15. “Now there are these five hindrances, student. What are the five? The hindrance of sensual desire, the hindrance of ill will, the hindrance of sloth and torpor, the hindrance of restlessness and remorse, and the hindrance of doubt. These are the five hindrances. The brahmin Pokkharasāti is obstructed, hindered, blocked, and enveloped by these five hindrances. That he could know or see or realise a superhuman state, a distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones—this is impossible.
16. “Now there are these five cords of sensual pleasure, student. What are the five? Forms cognizable by the eye that are wished for, desired, agreeable, and likeable, connected with sensual desire and provocative of lust. Sounds cognizable by the ear…Odours cognizable by the nose…Flavours cognizable by the tongue…Tangibles cognizable by the body that are wished for, desired, agreeable, and likeable, connected with sensual desire and provocative of lust. These are the five cords of sensual pleasure. The brahmin Pokkharasāti is tied to these five cords of sensual pleasure, infatuated with them and utterly committed to them; he enjoys them without seeing the danger in them or understanding the escape from them. That he could know or see or realise a superhuman state, a distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones—this is impossible.
17. “What do you think, student? Which of these two fires would have a [better] flame, colour, and radiance—a fire that might burn in dependence on fuel, such as grass and wood, or a fire that might burn independent of fuel, such as grass and wood?”
“If it were possible, Master Gotama, for a fire to burn independent of fuel such as grass and wood, that fire would have a [better] flame, colour, and radiance.”
“It is impossible, student, it cannot happen that a fire could burn independent of fuel such as grass or wood except through [the exercise of] supernormal power. Like the fire that burns dependent on fuel such as grass and wood, I say, is the rapture [204] that is dependent on the five cords of sensual pleasure. Like the fire that burns independent of fuel such as grass and wood, I say, is the rapture that is apart from sensual pleasures, apart from unwholesome states. And what, student, is the rapture that is apart from sensual pleasures, apart from unwholesome states? Here, quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unwholesome states, a bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the first jhāna, which is accompanied by applied and sustained thought, with rapture and pleasure born of seclusion. This is a rapture apart from sensual pleasures, apart from unwholesome states. Again, with the stilling of applied and sustained thought, a bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the second jhāna, which has self-confidence and singleness of mind without applied and sustained thought, with rapture and pleasure born of concentration. This too is a rapture apart from sensual pleasures, apart from unwholesome states.
18. “Of those five things, student, that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, which of the five do they prescribe as the most fruitful for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome?”
“Of those five things, Master Gotama, that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, they prescribe generosity as the most fruitful for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome.”
19. “What do you think, student? Here a brahmin might be holding a great sacrifice, and two other brahmins would go there thinking to take part in that great sacrifice. One brahmin among them would think: ‘Oh, that only I might get the best seat, the best water, the best almsfood in the refectory; that no other brahmin might get the best seat, the best water, the best almsfood in the refectory!’ And it is possible that the other brahmin, not that brahmin, gets the best seat, the best water, the best almsfood in the refectory. Thinking about this, [205] the first brahmin might become angry and displeased. What kind of result do the brahmins describe for this?”
“Master Gotama, brahmins do not give gifts in such a way, thinking: ‘Let the others become angry and displeased because of this.’ Rather, brahmins give gifts motivated by compassion.”
“That being so, student, isn’t this the brahmins’ sixth basis for the performance of merit, that is, the motive of compassion?”913
“That being so, Master Gotama, this is the brahmins’ sixth basis for the performance of merit, that is, the motive of compassion.”
20. “Those five things, student, that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome—where do you often see those five things, among householders or among those gone forth?”
“Those five things, Master Gotama, that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, I often see among those gone forth, seldom among householders. For the householder has a great deal of activity, great functions, great engagements, and great undertakings: he does not constantly and invariably speak the truth, practise asceticism, observe celibacy, engage in study, or engage in generosity. But one gone forth has a small amount of activity, small functions, small engagements, and small undertakings: he constantly and invariably speaks the truth, practises asceticism, observes celibacy, engages in study, and engages in generosity. Thus those five things that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, I often see among those gone forth, seldom among householders.”
21. “Those five things, student, that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, [206] I call equipment of the mind, that is, for developing a mind that is without hostility and without ill will. Here, student, a bhikkhu is a speaker of truth. Thinking, ‘I am a speaker of truth,’ he gains inspiration in the meaning, gains inspiration in the Dhamma, gains gladness connected with the Dhamma. It is that gladness connected with the wholesome that I call an equipment of the mind. Here, student, a bhikkhu is an ascetic…one who is celibate…one who engages in study…one who engages in generosity. Thinking, ‘I am one who engages in generosity,’ he gains inspiration in the meaning, gains inspiration in the Dhamma, gains gladness connected with the Dhamma. It is that gladness connected with the wholesome that I call an equipment of the mind. Thus those five things that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, I call equipment of the mind, that is, for developing a mind that is without hostility and without ill will.”
