Aṅguttara Nikāya
Catukka Nipāta
XII: Kesi Vagga
Sutta 115
Thana Sutta
Courses of Action
Translated from the Pali by Thanissaro Bhikkhu.
Proofed against and modified in accordance with the revised edition at dhammatalks.org
For free distribution only.
[1][pts] "Monks, there are these four courses of action.
Which four?
There is the course of action that is unpleasant to do
and that, when done,
leads to what is unprofitable.
There is the course of action that is unpleasant to do
but that, when done,
leads to what is profitable.
There is the course of action that is pleasant to do
but that, when done,
leads to what is unprofitable.
There is the course of action that is pleasant to do
and that, when done,
leads to what is profitable.
■
"Now as for the course of action that is unpleasant to do
and that, when done,
leads to what is unprofitable,
one considers it as not worth doing for both reasons:
because the course of action is unpleasant to do,
one considers it as not worth doing;
and because the course of action, when done,
leads to what is unprofitable,
one considers it as not worth doing.
Thus one considers it as not worth doing for both reasons.
■
"As for the course of action that is unpleasant to do
but that, when done,
leads to what is profitable,
it is in light of this course of action
that one may be known
— in terms of manly stamina,
manly persistence,
manly effort —
as a fool or a wise person.
For a fool doesn't reflect,
'Even though this course of action is unpleasant to do,
still when it is done
it leads to what is profitable.'
So he doesn't do it,
and thus the non-doing of that course of action
leads to what is unprofitable for him.
But a wise person reflects,
'Even though this course of action is unpleasant to do,
still when it is done
it leads to what is profitable.'
So he does it,
and thus the doing of that course of action
leads to what is profitable for him.
"As for the course of action that is pleasant to do
but that, when done,
leads to what is unprofitable,
it is in light of this course of action
that one may be known
— in terms of manly stamina,
manly persistence,
manly effort —
as a fool or a wise person.
For a fool doesn't reflect,
'Even though this course of action is pleasant to do,
still when it is done
it leads to what is unprofitable.'
So he does it,
and thus the doing of that course of action
leads to what is unprofitable for him.
But a wise person reflects,
'Even though this course of action is pleasant to do,
still when it is done
it leads to what is unprofitable.'
So he doesn't do it,
and thus the non-doing of that course of action
leads to what is profitable for him.
"As for the course of action that is pleasant to do
and that, when done,
leads to what is profitable,
one considers it as worth doing for both reasons:
because the course of action is pleasant to do,
one considers it as worth doing;
and because the course of action, when done,
leads to what is profitable,
one considers it as worth doing.
Thus one considers it as worth doing for both reasons.
"These are the four courses of action."
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