Majjhima Nikāya
1. Mūla-Paṇṇāsa
4. Mahā Yamaka Vagga

The Middle Length Sayings
I. The First Fifty Discourses
4. The Greater Division of the Pairs

Sutta 40

Cūḷa Assapura Suttaɱ

Translated from the Pali by I.B. Horner, O.B.E., M.A.
Associate of Newham College, Cambridge
First Published in 1954

Copyright The Pali Text Society
Commercial Rights Reserved

For details see Terms of Use.

[334]

[1][chlm][upal][than] THUS have I heard:

At one time the Lord was staying among the Aṅgas;
a township of the Aṅgas was called Assapura.

While he was there the Lord addressed the monks, saying:

“Monks.”

[335] “Revered one,”
these monks answered the Lord in assent.

The Lord spoke thus:

“‘Recluses, recluses,’
so the people know you, monks,
and you, on being asked:

‘Who are you?’

should acknowledge:

‘We are recluses.’

Such being your, designations, monks,
such being your vocations,
thus you should train yourselves, monks:

‘We will follow those practices
which are fitting for recluses;
thus will this designation of ours
become true
and the vocation real;
and the gifts of those things we make use of –
robe-material,
almsfood,
lodging,
medicines for the sick –
will come to be of great fruit,
of great advantage to us;
and this our going forth
will come to be not barren
but fruitful
and growing.’

And how, monks, does a monk come to be one
who is not following the practice
that is fitting for recluses?

Monks, in any monk who is covetous,
covetousness not got rid of;
who is malevolent in mind,
malevolence not got rid of;
who is wrathful,
wrath not got rid of;
who is grudging,
grudging not got rid of;
who is hypocritical,
hypocrisy not got rid of;
who is spiteful,
spite not got rid of;
who is jealous,
jealousy not got rid of;
who is stingy,
stinginess not got rid of;
who is treacherous,
treachery not got rid of;
who is crafty,
craftiness not got rid of;
who is of evil desires,
evil desires not got rid of;
who is of wrong view,
wrong view not got rid of –
I, monks, say
that if he does not follow
the practice fitting for recluses,
there is no getting rid of these stains on recluses,
defects in recluses,
faults in recluses,
occasions for the sorrowful states,
of what is to be experienced in a bad bourn.

Monks, as a deadly weapon^[1] for fighting with,
double-edged
and whetted sharp,
may be covered
and enveloped
by his outer cloak –
unto this do I, monks,
liken this monk’s going forth.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who wears an outer cloak
depends merely on his wearing an outer cloak.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who is unclothed
depends merely on his being unclothed.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one living in dust and dirt
depends merely on his living in dust and dirt.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who bathes ceremonially^[2]
depends merely on the ceremonial bathing.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who [336] lives at the root of a tree
depends merely on his living at the root of a tree.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who lives in the open
depends merely on his living in the open.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who stands erect
depends merely on his standing erect.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who lives on a regimen^[3]
depends merely on his living on a regimen.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who meditates on chants^[4]
depends merely on his meditating on chants.

I, monks, do not say
that the recluseship
of one who has matted hair
depends merely on his matted hair.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who wears an outer cloak
could be got rid of
merely by wearing an outer cloak;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who wears an outer cloak
could be got rid of
merely by wearing an outer cloak;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him wear an outer cloak
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to wear an outer cloak,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,^[5]
become a wearer of an outer cloak,
for on your being a wearer of an outer cloak
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by wearing an outer cloak;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who wears an outer cloak
will be got rid of
merely by wearing an outer cloak’;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who wears an outer cloak
depends merely on his wearing an outer cloak.

But because I, monks, see here
some wearers of an outer cloak
who are covetous,
malevolent in mind,
wrathful,
grudging,
hypocritical,
spiteful,
jealous,
stingy,
treacherous,
crafty,
of evil desires,
of wrong view,
therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who wears an outer cloak
depends merely on his wearing an outer cloak.

