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UNIVERSITY And THE BUDDHISTONLINE GOOD NEWS LETTER by ABHIDHAMMA RAKKHITA through http://sarvajan.ambedkar.org
IT IS THE WISH OF THE PEOPLE ALL OVER
THE WORLD THAT USA CELEBRATE 2556TH BUDDHA JAYANTI AT WHITE HOUSE,
AS IT WAS MAGNANIMOUS TO CELEBRATE DEEPAVALI.
Dhammapada:
Verses and Stories
Dhammapada
Verse 157
Safeguard Your Own Self
Verse 157.
Safeguard Your Own Self
If one
holds oneself as dear,
protected, one protects oneself.
One who’s wise should be aware
through all the watches three.
Explanation: If you are aware that you are fond of your own self
then protecting it is the best safeguard. You must take measures to protect
your self in one of the three stages of life - namely childhood, youth and old
age. The best safeguard is the acquisition of virtue.
VI.
DEMON
LINEAGE
with
Level I: Introduction to Buddhism
Level II: Buddhist Studies
TO ATTAIN
Level III:
Stream-Enterer
Level IV: Once - Returner
Level V: Non-Returner
Level VI: Arhat
Jambudvipa,
i.e, PraBuddha Bharath scientific thought in
mathematics,
astronomy,
alchemy,
and
anatomy
Philosophy and Comparative
Religions;
Historical Studies;
International Relations and Peace
Studies;
Business Management in relation to
Public Policy and Development Studies;
Languages and Literature;
VI.
DEMON
LINEAGE
with
Level I: Introduction to Buddhism
Level II: Buddhist Studies
TO ATTAIN
Level III:
Stream-Enterer
Level IV: Once - Returner
Level V: Non-Returner
Level VI: Arhat
Jambudvipa,
i.e, PraBuddha Bharath scientific thought in
mathematics,
astronomy,
alchemy,
and
anatomy
Philosophy and Comparative
Religions;
Historical Studies;
International Relations and Peace
Studies;
Business Management in relation to
Public Policy and Development Studies;
Languages and Literature;
Level III: Stream-Enterer
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/study/into_the_stream.html
Into the Stream
A Study Guide on the First Stage of Awakening
by
Thanissaro Bhikkhu
Alternate format: ![[PDF icon]](file:///C:%5CDOCUME%7E1%5CHOME%5CLOCALS%7E1%5CTemp%5Cmsohtmlclip1%5C01%5Cclip_image003.gif){kind=small}
Sole dominion over the earth, going to heaven,
lordship over all worlds: the fruit of stream-entry excels them.
— Dhp 178
Contents
·
Association with People of Integrity
·
Listening to the True Dhamma
·
Practice in Accordance with the Dhamma
II: Stream Entry & Its Results
·
The Arising of the Dhamma Eye
·
The Character of a Stream-enterer
·
Rewards
·
Advice
I: The Way to Stream Entry
Introduction
The
Pali Canon recognizes four levels of Awakening, the first of which is called
stream entry. This gains its name from the fact that a person who has attained
this level has entered the “stream” flowing inevitably to nibbana.
He/she is guaranteed to achieve full awakening within seven lifetimes at most,
and in the interim will not be reborn in any of the lower realms.
This
study guide on stream entry is divided into two parts. The first deals with the
practices leading to stream entry; the second, with the experience of stream
entry and its results.
The
practices leading to stream entry are encapsulated in four factors:
Association with people of integrity is a factor
for stream-entry. Listening to the true Dhamma is a factor for stream-entry.
Appropriate attention is a factor for stream-entry. Practice in accordance with
the Dhamma is a factor for stream-entry.
— SN 55.5
These
factors form the framework for the first part of this study guide.
The
Canon’s treatment of these factors touches on questions of interest to all
meditators, regardless of whether their practice aims all the way to Awakening:
How can you recognize a trustworthy teacher? How can you tell the true Dhamma
from counterfeit Dhamma? What are the rewards that come from listening to the
Dhamma? Which questions should you ask yourself in the course of the practice?
What kind of practice qualifies as being in accordance with the Dhamma? What
kind of qualities do you need to develop to benefit most from your practice?
For
your practice to lead to Awakening, you must develop reliable standards for
answering these questions. The Buddha offers some preliminary guidance on
developing these standards in his instructions to the brahman teenager,
Kapadika Bharadvaja.
[Kapadika
Bharadvaja:] “To what extent is there an awakening to the truth? To what
extent does one awaken to the truth? We ask Master Gotama about awakening to
the truth.”
[The
Buddha:] “There is the case, Bharadvaja, where a monk lives in dependence
on a certain village or town. Then a householder or householder’s son goes to
him and observes him with regard to three mental qualities — qualities based on
greed, qualities based on aversion, qualities based on delusion: ‘Are there in
this venerable one any such qualities based on greed that, with his mind
overcome by these qualities, he might say, “I know,” while not
knowing, or say, “I see,” while not seeing; or that he might urge another
to act in a way that was for his/her long-term harm & pain?’ As he observes
him, he comes to know, ‘There are in this venerable one no such qualities based
on greed… His bodily behavior & verbal behavior are those of one not
greedy. And the Dhamma he teaches is deep, hard to see, hard to realize,
tranquil, refined, beyond the scope of conjecture, subtle, to-be-experienced by
the wise. This Dhamma can’t easily be taught by a person who’s greedy.
“When,
on observing that the monk is purified with regard to qualities based on greed,
he next observes him with regard to qualities based on aversion… based on
delusion: ‘Are there in this venerable one any such qualities based on delusion
that, with his mind overcome by these qualities, he might say, “I know,”
while not knowing, or say, “I see,” while not seeing; or that he
might urge another to act in a way that was for his/her long-term harm &
pain?’ As he observes him, he comes to know, ‘There are in this venerable one
no such qualities based on delusion… His bodily behavior & verbal
behavior are those of one not deluded. And the Dhamma he teaches is deep, hard
to see, hard to realize, tranquil, refined, beyond the scope of conjecture,
subtle, to-be-experienced by the wise. This Dhamma can’t easily be taught by a
person who’s deluded.
“When,
on observing that the monk is purified with regard to qualities based on
delusion, he places conviction in him. With the arising of conviction, he
visits him & grows close to him. Growing close to him, he lends ear. Lending
ear, he hears the Dhamma. Hearing the Dhamma, he remembers it. Remembering it,
he penetrates the meaning of those dhammas. Penetrating the meaning, he comes
to an agreement through pondering those dhammas. There being an agreement
through pondering those dhammas, desire arises. With the arising of desire, he
becomes willing. Willing, he contemplates [lit: “weighs,”
“compares”]. Contemplating, he makes an exertion. Exerting himself,
he both realizes the ultimate meaning of the truth with his body and sees by
penetrating it with discernment.
“To
this extent, Bharadvaja, there is an awakening to the truth. To this extent one
awakens to the truth. I describe this as an awakening to the truth. But it is
not yet the final attainment of the truth.”
[Kapadika
Bharadvaja:] “Yes, Master Gotama, to this extent there is an awakening to
the truth. To this extent one awakens to the truth. We regard this as an
awakening to the truth. But to what extent is there the final attainment of the
truth? To what extent does one finally attain the truth? We ask Master Gotama
about the final attainment of the truth.”
[Buddha:]
“The cultivation, development, & pursuit of those very same qualities:
to this extent, Bharadvaja, there is the final attainment of the truth. To this
extent one finally attains the truth. I describe this as the final attainment
of the truth.”
— MN 95
Association with People of Integrity
“With
regard to external factors, I don’t envision any other single factor like
friendship with admirable people as doing so much for a monk in training, who
has not attained the goal but remains intent on the unsurpassed safety from
bondage. A monk who is a friend with admirable people abandons what is
unskillful and develops what is skillful.”
A monk who is a friend to admirable people — who’s
reverential, respectful, doing what his friends advise — mindful, alert,
attains step by step the ending of all fetters.
— Iti 17
As
he was seated to one side, Ven. Ananda said to the Blessed One, “This is
half of the holy life, lord: having admirable people as friends, companions,
& colleagues.”
“Don’t
say that, Ananda. Don’t say that. Having admirable people as friends,
companions, & colleagues is actually the whole of the holy life. When a
monk has admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues, he can be
expected to develop & pursue the noble eightfold path.
“And
how does a monk who has admirable people as friends, companions, &
colleagues, develop & pursue the noble eightfold path? There is the case
where a monk develops right view dependent on seclusion, dependent on
dispassion, dependent on cessation, resulting in letting go. He develops right
resolve… right speech… right action… right livelihood… right effort…
right mindfulness… right concentration dependent on seclusion…
dispassion… cessation, resulting in letting go. This is how a monk who has
admirable people as friends, companions, & colleagues, develops &
pursues the noble eightfold path.
“And
through this line of reasoning one may know how having admirable people as
friends, companions, & colleagues is actually the whole of the holy life:
It’s in dependence on me as an admirable friend that beings subject to birth
have gained release from birth, that beings subject to aging have gained
release from aging, that beings subject to death have gained release from
death, that beings subject to sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, &
despair have gained release from sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, &
despair.”
— SN 45.2
“And
what does it mean to have admirable people as friends? There is the case where
a lay person, in whatever town or village he may dwell, spends time with
householders or householders’ sons, young or old, who are advanced in virtue.
He talks with them, engages them in discussions. He emulates consummate
conviction in those who are consummate in conviction, consummate virtue in
those who are consummate in virtue, consummate generosity in those who are
consummate in generosity, and consummate discernment in those who are
consummate in discernment. This is called having admirable people as friends…
“And
what does it mean to be consummate in conviction? There is the case where a noble
disciple has conviction, is convinced of the Tathagata’s Awakening: ‘Indeed,
the Blessed One is worthy & rightly self-awakened, consummate in knowledge
and conduct, well-gone, an expert with regard to the world, unexcelled as a
trainer for those people fit to be tamed, the Teacher of devas & human
beings, awakened, blessed.’ This is called being consummate in conviction.
“And
what does it mean to be consummate in virtue? There is the case where a noble
disciple abstains from taking life, abstains from stealing, abstains from
illicit sexual conduct, abstains from lying, abstains from taking intoxicants
that cause heedlessness. This is called being consummate in virtue.
“And
what does it mean to be consummate in generosity? There is the case of a noble
disciple, his awareness cleansed of the stain of miserliness, living at home,
freely generous, openhanded, delighting in being magnanimous, responsive to
requests, delighting in the distribution of alms. This is called being
consummate in generosity.
“And
what does it mean to be consummate in discernment? There is the case where a
noble disciple is discerning, endowed with discernment of arising and passing
away — noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress. This is
called being consummate in discernment.”
— AN 8.54
Admirable
friends are to be recognized both by what they say and by what they do.
“For
the person who transgresses in one thing, I tell you, there is no evil deed
that is not to be done. Which one thing? This: telling a deliberate lie.”
The person who lies, who transgress in this one
thing, transcending concern for the world beyond: there’s no evil he might not
do.
— Iti 25
“A
friend endowed with these three qualities is worth associating with. Which
three? He/she gives what is hard to give, does what is hard to do, endures what
is hard to endure. A friend endowed with these three qualities is worth
associating with.”
— AN 3.133
“These
three things have been promulgated by wise people, by people who are truly
good. Which three? Generosity…going-forth [from the home life]…&
service to one’s mother & father. These three things have been promulgated
by wise people, by people who are truly good.”
— AN 3.45
“Now
what is the level of a person of no integrity? A person of no integrity is
ungrateful, does not acknowledge the help given to him. This ingratitude, this
lack of acknowledgment is second nature among rude people. It is entirely on
the level of people of no integrity. A person of integrity is grateful &
acknowledges the help given to him. This gratitude, this acknowledgment is
second nature among admirable people. It is entirely on the level of people of
integrity.”
— AN 2.31
“A
person endowed with these four qualities can be known as ‘a person of
integrity.’ Which four?
“There
is the case where a person of integrity, when asked, doesn’t reveal another
person’s bad points, to say nothing of when unasked. Furthermore, when asked,
when pressed with questions, he is one who speaks of another person’s bad
points not in full, not in detail, with omissions, holding back…
“Then
again, a person of integrity, when unasked, reveals another person’s good
points, to say nothing of when asked. Furthermore, when asked, when pressed
with questions, he is one who speaks of another person’s good points in full
& in detail, without omissions, without holding back…
“Then
again, a person of integrity, when unasked, reveals his own bad points, to say
nothing of when asked. Furthermore, when asked, when pressed with questions, he
is one who speaks of his own bad points in full & in detail, without
omissions, without holding back…
“Then
again, a person of integrity, when asked, doesn’t reveal his own good points,
to say nothing of when unasked. Furthermore, when asked, when pressed with
questions, he is one who speaks of his own good points not in full, not in
detail, with omissions, holding back…
“Monks,
a person endowed with these four qualities can be known as ‘a person of
integrity.’”
— AN 4.73
[1]
“‘It’s through living together that a person’s virtue may be known, and
then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not
by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not
discerning’: Thus it was said. And in reference to what was it said?
“There
is the case where one individual, through living with another, knows this: ‘For
a long time this person has been torn, broken, spotted, splattered in his
actions. He hasn’t been consistent in his actions. He hasn’t practiced
consistently with regard to the precepts. He is an unprincipled person, not a
virtuous, principled one.’ And then there is the case where one individual,
through living with another, knows this: ‘For a long time this person has been
untorn, unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered in his actions. He has been
consistent in his actions. He has practiced consistently with regard to the
precepts. He is a virtuous, principled person, not an unprincipled one.’
“‘It’s
through living together that a person’s virtue may be known, and then only
after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one
who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not
discerning’: Thus it was said. And in reference to this was it said.
[2]
“‘It’s through dealing with a person that his purity may be known, and
then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not
by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not
discerning’: Thus it was said. And in reference to what was it said?
“There
is the case where one individual, through dealing with another, knows this:
‘This person deals one way when one-on-one, another way when with two, another
way when with three, another way when with many. His earlier dealings do not
jibe with his later dealings. He is impure in his dealings, not pure.’ And then
there is the case where one individual, through dealing with another, knows
this: ‘The way this person deals when one-on-one, is the same way he deals when
with two, when with three, when with many. His earlier dealings jibe with his
later dealings. He is pure in his dealings, not impure.’
“‘It’s
through dealing with a person that his purity may be known, and then only after
a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is
inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning’: Thus
it was said. And in reference to this was it said.
[3]
“‘It’s through adversity that a person’s endurance may be known, and then
only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by
one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not
discerning’: Thus it was said. And in reference to what was it said?
“There
is the case where a person, suffering loss of relatives, loss of wealth, or
loss through disease, does not reflect: ‘That’s how it is when living together
in the world. That’s how it is when gaining a personal identity [atta-bhava,
literally “self-state”]. When there is living in the world, when
there is the gaining of a personal identity, these eight worldly conditions
spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly conditions:
gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, & pain.’ Suffering
loss of relatives, loss of wealth, or loss through disease, he sorrows,
grieves, & laments, beats his breast, becomes distraught. And then there is
the case where a person, suffering loss of relatives, loss of wealth, or loss
through disease, reflects: ‘That’s how it is when living together in the world.
That’s how it is when gaining a personal identity. When there is living in the
world, when there is the gaining of a personal identity, these eight worldly
conditions spin after the world, and the world spins after these eight worldly
conditions: gain, loss, status, disgrace, censure, praise, pleasure, &
pain.’ Suffering loss of relatives, loss of wealth, or loss through disease, he
does not sorrow, grieve, or lament, does not beat his breast or become
distraught.
“‘It’s
through adversity that a person’s endurance may be known, and then only after a
long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one who is
inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not discerning’: Thus
it was said. And in reference to this was it said.
[4]
“‘It’s through discussion that a person’s discernment may be known, and
then only after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not
by one who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not
discerning’: Thus it was said. And in reference to what was it said?
“There
is the case where one individual, through discussion with another, knows this:
‘From the way this person rises to an issue, from the way he applies [his
reasoning], from the way he addresses a question, he is dull, not discerning.
Why is that? He does not make statements that are deep, tranquil, refined,
beyond the scope of conjecture, subtle, to-be-experienced by the wise. He
cannot declare the meaning, teach it, describe it, set it forth, reveal it,
explain it, or make it plain. He is dull, not discerning.’ Just as if a man
with good eyesight standing on the shore of a body of water were to see a small
fish rise. The thought would occur to him, ‘From the rise of this fish, from
the break of its ripples, from its speed, it is a small fish, not a large one.’
In the same way, one individual, in discussion with another, knows this: ‘From
the way this person rises to an issue, from the way he applies [his reasoning],
from the way he addresses a question… he is dull, not discerning.’
“And
then there is the case where one individual, through discussion with another,
knows this: ‘From the way this person rises to an issue, from the way he
applies [his reasoning], from the way he addresses a question, he is
discerning, not dull. Why is that? He makes statements that are deep, tranquil,
refined, beyond the scope of conjecture, subtle, to-be-experienced by the wise.
He can declare the meaning, teach it, describe it, set it forth, reveal it,
explain it, & make it plain. He is discerning, not dull.’ Just as if a man
with good eyesight standing on the shore of a body of water were to see a large
fish rise. The thought would occur to him, ‘From the rise of this fish, from
the break of its ripples, from its speed, it is a large fish, not a small one.’
