SN 45-56 The Group of Connected Discourses on the Path – Mahāvaggasaṁyutta > SN 51 Linked Discourses on the Bases of Psychic Power – Iddhipādasaṁyutta > SN 51.11 Before

Linked Discourses 51.11 – Saṁyutta Nikāya 51.11

2. Shaking the Stilt Longhouse – 2. Pāsādakampanavagga

SN 51.11 Before – Pubbasutta

At Sāvatthī.

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

“Bhikkhū, before my awakening—when I was still unawakened but intent on awakening—I thought:

“Pubbeva me, bhikkhave, sambodhā anabhisambuddhassa bodhisattasseva sato etadahosi:

‘What’s the cause, what’s the reason for the development of the bases of psychic power?’

‘ko nu kho hetu, ko paccayo iddhipādabhāvanāyā’ti?

Then it occurred to me:

Tassa mayhaṁ, bhikkhave, etadahosi:

‘It’s when a bhikkhu develops the basis of psychic power that has samādhi due to enthusiasm, and active effort.

‘idha bhikkhu chandasamādhippadhānasaṅkhārasamannāgataṁ iddhipādaṁ bhāveti—

They think: “My enthusiasm won’t be too lax or too tense. And it’ll be neither constricted internally nor scattered externally.”

iti me chando na ca atilīno bhavissati, na ca atippaggahito bhavissati, na ca ajjhattaṁ saṅkhitto bhavissati, na ca bahiddhā vikkhitto bhavissati.

And they meditate perceiving continuity:

Pacchāpuresaññī ca viharati—

as before, so after; as after, so before;

yathā pure tathā pacchā, yathā pacchā tathā pure;

as below, so above; as above, so below;

yathā adho tathā uddhaṁ, yathā uddhaṁ tathā adho;

as by day, so by night; as by night, so by day.

yathā divā tathā rattiṁ, yathā rattiṁ tathā divā.

And so, with an open and unenveloped heart, they develop a mind that’s full of radiance.

Iti vivaṭena cetasā apariyonaddhena sappabhāsaṁ cittaṁ bhāveti’.

They develop the basis of psychic power that has samādhi due to energy …

Vīriyasamādhippadhānasaṅkhārasamannāgataṁ iddhipādaṁ bhāveti—

iti me vīriyaṁ na ca atilīnaṁ bhavissati, na ca atippaggahitaṁ bhavissati, na ca ajjhattaṁ saṅkhittaṁ bhavissati, na ca bahiddhā vikkhittaṁ bhavissati.

Pacchāpuresaññī ca viharati—

yathā pure tathā pacchā, yathā pacchā tathā pure;

yathā adho tathā uddhaṁ, yathā uddhaṁ tathā adho;

yathā divā tathā rattiṁ, yathā rattiṁ tathā divā.

Iti vivaṭena cetasā apariyonaddhena sappabhāsaṁ cittaṁ bhāveti.

mental development …

Cittasamādhippadhānasaṅkhārasamannāgataṁ iddhipādaṁ bhāveti—

iti me cittaṁ na ca atilīnaṁ bhavissati, na ca atippaggahitaṁ bhavissati, na ca ajjhattaṁ saṅkhittaṁ bhavissati, na ca bahiddhā vikkhittaṁ bhavissati.

Pacchāpuresaññī ca viharati—

yathā pure tathā pacchā, yathā pacchā tathā pure;

yathā adho tathā uddhaṁ, yathā uddhaṁ tathā adho;

yathā divā tathā rattiṁ, yathā rattiṁ tathā divā.

Iti vivaṭena cetasā apariyonaddhena sappabhāsaṁ cittaṁ bhāveti.

inquiry, and active effort.

Vīmaṁsāsamādhippadhānasaṅkhārasamannāgataṁ iddhipādaṁ bhāveti—

They think: “My inquiry won’t be too lax or too tense. And it’ll be neither constricted internally nor scattered externally.”

iti me vīmaṁsā na ca atilīnā bhavissati, na ca atippaggahitā bhavissati, na ca ajjhattaṁ saṅkhittā bhavissati, na ca bahiddhā vikkhittā bhavissati.

