sutta » an » an9 » Aṅguttara Nikāya 9.24

Sattāvāsasutta

Abodes of Sentient Beings

“Navayime, bhikkhave, sattāvāsā.
“Mendicants, there are nine abodes of sentient beings.

Katame nava?
What nine?

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā nānattakāyā nānattasaññino, seyyathāpi manussā, ekacce ca devā, ekacce ca vinipātikā.
There are sentient beings that are diverse in body and diverse in perception, such as human beings, some gods, and some beings in the underworld.

Ayaṁ paṭhamo sattāvāso.
This is the first abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā nānattakāyā ekattasaññino, seyyathāpi devā brahmakāyikā paṭhamābhinibbattā.
There are sentient beings that are diverse in body and unified in perception, such as the gods reborn in the Divinity’s host through the first absorption.

Ayaṁ dutiyo sattāvāso.
This is the second abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā ekattakāyā nānattasaññino, seyyathāpi devā ābhassarā.
There are sentient beings that are unified in body and diverse in perception, such as the gods of streaming radiance.

Ayaṁ tatiyo sattāvāso.
This is the third abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā ekattakāyā ekattasaññino, seyyathāpi devā subhakiṇhā.
There are sentient beings that are unified in body and unified in perception, such as the gods of universal beauty.

Ayaṁ catuttho sattāvāso.
This is the fourth abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā asaññino appaṭisaṁvedino, seyyathāpi devā asaññasattā.
There are sentient beings that are non-percipient and do not experience anything, such as the gods who are non-percipient beings.

Ayaṁ pañcamo sattāvāso.
This is the fifth abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā sabbaso rūpasaññānaṁ samatikkamā paṭighasaññānaṁ atthaṅgamā nānattasaññānaṁ amanasikārā ‘ananto ākāso’ti ākāsānañcāyatanūpagā.
There are sentient beings that have gone totally beyond perceptions of form. With the ending of perceptions of impingement, not focusing on perceptions of diversity, aware that ‘space is infinite’, they have been reborn in the dimension of infinite space.

Ayaṁ chaṭṭho sattāvāso.
This is the sixth abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā sabbaso ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ samatikkamma ‘anantaṁ viññāṇan’ti viññāṇañcāyatanūpagā.
There are sentient beings that have gone totally beyond the dimension of infinite space. Aware that ‘consciousness is infinite’, they have been reborn in the dimension of infinite consciousness.

Ayaṁ sattamo sattāvāso.
This is the seventh abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā sabbaso viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ samatikkamma ‘natthi kiñcī’ti ākiñcaññāyatanūpagā.
There are sentient beings that have gone totally beyond the dimension of infinite consciousness. Aware that ‘there is nothing at all’, they have been reborn in the dimension of nothingness.

Ayaṁ aṭṭhamo sattāvāso.
This is the eighth abode of sentient beings.

Santi, bhikkhave, sattā sabbaso ākiñcaññāyatanaṁ samatikkamma nevasaññānāsaññāyatanūpagā.
There are sentient beings that have gone totally beyond the dimension of nothingness. They have been reborn in the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.

Ayaṁ navamo sattāvāso.
This is the ninth abode of sentient beings.

Ime kho, bhikkhave, nava sattāvāsā”ti.
These are the nine abodes of sentient beings.”

Catutthaṁ.