Greed, aversion, delusion destroy
the self-same person of evil-mind
from whom they are born,
like the fruiting
of the bamboo.
Comprehending the property of form,
not taking a stance in the formless,
those released in cessation
are people who've left death behind.
Having touched with his body
the deathless
property free
from acquisitions,
having realized relinquishing
of acquisitions,
fermentation-free,
the Rightly
Self-awakened One
teaches the state
with no sorrow,
no dust.
Centered,
mindful,
alert,
the Awakened One's
disciple
discerns feelings,
how feelings come into play,
where they cease,
& the path to their ending.With the ending of feelings, a monk
free of want
is totally unbound.
Whoever sees
pleasure as stress,
sees pain as an arrow,
sees peaceful neither-pleasure-nor-pain
as inconstant:
he is a monk
who's seen rightly.
From that he is there set free.
A master of direct knowing,
at peace,
he is a sage
gone beyond bonds.
Centered,
mindful,
alert,
the Awakened One's
disciple
discerns searches,
how searches come into play,
where they cease,
& the path to their ending.With the ending of searches, a monk
free of want
is totally unbound.
Sensual search, becoming-search,
together with the holy-life search --
i.e., grasping at truth
based on an accumulation
of viewpoints:
through the relinquishing of searches
& the abolishing of viewpoints
of one dispassionate to
all passion,
and released in the ending
of craving,
through the ending of searches, the monk
is devoid of perplexity &
desire.
Centered,
mindful,
alert,
the Awakened One's
disciple
discerns fermentations,
how fermentations come into play,
where they cease,
& the path to their ending.With the ending of fermentations, a monk
free of want
is totally unbound.
His fermentation of sensuality
ended,
his ignorance
washed away,
his fermentation of becoming
exhausted:
one totally released, acquisition-free,
bears his last body,
having conquered Mara
along with his mount.
Bound with the bondage of craving,
their minds smitten with becoming & non-,
they are bound with the bondage of Mara --
people with no safety from bondage,
beings going through the wandering-on,
headed for birth & death.
While those who've abandoned craving,
free from the craving for becoming & non-,
reaching the ending of fermentations,
though in the world,
have gone beyond.
Virtue, concentration, discernment:
one in whom these are well-developed,
passing beyond Mara's domain,
shines, shines
like the sun.
Train in acts of merit
that bring long-lasting bliss --
develop generosity,
a life in tune,
a mind of good-will.
Developing these
three things
that bring about bliss,
the wise reappear
in a world of bliss
unalloyed.
The eye of flesh,
the eye divine,
the eye of discernment
unsurpassed:
these three eyes were taught
by the Person Superlative.
The arising of the eye of flesh
is the path to the eye divine.
When knowledge arises,
the eye of discernment unsurpassed:
whoever gains this eye
is -- from all suffering & stress --
set free.
For a learner in training
along the straight path:
first, the knowledge of ending;
then, immediately,
gnosis;
then, from the ending
of the fetter -- becoming --
there's the knowledge,
the gnosis of one released
who is Such:
'My release is unshaken.'One consummate in these faculties,
peaceful,
enjoying the peaceful state,
bears his last body,
having conquered Mara
along with his mount.
Perceiving in terms of signs, beings
take a stand on signs.
Not fully comprehending signs, they
come into the bonds
of death.
But fully comprehending signs, one
doesn't construe a signifier.
Touching liberation with the heart,
the state of peace unsurpassed,
consummate in terms of signs,
peaceful,
enjoying the peaceful state,
judicious,
an attainer-of wisdom
makes use of classifications
but can't be classified.
Having engaged[See AN X.176]
in bodily misconduct,
verbal misconduct,
misconduct of mind,
or whatever else is flawed,
not having done what is skillful,
having done much that is not,
at the break-up of the body,
the undiscerning one reappears in
hell.
Having abandoned
bodily misconduct,
verbal misconduct,
misconduct of mind,
& whatever else is flawed,
not having done what's not skillful,
having done much that is,
at the break-up of the body,
the discerning one reappears
in heaven.
Clean in body,
clean in speech,
clean in awareness
-- fermentation-free --
one who is clean,
consummate in cleanliness,
is said to have abandoned
the All.
A sage in body, a sage in speech,[Note: Compare the above two discourses with AN III.123.]
a sage in mind, fermentation-free:
a sage consummate in sagacity
is said to be bathed
of evil.
