Samyutta Nikaya - Sotapatti Samyutta I
SN 55.1
Raja Sutta
The Emperor
Translated from the Pali by
Thanissaro BhikkhuPTS: S v 342
CDB ii 1788
Source: Transcribed from a file provided by the translator.
Copyright © 2004 Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
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At Savatthi. There the Blessed One said, "Monks, even though a wheel-turning
emperor, having exercised sovereign lordship over the four continents, on the
break-up of the body, after death, reappears in the good destination, the
heavenly world, in the company of the devas of the Thirty-three, and enjoys
himself there in the Nandana grove, surrounded by a consort of nymphs, supplied
and endowed with the five strings of heavenly sensual pleasure, still — because
he is not endowed with four qualities — he is not freed from [the possibility of
going to] hell, not freed from the animal womb, not freed from the realm of
hungry shades, not freed from the plane of deprivation, the bad destinations,
the lower realms.
"And even though a disciple of the noble ones lives off lumps of alms food and
wears rag-robes, still — because he is endowed with four qualities — he is freed
from hell, freed from the animal womb, freed from the realm of hungry shades,
freed from the plane of deprivation, the bad destinations, the lower realms.
"And what are the four? There is the case where the disciple of the noble ones
is endowed with verified confidence in the Awakened One: 'Indeed, the Blessed
One is worthy and rightly self-awakened, consummate in knowledge & conduct,
well-gone, an expert with regard to the world, unexcelled as a trainer for those
people fit to be tamed, the Teacher of divine & human beings, awakened,
blessed.'
"He/she is endowed with verified confidence in the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is
well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here & now, timeless, inviting
verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.'
"He/she is endowed with verified confidence in the Sangha: 'The Sangha of the
Blessed One's disciples who have practiced well...who have practiced
straight-forwardly...who have practiced methodically...who have practiced
masterfully — in other words, the four types of noble disciples when taken as
pairs, the eight when taken as individual types1 — they are the Sangha of the
Blessed One's disciples: worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality, worthy of
offerings, worthy of respect, the incomparable field of merit for the world.'
"He/she is endowed with virtues that are appealing to the noble ones: untorn,
unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the wise, untarnished,
leading to concentration.
"He/she is endowed with these four qualities.2
"And between the gaining of the four continents and the gaining of these four
qualities, the gaining of the four continents is not equal to one sixteenth of
the gaining of these four qualities."3
Notes
1. The four pairs are (1) the person on the path to stream-entry, the person
experiencing the fruit of stream-entry; (2) the person on the path to
once-returning, the person experiencing the fruit of once-returning; (3) the
person on the path to non-returning, the person experiencing the fruit of
non-returning; (4) the person on the path to arahantship, the person
experiencing the fruit of arahantship. The eight individuals are the eight types
forming these four pairs.
2. These four qualities — the factors of stream-entry — characterize the person
who has attained the first of the four levels of awakening.
3. Dhp 178 provides what would appear to be a verse summary of this last
paragraph:
Sole dominion over the earth,
going to heaven,
lordship over all worlds:
the fruit of stream-entry
excels them.
SN 55.21
Mahanama Sutta
To Mahanama (1)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Sakyans
near Kapilavatthu in Nigrodha's Park. Then Mahanama the Sakyan went to the
Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he
was sitting there, he said to the Blessed One, "Lord, this Kapilavatthu is rich
& prosperous, populous & crowded, its alleys congested. Sometimes, when I enter
Kapilavatthu in the evening after visiting with the Blessed One or with the
monks who inspire the mind, I meet up with a runaway elephant, a runaway horse,
a runaway chariot, a runaway cart, or a runaway person. At times like that my
mindfulness with regard to the Blessed One gets muddled, my mindfulness with
regard to the Dhamma... the Sangha gets muddled. The thought occurs to me, 'If I
were to die at this moment, what would be my destination? What would be my
future course?"
"Have no fear, Mahanama! Have no fear! Your death will not be a bad one, your
demise will not be bad. If one's mind has long been nurtured with conviction,
nurtured with virtue, nurtured with learning, nurtured with relinquishment,
nurtured with discernment, then when the body — endowed with form, composed of
the four primary elements, born from mother & father, nourished with rice &
porridge, subject to inconstancy, rubbing, pressing, dissolution, & dispersion —
is eaten by crows, vultures, hawks, dogs, hyenas, or all sorts of creatures,
nevertheless the mind — long nurtured with conviction, nurtured with virtue,
learning, relinquishment, & discernment — rises upward and separates out.
"Suppose a man were to throw a jar of ghee or a jar of oil into a deep lake of
water, where it would break. There the shards & jar-fragments would go down,
while the ghee or oil would rise upward and separate out. In the same way, if
one's mind has long been nurtured with conviction, nurtured with virtue,
nurtured with learning, nurtured with relinquishment, nurtured with discernment,
then when the body... is eaten by crows, vultures, hawks, dogs, hyenas, or all
sorts of creatures, nevertheless the mind... rises upward and separates out.