In the same way, one individual, in discussion with another, knows this: ‘From
the way this person rises to an issue, from the way he applies [his reasoning],
from the way he addresses a question… he is discerning, not dull.’
“‘It’s
through discussion that a person’s discernment may be known, and then only
after a long period, not a short period; by one who is attentive, not by one
who is inattentive; by one who is discerning, not by one who is not
discerning’: Thus it was said. And in reference to this was it said.”
— AN 4.192
In
addition to requiring time and clear powers of observation, the ability to
recognize a person of integrity requires that you be a person of integrity as
well.
“Monks,
could a person of no integrity know of a person of no integrity: ‘This is a
person of no integrity’?”
“No,
lord.”
“Good,
monks. It’s impossible, there’s no way, that a person of no integrity would
know of a person of no integrity: ‘This is a person of no integrity.’
“Could
a person of no integrity know of a person of integrity: ‘This is a person of
integrity’?”
“No,
lord.”
“Good,
monks. It’s impossible, there’s no way, that a person of no integrity would
know of a person of integrity: ‘This is a person of integrity.’”…
“Now,
monks, could a person of integrity know of a person of no integrity: ‘This is a
person of no integrity’?”
“Yes,
lord.”
“Good,
monks. It is possible that a person of integrity would know of a person of no
integrity: ‘This is a person of no integrity.’
“Could
a person of integrity know of a person of integrity: ‘This is a person of
integrity’?”
“Yes,
lord.”
“Good,
monks. It is possible that a person of integrity would know of a person of
integrity: ‘This is a person of integrity.’
“A
person of integrity is endowed with qualities of integrity; he is a person of
integrity in his friendship, in the way he wills, the way he gives advice, the
way he speaks, the way he acts, the views he holds, & the way he gives a
gift.
“And
how is a person of integrity endowed with qualities of integrity? There is the
case where a person of integrity is endowed with conviction, conscience,
concern; he is learned, with aroused persistence, unmuddled mindfulness, &
good discernment. This is how a person of integrity is endowed with qualities
of integrity.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in his friendship? There is
the case where a person of integrity has, as his friends & companions,
those contemplatives & brahmans who are endowed with conviction, shame,
compunction; who are learned, with aroused persistence, unmuddled mindfulness,
& good discernment. This is how a person of integrity is a person of
integrity in his friendship.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the way he wills? There
is the case where a person of integrity wills neither for his own affliction,
nor for the affliction of others, nor for the affliction of both. This is how a
person of integrity is a person of integrity in the way he wills.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the way he gives advice?
There is the case where a person of integrity gives advice neither for his own
affliction, nor for the affliction of others, nor for the affliction of both.
This is how a person of integrity is a person of integrity in the way he gives
advice.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the way he speaks? There
is the case where a person of integrity is one who refrains from lies, refrains
from divisive tale-bearing, refrains from harsh speech, refrains from idle
chatter. This is how a person of integrity is a person of integrity in the way
he speaks.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the way he acts? There is
the case where a person of integrity is one who refrains from taking life,
refrains from stealing, refrains from illicit sex. This is how a person of
integrity is a person of integrity in the way he acts.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the views he holds? There
is the case where a person of integrity is one who holds a view like this:
‘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 contemplatives & brahmans who, faring rightly & practicing
rightly, proclaim this world & the next after having directly known &
realized it for themselves.’ This is how a person of integrity is a person of
integrity in the views he holds.
“And
how is a person of integrity a person of integrity in the way he gives a gift?
There is the case where a person of integrity gives a gift attentively, with
his own hand, respectfully, not as if throwing it away, with the view that
something will come of it. This is how a person of integrity is a person of
integrity in the way he gives a gift.
“This
person of integrity — thus endowed with qualities of integrity; a person of
integrity in his friendship, in the way he wills, the way he gives advice, the
way he speaks, the way he acts, the views he holds, & the way he gives a
gift — on the break-up of the body, after death, reappears in the destination
of people of integrity. And what is the destination of people of integrity?
Greatness among devas or among human beings.”
— MN 110
Regard him as one who points out treasure, the wise
one who seeing your faults rebukes you. Stay with this sort of sage. For the
one who stays with a sage of this sort, things get better, not worse.
— Dhp 76
Listening to the True Dhamma
The
opportunity to listen to the Dhamma is considered valuable both because it is
rare and because it yields great benefits.
Hard
the chance to hear the true Dhamma.
— Dhp 182
“There
are these five rewards in listening to the Dhamma. Which five?
“[1]
One hears what one has not heard before. [2] One clarifies what one has heard
before. [3] One gets rid of doubt. [4] One’s views are made straight. [5] One’s
mind grows serene.
“These
are the five rewards in listening to the Dhamma.”
— AN 5.202
To
obtain these benefits, one must come to the Dhamma both with the right karmic
background and with the right attitude.
“Endowed
with these six qualities, a person is capable of alighting on the lawfulness,
the rightness of skillful mental qualities even while listening to the true
Dhamma. Which six?
“He
is not endowed with a (present) kamma obstruction, a defilement obstruction, or
a result-of-(past)-kamma obstruction; he has conviction, has the desire (to
listen), and is discerning.
“Endowed
with these six qualities, a person is capable of alighting on the lawfulness,
the rightness of skillful mental qualities even while listening to the true
Dhamma.”
— AN 6.86
“With what virtue, what behavior, nurturing
what actions, would a person become rightly based and attain the ultimate
goal?” “One should be respectful of one’s superiors[1]
& not envious; should have a sense of the time for seeing teachers;[2]
should value the opportunity when a talk on Dhamma’s in progress; should listen
intently to well-spoken words; should go at the proper time, humbly, casting
off stubbornness, to one’s teacher’s presence; should both recollect &
follow the Dhamma, its meaning, restraint, & the holy life. Delighting in
Dhamma, savoring Dhamma, established in Dhamma, with a sense of how to
investigate Dhamma, one should not speak in ways destructive of Dhamma,[3]
should guide oneself with true, well-spoken words. Shedding hilarity,
chattering, lamentation, hatred, deception, deceit, greed, pride, confrontation,
roughness, astringency, infatuation, one should go about free of intoxication,
steadfast within. Understanding’s the heartwood of well-spoken words;
concentration, the heartwood of learning & understanding. When a person is
hasty & heedless his discernment & learning don’t grow. While those who
delight in the doctrines taught by the noble ones, are unexcelled in word,
action, & mind. They, established in calm, composure, & concentration,
have reached what discernment & learning have as their heartwood.”[4]
— Sn 2.9
Notes
1.
According to the Commentary, one’s
superiors include those who have more wisdom than oneself, more skill in
concentration and other aspects of the path than oneself, and those senior to
oneself.
2.
The Commentary says that the right
time to see a teacher is when one is overcome with passion, aversion, and
delusion, and cannot find a way out on one’s own. This echoes a passage in AN
6.26, in which Ven. Maha Kaccana says that the right time to visit a “monk
worthy of esteem” is when one needs help in overcoming any of the five
hindrances or when one doesn’t yet have an appropriate theme to focus on to put
an end to the mind’s effluents.
3.
The Commentary equates “words
destructive of the Dhamma” with “animal talk.” See the
discussion under Pacittiya 85 in The Buddhist Monastic Code.
4.
The heartwood of learning &
discernment is release.
[Ven.
Yasadatta:]
Intent on quibbling, the dullard hears the
Conqueror’s teaching. He’s as far from the True Dhamma as the ground is from
the sky. Intent on quibbling, the dullard hears the Conqueror’s teaching. He
wanes from the True Dhamma like the moon in the dark half of the month. Intent
on quibbling, the dullard hears the Conqueror’s teaching. He dries up in the
True Dhamma like a fish in next to no water. Intent on quibbling, the dullard
hears the Conqueror’s teaching. He doesn’t grow in the True Dhamma, like a
rotten seed in a field. But whoever hears the Conqueror’s teaching with guarded
intent, doing away with effluents — all — realizing the unshakable, attaining
the foremost peace, is — effluent-free — totally unbound.
— Thag 5.10
It’s
also important to understand clearly the standards for distinguishing true
Dhamma from false. These standards come down to a pragmatic test: How does one
behave, and what results come from one’s behavior, when one puts the Dhamma
into practice?
As
they were sitting to one side, the Kalamas of Kesaputta said to the Blessed
One, “Venerable sir, there are some contemplatives & brahmans who come
to Kesaputta. They expound & glorify their own doctrines, but as for the
doctrines of others, they deprecate them, revile them, show contempt for them,
& disparage them. And then other contemplatives & brahmans come to
Kesaputta. They expound & glorify their own doctrines, but as for the
doctrines of others, they deprecate them, revile them, show contempt for them,
& disparage them. They leave us simply uncertain & doubtful: Which of
these venerable contemplatives & brahmans are speaking the truth, and which
ones are lying?”
“Of
course you are uncertain, Kalamas. Of course you are doubtful. When there are reasons
for doubt, uncertainty is born. So in this case, Kalamas, don’t go by reports,
by legends, by traditions, by scripture, by conjecture, by inference, by
analogies, by agreement through pondering views, by probability, or by the
thought, ‘This contemplative is our teacher.’ When you know for yourselves
that, ‘These qualities are unskillful; these qualities are blameworthy; these
qualities are criticized by the wise; these qualities, when undertaken &
carried out, lead to harm & to suffering’ — then you should abandon them…
“What
do you think, Kalamas: When greed arises in a person, does it arise for welfare
or for harm?”
“For
harm, lord.”
“And
this greedy person, overcome by greed, his mind possessed by greed: Doesn’t he
kill living beings, take what is not given, go after another person’s wife,
tell lies, and induce others to do likewise, all of which is for long-term harm
& suffering?”
“Yes,
lord.”
[Similarly
for aversion & delusion.]
“So
what do you think, Kalamas: Are these qualities skillful or unskillful?”
“Unskillful,
lord.”
“Blameworthy
or blameless?”
“Blameworthy,
lord.”
“Criticized
by the wise or praised by the wise?”
“Criticized
by the wise, lord.”
“When
undertaken & carried out, do they lead to harm & to suffering, or
not?”
“When
undertaken & carried out, they lead to harm & to suffering…”
“…Now,
Kalamas, don’t go by reports, by legends, by traditions, by scripture, by
conjecture, by inference, by analogies, by agreement through pondering views,
by probability, or by the thought, ‘This contemplative is our teacher.’ When
you know for yourselves that, ‘These qualities are skillful; these qualities
are blameless; these qualities are praised by the wise; these qualities, when
undertaken & carried out, lead to welfare & to happiness’ — then you
should enter & remain in them.
“What
do you think, Kalamas: When lack of greed arises in a person, does it arise for
welfare or for harm?”
“For
welfare, lord.”
“And
this ungreedy person, not overcome by greed, his mind not possessed by greed:
He doesn’t kill living beings, take what is not given, go after another
person’s wife, tell lies, or induce others to do likewise, all of which is for
long-term welfare & happiness — right?”
“Yes,
lord.”
[Similarly
for lack of aversion & lack of delusion.]
“So
what do you think, Kalamas: Are these qualities skillful or unskillful?”
“Skillful,
lord.”
“Blameworthy
or blameless?”
“Blameless,
lord.”
“Criticized
by the wise or praised by the wise?”
“Praised
by the wise, lord.”
“When
undertaken & carried out, do they lead to welfare & to happiness, or
not?”
“When
undertaken & carried out, they lead to welfare & to happiness…”
— AN 3.65
“Gotami,
the qualities of which you may know, ‘These qualities lead — to passion, not to
dispassion; to being fettered, not to being unfettered; to accumulating, not to
shedding; to self-aggrandizement, not to modesty; to discontent, not to
contentment; to entanglement, not to seclusion; to laziness, not to aroused
persistence; to being burdensome, not to being unburdensome’: You may
categorically hold, ‘This is not the Dhamma, this is not the Vinaya, this is
not the Teacher’s instruction.’
“As
for the qualities of which you may know, ‘These qualities lead — to dispassion,
not to passion; to being unfettered, not to being fettered; to shedding, not to
accumulating; to modesty, not to self-aggrandizement; to contentment, not to
discontent; to seclusion, not to entanglement; to aroused persistence, not to
laziness; to being unburdensome, not to being burdensome’: You may
categorically hold, ‘This is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the
Teacher’s instruction.’”
— AN 8.53
“Upali,
the qualities of which you may know, ‘These qualities do not lead to utter
disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to calm, to direct knowledge, to
self-awakening, nor to Unbinding’: You may categorically hold, ‘This is not the
Dhamma, this is not the Vinaya, this is not the Teacher’s instruction.’
“As
for the qualities of which you may know, ‘These qualities lead to utter
disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to calm, to direct knowledge, to
self-awakening, to Unbinding’: You may categorically hold, ‘This is the Dhamma,
this is the Vinaya, this is the Teacher’s instruction.’”
— AN 7.79
The
test for the true Dhamma being pragmatic, this means that even when you are
convinced that you have heard the true Dhamma, you must be careful to realize
that simply hearing the truth is not enough to know it for sure.
[The
Buddha:] “There are five things that can turn out in two ways in the
here-&-now. Which five? Conviction, liking, unbroken tradition, reasoning
by analogy, & an agreement through pondering views. These are the five
things that can turn out in two ways in the here-&-now. Now some things are
firmly held in conviction and yet vain, empty, & false. Some things are not
firmly held in conviction, and yet they are genuine, factual, & unmistaken.
Some things are well-liked… truly an unbroken tradition… well-reasoned…
Some things are well-pondered and yet vain, empty, & false. Some things are
not well-pondered, and yet they are genuine, factual, & unmistaken. In
these cases it isn’t proper for a knowledgeable person who safeguards the truth
to come to a definite conclusion, ‘Only this is true; anything else is
worthless.”
[Kapadika
Bharadvaja:] “But to what extent, Master Gotama, is there the safeguarding
of the truth? To what extent does one safeguard the truth? We ask Master Gotama
about the safeguarding of the truth.”
[The
Buddha:] “If a person has conviction, his statement, ‘This is my
conviction,’ safeguards the truth. But he doesn’t yet come to the definite
conclusion that ‘Only this is true; anything else is worthless.’ To this
extent, Bharadvaja, there is the safeguarding of the truth. To this extent one
safeguards the truth. I describe this as the safeguarding of the truth. But it
is not yet an awakening to the truth.”
— MN 95
Appropriate Attention
Having
heard the Dhamma, it is important to bring appropriate attention — seeing
things in terms of cause and effect — both to what you have heard and to your
experiences in general, for this one factor can make all the difference in the
success or failure of your practice.
“With
regard to internal factors, I don’t envision any other single factor like
appropriate attention as doing so much for a monk in training, who has not
attained the goal but remains intent on the unsurpassed safety from bondage. A
monk who attends appropriately abandons what is unskillful and develops what is
skillful.
Appropriate attention as a quality of a monk in
training: nothing else does so much for attaining the superlative goal. A monk,
striving appropriately, attains the ending of stress.
— Iti 16
I
have heard that on one occasion a certain monk was dwelling among the Kosalans
in a forest thicket. Now at that time, he spent the day’s abiding thinking
evil, unskillful thoughts: i.e., thoughts of sensuality, thoughts of ill will,
thoughts of harmfulness.
Then
the devata inhabiting the forest thicket, feeling sympathy for the monk,
desiring his benefit, desiring to bring him to his senses, approached him and
addressed him with this verse:
“From inappropriate attention you’re being
chewed by your thoughts. Relinquishing what’s inappropriate, contemplate
appropriately. Keeping your mind on the Teacher, the Dhamma, the Sangha, your
virtues, you will arrive at joy, rapture, pleasure without doubt. Then,
saturated with joy, you will put an end to suffering & stress.”
The
monk, chastened by the devata, came to his senses.
— SN 9.11
Appropriate
attention is essentially the ability to frame your understanding of experience
in the right terms. In many cases, this means framing the right questions for
gaining insight into suffering and its end.
“This
is the way leading to discernment: when visiting a contemplative or brahman, to
ask: ‘What is skillful, venerable sir? What is unskillful? What is blameworthy?
What is blameless? What should be cultivated? What should not be cultivated?
What, having been done by me, will be for my long-term harm & suffering? Or
what, having been done by me, will be for my long-term welfare &
happiness?’”
— MN 135
“There
is the case where an uninstructed, run-of-the-mill person…does not discern
what ideas are fit for attention, or what ideas are unfit for attention. This
being so, he does not attend to ideas fit for attention, and attends [instead]
to ideas unfit for attention. And what are the ideas unfit for attention that
he attends to? Whatever ideas such that, when he attends to them, the unarisen
effluent of sensuality arises, and the arisen effluent of sensuality increases;
the unarisen effluent of becoming… the unarisen effluent of ignorance arises,
and the arisen effluent of ignorance increases… This is how he attends
inappropriately: ‘Was I in the past? Was I not in the past? What was I in the
past? How was I in the past? Having been what, what was I in the past? Shall I
be in the future? Shall I not be in the future? What shall I be in the future?
How shall I be in the future? Having been what, what shall I be in the future?’
Or else he is inwardly perplexed about the immediate present: ‘Am I? Am I not?
