The seven underlying tendencies - 1) sensual desire, 2) aversion, 3) wrong view, 4) doubt, 5) conceit, 6) attachment to existence, and 7) ignorance - are described in brief. The four establishments of mindfulness should be cultivated for directly knowing, full understanding, complete exhaustion, and giving up of these tendencies.
“Sattime, bhikkhave, anusayā. Katame satta? Kāmarāgānusayo, paṭighānusayo, diṭṭhānusayo, vicikicchānusayo, mānānusayo, bhavarāgānusayo, avijjānusayo— ime kho, bhikkhave, sattānusayā.
“Bhikkhus, there are these seven underlying tendencies. What seven?
Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, sattannaṁ anusayānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya …pe… cattāro satipaṭṭhānā bhāvetabbo”ti.
1.) The underlying tendency toward |sensual desire::passion or lust for sensual pleasures [kāmarāga]|,
2.) the underlying tendency toward |aversion::mental resistance, irritation, conflict [paṭigha]|,
3.) the |underlying tendency toward views::inherent inclination towards opinions, underlying conceptual beliefs; lit. views sleeping alongside [diṭṭhānusaya]|,
4.) the underlying tendency toward |doubt::uncertainty, indecisiveness wrt suffering, its arising, its ending, and the way of practice leading to the end of suffering [vicikiccha]|,
5.) the underlying tendency toward |conceit::self-view expressed as comparison—seeing oneself as superior, inferior, or equal; the persistent “I am” conceit (asmimāna) that underlies identification and fuels rebirth [māna]|,
6.) the underlying tendency toward passion for |existence::continued conditional existence, the karmically conditioned mode of being that leads to future rebirth [bhava]|, and
7.) the underlying tendency toward |ignorance::fundamental unawareness or misunderstanding of the true nature of reality, not experientially understanding the four noble truths [avijjā]|.
These, bhikkhus, are the seven underlying tendencies.
Bhikkhus, for the |direct knowledge::experiential understanding [abhiññāya]|, |full understanding::complete comprehension [pariññāya]|, |complete exhaustion::gradual and complete wearing away [parikkhaya]|, and for |giving up::letting go, abandoning [pahāna]| of these seven underlying tendencies, the four establishments of mindfulness |should be cultivated::should be developed [bhāvetabba]|.”
“Bhikkhus, there are these seven underlying tendencies. What seven?
1.) The underlying tendency toward |sensual desire::passion or lust for sensual pleasures [kāmarāga]|,
2.) the underlying tendency toward |aversion::mental resistance, irritation, conflict [paṭigha]|,
3.) the |underlying tendency toward views::inherent inclination towards opinions, underlying conceptual beliefs; lit. views sleeping alongside [diṭṭhānusaya]|,
4.) the underlying tendency toward |doubt::uncertainty, indecisiveness wrt suffering, its arising, its ending, and the way of practice leading to the end of suffering [vicikiccha]|,
5.) the underlying tendency toward |conceit::self-view expressed as comparison—seeing oneself as superior, inferior, or equal; the persistent “I am” conceit (asmimāna) that underlies identification and fuels rebirth [māna]|,
6.) the underlying tendency toward passion for |existence::continued conditional existence, the karmically conditioned mode of being that leads to future rebirth [bhava]|, and
7.) the underlying tendency toward |ignorance::fundamental unawareness or misunderstanding of the true nature of reality, not experientially understanding the four noble truths [avijjā]|.
These, bhikkhus, are the seven underlying tendencies.
Bhikkhus, for the |direct knowledge::experiential understanding [abhiññāya]|, |full understanding::complete comprehension [pariññāya]|, |complete exhaustion::gradual and complete wearing away [parikkhaya]|, and for |giving up::letting go, abandoning [pahāna]| of these seven underlying tendencies, the four establishments of mindfulness |should be cultivated::should be developed [bhāvetabba]|.”
“Sattime, bhikkhave, anusayā. Katame satta? Kāmarāgānusayo, paṭighānusayo, diṭṭhānusayo, vicikicchānusayo, mānānusayo, bhavarāgānusayo, avijjānusayo— ime kho, bhikkhave, sattānusayā.
Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, sattannaṁ anusayānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya …pe… cattāro satipaṭṭhānā bhāvetabbo”ti.