The Related Discourses
3. Dependent Origination
| （二八五） 瞿曇 | 3 (285). Gautama |
|---|---|
| 如是我聞： 一時，佛住舍衛國、祇樹、給孤獨園。 | 1. Thus I have heard:1 One time, the Buddha was staying at Anāthapiṇḍada’s Park in Jeta Grove in Śrāvastī. |
| 爾時，世尊告諸比丘： 「我憶宿命未成正覺時。 獨一靜處，專精禪思，生如是念： 『世間難入。 所謂若生、若老、若病、若死、若遷、若受生，然諸眾生，生、老、死上及所依不如實知。』 | 2. It was then that the Bhagavān addressed the monks, “I recall a past life before I had achieved perfect awakening. I was alone in a quiet place focused in meditative reflection when this thought occurred to me: ‘The world is in a difficult situation. That is, whether they are born, grow old, become ill, die, transmigrate, or receive birth, sentient beings still do not truly understand what supports that birth, old age, and death.’” |
| 「我作是念： 『何法有故生有？ 何法緣故生有？』 即正思惟，起無間等知： 『有有故生有。 有緣故生有。』 | 3. “I had this thought, ‘The existence of what causes birth to exist? The condition of what causes birth to exist?’ When I properly considered it, this [true] understanding occurred to me immediately: ‘Birth exists because existence exists. Birth exists because of the condition of existence.’ |
| 「復思惟： 『何法有故有有？ 何法緣故有有？』 即正思惟，如實無間等起知： 『取有故有有。 取緣故有有。』 | 4. “Again, I considered this, ‘The existence of what causes existence to exist? The condition of what causes existence to exist?’ When I properly considered it, this true understanding occurred to me immediately: ‘Existence exists because grasping exists. Existence exists because of the condition of grasping.’ |
| 「又作是念： 『取復何緣？ 何法有故取有？ 何法緣故取有？』 即正思惟，如實無間等起知： 『取法味著、顧念、心縛，愛欲增長。 彼愛有故取有。 愛故緣取。 取緣有，有緣生，生緣老、病、死、憂、悲、惱、苦。 如是如是純大苦聚集。』 | 5. “I also had this thought, ‘Again, what’s the condition for grasping? The existence of what causes grasping to exist? The condition of what causes grasping to exist?’ When I properly considered it, this true understanding occurred to me immediately: ‘When things that are grasped are savored, thought about, and fetter the mind, craving grows. Grasping exists because craving exists. It’s craving that conditions grasping. Grasping conditions existence, existence conditions birth, and birth conditions old age, illness, death, sorrow, lamentation, trouble, and pain. Such is the way the whole mass of suffering forms.’ |
| 「諸比丘，於意云何？ 譬如緣膏油及炷，燈明得燒。 數增油、炷，彼燈明得久住不？」 | 6. “Monks, what do you think? Take the example of oil and a wick being the conditions for lighting a lamp. Doesn’t the lamp’s light last longer when more oil and wick are added?” |
| 答言： 「如是，世尊。」 | They answered, “Yes, Bhagavān.” |
| 「如是，諸比丘，於色取味著、顧念、愛縛，增長愛，緣故取。 取緣有，有緣生，生緣老、病、死、憂、悲、惱、苦。 如是如是純大苦聚集。 | 7. “So it is, monks, when grasping form is savored, thought about it, and fetters the mind, it increases craving, which is the condition for grasping. Grasping conditions existence, existence conditions birth, and birth conditions old age, illness, death, sorrow, lamentation, trouble, and pain. Such is the way the whole mass of suffering forms. |
| 「我時復作是念： 『何法無故無此老、病、死？ 何法滅故老、病、死滅？』 即正思惟，起如實無間等： 『無生則無老、病、死。 生滅故，則老、病、死滅。』 | 8. “Once again, I had this thought, ‘The absence of what causes the absence of old age, illness, and death? The ceasing of what causes old age, illness, and death to cease?’ When I properly considered it, this true [understanding] occurred to me immediately: ‘If birth is absent, then old age, illness, and death are absent. If birth ceases, then old age, illness, and death cease.’ |
| 「復作是念： 『何法無故無生？ 何法滅故生滅？』 即正思惟，起如實無間等： 『有無故生無。 有滅故生滅。』 | 9. “Again, I had the thought, ‘The absence of what causes the absence of birth? The ceasing of what causes birth to cease?’ When I properly considered it, this true [understanding] occurred to me immediately: ‘When existence is absent, then birth is absent. When existence ceases, then birth ceases.’ |
| 「又復思惟： 『何法無故有無？ 何法滅故有滅？』 即正思惟，生如實無間等觀： 『取無故有無。 取滅故有滅。』 | 10. “Again, I had the thought, ‘The absence of what causes the absence of existence? The ceasing of what causes existence to cease?’ When I properly considered it, this true [understanding] occurred to me immediately: ‘When grasping is absent, then existence is absent. When grasping ceases, then existence ceases.’ |