What am I? How am I? Where has this being come from? Where is it bound?’
“As
he attends inappropriately in this way, one of six kinds of view arises in him:
The view I have a self arises in him as true & established, or the
view I have no self… or the view It is precisely by means of self
that I perceive self… or the view It is precisely by means of self that
I perceive not-self… or the view It is precisely by means of not-self
that I perceive self arises in him as true & established, or else he
has a view like this: This very self of mine — the knower that is sensitive
here & there to theripening of good & bad actions — is the self of mine
that is constant, everlasting, eternal, not subject to change, and will endure
as long as eternity.This is called a thicket of views, a wilderness of
views, a contortion of views, a writhing of views, a fetter of views. Bound by
a fetter of views, the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person is not freed from
birth, aging, & death, from sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, &
despair. He is not freed, I tell you, from stress.
“The
well-instructed noble disciple… discerns what ideas are fit for attention,
and what ideas are unfit for attention. This being so, he does not attend to
ideas unfit for attention, and attends [instead] to ideas fit for attention…
And what are the ideas fit for attention that he attends to? Whatever ideas
such that, when he attends to them, the unarisen effluent of sensuality does
not arise, and the arisen effluent of sensuality is abandoned; the unarisen
effluent of becoming… the unarisen effluent of ignorance does not arise, and
the arisen effluent of ignorance is abandoned… He attends appropriately, This
is stress… This is the origination of stress… This is the cessation of
stress… This is the way leading to the cessation of stress. As he attends
appropriately in this way, three fetters are abandoned in him: identity-view,
doubt, and grasping at habits & practices. These are called the effluents
that are to be abandoned by seeing.”
— MN 2
Appropriate
attention can also mean framing the way you understand events as they occur.
[Ven.
MahaKotthita:] “Sariputta my friend, which things should a virtuous monk
attend to in an appropriate way?”
[Ven.
Sariputta:] “A virtuous monk, Kotthita my friend, should attend in an
appropriate way to the five clinging-aggregates as inconstant, stressful, a
disease, a cancer, an arrow, painful, an affliction, alien, a dissolution, an
emptiness, not-self. Which five? The form clinging-aggregate, the feeling…
perception… fabrications… consciousness clinging-aggregate. A virtuous monk
should attend in an appropriate way to these five clinging-aggregates as
inconstant, stressful, a disease, a cancer, an arrow, painful, an affliction,
alien, a dissolution, an emptiness, not-self. For it is possible that a
virtuous monk, attending in an appropriate way to these five
clinging-aggregates as inconstant… not-self, would realize the fruit of
stream-entry.”
[Ven.
MahaKotthita:] “Then which things should a monk who has attained
stream-entry attend to in an appropriate way?”
[Ven.
Sariputta:] “A monk who has attained stream-entry should attend in an
appropriate way to these five clinging-aggregates as inconstant, stressful, a
disease, a cancer, an arrow, painful, an affliction, alien, a dissolution, an
emptiness, not-self. For it is possible that a monk who has attained
stream-entry, attending in an appropriate way to these five clinging-aggregates
as inconstant… not-self, would realize the fruit of once-returning.”
[Ven.
MahaKotthita:] “Then which things should a monk who has attained
once-returning attend to in an appropriate way?”
[Ven.
Sariputta:] “A monk who has attained once-returning should attend in an
appropriate way to these five clinging-aggregates as inconstant, stressful, a
disease, a cancer, an arrow, painful, an affliction, alien, a dissolution, an
emptiness, not-self. For it is possible that a monk who has attained
once-returning, attending in an appropriate way to these five
clinging-aggregates as inconstant… not-self, would realize the fruit of
non-returning.”
[Ven.
MahaKotthita:] “Then which things should a monk who has attained
non-returning attend to in an appropriate way?”
[Ven.
Sariputta:] “A monk who has attained non-returning should attend in an
appropriate way to these five clinging-aggregates as inconstant, stressful, a
disease, a cancer, an arrow, painful, an affliction, alien, a dissolution, an
emptiness, not-self. For it is possible that a monk who has attained
non-returning, attending in an appropriate way to these five clinging-aggregates
as inconstant… not-self, would realize the fruit of arahantship.”
[Ven.
MahaKotthita:] “Then which things should an arahant attend to in an
appropriate way?”
[Ven.
Sariputta:] “An arahant should attend in an appropriate way to these five
clinging-aggregates as inconstant, stressful, a disease, a cancer, an arrow,
painful, an affliction, alien, a dissolution, an emptiness, not-self. Although,
for an arahant, there is nothing further to do, and nothing to add to what has
been done, still these things — when developed & pursued — lead both to a
pleasant abiding in the here-&-now and to mindfulness &
alertness.”
Practice in Accordance with the Dhamma
In
developing dispassion for the clinging-aggregates, appropriate attention is an
important first step in practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma.
“For
a monk practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, this is what
accords with the Dhamma: that he keep cultivating disenchantment with regard to
form, that he keep cultivating disenchantment with regard to feeling, that he
keep cultivating disenchantment with regard to perception, that he keep
cultivating disenchantment with regard to fabrications, that he keep
cultivating disenchantment with regard to consciousness. As he keeps
cultivating disenchantment with regard to form… feeling… perception…
fabrications… consciousness, he comprehends form… feeling… perception…
fabrications… consciousness. As he comprehends form… feeling…
perception… fabrications… consciousness, he is totally released from form…
feeling… perception… fabrications… consciousness. He is totally released
from sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs. He is totally
released, I tell you, from suffering & stress.”
“For
a monk practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, this is what
accords with the Dhamma: that he keep focused on inconstancy… stress…
not-self with regard to form, that he keep focused on inconstancy… stress…
not-self with regard to feeling… perception… fabrications… consciousness.
As he keeps focusing on inconstancy… stress… not-self with regard to
form… feeling… perception… fabrications… consciousness, he comprehends
form… feeling… perception… fabrications… consciousness. As he
comprehends form… feeling… perception… fabrications… consciousness, he
is totally released from form… feeling… perception… fabrications…
consciousness. He is totally released from sorrows, lamentations, pains,
distresses, & despairs. He is totally released, I tell you, from suffering
& stress.”
“If
a monk teaches the Dhamma for the sake of disenchantment, dispassion, &
cessation with regard to aging & death… birth… becoming…
clinging/sustenance… craving… feeling… contact… the six sense media…
name & form… consciousness… fabrications… ignorance, he deserves to
be called a monk who is a speaker of Dhamma. If he practices for the sake of
disenchantment, dispassion, & cessation with regard to aging & death…
ignorance, he deserves to be called a monk who practices the Dhamma in
accordance with the Dhamma. If — through disenchantment, dispassion, cessation,
and lack of clinging/sustenance with regard to aging & death… ignorance —
he is released, then he deserves to be called a monk who has attained Unbinding
in the here-&-now.”
— SN 22.67
The
practice leading to disenchantment, dispassion, and release follows a stepwise
path of cause and effect.
“Now,
I tell you, clear knowing & release have their nutriment. They are not
without nutriment. And what is their nutriment? The seven factors for
awakening… And what is the nutriment for the seven factors for awakening? The
four establishings of mindfulness… And what is the nutriment for the four
establishings of mindfulness? The three forms of right conduct… And what is
the nutriment for the three forms of right conduct? Restraint of the senses…
And what is the nutriment for restraint of the senses? Mindfulness &
alertness… And what is the nutriment for mindfulness & alertness?
Appropriate attention… And what is the nutriment for appropriate attention?
Conviction… And what is the nutriment for conviction? Hearing the true
Dhamma… And what is the nutriment for hearing the true Dhamma? Associating
with people who are truly good…
“Just
as when the gods pour rain in heavy drops & crash thunder on the upper
mountains: The water, flowing down along the slopes, fills the mountain clefts
& rifts & gullies… the little ponds… the big lakes… the little
rivers… the big rivers. When the big rivers are full, they fill the great
ocean, and thus is the great ocean fed, thus is it filled. In the same way,
when associating with truly good people is brought to fulfillment, it fulfills
[the conditions for] hearing the true Dhamma… conviction… appropriate
attention… mindfulness & alertness… restraint of the senses… the
three forms of right conduct… the four establishings of mindfulness… the
seven factors for awakening. When the seven factors for awakening are brought
to fulfillment, they fulfill [the conditions for] clear knowing & release.
Thus is clear knowing & release fed, thus is it brought to
fulfillment.”
— AN 10.61
Mindfulness & Alertness
“Stay
mindful, monks, and alert. This is our instruction to you all. And how is a
monk mindful? There is the case where a monk remains focused on the body in
& of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed &
distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on feelings… mind…
mental qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful —
putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. This is how a
monk is mindful.
“And
how is a monk alert? There is the case where feelings are known to the monk as
they arise, known as they persist, known as they subside. Thoughts are known to
him as they arise, known as they persist, known as they subside. Discernment [vl:
perception] is known to him as it arises, known as it persists, known as it
subsides. This is how a monk is alert. So stay mindful, monks, and alert. This
is our instruction to you all.”
— SN 47.35
Restraint of the Senses
“And
how does a monk guard the doors of his senses? On seeing a form with the eye,
he does not grasp at any theme or details by which — if he were to dwell
without restraint over the faculty of the eye — evil, unskillful qualities such
as greed or distress might assail him. On hearing a sound with the ear… On
smelling an odor with the nose… One tasting a flavor with the tongue… On
touching a tactile sensation with the body… On cognizing an idea with the
intellect, he does not grasp at any theme or details by which — if he were to
dwell without restraint over the faculty of the intellect — evil, unskillful
qualities such as greed or distress might assail him. Endowed with this noble
restraint over the sense faculties, he is inwardly sensitive to the pleasure of
being blameless. This is how a monk guards the doors of his senses.”
— DN 2
The Three Forms of Right Conduct
“Now,
Cunda, there are three ways in which one is made pure by bodily action, four
ways in which one is made pure by verbal action, and three ways in which one is
made pure by mental action.
“And
how is one made pure in three ways by bodily action? There is the case where a
certain person, abandoning the taking of life, abstains from the taking of
life. He dwells with his rod laid down, his knife laid down, scrupulous,
merciful, compassionate for the welfare of all living beings. Abandoning the
taking of what is not given, he abstains from taking what is not given. He does
not take, in the manner of a thief, things in a village or a wilderness that
belong to others and have not been given by them. Abandoning sensual
misconduct, he abstains from sensual misconduct. He does not get sexually
involved with those who are protected by their mothers, their fathers, their
brothers, their sisters, their relatives, or their Dhamma; those with husbands,
those who entail punishments, or even those crowned with flowers by another
man. This is how one is made pure in three ways by bodily action.
“And
how is one made pure in four ways by verbal action? There is the case where a
certain person, abandoning false speech, abstains from false speech. When he
has been called to a town meeting, a group meeting, a gathering of his
relatives, his guild, or of the royalty, if he is asked as a witness, ‘Come
& tell, good man, what you know’: If he doesn’t know, he says, ‘I don’t
know.’ If he does know, he says, ‘I know.’ If he hasn’t seen, he says, ‘I
haven’t seen.’ If he has seen, he says, ‘I have seen.’ Thus he doesn’t consciously
tell a lie for his own sake, for the sake of another, or for the sake of any
reward. Abandoning false speech, he abstains from false speech. He speaks the
truth, holds to the truth, is firm, reliable, no deceiver of the world.
Abandoning divisive speech, he abstains from divisive speech. What he has heard
here he doesn’t tell there to break those people apart from these people here.
What he has heard there he doesn’t tell here to break these people apart from
those people there. Thus reconciling those who have broken apart or cementing
those who are united, he loves concord, delights in concord, enjoys concord,
speaks things that create concord. Abandoning abusive speech, he abstains from
abusive speech. He speaks words that are soothing to the ear, that are
affectionate, that go to the heart, that are polite, appealing & pleasing
to people at large. Abandoning idle chatter, he abstains from idle chatter. He
speaks in season, speaks what is factual, what is in accordance with the goal,
the Dhamma, & the Vinaya. He speaks words worth treasuring, seasonable,
reasonable, circumscribed, connected with the goal. This is how one is made
pure in four ways by verbal action.
“And
how is one made pure in three ways by mental action? There is the case where a certain
person is not covetous. He does not covet the belongings of others, thinking,
‘O, that what belongs to others would be mine!’ He bears no ill will and is not
corrupt in the resolves of his heart. [He thinks,] ‘May these beings be free
from animosity, free from oppression, free from trouble, and may they look
after themselves with ease!’ He has right view and is not warped in the way he
sees things: ‘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 contemplatives & brahmans who, faring rightly
& practicing rightly, proclaim this world & the next after having
directly known & realized it for themselves.’ This is how one is made pure
in three ways by mental action.
“These,
Cunda, are the ten courses of skillful action.”
The Four Establishings of Mindfulness
“[1]
Now, on whatever occasion a monk breathing in long discerns that he is
breathing in long; or breathing out long, discerns that he is breathing out
long; or breathing in short, discerns that he is breathing in short; or
breathing out short, discerns that he is breathing out short; trains himself to
breathe in…&… out sensitive to the entire body; trains himself to
breathe in…&…out calming bodily fabrication: On that occasion the monk
remains focused on the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, &
mindful — subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. I tell
you, monks, that this — the in-&-out breath — is classed as a body among
bodies, which is why the monk on that occasion remains focused on the body in &
of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress
with reference to the world.
“[2]
On whatever occasion a monk trains himself to breathe in…&…out
sensitive to rapture; trains himself to breathe in…&…out sensitive to
pleasure; trains himself to breathe in…&…out sensitive to mental
fabrication; trains himself to breathe in…&…out calming mental
fabrication: On that occasion the monk remains focused on feelings in
& of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — subduing greed &
distress with reference to the world. I tell you, monks, that this — close
attention to in-&-out breaths — is classed as a feeling among feelings,
which is why the monk on that occasion remains focused on feelings in & of
themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress
with reference to the world.
“[3]
On whatever occasion a monk trains himself to breathe in…&…out
sensitive to the mind; trains himself to breathe in…&…out satisfying
the mind; trains himself to breathe in…&…out steadying the mind; trains
himself to breathe in…&…out releasing the mind: On that occasion the
monk remains focused on the mind in & of itself — ardent, alert,
& mindful — subduing greed & distress with reference to the world. I
don’t say that there is mindfulness of in-&-out breathing in one of
confused mindfulness and no alertness, which is why the monk on that occasion
remains focused on the mind in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful —
putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world.
“[4]
On whatever occasion a monk trains himself to breathe in…&…out focusing
on inconstancy; trains himself to breathe in…&…out focusing on
dispassion; trains himself to breathe in…&…out focusing on cessation;
trains himself to breathe in…&…out focusing on relinquishment: On that
occasion the monk remains focused on mental qualities in & of
themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — subduing greed & distress with
reference to the world. He who sees clearly with discernment the abandoning of
greed & distress is one who oversees with equanimity, which is why the monk
on that occasion remains focused on mental qualities in & of themselves —
ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with
reference to the world.
“This
is how mindfulness of in-&-out breathing is developed & pursued so as
to bring the four establishings of mindfulness to their culmination.
The Seven Factors for Awakening
“And
how are the four establishings of mindfulness developed & pursued so as to
bring the seven factors for awakening to their culmination?
“[1]
On whatever occasion the monk remains focused on the body in & of
itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside greed & distress with
reference to the world, on that occasion his mindfulness is steady &
without lapse. When his mindfulness is steady & without lapse, then mindfulness
as a factor for awakening becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes
to the culmination of its development.
“[2]
Remaining mindful in this way, he examines, analyzes, & comes to a
comprehension of that quality with discernment. When he remains mindful in this
way, examining, analyzing, & coming to a comprehension of that quality with
discernment, then analysis of qualities as a factor for awakening
becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes to the culmination of its
development.
“[3]
In one who examines, analyzes, & comes to a comprehension of that quality
with discernment, unflagging persistence is aroused. When unflagging persistence
is aroused in one who examines, analyzes, & comes to a comprehension of
that quality with discernment, then persistence as a factor for
awakening becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes to the
culmination of its development.
“[4]
In one whose persistence is aroused, a rapture not-of-the-flesh arises. When a
rapture not-of-the-flesh arises in one whose persistence is aroused, then rapture
as a factor for awakening becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes
to the culmination of its development.
“[5]
For one who is enraptured, the body grows calm and the mind grows calm. When
the body & mind of an enraptured monk grow calm, then serenity as a
factor for awakening becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes to
the culmination of its development.
“[6]
For one who is at ease — his body calmed — the mind becomes concentrated. When
the mind of one who is at ease — his body calmed — becomes concentrated, then concentration
as a factor for awakening becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes
to the culmination of its development.
“[7]
He oversees the mind thus concentrated with equanimity. When he oversees the
mind thus concentrated with equanimity, equanimity as a factor for
awakening becomes aroused. He develops it, and for him it goes to the
culmination of its development.
[Similarly
with the other three establishings of mindfulness: feelings, mind, & mental
qualities.]
“This
is how the four establishings of mindfulness are developed & pursued so as
to bring the seven factors for awakening to their culmination.
