Aṇguttara Nikāya
IX. Navaka Nipāta
I. Sambodha Vagga

The Book of the Gradual Sayings
IX. The Book of the Nines
Chapter I: The Awakening

Sutta 3

Meghiya Suttaṃ

The Venerable Meghiya^[1]

Translated from the Pali by E.M. Hare.

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[234]

[1][upal] Thus have I heard:

Once, when the venerable Meghiya was his attendant,
the Exalted One^[2] stayed at Calika,^[3] on the hill there.

Now the venerable Meghiya approached the Exalted One,
saluted him
and stood at one side.

So standing, he said to the Exalted One:

"Lord, I would like to visit Jantugāma^[4] for alms."

"Do now, Meghiya, as you think timely."

■

So the venerable Meghiya,
dressing himself before noon,
taking bowl and robe,
entered Jantugāma for alms.

And when he had wandered about for alms
and returned therefrom
[235] and finished his meal,
he came to the bank of the Kimikaḷa^[5] river.

Now, while stretching his legs
and roaming to and fro^[6] along the river bank,
the venerable Meghiya saw a mango grove,
pleasing and beautiful;
and at the sight, he thought:

"Truly, this mango grove is pleasing and beautiful;
meet, indeed, is it to strive here,
for a clansman wanting to strive!

If the Exalted One permit me,
I will come and strive in this mango grove."

 

§

 

And the venerable Meghiya returned to the Exalted One,
saluted him
and sat down at one side
and (told him all that had taken place, adding):

"If the Exalted One permit me,
I will go to that mango grove and strive."

■

'Stay awhile, Meghiya,
till some other monk appear,
for we are alone."^[7]

 

§

 

A second time the venerable Meghiya spoke, saying:

"Lord, for the Exalted One there is nothing further to be done;
there is no adding to his accomplishments.

But for me, lord, there is more to be done;
to what is done,
there is (more) to be added.^[8]

If the Exalted One permit me,
I will go to that mango grove and strive."

"Stay awhile, Meghiya,
till some other monk appear,
for we are alone."

 

§

 

A third time the venerable Meghiya spoke, saying:

"Lord, for the Exalted One there is nothing further to be done;
there is no adding to his accomplishments.

But for me, lord, there is more to be done;
to what is done
there is more to be added.

If the Exalted One permit me,
I will go to the mango grove and strive."

■

[236] 'What can we say to you, Meghiya,
when you repeat:

'I would strive'?

Do now, Meghiya, as you think fit."

■

Then the venerable Meghiya rose from sitting,
saluted the Exalted One,
and keeping him on his right,
went to the mango grove.

And having come,
he entered the grove and sat down at the foot of a tree
to spend the noon-day rest.

■

And there, in that mango grove,
three wicked, evil thoughts
kept coming to the venerable Meghiya -
that is to say,
sensual thoughts,
malign thoughts
and cruel thoughts.

■

And the venerable Meghiya wondered thus:

"It is amazing and astonishing, sir!

By^[9] faith alone
have I gone forth from home
to this homeless state;
yet I am still dogged^[10] by these three wicked, evil thoughts:
sensual thoughts,
malign thoughts,
cruel thoughts."

■

So the venerable Meghiya returned to the Exalted One,
saluted him
and stood at one side.

So standing, he said to the Exalted One:

"Lord, while I stayed in that mango grove,
three wicked, evil thoughts kept coming to me:
sensual thoughts,
malign thoughts
and cruel thoughts;
and I thought how amazing and astonishing it was
that I had gone forth
from the home to the homeless life by faith alone;
for, lord, I am still dogged by those three wicked, evil thoughts:
sensual thoughts,
malign thoughts,
cruel thoughts."

 

§

 

"For the emancipation of the mind of the unripe,
five conditions, Meghiya,
are conducive to the ripening.

What five?

Herein, Meghiya, a monk has a good friend,
a good companion,
a good comrade.

For the emancipation of the mind of the unripe,
this is the first condition conducive to the ripening.

■

Again, a monk is virtuous
and dwells restrained by the restraint of the Obligations^[11] he is perfect in behaviour and habitude,
seeing danger in the smallest fault;
undertaking the training,
he trains himself accordantly.

This is the second condition conducive to the ripening.

