English
Homage to the Blessed One, the Arahant, the Perfectly Self-Enlightened One. In the Middle Discourses The Latter Fifty Discourses 1. The Devadaha Chapter 1. The Devadaha Sutta 1. Thus have I heard: On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling among the Sakyans, at a Sakyan town named Devadaha. There the Blessed One addressed the bhikkhus thus: “Bhikkhus!” “Venerable sir,” those bhikkhus replied to the Blessed One. The Blessed One said this: “There are, bhikkhus, some recluses and brahmins who hold such a doctrine, who hold such a view: ‘Whatever this person experiences, be it pleasure or pain or neither-pain-nor-pleasure, all that is due to past kamma. Thus, by the destruction through asceticism of old kamma, and by the non-doing of new kamma, there is no influx in the future. With no influx in the future, there is the destruction of kamma. With the destruction of kamma, there is the destruction of suffering. With the destruction of suffering, there is the destruction of feeling. With the destruction of feeling, all suffering will be worn away.’ Such, bhikkhus, are the Nigaṇṭhas. “When I, bhikkhus, approach the Nigaṇṭhas who hold such a doctrine, I speak to them thus: ‘Is it true, friends Nigaṇṭhas, that you hold such a doctrine, that you hold such a view: “Whatever this person experiences, be it pleasure or pain or neither-pain-nor-pleasure, all that is due to past kamma. Thus, by the destruction through asceticism of old kamma, and by the non-doing of new kamma, there is no influx in the future. With no influx in the future, there is the destruction of kamma. With the destruction of kamma, there is the destruction of suffering. With the destruction of suffering, there is the destruction of feeling. With the destruction of feeling, all suffering will be worn away”?’ And those Nigaṇṭhas, bhikkhus, when questioned by me thus, admit: ‘Yes.’ “Then I say to them: ‘Do you, friends Nigaṇṭhas, know: “We existed in the past, we did not not exist”?’ ‘No, friend.’ “‘Do you, friends Nigaṇṭhas, know: “We did evil kamma in the past, we did not not do it”?’ ‘No, friend.’ “‘Do you, friends Nigaṇṭhas, know: “Such and such kamma, or such and such kamma, "Did we do evil deeds?" "No, friend." "Do you know, friends, Nigaṇṭhas, that this much suffering has been exhausted, and this much suffering remains to be exhausted, and when this much suffering has been exhausted, all suffering will be exhausted?" "No, friend." "Do you know, friends, Nigaṇṭhas, the abandonment of unwholesome states and the acquisition of wholesome states in this very life?" "No, friend." 2. "So then, friends, Nigaṇṭhas, you do not know that we existed in the past, not that we did not exist; you do not know that we did evil deeds in the past, not that we did not do them; you do not know that we did such and such evil deeds; you do not know that this much suffering has been exhausted, and this much suffering remains to be exhausted, and when this much suffering has been exhausted, all suffering will be exhausted; you do not know the abandonment of unwholesome states and the acquisition of wholesome states in this very life. This being the case, it is not proper for the venerable Nigaṇṭhas to declare: 'Whatever this person experiences, whether pleasure or pain or neither-pain-nor-pleasure, all that is due to past deeds. Thus, through austerity, the exhaustion of old kamma, and by not doing new kamma, there is no influx in the future; with no influx in the future, there is the destruction of kamma; with the destruction of kamma, there is the destruction of suffering; with the destruction of suffering, there is the destruction of feeling; with the destruction of feeling, all suffering will be exhausted.'" "But if, friends, Nigaṇṭhas, you were to know that we existed in the past, not that we did not exist; if you were to know that we did evil deeds in the past, not that we did not do them; if you were to know that we did such and such evil deeds; if you were to know that this much suffering has been exhausted, and this much suffering remains to be exhausted, and when this much suffering has been exhausted, all suffering will be exhausted; if you were to know..." you should bring forth— in this very life the abandoning of unwholesome states, the attainment of wholesome states. If this were so, it would be proper for the venerable Nigaṇṭhas to declare: ‘Whatever this person experiences— whether pleasure or pain, or neither-pain-nor-pleasure— all that is due to past deeds. Thus, through austerity, the exhaustion of old kamma, and by not performing new kamma, there is no influx in the future. With no influx in the future, there is the destruction of kamma. With the destruction of kamma, there is the destruction of suffering. With the destruction of suffering, there is the destruction of feeling. With the destruction of feeling, all suffering will be worn out.’ ” 3. “Just as, friends Nigaṇṭhas, a man might be pierced by a poisoned arrow, firmly coated with a strong poison. He would experience painful, sharp, bitter feelings due to the piercing of the arrow. His friends, acquaintances, relatives, and kinsmen would bring a physician, a surgeon. That physician, surgeon, would cut open the wound with a knife. He would experience painful, sharp, bitter feelings due to the cutting open of the wound with the knife. That physician, surgeon, would probe for the arrow with a probe. He would experience painful, sharp, bitter feelings due to the probing for the arrow with the probe. That physician, surgeon, would pull out the arrow. He would experience painful, sharp, bitter feelings due to the pulling out of the arrow. That physician, surgeon, would apply a healing ointment to the wound. He would experience painful, sharp, bitter feelings due to the application of the healing ointment to the wound. After some time, with the wound healed and skinned over, he would be healthy, happy, free, master of himself, going where he wished. He would think: ‘Formerly, I was pierced by a poisoned arrow, firmly coated with a strong poison. And I, due to the piercing of the arrow, I felt painful, sharp, bitter feelings. My friends, relatives, kinsfolk, and blood relations brought a physician, a surgeon, to me. That physician, that surgeon, cut open the mouth of my wound with a knife; and I, because of the cutting open of the mouth of the wound with a knife, felt painful, sharp, bitter feelings. That physician, that surgeon, probed for the dart with a probe; and I, because of the probing for the dart with a probe, felt painful, sharp, bitter feelings. That physician, that surgeon, extracted the dart; and I, because of the extraction of the dart, felt painful, sharp, bitter feelings. That physician, that surgeon, applied a caustic cautery to the mouth of the wound; and I, because of the application of the caustic cautery to the mouth of the wound, felt painful, sharp, bitter feelings. Now I am with a healed wound, with skin grown over, healthy, happy, free, self-mastered, going where I wish.” “Just so, friends Nigaṇṭhas, if you knew: ‘We existed in the past, we did not not exist,’ if you knew: ‘We did evil deeds in the past, we did not not do them,’ if you knew: ‘We did such and such evil deeds,’ if you knew: ‘This much suffering has been worn away, this much suffering is yet to be worn away, when this much suffering has been worn away, all suffering will have been worn away,’ if you knew: ‘In this very life, the abandonment of unwholesome states, the accomplishment of wholesome states;’ if this were so, it would be proper for the venerable Nigaṇṭhas to declare: ‘Whatever this person experiences, be it pleasure, or pain, or neither-pain-nor-pleasure, all that is due to past deeds. Thus, through austerity, the wearing away of old kamma, through not doing new kamma, there is no influx in the future; through no influx in the future, the destruction of kamma; through the destruction of kamma, the destruction of suffering; through the destruction of feeling, all suffering will have been worn away.’” thus.” “Because, friends, you Nigaṇṭhas do not know: ‘We existed in the past, not that we did not exist,’ you do not know: ‘We did evil deeds in the past, not that we did not do them,’ you do not know: ‘We did such and such evil deeds,’ you do not know: ‘So much suffering has been worn away, so much suffering is yet to be worn away, when so much suffering is worn away, all suffering will be worn away,’ you do not know: ‘The abandonment of unwholesome states and the acquisition of wholesome states in this very life’; therefore, it is not proper for the venerable Nigaṇṭhas to declare: ‘Whatever this person experiences— whether pleasure or pain or neither-pain-nor-pleasure— all that is due to past deeds. Thus, through austerity, the wearing away of old deeds, and the non-doing of new deeds, there is no influx in the future; with no influx in the future, there is the destruction of deeds; with the destruction of deeds, there is the destruction of suffering; with the destruction of suffering, there is the destruction of feeling; with the destruction of feeling, all suffering will be worn away.’” 4. “When this was said, bhikkhus, those Nigaṇṭhas said to me: ‘The Nigaṇṭha Nāṭaputta, friend, is omniscient and all-seeing, he claims complete knowledge and vision. Whether I am walking or standing, sleeping or awake, knowledge and vision are constantly and continuously present to me.’ So he says: ‘Friends, Nigaṇṭhas, you have indeed done evil deeds in the past; wear them away with this harsh, difficult ascetic practice. As for what you are now— restrained in body, restrained in speech, restrained in mind— that is the non-doing of evil deeds in the future. Thus, through austerity, the wearing away of old deeds, and the non-doing of new deeds, there is no influx in the future; with no influx in the future, there is the destruction of deeds; with the destruction of deeds,