Hi Lars,
LS> I just saw how Michael Olds (www.buddhadust.org) takes vi~n~nana as
LS> "double-knowing-knowing" so he takes it as vi + j~naa + ~naa (or j~naa).
LS> Would you think this to be possible?
It's a good joke.
Actually vi~n~nana is quite similar to Russian soznanie
(consciousness). The Pali root 'jna' corresponds to 'zna'.
The translation as 'consciousness' is consistent with the suttas
recently mentioned.
> There is also another definition in the Samyutta Nikaya (S XXII.79):
> "And why do you call it 'consciousness'? Because it cognizes, thus it is
> called consciousness. What does it cognize? It cognizes what is sour,
> bitter, pungent, sweet, alkaline, non-alkaline, salty, & unsalty. Because it
> cognizes, it is called consciousness."
How would you otherwise describe in a simple words a concept of
consciousness?
Dimitry