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Majjhima Nikāya 46

Mahādhammasamādānasutta

The Great Discourse on Taking Up Practices · Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato, SuttaCentral

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also withsahāpi with pleasuresukhena also withsahāpi with gladnesssomanassena from idle chattersamphappalāpā abstainspaṭivirato ishoti, of idle chattersamphappalāpā because of abstainingveramaṇīpaccayā andca pleasuresukhaṁ gladnesssomanassaṁ experiencespaṭisaṁvedeti;
also withsahāpi with pleasuresukhena also withsahāpi with gladnesssomanassena without covetousnessanabhijjhālu ishoti, because of non-covetousnessanabhijjhāpaccayā andca pleasuresukhaṁ gladnesssomanassaṁ experiencespaṭisaṁvedeti;
also withsahāpi with pleasuresukhena also withsahāpi with gladnesssomanassena with a mind free of ill willabyāpannacitto ishoti, because of non-ill willabyāpādapaccayā andca pleasuresukhaṁ gladnesssomanassaṁ experiencespaṭisaṁvedeti;
also withsahāpi with pleasuresukhena also withsahāpi with gladnesssomanassena right viewsammādiṭṭhi ishoti, because of right viewsammādiṭṭhipaccayā andca pleasuresukhaṁ gladnesssomanassaṁ experiencespaṭisaṁvedeti.
heSo of the bodykāyassa at the breaking upbhedā afterparaṁ deathmaraṇā to a good destinationsugatiṁ heavenlysaggaṁ worldlokaṁ is rebornupapajjati.
thisIdaṁ, is calledvuccati, monksbhikkhave, a way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ pleasant now andpaccuppannasukhañceva and in the futureāyatiñca resulting in pleasuresukhavipākaṁ.
theseImāni indeedkho, monksbhikkhave, fourcattāri ways of taking up practicesdhammasamādānāni.

And when their body breaks up, after death, they’re reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm. This is called the way of taking up practices that is pleasant now and results in future pleasure. These are the four ways of taking up practices.

just asSeyyathāpi, o monksbhikkhave, bitter gourdtittakālābu with poisonvisena mixedsaṁsaṭṭho.
thenAtha a manpuriso would comeāgaccheyya wishing to livejīvitukāmo not wishing to dieamaritukāmo wishing for happinesssukhakāmo recoiling from paindukkhappaṭikūlo.
to him thisTamenaṁ thusevaṁ they would sayvadeyyuṁ:
here‘ambho my manpurisa, thisayaṁ bitter gourdtittakālābu with poisonvisena mixedsaṁsaṭṭho,
ifsace you wishākaṅkhasi drinkpiva.
of youTassa for youte while drinkingpivato andceva will not pleasenacchādessati by color evenvaṇṇenapi by smell evengandhenapi by taste evenrasenapi, having drunkpivitvā andca moreoverpana deathmaraṇaṁ orvā you will undergonigacchasi deadlymaraṇamattaṁ orvā paindukkhan’ti.
heSo ittaṁ without appraisalappaṭisaṅkhāya would drinkpiveyya, would not rejectnappaṭinissajjeyya.
of himTassa ittaṁ while drinkingpivato andceva would not pleasenacchādeyya by color evenvaṇṇenapi by smell evengandhenapi by taste evenrasenapi, having drunkpivitvā andca moreoverpana deathmaraṇaṁ orvā he would undergonigaccheyya deadlymaraṇamattaṁ orvā paindukkhaṁ.
with such a simile ITathūpamāhaṁ, o monksbhikkhave, thisimaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ I sayvadāmi, that which is thisyamidaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ painful now andpaccuppannadukkhañceva in the future andāyatiñca resulting in paindukkhavipākaṁ.

