Feeling (Buddhism)

The objects of feeling are pleasure, pain and neutrality; it is the individual experiencing of the fruit of virtuous and non-virtuous actions. Thus all pleasures arise from virtuous acts, all pains from non-virtuous acts. All three (pleasure, pain, neutrality) may be experienced physically or mentally, the former accompanying any of the five sense-consciousnesses and the latter accompanying mental consciousness. Again, feeling may be the base of attachment to the Desire Realm or deliverance from the Desire Realm; or materialistic (toward physical or mental aggregates) or non-materialistic (accompanying wisdom consciousness cognizing selflessness).

One of the five omnipresent mental factors defined in Tibetan Buddhism. Also the seventh of 12 links – nidana – perpetuating the cycle of birth and death as delineated in the Buddhist causally continuous doctrine of being.