Majjhima Nikaya - Gopaka Moggallana Sutta

MN 108
Gopaka Moggallana Sutta
Moggallana the Guardsman
Translated from the Pali by
Thanissaro BhikkhuPTS: M iii 7



Source: Transcribed from a file provided by the translator.



Copyright © 1998 Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
Access to Insight edition © 1998
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.



Translator's note: This discourse presents a picture of life in the early
Buddhist community shortly after the Buddha's passing away. On the one hand, it
shows the relationship between the monastic community and the political powers
that be: the monks are polite and courteous to political functionaries, but the
existence of this discourse shows that they had no qualms about depicting those
functionaries as a little dense. On the other hand, it shows that early Buddhist
practice had no room for many practices that developed in later Buddhist
traditions, such as appointed lineage holders, elected ecclesiastical heads, or
the use of mental defilements as a basis for concentration practice.



I have heard that on one occasion Ven. Ananda was staying near Rajagaha in the
Bamboo Grove, the Squirrels' Sanctuary, not long after the Blessed One's total
Unbinding.
Now at that time King Ajatasattu Vedehiputta of Magadha, suspicious of King
Pajjota, was having Rajagaha fortified.
Then in the early morning, Ven. Ananda, having put on his robes and carrying his
bowl and outer robe, went into Rajagaha for alms. The thought occurred to him,
"It's too early to go for alms in Rajagaha. What if I were to go to the brahman
Moggallana the Guardsman at his construction site?" So he went to Moggallana the
Guardsman at his construction site. Moggallana the Guardsman saw him coming from
afar, and on seeing him said to him, "Come, Master Ananda. Welcome, Master
Ananda. It has been a long time since Master Ananda has found the time to come
here. Sit down, Master Ananda. Here is a seat made ready for you."
So Ven. Ananda sat down on the seat made ready. Moggallana the Guardsman, taking
a lower seat, sat to one side.
As he was sitting there, he said to Ven. Ananda: "Master Ananda, is there any
one monk endowed in each & every way with the qualities with which Master Gotama
— worthy & rightly self-awakened — was endowed?"
"No, brahman, there isn't any one monk endowed in each & every way with the
qualities with which the Blessed One — worthy & rightly self-awakened — was
endowed. For the Blessed One was the arouser of the unarisen path, the begetter
of the unbegotten path, the expounder of the unexpounded path, the knower of the
path, the expert with regard to the path, adept at the path. And now his
disciples follow the path and become endowed with it after him."
And then Ven. Ananda's discussion with Moggallana the Guardsman was interrupted
in mid-course, for the brahman Vassakara, the Magadhan administrator, on an
inspection tour of the construction sites in Rajagaha, went to Ven. Ananda at
Moggallana the Guardsman's construction site. On arrival, he exchanged courteous
greetings with Ven. Ananda. After an exchange of friendly greetings &
courtesies, he sat to one side. As he was sitting there, he said to Ven. Ananda,
"Just now, for what discussion were you sitting together when you were
interrupted in mid-course?"
"Just now, brahman, Moggallana the Guardsman said to me, 'Master Ananda, is
there any one monk endowed in each & every way with the qualities with which
Master Gotama — worthy & rightly self-awakened — was endowed?' And when this was
said, I said to him, 'No, brahman, there isn't any one monk endowed in each &
every way with the qualities with which the Blessed One — worthy & rightly
self-awakened — was endowed. For the Blessed One was the arouser of the unarisen
path, the begetter of the unbegotten path, the expounder of the unexpounded
path, the knower of the path, the expert with regard to the path, adept at the
path. And now his disciples follow the path and become endowed with it after
him.' This was my discussion with the brahman Moggallana the Guardsman that was
interrupted in mid-course when you arrived."
"Master Ananda, is there any one monk appointed by Master Gotama [with the
words], 'He will be your arbitrator after I am gone,' to whom you now turn?"
"No, brahman. There isn't any one monk appointed by the Blessed One — the one
who knows, the one who sees, worthy & rightly self-awakened — [with the words]
'He will be your arbitrator after I am gone,' to whom we now turn."
"Then is there any one monk authorized by the Sangha and appointed by a large
body of elder monks [with the words], 'He will be our arbitrator after the
Blessed One is gone,' to whom you now turn?"
"No, brahman. There isn't any one monk authorized by the Sangha and appointed by
a large body of elder monks [with the words] 'He will be our arbitrator after
the Blessed One is gone,' to whom we now turn."
"Being thus without an arbitrator, Master Ananda, what is the reason for your
concord?"
"It's not the case, brahman, that we're without an arbitrator. We have an
arbitrator. The Dhamma is our arbitrator."
"When asked, 'Master Ananda, is there any one monk appointed by Master Gotama
[with the words], "He will be your arbitrator after I am gone," to whom you now
turn?' you said, 'No, brahman. There isn't any one monk appointed by the Blessed
One... to whom we now turn.'
"When asked, 'Then is there any one monk authorized by the Sangha... to whom you
now turn?' you said, 'No, brahman. There isn't any one monk authorized by the
Sangha... to whom we now turn.'
"When asked, 'Being thus without an arbitrator, Master Ananda, what is the
reason for your concord?' you said, 'It's not the case, brahman, that we're
