Aṅguttara Nikāya
Sattaka Nipāta
Avyākata Vagga
The Book of the Gradual Sayings
The Book of the Sevens
Chapter VI: The Unexplained
Sutta 52
Man's Faring
Translated from the Pali by E.M. Hare.
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Once the Exalted One was dwelling near Sāvatthī,
at Jeta Grove, in Anāthapiṇḍika's Park;
and there he addressed the monks, saying:
"Monks."
'Yes, lord,' they replied;
and the Exalted One said:
"Monks, I will teach the seven farings[1] of man
and the completely unattached[2] cool;
listen well,
pay heed,
I will speak.'
'Yes, lord,' rejoined the monks;
and the Exalted One said:
"And what, monks, are the seven farings of man?
§
Consider a monk who steps his way, thinking:
"If it were[3] not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall [41] not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;[4]
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
he becomes completely cool[5] after an interval.
■
Monks, just as from an iron slab,[6]
heated and beaten[7] all day,
a bit may come off and cool[8] down;
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
he becomes completely cool after an interval.
§
Again, consider a monk who steps his way thinking:[9]
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
becomes completely cool after an interval:
■
Just as from an iron slab, heated and beaten all day, a bit may come off, fly up and cool down;
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
becomes completely cool after an interval.
§
Again, consider a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
becomes completely cool after an interval.
■
Just as from an iron slab,
heated and beaten all day,
a bit may come off,
fly up and before touching the ground cool down;
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
becomes completely cool after an interval.
§
Again, consider a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
becomes completely cool after lessening his period.
■
Just as from an iron slab,
heated and beaten all day,
a bit may come off,
fly up and after touching the ground cool down;
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
becomes completely cool after lessening his period.
§
Again, consider a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
without (karmic) residue becomes completely cool.[ed1]
■
Just as from an iron slab,
heated and beaten all day,
a bit may come off,
fly up and fall on some small heap of grass,
heap of sticks,
kindle fire,
kindle smoke
and consume that small heap
and cool down from want of fuel;[10]
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
without (karmic) residue becomes completely cool.
§
[42] Again, consider a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
with some (karmic) residue becomes completely cool.
■
Just as from an iron slab,
heated and beaten all day,
a bit may fall on a large heap of grass,
heap of sticks,
kindle fire,
kindle smoke
and consume that large heap
and cool down from want of fuel;
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
with some (karmic) residue becomes completely cool.
§
Again, consider a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
he becomes part of the upward stream, bound for the highest.
■
Just as from an iron slab,
heated and beaten all day,
a bit may come off,
fly up and fall on a large heap of grass,
a large heap of sticks,
kindle fire,
kindle smoke,
consume that large heap,
set fire to the shrubland,[11]
set fire to the woodland
and, burning there,
come to the edge of a green cornfield,
[12]upland,
rock,
water
or lush countryside[13]
and there cool down from want of fuel;
even so a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!" -
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but sees with true wisdom
that there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
yet not all in all is the bourne realized by him,
nor all in all is the leaning towards conceit got rid of,
nor that towards worldly lusts,
nor towards ignorance.
When the five lower fetters are destroyed,
he becomes part of the upward stream, bound for the highest.
Verily, monks, these are the seven farings of man.
§
And what is the completely unattached cool?
Consider a monk who steps his way thinking:
"If it were not,
it would not be mine;
it shall not become,
for me it shall not become;
what is,
what's become,
that I abandon!"
he acquires poise,
yearns not after life,
yearns not after life to come,
but with true wisdom sees there is beyond a bourne,
a peace;
and that bourne is, verily,
all in all realized by him;
and all in all is the leaning towards conceit
got rid of by him,
the leaning towards worldly lusts
got rid of by him,
the leaning towards ignorance
got rid of by him.
Destroying the cankers,
he enters and abides in the cankerless mind-emancipation,
wisdom-emancipation,
[43] here and now,
realizing it himself by his own knowledge.
This, monks, is called the completely unattached cool.
Verily, monks, these are the seven farings of man and the completely unattached cool.'
[1] Purisa-gati. Comy. purisassa ñāṇa- (gnosis) -gatiyo; P.E.D. omits.
[2] Anupādā parinibbāna. Comy. apaccaya-nibbāna; 'not taking up (fuel)'; cf. A. i, 44 (G.S. 'without attachment'); M. i, 148 (F. Dial. absolute'). (Note: The rendering of the Pali parinibbāyin by 'becomes ... cool' is to copy the adaptation of the phrase to the simile. The more usual term is sītibhūta. - Mrs. Rhys Davids.)
[3] S. iii, 55; Ud. 66; Comy. and S.e. here read assa. Comy. explains as at S.A. (see note to K.S. iii, 48): because of the deed (kamma) there is the personality (attabhāva), i.e. the self made-to-become.
[4] Atth'uttariɱ padaɱ santaɱ. Comy. Nibbāna-padaɱ.
[5] On this and subsequent terms see above, p. 9, n. 1.
[6] Ayokapāla. S.e. so; P.E.D. suggests phāla, following Vin. i, 225, which I adopt; but cf. SnA. 221: aggitattakapālasadiso. V.l. guhala, gula.
[7] Comy. Saṇḍāsena gahetvā muṭṭhikāya koṭṭiyamāne.
[8] Nibbāyeyya.
[9] The text repeats much in full. [Ed. Fully expanded here.]
[10] Anāhāra. Cf. M. i, 487.
[11] Gaccha. S.e., kaccha with v.l.; Comy. both, observing, nirārakkhaɱ {not in P.E.D.) araññaɱ. See Vism. 183.
[12] Haritaɱ taɱ vā patthaɱ taɱ vā ... S.e. haritattaɱ vaɱ patthattaɱ vā selantaɱ vā ...; we should no doubt, read: harit'antaɱ vā patth'antaɱ vā ... and so forth.
[13] Ramaṇīyaɱ bhūmibhdgaɱ.
[ed1] See Hare's version in AN 7.16.. In that version his abbreviation makes it uncertain as to his intent to include the line: 'When the five lower fetters are destroyed;' here it is completely ignored. It has been restored here and in AN 7.16 following the Pali.
