Aṇguttara Nikāya
XI. Ekā-Dasaka Nipāta
I. Nissāya
The Book of the Gradual Sayings
XI. The Book of the Elevens
I. Dependence
Sutta 10
Sandha Suttaṃ
Sandha[1]
Translated from the Pali by F. L. Woodward, M.A.
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[1][than] [323] Once the Exalted One was staying at Natika[2] in the Brick Hall.
Then the venerable Sandha came to see the Exalted One.
As he sat at one side
the Exalted One said this to him:
[205] "Sandha, do you muse with the musing
of the trained thoroughbred.
Muse not with the musing
of the unbroken colt.[3]
And what is the musing
of the unbroken colt?
The unbroken colt, Sandha,
when tied up by the feeding-trough muses:
'Fodder! Fodder!'
Why is that?
When thus tied up by the feeding-trough
it never occurs to him:[4]
'I wonder what task the trainer will set me today?
What can I do for him in return?'
But tied up there by the feeding-trough
he just muses of fodder.
In the same way, Sandha,
a certain one here,
an untrained man-colt,
who has gone to the forest
or the root of a tree
or a lonely dwelling-place,
lives with a heart obsessed by desire and lust,
overwhelmed by desire and lust,
and he has not come to know
the way out of desire and lust when they arise.
Keeping desire and lust within him[5]
he muses,
he is bemused,
he is im-mused,
he is de-mused.[6]
He lives with a heart obsessed by malice,[ed1]
overwhelmed by malice,
and he has not come to know
the way out of malice when it arises.
Keeping malice within him
he muses,
he is bemused,
he is im-mused,
he is de-mused.
He lives with a heart obsessed by sloth-and-torpor,
overwhelmed by sloth-and-torpor,
and he has not come to know
the way out of sloth-and-torpor when it arises.
Keeping sloth-and-torpor within him
he muses,
he is bemused,
he is im-mused,
he is de-mused.
He lives with a heart obsessed by worry-and-flurry,
overwhelmed by worry-and-flurry,
and he has not come to know
the way out of worry-and-flurry when it arises.
Keeping worry-and-flurry within him
he muses,
he is bemused,
he is im-mused,
he is de-mused.
He lives with a heart obsessed by doubt-and-wavering,
overwhelmed by doubt-and-wavering,
and he has not come to know
the way out of doubt-and-wavering when it arises.
Keeping doubt-and-wavering within him
he muses,
he is bemused,
he is im-mused,
he is de-mused.
[324] He muses dependent on earth;
he muses dependent on water;
he muses dependent on fire;
he muses dependent on air;
he muses dependent on the realm of unbounded space;
he muses dependent on the realm of unbounded consciousness;
he muses dependent on the realm of nothingness;
he muses dependent on the realm of neither-consciousness-nor-unconsciousness;
he muses dependent on this world;
he muses dependent on the world beyond;
whatever is seen, heard, sensed, cognized,
attained, sought after, thought out by mind
— on that also dependent he muses.[7]
Of such a nature, Sandha,
is the musing
of the unbroken man-colt.
§
And what, Sandha, is the musing
of the thoroughbred?
The goodly, trained thoroughbred,
when tied up near the feeding-trough,
muses not thus:
'Fodder! Fodder!'
Why not?
[206] When the goodly, trained thoroughbred, Sandha,
is tied up near the feeding-trough
it occurs thus to him:
'I wonder what task the trainer will set me today?
What return can I make to him?'
He muses not on fodder always
when tied up near the feeding-trough.
The goodly, trained thoroughbred, Sandha,
looks (with dread) upon the application of the goad
as one would look upon a debt,
imprisonment,
loss, a piece of ill-luck.[8]
In the same way, Sandha,
the goodly thoroughbred man
who has gone to the forest,
to the root of a tree,
to a lonely dwelling-place,
lives not with his heart obsessed by desire and lust,
not overwhelmed by desire and lust,
but he comes to know
the way out of desire and lust,
as it really is.
He dwells not with his heart obsessed by malice,
not overwhelmed by malice,
but he comes to know
the way out of malice,
as it really is.
He dwells not with his heart obsessed by sloth-and-torpor,
not overwhelmed by sloth-and-torpor,
but he comes to know
the way out of sloth-and-torpor,
as it really is.
He dwells not with his heart obsessed by worry-and-flurry,
not overwhelmed by worry-and-flurry,
but he comes to know
the way out of worry-and-flurry,
as it really is.
He dwells not with his heart obsessed by by doubt-and-wavering,
not overwhelmed by doubt-and-wavering,
but he comes to know
the way out of doubt-and-wavering,
as it really is.[ed2]
He muses not dependent[9] on earth;
he muses not dependent on water;
he muses not dependent on fire;
he muses not dependent on air;
he muses not dependent on the realm of unbounded space;
he muses not dependent on the realm of unbounded consciousness;
he muses not dependent on the realm of nothingness;
he muses not dependent on the realm of neither-consciousness-nor-unconsciousness;
he muses not dependent on this world;
he muses not dependent on the world beyond;
whatever is seen, heard, sensed, cognized,
attained, sought after, thought out by mind
— dependent on all that he muses not,
and yet he does muse.
