4👑☸ Cattāri Ariya-saccaṃ 四聖諦

4👑☸ → MN‍ → MN ²³ 🔝

MN ²³ – MN 23 Vammika: 🐜The Ant-Hill
MN ^23.1 (deity asks monk Kassapa a strange riddle)
MN ^23.2 (Kassapa went to the Buddha to get answers to riddles on ant hill)

detailed TOC

MN ²³ – MN 23 Vammika: 🐜The Ant-Hill
MN ^23.1 (deity asks monk Kassapa a strange riddle)
MN ^23.2 (Kassapa went to the Buddha to get answers to riddles on ant hill)
MN ^23.2.1 (🐜‘ant-hill’ is)
MN ^23.2.2 (fuming at night and flaming by day is)
MN ^23.2.4 (brahmin, sage is)
MN ^23.2.6 (⚔️ sword, digging, is)
MN ^23.2.8 (bar is)
MN ^23.2.9 (🐸bullfrog is)
MN ^23.2.10 (forked path is)
MN ^23.2.11 (box is)
MN ^23.2.12 (🐢 tortoise is)
MN ^23.2.13 (🪓axe and block is)
MN ^23.2.14 (piece of flesh is)
MN ^23.2.15 (🐉dragon is)
MN ^23.100 – commentary

23 – MN 23 Vammika: \xED\xA0\xBD\xED\xB0\x9CThe Ant-Hill

(2023 SP-FLUENT translation by frankk‍ derived from B. Sujato‍ )

23.1 (deity asks monk Kassapa a strange riddle)

Evaṃ me sutaṃ—	So I have heard.
ekaṃ samayaṃ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṃ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme.	At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery.
Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā kumārakassapo andhavane viharati.	Now at that time Venerable Kassapa the Prince was staying in the Dark Forest.
Atha kho aññatarā devatā abhikkantāya rattiyā abhikkantavaṇṇā kevalakappaṃ andhavanaṃ obhāsetvā yenāyasmā kumārakassapo tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā ekamantaṃ aṭṭhāsi. Ekamantaṃ ṭhitā kho sā devatā āyasmantaṃ kumārakassapaṃ etadavoca:	Then, late at night, a glorious deity, lighting up the entire Dark Forest, went up to Kassapa, stood to one side, and said:
“Bhikkhu bhikkhu, ayaṃ vammiko rattiṃ dhūmāyati, divā pajjalati.	“Monk, monk! This ant-hill fumes by night and flames by day.
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	‘Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa laṅgiṃ	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a bar:
‘laṅgī, bhadante’ti.	‘A bar, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa laṅgiṃ;	‘Throw out the bar!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa uddhumāyikaṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a bullfrog:
‘Uddhumāyikā, bhadante’ti.	‘A bullfrog, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa uddhumāyikaṃ;	‘Throw out the bullfrog!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa dvidhāpathaṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a forked path:
‘Dvidhāpatho, bhadante’ti.	‘A forked path, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa dvidhāpathaṃ;	‘Throw out the forked path!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa caṅgavāraṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a box:
‘Caṅgavāro, bhadante’ti.	‘A box, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa caṅgavāraṃ;	‘Throw out the box!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa kummaṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a tortoise:
‘Kummo, bhadante’ti.	‘A tortoise, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa kummaṃ;	‘Throw out the tortoise!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa asisūnaṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw an axe and block:
‘Asisūnā, bhadante’ti.	‘An axe and block, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa asisūnaṃ;	‘Throw out the axe and block!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa maṃsapesiṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a piece of flesh:
‘Maṃsapesi, bhadante’ti.	‘A piece of flesh, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘ukkhipa maṃsapesiṃ;	‘Throw out the piece of flesh!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā’ti.	Take up the sword and dig, O sage!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya addasa nāgaṃ.	Taking up the sword and digging, the sage saw a dragon:
‘Nāgo, bhadante’ti.	‘A dragon, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:	The brahmin said:
‘tiṭṭhatu nāgo, mā nāgaṃ ghaṭṭesi; namo karohi nāgassā’ti.	‘Leave the dragon! Do not disturb the dragon! Worship the dragon!’
Ime kho tvaṃ, bhikkhu, pañhe bhagavantaṃ upasaṅkamitvā puccheyyāsi, yathā ca te bhagavā byākaroti tathā naṃ dhāreyyāsi.	monk, go to the Buddha and ask him about this riddle. You should remember it in line with his answer.
Nāhaṃ taṃ, bhikkhu, passāmi sadevake loke samārake sabrahmake sassamaṇabrāhmaṇiyā pajāya sadevamanussāya, yo imesaṃ pañhānaṃ veyyākaraṇena cittaṃ ārādheyya aññatra tathāgatena vā, tathāgatasāvakena vā, ito vā pana sutvā”ti—	I don’t see anyone in this world—with its gods, Māras, and Brahmās, this population with its ascetics and brahmins, its gods and humans—who could provide a satisfying answer to this riddle except for the Realized One or his disciple or someone who has heard it from them.”
idamavoca sā devatā.	That is what that deity said
Idaṃ vatvā tatthevantaradhāyi.	before vanishing right there.

