sn.35.244 Saṁyutta Nikāya (Linked Discourses)

States That Entail Suffering

“Bhikkhus, when a bhikkhu understands as they really are the origin and the passing away of all states whatsoever that entail suffering, then sensual pleasures have been seen by him in such a way that as he looks at them sensual desire, sensual affection, sensual infatuation, and sensual passion do not lie latent within him in regard to sensual pleasures; then he has comprehended a mode of conduct and manner of dwelling in such a way that as he conducts himself thus and as he dwells thus, evil unwholesome states of covetousness and displeasure do not flow in upon him.

“And how, bhikkhus, does a bhikkhu understand as they really are the origin and the passing away of all states whatsoever that entail suffering? ‘Such is form, such its origin, such its passing away; such is feeling … such is perception … such are volitional formations … such is consciousness, such its origin, such its passing away’: it is in such a way that a bhikkhu understands as they really are the origin and the passing away of all states whatsoever that entail suffering.

“And how, bhikkhus, are sensual pleasures seen by a bhikkhu in such a way that as he looks at them sensual desire, sensual affection, sensual infatuation, and sensual passion do not lie latent within him in regard to sensual pleasures? Suppose there is a charcoal pit deeper than a man’s height, filled with glowing coals without flame or smoke. A man would come along wanting to live, not wanting to die, desiring happiness and averse to suffering. Then two strong men would grab him by both arms and drag him towards the charcoal pit. The man would wriggle his body this way and that. For what reason? Because he knows: ‘I will fall into this charcoal pit and I will thereby meet death or deadly suffering.’ So too, bhikkhus, when a bhikkhu has seen sensual pleasures as similar to a charcoal pit, sensual desire, sensual affection, sensual infatuation, and sensual passion do not lie latent within him in regard to sensual pleasures.

“And how, bhikkhus, has a bhikkhu comprehended a mode of conduct and manner of dwelling in such a way that as he conducts himself thus and as he dwells thus, evil unwholesome states of covetousness and displeasure do not flow in upon him? Suppose a man would enter a thorny forest. There would be thorns in front of him, thorns behind him, thorns to his left, thorns to his right, thorns below him, thorns above him. He would go forward mindfully, he would go back mindfully, thinking, ‘May no thorn prick me!’ So too, bhikkhus, whatever in the world has a pleasing and agreeable nature is called a thorn in the Noble One’s Discipline. Having understood this thus as ‘a thorn,’ one should understand restraint and nonrestraint.

“And how, bhikkhus, is there nonrestraint? Here, having seen a form with the eye, a bhikkhu is intent upon a pleasing form and repelled by a displeasing form. He dwells without having set up mindfulness of the body, with a limited mind, and he does not understand as it really is that liberation of mind, liberation by wisdom, wherein those evil unwholesome states cease without remainder. Having heard a sound with the ear … Having cognized a mental phenomenon with the mind, he is intent upon a pleasing mental phenomenon and repelled by a displeasing mental phenomenon. He dwells without having set up mindfulness of the body, with a limited mind, and he does not understand as it really is that liberation of mind, liberation by wisdom, wherein those evil unwholesome states cease without remainder. It is in such a way that there is nonrestraint.

“And how, bhikkhus, is there restraint? Here, having seen a form with the eye, a bhikkhu is not intent upon a pleasing form and not repelled by a displeasing form. He dwells having set up mindfulness of the body, with a measureless mind, and he understands as it really is that liberation of mind, liberation by wisdom, wherein those evil unwholesome states cease without remainder. Having heard a sound with the ear … Having cognized a mental phenomenon with the mind, he is not intent upon a pleasing mental phenomenon and not repelled by a displeasing mental phenomenon. He dwells having set up mindfulness of the body, with a measureless mind, and he understands as it really is that liberation of mind, liberation by wisdom, wherein those evil unwholesome states cease without remainder. It is in such a way that there is restraint.

