English
Thinking, "Oh, may this be mine!" That which destroys welfare and happiness is "ill will." It is characterized by mental corruption for the destruction of others. Like harsh speech, it is of little fault and great fault. Its two requisites are: Another being, And the thought of their destruction. For even when anger arises with another being as its object, There is no breach of the path of action until one thinks, "Oh, may this one be destroyed, may this one be ruined!" He did not think of destroying him, thinking "he is docile." 'Wrong view' is seeing wrongly because of not grasping things as they really are. It is characterized by perverse seeing in the manner of "there is no giving," etc. Frivolous talk is like minor offenses and major offenses. Moreover, some are indeterminate minor offenses, and some are determinate major offenses. It has two requisites: the perversity of the object and the manner in which it is grasped, and the establishment of it as it is grasped. Among these, only the views of nihilism, non-causality, and non-action cause a division of the path of action, not other views. Now, the analysis of these ten unwholesome paths of action should be understood in five ways: by way of nature, by way of division, by way of object, by way of feeling, and by way of root. Therein, 'by way of nature': in these, in order, seven are simply mental states, and the three, covetousness, ill will, and wrong view, are associated with mental states. 'By way of division': in order, seven, and wrong view, these eight are simply paths of action; they are not roots. Covetousness and ill will are both paths of action and roots. For covetousness, having reached the state of a root, becomes 'greed, an unwholesome root,' and ill will becomes 'hatred, an unwholesome root.' 'By way of object': killing living beings has a being's life faculty as its object, or it has conditioned things as its object. Taking what is not given has a being as its object, or it has conditioned things as its object. Sexual misconduct has conditioned things as its object by way of tangible objects; some say it also has a being as its object. False speech has a being as its object, or it has conditioned things as its object. So too is malicious speech. Harsh speech has only a being as its object. Frivolous talk has a being as its object or conditioned things as its object by way of what is seen, heard, sensed, and known. So too is covetousness. Ill will has only a being as its object. Wrong view has only conditioned things as its object by way of the three realms. 'By way of feeling': killing living beings is accompanied by painful feeling. Even though kings, seeing a thief, may laugh and say, "Go, kill him," the determining intention of theirs is still associated with pain. Taking what is not given is accompanied by three kinds of feeling. For when one sees another's goods, one takes them with joy and gladness. When there is pleasant feeling, for one seized by fear and thirst, there is painful feeling. Likewise, for one reflecting on the fruits of resultant outflow. But for one who remains in equanimity while taking, there is neither painful nor pleasant feeling. Wrong conduct is twofold, through pleasantness and equanimity. But in the determining thought, there is no equanimous feeling. False speech is threefold, as in the manner stated for taking what is not given; likewise, slanderous speech. Harsh speech is painful feeling. Frivolous talk is threefold. For when others give praise, throwing up clothes and the like, for one delighted and pleased, at the time of speaking of carrying cold things, burdens, battles, and the like, there is pleasant feeling. When one, having been given wages at first, is later told, "Tell it from the beginning," and, being distressed, thinks, "Shall I tell disconnected, rambling talk or not?", at the time of speaking, there is painful feeling; for one speaking with equanimity, there is neither painful nor pleasant feeling. Covetousness is twofold, through pleasantness and equanimity; likewise, wrong view. Ill will is painful feeling. 'From the root,' killing living beings has two roots, through hate and delusion. Taking what is not given is through hate and delusion, or through greed and delusion. Wrong conduct is through greed and delusion. False speech is through hate and delusion, or through greed and delusion; likewise, slanderous speech and frivolous talk. Harsh speech is through hate and delusion. Covetousness has one root, through delusion; likewise, ill will. Wrong view has two roots, through greed and delusion. The discourse on unwholesome courses of action is concluded. The Discourse on Wholesome Courses of Action But abstinences from killing living beings and the like, non-covetousness, non-ill will, and right view, these ten are called wholesome courses of action. Therein, killing living beings and the like have the meanings already stated. By this, they abstain from