One whose passion, aversion, & ignorance
are washed away,
is said to be
composed in mind,
Brahma-become,
awakened, Tathagata,
one for whom fear & hostility
are past,
one who's abandoned
the All.
[See SN XXXV.115]
One whose passion, aversion, & ignorance[See Iti 109]
are washed away,
has crossed over this ocean
with its sharks,
demons,
dangerous waves,
so hard to cross.Free from acquisitions
-- bonds surmounted
death abandoned --
he has abandoned stress
with no further becoming.Having gone to the goal
he is undefined,
has outwitted, I tell you,
the King of Death.
With mind wrongly directed,
speaking wrong speech,
doing wrong deeds with the body:
a person here
of little learning,
a doer of evil
here in this life so short,
at the break-up of the body,
undiscerning,
reappears in hell.
With mind rightly directed,
speaking right speech,
doing right deeds with the body:
a person here
of much learning,
a doer of merit
here in this life so short,
at the break-up of the body,
discerning,
reappears in heaven.
Knowing the escape from sensuality,
& the overcoming of forms
-- ardent
always --
touching the stilling
of all fabrications:he is a monk
who's seen rightly.
From that he is there set free.
A master of direct knowing,
at peace,
he is a sage
gone beyond bonds.
Those beings headed to forms,
and those standing in the formless,
with no knowledge of cessation,
return to further becoming.But, comprehending form,
not taking a stance in formless things,
those released in cessation
are people who've left death behind.
Having touched with his body
the deathless
property free
from acquisitions,
having realized relinquishing
of acquisitions,
fermentation-free,
the Rightly
Self-awakened One
teaches the state
with no sorrow,
no dust.
"And how is a son or daughter of heightened birth? There is the case where a son or daughter's parents have not gone to the Buddha for refuge, have not gone to the Dhamma for refuge, have not gone to the Sangha for refuge. They do not abstain from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, from fermented & distilled liquors that cause heedlessness. They are unprincipled & evil by nature. However, their son or daughter has gone to the Buddha for refuge, has gone to the Dhamma for refuge, has gone to the Sangha for refuge. He/she abstains from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, from fermented & distilled liquors that cause heedlessness. He/she is principled & admirable by nature. This is called a son or daughter of heightened birth.
"And how is a son or daughter of similar birth? There is the case where a son or daughter's parents have gone to the Buddha for refuge, have gone to the Dhamma for refuge, have gone to the Sangha for refuge. They abstain from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, from fermented & distilled liquors that cause heedlessness. They are principled & admirable by nature. Their son or daughter has also gone to the Buddha for refuge, has gone to the Dhamma for refuge, has gone to the Sangha for refuge. He/she abstains from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, from fermented & distilled liquors that cause heedlessness. He/she is principled & admirable by nature. This is called a son or daughter of similar birth.
"And how is a son or daughter of lowered birth? There is the case where a son or daughter's parents have gone to the Buddha for refuge, have gone to the Dhamma for refuge, have gone to the Sangha for refuge. They abstain from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, from fermented & distilled liquors that cause heedlessness. They are principled & admirable by nature. However, their son or daughter has not gone to the Buddha for refuge, has not gone to the Dhamma for refuge, has not gone to the Sangha for refuge. He/she does not abstain from taking life, from stealing, from sexual misconduct, from false speech, from fermented & distilled liquors that cause heedlessness. He/she is unprincipled & evil by nature. This is called a son or daughter of lowered birth."
The wise hope for a child
of heightened or similar birth,
not for one
of lowered birth,
a disgrace to the family.These children in the world,
lay followers,
consummate in virtue, conviction;
generous, free from stinginess,
shine forth in any gathering
like the moon
when freed from a cloud.
"And how is a person like a cloud without rain? There is the case where a person is not a giver of food, drink, clothing, vehicles, garlands, scents, ointments, beds, dwellings, or lights to any priests or contemplatives, to any of the miserable, the homeless, or beggars. This is how a person is like a cloud without rain.
"And how is a person one who rains locally? There is the case where a person is a giver of food, drink, clothing, vehicles, garlands, scents, ointments, beds, dwellings, & lights to some priests & contemplatives, to some of the miserable, the homeless, & beggars, and not to others. This is how a person one who rains locally.
"And how is a person one who rains everywhere? There is the case where a person gives food, drink, clothing, vehicles, garlands, scents, ointments, beds, dwellings, & lights to all priests & contemplatives, to all of the miserable, the homeless, & beggars. This is how a person one who rains everywhere.