23.2 (Kassapa went to the Buddha to get answers to riddles on ant hill)

23.2.1 (\xED\xA0\xBD\xED\xB0\x9C‘ant-hill’ is)

Atha kho āyasmā kumārakassapo tassā rattiyā accayena yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṃ abhivādetvā ekamantaṃ nisīdi. Ekamantaṃ nisinno kho āyasmā kumārakassapo bhagavantaṃ etadavoca:	Then, when the night had passed, Kassapa went to the Buddha, bowed, sat down to one side, and told him what had happened. Then he asked:
“imaṃ, bhante, rattiṃ aññatarā devatā abhikkantāya rattiyā abhikkantavaṇṇā kevalakappaṃ andhavanaṃ obhāsetvā yenāhaṃ tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā ekamantaṃ aṭṭhāsi. Ekamantaṃ ṭhitā kho, bhante, sā devatā maṃ etadavoca:
‘bhikkhu bhikkhu, ayaṃ vammiko rattiṃ dhūmāyati, divā pajjalati.
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:
“abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyā”ti.
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṃ ādāya … pe …
ito vā pana sutvā’ti.
Idamavoca, bhante, sā devatā.
Idaṃ vatvā tatthevantaradhāyi.
Ko nu kho, bhante, vammiko, kā rattiṃ dhūmāyanā, kā divā pajjalanā, ko brāhmaṇo, ko sumedho, kiṃ satthaṃ, kiṃ abhikkhaṇaṃ, kā laṅgī, kā uddhumāyikā, ko dvidhāpatho, kiṃ caṅgavāraṃ, ko kummo, kā asisūnā, kā maṃsapesi, ko nāgo”ti?	“Sir, what is the ant-hill? What is the fuming by night and flaming by day? Who is the brahmin, and who the sage? What are the sword, the digging, the bar, the bullfrog, the forked path, the box, the tortoise, the axe and block, and the piece of flesh? And what is the dragon?”
“‘Vammiko’ti kho, bhikkhu, imassetaṃ cātumahābhūtikassa kāyassa adhivacanaṃ, mātāpettikasambhavassa odanakummāsūpacayassa aniccucchādanaparimaddanabhedanaviddhaṃsanadhammassa. (1)	“monk, ‘ant-hill’ is a term for this body made up of the four primary elements, produced by mother and father, built up from rice and porridge, liable to impermanence, to wearing away and erosion, to breaking up and destruction.

23.2.2 (fuming at night and flaming by day is)

Yaṃ kho, bhikkhu, divā kammante ārabbha rattiṃ anuvitakketi anuvicāreti—	Thinking and considering all night about what you did during the day—
ayaṃ rattiṃ dhūmāyanā.	this is the fuming at night.
Yaṃ kho, bhikkhu, rattiṃ anuvitakketvā anuvicāretvā divā kammante payojeti kāyena vācāya ‘manasā’—	The work you apply yourself to during the day by body, speech, and mind after thinking about it all night—
ayaṃ divā pajjalanā. (2–3.)	this is the flaming by day.

23.2.4 (brahmin, sage is)

‘Brāhmaṇo’ti kho, bhikkhu, tathāgatassetaṃ adhivacanaṃ arahato sammāsambuddhassa.	‘Brahmin’ is a term for the Realized One, the perfected one, the fully awakened Buddha.
‘Sumedho’ti kho, bhikkhu, sekkhassetaṃ bhikkhuno adhivacanaṃ. (4–5.)	‘Sage’ is a term for the trainee monk.

23.2.6 (⚔️ sword, digging, is)

‘Satthan’ti kho, bhikkhu, ariyāyetaṃ paññāya adhivacanaṃ.	‘Sword’ is a term for noble wisdom.
‘Abhikkhaṇan’ti kho, bhikkhu, vīriyārambhassetaṃ adhivacanaṃ. (6–7.)	‘Digging’ is a term for being energetic.

23.2.8 (bar is)

‘Laṅgī’ti kho, bhikkhu, avijjāyetaṃ adhivacanaṃ.	‘Bar’ is a term for ignorance.
Ukkhipa laṅgiṃ, pajaha avijjaṃ;	‘Throw out the bar’ means ‘give up ignorance,
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (8)	take up the sword, sage, and dig.’

