Contents
Introduction
The Eight Principles
1. Dispassion
2. Being Unfettered
3. Shedding
4. Modesty
5. Contentment
6. Seclusion
7. Persistence
8. Being Unburdensome
Introduction
Shortly after her ordination, the Buddha's step-mother, Mahapajapati Gotami,
asked him for a short Dhamma-instruction that would guide her in her solitary
practice. He responded with eight principles for recognizing what qualifies
as Dhamma and Vinaya, and what does not. The commentary tells us that after
her instruction, Mahapajapati Gotami in no long time became an arahant.
The eight principles have been widely cited ever since. One Thai writer has
called them the "constitution of Buddhism" as they form the standards
against which the validity of any interpretation of the Dhamma or Vinaya must
be judged. Perhaps the most important point that these principles make is that
any teaching has to be judged by the results that come when putting it into
practice. They are an excellent illustration of the teachings given in the well-known
Kalama Sutta (AN III.65), as well as in the teachings that the Buddha gave to
his son, Rahula (MN 61).
The Canon illustrates these principles not only with abstract discussions but also with stories, and the stories are often more memorable than the discussions. Thus this study guide differs from its companions in that it is predominantly composed of stories. Bear in mind as you read the stories that they are often framed in somewhat extreme terms to drive their points home. Sister Subha [§1.4], Kali [§2.10], Prince Dighavu [§3.3], and the monk whose limbs are being removed by a saw [§2.10] would not be as memorable if their stories were framed in more realistic terms.
Also bear in mind that there is some overlap among the principles, and that a passage may illustrate more than one at a time. Thus, for instance, the story of Ven. Isidatta [§2.11] analyzes the fetter of self-identity views, at the same time illustrating the principles of modesty and non-entanglement. The most extensive overlap is between the principle of dispassion and that of not being fettered, as passion in its various forms covers three of the ten fetters that bind a person to the round of rebirth. Thus the section on dispassion contains passages dealing with how to overcome the three "passion fetters" -- sensual passion, passion for the sense of form experienced in the jhanas of form, and passion for the sense of formlessness experienced in the formless jhanas -- whereas the section on being unfettered treats the remaining seven fetters.
The Eight Principles
I have heard that at on one occasion the Blessed One was staying at Vesali,
in the Peaked Roof Hall in the Great Forest.
Then Mahapajapati Gotami went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, having bowed down to him, stood to one side. As she was standing there she said to him: "It would be good, venerable sir, if the Blessed One would teach me the Dhamma in brief such that, having heard the Dhamma from the Blessed One, I might dwell alone, secluded, heedful, ardent, & resolute."
"Gotami, the qualities of which you may know, 'These qualities lead:
to passion, not to dispassion;
to being fettered, not to being unfettered;
to accumulating, not to shedding;
to self-aggrandizement, not to modesty;
to discontent, not to contentment;
to entanglement, not to seclusion;
to laziness, not to aroused persistence;
to being burdensome, not to being unburdensome':
You may definitely hold, 'This is not the Dhamma, this is not the Vinaya, this
is not the Teacher's instruction.'
"As for the qualities of which you may know, 'These qualities lead:
to dispassion, not to passion;
to being unfettered, not to being fettered;
to shedding, not to accumulating;
to modesty, not to self-aggrandizement;
to contentment, not to discontent;
to seclusion, not to entanglement;
to aroused persistence, not to laziness;
to being unburdensome, not to being burdensome':
You may definitely hold, 'This is the Dhamma, this is the Vinaya, this is the
Teacher's instruction.'"
That is what the Blessed One said. Gratified, Mahapajapati Gotami delighted at his words.
[AN VIII.53]
1. Dispassion
§ 1.1.
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying in Gaya, at Gaya
Head, with 1,000 monks. There he addressed the monks:
"Monks, the All is aflame. What All is aflame? The eye is aflame. Forms
are aflame. Consciousness at the eye is aflame. Contact at the eye is aflame.
And whatever there is that arises in dependence on contact at the eye -- experienced
as pleasure, pain or neither-pleasure-nor-pain -- that too is aflame. Aflame
with what? Aflame with the fire of passion, the fire of aversion, the fire of
delusion. Aflame, I tell you, with birth, aging & death, with sorrows, lamentations,
pains, distresses, & despairs.
"The ear is aflame. Sounds are aflame...
"The nose is aflame. Aromas are aflame...