without an arbitrator. We have an arbitrator. The Dhamma is our arbitrator.' Now
how is the meaning of what you have said to be understood?"
"Brahman, there is a training rule laid down by the Blessed One — the one who
knows, the one who sees, worthy & rightly self-awakened — a Patimokkha that has
been codified. On the uposatha day, all of us who live dependent on a single
township gather together in one place. Having gathered together, we invite the
one to whom it falls [to recite the Patimokkha]. If, while he is reciting, a
monk remembers an offense or transgression, we deal with him in accordance with
the Dhamma, in accordance with what has been instructed. We're not the ones who
deal with that venerable one. Rather, the Dhamma is what deals with us."
"Is there, Master Ananda, any one monk you now honor, respect, revere, &
venerate, on whom — honoring & respecting — you live in dependence?"
"Yes, brahman, there is a monk we now honor, respect, revere, & venerate, on
whom — honoring & respecting — we live in dependence."
"When asked, 'Master Ananda, is there any one monk appointed by Master Gotama
[with the words], "He will be your arbitrator after I am gone," to whom you now
turn?' you said, 'No, brahman. There isn't any one monk appointed by the Blessed
One... to whom we now turn.'
"When asked, 'Then is there any one monk authorized by the Sangha... to whom you
now turn?' you said, 'No, brahman. There isn't any one monk authorized by the
Sangha... to whom we now turn.'
"When asked, 'Is there, Master Ananda, any one monk you now honor, respect,
revere, & venerate, on whom — honoring & respecting — you live in dependence?'
you said, 'Yes, brahman, there is a monk we now honor, respect, revere, &
venerate, on whom — honoring & respecting — we live in dependence.' Now how is
the meaning of what you have said to be understood?"
"Brahman, there are ten inspiring qualities expounded by the Blessed One — the
one who knows, the one who sees, worthy & rightly self-awakened. In whoever
among us those ten qualities are found, we now honor, respect, revere, &
venerate him; honoring & respecting him, we live in dependence on him. Which
ten?
[1] "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.
[2] "He has heard much, has retained what he has heard, has stored what he has
heard. Whatever teachings are admirable in the beginning, admirable in the
middle, admirable in the end, that — in their meaning & expression — proclaim
the holy life entirely perfect & pure: those he has listened to often, retained,
discussed, accumulated, examined with his mind, and well-penetrated in terms of
his views.
[3] "He is content with robes, alms food, lodgings, & medicinal requisites for
curing the sick.
[4] "He attains — whenever he wants, without strain, without difficulty — the
four jhanas that are heightened mental states, pleasant abidings in the
here-&-now.
[5] "He experiences manifold supranormal powers. Having been one he becomes
many; having been many he becomes one. He appears. He vanishes. He goes
unimpeded through walls, ramparts, & mountains as if through space. He dives in
& out of the earth as if it were water. He walks on water without sinking as if
it were dry land. Sitting crosslegged he flies through the air like a winged
bird. With his hand he touches & strokes even the sun & moon, so mighty &
powerful. He exercises influence with his body even as far as the Brahma worlds.
[6] "He hears — by means of the divine ear-element, purified & surpassing the
human — both kinds of sounds: divine & human, whether near or far.
[7] "He knows the awareness of other beings, other individuals, having
encompassed it with his own awareness. He discerns a mind with passion as a mind
with passion, and a mind without passion as a mind without passion. He discerns
a mind with aversion as a mind with aversion, and a mind without aversion as a
mind without aversion. He discerns a mind with delusion as a mind with delusion,
and a mind without delusion as a mind without delusion. He discerns a restricted
mind as a restricted mind, and a scattered mind as a scattered mind. He discerns
an enlarged mind as an enlarged mind, and an unenlarged mind as an unenlarged
mind. He discerns an excelled mind [one that is not at the most excellent level]
as an excelled mind, and an unexcelled mind as an unexcelled mind. He discerns a
concentrated mind as a concentrated mind, and an unconcentrated mind as an
unconcentrated mind. He discerns a released mind as a released mind, and an
unreleased mind as an unreleased mind.
[8] "He recollects his manifold past lives (lit: previous homes), i.e., one
birth, two births, three births, four, five, ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty,
one hundred, one thousand, one hundred thousand, many aeons of cosmic
contraction, many aeons of cosmic expansion, many aeons of cosmic contraction &
expansion, [recollecting], '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 remembers his manifold past
lives in their modes & details.
[9] "He sees — by means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human —
beings passing away and re-appearing, and he discerns how they are inferior &
superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their
kamma: 'These beings — who were endowed with bad conduct of body, speech, &
mind, who reviled the noble ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under
the influence of wrong views — with 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 good conduct of body, speech,
& mind, who did not revile the noble ones, who held right views and undertook
actions under the influence of right views — with 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 and re-appearing, and he discerns how they are inferior &