Clear Knowing & Release
“And
how are the seven factors for awakening developed & pursued so as to bring
clear knowing & release to their culmination? There is the case where a
monk develops mindfulness as a factor for awakening dependent on
seclusion… dispassion… cessation, resulting in relinquishment. He develops analysis
of qualities as a factor for awakening… persistence as a factor
for awakening… rapture as a factor for awakening… serenity as
a factor for awakening… concentration as a factor for awakening… equanimity
as a factor for awakening dependent on seclusion… dispassion… cessation,
resulting in relinquishment.
“This
is how the seven factors for awakening, when developed & pursued, bring
clear knowing & release to their culmination.”
— MN 118
The
ability to follow this path to completion is not just a matter of mastering
technique. It also depends on the ability to develop strong character traits.
“Now,
what are the eight thoughts of a great person? This Dhamma is for one who is
modest, not for one who is self-aggrandizing. This Dhamma is for one who is
content, not for one who is discontent. This Dhamma is for one who is
reclusive, not for one who is entangled. This Dhamma is for one whose
persistence is aroused, not for one who is lazy. This Dhamma is for one whose
mindfulness is established, not for one whose mindfulness is confused. This
Dhamma is for one whose mind is concentrated, not for one whose mind is
unconcentrated. This Dhamma is for one endowed with discernment, not for one
whose discernment is weak. This Dhamma is for one who enjoys
non-objectification, who delights in non-objectification, not for one who
enjoys & delights in objectification.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one who is modest, not for one who is self-aggrandizing.’ Thus
was it said. With reference to what was it said? There is the case where a
monk, being modest, does not want it to be known that ‘He is modest.’ Being
content, he does not want it to be known that ‘He is content.’ Being reclusive,
he does not want it to be known that ‘He is reclusive.’ His persistence being
aroused, he does not want it to be known that ‘His persistence is aroused.’ His
mindfulness being established, he does not want it to be known that ‘His
mindfulness is established.’ His mind being concentrated, he does not want it
to be known that ‘His mind is concentrated.’ Being endowed with discernment, he
does not want it to be known that ‘He is endowed with discernment.’ Enjoying
non-objectification, he does not want it to be known that ‘He is enjoying
non-objectification.’ ‘This Dhamma is for one who is modest, not for one who is
self-aggrandizing.’ Thus was it said. And with reference to this was it said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one who is content, not for one who is discontent.’ Thus was it
said. With reference to what was it said? There is the case where a monk is
content with any old robe cloth at all, any old almsfood, any old lodging, any
old medicinal requisites for curing sickness at all. ‘This Dhamma is for one
who is content, not for one who is discontent.’ Thus was it said. And with
reference to this was it said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one who is reclusive, not for one who is entangled.’ Thus was it
said. With reference to what was it said? There is the case where a monk, when
living in seclusion, is visited by monks, nuns, lay men, lay women, kings,
royal ministers, sectarians & their disciples. With his mind bent on
seclusion, tending toward seclusion, inclined toward seclusion, aiming at
seclusion, relishing renunciation, he converses with them only as much as is
necessary for them to take their leave. ‘This Dhamma is for one who is
reclusive, not for one in entanglement.’ Thus was it said. And with reference
to this was it said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one whose persistence is aroused, not for one who is lazy.’ Thus
was it said. With reference to what was it said? There is the case where a monk
keeps his persistence aroused for abandoning unskillful mental qualities and
taking on skillful mental qualities. He is steadfast, solid in his effort, not
shirking his duties with regard to skillful mental qualities. ‘This Dhamma is
for one whose persistence is aroused, not for one who is lazy.’ Thus was it
said. And with reference to this was it said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one whose mindfulness is established, not for one whose
mindfulness is confused.’ Thus was it said. With reference to what was it said?
There is the case where a monk is mindful, highly meticulous, remembering &
able to call to mind even things that were done & said long ago. ‘This
Dhamma is for one whose mindfulness is established, not for one whose
mindfulness is confused.’ Thus was it said. And with reference to this was it
said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one whose mind is concentrated, not for one whose mind is
unconcentrated.’ Thus was it said. With reference to what was it said? There is
the case where a monk — quite secluded from sensuality, secluded from
unskillful qualities — enters & remains in the first jhana: rapture &
pleasure born of seclusion, 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 equanimous, 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 pleasant
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
Dhamma is for one whose mind is concentrated, not for one whose mind is
unconcentrated.’ Thus was it said. And with reference to this was it said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one endowed with discernment, not for one whose discernment is
weak.’ Thus was it said. With reference to what was it said? There is the case
where a monk is discerning, endowed with discernment of arising & passing
away — noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress. ‘This Dhamma
is for one endowed with discernment, not for one whose discernment is weak.’
Thus was it said. And with reference to this was it said.
“‘This
Dhamma is for one who enjoys non-objectification, who delights in
non-objectification, not for one who enjoys & delights in objectification.’
Thus was it said. With reference to what was it said? There is the case where a
monk’s mind leaps up, grows confident, steadfast, & firm in the cessation
of objectification. ‘This Dhamma is for one who enjoys non-objectification, who
delights in non-objectification, not for one who enjoys & delights in
objectification.’ Thus was it said. And with reference to this was it
said.”
— AN 8.30
“A
monk endowed with these seven qualities is worthy of gifts, worthy of
hospitality, worthy of offerings, worthy of respect, an unexcelled field of
merit for the world. Which seven? There is the case where a monk is one with a
sense of Dhamma, a sense of meaning, a sense of himself, a sense of moderation,
a sense of time, a sense of social gatherings, & a sense of distinctions
among individuals.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of Dhamma? There is the case where a monk knows
the Dhamma: dialogues, narratives of mixed prose & verse, explanations,
verses, spontaneous exclamations, quotations, birth stories, amazing events,
question & answer sessions [this is a list of the earliest classifications
of the Buddha’s teachings]. If he didn’t know the Dhamma — dialogues,
narratives of mixed prose & verse, explanations, verses, spontaneous
exclamations, quotations, birth stories, amazing events, question & answer
sessions — he wouldn’t be said to be one with a sense of Dhamma. So it’s
because he does know the Dhamma — dialogues… question & answer sessions —
that he is said to be one with a sense of Dhamma. This is one with a sense of
Dhamma.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of meaning? There is the case where a monk knows
the meaning of this & that statement — ‘This is the meaning of that
statement; that is the meaning of this.’ If he didn’t know the meaning of this
& that statement — ‘This is the meaning of that statement; that is the meaning
of this’ — he wouldn’t be said to be one with a sense of meaning. So it’s
because he does know the meaning of this & that statement — ‘This is the
meaning of that statement; that is the meaning of this’ — that he is said to be
one with a sense of meaning. This is one with a sense of Dhamma & a sense
of meaning.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of himself? There is the case where a monk knows
himself: ‘This is how far I have come in conviction, virtue, learning,
generosity, discernment, quick-wittedness.’ If he didn’t know himself — ‘This
is how far I have come in conviction, virtue, learning, generosity,
discernment, quick-wittedness’ — he wouldn’t be said to be one with a sense of
himself. So it’s because he does know himself — ‘This is how far I have come in
conviction, virtue, learning, generosity, discernment, quick-wittedness’ — that
he is said to be one with a sense of himself. This is one with a sense of
Dhamma, a sense of meaning, & a sense of himself.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of moderation? There is the case where a monk
knows moderation in accepting robes, almsfood, lodgings, & medicinal
requisites for curing the sick. If he didn’t know moderation in accepting
robes, almsfood, lodgings, & medicinal requisites for curing the sick, he
wouldn’t be said to be one with a sense of moderation. So it’s because he does
know moderation in accepting robes, almsfood, lodgings, & medicinal
requisites for curing the sick, that he is said to be one with a sense of
moderation. This is one with a sense of Dhamma, a sense of meaning, a sense of
himself, & a sense of moderation.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of time? There is the case where a monk knows
the time: ‘This is the time for recitation; this, the time for questioning;
this, the time for making an effort [in meditation]; this, the time for
seclusion.’ If he didn’t know the time — ‘This is the time for recitation;
this, the time for questioning; this, the time for making an effort; this, the
time for seclusion’ — he wouldn’t be said to be one with a sense of time. So
it’s because he does know the time — ‘This is the time for recitation; this,
the time for questioning; this, the time for making an effort; this, the time
for seclusion’ — that he is said to be one with a sense of time. This is one
with a sense of Dhamma, a sense of meaning, a sense of himself, a sense of
moderation, & a sense of time.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of social gatherings? There is the case where a
monk knows his social gathering: ‘This is a social gathering of noble warriors;
this, a social gathering of brahmans; this, a social gathering of householders;
this, a social gathering of contemplatives; here one should approach them in
this way, stand in this way, act in this way, sit in this way, speak in this way,
stay silent in this way.’ If he didn’t know his social gathering — ‘This is a
social gathering of noble warriors; this, a social gathering of brahmans; this,
a social gathering of householders; this, a social gathering of contemplatives;
here one should approach them in this way, stand in this way, act in this way,
sit in this way, speak in this way, stay silent in this way’ — he wouldn’t be
said to be one with a sense of social gatherings. So it’s because he does know
his social gathering — ‘This is a social gathering of noble warriors; this, a
social gathering of brahmans; this, a social gathering of householders; this, a
social gathering of contemplatives; here one should approach them in this way,
stand in this way, act in this way, sit in this way, speak in this way, stay
silent in this way’ — that he is said to be one with a sense of social
gatherings. This is one with a sense of Dhamma, a sense of meaning, a sense of
himself, a sense of moderation, a sense of time, & a sense of social
gatherings.
“And
how is a monk one with a sense of distinctions among individuals? There is the
case where people are known to a monk in terms of two categories.
“Of
two people — one who wants to see noble ones and one who doesn’t — the one who
doesn’t want to see noble ones is to be criticized for that reason, the one who
does want to see noble ones is, for that reason, to be praised.
“Of
two people who want to see noble ones — one who wants to hear the true Dhamma
and one who doesn’t — the one who doesn’t want to hear the true Dhamma is to be
criticized for that reason, the one who does want to hear the true Dhamma is,
for that reason, to be praised.
“Of
two people who want to hear the true Dhamma — one who listens with an attentive
ear and one who listens without an attentive ear — the one who listens without
an attentive ear is to be criticized for that reason, the one who listens with
an attentive ear is, for that reason, to be praised.
“Of
two people who listen with an attentive ear — one who, having listened to the Dhamma,
remembers it, and one who doesn’t — the one who, having listened to the Dhamma,
doesn’t remember it is to be criticized for that reason, the one who, having
listened to the Dhamma, does remember the Dhamma is, for that reason, to be
praised.
“Of
two people who, having listened to the Dhamma, remember it — one who explores
the meaning of the Dhamma he has remembered and one who doesn’t — the one who
doesn’t explore the meaning of the Dhamma he has remembered is to be criticized
for that reason, the one who does explore the meaning of the Dhamma he has
remembered is, for that reason, to be praised.
“Of
two people who explore the meaning of the Dhamma they have remembered — one who
practices the Dhamma in line with the Dhamma, having a sense of Dhamma, having
a sense of meaning, and one who doesn’t — the one who doesn’t practice the
Dhamma in line with the Dhamma, having a sense of Dhamma, having a sense of
meaning, is to be criticized for that reason, the one who does practice the
Dhamma in line with the Dhamma, having a sense of Dhamma, having a sense of
meaning is, for that reason, to be praised.
“Of
two people who practice the Dhamma in line with the Dhamma, having a sense of
Dhamma, having a sense of meaning — one who practices for both his own benefit
and that of others, and one who practices for his own benefit but not that of
others — the one who practices for his own benefit but not that of others is to
be criticized for that reason, the one who practices for both his own benefit
and that of others is, for that reason, to be praised.
“This
is how people are known to a monk in terms of two categories. And this is how a
monk is one with a sense of distinctions among individuals.
“A
monk endowed with these seven qualities is worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality,
worthy of offerings, worthy of respect, an unexcelled field of merit for the
world.”
— AN 7.64
To
practice the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma not only makes one worthy of
respect, it also is a way of showing respect and gratitude to the Buddha for
his admirable friendship in creating the opportunity for hearing the true
Dhamma.
Then
the Blessed One [on his death-bed] said to Ven. Ananda, “Ananda, the twin
sal-trees are in full bloom, even though it’s not the flowering season. They
shower, strew, & sprinkle on the Tathagata’s body in homage to him.
Heavenly coral-tree blossoms are falling from the sky… Heavenly sandalwood
powder is falling from the sky… Heavenly music is playing in the sky…
Heavenly songs are sung in the sky, in homage to the Tathagata. But it is not
to this extent that a Tathagata is worshipped, honored, respected, venerated,
or paid homage to. Rather, the monk, nun, male lay follower, or female lay
follower who keeps practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, who
keeps practicing masterfully, who lives in accordance with the Dhamma: that is
the person who worships, honors, respects, venerates, & pays homage to the
Tathagata with the highest homage. So you should train yourselves: ‘We will
keep practicing the Dhamma in accordance with the Dhamma, we will keep
practicing masterfully, we will live in accordance with the Dhamma.’ That’s how
you should train yourselves.”
— DN 16
II: Stream Entry & its Results
Introduction
When
treating the experience of stream entry and its results, the Canon uses all
three of its typical modes of discourse: the narrative mode — stories about
people who have attained stream entry; the cosmological mode — descriptions of
the after-death destinations awaiting those who have attained stream entry; and
what might be called the “emptiness” mode, which describes mental
states in and of themselves as they are directly experienced as absent or
present, both during and after stream entry.
The
material in this part of the study guide is presented in five sections. The
first section, The Arising of the
Dhamma Eye, discusses the experience of stream entry, and concludes with
a passage indicating why the experience is described in terms of the faculty of
vision. The second section, The Three
Fetters, discusses the three fetters of renewed existence that are cut
with the arising of the Dhamma eye: self-identity views, uncertainty, and
grasping at habits and practices. The third section, The Character of the Stream-enterer,discusses the personal
characteristics of a stream-enterer that flow directly from the cutting of the
first three fetters. This section focuses on three lists of the four factors of
stream entry, which are not to be confused with the four factors for stream
entry discussed in the first part of this study guide. The fourth section, Rewards, discusses the rewards of
stream entry that are come both in this life and in future lives. The final
section, Advice, echoes the
Buddha’s last words to his disciples before entering total nibbana. The
discourse reporting those words — DN 16 — also reports that the most backward
of the monks present at the Buddha’s passing away were stream-enterers. The
fact that his last words to them stressed the need for heedfulness underlies
the fact that even stream-enterers have to be wary of heedlessness. This is
especially true in the present day, when many different meditation schools
define the attainment of stream entry in such different terms, raising the
question of whose certification of stream entry is valid and whose is not. The
safest course of action for all meditators — whether certified as
stream-enterers or not, and whether that certification is valid or not — is to
maintain an attitude of heedfulness with regard to all mental qualities.
The
term “stream” in “stream entry” refers to the point where
all eight factors of the noble eightfold path come together.
“Sariputta,
‘The stream, the stream’: thus it is said. And what, Sariputta, is the
stream?”
“This
noble eightfold path, lord, is the stream: right view, right resolve, right
speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right
concentration.”
“Very
good, Sariputta! Very good! This noble eightfold path — right view, right
resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right
mindfulness, right concentration — is the stream.”
— SN 55.5
“And
what is right view? Knowledge in terms of stress, knowledge in terms of the
origination of stress, knowledge in terms of the cessation of stress, knowledge
in terms of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress: This is called
right view.
“And
what is right resolve? Being resolved on renunciation, on non-ill will, on
harmlessness: This is called right resolve.
“And
what is right speech? Abstaining from lying, from divisive speech, from abusive
speech, & from idle chatter: This is called right speech.
“And
what is right action? Abstaining from taking life, from stealing, & from
sexual intercourse: This is called right action.
“And
what is right livelihood? There is the case where a disciple of the noble ones,
having abandoned dishonest livelihood, keeps his life going with right
livelihood. This is called right livelihood.
“And
what is right effort? There is the case where a monk generates desire,
endeavors, arouses persistence, upholds & exerts his intent for the sake of
the non-arising of evil, unskillful qualities that have not yet arisen… for
the sake of the abandoning of evil, unskillful qualities that have arisen…
for the sake of the arising of skillful qualities that have not yet arisen…
(and) for the maintenance, non-confusion, increase, plenitude, development,
& culmination of skillful qualities that have arisen. This is called right
effort.
“And
what is right mindfulness? There is the case where a monk remains focused on
the body in & of itself — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside
greed & distress with reference to the world. He remains focused on
feelings in & of themselves… the mind in & of itself… mental
qualities in & of themselves — ardent, alert, & mindful — putting aside
greed & distress with reference to the world. This is called right
mindfulness.
“And
what is right concentration? There is the case where a monk — quite secluded
from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities — enters & remains in
the first jhana: rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, 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
equanimous, 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 pleasant 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 called right
concentration.”
— SN 45.8
The
coming-together of these factors is called the stream because it leads
inevitably to two things, just as the current of a tributary will lead
inevitably to a major river and then to the sea. In the immediate present, the
stream leads directly to the arising of the Dhamma eye, the vision that
actually constitutes this first awakening. Over time, the stream ensures that —
in no more than seven lifetimes — one will be totally unbound.