"The tongue is aflame. Flavors are aflame...
"The body is aflame. Tactile sensations are aflame...
"The intellect is aflame. Ideas are aflame. Consciousness at the intellect is aflame. Contact at the intellect is aflame. And whatever there is that arises in dependence on contact at the intellect -- experienced as pleasure, pain or neither-pleasure-nor-pain -- that too is aflame. Aflame with what? Aflame with the fire of passion, the fire of aversion, the fire of delusion. Aflame, I say, with birth, aging & death, with sorrows, lamentations, pains, distresses, & despairs.
"Seeing thus, the instructed noble disciple grows disenchanted with the eye, disenchanted with forms, disenchanted with consciousness at the eye, disenchanted with contact at the eye. And whatever there is that arises in dependence on contact at the eye, experienced as pleasure, pain or neither-pleasure-nor-pain: With that, too, he grows disenchanted.
"He grows disenchanted with the ear...
"He grows disenchanted with the nose...
"He grows disenchanted with the tongue...
"He grows disenchanted with the body...
"He grows disenchanted with the intellect, disenchanted with ideas, disenchanted with consciousness at the intellect, disenchanted with contact at the intellect. And whatever there is that arises in dependence on contact at the intellect, experienced as pleasure, pain or neither-pleasure-nor-pain: He grows disenchanted with that too. Disenchanted, he becomes dispassionate. Through dispassion, he is fully released. With full release, there is the knowledge, 'Fully released.' He discerns that 'Birth is depleted, the holy life fulfilled, the task done. There is nothing further for this world.'"
That is what the Blessed One said. Gratified, the monks delighted at his words. And while this explanation was being given, the hearts of the 1,000 monks, through no clinging (not being sustained), were fully released from fermentation/effluents.
[SN XXXV.28]
§ 1.2.
"And how does a monk guard the doors of his senses? On seeing a form with
the eye, he does not grasp at any theme or details by which -- if he were to
dwell without restraint over the faculty of the eye -- evil, unskillful qualities
such as greed or distress might assail him. On hearing a sound with the ear
.... On smelling an odor with the nose .... One tasting a flavor with the tongue
.... On touching a tactile sensation with the body .... On cognizing an idea
with the intellect, he does not grasp at any theme or details by which -- if
he were to dwell without restraint over the faculty of the intellect -- evil,
unskillful qualities such as greed or distress might assail him. Endowed with
this noble restraint over the sense faculties, he is inwardly sensitive to the
pleasure of being blameless. This is how a monk guards the doors of his senses."
[DN 2]
§ 1.3.
Sister Nanda:
"Sick, putrid, unclean:
look, Nanda, at this physical heap.
Through contemplation of the foul,
develop your mind,
make it one, well-centered.
As this [your body], so that.
As that, so this.
It gives off a foul stench,
the delight of fools."
Considering it thus,
untiring, both day & night,
I, with my own discernment
dissecting it,
saw.
And as I, heedful,
examined it aptly,
this body -- as it actually is --
was seen inside & out.
Then was I disenchanted with the body
& dispassionate within:
Heedful, detached,
calmed was I.
Unbound.
[Thig V.4]
§ 1.4.
As Subha the nun was going through Jivaka's delightful mango grove, a libertine
(a goldsmith's son) blocked her path, so she said to him:
'What wrong have I done you
that you stand in my way?
It's not proper, my friend,
that a man should touch
a woman gone forth.
I respect the Master's message,
the training pointed out by the one well-gone.
I am pure, without blemish:
Why do you stand in my way?
You -- your mind agitated, impassioned;
I -- unagitated, unimpassioned,
with a mind entirely freed:
Why do you stand in my way?'
'You are young & not bad-looking,
what need do you have for going forth?
Throw off your ochre robe --
Come, let's delight in the flowering grove.
A sweetness they exude everywhere,
the towering trees with their pollen.
The beginning of spring is a pleasant season --
Come, let's delight in the flowering grove.
The trees with their blossoming tips
moan, as it were, in the breeze:
What delight will you have
if you plunge into the grove alone?
Frequented by herds of wild beasts,
disturbed by elephants rutting & aroused:
you want to go
unaccompanied
into the great, lonely, frightening grove?
Like a doll made of gold, you will go about,
like a goddess in the gardens of heaven.
With delicate, smooth Kasi fabrics,
you will shine, O beauty without compare.