"Have no fear, Mahanama! Have no fear! Your death will not be a bad one, your
demise will not be bad."
See also: SN 55.22; AN 6.16
SN 55.22
Mahanama Sutta
To Mahanama (2)
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying among the Sakyans
near Kapilavatthu in Nigrodha's Park. Then Mahanama the Sakyan went to the
Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he
was sitting there, he said to the Blessed One, "Lord, this Kapilavatthu is rich
& prosperous, populous & crowded, its alleys congested. Sometimes, when I enter
Kapilavatthu in the evening after visiting with the Blessed One or with the
monks who inspire the mind, I meet up with a runaway elephant, a runaway horse,
a runaway chariot, a runaway cart, or a runaway person. At times like that my
mindfulness with regard to the Blessed One gets muddled, my mindfulness with
regard to the Dhamma... the Sangha gets muddled. The thought occurs to me, 'If I
were to die at this moment, what would be my destination? What would be my
future course?"
"Have no fear, Mahanama! Have no fear! Your death will not be a bad one, your
demise will not be bad. A disciple of the noble ones, when endowed with four
qualities, leans toward Unbinding, slants toward Unbinding, inclines toward
Unbinding. Which four?
"There is the case where the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with verified
confidence in the Awakened One: 'Indeed, the Blessed One is worthy and rightly
self-awakened, consummate in knowledge & conduct, well-gone, an expert with
regard to the world, unexcelled as a trainer for those people fit to be tamed,
the Teacher of divine & human beings, awakened, blessed.'
"He/she is endowed with verified confidence in the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is
well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here & now, timeless, inviting
verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.'
"He/she is endowed with verified confidence in the Sangha: 'The Sangha of the
Blessed One's disciples who have practiced well...who have practiced
straight-forwardly...who have practiced methodically...who have practiced
masterfully — in other words, the four types of noble disciples when taken as
pairs, the eight when taken as individual types — they are the Sangha of the
Blessed One's disciples: worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality, worthy of
offerings, worthy of respect, the incomparable field of merit for the world.'
"He/she is endowed with virtues that are appealing to the noble ones: untorn,
unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the wise, untarnished,
leading to concentration.
"Suppose a tree were leaning toward the east, slanting toward the east,
inclining toward the east. When its root is cut, which way would it fall?"
"In whichever way it was leaning, slanting, and inclining, lord."
"In the same way, Mahanama, a disciple of the noble ones, when endowed with four
qualities, leans toward Unbinding, slants toward Unbinding, inclines toward
Unbinding."
See also: SN 55.21; AN 6.16
SN 55.30
Licchavi Sutta
To the Licchavi
On one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Vesali in the Gabled Hall in
the Great Forest. Then Nandaka, the chief minister of the Licchavis, went to the
Blessed One and on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was
sitting there the Blessed One said to him: "Nandaka, a disciple of the noble
ones endowed with four qualities is a stream-winner, steadfast, never again
destined for states of woe, headed for self-awakening. Which four?
"There is the case where the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with verified
confidence in the Awakened One: 'Indeed, the Blessed One is worthy and rightly
self-awakened, consummate in knowledge & conduct, well-gone, an expert with
regard to the world, unexcelled as a trainer for those people fit to be tamed,
the Teacher of divine & human beings, awakened, blessed.'
"He/she is endowed with verified confidence in the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is
well-expounded by the Blessed One, to be seen here & now, timeless, inviting
verification, pertinent, to be realized by the wise for themselves.'
"He/she is endowed with verified confidence in the Sangha: 'The Sangha of the
Blessed One's disciples who have practiced well...who have practiced
straight-forwardly...who have practiced methodically...who have practiced
masterfully-in other words, the four types of noble disciples when taken as
pairs, the eight when taken as individual types-they are the Sangha of the
Blessed One's disciples: worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality, worthy of
offerings, worthy of respect, the incomparable field of merit for the world.'
"He/she is endowed with virtues that are appealing to the noble ones: untorn,
unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the wise, untarnished,
leading to concentration.
"A disciple of the noble ones endowed with these four qualities is a
stream-winner, steadfast, never again destined for states of woe, headed for
self-awakening.
"Furthermore, a disciple of the noble ones endowed with these four qualities is
linked with long life, human or divine; is linked with beauty, human or divine;
is linked with happiness, human or divine; is linked with status, human or
divine; is linked with influence, human or divine.
"I tell you this, Nandaka, not having heard it from any other brahman or
contemplative. Instead, I tell you this having known, seen, and realized it for
myself."
When this was said, a certain man said to Nandaka, the chief minister of the
Licchavis, "It is now time for your bath, sir."
[Nandaka responded,] "Enough, I say, with this external bath. I am satisfied
with this internal bath: confidence in the Blessed One."
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