killing living beings and the like, either they themselves abstain, or it is merely abstaining, thus abstinence. That abstinence, conjoined with wholesome consciousness, which is said to be "the refraining, the abstinence from killing living beings at that time" for one abstaining from killing living beings, is threefold in distinction – abstinence by confrontation, abstinence by undertaking, and abstinence by cutting off. Therein, the abstinence that arises in those who, without having undertaken precepts, reflect on their own birth, age, learning, and so on, and do not transgress an encountered object, thinking, "It is not fitting for us to do such evil," is to be understood as "abstinence by confrontation," like that of the lay follower Cakkana in Sri Lanka. It is said that when he was a young boy, his mother became ill. The physician said, "It is proper to obtain hare's meat." Then Cakkana's brother sent him, saying, "Go, dear, wander in the field." He went there. At that time, a hare had come to eat the young shoots. Seeing him, it ran swiftly and, caught in a vine, made a "kiri kiri" sound. Cakkana, hearing that sound, went and caught it, thinking, "I will make medicine for my mother." Then he thought, "It is not fitting for me to deprive another of life for the sake of my mother's life." Then he released it, saying, "Go, enjoy the grass and water with the hares in the forest." When asked by his brother, "Dear, did you catch a hare?" he told him the story. Then his brother scolded him. He went to his mother and declared a truth, saying, "Since I was born, I do not recall intentionally depriving a living being of life." Immediately, his mother became well. But the abstinence that arises in those who, having undertaken precepts, do not transgress an object, even sacrificing their own lives in undertaking the precepts and beyond, is to be understood as "abstinence by undertaking," like that of the lay follower who lived on Mount Uttaravaḍḍhamāna. It is said that he took the precepts from the elder Piṅgalabuddharakkhita, who lived in the Ambariya Monastery, and was cultivating his field. Then his ox was lost. Searching for it, he climbed Mount Uttaravaḍḍhamāna. There, a large snake seized him. He thought, "I will cut off its head with this sharp knife." Then he thought, "It is not fitting for me to Having taken the precepts from the teacher Īya, thinking three times, "I will break them," he threw into the forest a sharp-edged staff, resolved, "I will give up my life, but not the precepts." Immediately, a great serpent released him and went away. But the abstinence associated with the Noble Path should be understood as "abstinence by cutting off," from whose arising onwards, even the thought "I will kill a living being" does not arise in noble individuals. Now, just as with unwholesome actions, so also with these wholesome paths of action, a decision should be made in five ways: by nature, by division, by object, by feeling, and by root. There, "by nature," in these, seven volitions operate in order, and also abstinences; at the end, the three are only associated with volition. "By division," in order, there are seven paths of action, but not roots. At the end, there are three paths of action and also roots. For non-covetousness, reaching the root, becomes "non-greed, a wholesome root." Non-ill-will is "non-hatred, a wholesome root," right view is "non-delusion, a wholesome root." "By object," the objects of these are the same as the objects of killing living beings, etc. For restraint is called restraint only from what should be transgressed. Just as the Noble Path with nibbāna as its object abandons defilements, so these paths of action with life-faculty, etc., as their objects, should be understood as abandoning killing living beings, etc., unwholesome conduct. "By feeling," all are either pleasant feeling or neutral feeling. For having reached wholesomeness, there is no such thing as painful feeling. "By root," in order, the seven paths of action, for one abstaining with a mind associated with knowledge, have three roots in terms of non-greed, non-hatred, and non-delusion; for one abstaining with a mind disassociated from knowledge, they have two roots. Non-covetousness, for one abstaining with a mind associated with knowledge, has two roots; for one abstaining with a mind disassociated from knowledge, it has one root. But non-greed itself is not its own root. The same method applies to non-ill-will. Right view has only two roots in terms of non-greed and non-hatred. These are called the ten wholesome paths of action. A Summary of the Paths of Action Now, in this place, it should be understood as the "Analysis of the Paths of Action." For, lack of restraint arising through the five sense doors is only unwholesome mental action. Arising through the mind-sense door, there are three kinds of action: for when it reaches application through the body door, it is unwholesome bodily action;