hi Mrunal
The correct spelling is paticcasamuppada.
The reason there are only six senses is that is the exact way things are. It is the nature of the world.
However, I think we are in trouble with AI coming to the masses.
@Mrunal_Mhatre1 Besides using line by line translations of pāḷi (and try to check them too), please don’t use ai to ask general questions about Buddhism.
The ordinary experience of human beings (and most beings in the universe) can be classified into six sensory modalities. This understanding is sufficient for the practice that leads to liberation.
However, in a more elaborate way, aside from the mind, the more refined sensory modalities (vision, hearing, smell, and taste) are all derived from the body. Therefore, any sensory modality that does not fit into these four more refined bases can be understood as derived from the body-door, which is responsible for touch.
Examples of this in humans, according to contemporary science, would be the senses of proprioception and balance. Additionally, some animals have other sensory abilities, such as detecting electric fields (e.g., certain sharks) and sensing the Earth’s magnetic field (e.g., some birds)—things that were not particularly relevant to mention during the Buddha’s time.
Instead of describing these as entirely new senses outside the six-sense-base framework, it is possible to interpret them as refinements of the body-door, thereby maintaining the six-base sensory scheme.
The 6 senses are very core to Buddhist studies and practice. I have memorized and recited 21,000 syllables of 6 sense door suttas as part of my independence training. Although it was short-cut method due to the repetitions for each sense, I did find a lot of wisdom in it. There is a whole section in the samyutta nikaya. Saṃyutta Nikāya
Saḷāyatana Vagga
Saḷāyatana Saṃyutta
When you study this, you will see that the 4 elements are also involved, and then also the 28 material types. You can expand this to nāma and rūpa and the 5 khandas. You can take it to be anicca, dukkha, anatta. It can be expanded to the four noble truths. Without the 6 senses, there is no object to be taken, there is no contact, there is no consciousness. This is very important to know in Classical Theravāda. It is this saṃyutta that actually has a strong interconnection with the Abhidhamma. It is a bridge.
MN148 Chachakkasutta (Six by Six) is a highly detailed discourse on the six sense bases, examined from six different aspects. A careful analysis of this teaching can be profoundly liberating.
(…)
“Mendicants, I shall teach you the Dhamma that’s good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end, meaningful and well-phrased. And I shall reveal a spiritual practice that’s entirely full and pure, namely, the six sets of six. Listen and apply your mind well, I will speak.”
“Yes, sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this:
The six interior sense fields should be understood.
The six exterior sense fields should be understood.
The six classes of consciousness should be understood.
The six classes of contact should be understood.
The six classes of feeling should be understood.
The six classes of craving should be understood."
(…)