[337] If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who is unclothed
could be got rid of
merely by being unclothed;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who is unclothed
could be got rid of
merely by being unclothed;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him go unclothed
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to go unclothed,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who goes unclothed,
for on your being one who goes unclothed
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by being unclothed;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who is unclothed
will be got rid of,
merely by being unclothed;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who goes unclothed
depends merely on his being unclothed.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who lives in dust and dirt
could be got rid of
merely by living in dust and dirt;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives in dust and dirt
could be got rid of
merely by living in dust and dirt;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make go live in dust and dirt
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to live in dust and dirt,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who lives in dust and dirt,
for on your being one who lives in dust and dirt
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by living in dust and dirt;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives in dust and dirt
will be got rid of,
merely by living in dust and dirt;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who lives in dust and dirt
depends merely by living in dust and dirt.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who bathes ceremonially
could be got rid of
merely by bathing ceremonially;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who bathes ceremonially
could be got rid of
merely by bathing ceremonially;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him bathe ceremonially
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to bathe ceremonially,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who bathes ceremonially,
for on your being one who bathes ceremonially
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by bathing ceremonially;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who bathes ceremonially
will be got rid of,
merely by bathing ceremonially;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who bathes ceremonially
depends merely on bathing ceremonially.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who lives at the root of a tree
could be got rid of
merely by living at the root of a tree;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives at the root of a tree
could be got rid of
merely by living at the root of a tree;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him live at the root of a tree
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to live at the root of a tree,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who lives at the root of a tree,
for on your being one who lives at the root of a tree
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by living at the root of a tree;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives at the root of a tree
will be got rid of,
merely by living at the root of a tree;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who lives at the root of a tree
depends merely on living at the root of a tree.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who lives in the open
could be got rid of
merely by living in the open;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives in the open
could be got rid of
merely by living in the open;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him live in the open
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to live in the open,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who lives in the open,
for on your being one who lives in the open
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by living in the open;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives in the open
will be got rid of,
merely by living in the open;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who lives in the open
depends merely on living in the open.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who stands erect
could be got rid of
merely by standing erect;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who stands erect
could be got rid of
merely by standing erect;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him stand erect
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to stand erect,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who stands erect,
for on your being one who stands erect
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by standing erect;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who stands erect
will be got rid of,
merely by standing erect;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who stands erect
depends merely by standing erect.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who lives on a regimen
could be got rid of
merely by living on a regimen;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives on a regimen
could be got rid of
merely by living on a regimen;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him live on a regimen
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to live on a regimen,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who lives on a regimen,
for on your being one who lives on a regimen
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by living on a regimen;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who lives on a regimen
will be got rid of,
merely by living on a regimen;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who lives on a regimen
depends merely by living on a regimen.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who meditates on chants
could be got rid of
merely by meditating on chants;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who meditates on chants
could be got rid of
merely by meditating on chants;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him meditate on chants
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to meditate on chants,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who meditates on chants,
for on your being one who meditates on chants
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by meditating on chants;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who meditates on chants
will be got rid of,
merely by meditating on chants;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who meditates on chants
depends merely on meditating on chants.

If, monks, the covetousness
of one who is covetous
and who has matted hair
could be got rid of
merely by having matted hair;

if the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

if the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

if the grudging
of one who is grudging;

if the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

if the spite
of one who is spiteful;

if the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

if the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

if the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

if the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

if the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

if the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who has matted hair
could be got rid of
merely by having matted hair;

then his friends and acquaintances,
kith and kin,
would make him have matted hair
from the very day that he was born,
would encourage him to have matted hair,
saying:

‘Come, you auspicious-faced,
become one who has matted hair,
for on your being one who has matted hair
the covetousness
of one who is covetous
will be got rid of,
merely by having matted hair;

the malevolence of mind
of one who is malevolent;

the wrath
of one who is wrathful;

the grudging
of one who is grudging;

the hypocrisy
of one who is hypocritical;

the spite
of one who is spiteful;

the jealousy
of one who is jealous;

the stinginess
of one who is stingy;

the treachery
of one who is treacherous;

the craftiness
of one who is crafty;

the evil desires
of one who is of evil desires;

the wrong view
of one who is of wrong view
and who has matted hair
will be got rid of,
merely by having matted hair;

therefore I do not say
that the recluseship
of one who has matted hair
depends merely on having matted hair.

