Mahāsīhanādasutta

Majjhima Nikāya 12

The Longer Discourse on the Lion’s Roar · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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I recallAbhijānāmi indeedkho now Ipanāhaṁ, Sāriputtasāriputta, many hundreds ofanekasataṁ brahmin assembliesbrāhmaṇaparisaṁ and so on…pe…
householder assembliesgahapatiparisaṁ ……
ascetic assembliessamaṇaparisaṁ ……
four great kings' god assembliescātumahārājikaparisaṁ ……
thirty-three god assembliestāvatiṁsaparisaṁ ……
Māra assembliesmāraparisaṁ ……
divinity assembliesbrahmaparisaṁ having approachedupasaṅkamitā.
there tooTatrapi by memayā formerly sat together andsannisinnapubbañceva, formerly conversed andsallapitapubbañca, discussionssākacchā andca formerly engaged insamāpajjitapubbā.
in that caseTatra indeedvata memaṁ fearbhayaṁ orvā insecuritysārajjaṁ orvā will beset (quote)okkamissatīti this groundnimittametaṁ, Sāriputtasāriputta, notna I seesamanupassāmi.
this IEtamahaṁ, Sāriputtasāriputta, groundnimittaṁ not seeingasamanupassanto attained securitykhemappatto attained fearlessnessabhayappatto attained self-assurancevesārajjappatto I liveviharāmi.

I recall having approached an assembly of hundreds of brahmins … householders … ascetics … the gods of the four great kings … the gods of the thirty-three … Māras … divinities. There too I used to sit with them, converse, and engage in discussion. But I don’t see any reason to feel afraid or insecure. Since I see no such reason, I live secure, fearless, and self-assured.

whoeverYo indeedkho memaṁ, Sāriputtasāriputta, thusevaṁ knowingjānantaṁ thusevaṁ seeingpassantaṁ thusevaṁ would sayvadeyya:
there is not‘natthi of the asceticsamaṇassa Gotamagotamassa beyonduttari the human normmanussadhammā distinction in noble knowledge and visionalamariyañāṇadassanaviseso, hammered out by logictakkapariyāhataṁ the asceticsamaṇo Gotamagotamo the teachingdhammaṁ teachesdeseti following inquiryvīmaṁsānucaritaṁ his own invention (quote)sayampaṭibhānan’ti,
thattaṁ, Sāriputtasāriputta, speechvācaṁ without giving upappahāya thattaṁ thoughtcittaṁ without giving upappahāya thattaṁ viewdiṭṭhiṁ without relinquishingappaṭinissajjitvā as if carried offyathābhataṁ placednikkhitto thusevaṁ in hellniraye.
just asSeyyathāpi, Sāriputtasāriputta, a monkbhikkhu accomplished in ethicssīlasampanno accomplished in immersionsamādhisampanno accomplished in wisdompaññāsampanno in this verydiṭṭheva lifedhamme enlightenmentaññaṁ would attainārādheyya, suchevaṁ is this consequencesampadamidaṁ, Sāriputtasāriputta, I sayvadāmi.
thatTaṁ speechvācaṁ without giving upappahāya thattaṁ thoughtcittaṁ without giving upappahāya thattaṁ viewdiṭṭhiṁ without relinquishingappaṭinissajjitvā as if carried offyathābhataṁ placednikkhitto thusevaṁ in hellniraye.

When I know and see in this way, suppose someone were to say this: ‘The ascetic Gotama has no superhuman distinction in knowledge and vision worthy of the noble ones …’ Unless they give up that speech and that thought, and let go of that view, they will be placed in hell as if delivered there.

fourCatasso indeedkho theseimā, Sāriputtasāriputta, kinds of reproductionyoniyo.
whatKatamā four?catasso?
egg-bornAṇḍajā reproductionyoni, womb-bornjalābujā reproductionyoni, moisture-bornsaṁsedajā reproductionyoni, spontaneousopapātikā reproductionyoni.

Sāriputta, there are these four kinds of reproduction. What four? Reproduction for creatures born from an egg, from a womb, from moisture, or spontaneously.

And what is reproduction from an egg? There are beings who are born by breaking out of an eggshell. This is called reproduction from an egg. And what is reproduction from a womb? There are beings who are born by breaking out of the amniotic sac. This is called reproduction from a womb. And what is reproduction from moisture? There are beings who are born in a rotten fish, a rotten carcass, rotten porridge, a cesspool, or a sump. This is called reproduction from moisture. And what is spontaneous reproduction? Gods, hell-beings, certain humans, and certain beings in the lower realms. This is called spontaneous reproduction. These are the four kinds of reproduction.

fivePañca indeedkho theseimā, Sāriputtasāriputta, destinationsgatiyo.
whatKatamā five?pañca?
hellNirayo, the animal realmtiracchānayoni, the ghost realmpettivisayo, humansmanussā, godsdevā.

There are these five destinations. What five? Hell, the animal realm, the ghost realm, humanity, and the gods.

I understand hell, and the path and practice that leads to hell. And I understand how someone practicing that way, when their body breaks up, after death, is reborn in a place of loss, a bad place, the underworld, hell. I understand the animal realm … the ghost realm … humanity … gods, and the path and practice that leads to the world of the gods. And I understand how someone practicing that way, when their body breaks up, after death, is reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm. And I understand extinguishment, and the path and practice that leads to extinguishment. And I understand how someone practicing that way realizes the undefiled freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom, and lives having realized it with their own insight in this very life due to the ending of defilements.

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