sutta » an » an3 » Aṅguttara Nikāya 3.118

Apaṇṇakasutta

Unfailing Dice

“Tisso imā, bhikkhave, vipattiyo.
“Mendicants, there are three failures.

Katamā tisso?
What three?

Sīlavipatti, cittavipatti, diṭṭhivipatti.
Failure in ethics, mind, and view.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, sīlavipatti?
And what is failure in ethics?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco pāṇātipātī hoti …pe… samphappalāpī hoti.
It’s when someone kills living creatures, steals, commits sexual misconduct, and uses speech that’s false, divisive, harsh, or nonsensical.

Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sīlavipatti.
This is called ‘failure in ethics’.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, cittavipatti?
And what is failure in mind?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco abhijjhālu hoti byāpannacitto.
It’s when someone is covetous and malicious.

Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, cittavipatti.
This is called ‘failure in mind’.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, diṭṭhivipatti?
And what is failure in view?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco micchādiṭṭhiko hoti viparītadassano:
It’s when someone has wrong view, a distorted perspective, such as:

‘natthi dinnaṁ, natthi yiṭṭhaṁ …pe… ye imañca lokaṁ parañca lokaṁ sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā pavedentī’ti.
‘There’s no meaning in giving, sacrifice, or offerings. There’s no fruit or result of good and bad deeds. There’s no afterlife. There’s no such thing as mother and father, or beings that are reborn spontaneously. And there’s no ascetic or brahmin who is rightly comported and rightly practiced, and who describes the afterlife after realizing it with their own insight.’

Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, diṭṭhivipatti.
This is called ‘failure in view’.

Sīlavipattihetu vā, bhikkhave …pe… diṭṭhivipattihetu vā, bhikkhave, sattā kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā apāyaṁ duggatiṁ vinipātaṁ nirayaṁ upapajjanti.
Some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a place of loss, a bad place, the underworld, hell because of failure in ethics, mind, or view.

Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, apaṇṇako maṇi uddhaṁ khitto yena yeneva patiṭṭhāti suppatiṭṭhitaṁyeva patiṭṭhāti;
It’s like throwing unfailing dice: they always fall the right side up.

evamevaṁ kho, bhikkhave, sīlavipattihetu vā sattā …pe… upapajjanti.
In the same way, some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a place of loss, a bad place, the underworld, hell because of failure in ethics, mind, or view.

Imā kho, bhikkhave, tisso vipattiyoti.
These are the three failures.

Tisso imā, bhikkhave, sampadā.
There are three accomplishments.

Katamā tisso?
What three?

Sīlasampadā, cittasampadā, diṭṭhisampadā.
Accomplishment in ethics, mind, and view.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, sīlasampadā?
And what is accomplishment in ethics?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco pāṇātipātā paṭivirato hoti …pe…
It’s when someone doesn’t kill living creatures, steal, commit sexual misconduct, or use speech that’s false, divisive, harsh, or nonsensical.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sīlasampadā.
This is called accomplishment in ethics.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, cittasampadā?
And what is accomplishment in mind?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco anabhijjhālu hoti abyāpannacitto.
It’s when someone is content and kind-hearted.

Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, cittasampadā.
This is called accomplishment in mind.

Katamā ca, bhikkhave, diṭṭhisampadā?
And what is accomplishment in view?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco sammādiṭṭhiko hoti aviparītadassano:
It’s when someone has right view, an undistorted perspective, such as:

‘atthi dinnaṁ, atthi yiṭṭhaṁ …pe… ye imañca lokaṁ parañca lokaṁ sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā pavedentī’ti.
‘There is meaning in giving, sacrifice, and offerings. There are fruits and results of good and bad deeds. There is an afterlife. There are such things as mother and father, and beings that are reborn spontaneously. And there are ascetics and brahmins who are rightly comported and rightly practiced, and who describe the afterlife after realizing it with their own insight.’

Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, diṭṭhisampadā.
This is called accomplishment in view.

Sīlasampadāhetu vā, bhikkhave, sattā kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapajjanti. Cittasampadāhetu vā …pe… diṭṭhisampadāhetu vā, bhikkhave, sattā kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapajjanti.
Some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm because of accomplishment in ethics, mind, or view.

Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, apaṇṇako maṇi uddhaṁ khitto yena yeneva patiṭṭhāti suppatiṭṭhitaṁyeva patiṭṭhāti;
It’s like throwing unfailing dice: they always fall the right side up.

evamevaṁ kho, bhikkhave, sīlasampadāhetu vā sattā kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapajjanti, cittasampadāhetu vā sattā …pe… diṭṭhisampadāhetu vā sattā kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapajjanti.
In the same way, some sentient beings, when their body breaks up, after death, are reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm because of accomplishment in ethics, mind, or view.

Imā kho, bhikkhave, tisso sampadā”ti.
These are the three accomplishments.”

Chaṭṭhaṁ.