| 「又作是念： 『何法無故取無？ 何法滅故取滅？』 即正思惟，生如實無間等觀： 『所取法無常、生滅。 離欲、滅盡、捨離，心不顧念，心不縛著。 愛則滅。 彼愛滅故取滅。 取滅故有滅。 有滅故生滅。 生滅故老、病、死、憂、悲、惱、苦滅。 如是如是純大苦聚滅。』 | 11. “Again, I had this thought, ‘The absence of what causes the absence of grasping? The ceasing of what causes grasping to cease?’ When I properly considered it, this true observation occurred to me immediately: ‘Things that are grasped are impermanent, arising and ceasing. Parting with desire for, completely ceasing, and getting rid of them, one’s mind doesn’t think about and isn’t fettered by them. Craving then ceases. When craving ceases, grasping ceases. When grasping ceases, existence ceases. When existence ceases, birth ceases. When birth ceases, old age, illness, death, sorrow, lamentation, trouble, and pain cease. Such is the way the whole mass of suffering ceases.’ |
| 「諸比丘，於意云何？ 譬如油、炷然燈， 若不增油治炷，非彼燈明未來不生、盡、磨滅耶？」 | 12. “Monks, what do you think? Take the example of oil and a wick being conditions for lighting a lamp. If oil isn’t added or the wick adjusted, wouldn’t that lamp light not arise, come to an end, and gradually go out at some point?” |
| 比丘白佛： 「如是，世尊。」 | The monks said to the Buddha, “Yes, Bhagavān.” |
| 「如是，諸比丘，於所取法觀察無常、生滅。 離欲、滅盡、捨離，心不顧念，心不縛著。 愛則滅。 愛滅則取滅⋯乃至⋯純大苦聚滅。」 | 13. “So it is, monks, when one observes that things that are grasped are impermanent, arising and ceasing. Parting with desire for, completely ceasing, and getting rid of them, one’s mind doesn’t think about and isn’t fettered by them. Craving then ceases. When craving ceases, grasping ceases … the whole mass of suffering ceases.” |
| 佛說此經已，諸比丘聞佛所說，歡喜奉行。 | 14. After the Buddha spoke this sūtra, the monks who heard what the Buddha taught rejoiced and approved. |
Notes
- This is sūtra no. 285 in the Taisho edition and no. 466 in Yinshun (T99.2.79c27-80b7). It’s partially parallel with SN 12.10 and 53-54. By extension, it’s also related to the contemplation of dependent origination in DN 14, DĀ 1, and SN 12.4-9. A comparison of these parallels reveals that this sūtra has the same narrative framing as SN 12.10, but the contemplation described is the one found in SN 12.53-54. That is, it presents a shorter chain of dependent origination that begins with craving, and likens the conditions of suffering as being like the oil and wick that produce light when a lamp is burning. It stops when they run out.
It’s interesting that the narrative frame is the same as in SN 12.10 and very similar to the one in DN 14 and DĀ 1. Those sūtras all present long forms of dependent origination that begin either with ignorance or name and form. It would be especially interesting to know if this short version was found in the Mūlasarvāstivāda version of DN 14. If so, it would be evidence to me that this is in fact an older version of the dependent origination contemplation found in those longer sūtras. As it is, I suspect that the chain beginning with craving could be earlier than the longer ones because craving and desire are commonly identified as the root problem of life in early Buddhist texts. It would make sense that it would have been the starting point for an analysis of how suffering arises, perhaps beginning as an elaboration of the second and third noble truths.
It’s also possible, however, that the traditional explanation is true: That the longer forms of dependent origination include the past life conditions that cause the present life, while the short forms describe only the present life conditions. Both versions could’ve been formulated around the same time in history from these different perspectives. [back] - The world has entered difficulty. C. 世間難入, P. kicchaṁ vatāyaṁ loko āpanno. The P. version is clearer in its intended meaning. The C. could easily be read as “the worldly enter with difficulty” since 難 would normally be an adverb, but it’s actually the object of the verb 入. As is often the case, the translator has preserved the Indic SOV grammar. In the P., the sentence is arranged a little differently and reads more like: “Alas, what trouble the world has entered!” which could be translated more colloquially as “What a mess the world has gotten into!” [back]
Translator: Charles Patton
Last Revised: 12 May 2024
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