MN 117
Maha-cattarisaka Sutta
The Great Forty
Translated from the Pali by
Thanissaro BhikkhuPTS: M iii 71
Source: Transcribed from a file provided by the translator.
Copyright © 1997 Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
Access to Insight edition © 2008
For free distribution. This work may be republished, reformatted,
reprinted, and redistributed in any medium. It is the author's wish,
however, that any such republication and redistribution be made available
to the public on a free and unrestricted basis and that translations and
other derivative works be clearly marked as such.
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Savatthi, in
Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's monastery. There he addressed the monks: "Monks!"
"Yes, lord," the monks replied.
The Blessed One said, "Monks, I will teach you noble right concentration with
its supports and requisite conditions. Listen, and pay close attention. I will
speak."
"Yes, lord," the monks replied.
The Blessed One said: "Now what, monks, is noble right concentration with its
supports & requisite conditions? Any singleness of mind equipped with these
seven factors — right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right
livelihood, right effort, & right mindfulness — is called noble right
concentration with its supports & requisite conditions.
[1] "Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the
forerunner? One discerns wrong view as wrong view, and right view as right view.
This is one's right view. And what is wrong view? 'There is nothing given,
nothing offered, nothing sacrificed. There is no fruit or result of good or bad
actions. There is no this world, no next world, no mother, no father, no
spontaneously reborn beings; no priests or contemplatives who, faring rightly &
practicing rightly, proclaim this world & the next after having directly known &
realized it for themselves.' This is wrong view.
"And what is right view? Right view, I tell you, is of two sorts: There is right
view with effluents [asava], siding with merit, resulting in the acquisitions
[of becoming]; and there is noble right view, without effluents, transcendent, a
factor of the path.
"And what is the right view that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in
acquisitions? 'There is what is given, what is offered, what is sacrificed.
There are fruits & results of good & bad actions. There is this world & the next
world. There is mother & father. There are spontaneously reborn beings; there
are priests & contemplatives who, faring rightly & practicing rightly, proclaim
this world & the next after having directly known & realized it for themselves.'
This is the right view that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in
acquisitions.
"And what is the right view that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of
the path? The discernment, the faculty of discernment, the strength of
discernment, analysis of qualities as a factor for Awakening, the path factor of
right view of one developing the noble path whose mind is noble, whose mind is
free from effluents, who is fully possessed of the noble path. This is the right
view that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
"One tries to abandon wrong view & to enter into right view: This is one's right
effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong view & to enter & remain in right view:
This is one's right mindfulness. Thus these three qualities — right view, right
effort, & right mindfulness — run & circle around right view.
[2] "Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the
forerunner? One discerns wrong resolve as wrong resolve, and right resolve as
right resolve. And what is wrong resolve? Being resolved on sensuality, on ill
will, on harmfulness. This is wrong resolve.
"And what is right resolve? Right resolve, I tell you, is of two sorts: There is
right resolve with effluents, siding with merit, resulting in the acquisitions
[of becoming]; and there is noble right resolve, without effluents,
transcendent, a factor of the path.
"And what is the right resolve that has effluents, sides with merit, & results
in acquisitions? Being resolved on renunciation, on freedom from ill will, on
harmlessness. This is the right resolve that has effluents, sides with merit, &
results in acquisitions.
And what is the right resolve that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor
of the path? The thinking, directed thinking, resolve, (mental) fixity,
transfixion, focused awareness, & verbal fabrications of one developing the
noble path whose mind is noble, whose mind is without effluents, who is fully
possessed of the noble path. This is the right resolve that is without
effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
"One tries to abandon wrong resolve & to enter into right resolve: This is one's
right effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong resolve & to enter & remain in
right resolve: This is one's right mindfulness. Thus these three qualities —
right view, right effort, & right mindfulness — run & circle around right
resolve.
[3] "Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the
forerunner? One discerns wrong speech as wrong speech, and right speech as right
speech. And what is wrong speech? Lying, divisive tale-bearing, abusive speech,
& idle chatter. This is wrong speech.
"And what is right speech? Right speech, I tell you, is of two sorts: There is
right speech with effluents, siding with merit, resulting in the acquisitions
[of becoming]; and there is noble right speech, without effluents, transcendent,
a factor of the path.
"And what is the right speech that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in
acquisitions? Abstaining from lying, from divisive tale-bearing, from abusive
speech, & from idle chatter. This is the right speech that has effluents, sides
with merit, & results in acquisitions.
"And what is the right speech that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor
of the path? The abstaining, desisting, abstinence, avoidance of the four forms
of verbal misconduct of one developing the noble path whose mind is noble, whose
mind is without effluents, who is fully possessed of the noble path. This is the
right speech that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
"One tries to abandon wrong speech & to enter into right speech: This is one's
right effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong speech & to enter & remain in
right speech: This is one's right mindfulness. Thus these three qualities —
right view, right effort, & right mindfulness — run & circle around right
speech.