Suppose there was some bitter gourd mixed with poison. Then a man would come along who wants to live and doesn’t want to die, who wants to be happy and recoils from pain. They’d say to him: ‘Here, my man, this is bitter gourd mixed with poison. Drink it if you like. If you drink it, the color, aroma, and flavor will be unappetizing, and it will result in death or deadly pain.’ He wouldn’t put it down. Without appraisal, he’d drink it. The color, aroma, and flavor would be unappetizing, and it would result in death or deadly pain. This is comparable to the way of taking up practices that is painful now and results in future pain, I say.

just asSeyyathāpi, monksbhikkhave, bronze goblet of beverageāpānīyakaṁso with nice colorvaṇṇasampanno with nice aromagandhasampanno with nice flavorrasasampanno.
thatSo butca indeedkho with poisonvisena mixedsaṁsaṭṭho.
thenAtha a manpuriso would comeāgaccheyya wanting to livejīvitukāmo not wanting to dieamaritukāmo wanting happinesssukhakāmo recoiling from paindukkhappaṭikūlo.
him theyTamenaṁ thusevaṁ would sayvadeyyuṁ:
here‘ambho my manpurisa, thisayaṁ bronze goblet of beverageāpānīyakaṁso with nice colorvaṇṇasampanno with nice aromagandhasampanno with nice flavorrasasampanno.
thatSo butca indeedkho with poisonvisena mixedsaṁsaṭṭho,
ifsace you wishākaṅkhasi drinkpiva.
for youTassa youte while drinkingpivatohi indeedkho will be appetizingchādessati even by colorvaṇṇenapi even by aromagandhenapi even by flavorrasenapi, having drunkpivitvā butca thenpana deathmaraṇaṁ orvā you will undergonigacchasi deadlymaraṇamattaṁ orvā paindukkhan’ti.
heSo ittaṁ without appraisalappaṭisaṅkhāya would drinkpiveyya, would not put downnappaṭinissajjeyya.
for himTassa ittaṁ while drinkingpivatohi indeedkho would be appetizingchādeyya even by colorvaṇṇenapi even by aromagandhenapi even by flavorrasenapi, having drunkpivitvā butca thenpana deathmaraṇaṁ orvā would undergonigaccheyya deadlymaraṇamattaṁ orvā paindukkhaṁ.
comparable to thatTathūpamāhaṁ, monksbhikkhave, thisimaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ I sayvadāmi, that whichyamidaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ pleasant nowpaccuppannasukhaṁ in the futureāyatiṁ ripening in paindukkhavipākaṁ.

Suppose there was a bronze goblet of beverage that had a nice color, aroma, and flavor. But it was mixed with poison. Then a man would come along who wants to live and doesn’t want to die, who wants to be happy and recoils from pain. They’d say to him: ‘Here, my man, this bronze goblet of beverage has a nice color, aroma, and flavor. But it’s mixed with poison. Drink it if you like. If you drink it, the color, aroma, and flavor will be appetizing, but it will result in death or deadly pain.’ He wouldn’t put it down. Without appraisal, he’d drink it. The color, aroma, and flavor would be appetizing, but it would result in death or deadly pain. This is comparable to the way of taking up practices that is pleasant now and results in future pain, I say.

just as ifSeyyathāpi, monksbhikkhave, rancid urinepūtimuttaṁ with different medicinesnānābhesajjehi mixedsaṁsaṭṭhaṁ.
thenAtha a manpuriso would comeāgaccheyya with jaundicepaṇḍukarogī.
himTamenaṁ thusevaṁ they would sayvadeyyuṁ:
here‘ambho my manpurisa, thisidaṁ rancid urinepūtimuttaṁ with different medicinesnānābhesajjehi mixedsaṁsaṭṭhaṁ, ifsace you wishākaṅkhasi drinkpiva.
for youTassa yourte while drinkingpivatohi indeedkho will not be appetizingnacchādessati even by colorvaṇṇenapi even by aromagandhenapi even by flavorrasenapi, having drunkpivitvā andca butpana happysukhī you will bebhavissasī’ti.
heSo ittaṁ after appraisalpaṭisaṅkhāya would drinkpiveyya, would not reject itnappaṭinissajjeyya.
for himTassa ittaṁ while drinkingpivatohi indeedkho would not be appetizingnacchādeyya even by colorvaṇṇenapi even by aromagandhenapi even by flavorrasenapi, having drunkpivitvā andca butpana happysukhī he would beassa.
I say this is comparableTathūpamāhaṁ, monksbhikkhave, thisimaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ I sayvadāmi, this whichyamidaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ painful nowpaccuppannadukkhaṁ in the futureāyatiṁ resulting in pleasuresukhavipākaṁ.