The Arising of the Dhamma Eye
What
does the Dhamma eye see when it arises?
Then
Ven. Assaji gave this Dhamma exposition to Sariputta the wanderer:
“Whatever phenomena arise from a cause: Their
cause & their cessation. Such is the teaching of the Tathagata, the Great
Contemplative.”
Then
to Sariputta the wanderer, as he heard this exposition of Dhamma, there arose
the dustless, stainless Dhamma eye: Whatever is subject to origination is
all subject to cessation.
— Mv I.23.5
This
standard formula — it is repeated throughout the Canon — may not seem that
remarkable an insight. However, the texts make clear that this insight is not a
matter of belief or contemplation, but of direct seeing. As the following
passages show, belief and contemplation may be conducive to the seeing — and an
undefined level of belief and discernment may actually guarantee that someday
in this lifetime the seeing will occur — but only with the actual seeing does
there come a dramatic shift in the course of one’s life and one’s relationship
to the Dhamma.
“Monks,
the eye is inconstant, changeable, alterable. The ear… The nose… The
tongue… The body… The mind is inconstant, changeable, alterable.
Forms…
Sounds … Aromas… Flavors… Tactile sensations… Ideas are inconstant,
changeable, alterable.
“Eye-consciousness…
Ear-consciousness… Nose-consciousness… Tongue-consciousness…
Body-consciousness… Intellect-consciousness is inconstant, changeable,
alterable.
“Eye-contact…Ear-contact…Nose-contact…Tongue-contact…Body-contact…
Intellect-contact is inconstant, changeable, alterable.
“Feeling
born of eye-contact… Feeling born of ear-contact… Feeling born of
nose-contact… Feeling born of tongue-contact… Feeling born of
body-contact… Feeling born of intellect-contact is inconstant, changeable,
alterable.
“Perception
of forms… Perception of sounds… Perception of smells… Perception of
tastes… Perception of tactile sensations…Perception of ideas is inconstant,
changeable, alterable.
“Intention
for forms… Intention for sounds… Intention for smells… Intention for
tastes… Intention for tactile sensations… Intention for ideas is inconstant,
changeable, alterable.
“Craving
for forms… Craving for sounds… Craving for smells… Craving for tastes…
Craving for tactile sensations… Craving for ideas is inconstant, changeable,
alterable.
“The
earth property… The liquid property… The fire property… The wind
property… The space property… The consciousness property is inconstant,
changeable, alterable.
“Form…
Feeling… Perception… Fabrications… Consciousness is inconstant,
changeable, alterable.
“One
who has conviction & belief that these phenomena are this way is called a
faith-follower: one who has entered the orderliness of rightness, entered the
plane of people of integrity, transcended the plane of the run-of-the-mill. He
is incapable of doing any deed by which he might be reborn in hell, in the
animal womb, or in the realm of hungry ghosts. He is incapable of passing away
until he has realized the fruit of stream entry.
“One
who, after pondering with a modicum of discernment, has accepted that these
phenomena are this way is called a Dhamma-follower: one who has entered the
orderliness of rightness, entered the plane of people of integrity, transcended
the plane of the run-of-the-mill. He is incapable of doing any deed by which he
might be reborn in hell, in the animal womb, or in the realm of hungry ghosts.
He is incapable of passing away until he has realized the fruit of stream
entry.
“One
who knows and sees that these phenomena are this way is called a
stream-enterer, steadfast, never again destined for states of woe, headed for
self-awakening.”
— SN 25.1-10
To
Upali the householder, as he was sitting right there, there arose the dustless,
stainless Dhamma eye: Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to
cessation.Then — having seen the Dhamma, having reached the Dhamma, known
the Dhamma, gained a footing in the Dhamma, having crossed over & beyond
doubt, having had no more questioning — Upali the householder gained
fearlessness and was independent of others with regard to the Teacher’s
message.
— MN 56
Part
of what makes the arising of the Dhamma eye such a powerful experience is that
the realization that “Whatever is subject to origination is all subject to
cessation” must follow on a glimpse of what stands in opposition to
“all that is subject to origination,” i.e., a glimpse of the
Unconditioned — deathlessness.
[Immediately
after attaining the stream] Sariputta the wanderer went to Moggallana the
wanderer. Moggallana the wanderer saw him coming from afar and, on seeing him,
said, “Your faculties are bright, my friend; your complexion pure &
clear. Could it be that you have attained the Deathless?”
“Yes,
my friend, I have…”
— Mv I.23.5
The
connection between Ven. Assaji’s verse above, discussing causation, and the
arising of the Dhamma eye in Sariputta suggests that realization conveyed by
the Dhamma eye is not just an insight into the fleeting, impermanent nature of
ordinary experience. Instead, it extends also to a realization of the
conditioned, dependent nature of that experience. Other passages describing in
more detail the knowledge of a stream-enterer — one who has entered the stream
— show that this is in fact the case. The Dhamma eye sees that things arise and
pass away in line with a particular type of causality, in which the effects of
causes are felt immediately or over the course of time.
“And
which is the noble method that he has rightly seen & rightly ferreted out
through discernment?
“There
is the case where a disciple of the noble ones notices:
“When
this is, that is.
“From
the arising of this comes the arising of that.
“When
this isn’t, that isn’t.
“From
the cessation of this comes the cessation of that.
“In
other words:
“From
ignorance as a requisite condition come fabrications.
“From
fabrications as a requisite condition comes consciousness.
“From
consciousness as a requisite condition comes name-&-form.
“From
name-&-form as a requisite condition come the six sense media.
“From
the six sense media as a requisite condition comes contact.
“From
contact as a requisite condition comes feeling.
“From
feeling as a requisite condition comes craving.
“From
craving as a requisite condition comes clinging/sustenance.
“From
clinging/sustenance as a requisite condition comes becoming.
“From
becoming as a requisite condition comes birth.
“From
birth as a requisite condition, then aging & death, sorrow, lamentation,
pain, distress, & despair come into play. Such is the origination of this
entire mass of stress & suffering.
“Now
from the remainderless fading & cessation of that very ignorance comes the
cessation of fabrications. From the cessation of fabrications comes the
cessation of consciousness. From the cessation of consciousness comes the
cessation of name-&-form. From the cessation of name-&-form comes the
cessation of the six sense media. From the cessation of the six sense media
comes the cessation of contact. From the cessation of contact comes the
cessation of feeling. From the cessation of feeling comes the cessation of
craving. From the cessation of craving comes the cessation of clinging/sustenance.
From the cessation of clinging/sustenance comes the cessation of becoming. From
the cessation of becoming comes the cessation of birth. From the cessation of
birth, then aging & death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, &
despair all cease. Such is the cessation of this entire mass of stress &
suffering.
“This
is the noble method that he has rightly seen & rightly ferreted out through
discernment.”
— AN 10.92
“When
a disciple of the noble ones has seen well with right discernment this
dependent co-arising & these dependently co-arisen phenomena as they are
actually present, it is not possible that he would run after the past,
thinking, ‘Was I in the past? Was I not in the past? What was I in the past?
How was I in the past? Having been what, what was I in the past?’ or that he
would run after the future, thinking, ‘Shall I be in the future? Shall I not be
in the future? What shall I be in the future? How shall I be in the future?
Having been what, what shall I be in the future?’ or that he would be inwardly
perplexed about the immediate present, thinking, ‘Am I? Am I not? What am I?
How am I? Where has this being come from? Where is it bound?’ Such a thing is
not possible. Why is that? Because the disciple of the noble ones has seen well
with right discernment this dependent co-arising & these dependently
co-arisen phenomena as they are actually present.”
— SN 12.20
The
insight of a stream-enterer into the truths of causality on the one hand, and
of the Deathless on the other, is accurate as far as it goes, but it does not
equal the intensity of the insight of the arahant — one who has reached the
final level of awakening. The differences between the two are suggested in the
following simile.
[Ven.
Narada:] “My friend, although I have seen properly with right discernment,
as it actually is present, that ‘The cessation of becoming is Unbinding,’ still
I am not an arahant whose effluents are ended. It’s as if there were a well
along a road in a desert, with neither rope nor water bucket. A man would come
along overcome by heat, oppressed by the heat, exhausted, dehydrated, &
thirsty. He would look into the well and would have knowledge of ‘water,’ but
he would not dwell touching it with his body. In the same way, although I have
seen properly with right discernment, as it actually is present, that ‘The
cessation of becoming is Unbinding,’ still I am not an arahant whose effluents
are ended.”
— SN 12.68
The Three Fetters
The
four levels of Awakening are defined by the extent to which they cut the ten
fetters by which the mind binds itself to conditioned experience.
“And
which are the five lower fetters? Self-identity views, uncertainty, grasping at
habits & practices, sensual desire, & ill will. These are the five
lower fetters. And which are the five higher fetters? Passion for form, passion
for what is formless, conceit, restlessness, & ignorance. These are the
five higher fetters.”
— AN 10.13
“In
this community of monks there are monks who are arahants, whose effluents are
ended, who have reached fulfillment, done the task, laid down the burden,
attained the true goal, totally destroyed the fetter of becoming, and who are
released through right gnosis…
“In
this community of monks there are monks who, with the total ending of the five
lower fetters, are due to be reappear [in the Pure Abodes], there to be totally
unbound, never again to return from that world…
“In
this community of monks there are monks who, with the total ending of [the
first] three fetters, and with the attenuation of passion, aversion, &
delusion, are once-returners, who — on returning only one more time to this
world — will make an ending to stress…
“In
this community of monks there are monks who, with the total ending of [the
first] three fetters, are stream-winners, steadfast, never again destined for
states of woe, headed for self-awakening.”
— MN 118
For
the stream-enterer, the arising of the Dhamma eye — with its insight into the
causal principles underlying the origination and cessation of stress — is what
cuts through the first three fetters.
“He
attends appropriately, This is stress… This is the origination of
stress… This is the cessation of stress… This is the way leading to the
cessation of stress. As he attends appropriately in this way, three fetters
are abandoned in him: self-identity view, doubt, and grasping at habits &
practices.”
— MN 2
The
Canon contains passages that amplify what it means to cut the first three of
these fetters. First, self-identity
views:
[Visakha:]
“But, lady, how does self-identity come about?”
[Sister
Dhammadinna:] “There is the case, friend Visakha, where an uninstructed,
run-of-the-mill person — who has no regard for noble ones, is not well-versed
or disciplined in their Dhamma; who has no regard for men of integrity, is not
well-versed or disciplined in their Dhamma — assumes form (the body) to be the
self, or the self as possessing form, or form as in the self, or the self as in
form.
“He
assumes feeling to be the self…
“He
assumes perception to be the self…
“He
assumes fabrications to be the self…
“He
assumes consciousness to be the self, or the self as possessing consciousness,
or consciousness as in the self, or the self as in consciousness. This is how
self-identity comes about.”
[Visakha:]
“But, lady, how does self-identity not come about?”
[Sister
Dhammadinna:] “There is the case where a well-instructed disciple of the
noble ones — who has regard for noble ones, is well-versed & disciplined in
their Dhamma; who has regard for men of integrity, is well-versed &
disciplined in their Dhamma — does not assume form to be the self, or the self
as possessing form, or form as in the self, or the self as in form.
“He
does not assume feeling to be the self…
“He
does not assume perception to be the self…
“He
does not assume fabrications to be the self…
“He
does not assume consciousness to be the self, or the self as possessing
consciousness, or consciousness as in the self, or the self as in
consciousness. This is how self-identity does not come about.”
— MN 44
[Visakha:]
“‘The origination of self-identity, the origination of self-identity,’ it
is said, lady. Which origination of self-identity is described by the Blessed
One?”
[Sister
Dhammadinna:] “The craving that makes for further becoming — accompanied
by passion & delight, relishing now here & now there — i.e., craving
for sensual pleasure, craving for becoming, craving for non-becoming: This,
friend Visakha, is the origination of self-identity described by the Blessed
One.”
[Visakha:]
“‘The cessation of self-identity, the cessation of self-identity,’ it is
said, lady. Which cessation of self-identity is described by the Blessed
One?”
[Sister
Dhammadinna:] “The remainderless fading & cessation, renunciation,
relinquishment, release, & letting go of that very craving: This, friend
Visakha, is the cessation of self-identity described by the Blessed One.”
[Visakha:]
“‘The way of practice leading to the cessation of self-identity, the way
of practice leading to the cessation of self-identity,’ it is said, lady. Which
way of practice leading to the cessation of self-identity is described by the
Blessed One?”
[Sister
Dhammadinna:] “Precisely this noble eightfold path — right view, right
resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right
mindfulness, right concentration: This, friend Visakha, is the way of practice
leading to the cessation of self-identity described by the Blessed One.”
— MN 44
[Ven.
Ananda:] “What is the noble liberation?”
[The
Buddha:] “There is the case, Ananda, where a disciple of the noble ones
considers this: ‘Sensuality here & now; sensuality in lives to come;
sensual perceptions here & now; sensual perceptions in lives to come; forms
here & now; forms in lives to come; form-perceptions here & now;
form-perceptions in lives to come; perceptions of the imperturbable; perceptions
of the dimension of nothingness; perceptions of the dimension of neither
perception nor non-perception: that is an identity, to the extent that there is
an identity. This is deathless: the liberation of the mind through lack of
clinging/sustenance.’”
— MN 106
“Magandiya,
it is just as if there were a blind man who couldn’t see black objects…
white… blue… yellow… red… the sun or the moon. Now suppose that a
certain man were to take a grimy, oil-stained rag and fool him, saying, ‘Here,
my good man, is a white cloth — beautiful, spotless, & clean.’ The blind
man would take it and wear it.
“Then
suppose his friends, companions, & relatives took him to a doctor, and the
doctor treated him with medicine: purges from above & purges from below,
ointments & counter-ointments, and treatments through the nose. And thanks
to the medicine his eyesight would appear & grow clear. Then together with
the arising of his eyesight, he would abandon whatever passion & delight he
felt for that grimy, oil-stained rag. And he would regard that man as an enemy
& no friend at all, and think that he deserved to be killed. ‘My gosh, how
long have I been fooled, cheated, & deceived by that man & his grimy,
oil-stained rag! — “Here, my good man, is a white cloth — beautiful,
spotless, & clean.”‘
“In
the same way, Magandiya, if I were to teach you the Dhamma — this freedom from
Disease, this Unbinding — and you on your part were to understand that freedom
from Disease and see that Unbinding, then together with the arising of your
eyesight, you would abandon whatever passion & delight you felt with regard
for the five aggregates for sustenance. And it would occur to you, ‘My gosh,
how long have I been fooled, cheated, & deceived by this mind! For in
clinging, it was just form that I was clinging to…it was just feeling… just
perception… just fabrications… just consciousness that I was clinging to.
With my clinging as condition, there is becoming… birth… aging &
death… sorrow, lamentation, pains, distresses, & despairs all come into
play. And thus is the origination of this entire mass of stress.’”
— MN 75
In
the following passage, Ven. Khemaka — a monk who has attained the level of
non-returner, and so has cut the first five fetters — indicates how
self-identity views may be cut even though the mind has yet to cut the conceit,
“I am,” which ends only at the level of full awakening.
[Ven.
Khemaka:] “Friends, it’s not that I say ‘I am form,’ nor do I say ‘I am
something other than form.’ It’s not that I say, ‘I am feeling… perception…
fabrications… consciousness,’ nor do I say, ‘I am something other than
consciousness.’ With regard to these five clinging-aggregates, ‘I am’ has not
been overcome, although I don’t assume that ‘I am this.’
“It’s
just like the scent of a blue, red, or white lotus: If someone were to call it
the scent of a petal or the scent of the color or the scent of a filament,
would he be speaking correctly?”
“No,
friend.”
“Then
how would he describe it if he were describing it correctly?”
“As
the scent of the flower: That’s how he would describe it if he were describing
it correctly.”
“In
the same way, friends, it’s not that I say ‘I am form,’ nor do I say ‘I am
other than form.’ It’s not that I say, ‘I am feeling… perception…
fabrications… consciousness,’ nor do I say, ‘I am something other than
consciousness.’ With regard to these five clinging-aggregates, ‘I am’ has not
been overcome, although I don’t assume that ‘I am this.’”
— SN 22.89
The fetter of uncertainty is
defined as doubt in the Awakening of the Buddha, the truth of his Dhamma, and
the practice of his noble disciples. What this uncertainty boils down to is
doubt as to whether there is a Deathless dimension, and whether one can realize
it through one’s own efforts. The experience of the Deathless — following on
the practice of the Dhamma to the point of entering the stream — cuts this
fetter by confirming the possibility of a human being’s awakening to the
Deathless, the correctness of the Buddha’s teaching as a guide to entering the
stream, and the worthiness of those who have reached the stream.
“There
is the case where the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with unwavering
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 devas & human beings, awakened, blessed.’
“He
is endowed with unwavering 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
is endowed with unwavering 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[1] — 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.’”
NOTE
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.