23.2.9 (\xED\xA0\xBD\xED\xB0\xB8bullfrog is)

‘Uddhumāyikā’ti kho, bhikkhu, kodhūpāyāsassetaṃ adhivacanaṃ.	‘Bullfrog’ is a term for anger and distress.
Ukkhipa uddhumāyikaṃ, pajaha kodhūpāyāsaṃ;	‘Throw out the bullfrog’ means ‘give up anger and distress’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (9)

23.2.10 (forked path is)

‘Dvidhāpatho’ti kho, bhikkhu, vicikicchāyetaṃ adhivacanaṃ.	‘A forked path’ is a term for doubt.
Ukkhipa dvidhāpathaṃ, pajaha vicikicchaṃ;	‘Throw out the forked path’ means ‘give up doubt’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (10)

23.2.11 (box is)

‘Caṅgavāran’ti kho, bhikkhu, pañcannetaṃ nīvaraṇānaṃ adhivacanaṃ, seyyathidaṃ—	‘Box’ is a term for the five hindrances, that is:
kāmacchandanīvaraṇassa, byāpādanīvaraṇassa, thinamiddhanīvaraṇassa, uddhaccakukkuccanīvaraṇassa, vicikicchānīvaraṇassa.	the hindrances of sensual desire, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and remorse, and doubt.
Ukkhipa caṅgavāraṃ, pajaha pañca nīvaraṇe;	‘Throw out the box’ means ‘give up the five hindrances’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (11)

23.2.12 (\xED\xA0\xBD\xED\xB0\xA2 tortoise is)

‘Kummo’ti kho, bhikkhu, pañcannetaṃ upādānakkhandhānaṃ adhivacanaṃ, seyyathidaṃ—	‘Tortoise’ is a term for the five grasping aggregates, that is:
rūpupādānakkhandhassa, vedanupādānakkhandhassa, saññupādānakkhandhassa, saṅkhārupādānakkhandhassa, viññāṇupādānakkhandhassa.	form, feeling, perception, co-doings, and consciousness.
Ukkhipa kummaṃ, pajaha pañcupādānakkhandhe;	‘Throw out the tortoise’ means ‘give up the five grasping aggregates’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (12)

23.2.13 (\xED\xA0\xBE\xED\xBA\x93axe and block is)

‘Asisūnā’ti kho, bhikkhu, pañcannetaṃ kāmaguṇānaṃ adhivacanaṃ—	‘Axe and block’ is a term for the five kinds of sensual stimulation.
cakkhuviññeyyānaṃ rūpānaṃ iṭṭhānaṃ kantānaṃ manāpānaṃ piyarūpānaṃ kāmūpasaṃhitānaṃ rajanīyānaṃ,	Sights known by the eye that are likable, desirable, agreeable, pleasant, sensual, and arousing.
sotaviññeyyānaṃ saddānaṃ … pe …	Sounds known by the ear …
ghānaviññeyyānaṃ gandhānaṃ … pe …	Smells known by the nose …
jivhāviññeyyānaṃ rasānaṃ … pe …	Tastes known by the tongue …
kāyaviññeyyānaṃ phoṭṭhabbānaṃ iṭṭhānaṃ kantānaṃ manāpānaṃ piyarūpānaṃ kāmūpasaṃhitānaṃ rajanīyānaṃ.	Touches known by the body that are likable, desirable, agreeable, pleasant, sensual, and arousing.
Ukkhipa asisūnaṃ, pajaha pañca kāmaguṇe;	‘Throw out the axe and block’ means ‘give up the five kinds of sensual stimulation’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (13)

23.2.14 (piece of flesh is)

‘Maṃsapesī’ti kho, bhikkhu, nandīrāgassetaṃ adhivacanaṃ.	‘Piece of flesh’ is a term for desire with relishing.
Ukkhipa maṃsapesiṃ, pajaha nandīrāgaṃ;	‘Throw out the piece of flesh’ means ‘give up desire with relishing’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṃ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. (14)

23.2.15 (\xED\xA0\xBD\xED\xB0\x89dragon is)

‘Nāgo’ti kho, bhikkhu, khīṇāsavassetaṃ bhikkhuno adhivacanaṃ.	‘Dragon’ is a term for a monk who has ended the defilements.
Tiṭṭhatu nāgo, mā nāgaṃ ghaṭṭesi; namo karohi nāgassāti ayametassa attho”ti. (15)	This is the meaning of: ‘Leave the dragon! Do not disturb the dragon! Worship the dragon.’”
Idamavoca bhagavā.	That is what the Buddha said.
Attamano āyasmā kumārakassapo bhagavato bhāsitaṃ abhinandīti.	Satisfied, Venerable Kassapa the Prince was happy with what the Buddha said.

