AN 9.37 “no forceful restraint” happening right before “final knowledge”
Also important to note prior to this excerpt, the Buddha only lists the first 3 formless attainments, not the four jhānas, as attainments where one is not percipient of the 5 sense faculties (eyes … body).
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♦ “ekamidāhaṃ, āvuso, samayaṃ sākete viharāmi |
"One, *****, time (at) Sāketa (I) dwelled, |
añjana-vane miga-dāye. |
(in the) Añjana-Grove deer-park. |
atha kho, āvuso, |
Then ***, ******, |
jaṭilavāsikā bhikkhunī yenāhaṃ tenupasaṅkami; |
Jaṭilagāhiyā (the) bhikkhunī {approached} me, |
upasaṅkamitvā maṃ abhivādetvā |
having-approached me, paid-homage, |
ekam-antaṃ aṭṭhāsi. |
(towards) one-side (she) stood. |
ekam-antaṃ ṭhitā kho, āvuso, |
(at) one-side standing there, *****, |
jaṭilavāsikā bhikkhunī maṃ etad-avoca — |
Jaṭilagāhiyā (the) bhikkhunī (to) me {said}-this |
‘yāyaṃ, bhante ānanda, |
‘*****, Bhante Ānanda, |
samādhi na c-ābhinato |
(the) concentration (that does) not lean-forward |
na c-āpanato |
(and does) not bend-back, |
”no forceful restraint”
na ca sa-saṅkhāra-niggayha-vārita-gato, |
(and that is) not ** reined in and checked by forcefully suppressing [the defilements]— |
vimutt-attā ṭhito, |
{being}-liberated, (it is) steady, |
ṭhit-attā santusito, |
{being}-steady (it is) content, |
santusit-attā no paritassati. |
{being}-content (one is) not agitated. |
ayaṃ, bhante ānanda, |
This, ****** ******, |
samādhi kiṃ-phalo |
concentration (has) what-(as its)-fruit, |
vutto bhagavatā’”ti? |
did the-blessed one say? |
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♦ “evaṃ vutte, sohaṃ, āvuso, |
"When asked, I {responded to}, *****, |
jaṭilavāsikaṃ bhikkhuniṃ etadavocaṃ — |
Jaṭilagāhiyā (the) bhikkhunī {*********} - |
‘yāyaṃ, bhagini, |
‘*****, Sister, |
samādhi na c-ābhinato |
(the) concentration (that does) not lean-forward |
na c-āpanato |
(and does) not bend-back, |
”no forceful restraint”
na ca sa-saṅkhāra-niggayha-vārita-gato, |
(and that is) not ** reined in and checked by forcefully suppressing [the defilements]— |
vimutt-attā ṭhito, |
{being}-liberated, (it is) steady, |
ṭhit-attā santusito, |
{being}-steady (it is) content, |
santusit-attā no paritassati. |
{being}-content (one is) not agitated. |
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final knowledge, aññā-phalo
ayaṃ, bhagini, samādhi |
This, *******, concentration |
aññā-phalo |
(has) final-knowledge-(as its)-fruit, |
vutto bhagavatā’ti. |
(that) was-said (by) the-blessed-one.' |
evaṃ-saññīpi kho, āvuso, |
thus-percipient ***, friend, |
tad-āyatanaṃ no paṭisaṃvedeti. |
that-base [one does] not experience. |
final knowledge is presumably arahantship, or at the very least stream entry. The vimutt-attā ṭhito, liberation and steadiness, along with the other descriptions, seems very reminiscent of the description of Arahantship in Sutta Nipata and Udāna.
This translation is following B.Bodhi’s meaning of This, *******, concentration
(has) final-knowledge-(as its)-fruit, whereas Thanissaro has the reverse:
Thanissaro says, that arahantship attainment moment produces a fruit of the “no forceful restraint samadhi”
"I said to her, 'Sister, the concentration whereby — neither pressed down nor forced back, nor with fabrication kept blocked or suppressed — still as a result of release, contented as a result of standing still, and as a result of contentment one is not agitated: This concentration is said by the Blessed One to be the fruit of gnosis.'[1] This is another way of being percipient when not sensitive to that dimension."
Thanissaro’s footnote says “final knowledge” is arahantship.
Does “no forceful restraint” always have no percipience of 5 sense faculties?
