4👑☸ Cattāri Ariya-saccaṃ 四聖諦

KN Snp Critical edition

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KN Snp 5.7 upasīvamāṇavapucchā (u's-questions)

(FLIPT by frankk‍)

♦ 6. upasīvamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.61) n	5:6  Upasīva’s Questions
♦ 1075.
(iccāyasmā upasīvo)	Upasīva:
♦ “eko ahaṃ sakka mahantam-oghaṃ,	Alone I (am), Sakyan, (with respect to the) great-flood,
♦ anissito no visahāmi tārituṃ.	With nothing to rely on, I can’t venture across.
♦ ārammaṇaṃ brūhi samanta-cakkhu,	(what is the) support? Tell me, all-around-eye,
yaṃ nissito oghamimaṃ tareyyaṃ”.	that (which can be) relied (upon for the) flood’s crossing?
♦ 1076.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “ākiñcaññaṃ pekkhamāno satimā,	Nothingness observation; remembrance [of that Dharma],
♦ natthī-ti nissāya tarassu oghaṃ.	‘There isn’t,’ (by) relying (on that), (you should) cross-over (the) flood.
♦ kāme pahāya virato kathāhi,	sensuality; abandoning (that), abstaining (from) conversations,
Taṇhak-khayaṃ natta-mah-ābhi-passa” VAR .	craving’s-destruction; night-and-day – keep-watch (for that).
♦ 1077.
(iccāyasmā upasīvo)	Upasīva:
♦ “sabbesu kāmesu yo vīta-rāgo,	all sensuality, one free-of-passion (for that),
♦ ākiñcaññaṃ nissito hitvā maññaṃ.	Nothingness; relying (on that), letting-go (of) all-else,
♦ saññā-vi-mokkhe parame vimutto VAR,	(among) Perception-emancipations, (this is the) highest emancipation:
tiṭṭhe nu so tattha anānu-yāyī” VAR .	staying {there} is he unaffected?
♦ 1078.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “sabbesu kāmesu yo vītarāgo,	all sensuality, one free-of-passion (for that),
♦ ākiñcaññaṃ nissito hitvā maññaṃ.	Nothingness; relying (on that), letting-go (of) all-else,
♦ saññā-vi-mokkhe parame vimutto,	(among) Perception-emancipations, (this is the) highest emancipation:
tiṭṭheyya so tattha anānuyāyī”.	staying {there} he is unaffected.
♦ 1079.	Upasīva:
♦ “tiṭṭhe ce so tattha anānuyāyī,	(if) staying there unaffected,
pūgampi vassānaṃ samanta-cakkhu.	for many years, All-around Eye,
♦ tattheva so sītisiyā vimutto,	right there, would he be cooled & emancipated?
cavetha viññāṇaṃ tathā-vidhassa”.	Would his consciousness be like that?
♦ 1080.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “accī yathā vāta-vegena khittā VAR,	(a) flame, just-as-if (by) wind-force overthrown
♦ atthaṃ paleti na upeti saṅkhaṃ.	goes to an end that cannot be classified,
♦ evaṃ munī nāma-kāyā vimutto,	Like-that (the) sage, (from the) name-body (is) emancipated,
atthaṃ paleti na upeti saṅkhaṃ”.	goes to an end that cannot be classified,
♦ 1081.	Upasīva:
♦ “atthaṅ-gato so uda vā so natthi,	(with) end-gone-to, (does) he exist (or) he not-exist?
udāhu ve sassatiyā a-rogo.	or is he (for) eternity free-of-disease?
♦ taṃ me munī sādhu viyā-karohi,	Please, sage, declare this to me
tathā hi te vidito esa dhammo”.	since you’ve known this Dharma.
♦ 1082.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “atthaṅ-gatassa na pamāṇa-matthi,	One who has reached the end has no criterion
♦ yena naṃ vajjuṃ taṃ tassa natthi.	by which anyone would say that—for him it doesn’t exist.
♦ sabbesu dhammesu samohatesu,	When all dharmas are done away with,5
samūhatā vāda-pathāpi sabbe”ti.	all means of speaking are done away with as well.
♦ upasīvamāṇavapucchā chaṭṭhī niṭṭhitā.	vv. 1069–1076

KN Snp 5.7, SP-FLUENT by frankk‍

♦ 6. upasīvamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.61) n	5:6  Upasīva’s Questions
♦ 1075.
(iccāyasmā upasīvo)	Upasīva:
♦ “eko ahaṃ sakka mahantam-oghaṃ,	Alone I (am), Sakyan, (with respect to the) great-flood,
♦ anissito no visahāmi tārituṃ.	With nothing to rely on, I can’t venture across.
♦ ārammaṇaṃ brūhi samanta-cakkhu,	(what is the) support? Tell me, all-around-eye,
yaṃ nissito oghamimaṃ tareyyaṃ”.	that (which can be) relied (upon for the) flood’s crossing?
♦ 1076.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “ākiñcaññaṃ pekkhamāno satimā,	Nothingness observation; remembrance [of that Dharma],
♦ natthī-ti nissāya tarassu oghaṃ.	‘There isn’t,’ (by) relying (on that), (you should) cross-over (the) flood.
♦ kāme pahāya virato kathāhi,	sensuality; abandoning (that), abstaining (from) conversations,
Taṇhak-khayaṃ natta-mah-ābhi-passa” VAR .	craving’s-destruction; night-and-day – keep-watch (for that).
♦ 1077.
(iccāyasmā upasīvo)	Upasīva:
♦ “sabbesu kāmesu yo vīta-rāgo,	all sensuality, one free-of-passion (for that),
♦ ākiñcaññaṃ nissito hitvā maññaṃ.	Nothingness; relying (on that), letting-go (of) all-else,
♦ saññā-vi-mokkhe parame vimutto VAR,	(among) Perception-emancipations, (this is the) highest emancipation:
tiṭṭhe nu so tattha anānu-yāyī” VAR .	staying {there} is he unaffected?
♦ 1078.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “sabbesu kāmesu yo vītarāgo,	all sensuality, one free-of-passion (for that),
♦ ākiñcaññaṃ nissito hitvā maññaṃ.	Nothingness; relying (on that), letting-go (of) all-else,
♦ saññā-vi-mokkhe parame vimutto,	(among) Perception-emancipations, (this is the) highest emancipation:
tiṭṭheyya so tattha anānuyāyī”.	staying {there} he is unaffected.
♦ 1079.	Upasīva:
♦ “tiṭṭhe ce so tattha anānuyāyī,	(if) staying there unaffected,
pūgampi vassānaṃ samanta-cakkhu.	for many years, All-around Eye,
♦ tattheva so sītisiyā vimutto,	right there, would he be cooled & emancipated?
cavetha viññāṇaṃ tathā-vidhassa”.	Would his consciousness be like that?
♦ 1080.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “accī yathā vāta-vegena khittā VAR,	(a) flame, just-as-if (by) wind-force overthrown
♦ atthaṃ paleti na upeti saṅkhaṃ.	goes to an end that cannot be classified,
♦ evaṃ munī nāma-kāyā vimutto,	Like-that (the) sage, (from the) name-body (is) emancipated,
atthaṃ paleti na upeti saṅkhaṃ”.	goes to an end that cannot be classified,
♦ 1081.	Upasīva:
♦ “atthaṅ-gato so uda vā so natthi,	(with) end-gone-to, (does) he exist (or) he not-exist?
udāhu ve sassatiyā a-rogo.	or is he (for) eternity free-of-disease?
♦ taṃ me munī sādhu viyā-karohi,	Please, sage, declare this to me
tathā hi te vidito esa dhammo”.	since you’ve known this Dharma.
♦ 1082.
(upasīvāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “atthaṅ-gatassa na pamāṇa-matthi,	One who has reached the end has no criterion
♦ yena naṃ vajjuṃ taṃ tassa natthi.	by which anyone would say that—for him it doesn’t exist.
♦ sabbesu dhammesu samohatesu,	When all dharmas are done away with,5
samūhatā vāda-pathāpi sabbe”ti.	all means of speaking are done away with as well.
♦ upasīvamāṇavapucchā chaṭṭhī niṭṭhitā.	vv. 1069–1076