22. When this was said, the brahmin student Subha, Todeyya’s son, said to the Blessed One: “Master Gotama, I have heard that the recluse Gotama knows the path to the company of Brahmā.”
“What do you think, student? Is the village of Naḷakāra near here, not far from here?”
“Yes, sir, the village of Naḷakāra is near here, not far from here.”
“What do you think, student? Suppose there was a man born and raised in the village of Naḷakāra, and as soon as he had left Naḷakāra they asked him about the path to the village. Would that man be slow or hesitant in answering?”
“No, Master Gotama. Why is that? Because that man has been born and raised in Naḷakāra, and is well acquainted with all the paths to the village.”
“Still, a man born and raised in the village of Naḷakāra [207] might be slow or hesitant in answering when asked about the path to the village, but a Tathāgata, when asked about the Brahma-world or the way leading to the Brahma-world, would never be slow or hesitant in answering. I understand Brahmā, student, and I understand the Brahma-world, and I understand the way leading to the Brahma-world, and I understand how one should practise to reappear in the Brahma-world.”914
23. “Master Gotama, I have heard that the recluse Gotama teaches the path to the company of Brahmā. It would be good if Master Gotama would teach me the path to the company of Brahmā.”
“Then, student, listen and attend closely to what I shall say.”
“Yes, sir,” he replied. The Blessed One said this:
24. “What, student, is the path to the company of Brahmā? Here a bhikkhu abides pervading one
quarter with a mind imbued with loving-kindness, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; so above, below, around, and everywhere, and to all as to himself, he abides pervading the all-encompassing world with a mind imbued with loving-kindness, abundant, exalted, immeasurable, without hostility, and without ill will. When the deliverance of mind by loving-kindness is developed in this way, no limiting action remains there, none persists there. Just as a vigorous trumpeter could make himself heard without difficulty in the four quarters, so too, when the deliverance of mind by loving-kindness is developed in this way, no limiting action remains there, none persists there.915 This is the path to the company of Brahmā.
25–27. “Again, a bhikkhu abides pervading one quarter with a mind imbued with compassion…with a mind imbued with altruistic joy…with a mind imbued with equanimity, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; so above, below, around, and everywhere, and to all as to himself, he abides pervading the all-encompassing world with a mind imbued with equanimity, abundant, exalted, [208] immeasurable, without hostility, and without ill will. When the deliverance of mind by equanimity is developed in this way, no limiting action remains there, none persists there. Just as a vigorous trumpeter could make himself heard without difficulty in the four quarters, so too, when the deliverance of mind by equanimity is developed in this way, no limiting action remains there, none persists there. This too is the path to the company of Brahmā.”
28. When this was said, the brahmin student Subha, Todeyya’s son, said to the Blessed One: “Magnificent, Master Gotama! Magnificent, Master Gotama! Master Gotama has made the Dhamma clear in many ways, as though he were turning upright what had been overturned, revealing what was hidden, showing the way to one who was lost, or holding up a lamp in the dark for those with eyesight to see forms. I go to Master Gotama for refuge and to the Dhamma and to the Sangha of bhikkhus. Let Master Gotama remember me as a lay follower who has gone to him for refuge for life.
29. “And now, Master Gotama, we depart. We are busy and have much to do.” “You may go, student, at your own convenience.”
Then the brahmin student Subha, Todeyya’s son, having delighted and rejoiced in the Blessed One’s words, rose from his seat, and after paying homage to the Blessed One, keeping him on his right, he departed.
30. Now on that occasion the brahmin Jāṇussoṇi was driving out of Sāvatthī in the middle of the day in an all-white chariot drawn by white mares.916 He saw the brahmin student Subha, Todeyya’s son, coming in the distance and asked him: “Now where is Master Bhāradvāja coming from in the middle of the day?”
“Sir, I am coming from the presence of the recluse Gotama.”
“What does Master Bhāradvāja think of the recluse Gotama’s lucidity of wisdom? He is wise, is he not?” [209]
“Sir, who am I to know the recluse Gotama’s lucidity of wisdom? One would surely have to be his equal to know the recluse Gotama’s lucidity of wisdom.”
“Master Bhāradvāja praises the recluse Gotama with high praise indeed.”
“Sir, who am I to praise the recluse Gotama? The recluse Gotama is praised by the praised as best among gods and humans. Sir, those five things that the brahmins prescribe for the performance of merit, for accomplishing the wholesome, the recluse Gotama calls equipment of the mind, that is, for developing a mind that is without hostility and without ill will.”
31. When this was said, the brahmin Jāṇussoṇi got down from his all-white chariot drawn by white mares, and after arranging his upper robe on one shoulder, he extended his hands in reverential salutation towards the Blessed One and uttered this exclamation: “It is a gain for King Pasenadi of Kosala, it is a great gain for King Pasenadi of Kosala that the Tathāgata, accomplished and fully enlightened, lives in his realm.”
