The Buddhist analogy of the Mental formations as a "Plantain tree"

The Buddhist analogy of Mental formations as a "Plantain tree" is meant to convey that just as the plantain tree appears solid and substantial on the outside, but upon closer inspection reveals itself to be hollow and devoid of any true heartwood, the Buddhist teachings point to the ultimate insubstantiality of all mental formations.

Our subjective experience is made up of a constant flux of thoughts, emotions, sensations, and perceptions - the ever-changing "volitional formations" (saṃkhārā) that arise and pass away moment by moment. These mental phenomena may seem like stable, enduring entities, but the Buddhist view is that they are fundamentally empty, lacking any permanent essence or abiding self.

On one occasion, Buddha was dwelling in Ayojja, on the banks of the Ganges River. There, he addressed the community of bhikkus (monks), saying:

Suppose, bhikkhus, that a man needing heartwood, seeking heartwood, wandering in search of heartwood, would take a sharp axe and enter a forest. There he would see the trunk of a large plantain tree, straight, fresh, without a fruit-bud core. He would cut it down at the root, cut off the crown, and unroll the coil. As he unrolls the coil, he would not find even softwood, let alone heartwood.

A man with good sight would inspect it, ponder it, and carefully investigate it, and it would appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in the trunk of a plantain tree?

So too, bhikkhus, whatever kind of volitional formations there are, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near: a bhikkhu inspects them, ponders them, and carefully investigates them. As he investigates them, they appear to him to be void, hollow, insubstantial. For what substance could there be in volitional formations?

Just as the plantain tree appears solid and substantial on the outside, but upon closer inspection reveals itself to be hollow and devoid of any true heartwood, the Buddhist teachings point to the ultimate insubstantiality of all phenomena, including the sense of self.

The key parallel drawn is between the plantain tree and "volitional formations" (saṃkhārā in Pali) - the constantly changing mental and physical processes that make up our subjective experience. Just as the plantain tree lacks any enduring essence, the Buddhist view is that all the thoughts, feelings, perceptions, and bodily sensations that arise and pass away within us are also fundamentally empty of any permanent self or substance.

When the meditating Buddhist "inspects, ponders, and carefully investigates" these ephemeral mental formations, their inherent void-like nature becomes apparent. There is no stable, independent "self" to be found within the flux of experience - only a stream of conditional, interdependent phenomena.

This insight into the emptiness (śūnyatā) of all conditioned things is a profound realization that shatters our normal, dualistic way of perceiving the world. We typically cling to the idea of a fixed, autonomous self, but the Buddha's teaching reveals this to be a mental fabrication, a convenient fiction that obscures the true nature of reality.

Recognizing the lack of any abiding essence in the ever-changing "trunk" of our subjective experience is the gateway to a radically different way of being. It undermines our usual patterns of grasping and aversion, freeing us from the suffering that arises from our identification with a solidified sense of self.

Just as the plantain tree is revealed to be hollow and devoid of any enduring substance, so too are all the mental formations that we so desperately cling to in an attempt to construct a lasting identity. This liberating understanding lies at the heart of the Buddhist path to enlightenment.

The analogy of the Plantain tree is very closely tied to the Buddhist concept of impermanence (anicca) and non-self. Let's explore how the Plantain tree illustrates this fundamental Buddhist teaching:

Apparent Solidity vs. Underlying Hollowness:

The analogy of the plantain tree beautifully illustrates the Buddhist concepts of impermanence (anicca) and non-self (anatta) at the heart of the teachings on mental formations (sankharas). Impermanence:

Just as the plantain tree appears solid and substantial on the outside, but is revealed to be hollow and lacking any enduring core when cut open, the mental formations that make up our subjective experience are also inherently impermanent.

Thoughts, emotions, sensations, and perceptions arise and pass away moment by moment, with nothing permanent or unchanging at the center. This constant flux and change is the essential nature of all conditioned phenomena, including the sense of self.