“When, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu is conducting himself and dwelling in such a way, if occasionally, due to a lapse of mindfulness, evil unwholesome memories and intentions connected with the fetters arise in him, slow might be the arising of his mindfulness, but then he quickly abandons them, dispels them, puts an end to them, obliterates them. Suppose a man let two or three drops of water fall onto an iron plate heated for a whole day. Slow might be the falling of the water drops, but then they would quickly vaporize and vanish. So too, when a bhikkhu is conducting himself and dwelling in such a way … slow might be the arising of his mindfulness, but then he quickly abandons them, dispels them, puts an end to them, obliterates them.

“Thus a bhikkhu has comprehended a mode of conduct and manner of dwelling in such a way that as he conducts himself and as he dwells thus, evil unwholesome states of covetousness and displeasure do not flow in upon him.

“When a bhikkhu is conducting himself thus and dwelling thus, kings or royal ministers, friends or colleagues, relatives or kinsmen, might invite him to accept wealth, saying: ‘Come, good man, why let these saffron robes weigh you down? Why roam around with a shaven head and a begging bowl? Come, having returned to the lower life, enjoy wealth and do meritorious deeds.’ Indeed, bhikkhus, when that bhikkhu is conducting himself thus and dwelling thus, it is impossible that he will give up the training and return to the lower life.

“Suppose, bhikkhus, that when the river Ganges slants, slopes, and inclines towards the east, a great crowd of people would come along bringing a shovel and basket, thinking: ‘We will make this river Ganges slant, slope, and incline towards the west.’ What do you think, bhikkhus, would that great crowd of people be able to make the river Ganges slant, slope, and incline towards the west?”

“No, venerable sir. For what reason? Because the river Ganges slants, slopes, and inclines towards the east, and it is not easy to make it slant, slope, and incline towards the west. That great crowd of people would only reap fatigue and vexation.”

“So too, bhikkhus, when a bhikkhu is conducting himself thus and dwelling thus, kings or royal ministers, friends or colleagues, relatives or kinsmen, might invite him to accept wealth … but it is impossible that he will give up the training and return to the lower life. For what reason? Because for a long time his mind has slanted, sloped, and inclined towards seclusion. Thus it is impossible that he will give up the training and return to the lower life.”