KN Snp 5.7, trans. Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu‍

Alone, Sakyan, with nothing to rely on, I can’t venture across the great flood. Tell me, All-around Eye, the support to rely on for crossing over this flood. The Buddha: Mindfully focused on nothingness,1 relying on ‘There isn’t,’ you should cross over the flood. Abandoning sensuality, abstaining from conversations, keep watch for the ending of craving, night & day. Upasīva: One free from passion for all sensuality relying on nothingness, letting go of all else, released in the highest emancipation of perception: Does he stay there unaffected? The Buddha: One free from passion for all sensuality relying on nothingness, letting go of all else, released in the highest emancipation of perception: He stays there unaffected. Upasīva: If, All-around Eye, he stays there, unaffected for many years, right there would he be cooled & released? Would his consciousness be like that? The Buddha: As a flame overthrown by the force of the wind goes to an end that cannot be classified,2 so the sage freed from the name-body3 goes to an end that cannot be classified. Upasīva: One who has reached the end: Does he not exist, or is he for eternity free from dis-ease? Please, sage, declare this to me as this phenomenon has been known by you. The Buddha: One who has reached the end has no criterion4 by which anyone would say that— for him it doesn’t exist. When all phenomena are done away with,5 all means of speaking are done away with as well. vv. 1069–1076 Notes 1. “Nothingness” here denotes the dimension of nothingness, one of the four levels of mental absorption on formless themes. One attains this level, after surmounting the dimension of the infinitude of consciousness, by focusing on the perception, “There is nothing.” MN 26 tells us that Āḷāra Kālāma, the Buddha’s first teacher when the latter was still a Bodhisatta, had attained this level of mental absorption and had thought that it was the highest possible attainment. The Bodhisatta left him upon realizing that it was not true liberation from stress and suffering. Nevertheless, the dimension of nothingness can be used as a basis for the insight leading to that liberation. On this point, see KN Snp 5.14, below, and AN 9.36. On the strategy of relying on the formless states to cross over the flood, see MN 52, MN 106, MN 111, and AN 9.36. 2. For a discussion of this passage in light of early Buddhist theories of fire, see The Mind Like Fire Unbound, chapter 1. 3. Nāma-kāya = mental activities of all sorts. 4. For a discussion of the meaning of “criterion” in this passage, see The Mind Like Fire Unbound, chapter 1. On the Tathāgata as being undescribable, see Skill in Questions, chapter 9 and appendix 4. 5. This is one of the passages in the Canon that treats unbinding, not as a phenomenon (dhamma), but as the end of phenomena. On this point, see AN 3.137 note 1.

KN Snp 5.7, trans. Bhikkhu Bodhi‍

6 THE QUESTIONS OF UPASĪVA (UPASĪVAMĀṆAVAPUCCHĀ) 1069. “Alone, Sakya, unsupported,” (said the Venerable Upasīva), “I am not able to cross over the great flood. Declare to me a basis, O universal eye, supported by which I might cross over this flood.”233 (1) 1070. “Contemplating nothingness, mindful, (Upasīva,” said the Blessed One), “supported by ‘there is not,’ cross over the flood. [206] Having abandoned sensual pleasures, refraining from perplexity, night and day see into the destruction of craving.” (2) 1071. “One devoid of lust for all sensual pleasures,” (said the Venerable Upasīva), “supported by nothingness, having discarded all else, liberated in the supreme emancipation of perception: 234 would he stay there without departing?” (3) 1072. “One devoid of lust for all sensual pleasures, (Upasīva,” said the Blessed One), “supported by nothingness, having discarded all else, liberated in the supreme emancipation of perception, would stay there without departing.” (4) 1073. “If he would stay there without departing even for a multitude of years, O universal eye, would he become cool, liberated right there — [or] would the consciousness of such a one pass away?”235 (5) 1074. “As a flame, thrown by a gust of wind, (Upasīva,” said the Blessed One), “goes out and cannot be designated, [207] so the muni, liberated from the mental body, goes out and cannot be designated.” (6) 1075. “But does one who has gone out not exist, or else is he intact through eternity? Explain this matter clearly to me, O muni, for this Dhamma has been understood by you.” (7) 1076. “There is no measure of one who has gone out, (Upasīva,” said the Blessed One). “There is no means by which they might speak of him. When all phenomena have been uprooted, all pathways of speech are also uprooted.” (8)

