Aṅguttara Nikāya
VIII. Navaka Nipāta
III. Sattāvāsa Vagga

The Book of Nines

Sutta 33

Anupubba-Vihāra-Samāpatti Suttaṃ

The Successive Habitations Attainment

Translated from the Pāḷi
by
Michael M. Olds

 

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[1][pts][than] I hear tell:

Once upon a time The Lucky Man
Sāvātthi-town revisiting
Anāthapiṇḍika's Jetavana sporting ground.

There then the Lucky Man said this
to the beggars:

"Beggars!"

"Bhadante"
the beggars responded to
the Lucky Man.

"There are nine
successive habitation attainments
about which I will discourse:

Pay attention,
give ear,
I will speak!"

"Even so, bhante!"

And this is what The Lucky Man
said to them: —

"And what are the nine
successive habitation attainments?

At which time
desire for sense-pleasures has ended and
those who have ended
desire for sense pleasures
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with sense desire quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
are sense desires ended and
where do those
who have ended
desire for sense pleasures,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
separating himself from sense pleasures,
separating himself from unskillful things,
still thinking and pondering
with the pleasurable enthusiasm
born of detachment
enters into and
makes a habitat of
the First Knowing.

This is where sense desire ends and
where those who have ended
desire for sense pleasures,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
thinking and pondering has ended and
those who have ended
thinking and pondering
live having ended them —
surely these Old Men,
with thinking and pondering quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
are thinking and pondering ended and
where do those
who have ended
thinking and pondering,
live, having ended them?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
with thinking and pondering
having ended,
attaining tranquillity,
becoming whole-heartedly single-minded,
without thinking and pondering,
with the pleasurable enthusiasm
born of serenity
he enters into and
makes a habitat of
the Second Knowing;

This is where thinking and pondering ends and
where those who have ended
thinking and pondering,
live, having ended them.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
enthusiasm has ended and
those who have ended
enthusiasm
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with enthusiasm quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is enthusiasm ended and
where do those
who have ended
enthusiasm,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
dispassionate and
detached from enthusiasm,
living conscious and
aware of bodily sense-reactions
such as those described by the aristocrats
when they say
'Detached,
with satisfied mind,
he lives pleasantly,'
he enters into and
makes a habitat of
the Third Knowing;

This is where enthusiasm ends and
where those who have ended
enthusiasm,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
pleasurable detachment has ended and
those who have ended
pleasurable detachment
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with pleasurable detachment quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is pleasurable detachment ended and
where do those
who have ended
pleasurable detachment,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
letting go of his former experiences of
pleasure and pain,
allowing his experience of
mental ease and discomfort
to subside on their own,
without pleasure or pain,
with utterly pure
detachment of mind,
he enters into and
makes a habitat of
the Fourth Knowing;

This is where pleasurable detachment ends and
where those who have ended
pleasurable detachment,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
perception of forms has ended and
those who have ended
perception of forms
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with perception of forms quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is perception of forms ended and
where do those
who have ended
perception of forms,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
elevating himself
above all perceptions of
form,
allowing perceptions of resistance
to subside, and
not scrutinizing
perceptions of diversity,
thinking:
'Un-ending is space'
he enters into and
makes a habitat of
The Space Dimension;

This is where perception of forms ends and
where those who have ended
perception of forms,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
perception of The Space Dimension has ended and
those who have ended
perception of The Space Dimension
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with perception of The Space Dimension quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is perception of The Space Dimension ended and
where do those
who have ended
The Space Dimension,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
elevating himself
completely above The Space Dimension,
thinking:
'Un-ending is consciousness'
he enters into and
makes a habitat of
The Consciousness Dimension;

This is where perception of The Space Dimension ends and
where those who have ended
perception of The Space Dimension,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
perception of The Consciousness Dimension has ended and
those who have ended
perception of The Consciousness Dimension
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with perception of The Consciousness Dimension quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is perception of The Consciousness Dimension ended and
where do those
who have ended
The Consciousness Dimension,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
elevating himself
completely above The Consciousness Dimension,
thinking:
'There is nothing'
he enters into and
makes a habitat of
No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension;

This is where perception of The Consciousness Dimension ends and
where those who have ended
perception of The Consciousness Dimension,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
perception of The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension has ended and
those who have ended
perception of The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with perception of The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is perception of The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension ended and
where do those
who have ended
The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
elevating himself
completely above The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension,
enters into and
makes a habitat of
The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension;

This is where perception of The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension ends and
where those who have ended
perception of The No-Thing-To-Be-Had-There Dimension,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

■

At which time
perception of The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension has ended and
those who have ended
perception of The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension
live having ended it —
surely these Old Men,
with perception of The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension quenched,
have crossed over,
gone beyond this dimension
I say.

'Where
is perception of The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension ended and
where do those
who have ended
The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension,
live, having ended it?

This I do not know,
this I do not see.'

This having been asked of you,
thus should be your reply:

Here friend, a beggar,
elevating himself
completely above The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension,
enters into and
makes a habitat of
the ending of perception and experience;

This is where perception of The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension ends and
where those who have ended
perception of The Neither-Perception-Nor-Non-Perception Dimension,
live, having ended it.

And it seems to me, beggars,
that satisfied and
appreciating that answer,
an honest person could say
'Well said!'
without hypocrisy.

Satisfied and
appreciating that answer, and
saying 'Well-said!'
he would show his respect
with the salutation of
holding his clasped hands
to his heart.

These then, beggars, are
nine successive habitation attainments."

 

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