3.
The Greater Discourse to Vaccha
193. Thus have I heard - On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the Squirrels' Feeding Ground. Then the wandering ascetic Vacchagotta approached the Blessed One; having approached, he exchanged friendly greetings with the Blessed One. Having concluded the pleasant and memorable talk, he sat down to one side. Seated to one side, the wandering ascetic Vacchagotta said this to the Blessed One - "For a long time I have been one who converses with Master Gotama. It would be good if Master Gotama would teach me the wholesome and unwholesome in brief." "I could teach you, Vaccha, the wholesome and unwholesome in brief, I could also teach you, Vaccha, the wholesome and unwholesome in detail; but I will teach you, Vaccha, the wholesome and unwholesome in brief. listen to that, pay close attention, I will speak." "Yes, sir," the wandering ascetic Vacchagotta assented to the Blessed One. The Blessed One said this -
194. "Greed, Vaccha, is unwholesome, non-greed is wholesome; hate, Vaccha, is unwholesome, non-hate is wholesome; delusion, Vaccha, is unwholesome, non-delusion is wholesome. Thus, Vaccha, these three mental states are unwholesome, three mental states are wholesome.
"Killing living beings, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from killing living beings is wholesome; taking what is not given, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from taking what is not given is wholesome; sexual misconduct, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from sexual misconduct is wholesome; lying, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from lying is wholesome; divisive speech, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from divisive speech is wholesome; harsh speech, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from harsh speech is wholesome; idle chatter, Vaccha, is unwholesome, abstention from idle chatter is wholesome; covetousness, Vaccha, is unwholesome, non-covetousness is wholesome; anger, Vaccha, is unwholesome, non-anger is wholesome; wrong view, Vaccha, is unwholesome, right view is wholesome. Thus, Vaccha, these ten mental states are unwholesome, ten mental states are wholesome.
"Since, Vaccha, for a monk craving has been abandoned, its root cut off, made like a palm stump, brought to obliteration, subject to non-arising in the future, that monk is a Worthy One, one who has eliminated the mental corruptions, one who has lived the holy life, one who has done what was to be done, one who has laid down the burden, one who has attained his own welfare, one who has completely destroyed the fetter of becoming, one completely liberated through final knowledge."
195. "Let the Master Gotama wait. But is there even one monk who is a disciple of Master Gotama who, with the elimination of the mental corruptions, in this very life, having realised by direct knowledge himself, having attained, dwells in the liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom that are without mental corruptions?" "Not just one hundred, Vaccha, nor two hundred, nor three hundred, nor four hundred, nor five hundred, but far more are the monks who are my disciples who, with the elimination of the mental corruptions, in this very life, having realised by direct knowledge themselves, having attained, dwell in the liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom that are without mental corruptions."
"Let the Master Gotama wait, let the monks wait. But is there even one nun who is a female disciple of Master Gotama who, with the elimination of the mental corruptions, in this very life, having realised by direct knowledge herself, having attained, dwells in the liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom that are without mental corruptions?" "Not just one hundred, Vaccha, nor two hundred, nor three hundred, nor four hundred, nor five hundred, but far more are the nuns who are my female disciples who, with the elimination of the mental corruptions, in this very life, having realised by direct knowledge themselves, having attained, dwell in the liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom that are without mental corruptions."
"Let the Master Gotama wait, let the monks wait, let the nuns wait. But is there even one male lay follower who is a disciple of Master Gotama, a householder clad in white, leading the holy life, who, with the utter elimination of the five lower mental fetters, is one of spontaneous birth, attaining final nibbāna there, not subject to return from that world?" "Not just one hundred, Vaccha, nor two hundred, nor three hundred, nor four hundred, nor five hundred, but far more are the male lay followers who are my disciples, householders clad in white, leading the holy life, who, with the utter elimination of the five lower mental fetters, are ones of spontaneous birth, attaining final nibbāna there, not subject to return from that world."