"These are the three types of persons who can be found existing in the world."
Not to contemplatives,
to priests,
to the miserable,
nor to the homeless
does he share what he's gained:
food,
drinks,
nourishment.
He, that lowest of people,
is called a cloud with no rain.To some he gives,
to others he doesn't:
the intelligent call him
one who rains locally.A person responsive to requests,
sympathetic to all beings,
delighting in distributing alms:
"Give to them!
Give!"
he says.
As a cloud -- resounding, thundering -- rains,
filling with water, drenching
the plateaus & gullies:
a person like this
is like that.
Having rightly amassed
wealth attained through initiative,
he satisfies fully with food & drink
those fallen into
the homeless state.
Intelligent,
you should guard your virtue,
aspiring to three forms of bliss:
praise;
the obtaining of wealth;
and, after death, rejoicing
in heaven.Even if you do no evil
but seek out one who does,
you're suspected of evil.
Your bad reputation
grows.The sort of person you make a friend,
the sort you seek out,
that's the sort you yourself become --
for your living together is of
that sort.The one associated with,
the one who associates,
the one who's touched,
the one who touches another
-- like an arrow smeared with poison --
contaminates the quiver.
So, fearing contamination, the enlightened
should not be comrades
with evil people.A man who wraps rotting fish
in a blade of kusa grass
makes the grass smelly:
so it is
if you seek out fools.But a man who wraps powdered incense
in the leaf of a tree
makes the leaf fragrant:
so it is
if you seek out
the enlightened.So,
knowing your own outcome
as like the leaf-wrapper's,
you shouldn't seek out
those who aren't good.
The wise would associate
with those who are.
Those who aren't good
lead you to hell.
The good help you reach
a good destination.
Knowing the body as falling apart,
& consciousness as dissolving away,
seeing the danger in acquisitions,
you've gone beyond
birth & death.
Having reached the foremost peace,
you bide your time,
composed.
The underbrush born
of association
is cut away
by non-association.Just as one riding
a small wooden plank
would sink
in the great sea,
so does even one of right living
sink,
associating with the lazy.So avoid the lazy,
those with low persistence.
Live with the noble ones --
secluded, resolute, absorbed in jhana,
their persistence constantly aroused
: the wise.
"These three things lead to the non-falling away of a monk in training. Which three? There is the case where a monk in training doesn't enjoy activity, doesn't delight in activity, isn't intent on his enjoyment of activity. He doesn't enjoy chatter, doesn't delight in chatter, isn't intent on his enjoyment of chatter. He doesn't enjoy sleep, doesn't delight in sleep, isn't intent on his enjoyment of sleep. These are the three things that lead to the non-falling away of a monk in training."
Enjoying activity,
delighting in chatter,
enjoying sleep,
& restless:
he's incapable
-- a monk like this --
of touching superlative
self-awakening.So he should be a man of few duties,
of little sloth,
not restless.
He's capable
-- a monk like this --
of touching superlative
self-awakening.
Fettered[* Note: According to the Commentary, this refers to a monk's tendency to be overly intimate with lay people, overly susceptible to the rises and falls in their fortunes, "happy when they are happy, sad when they are sad, busying himself with their affairs."]
to not wanting to be despised;
to gains, offerings, respect;
to delight in companions:
you're far from the ending of fetters.
But whoever here,
having abandoned
sons,
cattle,
marriage,
intimates:
he's capable
-- a monk like this --
of touching superlative
self-awakening.
[See MN 19]
"It's not through having heard it from other priests or contemplatives that I say, 'I have seen beings conquered by receiving offerings -- their minds overwhelmed -- at the break-up of the body, after death, reappearing in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. I have seen beings conquered by not receiving offerings -- their minds overwhelmed -- at the break-up of the body, after death, reappearing in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. I have seen beings conquered both by receiving offerings & by not receiving offerings -- their minds overwhelmed -- at the break-up of the body, after death, reappearing in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell.'
"Instead, it's from having known it myself, seen it myself, observed it myself that I say, 'I have seen beings conquered by receiving offerings -- their minds overwhelmed -- at the break-up of the body, after death, reappearing in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. I have seen beings conquered by not receiving offerings -- their minds overwhelmed -- at the break-up of the body, after death, reappearing in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. I have seen beings conquered both by receiving offerings & by not receiving offerings -- their minds overwhelmed -- at the break-up of the body, after death, reappearing in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell.'"