- Translator: Bhikkhu Bodhi

- Editor: Blake Walsh

Entailing Suffering

“Mendicants, when a mendicant truly understands the origin and ending of all things that entail suffering,
then they’ve seen sensual pleasures in such a way that they have no underlying tendency for desire, affection, infatuation, and passion for sensual pleasures.
And they’ve awakened to a way of conduct and a way of living such that, when they live in that way, bad, unskillful qualities of desire and grief don’t overwhelm them.
And how does a mendicant truly understand the origin and ending of all things that entail suffering?
‘Such is form, such is the origin of form, such is the ending of form.
Such is feeling …
perception …
choices …
consciousness, such is the origin of consciousness, such is the ending of consciousness.’
That’s how a mendicant truly understands the origin and ending of all things that entail suffering.
And how has a mendicant seen sensual pleasures in such a way that they have no underlying tendency for desire, affection, infatuation, and passion for sensual pleasures?
Suppose there was a pit of glowing coals deeper than a man’s height, filled with glowing coals that neither flamed nor smoked. Then a person would come along who wants to live and doesn’t want to die, who wants to be happy and recoils from pain. Then two strong men grab would grab each arm and drag them towards the pit of glowing coals. They’d writhe and struggle to and fro.
Why is that?
For that person knows, ‘If I fall in that pit of glowing coals, that will result in my death or deadly pain.’
In the same way, when a mendicant has seen sensual pleasures as like a pit of glowing coals, they have no underlying tendency for desire, affection, infatuation, and passion for sensual pleasures.
And how has a mendicant awakened to a way of conduct and a way of living such that, when they live in that way, bad, unskillful qualities of desire and grief don’t overwhelm them?
Suppose a person was to enter a thicket full of thorns. They’d have thorns in front and behind, to the left and right, below and above. So they’d go forward mindfully and come back mindfully, thinking, ‘May I not get any thorns!’
In the same way, whatever in the world seems nice and pleasant is called a thorn in the training of the Noble One.
When they understand what a thorn is, they should understand restraint and lack of restraint.
And how is someone unrestrained?
Take a mendicant who sees a sight with the eye. If it’s pleasant they hold on to it, but if it’s unpleasant they dislike it. They live with mindfulness of the body unestablished and their heart restricted.
And they don’t truly understand the freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom where those arisen bad, unskillful qualities cease without anything left over.
They hear a sound … smell an odor … taste a flavor … feel a touch …
know a thought with the mind. If it’s pleasant they hold on to it, but if it’s unpleasant they dislike it. They live with mindfulness of the body unestablished and a limited heart.
And they don’t truly understand the freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom where those arisen bad, unskillful qualities cease without anything left over.
This is how someone is unrestrained.
And how is someone restrained?
Take a mendicant who sees a sight with the eye. If it’s pleasant they don’t hold on to it, and if it’s unpleasant they don’t dislike it. They live with mindfulness of the body established and a limitless heart.
And they truly understand the freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom where those arisen bad, unskillful qualities cease without anything left over.
They hear a sound … smell an odor … taste a flavor … feel a touch …
know a thought with the mind. If it’s pleasant they don’t hold on to it, and if it’s unpleasant they don’t dislike it. They live with mindfulness of the body established and a limitless heart.
And they truly understand the freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom where those arisen bad, unskillful qualities cease without anything left over.
This is how someone is restrained.
Though that mendicant conducts themselves and lives in this way, every so often they might lose mindfulness, and bad, unskillful memories and thoughts prone to fetters arise. If this happens, their mindfulness is slow to come up, but they quickly give them up, get rid of, eliminate, and obliterate those thoughts.
Suppose there was an iron cauldron that had been heated all day, and a person let two or three drops of water fall onto it. The drops would be slow to fall, but they’d quickly dry up and evaporate.
In the same way, though that mendicant conducts themselves and lives in this way, every so often they might lose mindfulness, and bad, unskillful memories and thoughts prone to fetters arise. If this happens, their mindfulness is slow to come up, but they quickly give them up, get rid of, eliminate, and obliterate those thoughts.
This is how a mendicant has awakened to a way of conduct and a way of living such that, when they live in that way, bad, unskillful qualities of desire and grief don’t overwhelm them.
While that mendicant conducts themselves in this way and lives in this way, it may be that rulers or their ministers, friends or colleagues, relatives or family would invite them to accept wealth, saying,
‘Please, mister, why let these ocher robes torment you?
Why follow the practice of shaving your head and carrying an alms bowl?
Come, return to a lesser life, enjoy wealth, and make merit!’
But it’s simply impossible for a mendicant who conducts themselves in this way and lives in this way to resign the training and return to a lesser life.
Suppose that, although the Ganges river slants, slopes, and inclines to the east, a large crowd were to come along with a spade and basket, saying: ‘We’ll make this Ganges river slant, slope, and incline to the west!’
What do you think, mendicants?
Would they still succeed?”
“No, sir.
Why is that?
The Ganges river slants, slopes, and inclines to the east.
It’s not easy to make it slant, slope, and incline to the west.
That large crowd will eventually get weary and frustrated.”
“In the same way, while that mendicant conducts themselves in this way and lives in this way, it may be that rulers or their ministers, friends or colleagues, relatives or family should invite them to accept wealth, saying,
‘Please, mister, why let these ocher robes torment you?
Why follow the practice of shaving your head and carrying an alms bowl?
Come, return to a lesser life, enjoy wealth, and make merit!’
But it’s simply impossible for a mendicant who conducts themselves in this way and lives in this way to resign the training and return to a lesser life.
Why is that?
Because for a long time that mendicant’s mind has slanted, sloped, and inclined to seclusion. So it’s impossible for them to return to a lesser life.”