SN22:88 Assaji
- DG BB TBW © Translated from the Pali by Bhikkhu Bodhi. (More copyright information)
1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrel Sanctuary. Now on that occasion the Venerable Assaji was dwelling at Kassapaka's Park, sick, afflicted, gravely ill.Then the Venerable Assaji addressed his attendants:
sn.iii.125"Come, friends, approach the Blessed One, pay homage to him in my name with your head at his feet, and say: ‘Venerable sir, the bhikkhu Assaji is sick, afflicted, gravely ill; he pays homage to the Blessed One with his head at his feet.’ Then say: ‘It would be good, venerable sir, if the Blessed One would approach the bhikkhu Assaji out of compassion.’"
"Yes, friend," those bhikkhus replied, and they approached the Blessed One, paid homage to him, sat down to one side, and delivered their message. The Blessed One consented by silence.
2Then the Blessed One dressed and, taking bowl and robe, approached the Venerable Assaji. sn.iii.120 The Venerable Assaji saw the Blessed One coming in the distance and stirred on his bed. [n.167] Samadhosi. Spk: He showed his respect by making a movement; for, it is said, even a patient is obliged to show respect to a superior by making a gesture of rising. The Blessed One said to him: "Enough, Assaji, do not stir on your bed. There are these seats ready, I will sit down there."
The Blessed One then sat down on the appointed seat and said to the Venerable Assaji: "I hope you are bearing up, Assaji, I hope you are getting better. I hope that your painful feelings are subsiding and not increasing, and that their subsiding, not their increase, is to be discerned."
3"Venerable sir, I am not bearing up, I am not getting better. Strong painful feelings are increasing in me, not subsiding, and their increase, not their subsiding, is to be discerned."
"I hope then, Assaji, that you are not troubled by remorse and regret."
"Indeed, venerable sir, I have quite a lot of remorse and regret."
I hope, Assaji, that you have nothing for which to reproach yourself in regard to virtue."
"I have nothing, venerable sir, for which to reproach myself in regard to virtue."
"Then if you have nothing for which to reproach yourself in regard to virtue, Assaji, why are you troubled by remorse and regret?"
"Formerly, venerable sir, when I was ill I kept on tranquillizing the bodily formations, but now I do not obtain concentration.
[n.173] I read with Be: gelaññe passambhetvā passambhetvā kāysaṅkhāre viharāmi, so ’haṃ samādhiṃ nappaṭilabhāmi. The "bodily formations" are in-breathing and out-breathing (assasa-passasa); see MN I 56,20–22 and MN I 301,20–21 (= SN41.6; IV 293,16).
Spk: He kept tranquillizing in-and-out breathing when he dwelt in the fourth jhāna, where breathing ceases (SN36.11; IV 217,8–9). Because he had fallen away from all the meditative absorptions that he had previously attained, he thought, "Let me not fall away from the Teaching."
As I do not obtain concentration, it occurs to me: ‘Let me not fall away!’"
"Those ascetics and brahmins, Assaji, who regard concentration as the essence and identify concentration with asceticism, [n.174] Spk: Samādhisārakā samādhisāmaññā ti samādhiṃ yeva sārañ ca sāmaññañ ca maññanti. "In my Teaching that is not the essence; the essence is insight, path, and fruit." failing to obtain concentration, might think, ‘Let us not fall away!’
4"What do you think, Assaji, is form permanent or impermanent?"
"Impermanent, venerable sir."
"Is feeling permanent or impermanent? … Is perception permanent or impermanent? … Are volitional formations permanent or impermanent? … Is consciousness permanent or impermanent?"
"Impermanent, venerable sir."
"Is what is impermanent suffering or happiness?"
"Suffering, venerable sir."
"Is what is impermanent, suffering, and subject to change fit to be regarded thus: ‘This is mine, this I am, this is my self’?"
"No, venerable sir."
"Therefore any kind of form, feeling, perception, volitional formations, or consciousness whatsoever, whether past, future, or present, internal or external, gross or subtle, inferior or superior, far or near – all of these should be seen as they really are with correct wisdom thus: ‘This is not mine, this I am not, this is not my self.’
Seeing thus, Assaji, the instructed noble disciple experiences revulsion towards form, revulsion towards feeling, revulsion towards perception, revulsion towards volitional formations, revulsion towards consciousness.
Experiencing revulsion, he becomes dispassionate. Through dispassion his mind is liberated. When it is liberated there comes the knowledge: ‘It's liberated.’ He understands: ‘Destroyed is birth, the holy life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, there is no more for this state of being.’ [n.175] Spk says that at the end of the Buddha’s exposition of the three characteristics, Assaji attained arahantship. Spk explains that the Buddha introduces the following passage to show the arahant's constant abiding. See too SN12.51, where the same text is coupled with a different simile. The present version is also at SN36.7, 36:8, and SN54.8.
"If he feels a pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘It is impermanent’; he understands: ‘It is not held to’; he understands: ‘It is not delighted in.’ If he feels a painful feeling, he understands: ‘It is impermanent’; he understands: ‘It is not held to’; he understands: ‘It is not delighted in.’ If he feels a neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling, he understands: ‘It is impermanent’; he understands: ‘It is not held to’; he understands: ‘It is not delighted in.’