KN Snp 5.7 commentary, trans. Bhikkhu Bodhi‍

6 Upasīva (Upasīva Sutta) 1069 Unsupported: not reliant on either a person or a teaching. Supported by which: a person or a teaching supported by which. Nidd II 91–92. Alone: I have no person as a partner; I have no teaching (dhamma) as a partner. There is no person or teaching depending on which I can cross the great flood of sensuality, the flood of existence, the flood of views, and the flood of ignorance. Unsupported, I am not able to cross over the great flood: Unsupported by either a person or a teaching, I am not able to cross over the great flood of sensuality, the flood of existence, the flood of views, and the flood of ignorance. Declare to me a basis: Declare, explain, teach, proclaim, establish, disclose, analyze, elucidate, reveal a basis, a support, a foundation. Universal eye: It is the omniscient knowledge that is called “the universal eye. ” The Blessed One is endowed with that. Supported by which I might cross this flood: a person or teaching depending on which I can cross the great flood of sensuality, the flood of existence, the flood of views, and the flood of ignorance.   1070 Now, this brahmin was one who gained the base of nothingness, but he did not know that it, too, was actually a support. Therefore the Blessed One spoke the verse “Contemplating nothingness, mindful,” showing him that support and a higher pathway to emancipation. Here, contemplating nothingness: having mindfully entered that attainment of the base of nothingness and emerged from it, seeing it by way of impermanence and so forth; supported by “there is not”: having taken as a basis the attainment occurring, “there is nothing”; cross over the flood: with the insight occurring from that point on, cross over the entire fourfold flood in a suitable way. Night and day see into the destruction of craving: Having made it manifest, see nibbāna night and day;2100 by this, he explains to him the pleasant dwelling in this very life. Nidd II 92. Contemplating nothingness, mindful: That brahmin was one who naturally gained the attainment of the base of nothingness, but he did not know: “This is my support. ” The Blessed One showed him that support and a higher pathway to emancipation. Having mindfully entered that attainment of the base of nothingness and emerged from it, contemplating, discerning, inspecting, meditating on, investigating the mind and mental factors produced therein as impermanent, as suffering, as a disease . . . [as at p. 1035, Nidd I 38] . . . by way of their origin, their passing away, their gratification, their danger, and the escape from them. Nidd II 93. Supported by “there is not,” cross over the flood: “There is nothing”: the attainment of the base of nothingness. Why so? Having mindfully entered the attainment of the base of the boundlessness of consciousness and emerged from it, one negates that same consciousness, eliminates it, makes it disappear, and sees: “There is nothing. ” For that reason, supported by the attainment of the base of nothingness, “there is nothing,” sustained by it, having taken it as a basis, cross over the flood of sensuality, the flood of existence, the flood of views, and the flood of ignorance. Having abandoned sensual pleasures, refraining from perplexity: There are two kinds of sensual pleasures: sensual objects and sensual defilements. Having abandoned sensual pleasures: Having fully understood sensual objects, and having abandoned, dispelled, terminated, eliminated the sensual defilements. Refraining from perplexity: It is doubt that is called perplexity. Refraining from such doubts as doubt about suffering. . . . Or alternatively, desisting from the thirty-two kinds of pointless talk, refraining from them. 2101 Night and day see into the destruction of craving: Nattaṃ is night (ratti); aho is day (divaso). Night and day see, observe, discern, survey, meditate on, investigate the destruction of craving, the destruction of lust, the destruction of hatred, the destruction of delusion, the destruction of a destination [for rebirth], the destruction of rebirth, the destruction of conception, the destruction of existence, the destruction of saṃsāra, the destruction of the round.   1071–72. Now, when he heard, “Having abandoned sensual pleasures,” seeing that he himself had abandoned sensual pleasures by way of suppression, he spoke the next verse. Here, having discarded all else: having discarded the other six attainments below [that base of nothingness]. [594] In the supreme emancipation of perception: in the base of nothingness, which is highest among the seven emancipations of perception. 2102 Would he stay there without departing? He asks: “Would that person stay there in the brahma world of the base of nothingness, without leaving? ” Then the Blessed One spoke the third verse to him, acknowledging that one might stay there even for 60,000 eons. Nidd II 94–95. Supported by nothingness, having discarded all else: Having discarded the lower six attainments, overcome them, transcended them, supported by the attainment of the base of nothingness, leaning on it, arrived at it, adhering to it, intent upon it. Liberated in (intent upon) the supreme emancipation of perception. 2103 It is the seven meditative attainments [accompanied by] perception that are called “emancipations of perception. ”2104 The emancipation through attainment of the base of nothingness is the foremost, the best, the most outstanding, the most eminent, the highest, and the most excellent of those meditative attainments [accompanied by] perception. He is intent by the emancipation of intentness2105 upon that supreme, foremost state; he is intent on it, practicing for it, attentive to it, esteeming it, leaning toward it, inclined to it, sloping toward it, intent on it by giving precedence to it. He would stay there without departing: He would stay there, in the base of nothingness, for 60,000 eons, without departing, without separating from it, without vanishing, without disappearing, without deteriorating. Or else, without lust, without hatred, without delusion, without defilement, he would persist there without departing.   1073 When he heard about his staying there, he spoke the next verse, “If he would stay there,” asking about eternal existence or annihilation. A multitude of years: a count of many years, meaning an accumulation. 2106 Would he become cool, liberated right there: Would that person, liberated from the various sufferings, attain coolness right there in the base of nothingness? The purport is: “Does one who has attained nibbāna persist, having become eternal? ” Would the consciousness of such a one pass away: He asks about annihilation: “Or else (udāhu), would the consciousness of such a one attain final nibbāna without clinging? ” Or he asks about conception: “Would it perish for the purpose of taking conception? ”2107 Nidd II 96–97. If he would stay there without departing. If he would stay there, in the base of nothingness, for 60,000 eons, without departing, without separating from it, without vanishing, without disappearing, without deteriorating. Or else, without lust, without hatred, without delusion, without defilement, he would persist there without departing. Would he become cool, liberated right there — [or] would the consciousness of such a one pass away? : He asks about the eternal existence or annihilation of one who has attained the base of nothingness: “Having attained the state of coolness right there, would he stay there as permanent, everlasting, eternal, not subject to change, just like eternity itself? Or would his consciousness pass away (caveyya), be annihilated, be abolished, be destroyed, no longer exist? Would the consciousness that undergoes conception in renewed existence be generated in the desire realm, the form realm, or the formless realm? ” Or alternatively, he asks about the final nibbāna and conception of one who has been reborn in the base of nothingness: “Would it attain final nibbāna right there by way of the nibbāna element without residue remaining? Or would his consciousness pass away and again produce a conception consciousness in the desire realm, the form realm, or the formless realm? ” Of such a one: Of one like that, of one similar to him, of one who partakes of that, of one reborn in the base of nothingness.   1074 Then the Blessed One, without adopting either annihilation or eternal existence, spoke the verse “As a flame,” showing the final nibbāna through non-clinging of a noble disciple who has arisen there. Cannot be designated: It cannot be described thus: “It has gone in such and such a direction. ” So the muni, liberated from the mental body: So the trainee-muni who has arisen there, naturally liberated earlier from the form body, generates the fourth path there [in the base of nothingness]; because he has then fully understood the Dhamma body, he is also liberated from the mental body. 2108 Thus, having become an arahant liberated in both respects, when he goes out — a designation for final nibbāna through non-clinging — he can no longer be designated “a khattiya” or “a brahmin” and so forth. 2109 [595] Nidd II 97–98. As a flame, thrown by a gust of wind: As a flame thrown, flung, tossed, tossed away, suppressed by a gust of wind from the east, west, north, or south, or any other wind; goes out: goes out, disappears, ceases, abates, subsides; cannot be designated: cannot be indicated, reckoned, described thus: “It has gone to the east, to the west, to the north, to the south, above, below, across, or to an intermediate direction. ” There is no cause, no condition, no means by which it might be designated. Nidd II 98. So the muni, liberated from the mental body: the muni, naturally liberated earlier from the form body. Having overcome it (the form body) in a particular respect, it has been abandoned by suppression. 2110 Based on what is presently existent, the four noble paths are obtained by that muni. Because he has obtained the four noble paths, he has fully understood the mental body and the form body. Because he has fully understood the mental body and the form body, he is freed from the mental body and from the form body — liberated, well liberated, by way of ultimate emancipation through non-clinging. Thus the muni, liberated from the mental body, goes out: attains final nibbāna by way of the nibbāna element without residue remaining; cannot be designated: because he has attained final nibbāna by way of the nibbāna element without residue remaining, he cannot be indicated, reckoned, or described as “a khattiya” or “a brahmin” or “a vessa” or “a sudda”; as “a householder” or “a monastic”; as “a deva” or “a human being”; as “one having form” or as “one without form”; as “percipient” or “nonpercipient” or “neither-percipient-nor-nonpercipient. ” There is no cause, no condition, no means by which he might be designated. In this way he goes out and can no longer be designated.   1075 Now, when he heard the expression “goes out,” not thoroughly discerning its meaning, he spoke the verse “But does one who has gone out. ” This is its meaning: “Does one who has gone out not exist, or is it that through eternity, by an eternal nature, he is intact (healthy), not subject to change? Explain this matter well to me, O muni. ” For what reason? For this Dhamma has been understood by you. Nidd II 98. But does one who has gone out not exist? : Does one who has gone out not exist, has he ceased, been annihilated, been destroyed? Or else is he intact (healthy) through eternity? : Or else would he persist as permanent, everlasting, eternal, not subject to change, just like eternity itself?   1076 Then the Blessed One spoke the verse “There is no measure of one who has gone out,” showing that he cannot be described in such ways. Here, of one who has gone out: of one who has attained final nibbāna through non-clinging; there is no measure: there is no measurement by way of form and the other aggregates. No means by which they might speak of him: no means by which they might speak of him in terms of lust and so forth. When all phenomena have been uprooted: When all such phenomena as the aggregates have been uprooted. The rest everywhere is clear. Nidd II 99. There is no measure of one who has gone out: For one who has gone out, who has attained final nibbāna by way of the nibbāna element without residue remaining, there is no measure by way of form, no measure by way of feeling, no measure by way of perception, no measure by way of volitional activities, no measure by way of consciousness. No [such measure] is found or apprehended; it has been abandoned, eradicated, allayed, stilled, made incapable of arising, burnt up by the fire of knowledge. There is no means by which they might speak of him: Those volitional activities have been abandoned by means of which they might describe him, on account of lust, hatred, delusion, conceit, views, restlessness, doubt, and the latent tendencies [respectively] as “lustful” or “hating” or “deluded” or “bound down [by conceit]” or “seizing [upon views]” or “distracted [by restlessness]” or “undecided [because of doubt]” or “tenacious [because of the latent tendencies]. ” Because those volitional activities have been abandoned, there is no cause, no condition, no means by which they might speak of him, discuss him, describe him, express him through a destination [of rebirth] as “a hell being” or “an animal” or “an afflicted spirit” or “a human being” or “a deva”; as “one having form” or as “formless”; as “percipient” or “non-percipient” or “neither-percipient-nor-nonpercipient. ” So there is no means by which they might speak of him. Nidd II 100. When all phenomena have been uprooted: when all phenomena, all the aggregates, all the sense bases, all the elements, all destinations, all rebirths, all modes of conception, all existences, all states in saṃsāra, all states in the round have been rooted out, uprooted, removed, extricated, fully extricated, abandoned, eradicated, allayed, stilled, made incapable of arising, burnt up by the fire of knowledge. All pathways of speech are also uprooted: It is the defilements, aggregates, and volitional activities that are called pathways of speech. For such a one, speech and pathways of speech, designations and pathways of designation, language and pathways of language, description and pathways of description have been rooted out, uprooted . . . burnt up by the fire of knowledge.   Thus the Blessed One concluded this discourse, too, with its culmination in arahantship. At the conclusion of the teaching there was a breakthrough to the Dhamma in the way already stated.

