Patrick Kearney

Exploring Sla
Bodhi Zendo 8-20 August 2016

The fundamental teaching

Not doing any wrong [ppa1],
Cultivating the wholesome [kusala2],
Purifying the heart [citta3]
This is what buddhas teach.

Dhammapada 183

How should I live?

What is wholesome [kusala], what is unwholesome [akusala]? What is praiseworthy
[anavajja], what is blameable [svajja]? What ought I to do, what ought I not to do? What,
having done it, will bring me harm [ahita] and suffering [dukkha] over the long term, and
what will bring me welfare [hita] and happiness [sukha] over the long term?

Lakkhaa Sutta (Characteristics DN30)

The unwholesome and the wholesome

The unwholesome
Klmas, when you know for yourselves: These things are unwholesome [akusala]; these
things are blameable [svajja]; these things are criticised by the wise [viu]; undertaken
and carried out, these things lead to harm [ahita] and suffering [dukkha], then abandon
them.

What do you think, Klmas? Does greed (lobha4) appear in a person for her welfare or
harm? For her harm, bhante. Given to greed, overwhelmed and mentally defeated by
greed, this person kills living beings, takes what is not given, engages in sensual
misconduct, and speaks falsely; and she prompts another to act in the same way.5 Will that
result in her long term harm and suffering? Yes, bhante.

What do you think, Klmas? Does hatred (dosa6) appear in a person for her welfare or
harm? For her harm, bhante. Does delusion (moha7) appear in a person for her
welfare or harm? For her harm, bhante. Given to delusion, overwhelmed and
mentally defeated by delusion, this person kills living beings, takes what is not given,
engages in sensual misconduct, and speaks falsely; and she prompts another to act in the
same way. Will that result in her long term harm and suffering? Yes, bhante.

What do you think, Klmas? Are these things wholesome or unwholesome?

Unwholesome, bhante. Blameable or blameless? Blameable, bhante. Criticised or

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praised by the wise? Criticised, bhante. Undertaken and carried out, do these things
lead to harm and suffering, or not? How does it seem to you? Undertaken and carried
out, these things lead to harm and suffering. This is how it seems to us.

The wholesome
Klmas, when you know for yourselves: These things are wholesome; these things are
blameless; these things are praised by the wise; undertaken and carried out, these things
lead to welfare and happiness, then attain and live them.

What do you think, Klmas? Does non-greed (alobha8) appear in a person for her welfare
or harm? For her welfare, bhante. Not given to greed, not overwhelmed and mentally
defeated by greed, this person does not kill living beings, does not take what is not given,
does not engage in sensual misconduct, and does not speak falsely; and she prompts
another to act in the same way. Will that result in her long term welfare and happiness?
Yes, bhante.

What do you think, Klmas? Does non-hatred (adosa9) appear in a person for her welfare
or harm? Does non-delusion (amoha10) appear in a person for her welfare or harm?
For her welfare, bhante. Not given to delusion, not overwhelmed and mentally
defeated by delusion, this person does not kill living beings, does not take what is not
given, does not engage in sensual misconduct, and does not speak falsely; and she
prompts another to act in the same way. Will that result in her long term welfare and
happiness? Yes, bhante.

What do you think, Klmas? Are these things wholesome or unwholesome?

Wholesome, bhante. Blameable or blameless? Blameless, bhante. Criticised or
praised by the wise? Praised, bhante. Undertaken and carried out, do these things
lead to welfare and happiness, or not? How does it seem to you? Undertaken and
carried out, these things lead to welfare and happiness. This is how it seems to us.

Klma Sutta (To the Klmas AN 3.65)

Two guardians of the world

There are two bright qualities that protect the world. What two? Hiri and ottapa.11

Cariya Sutta (Behaviour AN2.9)

The benefits of sla

[Buddha:] I say definitively, nanda, that bodily, verbal and mental misconduct
[duccarita] should not be done.

[nanda:] What disadvantages [dnava] can be expected from acting in this way?

