THE PATH
OF PURIFICATION
(VISUDDHIMAGGA)
BY
BHADANTACARIYA BUDDHAGHOSA
Translated from the Pali
by
BHIKKHU NANAMOLI
FIFTH EDITION
BUDDHIST PUBLICATION SOCIETY
Kandy Sri Lanka
[(4) RECOLLECTION OF PAST LIFE]
13. As to the explanation of knowledge of recollection of past life, [the
text is as follows: He directs, he inclines, his mind to the knowledge of
recollection of past life. He recollects his manifold past life, that is to
say, one birth, two births, three births, four births, five births, ten births,
twenty births, thirty births, forty births, fifty births, a hundred births, a
thousand births, a hundred thousand births, many aeons of world con-
traction, many aeons of world expansion: many aeons of world contrac-
tion and expansion: "There I was so named, of such a race, with such an
appearance, such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain,
such the end of my life span; and passing away from there, I reappeared
elsewhere; and there too I was so named, of such a race, with such an ap-
pearance, such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain,
such the end of my life span; and passing away from there, I reappeared
here". Thus with its aspects and particulars he recollects his manifold
pasc life' (D.i,81). [Herein,] to the knowledge of recollection of past life
[means] for knowledge concerning recollection of past life. Past life is
aggregates lived in the past in former births. 'Lived' [in that case means]
lived out, undergone, arisen and ceased in one's own [subjective] conti-
nuity. Or alternatively, [past life] is mental objects lived [in the past in
one's former births]; and 'lived' in that case means lived by living in
one's [objective] resort, which has been cognized and delimited by one's
own consciousness, or cognized by another's consciousness, too. In the
case of recollection of those [past Enlightened Ones] who have broken
the cycle, and so on,
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these last are only accessible to Enlightened Ones.
Recollection of past life: the mindfulness (memory) by means of which
he recollects the past life is the recollection of past life. Knowledge is the
knowledge associated with that mindfulness. [411] To the knowledge of
recollection of past life: for the purpose of the knowledge of the recol-
lection of past life in this way; for the attaining, for the reaching, of that
knowledge, is what is meant.
14. Manifold: of many kinds: or that has occurred in many ways. Given
in detail, is the meaning.
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Past life is the continuity lived here and there,
taking the immediately previous existence as the beginning [and working
backwards]. He recollects: he recalls it, following it out by the succes-
sion of aggregates, or by death and rebirth-linking.
15. There are six kinds of people who recollect this past life. They are:
other sectarians, ordinary disciples, great disciples, chief disciples, Pac-
cekabuddhas, and Buddhas.
16. Herein, other sectarians recollect only as far back as forty aeons, but
not beyond that. Why? Because their understanding is weak for lack of
delimitation of mind and matter (see Ch. XVIII). Ordinary disciples rec-
ollect as far back as a hundred aeons and as far back as a thousand aeons
because their understanding is strong. The eighty great disciples recol-
lect as far back as a hundred thousand aeons. The two chief disciples
recollect as far back as an incalculable age and a hundred thousand
aeons. Paccekabuddhas recollect as far back as two incalculable ages and
a hundred thousand aeons. For such is the extent to which they can con-
vey [their minds back respectively]. But there is no limit in the case of
Buddhas.
17. Again, other sectarians only recollect the succession of aggregates;
they are unable to recollect according [only] to death and rebirth-linking,
letting go of the succession of aggregates. They are like the blind in that
they are unable to descend upon any place they choose; they go as the
blind do without letting go of their sticks. So they recollect without
letting go of the succession of aggregates. Ordinary disciples both recol-
lect by means of the succession of aggregates and trace by means of
death and rebirth-linking. Likewise the eighty great disciples. But the
chief disciples have nothing to do with the succession of aggregates.
When they see the death of one person, they see the rebirth-linking, and
again when they see the death of another, they see the rebirth-linking. So
they go by tracing through death and rebirth-linking. Likewise Pacceka-
buddhas.
18. Buddhas, however, have nothing to do either with succession of
aggregates or with tracing though death and rebirth-linking; for whatever
instance they choose in many millions of aeons, or more or less, is
evident to them. So they go, and so they descend with the lion's descent
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wherever they want, even skipping over many millions of aeons as though
they were an elision in a text. And just as an arrow shot by such a master
of archery expert in hair-splitting as Sarabhahga (see Ja.v,129) always
hits the target without getting held up among trees, crebpers, etc., on its
way, and so neither gets held up nor misses, so too, since Buddhas go in
this way their knowledge does not get held up in intermediate births
[412] or miss; without getting held up or missing, it seizes any instance
required.
