Note: Unless otherwise indicated, these suttas were translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
"Then do, Meghiya, what you think it is now time to do."
Then in the early morning, Ven. Meghiya, having put on his robes and carrying his bowl and outer robe, went into Jantu Village for alms. Having gone for alms in Jantu Village, after the meal, returning from his alms round, he went to the banks of the Kimikala River. As he was walking along the banks of the river to exercise his legs, he saw a pleasing, charming mango grove. Seeing it, the thought occurred to him: "How pleasing and charming is this mango grove! It's an ideal place for a young man of good family intent on exertion to exert himself in meditation. If the Blessed One gives me permission, I would like to exert myself in meditation in this mango grove."
So Ven. Meghiya went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One, "Just now, in the early morning, having put on my robes and carrying my bowl and outer robe, I went into Jantu Village for alms. Having gone for alms in Jantu Village, after the meal, returning from my alms round, I went to the banks of the Kimikala River. As I was walking along the banks of the river to exercise my legs, I saw a pleasing, charming mango grove. Seeing it, the thought occurred to me: 'How pleasing and charming is this mango grove! It's an ideal place for a young man of good family intent on exertion to exert himself in meditation. If the Blessed One gives me permission, I would like to exert myself in meditation in this mango grove.' If the Blessed One gives me permission, I would like to go to the mango grove to exert myself in meditation."
When this was said, the Blessed One responded to Ven. Meghiya, "As long as I am still alone, stay here until another monk comes."
A second time, Ven. Meghiya said to the Blessed One, "Lord, the Blessed One has nothing further to do, and nothing further to add to what he has done. I, however, have something further to do, and something further to add to what I have done. If the Blessed One gives me permission, I would like to go to the mango grove to exert myself in meditation."
A second time, the Blessed One responded to Ven. Meghiya, "As long as I am still alone, stay here until another monk comes."
A third time, Ven. Meghiya said to the Blessed One, "Lord, the Blessed One has nothing further to do, and nothing further to add to what he has done. I, however, have something further to do, and something further to add to what I have done. If the Blessed One gives me permission, I would like to go to the mango grove to exert myself in meditation."
"As you are talking about exertion, Meghiya, what can I say? Do what you think it is now time to do."
Then Ven. Meghiya, rising from his seat, bowing down to the Blessed One and circling him to the right, went to the mango grove. On arrival, having gone deep into the grove, he sat down at the foot of a certain tree for the day's abiding.
Now while Ven. Meghiya was staying in the mango grove, he was for the most part assailed by three kinds of unskillful thoughts: sensual thoughts, thoughts of ill will, and thoughts of doing harm. The thought occurred to him: "How amazing! How awesome! Even though it was through faith that I went forth from home to the homeless life, still I am overpowered by these three kinds of unskillful thoughts: sensual thoughts, thoughts of ill will, and thoughts of doing harm." Emerging from his seclusion in the late afternoon, he went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, sat to one side. As he was sitting there he said to the Blessed One, "Just now, while I was staying in the mango grove, I was for the most part assailed by three kinds of unskillful thoughts: sensual thoughts, thoughts of ill will, and thoughts of doing harm. The thought occurred to me: 'How amazing! How awesome! Even though it was through faith that I went forth from home to the homeless life, still I am overpowered by these three kinds of unskillful thoughts: sensual thoughts, thoughts of ill will, and thoughts of doing harm.'"
"Meghiya, in one whose release of awareness is still immature, five qualities bring it to maturity. Which five?
"There is the case where a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, and colleagues. In one whose release of awareness is still immature, this is the first quality that brings it to maturity.
"Furthermore, the monk is virtuous. He dwells restrained in accordance with the Patimokkha, consummate in his behavior and sphere of activity. He trains himself, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults. In one whose release of awareness is still immature, this is the second quality that brings it to maturity.
"Furthermore, he gets to hear at will, easily and without difficulty, talk that is truly sobering and conducive to the opening of awareness, i.e., talk on having few wants, on contentment, on seclusion, on non-entanglement, on arousing persistence, on virtue, on concentration, on discernment, on release, and on the knowledge and vision of release. In one whose release of awareness is still immature, this is the third quality that brings it to maturity.
