Vitakkasaṇṭhānasutta

Majjhima Nikāya 20

Vitakkasaṇṭhānasutta

How to Stop Thinking · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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Evaṁ me sutaṁ—
ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṁ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme.
Tatra kho bhagavā bhikkhū āmantesi:
“bhikkhavo”ti.
“Bhadante”ti te bhikkhū bhagavato paccassosuṁ.
Bhagavā etadavoca:

So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery. There the Buddha addressed the mendicants, “Mendicants!” “Venerable sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this:

“Adhicittamanuyuttena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā pañca nimittāni kālena kālaṁ manasi kātabbāni.
Katamāni pañca?

“Mendicants, a mendicant committed to the higher mind should focus on five subjects from time to time. What five?

Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno yaṁ nimittaṁ āgamma yaṁ nimittaṁ manasikaroto uppajjanti pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, tena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā tamhā nimittā aññaṁ nimittaṁ manasi kātabbaṁ kusalūpasaṁhitaṁ.
Tassa tamhā nimittā aññaṁ nimittaṁ manasikaroto kusalūpasaṁhitaṁ ye pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.
Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, dakkho palagaṇḍo vā palagaṇḍantevāsī vā sukhumāya āṇiyā oḷārikaṁ āṇiṁ abhinihaneyya abhinīhareyya abhinivatteyya;
evameva kho, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno yaṁ nimittaṁ āgamma yaṁ nimittaṁ manasikaroto uppajjanti pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, tena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā tamhā nimittā aññaṁ nimittaṁ manasi kātabbaṁ kusalūpasaṁhitaṁ.

Take a mendicant who is focusing on some subject that gives rise to bad, unskillful thoughts connected with desire, hate, and delusion. That mendicant should focus on some other subject connected with the skillful. As they do so, those bad thoughts are given up and come to an end. Their mind becomes stilled internally; it settles, unifies, and becomes immersed in samādhi. It’s like a deft mason or their apprentice who’d knock out or extract a large peg with a finer peg. In the same way, a mendicant … should focus on some other basis of meditation connected with the skillful …

Tassa tamhā nimittā aññaṁ nimittaṁ manasikaroto kusalūpasaṁhitaṁ ye pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.

For him who attends to another sign connected with what is wholesome, the evil unwholesome thoughts connected with desire, with hatred, and with delusion are abandoned; they go to destruction. From their abandoning, the mind becomes steadied internally, settles down, becomes unified and concentrated.

Tassa ce, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno tamhā nimittā aññaṁ nimittaṁ manasikaroto kusalūpasaṁhitaṁ uppajjanteva pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, tena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ ādīnavo upaparikkhitabbo:
‘itipime vitakkā akusalā, itipime vitakkā sāvajjā, itipime vitakkā dukkhavipākā’ti.
Tassa tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ ādīnavaṁ upaparikkhato ye pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.
Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, itthī vā puriso vā daharo yuvā maṇḍanakajātiko ahikuṇapena vā kukkurakuṇapena vā manussakuṇapena vā kaṇṭhe āsattena aṭṭiyeyya harāyeyya jiguccheyya;

Now, suppose that mendicant is focusing on some other subject connected with the skillful, but bad, unskillful thoughts connected with desire, hate, and delusion keep coming up. They should examine the drawbacks of those thoughts: ‘So these thoughts are unskillful, they’re blameworthy, and they result in suffering.’ As they do so, those bad thoughts are given up and come to an end. Their mind becomes stilled internally; it settles, unifies, and becomes immersed in samādhi. Suppose there was a woman or man who was young, youthful, and fond of adornments. If the carcass of a snake or a dog or a human were hung around their neck, they’d be horrified, repelled, and disgusted.

evameva kho, bhikkhave, tassa ce bhikkhuno tamhāpi nimittā aññaṁ nimittaṁ manasikaroto kusalūpasaṁhitaṁ uppajjanteva pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, tena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ ādīnavo upaparikkhitabbo:
‘itipime vitakkā akusalā, itipime vitakkā sāvajjā, itipime vitakkā dukkhavipākā’ti.
Tassa tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ ādīnavaṁ upaparikkhato ye pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.

In the same way, a mendicant … should examine the drawbacks of those thoughts …

Tassa ce, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno tesampi vitakkānaṁ ādīnavaṁ upaparikkhato uppajjanteva pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, tena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ asatiamanasikāro āpajjitabbo.
Tassa tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ asatiamanasikāraṁ āpajjato ye pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.
Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, cakkhumā puriso āpāthagatānaṁ rūpānaṁ adassanakāmo assa;
so nimīleyya vā aññena vā apalokeyya;
evameva kho, bhikkhave, tassa ce bhikkhuno tesampi vitakkānaṁ ādīnavaṁ upaparikkhato uppajjanteva pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.

Now, suppose that mendicant is examining the drawbacks of those thoughts, but bad, unskillful thoughts connected with desire, hate, and delusion keep coming up. They should try to forget and ignore them. As they do so, those bad thoughts are given up and come to an end. Their mind becomes stilled internally; it settles, unifies, and becomes immersed in samādhi. Suppose there was a person with clear eyes, and some undesirable sights came into their range of vision. They’d just close their eyes or look away. In the same way, a mendicant … those bad thoughts are given up and come to an end …

Tassa ce, bhikkhave, bhikkhuno tesampi vitakkānaṁ asatiamanasikāraṁ āpajjato uppajjanteva pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi, tena, bhikkhave, bhikkhunā tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ vitakkasaṅkhārasaṇṭhānaṁ manasikātabbaṁ.
Tassa tesaṁ vitakkānaṁ vitakkasaṅkhārasaṇṭhānaṁ manasikaroto ye pāpakā akusalā vitakkā chandūpasaṁhitāpi dosūpasaṁhitāpi mohūpasaṁhitāpi te pahīyanti te abbhatthaṁ gacchanti.
Tesaṁ pahānā ajjhattameva cittaṁ santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti samādhiyati.
Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, puriso sīghaṁ gaccheyya.
Tassa evamassa:
‘kiṁ nu kho ahaṁ sīghaṁ gacchāmi?
Yannūnāhaṁ saṇikaṁ gaccheyyan’ti.
So saṇikaṁ gaccheyya.
Tassa evamassa:
‘kiṁ nu kho ahaṁ saṇikaṁ gacchāmi?
Yannūnāhaṁ tiṭṭheyyan’ti.
So tiṭṭheyya.
Tassa evamassa:
‘kiṁ nu kho ahaṁ ṭhito?
Yannūnāhaṁ nisīdeyyan’ti.
So nisīdeyya.
Tassa evamassa:
‘kiṁ nu kho ahaṁ nisinno?
Yannūnāhaṁ nipajjeyyan’ti.

Now, suppose that mendicant is ignoring and forgetting about those thoughts, but bad, unskillful thoughts connected with desire, hate, and delusion keep coming up. They should focus on stopping the formation of those thoughts. As they do so, those bad thoughts are given up and come to an end. Their mind becomes stilled internally; it settles, unifies, and becomes immersed in samādhi. Suppose there was a person walking quickly. They’d think: ‘Why am I walking so quickly? Why don’t I slow down?’ So they’d slow down. They’d think: ‘Why am I walking slowly? Why don’t I stand still?’ So they’d stand still. They’d think: ‘Why am I standing still? Why don’t I sit down?’ So they’d sit down. They’d think: ‘Why am I sitting? Why don’t I lie down?’

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