{"collection":"Anguttara Nikaya","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/suttacentral_an10.46/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/suttacentral_an10.46","id":"suttacentral_an10.46","license":"CC0","rights_basis":"suttacentral_bilara_data_cc0","source":"suttacentral","source_url":"https://suttacentral.net/an10.46/en/sujato","summary":null,"tags":["Anguttara Nikaya","Early Buddhist Texts"],"text":"At one time the Buddha was staying in the land of the Sakyans, near Kapilavatthu in the Banyan Tree Monastery. Then on the sabbath several Sakyan lay followers went up to the Buddha, bowed, and sat down to one side. The Buddha said to them: \u201cSakyans, do you observe the sabbath with its eight factors?\u201d \u201cSir, sometimes we do, sometimes we don\u2019t.\u201d \u201cThat\u2019s your loss, Sakyans, it\u2019s your misfortune. In this life with its fear of sorrow and death, you sometimes keep the sabbath and you sometimes don\u2019t. What do you think, Sakyans? Take a man who earns half a dollar for an honest day\u2019s work. Is this enough to call him a deft and industrious man?\u201d \u201cYes, sir.\u201d \u201cWhat do you think, Sakyans? Take a man who earns a dollar for an honest day\u2019s work. Is this enough to call him a deft and industrious man?\u201d \u201cYes, sir.\u201d \u201cWhat do you think, Sakyans? Take a man who, for an honest day\u2019s work, earns two dollars \u2026 three dollars \u2026 four dollars \u2026 five dollars \u2026 six dollars \u2026 seven dollars \u2026 eight dollars \u2026 nine dollars \u2026 ten dollars \u2026 twenty dollars \u2026 thirty dollars \u2026 forty dollars \u2026 fifty dollars \u2026 a hundred dollars. Is this enough to call him a deft and industrious man?\u201d \u201cYes, sir.\u201d \u201cWhat do you think, Sakyans? Suppose that man earned a hundred or a thousand dollars every day and saved it all up. If he lived for a hundred years, would he not accumulate a large mass of wealth?\u201d \u201cYes, sir.\u201d \u201cWhat do you think, Sakyans? Would that man, on account of that wealth, experience absolute happiness for a single day or night, or even half a day or night?\u201d \u201cNo, sir.\u201d \u201cWhy is that?\u201d \u201cBecause sensual pleasures, sir, are impermanent, hollow, false, and deceptive.\u201d \u201cBut take one of my disciples who lives diligent, keen, and resolute for ten years, practicing in line with my instructions. They can experience absolute happiness for a hundred years, ten thousand years, or a hundred thousand years. And they could become a once-returner or a non-returner, or, as a sure bet, a stream-enterer. Let alone ten years, take one of my disciples who lives diligent, keen, and resolute for nine years \u2026 eight years \u2026 seven years \u2026 six years \u2026 five years \u2026 four years \u2026 three years \u2026 two years \u2026 one year \u2026 ten months \u2026 nine months \u2026 eight months \u2026 seven months \u2026 six months \u2026 five months \u2026 four months \u2026 three months \u2026 two months \u2026 one month \u2026 a fortnight \u2026 ten days \u2026 nine days \u2026 eight days \u2026 seven days \u2026 six days \u2026 five days \u2026 four days \u2026 three days \u2026 two days \u2026 Let alone two days, take one of my disciples who lives diligent, keen, and resolute for one day, practicing in line with my instructions. They can experience absolute happiness for a hundred years, ten thousand years, or a hundred thousand years. And they could become a once-returner or a non-returner, or, as a sure bet, a stream-enterer. It\u2019s your loss, Sakyans, it\u2019s your misfortune. In this life with its fear of sorrow and death, you sometimes keep the sabbath and you sometimes don\u2019t.\u201d \u201cWell, sir, from this day forth we will observe the sabbath with its eight factors.\u201d","title":"With the Sakyans","tradition":"Anguttara Nikaya","translated_text":null,"word_count":558}