In AN 9.37, “no forceful restraint” has two features differing from the other sutta passages. 1) It’s while in this attainment that the nun attains final knowledge, Arahantship. 2) In this version of “no forceful restraint”, the nun is not percipient of the 5 sense faculties, whereas in other passages such as:
SN 1.38 (Buddha is percipient of 5 faculties when he’s folding his robe)
Now on that occasion the Blessed One’s foot had been cut by a stone splinter.86 Severe pains assailed the Blessed One—bodily feelings that were painful, racking, sharp, piercing, harrowing, disagreeable. But the Blessed One endured them, mindful and clearly comprehending, without becoming distressed. Then the Blessed One had his outer robe folded in four, and he lay down on his right side in the lion posture with one leg overlapping the other, mindful and clearly comprehending.
(The SN 1.38 excerpt from earlier in this article occurs next, with the devas showing amazement at the Buddha dwelling in “no forceful restraint” while in pain)
relationship between AN 9.36 and 9.37
In AN 9.36, it shows how one can attain Nirvana from any of the 4 jhānas, while in jhāna, or any of the first 3 formless attainments, while in that attainment. Only the last 2 formless attainments, one can only touch Nirvana upon emerging from that attainment.
In AN 9.37, since the “no forceful restraint” is happening concurrently with final knowledge, i.e. arahantship, connecting the dots with AN 9.36, we can deduce the Nun is most likely in one of the first 3 formless attainments and then contacts Nirvana while in that attainment. The point in the sutta where the Nun asks Ananda about this attainment, it suggests she’s in the state where mind is divorced from five sense faculties, ruling out the first four jhānas, but she is wondering exactly what that state is because it doesn’t feel like it’s an ordinary version of the first 3 formless attainments.
Another reason it seems likely to be the first 3 formless attainments, if we examine the pāli words for the expression “no forceful restraint”, sankhara is likely referring to the 3 sankharas of bodily, speech, mind.
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na sa-saṅkhāra-niggayha-vārita-gato |
not using-- fabrications (to) – restrain – (and) block [defilements] – **** |
with
(SN 12.2, 3 types of Fabrications
♦ “katame ca, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā? |
"And-what, monks, (are) fabrications? |
tayo-me, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā — |
(there are) three-of-these, **********, fabrications: |
kāya-saṅkhāro, |
bodily-fabrications, |
vacī-saṅkhāro, |
verbal-fabrications, |
citta-saṅkhāro. |
mental-fabrications, |
ime vuccanti, bhikkhave, saṅkhārā. |
This (is) called, *********, fabrications. |
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From well known EBT passages, we know verbal-fabrications ceases in 2nd jhāna, bodily fabrications, the breath, ceases in 4th jhāna, and the mental-fabrications are active in the first 3 formless attainments, divorced from the 5 sense faculties.
DN
DN 34 same as AN 5.27
DN 3, 11. dasuttarasuttaṃ, pañca dhammā DN 34.6, para. 13 ⇒
(ja) “katame pañca dhammā uppādetabbā? pañca ñāṇiko sammāsamādhi — ‘ayaṃ samādhi paccuppannasukho ceva āyatiñca sukhavipāko’ti paccattaṃyeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati. ‘ayaṃ samādhi ariyo nirāmiso’ti paccattaññeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati. ‘ayaṃ samādhi akāpurisasevito’ti paccattaṃyeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati. ‘ayaṃ samādhi santo paṇīto paṭippassaddhaladdho ekodibhāvādhigato, na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato’’ti {na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayha vāritavatoti (sī. syā. kaṃ. pī.), na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavārivāvato (ka.), na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāriyādhigato (?)} paccattaṃyeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati. ‘so kho panāhaṃ imaṃ samādhiṃ satova samāpajjāmi sato vuṭṭhahāmī’ti paccattaṃyeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati. ime pañca dhammā uppādetabbā.
MN
SN
SN 1.38 Devadatta tries to kill Buddha, hurts his foot, devas praise Buddha
SN 1, 1. devatāsaṃyuttaṃ, 4. satullapakāyikavaggo, 8. sakalikasuttaṃ SN 1.38, para. 8 ⇒
atha kho aparā devatā bhagavato santike imaṃ udānaṃ udānesi — “passa samādhiṃ subhāvitaṃ cittañca suvimuttaṃ, na cābhinataṃ na cāpanataṃ na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagataṃ {sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavataṃ (sī. syā. kaṃ. pī.), sasaṅkhāraniggayhavārivāvataṃ (ka.)} . yo evarūpaṃ purisanāgaṃ purisasīhaṃ purisāajānīyaṃ purisanisabhaṃ purisadhorayhaṃ purisadantaṃ atikkamitabbaṃ maññeyya kimaññatra adassanā”ti.