[Buddha:] These disadvantages are to be expected: one blames oneself; the wise [viu],
after investigating, criticise one; one gains a bad reputation; one dies confused; and with
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the breakup of the body, after death, one arises in a realm of deprivation [apya], a bad
destination [duggati], a place of ruin [vinipta], a world of destruction [niraya].

I say definitively, nanda, that bodily, verbal and mental good conduct [sucarita] should
be done.

[nanda:] What benefits [nisasa] are to be expected from acting in this way?

[Buddha:] These benefits are to be expected: one does not blame oneself; the wise, after
investigating, praise one; one gains a good reputation; one dies unconfused; and with the
breakup of the body, after death, one arises in a good destination [sugati], in a heavenly
world [sagga loka].

(AN 2.18)

Sla without heavenly reward

A student of the cultivated ones, Klmas, with s a heart that is free from hatred and
malice, undefiled and purified, finds [two] comforts here and now. (1)If there is another
world and there is a fruit, a result, of actions done well or badly, then at the break-up of
the body, after death, I shall arise in a blissful heavenly world. This is the first comfort she
finds. (2)If there is no other world and no fruit, no result, of actions done well or badly,
then I keep myself peaceful, loving, calm and happy. This is the second comfort she finds.

Klma Sutta (To the Klmas AN 3.65)

Why practise sla?

[nanda:] Bhante, what is the purpose [atthiya] and benefit [nisasa] of wholesome
virtue12 [kusala sla13]? [Buddha:] The purpose and benefit of wholesome virtue is non-
regret [or non-remorse] [avippaisra14].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of non-regret? [Buddha:] The purpose and
benefit of non-regret is joy [pmojja].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of joy? [Buddha:] The purpose and benefit
of joy is rapture [pti].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of rapture? [Buddha:] The purpose and
benefit of rapture is tranquility [passaddhi].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of tranquility? [Buddha:] The purpose and
benefit of tranquility is happiness [sukha].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of happiness? [Buddha:] The purpose and
benefit of happiness is concentration [samdhi].

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[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of concentration? [Buddha:] The purpose
and benefit of concentration is realistic understanding and seeing [yathbhta-a-
dassana].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of realistic understanding and

seeing? [Buddha:] The purpose and benefit of realistic understanding and seeing is
disenchantment [nibbid] and the fading of obsession [virga].

[nanda:] What is the purpose and benefit of disenchantment and the fading of
obsession? [Buddha:] The purpose and benefit of disenchantment and the fading of
obsession is the understanding and seeing that comes from liberation [vimutti-a-
dassana].

And so, nanda, wholesome virtue leads progressively to the highest [agga].

Kim Atthiya Sutta (For what purpose? AN10.1)

Its just nature

Bhikkhus, for a virtuous person [slavant], a person endowed with virtue [sla-sampanna],
there is no need to resolve [na cetanya karaya]: May non-regret [avippaisra] arise in
me. Its just nature [dhammat15] that non-regret arises in a virtuous person, a person
endowed with virtue.

For one without regret there is no need to resolve: May joy [pmojja] arise in me. Its just
nature that joy arises in one without regret.

For one who is joyful, there is no need to resolve: May rapture [pti] arise in me. Its just
nature that rapture arises in one who is joyful.

For one with a rapturous mind [pti-mna] there is no need to resolve: May my body
[kya] be tranquil [passaddhi]. Its just nature that the body of one with a rapturous mind is
tranquil.

For one with a tranquil body there is no need to resolve: May I feel happiness [sukha].
Its just nature that one with a tranquil body feels happiness.

For one feeling happiness there is no need to resolve: May my heart/mind [citta] be
concentrated [samdhi]. Its just nature that the heart/mind of one feeling happiness
becomes concentrated.

For one who is concentrated there is no need to resolve: May I understand and see
realistically [yathbhta jnmi passm]. Its just nature that one who is concentrated
understands and sees realistically.

For one who understands and sees realistically there is no need to resolve: May I be
disenchanted [nibbid] and my obsession fade [virga]. Its just nature that one who
understands and sees realistically becomes disenchanted, and their obsession fades.

