AN 4.94 3rd-Samādhi-sutta (samatha & vipassana), pali+eng, Thanissaro trans

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AN 4.94 tatiya-samādhi

tatiya-samādhi-suttaṃ (AN 4.94)
Concentration (Tranquility & Insight) (4:94)
♦ 94. “cattārome, bhikkhave, puggalā santo saṃvijjamānā lokasmiṃ.
“Monks, these four types of individuals are to be found existing in world.
katame cattāro?
Which four?
1) idha, bhikkhave, ekacco puggalo lābhī hoti ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa, na lābhī adhipaññādhammavipassanāya.
1) “There is the case of the individual who has attained internal tranquility of awareness, but not insight into phenomena through heightened discernment.
2) idha pana, bhikkhave, ekacco puggalo lābhī hoti adhipaññādhammavipassanāya, na lābhī ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa.
2) Then there is the case of the individual who has attained insight into phenomena through heightened discernment, but not internal tranquility of awareness.
3) idha pana, bhikkhave, ekacco puggalo na ceva lābhī hoti ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa na ca lābhī adhipaññādhammavipassanāya.
3) Then there is the case of the individual who has attained neither internal tranquility of awareness nor insight into phenomena through heightened discernment.
4) idha pana, bhikkhave, ekacco puggalo lābhī ceva hoti ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa lābhī ca adhipaññādhammavipassanāya.
4) And then there is the case of the individual who has attained both internal tranquility of awareness & insight into phenomena through heightened discernment.

(1. Has samatha, no vipassana)

1. ♦ “tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṃ puggalo lābhī ajjhattaṃ ceto-samathassa
1. “The individual who has attained internal tranquility of awareness,
na lābhī adhi-paññā-dhamma-vipassanāya,
but not insight into phenomena through heightened discernment,
tena, bhikkhave, puggalena yvāyaṃ puggalo lābhī adhi-paññā-dhamma-vipassanāya so upasaṅkamitvā evamassa vacanīyo —
should approach an individual who has attained insight into phenomena through heightened discernment and ask him:
‘kathaṃ nu kho, āvuso, saṅkhārā daṭṭhabbā?
‘How should fabrications be regarded?
kathaṃ saṅkhārā sammasitabbā?
How should they be investigated?
kathaṃ saṅkhārā vipassitabbā’ VAR ti?
How should they be seen with insight?’
tassa so yathādiṭṭhaṃ yathāviditaṃ byākaroti —
The other will answer in line with what he has seen & experienced:
‘evaṃ kho, āvuso, saṅkhārā daṭṭhabbā,
‘Fabrications should be regarded in this way.
evaṃ saṅkhārā sammasitabbā,
Fabrications should be investigated in this way.
evaṃ saṅkhārā vipassitabbā’ti.
Fabrications should be seen in this way with insight.’
so aparena samayena lābhī ceva hoti ajjhattaṃ ceto-samathassa
Then eventually he [the first] will become one who has attained both internal tranquility of awareness
lābhī ca adhi-paññā-dhamma-vipassanāya.
& insight into phenomena through heightened discernment.

(2. Has no samatha, has vipassana)

2. ♦ “tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṃ puggalo
2. “As for the individual
lābhī adhi-paññā-dhamma-vipassanāya
who has attained insight into phenomena through heightened discernment,
na lābhī ajjhattaṃ ceto-samathassa,
but not internal tranquility of awareness,
tena, bhikkhave, puggalena yvāyaṃ puggalo lābhī ajjhattaṃ ceto-samathassa so upasaṅkamitvā evamassa vacanīyo —
he should approach an individual who has attained internal tranquility of awareness… and ask him:
‘kathaṃ nu kho, āvuso, cittaṃ saṇṭhapetabbaṃ?
‘How should the mind be steadied?
kathaṃ cittaṃ sannisādetabbaṃ?
How should it be made to settle down?
kathaṃ cittaṃ ekodi kātabbaṃ?
How should it be unified?
kathaṃ cittaṃ samādahātabban’ti?
How should it be concentrated?’
tassa so yath-ādiṭṭhaṃ yathā-viditaṃ byākaroti —
The other will answer in line with what he has seen & experienced:
‘evaṃ kho, āvuso, cittaṃ saṇṭhapetabbaṃ,
‘The mind should be steadied in this way.
evaṃ cittaṃ sannisādetabbaṃ,
The mind should be made to settle down in this way.
evaṃ cittaṃ ekodi kātabbaṃ VAR,
The mind should be unified in this way.
evaṃ cittaṃ samādahātabban’ti.
The mind should be concentrated in this way.’
so aparena samaye
Then eventually he [the first] will become
lābhī ceva hoti adhi-paññā-dhamma-vipassanāya
one who has attained both internal tranquility of awareness
lābhī ca ajjhattaṃ ceto-samathassa.
& insight into phenomena through heightened discernment.