And they meditate perceiving continuity:

Pacchāpuresaññī ca viharati—

as before, so after; as after, so before;

yathā pure tathā pacchā, yathā pacchā tathā pure;

as below, so above; as above, so below;

yathā adho tathā uddhaṁ, yathā uddhaṁ tathā adho;

as by day, so by night; as by night, so by day.

yathā divā tathā rattiṁ, yathā rattiṁ tathā divā.

And so, with an open and unenveloped heart, they develop a mind that’s full of radiance.’

Iti vivaṭena cetasā apariyonaddhena sappabhāsaṁ cittaṁ bhāveti.

When the four bases of psychic power have been developed and cultivated in this way, they wield the many kinds of psychic power: multiplying themselves and becoming one again; appearing and disappearing; going unimpeded through a wall, a rampart, or a mountain as if through space; diving in and out of the earth as if it were water; walking on water as if it were earth; flying cross-legged through the sky like a bird; touching and stroking with the hand the sun and moon, so mighty and powerful; controlling the body as far as the Brahmā realm.

Evaṁ bhāvitesu kho, bhikkhu, catūsu iddhipādesu evaṁ bahulīkatesu, anekavihitaṁ iddhividhaṁ paccanubhoti—ekopi hutvā bahudhā hoti, bahudhāpi hutvā eko hoti; āvibhāvaṁ, tirobhāvaṁ; tirokuṭṭaṁ tiropākāraṁ tiropabbataṁ asajjamāno gacchati, seyyathāpi ākāse; pathaviyāpi ummujjanimujjaṁ karoti, seyyathāpi udake; udakepi abhijjamāne gacchati, seyyathāpi pathaviyaṁ; ākāsepi pallaṅkena kamati, seyyathāpi pakkhī sakuṇo; imepi candimasūriye evaṁmahiddhike evaṁmahānubhāve pāṇinā parimasati parimajjati; yāva brahmalokāpi kāyena vasaṁ vatteti.

When the four bases of psychic power have been developed and cultivated in this way, they hear both kinds of sounds, human and divine, whether near or far.

Evaṁ bhāvitesu kho, bhikkhu, catūsu iddhipādesu evaṁ bahulīkatesu dibbāya sotadhātuyā visuddhāya atikkantamānusikāya ubho sadde suṇāti—dibbe ca mānuse ca, dūre santike cāti.

When the four bases of psychic power have been developed and cultivated in this way, they understand the minds of other beings and individuals, having comprehended them with their own mind.

Evaṁ bhāvitesu kho, bhikkhu, catūsu iddhipādesu evaṁ bahulīkatesu, parasattānaṁ parapuggalānaṁ cetasā ceto paricca pajānāti.

They understand mind with greed as ‘mind with greed’,

Sarāgaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘sarāgaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

and mind without greed as ‘mind without greed’.

vītarāgaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vītarāgaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

They understand mind with hate …

sadosaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘sadosaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind without hate …

vītadosaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vītadosaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind with delusion …

samohaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘samohaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind without delusion …

vītamohaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vītamohaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

constricted mind …

saṅkhittaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘saṅkhittaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

scattered mind …

vikkhittaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vikkhittaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

expansive mind …

mahaggataṁ vā cittaṁ ‘mahaggataṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

unexpansive mind …

amahaggataṁ vā cittaṁ ‘amahaggataṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind that is not supreme …

sauttaraṁ vā cittaṁ ‘sauttaraṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind that is supreme …

anuttaraṁ vā cittaṁ ‘anuttaraṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind immersed in samādhi …

samāhitaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘samāhitaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

mind not immersed in samādhi …

asamāhitaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘asamāhitaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

freed mind …

vimuttaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘vimuttaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti;

They understand unfreed mind as ‘unfreed mind’.

avimuttaṁ vā cittaṁ ‘avimuttaṁ cittan’ti pajānāti.

