With AssajiAssajisutta

At one time the Buddha was staying near Rājagaha in the Bamboo Grove, the squirrels’ feeding ground.Ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā rājagahe viharati veḷuvane kalandakanivāpe. Now at that time Venerable Assaji was staying in a monastery built by a Kassapa, and he was sick, suffering, gravely ill.Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā assaji kassapakārāme viharati ābādhiko dukkhito bāḷhagilāno. Then he addressed his carers:Atha kho āyasmā assaji upaṭṭhāke āmantesi:

“Please, reverends, go to the Buddha, and in my name bow with your head to his feet. Say to him:“etha tumhe, āvuso, yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamatha; upasaṅkamitvā mama vacanena bhagavato pāde sirasā vandatha: ‘Sir, the mendicant Assaji is sick, suffering, gravely ill.‘assaji, bhante, bhikkhu ābādhiko dukkhito bāḷhagilāno. He bows with his head to your feet.’So bhagavato pāde sirasā vandatī’ti. And then say:Evañca vadetha: ‘Sir, please go to the mendicant Assaji out of sympathy.’”‘sādhu kira, bhante, bhagavā yena assaji bhikkhu tenupasaṅkamatu anukampaṁ upādāyā’”ti.

“Yes, reverend,” those monks replied. They did as he asked.“Evamāvuso”ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato assajissa paṭissutvā yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamiṁsu; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdiṁsu. Ekamantaṁ nisinnā kho te bhikkhū bhagavantaṁ etadavocuṁ: The Buddha consented with silence.Adhivāsesi bhagavā tuṇhībhāvena.

Then in the late afternoon, the Buddha came out of retreat and went to Venerable Assaji.Atha kho bhagavā sāyanhasamayaṁ paṭisallānā vuṭṭhito yenāyasmā assaji tenupasaṅkami. Venerable Assaji saw the Buddha coming off in the distance,Addasā kho āyasmā assaji bhagavantaṁ dūratova āgacchantaṁ. and stirred in his cot.Disvāna mañcake samadhosi.

But the Buddha said to him,Atha kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ assajiṁ etadavoca: “It’s all right, Assaji, don’t get up.“alaṁ, assaji, mā tvaṁ mañcake samadhosi. There are some seats spread out, I will sit there.”Santimāni āsanāni paññattāni, tatthāhaṁ nisīdissāmī”ti.

He sat down on the seat spread out and said,Nisīdi bhagavā paññatte āsane. Nisajja kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ assajiṁ etadavoca: “I hope you’re keeping well, Assaji; I hope you’re all right. I hope your pain is fading, not growing; that its fading is evident, not its growing.”“kacci te, assaji, khamanīyaṁ, kacci yāpanīyaṁ …pe… paṭikkamosānaṁ paññāyati no abhikkamo”ti?

“Sir, I’m not keeping well, I’m not getting by. My pain is terrible and growing, not fading; its growing is evident, not its fading.”“Na me, bhante, khamanīyaṁ …pe… abhikkamosānaṁ paññāyati no paṭikkamo”ti.

“I hope you don’t have any remorse or regret?”“Kacci te, assaji, na kiñci kukkuccaṁ na koci vippaṭisāro”ti?

“Indeed, sir, I have no little remorse and regret.”“Taggha me, bhante, anappakaṁ kukkuccaṁ anappako vippaṭisāro”ti.

“I hope you have no reason to blame yourself when it comes to ethical conduct?”“Kacci pana taṁ, assaji, attā sīlato na upavadatī”ti?

“No sir, I have no reason to blame myself when it comes to ethical conduct.”“Na kho maṁ, bhante, attā sīlato upavadatī”ti.

“In that case, Assaji, why do you have remorse and regret?”“No ce kira taṁ, assaji, attā sīlato upavadati, atha kiñca te kukkuccaṁ ko ca vippaṭisāro”ti?

“Sir, before my time of illness I meditated having completely stilled the physical process. But now I can’t get immersion.“Pubbe khvāhaṁ, bhante, gelaññe passambhetvā passambhetvā kāyasaṅkhāre viharāmi, sohaṁ samādhiṁ nappaṭilabhāmi. Since I can’t get immersion, I think:Tassa mayhaṁ, bhante, taṁ samādhiṁ appaṭilabhato evaṁ hoti: ‘May I not decline!’”‘no cassāhaṁ parihāyāmī’”ti.

“There are, Assaji, ascetics and brahmins for whom samādhi is the essence, equating immersion with the ascetic life. They think:“Ye te, assaji, samaṇabrāhmaṇā samādhisārakā samādhisāmaññā tesaṁ taṁ samādhiṁ appaṭilabhataṁ evaṁ hoti: ‘May we not decline!’‘no cassu mayaṁ parihāyāmā’ti.

What do you think, Assaji?Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, assaji, Is form permanent or impermanent?”rūpaṁ niccaṁ vā aniccaṁ vā”ti?

“Impermanent, sir.” …“Aniccaṁ, bhante” …pe…

“Is consciousness permanent or impermanent?” …viññāṇaṁ …pe…

“So you should truly see …“tasmātiha …pe… Seeing this …evaṁ passaṁ …pe… They understand: ‘… there is nothing further for this place.’nāparaṁ itthattāyāti pajānātīti.

If they feel a pleasant feeling, they understand that it’s impermanent, that they’re not attached to it, and that they don’t relish it.So sukhañce vedanaṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anajjhositā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. If they feel a painful feeling, they understand that it’s impermanent, that they’re not attached to it, and that they don’t relish it.Dukkhañce vedanaṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anajjhositā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. If they feel a neutral feeling, they understand that it’s impermanent, that they’re not attached to it, and that they don’t relish it.Adukkhamasukhañce vedanaṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti …pe… ‘anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. If they feel a pleasant feeling, they feel it detached.So sukhañce vedanaṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati; If they feel a painful feeling, they feel it detached.dukkhañce vedanaṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati; If they feel a neutral feeling, they feel it detached.adukkhamasukhañce vedanaṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati. Feeling the end of the body draw close, they understand: ‘I feel the end of the body draw close.’ Feeling the end of life draw close, they understand: ‘I feel the end of life draw close.’So kāyapariyantikañce vedanaṁ vedayamāno ‘kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanaṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. Jīvitapariyantikañce vedanaṁ vedayamāno ‘jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanaṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. They understand: ‘When my body breaks up and my life is over, everything that’s felt, being no longer relished, will become cool right here.’‘Kāyassa bhedā uddhaṁ jīvitapariyādānā idheva sabbavedayitāni anabhinanditāni sītībhavissantī’ti pajānāti.

Suppose an oil lamp depended on oil and a wick to burn.Seyyathāpi, assaji, telañca paṭicca, vaṭṭiñca paṭicca, telappadīpo jhāyeyya; As the oil and the wick are used up, it would be extinguished due to not being fed.tasseva telassa ca vaṭṭiyā ca pariyādānā anāhāro nibbāyeyya.

In the same way, feeling the end of the body draw close, they understand: ‘I feel the end of the body draw close.’ Feeling the end of life draw close, they understand: ‘I feel the end of life draw close.’Evameva kho, assaji, bhikkhu kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanaṁ vedayamāno ‘kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanaṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. Jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanaṁ vedayamāno ‘jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanaṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. They understand: ‘When my body breaks up and my life is over, everything that’s felt, being no longer relished, will become cool right here.’”‘Kāyassa bhedā uddhaṁ jīvitapariyādānā idheva sabbavedayitāni anabhinanditāni sītībhavissantī’ti pajānātī”ti.