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For one who is disenchanted and whose obsession has faded there is no need to resolve:
May I realise the understanding and seeing that comes from liberation [vimutti-a-
dassana sacchikarom]. Its just nature that one who is disenchanted and dispassionate
realises the understanding and seeing that comes from liberation.

In this way, bhikkhus, one stage flows into the next stage, one stage fills up the next stage,
for going from the near to the further shore [apr pra].

Cetankaraya Sutta (Resolve AN 10.2)

The acrobats daughter

[The Buddha:] Once upon a time an acrobat set up his bamboo pole and said to his
apprentice Medakathlik: Come, dear Medakathlik, climb the bamboo pole that
stands on my shoulders. Replying, Yes, teacher, the apprentice climbed up the bamboo
pole that stood on her teachers shoulders. The acrobat then said to his apprentice: You
protect me, dear Medakathlik, and Ill protect you. Guarded by one another in this way,
protected by one another, we will display our skills, collect our fee, and get down safely
from the bamboo pole.

The apprentice Medakathlik replied: Thats not the way to do it, teacher. You protect
yourself and Ill protect myself, and with each of us self-guarded and self-protected we
will display our skills, collect our fee, and get down safely from the bamboo pole.

Thats the way [ya] here. Its just as the apprentice Medakathlik said. I will protect
myself: this is how the establishments of mindfulness [satipahna] should be practised.
I will protect others: this is how the establishments of mindfulness should be practised.
Protecting oneself, one protects others; protecting others, one protects oneself.

Sedaka Sutta (At Sedaka SN47.19)

Social justice
[The Buddha tells Kadanta, a wealthy brhmaa who wants to host an elaborate and
expensive animal sacrifice, the story of of King Mahvijita and his prime minister
[purohita], who was actually the Buddha himself in a previous life. King Mahvijita was a
wealthy king who had successfully conquered a large territory. He thought of making a
great sacrifice, to celebrate his success and increase his happiness. However, his prime
minister objected:]

Your Majestys country is beset by thieves, it is ravaged, villages and towns are being
destroyed, the countryside is infested with brigands. If Your Majesty were to impose taxes
on this oppressed region, that would be the wrong thing to do.

Suppose Your Majesty thought to get rid of this plague of robbers by executions and
imprisonment, or by confiscation, threats and banishment. Still the plague would not be
properly ended, and the survivors would later harm Your Majestys realm.

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However, you can completely eliminate the plague with this plan: To those in the kingdom
who are engaged in cultivating crops and raising cattle, let Your Majesty distribute grain
and fodder; to those in trade, give capital; to those in government service, assign proper
living wages. Then those people, being intent on their own occupations, will not harm the
kingdom. Your Majestys revenues will be great, the land will be tranquil and not beset by
thieves, and the people, with joy in their hearts, will play with their children and live in
open houses.

Kadanta Sutta (About Kadanta DN5)

Advice to shopkeepers

The shopkeeper
When a shopkeeper has three things he soon soon attains vast and abundant wealth
[bhoga]. What three? Here, a shopkeeper has keen eyes, is expert, and has investors.

1. How does a shopkeeper have keen eyes? Here, a shopkeeper knows of an item: If
this item is bought at such a price and sold at such a price, it will require this much
capital and bring this much profit. It is in this way that a shopkeeper has keen eyes.

2. How is a shopkeeper expert? Here, a shopkeeper is skilled in buying and selling

goods. It is in this way that a shopkeeper is expert.

3. How does a shopkeeper have investors? Here, rich, wealthy, affluent householders
and householders sons know him in this way: This good shopkeeper has keen eyes
and is expert; he is able to support his wife and children and pay us back from time
to time. So they deposit money with him, saying: Having earned wealth with this,
friend shopkeeper, support your wife and children and pay us back from time to
time. It is in this way that a shopkeeper has investors.

The bhikkhu16
So too, when a bhikkhu has three things he soon attains vast and abundant wholesome
qualities [kusala dhammas]. What three? Here, a bhikkhu has keen eyes, is expert, and has
investors.

1. How does a bhikkhu have keen eyes? Here, a bhikkhu understands realistically
[yathbhta pajnti]: This is dukkha; This is the arising of dukkha; This is the
cessation of dukkha; This is the way leading to the cessation of dukkha. It is in
this way that a bhikkhu has keen eyes.

