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Numbered Discourses · AN 4.168

  • Numbered Discourses 4.168Aṅguttara Nikāya 4.168
  • 17. Practice17. Paṭipadāvagga

Sāriputta’s PracticeSāriputtasutta

Then Venerable Mahāmoggallāna went up to Venerable Sāriputta, and exchanged greetings with him.Atha kho āyasmā mahāmoggallāno yenāyasmā sāriputto tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā āyasmatā sāriputtena saddhiṁ sammodi. When the greetings and polite conversation were over, Mahāmoggallāna sat down to one side, and said to Sāriputta:Sammodanīyaṁ kathaṁ sāraṇīyaṁ vītisāretvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinno kho āyasmā mahāmoggallāno āyasmantaṁ sāriputtaṁ etadavoca:

“Reverend Sāriputta, there are four ways of practice.“Catasso imā, āvuso sāriputta, paṭipadā. What four?Katamā catasso?

  1. Painful practice with slow insight,Dukkhā paṭipadā dandhābhiññā,
  2. painful practice with swift insight,dukkhā paṭipadā khippābhiññā,
  3. pleasant practice with slow insight, andsukhā paṭipadā dandhābhiññā,
  4. pleasant practice with swift insight.sukhā paṭipadā khippābhiññā.

These are the four ways of practice.Imā kho, āvuso, catasso paṭipadā. Which one of these four ways of practice did you rely on to free your mind from defilements by not grasping?”Imāsaṁ, āvuso, catunnaṁ paṭipadānaṁ katamaṁ te paṭipadaṁ āgamma anupādāya āsavehi cittaṁ vimuttan”ti?

“Reverend Moggallāna …“Catasso imā, āvuso moggallāna, paṭipadā. I relied on the pleasant practice with swift insight to free my mind from defilements by not grasping.”Imāsaṁ, āvuso, catunnaṁ paṭipadānaṁ yāyaṁ paṭipadā sukhā khippābhiññā, imaṁ me paṭipadaṁ āgamma anupādāya āsavehi cittaṁ vimuttan”ti.

Similar passages elsewhere

Found by meaning, not by citation: the passages in other texts whose wording sits closest to a passage here.

  1. AN 4.167 Moggallāna’s Practice 0.98near 0.1Numbered Discourses 4.167 17. Practice Moggallāna’s Practice Then Venerable Sāriputta went up to Venerable Mahāmoggallāna, and exchanged greetings with him. When the greetings and polite conversation were over, Sāriputta…
  2. AN 4.161 In Brief 0.57near 0.1Numbered Discourses 4.161 17. Practice In Brief “Mendicants, there are four ways of practice. What four? Painful practice with slow insight, painful practice with swift insight, pleasant practice with slow insight, and p…
  3. AN 4.166 Both 0.55near 0.1Numbered Discourses 4.166 17. Practice Both “Mendicants, there are four ways of practice. What four? Painful practice with slow insight, painful practice with swift insight, pleasant practice with slow insight, and pleas…