Translating Classical Buddhism to Modern English

The Related Discourses

4. Truth

(三八一)四聖諦 3 (381). The Four Noble Truths (2)
如是我聞: 一時,佛住波羅㮈、仙人住處、鹿野苑中。 1. Thus I have heard:1 One time, the Buddha was staying at the Residence of Sages in the Deer Preserve of Bārāṇasī.
爾時,世尊告諸比丘: 「有四聖諦。 何等為四? 謂苦聖諦、苦集聖諦、苦滅聖諦、苦滅道跡聖諦。 2. It was then that the Bhagavān addressed the monks, “There are four noble truths. What are the four? They are the noble truth of suffering, the noble truth of suffering’s formation, the noble truth of suffering’s cessation, and the noble truth of the path to suffering’s cessation.
「若比丘於此四聖諦未無間等者,當修無間等。 起增上欲,方便堪能,正念正知,應當覺。」 3. “If he has yet to immediately understand these four noble truths, a monk must cultivate that immediate understanding. By producing an increasing desire and applying himself as he is able, he should realize it with right mindfulness and right knowledge.”
佛說此經已,諸比丘聞佛所說歡喜,奉行。 4. After the Buddha spoke this sūtra, the monks who heard what the Buddha taught rejoiced and approved.

Notes

  1. This is sūtra no. 381 in the Taisho edition and no. 544 in Yinshun (T99.2.104b6-12). [back]

Translator: Charles Patton

Last Revised: 27 May 2024