SN 1.38 B. Bodhi footnote 88
I read with Se: Passa samādhiṁ subhāvitaṁ cittañ ca suvimuttaṁ na cābhinataṁ na cāpanataṁ na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavataṁ . Be is identical except that the final word in the compound is read as -gataṁ;; Ee1 -cāritavataṁ is clearly an error, rectified in PED, s.v. vāritavata. Ee2 reads as in Se, but with niggayha taken as uncompounded, which leaves sasaṅkhāra dangling. The same expression occurs elsewhere: at AN IV 428,9-10 the full formula is used to describe a samādhi called aññāphala, the fruit of final knowledge (or perhaps, “having final knowledge as its fruit”); sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavata, at AN I 254,34, describes a samādhi developed as the basis for the six abhiññā (probably the fourth jhāna); and at AN III 24,9, DN III 279,4, and Vibh 334,15, it characterizes a “right concentration of fivefold knowledge” (pañcañāṇika sammā samādhi). In the present context, it seems, the expression qualifies cittaṁ, mind, though the mind has these qualities by virtue of the samādhi in which it is absorbed. At AN IV 428,9-10 and elsewhere the phrase clearly qualifies the samādhi. Spk (Se): The concentration is that of the fruit of arahantship (arahattaphalasamādhi). The mind is said to be well liberated (suvimuttaṁ) because it is liberated by the fruit. Not bent forward and not bent back: the mind accompanied by lust is said to be “bent forward” (abhinataṁ), that accompanied by hate to be ʺbent backʺ (apanataṁ) . Rejecting both, he speaks thus. Not blocked and checked by forceful suppression: It is not blocked and checked, having suppressed the defilements forcefully, with effort; rather, it is checked because the defilements have been cut off. The meaning is that it is concentrated by the concentration of fruition (na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavatan ti na sasaṅkhārena sappayogena kilese niggahetvā vāritavataṁ; kilesānaṁ pana chinnattā vataṁ, phalasamādhinā samāhitan ti attho). (N.B. While Spk (Be) reads -gataṁ in the lemma, it reads -vataṁ twice in the explanation.)
Spk-pṭ: This is not achieved, not fixed, forcefully, with effort, by way of abandoning in a particular respect or by way of abandoning through suppression as is the mundane-jhāna mind or insight; but rather (it is achieved) because the defilements have been completely cut off (lokiyajjhānacittaṁviya vipassanā viya ca sasaṅkhārena sappayogena tadaṅgappahāna-vikkhambhanappahānavasena ca vikkhambhetvā na adhigataṁ na ṭhapitaṁ, kiñcarahi kilesānaṁ sabbaso chinnatāya).
The Pāli phrase is extremely difficult and the exact reading uncertain. Indeed, in the Central Asian Skt ms corresponding to DN III 279,4 (Waldschmidt, Sanskrittexte aus den Turfanfunden IV, p. 70, V.8 (3)), it is conspicuously absent. A Skt version in Śrāv-bh (p. 444,19-21) reads vārivad dhṛtaṁ, “maintained like water,” which seems to me unlikely to correspond to the original reading.
Ee1 puts a hiatus after niggayha, and Ee2 separates it off entirely; the other eds. integrate niggayha into the long compound. There is no way to determine, on the basis of grammar alone, which is correct. Each attempt to resolve the expression into its elements gives rise to its own special problems, and even the aṭṭhakathās and ṭīkās offer conflicting explanations, e.g., Sv III 1060,11-13 and Vibh-a 421,13-15 take niggayha to be absolutive (as does Spk) and turn vārita into the absolutive vāretvā; their respective ṭīkās, Sv-pṭ III 284,24-27 (Be) and Vibh-mṭ 205,16-18 (Be), take niggayha as the gerundive niggahetabba and vārita as the gerundive vāretabba. Since niggayha occurs elsewhere unambiguously as an absolutive (e.g., at MN III 118,4, interestingly, as here, without a direct object), while there seem to be no instances in canonical Pāli of the word occurring as a gerundive, the aṭṭhakathās are more likely to be right. Norman questions this interpretation on the ground that there is no other known instance in Pāli of an absolutive occurring as the second member of a compound (personal communication), but perhaps we should not rule out the possibility that we have such a construction here. I translate, however, in compliance with natural English idiom rather than in strict conformity with the syntax of the Pāli.