— AN 10.92
The fetter of grasping at habits and
practices is often described in the Pali Canon with
reference to the view that one becomes pure simply through performing rituals
or patterns of behavior. This view in turn is related to the notion that one’s
being is defined by one’s actions: If one acts in accordance with clearly
defined habits and practices, one is ipso facto pure. Although the Canon
recognizes the importance of habits and practices in the attaining the stream,
the experience of the Deathless shows the person who has attained the stream
that one cannot define oneself in terms of those habits and practices. Thus one
continues to follow virtuous practices, but without defining oneself in terms
of them.
“Now
where do skillful habits cease without trace? Their cessation, too, has been
stated: There is the case where a monk is virtuous, but not fashioned of (or:
defined by his) virtue. He discerns, as it actually is, the awareness-release
& discernment-release where his skillful habits cease without trace.”
— MN 78
[The enlightened person] doesn’t speak of purity in
terms of view, learning, knowledge, habit or practice. Nor is it found by a
person through lack of view, of learning, of knowledge, of habit or practice.
Letting these go, without grasping, one is independent, at peace.
— Sn 4.9
The Character of a Stream-winner
A
standard formula in the Canon describes a stream-enterer in terms of four
factors. The first three of these four factors of stream entry are directly
related to the cutting of the fetter of uncertainty. The fourth is related to
the cutting of the fetter of grasping at habits and practices.
“There
is the case where the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with unwavering
confidence in the Awakened One… unwavering confidence in the Dhamma…
unwavering confidence in the Sangha… 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.”
— AN 10.92
Although
this is the standard list of the four factors of stream entry, there are other
lists that replace the fourth factor with other factors.
SN 55.32 defines the fourth factor as
follows: “Furthermore, the disciple of the noble ones lives at home with
an awareness cleansed of the stain of stinginess, freely generous, openhanded,
delighting in being magnanimous, responsive to requests, delighting in the
distribution of alms.
SN 55.33 defines it as follows:
“Furthermore, the disciple of the noble ones is discerning, endowed with
discernment of arising & passing away — noble, penetrating, leading to the
right ending of stress.”
When
these lists are collated, we arrive at four qualities that describe a
stream-enterer: conviction, virtue, generosity, and discernment. AN 8.54
describes these as “four qualities that lead to a lay person’s happiness
and well-being in lives to come.” Other passages in the Canon explore the
implications of each of these four as embodied in a stream-enterer’s behavior.
Conviction in the
Triple Gem of the Buddha, Dhamma, and Sangha is not simply a matter of belief
or devotion. It forces one to place trust in the principle of kamma — the
principle of action and result in line with which one first gained entry to the
stream.
“Endowed
with these five qualities, a lay follower is a jewel of a lay follower, a lotus
of a lay follower, a fine flower of a lay follower. Which five? He/she has
conviction; is virtuous; is not eager for protective charms & ceremonies;
trusts kamma, not protective charms & ceremonies; does not search for
recipients of his/her offerings outside [of the Sangha], and gives offerings
here first.”
— AN 5.175
Virtue, as practiced by the stream-enterer,
is also a function of a deep trust in the principle of kamma, and of a sympathy
for others that arises from that trust. Although stream-enterers may still
break the minor rules of training, the depth of insight that informs their
virtue ensures that their adherence to the basic principles of morality is
unshakable.
“There
is the case where a disciple of the noble ones reflects thus: ‘I love life and
don’t love death. I love happiness and abhor pain. Now if I — loving life and
not loving death, loving happiness and abhorring pain — were to be killed, that
would be displeasing & disagreeable to me. And if I were to kill another
who loves life and doesn’t love death, who loves happiness and abhors pain,
that would be displeasing & disagreeable to the other. What is displeasing
& disagreeable to me is displeasing & disagreeable to others. How can I
inflict on others what is displeasing & disagreeable to me?’ Reflecting in
this way, he refrains from taking life, gets others to refrain from taking life,
and speaks in praise of refraining from taking life. In this way his bodily
behavior is pure in three ways.
“Furthermore,
he reflects thus: ‘If someone, by way of theft, were to take from me what I
haven’t given, that would be displeasing & disagreeable to me… If someone
were to commit adultery with my wives, that would be displeasing &
disagreeable to me… If someone were to damage my well-being with a lie, that
would be displeasing & disagreeable to me… If someone were to divide me
from my friends with divisive speech, that would be displeasing &
disagreeable to me… If someone were to address me with harsh speech, that
would be displeasing & disagreeable to me… If someone were to address me
with idle chatter, that would be displeasing & disagreeable to me. And if I
were to address another with idle chatter, that would be displeasing &
disagreeable to the other. What is displeasing & disagreeable to me is
displeasing & disagreeable to others. How can I inflict on others what is
displeasing & disagreeable to me?’ Reflecting in this way, he refrains from
idle chatter, gets others to refrain from idle chatter, and speaks in praise of
refraining from idle chatter. In this way his verbal behavior is pure in three
ways.”
— SN 55.7
“Monks,
this recitation of more than 150 training rules comes every fortnight, in
reference to which sons of good families desiring the goal train themselves.
There are these three trainings under which all that is gathered. Which three?
The training in heightened virtue, the training in heightened mind, the
training in heightened discernment. These are the three trainings under which
all that is gathered.
“There
is the case where a monk is wholly accomplished in virtue, moderately
accomplished in concentration, and moderately accomplished in discernment. With
reference to the lesser and minor training rules, he falls into offenses and
rehabilitates himself. Why is that? Because I have not declared that to be a
disqualification in these circumstances. But as for the training rules that are
basic to the holy life and proper to the holy life, he is one of permanent
virtue, one of steadfast virtue. Having undertaken them, he trains in reference
to the training rules. With the wasting away of [the first] three fetters, he
is a stream-winner, never again destined for states of woe, certain, headed for
self-awakening.”
— AN 3.87
Generosityis
actually a characteristic that must precede stream entry. However, the
attainment of stream entry gives generosity a distinctive integrity.
“Monks,
there are these five forms of stinginess. Which five? Stinginess as to one’s
monastery [lodgings], stinginess as to one’s family [of supporters], stinginess
as to one’s gains, stinginess as to one’s status, and stinginess as to the
Dhamma. These are the five forms of stinginess. And the meanest of these five
is this: stinginess as to the Dhamma…
“Without
abandoning these five things, one is incapable of realizing the fruit of stream
entry.”
“Without
abandoning these five things, one is incapable of realizing the fruit of stream
entry. Which five? Stinginess as to one’s monastery [lodgings], stinginess as
to one’s family [of supporters], stinginess as to one’s gains, stinginess as to
one’s status, and ingratitude.”
— AN 5.259
“These
five are a person of integrity’s gifts. Which five? A person of integrity gives
a gift with a sense of conviction. A person of integrity gives a gift
attentively. A person of integrity gives a gift in season. A person of
integrity gives a gift with an empathetic heart. A person of integrity gives a
gift without adversely affecting himself or others.”
— AN 5.148
Discernment is the
character trait of the stream-enterer that is most directly related to the
cutting of the fetter of self-identity views. However, its implications spread
to other facets of right view as well. In fact, “consummate in view”
is one of the epithets for a stream-enterer. The impact of being consummate in
view extends, not only to one’s intellectual life, but also to one’s emotional
life as well.
“There
is the case where a monk, having gone to the wilderness, to the root of a tree,
or to an empty dwelling, considers thus: ‘Is there any internal enthrallment
unabandoned in me that, enthralled with which, my enthralled mind would not
know or see things as they actually are?’ If a monk is enthralled with sensual
passion, then his mind is enthralled. If he is enthralled with ill will, then
his mind is enthralled. If he is enthralled with sloth and torpor, then his
mind is enthralled. If he is enthralled with restlessness and anxiety, then his
mind is enthralled. If he is enthralled with uncertainty, then his mind is
enthralled. If a monk is absorbed in speculation about this world, then his
mind is enthralled. If a monk is absorbed in speculation about the other world,
then his mind is enthralled. If a monk is given to arguing and quarreling and
disputing, stabbing others with weapons of the mouth, then his mind is
enthralled.
“He
discerns that, ‘There is no enthrallment unabandoned in me that, enthralled
with which, my enthralled mind would not know and see things as they actually
are. My mind is well directed for awakening to the truths.’ This is the first
knowledge attained by him that is noble, transcendent, not held in common with
run-of-the-mill people.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones considers thus: ‘When I cultivate, develop, and
pursue this view, do I personally obtain serenity, do I personally obtain
Unbinding?’
“He
discerns that, ‘When I cultivate, develop, and pursue this view, I personally
obtain serenity, I personally obtain Unbinding.’ This is the second knowledge
attained by him that is noble, transcendent, not held in common with
run-of-the-mill people.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones considers thus: ‘Is there, outside of this
[Dhamma & Vinaya], any other contemplative or brahman endowed with the sort
of view with which I am endowed?’
“He
discerns that, ‘There is no other contemplative or brahman outside [the Dhamma
& Vinaya] endowed with the sort of view with which I am endowed.’ This is
the third knowledge attained by him that is noble, transcendent, not held in
common with run-of-the-mill people.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones considers thus: ‘Am I endowed with the character
of a person consummate in view?’ What is the character of a person consummate
in view? This is the character of a person consummate in view: Although he may
commit some kind of offence for which a means of rehabilitation has been laid
down, still he immediately confesses, reveals, and discloses it to the Teacher
or to wise companions in the holy life; having done that, he undertakes
restraint for the future. Just as a young, tender infant lying on his back,
when he has hit a live ember with his hand or his foot, immediately draws back;
in the same way, this is the character of a person consummate in view: although
he may commit some kind of offence for which a means of rehabilitation has been
laid down, still he immediately confesses, reveals, and discloses it to the
Teacher or to wise companions in the holy life; having done that, he undertakes
restraint for the future.
“He
discerns that, ‘I am endowed with the character of a person consummate in
view.’ This is the fourth knowledge attained by him that is noble,
transcendent, not held in common with run-of-the-mill people.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones considers thus: ‘Am I endowed with the character
of a person consummate in view?’ What is the character of a person consummate
in view? This is the character of a person consummate in view: although he may
be active in the various affairs of his companions in the holy life, he still
has a keen regard for training in heightened virtue, training in heightened
mind, & training in heightened discernment. Just as a cow with a new calf
watches after her calf all the while she is grazing on grass, in the same way,
this is the character of a person consummate in view: Although he may be active
in the various affairs of his companions in the holy life, he still has a keen
regard for training in heightened virtue, training in heightened mind, &
training in heightened discernment.
“He
discerns that, ‘I am endowed with the character of a person consummate in
view.’ This is the fifth knowledge attained by him that is noble, transcendent,
not held in common with run-of-the-mill people.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones considers thus: ‘Am I endowed with the strength
of a person consummate in view?’ What is the strength of a person consummate in
view? This is the strength of a person consummate in view: When the Dhamma
& Vinaya proclaimed by the Tathagata is being taught, he heeds it, gives it
attention, engages it with all his mind, hears the Dhamma with eager ears.
“He
discerns that, ‘I am endowed with the strength of a person consummate in view.’
This is the sixth knowledge attained by him that is noble, transcendent, not
held in common with run-of-the-mill people.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones considers thus: ‘Am I endowed with the strength
of a person consummate in view?’ What is the strength of a person consummate in
view? This is the strength of a person consummate in view: When the Dhamma
& Vinaya proclaimed by the Tathagata is being taught, he gains
understanding in the meaning, gains understanding in the Dhamma, gains gladness
connected with the Dhamma.
“He
discerns that, ‘I am endowed with the strength of a person consummate in view.’
This is the seventh knowledge attained by him that is noble, transcendent, not
held in common with run-of-the-mill people.
“A
disciple of the noble ones thus possessed of seven factors has well examined
the character for the realization of the fruit of stream entry. A disciple of
the noble ones thus possessed of seven factors is endowed with the fruit of
stream entry.”
— MN 48
“There
is a manner of reckoning whereby a monk who is a learner, standing at the level
of a learner, can discern that ‘I am a learner,’ and whereby a monk who is an
adept [i.e., an arahant], standing at the level of an adept, can discern that
‘I am an adept.’
“And
what is the manner of reckoning whereby a monk who is a learner, standing at
the level of a learner, can discern that ‘I am a learner’? There is the case
where a monk is a learner. He discerns, as it actually is, that ‘This is
stress… This is the origination of stress… This is the cessation of
stress… This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.’
This is a manner of reckoning whereby a monk who is a learner, standing at the
level of a learner, can discern that ‘I am a learner.’
“Furthermore,
the monk who is a learner reflects, ‘Is there outside of this [Dhamma &
Vinaya] any contemplative or brahman who teaches the true, genuine, &
accurate Dhamma like the Blessed One?’ And he discerns, ‘No, there is no
contemplative or brahman outside of this Dhamma & Vinaya who teaches the
true, genuine, & accurate Dhamma like the Blessed One.’ This too is a
manner of reckoning whereby a monk who is a learner, standing at the level of a
learner, can discern that ‘I am a learner.’
“Furthermore,
the monk who is a learner discerns the five faculties: the faculty of
conviction… persistence… mindfulness… concentration… discernment. He
sees clear through with discernment their destiny, excellence, rewards, &
consummation, but he does not touch them with his body. This too is a manner of
reckoning whereby a monk who is a learner, standing at the level of a learner,
can discern that ‘I am a learner.’
“And
what is the manner of reckoning whereby a monk who is an adept, standing at the
level of an adept, can discern that ‘I am an adept’? There is the case where a
monk who is an adept discerns the five faculties: the faculty of conviction…
persistence… mindfulness… concentration… discernment. He touches with his
body and sees clear through with discernment what their destiny, excellence,
rewards, & consummation are. This is a manner of reckoning whereby a monk
who is an adept, standing at the level of an adept, can discern that ‘I am an
adept.’
“Furthermore,
the monk who is an adept discerns the six sense faculties: the faculty of the
eye… ear… nose… tongue… body… intellect. He discerns, ‘These six
sense faculties will disband entirely, everywhere, & in every way without
remainder, and no other set of six sense faculties will arise anywhere or in
any way.’ This too is a manner of reckoning whereby a monk who is an adept,
standing at the level of an adept, can discern that ‘I am an adept.’”
— SN 48.53
Then
Anathapindika the householder went to where the wanderers of other persuasions
were staying. On arrival he greeted them courteously. After an exchange of
friendly greetings & courtesies, he sat to one side. As he was sitting
there, the wanderers said to him, “Tell us, householder, what views the
contemplative Gotama has.”
“Venerable
sirs, I don’t know entirely what views the Blessed One has.”
“Well,
well. So you don’t know entirely what views the contemplative Gotama has. Then
tell us what views the monks have.”
“I
don’t even know entirely what views the monks have.”
“So
you don’t know entirely what views the contemplative Gotama has or even that
the monks have. Then tell us what views you have.”
“It
wouldn’t be difficult for me to expound to you what views I have. But please
let the venerable ones expound each in line with his position, and then it
won’t be difficult for me to expound to you what views I have.”
When
this had been said, one of the wanderers said to Anathapindika the householder,
“The cosmos is eternal. Only this is true; anything otherwise is
worthless. This is the sort of view I have.”
Another
wanderer said to Anathapindika, “The cosmos is not eternal. Only
this is true; anything otherwise is worthless. This is the sort of view I
have.”
Another
wanderer said, “The cosmos is finite…”…”The cosmos is
infinite…”…”The soul & the body are the
same…”…”The soul is one thing and the body
another…”…”After death a Tathagata exists…”…”After
death a Tathagata does not exist…”…”After death a Tathagata both
does & does not exist…”…”After death a Tathagata neither does
nor does not exist. Only this is true; anything otherwise is worthless.
This is the sort of view I have.”
When
this had been said, Anathapindika the householder said to the wanderers,
“As for the venerable one who says, ‘The cosmos is eternal. Only
this is true; anything otherwise is worthless. This is the sort of view I
have,” his view arises from his own inappropriate attention or in
dependence on the words of another. Now this view has been brought into being,
is fabricated, willed, dependently originated. Whatever has been brought into
being, is fabricated, willed, dependently originated, that is inconstant.
Whatever is inconstant is stress. This venerable one thus adheres to that very
stress, submits himself to that very stress.” [Similarly with the other
positions.]
When
this had been said, the wanderers said to Anathapindika the householder,
“We have each & every one expounded to you in line with our own
positions. Now tell us what views you have.”
“Whatever
has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently originated,
that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress. Whatever is stress is not
me, is not what I am, is not my self. This is the sort of view I have.”
“So,
householder, whatever has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed,
dependently originated, that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress.
You thus adhere to that very stress, submit yourself to that very stress.”
“Venerable
sirs, whatever has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently
originated, that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress. Whatever is
stress is not me, is not what I am, is not my self. Having seen this well with
right discernment as it actually is present, I also discern the higher escape
from it as it actually is present.”
When
this was said, the wanderers fell silent, abashed, sitting with their shoulders
drooping, their heads down, brooding, at a loss for words. Anathapindika the
householder, perceiving that the wanderers were silent, abashed…at a loss for
words, got up & went to the Blessed One. On arrival, having bowed down to
the Blessed One, he sat to one side. As he was sitting there, he told the
Blessed One the entirety of his conversation with the wanderers.
