Beautiful passage from sutta in "The Swift Pair of Messengers", but can't find refference

Q & A
1

Greetings friends! :anjal:

I’m just reading Ajahn Sujato book “The Swift Pair of Messengers”, (which is awesome by the way :slight_smile: ) and I’ve found a very beautiful passage from a sutta:

‘On the occasion when a noble disciple intends to go forth from
the home life into homelessness, he is like the celestial coral tree of
the Tāvatimsa deities when the leaves turn brown.
‘On the occasion when the noble disciple shaves off hair and beard,
puts on the dyed robe and goes forth from the home life into homelessness,
he is like the celestial coral tree… when the leaves fall.
‘On the occasion when the noble disciple… enters and abides in
the first jhāna, he is like the celestial coral tree… when it is budding.
‘On the occasion when the noble disciple… enters and abides in
the second jhāna, he is like the celestial coral tree… when the shoots
appear.
‘On the occasion when the noble disciple… enters and abides in
the third jhāna, he is like the celestial coral tree… when the blossoms
form.
‘On the occasion when the noble disciple… enters and abides in
the fourth jhāna, he is like the celestial coral tree… when the flowers
are like the red lotus.
‘On the occasion when the noble disciple, due to the evaporation
of the poisons, enters and abides in the poison-free release of heart,
release by wisdom, having witnessed it with his own direct knowledge,
he is like the celestial coral tree of the Tāvatimsa deities when it is in
full bloom.
‘On that occasion the earth deities proclaim the news: “The venerable
one of such & such a name, the student of such & such a venerable
one, who went forth from such & such a village or town, has
witnessed… the evaporation of the poisons!”… And right at that moment,
that instant, the news soars up [through the various orders of
deities] as far as the Brahmā realm. Such is the majesty of one who
has evaporated the poisons.’

Problem is that, refference in footnotes points to AN7.65, and when I type this sutta in SuttaCentral, I get totally different sutta: Hirīottappasutta - Conscience and Prudence.

Here is the link to Ajahn Sujato book if something:
https://dhammabooks.online/books/Bhikkhu-Sujato/A_Swift_Pair_of_Messengers.pdf

The passage I quoted and refference footnote is at page 41.

Generally it is not the first time I have a troube finding the sutta that this otherwise wonderful book is refferencing.

Is there completely different numeration on Sutta Central than in the translations found in this book (Bhikkhu Bodhi probably), hence the problems of finding the refferenced suttas? Or perhaps there are some errors in refferences?

Also I can’t find the passage quoted here on google. When I google it, I just get “The Swift Pairs of Messengers”.

If you could please Venerable Bhante @Sujato or anyone else explain this situation, I would be grateful. And if it is an error, then please consider this message as feedback. :slight_smile:

Btw. the passage is truly beautiful :slight_smile: It reminds me colors of the robes of bhikkhus and bhikkhunis…

‘On the occasion when a noble disciple intends to go forth from
the home life into homelessness, he is like the celestial coral tree of
the Tāvatimsa deities when the leaves turn brown.

Metta :anjal:

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Allright I’ve did some more digging and I found the sutta, here is says it is AN07.065 and it is called The Celestial Coral Tree.

Also’ I’ve found this sutta on SuttaCentral, but under different number: AN7.69 Pāricchattakasutta - The Shady Orchid Tree.

So it seems like numeration is different. Would be great to know why is that? :slight_smile:

Here is the passage in Ajahn Sujato translation:

In the same way, when a noble disciple plans to go forth from the lay life to homelessness, they’re like the Shady Orchid Tree when its leaves turn brown.

When a noble disciple shaves off their hair and beard, dresses in ocher robes, and goes forth from the lay life to homelessness, they’re like the Shady Orchid Tree when its leaves fall.

When a noble disciple, quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unskillful qualities, enters and remains in the first absorption, which has the rapture and bliss born of seclusion, while placing the mind and keeping it connected, they’re like the Shady Orchid Tree when its foliage starts to regrow.

When, as the placing of the mind and keeping it connected are stilled, a noble disciple enters and remains in the second absorption, which has the rapture and bliss born of immersion, with internal clarity and confidence, and unified mind, without placing the mind and keeping it connected, they’re like the Shady Orchid Tree when it’s ready to grow flowers and leaves separately.

When, with the fading away of rapture, a noble disciple enters and remains in the third absorption, where they meditate with equanimity, mindful and aware, personally experiencing the bliss of which the noble ones declare, ‘Equanimous and mindful, one meditates in bliss’, they’re like the Shady Orchid Tree when its buds start to form.

When, giving up pleasure and pain, and ending former happiness and sadness, a noble disciple enters and remains in the fourth absorption, without pleasure or pain, with pure equanimity and mindfulness, they’re like the Shady Orchid Tree when its buds burst.

When a noble disciple realizes the undefiled freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom in this very life, and they live having realized it with their own insight due to the ending of defilements, they’re like the Shady Orchid tree when it fully blossoms.

At that time the earth gods raised the cry: ‘This venerable named so-and-so, from such-and-such village or town, the pupil of the venerable named so-and-so, went forth from the lay life to homelessness. They’ve realized the undefiled freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom in this very life. And they live having realized it with their own insight due to the ending of defilements.’

:bodhileaf::maple_leaf::bodhileaf:
:maple_leaf::bodhileaf::maple_leaf:
:bodhileaf::anjal::maple_leaf:

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It is because SuttaCentral uses the Bodhi numbering for AN and SN rather than the PTS numbering. As Bodhi’s Numerical Discourses of the Buddha was published in the same year as the latest (revised) edition of A Swift Pair of Messengers, the latter uses the old PTS system for the Aṅguttara Nikāya rather than the Bodhi/SuttaCentral system. More information about differences in numbering can be found at suttacentral.net/numbering, which also lists the sections where PTS and Bodhi/SuttaCentral diverge, including AN 7.19 [AN 7.17] and the rest of AN 7.

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Thank you Robbie, this perfectly answers my former confusion and now everything fell into place. :anjal: :slight_smile:

I’m glad this little confusion created an opportunity to share this beautiful sutta. :fallen_leaf: :slight_smile:

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