Aṇguttara Nikāya
4. Catukka Nipāta
VI. Puññābhisanda Vagga
Dutiya Puññābhisanda Suttaṃ
Sutta 52
Bonanzas of Merit
Translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
Sourced from dhammatalks.org
For free distribution only.
[1][pts][bodh] "Monks, these four bonanzas of merit, bonanzas of skillfulness, nourishments of bliss—heavenly, resulting in bliss—lead to what is wished for, appealing, agreeable, well-being, and bliss. Which four?
"There is the case where the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with verified confidence in the Awakened One: 'Indeed, the Blessed One is worthy and rightly self-awakened, consummate in clear-knowing and conduct, well-gone, an expert with regard to the cosmos, unexcelled trainer of people fit to be tamed, teacher of devas and human beings, awakened, blessed.' This is the first bonanza of merit, bonanza of skillfulness, nourishment of bliss—heavenly, resulting in bliss—that leads to what is wished for, appealing, agreeable, well-being, and bliss.
"And further, the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with verified confidence in the Dhamma: 'The Dhamma is well taught by the Blessed One, to be seen here and now, timeless, inviting verification, pertinent, to be experienced by the observant for themselves.' This is the second bonanza of merit, bonanza of skillfulness, nourishment of bliss—heavenly, resulting in bliss—that leads to what is wished for, appealing, agreeable, well-being, and bliss.
"And further, the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with verified confidence in the Saṅgha: 'The Saṅgha of the Blessed One's disciples who have practiced well… who have practiced straight-forwardly… who have practiced methodically… who have practiced masterfully—in other words, the four types of noble disciples when taken as pairs, the eight when taken as individual types—they are the Saṅgha of the Blessed One's disciples: worthy of gifts, worthy of hospitality, worthy of offerings, worthy of respect, the incomparable field of merit for the world.' This is the third bonanza of merit, bonanza of skillfulness, nourishment of bliss—heavenly, resulting in bliss—that leads to what is wished for, appealing, agreeable, well-being, and bliss.
"And further, the disciple of the noble ones is endowed with virtues that are appealing to the noble ones: untorn, unbroken, unspotted, unsplattered, liberating, praised by the observant, ungrasped at, leading to concentration. This is the fourth bonanza of merit, bonanza of skillfulness, nourishment of bliss—heavenly, resulting in bliss—that leads to what is wished for, appealing, agreeable, well-being, and bliss.
"These are four bonanzas of merit, bonanzas of skillfulness, nourishments of bliss—heavenly, resulting in bliss—that lead to what is wished for, appealing, agreeable, well-being, and bliss."
'One whose conviction in the Tathāgata
is well-established, unshakable;
whose virtue is admirable,
appealing to the noble ones, praised;
who has confidence in the Saṅgha,
and vision made straight:
"Not poor," they say of him.
Not in vain his life.
So conviction and virtue,
confidence and Dhamma-vision
should be cultivated by the intelligent,
remembering the Buddhas' teachings.'"[1]
[1] These verses also appear in SN 11:14 and SN 55:26. In Thailand, they are often chanted in ceremonies for dedicating merit to those who have passed away.
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