"Furthermore, he keeps his persistence aroused for abandoning unskillful [mental] qualities and for taking on skillful qualities. He is steadfast, solid in his effort, not shirking his duties with regard to skillful qualities. In one whose release of awareness is still immature, this is the fourth quality that brings it to maturity.
"Furthermore, he is discerning, endowed with the discernment of arising and passing away -- noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress. In one whose release of awareness is still immature, this is the fifth quality that brings it to maturity.
"Meghiya, when a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, and colleagues, it is to be expected that he will be virtuous, will dwell restrained in accordance with the Patimokkha, consummate in his behavior and sphere of activity, and will train himself, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults.
"When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, and colleagues, it is to be expected that he will get to hear at will, easily and without difficulty, talk that is truly sobering and conducive to the opening of awareness, i.e., talk on having few wants, on contentment, on seclusion, on non-entanglement, on arousing persistence, on virtue, on concentration, on discernment, on release, and on the knowledge and vision of release.
"When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, and colleagues, it is to be expected that he will keep his persistence aroused for abandoning unskillful qualities, and for taking on skillful qualities -- steadfast, solid in his effort, not shirking his duties with regard to skillful qualities.
"When a monk has admirable people as friends, companions, and colleagues, it is to be expected that he will be discerning, endowed with discernment of arising and passing away -- noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress.
"And furthermore, when the monk is established in these five qualities, there are four additional qualities he should develop: He should develop [contemplation of] the unattractive so as to abandon lust. He should develop good will so as to abandon ill will. He should develop mindfulness of in-and-out breathing so as to cut off distractive thinking. He should develop the perception of inconstancy so as to uproot the conceit, 'I am.' For a monk perceiving inconstancy, the perception of not-self is made firm. One perceiving not-self attains the uprooting of the conceit, 'I am' -- Unbinding in the here and now."
Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
Little thoughts, subtle thoughts,
when followed, stir up the heart.
Not comprehending the thoughts of the heart,
one runs here & there,
the mind out of control.
But comprehending the thoughts of the heart,
one who is ardent, mindful,
restrains them.
When, followed, they stir up the heart,
one who is awakened
lets them go without trace.
It so happened that two yakkhas who were companions were flying from north to south on some business or other. They saw Ven. Sariputta -- his head newly shaven -- sitting in the open air. Seeing him, the first yakkha said to the second, "I'm inspired to give this contemplative a blow on the head."
When this was said, the second yakkha said to the first, "Enough of that, my good friend. Don't lay a hand on the contemplative. He's an outstanding contemplative, of great power and great might."
A second time, the first yakkha said to the second, "I'm inspired to give this contemplative a blow on the head."
A second time, the second yakkha said to the first, "Enough of that, my good friend. Don't lay a hand on the contemplative. He's an outstanding contemplative, of great power and great might."
A third time, the first yakkha said to the second, "I'm inspired to give this contemplative a blow on the head."
A third time, the second yakkha said to the first, "Enough of that, my good friend. Don't lay a hand on the contemplative. He's an outstanding contemplative, of great power and great might."
Then the first yakkha, ignoring the second yakkha, gave Ven. Sariputta a blow on the head. And with that blow he might have knocked over an elephant seven or eight cubits tall, or split a rocky crag. But right there the yakkha -- yelling, "I'm burning!" -- fell into the Great Hell.
Now, Ven. Moggallana -- with his divine eye, pure and surpassing the human -- saw the yakkha give Ven. Sariputta a blow on the head. Seeing this, he went to Ven. Sariputta and, on arrival, said to him, "I hope you are well, friend Sariputta. I hope you are comfortable. I hope you are feeling no pain."
"I am well, friend Moggallana. I am comfortable. But I do have a slight headache."
"How amazing, friend Sariputta! How awesome! How great your power and might! Just now a yakkha gave you a blow on the head. So great was that blow that he might have knocked over an elephant seven or eight cubits tall, or split a rocky crag. But all you say is this: 'I am well, friend Moggallana. I am comfortable. But I do have a slight headache'!"
"How amazing, friend Moggallana! How awesome! How great your power and might! Where you saw a yakkha just now, I didn't even see a dust devil!"
The Blessed One -- with his divine ear, pure and surpassing the human -- heard those two great beings speak in praise of one another in this way. Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
Whose mind is like rock,
steady,
unmoved,
dispassionate for things that spark passion,
unangered by things that spark anger:
When one's mind is developed like this,
from where can there come
suffering & stress?