KN Snp 5.14 udayamāṇava-pucchā (u's-questions)

(FLIPT by frankk‍)

♦ 13. udayamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.68) n	5:13  Udaya’s Questions
♦ 1111. (iccāyasmā udayo)
♦ “jhāyiṃ viraja-m-āsīnaṃ,	(To the one in) jhāna— dustless, seated,
kata-kiccaṃ an-āsavaṃ.	Done-(with)-task, no-more—asinine-inclinations
♦ pāraguṃ sabba-dhammānaṃ,	Gone-beyond all-dharmas—
atthi pañhena āgamaṃ.	here (with a) question (I’ve) come.
♦ aññā-vimokkhaṃ pa-brūhi,	Final-knowledge-emancipation: please speak on it,
avijjāya pa-bhedanaṃ”.	ignorance breaking-up..
♦ 1112. (udayāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “pahānaṃ kāma-c-chandānaṃ,	(the) abandoning (of) sensual-desires,
domanassāna cūbhayaṃ.	(and) distressed-mental-states, both of them,
♦ thinassa ca panūdanaṃ,	Slothfulness ** (being) dispelled,
kukkuccānaṃ nivāraṇaṃ.	regrets being warded off.
♦ 1113.
♦ “upekkhā-sati-saṃ-suddhaṃ,	equanimous-observation-&-rememberfulness [of Dharma] purified,
Dhamma-takka-purejavaṃ.	(with) ☸Dharma-thoughts preceding (that)
♦ aññā-vimokkhaṃ pa-brūmi,	(this is the) final-knowledge-emancipation (that I) speak-of,
avijjāya pa-bhedanaṃ”.	ignorance breaking-up..
♦ 1114.	Udaya:
♦ “kiṃsu saṃ-yojano loko,	what (causes) fettered world?
kiṃsu tassa vicāraṇaṃ.	(With) what (is) it examined?
♦ kissassa vip-pahānena,	(with) whats abandoning
nibbānaṃ iti vuccati”.	(is) nirvana spoken-of?
♦ 1115.	The Buddha:
♦ “nandi-saṃ-yojano loko,	delight fetters (the) world.
vitakkassa vicāraṇaṃ.	(With) directed-thought (it’s) examined.
♦ taṇhāya vip-pahānena,	(Through) craving’s abandoning
nibbānaṃ iti vuccati”.	nirvana is spoken of.
♦ 1116.	Udaya:
♦ “kathaṃ satassa carato,	how is [☸Dharma]-remembrance conducted,
viññāṇaṃ uparujjhati.	(for) consciousness to halt?
♦ bhagavantaṃ puṭṭhum-āgamma,	(to the) Blessed One (with a) question (we’ve) come..
taṃ suṇoma vaco tava”.	Let us hear your words.
♦ 1117.	The Buddha:
♦ “ajjhattañca bahiddhā ca,	internally and externally,
vedanaṃ n-ābhi-nandato.	{not delighting in} feelings.
♦ evaṃ satassa carato,	In-this-way [Dharma]-remembrance conducted,
viññāṇaṃ uparujjhatī”ti.	consciousness is halted.
♦ udayamāṇavapucchā terasamā niṭṭhitā.	(end of sutta)

KN Snp 5.14, SP-FLUENT by frankk‍

♦ 13. udayamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.68) n	5:13  Udaya’s Questions
♦ 1111. (iccāyasmā udayo)
♦ “jhāyiṃ viraja-m-āsīnaṃ,	To the one sitting in jhāna— without dust,
kata-kiccaṃ an-āsavaṃ.	Done the task, [an arahant with] no more asinine-inclinations.
♦ pāraguṃ sabba-dhammānaṃ,	Gone beyond all dharmas—
atthi pañhena āgamaṃ.	I’ve come here with a question.
♦ aññā-vimokkhaṃ pa-brūhi,	Please speak about the emancipation of final knowledge,
avijjāya pa-bhedanaṃ”.	ignorance breaking up.
♦ 1112. (udayāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “pahānaṃ kāma-c-chandānaṃ,	the abandoning of both sensual-desires
domanassāna cūbhayaṃ.	and distressed mental states,
♦ thinassa ca panūdanaṃ,	Dispelling of Sloth,
kukkuccānaṃ nivāraṇaṃ.	regrets being warded off. [These are referencing the five hindrances]
♦ 1113.
♦ “upekkhā-sati-saṃ-suddhaṃ,	[fourth jhāna is] equanimous observation & [Dharma] remembrance purified,
Dhamma-takka-purejavaṃ.	with ☸Dharma-thoughts [of first jhāna] preceding that.
♦ aññā-vimokkhaṃ pa-brūmi,	this is the final knowledge emancipation that I speak of,
avijjāya pa-bhedanaṃ”.	ignorance breaking-up..
♦ 1114.	Udaya:
♦ “kiṃsu saṃ-yojano loko,	what fetters the world?
kiṃsu tassa vicāraṇaṃ.	With what is it examined?
♦ kissassa vip-pahānena,	with what being abandoned
nibbānaṃ iti vuccati”.	is nirvana spoken of?
♦ 1115.	The Buddha:
♦ “nandi-saṃ-yojano loko,	delight fetters the world.
vitakkassa vicāraṇaṃ.	with [wrong] thoughts [delight] is explored, with directed-thought [of first jhāna, the nature of wrong thought] is examined.
♦ taṇhāya vip-pahānena,	Through craving’s abandoning
nibbānaṃ iti vuccati”.	nirvana is spoken of.
♦ 1116.	Udaya:
♦ “kathaṃ satassa carato,	how is [☸Dharma]-remembrance conducted,
viññāṇaṃ uparujjhati.	for consciousness to halt?
♦ bhagavantaṃ puṭṭhum-āgamma,	We’ve come to the Blessed One with a question.
taṃ suṇoma vaco tava”.	Let us hear your words.
♦ 1117.	The Buddha:
♦ “ajjhattañca bahiddhā ca,	internally [in this body and mind], and externally,
vedanaṃ n-ābhi-nandato.	not delighting in feelings [using jhāna through progressive cessation of feelings (see SN 36.11)]
♦ evaṃ satassa carato,	Conducting [Dharma]-remembrance in this way,
viññāṇaṃ uparujjhatī”ti.	consciousness is halted.
♦ udayamāṇavapucchā terasamā niṭṭhitā.	(end of sutta)

KN Snp 5.14, trans. Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu‍

♦ 13. udayamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.68) n	5:13  Udaya’s Questions
♦ 1111. (iccāyasmā udayo)
♦ “jhāyiṃ viraja-m-āsīnaṃ,	To the one in jhāna— seated, dustless,
kata-kiccaṃ an-āsavaṃ.	passionless, his task done, effluent-free,
♦ pāraguṃ sabba-dhammānaṃ,	gone to the beyond of all phenomena—
atthi pañhena āgamaṃ.	I’ve come with a desire for a question.
♦ aññā-vimokkhaṃ pa-brūhi,	Tell me the gnosis of emancipation,
avijjāya pa-bhedanaṃ”.	the breaking open of ignorance.
♦ 1112. (udayāti bhagavā)	The Buddha:
♦ “pahānaṃ kāma-c-chandānaṃ,	The abandoning both of sensual desires,
domanassāna cūbhayaṃ.	& of unhappiness,
♦ thinassa ca panūdanaṃ,	the dispelling of sloth,
kukkuccānaṃ nivāraṇaṃ.	the warding off of anxieties,
♦ 1113.
♦ “upekkhā-sati-saṃ-suddhaṃ,	equanimity-&-mindfulness purified,
Dhamma-takka-purejavaṃ.	with inspection of mental qualities swift in the forefront:
♦ aññā-vimokkhaṃ pabrūmi,	That I call the gnosis of emancipation,1
avijjāya pa-bhedanaṃ”.	the breaking open of ignorance.2
♦ 1114.	Udaya:
♦ “kiṃsu saṃ-yojano loko,	With what is the world fettered?
kiṃsu tassa vicāraṇaṃ.	With what is it examined?
♦ kissassa vippahānena,	Through the abandoning of what
nibbānaṃ iti vuccati”.	is there said to be unbinding?
♦ 1115.	The Buddha:
♦ “nandi-saṃ-yojano loko,	With delight the world’s fettered.
vitakkassa vicāraṇaṃ.	With directed thought it’s examined.
♦ taṇhāya vippahānena,	Through the abandoning of craving
nibbānaṃ iti vuccati”.	is there said to be unbinding.
♦ 1116.	Udaya:
♦ “kathaṃ satassa carato,	Living mindful in what way
viññāṇaṃ uparujjhati.	does one bring consciousness to a halt?
♦ bhagavantaṃ puṭṭhum-āgamma,	We’ve come to ask the Blessed One.
taṃ suṇoma vaco tava”.	Let us hear your words.
♦ 1117.	The Buddha:
♦ “ajjhattañca bahiddhā ca,	Not relishing feeling,
vedanaṃ n-ābhi-nandato.	inside or out:
♦ evaṃ satassa carato,	One living mindful in this way
viññāṇaṃ uparujjhatī”ti.	brings consciousness to a halt.3
♦ udayamāṇavapucchā terasamā niṭṭhitā.	vv. 1105–1111