Both when receiving offerings[See Dhp 365-66]
& not:
his concentration
won't waver,
he remains
heedful:
he -- continually absorbed in jhana,
subtle in view & clear-seeing,
enjoying the ending of clinging --
is called a man
of integrity.
"When a noble disciple lives committed to the development of the seven [sets of] qualities that are wings to awakening,* on that occasion the divine sound sounds forth among the devas: 'This noble disciple is doing battle with Mara.' This is the second divine sound that sounds forth among the devas on appropriate occasions.
"When a noble disciple, through the ending of fermentations dwells in the release of awareness & release of discernment that are free from fermentation, having known & made them manifest for himself right in the present life, on that occasion the divine sound sounds forth among the devas: 'This noble disciple has won the battle. Having been in the front lines of the battle, he now dwells victorious.' This is the third divine sound that sounds forth among the devas on appropriate occasions.
"These are the three divine sounds that sound forth among the devas on appropriate occasions."
Seeing he's won the battle[* Note: The wings to awakening are the four frames of reference, the four right exertions, the four bases for power, the five faculties, the five strengths, the seven factors for awakening, and the noble eightfold path.]
-- the disciple of the Rightly
Self-awakened One --
even the devas pay homage
to this great one, thoroughly mature.
"Homage to you, O thoroughbred man --
you who have won the hard victory,
defeating the army of Death,
unhindered in
emancipation."Thus they pay homage, the devas,
to one who has reached the heart's goal,
for they see in him no means
that would bring him under Death's sway.
When this was said, a certain monk said to the Blessed One, "What, lord, is the devas' reckoning of going to a good destination? What is their reckoning of the gain that is good to gain? What is their reckoning of becoming well-established?"
"The human state, monks, is the devas' reckoning of going to a good destination. Having become a human being, acquiring conviction in the Dhamma-&-Vinaya taught by the Tathagata: this is the devas' reckoning of the gain that is good to gain. When that conviction is settled within one -- rooted, established, & strong, not to be destroyed by any priest or contemplative; deva, Mara, or Brahma; or anyone else in the world: this is the devas' reckoning of becoming well-established."
When a deva
passes away
from the company of devas
through his life-span's ending,
three sounds sound forth
-- the devas' encouragement.
'Go from here,
honorable sir,
to a good destination,
to companionship
with human beings.
On becoming a human being,
acquire a conviction
unsurpassed
in True Dhamma.
That conviction of yours
in True Dhamma, well-taught,
should be settled,
rooted,
established,
-- undestroyed
as long as you live.Having abandoned
bodily misconduct,
verbal misconduct,
mental misconduct,
and whatever else is flawed;
having done with the body what's skillful,
and much that is skillful with speech,
having done what's skillful
with a heart without limit,
with no acquisitions,
then -- having made much
of that basis of merit
through generosity --
establish other mortals
in True Dhamma &
the holy life.'With this sympathy, the devas --
when they know a deva is passing away --
encourage him:
'Come back, deva,
again & again.'
"There is the case where a Tathagata appears in the world, worthy & rightly self-awakened, consummate in clear knowing & conduct, well-gone, an expert with regard to the cosmos, unsurpassed trainer of tamable people, teacher of beings human & divine, awakened, blessed. He teaches the Dhamma admirable in its beginning, admirable in its middle, admirable in its end. He proclaims the holy life both in its particulars & in its essence, entirely perfect, surpassingly pure. This is the first person who, appearing in the world, appears for the benefit of many, the happiness of many, in sympathy for the world -- for the welfare, the benefit, the happiness of beings human & divine.
"Furthermore, there is the disciple of that Teacher who is a worthy one, his mental fermentations ended, who has reached fulfillment, done the task, laid down the burden, attained the true goal, totally destroyed the fetter of becoming, and who is released through right gnosis. He teaches the Dhamma admirable in its beginning, admirable in its middle, admirable in its end. He proclaims the holy life both in its particulars & in its essence, entirely perfect, surpassingly pure. This is the second person who, appearing in the world, appears for the benefit of many, the happiness of many, in sympathy for the world -- for the welfare, the benefit, the happiness of beings human & divine.