2. How is a bhikkhu expert? Here, a bhikkhu lives with determined energy for
abandoning unwholesome qualities [akusala dhamma] and taking up wholesome
qualities [kusala dhamma]. He is strong, firm in exertion, not rejecting the duty of
cultivating wholesome qualities. It is in this way that a bhikkhu is expert.

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3. And how does a bhikkhu have investors? Here, from time to time a bhikkhu
approaches those bhikkhus who are learned, receivers of the heritage, experts on the
teaching [dhamma], experts on the training [vinaya], experts on the outlines [mtik],
and asks: What is this? What is its meaning? Those venerable ones then reveal to
him what has not been revealed, clear up what is obscure, and dispel his perplexity
about numerous perplexing points. It is in this way that a bhikkhu has investors.

Possessing these three things, a bhikkhu soon attains vast and abundant wholesome
qualities.

Dutiya Ppaika Sutta (Shopkeeper (2) AN3.20)

Stinginess
[King Pasenadi of Kosala visits the Buddha at an unusual time of day, and the Buddha
asks him where he is coming from.]

[Pasenadi:] A financier householder [sehi gahapati] in Svatth has died. He died intestate,
and I have come here after taking his heirless fortune to the palace. There were eighty
lakhs17 of gold, not to speak of silver, and yet, Bhante, his meals were of red rice along with
sour gruel, and for clothes he wore a three-piece hempen garment. For his vehicle he went
about in a shabby little cart with a leaf awning.

[Buddha:] It happens, Great King. When an undeveloped person [asappurisa18] gains

abundant wealth, he does not make himself happy [sukha] and pleased [pita], nor does
he make his mother and father happy and pleased, nor his wife and children, nor his
slaves, workers and servants, nor his friends and colleagues; nor does he establish an
offering for samaas and brhmaas19, one leading upwards, of heavenly fruit, resulting in
happiness, conducive to heaven. Because his wealth is not used properly, kings take it
away, or thieves take it away, or fire burns it, or water carries it away, or unloved heirs
take it. In such a situation wealth is not used properly, and is wasted rather than utilised.

Pahama Aputtaka Sutta (Childless (1) SN3.19)

Desired things
[The Buddha to Anthapiika:] Householder, there are four things [dhamm] in the world
that are wished for, desired, agreeable, and difficult to gain. What four?

1. May wealth come to me ethically [sahadhammenti]! This is the first thing rarely
gained in the world.

2. With wealth gained ethically: May fame come to me and to my relatives and
teachers! This is the second thing difficult to gain.

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3. With wealth gained ethically, along with fame for oneself and ones relatives and
teachers: May I live long and enjoy a long life span! This is the third thing
difficult to gain.

4. With wealth gained ethically, along with fame for oneself and ones relatives and
teachers, living long and enjoying a long life span: With the breakup of the body
[kyassa bhed], after death [para mara], may I arise in a good destination [sugati],
in a heavenly world [sagga loka]! This is the fourth thing difficult to gain.

These are the four things in the world that are wished for, desired, agreeable, and difficult
to gain.20

What leads to the four desired things

There are four things that lead to obtaining that four: accomplishment in faith [saddh21];
accomplishment in virtuous behaviour [sla]; accomplishment in generosity [cga]; and
accomplishment in wisdom [pa].22

1. What is accomplishment in faith? Here, a mature student [ariya-svaka23] is endowed

with faith; she places faith in the awakening of the Tathgata in this way: The
Blessed One [bhagav] is accomplished [araha], fully awakened [sammsambuddho],
endowed with knowledge and conduct [vijj-caraa-sampanno], well-gone [sugato],
knower of worlds [loka-vid], unsurpassed trainer of people with the potential for
training [anuttaro purisadamma-srathi], teacher of gods and people [satth
devamanussna], awakened [buddho] and blessed [bhagav]. This is called
accomplishment in faith.24

2. And what is accomplishment in virtuous behaviour? Here, a mature student abstains

from the destruction of life abstains from the carelessness caused by intoxicants.
This is called accomplishment in virtuous behaviour.

