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SN 12.49PTS SN 2.772 min read

A Noble Disciple

Ariyasāvakasutta

A noble disciple does not wonder about the links of dependent origination, as they see it for themselves, independent of others.

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

  • 0.1Saṁyutta Nikāya 12.49Linked Discourses 12.49
  • 0.25. Gahapativagga5. Householders

0.3AriyasāvakasuttaA Noble Disciple

1.1PTS 2.78Sāvatthiyaṁ viharati.At Sāvatthī.

1.2“Na, bhikkhave, sutavato ariyasāvakassa evaṁ hoti:“Mendicants, a learned noble disciple doesn’t think:1.3‘kiṁ nu kho—1.4kismiṁ sati kiṁ hoti, kissuppādā kiṁ uppajjati?‘When what exists, what is? Due to the arising of what, what arises?1.5Kismiṁ sati saṅkhārā honti, kismiṁ sati viññāṇaṁ hoti, kismiṁ sati nāmarūpaṁ hoti, kismiṁ sati saḷāyatanaṁ hoti, kismiṁ sati phasso hoti, kismiṁ sati vedanā hoti, kismiṁ sati taṇhā hoti, kismiṁ sati upādānaṁ hoti, kismiṁ sati bhavo hoti, kismiṁ sati jāti hoti, kismiṁ sati jarāmaraṇaṁ hotī’ti?When what exists do name and form come to be? When what exists do the six sense fields … contact … feeling … craving … grasping … continued existence … rebirth … old age and death come to be?’1

2.1Atha kho, bhikkhave, sutavato ariyasāvakassa aparappaccayā ñāṇamevettha hoti:Rather, a learned noble disciple has only knowledge about this that is independent of others:2.2‘imasmiṁ sati idaṁ hoti, imassuppādā idaṁ uppajjati.‘When this exists, this comes to be; due to the arising of this, this arises.22.3Avijjāya sati saṅkhārā honti;When ignorance exists choices come to be.2.4saṅkhāresu sati viññāṇaṁ hoti;When choices exist consciousness comes to be.2.5viññāṇe sati nāmarūpaṁ hoti;When consciousness exists name and form come to be.2.6nāmarūpe sati saḷāyatanaṁ hoti;When name and form exist the six sense fields come to be.2.7saḷāyatane sati phasso hoti;When the six sense fields exist contact comes to be.2.8phasse sati vedanā hoti;When contact exists feeling comes to be.2.9vedanāya sati taṇhā hoti;When feeling exists craving comes to be.2.10taṇhāya sati upādānaṁ hoti;When craving exists grasping comes to be.2.11upādāne sati bhavo hoti;When grasping exists continued existence comes to be.2.12bhave sati jāti hoti;When continued existence exists rebirth comes to be.2.13jātiyā sati jarāmaraṇaṁ hotī’ti.When rebirth exists old age and death come to be.’2.14So evaṁ pajānāti:They understand:2.15‘evamayaṁ loko samudayatī’ti.‘That is how this world originates.’

3.1Na, bhikkhave, sutavato ariyasāvakassa evaṁ hoti:A learned noble disciple doesn’t think:3.2‘kiṁ nu kho—3.3kismiṁ asati kiṁ na hoti, kissa nirodhā kiṁ nirujjhati?‘When what doesn’t exist, what is not? Due to the cessation of what, what ceases?3.4Kismiṁ asati saṅkhārā na honti, kismiṁ asati viññāṇaṁ na hoti, kismiṁ asati nāmarūpaṁ na hoti, kismiṁ asati saḷāyatanaṁ na hoti, kismiṁ asati phasso na hoti, kismiṁ asati vedanā na hoti, kismiṁ asati taṇhā na hoti, kismiṁ asati upādānaṁ na hoti, kismiṁ asati bhavo na hoti, kismiṁ asati jāti na hoti, kismiṁ asati jarāmaraṇaṁ na hotī’ti?When what doesn’t exist do choices not come to be? When what doesn’t exist do name and form not come to be? When what doesn’t exist do the six sense fields … contact … feeling … craving … grasping … continued existence … rebirth … old age and death not come to be?’

4.1Atha kho, bhikkhave, sutavato ariyasāvakassa aparappaccayā ñāṇamevettha hoti:Rather, a learned noble disciple has only knowledge about this that is independent of others:4.2‘imasmiṁ asati idaṁ na hoti, imassa nirodhā idaṁ nirujjhati.‘When this doesn’t exist, this doesn’t come to be; due to the cessation of this, this ceases.4.3Avijjāya asati saṅkhārā na honti;When ignorance doesn’t exist choices don’t come to be.4.4saṅkhāresu asati viññāṇaṁ na hoti;When choices don’t exist consciousness doesn’t come to be.4.5viññāṇe asati nāmarūpaṁ na hoti;When consciousness doesn’t exist name and form don’t come to be.4.6nāmarūpe asati saḷāyatanaṁ na hoti …pe…When name and form don’t exist the six sense fields don’t come to be. …4.7bhavo na hoti …continued existence doesn’t come to be …4.8jāti na hoti …rebirth doesn’t come to be …4.9jātiyā asati jarāmaraṇaṁ na hotī’ti.When rebirth doesn’t exist old age and death don’t come to be.’4.10So evaṁ pajānāti:They understand:4.11‘evamayaṁ loko nirujjhatī’ti.‘That is how this world ceases.’

5.1PTS 2.79Yato kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako evaṁ lokassa samudayañca atthaṅgamañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti, ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako diṭṭhisampanno itipi …pe…A noble disciple comes to truly understand the origin and disappearance of the world. Such a noble disciple is one who is called ‘one accomplished in view’, ‘one accomplished in vision’, ‘one who has come to the true teaching’, ‘one who sees this true teaching’, ‘one endowed with a trainee’s insight’, ‘one endowed with a trainee’s knowledge’, ‘one who has entered the stream of the teaching’, ‘a noble one with penetrative wisdom’, and also ‘one who stands knocking at the door to freedom from death’.”5.2amatadvāraṁ āhacca tiṭṭhati itipī”ti.

5.3Navamaṁ.

Translator’s notes

  1. Choices and consciousness are included here in some editions, but the commentary clearly read them as absent, this being the only difference from the next discourse.

    ↩ sn12.49:1.5
  2. Each link is here expressed in the form of the first half of this formula, using the locative absolute construction (see note on SN 12.37:2.2).

    ↩ sn12.49:2.2