The plantain tree analogy makes this impermanence visceral and palpable. Like the tree, our experience of consciousness has the appearance of solidity and continuity, but upon closer examination, it is exposed as a transient, ever-changing process, devoid of any fixed, abiding essence.

Non-self (anatta):

The concept of non-self, or the absence of an autonomous, permanent "self", is also beautifully conveyed through the plantain tree analogy.

Just as the trunk of the plantain tree is revealed to be hollow, lacking any true, essential core, the sense of self that we so strongly cling to is also seen to be an illusion, a convenient fiction with no underlying substance.

When we look deeply into the contents of our own mind through meditation and introspection, we discover that there is no separate, independent "self" to be found - only a constantly changing stream of physical and mental phenomena that we habitually identify with.

The plantain tree analogy makes this insight into the groundlessness of the self viscerally apparent. Like the tree, our usual perception of a solid, permanent self is exposed as a mere appearance, a construction of the mind with no firm foundation in reality.

By recognizing the profound truth of impermanence and non-self, as illustrated by the plantain tree, we can begin to let go of our attachment to the idea of a fixed, autonomous ego. This liberating insight undermines the root cause of suffering, freeing us from the endless cycle of grasping and aversion that arises from our identification with the ever-changing flow of mental formations.

In this way, the powerful analogy of the plantain tree serves as a potent teaching tool, illuminating the essential Buddhist understanding of the nature of consciousness and the self. It points the way towards the direct realization of the true emptiness (sunyata) at the heart of all phenomena.

How Modern Science validates the " Mental formations is like a Plantain tree" analogue

From a Buddhist perspective, the Plantain tree analogy powerfully illustrates the core Buddhist teaching of insubstantiality, and lack of fixed essence at the heart of all phenomena, including our own moment-to-moment experiences of perception and cognition.

the Buddhist understanding of the nature of mental formations (sankhara) can be illuminated quite well by drawing parallels with modern scientific insights. Here are a few examples:

To explore the Buddhist concept of mental formations (saṃkhārā) through a modern scientific lens, let's see how we can draw some parallels:

From a neuroscientific perspective, we can view mental formations as the constantly fluctuating patterns of neural activity in the brain. Just as the plantain tree appears solid on the outside but is revealed to be hollow, our sense of self emerges from the dynamic, interconnected firing of billions of neurons - a process that is ultimately empty of any fixed, enduring essence.

Recent research on the brain's "default mode network" has shown how our experience of a coherent self is an illusion created by the brain's tendency to generate a narrative from the scattered fragments of sensory information and neural activity. There is no homunculus or little person inside the head directing the show, only the brain's remarkable capacity to construct a seemingly unified consciousness out of disparate parts.

Similarly, the Buddhist teaching of anattā (non-self) points to the lack of any permanent, independent self at the heart of our experience. Just as a car is made up of many interdependent parts that give rise to the function of the vehicle, the "self" is understood to be a convenient label we apply to the ever-changing collection of physical and mental processes that make up our lived experience.

From a quantum physics perspective, we can also draw parallels to the Buddhist view of the fundamental emptiness (śūnyatā) of all phenomena. At the most fundamental level of reality, subatomic particles are understood to be not solid, discrete entities, but rather complex patterns of energy and probability. The apparent solidity of the material world dissolves into a web of interconnected, constantly fluctuating fields.

This scientific understanding of reality as a dynamic, interdependent process rather than a collection of fixed, substantial things echoes the Buddhist perspective on the nature of mental formations. Just as a tornado is not a thing but a pattern of swirling air, our sense of self is not a permanent, eternal essence but a temporary confluence of physical and mental processes.

By contemplating these scientific insights alongside the Buddhist teachings, we can begin to glimpse the profound truth that there is no abiding substance to be found in the ever-changing flow of our experience. This realization can free us from the suffering caused by our attachment to the illusion of a solid, autonomous self, and open us to a deeper understanding of the true nature of reality..