The Related Discourses
3. Causation
| (二八七) 故城邑 | 5 (287). An Ancient City |
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| 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，作是念： 『何法有故老死有？ 何法緣故老死有？』 即正思惟，生如實無間等： 『生有故老死有。 生緣故老死有。』 如是有、取、愛、受、觸、六入處、名色。 | 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 existence of what causes old and death to exist? The condition of what causes old age and death 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.’ So it is with existence, grasping, craving, feeling, contact, the six senses, name and form. |
| 「『何法有故名色有？ 何法緣故名色有？』 即正思惟，如實無間等生： 『識有故名色有。 識緣故有名色有。』 我作是思惟時，齊識而還，不能過彼。 謂『緣識名色，緣名色六入處，緣六入處觸，緣觸受，緣受愛，緣愛取，緣取有，緣有生，緣生老、病、死、憂、悲、惱、苦。 如是如是純大苦聚集。』 | 3. “‘The existence of what causes the existence of name and form? The condition of what causes the existence of name and form?’ When I properly considered it, this true [understanding] occurred to me immediately: ‘Name and form exist because awareness exists. Name and form exist because the condition of awareness exists.’ When I contemplated this, I stopped at awareness, turned back, and couldn’t go beyond it. That is, ‘name and form is conditioned by awareness, the six senses are conditioned by name and form, contact is conditioned by the six senses, feeling is conditioned by contact, craving is conditioned by feeling, grasping is conditioned by craving, existence is conditioned by grasping, birth is conditioned by existence, and old age, illness, death, sorrow, lamentation, trouble, and pain are conditioned by birth. Such is the way that the whole mass of suffering forms.’ |
| 「我時作是念： 『何法無故則老死無？ 何法滅故老死滅？』 即正思惟，生如實無間等： 『生無故老死無。 生滅故老死滅。』 如是生、有、取、愛、受、觸、六入處、名色、識、行⋯」廣說。 | 4. “The thought then occurred to me, ‘The absence of what causes the absence old age and death absent? The ceasing of what causes old age and death to cease?’ When I properly considered it, this true [understanding] occurred to me immediately: ‘If birth is absent, that old age and death are absent. If birth ceases, then old age and death cease.’ So it is with birth, existence, clinging, craving, feeling, contact, six senses, name and form, awareness, and action.2 |
| 「我復作是思惟： 『何法無故行無？ 何法滅故行滅？』 即正思惟，如實無間等： 『無明無故行無。 無明滅故行滅。 行滅故識滅。 識滅故名色滅。 名色滅故六入處滅。 六入處滅故觸滅。 觸滅故受滅。 受滅故愛滅。 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。』 | 5. “The thought again occurred to me, ‘The absence of what causes the absence of action? The ceasing of what causes action to cease?’ When I properly considered it, this true [understanding] occurred to me immediately: ‘Action is absent because ignorance is absent. Action ceases because ignorance ceases. Awareness ceases because action ceases. Name and form cease because awareness ceases. The six senses cease because name and form cease. Contact ceases because the six senses cease. Feeling ceases because contact ceases. Craving ceases because feeling ceases. Grasping ceases because craving ceases. Existence ceases because grasping ceases. Birth ceases because existence ceases. Old age, illness, death, sorrow, lamentation, trouble, and pain cease because birth ceases. Such is the way that the whole mass of suffering ceases.’ |
| 「我時作是念： 『我得古仙人道、古仙人逕、古仙人道跡。 古仙人從此跡去，我今隨去。』 | 6. “The thought then occurred to me, ‘I found the road of ancient sages, the way of ancient sages, and the tracks of ancient sages. Ancient sages had departed following these tracks, and now I’ve departed by following them.’ |
