“Katamaṁ taṁ, sāti, viññāṇan”ti? “Yvāyaṁ, bhante, vado vedeyyo tatra tatra kalyāṇapāpakānaṁ kammānaṁ vipākaṁ paṭisaṁvedetī”ti. “Kassa nu kho nāma tvaṁ, moghapurisa, mayā evaṁ dhammaṁ desitaṁ ājānāsi? Nanu mayā, moghapurisa, anekapariyāyena paṭiccasamuppannaṁ viññāṇaṁ vuttaṁ, aññatra paccayā natthi viññāṇassa sambhavoti?  
“Sāti, what is that consciousness?” “Sir, he is the speaker, the knower who experiences the results of good and bad deeds in all the different realms.” “Silly man, who on earth have you ever known me to teach in that way? Haven’t I said in many ways that consciousness is dependently originated, since consciousness does not arise without a cause?

Katamañca, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ? Chayime, bhikkhave, viññāṇakāyā— cakkhuviññāṇaṁ, sotaviññāṇaṁ, ghānaviññāṇaṁ, jivhāviññāṇaṁ, kāyaviññāṇaṁ, manoviññāṇaṁ. Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ.  
And what is consciousness? There are these six classes of consciousness. Eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind consciousness. This is called consciousness.

katamañca, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ …? Katame ca, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā? Tayome, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā— kāyasaṅkhāro, vacīsaṅkhāro, cittasaṅkhāro.  
And what is consciousness? … And what are choices? There are three kinds of choices. Choices by way of body, speech, and mind.

Katamañca, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ? Chayime, bhikkhave, viññāṇakāyā— cakkhuviññāṇaṁ, sotaviññāṇaṁ, ghānaviññāṇaṁ, jivhāviññāṇaṁ, kāyaviññāṇaṁ, manoviññāṇaṁ. Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ.  
And what is consciousness? There are these six classes of consciousness: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind consciousness. This is called consciousness.

Katamañca, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ? Chayime, bhikkhave, viññāṇakāyā— cakkhuviññāṇaṁ, sotaviññāṇaṁ, ghānaviññāṇaṁ, jivhāviññāṇaṁ, kāyaviññāṇaṁ, manoviññāṇaṁ. Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ.  
And what is consciousness? There are these six classes of consciousness: eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind consciousness. This is called consciousness.

Kiñca, bhikkhave, viññāṇaṁ vadetha? Vijānātīti kho, bhikkhave, tasmā ‘viññāṇan’ti vuccati. Kiñca vijānāti? Ambilampi vijānāti, tittakampi vijānāti, kaṭukampi vijānāti, madhurampi vijānāti, khārikampi vijānāti, akhārikampi vijānāti, loṇikampi vijānāti, aloṇikampi vijānāti.  
And why do you call it consciousness? It cognizes; that’s why it’s called ‘consciousness’. And what does it cognize? It cognizes sour, bitter, pungent, sweet, hot, mild, salty, and bland.

“‘Viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ, viññāṇañcāyatanan’ti vuccati. Katamaṁ nu kho viññāṇañcāyatananti? Tassa mayhaṁ, āvuso, etadahosi: ‘idha bhikkhu sabbaso ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ samatikkamma anantaṁ viññāṇanti viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ upasampajja viharati.  
“They speak of this thing called the ‘dimension of infinite consciousness’. What is the dimension of infinite consciousness? It occurred to me: ‘It’s when a mendicant, going totally beyond the dimension of infinite space, aware that “consciousness is infinite”, enters and remains in the dimension of infinite consciousness.