Jhānaṁ and satipaṭṭhānā in the pāli nikāyas

josephzizys · August 27, 2024, 12:35pm

PART ONE.

jhāna

At many places throughout the nikāyas a lengthy piece of prose is either stated in full, stated with modifications, or truncated and alluded to, as at:

DN2 DN3 DN4 DN5 DN6 DN7 DN8 DN9 DN10 DN11 DN12 DN13

MN4 MN6 MN19 MN27 MN36 MN38 MN39 MN51 MN53 MN60 MN65 MN73 MN76 MN77 MN79 MN85 MN94 MN100 MN101 MN107 MN112 MN119 MN125

SN6.3 SN12.70 SN16.9 SN16.11 SN51.11

AN3.58 AN4.198 AN5.75 AN5.76 AN10.99

The standard version of this trope begins:

“Consider when a Realized One arises in the world, perfected, a fully awakened Buddha, accomplished in knowledge and conduct, holy, knower of the world, supreme guide for those who wish to train, teacher of gods and humans, awakened, blessed.
“idha, mahārāja, tathāgato loke uppajjati arahaṁ sammāsambuddho vijjācaraṇasampanno sugato lokavidū anuttaro purisadammasārathi satthā devamanussānaṁ buddho bhagavā.

He has realized with his own insight this world—with its gods, Māras and Brahmās, this population with its ascetics and brahmins, gods and humans—and he makes it known to others.
So imaṁ lokaṁ sadevakaṁ samārakaṁ sabrahmakaṁ sassamaṇabrāhmaṇiṁ pajaṁ sadevamanussaṁ sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā pavedeti.

He teaches Dhamma that’s good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end, meaningful and well-phrased. And he reveals a spiritual practice that’s entirely full and pure.
So dhammaṁ deseti ādikalyāṇaṁ majjhekalyāṇaṁ pariyosānakalyāṇaṁ sātthaṁ sabyañjanaṁ, kevalaparipuṇṇaṁ parisuddhaṁ brahmacariyaṁ pakāseti.

A householder hears that teaching, or a householder’s child, or someone reborn in some clan.
Taṁ dhammaṁ suṇāti gahapati vā gahapatiputto vā aññatarasmiṁ vā kule paccājāto.

They gain faith in the Realized One,
So taṁ dhammaṁ sutvā tathāgate saddhaṁ paṭilabhati.

and reflect:
So tena saddhāpaṭilābhena samannāgato iti paṭisañcikkhati:

‘Living in a house is cramped and dirty, but the life of one gone forth is wide open.
‘sambādho gharāvāso rajopatho, abbhokāso pabbajjā.

It’s not easy for someone living at home to lead the spiritual life utterly full and pure, like a polished shell.
Nayidaṁ sukaraṁ agāraṁ ajjhāvasatā ekantaparipuṇṇaṁ ekantaparisuddhaṁ saṅkhalikhitaṁ brahmacariyaṁ carituṁ.

Why don’t I shave off my hair and beard, dress in ocher robes, and go forth from the lay life to homelessness?’
Yannūnāhaṁ kesamassuṁ ohāretvā kāsāyāni vatthāni acchādetvā agārasmā anagāriyaṁ pabbajeyyan’ti.

And ends with:

They truly understand: ‘These are defilements’ … ‘This is the origin of defilements’ … ‘This is the cessation of defilements’ … ‘This is the practice that leads to the cessation of defilements’.
Ime āsavāti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ āsavasamudayoti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ āsavanirodhoti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ āsavanirodhagāminī paṭipadāti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti.

Knowing and seeing like this, their mind is freed from the defilements of sensuality, desire to be reborn, and ignorance.
Tassa evaṁ jānato evaṁ passato kāmāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati, bhavāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati, avijjāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati, When they’re freed, they know they’re freed. vimuttasmiṁ ‘vimuttam’iti ñāṇaṁ hoti,

They understand: ‘Rebirth is ended, the spiritual journey has been completed, what had to be done has been done, there is no return to any state of existence.’
‘khīṇā jāti, vusitaṁ brahmacariyaṁ, kataṁ karaṇīyaṁ, nāparaṁ itthattāyā’ti pajānāti.

We will call this long piece of prose the āsavanirodhagāminī paṭipadā or just paṭipadā for short.

The sequence has variations, in particular in the ways it describes morality, and in the way it uses or does not use similes, but in terms of it’s instructions for meditation it is (almost*) always consistent, it says (minus the similes ):
*see DN13 for an example.

Then:
1.

And how does a mendicant guard the sense doors?
Kathañca, mahārāja, bhikkhu indriyesu guttadvāro hoti?

When a mendicant sees a sight with their eyes, they don’t get caught up in the features and details.
Idha, mahārāja, bhikkhu cakkhunā rūpaṁ disvā na nimittaggāhī hoti nānubyañjanaggāhī.

If the faculty of sight were left unrestrained, bad unskillful qualities of covetousness and displeasure would become overwhelming. For this reason, they practice restraint, protecting the faculty of sight, and achieving its restraint.
Yatvādhikaraṇamenaṁ cakkhundriyaṁ asaṁvutaṁ viharantaṁ abhijjhā domanassā pāpakā akusalā dhammā anvāssaveyyuṁ, tassa saṁvarāya paṭipajjati, rakkhati cakkhundriyaṁ, cakkhundriye saṁvaraṁ āpajjati.

When they hear a sound with their ears …
Sotena saddaṁ sutvā …pe…

When they smell an odor with their nose …
ghānena gandhaṁ ghāyitvā …pe…

When they taste a flavor with their tongue …
jivhāya rasaṁ sāyitvā …pe…

When they feel a touch with their body …
kāyena phoṭṭhabbaṁ phusitvā …pe…

When they know an idea with their mind, they don’t get caught up in the features and details.
manasā dhammaṁ viññāya na nimittaggāhī hoti nānubyañjanaggāhī.

If the faculty of mind were left unrestrained, bad unskillful qualities of covetousness and displeasure would become overwhelming. For this reason, they practice restraint, protecting the faculty of mind, and achieving its restraint.
Yatvādhikaraṇamenaṁ manindriyaṁ asaṁvutaṁ viharantaṁ abhijjhā domanassā pāpakā akusalā dhammā anvāssaveyyuṁ, tassa saṁvarāya paṭipajjati, rakkhati manindriyaṁ, manindriye saṁvaraṁ āpajjati.

When they have this noble sense restraint, they experience an unsullied bliss inside themselves.
So iminā ariyena indriyasaṁvarena samannāgato ajjhattaṁ abyāsekasukhaṁ paṭisaṁvedeti.

That’s how a mendicant guards the sense doors.
Evaṁ kho, mahārāja, bhikkhu indriyesu guttadvāro hoti.

Then:
2.

And how does a mendicant have mindfulness and situational awareness?
Kathañca, mahārāja, bhikkhu satisampajaññena samannāgato hoti?

It’s when a mendicant acts with situational awareness when going out and coming back; when looking ahead and aside; when bending and extending the limbs; when bearing the outer robe, bowl and robes; when eating, drinking, chewing, and tasting; when urinating and defecating; when walking, standing, sitting, sleeping, waking, speaking, and keeping silent.
Idha, mahārāja, bhikkhu abhikkante paṭikkante sampajānakārī hoti, ālokite vilokite sampajānakārī hoti, samiñjite pasārite sampajānakārī hoti, saṅghāṭipattacīvaradhāraṇe sampajānakārī hoti, asite pīte khāyite sāyite sampajānakārī hoti, uccārapassāvakamme sampajānakārī hoti, gate ṭhite nisinne sutte jāgarite bhāsite tuṇhībhāve sampajānakārī hoti.

That’s how a mendicant has mindfulness and situational awareness.
Evaṁ kho, mahārāja, bhikkhu satisampajaññena samannāgato hoti.

Then:
3.

And how is a mendicant content?
Kathañca, mahārāja, bhikkhu santuṭṭho hoti?

It’s when a mendicant is content with robes to look after the body and almsfood to look after the belly. Wherever they go, they set out taking only these things.
Idha, mahārāja, bhikkhu santuṭṭho hoti kāyaparihārikena cīvarena, kucchiparihārikena piṇḍapātena. So yena yeneva pakkamati, samādāyeva pakkamati.

That’s how a mendicant is content.
Evaṁ kho, mahārāja, bhikkhu santuṭṭho hoti.

Then:
4.

When they have this entire spectrum of noble ethics, this noble sense restraint, this noble mindfulness and situational awareness, and this noble contentment,
So iminā ca ariyena sīlakkhandhena samannāgato, iminā ca ariyena indriyasaṁvarena samannāgato, iminā ca ariyena satisampajaññena samannāgato, imāya ca ariyāya santuṭṭhiyā samannāgato,

they frequent a secluded lodging—a wilderness, the root of a tree, a hill, a ravine, a mountain cave, a charnel ground, a forest, the open air, a heap of straw.
vivittaṁ senāsanaṁ bhajati araññaṁ rukkhamūlaṁ pabbataṁ kandaraṁ giriguhaṁ susānaṁ vanapatthaṁ abbhokāsaṁ palālapuñjaṁ.

After the meal, they return from almsround, sit down cross-legged, set their body straight, and establish mindfulness in their presence.
So pacchābhattaṁ piṇḍapātapaṭikkanto nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā.

Then:
5.

Giving up covetousness for the world, they meditate with a heart rid of covetousness, cleansing the mind of covetousness.
So abhijjhaṁ loke pahāya vigatābhijjhena cetasā viharati, abhijjhāya cittaṁ parisodheti.

Giving up ill will and malevolence, they meditate with a mind rid of ill will, full of sympathy for all living beings, cleansing the mind of ill will.
Byāpādapadosaṁ pahāya abyāpannacitto viharati sabbapāṇabhūtahitānukampī, byāpādapadosā cittaṁ parisodheti.

Giving up dullness and drowsiness, they meditate with a mind rid of dullness and drowsiness, perceiving light, mindful and aware, cleansing the mind of dullness and drowsiness.
Thinamiddhaṁ pahāya vigatathinamiddho viharati ālokasaññī, sato sampajāno, thinamiddhā cittaṁ parisodheti.

Giving up restlessness and remorse, they meditate without restlessness, their mind peaceful inside, cleansing the mind of restlessness and remorse.
Uddhaccakukkuccaṁ pahāya anuddhato viharati, ajjhattaṁ vūpasantacitto, uddhaccakukkuccā cittaṁ parisodheti.

Giving up doubt, they meditate having gone beyond doubt, not undecided about skillful qualities, cleansing the mind of doubt.
Vicikicchaṁ pahāya tiṇṇavicikiccho viharati, akathaṅkathī kusalesu dhammesu, vicikicchāya cittaṁ parisodheti.

Then:
6.

Seeing that the hindrances have been given up in them, joy springs up. Being joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel bliss. And when blissful, the mind becomes immersed.
Tassime pañca nīvaraṇe pahīne attani samanupassato pāmojjaṁ jāyati, pamuditassa pīti jāyati, pītimanassa kāyo passambhati, passaddhakāyo sukhaṁ vedeti, sukhino cittaṁ samādhiyati.

Then:
7.

Quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unskillful qualities, they enter and remain in the first absorption, which has the rapture and bliss born of seclusion, while placing the mind and keeping it connected.
So vivicceva kāmehi, vivicca akusalehi dhammehi savitakkaṁ savicāraṁ vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

Furthermore, as the placing of the mind and keeping it connected are stilled, a mendicant enters and remains in the second absorption, which has the rapture and bliss born of immersion, with internal clarity and mind at one, without applying the mind and keeping it connected.
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu vitakkavicārānaṁ vūpasamā ajjhattaṁ sampasādanaṁ cetaso ekodibhāvaṁ avitakkaṁ avicāraṁ samādhijaṁ pītisukhaṁ dutiyaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

Furthermore, with the fading away of rapture, a mendicant 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.’
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu pītiyā ca virāgā upekkhako ca viharati sato sampajāno, sukhañca kāyena paṭisaṁvedeti, yaṁ taṁ ariyā ācikkhanti: ‘upekkhako satimā sukhavihārī’ti, tatiyaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

Furthermore, giving up pleasure and pain, and ending former happiness and sadness, a mendicant enters and remains in the fourth absorption, without pleasure or pain, with pure equanimity and mindfulness.
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu sukhassa ca pahānā dukkhassa ca pahānā, pubbeva somanassadomanassānaṁ atthaṅgamā adukkhamasukhaṁ upekkhāsatipārisuddhiṁ catutthaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.
DN2

This meditation instruction, in particular step 7., that we shall call jhāna for short, is given in the following suttas with chinese parallels occurring in the same agama as sutta in the pāli nikāyas at:

DN1 (DA21) DN2 (DA27) DN3 (DA20) DN4 (DA22) DN5 (DA23) DN8 (DA25) DN9 (DA28) DN11 (DA24) DN16 (DA2) DN26 (DA6) DN29 (DA17)

MN8 (MA91) MN13 (MA99) MN19 (MA102) MN25 (MA178) MN26 (MA204) MN27 (MA146) MN31 (MA185) MN39 (MA182) MN64 (MA205) MN65 (MA194) MN66 (MA192) MN78 (MA179) MN79 (MA208) MN85 (MA204) MN101 (MA19) MN107 (MA144) MN108 (MA145) MN112 (MA187) MN113 (MA85) MN119 (MA81 MA98) MN138 (MA164) MN139 (MA169) MN141 (MA31 MA98)

SN16.9 (SA1142) SN36.11 (SA473) SN36.17 (SA473) SN36.19 (SA485) SN36.31 (SA483) SN41.9 (SA573) SN48.10 (SA658) SN54.8 (SA814)

AN7.69 (EA39.2)

We can therefore say, with confidence, that this meditation instruction is taught by all 4 recitation groups in both languages and is therefore universally acknowledged as a teaching of the buddha on meditation.