| 「譬如有人遊於曠野。 披荒覓路，忽遇故道古人行處。 彼則隨行，漸漸前進，見故城邑、故王宮殿、園觀、浴池、林木清淨。 彼作是念： 『我今當往白王令知！』 即往白王： 『大王，當知我遊曠野。 披荒求路， 忽見故道古人行處，我即隨行。 我隨行已，見故城邑、故王宮殿、園觀、浴池、林流清淨。 大王，可往居止其中？』 王即往彼，止住其中，豐樂安隱，人民熾盛。 | 7. “It was like someone who explores the wilderness. Parting the undergrowth in search of a path, they discover the road to a place where ancient people lived. Following it, they eventually make their way forward until they see an ancient city and an ancient king’s palace hall, pleasure garden, pond, and pristine forest. The thought occurs to them, ‘Now, I should go to the King and let him know about this!’ They then go to their King and say, ‘Great King, you should know that I was exploring the wilderness. Parting the undergrowth in search of a path, I discovered a road to a place where ancient people lived, and then I followed it. After following it, I saw an ancient city and an ancient king’s palace, pleasure garden, pond, and a pristine forest. Perhaps the Great King could go and live there?’ Their king then goes there to live in that bountiful, pleasant, and peaceful place, and his people flourish. |
| 「今我如是，得古仙人道、古仙人逕、古仙人跡。 古仙人去處，我得隨去。 謂八聖道，正見、正志、正語、正業、正命、正方便、正念、正定。 我從彼道見老病死、老病死集、老病死滅、老病死滅道跡。 見生⋯有⋯取⋯愛⋯受⋯觸⋯六入處⋯名色⋯識⋯行、行集、行滅、行滅道跡。 | 8. “Now, I was like that. I found the road of ancient sages, the way of ancient sages, and the tracks of ancient sages. Ancient sages had departed following these tracks, and now I’ve departed by following them. It was the noble eightfold path, which is right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right method, right mindfulness, and right samādhi. Following that path, I saw old age, illness, and death, the formation of old age, illness, and death, the cessation of old age illness, and death, and the path to the cessation of old, illness, and death. I saw birth … existence … grasping … craving … contact … the six senses … name and form … awareness … action, the formation of action, the cessation of action, and the path to the cessation of action. |
| 「我於此法自知、自覺，成等正覺為比丘、比丘尼、優婆塞、優婆夷，及餘外道沙門、婆羅門、在家、出家。 彼諸四眾聞法、正向、信樂知法善，梵行增廣，多所饒益，開示、顯發。」 | 9. “I knew and realized this teaching myself and achieved the perfect awakening for the monks, nuns, laymen, laywomen, and the all the other ascetics and priests of other religions who live at home or go homeless. Those four assemblies who hear the teaching, are correctly oriented, and confident know the teaching is good, develops the religious life, is of benefit to many, and is disclosed openly.” |
| 佛說此經已，諸比丘聞佛所說歡喜，奉行。 | 10. After the Buddha spoke this sūtra, the monks who heard what the Buddha taught rejoiced and approved. |
Notes
- This is sūtra no. 287 in the Taisho edition and no. 468 in Yinshun (T99.2.80b24-81a8). It’s parallel with SN 12.65, EĀ 38.4, and a Sanskrit fragment (SF154). SN 12.65 differs from this sūtra in that it presents the long dependent origination chain that ends with name and form. EĀ 38.4 is nearly identical with this text, The Sanskrit version, on the other hand, is nearly identical to SN 12.65. [back]
- action. C. 行, P. saṅkhāra, S. saṁskāra. Typically, this item in the chain of dependent origination is translated as volition, mental formations, or choices. This is largely because the item is interpreted as intention in the Theravāda tradition. However, this item included all three types of action in other Abhidharma traditions. That is to say, this item represented all the karma of past lives which caused the continuation of awareness into this life. This is true of the Śāriputra Abhidharma (T1548.28.606b29-7a25) of the Dharmaguptakas and the Abhidharma Dharmakāya (T1537.26.506a14-c29) of the Sarvāstivādins. I’ve therefore translated this item as “action” in this context. This interpretation was probably why saṁskāra was translated as 行 in C., which means simply “action” or “conduct.” [back]
Translator: Charles Patton
Last Revised: 12 May 2024
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