3. And what is accomplishment in generosity? Here, a mature student lives at home

with a heart free from the stain of miserliness, freely generous, openhanded,
delighting in letting go, devoted to donating, delighting in giving and sharing. This
is called accomplishment in generosity.25

4. And what is accomplishment in wisdom? If one lives with a heart [ceto] overcome by
longing [abhijjh] and disharmonious greed [visama-lobh], one does what should be
avoided and neglects ones duty, and ones fame and happiness are spoiled.26 If one
lives with a heart overcome by ill will [bypda] by stiffness-&-dullness [thna-
middha] by restlessness-&-worry [uddhacca-kukkucca] by paralytic doubt
[vicikicch]27, one does what should be avoided and neglects ones duty, and ones
fame and happiness are spoiled.28

When a mature student has understood that longing and disharmonious greed are a
defilement [upakilesa] of the heart [citta], she abandons them. When she has

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understood that ill will stiffness-&-dullness restlessness-&-worry paralytic

doubt is a defilement of the heart, she abandons it.

When a mature student has [abandoned] longing and disharmonious greed ill will
stiffness-&-dullness restlessness-&-worry paralytic doubt, she is then called
a mature student of great wisdom [mah-paa] and wide wisdom [puthu-paa]29,
one who sees the range [ptadasa30] and is accomplished in wisdom [pa-
sampanna]. This is called accomplishment in wisdom.

What follows the four desired things

With wealth acquired by energetic striving ethically gained, the mature student
undertakes four worthy deeds. What four?31

1. The mature student makes himself happy and pleased and properly [samm]
maintains himself in happiness; he makes his parents happy and pleased and
properly maintains them in happiness; he makes his wife and children, his slaves,
workers and servants happy and pleased and properly maintains them in happiness;
he makes his friends and companions happy and pleased and properly maintains
them in happiness. This is the first case of wealth that has gone to good use, that has
been properly utilised and used for a worthy cause.32

2. The mature student makes provisions against the losses that might arise from fire,
floods, kings, thieves, or displeasing heirs; he makes himself secure against them.
This is the second case of wealth that has gone to good use for a worthy cause.

3. The mature student makes the five offerings [paca-bali], to relatives [ti], guests
[atithi], ancestors [pubbapeta], the king [rja], and the deities [devat]. This is the third
case of wealth that has gone to good use for a worthy cause.33

4. The mature student establishes an uplifting offering of alms an offering that is

heavenly [sovaggika], resulting in happiness [sukha-vipka], conducive to heaven
[sagga-savattanika] to those samaas and brhmaas who refrain from the
carelessness caused by intoxication, who are settled in patience and mildness, who
tame themselves, calm themselves, and train themselves for nibbna. This is the
fourth case of wealth that has gone to good use for a worthy cause.34

When anyone exhausts wealth on anything apart from these four worthy deeds, that
wealth is said to have gone to waste, to have been squandered, to have been used
frivolously. But when anyone exhausts wealth on these four worthy deeds, that wealth is
said to have gone to good use, to have been properly used, to have been utilised for a
worthy cause.

Pattakamma Sutta (Worthy Deeds AN4.61)

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The highest thing

Virtue [sla] is washed about [paridhota] by wisdom [pa], and wisdom is washed about
by virtue. Where there is virtue, there is wisdom, and where there is wisdom, there is
virtue. The virtuous person has wisdom, and the wise person has virtue, and this
combination is called the highest thing in the world. Just as one hand washes the other, or
one foot washes the other, so wisdom is washed about by virtue and virtue is washed
about by wisdom, and this combination is called the highest thing in the world.

Soadada Sutta (To Soadada DN4)

1.Ppa is usually translated as evil, but in many contexts this could be too strong a term.
Ppa seems to indicate a simple opposite of the good, so it could be translated as wrong
as the opposite of right or bad as the opposite of good.