I would gladly do your every bidding
if we were to dwell in the glade.
For there is no creature dearer to me
than you, O nymph with the languid regard.
If you do as I ask, happy, come live in my house.
Dwelling in the calm of a palace,
have women wait on you,
wear delicate Kasi fabrics,
adorn yourself with garlands & creams.
I will make you many & varied ornaments
of gold, jewels, & pearls.
Climb onto a costly bed,
scented with sandalwood carvings,
with a well-washed coverlet, beautiful,
spread with a woolen quilt, brand new.
Like a blue lotus rising from the water
where there dwell non-human beings,
you will go to old age with your limbs unseen,
if you stay as you are in the holy life.'
'What do you assume of any essence,
here in this cemetery grower, filled with corpses,
this body destined to break up?
What do you see when you look at me,
you who are out of your mind?'
'Your eyes are like those of a fawn,
like those of a sprite in the mountains.
Seeing your eyes, my sensual delight
grows all the more.
Like tips they are, of blue lotuses,
in your golden face
-- spotless:
Seeing your eyes, my sensual delight
grows all the more.
Even if you should go far away,
I will think only of your pure,
long-lashed gaze,
for there is nothing dearer to me
than your eyes, O nymph with the languid regard.'
'You want to stray from the road,
you want the moon as a plaything,
you want to jump over Mount Sineru,
you who have designs on one born of the Buddha.
For there is nothing anywhere at all
in the cosmos with its gods,
that would be an object of passion for me.
I don't even know what that passion would be,
for it's been killed, root & all, by the path.
Like embers from a pit -- scattered,
like a bowl of poison -- evaporated,
I don't even see what that passion would be,
for it's been killed, root & all, by the path.
Try to seduce one who hasn't reflected on this,
or who has not followed the Master's teaching.
But try it with this one who knows
and you suffer.
For in the midst of praise & blame,
pleasure & pain,
my mindfulness stands firm.
Knowing the unattractiveness
of things compounded,
my mind cleaves to nothing at all.
I am a follower of the one well-gone,
riding the vehicle of the eightfold way:
My arrow removed, effluent-free,
I delight, having gone to an empty dwelling.
For I have seen well-painted puppets,
hitched up with sticks & strings,
made to dance in various ways.
When the sticks & strings are removed,
thrown away, scattered, shredded,
smashed into pieces, not to be found,
in what will the mind there make its home?
This body of mine, which is just like that,
when devoid of dhammas doesn't function.
When, devoid of dhammas, it doesn't function,
in what will the mind there make its home?
Like a mural you've seen, painted on a wall,
smeared with yellow orpiment,
there your vision has been distorted,
meaningless your human perception.
Like an evaporated mirage,
like a tree of gold in a dream,
like a magic show in the midst of a crowd --
you run blind after what is unreal.
Resembling a ball of sealing wax,
set in a hollow,
with a bubble in the middle
and bathed with tears,
eye secretions are born there too:
The parts of the eye
are rolled all together
in various ways.'
Plucking out her lovely eye,
with mind unattached
she felt no regret.
'Here, take this eye. It's yours.'
Straightaway she gave it to him.
Straightaway his passion faded right there,
and he begged her forgiveness.
'Be well, follower of the holy life.
This sort of thing
won't happen again.
Harming a person like you
is like embracing a blazing fire.
It's as if I have seized a poisonous snake.
So may you be well. Forgive me.'
And released from there, the nun
went to the excellent Buddha's presence.
When she saw the mark of his excellent merit,
her eye became
as it was before.
[Thig XIV]
§ 1.5.
Now at that time Ven. Anuruddha, going through the Kosalan countryside on his
way to Savatthi, arrived in the evening at a certain village. And at that time
a rest house had been set up by a woman in that village. So Ven. Anuruddha went
to the woman and, on arrival, said to her, "If it is no inconvenience for
you, sister, I will stay for one night in the rest house."
"You are welcome to stay, venerable sir."
Then other travelers went to that woman and, on arrival, said, "If it is no inconvenience for you, lady, we will stay for one night in the rest house."
"This master has arrived first. If he gives his permission, you may stay."
So the travelers went to Ven. Anuruddha and on arrival said to him, "If it is no inconvenience for you, venerable sir, we will stay for one night in the rest house."
"You are welcome to stay, friends."
