I don’t understand the point being made at the end of MN 1, when it says:
“That is what the Buddha said.
But the mendicants were not happy with what the Buddha said.”
Why aren’t the mendicants happy with this teaching?
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If Think it’s a mistake. 
has be reported in typo mistakes post
The other version has this
Thus spoke the Lord. Delighted, these monks rejoiced in what the Lord had said.
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Thank you! That makes so much more sense! 
Or perhaps, because one of the themes of the sutta is not “delighting” in phenomena, the bhikkhus were showing that they got the point.
The potential wordplay comes across a little better in Bhikkhu Bodhi’s translation, which talks about the ordinary worldling “delighting” (abhinandati), that the sekha “should not delight” (mābhinandi), and that the arahant and the Tathāgata “do not delight” (nābhinandati) in various phenomena. The last line is that the bhikkhus “did not delight (abhinandunti) in the Blessed One’s words”.
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Thank you! I appreciate your pointing out the underlying Pali words being used. 
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Nope, this is not a mistake! MN1 is the only sutta which ends with the monks not being happy with what the Buddha said. The reason, as per the commentaries, is that the monks in question were newly converted from the Samkhya school and the Buddha in this discourse directly addresses and puts aside their main philosophical view Viz. That the most basic ‘root’ of Reality can be arrived at by a rational/ analytical/ meditative process. See Thanissaro Bhikkhu’s explanation here.
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Hi Jim
I checked out the parallel , 3 of it appears saying delighting with the Buddha said .
佛說如是。彼諸比丘聞佛所說，歡喜奉行. MA 106
爾時，諸比丘聞佛所說，歡喜奉行. EA44.6
佛如是說。彼諸比丘聞世尊所說，歡喜而樂，所因跋渠盡. T56
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Bhikkhu Bodhi’s translation of the sutta and commentary are available here: https://www.bps.lk/olib/bp/bp210s_Bodhi_Root-Of-Existance.pdf
The Commentary has a detailed discussion of the passage, so if it was a transmission error it must have happened reasonably early.
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Thank you! While many of us would be familiar with the traditional explanation that this discourse refuted the theory specially dear to these former Brahmins, Ven. Thanissaro’s excellent analysis adds depth. Thanks for linking it! By the way, here is his updated version.
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Wow interesting 
will read
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Thank you for checking the parallel texts, @anon85245511!
And thank you for the great links Venerable @Charlotteannun and @mikenz66!
Yesterday I decided to start reading through the Middle Length Discourses one a day. It is amazing what a range of new learning that has exploded into on just the first reading! Thank you! 
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If you’re interested in the transmission of the suttas, I suggest reading the MN alongside Bhikkhu Analayo’s Comparative Study of the Majjhima-nikāya (Vol 1 and Vol 2) which gives the comparison to the parallel texts sutta by sutta.
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If you’re loving delving into the Majjhima, Venerable Sujato has laid out the structure and intent of this rich Nikaya. It may help bring it alive for you.
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Venerable, those volumes are also available from Bhikku Analayo’s web site: https://www.buddhismuskunde.uni-hamburg.de/en/personen/analayo.html in the Books section. However, it appears that Bhikkhu Analayo’s publications tend to become freely available a year or two after they are first published, so you may well be correct.
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Hi JiminBC. I love the ending of this sutta. It makes the Buddha’s teachings so real…not everything he said was easy to accept. The fact that the listeners weren’t pleased indicates this is an historically accurate reporting…it shows that those who passed down the teachings didn’t whitewash all the teachings as immediately accepted/understood by the listeners. So I’m disagreeing with Upasaka Dhammasara who thinks it was a typo. Sanghamitta in AB
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I read but it’s not complete right? If it’s not complete he sells the complete version? @Khemarato.bhikkhu