2.Kusala has a cluster of meanings. In its wider usage kusala indicates health. In the
Buddhas teaching it also implies intelligence or wisdom, where it can indicate a mundane
skill (hence skilful) such as the skill of a good craftsman, or dharma skilfulness, such as
the skill of an experienced meditator. It is normally translated as wholesome, indicating
a state of heart/mind that is healthy within itself, leads to a good result, and is morally
good.

3.Citta can be translated as mind, or heart, or heart/mind, or soul in the original,

non-Christian sense of the world. Citta refers to ones inner centre, and covers the areas of
both thinking (as in mind) and feeling (as in heart).

4.Lobha is attraction, the elemental movement of the heart towards an experience, to

hold it. Given the ethical context of this sutta, lobha is translated here as greed, which
strictly speaking is just one flavour of lobha. Love, desire, wish, aspiration all these are
different flavours of lobha.

5.Here we have the first four of the standard list of five precepts. These four are the most
important.

6.Dosa is aversion, the elemental movement of the heart away from an experience, to
reject it. Given the ethical context of this sutta, dosa is translated here as anger, which
strictly speaking is just one flavour of dosa. Irritation, rage, grumpiness, disdain, sadness,
depression all these are different flavours of dosa.

7.Moha is delusion, and it comes in two aspects. The first is simple ignorance, not knowing
what is happening. The second is a state of positive misinformation regarding the
experience, resulting in states such as confusion, bewilderment, misguided action, and so
on.

8.Alobha is the opposite of lobha. While translated as non-greed, the meaning is actually
stronger than mere absence. The initial a is the negative prefix, and here it represents
the opposite, the anti-, of the quality. So alobha is the opposite quality of lobha, rather
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than its mere absence. Alobha would include letting go, renunciation, generosity,
contentment, etc. positive qualities that arise when the heart does not cling to an
experience.

9.Adosa would include love, kindness, compassion, acceptance, etc. the positive qualities
that arise when the heart does not reject an experience.

10.Amoha would include wisdom, clarity, discernment, understanding, etc. the positive
qualities that arise when the heart is not mistaken, confused or bewildered by an
experience.

11. Hiri and ottapa have been variously translated over the years, but currently hiri is
translated as moral shame by Bhikkhu Bodhi and as conscience by Bhikkhu
hnissaro. Ottapa is translated as moral dread by Bhikkhu Bodhi and as concern by
Bhikkhu hnissaro. (1)Hiri focuses on how we feel when we realise we have done/are
doing/will do something we know we should not. It manifests as both guilt (which is
inner and private) and shame (which is outer and social). (2)Ottapa focuses on how we
feel about the significance of our action, the consequences of what we have done/are
doing/will do for the world we live in and our place within it. Buddhaghosa, the 5th
century AD commentator, says of hiri and ottapa: Their proximate causes are self-respect
and respect of others [respectively]. A man rejects evil through hiri out of respect for
himself ; he rejects evil through ottapa out of respect for another

12. In ancient Greece a virtue was simply an excellence. It is a virtue in a knife, for
example, that it has a sharp edge; we call this a good knife. A moral virtue is an
excellence that forms character, and it is cultivated through education or training.
Important virtues in ancient Greece included justice, courage and temperance.

13.Sla is a broad term that covers the area of character, habit, nature, virtue, ethics and
(good) conduct, as well as virtues such as compassion (karu), generosity (cga) and
commitment (viriya). Buddhaghosa emphasises the harmonising nature of sla: It is sla in
the sense of composing (slana). What is this composing? It is either a coordinating
(samdhna), meaning non-inconsistency of bodily action, etc., due to virtuousness; or it is
an upholding (upadhrana), meaning a state of support (dhra) as it serves as foundation
for wholesome qualities (kusala dhamma).

14.Avippaisra is another negative term starting with a-, the meaning of which depends
on whether a- is taken as mere absence or as indicating the opposite quality. Vippaisra
can be translated as regret, remorse, even repentance. It is based on the Sanskrit root sr,
remember, the same root that forms the Pli word sati, mindfulness. This gives us a
vital hint. Regret and remorse refer to our relationship to the past. There is something we
have done, or not done, in the past that bothers us today, that leads us to obsess about the
past. This obsession pollutes our relationship with the present. Non-regret could be the
simple absence of regret/remorse. If taken as the opposite of regret, non-regret would
suggest a positive state of happiness or contentment with ones life, or even rejoicing in

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how one has lived. The fact that joy arises in one who experiences non-regret suggests this
stronger meaning is indicated here.

