sutta » sn » sn56 » Saṁyutta Nikāya 56.62

Paccantasutta

In the Borderlands

Atha kho bhagavā parittaṁ nakhasikhāyaṁ paṁsuṁ āropetvā bhikkhū āmantesi:
Then the Buddha, picking up a little bit of dirt under his fingernail, addressed the mendicants:

“Taṁ kiṁ maññatha, bhikkhave,
“What do you think, mendicants?

katamaṁ nu kho bahutaraṁ—yo vāyaṁ mayā paritto nakhasikhāyaṁ paṁsu āropito, ayaṁ vā mahāpathavī”ti?
Which is more: the little bit of dirt under my fingernail, or this great earth?”

“Etadeva, bhante, bahutaraṁ, yadidaṁ—mahāpathavī; appamattakāyaṁ bhagavatā paritto nakhasikhāyaṁ paṁsu āropito.
“Sir, the great earth is certainly more. The little bit of dirt under your fingernail is tiny.

Saṅkhampi na upeti, upanidhampi na upeti, kalabhāgampi na upeti mahāpathaviṁ upanidhāya bhagavatā paritto nakhasikhāyaṁ paṁsu āropito”ti.
Compared to the great earth, it doesn’t count, there’s no comparison, it’s not worth a fraction.”

“Evameva kho, bhikkhave, appamattakā te sattā ye majjhimesu janapadesu paccājāyanti; atha kho eteva bahutarā sattā ye paccantimesu janapadesu paccājāyanti aviññātāresu milakkhesu …pe….
“In the same way, the sentient beings reborn in central countries are few, while those reborn in the borderlands, among uneducated foreigners, are many. …”

Dutiyaṁ.