(3. Has no samatha, has no vipassana, better work your ass off)

3. ♦ “tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṃ puggalo na ceva lābhī ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa na ca lābhī adhipaññādhammavipassanāya, tena, bhikkhave, puggalena yvāyaṃ puggalo lābhī ceva ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa lābhī ca adhipaññādhammavipassanāya so upasaṅkamitvā evamassa vacanīyo — ‘kathaṃ nu kho, āvuso, cittaṃ saṇṭhapetabbaṃ? kathaṃ cittaṃ sannisādetabbaṃ? kathaṃ cittaṃ ekodi kātabbaṃ? kathaṃ cittaṃ samādahātabbaṃ? kathaṃ saṅkhārā daṭṭhabbā? kathaṃ saṅkhārā sammasitabbā? kathaṃ saṅkhārā vipassitabbā’ti? tassa so yathādiṭṭhaṃ yathāviditaṃ byākaroti — ‘evaṃ kho, āvuso, cittaṃ saṇṭhapetabbaṃ, evaṃ cittaṃ sannisādetabbaṃ, evaṃ cittaṃ ekodi kātabbaṃ, evaṃ cittaṃ samādahātabbaṃ, evaṃ saṅkhārā daṭṭhabbā, evaṃ saṅkhārā sammasitabbā, evaṃ saṅkhārā vipassitabbā’ti. so aparena samayena lābhī ceva hoti ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa lābhī ca adhipaññādhammavipassanāya.
3. “As for the individual who has attained neither internal tranquility of awareness nor insight into phenomena through heightened discernment, he should approach an individual who has attained both internal tranquility of awareness & insight into phenomena through heightened discernment… and ask him: ‘How should the mind be steadied? How should it be made to settle down? How should it be unified? How should it be concentrated? How should fabrications be regarded? How should they be investigated? How should they be seen with insight?’ The other will answer in line with what he has seen & experienced: ‘The mind should be steadied in this way. The mind should be made to settle down in this way. The mind should be unified in this way. The mind should be concentrated in this way. Fabrications should be regarded in this way. Fabrications should be investigated in this way. Fabrications should be seen in this way with insight.’ Then eventually he [the first] will become one who has attained both internal tranquility of awareness & insight into phenomena through heightened discernment.

(4. Has samatha, has vipassana, aim for arahantship )

4. ♦ “tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṃ puggalo lābhī ceva hoti ajjhattaṃ cetosamathassa lābhī adhipaññādhammavipassanāya, tena, bhikkhave, puggalena tesu ceva kusalesu dhammesu patiṭṭhāya uttari āsavānaṃ khayāya yogo karaṇīyo.
4. “As for the individual who has attained both internal tranquility of awareness & insight into phenomena through heightened discernment, his duty is to make an effort in establishing [‘tuning’] those very same skillful qualities to a higher degree for the ending of the effluents.
ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro puggalā santo saṃvijjamānā lokasmin”ti.
“These are four types of individuals to be found existing in world.”
catutthaṃ.
(end of sutta, thanissaro trans.)
See also: MN 149; SN 22:57; SN 35:204; AN 2:29—30; AN 4:170; AN 10:54; AN 10:71
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A timely post in line with my post below in SC and DW.
Take on from my post is that Samatha and Vipassana should be practiced in tandem the easiest way to attain Nibbana. That is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path.
Link to DW:

https://dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?f=13&t=31599

Does anyone know what the mind being “unified” means here, practically speaking?

(unifed) ekodi, samadaham, those are conjugated forms of
ekaggata, samadhi, which you may recognize as the key terms that appear in the standard 4 jhana formulas.

So the instruction is literally to do the 4 jhanas, or attempt to. ekodi, ekagga are pretty synonymous.

To unify the mind, make the mind singular, is to gather the mind around a single theme, for example, the breath in the body.

ekagga and samadhi are often used synoymously, and in this context, as 2 factors in jhana, and the instruction to get into jhana, it is pretty synonymous.

samadhi, which I translate as undistractable-lucidity, like ekaggata, means the mind is gathered around a single theme, but also is undistractable, not scattered in many directions, the mental energy is consolidated, not dispersed.

Samadhi is way more versatile than “one pointed.” One can be sitting in a deep 4th jhana, or one can be in first jhana, walking very slowly on a meditation path, where the “one theme” is sati immersed in the body walking softly, attending to the breath, or maybe attending to remembering of death.

The essence of samadhi is to be undistractable and lucid, able to withstand the impact of the 6 senses without being shaken. One thinks what one wants to think, doesn’t think what one doesn’t want to think.

Samatha (stillness) is a necessary ingredient to develop strong samadhi, but samatha is not samadhi. Samadhi contains samatha, samatha shares some qualities of samadhi but does not contain samadhi.

So in this sutta, while a superficial reading may seem to imply samadhi and samatha can be used synonymously, considering the whole body of EBT passages on samadhi and its related ingredients, it’s not the case.

As @frankk said focusing on a single object and not letting the mind be distracted (ie working on the five hindrances) is helpful. Also calming the breath and body also helps. Quietening the mind also helps, as suggested in the sutta above.

With metta

Yes, that makes sense. It is like being properly focussed.

Yes, that an accurate description- but the character can intensify in jhana/ with deeper samadhi states, as it wont remain the same. But otherwise it is a good description. :slight_smile:

with metta

It does sounds strange, doesn’t it? That made me look into it. After much digging, I came to the conclusion that it should be translated as “poised”. Thus, “How is the mind (citta) to be poised (ekodi kātabbaṁ).