English
"A hundred ascetics, a thousand ascetics surround me. Others have few attendants, but I have a large retinue and a pure retinue." The conceit arising from such a thought is called the conceit of retinue. "Other beings do not even obtain enough for their own use, but for me, there is no limit to my wealth, as if it were stored in a treasury." The conceit arising from such a thought is called the conceit of possessions. "Other beings are ill-favored, ill-looking; I am handsome and pleasing." Or, "Other beings are without virtues, their fame not spread; but the sound of my fame is well-known among gods and humans: 'Indeed, this elder is learned, indeed, he is virtuous, indeed, he is endowed with ascetic practices.'" Thus, the conceit arising from such a thought, regarding bodily appearance and virtuous qualities, is called the conceit of appearance. "Other beings are of little learning, but I am very learned." The conceit arising from such a thought is called the conceit of learning. "Other beings are without ready wit, but for my ready wit, there is no limit." The conceit arising from such a thought is called the conceit of ready wit. "I am one who knows the past; I know such and such a Buddha lineage, a royal lineage, a country lineage, a village lineage, the divisions of day and night, the conjunctions of stars and auspicious moments." The conceit arising from such a thought is called the conceit of knowing the past. "Other monks have become alms-eaters in between, but I am an alms-eater by birth." The conceit arising from such a thought is called the conceit of alms-eating. "Other beings are despised, disrespected..." Ah, “I am not despised,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of not being despised. “The deportment of other beings is unpleasing, but mine is pleasing,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of deportment. “Other beings are like crows with clipped wings, but I am mighty, of great power,” or “Whatever work I do, that succeeds,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of psychic power. The conceit of fame, however, can be explained for both householders and the homeless. For a certain householder is the chief of one of the eighteen guilds; for him, “I appoint other men, I manage them.” And a certain homeless one is the chief somewhere; for him, “Other monks follow my advice, I am the chief.” The conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of fame. “Other beings are immoral, but I am virtuous,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of virtue. “Other beings do not have one-pointedness of mind even for the time it takes a chicken to drink water, but I am a recipient of access and absorption attainments,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of jhāna. “Other beings are unskilled, I am skilled,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of skill. “Other beings are short, I am tall,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of height. “Other beings are either short or tall, I am perfectly proportioned like a banyan tree,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of girth. “The bodily form of other beings is ugly, repulsive, but mine is pleasing, attractive,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of form. “There are many faults in the bodies of other beings, but there is not even a hair's breadth of fault in my body,” the conceit that arises from exulting in this is called the conceit of perfection. Thus, all this conceit, arising from exulting based on birth and so on, is here called “intoxication” (mada). The mind's attachment to sense pleasures Letting go is heedlessness, the mind's letting go, not restrained by mindfulness in the five sense pleasures. It is said to be the absence of mindfulness. Craving and ignorance are evident. And again, greed and so on are taken as the three roots of unwholesome action, in groups of three. Even in misconduct and so on, the word "threefold" should be applied to each. There, bodily misconduct and so on are the threefold misconducts. Craving, defilements and so on are the threefold defilements. Lust, stains and so on, because they cause defilement, are the threefold stains. For lust and so on make the mind defiled, they cause it to grasp defilement, therefore they are called "stains". "Lust is uneven, hatred is uneven, delusion is uneven" —thus spoken, lust and so on. "Bodily unevenness, verbal unevenness, mental unevenness" —thus come, bodily misconduct and so on, are the threefold unevennesses. But because beings stumble in lust and so on, and in bodily misconduct and so on. And having stumbled, they fall from the teaching and from a good destination. Therefore, because they are causes of stumbling and falling, they are called "unevennesses". "Sense-desire perception, ill-will perception, harmfulness perception" —thus come, perceptions