1At one time the Buddha was staying near Rājagaha, in the Bamboo Grove, the squirrels’ feeding ground. Now at that time Venerable Assaji was staying in a monastery built by a Kassapa, and he was sick, suffering, gravely ill. Then he addressed his carers:

“Please, reverends, go to the Buddha, and in my name bow with your head to his feet. Say to him: ‘Sir, the mendicant Assaji is sick, suffering, gravely ill. He bows with his head to your feet.’ And then say: ‘Sir, please go to the mendicant Assaji out of compassion.’”

“Yes, reverend,” those monks replied. They did as he asked. The Buddha consented in silence.

Then in the late afternoon, the Buddha came out of retreat and went to Venerable Assaji. Venerable Assaji saw the Buddha coming off in the distance, and tried to rise on his cot.

But the Buddha said to him: “It’s all right, Assaji, don’t get up. There are some seats spread out by others, I will sit there.”

He sat on the seat spread out and said: “Assaji, I hope you’re keeping well; I hope you’re alright. And I hope the pain is fading, not growing, that its fading is evident, not its growing.”

“Sir, I’m not all right, I’m not getting by. My pain is terrible and growing, not fading, its growing is evident, not its fading.”

“I hope you don’t have any remorse or regret?”

“Indeed, sir, I have no little remorse and regret.”

“I hope you have no reason to blame yourself when it comes to ethical conduct?”

“No sir, I have no reason to blame myself when it comes to ethical conduct.”

“In that case, Assaji, why do you have remorse and regret?”

“Sir, before my time of illness I meditated having completely stilled the physical process. But now I can’t get immersion. Since I can’t get immersion, I think: ‘May I not decline!’”

“Assaji, there are ascetics and brahmins for whom samādhi is the essence, equating immersion with the ascetic life. They think: ‘May we not decline!’

What do you think, Assaji? Is form permanent or impermanent?”

“Impermanent, sir.” …

“Is consciousness permanent or impermanent?” …

“So you should truly see … Seeing this … They understand: ‘… there is no return to any state of existence.’

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. 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. 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. If they feel a pleasant feeling, they feel it detached. If they feel a painful feeling, they feel it detached. If they feel a neutral feeling, they feel it detached. Feeling the end of the body approaching, they understand: ‘I feel the end of the body approaching.’ Feeling the end of life approaching, they understand: ‘I feel the end of life approaching.’ 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.’

Suppose an oil lamp depended on oil and a wick to burn. As the oil and the wick are used up, it would be extinguished due to lack of fuel.

In the same way, feeling the end of the body approaching, they understand: ‘I feel the end of the body approaching.’ Feeling the end of life approaching, they understand: ‘I feel the end of life approaching.’ 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.’”

1Ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā rājagahe vihārati veḷuvane kalandakanivāpe. Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā assaji kassapakārāme vihārati ābādhiko dukkhito bāḷhagilāno. Atha kho āyasmā assaji upaṭṭhāke āmantesi: "etha tumhe, āvuso, yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamatha; upasaṅkamitvā mama vacanena bhagavato pāde sirasā vandatha: ‘assaji, bhante, bhikkhu ābādhiko dukkhito bāḷhagilāno. So bhagavato pāde sirasā vandatī’ti. Evañca vadetha: ‘sādhu kira, bhante, bhagavā yena assaji bhikkhu tenupasaṅkamatu anukampāṁ upādāyā’"ti. "Evamāvuso"ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato assajissa paṭissutvā yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkamiṁsu; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdiṁsu. Ekamantaṁ nisinnā kho te bhikkhū bhagavantaṁ etadavocuṁ: "assaji, bhante, bhikkhu ābādhiko … pe … sādhu kira, bhante, bhagavā yena assaji bhikkhu tenupasaṅkamatu anukampāṁ upādāyā"ti. Adhivāsesi bhagavā tuṇhībhāvena.

2Atha kho bhagavā sāyanhasamayaṁ paṭisallānā vuṭṭhito yenāyasmā assaji tenupasaṅkami. Addasā kho āyasmā assaji bhagavantaṁ dūratova āgacchantaṁ. Disvāna mañcake samadhosi. Atha kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ assajiṁ etadavoca: "Alaṁ, assaji, mā tvaṁ mañcake samadhosi. Santimāni āsanāni paññattāni, tatthāhaṁ nisīdissāmī"ti. Nisīdi bhagavā paññatte āsane. Nisajja kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ assajiṁ etadavoca: "Kacci te, assaji, khamanīyaṁ, kacci yāpanīyaṁ … pe … paṭikkamosānaṁ paññāyati no abhikkamo"ti?

3"Na me, bhante, khamanīyaṁ … pe … abhikkamosānaṁ paññāyati no paṭikkamo"ti.

"Kacci te, assaji, na kiñci kukkuccaṁ na koci vippaṭisāro"ti? "Taggha me, bhante, anappakaṁ kukkuccaṁ anappako vippaṭisāro"ti.

"Kacci pana taṁ, assaji, attā sīlato na upavadatī"ti? "Na kho maṁ, bhante, attā sīlato upavadatī"ti. "No ce kira taṁ, assaji, attā sīlato upavadati, atha kiñca te kukkuccaṁ ko ca vippaṭisāro"ti?

"Pubbe khvāhaṁ, bhante, gelaññe passambhetvā passambhetvā kāyasaṅkhāre viharāmi, sohaṁ samādhiṁ nappaṭilabhāmi. Tassa mayhaṁ, bhante, taṁ samādhiṁ appaṭilabhato evaṁ hoti: ‘no cassāhaṁ parihāyāmī’"ti.

"Ye te, assaji, samaṇabrāhmaṇā samādhisārakā samādhisāmaññā tesaṁ taṁ samādhiṁ appaṭilabhataṁ evaṁ hoti: ‘no cassu mayaṁ parihāyāmā’ti.

4Taṁ kiṁ maññasi, assaji, rūpaṁ niccaṁ vā aniccaṁ vā"ti? "Aniccaṁ, bhante" … pe … viññāṇaṁ … pe … "tasmātiha … pe … evaṁ passaṁ … pe … nāparaṁ itthattāyāti pajānātīti.

So sukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anajjhositā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. Dukkhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anajjhositā’ti pajānāti. ‘Anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti. Adukkhamasukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, sā ‘aniccā’ti pajānāti … pe … ‘anabhinanditā’ti pajānāti.

So sukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati; dukkhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati; adukkhamasukhañce vedanāṁ vedayati, visaṁyutto naṁ vedayati.

So kāyapariyantikañce vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. Jīvitapariyantikañce vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. ‘Kāyassa bhedā uddhaṁ jīvitapariyādānā idheva sabbavedayitāni anabhinanditāni sītībhavissantī’ti pajānāti.

5Seyyathāpi, assaji, telañca paṭicca, vaṭṭiñca paṭicca, telappadīpo jhāyeyya; tasseva telassa ca vaṭṭiyā ca pariyādānā anāhāro nibbāyeyya. Evameva kho, assaji, bhikkhu kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘kāyapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. Jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayamāno ‘jīvitapariyantikaṁ vedanāṁ vedayāmī’ti pajānāti. ‘Kāyassa bhedā uddhaṁ jīvitapariyādānā idheva sabbavedayitāni anabhinanditāni sītībhavissantī’ti pajānātī"ti.

Chaṭṭhaṁ.