We can also say, with confidence, that the community that preserved the pāli nikāyas thought that it was important enough to repeat 13 times in a row in the first 13 chapters of the first collection of teachings in their tradition, and to mention, explicitly and by name, the first two of these suttas as the first two collected, in their Vinaya account of the first council, the Pañcasatikakkhandhaka. The Chinese parallel in the Mahīśāsaka Vinaya also gives both the Brahmajālasutta DN1 / DA21 (梵動經) and the Sāmaññaphalasutta DN2 / DA27 (沙門果經) in its text (along with DN33 and DN34). The Dharmaguptakas refer at least to DN1, see here. The Mahāsaṅghika Vinaya is vague, merely mentioning the long, middle, connected, numerical and miscellaneous, in that order, and finally the Sarvāstivāda Vinaya comes down in favour of SN56.11, making it the odd one out of the chinese vinayas available to me at suttacentral.

We can also say that in the pāli nikāyas, the teaching is introduced* by the Buddha, to a prestigious audience, King Ajātasattu, with 1250 monks in attendance, on a sabbath when holy persons where wont to give public teachings.

*(the jhāna are also given at DN1, in a different context, as a meditative practice also used by members of other groups)

There should be absolutely no question then that this is a foundational teaching in the early buddhist literature, and an equally, if not more, foundational teaching in the pāli nikāyas.

To summarise:

The instruction is:

(0. live ethically and therefore have an internal sense of happiness, then;)

restrain the senses and experience physical pleasure internally.
be aware of what your doing, i.e standing, sitting, walking etc.
be content with what you have i.e the cloths on your back, the food in your belly.
after eating, sit down somewhere quiet and establish mindfulness.
give up bad thoughts/things like lust and ill will and so on i.e the “hindrances”.
the mind freed* feel happy, feeling happy feel pleasure, feeling pleasure enter “samādhi”.
progressively still thoughts**, emotions***, feelings****, thus entering “fourth jhāna”.

(* the mind freed from the 5 hinderences, i’e thoughts of lust, ill will, sleep, etc)
(** the savitakkaṁ savicāraṁ (positive thoughts) stills, moving from 1 to 2)
(*** the emotion of happiness, pītiyā stills, moving from 2 to 3)
(**** the physical feeling of pleasure, sukhassa, stills, moving form 3 to 4 and culminating in the cardinal buddhist virtue of upekkhāsatipārisuddhiṁ.)

The instruction 7. “jhāna” is given, as indicated above, in dozens and dozens of places throughout the pāli nikāyas, given by the buddha, to an audience of monks or other public figures. It is never called anything else, there is never any confusion over it’s sequence or the names of the parts, and it is consistently acknowledged as the sammāsamādhi of the eightfold path.

The other great tradition of buddhist meditation in the pāli nikāyas is satipaṭṭhānā, and our purpose in starting with jhāna is to have something to compare this other tradition to.
The key points to take away to begin with is that this teaching is unambiguously widespread in the early literature, both across collections and across schools and languages and that there are at least three places in the jhāna trope where sati is invoked, at 2. at 4. and at 7.

This will be relevant for what comes next.

end of part one

PART TWO.

cattāro satipaṭṭhānā

At many places throughout the nikāyas a term is either stated without giving a teaching or the term with a teaching is given, as at:

DN16 DN18 DN22 DN28 DN29 DN33 DN34

MN10 MN44 MN51 MN103 MN104 MN118 MN125 MN151

SN22.81 SN43.5 SN46.6 SN47.1 SN47.5 SN47.6 SN47.7 SN47.10 SN47.12 SN47.17 SN47.18 SN47.24 SN47.29 SN47.32 SN47.33 SN47.34 SN47.36 SN47.41 SN47.43 SN47.45 SN47.49 SN47.50 SN47.95 SN48.8 SN52.1 SN52.2 SN52.4 SN52.5 SN52.7 SN52.9 SN52.10 SN54.13 SN54.14 SN54.15 SN54.16

AN5.15 AN5.136 AN6.57 AN8.19 AN8.28 AN9.63 AN9.64 AN9.65 AN9.66 AN9.67 AN9.68 AN9.69 AN9.70 AN9.71 AN9.72 AN10.28 AN10.61 AN10.62 AN10.90 AN10.95

this is cattāro satipaṭṭhānā or less frequently catūsu satipaṭṭhānesu and sometimes cattāro satipaṭṭhāne, or other variants, which is mentioned in several contexts, but is most concisely exemplified at SN47.1 given below:

So I have heard.
Evaṁ me sutaṁ—

At one time the Buddha was staying near Vesālī, in Ambapālī’s Mango Grove.
ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā vesāliyaṁ viharati ambapālivane.

There the Buddha addressed the mendicants,
Tatra kho bhagavā bhikkhū āmantesi:

“Mendicants!”
“bhikkhavo”ti.

“Venerable sir,” they replied.
“Bhadante”ti te bhikkhū bhagavato paccassosuṁ.

The Buddha said this:
Bhagavā etadavoca:

“Mendicants, the four kinds of mindfulness meditation are the path to convergence. They are in order to purify sentient beings, to get past sorrow and crying, to make an end of pain and sadness, to discover the system, and to realize extinguishment.
“Ekāyanvāyaṁ, bhikkhave, maggo sattānaṁ visuddhiyā sokaparidevānaṁ samatikkamāya dukkhadomanassānaṁ atthaṅgamāya ñāyassa adhigamāya nibbānassa sacchikiriyāya, yadidaṁ—cattāro satipaṭṭhānā.

What four?
Katame cattāro?

It’s when a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of the body—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā, vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ;

They meditate observing an aspect of feelings—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
vedanāsu vedanānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā, vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ;

They meditate observing an aspect of the mind—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
citte cittānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā, vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ;

They meditate observing an aspect of principles—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
dhammesu dhammānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā, vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.

The four kinds of mindfulness meditation are the path to convergence. They are in order to purify sentient beings, to get past sorrow and crying, to make an end of pain and sadness, to discover the system, and to realize extinguishment.”
Ekāyanvāyaṁ, bhikkhave, maggo sattānaṁ visuddhiyā sokaparidevānaṁ samatikkamāya dukkhadomanassānaṁ atthaṅgamāya ñāyassa adhigamāya nibbānassa sacchikiriyāya, yadidaṁ—cattāro satipaṭṭhānā”ti.

That is what the Buddha said.
Idamavoca bhagavā.

Satisfied, the mendicants approved what the Buddha said.
Attamanā te bhikkhū bhagavato bhāsitaṁ abhinandunti.

Unlike the jhāna teaching, this teaching does not occur, and is not mentioned, in the first 13 suttas of DN, the Sīlakkhandhavagga, where the jhāna instructions and names are given 12 times over, ommitted only in the last sutta where the paṭipadā is modified to give the brahmāviharas.

Instead, the term does not occur until DN16 the Mahāparinibbānasutta which we will turn to now.

The first mention of the term comes not from the buddha, but from his chief disciple, sariputta:

In the same way, I understand this by inference from the teaching:

Evameva kho me, bhante, dhammanvayo vidito:

‘All the perfected ones, fully awakened Buddhas—whether past, future, or present—give up the five hindrances, corruptions of the heart that weaken wisdom. Their mind is firmly established in the four kinds of mindfulness meditation. They correctly develop the seven awakening factors. And they wake up to the supreme perfect awakening.’”

‘ye te, bhante, ahesuṁ atītamaddhānaṁ arahanto sammāsambuddhā, sabbe te bhagavanto pañca nīvaraṇe pahāya cetaso upakkilese paññāya dubbalīkaraṇe catūsu satipaṭṭhānesu supatiṭṭhitacittā sattabojjhaṅge yathābhūtaṁ bhāvetvā anuttaraṁ sammāsambodhiṁ abhisambujjhiṁsu.

Yepi te, bhante, bhavissanti anāgatamaddhānaṁ arahanto sammāsambuddhā, sabbe te bhagavanto pañca nīvaraṇe pahāya cetaso upakkilese paññāya dubbalīkaraṇe catūsu satipaṭṭhānesu supatiṭṭhitacittā satta bojjhaṅge yathābhūtaṁ bhāvetvā anuttaraṁ sammāsambodhiṁ abhisambujjhissanti.

Bhagavāpi, bhante, etarahi arahaṁ sammāsambuddho pañca nīvaraṇe pahāya cetaso upakkilese paññāya dubbalīkaraṇe catūsu satipaṭṭhānesu supatiṭṭhitacitto satta bojjhaṅge yathābhūtaṁ bhāvetvā anuttaraṁ sammāsambodhiṁ abhisambuddho’”ti.
DN16

This is odd, in that it is the first time we see the term (or the sattabojjhaṅge), and at this point it has not been explained in the sutta, nor in the previous 15 suttas in the long collection, it has never been mentioned by the buddha, in this sutta or the previous 15.

Next, the buddha gives the teaching we associate with the four foundations, but he doesn’t call it that saying simply:

“Mendicants, a mendicant should live mindful and aware"
“Sato, bhikkhave, bhikkhu vihareyya sampajāno,

This is my instruction to you.
ayaṁ vo amhākaṁ anusāsanī.

And how is a mendicant mindful?
Kathañca, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sato hoti?

It’s when a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of the body—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.

They meditate observing an aspect of feelings …
Vedanāsu vedanānupassī …pe…

mind …
citte cittānupassī …pe…

principles—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
dhammesu dhammānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.

That’s how a mendicant is mindful.
Evaṁ kho, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sato hoti.

And how is a mendicant aware?
Kathañca, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sampajāno hoti?

It’s when a mendicant acts with situational awareness when going out and coming back; when looking ahead and aside; when bending and extending the limbs; when bearing the outer robe, bowl and robes; when eating, drinking, chewing, and tasting; when urinating and defecating; when walking, standing, sitting, sleeping, waking, speaking, and keeping silent.
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu abhikkante paṭikkante sampajānakārī hoti, ālokite vilokite sampajānakārī hoti, samiñjite pasārite sampajānakārī hoti, saṅghāṭipattacīvaradhāraṇe sampajānakārī hoti, asite pīte khāyite sāyite sampajānakārī hoti, uccārapassāvakamme sampajānakārī hoti, gate ṭhite nisinne sutte jāgarite bhāsite tuṇhībhāve sampajānakārī hoti.

That’s how a mendicant is aware.
Evaṁ kho, bhikkhave, bhikkhu sampajāno hoti.

A mendicant should live mindful and aware.
Sato, bhikkhave, bhikkhu vihareyya sampajāno,

This is my instruction to you.”
ayaṁ vo amhākaṁ anusāsanī”ti.
DN16

This continues to be strikingly odd, at no point has this teaching been given before, except the situational awareness part, which we are familiar with from the jhāna teaching, but this new teaching is not refered to as the four foundations by the buddha, it is merely said to be “sato”.

The buddha then repeats the same teaching, to ananda, but again, does not call it the four foundations of mindfulness, instead saying:

So Ānanda, live as your own island, your own refuge, with no other refuge. Let the teaching be your island and your refuge, with no other refuge.
Tasmātihānanda, attadīpā viharatha attasaraṇā anaññasaraṇā, dhammadīpā dhammasaraṇā anaññasaraṇā.

And how does a mendicant do this?
Kathañcānanda, bhikkhu attadīpo viharati attasaraṇo anaññasaraṇo, dhammadīpo dhammasaraṇo anaññasaraṇo?

It’s when a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of the body—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
Idhānanda, bhikkhu kāye kāyānupassī viharati atāpī sampajāno satimā, vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.

They meditate observing an aspect of feelings …
Vedanāsu …pe…

mind …
citte …pe…

Finally the buddha does mention the term, but doesn’t connect it with the teaching we have just heard, saying:

And what are those things I have taught from my direct knowledge?
Katame ca te, bhikkhave, dhammā mayā abhiññā desitā, ye vo sādhukaṁ uggahetvā āsevitabbā bhāvetabbā bahulīkātabbā, yathayidaṁ brahmacariyaṁ addhaniyaṁ assa ciraṭṭhitikaṁ, tadassa bahujanahitāya bahujanasukhāya lokānukampāya atthāya hitāya sukhāya devamanussānaṁ.

They are: the four kinds of mindfulness meditation, the four right efforts, the four bases of psychic power, the five faculties, the five powers, the seven awakening factors, and the noble eightfold path.
Seyyathidaṁ—cattāro satipaṭṭhānā, cattāro sammappadhānā, cattāro iddhipādā, pañcindriyāni, pañca balāni, satta bojjhaṅgā, ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo.
DN16

Again, apart from the ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo this is the first time any of these terms have occured in the prose collections of the pāli nikāyas, read in the order given by ananda in the vinaya account of the first council, the Pañcasatikakkhandhaka.