When the four bases of psychic power have been developed and cultivated in this way, they recollect many kinds of past lives. That is: one, two, three, four, five, ten, twenty, thirty, forty, fifty, a hundred, a thousand, a hundred thousand rebirths; many eons of the world contracting, many eons of the world expanding, many eons of the world contracting and expanding. They remember: ‘There, I was named this, my clan was that, I looked like this, and that was my food. This was how I felt pleasure and pain, and that was how my life ended. When I passed away from that place I was reborn somewhere else. There, too, I was named this, my clan was that, I looked like this, and that was my food. This was how I felt pleasure and pain, and that was how my life ended. When I passed away from that place I was reborn here.’ And so they recollect their many kinds of past lives, with features and details.

Evaṁ bhāvitesu kho, bhikkhu, catūsu iddhipādesu evaṁ bahulīkatesu, anekavihitaṁ pubbenivāsaṁ anussarati, seyyathidaṁ—ekampi jātiṁ dvepi jātiyo tissopi jātiyo catassopi jātiyo pañcapi jātiyo dasapi jātiyo vīsampi jātiyo tiṁsampi jātiyo cattālīsampi jātiyo paññāsampi jātiyo jātisatampi jātisahassampi jātisatasahassampi anekepi saṁvaṭṭakappe anekepi vivaṭṭakappe anekepi saṁvaṭṭavivaṭṭakappe: ‘amutrāsiṁ evaṁnāmo evaṅgotto evaṁvaṇṇo evamāhāro evaṁsukhadukkhappaṭisaṁvedī evamāyupariyanto, so tato cuto amutra udapādiṁ; tatrāpāsiṁ evaṁnāmo evaṅgotto evaṁvaṇṇo evamāhāro evaṁsukhadukkhappaṭisaṁvedī evamāyupariyanto, so tato cuto idhūpapanno’ti. Iti sākāraṁ sauddesaṁ anekavihitaṁ pubbenivāsaṁ anussarati.

When the four bases of psychic power have been developed and cultivated in this way, with clairvoyance that is purified and superhuman, they see sentient beings passing away and being reborn—inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, in a good place or a bad place. They understand how sentient beings are reborn according to their deeds. ‘These dear beings did bad things by way of body, speech, and mind. They spoke ill of the noble ones; they had wrong view; and they chose to act out of that wrong view. When their body breaks up, after death, they’re reborn in a place of loss, a bad place, the underworld, hell. These dear beings, however, did good things by way of body, speech, and mind. They never spoke ill of the noble ones; they had right view; and they chose to act out of that right view. When their body breaks up, after death, they’re reborn in a good place, a heavenly realm.’ And so, with clairvoyance that is purified and superhuman, they see sentient beings passing away and being reborn—inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, in a good place or a bad place. They understand how sentient beings are reborn according to their deeds.

Evaṁ bhāvitesu kho, bhikkhu, catūsu iddhipādesu evaṁ bahulīkatesu, dibbena cakkhunā visuddhena atikkantamānusakena satte passati cavamāne upapajjamāne hīne paṇīte suvaṇṇe dubbaṇṇe, sugate duggate yathākammūpage satte pajānāti: ‘ime vata, bhonto, sattā kāyaduccaritena samannāgatā vacīduccaritena samannāgatā manoduccaritena samannāgatā ariyānaṁ upavādakā micchādiṭṭhikā micchādiṭṭhikammasamādānā; te kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā apāyaṁ duggatiṁ vinipātaṁ nirayaṁ upapannā. Ime vā pana, bhonto, sattā kāyasucaritena samannāgatā vacīsucaritena samannāgatā manosucaritena samannāgatā ariyānaṁ anupavādakā sammādiṭṭhikā sammādiṭṭhikammasamādānā; te kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapannā’ti. Iti dibbena cakkhunā visuddhena atikkantamānusakena satte passati cavamāne upapajjamāne hīne paṇīte, suvaṇṇe dubbaṇṇe, sugate duggate yathākammūpage satte pajānāti.

When the four bases of psychic power have been developed and cultivated in this way, they realize the undefiled freedom of heart and freedom by wisdom in this very life. And they live having realized it with their own insight due to the ending of defilements.”

Evaṁ bhāvitesu kho, bhikkhu, catūsu iddhipādesu evaṁ bahulīkatesu, āsavānaṁ khayā anāsavaṁ cetovimuttiṁ paññāvimuttiṁ diṭṭheva dhamme sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā upasampajja viharatī”ti.