■

[237] Then, Meghiya, that talk which is serious and a help to opening the heart -
that is to say,
talk on wanting little,
on contentment,
on loneliness,
on going apart,
on strenuous endeavour,
on virtue,
on concentration,
on wisdom,
on emancipation,
on the knowledge and vision of emancipation
- a monk obtains at will,
easily and without difficulty.

This is the third condition conducive to the ripening.

■

Then, Meghiya, a monk dwells strenuous in purpose,
putting away unrighteous conditions,
taking to righteousness;
persevering and energetic,
he shirks not the burden of righteousness.

This is the fourth thing to make become for conditions that wing to the awakening.

■

Moreover, Meghiya, a monk has wisdom
and is endowed therewith
as to the way of growth and decay,
with Ariyan penetration
concerning the way to the utter destruction of ill.

This, Meghiya, is the fifth condition conducive to the ripening.

 

§

 

Meghiya, this may be expected of a monk,
who has a good friend,
companion, comrade:
he will be virtuous,
and dwell restrained by the restraint of the Obligations;
perfect in behaviour and habitude,
seeing danger in the smallest fault;
undertaking the training,
training himself accordantly.

■

This may also be expected of a monk,
who has a good friend,
companion, comrade:
that talk which is serious and a help to opening the heart -
that is to say,
talk on wanting little,
on contentment,
on loneliness,
on going apart,
on strenuous endeavour,
on virtue,
on concentration,
on wisdom,
on emancipation,
on the knowledge and vision of emancipation
- he will obtain at will,
easily and without difficulty.

■

Moreover this may also be expected of a monk,
who has a good friend,
companion, comrade:
he will dwell strenuous in purpose,
putting away unrighteous conditions,
taking to righteousness;
persevering and energetic,
and will not shirk the burden of righteousness.

■

And this may also be expected of a monk,
who has a good friend,
companion, comrade:
he will have wisdom
and be endowed therewith
as to the way of growth and decay,
with Ariyan penetration
concerning the way to the utter destruction of ill.

 

§

 

Then, Meghiya, when that monk is established in those five conditions,
four more conditions must be made to become,
that is to say,
(reflection on) foul things
must be made to become,
to put away passion;
(reflection on) amity
must be made to become,
to put away ill-will;
mindfulness in in-breathing and out-breathing
must be made to become,
to cut off distraction; the thought of impermanence
must be made to become,
to uproot the conceit 'I am.'

For a monk, Meghiya, who thinks on impermanence,
the thought of not-self endures;
thinking on there being no self,
he wins to the state wherein the conceit "I am" has been uprooted,
to the cool,
even in this life."^[12]

 

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^[1] On Meghiya, cf. Pss. of the Brethren, pp. 350 and 67.

^[2] The whole of this sutta recurs at Ud. 34; see Ud.A. 217 ff., and the references there, also Thomas's Life, 119.

^[3] The Comy. observes that this was a city situated near a quagmire, calapaṇka.

^[4] Comy. has a reading: Jatuvāma; UdA. Janagāma. Jantu can mean either 'person' (? Folkestone) or 'grass.'

^[5] Lit. black with worms (? eels).

^[6] This is a stock phrase; cf. D. i, 235; M. i, 108; ii, 118; Sn. p. 105; see Dial, i, 301 n. UdA. to stretch the legs after sitting long.

^[7] The Comy. remarks that the Exalted One prevented him, knowing that knowledge was not yet ripe within him. It was to Meghiya that the Dhp. verses 33-34 were said (Phandanaṃ capalaṃ cittaṃ; see Dhp.A. i, 287).

^[8] Comy. either in culture or in putting away evil. See K.S. iii, 144. The passage recurs at Vin. ii, 74; iii, 158; cf. A. iii, 376; v, 336; Th. i, 642; Mil. 138; cf. M. i, 271 ff.

^[9] Our text reads: saddhāya'va tañ c'amhi agārasmā anagāriyaṃ pabbajito; S.e. saddhāya vata c'amhi; Ud. saddhāya ca vat'amhi ...

^[10] Anvāsatto, so S.e. and our Comy., glossing: anubaddho, sampari-vārito. Ud. text, anvāsanno, with some v.l., but Comy. anvāsattā, glossing; anulaggā, vokiṇṇa. P.E.D. takes the root as √SAÑJ., to cling.

^[11] The text repeats nearly all the following in full; see the first sutta of the Nines. [Ed.: Inserted in full here.]

^[12] The Uddna version here follows with a gāthā.