This is strikingly unlike the jhāna teaching, which has been given in full in 12 of the last 15 suttas, and just in case we had forgotten the importance of it, the current sutta reminds us with:

Then the Buddha entered the first absorption. Emerging from that, he entered the second absorption. Emerging from that, he successively entered into and emerged from the third absorption, the fourth absorption, the dimension of infinite space, the dimension of infinite consciousness, the dimension of nothingness, and the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception. Then he entered the cessation of perception and feeling.
Atha kho bhagavā paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, paṭhamajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā dutiyaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, dutiyajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā tatiyaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, tatiyajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā catutthaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, catutthajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ samāpajji, ākāsānañcāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ samāpajji, viññāṇañcāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā ākiñcaññāyatanaṁ samāpajji, ākiñcaññāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā nevasaññānāsaññāyatanaṁ samāpajji, nevasaññānāsaññāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā saññāvedayitanirodhaṁ samāpajji.

Then Venerable Ānanda said to Venerable Anuruddha,
Atha kho āyasmā ānando āyasmantaṁ anuruddhaṁ etadavoca:

“Honorable Anuruddha, has the Buddha become fully quenched?”
“parinibbuto, bhante anuruddha, bhagavā”ti.

“No, Reverend Ānanda. He has entered the cessation of perception and feeling.”
“Nāvuso ānanda, bhagavā parinibbuto, saññāvedayitanirodhaṁ samāpanno”ti.

Then the Buddha emerged from the cessation of perception and feeling and entered the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception. Emerging from that, he successively entered into and emerged from the dimension of nothingness, the dimension of infinite consciousness, the dimension of infinite space, the fourth absorption, the third absorption, the second absorption, and the first absorption. Emerging from that, he successively entered into and emerged from the second absorption and the third absorption. Then he entered the fourth absorption. Emerging from that the Buddha immediately became fully extinguished.
Atha kho bhagavā saññāvedayitanirodhasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā nevasaññānāsaññāyatanaṁ samāpajji, nevasaññānāsaññāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā ākiñcaññāyatanaṁ samāpajji, ākiñcaññāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ samāpajji, viññāṇañcāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ samāpajji, ākāsānañcāyatanasamāpattiyā vuṭṭhahitvā catutthaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, catutthajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā tatiyaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, tatiyajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā dutiyaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, dutiyajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, paṭhamajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā dutiyaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, dutiyajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā tatiyaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, tatiyajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā catutthaṁ jhānaṁ samāpajji, catutthajjhānā vuṭṭhahitvā samanantarā bhagavā parinibbāyi.

When the Buddha was fully quenched, along with the full extinguishment there was a great earthquake, awe-inspiring and hair-raising, and thunder cracked the sky.
Parinibbute bhagavati saha parinibbānā mahābhūmicālo ahosi bhiṁsanako salomahaṁso. Devadundubhiyo ca phaliṁsu.

So the first time we meet satipaṭṭhānā in the suttas, it is mentionedby sariputta, then it is taught by the buddha but not called by that name, then it is mentioned by the buddha, who then does a virtuoso jhāna performance and then dies.

If we are left feeling a little let down, after all, the buddha taught the jhāna to a king, in chapter two of the big book of buddhism, called them unequivocally by their names, and then repeated himself TEN TIMES, while here it is not even explicit if the buddha has actually taught the four foundations of mindfulness or not yet, and it has been introduced by sariputta.

The same goes for several of the terms in the cattāro satipaṭṭhānā, cattāro sammappadhānā, cattāro iddhipādā, pañcindriyāni, pañca balāni, satta bojjhaṅgā, ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo. list.

The next time we run into cattāro satipaṭṭhānā is at DN18. perhaps here we will hear the buddha be more direct and explicit about what exactly is being taught when cattāro satipaṭṭhānā is being taught.

Nope.

“What do the good gods of the thirty-three think? How well described by the Buddha are the four kinds of mindfulness meditation! They are taught for achieving what is skillful.
“Taṁ kiṁ maññanti, bhonto devā tāvatiṁsā, yāva supaññattā cime tena bhagavatā jānatā passatā arahatā sammāsambuddhena cattāro satipaṭṭhānā paññattā kusalassādhigamāya.

What four?
Katame cattāro?

It’s when a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of the body internally—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
Idha, bho, bhikkhu ajjhattaṁ kāye kāyānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.

As they meditate in this way, they become rightly immersed in that, and rightly serene.
Ajjhattaṁ kāye kāyānupassī viharanto tattha sammā samādhiyati, sammā vippasīdati.

Then they give rise to knowledge and vision of other people’s bodies externally.
So tattha sammā samāhito sammā vippasanno bahiddhā parakāye ñāṇadassanaṁ abhinibbatteti.

They meditate observing an aspect of feelings internally …
Ajjhattaṁ vedanāsu vedanānupassī viharati …pe…

Then they give rise to knowledge and vision of other people’s feelings externally.
bahiddhā paravedanāsu ñāṇadassanaṁ abhinibbatteti.

They meditate observing an aspect of the mind internally …
Ajjhattaṁ citte cittānupassī viharati …pe…

Then they give rise to knowledge and vision of other people’s minds externally.
bahiddhā paracitte ñāṇadassanaṁ abhinibbatteti.

They meditate observing an aspect of principles internally—keen, aware, and mindful, rid of covetousness and displeasure for the world.
Ajjhattaṁ dhammesu dhammānupassī viharati ātāpī sampajāno satimā vineyya loke abhijjhādomanassaṁ.

As they meditate in this way, they become rightly immersed in that, and rightly serene.
Ajjhattaṁ dhammesu dhammānupassī viharanto tattha sammā samādhiyati, sammā vippasīdati.

Then they give rise to knowledge and vision of other people’s principles externally.
So tattha sammā samāhito sammā vippasanno bahiddhā paradhammesu ñāṇadassanaṁ abhinibbatteti.

These are the four kinds of mindfulness meditation taught by the Buddha for achieving what is skillful.”
Ime kho, bho, tena bhagavatā jānatā passatā arahatā sammāsambuddhena cattāro satipaṭṭhānā paññattā kusalassādhigamāyā”ti.

That is the topic on which Brahmā Sanaṅkumāra spoke.
Imamatthaṁ, bhante, brahmā sanaṅkumāro bhāsittha.
DN18

So the second time we meet satipaṭṭhānā in the first collection of the pāli nikāyas it is Brahmā Sanaṅkumāra giving the teaching, not the buddha, and the teaching is unusual, and this is important for whats coming, in that it seems to imply that the four foundations of mindfulness are sammā samādhiyati and capable of bestowing psychic powers.

This is new and exciting information, but the previous teachings, explicitly by the buddha, to a human audience, including a fmous king, said that it was the four jhāna that prepared the mind for the psychic powers, so what is going on?

The next sutta to address satipaṭṭhānā is DN22 but we will skip it here, it is indeed a teaching by the buddha, to a human audience, but on the basis that it lacks a parallel in the chinese long collection we will defer it to our discussion of the middle length collections where it has a parallel in both the pali and the chinese.

After DN22 the next sutta to discuss satipaṭṭhānā is DN28 and guess what, here agin it is not the buddha who gives the teaching but sariputta.

DN29 provides us with what we have been chasing, here is a sutta, with a chinese parallel at DA17 that has the buddha both naming and then giving the satipaṭṭhānā teaching.

It is worth noting that the chinese parallel has its satipaṭṭhānā teaching in a different position to the pali, and that it includes sariputtas earlier “give up the five hindrances, corruptions of the heart that weaken wisdom. Their mind is firmly established in the four kinds of mindfulness meditation. They correctly develop the seven awakening factors. And they wake up to the supreme perfect awakening” trope, which the pali lacks.

It is also worth noting that the theme of this sutta is that of how a community should conduct themselves to preserve thier teachings after the death of a founder, so a suspicious person might think that it was composed at a point in the history of buddhism, like the mahāparinibbānasutta, after the buddha had died.

But that is not really here nor there for this story.

The last two suttas that mention satipaṭṭhānā in the long collection are DN33 and DN34 both of which are attributed to sariputta.

So to summarise, in the entirety of the long collection, the buddha gives the satipaṭṭhānā teaching and calls it by it’s name, exactly once, at DN29/DA17. It is mentioned by sariputta in 4 suttas, and it is named and taught by a god in one.

In comparison the jhāna are taught by the buddha eleven times in the first 13 suttas of the long collection and then taught or mentioned in eleven of the remaining twenty one suttas in that collection.

Fully two thirds of the book teaches or mentions the Jhāna teaching.

Compared to satipaṭṭhānā which is taught under that name twice, and one of those teachings (given by a god to other gods) differs significantly from that given in the other.

Next we will look at the middle length collection and hopefully uncover a richer picture of how these two teachings interrelated and maybe even evolved in this literature.

But that can wait for a bit, stay tuned for part three!

end of part two

josephzizys · August 28, 2024, 8:10am

PART TWO:

So to recap; In 12 of the first 13 suttas of DN, the chapter called the silakhandhavagga, a lengthy piece of prose is repeated, which we call the paṭipadā.
In 11 of these 12 occurrences, and once more in another sutta, making 12 out of 13 occurrences, a subsection of this long piece of prose, the jhāna instruction is given.
In the one exception DN13, the entirety of the paṭipadā is given up to the point where we would expect to see the jhāna, where instead what we call the brahmavihārā are given, and then the sequence is cut, so that no psychic powers are developed and no knowledge of the end of rebirth is gained.
In the subsequent chapters jhāna is mentioned or implied in DN15 DN16 DN17 DN19 DN21 DN22 DN26 DN27 DN29 DN33 DN34 meaning that jhāna is mentioned (or implied by a “pe…”) in 23 of the 34 suttas of the pāli long collection, DN.
Alongside this meditation instruction is another one, most commonly called cattāro satipaṭṭhānā that first occurs at DN16, then again at DN18 DN22 DN28 DN29 DN33 DN34.
This teaching is introduced in a haphazard way in DN16, first mentioned by sariputta not the buddha, mentioned as if it is assumed common knowledge, taught under different titles but not connected to the term, and then in DN18 taught not by the buddha but by a god, and more or less at no point becoming a salient theme ala the prevalence of the jhana teaching in the first half of the collection.
Next, while the scattered teachings, often given under a different heading, mostly make of cattāro satipaṭṭhānā an exercise in the sort of mindfulness associated with the “situational awareness and mindfulness” of the paṭipadā instruction, as when the buddha gives the instruction at DN16, calling it only sato and following it immediatly with the “situational awareness” trope, in at least two places it appears to be elevated into a position that places it on a higher pedestal, as in where we see it after the five hinderances, where we would normally see jhana in sariputtas statement;

‘All the perfected ones, fully awakened Buddhas—whether past, future, or present—give up the five hindrances, corruptions of the heart that weaken wisdom. Their mind is firmly established in the four kinds of mindfulness meditation. They correctly develop the seven awakening factors. And they wake up to the supreme perfect awakening.’”

and where we see it more or less equated with sammā samādhiyati by Brahmā Sanaṅkumāra in DN18.

It gets it’s most sustained treatment in DN22, a sutta literally named after satipaṭṭhānā but this text is suspect because it is, uniquely amongst suttas in DN, an (almost) exact copy of a sutta in MN, MN10, and moreover, the chinese long discourses do not contain it in parallel, where it is only preserved as a middle length discourse.

This then brings us to the middle length collection, and hopefully more clarity on exactly why there is this difference in the long collections presentation of the two traditional mediation instructions.

The first major meditation instruction in MN is MN2. It culminates in an instruction we saw before in DN16, the so called sattabojjhaṅge, introduced in that long sutta by sariputta.

So, here is MN2:

And what are the defilements that should be given up by developing?
Katame ca, bhikkhave, āsavā bhāvanā pahātabbā?

It’s when a mendicant, reflecting rationally, develops the awakening factors of mindfulness,
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu paṭisaṅkhā yoniso satisambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ;

investigation of principles,
paṭisaṅkhā yoniso dhammavicayasambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti …pe…

energy,
vīriyasambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti …

rapture,
pītisambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti …

tranquility,
passaddhisambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti …

immersion,
samādhisambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti …

and equanimity, which rely on seclusion, fading away, and cessation, and ripen as letting go.
upekkhāsambojjhaṅgaṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ.

For the distressing and feverish defilements that might arise in someone who lives without developing these things do not arise when they are developed.
Yañhissa, bhikkhave, abhāvayato uppajjeyyuṁ āsavā vighātapariḷāhā, bhāvayato evaṁsa te āsavā vighātapariḷāhā na honti.

These are called the defilements that should be given up by developing.
Ime vuccanti, bhikkhave, āsavā bhāvanā pahātabbā.

A few observations:

MN2 starts as a development of the paṭipadā trope, relying on our familiarity with it to introduce it’s first part, the defilements that should be given up by seeing, which are listed as the familiar kāmāsavo, bhavāsavo and avijjāsavo of the paṭipadā.
The sutta then moves to the sense restraint part of the paṭipadā, the a slightly expanded form of the contentment with little part, then an intersting pait of avoiding and enduring tropes that quite possibly where a standard part of the paṭipadā that didn’t make it into the “canonical” version (they recall Jain tropes that appear more or less common stock to boh groups).
And finally we have this sattabojjhaṅga trope.

When we examine this trope it appears to relate mindfulness to samādhi via a series of intervening steps, and it recalls step 6. from our jhana instruction:

Seeing that the hindrances have been given up in them, joy springs up. Being joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel bliss. And when blissful, the mind becomes immersed.
Tassime pañca nīvaraṇe pahīne attani samanupassato pāmojjaṁ jāyati, pamuditassa pīti jāyati, pītimanassa kāyo passambhati, passaddhakāyo sukhaṁ vedeti, sukhino cittaṁ samādhiyati.