"If he feels a pleasant feeling, he feels it detached; if he feels a painful feeling, he feels it detached; if he feels a neither-painful-nor-pleasant feeling, he feels it detached.
"When he feels a feeling terminating with the body, he understands: ‘I feel a feeling terminating with the body.’ When he feels a feeling terminating with life, he understands: ‘I feel a feeling terminating with life.’ He understands: ‘With the breakup of the body, following the exhaustion of life, all that is felt, not being delighted in, will become cool right here.’
5"Just as, Assaji, an oil lamp burns in dependence on the oil and the wick, and with the exhaustion of the oil and the wick it is extinguished through lack of fuel, so too, Assaji, when a bhikkhu feels a feeling terminating with the body … terminating with life … He understands: ‘With the breakup of the body, following the exhaustion of life, all that is felt, not being delighted in, will become cool right here.’"
1Ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā rājagahe vihārati veḷuvane kalandakanivāpe. Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā assaji kassapakārāme vihārati ābādhiko dukkhito bāḷhagilāno. Atha kho āyasmā assaji upaṭṭhāke āmantesi:
"etha tumhe, āvuso, yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamatha; upasaṅkamitvā mama vacanena bhagavato pāde sirasā vandatha: ‘assaji, bhante, bhikkhu ābādhiko dukkhito bāḷhagilāno. So bhagavato pāde sirasā vandatī’ti. Evañca vadetha: ‘sādhu kira, bhante, bhagavā yena assaji bhikkhu tenupasaṅkamatu anukampāṁ upādāyā’"ti.
"Evamāvuso"ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato assajissa paṭissutvā yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamiṁsu; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdiṁsu. Ekamantaṁ nisinnā kho te bhikkhū bhagavantaṁ etadavocuṁ: "assaji, bhante, bhikkhu ābādhiko … pe … sādhu kira, bhante, bhagavā yena assaji bhikkhu tenupasaṅkamatu anukampāṁ upādāyā"ti. Adhivāsesi bhagavā tuṇhībhāvena.
2Atha kho bhagavā sāyanhasamayaṁ paṭisallānā vuṭṭhito yenāyasmā assaji tenupasaṅkami. Addasā kho āyasmā assaji bhagavantaṁ dūratova āgacchantaṁ. Disvāna mañcake samadhosi. Atha kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ assajiṁ etadavoca: "Alaṁ, assaji, mā tvaṁ mañcake samadhosi. Santimāni āsanāni paññattāni, tatthāhaṁ nisīdissāmī"ti.
Nisīdi bhagavā paññatte āsane. Nisajja kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ assajiṁ etadavoca: "Kacci te, assaji, khamanīyaṁ, kacci yāpanīyaṁ … pe … paṭikkamosānaṁ paññāyati no abhikkamo"ti?
3"Na me, bhante, khamanīyaṁ … pe … abhikkamosānaṁ paññāyati no paṭikkamo"ti.
"Kacci te, assaji, na kiñci kukkuccaṁ na koci vippaṭisāro"ti?
"Taggha me, bhante, anappakaṁ kukkuccaṁ anappako vippaṭisāro"ti.
"Kacci pana taṁ, assaji, attā sīlato na upavadatī"ti?
"Na kho maṁ, bhante, attā sīlato upavadatī"ti.
"No ce kira taṁ, assaji, attā sīlato upavadati, atha kiñca te kukkuccaṁ ko ca vippaṭisāro"ti?
"Pubbe khvāhaṁ, bhante, gelaññe passambhetvā passambhetvā kāyasaṅkhāre viharāmi, sohaṁ samādhiṁ nappaṭilabhāmi. Tassa mayhaṁ, bhante, taṁ samādhiṁ appaṭilabhato evaṁ hoti: ‘no cassāhaṁ parihāyāmī’"ti.
"Ye te, assaji, samaṇabrāhmaṇā samādhisārakā samādhisāmaññā tesaṁ taṁ samādhiṁ appaṭilabhataṁ evaṁ hoti: ‘no cassu mayaṁ parihāyāmā’ti.
4Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, assaji, rūpaṁ niccaṁ vā aniccaṁ vā"ti? "Aniccaṁ, bhante" … pe … viññāṇaṁ … pe …
"tasmātiha … pe …
evaṁ passaṁ … pe …
… nāparaṁ itthattāyāti pajānātīti.
So sukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anajjhositā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. Dukkhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anajjhositā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. Adukkhamasukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti … pe … ‘anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti.
So sukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati; dukkhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati; adukkhamasukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati.
So kāyapariyantikañce vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. Jīvitapariyantikañce vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. ‘Kāyassa bhedā uddhaṁ jīvitapariyādānā idheva sabbavedayitāni anabhinanditāni sītībhavissantī’ti pajānāti.
5Seyyathāpi, assaji, telañca paṭicca, vaṭṭiñca paṭicca, telappadīpo jhāyeyya; tasseva telassa ca vaṭṭiyā ca pariyādānā anāhāro nibbāyeyya. Evameva kho, assaji, bhikkhu kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. Jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. ‘Kāyassa bhedā uddhaṁ jīvitapariyādānā idheva sabbavedayitāni anabhinanditāni sītībhavissantī’ti pajānātī"ti.
Chaṭṭhaṁ.