19. Among these beings with recollection of past life, the sectarians'
vision of past life seems like the light of a glow-worm, that of ordinary
disciples like the light of a candle, that of the great disciples like the
light of a torch, that of the chief disciples like the light of the morning
star, that of Paccekabuddhas like the light of the moon, and that of Bud-
dhas like the glorious autumn sun's disk with its thousand rays.
20. Other sectarians see past life as blind men go [tapping] with the
point of a stick. Ordinary disciples do so as men who go on a log bridge.
The great disciples do so as men who go on a foot bridge. The chief
disciples do so as men who go on a cart bridge. Paccekabuddhas do so as
men who go on a main foot-path. And Buddhas do so as men who go on
a high road for carts.
21. In this connexion it is the disciples' recollection of past life that is
intended. Hence it was said above: * "He recollects": he recollects it fol-
lowing it out by the succession of aggregates, or by death and rebirth-
linking' (§14).
22. So a bhikkhu who is a beginner and wants to recollect in this way
should go into solitary retreat on return from his alms round after his
meal. Then he should attain the four jhanas in succession and emerge
from the fourth jhana as basis for direct-knowledge. He should then
advert to his most recent act of sitting down [for this purpose], next, to
the preparation of the seat, to the entry into the lodging, to the putting
away of the bowl and [outer] robe, to the time of eating, to the time of
returning from the village, to the time of wandering for alms in the
village, to the time of entering the village, to the time of setting out from
the monastery, to the time of paying homage at the shrine terrace and the
Enlightenment-tree terrace, to the time of washing the bowl, to the time
of picking up the bowl, to the things done from the time of picking up
the bowl back to the mouth washing, to the things done in the early
morning, to the things done in the middle watch, in the first watch. In
this way he should advert to all the things done during the whole night
and day in reverse order.
23. While this much, however, is evident even to his normal conscious-
ness, it is especially evident to his preliminary-work consciousness. But
if anything there is not evident, he should again attain the basic jhana,
emerge and advert. By so doing it becomes as evident as when a lamp is
lit. And so, in reverse order too, he should advert to the things done on
the second day back, and on the third, fourth and fifth day, and in the ten
days, and in the fortnight, and as far back as a year.
24. When by these means he adverts to ten years, twenty years, and so
on as far back as his own rebirth-linking in this existence, [413] he
should advert to the mentality-materiality occurring at the moment of
death in the preceding existence; for a wise bhikkhu is able at the first
attempt to remove
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the rebirth-linking and make the mentality-material-
ity at the death moment his object.
25. But the mentality-materiality in the previous existence has ceased
without remainder and another has arisen, and consequently that instance
is, as it were, shut away in darkness, and it is hard for one of little under-
standing to see it. Still he should not give up the task, thinking 'I am
unable to remove the rebirth-linking and make the mentality-materiality
that occurred at the death moment my object'. On the contrary, he should
again and again attain that same basic jhana, and each time he emerges
he should advert to that instance.
26. Just as when a strong man is felling a big tree for the purpose of
making the peak of a gable, but is unable to fell the big tree with an axe
blade blunted by lopping the branches and foliage, still he does not give
up the task; on the contrary, he goes to a smithy and has his axe sharp-
ened, after which he returns and continues chopping the tree; and when
the axe again gets blunt, he does as before and continues chopping it;
and as he goes on chopping it in this way, the tree falls at length,
because each time there is no need to chop again what has already been
chopped and what has not yet been chopped gets chopped; so too, when
he emerges from the basic jhana, instead of adverting to what he has
already adverted to, he should advert only to the rebirth-linking, and at
length he removes the rebirth-linking and makes the mentality-material-
ity that occurred at the death moment his object. And this meaning
should also be illustrated by means of the wood cutter and the hair-cutter
as well.
27. Herein, the knowledge that occurs making its object the period from
the last sitting down for this purpose back to the rebirth-linking is not
called knowledge of recollection of past life; but it is called preliminary-
work-concentration knowledge; and some call it 'knowledge of the past'
(antamsandna), but that is inappropriate to the fine-material sphere.
However, when this bhikkhu has got back beyond the rebirth-
linking, there arises in him mind-door adverting making its object the
mentality-materiality that occurred at the death moment. And when that
has ceased, then either four or five impulsions impel making that their
object too. The first of these, called 'preliminary-work', etc., in the way
already described (§5), are of the sense sphere. The last is a fine-material
absorption consciousness of the fourth jhana.The knowledge that arises
in him then together with that consciousness is what is called 'knowl-
edge of recollection of past life'. It is with the mindfulness (memory)
associated with that knowledge that he 'recollects his manifold past life,
that is to say', one birth, two births, ... [414] thus with details and
particulars he recollects his manifold past life (D.i,81).