"Let the Master Gotama wait, let the monks wait, let the nuns wait, let the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, wait. But is there even one male lay follower who is a disciple of Master Gotama, a householder clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, one who follows the teaching, one who accepts exhortation, who has crossed over doubt, who has gone beyond uncertainty, who has attained self-confidence, not relying on others, dwelling in the Teacher's instruction?" "Not just one hundred, Vaccha, nor two hundred, nor three hundred, nor four hundred, nor five hundred, but far more are the male lay followers who are my disciples, householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, who follow the teaching, who accept exhortation, who have crossed over doubt, who have gone beyond uncertainty, who have attained self-confidence, not relying on others, dwelling in the Teacher's instruction."
"Let the Master Gotama wait, let the monks wait, let the nuns wait, let the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, wait, let the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, wait. But is there even one female lay follower who is a female disciple of Master Gotama, a housewife clad in white, leading the holy life, who, with the utter elimination of the five lower mental fetters, is one of spontaneous birth, attaining final nibbāna there, not subject to return from that world?" "Not just one hundred, Vaccha, nor two hundred, nor three hundred, nor four hundred, nor five hundred, but far more are the female lay followers who are my female disciples, housewives clad in white, leading the holy life, who, with the utter elimination of the five lower mental fetters, are ones of spontaneous birth, attaining final nibbāna there, not subject to return from that world."
"Let the Master Gotama wait, let the monks wait, let the nuns wait, let the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, wait, let the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, wait, let the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, leading the holy life, wait. But is there even one female lay follower who is a female disciple of Master Gotama, a housewife clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, one who follows the teaching, one who accepts exhortation, who has crossed over doubt, who has gone beyond uncertainty, who has attained self-confidence, not relying on others, dwelling in the Teacher's instruction?" "Not just one hundred, Vaccha, nor two hundred, nor three hundred, nor four hundred, nor five hundred, but far more are the female lay followers who are my female disciples, housewives clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, who follow the teaching, who accept exhortation, who have crossed over doubt, who have gone beyond uncertainty, who have attained self-confidence, not relying on others, dwelling in the Teacher's instruction."
196. "If indeed, Master Gotama, Master Gotama alone had been one who fulfils this Teaching, but the monks had not been ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life would have been incomplete in that factor. But because, Master Gotama, Master Gotama is one who fulfils this Teaching and the monks are ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life is complete in that factor.
"If indeed, Master Gotama, Master Gotama had been one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks had been ones who fulfil it, but the nuns had not been ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life would have been incomplete in that factor. But because, Master Gotama, Master Gotama is one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks are ones who fulfil it, and the nuns are ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life is complete in that factor.
"If indeed, Master Gotama, Master Gotama had been one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks had been ones who fulfil it, and the nuns had been ones who fulfil it, but the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, had not been ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life would have been incomplete in that factor. But because, Master Gotama, Master Gotama is one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks are ones who fulfil it, and the nuns are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, are ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life is complete in that factor.
"If indeed, Master Gotama, Master Gotama had been one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks had been ones who fulfil it, and the nuns had been ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, had been ones who fulfil it, but the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, had not been ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life would have been incomplete in that factor. But because, Master Gotama, Master Gotama is one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks are ones who fulfil it, and the nuns are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, are ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life is complete in that factor.
"If indeed, Master Gotama, Master Gotama had been one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks had been ones who fulfil it, and the nuns had been ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, had been ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, had been ones who fulfil it, but the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, leading the holy life, had not been ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life would have been incomplete in that factor. But because, Master Gotama, Master Gotama is one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks are ones who fulfil it, and the nuns are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, are ones who fulfil it, and the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, leading the holy life, are ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life is complete in that factor.
"If indeed, Master Gotama, Master Gotama had been one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks had been ones who fulfil it, and the nuns had been ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, had been ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, had been ones who fulfil it, and the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, leading the holy life, had been ones who fulfil it, but the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, had not been ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life would have been incomplete in that factor. But because, Master Gotama, Master Gotama is one who fulfils this Teaching, and the monks are ones who fulfil it, and the nuns are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, leading the holy life, are ones who fulfil it, and the male lay followers who are householders clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, are ones who fulfil it, and the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, leading the holy life, are ones who fulfil it, and the female lay followers who are housewives clad in white, enjoying sensual pleasures, are ones who fulfil it; thus this holy life is complete in that factor.