[4] "Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the
forerunner? One discerns wrong action as wrong action, and right action as right
action. And what is wrong action? Killing, taking what is not given, illicit
sex. This is wrong action.
"And what is right action? Right action, I tell you, is of two sorts: There is
right action with effluents, siding with merit, resulting in the acquisitions
[of becoming]; and there is noble right action, without effluents, transcendent,
a factor of the path.
"And what is the right action that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in
acquisitions? Abstaining from killing, from taking what is not given, & from
illicit sex. This is the right action that has effluents, sides with merit, &
results in acquisitions.
"And what is the right action that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor
of the path? The abstaining, desisting, abstinence, avoidance of the three forms
of bodily misconduct of one developing the noble path whose mind is noble, whose
mind is without effluents, who is fully possessed of the noble path. This is the
right action that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
"One tries to abandon wrong action & to enter into right action: This is one's
right effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong action & to enter & remain in
right action: This is one's right mindfulness. Thus these three qualities —
right view, right effort, & right mindfulness — run & circle around right
action.
[5] "Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the
forerunner? One discerns wrong livelihood as wrong livelihood, and right
livelihood as right livelihood. And what is wrong livelihood? Scheming,
persuading, hinting, belittling, & pursuing gain with gain. This is wrong
livelihood.
"And what is right livelihood? Right livelihood, I tell you, is of two sorts:
There is right livelihood with effluents, siding with merit, resulting in the
acquisitions [of becoming]; and there is noble right livelihood, without
effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
"And what is the right livelihood that has effluents, sides with merit, &
results in acquisitions? There is the case where a disciple of the noble ones
abandons wrong livelihood and maintains his life with right livelihood. This is
the right livelihood that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in
acquisitions.
"And what is the right livelihood that is without effluents, transcendent, a
factor of the path? The abstaining, desisting, abstinence, avoidance of wrong
livelihood of one developing the noble path whose mind is noble, whose mind is
without effluents, who is fully possessed of the noble path. This is the right
livelihood that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
"One tries to abandon wrong livelihood & to enter into right livelihood: This is
one's right effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong livelihood & to enter &
remain in right livelihood: This is one's right mindfulness. Thus these three
qualities — right view, right effort, & right mindfulness — run & circle around
right livelihood.
"Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the forerunner?
In one of right view, right resolve comes into being. In one of right resolve,
right speech comes into being. In one of right speech, right action... In one of
right action, right livelihood... In one of right livelihood, right effort... In
one of right effort, right mindfulness... In one of right mindfulness, right
concentration... In one of right concentration, right knowledge... In one of
right knowledge, right release comes into being. Thus the learner is endowed
with eight factors, and the arahant with ten.
"Of those, right view is the forerunner. And how is right view the forerunner?
In one of right view, wrong view is abolished. The many evil, unskillful
qualities that come into play with wrong view as their condition are also
abolished, while the many skillful qualities that have right view as their
condition go to the culmination of their development. In one of right resolve,
wrong resolve is abolished... In one of right speech, wrong speech is
abolished... In one of right action, wrong action is abolished... In one of
right livelihood, wrong livelihood is abolished... In one of right effort, wrong
effort is abolished... In one of right mindfulness, wrong mindfulness is
abolished... In one of right concentration, wrong concentration is abolished...
In one of right knowledge, wrong knowledge is abolished... In one of right
release, wrong release is abolished. The many evil, unskillful qualities that
come into play with wrong release as their condition are also abolished, while
the many skillful qualities that have right release as their condition go to the
culmination of their development.
"Thus, monks, there are twenty factors siding with skillfulness, and twenty with
unskillfulness.
"This Dhamma discourse on the Great Forty has been set rolling and cannot be
stopped by any contemplative or priest or deva or Mara and Brahma or anyone at
all in the world.
"If any priest or contemplative might think that this Great Forty Dhamma
discourse should be censured & rejected, there are ten legitimate implications
of his statement that would form grounds for censuring him here & now. If he
censures right view, then he would honor any priests and contemplatives who are
of wrong view; he would praise them. If he censures right resolve... right
speech... right action... right livelihood... right effort... right
mindfulness... right concentration... right knowledge... If he censures right
release, then he would honor any priests and contemplatives who are of wrong
release; he would praise them. If any priest or contemplative might think that
this Great Forty Dhamma discourse should be censured & rejected, there are these
ten legitimate implications of his statement that would form grounds for
censuring him here & now.
"Even Vassa & Bhañña — those teachers from Okkala who were proponents of
no-causality, no-action, & no-existence — would not think that this Dhamma
discourse on the Great Forty should be censured & rejected. Why is that? For
fear of criticism, opposition, & reproach."
That is what the Blessed One said. Gratified, the monks delighted in the Blessed
One's words.
0 comments:
Post a Comment