[The
Blessed One said:] “Well done, householder. Well done. That is how you
should periodically & righteously refute those foolish men.” Then he
instructed, urged, roused, and encouraged Anathapindika the householder with a
talk on Dhamma. When Anathapindika the householder had been instructed, urged,
roused and encouraged by the Blessed One with a talk on Dhamma, he got up from
his seat and, having bowed down to the Blessed One, left, keeping the Blessed
One on his right side. Not long afterward, the Blessed One addressed the monks:
“Monks, even a monk who has long penetrated the Dhamma in this Dhamma
& Vinaya would do well, periodically & righteously, to refute the
wanderers of other persuasions in just the way Anathapindika the householder
has done.”
— AN 10.93
Rewards
Many
of the passages describing the rewards of stream entry focus on the
stream-enterer’s fate after death: He/she will never be reborn on a plane lower
than the human, and will tend to experience exceptional happiness wherever
reborn. As for the number of rebirths remaining for the stream-enterer before
total Unbinding, the texts distinguish three levels of attainment.
“[Some,]
with the wasting away of the three fetters, are ‘one-seed-ers’ (ekabijin):
After taking rebirth only one more time on the human plane, they will put an
end to stress.
“Or,
not breaking through to that, not penetrating that, with the wasting away of
the three fetters they are ‘family-to-family-ers’ (kolankola): After
transmigrating & wandering on through two or three more families [according
to the Commentary, this phrase should be interpreted as ‘through two to six
more states of becoming’], they will put an end to stress.
“Or,
not breaking through to that, not penetrating that, with the wasting away of
the three fetters they are ’seven-times-at-most-ers’ (sattakkhattuparama):
After transmigrating & wandering on among devas & human beings, they
will put an end to stress.”
— AN 3.89
[The
Buddha is speaking to Nandaka, the chief minister of the Licchavis, concerning
the factors of stream entry:] “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 contemplative or
brahman. 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.”
— SN 55.30
The
Canon often places great importance on the power of the last mental state
before death in determining one’s future plane of existence. However, the power
of stream entry is so great that it can overcome even a muddled state of mind
at death, ensuring that the next rebirth will be a good one.
As
he was sitting there, Mahanama the Sakyan 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 generosity, 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, generosity, & 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 generosity, 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.”
— SN 55.21
[Ven.
Ananda is speaking to Anathapindika:] “A well-instructed disciple of the
noble ones, when endowed with these four qualities [the factors of stream
entry], has no terror, no trepidation, no fear at death with regard to the next
life.”
— SN 55.27
“Then
there is the case of the person who has no doubt or perplexity, who has arrived
at certainty with regard to the True Dhamma. Then he comes down with a serious
disease. As he comes down with a serious disease, the thought occurs to him, ‘I
have no doubt or perplexity. I have arrived at certainty with regard to the
True Dhamma.’ He doesn’t grieve, isn’t tormented; doesn’t weep, beat his
breast, or grow delirious. This, too, is a person who, subject to death, is not
afraid or in terror of death.”
— AN 4.184
“Just
as it’s not easy to take the measure of the water in the great ocean as ‘just
this many pails of water or hundreds of pails of water or thousands of pails of
water or hundreds of thousands of pails of water.’ It’s reckoned simply as a
great mass of water that is unreckonable, immeasurable. In the same way, when a
disciple of the noble ones is endowed with these four bonanzas of merit,
bonanzas of skillfulness [the factors of stream entry], it’s not easy to take
the measure of the merit as ‘just this much bonanza of merit, bonanza of
skillfulness, nourishment of bliss, heavenly, ripening in bliss leading to
heaven, leading to what is agreeable, pleasing, charming, happy, &
beneficial.’ It’s reckoned simply as a great mass of merit that is
unreckonable, immeasurable.”
— SN 55.41
“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 ghosts, 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 almsfood 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 ghosts, 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 unwavering confidence in the Awakened One… unwavering confidence
in the Dhamma… unwavering confidence in the Sangha… He/she is endowed with
virtues that are appealing to the noble ones… He/she is endowed with these
four qualities.
“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.”
— SN 55.1
Sole dominion over the earth, going to heaven,
lordship over all worlds: The fruit of Stream entry excels them.
— Dhp 178
Then
the Blessed One, picking up a little bit of dust with the tip of his
fingernail, said to the monks, “What do you think, monks? Which is greater:
the little bit of dust I have picked up with the tip of my fingernail, or the
great earth?”
“The
great earth is far greater, lord. The little bit of dust the Blessed One has
picked up with the tip of his fingernail is next to nothing. It’s not a hundredth,
a thousandth, a one hundred-thousandth — this little bit of dust the Blessed
One has picked up with the tip of his fingernail — when compared with the great
earth.”
“In
the same way, monks, for a disciple of the noble ones who is consummate in view,
an individual who has broken through [to stream entry], the suffering &
stress totally ended & extinguished is far greater. That which remains in
the state of having at most seven remaining lifetimes is next to nothing: it’s
not a hundredth, a thousandth, a one hundred-thousandth, when compared with the
previous mass of suffering. That’s how great the benefit is of breaking through
to the Dhamma, monks. That’s how great the benefit is of obtaining the Dhamma
eye.”
— SN 13.1
“Suppose,
monks, that there were a pond fifty leagues wide, fifty leagues long, &
fifty leagues deep, filled to overflowing with water so that a crow could drink
from it, and a man would draw some water out of it with the tip of a blade of
grass. What do you think? Which would be greater: the water drawn out with the
tip of the blade of grass or the water in the pond?”
“The
water in the pond would be far greater, lord. The water drawn out with the tip
of the blade of grass would be next to nothing. It wouldn’t be a hundredth, a
thousandth, a one hundred-thousandth — the water drawn out with the tip of the
blade of grass — when compared with the water in the pond.”
— SN 13.2
“Suppose,
monks, that the great ocean were to go to extinction, to its total end, except
for two or three drops of water. What do you think? Which would be greater: the
water in the great ocean that had gone to extinction, to its total end, or the
two or three remaining drops of water?”
“Lord,
the water in the great ocean that had gone to extinction, to its total end,
would be far greater. The two or three remaining drops of water would be next
to nothing. They wouldn’t be a hundredth, a thousandth, a one
hundred-thousandth — the two or three remaining drops of water — when compared
with the water in the great ocean that had gone to extinction, to its total
end.”
“In
the same way, monks, for a disciple of the noble ones who is consummate in
view, an individual who has broken through [to stream entry], the suffering
& stress totally ended & extinguished is far greater. That which
remains in the state of having at most seven remaining lifetimes is next to nothing:
it’s not a hundredth, a thousandth, a one hundred-thousandth, when compared
with the previous mass of suffering. That’s how great the benefit is of
breaking through to the Dhamma, monks. That’s how great the benefit is of
obtaining the Dhamma eye.”
— SN 13.8
Not
all of the rewards of stream entry concern one’s fate at death. Many of them
pertain also to the here-and-now.
Then
Anathapindika the householder went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having
bowed down to the Blessed One, sat to one side. As he was sitting there, the
Blessed One said to him, “When, for a disciple of the noble ones, five
forms of fear & animosity are stilled; when he is endowed with the four factors
of stream entry; and when, through discernment, he has rightly seen &
rightly ferreted out the noble method, then if he wants he may state about
himself: ‘Hell is ended; animal wombs are ended; the state of the hungry ghosts
is ended; states of deprivation, destitution, the bad bourns are ended! I am a
stream-winner, steadfast, never again destined for states of woe, headed for
self-awakening!’
“Now,
which five forms of danger & animosity are stilled?
“When
a person takes life, then with the taking of life as a requisite condition, he
produces fear & animosity in the here & now, produces fear &
animosity in future lives, experiences mental concomitants of pain &
despair; but when he refrains from taking life, he neither produces fear &
animosity in the here & now nor does he produce fear & animosity in
future lives, nor does he experience mental concomitants of pain & despair:
for one who refrains from taking life, that fear & animosity is thus
stilled.
“When
a person steals… engages in illicit sex… tells lies…
“When
a person drinks distilled & fermented drinks that cause heedlessness, then
with the drinking of distilled & fermented drinks that cause heedlessness
as a requisite condition, he produces fear & animosity in the here &
now, produces fear & animosity in future lives, experiences mental
concomitants of pain & despair; but when he refrains from drinking
distilled & fermented drinks that cause heedlessness, he neither produces
fear & animosity in the here & now nor does he produce fear &
animosity in future lives, nor does he experience mental concomitants of pain
& despair: for one who refrains from drinking distilled & fermented
drinks that cause heedlessness, that fear & animosity is thus stilled.
“These
are the five forms of fear & animosity that are stilled.”
— AN 10.92
“These
are the five rewards of conviction in a lay person. Which five?
“When
the truly good people in the world show compassion, they will first show compassion
to people of conviction, and not to people without conviction. When visiting,
they first visit people of conviction, and not people without conviction. When
accepting gifts, they will first accept those from people with conviction, and
not from people without conviction. When teaching the Dhamma, they will first
teach those with conviction, and not those without conviction. A person of
conviction, on the break-up of the body, after death, will arise in a good
destination, the heavenly world. These are the five rewards of conviction in a
lay person.
“Just
as a large banyan tree, on level ground where four roads meet, is a haven for
the birds all around, even so a lay person of conviction is a haven for many
people: monks, nuns, male lay followers, & female lay followers.”
A massive tree whose branches carry fruits &
leaves, with trunks & roots & an abundance of fruits: There the birds
find rest. In that delightful sphere they make their home. Those seeking shade
come to the shade, those seeking fruit find fruit to eat. So with the person
consummate in virtue & conviction, humble, sensitive, gentle, delightful,
& mild: To him come those without effluent — free from passion, free from
aversion, free from delusion — the field of merit for the world. They teach him
the Dhamma that dispels all stress. And when he understands, he is freed from
effluents, totally unbound.
— AN 5.38
Advice
Although
it would be pleasant to conclude this study guide with the above passages of
encouragement, we would probably do better to follow the example of the Buddha,
who directed his last words to his stream-enterer disciples, encouraging them
not to rest content with the rewards awaiting them, but to maintain instead an
attitude of heedfulness.
Then
the Blessed One addressed the monks, “Now, then, monks, I exhort you: All
fabrications are subject to decay. Bring about completion through
heedfulness.” Those were the Tathagata’s last words.
— DN 16
“And
what is heedfulness? There is the case where a monk guards his mind with regard
to effluents and qualities accompanied by effluents. When his mind is guarded
with regard to effluents and qualities accompanied by effluents, the faculty of
conviction goes to the culmination of its development. The faculty of
persistence… mindfulness… concentration… discernment goes to the
culmination of its development.
— SN 58.56
“And
how, Nandiya, does a disciple of the noble ones live heedlessly? There is the
case where a disciple of the noble ones is endowed with unwavering confidence
in the Awakened One… Content with that unwavering confidence in the Awakened
One, he does not exert himself further in solitude by day or seclusion by
night. For him, living thus heedlessly, there is no joy. There being no joy,
there is no rapture. There being no rapture, there is no serenity. There being
no serenity, he dwells in pain. When pained, the mind does not become
concentrated. When the mind is unconcentrated, phenomena do not become
manifest. When phenomena are not manifest, he is reckoned simply as one who
dwells heedlessly.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with unwavering confidence in the
Dhamma… unwavering confidence in the Sangha… virtues that are appealing to
the noble ones: untorn, unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised
by the wise, untarnished, leading to concentration. Content with those virtues
pleasing to the noble ones, he does not exert himself further in solitude by
day or seclusion by night. For him, living thus heedlessly, there is no joy.
There being no joy, there is no rapture. There being no rapture, there is no
serenity. There being no serenity, he dwells in pain. When pained, the mind
does not become concentrated. When the mind is unconcentrated, phenomena do not
become manifest. When phenomena are not manifest, he is reckoned simply as one
who dwells heedlessly…
“And
how, Nandiya, does a disciple of the noble ones live heedfully? There is the
case where a disciple of the noble ones is endowed with unwavering confidence
in the Awakened One… Not content with that unwavering confidence in the
Awakened One, he exerts himself further in solitude by day or seclusion by
night. For him, living thus heedfully, joy arises. In one who has joy, rapture
arises. In one who has rapture, the body becomes serene. When the body is
serene, one feels pleasure. Feeling pleasure, the mind becomes concentrated.
When the mind is concentrated, phenomena become manifest. When phenomena are
manifest, he is reckoned as one who dwells heedfully.
“Furthermore,
the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with unwavering confidence in the
Dhamma… unwavering confidence in the Sangha… virtues that are appealing to
the noble ones: untorn, unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised
by the wise, untarnished, leading to concentration. Not content with those
virtues pleasing to the noble ones, he exerts himself further in solitude by
day or seclusion by night. For him, living thus heedfully, joy arises. In one
who has joy, rapture arises. In one who has rapture, the body becomes serene.
When the body is serene, one feels pleasure. Feeling pleasure, the mind becomes
concentrated. When the mind is concentrated, phenomena become manifest. When
phenomena are manifest, he is reckoned as one who dwells heedfully.”
— SN 55.40
“And
what is the individual attained to view? There is the case where a certain
individual does not remain touching with his body those peaceful liberations
that transcend form, that are formless, but — having seen with discernment —
some of his fermentations are ended, and he has reviewed & examined with
discernment the qualities [or: teachings] proclaimed by the Tathagata. This is
called an individual who is attained to view. Regarding this monk, I say that
he has a task to do with heedfulness. Why is that? [I think:] ‘Perhaps this
venerable one, when making use of suitable resting places, associating with admirable
friends, balancing his [mental] faculties, will reach & remain in the
supreme goal of the holy life for which clansmen rightly go forth from home
into homelessness, knowing & realizing it for himself in the here &
now.’ Envisioning this fruit of heedfulness for this monk, I say that he has a
task to do with heedfulness.”
— MN 70
“Mahanama,
a discerning lay follower who is diseased, in pain, severely ill should be
reassured by another discerning lay follower with four reassurances: ‘Be
reassured, friend, that you are endowed with verified confidence in the
Awakened One… verified confidence in the Dhamma… verified confidence in the
Sangha… virtues that are appealing to the noble ones: untorn, unbroken,
unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the wise, untarnished, leading
to concentration.’
“Mahanama,
when a discerning lay follower who is diseased, in pain, severely ill has been
reassured by another discerning lay follower with these four reassurances, he
should be asked: ‘Friend, are you concerned for your mother & father?’ If
he should say, ‘I am…,’ he should be told, ‘You, my dear friend, are subject
to death. If you feel concern for your mother & father, you’re still going
to die. If you don’t feel concern for your mother & father, you’re still
going to die. It would be good if you abandoned concern for your mother &
father.’
“If
he should say, “My concern for my mother & father has been abandoned,’
he should be asked, ‘Friend, are you concerned for your wife & children?’
If he should say, ‘I am…,’ he should be told, ‘You, my dear friend, are
subject to death. If you feel concern for your wife & children, you’re
still going to die. If you don’t feel concern for your wife & children,
you’re still going to die. It would be good if you abandoned concern for your
wife & children.’
“If
he should say, “My concern for my wife & children has been abandoned,’
he should be asked, ‘Friend, are you concerned for the five strings of human
sensuality?’ If he should say, ‘I am…,’ he should be told, ‘Friend, divine
sensual pleasures are more splendid & more refined than human sensual
pleasures. It would be good if, having raised your mind above human sensual
pleasures, you set it on the Devas of the Four Great Kings.’
“If
he should say, ‘My mind is raised above human sensual pleasures and is set on
the Devas of the Four Great Kings,’ he should be told, ‘Friend, the Devas of
the Thirty-three are more splendid & more refined than the Devas of the
Four Great Kings. It would be good if, having raised your mind above the Devas
of the Four Great Kings, you set it on the Devas of the Thirty-three.’
“If
he should say, ‘My mind is raised above the Devas of the Four Great Kings and
is set on the Devas of the Thirty-three,’ he should be told, ‘Friend, the Devas
of the Hours are more splendid & more refined than the Devas of the
Thirty-three… the Contented Devas are more splendid & more refined than
the Devas of the Hours… the Devas Delighting in Creation are more splendid
& more refined than the Contented Devas… the Devas Wielding Power over
the Creations of Others are more splendid & more refined than the Devas
Delighting in Creation… the Brahma world is more splendid and more refined
than the Devas Wielding Power over the Creations of Others. It would be good
if, having raised your mind above the Devas Wielding Power over the Creations
of Others, you set it on the Brahma world.’
“If
he should say, ‘My mind is raised above the Devas Wielding Power over the
Creations of Others and is set on the Brahma world,’ he should be told,
‘Friend, even the Brahma world is inconstant, impermanent, included in
self-identity. It would be good if, having raised your mind above the Brahma
world, you brought it to the cessation of identity.’
“If
he should say, ‘My mind is raised above the Brahma worlds and is brought to the
cessation of identity,’ then, I tell you, Mahanama, there is no difference — in
terms of release — between the release of that lay follower whose mind is
released and the release of a monk whose mind is released.”
— SN 55.54
“Therefore,
Dighavu, when you are established in these four factors of stream entry, you
should further develop six qualities conducive to clear knowing. Remain focused
on inconstancy in all fabrications, percipient of stress in what is inconstant,
percipient of not-self in what is stressful, percipient of abandoning,
percipient of dispassion, percipient of cessation. That’s how you should train
yourself.”