Notes 1. The state of mind described here corresponds to the five-factored noble right concentration described in AN 5.28 and analyzed more fully in AN 9.36 For further discussion, see section III/F in The Wings to Awakening and the essays, “Jhāna Not by the Numbers” and “Silence Isn’t Mandatory.” 2. AN 3.33 contains a discussion of this verse. The Buddha tells Ven. Sāriputta that one should train oneself such that “with regard to this conscious body, there will be no ‘I’-making or ‘mine’-making or obsession with conceit, such that with regard to all external themes [topics of concentration] there will be no ‘I’-making or ‘mine’-making or obsession with conceit, and that we will enter & remain in the awareness-release & discernment-release in which there is no ‘I’-making or ‘mine’-making or obsession with conceit.” When one has trained in this way, he says, one is called a person who has cut through craving, unraveled the fetter, who has, through the right penetration of conceit, put an end to suffering and stress. He then states that it was in connection to this state that he uttered this verse. 3. See DN 11, DN 15, MN 49, and SN 12.67. For a discussion of “bringing consciousness to a halt”—showing that it is not an annihilation of consciousness, but rather the ending of its proliferating activity—see SN 22.53. See also the image in SN 12.64.

KN Snp 5.14, trans. Bhikkhu Bodhi‍

13 THE QUESTIONS OF UDAYA (UDAYAMĀṆAVAPUCCHĀ) 1105. “I have come in need with a question,” (said the Venerable Udaya), “to the seated meditator, dust-free, who has completed the task, without influxes, who has gone beyond all phenomena. Speak of emancipation by final knowledge, the breaking up of ignorance.” (1) 1106. “The abandoning of both, (Udaya,” said the Blessed One), “sensual desires and dejection; the dispelling of mental dullness, the warding off of regrets: (2) 1107. “purified by equanimity and mindfulness, preceded by thought on the Dhamma — I call this emancipation by final knowledge, the breaking up of ignorance.” (3) [215] 1108. “By what is the world fettered? What is its means of traveling about? By the abandoning of what is ‘nibbāna’ spoken of?” (4) 1109. “The world is fettered by delight; thought is its means of traveling about. It is by the abandoning of craving that ‘nibbāna’ is spoken of.” (5) 1110. “How does one live mindfully for consciousness to cease? Having come to ask the Blessed One, let us hear that word of yours.” (6) 1111. “For one not seeking delight in feeling internally and externally, for one living mindfully thus, consciousness ceases.” (7)

KN Snp 5.14 commentary, trans. Bhikkhu Bodhi‍

13 Udaya (Udaya Sutta) 1105. Here, emancipation by final knowledge: He asks about the emancipation arisen through the might of wisdom.2136 Now since Udaya was one who gained the fourth jhāna, the Blessed One spoke the next two verses, showing from different angles emancipation by final knowledge through the fourth jhāna that he had obtained. [600] Nidd II 139. The meditator: The Blessed One is a meditator. He meditates through the first jhāna, the second jhāna, the third jhāna, the fourth jhāna. He meditates through jhāna with thought and examination; through jhāna without thought but with examination only; through jhāna without thought and examination. He meditates through jhāna accompanied by rapture, through jhāna without rapture, through jhāna accompanied by ease, through jhāna accompanied by equanimity. He meditates through the jhāna of emptiness, through the jhāna of the markless, through the jhāna of the wishless. He meditates through mundane jhāna and through world-transcending jhāna. He delights in jhāna; he is intent on unity; he esteems his own good. Dust-free: Lust is dust, hatred is dust, delusion is dust . . . all unwholesome volitional activities are dust. That dust has been abandoned by the Buddha, the Blessed One, made like a palm stump, eliminated so that it is no more subject to future arising; therefore the Buddha is dustless, dust-free, one rid of dust, who has abandoned dust, who is disconnected from dust, who has transcended dust. It is lust that is dust, not fine particles; “dust” is a designation for lust. Having abandoned this dust, the One with Vision, the Conqueror, is called one devoid of dust.2137 It is hatred that is dust, not fine particles . . . the Conqueror, is called one devoid of dust. It is delusion that is dust, not fine particles . . . the Conqueror, is called one devoid of dust. Nidd II 140–41. Who has gone beyond all phenomena: The Blessed One has gone beyond all phenomena through direct knowledge, through full understanding, through abandoning, through development, through realization, through attainment. He has gone beyond through direct knowledge of all phenomena; through the full understanding of all suffering; through the abandoning of all defilements; through the development of the four paths; through the realization of cessation; through the attainment of all meditative attainments. He has attained mastery over good behavior, concentration, wisdom, and liberation. Nidd II 141. Speak of emancipation by final knowledge: It is emancipation by arahantship that is called emancipation by final knowledge. Explain emancipation by arahantship, teach it, describe it, establish it, disclose it, analyze it, elucidate it, reveal it. The breaking up of ignorance: the breaking apart of ignorance, its abandoning, allaying, relinquishment, subsiding, the deathless nibbāna. 1106. Here, the abandoning of sensual desires: I declare that this abandoning of sensual desires for one who has attained the first jhāna is also emancipation by final knowledge. All the terms should be construed in such a way. Nidd II 142–43. The abandoning of sensual desires: Sensual desire in regard to sensual pleasures, sensual lust, sensual delight, sensual craving, sensual affection, sensual thirst, sensual fever, sensual infatuation, sensual clutching, the flood of sensuality, the bond of sensuality, clinging to sensual pleasures, the hindrance of sensual desire. Dejection: mental unease, mental pain, the uneasy painful feeling born of mind-contact. The abandoning of both: The abandoning, allaying, relinquishment, and subsiding of both sensual desire and dejection. The dispelling of mental dullness: the dispelling, abandoning, allaying, relinquishment, subsiding of mental lethargy, unwieldiness, listlessness, sluggishness, slothfulness, dullness, tedium of mind. Regret: Regret is fidgeting with the hands, fidgeting with the feet, fidgeting with the hands and feet . . . [as at p. 1121, Nidd I 158–59] . . . any such regret, mental remorse, uneasiness of mind that arises. The warding off of regrets: The obstructing of regrets, the blocking of them, their abandoning, allaying, relinquishment, subsiding, the deathless nibbāna. 1107. Purified by equanimity and mindfulness: purified by the equanimity and mindfulness of the fourth jhāna. Preceded by thought on the Dhamma: By this, he refers to the emancipation of arahantship achieved by one who, based on that emancipation of the fourth jhāna, sees the jhāna factors with insight. For thought on the Dhamma, which is analyzed into right intention and so forth associated with the path, is the forerunner of the emancipation of arahantship. Hence he says: “preceded by thought on the Dhamma.” The breaking up of ignorance: And I call this emancipation by final knowledge “the breaking up of ignorance,” using a figurative description [of the effect by way of] its cause,2138 because it has arisen on the basis of nibbāna, which is designated the breaking up of ignorance. Nidd II 143–44. Purified by equanimity and mindfulness: These are the equanimity and mindfulness in the fourth jhāna. In the fourth jhāna equanimity and mindfulness are purified, cleansed, fully purified, brightened, made flawless, rid of defilement, malleable, wieldy, firm, and imperturbable. Preceded by thought on the Dhamma: It is right intention that is called thought on the Dhamma. That precedes and leads; it is a forerunner of emancipation by final knowledge; hence the latter is preceded by thought on the Dhamma. Or else it is right view that is called thought on the Dhamma. That precedes and leads; it is a forerunner of emancipation by final knowledge; hence the latter is preceded by thought on the Dhamma. Or it is the insight preparatory to the four paths that is called thought on the Dhamma. That precedes and leads; it is a forerunner of emancipation by final knowledge; hence the latter is preceded by thought on the Dhamma. Emancipation by final knowledge: It is the emancipation of arahantship that is called emancipation by final knowledge. The breaking up of ignorance: The breaking up of ignorance, its abandoning, allaying, relinquishment, subsiding, the deathless nibbāna. 1108. Having heard nibbāna referred to by the expression “the breaking up of ignorance,” he spoke the next verse, “By what is the world fettered?” asking: “By the abandoning of what is ‘nibbāna’ spoken of?”2139 1109. Then, explaining the matter to him, the Blessed One spoke the verse “The world is fettered by delight.” Here, thought is sensual thought and so forth. Nidd II 145. The world is fettered by delight: It is craving that is called delight. Any lust, passion . . . covetousness, greed as an unwholesome root, this is called delight. The world is yoked by this delight, bound by it, attached to it, conjoined with it, stuck to it, fastened to it, impeded by it, thus the world is fettered by delight. Thought: Nine kinds of thoughts: sensual thought . . . [as at p. 1277, Nidd II 112] . . . thought of not being despised. These nine kinds of thought are the world’s means of traveling about, of examining, of pondering. By means of these nine kinds of thought, the world travels about, examines, ponders. 1110. Now, asking about the path to nibbāna, he spoke the verse “How does one live mindfully . . . ?” Here, consciousness is the volitionally active consciousness.2140 1111. Then, explaining the path to him, the Blessed One spoke the verse “For one not seeking delight in feeling.” Here, mindfully thus: mindfully and with clear comprehension thus. The rest everywhere is clear. Nidd II 146–47. Not seeking delight in feeling internally and externally: While one dwells contemplating feelings in feelings internally, one does not seek delight in feeling, does not welcome it, does not remain clinging to it. While one dwells contemplating feelings in feelings externally . . . internally and externally, one does not seek delight in feeling, does not welcome it, does not remain clinging to it. While one dwells contemplating the nature of origination . . . the nature of vanishing . . . the nature of origination and vanishing while contemplating feelings in feelings internally, one does not seek delight in feeling, does not welcome it, does not remain clinging to it. While one dwells contemplating the nature of origination . . . the nature of vanishing . . . the nature of origination and vanishing while contemplating feelings in feelings externally, one does not seek delight in feeling, does not welcome it, does not remain clinging to it. While one dwells contemplating the nature of origination . . . the nature of vanishing . . . the nature of origination and vanishing while contemplating feelings in feelings internally and externally, one does not seek delight in feeling, does not welcome it, does not remain clinging to it. One abandons, dispels, terminates, and eliminates delight, welcoming, clinging, obsession, seizing, adherence. In these twelve ways, as one dwells contemplating feelings in feelings, one abandons delight . . . adherence. Or alternatively, seeing feeling as impermanent, as suffering, as a disease . . . [as at p. 1035, Nidd I 38] . . . by way of its origin, its passing away, its gratification, its danger, and the escape from it, one abandons, dispels, terminates, and eliminates delight . . . adherence. In these forty ways, as one dwells contemplating feelings in feelings, one abandons delight . . . adherence. For one living mindfully thus: For one living thus mindful and clearly comprehending; consciousness ceases: Consciousness accompanied by meritorious volitional activity, consciousness accompanied by demeritorious activity, consciousness accompanied by imperturbable volitional activity ceases, abates, disappears, subsides.  Thus the Blessed One concluded this discourse, too, with its culmination in arahantship. At the conclusion of the teaching, as before, there was a breakthrough to the Dhamma.

