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AN 5.74PTS AN 3.882 min read

One Who Lives by the Teaching (2nd)

Dutiyadhammavihārīsutta

The difference between someone who merely studies the letter of the Dharma, and someone who truly lives by it.

Translated by Bhikkhu Sujato · Pāli: Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka · Public domain (CC0) via SuttaCentral

  • 0.1Aṅguttara Nikāya 5.74Numbered Discourses 5.74
  • 0.28. Yodhājīvavagga8. Warriors

0.3DutiyadhammavihārīsuttaOne Who Lives by the Teaching (2nd)

1.1PTS 3.88Atha kho aññataro bhikkhu yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinno kho so bhikkhu bhagavantaṁ etadavoca:Then a mendicant went up to the Buddha, bowed, sat down to one side, and said to him:

1.2“‘dhammavihārī, dhammavihārī’ti, bhante, vuccati.“Sir, they speak of ‘one who lives by the teaching’.1.3Kittāvatā nu kho, bhante, bhikkhu dhammavihārī hotī”ti?How is a mendicant who lives by the teaching defined?”

2.1“Idha, bhikkhu, bhikkhu dhammaṁ pariyāpuṇāti—“Mendicant, take a mendicant who memorizes the teaching—2.2suttaṁ, geyyaṁ, veyyākaraṇaṁ, gāthaṁ, udānaṁ, itivuttakaṁ, jātakaṁ, abbhutadhammaṁ, vedallaṁ;statements, mixed prose & verse, discussions, verses, inspired exclamations, legends, stories of past lives, amazing stories, and elaborations.2.3uttari cassa paññāya atthaṁ nappajānāti.But they don’t understand the higher meaning.2.4Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhu: ‘bhikkhu pariyattibahulo, no dhammavihārī’.That mendicant is called one who studies a lot, not one who lives by the teaching.

3.1Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhu, bhikkhu yathāsutaṁ yathāpariyattaṁ dhammaṁ vitthārena paresaṁ deseti, uttari cassa paññāya atthaṁ nappajānāti.Furthermore, a mendicant teaches Dhamma in detail to others as they learned and memorized it. But they don’t understand the higher meaning.3.2Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhu: ‘bhikkhu paññattibahulo, no dhammavihārī’.That mendicant is called one who advocates a lot, not one who lives by the teaching.

4.1Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhu, bhikkhu yathāsutaṁ yathāpariyattaṁ dhammaṁ vitthārena sajjhāyaṁ karoti, uttari cassa paññāya atthaṁ nappajānāti.Furthermore, a mendicant rehearses the teaching in detail as they learned and memorized it. But they don’t understand the higher meaning.4.2Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhu: ‘bhikkhu sajjhāyabahulo, no dhammavihārī’.That mendicant is called one who rehearses a lot, not one who lives by the teaching.

5.1Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhu, bhikkhu yathāsutaṁ yathāpariyattaṁ dhammaṁ cetasā anuvitakketi anuvicāreti manasānupekkhati, uttari cassa paññāya atthaṁ nappajānāti.Furthermore, a mendicant thinks about and considers the teaching in their heart, examining it with the mind as they learned and memorized it. But they don’t understand the higher meaning.5.2Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhu: ‘bhikkhu vitakkabahulo, no dhammavihārī’.That mendicant is called one who thinks a lot, not one who lives by the teaching.

6.1Idha, bhikkhu, bhikkhu dhammaṁ pariyāpuṇāti—Take a mendicant who memorizes the teaching—6.2suttaṁ, geyyaṁ, veyyākaraṇaṁ, gāthaṁ, udānaṁ, itivuttakaṁ, jātakaṁ, abbhutadhammaṁ, vedallaṁ;statements, mixed prose & verse, discussions, verses, inspired exclamations, legends, stories of past lives, amazing stories, and elaborations.6.3uttari cassa paññāya atthaṁ pajānāti.And they do understand the higher meaning.6.4Evaṁ kho, bhikkhu, bhikkhu dhammavihārī hoti.That’s how a mendicant is one who lives by the teaching.

7.1PTS 3.89Iti kho, bhikkhu, desito mayā pariyattibahulo, desito paññattibahulo, desito sajjhāyabahulo, desito vitakkabahulo, desito dhammavihārī.So, mendicant, I’ve taught you the one who studies a lot, the one who advocates a lot, the one who rehearses a lot, the one who thinks a lot, and the one who lives by the teaching.7.2Yaṁ kho, bhikkhu, satthārā karaṇīyaṁ sāvakānaṁ hitesinā anukampakena anukampaṁ upādāya, kataṁ vo taṁ mayā.Out of sympathy, I’ve done what a teacher should do who wants what’s best for their disciples.7.3Etāni, bhikkhu, rukkhamūlāni, etāni suññāgārāni. Jhāyatha bhikkhu, mā pamādattha, mā pacchā vippaṭisārino ahuvattha. Ayaṁ vo amhākaṁ anusāsanī”ti.Here are these roots of trees, and here are these empty huts. Practice absorption, mendicant! Don’t be negligent! Don’t regret it later! This is my instruction to you.”

7.4Catutthaṁ.