"Furthermore, there is the disciple of that Teacher who is a learner, following the way, erudite, endowed with [good] practices & principles. He, too, teaches the Dhamma admirable in its beginning, admirable in its middle, admirable in its end. He proclaims the holy life both in its particulars & in its essence, entirely perfect, surpassingly pure. This is the third person who, appearing in the world, appears for the benefit of many, the happiness of many, in sympathy for the world -- for the welfare, the benefit, the happiness of beings human & divine.
"These are the three persons who, appearing in the world, appear for the benefit of many, the happiness of many, in sympathy for the world -- for the welfare, the benefit, the happiness of beings human & divine."
The Teacher,
Great Seer,
is first in the world;
following him, the disciple
composed;
and then the learner,
erudite, following the way,
endowed with good virtue,
practices.These three, chief
among beings divine & human,
giving light, proclaiming the Dhamma,
throw open the door to the Deathless,
release many from bondage.
Those who follow the path,
well-taught by the Caravan Leader
unsurpassed,
will put an end to stress
right here --
those heeding the message
of the One Well-gone.
Focusing on foulness[For the foulness of the body as a meditation theme, see MN 119. For mindfulness of in & out breathing as a meditation theme, see MN 118.]
in the body,
mindful
of in & out breathing,
seeing
the stilling of all fabrications
-- ardent
always:
he is a monk
who's seen rightly.
From that he is there set free.
A master of direct knowing,
at peace,
he is a sage
gone beyond bonds.
Dhamma his dwelling,
Dhamma his delight,
a monk pondering Dhamma,
calling Dhamma to mind,
doesn't fall away
from true Dhamma.Whether walking,
standing,
sitting, or
lying down
-- his mind inwardly restrained --
he arrives
right at peace.
"There are these three kinds of skillful thinking that produce non-blindness, produce vision, produce knowledge, foster discernment, side with non-vexation, and are conducive to Unbinding. Which three? Thinking imbued with renunciation .... Thinking imbued with non-ill-will .... Thinking imbued with harmlessness produces non-blindness, produces vision, produces knowledge, fosters discernment, sides with non-vexation, and is conducive to Unbinding. These are the three kinds of skillful thinking that produce non-blindness, produce vision, produce knowledge, foster discernment, side with non-vexation, and are conducive to Unbinding."
Three skillful thoughts[See MN 19]
should be thought,
three unskillful thoughts
rejected.
Whoever stills sustained thoughts
-- as rain would, a cloud of dust --
through an awareness with thinking stilled,
attains right here
the state
of peace.
Greed causes harm.
Greed provokes the mind.
People don't realize it
as a danger born from within.
A person, when greedy,
doesn't know his own welfare;
when greedy,
doesn't see Dhamma.
Overcome with greed,
he's in the dark, blind.But when one, abandoning greed,
feels no greed
for what would merit greed,
greed gets shed from him --
like a drop of water
off a lotus leaf.Aversion causes harm.
Aversion provokes the mind.
People don't realize it
as a danger born from within.A person, when aversive,
doesn't know his own welfare;
when aversive,
doesn't see Dhamma.
Overcome with aversion
he's in the dark, blind.But when one, abandoning aversion,
feels no aversion
for what would merit aversion,
aversion drops away from him --
like a palm leaf from its stem.Delusion causes harm.
Delusion provokes the mind.
People don't realize it
as a danger born from within.A person, when deluded,
doesn't know his own welfare;
when deluded,
doesn't see Dhamma.
Overcome with delusion
he's in the dark, blind.But when one, abandoning delusion,
feels no delusion
for what would merit delusion,
he disperses all delusion --
as the rising of the sun, the dark.
May no one in the world[* Note: Devadatta, one of the Buddha's cousins, plotted to take over the Sangha, and ended up causing a schism. His story is told in Cv VII. See also Iti 18.]
ever be reborn
with evil desire.
Know that,
through that
evil desire,
his destination's that
of all who have evil desires.I've heard how Devadatta,
-- regarded as wise, composed,
incandescent with honor --
in the thrall of heedlessness
assaulted the Tathagata
and fell to the four-gated, fearful place:
Avici, unmitigated hell.Whoever plots against
one free of corruption
who's done no evil deed:
that evil touches him himself,
corrupted in mind,
disrespectful.Whoever might think
of polluting the ocean
with a pot of poison,
couldn't succeed,
for the mass of water is great.So it is
when anyone attacks with abuse
the Tathagata
-- rightly-gone,
of peaceful mind --
for abuse doesn't grow on him.A wise person should make friends,
should associate,
with a person like him --
whose path a monk can follow
and reach the ending
of suffering & stress.