KN Snp 5.14 other translations

B. Anandajoti trans. Sutta Nipāta 5.14 The Way to the Beyond The Young Man Udaya’s Questions “To the meditator who sits dust-free,” said venerable Udaya, “with duty-done, pollutant-free, who is perfect in all things, I have come in need with a question: please tell of freedom through knowledge, the breaking up of ignorance.” “The giving up of sensual desire, Udaya,” said the Gracious One, “and of sorrow, these two, the dispelling of sloth, and the constraint of worry about wrong-doing. “Purity through equanimity and mindfulness, preceded by thought of impermanent things, this I call freedom through knowledge, the breaking up of ignorance.” “By what is the world fettered?” said venerable Udaya, “By what does it roam about? By completely giving up what thing is there what is called Nibbāna?” “The world is fettered by enjoyment, Udaya,” said the Gracious One, “it roams about through reflections. By completely giving up craving there is what is called Nibbāna.” “For he who lives mindfully, how is it consciousness ceases? We have come to ask the Gracious One, therefore may we hear your word.” “Without rejoicing over feeling on the inside or outside— for he who lives mindfully in this way, consciousness ceases.” The Young Man Udaya’s Questions are Finished laurence mills trans. Sutta Nipāta Udayamāṇavapucchā 5.14. Udaya’s Questions Udaya To the contemplative seated free of dust, done what should be done, with inflows none, to the one beyond all dharmas gone, to him with a question have I come: Please say by shattering ignorance how Final Knowledge’s free. Buddha Let go desires for pleasures of sense, with all bad-mindedness as well, sloth dispel and check remorse, poised mindfulness completely pure, forerun by Dharma-distinguishing: I say by shattering ignorance, there’s Final Knowledge free. Udaya What’s the fetter of the world? and what the world’s wandering? By abandonment of what is it Nirvāṇa named? Buddha Enjoyment: the fetter of the world, while thinking, the world’s wandering, the letting-go of craving— it’s Nirvāṇa named. Udaya How is consciousness broken up in one who practises mindfully? To the Lord we come with this question, we wish to hear your words. Buddha Feeling both within, without— in that do not delight, thus consciousness is broken up in one who practises mindfully.

KN Snp 5.15 posālamāṇava-pucchā (p's-questions)

(FLIPT by frankk‍)

♦ 14. posālamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.69)	5:14  Posāla’s Question
♦ 1118. (iccāyasmā posālo)	(brahman posālo:)
♦ “yo atītaṃ ādisati,	(to one) who {reveals the} past,
An-ejo chinna-saṃsayo.	Un-perturbed, (has) cut-through-doubts—
♦ pāraguṃ sabba-dhammānaṃ,	(who has) gone-beyond all-dhammas,
atthi pañhena āgamaṃ.	there-is (a) question (I’ve) come [to ask].
♦ 1119.
♦ “vi-bhūta—rūpa-saññissa,	(regarding one) devoid--(of)-form-perceptions,
Sabba-kāya-p-pahāyino.	(who has) entire-body-abandoned,
♦ ajjhattañ-ca bahiddhā ca,	Internally-and externally **,
natthi kiñcīti passato.	“There (is) nothing”: [that is what] (he) sees.
♦ ñāṇaṃ sakk-ānu-pucchāmi,	(for) Knowledge (of this), I ask the-Sakyan:
kathaṃ neyyo tathā-vidho”.	How (is he to be) led further-on?
♦ 1120. (posālāti bhagavā)	(The Buddha:)
♦ “viññāṇaṭ-ṭhitiyo sabbā,	Consciousness-stations, all (of them),
Abhi-jānaṃ tathāgato.	(the) direct-knowing (of), the-Tathagata (has).
♦ tiṭṭhantamenaṃ jānāti,	(for one) stationed-in-them knows,
vimuttaṃ tapparāyaṇaṃ.	release (and the) steps-leading-there.
♦ 1121.
♦ “ākiñcañña-sambhavaṃ ñatvā,	Nothingness’s-origin: having-known (that)
nandī saṃyojanaṃ iti.	delight’s fetter it (is).
♦ evametaṃ abhiññāya,	With-that direct-knowing,
tato tattha vi-passati.	right there (he) clearly-sees.
♦ etaṃ VAR ñāṇaṃ tathaṃ tassa,	that knowledge, genuine, (is) his,
brāhmaṇassa vusīmato”ti.	(the) brahman (who has) lived-to-fulfillment.
♦ posālamāṇavapucchā cuddasamā niṭṭhitā.	vv. 1112–1115

