{"collection":"Anguttara Nikaya","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/suttacentral_an4.53/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/suttacentral_an4.53","id":"suttacentral_an4.53","license":"CC0","rights_basis":"suttacentral_bilara_data_cc0","source":"suttacentral","source_url":"https://suttacentral.net/an4.53/en/sujato","summary":null,"tags":["Anguttara Nikaya","Early Buddhist Texts"],"text":"At one time the Buddha was traveling along the road between Madhur\u0101 and Vera\u00f1j\u0101, as were several householders, both women and men. The Buddha left the road and sat at the root of a tree, where the householders saw him. They went up to the Buddha, bowed, and sat down to one side. The Buddha said to them: \u201cHouseholders, there are four ways of living together. What four? A male zombie living with a female zombie; a male zombie living with a goddess; a god living with a female zombie; a god living with a goddess. And how does a male zombie live with a female zombie? It\u2019s when the husband kills living creatures, steals, commits sexual misconduct, lies, and consumes intoxicants of beer, wine, and liquor. He\u2019s unethical, of bad character, living at home with his heart full of the stain of stinginess, abusing and insulting ascetics and brahmins. And the wife is also \u2026 unethical, of bad character \u2026 That\u2019s how a male zombie lives with a female zombie. And how does a male zombie live with a goddess? It\u2019s when the husband \u2026 is unethical, of bad character \u2026 But the wife doesn\u2019t kill living creatures, steal, commit sexual misconduct, lie, or consume beer, wine, and liquor intoxicants. She\u2019s ethical, of good character, living at home with heart rid of the stain of stinginess, not abusing and insulting ascetics and brahmins. That\u2019s how a male zombie lives with a goddess. And how does a god live with a female zombie? It\u2019s when the husband \u2026 is ethical, of good character \u2026 But the wife \u2026 is unethical, of bad character \u2026 That\u2019s how a god lives with a female zombie. And how does a god live with a goddess? It\u2019s when the husband \u2026 is ethical, of good character \u2026 And the wife is also \u2026 ethical, of good character \u2026 That\u2019s how a god lives with a goddess. These are the four ways of living together. When both are unethical, miserly and abusive, then wife and husband live together as zombies. When the husband is unethical, miserly and abusive, but the wife is ethical, bountiful, rid of stinginess, she\u2019s a goddess living with a zombie for a husband. When the husband is ethical, bountiful, rid of stinginess, but the wife is unethical, miserly and abusive, she\u2019s a zombie living with a god for a husband. When both are faithful and bountiful, disciplined, living righteously, then wife and husband say nice things to each other. Their needs are amply satisfied, so they live at ease. Their enemies are downhearted, when both are equal in ethics. Having practiced the teaching here, both equal in precepts and observances, they delight in the heavenly realm, enjoying all the pleasures they desire.\u201d","title":"Living Together (1st)","tradition":"Anguttara Nikaya","translated_text":null,"word_count":461}