And how, monks,
does a monk become one
following practices fitting for recluses?

In whatever monk who was covetous
covetousness is got rid of,
who was malevolent
malevolence of mind is got rid of,
who was wrathful
wrath is got rid of,
who was grudging
grudging is got rid of,
who was hypocritical
hypocrisy is got rid of,
who was spiteful
spite is got rid of,
who was jealous,
jealousy is got rid of,
who was stingy,
stinginess is got rid of,
who was treacherous,
treachery is got rid of,
who was crafty,
craftiness is got rid of,
who was of evil desires,
evil desire is got rid of,
who was of wrong view,
wrong view is got rid of,
I, monks, say
that if he follows the practice fitting for recluses,
there is a getting rid of those stains on recluses,
defects in recluses,
faults in recluses,
occasions for the sorrowful states,
of what is to be experienced in a bad bourn.

He beholds the self purified
of all these evil unskilled states,
he beholds the self freed.

When he beholds the self purified
of all these evil unskilled states,
when he beholds the self feed,
delight is born;
rapture is born from delight;
when he is in rapture
the body is impassible;
when the body is impassible
he experiences joy;
being joyful,
the mind is concentrated.

He dwells,
having suffused the first quarter
with a mind of friendliness,
likewise the second,
likewise the third,
likewise the [338] fourth;
just so above,
below,
across;
he dwells having suffused the whole world
everywhere,
in every way
with a mind of friendliness
that is far-reaching,
wide-spread,
immeasurable,
without enmity,
without malevolence.

■

He dwells,
having suffused the first quarter
with a mind of compassion,
likewise the second,
likewise the third,
likewise the fourth;
just so above,
below,
across;
he dwells having suffused the whole world
everywhere,
in every way
with a mind of compassion
that is far-reaching,
wide-spread,
immeasurable,
without enmity,
without malevolence.

■

He dwells,
having suffused the first quarter
with a mind of sympathetic joy,
likewise the second,
likewise the third,
likewise the fourth;
just so above,
below,
across;
he dwells having suffused the whole world
everywhere,
in every way
with a mind of sympathetic joy
that is far-reaching,
wide-spread,
immeasurable,
without enmity,
without malevolence.

■

He dwells,
having suffused the first quarter
with a mind of equanimity,
likewise the second,
likewise the third,
likewise the fourth;
just so above,
below,
across;
he dwells having suffused the whole world
everywhere,
in every way
with a mind of equanimity
that is far-reaching,
wide-spread,
immeasurable,
without enmity,
without malevolence.

Monks, it is as if^[6] there were a lovely lotus-pond
with clear water,
sweet water,
cool water,
limpid,
with beautiful banks;
and if a man were to come along from the east,
overcome and overpowered by the hot-weather heat,^[7]
exhausted,
parched
and thirsty,
he, on coming to that lotus-pond,
might quench^[8] his thirst with water,
might quench the hot-weather fever.

And if a man were to come along from the west,
overcome and overpowered by the hot-weather heat,
exhausted,
parched
and thirsty,
he, on coming to that lotus-pond,
might quench his thirst with water,
might quench the hot-weather fever.

And if a man were to come along from the north,
overcome and overpowered by the hot-weather heat,
exhausted,
parched
and thirsty,
he, on coming to that lotus-pond,
might quench his thirst with water,
might quench the hot-weather fever.

And if a man were to come along from the south,
overcome and overpowered by the hot-weather heat,
exhausted,
parched
and thirsty,
he, on coming to that lotus-pond,
might quench his thirst with water,
might quench the hot-weather fever.

From wherever a man might come along,
overcome and overpowered by the hot-weather heat,
exhausted,
parched
and thirsty,
he, on coming to that lotus-pond,
might quench his thirst with water,
might quench the hot-weather fever.