KN Snp 5.15, SP-FLUENT by frankk‍

♦ 14. posālamāṇavapucchā (KN 5.69)	5:14  Posāla’s Question
♦ 1118. (iccāyasmā posālo)	(brahman posālo:)
♦ “yo atītaṃ ādisati,	To one who reveals the past [, recollections of many past lives of any being, up to many aeons,]
An-ejo chinna-saṃsayo.	[To one who is] Unperturbed, having cut through doubts,
♦ pāraguṃ sabba-dhammānaṃ,	[to one who has] gone beyond all dharmas,
atthi pañhena āgamaṃ.	I’ve come to ask a question.
♦ 1119.
♦ “vi-bhūta—rūpa-saññissa,	regarding one who is devoid of form perceptions,
Sabba-kāya-p-pahāyino.	who has abandoned their entire body,
♦ ajjhattañ-ca bahiddhā ca,	[both the] Internal [consisting of their own anatomical body] and external [forms and bodies],
natthi kiñcīti passato.	[for one who abides in the formless dimension of nothingness and] sees: “There (is) nothing”:
♦ ñāṇaṃ sakk-ānu-pucchāmi,	I ask [Buddha], the Sakyan, for Knowledge of this.
kathaṃ neyyo tathā-vidho”.	How should [the meditator] be led further?
♦ 1120. (posālāti bhagavā)	(The Buddha:)
♦ “viññāṇaṭ-ṭhitiyo sabbā,	Regarding all stations of Consciousness, [7 types of living beings (see DN 15) ]
Abhi-jānaṃ tathāgato.	[The Buddha], the-Tathagata, has direct-knowing of them. [He directly sees with the divine eye where liviing beings are reborn and how karma affects them.]
♦ tiṭṭhantamenaṃ jānāti,	One stationed there knows,
vimuttaṃ tapparāyaṇaṃ.	release and the steps leading there.
♦ 1121.
♦ “ākiñcañña-sambhavaṃ ñatvā,	Knowing directly Nothingness’s origin
nandī saṃyojanaṃ iti.	[knows] thus: delight is the fetter.
♦ evametaṃ abhiññāya,	With that direct knowledge,
tato tattha vi-passati.	right there he clearly sees.
♦ etaṃ VAR ñāṇaṃ tathaṃ tassa,	that knowledge, genuine, is his,
brāhmaṇassa vusīmato”ti.	the brahman who has lived to fulfillment [the brahmacariya spiritual life].
♦ posālamāṇavapucchā cuddasamā niṭṭhitā.	vv. 1112–1115

(Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu‍ trans.)

To one who reveals the past —unperturbed, his doubts cut through— who has gone to the beyond of all phenomena, I’ve come with a desire for a question. I ask the Sakyan about the knowledge1 of one devoid of perception of forms, who has abandoned all the body, every body, who sees, within & without, ‘There is nothing’: How is he to be led further on? The Buddha: The Tathāgata, knowing directly all stations of consciousness,2 knows for one stationed in them release & the steps leading there. Knowing directly the origin of nothingness to be the fetter of delight, one then sees there clearly. That’s his genuine knowledge— the brahman who has lived to fulfillment. vv. 1112–1115 Notes 1. Posāla’s question concerning the knowledge of the person in the dimension of nothingness has a double meaning: He is asking about the Buddha’s knowledge about that person, and also what a person in that dimension of attainment should do to develop his/her knowledge even further. The Buddha’s answer deals with the question in both its senses. On delight in nothingness, see MN 106. 2. On the seven stations of consciousness, see DN 15. The dimension of nothingness, discussed in this dialogue, is the seventh and most refined. See Sn 5:6, note 1. On the steps leading to release from being stationed in the formless states, see MN 52, MN 102, MN 106, MN 111, MN 140, and AN 9:36.

(from conversation with Ṭhānissaro Bhikkhu‍ in 2021, asking for clarification on ‘anejo’ and ‘sabba kaya’)

Aneja means unmoving. It could mean the unmoving kind of an awakened one or the unmoving mind of one in the formless attainments. Given that this line is spoken by an “outsider” it’s hard to tell what he meant by it, but both meanings would fit. The same with sabba-kāya. Sabba can mean “every” and “all.” The person in that state pays no attention either to his/her own body or to the body of anyone else.

(Bhikkhu Bodhi‍ trans.)

14 THE QUESTIONS OF POSĀLA (POSĀLAMĀṆAVAPUCCHĀ) 1112. “I have come in need with a question,” (said the Venerable Posāla), “to the one who points out the past, who is without impulse, who has cut off doubt, who has gone beyond all phenomena. (1) 1113. “I ask, Sakya, about the knowledge of one for whom perception of form has vanished, who has entirely abandoned the body, who sees ‘there is nothing’ internally and externally: how is such a one to be led?” (2) [216] 1114. “Directly knowing all stations of consciousness, (Posāla,” said the Blessed One), “the Tathāgata knows this one remaining, who is liberated, who has that as support. (3) 1115. “Having known the origin of nothingness thus, ‘delight is the fetter,’ having directly known it in such a way,241 one then sees into it with insight. This is the real knowledge of the brahmin, one who has lived the spiritual life.” (4)

(Bhikkhu Bodhi‍ trans. Of KN Nidd commentary to this sutta)

