SA 344（三四四） 拘𫄨罗

Thus have I heard:

At one time, the Buddha was staying at the Kalandaka Bamboo Grove in Rājagṛha. At that time, Venerable Śāriputra and Venerable Mahākauṣṭhila were staying at Vulture Peak.

At that time, Venerable Mahākauṣṭhila arose from his meditation in the afternoon and went to where Venerable Śāriputra was. They greeted each other with joy and, after exchanging greetings, sat to one side. Venerable Mahākauṣṭhila said to Venerable Śāriputra, "I have a question to ask. Is there time to answer it?"

Venerable Śāriputra said to Venerable Mahākauṣṭhila, "Ask your question, Venerable One. I will answer what I know."

Venerable Mahākauṣṭhila said to Venerable Śāriputra, "In this Dharma and Vinaya, what qualities do the learned noble disciples possess, so that they are called 'complete in view,' 'with right view accomplished,' 'with accomplishment in the purity of faith in the Buddha,' 'having entered the true Dharma,' 'having attained this true Dharma,' 'having awakened to this true Dharma'?"

Venerable Śāriputra said to Venerable Mahākauṣṭhila, "The learned noble disciples truly know unwholesome dharmas, the roots of unwholesome dharmas, wholesome dharmas, and the roots of wholesome dharmas.

How do they truly know unwholesome dharmas? Unwholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions are called unwholesome dharmas. They truly know unwholesome dharmas in this way. How do they truly know the roots of unwholesome dharmas? The three unwholesome roots: the unwholesome root of greed, the unwholesome root of anger, and the unwholesome root of delusion. These are called the roots of unwholesome dharmas. They truly know the roots of unwholesome dharmas in this way.

How do they truly know wholesome dharmas? Wholesome bodily, verbal, and mental actions are called wholesome dharmas. They truly know wholesome dharmas in this way. How do they truly know the roots of wholesome dharmas? The three wholesome roots: non-greed, non-anger, and non-delusion. These are called the three wholesome roots. They truly know the roots of wholesome dharmas in this way.

Venerable Mahā-Koṭṭhita, the well-versed noble disciple truly knows unwholesome dharmas, the roots of unwholesome dharmas, wholesome dharmas, and the roots of wholesome dharmas. Therefore, in this Dharma and Vinaya, they have perfect right view, upright view, and accomplish the unshakable faith in the Buddha. They enter the true Dharma, attain the true Dharma, and realize the true Dharma.

Venerable Mahā-Koṭṭhita said to Venerable Śāriputra, "Are there any more?"

Venerable Śāriputra said, "There are. If the well-versed noble disciple truly knows food, the origin of food, the cessation of food, and the path leading to the cessation of food,

How does one truly know food? It refers to the four kinds of food. What are the four? First, coarse solid food; second, subtle contact food; third, mental intention food; fourth, consciousness food. These are called food, and one truly knows them as such. How does one truly know the origin of food? It refers to the craving for future existence, accompanied by delight and desire, taking pleasure in various forms of existence. This is called the origin of food, and one truly knows the origin of food as such. How does one truly know the cessation of food? It refers to the complete cessation, relinquishment, elimination, detachment, cessation, pacification, and disappearance of the craving for future existence, accompanied by delight and desire, taking pleasure in various forms of existence. This is called the cessation of food, and one truly knows the cessation of food as such. How does one truly know the path leading to the cessation of food? It refers to the eightfold noble path - right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right concentration. This is called the path leading to the cessation of food, and one truly knows the path leading to the cessation of food as such.

"If the well-versed noble disciple truly knows food, the origin of food, the cessation of food, and the path leading to the cessation of food, then the well-versed noble disciple will be endowed with right view in the true Dharma and Vinaya, will attain upright view, will attain unshakable faith in the Buddha, will enter the true Dharma, will attain this true Dharma, and will realize this true Dharma."

Venerable Mahā-Koṭṭhita further asked Venerable Śāriputra, "Are there any other kinds of food?"

Venerable Śāriputra said, "Venerable Mahā-Koṭṭhita! There are also other kinds of food. The well-versed noble disciple truly knows illness, the origin of illness, the cessation of illness, and the path leading to the cessation of illness.