Sangārava Sutta
To Sangārava
1. THUS HAVE I HEARD. On one occasion the Blessed One was wandering in the Kosalan country with a large Sangha of bhikkhus.
2. Now on that occasion a brahmin woman named Dhānañjānī was staying at Caṇḍalakappa, having full confidence in the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Sangha.917 One time she stumbled, and [on recovering her balance] exclaimed three times: “Honour to the Blessed One, accomplished and fully enlightened! Honour to the Blessed One, accomplished and fully enlightened! Honour to the Blessed One, accomplished [210] and fully enlightened!”
3. At the time there was a brahmin student named Sangārava staying at Caṇḍalakappa. He was a master of the Three Vedas, with their vocabularies, liturgy, phonology, and etymology, and the histories as the fifth; skilled in philology and grammar, he was fully versed in natural philosophy and in the marks of a Great Man. Having heard the brahmin woman Dhānañjānī utter those words, he said to her: “This brahmin woman Dhānañjānī must be disgraced and degraded, since when there are brahmins around she praises that bald-pated recluse.”
[She replied:] “My dear sir, you do not know the virtue and wisdom of the Blessed One. If you knew that Blessed One’s virtue and wisdom, my dear sir, you would never think of abusing and reviling him.”
“Then, madam, inform me when the recluse Gotama comes to Caṇḍalakappa.”
“Yes, dear sir,” the brahmin woman Dhānañjāni replied.
4. Then, after wandering by stages in the Kosalan country, the Blessed One eventually arrived at Caṇḍalakappa. There in Cạ̣alakappa the Blessed One lived in the Mango Grove belonging to the brahmins of the Todeyya clan.
5. The brahmin woman Dhānañjānī heard that the Blessed One had arrived, so she went to the brahmin student Sangārava and told him: “My dear sir, the Blessed One has arrived in Caṇḍalakappa and he is living here in Caṇḍalakappa in the Mango Grove belonging to the brahmins of the Todeyya clan. Now, dear Sir, you may go at your own convenience.”
“Yes, madam,” he replied. Then he went to the Blessed One and exchanged greetings with him. When this courteous [211] and amiable talk was finished, he sat down at one side and said:
6. “Master Gotama, there are some recluses and brahmins who claim [to teach] the fundamentals of the holy life after having reached the consummation and perfection of direct knowledge here and now.918 Where among these recluses and brahmins does Master Gotama stand?”
7. “Bhāradvāja, I say that there is a diversity among those recluses and brahmins who claim [to teach] the fundamentals of the holy life after having reached the consummation and perfection of direct knowledge here and now. There are some recluses and brahmins who are traditionalists, who on the basis of oral tradition claim [to teach] the fundamentals of the holy life after having reached the consummation and perfection of direct knowledge here and now; such are the brahmins of the Three Vedas. There are some recluses and brahmins who, entirely on the basis of mere faith, claim [to teach] the fundamentals of the holy life after having reached the consummation and perfection of direct knowledge here and now; such are the reasoners and investigators.919 There are some recluses and brahmins who, having directly known the Dhamma for themselves920 among things not heard before, claim [to teach] the fundamentals of the holy life after having reached the consummation and perfection of direct knowledge here and now.
8. “I, Bhāradvāja, am one of those recluses and brahmins who, having directly known the Dhamma for themselves among things not heard before, claim [to teach] the fundamentals of the holy life after having reached the consummation and perfection of direct knowledge here and now. As to how I am one of those recluses and brahmins, that may be understood in the following way.
9. “Here, Bhāradvāja, before my enlightenment, while I was still only an unenlightened Bodhisatta, I considered thus: ‘Household life is crowded and dusty; life gone forth is wide open. It is not easy while living in a home to lead the holy life utterly perfect and pure as a polished shell. Suppose I shave off my hair and beard, put on the yellow robe, and go forth from the home life into homelessness.’
10–13
. “Later, Bhāradvāja, [212] while still young...(as Sutta 26, §§14–17)...And I sat down thinking: ‘This will serve for striving.’
14–30. “Now these three similes occurred to me spontaneously never heard before...(as Sutta 36, §§17–33; but in the present sutta in §§17–22—corresponding to §§20–25 of Sutta 36—the sentence “But such painful feeling that arose in me did not invade my mind and remain” does not occur)...the five bhikkhus were disgusted and left me, thinking: ‘The recluse Gotama now lives luxuriously; he has given up his striving and reverted to luxury.’
31–41. “Now when I had eaten solid food and regained my strength, then quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unwholesome states...(as Sutta 36, §§34–44; but in the present sutta in §§36, 38, and 41—corresponding to §§39, 41, and 44 of Sutta 36—the sentence “But such pleasant feeling that arose in me did not invade my mind and remain” does not occur)...as happens in one who abides diligent, ardent, and resolute.”
The Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha Page 90