Readings of the last part of the compound vary among the different traditions: in general vāritavata prevails in the Sinhalese tradition, vāritagata in the Burmese,with Burmese vv.ll. vārivāvata and vārivāvaṭa also recorded. Vārita here is a past participle of the causative vāreti, to block, to restrain. The terminal member of the compound could then be either vata or gata. Gata is clearly a past participle. Vata is more problematic. At KS 1:39, vāritavataṁ is rendered “having the habit of self-denial.” Apparently C.Rh.D understands vata as equivalent to Skt vrata . However, Spk’s gloss, chinnattā vataṁ phalasamādhinā samāhitaṁ, suggests that we have a past participle here, and I would propose that vata represents Skt vṛta, which according to MW can mean “stopped, checked, held back.” I cannot cite other occurrences of the simple participle vata in Pāli, but prefixed forms are common enough: saṁvuta, nibbuta, vivaṭa, āvaṭa, etc. Thus we would have here two past participles from the same root, one causative, the other simple, so that the compound vāritavata would mean “blocked and checked” (unfortunately two distinct English verbs are needed to capture the nuances). Although this construction is certainly unusual, it need not be rejected out of hand, as it may have been used for special emphasis. If the reading gata is accepted, vāritagata could mean “gone to (attained to) control,” with varita taken as a noun of state. This certainly sounds more natural than vāritavata, but the prevalence of vata in the textual tradition lends strong support to its authenticity.
AN
AN 3.101 describing a purified imperturbable 4th jhana
AN 3, 2. dutiyapaṇṇāsakaṃ, (10) 5. loṇakapallavaggo, 10. paṃsudhovakasuttaṃ AN 3.102, para. 2 ⇒
“evamevaṃ kho, bhikkhave, santi adhicittamanuyuttassa bhikkhuno oḷārikā upakkilesā kāyaduccaritaṃ vacīduccaritaṃ manoduccaritaṃ, tamenaṃ sacetaso bhikkhu dabbajātiko pajahati vinodeti byantīkaroti anabhāvaṃ gameti. tasmiṃ pahīne tasmiṃ byantīkate santi adhicittamanuyuttassa bhikkhuno majjhimasahagatā upakkilesā kāmavitakko byāpādavitakko vihiṃsāvitakko, tamenaṃ sacetaso bhikkhu dabbajātiko pajahati vinodeti byantīkaroti anabhāvaṃ gameti. tasmiṃ pahīne tasmiṃ byantīkate santi adhicittamanuyuttassa bhikkhuno sukhumasahagatā upakkilesā ñātivitakko janapadavitakko anavaññattipaṭisaṃyutto vitakko, tamenaṃ sacetaso bhikkhu dabbajātiko pajahati vinodeti byantīkaroti anabhāvaṃ gameti. tasmiṃ pahīne tasmiṃ byantīkate athāparaṃ dhammavitakkāvasissati {dhammavitakkovasissati (ka.)} . so hoti samādhi na ceva santo na ca paṇīto nappaṭippassaddhaladdho na ekodibhāvādhigato sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato {sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavato (sī. syā. kaṃ. pī.), sasaṅkhāraniggayhavārivāvato (ka.), sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāriyādhigato (?) a. ni. 9.37; dī. ni. 3.355} hoti. so, bhikkhave, samayo yaṃ taṃ cittaṃ ajjhattaṃyeva santiṭṭhati sannisīdati ekodi hoti {ekodibhāvaṃ gacchati (sī.), ekodibhāvo hoti (syā. kaṃ. ka.), ekodihoti (pī.)} samādhiyati. so hoti samādhi santo paṇīto paṭippassaddhiladdho ekodibhāvādhigato na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato. yassa yassa ca abhiññā sacchikaraṇīyassa dhammassa cittaṃ abhininnāmeti abhiññā sacchikiriyāya tatra tatreva sakkhibhabbataṃ pāpuṇāti sati satiāyatane.