Even so, monks,
if from a noble’s family
one has gone forth from home into homelessness
and has come into this Dhamma and discipline
taught by the Tathāgata,
having thus developed friendliness,
compassion,
sympathetic joy
and equanimity,
he attains inward calm –
I say it is by inward calm
that he is following the practices
fitting for recluses.

Even so, monks,
if from a brahman’s family
one has gone forth from home into homelessness
and has come into this Dhamma and discipline
taught by the Tathāgata,
having thus developed friendliness,
compassion,
sympathetic joy
and equanimity,
he attains inward calm –
I say it is by inward calm
that he is following the practices
fitting for recluses.

Even so, monks,
if from a merchant’s family
one has gone forth from home into homelessness
and has come into this Dhamma and discipline
taught by the Tathāgata,
having thus developed friendliness,
compassion,
sympathetic joy
and equanimity,
he attains inward calm –
I say it is by inward calm
that he is following the practices
fitting for recluses.

Even so, monks,
if from a worker’s family
one has gone forth from home into homelessness
and has come into this Dhamma and discipline
taught by the Tathāgata,
having thus developed friendliness,
compassion,
sympathetic joy
and equanimity,
he attains inward calm –
I say it is by inward calm
that he is following the practices
fitting for recluses.

Even so, monks,
from whatever family
one has gone forth from home into homelessness
and has come into this Dhamma and discipline
taught by the Tathāgata,
having thus developed friendliness,
compassion,
sympathetic joy
and equanimity,
he attains inward calm –
I say it is by inward calm
that he is following the practices
fitting for recluses.

And if one has gone forth from home into homelessness
from a noble’s family,
and by the destruction of the cankers,
having here and now realized
by his own super-knowledge
freedom of mind,
the freedom through intuitive wisdom
that are cankerless,
entering on them,
abides therein –
he is a recluse
through the destruction of the cankers.

If one has gone forth from home into homelessness
from a brahman’s family,
and by the destruction of the cankers,
having here and now realized
by his own super-knowledge
freedom of mind,
the freedom through intuitive wisdom
that are cankerless,
entering on them,
abides therein –
he is a recluse
through the destruction of the cankers.

If one has gone forth from home into homelessness
from a merchant’s family,
and by the destruction of the cankers,
having here and now realized
by his own super-knowledge
freedom of mind,
the freedom through intuitive wisdom
that are cankerless,
entering on them,
abides therein –
he is a recluse
through the destruction of the cankers.

If one has gone forth from home into homelessness
from a worker’s family,
and by the destruction of the cankers,
having here and now realized
by his own super-knowledge
freedom of mind,
the freedom through intuitive wisdom
that are cankerless,
entering on them,
abides therein –
he is a recluse
through the destruction of the cankers.

If one has gone forth from home [339] into homelessness
from a whatever family,
and by the destruction of the cankers,
having here and now realized
by his own super-knowledge
freedom of mind,
the freedom through intuitive wisdom
that are cankerless,
entering on them,
abides therein –
he is a recluse
through the destruction of the cankers.”

Thus spoke the Lord.

Delighted, those monks rejoiced in what the Lord had said.

Lesser Discourse at Assapura:
The Tenth

^[1] maṭaja; v.l. mataja.

^[2] At S. iv. 312 = A. v. 263 spoken of as brahmans of the west. MA. ii. 325 says they enter the water three times a day (to cleanse themselves of their wrong-doings).

^[3] MA. ii. 325 saying he eats once a month or a fortnight. Also that all these practices are external to “this teaching,” where a monk who wears a robe is not called “a wearer of an outer cloak”, saṅghāṭiko. The only practices that Gotama’s followers have in common with the crowd outside are dwelling at the root of a tree and in the open.

^[4] manta.

^[5] bhadra-mukha. Also at M. ii. 53, S. i. 74. See K.S. i. 100, n. 3. MA. ii. does not comment.

^[6] M. i. 76.

^[7] M. i. 74.

^[8] vineyya, might avert, drive or lead away.