sutta » an » an4 » Aṅguttara Nikāya 4.95

Chavālātasutta

A Firebrand

“Cattārome, bhikkhave, puggalā santo saṁvijjamānā lokasmiṁ.
“Mendicants, these four people are found in the world.

Katame cattāro?
What four?

Nevattahitāya paṭipanno no parahitāya,
One who practices to benefit neither themselves nor others;

parahitāya paṭipanno no attahitāya,
one who practices to benefit others, but not themselves;

attahitāya paṭipanno no parahitāya,
one who practices to benefit themselves, but not others; and

attahitāya ceva paṭipanno parahitāya ca.
one who practices to benefit both themselves and others.

Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, chavālātaṁ ubhato padittaṁ, majjhe gūthagataṁ, neva gāme kaṭṭhatthaṁ pharati na araññe (…);
Suppose there was a firebrand for lighting a funeral pyre, burning at both ends, and smeared with dung in the middle. It couldn’t be used as timber either in the village or the wilderness.

tathūpamāhaṁ, bhikkhave, imaṁ puggalaṁ vadāmi yvāyaṁ puggalo nevattahitāya paṭipanno no parahitāya.
The person who practices to benefit neither themselves nor others is like this, I say.

Tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṁ puggalo parahitāya paṭipanno no attahitāya, ayaṁ imesaṁ dvinnaṁ puggalānaṁ abhikkantataro ca paṇītataro ca.
The person who practices to benefit others, but not themselves, is better than that.

Tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṁ puggalo attahitāya paṭipanno no parahitāya, ayaṁ imesaṁ tiṇṇaṁ puggalānaṁ abhikkantataro ca paṇītataro ca.
The person who practices to benefit themselves, but not others, is better than both of those.

Tatra, bhikkhave, yvāyaṁ puggalo attahitāya ceva paṭipanno parahitāya ca, ayaṁ imesaṁ catunnaṁ puggalānaṁ aggo ca seṭṭho ca pāmokkho ca uttamo ca pavaro ca.
But the person who practices to benefit both themselves and others is the foremost, best, chief, highest, and finest of the four.

Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, gavā khīraṁ, khīramhā dadhi, dadhimhā navanītaṁ, navanītamhā sappi, sappimhā sappimaṇḍo, sappimaṇḍo tattha aggamakkhāyati;
From a cow comes milk, from milk comes curds, from curds come butter, from butter comes ghee, and from ghee comes cream of ghee. And the cream of ghee is said to be the best of these.

evamevaṁ kho, bhikkhave, yvāyaṁ puggalo attahitāya ceva paṭipanno parahitāya ca, ayaṁ imesaṁ catunnaṁ puggalānaṁ aggo ca seṭṭho ca pāmokkho ca uttamo ca pavaro ca.
In the same way, the person who practices to benefit both themselves and others is the foremost, best, chief, highest, and finest of the four.

Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro puggalā santo saṁvijjamānā lokasmin”ti.
These are the four people found in the world.”

Pañcamaṁ.