AN 5.27 as one of 5 types of attributes that should be developed in samadhi
AN 5, 1. paṭhamapaṇṇāsakaṃ, 3. pañcaṅgikavaggo, 7. samādhisuttaṃ AN 5.27, para. 1 ⇒
27. “samādhiṃ, bhikkhave, bhāvetha appamāṇaṃ nipakā patissatā. samādhiṃ, bhikkhave, bhāvayataṃ appamāṇaṃ nipakānaṃ patissatānaṃ pañca ñāṇāni paccattaññeva uppajjanti. katamāni pañca? ‘ayaṃ samādhi paccuppannasukho ceva āyatiñca sukhavipāko’ti paccattaññeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati, ‘ayaṃ samādhi ariyo nirāmiso’ti paccattaññeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati, ‘ayaṃ samādhi akāpurisasevito’ti {mahāpurisasevitoti (ka.)} paccattaññeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati, ‘ayaṃ samādhi santo paṇīto paṭippassaddhaladdho ekodibhāvādhigato, na saṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato’ti {na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritappatitoti (sī.), na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritapattoti (syā.), na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavārivāvaṭoti (ka.), na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāriyādhigatoti (?) dī. ni. 3.355; a. ni. 3.102; 9.27} paccattaññeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati, ‘sato kho panāhaṃ imaṃ samāpajjāmi sato vuṭṭhahāmī’ti {so kho panāhaṃ imaṃ samādhiṃ satova samāpajjāmi, sato uṭṭhahāmīti (sī. syā. kaṃ.)} paccattaññeva ñāṇaṃ uppajjati.
AN 9.37 while in the samadhi perceiving nirvana, percipient of nirvana but not 5 sense bases
AN 9, 1. paṭhamapaṇṇāsakaṃ, 4. mahāvaggo, 6. ānandasuttaṃ AN 9.37, para. 7 ⇒
“ekamidāhaṃ, āvuso, samayaṃ sākete viharāmi añjanavane migadāye. atha kho, āvuso, jaṭilavāsikā {jaṭilagāhiyā (sī. pī.), jaḍilabhāgikā (syā.)} bhikkhunī yenāhaṃ tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā maṃ abhivādetvā ekamantaṃ aṭṭhāsi. ekamantaṃ ṭhitā kho, āvuso, jaṭilavāsikā bhikkhunī maṃ etadavoca — ‘yāyaṃ, bhante ānanda, samādhi na cābhinato na cāpanato na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato {sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavato (sī. syā. kaṃ. pī.), sasaṅkhāraniggayhavārivāvaṭo (ka.) a. ni. 3.102; 5.27; dī. ni. 3.355}, vimuttattā ṭhito, ṭhitattā santusito, santusitattā no paritassati. ayaṃ, bhante ānanda, samādhi kiṃphalo vutto bhagavatā’”ti?
AN 9, 1. paṭhamapaṇṇāsakaṃ, 4. mahāvaggo, 6. ānandasuttaṃ AN 9.37, para. 8 ⇒
“evaṃ vutte, sohaṃ, āvuso, jaṭilavāsikaṃ bhikkhuniṃ etadavocaṃ — ‘yāyaṃ, bhagini, samādhi na cābhinato na cāpanato na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato, vimuttattā ṭhito, ṭhitattā santusito, santusitattā no paritassati. ayaṃ, bhagini, samādhi aññāphalo vutto bhagavatā’ti. evaṃsaññīpi kho, āvuso, tadāyatanaṃ no paṭisaṃvedetī”ti. chaṭṭhaṃ.
KN
KN Nett, 4. paṭiniddesavāro, 2. vicayahārasampāto, para. 4 ⇒
54. so samādhi pañcavidhena veditabbo. ayaṃ samādhi “paccuppannasukho”ti itissa paccattameva ñāṇadassanaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ bhavati, ayaṃ samādhi “āyatiṃ sukhavipāko”ti itissa paccattameva ñāṇadassanaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ bhavati, ayaṃ samādhi “ariyo nirāmiso”ti itissa paccattameva ñāṇadassanaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ bhavati, ayaṃ samādhi “akāpurisasevito”ti itissa paccattameva ñāṇadassanaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ bhavati, ayaṃ samādhi “santo ceva paṇīto ca paṭippassaddhiladdho ca ekodibhāvādhigato ca na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato {sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritavato (sī.), sasaṅkhāraniggayhavārivāvaṭo (ka.)} cā”ti itissa paccattameva ñāṇadassanaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ bhavati. taṃ kho panimaṃ samādhiṃ “sato samāpajjāmi sato vuṭṭhahāmī”ti itissa paccattameva ñāṇadassanaṃ paccupaṭṭhitaṃ bhavati. tattha yo ca samādhi paccuppannasukho yo ca samādhi āyatiṃ sukhavipāko ayaṃ samatho. yo ca samādhi ariyo nirāmiso, yo ca samādhi akāpurisasevito, yo ca samādhi santo ceva paṇīto paṭippassaddhiladdho ca ekodibhāvādhigato ca na sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato ca yañcāhaṃ taṃ kho panimaṃ samādhiṃ sato samāpajjāmi sato vuṭṭhahāmīti, ayaṃ vipassanā.