So while there is no mention of either satipaṭṭhānā or jhāna here we are clearly still under the direct influence of the paṭipadā, and on familiar ground.

The next meditation instruction sutta in the middle length collection is MN4, again a modified version of the paṭipadā, this time giving the full jhāna intstruction.

What is interesting abou thtis sutta is a how it gives the steps 5. and 6. as below:

Then I thought,
Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins full of desire for sensual pleasures, with acute lust …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā abhijjhālū kāmesu tibbasārāgā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, abhijjhālukāmesutibbasārāgasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ abhijjhālu kāmesu tibbasārāgo araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I am not full of desire …’
anabhijjhālūhamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā anabhijjhālū araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, anabhijjhālutaṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins full of ill will, with malicious intentions …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā byāpannacittā paduṭṭhamanasaṅkappā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, byāpannacittapaduṭṭhamanasaṅkappasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ byāpannacitto paduṭṭhamanasaṅkappo araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I have a heart full of love …’
mettacittohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā mettacittā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, mettacittataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins overcome with dullness and drowsiness …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā thinamiddhapariyuṭṭhitā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, thinamiddhapariyuṭṭhānasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ thinamiddhapariyuṭṭhito araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I am free of dullness and drowsiness …’
vigatathinamiddhohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā vigatathinamiddhā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, vigatathinamiddhataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who are restless, with no peace of mind …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā uddhatā avūpasantacittā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, uddhataavūpasantacittasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ uddhato avūpasantacitto araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

My mind is peaceful …’
vūpasantacittohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā vūpasantacittā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, vūpasantacittataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who are doubting and uncertain …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā kaṅkhī vicikicchī araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, kaṅkhivicikicchisandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ kaṅkhī vicikicchī araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I’ve gone beyond doubt …’
tiṇṇavicikicchohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā tiṇṇavicikicchā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, tiṇṇavicikicchataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who glorify themselves and put others down …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā attukkaṁsakā paravambhī araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, attukkaṁsanaparavambhanasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ attukkaṁsako paravambhī araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I don’t glorify myself and put others down …’
anattukkaṁsako aparavambhīhamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā anattukkaṁsakā aparavambhī araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, anattukkaṁsakataṁ aparavambhitaṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who are cowardly and craven …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā chambhī bhīrukajātikā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, chambhibhīrukajātikasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ chambhī bhīrukajātiko araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I don’t get startled …’
vigatalomahaṁsohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā vigatalomahaṁsā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, vigatalomahaṁsataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who enjoy possessions, honor, and popularity …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā lābhasakkārasilokaṁ nikāmayamānā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, lābhasakkārasilokanikāmanasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ lābhasakkārasilokaṁ nikāmayamāno araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I have few wishes …’
appicchohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā appicchā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, appicchataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who are lazy and lack energy …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā kusītā hīnavīriyā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, kusītahīnavīriyasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ kusīto hīnavīriyo araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;
I am energetic …’
āraddhavīriyohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā āraddhavīriyā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, āraddhavīriyataṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who are unmindful and lack situational awareness …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā muṭṭhassatī asampajānā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, muṭṭhassatiasampajānasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ muṭṭhassati asampajāno araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I am mindful …’
upaṭṭhitassatihamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā upaṭṭhitassatī araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, upaṭṭhitassatitaṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

Tassa mayhaṁ, brāhmaṇa, etadahosi:

‘There are ascetics and brahmins who lack immersion, with straying minds …
‘ye kho keci samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā asamāhitā vibbhantacittā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti, asamāhitavibbhantacittasandosahetu have te bhonto samaṇabrāhmaṇā akusalaṁ bhayabheravaṁ avhāyanti.
Na kho panāhaṁ asamāhito vibbhantacitto araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevāmi;

I am accomplished in immersion …’
samādhisampannohamasmi.
Ye hi vo ariyā samādhisampannā araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni paṭisevanti tesamahaṁ aññataro’ti.
Etamahaṁ, brāhmaṇa, samādhisampadaṁ attani sampassamāno bhiyyo pallomamāpādiṁ araññe vihārāya.

So the things of note here; first, there is a pretty good indication that here again we are clearly still under the direct influence of the paṭipadā, with a slightly expanded list of hinderances, and a slightly unusal ordering of contentment with little and mindfulness and situational awareness.

We still don’t see any reference satipaṭṭhānā, beyond mindfulness and situational awareness, but we do see reference to energy, something that first appears in the sattabojjhaṅga trope. we also get a very good context for thinking that samādhiand therefore (perhaps to a greater or more specific extent) jhāna simply means “concentration” in that samādhi here is directly contrasted to a “wandering mind”.

MN5 is not really a meditation sutta per se but has the neat:

But there are those gentlemen who went forth from the lay life to homelessness out of faith. They’re not devious, deceitful, and sneaky. They’re not restless, insolent, fickle, scurrilous, and loose-tongued. They guard their sense doors and eat in moderation, and they are dedicated to wakefulness. They care about the ascetic life, and keenly respect the training. They’re not indulgent or slack, nor are they leaders in backsliding, neglecting seclusion. They’re energetic and determined. They’re mindful, with situational awareness, immersion, and unified minds; wise, not stupid. Hearing this exposition of the teaching from Venerable Sāriputta, they drink it up and devour it, as it were. And in speech and thought they say:
Ye pana te kulaputtā saddhā agārasmā anagāriyaṁ pabbajitā, asaṭhā amāyāvino aketabino anuddhatā anunnaḷā acapalā amukharā avikiṇṇavācā, indriyesu guttadvārā, bhojane mattaññuno, jāgariyaṁ anuyuttā, sāmaññe apekkhavanto, sikkhāya tibbagāravā, na bāhulikā na sāthalikā, okkamane nikkhittadhurā, paviveke pubbaṅgamā, āraddhavīriyā pahitattā upaṭṭhitassatī sampajānā samāhitā ekaggacittā paññavanto aneḷamūgā, te āyasmato sāriputtassa imaṁ dhammapariyāyaṁ sutvā pivanti maññe, ghasanti maññe vacasā ceva manasā ca:

Again, this is clearly, for those who read DN2-DN13, a familiar and succinct description of the paṭipadā.

MN6 is again a paṭipadā sutta. Mn7 is another one, giving a significantly longer list of mental hinderences before repeting step 6. in our list;

Thinking: ‘I have discarded, eliminated, released, given up, and relinquished to this extent,’ they find inspiration in the meaning and the teaching, and find joy connected with the teaching.
‘Yathodhi kho pana me cattaṁ vantaṁ muttaṁ pahīnaṁ paṭinissaṭṭhan’ti labhati atthavedaṁ, labhati dhammavedaṁ, labhati dhammūpasaṁhitaṁ pāmojjaṁ;

When they’re joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel bliss. And when they’re blissful, the mind becomes immersed in samādhi.
pamuditassa pīti jāyati, pītimanassa kāyo passambhati, passaddhakāyo sukhaṁ vedeti, sukhino cittaṁ samādhiyati.

MN8 is a exegesis on the jhana parctice (and the appended formless attainments) giving an extended list of hinderences including a tenfold path, the sila, the hinderences, and the preceding energy -mindfulness -wisdom trope from MN4.

MN9 is a sariputta sutta, but it’s an important one for a couple of reasons:

Ignorance originates from defilement. Ignorance ceases when defilement ceases. The practice that leads to the cessation of ignorance is simply this noble eightfold path …”
Āsavasamudayā avijjāsamudayo, āsavanirodhā avijjānirodho, ayameva ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo avijjānirodhagāminī paṭipadā, seyyathidaṁ—
sammādiṭṭhi …pe… sammāsamādhi.

Yato kho, āvuso, ariyasāvako evaṁ avijjaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ avijjāsamudayaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ avijjānirodhaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ avijjānirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ pajānāti, so sabbaso rāgānusayaṁ pahāya, paṭighānusayaṁ paṭivinodetvā, ‘asmī’ti diṭṭhimānānusayaṁ samūhanitvā, avijjaṁ pahāya vijjaṁ uppādetvā, diṭṭheva dhamme dukkhassantakaro hoti—
ettāvatāpi kho, āvuso, ariyasāvako sammādiṭṭhi hoti, ujugatāssa diṭṭhi, dhamme aveccappasādena samannāgato, āgato imaṁ saddhamman”ti.

Saying “Good, sir,” those mendicants approved and agreed with what Sāriputta said. Then they asked another question:
“Sādhāvuso”ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato sāriputtassa bhāsitaṁ abhinanditvā anumoditvā āyasmantaṁ sāriputtaṁ uttari pañhaṁ apucchuṁ:

“But reverend, might there be another way to describe a noble disciple who has right view, whose view is correct, who has experiential confidence in the teaching, and has come to the true teaching?”
“siyā panāvuso, aññopi pariyāyo yathā ariyasāvako sammādiṭṭhi hoti, ujugatāssa diṭṭhi, dhamme aveccappasādena samannāgato, āgato imaṁ saddhamman”ti?

“There might, reverends.
“Siyā, āvuso.

A noble disciple understands defilement, its origin, its cessation, and the practice that leads to its cessation.
Yato kho, āvuso, ariyasāvako āsavañca pajānāti, āsavasamudayañca pajānāti, āsavanirodhañca pajānāti, āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadañca pajānāti—

When they’ve done this, they’re defined as a noble disciple who has right view, whose view is correct, who has experiential confidence in the teaching, and has come to the true teaching.
ettāvatāpi kho, āvuso, ariyasāvako sammādiṭṭhi hoti, ujugatāssa diṭṭhi, dhamme aveccappasādena samannāgato, āgato imaṁ saddhammaṁ.

But what is defilement? What is its origin, its cessation, and the practice that leads to its cessation?
Katamo panāvuso, āsavo, katamo āsavasamudayo, katamo āsavanirodho, katamā āsavanirodhagāminī paṭipadāti?

There are these three defilements.
Tayome, āvuso, āsavā—

The defilements of sensuality, desire to be reborn, and ignorance.
kāmāsavo, bhavāsavo, avijjāsavo.

Defilement originates from ignorance. Defilement ceases when ignorance ceases. The practice that leads to the cessation of defilement is simply this noble eightfold path, that is:
Avijjāsamudayā āsavasamudayo, avijjānirodhā āsavanirodho, ayameva ariyo aṭṭhaṅgiko maggo āsavanirodhagāminī paṭipadā, seyyathidaṁ—

right view, right thought, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right immersion.
sammādiṭṭhi …pe… sammāsamādhi.

A noble disciple understands in this way defilement, its origin, its cessation, and the practice that leads to its cessation. They’ve completely given up the underlying tendency to greed, got rid of the underlying tendency to repulsion, and eradicated the underlying tendency to the view and conceit ‘I am’. They’ve given up ignorance and given rise to knowledge, and make an end of suffering in this very life.
Yato kho, āvuso, ariyasāvako evaṁ āsavaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ āsavasamudayaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ āsavanirodhaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ pajānāti, so sabbaso rāgānusayaṁ pahāya, paṭighānusayaṁ paṭivinodetvā, ‘asmī’ti diṭṭhimānānusayaṁ samūhanitvā, avijjaṁ pahāya vijjaṁ uppādetvā, diṭṭheva dhamme dukkhassantakaro hoti—

It’s the first time we see a 13 link DO that connects suffering to the kāmāsavo, bhavāsavo, avijjāsavo via ignorance, thus connecting the DO to the paṭipadā since we are introduced to DO in DN14 (although the concept is evident in D1 without being explained).

So so far all the meditation instructions in the middle collection are jhanic-paṭipadic, This one ends with an appeal to the eightfold path, first seen in DN6, where we are also given a patipada the aim of which is to understand the abyakata.

At the end of the jhanic first vagga comes the great work on satipaṭṭhānā MN10.

This is a central sutta in the story about how mindfulness fits with jhana, we will therefore leave it till

PART FOUR:

Satipaṭṭhānasutta and the Saṁyutta - How city based memorisers reformed the cognitive praxis of the early buddhists. Or something like that.

Dunlop · August 28, 2024, 10:19am

The suttas read to say to reach the fourth jhana, only vitakka & vicara (which are not thoughts) & vedana (feelings) are stilled. There are no “emotions” in jhana.

MN 19 reads to say there are no thoughts in jhana. I read as though there cannot be thoughts & one-pointedness (ekaggata) together. Ekaggata is a factor of the 1st (MN 43) and every jhana (MN 111).

Happiness does not read to render as “emotion” in English

I think it is an error to regard the DN as early & authoritative. I read Sujato’s intro for the DN, when I remember it was suggested the DN was for showing off & debating with Brahmins.

DN 16 is likely more authoritative in most places. There is no Noble Eightfold Path without satipatthana.

The King probably cannot practice jhana. The Buddha would have been showing off here; to impress the King. It was likely important in India to receive royal benefaction & protection.

[quote=“josephzizys, post:1, topic:35705”]

Giving up covetousness for the world, they meditate with a heart rid of covetousness, cleansing the mind of covetousness.

…

Giving up doubt, they meditate having gone beyond doubt, not undecided about skillful qualities, cleansing the mind of doubt.

Seeing that the hindrances have been given up in them, joy springs up. Being joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel bliss. And when blissful, the mind becomes immersed.[/quote]

There is a problem with this teaching, which is it does not work like this in reality. In reality, the mind absent of the five hindrances does not immediately result in jhana. If the absence of the five hindrances immediately caused jhana, the Buddha would not have had to engage in “unflagging” effort and “mindfulness established”. If the absence of the five hindrances immediately caused jhana, the Buddha (after Buddhahood) would not have to calm/still the breathing.

