Brahmanimantanikasutta

Since directly knowing all as all, and since directly knowing that which does not fall within the scope of experience characterized by all, I have not become all, I have not become in all, I have not become as all, I have not become one who thinks ‘all is mine’, I have not affirmed all. So Divinity, I am not your equal in knowledge, let alone your inferior. Rather, I know more than you.’

‘Sace kho, mārisa, sabbassa sabbattena ananubhūtaṁ, tadabhiññāya mā heva te rittakameva ahosi, tucchakameva ahosīti.

‘Well, good fellow, if you have directly known that which does not fall within the scope of experience characterized by all, may that not be vacuous and hollow for you!

Consciousness where no form appears, infinite, radiant all-round. That is what does not fall within the scope of experience characterized by earth, water, fire, air, creatures, gods, the Progenitor, the Divinity, the gods of sublime luminosity, the gods of universal beauty, the gods of abundant fruit, the Vanquisher, and the all.

Handa carahi te, mārisa, passa antaradhāyāmī’ti.
‘Handa carahi me tvaṁ, brahme, antaradhāyassu, sace visahasī’ti.
Atha kho, bhikkhave, bako brahmā:
‘antaradhāyissāmi samaṇassa gotamassa, antaradhāyissāmi samaṇassa gotamassā’ti nevassu me sakkoti antaradhāyituṁ.
Evaṁ vutte, ahaṁ, bhikkhave, bakaṁ brahmānaṁ etadavocaṁ:
‘handa carahi te brahme antaradhāyāmī’ti.
‘Handa carahi me tvaṁ, mārisa, antaradhāyassu sace visahasī’ti.
Atha kho ahaṁ, bhikkhave, tathārūpaṁ iddhābhisaṅkhāraṁ abhisaṅkhāsiṁ:
‘ettāvatā brahmā ca brahmaparisā ca brahmapārisajjā ca saddañca me sossanti, na ca maṁ dakkhantī’ti.
Antarahito imaṁ gāthaṁ abhāsiṁ:

Come then, good fellow, see me vanish from you!’ ‘Come on then, Divinity, vanish from me—if you can.’ Then Baka the Divinity said, ‘I will vanish from the ascetic Gotama! I will vanish from the ascetic Gotama!’ But he was unable to vanish from me. So I said to him, ‘Come then, Divinity, see me vanish from you!’ ‘Come on then, good fellow, vanish from me—if you can.’ Then I used my psychic power to will that my voice would extend so that divinity, his assembly, and his retinue would hear me, but they would not see me. And while vanished I spoke this verse:

‘Bhavevāhaṁ bhayaṁ disvā,
bhavañca vibhavesinaṁ;
Bhavaṁ nābhivadiṁ kiñci,
nandiñca na upādiyin’ti.

‘Seeing the danger in existence— that life in any existence will cease to be— I didn’t affirm any kind of existence, and didn’t grasp at relishing.’

Atha kho, bhikkhave, brahmā ca brahmaparisā ca brahmapārisajjā ca acchariyabbhutacittajātā ahesuṁ:
‘acchariyaṁ vata bho, abbhutaṁ vata bho.
Samaṇassa gotamassa mahiddhikatā mahānubhāvatā, na ca vata no ito pubbe diṭṭho vā, suto vā, añño samaṇo vā brāhmaṇo vā evaṁ mahiddhiko evaṁ mahānubhāvo yathāyaṁ samaṇo gotamo sakyaputto sakyakulā pabbajito.
Bhavarāmāya vata, bho, pajāya bhavaratāya bhavasammuditāya samūlaṁ bhavaṁ udabbahī’ti.

Then the Divinity, his assembly, and his retinue, their minds full of wonder and amazement, thought, ‘Oh lord, how incredible, how amazing! The ascetic Gotama has such psychic power and might! We’ve never before seen or heard of any other ascetic or brahmin with psychic power and might like the ascetic Gotama, who has gone forth from the Sakyan clan. Though people enjoy continued existence, loving it so much, he has extracted it, root and all.’

Atha kho, bhikkhave, māro pāpimā aññataraṁ brahmapārisajjaṁ anvāvisitvā maṁ etadavoca:
‘sace kho tvaṁ, mārisa, evaṁ pajānāsi, sace tvaṁ evaṁ anubuddho, mā sāvake upanesi, mā pabbajite;
mā sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ desesi, mā pabbajitānaṁ;
mā sāvakesu gedhimakāsi, mā pabbajitesu.
Ahesuṁ kho, bhikkhu, tayā pubbe samaṇabrāhmaṇā lokasmiṁ arahanto sammāsambuddhā paṭijānamānā.
Te sāvake upanesuṁ pabbajite, sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ desesuṁ pabbajitānaṁ, sāvakesu gedhimakaṁsu pabbajitesu, te sāvake upanetvā pabbajite, sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ desetvā pabbajitānaṁ, sāvakesu gedhitacittā pabbajitesu,
kāyassa bhedā pāṇupacchedā hīne kāye patiṭṭhitā.
Ahesuṁ ye pana, bhikkhu, tayā pubbe samaṇabrāhmaṇā lokasmiṁ arahanto sammāsambuddhā paṭijānamānā.

