1.
The Chapter on Benefits
1.
Commentary on the Discourse on What Purpose
1. In the first of the Book of Tens, "wholesome moral practices" means faultless moral practices. They conduce to the purpose of freedom from downcastness, freedom from remorse, thus "having freedom from remorse as their purpose." That is their benefit, thus "having freedom from remorse as their benefit." In "having knowledge and vision of things as they really are as its purpose" and so on: knowledge and vision of things as they really are is young insight, disenchantment is strong insight, dispassion is the path, liberation is the fruition of arahantship, knowledge and vision is reviewing knowledge. "Lead to the highest" means they go towards arahantship.
2.
Commentary on the Discourse on Volition as Not to Be Done
2. In the second, "there is nothing to be done by volition" means nothing to be done having intended, having planned, having designed. "This is the nature" means this is the intrinsic nature of the Dhamma, this is the fixed order of causation. "Flow into" means they proceed. "Fulfil" means they make complete. "From the near shore for going to the far shore" means from the round of the three planes of existence, which is the near shore, for the purpose of going to the far shore of Nibbāna.
3-5.
Commentary on the Triad of Discourses on Proximate Cause
3-5. In the third, "with its proximate cause destroyed" means with its cause destroyed. In the fourth and fifth, the distinction is only that they were spoken by two elder monks.
6.
Commentary on the Concentration Sutta
6. In the sixth, "he would not be percipient of earth in earth" means he would not be one having perception with the perception that has arisen thus "earth," having made earth as object. In the case of water and so on too, the same method applies. "Not in this world" means he would not be percipient with the perception of the fourfold or fivefold meditative absorption arising in this world. "Not in the world beyond" means he would not be percipient with the perception of the fourfold or fivefold meditative absorption arising in the world beyond. "And yet he would be percipient" means and yet his attainment would be an attainment with applied thought, so it is said. "This is peaceful, this is sublime" means for one who sits having entered with "peaceful, peaceful," even for the whole day the arising of consciousness proceeds as just "peaceful, peaceful"; for one who sits having entered with "sublime, sublime," even for the whole day the arising of consciousness proceeds as just "sublime, sublime." "That is to say, the stilling of all activities" means for one who sits having entered with "Nibbāna, Nibbāna," even for the whole day the arising of consciousness proceeds as just "Nibbāna, Nibbāna." All this was said with reference to the concentration of fruition attainment.
7.
Commentary on the Sāriputta Sutta
7. In the seventh, "And yet I was percipient, friend, at that time" means friend, at that time I was percipient with this perception of fruition attainment, "the cessation of existence is Nibbāna." "That attainment of mine was with consciousness" - thus reviewing is spoken of.
8.
Commentary on the Discourse on Meditative Absorption
8. In the eighth, "pleasing on all sides" means pleasing on all sides because of the existence of bodily action and so on that bring confidence. "Complete in every respect" means complete in all respects.
9.
Commentary on the Discourse on Peaceful Deliverance
9. In the ninth, "peaceful" means peaceful both by the peacefulness of the object and by the peacefulness of the factors. "Deliverances" means they have thus obtained their name because of being liberated from opposing states and because of being well released by way of object through the state of being without attachment. "Having gone beyond material form" means having proceeded by surpassing the fine-material meditative absorptions. The remainder is of manifest meaning everywhere.
The Chapter on Benefits is the first.