sutta » an » an9 » Aṅguttara Nikāya 9.37

Ānandasutta

By Ānanda

Ekaṁ samayaṁ āyasmā ānando kosambiyaṁ viharati ghositārāme.
At one time Venerable Ānanda was staying near Kosambī, in Ghosita’s Monastery.

Tatra kho āyasmā ānando bhikkhū āmantesi:
There Ānanda addressed the mendicants:

“āvuso bhikkhave”ti.
“Reverends, mendicants!”

“Āvuso”ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato ānandassa paccassosuṁ.
“Reverend,” they replied.

Āyasmā ānando etadavoca:
Ānanda said this:

“Acchariyaṁ, āvuso, abbhutaṁ, āvuso.
“It’s incredible, reverends, it’s amazing!

Yāvañcidaṁ tena bhagavatā jānatā passatā arahatā sammāsambuddhena sambādhe okāsādhigamo anubuddho sattānaṁ visuddhiyā sokaparidevānaṁ samatikkamāya dukkhadomanassānaṁ atthaṅgamāya ñāyassa adhigamāya nibbānassa sacchikiriyāya.
How this Blessed One who knows and sees, the perfected one, the fully awakened Buddha, has found an opportunity amid confinement. It’s in order to purify sentient beings, to get past sorrow and crying, to make an end of pain and sadness, to discover the system, and to realize extinguishment.

Tadeva nāma cakkhuṁ bhavissati te rūpā tañcāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedissati.
The eye itself is actually present, and so are those sights. Yet one will not experience that sense-field.

Tadeva nāma sotaṁ bhavissati te saddā tañcāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedissati.
The ear itself is actually present, and so are those sounds. Yet one will not experience that sense-field.

Tadeva nāma ghānaṁ bhavissati te gandhā tañcāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedissati.
The nose itself is actually present, and so are those smells. Yet one will not experience that sense-field.

Sāva nāma jivhā bhavissati te rasā tañcāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedissati.
The tongue itself is actually present, and so are those tastes. Yet one will not experience that sense-field.

Sova nāma kāyo bhavissati te phoṭṭhabbā tañcāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedissatī”ti.
The body itself is actually present, and so are those touches. Yet one will not experience that sense-field.”

Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā udāyī āyasmantaṁ ānandaṁ etadavoca:
When he said this, Venerable Udāyī said to Venerable Ānanda:

“saññīmeva nu kho, āvuso ānanda, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedeti udāhu asaññī”ti?
“Reverend Ānanda, is one who doesn’t experience that sense-field actually percipient or not?”

“Saññīmeva kho, āvuso, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedeti, no asaññī”ti.
“Reverend, one who doesn’t experience that sense-field is actually percipient, not non-percipient.”

“Kiṁsaññī panāvuso, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedetī”ti?
“But what does one who doesn’t experience that sense-field perceive?”

“Idhāvuso, bhikkhu, sabbaso rūpasaññānaṁ samatikkamā paṭighasaññānaṁ atthaṅgamā nānattasaññānaṁ amanasikārā ‘ananto ākāso’ti ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ upasampajja viharati.
“It’s when a mendicant, going totally beyond perceptions of form, with the ending of perceptions of impingement, not focusing on perceptions of diversity, aware that ‘space is infinite’, enters and remains in the dimension of infinite space.

Evaṁsaññīpi kho, āvuso, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedeti.
One who doesn’t experience that sense-field perceives in this way.

Puna caparaṁ, āvuso, bhikkhu sabbaso ākāsānañcāyatanaṁ samatikkamma ‘anantaṁ viññāṇan’ti viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ upasampajja viharati.
Furthermore, a mendicant, going totally beyond the dimension of infinite space, aware that ‘consciousness is infinite’, enters and remains in the dimension of infinite consciousness.

Evaṁsaññīpi kho, āvuso, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedeti.
One who doesn’t experience that sense-field perceives in this way.

Puna caparaṁ, āvuso, bhikkhu sabbaso viññāṇañcāyatanaṁ samatikkamma ‘natthi kiñcī’ti ākiñcaññāyatanaṁ upasampajja viharati.
Furthermore, a mendicant, going totally beyond the dimension of infinite consciousness, aware that ‘there is nothing at all’, enters and remains in the dimension of nothingness.

Evaṁsaññīpi kho, āvuso, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedetīti.
One who doesn’t experience that sense-field perceives in this way.

Ekamidāhaṁ, āvuso, samayaṁ sākete viharāmi añjanavane migadāye.
Reverend, one time I was staying near Sāketa in the deer park in Añjana Wood.

Atha kho, āvuso, jaṭilavāsikā bhikkhunī yenāhaṁ tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā maṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ aṭṭhāsi. Ekamantaṁ ṭhitā kho, āvuso, jaṭilavāsikā bhikkhunī maṁ etadavoca:
Then the nun Jaṭilagāhikā came up to me, bowed, stood to one side, and said to me:

‘yāyaṁ, bhante ānanda, samādhi na cābhinato na cāpanato na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato,
‘Honorable Ānanda, regarding the immersion that does not lean forward or pull back, and is not held in place by forceful suppression.

vimuttattā ṭhito, ṭhitattā santusito, santusitattā no paritassati.
Being free, it’s stable. Being stable, it’s content. Being content, one is not anxious.

Ayaṁ, bhante ānanda, samādhi kiṁphalo vutto bhagavatā’ti?
What did the Buddha say was the fruit of this immersion?’

Evaṁ vutte, sohaṁ, āvuso, jaṭilavāsikaṁ bhikkhuniṁ etadavocaṁ:
When she said this, I said to her:

‘yāyaṁ, bhagini, samādhi na cābhinato na cāpanato na ca sasaṅkhāraniggayhavāritagato,
‘Sister, regarding the immersion that does not lean forward or pull back, and is not held in place by forceful suppression.

vimuttattā ṭhito, ṭhitattā santusito, santusitattā no paritassati.
Being free, it’s stable. Being stable, it’s content. Being content, one is not anxious.

Ayaṁ, bhagini, samādhi aññāphalo vutto bhagavatā’ti.
The Buddha said that the fruit of this immersion is enlightenment.’

Evaṁsaññīpi kho, āvuso, tadāyatanaṁ no paṭisaṁvedetī”ti.
One who doesn’t experience that sense-field perceives in this way, too.”

Chaṭṭhaṁ.