SN42:11 Bhadraka
- DG BB TBW © Translated from the Pali by Bhikkhu Bodhi. (More copyright information)
1On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at a town of the Mallans named Uruvelakappa. Then Bhadraka the headman approached the Blessed One, paid homage to him, sat down to one side, and said to him: "It would be good, venerable sir, if the Blessed One would teach me about the origin and the passing away of suffering."
"If, headman, I were to teach you about the origin and the passing away of suffering with reference to the past, saying, ‘So it was in the past,’ perplexity and uncertainty about that might arise in you. And if I were to teach you about the origin and the passing away of suffering with reference to the future, saying, ‘So it will be in the future,’ perplexity and uncertainty about that might arise in you. Instead, headman, while I am sitting right here, and you are sitting right there, I will teach you about the origin and the passing away of suffering. Listen to that and attend closely, I will speak."
"Yes, venerable sir," Bhadraka the headman replied. The Blessed One said this:
2"What do you think, headman? Are there any people in Uruvelakappa on whose account sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would arise in you if they were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured?" [n.351] Be omits the second question, apparently by editorial oversight, as it is in Se and Ee.
"There are such people, venerable sir."
"But are there any people in Uruvelakappa on whose account sn.iv.328 sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would not arise in you in such an event?"
"There are such people, venerable sir."
"What, headman, is the cause and reason why in relation to some people in Uruvelakappa sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would arise in you if they were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured, while in regard to others no such sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would arise in you?"
"Those people in Uruvelakappa, venerable sir, in relation to whom sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would arise in me if they were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured—these are the ones for whom I have desire and attachment. But those people in Uruvelakappa in relation to whom no sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair would arise in me—these are the ones for whom I have no desire and attachment."
"Headman, by means of this principle that is seen, understood, immediately attained, fathomed, apply the method to the past and to the future thus: [n.352] Cp. SN12.33 (II 58,3–5). Spk's treatment of the line here indicates that it takes akālikena pattena as a single expression, with akālikena functioning as an adverbial instrumental in apposition to pattena: Akālikena pattenā ti na kālantarena pattena; kālaṁ anatikkamitvā va pattenā ti attho; "Immediately attained: not attained after an interval of time; the meaning is that it is attained even without any time having elapsed." For more on akālikena, see I, n. 33, II, n. 103. The opening of this paragraph in Ee seems garbled. ‘Whatever suffering arose in the past, all that arose rooted in desire, with desire as its source; for desire is the root of suffering. Whatever suffering will arise in the future, all that will arise rooted in desire, with desire as its source; for desire is the root of suffering.’"
"It is wonderful, venerable sir! It is amazing, venerable sir! How well that has been stated by the Blessed One: ‘Whatever suffering arises, sn.iv.329 all that is rooted in desire, has desire as its source; for desire is the root of suffering.’ [n.353] Note that the headman here ascribes to the Buddha, as a direct quotation, a general statement of the causal tie between desire and suffering (yaṁ kiñci dukkhaṁ uppajjamanaṁ uppajjati …). As this statement is not found in the Buddha’s words above but is clearly needed as the referent of "this principle" (iminā dhammena), it seems likely that the statement had been in the original text but at some point had been elided. Just below the Buddha does make the generalization himself. Venerable sir, I have a boy named Ciravasī, who stays at an outside residence. I rise early and send a man, saying, ‘Go, man, and find out how Ciravasī is.’ Until that man returns, venerable sir, I am upset, thinking, ‘I hope Ciravasī has not met with any affliction!’"
3"What do you think, headman? If Ciravasī were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured, would sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair arise in you?"
"Venerable sir, if Ciravasī were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured, even my life would be upset, so how could sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair not arise in me?"
"In this way too, headman, it can be understood: ‘Whatever suffering arises, all that arises rooted in desire, with desire as its source; for desire is the root of suffering.’
4"What do you think, headman? Before you saw Ciravasī's mother or heard about her, did you have any desire, attachment, or affection for her?"
"No, venerable sir."
"Then was it, headman, because of seeing her or hearing about her that this desire, attachment, and affection arose in you?"
"Yes, venerable sir."
5"What do you think, headman? If Ciravasī's mother were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured, would sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair arise in you?" sn.iv.330
"Venerable sir, if Ciravasī's mother were to be executed, imprisoned, fined, or censured, even my life would be upset, so how could sorrow, lamentation, pain, displeasure, and despair not arise in me?"
"In this way too, headman, it can be understood: ‘Whatever suffering arises, all that arises rooted in desire, with desire as its source; for desire is the root of suffering.’"
1Ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā mallesu vihārati uruvelakappaṁ nāma mallānaṁ nigamo. Atha kho bhadrako gāmaṇi yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinno kho bhadrako gāmaṇi bhagavantaṁ etadavoca: "sādhu me, bhante, bhagavā dukkhassa samudayañca atthaṅgamañca desetū"ti.