14 Posāla (Posāla Sutta) 1112 Points out the past: The Blessed One points out his own past and that of others in the way that begins “[He recollects] one birth” and so forth. Nidd II 148–49. The one who: the Blessed One, self-accomplished, who without a teacher, among things not heard in the past, on his own awakened to the truths and attained omniscience in regard to them and mastery over the powers. Points out the past: The Blessed One points out his own past and that of others, he points out the future, he points out the present. How does the Blessed One point out his own past? The Blessed One points out, in his own case, one past birth, two births, three births, four births, five births, ten births, twenty births, thirty births, forty births, fifty births, a hundred births, a thousand births, a hundred thousand births, many eons of world-dissolution, many eons of world-evolution, many eons of world-dissolution and world-evolution thus: “There I was so named, of such a clan, of such a social class, such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such my life span; passing away from there, I was reborn elsewhere, and there too I was so named, of such a clan, of such a social class, such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such my life span; passing away from there, I was reborn here.” Thus he points out his manifold past abodes with their aspects and details. Thus the Blessed One points out his own past. How does the Blessed One point out the past of others? The Blessed One points out, in the case of others, one past birth, two births . . . “he was reborn here.” Thus he points out their manifold past abodes with their aspects and details. Thus the Blessed One points out the past of others. When relating five hundred Jātakas, the Blessed One points out his own past as well as that of others; so too when relating the Mahāpadāna Sutta, the Mahāsudassana Sutta, the Mahāgovinda Sutta, and the Maghadeva Sutta he points out his own past as well as that of others. The knowledge of the diversity in faculties is a tathāgata-power of the Tathāgata; the knowledge of the inclinations and latent tendencies of beings . . . the knowledge of the twin miracle . . . the knowledge of the meditative attainment of great compassion . . . the omniscient knowledge . . . the unobstructed knowledge . . . the knowledge that is unstuck, unimpeded, without obstruction anywhere is a tathāgata-power of the Tathāgata. In this way the Blessed One points out the past, the future, and the present of himself and of others. 2141 Nidd II 149–50. Who is without impulse, who has cut off doubt: It is craving that is called impulse. That impulse of craving has been abandoned by the Buddha, cut off at the root, made like a palm stump, eliminated so that it is no more subject to future arising; therefore the Buddha is without impulse. Who has cut off doubt: Doubt about suffering . . . doubt about specific conditionality and dependently arisen phenomena. That doubt has been abandoned by the Buddha . . . burnt up by the fire of knowledge. Who has gone beyond all phenomena: The Blessed One has gone beyond all phenomena through direct knowledge . . . [as at p. 1296, Nidd II 140–41] . . . through the attainment of all meditative attainments.   1113 One for whom perception of form has vanished: one who has overcome perception of form; who has entirely abandoned the body: who has entirely abandoned the form body in a particular respect and by way of suppression; the purport is “when one has abandoned conception in form-realm existence.” [601] Who sees “there is nothing”: by clearly seeing the absence of consciousness one sees “there is nothing”; this refers to one who gains the base of nothingness. I ask, Sakya, about the knowledge: I ask about the knowledge of this person; how is it to be recognized? How is such a one to be led? : How is he to be led? How is higher knowledge to be aroused in him? Nidd II 150–51. Of one for whom perception of form has vanished: What is perception of form? The perception of one who has entered a form-sphere meditative attainment, or of one who has been reborn in the form sphere, or of one dwelling happily in this present life: this is perception of form. For one who has obtained the four formless meditative attainments, perception of form has vanished, gone away, been surpassed, been overcome, been transcended: this is one for whom perception of form has vanished. Who has entirely abandoned the body: one for whom the entire form body acquired at conception is abandoned; one’s form body is abandoned by overcoming it in a particular respect and by abandoning it through suppression. 2142 Who sees “there is nothing” internally and externally: the attainment of the base of nothingness. How is the attainment of the base of nothingness [the referent of] “there is nothing”? Having mindfully entered the base of the boundlessness of consciousness and emerged from it, one negates that same consciousness, abolishes it, makes it disappear, while one sees: “There is nothing.” In that way, the attainment of the base of nothingness is [the referent of] “there is nothing.” How is such a one to be led? : How is such a one — the attainer of the base of nothingness — to be led, to be guided, to be directed? How is he to arouse higher knowledge?   1114 Then, having shown him his own unobstructed knowledge in regard to such a person, the Blessed One spoke the next two verses to explain that knowledge. Here, directly knowing all stations of consciousness, the Tathāgata: the Tathāgata, directly knowing all the stations of consciousness thus: “Four by way of volitional activities and seven by way of conception.” Knows this one remaining: knows this person remaining by way of kammic volitional activities thus: “This one will have such a future [rebirth] destination.” One who is liberated: one resolved on the base of nothingness. 2143 Who has that as support: constituted by that. 2144 Nidd II 151. All the stations of consciousness: The Blessed One knows the four stations of consciousness that occur by way of volitional activity and he knows the seven stations of consciousness that occur by way of conception. How does the Blessed One know the four stations of consciousness that occur by way of volitional activity? For this has been said by the Blessed One: “Consciousness, bhikkhus, while standing, might stand engaged with form, based on form, established on form; with a sprinkling of delight, it might come to growth, increase, and expansion. Or consciousness, while standing, might stand engaged with feeling . . . engaged with perception . . . engaged with volitional activities, based on volitional activities, established on volitional activities; with a sprinkling of delight, it might come to growth, increase, and expansion” (SN III 53,10–14). In this way the Blessed One knows the stations of consciousness that occur by way of volitional activities. Nidd II 151–52. And how does the Blessed One know the stations of consciousness that occur by way of conception? This has been said by the Blessed One (AN IV 39–40; see too DN III 253): (1) “There are, bhikkhus, beings that are different in body and different in perception, such as humans, some devas, and some in the lower world. This is the first station of consciousness. 2145 (2) There are beings that are different in body but identical in perception, such as the devas of Brahmā’s company that are reborn through the first [jhāna]. This is the second station of consciousness. 2146 (3) There are beings that are identical in body but different in perception, such as the devas of streaming radiance. This is the third station of consciousness. 2147 (4) There are beings that are identical in body and identical in perception, such as the devas of refulgent glory. This is the fourth station of consciousness. 2148 (5) There are beings that, with the complete surmounting of perceptions of forms, with the passing away of perceptions of sensory impingement, with non-attention to perceptions of diversity, [perceiving] ‘space is boundless,’ belong to the base of the boundlessness of space. This is the fifth station of consciousness. (6) There are beings that, by completely surmounting the base of the boundlessness of space, [perceiving] ‘consciousness is boundless,’ belong to the base of the boundlessness of consciousness. This is the sixth station of consciousness. (7) There are beings that, by completely surmounting the base of the boundlessness of consciousness, [perceiving] ‘there is nothing,’ belong to the base of nothingness. This is the seventh station of consciousness.” In this way the Blessed One knows the stations of consciousness by way of conception. Nidd II 152–53: Directly knowing: understanding, cognizing, penetrating. The Tathāgata knows this one remaining: The Blessed One knows the one who remains here by way of kammic volitional activity thus: “With the breakup of the body, after death, this person will be reborn in the plane of misery, in a bad destination, in the lower world, in hell.” The Blessed One knows the one who remains here by way of kammic volitional activity thus: “With the breakup of the body, after death, this person will be reborn in the animal realm . . . this person will be reborn in the sphere of afflicted spirits . . . this person will be reborn among human beings . . . this person, who is practicing well, will be reborn in a good destination, in the heavenly world.”2149 Nidd II 154–55: One who is resolved on (liberated), who has that as support. 2150 Resolved: Resolved on the base of nothingness; resolved by emancipation, resolved there, resolved upon it, dominated by it. Or else, the Blessed One knows: “This person is resolved on forms, resolved on sounds, resolved on odors, resolved on tastes, resolved on tactile objects, resolved on families, resolved on a group, resolved on an abode; resolved on gain, fame, praise, and pleasure; resolved on robes, almsfood, a lodging, or medicinal requisites; resolved on the Suttas, the Vinaya, or the Abhidhamma; resolved on dwelling in the forest, resolved on going on alms round, resolved on wearing rag robes, resolved on going on alms round without skipping houses, resolved on refusing food brought afterward, resolved on the sitter’s practice, resolved on accepting any assigned lodging;2151 resolved on the first jhāna . . . resolved on the attainment of the base of neither-perception-nor-nonperception.”2152 Who has that as support: who consists of the base of nothingness, who has that as support, who has kamma as support, who has the result as support, who esteems kamma, who esteems conception. Or alternatively, the Blessed One knows: “This person has form as support . . . this one has the attainment of the base of neither-perception-nor-nonperception as support.”2153 1115 Having known the origin of nothingness: Having known the kammic volitional activity generating [rebirth into] the base of nothingness, asking: “Just how is that an impediment?” Thus, “delight is the fetter”: having known delight, consisting in lust for the formless, as the fetter there. One then sees into it with insight: Having emerged from the meditative attainment of the base of nothingness, one contemplates that meditative attainment with insight by way of impermanence and so forth. This is the real knowledge: This is the undistorted knowledge of arahantship that has gradually arisen in that person who contemplates with insight in such a way. The rest everywhere is clear. Nidd II 155. Having known the origin of nothingness: It is the kammic volitional activity leading to the base of nothingness that is called the origin of nothingness. Having known the kammic volitional activity leading to the base of nothingness as “the origin of nothingness,” having known it as a fastening, having known it as bondage, having known it as an impediment, having assessed it . . . having recognized it. Thus, “delight is the fetter”: It is lust for the formless that is called the fetter of delight. That kamma is stuck, fastened, impeded by that lust for the formless. Having known lust for the formless as “the fetter of delight”; having known it as a fastening, as bondage, as an impediment, having assessed it . . . having recognized it. The word “thus” (iti) is just a liaison term, a connective term, a filler, a word to complete the whole, a term assisting smooth diction, a term indicating sequence. 2154 Nidd II 156. One then sees it with insight: Having attained the base of nothingness and emerged from it, one sees with insight the mind and mental factors arisen there as impermanent, as suffering, as a disease . . . [as at p. 1035, Nidd I 38] . . . by way of their origin, their passing away, their gratification, their danger, and the escape from them. The real knowledge: This is the real, actual, accurate, undistorted knowledge. Of the brahmin, one who has lived the spiritual life: The seven trainees, inclusive of the good worldling, are living [the spiritual life], dwelling in it, abiding in it, following it, for the attainment of the as-yet-unattained, for the achievement of the as-yet-unachieved, for the realization of the as-yet-unrealized. The arahant has lived the spiritual life, done what had to be done, laid down the burden, attained his own good, utterly destroyed the fetters of existence, and is liberated through perfect knowledge. He has lived the life, completed the practice . . . for him there is no more renewed existence.   Thus the Blessed One concluded this discourse, too, with its culmination in arahantship. At the conclusion of the teaching, as before, there was a breakthrough to the Dhamma.

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