My energy was roused up and unflagging, my mindfulness was established and lucid, my body was tranquil and undisturbed, and my mind was immersed in samādhi.

MN 19

‘Reverends, the ascetic Gotama’s usual meditation during the rainy season residence was immersion due to mindfulness of breathing.’

I know: ‘I’ll breathe in stilling physical processes.’ ‘I’ll breathe out stilling physical processes.’

SN 54.11

Dunlop · August 28, 2024, 10:35am

The awakening factor of mindfulness is satipatthana.

Whenever a mendicant meditates by observing an aspect of feelings …mind …principles, at that time their mindfulness is established and lucid. At such a time, a mendicant has activated the awakening factor of mindfulness …

MN 118

And how, Kuṇḍaliya, are the four establishments of mindfulness developed and cultivated so that they fulfil the seven factors of enlightenment? Here, Kuṇḍaliya, a bhikkhu dwells contemplating the body in the body, ardent, clearly comprehending and mindful, having removed covetousness and displeasure in regard to the world. He dwells contemplating feelings in feelings … mind in mind … phenomena in phenomena, ardent, clearly comprehending and mindful, having removed covetousness and displeasure in regard to the world. It is in this way that the four establishments of mindfulness are developed and cultivated so that they fulfil the seven factors of enlightenment.

SN 46.6

The DN does not introduce DO. SN 12.10 & SN 12.65 introduce DO, where each begin with: “Mendicants, before my awakening—when I was still unawakened but intent on awakening”.

It does not read as though there are 13 links. MN 9 reads to say ignorance is the condition for asava; and asava are the condition for ignorance. This reads to be only one single link.

The absence of the five hindrances does not immediately result in jhana. Satipatthana reads to fit in between the ending of the hindrances & the reaching of jhana. Satipatthana reads to also be applicable to jhana itself because there must be mindfulness when experiencing feelings in jhana. Satipatthana is the 7th factor of the Noble Eightfold Path and the cause of jhana (MN 117).

The DN was likely composed up to centuries after the Buddha & reads to be for the purpose showing off, debating Brahmins & making a strong impression on ordinary folks.

I read somewhere the monk Sujato called MN 10 a forgery. Are the Satipathana suttas not original? (DN22, MN10)

stephen · August 28, 2024, 11:05am

In the thread you link to Bh Sujato says:

Later in the same thread he says:

At the end of the thread, Gillian reflects-

Which gets at the heart of the issue.

am7 · August 28, 2024, 11:34am

So what is the purpose of these posts: to figure out if satipaṭṭhānā is useful or are you doubting its usefulness or simply analyze texts?

An interesting point to realize is that in MN100, Buddha states before awakening:

Then it occurred to me, ‘It’s not just Āḷāra Kālāma who has faith, energy, sati, immersion, and wisdom; I too have these things. Why don’t I make an effort to realize the same teaching that Āḷāra Kālāma says he has realized with his own insight?’ I quickly realized that teaching with my own insight, and lived having achieved it.

“I soon entered upon and abode in that Dhamma, myself realizing it through direct knowledge. Then I went to Ālāra Kālāma, and I said to him: ‘Friend Kalama, is it in this way that you declare to have entered upon this Dhamma, yourself realizing it through direct knowledge?’

This sutta states Buddha even before awakening stated he had faith, energy, sati, immersion, and wisdom.
Then what about people who do not have all of these?
This might be where the cultivation of sati and other factors comes in.

faujidoc1 · August 28, 2024, 1:48pm

I dunno but it seems to me that Satipatthana encompasses the core of the Jhana patipada (viz steps 2-5)? Ethics could be viewed as a basic prerequisite ~~perquisite~~ while Jhana could be viewed as something which would happen quite naturally once steps 2-5 were completed, hence the development of a practice of the core elements only - which could be described as the direct path (ekanaya magga).

Is this what you are getting at?

stephen · August 28, 2024, 2:31pm

Perhaps you mean ‘prerequisite’ ?
Ethical behavior is usually viewed as a necessary requirement for furthering spiritual progress, rather than a ‘perk’.

josephzizys · August 28, 2024, 11:44pm

So before it was predominantly a religious forum for religious practitioners to share thier religious ideas and ask questions related to thier religious beliefs, this forum was dedicated to the study of the Early Buddhist Texts maintained at suttacentral.net.

I realise having discovered this forum during covid that I missed the heyday of this board as a place of genuine research, from what i can tell that was around the 2018 mark when there where systematic studies and jain parallels and vedic exegisis and all sorts of fascinating stuff flying around here.

Nowadays the numbers of such posters have dwindled and the number of “practitioner” posters has increased. But i count myself as a throwback to the glory days of the study of the texts for thier own sake and on thier own merits.

So yes, i am simply analysing texts, which is actually less simple than you might think given that there are tens of thousands of them in half a dozen ancient languages all talking about something that no one but an enlightened master can truly fully understand.

Viz satipathanna and its usefulness, it depends on what you mean, read “down” as being simply an instruction on how to pay attention i think its vital as a precursor to achieving the “read down” jhanas, that is concentration, and i think both attention and concentration are indespensable to understanding, and i mean undertanding practically anything, but in particular understanding what the buddha was teaching.

Do i think that it is neccesary to make fine distinctions within oneself about whether the experience your having is the body or feeling or whether it is internal or external etc? Not particularly, but after all, i am not claiming to be an enlightened master, just a student of ancient texts.

josephzizys · August 29, 2024, 12:01am

So a few things with this.

First, i am not arguing about sati, which is a common, non technical word for awareness, attentivness, recollectedness etc, that is used from the very beginning, and in the early poetry is much more prominent than anything we might take to be “jhanic”. I am talking about satipathanna, which is a technical term for a method of meditation described repatedly in the suttas, like jhana is.

Second, the fact that a text is set before the awakening tells us exactly nothing about when the text was written or when the technical terms and techniques described in the text where invented.

I could write a text about the buddha before his awakening right now and fill it with interesting terms and techniques, it wouldnt mean that the buddha really used those terms and techniques would it?

I allude to this in my discussion of DN16, we assume that this text was compiled after the buddha died because the buddha is dead in it, but this is not because we think it is impossible to write a text with a dead charector who is in fact alive, again, i could write a text with you dead in it but it would ve written while you where in fact still alive. The reason we think DN16 was written after the buddhas death is beacuase it would be wierd for a religious group to make up a religious instruction about the passing of thier founder while he was still alive. (Amongst other reasons)

There are however plenty of reasons to go the other way and write storys about your religious founder being al8ve when in fact he is already dead. You can reteoactively claim that he said something about the meditation technique your community has developed, for example.

All this is really neither here nor there for my project though, as while it appears to me pretty obvious that the textual debelopment i am exploring happened over centuries, whether it happened over centuries, decades or minutes in the matrix, it happened, and it seems to me only relevant really to religionists who have a wish that the buddha actually said all the things they like about buddhiam, rather than an ancient community. I think this need to worship a founder or figurehead or god is very deep in religious people, but as i say, not particularly relevent.

josephzizys · August 29, 2024, 12:20am

What I am ultimately getting at is a plausible explination of the inversion of the frequency of the terms satipathanna and jhana in the samyutta nikaya when compared to the other 3 nikayas in the pali sutta pitaka.

The traditional monastic explination that satipathanna is prominant in SN because teachings about it where collected there because each volume of the four collections was designed for a different audience, outsiders (DN), recent converts (MN), monastics (SN), and buddhist laity (AN), as posited by Bodhi for example, does not bear close scrutiny, which i intend to give it before giving my, imho, more plausible argument.

One of the many reasons this explination is not plausible for the satipathanna jhana inveraion in S is that it doesnt apply to a whole.bunch of other technical terms pertaining to the absolute pinnacle of monastic achievement.

And even putting aside the other technical terms, it doesnt even make sense in this case since even SN acknowledges jhana practice as a step above satipathanna practice in the achievemnt of awakening, so if it where the “specialist” book for monastics it should talk about jhana more, not less.

Anyway, what i am.“getting at” is NOT RELIGIOUS, it is TEXTUAL, its about how the texts evolved and changed, and maybe a few speculations as to why (an urban communal.environment where groups where engaged in the rote memorisation of these very same texts a generation after the principle figures in these texts spent the majority of thier time alone in the wilderness goes a fair way to a plausible picture about how lucid mindfulness and attention became more useful than concentration-for-psychic-powers).

The reflexive reading of such discussions as being about what the “real” teaching was is based on the fallacious and religious need for those teachings to be “spoken by the founder”. I no longer care about that idea.

faujidoc1 · August 29, 2024, 6:55am

oops, yes - all thanks to auto correct.
Edited it manually now.

am7 · August 29, 2024, 7:12am

Hi,

Thank you explaining the motive and purpose.

By refering to step above do you mean that in 8FP the steps follow as:
… right effort, right mightfullness, right samadhi (jhana)
And in seven awakening factors:

mindfullness 2. investigation of principles … 7. samadhi

I think its also good to take into account who Buddha taught in the suttas - as he first focused on people who had “little dust in the eye” from which we could imply that such people had many good qualities already present in them and might have needed only very little instruction.

josephzizys · August 29, 2024, 8:20am

Yes, exactly, the first seven steps of the 8FP are literally called “the 7 steps to immersion” in places in DN.

The sattabojangha is the same basic sequence - rousing up energy, investigating principles, etc

josephzizys · August 31, 2024, 1:57am

OK, part… whatever

MN10

SO MN10 opens with a reproduction of SN47.1 in it’s entirety, the only difference being the location, which MN10 has in common with DN22 and most? of the parallels.

This may cast suspicion on the location at SN47.1 but it is not the usual at savathi there either so there is some controversy here and a more complete investigation would be required to resolve it.

Much detailed work on the teachings of SN47.1 - MN10 - DN22 has been done by our own miraculous @sujato in his
A_History_of_Mindfulness_Bhikkhu_Sujato.pdf (2.9 MB)

Which I will assume has been read in what follows.

I take the satipaṭṭhānā mula to be a reasonable reconstruction of the text as it existed in the pre-sectarian times (see section 15 of the attached document.)

What we have is basically a layering of 3 texts, first, you guessed it, the paṭipadā

the core parts of observing the mind and of observing the dhammas are both from our ur-text, first;

When their mind has become immersed in samādhi like this—purified, bright, flawless, rid of corruptions, pliable, workable, steady, and imperturbable—they project it and extend it toward comprehending the minds of others.
So evaṁ samāhite citte parisuddhe pariyodāte anaṅgaṇe vigatūpakkilese mudubhūte kammaniye ṭhite āneñjappatte cetopariyañāṇāya cittaṁ abhinīharati abhininnāmeti.
They understand the minds of other beings and individuals, having comprehended them with their own mind.
So parasattānaṁ parapuggalānaṁ cetasā ceto paricca pajānāti—
They understand mind with greed as ‘mind with greed’,
sarāgaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘sarāgaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
and mind without greed as ‘mind without greed’.
vītarāgaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vītarāgaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
They understand mind with hate …
sadosaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘sadosaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
mind without hate …
vītadosaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vītadosaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
mind with delusion …
samohaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘samohaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
mind without delusion …
vītamohaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vītamohaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
constricted mind …
saṅkhittaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘saṅkhittaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
scattered mind …
vikkhittaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vikkhittaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
expansive mind …
mahaggataṁ vā cittaṁ ‘mahaggataṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
unexpansive mind …
amahaggataṁ vā cittaṁ ‘amahaggataṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
mind that is not supreme …
sauttaraṁ vā cittaṁ ‘sauttaraṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
mind that is supreme …
anuttaraṁ vā cittaṁ ‘anuttaraṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
immersed mind …
samāhitaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘samāhitaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
unimmersed mind …
asamāhitaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘asamāhitaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
freed mind …
vimuttaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vimuttaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti,
They understand unfreed mind as ‘unfreed mind’.
avimuttaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘avimuttaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti.

and then;

When they have this entire spectrum of noble ethics, this noble sense restraint, this noble mindfulness and situational awareness, and this noble contentment,
So iminā ca ariyena sīlakkhandhena samannāgato, iminā ca ariyena indriyasaṁvarena samannāgato, iminā ca ariyena satisampajaññena samannāgato, imāya ca ariyāya santuṭṭhiyā samannāgato,
they frequent a secluded lodging—a wilderness, the root of a tree, a hill, a ravine, a mountain cave, a charnel ground, a forest, the open air, a heap of straw.
vivittaṁ senāsanaṁ bhajati araññaṁ rukkhamūlaṁ pabbataṁ kandaraṁ giriguhaṁ susānaṁ vanapatthaṁ abbhokāsaṁ palālapuñjaṁ.
After the meal, they return from almsround, sit down cross-legged, set their body straight, and establish mindfulness in their presence.
So pacchābhattaṁ piṇḍapātapaṭikkanto nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā.