superior, beautiful & ugly, fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their
kamma.
[10] "Through the ending of the mental fermentations, he remains in the
fermentation-free awareness-release & discernment-release, having known & made
them manifest for himself right in the here & now.
"These, brahman, are the ten inspiring qualities expounded by the Blessed One —
the one who knows, the one who sees, worthy & rightly self-awakened. In whoever
among us these ten qualities are found, we now honor, respect, revere, &
venerate him; honoring & respecting him, we live in dependence on him."
When this was said, the brahman Vassakara, the Magadhan administrator, turned to
General Upananda and said, "What do you think, general? Do these venerable ones
honor what should be honored, respect what should be respected, revere what
should be revered, venerate what should be venerated? Of course they honor what
should be honored, respect what should be respected, revere what should be
revered, venerate what should be venerated. For if they did not honor, respect,
revere, or venerate a person like this, then what sort of person would they
honor, respect, revere, & venerate; on what sort of person, honor & respecting,
would they live in dependence?"
Then the brahman Vassakara, the Magadhan administrator, said to Ven. Ananda,
"But where are you staying now, Master Ananda?"
"I am now staying at the Bamboo Grove, brahman."
"I trust, Master Ananda, that the Bamboo Grove is delightful, quiet, free of
noise, with an air of isolation, remote from human beings, & appropriate for
retreat."
"Certainly, brahman, the Bamboo Grove is delightful, quiet, free of noise, with
an air of isolation, remote from human beings, & appropriate for retreat because
of guardians & protectors like yourself."
"Certainly, Master Ananda, the Bamboo Grove is delightful, quiet, free of noise,
with an air of isolation, remote from human beings, & appropriate for retreat
because of venerable ones who are endowed with mental absorption (jhana), who
make mental absorption their habit. You venerable ones are both endowed with
mental absorption & make mental absorption your habit.
"Once, Ven. Ananda, Master Gotama was staying near Vesali in the Peaked Roofed
Pavilion in the Great Wood. I went to him at the Peaked Roofed Pavilion in the
Great Wood, and there he spoke in a variety of ways on mental absorption. Master
Gotama was both endowed with mental absorption & made mental absorption his
habit. In fact, he praised mental absorption of every sort."
"It wasn't the case, brahman, that the Blessed One praised mental absorption of
every sort, nor did he criticize mental absorption of every sort. And what sort
of mental absorption did he not praise? There is the case where a certain person
dwells with his awareness overcome by sensual passion, seized with sensual
passion. He does not discern the escape, as it actually is present, from sensual
passion once it has arisen. Making that sensual passion the focal point, he
absorbs himself with it, besorbs, resorbs, & supersorbs himself with it.
"He dwells with his awareness overcome by ill will...
"He dwells with his awareness overcome by sloth & drowsiness...
"He dwells with his awareness overcome by restlessness & anxiety...
"He dwells with his awareness overcome by uncertainty, seized with uncertainty.
He does not discern the escape, as it actually is present, from uncertainty once
it has arisen. Making that uncertainty the focal point, he absorbs himself with
it, besorbs, resorbs, & supersorbs himself with it. This is the sort of mental
absorption that the Blessed One did not praise.
"And what sort of mental absorption did he praise? There is the case where a
monk — quite withdrawn from sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful (mental)
qualities — enters & remains in the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from
withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. With the stilling of
directed thoughts & evaluations, he enters & remains in the second jhana:
rapture & pleasure born of concentration, unification of awareness free from
directed thought & evaluation — internal assurance. With the fading of rapture,
he remains in equanimity, is mindful & alert, and senses pleasure with the body.
He enters & remains in the third jhana, of which the Noble Ones declare,
'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasurable abiding.' With the abandoning of
pleasure & pain — as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress — he
enters & remains in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness,
neither pleasure nor pain. This is the sort of mental absorption that the
Blessed One praised.
"It would seem, Ven. Ananda, that Master Gotama criticized the mental absorption
that deserves criticism, and praised that which deserves praise.
"Well, now, Master Ananda, I must be going. Many are my duties, many the things
I must do."
"Then do, brahman, what you think it is now time to do."
So the brahman Vassakara, the Magadhan administrator, delighting & rejoicing in
what Ven. Ananda had said, got up from his seat & left.
Then, not long after he had left, Moggallana the Guardsman said to Ven. Ananda,
"Master Ananda, you still haven't answered what I asked you."
"Didn't I just tell you, brahman? There isn't any one monk endowed in each &
every way with the qualities with which the Blessed One — worthy & rightly
self-awakened — was endowed. For the Blessed One was the arouser of the unarisen
path, the begetter of the unbegotten path, the expounder of the unexpounded
path, the knower of the path, the expert with regard to the path, adept at the
path. And now his disciples follow the path and become endowed with it after
him."