Thus have I heard. At one time the Lord was staying near Kosambi at the Ghosita monastery. At that time the Lord was living hemmed in by bhikkhus and bhikkhunis, by male and female lay followers, by kings and royal ministers, by sectarian teachers and their disciples, and he lived in discomfort and not at ease. [1] Then the Lord thought: "At present I am living hemmed in by bhikkhus and bhikkhunis ... by sectarian teachers and their disciples, and I live in discomfort and not at ease. Suppose I were to live alone, secluded from the crowd?"
Then the Lord, having put on his robe in the forenoon and taken his bowl and outer cloak, entered Kosambi for almsfood. Having walked for almsfood in Kosambi and returned after the meal, he set his lodging in order by himself, took his bowl and cloak, and without informing his attendant or taking leave of the Order of bhikkhus, he set off alone, without a companion, for Parileyyaka. Walking on tour by stages, he arrived at Parileyyaka and stayed near Parileyyaka in a protected forest at the foot of an auspicious sal-tree.
Now a certain bull elephant was living hemmed in by elephants and she-elephants, by elephant calves and sucklings; he ate grass with the tips pulled off and they ate the branches he had broken down. He drank muddied water and on going down and coming out of the water he was jostled by she-elephants; and he lived in discomfort and not at ease. Then that bull elephant thought: "At present I am living hemmed in by elephants and she-elephants, by elephant calves and sucklings; I eat grass with the tips pulled off and they eat the branches which I break down. I drink muddied water and on going down and coming out of the water I am jostled by she-elephants; and I live in discomfort and not at ease. Suppose I were to live alone, secluded from the crowd?"
So that bull elephant left the herd and went to Parileyyaka, to the protected forest, and approached the Lord at the foot of the auspicious sal-tree. On reaching the place where the Lord was staying that bull elephant kept the place free of grass and brought water with his trunk for the Lord's use.
Then, while the Lord was in solitude and seclusion, this thought arose in his mind: "Formerly I was living hemmed in by bhikkhus and bhikkhunis ... and I was living in discomfort and not at ease. But now I live not hemmed in by bhikkhus and bhikkhunis ... in comfort and at ease." And also this thought arose in that bull elephant's mind: "Formerly I was living hemmed in by elephants and she-elephants ... and I was living in discomfort and not at ease, but now I live not hemmed in by elephants and she-elephants ... I eat unbroken grass and (others) do not eat the branches which I break down. I drink clear water and on going down and coming out of the water I am not jostled by she-elephants, and I live in comfort and at ease."
Then the Lord, on observing his own solitude, understood with his mind the thought in the mind of that bull elephant, and uttered on that occasion this inspired utterance:
This unites mind with mind,
The perfected one and the bull elephant [2]
With tusks as long as chariot-poles:
That each delights in being alone in the forest.
1. Comy. explains that the Buddha was living surrounded by these eight assemblies, not out of gregariousness, but out of compassion, because he desired their welfare, in accordance with his vow to liberate others and to rescue them from the four floods. [Go back]
2. Nagassa nagena. The "perfected one" or arahat and the bull-elephant, as well as the serpent deity, are all termed naga. [Go back]
Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
Not reviling, not injuring,
restraint in line with the Patimokkha,
moderation in food,
dwelling in seclusion,
devotion to the heightened mind:
this is the teaching
of the Awakened Ones.
Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
Exalted in mind & heedful,
the sage trained in sagacity's ways:
He has no sorrows, one who is Such,
calmed & ever mindful.
Then the Blessed One, comprehending with his awareness the line of thinking that had arisen in Ven. Upasena Vangantaputta's awareness, on that occasion exclaimed:
He feels no regret at what life has been,
he feels no sorrow at death,
if -- a wise one -- he has seen that state.
He feels no sorrow
in the midst of sorrow.For one who has destroyed
craving for becoming --
the monk of peaceful mind --
birth & the wandering on
are totally ended.
There is no further becoming.
Then, on realizing the significance of that, the Blessed One on that occasion exclaimed:
For the monk whose mind is
peaceful, at peace,
whose cord to becoming is cut,
birth & the wandering on
are totally ended.
Freed is he
from Mara's bonds.