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Aṅguttara Nikāya - The Numerical Discourses

4: The Book of the Fours

I. At Bhaṇḍa Village — AN 4.10: Attachments

1“Mendicants, there are these four attachments. What four? The attachment to sensual pleasures, future lives, views, and ignorance.


And what is the attachment to sensual pleasures? It’s when you don’t truly understand sensual pleasures’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. So greed, relishing, affection, infatuation, thirst, passion, attachment, and craving for sensual pleasures linger on inside. This is called the attachment to sensual pleasures. Such is the attachment to sensual pleasures.

2And what is the attachment to future lives? It’s when you don’t truly understand future lives’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. So lust, delight, affection, infatuation, thirst, passion, attachment, and craving for continued existence linger on inside. This is called the attachment to future lives. Such are the attachments to sensual pleasures and future lives.

3And what is the attachment to views? It’s when you don’t truly understand views’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. So lust, delight, affection, infatuation, thirst, passion, attachment, and craving for views linger on inside. This is called the attachment to views. Such are the attachments to sensual pleasures, future lives, and views.


4And what is the attachment to ignorance? It’s when you don’t truly understand the six fields of contacts’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape, so ignorance and unknowing of the six fields of contact linger on inside. This is called the attachment to ignorance.

Such are the attachments to sensual pleasures, future lives, views, and ignorance. Someone attached to bad, unskillful qualities — corruptions that lead to future lives and are hurtful, resulting in suffering and future rebirth, old age, and death — is called: ‘one who has not found sanctuary from attachments’.

These are the four attachments.


5There are these four kinds of detachment. What four? Detachment from sensual pleasures, future lives, views, and ignorance.


And what is detachment from sensual pleasures? It’s when you truly understand sensual pleasures’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. So greed, relishing, affection, infatuation, thirst, passion, attachment, and craving for sensual pleasures don’t linger on inside. This is called detachment from sensual pleasures. Such is detachment from sensual pleasures.

6And what is detachment from future lives? It’s when you truly understand future lives’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. So lust, delight, affection, infatuation, thirst, passion, attachment, and craving for continued existence don’t linger on inside. This is called detachment from future lives. Such is detachment from sensual pleasures and future lives.

7And what is detachment from views? It’s when you don’t truly understand views’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape. So lust, delight, affection, infatuation, thirst, passion, attachment, and craving for views linger on inside. This is called detachment from views. Such is detachment from sensual pleasures, future lives, and views.


8And what is detachment from ignorance? It’s when you truly understand the six fields of contacts’ origin, ending, gratification, drawback, and escape, so ignorance and unknowing of the six fields of contact don’t linger on inside.


This is called detachment from ignorance. Such is detachment from sensual pleasures, future lives, views, and ignorance. Someone detached from bad, unskillful qualities — defilements that lead to future lives and are hurtful, resulting in suffering and future rebirth, old age, and death — is called: ‘one who has found sanctuary from attachments’.


These are the four kinds of detachment.


9Attached to both sensual pleasures
and the desire to be reborn in a future life;
attached also to views,
with ignorance in the forefront,

10sentient beings continue to transmigrate,
with ongoing birth and death.
But those who completely understand sensual pleasures,
and the attachment to all future lives;

11with the attachment to views eradicated,
and ignorance dispelled,
detached from all attachments,
those sages have gone beyond all attachments.”


1"Cattārome, bhikkhave, yogā. Katame cattāro? Kāmayogo, bhavayogo, diṭṭhiyogo, avijjāyogo.


Katamo ca, bhikkhave, kāmayogo? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco kāmānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ nappajānāti. Tassa kāmānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ appajānato yo kāmesu kāmarāgo kāmanandī kāmasneho kāmamucchā kāmapipāsā kāmapariḷāho kāmajjhosānaṁ kāmataṇhā sānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, kāmayogo. Iti kāmayogo.

2Bhavayogo ca kathaṁ hoti? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco bhavānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ nappajānāti. Tassa bhavānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ appajānato yo bhavesu bhavarāgo bhavanandī bhavasneho bhavamucchā bhavapipāsā bhavapariḷāho bhavajjhosānaṁ bhavataṇhā sānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, bhavayogo. Iti kāmayogo bhavayogo.