15.Dhammat (Skt. dharmat) takes the word dhamma (nature, natural order, reality, the
way things naturally flow) and by adding -t turns it into an abstract noun like adding -
ness to happy and creating the abstract concept of happiness. Dhammat means
nature, natural law or natural process; the basic reality of things that underlies
appearances.

16.Bhikkhu has two meanings in the Buddhas teachings. The legal (or vinaya) meaning
is a fully ordained man, just as a fully ordained woman is a bhikkhun. The dharma (or
sutta) meaning is any committed practitioner, whether male or female, ordained or lay.

17.A lakh = 100,000; so eighty lakhs = 8,000,000, or eight million.

18.A sappurisa is a good, worthy, superior, cultivated person; an asappurisa is the opposite.
The sa- comes from the verb atthi, to be, to exist. A sa-purisa is a real person, a genuine
or authentic person, someone who ex-ists, in the sense of stands out.

19.Samaas (roughly meaning philosophers in the classical Greek sense) and brhmaas
(the hereditary Vedic priesthood) together constituted the religious/philosophical elite of
the Buddhas time. The Buddha himself was a samaa.

20.Wealth, fame, long life and heavenly reward these are presented as desirable, and
there is no indication from the Buddha that one should not desire these things, or that they
are in any way bad. Rather, he seems to take it as obvious that these are good; that they are
goods. Notice he does think they are difficult to gain, and he is chiefly concerned with
how we gain our wealth (hence right livelihood samm jva is a factor in the path to
awakening), and what we do with it once we gain it.

21.Saddh comes from the root dha, to put or place, and rad, a Vedic word for heart.
Saddh means to place the heart, as in putting our heart into something, or to place in
the heart, as in taking something to heart. Saddh is about the heart connection with
what we take to be real. Not belief, but a felt connection with reality.

22.How does one come to obtain these rare goods? First, we see that the Buddha is
teaching the art of building up wealth. He would not be doing so if he thought that wealth
was unwholesome (akusala) and inherently harmful. So wealth is or could be a good
thing, where we take good as kusala, as constituent of human flourishing. What qualities
do we require to gain wealth and its attendant goods ethically? Accomplishment in faith,
virtue, generosity and wisdom. These accomplishments are part of the path to awakening,
so it is clear that the gaining of wealth is meant to be part of the eightfold path to the
cessation of dukkha, through the path factor of right livelihood.

23.Ariya, normally translated as noble, refers to a persons status as cultivated,

developed, refined. In Indian society, ariya referred to the social, economic and cultural
elite. For the Buddha, ariya referred to a person from any layer of society who was

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cultivated or developed in the dharma. In a technical context, an ariya is someone who has
attained at least the first stage of awakening, but here the term is probably used more
generally as someone who is spiritually mature. A svaka is literally one who hears,
which in an oral culture refers to a student. An ariya-svaka, therefore, is a mature or
developed student of the dharma.

24.Note that saddh is directed towards the Buddha, but in particular to his awakening.
Faith in Buddha entails faith in awakening. Since saddh involves a movement of the heart,
rather than just a cognitive belief, then faith in awakening refers to a felt sense that
awakening is real, and possible for me!

25.Crucial to the cultivation of generosity is learning to delight in giving and sharing.

When we find joy in the gift, then we naturally give and share, and this delight lightens
the heart, and makes us receptive to the path. In particular, as we have seen in Kim
Atthiya Sutta, the Buddha says that sukha gives rise to samdhi. Meditation is easier for a
generous person.

26.Notice that greed is disharmonious. Sla is concerned with harmony, both inner
(within oneself) and outer (within ones social world). When the heart loses its harmony,
then we are driven to seek goods for ourselves that create disharmony, and so neglect or
violate our duty (kicca), literally what should be done. The should here is not an
expression of a command from above, but of dharma. Dharma refers to reality, the way
things really are; and therefore what we should do, given that this is the way things are.
For the Buddha, when we act in delusion thinking ourselves to be radically separate
from others, for example then we act against our dharma, against our nature, and
therefore against our duty.

