5: The Book of the Fives
XXIV. A Resident Mendicant — AN 5.234: Very Helpful
- © Translated from the Pali by Bhante Sujato. (More copyright information)
1“Mendicants, a resident mendicant with five qualities is very helpful to the monastery. What five?
They’re ethical, restrained in the code of conduct, with good behavior and supporters. Seeing danger in the slightest fault, they keep the rules they’ve undertaken.
They’re very learned, remembering and keeping what they’ve learned. These teachings are good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end, meaningful and well-phrased, describing a spiritual practice that’s totally full and pure. They are very learned in such teachings, remembering them, reciting them, mentally scrutinizing them, and understanding them with right view.
They repair what is decayed and damaged.
When a large mendicant Saṅgha is arriving with mendicants from abroad, they go to the lay people and announce: ‘A large mendicant Saṅgha is arriving with mendicants from abroad. Make merit! Now is the time to make merit!’
They get the four absorptions — blissful meditations in the present life that belong to the higher mind — when they want, without trouble or difficulty.
A resident mendicant with these five qualities is very helpful to the monastery.”
1"Pañcahi, bhikkhave, dhammehi samannāgato āvāsiko bhikkhu āvāsassa bahūpakāro hoti. Katamehi pañcahi?
Sīlavā hoti … pe … samādāya sikkhati sikkhāpadesu;
bahussuto hoti … pe … diṭṭhiyā suppaṭividdhā;
khaṇḍaphullaṁ paṭisaṅkharoti;
mahā kho pana bhikkhusaṅgho abhikkanto nānāverajjakā bhikkhū gihīnaṁ upasaṅkamitvā āroceti: ‘mahā kho, āvuso, bhikkhusaṅgho abhikkanto nānāverajjakā bhikkhū, karotha puññāni, samayo puññāni kātun’ti;
catunnaṁ jhānānaṁ ābhicetasikānaṁ diṭṭhadhammasukhavihārānaṁ nikāmalābhī hoti akicchalābhī akasiralābhī.
Imehi kho, bhikkhave, pañcahi dhammehi samannāgato āvāsiko bhikkhu āvāsassa bahūpakāro hotī"ti.
Catutthaṁ.