What is truly knowing illness? There are three kinds of illness: the illness of desire, the illness of existence, and the illness of ignorance. This is called illness, and one truly knows it as such. What is truly knowing the origin of illness? The origin of ignorance is the origin of illness. This is called the origin of illness, and one truly knows it as such. What is truly knowing the cessation of illness? The cessation of ignorance is the cessation of illness. This is called the cessation of illness, and one truly knows it as such. What is truly knowing the path leading to the cessation of illness? It is the eightfold noble path, as explained before. This is called the path leading to the cessation of illness, and one truly knows it as such.

"If the well-versed noble disciple truly knows illness, the origin of illness, the cessation of illness, and the path leading to the cessation of illness, then the well-versed noble disciple will be endowed with right view in this Dharma and Vinaya, and will awaken to this true Dharma."

Venerable Mahā-Koṭṭhita asked Venerable Śāriputra, "Are there only these, or are there others?"

Venerable Śāriputra said to Venerable Mahā-Koṭṭhita, "There are also others. The well-versed noble disciple truly knows suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path leading to the cessation of suffering.

How does one truly know suffering? It refers to the suffering of birth, old age, sickness, death, separation from what is loved, encountering what is hated, and not obtaining what one desires. In brief, it refers to the suffering of the five aggregates. This is called suffering, and one truly knows it as such. How does one truly know the origin of suffering? It refers to the craving for future existence, accompanied by delight and desire, seeking delight in this and that. This is called the origin of suffering, and one truly knows it as such. How does one truly know the cessation of suffering? It refers to the complete cessation, pacification, and disappearance of the craving for future existence, accompanied by delight and desire, seeking delight in this and that. This is called the cessation of suffering, and one truly knows it as such. How does one truly know the path leading to the cessation of suffering? It refers to the eightfold noble path as explained above. This is called the path leading to the cessation of suffering, and one truly knows it as such.

"The well-versed noble disciple truly knows suffering, the origin of suffering, the cessation of suffering, and the path leading to the cessation of suffering. Such a noble disciple has perfect right view in my teachings and discipline, has attained right view, has attained unshakable faith in the Buddha, has entered the right path, has attained this right Dharma, and has realized this right Dharma."

He further asked Venerable Śāriputra, "Are there only these teachings, or are there others?"

Venerable Śāriputra replied, "There are others, namely, the well-versed noble disciple truly knows old age and death, the origin of old age and death, the cessation of old age and death, and the path leading to the cessation of old age and death. As explained in the previous sūtra. How does one truly know the origin of old age and death? The origin of birth is the origin of old age and death. The cessation of birth is the cessation of old age and death. The path leading to the cessation of old age and death is the eightfold noble path, as explained before. The well-versed noble disciple truly knows old age and death in this way, up to the path leading to the cessation of old age and death. Such a noble disciple has perfect right view in my teachings and discipline, has attained right view, has attained unshakable faith in the Buddha, has entered the right Dharma, has attained this right Dharma, and has realized this right Dharma. In this way, birth, existence, grasping, craving, feeling, contact, the six sense bases, name and form, consciousness, and formations - the noble disciple truly knows formations, the origin of formations, the cessation of formations, and the path leading to the cessation of formations.

"How does one truly know formations? There are three kinds of formations - bodily formations, verbal formations, and mental formations. One truly knows these formations in this way. How does one truly know the origin of formations? The origin of ignorance is the origin of formations. One truly knows the origin of formations in this way. How does one truly know the cessation of formations? The cessation of ignorance is the cessation of formations. One truly knows the cessation of formations in this way. How does one truly know the path leading to the cessation of formations? It is the eightfold noble path, as explained before. Mahākauṣṭhila! This is called the noble disciple truly knowing formations, the origin of formations, the cessation of formations, and the path leading to the cessation of formations. They have perfect right view in my teachings and discipline, have attained right view, have attained unshakable faith in the Buddha, have entered the right Dharma, have attained this right Dharma, and have realized this right Dharma."

Mahākauṣṭhila further asked Venerable Śāriputra, "Are there only these teachings, or are there others?"

Śāriputra replied, "Mahākauṣṭhila! Why do you pursue? You will never be able to exhaust all the teachings and reach their limits. If a noble disciple has eliminated ignorance and given rise to wisdom, what more need is there to seek?"

At that time, the two noble ones had finished discussing the teachings and each returned to their respective places.