Giving up covetousness for the world, they meditate with a heart rid of covetousness, cleansing the mind of covetousness.
So abhijjhaṁ loke pahāya vigatābhijjhena cetasā viharati, abhijjhāya cittaṁ parisodheti.
Giving up ill will and malevolence, they meditate with a mind rid of ill will, full of sympathy for all living beings, cleansing the mind of ill will.
Byāpādapadosaṁ pahāya abyāpannacitto viharati sabbapāṇabhūtahitānukampī, byāpādapadosā cittaṁ parisodheti.
Giving up dullness and drowsiness, they meditate with a mind rid of dullness and drowsiness, perceiving light, mindful and aware, cleansing the mind of dullness and drowsiness.
Thinamiddhaṁ pahāya vigatathinamiddho viharati ālokasaññī, sato sampajāno, thinamiddhā cittaṁ parisodheti.
Giving up restlessness and remorse, they meditate without restlessness, their mind peaceful inside, cleansing the mind of restlessness and remorse.
Uddhaccakukkuccaṁ pahāya anuddhato viharati, ajjhattaṁ vūpasantacitto, uddhaccakukkuccā cittaṁ parisodheti.
Giving up doubt, they meditate having gone beyond doubt, not undecided about skillful qualities, cleansing the mind of doubt.
Vicikicchaṁ pahāya tiṇṇavicikiccho viharati, akathaṅkathī kusalesu dhammesu, vicikicchāya cittaṁ parisodheti.

So the entirety of the of the mind contemplation, and half of the dhamma contemplation are simply redeployments of the lists we have been introduced to at DN2 (and repeated at DN3, DN4, DN5, DN6, DN7…).

The second half of the dhammas contemplation is the sattabojjhaṅga trope, which as we have pointed out seems to be a simple expansion of our step 6. from the patipada:

Seeing that the hindrances have been given up in them, joy springs up. Being joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel bliss. And when blissful, the mind becomes immersed.
Tassime pañca nīvaraṇe pahīne attani samanupassato pāmojjaṁ jāyati, pamuditassa pīti jāyati, pītimanassa kāyo passambhati, passaddhakāyo sukhaṁ vedeti, sukhino cittaṁ samādhiyati.

That is, one sits, establishes mindfulness (sattabojjhaṅga 1), discerns the dhammas i.e hindrances (sattabojjhaṅga 2), energetically removes the hinderences (sattabojjhaṅga 3) then the body becomes tranquil-rapturous-blissfull (sattabojjhaṅga 4) and from the resulting feeling of tranquility (sattabojjhaṅga 5) the mind becomes immersed (sattabojjhaṅga 6) the 4 jhanas then result in equanimity (sattabojjhaṅga 7)

The second half then of the satipaṭṭhānā mula is a straightforward quotation or elaboration on the paṭipadā.

The first half of the text is then the body contemplation and the vedana contemplation.

The full body trope first appears late in DN, at DN28 with;

Firstly, some ascetic or brahmin—by dint of keen, resolute, committed, and diligent effort, and right application of mind—experiences an immersion of the heart of such a kind that they examine their own body up from the soles of the feet and down from the tips of the hairs, wrapped in skin and full of many kinds of filth.
Idha, bhante, ekacco samaṇo vā brāhmaṇo vā ātappamanvāya padhānamanvāya anuyogamanvāya appamādamanvāya sammāmanasikāramanvāya tathārūpaṁ cetosamādhiṁ phusati, yathāsamāhite citte imameva kāyaṁ uddhaṁ pādatalā adho kesamatthakā tacapariyantaṁ pūraṁ nānappakārassa asucino paccavekkhati:
‘In this body there is head hair, body hair, nails, teeth, skin, flesh, sinews, bones, bone marrow, kidneys, heart, liver, diaphragm, spleen, lungs, intestines, mesentery, undigested food, feces, bile, phlegm, pus, blood, sweat, fat, tears, grease, saliva, snot, synovial fluid, urine.’
‘atthi imasmiṁ kāye kesā lomā nakhā dantā taco maṁsaṁ nhāru aṭṭhi aṭṭhimiñjaṁ vakkaṁ hadayaṁ yakanaṁ kilomakaṁ pihakaṁ papphāsaṁ antaṁ antaguṇaṁ udariyaṁ karīsaṁ pittaṁ semhaṁ pubbo lohitaṁ sedo medo assu vasā kheḷo siṅghānikā lasikā muttan’ti.
This is the first attainment of vision.
Ayaṁ paṭhamā dassanasamāpatti.

Here it is given more or less as an independent teaching in a sariputta style anthologizing sutta.

It appears again at MN119 where it is expanded to include the breath and the corpse grounds, but is still clearly connected to and an expansion of the situational awareness and mindfulness passage of the paṭipadā, the jhana and attainments portion of which immediately follows the section.

If we are alert we can see faint traces of the suicide controversy here in the way this sutta, MA81 in the chinese is “demoted” by the insertion of the samyutta style sutta MN118 (SA815) into the Therevada middle collection. This tracks with episode of mass suicide prompting the replacement of body contemplation with anapana in the vinaya.

At any rate, comparing MN119 with MN118 one sees that the number of tropes anthologiesed in MN118 increases and the presense of the paṭipadā is more clear in the presumably earlier MN119.

The last part to be explained is the vedana section.

The culmination of the vedana praxis in MN10 is:

When they feel a neutral feeling not of the flesh, they know: ‘I feel a neutral feeling not of the flesh.’
Nirāmisaṁ vā adukkhamasukhaṁ vedanaṁ vedayamāno ‘nirāmisaṁ adukkhamasukhaṁ vedanaṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti.

We have seen adukkhamasukhaṁ before of course, it is in our patipada at:

Furthermore, giving up pleasure and pain, and ending former happiness and sadness, a mendicant enters and remains in the fourth absorption, without pleasure or pain, with pure equanimity and mindfulness.
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu sukhassa ca pahānā dukkhassa ca pahānā, pubbeva somanassadomanassānaṁ atthaṅgamā adukkhamasukhaṁ upekkhāsatipārisuddhiṁ catutthaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

adukkhamasukhaṁ upekkhāsatipārisuddhiṁ.

So to summarize, MN10, and MN119 and MN118 are all to one extent or another quotations and elaborations of parts of the paṭipadā, rearranged or extended to reflect changing emphasis in praxis, one that shifts emphasis away form jhana and towards sati.

This probably reflects the changing context of praxis, from one where the majority of monks where wandering in search of “lonely places and empty huts” to one where most where living communally, and an environment where the focus was less on developing the psychic powers and more on remembering the (growing) teachings.

There is so much more to say, but perhaps that will do for now…

josephzizys · August 31, 2024, 11:57am

Maybe as an aside, MN113 is a great sutta that contains the gem:

The Buddha has spoken of not being determined even by the attainment of the first absorption.
‘paṭhamajjhānasamāpattiyāpi kho atammayatā vuttā bhagavatā.

I.e even jhana practitoners can be assholes.

BethL · August 31, 2024, 12:26pm

This analysis has been marvelous

josephzizys · August 31, 2024, 10:31pm

Aww thanks @BethL ! I just want to stress that i dont think anything essential was “lost” when jhana was superseded, as i think probably from the beginning it was a practice of the “ultimate satisfaction in this life” school that had been modified or welded onto the “eternalists” reincarnation praxis (for both see DN1) for the purposes of providing a sort of paradigmatic “enligtenment experience”. However I think the buddha says plenty of times, and in the poetry espscially, that all the pyrotechnics are secondary, and sariputta, who couldnt see a mud goblin, is just as enlightened as moggalana, flying around the brahma realm.

Buddhism has always been a teaching that transcends any particular experience. Thats kind of the whole point.

Metta!

josephzizys · August 31, 2024, 11:07pm

Just as an example of what we are talking about, contrast this description of practice in MN22 to the one at DN2 (DN3, DN4, DN5…);

Now, take a gentleman who memorizes the teaching—
Idha pana, bhikkhave, ekacce kulaputtā dhammaṁ pariyāpuṇanti—

statements, mixed prose & verse, discussions, verses, inspired exclamations, legends, stories of past lives, amazing stories, and elaborations.
suttaṁ, geyyaṁ, veyyākaraṇaṁ, gāthaṁ, udānaṁ, itivuttakaṁ, jātakaṁ, abbhutadhammaṁ, vedallaṁ.

And once he’s memorized them, he examines their meaning with wisdom,
Te taṁ dhammaṁ pariyāpuṇitvā tesaṁ dhammānaṁ paññāya atthaṁ upaparikkhanti.

and comes to an acceptance of them after deliberation.
Tesaṁ te dhammā paññāya atthaṁ upaparikkhataṁ nijjhānaṁ khamanti.

He doesn’t memorize the teaching for the sake of finding fault and winning debates.
Te na ceva upārambhānisaṁsā dhammaṁ pariyāpuṇanti na itivādappamokkhānisaṁsā ca.

He realizes the goal for which he memorized them.
Yassa catthāya dhammaṁ pariyāpuṇanti tañcassa atthaṁ anubhonti.

Because they’re correctly grasped, those teachings lead to his lasting welfare and happiness.
Tesaṁ te dhammā suggahitā dīgharattaṁ hitāya sukhāya saṁvattanti.

There’s no talk of anything like this as a mode of buddhist praxis in DN.

The sutta can be identified for other reasons as emanating from the Vinaya btw, but its a good example of the transition that i’m talking about taking place.

And just on MN22 for a little bit, contrast it with the teaching at MN7;

“Absolutely, sir. As I understand the Buddha’s teaching, the acts that he says are obstructions are not really obstructions for the one who performs them.”
“Evaṁ byā kho ahaṁ, bhante, bhagavatā dhammaṁ desitaṁ ājānāmi: ‘yathā yeme antarāyikā dhammā vuttā bhagavatā te paṭisevato nālaṁ antarāyāyā’”ti.
…
Truly, mendicants, it is quite impossible to perform sensual acts without sensual desires, sensual perceptions, and sensual thoughts.
So vata, bhikkhave, aññatreva kāmehi aññatra kāmasaññāya aññatra kāmavitakkehi kāme paṭisevissatīti—netaṁ ṭhānaṁ vijjati.
MN22

But see:

When a mendicant of such ethics, such qualities, and such wisdom eats boiled fine rice with the dark grains picked out and served with many soups and sauces, that is no obstacle for them.
Sa kho so, bhikkhave, bhikkhu evaṁsīlo evaṁdhammo evaṁpañño sālīnañcepi piṇḍapātaṁ bhuñjati vicitakāḷakaṁ anekasūpaṁ anekabyañjanaṁ, nevassa taṁ hoti antarāyāya.

Compare with cloth that is dirty and soiled; it can be made pure and clean by pure water. Or unrefined gold, which can be made pure and bright by a forge.
Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, vatthaṁ saṅkiliṭṭhaṁ malaggahitaṁ acchodakaṁ āgamma parisuddhaṁ hoti pariyodātaṁ, ukkāmukhaṁ vā panāgamma jātarūpaṁ parisuddhaṁ hoti pariyodātaṁ;

In the same way, when a mendicant of such ethics, such qualities, and such wisdom eats boiled fine rice with the dark grains picked out and served with many soups and sauces, that is no obstacle for them.
evameva kho, bhikkhave, bhikkhu evaṁsīlo evaṁdhammo evaṁpañño sālīnañcepi piṇḍapātaṁ bhuñjati vicitakāḷakaṁ anekasūpaṁ anekabyañjanaṁ, nevassa taṁ hoti antarāyāya.
MN7

it certainly seems like Ariṭṭha had a good textual point

the fight is taken up again in MN105 where a distinction is drawn by appeal to the famous similie of the poison dart;

‘My good man, the dart has been extracted and the poison expelled without residue.
‘ambho purisa, ubbhataṁ kho te sallaṁ, apanīto visadoso saupādiseso.
It is still capable of harming you.
Analañca te antarāyāya.
Eat only suitable food. Don’t eat unsuitable food, or else the wound may get infected.
Sappāyāni ceva bhojanāni bhuñjeyyāsi, mā te asappāyāni bhojanāni bhuñjato vaṇo assāvī assa.
Regularly wash the wound and anoint the opening, or else it’ll get covered with pus and blood.
Kālena kālañca vaṇaṁ dhoveyyāsi, kālena kālaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ ālimpeyyāsi, mā te na kālena kālaṁ vaṇaṁ dhovato na kālena kālaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ ālimpato pubbalohitaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ pariyonandhi.
Don’t walk too much in the wind and sun, or else dust and dirt will infect the wound.
Mā ca vātātape cārittaṁ anuyuñji, mā te vātātape cārittaṁ anuyuttassa rajosūkaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ anuddhaṁsesi.
Take care of the wound, my good sir, heal it.’
Vaṇānurakkhī ca, ambho purisa, vihareyyāsi vaṇasāropī’ti.