28. Herein, one birth is the continuity of aggregates included in a single
becoming starting with rebirth-linking and ending with death. So too
with two births, and the rest.
But in the case of many aeons of world contraction, etc., it should
be understood that the aeon of world contraction is an aeon of diminu-
tion and the aeon of world expansion is an aeon of increase.
29. Herein, what supersedes the contraction is included in the contrac-
tion since it is rooted in it; and so too what supersedes the expansion is
included in the expansion. This being so, it includes what is stated thus:
'Bhikkhus, there are four incalculables of the aeon. What four? The con-
traction, what supersedes the contraction, the expansion, and what super-
sedes the expansion' (A.ii,142 abbreviated).
30. Herein, there are three kinds of contraction: contraction due to wa-
ter, contraction due to fire, and contraction due to air (see M. Sutta 28).
Also there are three limits to the contraction; the Abhassara (Streaming-
radiance) Brahma-world, that of the Subhakinha (Refulgent-glory), and
that of the Vehapphala (Great-fruit). When the aeon contracts owing to
fire, all below the Abhassara [Brahma-world] is burnt up by fire. When
it contracts owing to water, it is all dissolved by water up to the
Subhakinha [Brahma-world]. When it contracts owing to air, it is all de-
molished by wind up to the Vehapphala [BrahmA-world].
31. In breadth it is always one of the Buddha-fields that is destroyed.
For the Buddha-fields are of three kinds, that is, the field of birth, the
field of authority, and the field of scope.
Herein, the field of birth is limited by the ten thousand world-spheres
that quaked on the Perfect One's taking rebirth-linking, and so on. The
field of authority is limited by the hundred thousand million world-
spheres where the following safeguards (paritta) are efficacious, that is,
the Ratana Sutta (Sn. p.39), the Khandha Paritta (Vin.ii,109; A.ii,72), the
Dhajagga Paritta (S.i,218) the AtAnAtiya Paritta (D.iii,194), and the Mora
Paritta (Ja.ii,33). The field of scope is boundless, immeasurable: 'As
far as he wishes' (A.i,228) it is said. The Perfect One knows anything
anywhere that he wishes. So one of these three Buddha-fields, that is to
say, the field of authority is destroyed. But when that is being destroyed,
the field of birth also gets destroyed. And that happens simultaneously;
and when it is reconstituted, that happens simultaneously (cf. MA.iv,l 14).
32. Now it should be understood how its destruction and reconstitution
come about thus. On the occasion when the aeon is destroyed by fire
[415] first of all a great cloud heralding the aeon's destruction appears,
and there is a great downpour all over the hundred thousand million
world-spheres. People are delighted, and they bring out all their seeds
and sow them. But when the sprouts have grown enough for an ox to
graze, then not a drop of rain falls any more even when asses bray. Rain
is withheld from then on. This is what the Blessed One referred to when
he said: 'Bhikkhus, an occasion comes when for many years, for many
hundred years, for many thousand years, for many hundred thousand
year, there is no rain' (A.iv,100). Beings that live by rain die and are
reborn in the Brahma-world, and so are the deities that live on flowers
and fruits.
33. When a long period has passed in this way, the water gives out here
and there. Then in due course the fishes and turtles die and are reborn in
the Brahma-world, and so are the beings in hell. Some say that the deni-
zens of hell perish there with the appearance of the seventh sun (§41).
Now there is no rebirth in the Brahma-world without jhana; and
some of them, being obsessed with the scarcity of food, are unable to
attain jhana, so how are they reborn there? By means of jhana obtained
in the [sense-sphere] divine world.
34. For then the sense-sphere deities called world-marshall (loka-byuha)
deities come to know that at the end of a hundred thousand years there
will be the emergence of an aeon, and they travel up and down the
haunts of men, their heads bared, their hair dishevelled, with piteous
faces, mopping their tears with their hands, clothed in dyed cloth, and
wearing their dress in great disorder. They make this announcement:
'Good sirs, good sirs, at the end of a hundred thousand years from now
there will be the emergence of an aeon. This world will be destroyed.
Even the ocean will dry up. This great earth, and Sineru King of Moun-
tains, will be consumed and destroyed. The destruction of the earth will
extend as far as the Brahma-world. Develop lovingkindness, good sirs,
develop compassion, gladness, equanimity, good sirs. Care for your moth-
ers, care for your fathers, honour the elders of your clans'.
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