(end of sutta⏹️)

23.100 – commentary

B. Bodhi trans. footnotes

SUTTA 23
275 Ven. Kum̄ra Kassapa was an adopted son of King Pasenadi of Kosala, born of a woman who, not knowing she was pregnant, had gone forth as a bhikkhunı̄ after having conceived him. At the time this sutta was delivered he was still a sekha; he attained arahantship using this sutta as his subject of meditation.
276 According to MA, this deity was a non-returner living in the Pure Abodes. He and Kumāra Kassapa had been members of a group of five fellow monks who, in the Dispensation of the previous Buddha Kassapa, had practised meditation together on a mountain-top. It was this same deity who spurred Bāhiya Dāruciriya, another former member of the group, to visit the Buddha (see Ud 1:10/7).
277 The meaning of the deity’s imagery will be explained later on in the sutta itself.
278 Kummāsa: The Vinaya and commentaries explain it as something made of yava, barley. Ñm had translated the word as bread, but from MN 82.18 it is clear that kummāsa is viscous and spoils overnight. PED defines it as junket; Horner translates it as “sour milk.”
279 MA: Just as a bar across the entrance to a city prevents people from entering it, so ignorance prevents people from attaining Nibbāna.
280 Dvedhāpatha might also have been rendered “a forked path,” an obvious symbol for doubt.
281 MA states that the four feet and head of a tortoise are similar to the five aggregates.
282 MA: Beings desiring sensual enjoyments are chopped up by the butcher’s knife of sensual desires upon the block of sense objects.
283 The symbolism is explicated at MN 54.16.
284 This is an arahant. For the symbolism, see n.75.

75 Mahānāga. The nāgas are a class of dragonlike beings in Indian mythology believed to inhabit the nether regions of the earth and to be the guardians of hidden treasures. The word comes to represent any gigantic or powerful creature, such as a tusker elephant or a cobra and, by extension, an arahant bhikkhu. See Dhp, ch. 23, Nāgavagga.

excerpt from Piya Tan's article

https://www.themindingcentre.org/dharmafarer/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/28.13-Vammika-S-m23-piya.pdf
2.2 PAST LIVES.
In the time of Padumuttara Buddha Kassapa was a learned brahmin, and having heard a monk ranked foremost in eloquence, he wished for a similar distinction and did many acts of piety towards that end.
During the time of Kassapa Buddha (the Buddha just before ours), when his teaching was declining,
Kumāra Kassapa, together with six other monks, vowed to live a life of rigorous asceticism on a mountain-top to attain liberation.
On reaching the summit with the help of a ladder, they threw it off, and began to meditate.
The eldest attained arhathood in three days, and the second attained non-return, but the remaining five died of starvation on the seventh day without any attainment.
These five companions were Pukkusāti, Bāhiya Dārucīriya, Dabba Malla,putta, the wanderer Sabhiya and Kumāra Kassapa.
2 It was the non-returner brahma who appeared before Kumāra Kassapa and gave him the riddle.
3 This same brahma also suggested to the wanderer Bāhiya to meet the Buddha.

This Potaliya Sutta parable refers to the lust-driven reactions of an ignorant worldling.
At this level, however, as the brahmin directs us to dig deeper into the ant-hill, we have reached the depths of our un-conscious latent tendencies, especially that of lust, and we are told abandon this, too.
(10) The cobra (nāga).
The final object dug out from the ant-hill is the nāga, which is here best con- textually translasted as “cobra,” even “king cobra.”
At the close of the Anaṅgaṇa Sutta (M 5), Sāriputta and Moggallāna are called “the great nagas” (mahā,nāga).
28 The word nāgais commonly used in early Buddhist texts to refer serpents, especially those of great strength and powers,29and it often refers to the cobra, the most venomous and revered of Indian snakes.
30 Figuratively, nāga means “hero, saint,” sym-bolizing great spiritual strength and endurance.
A popular etymology of the naga’s excellence is that “he does no evil” (āgun na karoti),31 that is, he is faultless.
32 In this sense, nāga is often used as an epithet of the Buddha and the arhat.
33 In the riddle, the brahmin says of the cobra (nāga), ‘Let the naga be! Spite not the naga! Pay hom- age to the naga!’34 The Pali verb for “spite” (ghaṭṭesi;
3rd sg ghaṭteti) is interesting and has two main senses, the literal and the figurative.
Literally, ghaṭṭeti means “he strikes, beats, knocks against, touch”;
35 and figuratively, “he offends, mocks, objects to.”
36 The meaning is that although all the nine previous objects are to be thrown away or abandoned, only this last one should be left untouched, that is, the arhat.
For, he is the liberated being who is no more under the power of any of those objects, and as such deserves our respect and emulation.