— SN 55.3
Glossary
Arahant:
A “worthy one” or
“pure one”; a person whose mind is free of defilement and is thus not
subject to further rebirth. A title for the Buddha and his highest level of
noble disciples.
Asava:
Effluent; fermentation. Four
qualities — sensuality, views, becoming, and ignorance — that “flow
out” of the mind and create the flood of the round of death and rebirth.
Deva (devata):
Literally, “shining one.”
An inhabitant of the heavenly realms.
Dhamma:
(1) Event; action; (2) a phenomenon
in and of itself; (3) mental quality; (4) doctrine, teaching; (5) nibbana (although
there are passages describing nibbana as the abandoning of all dhammas).
Sanskrit form: Dharma.
Jhana:
Mental absorption. A state of strong
concentration focused on a single sensation or mental notion. This term is
derived from the verb jhayati, which means to burn with a still, steady
flame.
Kamma:
Intentional act. Sanskrit form: Karma.
Nibbana:
Literally, the “unbinding”
of the mind from passion, aversion, and delusion, and from the entire round of
death and rebirth. As this term also denotes the extinguishing of a fire, it
carries connotations of stilling, cooling, and peace. “Total nibbana”
in some contexts denotes the experience of Awakening; in others, the final
passing away of an arahant. Sanskrit form: Nirvana.
Sangha:
Community. On the conventional (sammati)
level, this term denotes the communities of Buddhist monks and nuns. On the
ideal (ariya) level, it denotes those followers of the Buddha, lay or
ordained, who have attained at least stream entry.
Tathagata:
Literally, “one who has become
authentic (tatha-agata)”or “one who is truly gone (tatha-gata).”
An epithet used in ancient India for a person who has attained the highest
religious goal. In Buddhism, it usually denotes the Buddha, although
occasionally it also denotes any of his arahant disciples.
Vinaya:
The monastic discipline. The Buddha’s
own term for the religion he founded was “this Dhamma-Vinaya.”
Abbreviations
AN:
Anguttara Nikaya
Dhp:
Dhammapada
DN:
Digha Nikaya
Iti:
Itivuttaka
MN:
Majjhima Nikaya
Mv:
Mahavagga
SN:
Samyutta Nikaya
Sn:
Sutta Nipata
Thag:
Theragatha
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sot%C4%81panna
Sotāpanna
In
Buddhism, a Sotāpanna (Pali), Srotāpanna (Sanskrit; ch: rùliú 入流, Tib. rgyun zhugs[1]), or
“stream-winner”[2] is a person who has
eradicated the first three fetters (sanyojanas) of the
mind. Sotapanna literally means “one who entered (āpanna) the stream
(sota)”, after a metaphor which calls the Noble Eightfold Path, ‘a stream’
(SN 55.5). Sotapannaship (Sotaapatti) is the first of the four
stages of enlightenment.
According
to Tripitaka Master Bhikshu
Hsuan Hua’s Commentary on the Vajra Sutra, “A Shrotaapanna is a
first stage Arhat. Certification to the first
fruit of Arhatship, which is within the Small Vehicle, comes when the
eighty-eight categories of view delusions are smashed.” p. 77 [3]
Venerable
Hsuan Hua continues, “The first fruit is that of Srotāpanna, a Sanskrit
word which means “One Who Has Entered the Flow.” He opposes the flow
of common people’s six dusts and enters the flow of the sage’s dharma-nature.
Entering the flow means entering the state of the accomplished sage of the
Small Vehicle.” (Vajra Sutra Commentary, p. 78, Buddhist Text Translation
Society,
2002)
The
first moment of the attainment is termed the path of stream-entry (sotāpatti-magga),
which cuts off the first three fetters. The person who experiences it is called
a stream-winner (sotāpanna).[4][5] The Sotāpanna is said to
attain an intuitive grasp of dhamma (right
view)
and has complete confidence in the Three Jewels (Buddha,
Dhamma, and Sangha).
The Sotapanna is said to have “opened the eye of the Dharma” (dhammacakkhu),
because they have realized that whatever arises will cease (impermanence).
Their conviction in the true dhamma would be unshakable.
They
have had their first glimpse of the unconditioned element (Nibbana), which they
see as the third of the Four Noble Truths, in the moment of the fruition of
their path (magga-phala). Whereas the stream entrant has seen Nirvana though,
and thus has verified confidence in it, the Arahant (who is at the fourth and
final stage of Spiritual Nobility / sainthood) can drink of its waters,
so-to-speak, to use a simile from the Kosambi Sutta (SN 12.68) - of a ‘well’
encountered along a desert road.[6]
The
three fetters which the Sotāpanna eradicates are: [7][8]
- Identity
view
- The speculative view that a so-called self exists in the five
aggregates
(physical forms, feelings/sensations, perception, mental formations and
consciousness) is eradicated because the Sotāpanna gains insight into the
selfless nature of the aggregates. - Skeptical
Doubt
- Doubt about the Buddha and his teaching is eradicated because the
Sotāpanna personally experiences the true nature of reality through
insight, and this insight confirms the accuracy of the Buddha’s teaching. - Clinging
to rites and rituals
- Clinging to the view that one becomes pure simply through performing
ritual or rigid moralism, such as
praying to a god for deliverance, slaughtering animals for sacrifice,
ablutions, etc. is eradicated because the Sotāpanna realizes that rites
and ritual are nothing more than an obstructive tradition, repetitious
rites and dead dogmas; Deliverance can be won only through the practice of
the Noble
Eightfold Path.
According
to the Pali Commentary, six types of defilement would be abandoned by a
Sotāpanna: [9] At least there will be no
major transgressions.
- Envy
- Jealousy
- Hypocrisy
- Fraud
- Denigration
- Domineering
A
Sotāpanna will be safe from falling into the states of misery (they will not be
born as an animal, ghost, or hell being). Their
lust, hatred and delusion will not be strong enough to cause rebirth in the
lower realms. A Sotāpanna will have to be reborn at most only seven more times
in the human or heavenly worlds before attaining nibbana.[10] It is not necessary for a
Sotāpanna to be reborn seven more times before attaining nibbana, as an ardent
practitioner may progress to the higher stages in the same life in which he/she
reaches the Sotāpanna level by making an aspiration and persistent effort to
reach the final goal of nibbāna. [11]
In
the Pali
Canon,
qualities of a Sotāpanna are described as: [12]
…those monks who
have abandoned the three fetters, are all stream-winners, steadfast, never
again destined for states of woe, headed for self-awakening. This is how the
Dhamma well-proclaimed by me is clear, open, evident, stripped of rags.
—Alagaddupama Sutta
Sotāpanna
is not capable of committing six wrong actions:
- Murdering
one’s own mother. - Murdering
one’s own father. - Murdering
an Arahant. - Maliciously
injuring the Buddha to the point of drawing blood. - Successfully
creating a schism in the monastic community. - Choosing
anyone other than a Buddha as one’s foremost Teacher.
The
Buddha spoke favorably about the Sotapanna on many occasions, and even though
it is the first of Ariya Sangha members, he or she is welcomed by all
other Sangha-members for he or she practices for the benefit and welfare of
many. In the literature, the Ariya Sangha is described as “the
four” when taken as pairs, and as “the eight” when taken as
individuals. Thus, the first one of the pairs is referred to as the Sotapanna,
a stream enterer; however, when taken as eight individual, the Sotapanna acts
not only with stream-entry present but also a Sotapanna (plus), a Noble One who
acts for the fruit of stream-entry:[13]
‘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.’
—Anguttara Nikaya, 11.12
The
fifty-fifth Samyutta of the Samyutta Nikaya is called the Sotāpatti-saṃyutta,
and concerns Sotapannas and their attainment. In Sutta-numbers of chapter 1-4,
6-9, 11-14, 16-20, 22-36, 39-49, 51, 53, 54, Sotapannas are praised as Sangha
members by and to the sick, layfollowers, people on their deathbed, bhikkhunis,
bhikkhus, and devas, and end up for the wellbeing and benefit of many.
Dhammapada 178:
Sole dominion over the earth,
going to heaven,
lordship over all worlds:
the fruit of stream-entry
excels them.
Notes
- ^ Meditative
States in Tibetan Buddhism By Lati Rinpoche, Denma Locho Rinpoche, Leah
Zahler, Jeffrey Hopkins. pg 63 - ^ “A
Glossary of Pali and Buddhist Terms”. Access
to Insight.
Retrieved 2010-08-22. - ^ Venerable
Master Hsuan Hua. “The
Vajra Prajna Paramita Sutra - A General Explanation”. Buddhist
Text Translation Society. Retrieved 2009-09-16. - ^ Sister
Ayya Khema. “All
of Us”.
Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ Bhikkhu
Bodhi. “The
Noble Eightfold Path”. Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/study/stream2.html
- ^ Thanissaro
Bhikkhu. “Stream
Entry”.
Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ Thanissaro
Bhikkhu. “The
Noble Eightfold Path”. Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^
Nyanaponika Thera. “The
Simile of the Cloth & The Discourse on Effacement”. Access to
Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ Bhikkhu
Bodhi. “Transcendental
Dependent Arising”.
Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ Henepola
Gunaratana. “The
Jhanas”.
Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ “Alagaddupama
Sutta”.
Access to Insight. Retrieved 2009-03-16. - ^ “Sangha”. Access to Insight. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
See
also
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Four_stages_of_enlightenment
Four stages of awakenment with awareness
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
The
four stages of enlightenment in Buddhism are the four progressive stages
culminating in full enlightenment as an Arahat,
something which it is stressed within the tradition that any person of average
intelligence can achieve in this life with the necessary instruction and
effort.
The
four stages are Sotapanna, Sakadagami, Anagami and Arahat. The
Buddha referred to people who are at one of these four stages as noble people (ariya-puggala)
and the community of such persons within the bhikkhu-sangha as the noble
sangha (ariya-sangha).
The
teaching of the four stages of enlightenment is a central element of the early Buddhist schools,
including the Theravada school of Buddhism, which still
survives.
Contents |
The Ordinary
person
An
ordinary person or pruthajjana (Pali; Sanskrit: pṛthagjanai.e. pritha : without, and jnana :
knowledge) is trapped in the endless cycling of sansara. One is
reborn, lives, and dies in endless rebirths, either as a deva, human, animal, male, female,
neuter, ghost, deity, divinity, or hellion, or various other entities on
different categories of existence.
There
are a total of 31
planes of existence divided into three realms. The lowest realm is the realm of sensuality
(kama-loka) with the human world being the lowest fortunate world. Above this realm is the fine material realm
(rupa-loka), with numerous deva worlds : The lowest classes of devas (1) the desire realm devas
devote their time to enjoying and satisfying sense desires. Higher up are the (2) form and (3) formless devas and brahmas.
Having passed beyond sensual desires, the form devas experience the
refined bliss of the first four meditative absorptions (jhanas) and possess
subtle bodies emanating light. Transcending form, the devas of the formless
realm (arupa-loka) reside in subtle conscious states known as unbounded space,
unbounded consciousness, nothingness, and neither perception nor non-perception.
Although
these devas and brahmas live extremely long lives of ease and luxury in worlds
that may be described as paradises, they are not immortal. They too will
eventually pass away, often falling to a lower state of existence either
because it is difficult for them to find the motivation to practice the Dharma
(which creates profitable karma) since they can also submit to distractions,
or, since pure deva consciousness is yet within samsara, because some cycle of
ignorance, craving for continued existence, or holding a self-view, exhausts
their merit or good karma. Such a death means there was not enough spiritual
progress. They fall, but they may also take rebirth on the same plane or rise
to a higher plane. Unfortunately they may fall as far as the subhuman plane.
There
are numerous lower or unfortunate
planes below the human world: The least painful is (1) the animal realm (e.g., insects, birds, fish, mammals,
etc.). Their lives are characterized by instinct and emotions having to do with
survival. Then there is (2) the hungry
spirit plane, which is characterized by long periods of hunger and thirst
and lack that is difficult to bear. Finally, the lowest plane is (3) the hell planes, where
beings are relentlessly tormented depending on the plane (pierced, scalded,
tortured, frosted, etc.) by the fears arising from their delusional mind as a
result of unprofitable karma. The suffering continues for what seems like an
eternity but eventually the karma that sustained that existence is exhausted
and the hell beings (narakas) pass away and are reborn elsewhere in sansara
according to their karma.
Doing
good or bad (bodily, verbally, or mentally) as influenced by an entity’s mental
attachments ( sans. Raga ) and aversions ( sans. Dvvesh ), an ordinary entity
is born in higher or lower states of being (heavens, lower
states, or even tormenting hells)
according to their actions in preceding births.
As
these entities have little control over their minds and behaviors, due to the
hardships they experience, their destinies are haphazard and subject to great
suffering. Worries, “tension”, adversaries, and general adversity are
their daily grindstone - all projections of their own mind, instigated by the
driving force of past karma, subsisting as samskaras, or tendencies, in the
thought-stuff, and manifested as vasanas, or predilections, in immediate
consciousness and behavior.
An
ordinary entity has never seen and experienced the ultimate truth of Dharma and
therefore has no way of finding an end to the predicament. It is only when
suffering becomes acute, or seemingly unending, that an entity looks for a
“solution” to and, if fortunate, finds the Dharma.
The Noble
persons
Supra-mundane stages, fetters and rebirths |
|||
|
stage’s |
abandoned |
rebirth(s) |
|
|
1. identity view |
lower |
up to seven more times as |
|
|
once more as |
|||
|
4. sensual desire |
once more in |
||
|
6. material-rebirth lust |
higher |
none |
|
Source: Ñāṇamoli & Bodhi (2001), Middle-Length |
|||
One
who begins sincere training on the Buddhist
path
(known as Sekhas in Pali or “those in
training”) and experiences the truth to the extent of cutting off three or
more of the ten mental fetters (Pali: saṃyojana)
becomes an ariya puggala (Pali; Sanskrit: āryapudgala): a “noble
person” who will surely become an Arahant
within seven existences. The length is governed by the degree of attainment
reached. “Among whatever communities or groups there may be, the Sangha of
the Tathagata’s disciples is considered
supreme… 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.”[4]
The
Sangha of the Tathagata’s disciples (Ariya Sangha), i.e. the four [groups of
noble disciples] when taken as pairs, the eight when taken as individuals. The
four groups of noble disciples (Buddhist Sekhas) when taken as pairs are those
who have attained:
- I
(1) the path to stream-entry;
(2) the fruition of stream-entry; - II
(3) the path to once-returning;
(4) the fruition of once-returning; - III
(5) the path to non-returning;
(6) the fruition of non-returning; - IV
(7) the path to arahantship;
(8) the fruition of arahantship.
Taking
each attainment singly gives eight individuals.
Stream-enterer
Main article: Sotāpanna
The
first stage is that of Sotāpanna (Pali; Sanskrit: Srotāpanna),
literally meaning “one who enters (āpadyate)
the stream (sotas),” with the stream being the supermundane Noble Eightfold Path regarded
as the highest Dharma. The stream-enterer is also said to have “opened the
eye of the Dharma” (dhammacakkhu, Sanskrit: dharmacakṣus).
A
stream-enterer reaches arahantship within seven rebirths upon opening the eye
of the Dharma.
Due
to the fact that the stream-enterer has attained an intuitive grasp of Buddhist
doctrine (samyagdṛṣṭi or sammādiṭṭhi,
“right view”) and has complete confidence or Saddha in the Three Jewels: Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, that
individual will not be reborn in any plane lower than the human (animal, preta, or in hell).
Once-returner
Main article: Sakadagami
The
second stage is that of the Sakadāgāmī (Sanskrit: Sakṛdāgāmin),
literally meaning “one who once (sakṛt) comes (āgacchati)”.
The once-returner will at most return to the human world one more time. Both
the stream-enterer and the once-returner have abandoned the first three
fetters. The stream-enterer and once-returner are distinguished by the fact
that the once-returner has weakened lust, hate, and delusion to a greater
degree. The once-returner therefore has fewer than seven rebirths. They may
take place in higher planes but will include rebirth in the human world at most
only once more. Once-returners do not have only one more rebirth, as the name
suggests, for that may not even be said with certainty about the non-returner
who can take multiple rebirths in the five “Pure Abodes”.
Non-returner
Main article: Anāgāmi
The
third stage is that of the Anāgāmī (Sanskrit: Anāgāmin), literally meaning “one who does not (an-)
come (āgacchati)”.
The non-returner, having overcome sensuality, does not return to human world,
or any unfortunate world lower than that after death. Instead, non-returners
are reborn in one
of the five special worlds in Rūpadhātu called
the Śuddhāvāsa worlds, or
“Pure Abodes”, and there attain Nirvāṇa; Pāli:
Nibbana; some of them are reborn a second time in a higher world of the Pure
Abodes.
An Anāgāmī has abandoned the five lower fetters, out of ten
total fetters, that bind beings to the cycle of rebirth. An Anāgāmī is well advanced and close to complete Enlightenment.
Arahant
Main article: Arahant
The
fourth stage is that of Arahant, a fully enlightened being who has
abandoned all ten fetters and who, upon death (Sanskrit: Parinirvāṇa, Pāli: Parinibbāna) will never be reborn in any plane or world,
having wholly escaped saṃsāra.[4]