Now it so happened that the woman had fallen in love with Ven. Anuruddha at first sight, so she went to him and said, "The master will not be comfortable, crowded with these people. It would be good if I were to prepare a bed inside for the master."
Ven. Anuruddha consented by remaining silence.
Then the woman, having herself prepared a bed inside for Ven. Anuruddha, having put on her jewelry and scented herself with perfumes, went to him and said, "Master, you are beautiful, good-looking, and appealing. I, too, am beautiful, good-looking, & appealing. It would be good if I were to be your wife."
When this was said, Ven. Anuruddha remained silent. So a second time... A third time she said to him, "Master, you are beautiful, good-looking, & appealing. I too am beautiful, good-looking, & appealing. Please take me together with all my wealth."
A third time, Ven. Anuruddha remained silent. So the woman, having slipped off her upper cloak, paraded up & down in front of him, stood, sat down, & then lay down right in front of him. But Ven. Anuruddha, keeping control of his faculties, didn't as much as glance at her or say even a word.
Then the thought occurred to her: "Isn't it amazing! Isn't it astounding! Many men send for me at a price of 100 or even 1,000 (a night), but this contemplative, even when I myself beg him, doesn't want to take me together with all of my wealth!" So, putting her upper cloak back on and bowing her head at his feet, she said to him: "Venerable sir, a transgression has overcome me in that I was so foolish, so muddle-headed, & so unskillful as to act in such a way. Please accept this confession of my transgression as such, so that I may restrain myself in the future."
"Yes, sister, a transgression overcame you in that you were so foolish, so muddle-headed, & so unskillful as to act in such a way. But because you see your transgression as such and make amends in accordance with the Dhamma, we accept your confession. For it is a cause of growth in the Dhamma & discipline of the noble ones when, seeing a transgression as such, one makes amends in accordance with the Dhamma and exercises restraint in the future."
Then, when the night had passed, the woman, with her own hand, served & satisfied Ven. Anuruddha with excellent staple and non-staple food. When Ven. Anuruddha had eaten & removed his hand from his bowl, she sat to one side. As she was sitting there, Ven. Anuruddha instructed, urged, roused, & encouraged her with a talk on Dhamma. Then the woman, having been instructed, urged, roused, & encouraged by Ven. Anuruddha with a talk on Dhamma, said to him, "Magnificent, venerable sir! Magnificent! Just as if he were to place upright what was overturned, to reveal what was hidden, to show the way to one who was lost, or to carry a lamp into the dark so that those with eyes could see forms, in the same way has Ven. Anuruddha -- through many lines of reasoning -- made the Dhamma clear. I go to the Blessed One for refuge, to the Dhamma, and to the Community of monks. May the master remember me as a lay follower who has gone for refuge from this day forward for life."
[Pacittiya 6 (See Introduction to the Patimokkha Rules)]
§ 1.6.
"Quite withdrawn from sensual pleasures, withdrawn from unskillful mental
qualities, he enters and remains in the first jhana: rapture and pleasure born
from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought and evaluation. He permeates
and pervades, suffuses and fills this very body with the rapture and pleasure
born from withdrawal. Just as if a skilled bathman or bathman's apprentice would
pour bath powder into a brass basin and knead it together, sprinkling it again
and again with water, so that his ball of bath powder -- saturated, moisture-laden,
permeated within and without -- would nevertheless not drip; even so, the monk
permeates...this very body with the rapture and pleasure born of withdrawal.
There is nothing of his entire body unpervaded by rapture and pleasure born
from withdrawal. This is a fruit of the contemplative life, visible here and
now, more excellent than the previous ones and more sublime.
"Furthermore, with the stilling of directed thought and evaluation, he
enters and remains in the second jhana: rapture and pleasure born of composure,
one-pointedness of awareness free from directed thought and evaluation -- internal
assurance. He permeates and pervades, suffuses and fills this very body with
the rapture and pleasure born of composure. Just like a lake with spring-water
welling up from within, having no inflow from the east, west, north, or south,
and with the skies supplying abundant showers time and again, so that the cool
fount of water welling up from within the lake would permeate and pervade, suffuse
and fill it with cool waters, there being no part of the lake unpervaded by
the cool waters; even so, the monk permeates... this very body with the rapture
and pleasure born of composure. There is nothing of his entire body unpervaded
by rapture and pleasure born of composure. This, too, is a fruit of the contemplative
life, visible here and now, more excellent than the previous ones and more sublime.