SN 48.2PTS SN 5.1931 min read

A Stream-Enterer (1st)

Paṭhamasotāpannasutta

One who understands the gratification, the drawback, and the escape regarding the five faculties is a stream-enterer.

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

0.1Saṁyutta Nikāya 48.2Linked Discourses 48.2
0.21. Suddhikavagga1. Plain Version

0.3PaṭhamasotāpannasuttaA Stream-Enterer (1st)

1.1“Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, indriyāni.“Mendicants, there are these five faculties.1.2Katamāni pañca?What five?1.3Saddhindriyaṁ, vīriyindriyaṁ, satindriyaṁ, samādhindriyaṁ, paññindriyaṁ.The faculties of faith, energy, mindfulness, immersion, and wisdom.1.4Yato kho, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako imesaṁ pañcannaṁ indriyānaṁ assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti—A noble disciple comes to truly understand these five faculties’ gratification, drawback, and escape.¹1.5ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako sotāpanno avinipātadhammo niyato sambodhiparāyaṇo”ti.Such a noble disciple is called a stream-enterer, not liable to be reborn in the underworld, assured, destined for awakening.”

1.6Dutiyaṁ.

Translator’s notes

Of all the sets dealing with the path, only the five faculties are analyzed according to gratification, drawback, and escape. This treatment is elsewhere used for the factors under the wisdom analysis of the phenomena of reality, such as the five aggregates and the six senses. This reflects the fact that the “22 faculties” include, as well as the path, also the senses and other phenomena. Thus the category as a whole melds the path (fourth noble truth) with the phenomena of suffering (first noble truth). This is even implicit in the notion of “faculty” as not just something that one might elect to practice, but a potential within each person. Later in the Saṁyutta we see other similar examples, also unique to the faculties, where they are treated according to “origin and disappearance” (SN 48.3) and the four noble truths (SN 48.7).
↩ sn48.2:1.4