3Diṭṭhiyogo ca kathaṁ hoti? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco diṭṭhīnaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ nappajānāti. Tassa diṭṭhīnaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ appajānato yo diṭṭhīsu diṭṭhirāgo diṭṭhinandī diṭṭhisneho diṭṭhimucchā diṭṭhipipāsā diṭṭhipariḷāho diṭṭhijjhosānaṁ diṭṭhitaṇhā sānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, diṭṭhiyogo. Iti kāmayogo bhavayogo diṭṭhiyogo.


4Avijjāyogo ca kathaṁ hoti? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco channaṁ phassāyatanānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ nappajānāti. Tassa channaṁ phassāyatanānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ appajānato yā chasu phassāyatanesu avijjā aññāṇaṁ sānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, avijjāyogo.

Iti kāmayogo bhavayogo diṭṭhiyogo avijjāyogo, saṁyutto pāpakehi akusalehi dhammehi saṅkilesikehi ponobhavikehi sadarehi dukkhavipākehi āyatiṁ jātijarāmaraṇikehi. Tasmā ayogakkhemīti vuccati.

Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro yogā.


5Cattārome, bhikkhave, visaṁyogā. Katame cattāro? Kāmayogavisaṁyogo, bhavayogavisaṁyogo, diṭṭhiyogavisaṁyogo, avijjāyogavisaṁyogo.


Katamo ca, bhikkhave, kāmayogavisaṁyogo? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco kāmānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti. Tassa kāmānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānato yo kāmesu kāmarāgo kāmanandī kāmasneho kāmamucchā kāmapipāsā kāmapariḷāho kāmajjhosānaṁ kāmataṇhā sā nānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, kāmayogavisaṁyogo. Iti kāmayogavisaṁyogo.

6Bhavayogavisaṁyogo ca kathaṁ hoti? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco bhavānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti. Tassa bhavānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānato yo bhavesu bhavarāgo bhavanandī bhavasneho bhavamucchā bhavapipāsā bhavapariḷāho bhavajjhosānaṁ bhavataṇhā sā nānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, bhavayogavisaṁyogo. Iti kāmayogavisaṁyogo bhavayogavisaṁyogo.

7Diṭṭhiyogavisaṁyogo ca kathaṁ hoti? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco diṭṭhīnaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti. Tassa diṭṭhīnaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānato yo diṭṭhīsu diṭṭhirāgo diṭṭhinandī diṭṭhisneho diṭṭhimucchā diṭṭhipipāsā diṭṭhipariḷāho diṭṭhijjhosānaṁ diṭṭhitaṇhā sā nānuseti. Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, diṭṭhiyogavisaṁyogo. Iti kāmayogavisaṁyogo bhavayogavisaṁyogo diṭṭhiyogavisaṁyogo.


8Avijjāyogavisaṁyogo ca kathaṁ hoti? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco channaṁ phassāyatanānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānāti. Tassa channaṁ phassāyatanānaṁ samudayañca atthaṅgamañca assādañca ādīnavañca nissaraṇañca yathābhūtaṁ pajānato yā chasu phassāyatanesu avijjā aññāṇaṁ sā nānuseti.


Ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, avijjāyogavisaṁyogo. Iti kāmayogavisaṁyogo bhavayogavisaṁyogo diṭṭhiyogavisaṁyogo avijjāyogavisaṁyogo, visaṁyutto pāpakehi akusalehi dhammehi saṅkilesikehi ponobhavikehi sadarehi dukkhavipākehi āyatiṁ jātijarāmaraṇikehi. Tasmā yogakkhemīti vuccati.


Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro visaṁyogāti.


9Kāmayogena saṁyuttā,
bhavayogena cūbhayaṁ;
Diṭṭhiyogena saṁyuttā,
avijjāya purakkhatā.

10Sattā gacchanti saṁsāraṁ,
jātimaraṇagāmino;
Ye ca kāme pariññāya,
bhavayogañca sabbaso.

11Diṭṭhiyogaṁ samūhacca,
avijjañca virājayaṁ;
Sabbayogavisaṁyuttā,
te ve yogātigā munī"ti.


Dasamaṁ.

Bhaṇḍagāmavaggo paṭhamo.

12Anubuddhaṁ papatitaṁ dve,
Khatā anusotapañcamaṁ;
Appassuto ca sobhanaṁ,
Vesārajjaṁ taṇhāyogena te dasāti.