They’d think:
Tassa evamassa:
‘The dart has been extracted and the poison expelled with no residue.
‘ubbhataṁ kho me sallaṁ, apanīto visadoso anupādiseso.
It’s not capable of harming me.’
Analañca me antarāyāyā’ti.
They’d eat unsuitable food, and the wound would get infected.
So asappāyāni ceva bhojanāni bhuñjeyya. Tassa asappāyāni bhojanāni bhuñjato vaṇo assāvī assa.
And they wouldn’t regularly wash and anoint the opening, so it would get covered in pus and blood.
Na ca kālena kālaṁ vaṇaṁ dhoveyya, na ca kālena kālaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ ālimpeyya. Tassa na kālena kālaṁ vaṇaṁ dhovato, na kālena kālaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ ālimpato pubbalohitaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ pariyonandheyya.
And they’d walk too much in the wind and sun, so dust and dirt infected the wound.
Vātātape ca cārittaṁ anuyuñjeyya. Tassa vātātape cārittaṁ anuyuttassa rajosūkaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ anuddhaṁseyya.
And they wouldn’t take care of the wound or heal it.
Na ca vaṇānurakkhī vihareyya na vaṇasāropī.
Then both because they did what was unsuitable, and because of the residue of unclean poison, the wound would spread,
Tassa imissā ca asappāyakiriyāya, asuci visadoso apanīto saupādiseso tadubhayena vaṇo puthuttaṁ gaccheyya.
resulting in death or deadly pain.
So puthuttaṁ gatena vaṇena maraṇaṁ vā nigaccheyya maraṇamattaṁ vā dukkhaṁ.

but

They’d think:
Tassa evamassa:
‘The dart has been extracted and the poison expelled with no residue.
‘ubbhataṁ kho me sallaṁ, apanīto visadoso anupādiseso.
It’s not capable of harming me.’
Analañca me antarāyāyā’ti.
They’d eat suitable food, and the wound wouldn’t get infected.
So sappāyāni ceva bhojanāni bhuñjeyya. Tassa sappāyāni bhojanāni bhuñjato vaṇo na assāvī assa.
And they’d regularly wash and anoint the opening, so it wouldn’t get covered in pus and blood.
Kālena kālañca vaṇaṁ dhoveyya, kālena kālaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ ālimpeyya. Tassa kālena kālaṁ vaṇaṁ dhovato kālena kālaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ ālimpato na pubbalohitaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ pariyonandheyya.
And they wouldn’t walk too much in the wind and sun, so dust and dirt wouldn’t infect the wound.
Na ca vātātape cārittaṁ anuyuñjeyya. Tassa vātātape cārittaṁ ananuyuttassa rajosūkaṁ vaṇamukhaṁ nānuddhaṁseyya.
And they’d take care of the wound and heal it.
Vaṇānurakkhī ca vihareyya vaṇasāropī.
Then both because they did what was suitable, and the unclean poison had left no residue, the wound would heal,
Tassa imissā ca sappāyakiriyāya asu ca visadoso apanīto anupādiseso tadubhayena vaṇo viruheyya.
and no death or deadly pain would result.
So ruḷhena vaṇena sañchavinā neva maraṇaṁ vā nigaccheyya na maraṇamattaṁ vā dukkhaṁ.

Following the trail of antarāyāyā is a great way to see that substantive discussions are had in MN that are not at all had in SN, and that evolution of doctrine takes place.

SN basically has

‘And my darling, may you not come into possessions, honor, and popularity while you’re still a trainee and haven’t achieved your heart’s desire.’
Mā ca kho tvaṁ, ayye, sekhaṁ appattamānasaṁ lābhasakkārasiloko anupāpuṇātūti.
If a trainee who hasn’t achieved their heart’s desire comes into possessions, honor, and popularity it’s an obstacle for them.
Tañce, bhikkhave, bhikkhuniṁ sekhaṁ appattamānasaṁ lābhasakkārasiloko anupāpuṇāti, so tassā hoti antarāyāya.

So brutal are possessions, honor, and popularity. …”
Evaṁ dāruṇo kho, bhikkhave, lābhasakkārasiloko …pe…
evañhi vo, bhikkhave, sikkhitabban”ti.

(all the parallels are in EA)

and the completely unparalleled SN17.30.

All the substantial discussion is in MN.

josephzizys · September 3, 2024, 7:08am

Before we turn to S, a breif review of MN;

MN1 is an epistemological sutta about perception and cognition, about how ordinarily we form conceptions about what we percieve, and how we shouldn’t alal this opinionated free translation:

Having perceived BLAH as BLAH, they conceive it to be BLAH, they conceive it in BLAH, they conceive it as BLAH, they conceive “my BLAH”, they cling to BLAH.
pathaviṁ pathavito saññatvā pathaviṁ maññati, pathaviyā maññati, pathavito maññati, pathaviṁ meti maññati, pathaviṁ abhinandati.

The most interesting thing about his is that abhiññāya first comes up in DN9, regarding perception, so it can be seen as a pretty clear and consistent analysis of the same themes, remembering that DN9 is a sutta essentially about how to meditate in order to train perception.

MN2 is a return to our āsavanirodhagāminī paṭipadā sequence at DN2 in that it is a discussion of the asavas and culminating in sense restraint instructions followed by the bojjhaṅga in place of the jhāna.

MN3 shows us one of the major themes of MN that of the transition to eating one meal a day. but it also has a favourite line of mine regarding the training;

‘The disciples of a teacher who lives in seclusion train in seclusion.’
‘Satthu pavivittassa viharato sāvakā vivekamanusikkhantī’ti—

This is the first ground.
iminā paṭhamena ṭhānena therā bhikkhū pāsaṁsā bhavanti.
MN3

MN4 is probably the first official meditation instruction sutta in MN, it deals directly with concentration, which i will use for both samādhi and jhāna as I think it covers the basic core of the semantics pretty well and will bend to the english around it for the nuance needed. Anyway.

“But Mister Gotama, remote lodgings in the wilderness and the forest are challenging. It’s hard to maintain seclusion and hard to find joy in solitude.
“Durabhisambhavāni hi kho, bho gotama, araññavanapatthāni pantāni senāsanāni, dukkaraṁ pavivekaṁ, durabhiramaṁ ekatte,

The forests seem to rob the mind of a mendicant who isn’t concentrating.”
haranti maññe mano vanāni samādhiṁ alabhamānassa bhikkhuno”ti.

So the buddhas instruction is from thier own perspective and they say (basically);

My conduct is purified.
parisuddhakāyakammantohamasmi.

My livelihood is purified.
parisuddhājīvohamasmi.

I am not full of desire …’
anabhijjhālūhamasmi.

I have a heart full of love …’
mettacittohamasmi.

I am free of dullness and drowsiness …’
vigatathinamiddhohamasmi.

My mind is peaceful …’
vūpasantacittohamasmi.

I’ve gone beyond doubt …’
tiṇṇavicikicchohamasmi.

…

I am energetic …’
āraddhavīriyohamasmi.

I am mindful …’
upaṭṭhitassatihamasmi.

I am therefore;

accomplished in concentration …’
samādhisampannohamasmi.

And I therefore become

accomplished in wisdom.
paññāsampannohamasmi.

Again this isn’t an exact trope on any of our previous suttas but it is clearly describing the same processes and technique as that hinderances-jhana teaching, or the equivilent hinderences-bojhanga teaching.

MN5 is a sāriputto bhikkhū āmantesi sutta, about recognising the hindrances, or something very much like them, in oneself.

MN6 is another eccentric hinderences list, showing that we can take the original list not as some very specific and important set of vices but as simply indicitive, with

And what are the corruptions of the mind?
Katame ca, bhikkhave, cittassa upakkilesā?
Covetousness and immoral greed, ill will, anger, acrimony, disdain, contempt, jealousy, stinginess, deceit, deviousness, obstinacy, aggression, conceit, arrogance, vanity, and negligence are corruptions of the mind.
Abhijjhāvisamalobho cittassa upakkileso, byāpādo cittassa upakkileso, kodho cittassa upakkileso, upanāho cittassa upakkileso, makkho cittassa upakkileso, paḷāso cittassa upakkileso, issā cittassa upakkileso, macchariyaṁ cittassa upakkileso, māyā cittassa upakkileso, sāṭheyyaṁ cittassa upakkileso, thambho cittassa upakkileso, sārambho cittassa upakkileso, māno cittassa upakkileso, atimāno cittassa upakkileso, mado cittassa upakkileso, pamādo cittassa upakkileso.

probably working just as well as a list of things not to infect your mind with before:

Thinking: ‘I have discarded, eliminated, released, given up, and relinquished to this extent,’ they find inspiration in the meaning and the teaching, and find joy connected with the teaching.
‘Yathodhi kho pana me cattaṁ vantaṁ muttaṁ pahīnaṁ paṭinissaṭṭhan’ti labhati atthavedaṁ, labhati dhammavedaṁ, labhati dhammūpasaṁhitaṁ pāmojjaṁ;
When they’re joyful, rapture springs up. When the mind is full of rapture, the body becomes tranquil. When the body is tranquil, they feel bliss. And when they’re blissful, the mind becomes immersed in samādhi.
pamuditassa pīti jāyati, pītimanassa kāyo passambhati, passaddhakāyo sukhaṁ vedeti, sukhino cittaṁ samādhiyati.
MN7

MN8 relates meditation to views and again stresses that the meditative attainments themselves are not the “awakening”, rather it is the correct understanding of those experiences that constitutes enlightenment.

“Cunda, there are many different views that arise in the world
“Yā imā, cunda, anekavihitā diṭṭhiyo loke uppajjanti—
connected with theories of self or with theories of the cosmos.
attavādapaṭisaṁyuttā vā lokavādapaṭisaṁyuttā vā—
A mendicant gives up and lets go of these views by truly seeing with right wisdom where they arise, where they settle in, and where they operate as: ‘This is not mine, I am not this, this is not my self.’
yattha cetā diṭṭhiyo uppajjanti yattha ca anusenti yattha ca samudācaranti taṁ ‘netaṁ mama, nesohamasmi, na me so attā’ti—evametaṁ yathābhūtaṁ sammappaññā passato evametāsaṁ diṭṭhīnaṁ pahānaṁ hoti, evametāsaṁ diṭṭhīnaṁ paṭinissaggo hoti.

It’s possible that a certain mendicant, quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unskillful qualities, might enter and remain in the first absorption, which has the rapture and bliss born of seclusion, while placing the mind and keeping it connected.
Ṭhānaṁ kho panetaṁ, cunda, vijjati yaṁ idhekacco bhikkhu vivicceva kāmehi vivicca akusalehi dhammehi savitakkaṁ savicāraṁ vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja vihareyya.
They might think
Tassa evamassa:
they’re practicing self-effacement.
‘sallekhena viharāmī’ti.
But in the training of the Noble One these are not called ‘self-effacement’;
Na kho panete, cunda, ariyassa vinaye sallekhā vuccanti.
they’re called ‘blissful meditations in the present life’.
Diṭṭhadhammasukhavihārā ete ariyassa vinaye vuccanti.
MN8

MN8, after explaining how not to understand jhana (and the formless attainments which we will have to get back to at some stage) gives another list of sila/hinderences, more or less showing how the actions of sila are the equivilent of the thoughs of the hinderences;

Now, Cunda, you should work on self-effacement in each of the following ways.
Idha kho pana vo, cunda, sallekho karaṇīyo.

Conduct:
‘Others will be cruel, but here we will not be cruel.’
‘Pare vihiṁsakā bhavissanti, mayamettha avihiṁsakā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will kill living creatures, but here we will not kill living creatures.’
‘Pare pāṇātipātī bhavissanti, mayamettha pāṇātipātā paṭiviratā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will steal, but here we will not steal.’
‘Pare adinnādāyī bhavissanti, mayamettha adinnādānā paṭiviratā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be unchaste, but here we will not be unchaste.’
‘Pare abrahmacārī bhavissanti, mayamettha brahmacārī bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will lie, but here we will not lie.’
‘Pare musāvādī bhavissanti, mayamettha musāvādā paṭiviratā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will speak divisively, but here we will not speak divisively.’
‘Pare pisuṇavācā bhavissanti, mayamettha pisuṇāya vācāya paṭiviratā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will speak harshly, but here we will not speak harshly.’
‘Pare pharusavācā bhavissanti, mayamettha pharusāya vācāya paṭiviratā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will talk nonsense, but here we will not talk nonsense.’
‘Pare samphappalāpī bhavissanti, mayamettha samphappalāpā paṭiviratā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be covetous, but here we will not be covetous.’
‘Pare abhijjhālū bhavissanti, mayamettha anabhijjhālū bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will have ill will, but here we will not have ill will.’
‘Pare byāpannacittā bhavissanti, mayamettha abyāpannacittā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

…
Hinderences:
‘Others will be overcome with dullness and drowsiness, but here we will be rid of dullness and drowsiness.’
‘Pare thinamiddhapariyuṭṭhitā bhavissanti, mayamettha vigatathinamiddhā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be restless, but here we will not be restless.’
‘Pare uddhatā bhavissanti, mayamettha anuddhatā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will have doubts, but here we will have gone beyond doubt.’
‘Pare vicikicchī bhavissanti, mayamettha tiṇṇavicikicchā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be irritable, but here we will be without anger.’
‘Pare kodhanā bhavissanti, mayamettha akkodhanā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

…
Meditation:
‘Others will be unlearned, but here we will be well learned.’
‘Pare appassutā bhavissanti, mayamettha bahussutā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be lazy, but here we will be energetic.’
‘Pare kusītā bhavissanti, mayamettha āraddhavīriyā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be unmindful, but here we will be mindful.’
‘Pare muṭṭhassatī bhavissanti, mayamettha upaṭṭhitassatī bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

‘Others will be witless, but here we will be accomplished in wisdom.’
‘Pare duppaññā bhavissanti, mayamettha paññāsampannā bhavissāmā’ti sallekho karaṇīyo.

So here we see again a whole path, done as a list, that more or less shades imperceptably form action to thought to praxis and need make no especially firm distinctions in doing so. very organic, very consistant with our patipatda at DN2 etc.