Suppose there was some rancid urine mixed with different medicines. Then a man with jaundice would come along. They’d say to him: ‘Here, my man, this is rancid urine mixed with different medicines. Drink it if you like. If you drink it, the color, aroma, and flavor will be unappetizing, but after drinking it you will be happy.’ He wouldn’t put it down. After appraisal, he’d drink it. The color, aroma, and flavor would be unappetizing, but after drinking it he would be happy. This is comparable to the way of taking up practices that is painful now and results in future pleasure, I say.

just as ifSeyyathāpi, O monksbhikkhave, curdsdadhi andca honeymadhu andca gheesappi andca and molassesphāṇitañca in one placeekajjhaṁ mixed togethersaṁsaṭṭhaṁ.
thenAtha a manpuriso would come alongāgaccheyya with bloody dysenterylohitapakkhandiko.
to himTamenaṁ thusevaṁ they would sayvadeyyuṁ:
here‘ambho my manpurisa, thisidaṁ curdsdadhi andca honeymadhu andca gheesappi andca and molassesphāṇitañca in one placeekajjhaṁ mixed togethersaṁsaṭṭhaṁ, ifsace you wishākaṅkhasi drinkpiva.
of himTassa for youte while drinkingpivato indeedceva will be appetizingchādessati by color toovaṇṇenapi by aroma toogandhenapi by flavor toorasenapi, having drunkpivitvā andca thenpana happysukhī you will bebhavissasī’ti.
heSo thattaṁ after appraisalpaṭisaṅkhāya he would drinkpiveyya, he would not put it downnappaṭinissajjeyya.
of himTassa thattaṁ while drinkingpivato indeedceva would be appetizingchādeyya by color toovaṇṇenapi by aroma toogandhenapi by flavor toorasenapi, having drunkpivitvā andca thenpana happysukhī he would beassa.
comparable to thisTathūpamāhaṁ, O monksbhikkhave, thisimaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ I sayvadāmi, which is thisyamidaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ pleasant now indeedpaccuppannasukhañceva and in the futureāyatiñca resulting in pleasuresukhavipākaṁ.

Suppose there was some curds, honey, ghee, and molasses all mixed together. Then a man with bloody dysentery would come along. They’d say to him: ‘Here, my man, this is curds, honey, ghee, and molasses all mixed together. Drink it if you like. If you drink it, the color, aroma, and flavor will be appetizing, and after drinking it you will be happy.’ He wouldn’t put it down. After appraisal, he’d drink it. The color, aroma, and flavor would be appetizing, and after drinking it he would be happy. This is comparable to the way of taking up practices that is pleasant now and results in future pleasure, I say.

just asSeyyathāpi, monksbhikkhave, of the rainy seasonvassānaṁ in the lastpacchime monthmāse in autumnsaradasamaye when clearviddhe cloudlessvigatavalāhake in the heavensdeve the sunādicco to the firmamentnabhaṁ rising upabbhussakkamāno allsabbaṁ the darkness of spaceākāsagataṁ the darkness in the skytamagataṁ having dispelledabhivihacca shinesbhāsate andca glowstapate andca dazzlesvirocate andca;
just soevameva indeedkho, monksbhikkhave, this which isyamidaṁ way of taking up practicesdhammasamādānaṁ pleasant now andpaccuppannasukhañceva and in the futureāyatiñca resulting in pleasuresukhavipākaṁ the othertadaññe doctrines of the various ascetics and brahminsputhusamaṇabrāhmaṇaparappavāde having dispelledabhivihacca shinesbhāsate andca glowstapate andca dazzlesvirocate andcā”ti.
thisIdamavoca the Blessed One saidbhagavā.
SatisfiedAttamanā thosete monksbhikkhū of the Blessed Onebhagavato the speechbhāsitaṁ approvedabhinandunti.
The Great Discourse on Taking Up PracticesMahādhammasamādānasuttaṁ is finishedniṭṭhitaṁ sixthchaṭṭhaṁ.

It’s like the last month of the rainy season, in autumn, when the heavens are sunny and cloudless. And as the sun is rising to the firmament, having dispelled all the darkness of space, it shines and glows and dazzles. In the same way, this way of taking up practices that is pleasant now and results in future pleasure dispels the doctrines of the various other ascetics and brahmins as it shines and glows and dazzles.” That is what the Buddha said. Satisfied, the mendicants approved what the Buddha said.

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