connected with sense-desire and so on, are the threefold perceptions. Likewise, "sense-desire thought, ill-will thought, harmfulness thought" —thus come, are the threefold thoughts. Craving proliferation, view proliferation, conceit proliferation —these are the threefold proliferations. Because they proliferate beings in the cycle of existence, craving and so on are called "proliferations". In "fourfold perversions" and so on, the word "fourfold" should be applied to each. There, things like impermanence and so on, are sought in a contrary way, as permanence and so on —these are perversions. "In the impermanent, permanence" —perception perversion, mind perversion, view perversion. "In suffering, happiness" —perception perversion, mind perversion, view perversion. "In the unattractive, attractiveness" —perception perversion, mind perversion, view perversion. "In the non-self, self" —perception perversion, mind perversion, view perversion. Thus come, the twelve distortions, in terms of the four things like impermanence, are "fourfold". is called "search for existence." Here, when the mind's function is weak, the perception of unwholesome things, devoid of wrong view, is to be understood as perversion of perception when its own function is strong. The unwholesome mind itself, devoid of wrong view, is perversion of consciousness when its own function is strong. Perversion of view is in a mind associated with wrong view. Therefore, perversion of perception is the weakest, perversion of consciousness is stronger than that, perversion of view is the strongest of all. Perception is like a child, whose intelligence is not yet developed, seeing a coin, merely grasping the appearance of the object. Consciousness is like a villager seeing a coin, also accomplishing the penetration of its characteristics. Wrong view is like a blacksmith grasping iron with large tongs, due to its clinging and attachment. Among these, the four perversions of view, and the four perversions of perception and consciousness that arise as "permanent" in impermanent things, and so on— these eight perversions are abandoned by the path of stream-entry. The perversions of perception and consciousness of "beautiful" in the ugly become attenuated by the path of once-returning, and are abandoned by the path of non-returning. The perversions of perception and consciousness of "pleasure" in suffering are to be understood as abandoned by the path of arahantship. "The canker of sensuality, the canker of existence, the canker of wrong view, the canker of ignorance" —thus, sensual craving and so on, which are four, are called cankers (āsavā) because they flow (sandanti) and proceed (pavattanti) from the eye and so forth. Although wholesome things and so on also proceed from the eye and so forth, only the cankers of sensuality and so on flow forth in the manner of defilement that oozes, like juice from a wound. Therefore, only they are called "cankers." For the word "āsava" is established in the sense of oozing defilement. Or, they are cankers because they flow (savanti) and go (gacchanti) from the Dhamma up to the gotrabhu (change of lineage), and from the space up to the highest existence (bhavagga), proceeding by way of making things objects. The meaning is that they proceed encompassing these phenomena and this space. For the prefix "ā" has the meaning of a boundary. And a boundary is of two kinds: mariyāda (exclusion) and abhividhi (inclusion). Therein, mariyāda operates by excluding the action, as in "up to the Pāṭa- silence, the god has risen,” but the meaning of pervasiveness occurs by spreading the action, as in “the fame of the Blessed One spreads to the top of existence.” And this meaning of pervasiveness for the prefix “ā” is taken here. Therefore, those phenomena and that occasion, having been included, flow by way of becoming objects, thus they are called “āsavas” (outflows). Also, they are āsavas in the sense of being like intoxicants that have been long-stored. For in the world, intoxicants that have been long-stored are called “āsavas.” And if they are āsavas in the sense of being long-stored, then these alone must be. For it has been said: “The prior end of ignorance, monks, is not discerned; before this, ignorance did not exist,” and so on. But when craving and so on occur, making the aforementioned phenomena and occasion their object, and when conceit and so on exist, the pervasiveness by way of the grasping of “I” and “mine,” and the similarity to intoxicants by way of causing intoxication, belong to these alone, not to others. Thus, it should be understood that the word “āsava” is established in these alone in both interpretations of meaning. Or, they are āsavas because they flow forth, they cause to flow forth the long suffering of transmigration. For there is no suffering of transmigration that would arise without the āsavas.