Then Māra the Wicked took possession of a member of the retinue of Divinity and said this to me, ‘If such is your understanding, good fellow, do not present it to your disciples or those gone forth! Do not teach this Dhamma to your disciples or those gone forth! Do not wish this for your disciples or those gone forth! There have been ascetics and brahmins before you, mendicant, who claimed to be perfected ones, fully awakened Buddhas. They presented, taught, and wished this for their disciples and those gone forth. When their bodies broke up and their breath was cut off they were established in a lower realm. But there have also been other ascetics and brahmins before you, mendicant, who claimed to be perfected ones, fully awakened Buddhas.

Te na sāvake upanesuṁ na pabbajite, na sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ desesuṁ na pabbajitānaṁ, na sāvakesu gedhimakaṁsu na pabbajitesu, te na sāvake upanetvā na pabbajite, na sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ desetvā na pabbajitānaṁ, na sāvakesu gedhitacittā na pabbajitesu,
kāyassa bhedā pāṇupacchedā paṇīte kāye patiṭṭhitā.
Taṁ tāhaṁ, bhikkhu, evaṁ vadāmi—
iṅgha tvaṁ, mārisa, appossukko diṭṭhadhammasukhavihāramanuyutto viharassu, anakkhātaṁ kusalañhi, mārisa, mā paraṁ ovadāhī’ti.

They did not present, teach, or wish this for their disciples and those gone forth. When their bodies broke up and their breath was cut off they were established in a higher realm. So, mendicant, I tell you this: please, good fellow, remain passive, dwelling in blissful meditation in this life, for this is better left unsaid. Good fellow, do not instruct others.’

Evaṁ vutte, ahaṁ, bhikkhave, māraṁ pāpimantaṁ etadavocaṁ:
‘jānāmi kho tāhaṁ, pāpima, mā tvaṁ maññittho:
“na maṁ jānātī”ti.
Māro tvamasi, pāpima.
Na maṁ tvaṁ, pāpima, hitānukampī evaṁ vadesi;
ahitānukampī maṁ tvaṁ, pāpima, evaṁ vadesi.
Tuyhañhi, pāpima, evaṁ hoti:
“yesaṁ samaṇo gotamo dhammaṁ desessati, te me visayaṁ upātivattissantī”ti.
Asammāsambuddhāva pana te, pāpima, samānā sammāsambuddhāmhāti paṭijāniṁsu.
Ahaṁ kho pana, pāpima, sammāsambuddhova samāno sammāsambuddhomhīti paṭijānāmi.
Desentopi hi, pāpima, tathāgato sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ tādisova adesentopi hi, pāpima, tathāgato sāvakānaṁ dhammaṁ tādisova.
Upanentopi hi, pāpima, tathāgato sāvake tādisova, anupanentopi hi, pāpima, tathāgato sāvake tādisova.
Taṁ kissa hetu?
Tathāgatassa, pāpima, ye āsavā saṅkilesikā ponobbhavikā sadarā dukkhavipākā āyatiṁ jātijarāmaraṇiyā—

When he had spoken, I said to Māra, ‘I know you, Wicked One. Do not think, “He doesn’t know me.” You are Māra the Wicked. You don’t speak to me like this out of sympathy, but with no sympathy. For you think, “Those who the ascetic Gotama teaches will go beyond my reach.” Those who formerly claimed to be fully awakened Buddhas were not in fact fully awakened Buddhas. But I am. The Realized One remains such whether or not he teaches disciples. The Realized One remains as such whether or not he presents the teaching to disciples. Why is that? Because the Realized One has given up the defilements that are corrupting, leading to future lives, hurtful, resulting in suffering and future rebirth, old age, and death.

te pahīnā ucchinnamūlā tālāvatthukatā anabhāvaṅkatā āyatiṁ anuppādadhammā.
Seyyathāpi, pāpima, tālo matthakacchinno abhabbo puna virūḷhiyā;
evameva kho, pāpima, tathāgatassa ye āsavā saṅkilesikā ponobbhavikā sadarā dukkhavipākā āyatiṁ jātijarāmaraṇiyā—
te pahīnā ucchinnamūlā tālāvatthukatā anabhāvaṅkatā āyatiṁ anuppādadhammā’ti.

He has cut them off at the root, made them like a palm stump, obliterated them so they are unable to arise in the future. Just as a palm tree with its crown cut off is incapable of further growth, the Realized One has given up the defilements that are corrupting, leading to future lives, hurtful, resulting in suffering and future rebirth, old age, and death. He has cut them off at the root, made them like a palm stump, obliterated them so they are unable to arise in the future.’”

Iti hidaṁ mārassa ca anālapanatāya brahmuno ca abhinimantanatāya, tasmā imassa veyyākaraṇassa brahmanimantanikantveva adhivacanan”ti.
Brahmanimantanikasuttaṁ niṭṭhitaṁ navamaṁ.

And so, because of the silencing of Māra, and because of the invitation of the Divinity, the name of this discussion is “On the Invitation of Divinity”.

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