[325] Moreover, Sandha, to him thus musing
the devas, with their lord,[10]
and the Brahmās with their consorts
even from afar bow down, saying:
'We worship thee, thou thoroughbred of men,
We worship thee, most excellent of men;
For what it is whereon depending thou
Art musing — that we cannot comprehend.'[11]
§
At these words the venerable Sandha said this to the Exalted One:
[207] "But pray, sir, how musing does the goodly thoroughbred man muse?
For he muses not dependent on earth,
he muses not dependent on water;
he muses not dependent on fire;
he muses not dependent on air;
he muses not dependent on the realm of unbounded space;
he muses not dependent on the realm of unbounded consciousness;
he muses not dependent on the realm of nothingness;
he muses not dependent on the realm of neither-consciousness-nor-unconsciousness;
he muses not dependent on this world;
he muses not dependent on the world beyond;
whatever is seen, heard, sensed, cognized,
attained, sought after, thought out by mind
— dependent on all that he muses not,
and yet he does muse.
To him how musing, sir,
do the devas with their lord
and the Brahmās with their consorts
even from afar bow down saying:
'We worship thee, thou thoroughbred of men,
We worship thee, most excellent of men;
For what it is whereon depending thou
Art musing — that we cannot comprehend?'"
"Herein, Sandha,
for the goodly thoroughbred man
in earth the consciousness of earth is made clear;[12]
in water the consciousness of water is made clear;
in fire the consciousness of fire is made clear;
in air the consciousness of air is made clear;
in the realm of unbounded space the consciousness of the realm of unbounded space of is made clear;
in the realm of unbounded consciousness the consciousness of the realm of unbounded consciousness is made clear;
in the realm of nothingness the consciousness of the realm of nothingness is made clear;
in the realm of neither-consciousness-nor-unconsciousness the consciousness of the realm of neither-consciousness-nor-unconsciousness is made clear;
[326] in this world the consciousness of this world is made clear;
in the world beyond the consciousness of the world beyond is made clear;
in whatsoever is seen, heard, sensed, cognized,
attained, sought after, thought out by mind
— therein consciousness is made clear.
Musing thus the goodly thoroughbred man muses not dependent on earth,
he muses not dependent on water;
he muses not dependent on fire;
he muses not dependent on air;
he muses not dependent on the realm of unbounded space;
he muses not dependent on the realm of unbounded consciousness;
he muses not dependent on the realm of nothingness;
he muses not dependent on the realm of neither-consciousness-nor-unconsciousness;
he muses not dependent on this world;
he muses not dependent on the world beyond;
whatever is seen, heard, sensed, cognized,
attained, sought after, thought out by mind
— dependent on all that he muses not,
and yet he does muse.[13]
Thus musing the devas, with their lord,
and the Brahmās with their consorts
even from afar bow down, saying:
'We worship thee, thou thoroughbred of men,
We worship thee, most excellent of men;
For what it is whereon depending thou
Art musing — that we cannot comprehend.'"
[1] I have not found this name elsewhere. Text has v.l. saddha, and uddāna has sekho. In § 15 below is a monk named Saddho, but it is doubtful whether this is a name or an epithet. Cf. S. ii, 153: infr. 216 n.
[2] At Dial. ii, 97, Nādika (of the Nādikas); Cf. K.S. ii, 51; iv, 55, 282; v, 311 n. [SA., ad loc., Ñitika = the village of two kinsmen, Cū'āpitā and Mahāpitā, uncle and grandfather]; G.S. iii, 217, 278 has Nādika.
[3] Def. at A. iv. 397; cf. G.S. i. 223, 266.
[4] For this idea cf. G.S. ii, 118.
[5] Antaraṇ katvā = abbhantare karitvā, Comy.
[6] Jhāyati, pajjhāyati, nijjhāyati, avajjhāyati; cf. G.S: ii, 229, where I quoted Lord Chalmers' translation at M. i. 334 ('they trance, and en-trance, and un-trance, and de-trance' [Ed.: see MN 50-Chalmers), said in scorn of the 'shaveling monks.' The prefixes seem to disparage the quality of his musing. Comy. MA. seems to miss the point of all this, saying 'the words are just strengthened by prefixes.' Our Comy. here is more explicit: jhāyati = he ponders; sañjhāyati = he muses diversely hither and thither; nijjhāyati = he muses definitely without break.
[7] This passage quoted at Netti, pp. 38, 39, differs slightly there.
[8] Cf. G.S. ii, 119.
[9] Nā, nissāya = 'owing to absence of restraint (check or hindrance), niyantiyā, abhāvena. He makes nibbāna with the fruits of attainment his object of musing,' Comy.
[10] Sa-inda = Sakka.
[11] 'Cf. Sn. v. 544; S. iii, 91 = K.S. iii, 76 n.; SA. ii, 297; D. iii, 198 = DA. iii, 791. Here and at S. iii text should read yassa te nābhijānāma for tenābhijāma.
[12] Vibhūtā = pākatā, Comy.
[13] Not explained, but see note above.
[ed1] Woodward omits the sections on malice, sloth-and-torpor, worry-and-flurry and doubt-and-wavering.
[ed2] Woodward ends 'when it arises', not following the parallel construction of text.