"Among whatever beings there may be -- footless, two-footed, four-footed, many footed; with form or formless; percipient, non-percipient, neither percipient nor non-percipient -- the Tathagata, worthy & rightly self-awakened, is considered supreme. Those who have confidence in the Awakened One have confidence in what is supreme; and for those with confidence in the supreme, supreme is the result.
"Among whatever qualities there may be, fabricated or unfabricated, the quality of dispassion -- the subduing of intoxication, the elimination of thirst, the uprooting of attachment, the breaking of the round, the destruction of craving, dispassion, cessation, the realization of Unbinding -- is considered supreme. Those who have confidence in the quality of dispassion have confidence in what is supreme; and for those with confidence in the supreme, supreme is the result.
"Among whatever fabricated qualities there may be, the Noble Eightfold Path -- right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration -- is considered supreme. Those who have confidence in the Noble Eightfold Path have confidence in what is supreme; and for those with confidence in the supreme, supreme is the result.
"Among whatever communities or groups there may be, the Sangha of the Tathagata's disciples is considered supreme -- i.e., the four [groups of noble disciples] when taken as pairs, the eight when taken as persons. Those who have confidence in the Sangha have confidence in what is supreme; and for those with confidence in the supreme, supreme will be the result.
"These, monks, are the three supreme objects of confidence."
With
confidence,
realizing the supreme Dhamma to be supreme,
confidence in the supreme Buddha,
unsurpassed
in deserving offerings;
confidence in the supreme Dhamma,
the stilling of dispassion,
bliss;
confidence in the supreme Sangha,
unsurpassed
as a field of merit;
having given gifts to the supreme,
one develops supreme merit,
supreme long life & beauty,
status, honor,
bliss, & strength.
Having given to the supreme,
the wise person, centered
in supreme Dhamma,
whether becoming a divine or human being,
rejoices,
having attained the supreme.
He's missed out[See AN IV.95]
on the householder's enjoyment
& the purpose of the contemplative life
-- unfortunate man!
Ruining it, he throws it away,
perishes
like a funeral firebrand.Better to eat an iron ball
-- glowing, aflame --
than that, unprincipled &
unrestrained,
he should eat the alms of the country.
"But even if a monk were to live one hundred leagues away, yet if he were to have no greed for sensual objects, were not strong in his passions, not malevolent in mind, uncorrupt in his resolves, his mindfulness established, alert, centered, his mind at singleness, & his faculties well-restrained, then he would be near to me, and I to him. Why is that? Because he sees the Dhamma. Seeing the Dhamma, he sees me."
Though following right behind,
full of desire, vexation:
see how far he is! --
the perturbed
from the unperturbed,
the bound
from the Unbound,
the greedy one
from the one with no greed.But the wise person who, through
direct knowledge of Dhamma,
gnosis of Dhamma,
grows still & unperturbed
like a lake unruffled by wind:
see how close he is! --
the unperturbed to the unperturbed,
the Unbound to the Unbound,
the greedless one
to the one with no greed.
The fire of passion burns in a mortal
excited, smitten
with sensual desires;
the fire of aversion, in an angry person
taking life;
the fire of delusion, in a bewildered person
ignorant
of the noble teaching.
Not understanding these fires, people
-- fond of self-identity --
unreleased from Mara's shackles,
swell the ranks of hell,
the wombs of common animals, demons,
the realm of the hungry shades.While those who, day & night, follow the teachings
of the rightly self-awakened,
put out the fire of passion,
constantly perceiving the foul.
They, people superlative, put out the fire of aversion
with good will,
and the fire of delusion
with the discernment leading
to penetration.They, the masterful, by night & day,
having put out [the fires],
having, without remainder,
comprehended stress,
are, without remainder,
totally unbound.They, the wise, with an attainer-of-wisdom's
noble vision,
right gnosis,
directly knowing
the ending of birth,
come to no further becoming.
For a monk who has abandoned[Note: The "seven attachments" are passion, aversion, delusion, views, conceit, defilement, & misconduct. The "guide" is craving, which leads to becoming. For an explanation of this passage, see MN 138, translated in The Mind Like Fire Unbound, pp. 114-115.]
seven attachments
and cut the guide:
the wandering-on in birth
is finished,
there is
no further becoming.