197. "Just as, Master Gotama, the river Ganges slants towards the ocean, slopes towards the ocean, inclines towards the ocean, and remains reaching the ocean, even so this assembly of Master Gotama, with householders and those gone forth, slants towards Nibbāna, slopes towards Nibbāna, inclines towards Nibbāna, and remains reaching Nibbāna. Excellent, Master Gotama! Etc. I go for refuge to Master Gotama, to the Teaching, and to the Community of monks. May I receive the going forth in the presence of Master Gotama, may I receive the full ordination." "Whoever, Vaccha, was formerly of another sect and wishes for the going forth in this Teaching and discipline, wishes for full ordination, he undergoes probation for four months. After the elapse of four months, monks having won the favour give the going forth and give full ordination for monkhood; but here the difference among individuals is known to me." "If, venerable sir, those formerly of other sects wishing for the going forth in this Teaching and discipline, wishing for full ordination, undergo probation for four months, and after the elapse of four months monks having won the favour give the going forth and give full ordination for monkhood, I will undergo probation for four years. After the elapse of four years, let monks having won the favour give the going forth and give full ordination for monkhood." The wandering ascetic Vacchagotta received the going forth in the presence of the Blessed One, he received full ordination.
Not long after being fully ordained, the Venerable Vacchagotta, a fortnight after being fully ordained, approached the Blessed One; having approached, he paid respect to the Blessed One and sat down to one side. Seated to one side, the Venerable Vacchagotta said this to the Blessed One - "Whatever, venerable sir, is to be attained by a learner's knowledge, by a learner's true knowledge, that has been attained by me; may the Blessed One teach me the Teaching further." "If so, Vaccha, develop two things further - serenity and insight. These two things, Vaccha, when further developed - serenity and insight - will lead to the penetration of many elements.
198. "So you, Vaccha, whenever you wish - 'May I experience the various kinds of supernormal power - having been one, may I become many; having been many, may I become one; appearing and vanishing; may I go unhindered through walls, through ramparts, through mountains, just as through space; may I dive in and out of the earth just as in water; may I go on water without breaking it just as on earth; may I travel cross-legged through space just as a winged bird; may I fondle and stroke with my hand even the moon and sun, so mighty and powerful; may I exercise mastery with my body even as far as the Brahma world' - in each and every case you will attain the ability to witness, when there is a basis for mindfulness.
"So you, Vaccha, whenever you wish - 'With the divine ear element, purified and surpassing the human, may I hear both sounds - divine and human, whether far or near' - in each and every case you will attain the ability to witness, when there is a basis for mindfulness.
"So you, Vaccha, whenever you wish - 'May I understand the minds of other beings, of other persons, having encompassed them with my own mind - may I understand a mind with lust as "a mind with lust", may I understand a mind without lust as "a mind without lust"; may I understand a mind with hate as "a mind with hate", may I understand a mind without hate as "a mind without hate"; may I understand a mind with delusion as "a mind with delusion", may I understand a mind without delusion as "a mind without delusion"; may I understand a contracted mind as "a contracted mind", may I understand a distracted mind as "a distracted mind"; may I understand an exalted mind as "an exalted mind", may I understand a not exalted mind as "a not exalted mind"; may I understand a surpassed mind as "a surpassed mind", may I understand an unsurpassed mind as "an unsurpassed mind"; may I understand a concentrated mind as "a concentrated mind", may I understand an unconcentrated mind as "an unconcentrated mind"; may I understand a liberated mind as "a liberated mind", may I understand an unliberated mind as "an unliberated mind"' - in each and every case you will attain the ability to witness, when there is a basis for mindfulness.