MN9 is a Āyasmā sāriputto etadavoca sutta. it culminates with

A noble disciple understands in this way defilement, its origin, its cessation, and the practice that leads to its cessation. They’ve completely given up the underlying tendency to greed, got rid of the underlying tendency to repulsion, and eradicated the underlying tendency to the view and conceit ‘I am’. They’ve given up ignorance and given rise to knowledge, and make an end of suffering in this very life.
Yato kho, āvuso, ariyasāvako evaṁ āsavaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ āsavasamudayaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ āsavanirodhaṁ pajānāti, evaṁ āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ pajānāti, so sabbaso rāgānusayaṁ pahāya, paṭighānusayaṁ paṭivinodetvā, ‘asmī’ti diṭṭhimānānusayaṁ samūhanitvā, avijjaṁ pahāya vijjaṁ uppādetvā, diṭṭheva dhamme dukkhassantakaro hoti—

and is thus an āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ sutta, and thus given the speaker a commentary on the material on āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ given at DN2 etc.

This then brings us to MN10 as discussed above.

MN11 is an even more intersting sutta than MN10 from a theoretical perspective.

Mendicants, there are these two views:
Dvemā, bhikkhave, diṭṭhiyo—
views favoring continued existence and views favoring ending existence.
bhavadiṭṭhi ca vibhavadiṭṭhi ca.
Any ascetics or brahmins who resort to, draw near to, and cling to a view favoring continued existence will oppose a view favoring ending existence.
Ye hi keci, bhikkhave, samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā bhavadiṭṭhiṁ allīnā bhavadiṭṭhiṁ upagatā bhavadiṭṭhiṁ ajjhositā, vibhavadiṭṭhiyā te paṭiviruddhā.
Any ascetics or brahmins who resort to, draw near to, and cling to a view favoring ending existence will oppose a view favoring continued existence.
Ye hi keci, bhikkhave, samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā vibhavadiṭṭhiṁ allīnā vibhavadiṭṭhiṁ upagatā vibhavadiṭṭhiṁ ajjhositā, bhavadiṭṭhiyā te paṭiviruddhā.

There are some ascetics and brahmins who don’t truly understand these two views’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. They’re greedy, hateful, delusional, craving, grasping, and ignorant. They favor and oppose, and they enjoy proliferation.
Ye hi keci, bhikkhave, samaṇā vā brāhmaṇā vā imāsaṁ dvinnaṁ diṭṭhīnaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ nappajānanti, ‘te sarāgā te sadosā te samohā te sataṇhā te saupādānā te aviddasuno te anuruddhappaṭiviruddhā te papañcārāmā papañcaratino;
They’re not freed from rebirth, old age, and death, from sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress.
te na parimuccanti jātiyā jarāya maraṇena sokehi paridevehi dukkhehi domanassehi upāyāsehi;
They’re not freed from suffering, I say.
na parimuccanti dukkhasmā’ti vadāmi.

So importantly this is a gratification danger and escape trope, I think another of the really central and almost certainly old tropes in the canon.

The view it gives are “being” view and “not-being” view. I get that ther are semantics around “becoming” etc, but the idea is the same regardless, those leaning towards becoming-being-existence and those leaning towards unbecoming-not-being-nonexistence.

The solution given is the teaching that things are to be understood by their appearance and disappearance, their appeal, their drawback and their trancendece, escape, path beyond, outcome, issue, whatever you want to call it.

I will call it the nissaraṇa teaching or the nissaraṇa trope.

nissaraṇa is what can be said, abyākataṁ is what can’t.

It seems to me that combined with the āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ these three ideas underwrite everything in the ebt from the sense bases, thru to DO in whatever form you like, the aggregates, the eightfold path, the four noble truths, you name it, I probably think it is best historically (genealogically?) explained by appeal to these three tropes-teachings-ideas.

So maybe to start again in the middle and I can maybe revise it later

DN1 gives us the starting point for the nissaraṇa again my wilful free translation:

The Realized One understands this:
Tayidaṁ, bhikkhave, tathāgato pajānāti:

‘If you hold on to and attach to this it leads to such and such consequences.’
‘ime diṭṭhiṭṭhānā evaṅgahitā evaṁparāmaṭṭhā evaṅgatikā bhavanti evaṁabhisamparāyā’ti,

He understands this, and what goes beyond this. And since he does not misapprehend that understanding, he has realized quenching within himself.
tañca tathāgato pajānāti, tato ca uttaritaraṁ pajānāti; tañca pajānanaṁ na parāmasati, aparāmasato cassa paccattaññeva nibbuti viditā.

Having truly understood the origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape from feelings, the Realized One is freed through not grasping.
Vedanānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ viditvā anupādāvimutto, bhikkhave, tathāgato.

This is the principle—deep, hard to see, hard to understand, peaceful, sublime, beyond the scope of logic, subtle, comprehensible to the astute—which the Realized One makes known after realizing them with his own insight. And those who genuinely praise the Realized One would rightly speak of these things.
Ime kho te, bhikkhave, dhammā gambhīrā duddasā duranubodhā santā paṇītā atakkāvacarā nipuṇā paṇḍitavedanīyā, ye tathāgato sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā pavedeti, yehi tathāgatassa yathābhuccaṁ vaṇṇaṁ sammā vadamānā vadeyyuṁ.

And now my even more willful paraphrase:

Vedanānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ viditvā anupādāvimutto, bhikkhave, tathāgato.

understanding the coming to be and the coming to pass, the pleasure and the pain, and the way through perception, one thus gone through is freed.

DN9 gives us our abyākata (again willful paraphrasing)at:

“Why haven’t these things been declared by the Buddha?”
“Kasmā panetaṁ, bhante, bhagavatā abyākatan”ti?

“Because they’re they don’t lead to awakening…
“Na hetaṁ, poṭṭhapāda, atthasaṁhitaṁ na dhammasaṁhitaṁ nādibrahmacariyakaṁ, na nibbidāya na virāgāya na nirodhāya na upasamāya na abhiññāya na sambodhāya na nibbānāya saṁvattati, That’s why I haven’t declared them.” tasmā etaṁ mayā abyākatan”ti.

“Then what has been declared by the Buddha?”
“Kiṁ pana, bhante, bhagavatā byākatan”ti?

“I have declared this: ‘This is BLAH’ … ‘This is the origin of BLAH’ … ‘This is the cessation of BLAH’ (this is the pleasure in BLAH, this is the pain in BLAH) … ‘This is the nissaraṇa that leads through/beyond BLAH’.”
“Idaṁ dukkhanti kho, poṭṭhapāda, mayā byākataṁ. Ayaṁ dukkhasamudayoti kho, poṭṭhapāda, mayā byākataṁ. Ayaṁ dukkhanirodhoti kho, poṭṭhapāda, mayā byākataṁ. Ayaṁ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadāti kho, poṭṭhapāda, mayā byākatan”ti.

what can be said about practice is mostly said in our āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ at DN2 as in:

The buddha:
“Consider when a Realized One arises in the world, perfected, a fully awakened Buddha, accomplished in knowledge and conduct, holy, knower of the world, supreme guide for those who wish to train, teacher of gods and humans, awakened, blessed.
“idha, mahārāja, tathāgato loke uppajjati arahaṁ sammāsambuddho vijjācaraṇasampanno sugato lokavidū anuttaro purisadammasārathi satthā devamanussānaṁ buddho bhagavā.

…

The conversion:
A householder hears that teaching, or a householder’s child, or someone reborn in a good family.
Taṁ dhammaṁ suṇāti gahapati vā gahapatiputto vā aññatarasmiṁ vā kule paccājāto.

They gain faith in the Realized One
So taṁ dhammaṁ sutvā tathāgate saddhaṁ paṭilabhati.

and reflect:
So tena saddhāpaṭilābhena samannāgato iti paṭisañcikkhati:

…

The lifestyle:
After some time they give up a large or small fortune, and a large or small family circle. They shave off hair and beard, dress in ocher robes, and go forth from normal life to homelessness.
So aparena samayena appaṁ vā bhogakkhandhaṁ pahāya mahantaṁ vā bhogakkhandhaṁ pahāya appaṁ vā ñātiparivaṭṭaṁ pahāya mahantaṁ vā ñātiparivaṭṭaṁ pahāya kesamassuṁ ohāretvā kāsāyāni vatthāni acchādetvā agārasmā anagāriyaṁ pabbajati.

Once they’ve gone forth, they live restrained, conducting themselves well and seeking alms in suitable places. Seeing danger in the slightest fault, they keep the vows they’ve undertaken. They act skillfully by body and speech. They’re purified. They guard the sense doors, have mindfulness and situational awareness, and are content.
So evaṁ pabbajito samāno pātimokkhasaṁvarasaṁvuto viharati ācāragocarasampanno, aṇumattesu vajjesu bhayadassāvī, samādāya sikkhati sikkhāpadesu, kāyakammavacīkammena samannāgato kusalena, parisuddhājīvo sīlasampanno, indriyesu guttadvāro, satisampajaññena samannāgato, santuṭṭho.

…

the practice:
When they have this entire spectrum of noble ethics, this noble sense restraint, this noble mindfulness and situational awareness, and this noble contentment,
So iminā ca ariyena sīlakkhandhena samannāgato, iminā ca ariyena indriyasaṁvarena samannāgato, iminā ca ariyena satisampajaññena samannāgato, imāya ca ariyāya santuṭṭhiyā samannāgato,
they frequent a secluded lodging—a wilderness, the root of a tree, a hill, a ravine, a mountain cave, a charnel ground, a forest, the open air, a heap of straw.
vivittaṁ senāsanaṁ bhajati araññaṁ rukkhamūlaṁ pabbataṁ kandaraṁ giriguhaṁ susānaṁ vanapatthaṁ abbhokāsaṁ palālapuñjaṁ.
After the meal, they return from almsround, sit down cross-legged, set their body straight, and establish mindfulness in their presence.
So pacchābhattaṁ piṇḍapātapaṭikkanto nisīdati pallaṅkaṁ ābhujitvā ujuṁ kāyaṁ paṇidhāya parimukhaṁ satiṁ upaṭṭhapetvā.

Giving up BLAH for the world, they meditate with a heart rid of BLAH, cleansing the mind of BLAH.
So abhijjhaṁ loke pahāya vigatābhijjhena cetasā viharati, abhijjhāya cittaṁ parisodheti.

…

Thus Quite secluded from sensual pleasures, secluded from unskillful qualities, they enter and remain in the pleasure and joy born of seclusion, while thinking about the teachings.
So vivicceva kāmehi, vivicca akusalehi dhammehi savitakkaṁ savicāraṁ vivekajaṁ pītisukhaṁ paṭhamaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

Furthermore, as the thinking stills, a mendicant enters and remains in the pleasure and joy born of immersion, with internal clarity and mind at one, without thought.
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu vitakkavicārānaṁ vūpasamā ajjhattaṁ sampasādanaṁ cetaso ekodibhāvaṁ avitakkaṁ avicāraṁ samādhijaṁ pītisukhaṁ dutiyaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

Furthermore, with the fading away of pleasure, a mendicant enters and remains in equanimity, mindful and aware, personally experiencing the pleasure of which the noble ones declare, ‘Equanimous and mindful, one meditates in pleasure.’
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu pītiyā ca virāgā upekkhako ca viharati sato sampajāno, sukhañca kāyena paṭisaṁvedeti, yaṁ taṁ ariyā ācikkhanti: ‘upekkhako satimā sukhavihārī’ti, tatiyaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati.

Furthermore, giving up pleasure( and pain), having already ended joy (and sadness), a mendicant enters and remains, without pleasure( or pain), with pure equanimity and mindfulness.
Puna caparaṁ, mahārāja, bhikkhu sukhassa ca pahānā dukkhassa ca pahānā, pubbeva somanassadomanassānaṁ atthaṅgamā adukkhamasukhaṁ upekkhāsatipārisuddhiṁ catutthaṁ jhānaṁ upasampajja viharati

…

When their mind has become like this they extend it toward knowledge.
So evaṁ samāhite citte parisuddhe pariyodāte anaṅgaṇe vigatūpakkilese mudubhūte kammaniye ṭhite āneñjappatte ñāṇadassanāya cittaṁ abhinīharati abhininnāmeti.

They understand:
So evaṁ pajānāti:

‘This body of mine is physically built from porridge, liable to destruction.
‘ayaṁ kho me kāyo rūpī cātumahābhūtiko mātāpettikasambhavo odanakummāsūpacayo aniccucchādanaparimaddanabhedanaviddhaṁsanadhammo;

And this mind of mine is attached to it, tied to it.’
idañca pana me viññāṇaṁ ettha sitaṁ ettha paṭibaddhan’ti.

…

They truly understand: ‘These are the attachments’ … ‘This is the origin of attachment’ … ‘This is the cessation of attachment’ … ‘This is the practice that leads to the cessation of attachments’.
Ime āsavāti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ āsavasamudayoti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ āsavanirodhoti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ āsavanirodhagāminī paṭipadāti yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti.

Knowing and seeing like this, their mind is freed from the attachments sensations, experiences, wanting to know.
Tassa evaṁ jānato evaṁ passato kāmāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati, bhavāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati, avijjāsavāpi cittaṁ vimuccati,

When they’re freed, they know they’re freed.
vimuttasmiṁ ‘vimuttam’iti ñāṇaṁ hoti,

They understand: ‘Rebirth is ended, the spiritual journey has been completed, what had to be done has been done, there is nothing further for this place.’
‘khīṇā jāti, vusitaṁ brahmacariyaṁ, kataṁ karaṇīyaṁ, nāparaṁ itthattāyā’ti pajānāti.

so the upekkhāsati is the nissaraṇa or āsavanirodhagāminiṁ paṭipadaṁ of the abyākata.

or; the balanced mind is the path of escape from the unspeakable terror.

D1, D2, D9.

all the rest is just filler.

Maybe I have to start again from the beginning.

sigh.