Devas whose pleasures are already provided,
those with control,
those who delight in creation,
and any others enjoying sensual pleasures
in this state here
or anywhere else,
don't go beyond
the wandering-on.Knowing this drawback
in sensual pleasures, the wise
should abandon all sensual desires,
whether human
or divine.Having cut the flow of greed
for lovely, alluring forms
so hard to transcend,
having, without remainder,
comprehended stress,
they are, without remainder,
totally unbound.They, the wise, with an attainer-of-wisdom's
noble vision,
right gnosis,
directly knowing
the ending of birth,
come to no further becoming.
Tied by both
the yoke of sensuality
& the yoke of becoming,
beings go to the wandering-on
leading to birth
& death.Those who've abandoned the sensual
without reaching the ending of fermentations,
are bound by the yoke of becoming,
are said to be Non-returners.While those who've cut off doubt
have no more conceit
or further becoming.They who have reached
the ending of fermentations,
while in the world
have gone beyond.
"And how is a monk a person with admirable virtue? There is the case where a monk is virtuous. He dwells restrained in accordance with the Patimokkha, consummate in his behavior & sphere of activity. He trains himself, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults. In this way a monk is a person with admirable virtue. Thus he is of admirable virtue.
"And how is a monk a person with admirable qualities? There is the case where a monk lives committed to the development of the seven [sets of] qualities that are wings to awakening. In this way a monk is a person with admirable qualities. Thus he is of admirable virtue & admirable qualities.
"And how is a monk a person with admirable discernment? There is the case where a monk, through the ending of fermentations, dwells in the release of awareness & release of discernment that are free from fermentation, having known & made them manifest for himself right in the present life. In this way a monk is a person with admirable discernment. Thus he is of admirable virtue, admirable qualities, admirable discernment. In this Dhamma-&-Vinaya he is called one who is complete, fulfilled, a superlative person."
Devoid of wrong-doing
in thought, word, or deed,
he's called a person of admirable virtue:
the monk conscientious.Well-developed in the qualities
that go to the attainment of self-awakening,
he's called a person of admirable qualities:
the monk unassuming.Discerning right here for himself,
in himself,
the ending of stress
he's called a person of admirable discernment:
the monk with no fermentation.Consummate in
these things,
untroubled, with doubt cut away,
unattached in all the world,
he's said to have abandoned
the All.
The gift he describes
as foremost & unsurpassed,
the sharing the Blessed One has extolled:
who -- confident in the supreme field of merit,
wise, discerning --
wouldn't give it at appropriate times?Both for those who proclaim it
and those who listen,
confident in the message of the One Well-gone:
it purifies their foremost benefit --
those heeding the message
of the One Well-gone.
"There is the case where a monk recollects his manifold past lives, i.e., one birth, two ... five, ten ... fifty, a hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand, many eons of cosmic contraction, many eons of cosmic expansion, many eons of cosmic contraction & expansion: 'There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose there. There too I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose here.' Thus he recollects his manifold past lives in their modes & details.
"This is the first knowledge he has attained. Ignorance has been destroyed; knowledge has arisen; darkness has been destroyed; light has arisen -- as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"Then again, the monk sees -- by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human -- beings passing away & re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings -- who were endowed with bodily misconduct, verbal misconduct, & mental misconduct; who reviled noble ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views -- at the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the lower realms, in hell. But these beings -- who were endowed with bodily good conduct, verbal good conduct, & mental good conduct; who did not revile noble ones, who held right views and undertook actions under the influence of right views -- at the break-up of the body, after death, have re-appeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.' Thus -- by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human -- he sees beings passing away & re-appearing, and discerns how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.
"This is the second knowledge he has attained. Ignorance has been destroyed; knowledge has arisen; darkness has been destroyed; light has arisen -- as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"Then again, the monk -- with the ending of fermentations -- remains in the fermentation-free release of awareness & release of discernment, having directly known and made it manifest for himself right in the present life.
"This is the third knowledge he has attained. Ignorance has been destroyed; knowledge has arisen; darkness has been destroyed; light has arisen -- as happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"It's in this way that, on the strength of Dhamma, I describe [a person as] a brahmin with threefold knowledge, and not another as measured by citing & reciting."
He knows his former lives.[See MN 4; Dhp. 423]
He sees heavens & states of woe,
has attained the ending of birth,
is a sage who has mastered full-knowing.By means of these three knowledges
he becomes a three-knowledge brahmin.
He's what I call a three-knowledge man --
not another,
citing, reciting.