"So you, Vaccha, whenever you wish - 'May I recollect manifold past lives, as follows - one birth, two births, three births, four births, five births, ten births, twenty births, thirty births, forty births, fifty births, a hundred births, a thousand births, a hundred thousand births; many cosmic cycles of universe-contraction, many cosmic cycles of universe-expansion, many cosmic cycles of universe-contraction and expansion - There I was, having such a name, such a clan, such beauty, such food, experiencing such pleasure and pain, with such a life span; passing away from there, I arose there. there too I was, having such a name, such a clan, such beauty, such food, experiencing such pleasure and pain, with such a life span; passing away from there, I arose here." Thus with aspects and terms may I recollect manifold past lives' - in each and every case you will attain the ability to witness, when there is a basis for mindfulness.
"So you, Vaccha, whenever you wish - 'With the divine eye, which is pure and surpasses the human, may I see beings passing away and arising, inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate, may I understand beings according to their actions - "These beings indeed, sirs, endowed with bodily misconduct, endowed with verbal misconduct, endowed with mental misconduct, revilers of the noble ones, holding wrong views, undertaking actions based on wrong views, upon the body's collapse at death, they have arisen in a realm of misery, an unfortunate realm, a nether world, in hell; but these beings, sirs, endowed with bodily good conduct, endowed with verbal good conduct, endowed with mental good conduct, not revilers of the noble ones, holding right views, undertaking actions based on right views, upon the body's collapse at death, they have arisen in a fortunate realm, in a heavenly world"; thus with the divine eye, which is pure and surpasses the human, may I see beings passing away and arising, inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate, may I understand beings according to their actions' - in each case you will attain the ability to witness, when there is a basis for mindfulness.
"So you, Vaccha, whenever you wish - 'With the elimination of the mental corruptions, in this very life, having realised by direct knowledge myself, having attained, may I dwell in the liberation of mind and liberation by wisdom that are without mental corruptions' - in each case you will attain the ability to witness, when there is a basis for mindfulness."
199. Then the Venerable Vacchagotta, having delighted in and given thanks for what the Blessed One had said, rose from his seat, paid respect to the Blessed One, circumambulated him keeping him on his right, and departed. Then the Venerable Vacchagotta, dwelling alone, withdrawn, diligent, ardent, and resolute, before long - that unsurpassed final goal of the holy life, for the sake of which sons of good family rightly go forth from home into homelessness - the final goal of the holy life, in this very life, having realised by direct knowledge himself, having attained, he dwelt. He directly knew: "Birth is eliminated, the holy life has been lived, what was to be done has been done, there is no more of this state of being." And the Venerable Vacchagotta became one of the Worthy Ones.
200. Now at that time several monks were going to see the Blessed One. The Venerable Vacchagotta saw those monks coming from afar. Having seen them, he approached those monks; having approached, he said this to those monks - "Well then! Where are you venerable ones going?" "We are going to see the Blessed One, friend." "Then, venerable ones, in my name pay respect with your head at the Blessed One's feet, and say thus - 'The monk Vacchagotta, venerable sir, pays respect with his head at the Blessed One's feet, and says thus - The Blessed One has been attended upon by me, the Fortunate One has been attended upon by me.'" "Yes, friend," those monks assented to the Venerable Vacchagotta. Then those monks approached the Blessed One; having approached, they paid respect to the Blessed One and sat down to one side. Seated to one side, those monks said this to the Blessed One - "The Venerable Vacchagotta, venerable sir, pays respect with his head at the Blessed One's feet, and says thus - 'The Blessed One has been attended upon by me, the Fortunate One has been attended upon by me.'" "Even before, monks, the monk Vacchagotta was known to me, having encompassed his mind with my mind - 'The monk Vacchagotta is a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, of great supernormal power, of great might.' Deities also reported this matter to me - 'The monk Vacchagotta, venerable sir, is a possessor of the threefold true knowledge, of great supernormal power, of great might.'"
This is what the Blessed One said. Those monks, delighted, rejoiced in what the Blessed One had said.
The Greater Discourse to Vacchagotta is concluded as third.