"Ahañce te, gāmaṇi, atītamaddhānaṁ ārabbha dukkhassa samudayañca atthaṅgamañca deseyyaṁ: ‘evaṁ ahosi atītamaddhānan’ti, tatra te siyā kaṅkhā, siyā vimati. Ahañce te, gāmaṇi, anāgatamaddhānaṁ ārabbha dukkhassa samudayañca atthaṅgamañca deseyyaṁ: ‘evaṁ bhavissati anāgatamaddhānan’ti, tatrāpi te siyā kaṅkhā, siyā vimati. Api cāhaṁ, gāmaṇi, idheva nisinno ettheva te nisinnassa dukkhassa samudayañca atthaṅgamañca desessāmi. Taṁ suṇāhi, sādhukaṁ manasi karohi; bhāsissāmī"ti.
"Evaṁ, bhante"ti kho bhadrako gāmaṇi bhagavato paccassosi. Bhagavā etadavoca:
2"Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, gāmaṇi, atthi te uruvelakappe manussā yesaṁ te vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti?
"Atthi me, bhante, uruvelakappe manussā yesaṁ me vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti.
"Atthi pana te, gāmaṇi, uruvelakappe manussā yesaṁ te vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti?
"Atthi me, bhante, uruvelakappe manussā yesaṁ me vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti.
"Ko nu kho, gāmaṇi, hetu, ko paccayo yena te ekaccānaṁ uruvelakappiyānaṁ manussānaṁ vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti?
"Yesaṁ me, bhante, uruvelakappiyānaṁ manussānaṁ vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā, atthi me tesu chandarāgo. Yesaṁ pana, bhante, uruvelakappiyānaṁ manussānaṁ vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā, natthi me tesu chandarāgo"ti.
"Iminā tvaṁ, gāmaṇi, dhammena diṭṭhena viditena akālikena pattena pariyogāḷhena atītānāgate nayaṁ nehi: ‘Yaṁ kho kiñci atītamaddhānaṁ dukkhaṁ uppajjamānaṁ uppajji sabbaṁ taṁ chandamūlakaṁ chandanidānaṁ. Chando hi mūlaṁ dukkhassa. Yampi hi kiñci anāgatamaddhānaṁ dukkhaṁ uppajjamānaṁ uppajjissati, sabbaṁ taṁ chandamūlakaṁ chandanidānaṁ. Chando hi mūlaṁ dukkhassā’"ti.
"Acchariyaṁ, bhante, abbhutaṁ, bhante. Yāva subhāsitañcidaṁ, bhante, bhagavatā: ‘Yaṁ kiñci dukkhaṁ uppajjamānaṁ uppajjati, sabbaṁ taṁ chandamūlakaṁ chandanidānaṁ. Chando hi mūlaṁ dukkhassā’ti. Atthi me, bhante, ciravāsī nāma kumāro bahi āvasathe paṭivasati. So khvāhaṁ, bhante, kālasseva vuṭṭhāya purisaṁ uyyojemi: ‘gaccha, bhaṇe, ciravāsiṁ kumāraṁ jānāhī’ti. Yāvakīvañca, bhante, so puriso nāgacchati, tassa me hoteva aññathattaṁ: ‘mā heva ciravāsissa kumārassa kiñci ābādhayitthā’"ti.
3"Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, gāmaṇi, ciravāsissa kumārassa vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti?
"Ciravāsissa me, bhante, kumārassa vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā jīvitassapi siyā aññathattaṁ, kiṁ pana me nuppajjissanti sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti.
"Imināpi kho etaṁ, gāmaṇi, pariyāyena veditabbaṁ: ‘Yaṁ kiñci dukkhaṁ uppajjamānaṁ uppajjati, sabbaṁ taṁ chandamūlakaṁ chandanidānaṁ. Chando hi mūlaṁ dukkhassā’ti.
4Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, gāmaṇi, yadā te ciravāsimātā adiṭṭhā ahosi, assutā ahosi, te ciravāsimātuyā chando vā rāgo vā pemaṁ vā"ti?
"No hetaṁ, bhante".
"Dassanaṁ vā te, gāmaṇi, āgamma savanaṁ vā evaṁ te ahosi: ‘ciravāsimātuyā chando vā rāgo vā pemaṁ vā’"ti?
"Evaṁ, bhante".
5"Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, gāmaṇi, ciravāsimātuyā te vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti?
"Ciravāsimātuyā me, bhante, vadhena vā bandhena vā jāniyā vā garahāya vā jīvitassapi siyā aññathattaṁ, kiṁ pana me nuppajjissanti sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā"ti.
"Imināpi kho etaṁ, gāmaṇi, pariyāyena veditabbaṁ: ‘Yaṁ kiñci dukkhaṁ uppajjamānaṁ uppajjati, sabbaṁ taṁ chandamūlakaṁ chandanidānaṁ. Chando hi mūlaṁ dukkhassā’"ti.
Ekādasamaṁ.