27.These are the five hindrances to the cultivation of serenity and insight. They are a
barrier to serenity, because we cannot attain meditative absorption (jhna) when they
dominate the heart (Mahvedalla Sutta The Greater Dialectic MN43). They are a barrier to
wisdom, because we cannot see and understand realistically our own good or the good of
others when they dominate the heart (Sagrava Sutta To Sagrava AN5.193).

28.Wisdom for the lay person busy in the world entails recognition of the need to engage
in meditation practice (bhvan), because of the destructive effects of the hindrances, the
way they take us away from the path of human flourishing. Faith (saddh), virtue (sla) and
generosity (cga) do not require meditation practice; but cultivating wisdom (pa) does
require a commitment to meditation. And here we are clearly speaking of a lay practice.
Note also that the practitioner here is an ariya-svaka, a mature student, even before any
mention of meditation practice, indicating that ariya is being used loosely, in a non-
technical sense.

29.Wisdom (pa) comes from abandoning hindrances; and abandoning hindrances

comes from wisdom. The dominant role of wisdom indicates this is a way of practice that
emphasises insight (vipassan) over serenity (samatha), although the student needs and
employs both. The themes of lay practice and leading with wisdom rather than
concentration (samdhi) indicates insight meditation (vipassan bhvan) as found in the
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 Patrick Kearney

modern Burmese insight movement, in traditions such as those of U Ba Khin/S. N.

Goenka and Mahs Saydaw.

30.Range (ptadasa) refers to the range of the six senses, of seeing, hearing, smelling,
tasting, touching and minding. Wisdom extends to everything found within the ranges
of the senses in other words, everything within human experience.

31.Here we have the central ethical question of what we should do with our wealth and
good material fortune. This question arises in the context of dependent arising
(paiccasamuppda). First, the Buddha presents the good to be obtained. Then he considers
the cause or condition of that good; what gives rise to that good? What feeds that good?
Finally, he considers what follows that good, what that good feeds for the
accomplishments listed above are not the end of the story. They are merely one stage in a
path that ends only with the culmination of human flourishing, nibbna.

32.The first thing to be done with our wealth is to make ourselves happy! However, the
person who is to be made happy is not the atomic, isolated individual of neo-liberalism,
but a socially embedded person who cannot be separated from her social networks, and
whose happiness is intimately entwined with the happiness of those within her networks.
Of course, ultimately (as in Mett Sutta), these networks extend to all beings; but for
practical purposes, they begin with the actual social situation of the person and those
dependent upon her and associated with her. So the first principle is: make ourselves
happy and pleased as the centre of a network of happy and pleased associates, beginning with
those who depend upon us.

33.In tribal Vedic culture a ruler protected his people through war, and distributed the
profits of battle to them through gifts. His people provided gifts in return for this
protection. They also provided gifts to the gods (devas) for their protection. These offerings
or gifts were bali. Later, this term became used for tax, but it may be that at the time of
the Buddha payments that we call taxes maintained their sacred context, like offerings
to the gods and spirits, or to the ancestors.

34.The first, third and fourth deeds have to do with generosity. Generosity begins at
home, and extends out to the social network. This network includes what we would call
the spiritual or supernatural world in the form of the dead and the deities. A
flourishing life extends into the next world, just as it was influenced by the previous world
of the ancestors. If this was a Christian tract, then heaven would be the ultimate
destination; but in the context of the Buddhas teaching, heaven is not the final destination
of human flourishing, but a way station on a longer path that leads to awakening. The
Buddha is teaching a path that shows no sense of being in a hurry. It is expected to last a
number of lifetimes. Do we see here a basic difference between lay and monastic practice?
Lay practitioners are expected to take their time, working to fulfil their social obligations
as they proceed, while monastic practitioners are in the fast lane, jettisoning their family-
based social obligations in order to attain awakening as quickly as possible, and preferably
in this life.

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