{"collection":"Majjhima Nikaya","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/suttacentral_mn106/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/suttacentral_mn106","id":"suttacentral_mn106","license":"CC0","rights_basis":"suttacentral_bilara_data_cc0","source":"suttacentral","source_url":"https://suttacentral.net/mn106/en/sujato","summary":null,"tags":["Early Buddhist Texts","Majjhima Nikaya"],"text":"So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying in the land of the Kurus, near the Kuru town named Kamm\u0101sadamma. There the Buddha addressed the mendicants, \u201cMendicants!\u201d \u201cVenerable sir,\u201d they replied. The Buddha said this: \u201cMendicants, sensual pleasures are impermanent, hollow, false, and deceptive. This is made by illusion, mendicants, lamented by fools. Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come; both of these are M\u0101ra\u2019s dominion, M\u0101ra\u2019s domain, M\u0101ra\u2019s lair, and M\u0101ra\u2019s range. They conduce to bad, unskillful notions such as desire, ill will, and aggression. And they create an obstacle for a noble disciple training here. A noble disciple reflects on this: \u2018Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come; both of these are M\u0101ra\u2019s dominion, M\u0101ra\u2019s domain, M\u0101ra\u2019s lair, and M\u0101ra\u2019s range. They conduce to bad, unskillful notions such as desire, ill will, and aggression. And they create an obstacle for a noble disciple training here. Why don\u2019t I meditate with an abundant, expansive heart, having mastered the world and stabilized the mind? Then I will have no more bad, unskillful notions such as desire, ill will, and aggression. And by giving them up my mind, no longer limited, will become limitless and well developed.\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the imperturbable now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the imperturbable. This is said to be the first way of practice suitable for attaining the imperturbable. Furthermore, a noble disciple reflects: \u2018Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come; whatever form there is, all form is the four principal states, or form derived from the four principal states.\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the imperturbable now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the imperturbable. This is said to be the second way of practice suitable for attaining the imperturbable. Furthermore, a noble disciple reflects: \u2018Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come, visions in this life and in lives to come, perceptions of visions in this life and in lives to come; all of these are impermanent. And what\u2019s impermanent is not worth approving, welcoming, or clinging to.\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the imperturbable now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the imperturbable. This is said to be the third way of practice suitable for attaining the imperturbable. Furthermore, a noble disciple reflects: \u2018Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come, visions in this life and in lives to come, perceptions of visions in this life and in lives to come, and perceptions of the imperturbable; all are perceptions. Where they cease without remainder, that is peaceful, that is sublime, namely the dimension of nothingness.\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the dimension of nothingness now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the dimension of nothingness. This is said to be the first way of practice suitable for attaining the dimension of nothingness. Furthermore, a noble disciple has gone to a wilderness, or to the root of a tree, or to an empty hut, and reflects like this: \u2018This is empty of a self or what belongs to a self.\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the dimension of nothingness now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the dimension of nothingness. This is said to be the second way of practice suitable for attaining the dimension of nothingness. Furthermore, a noble disciple reflects: \u2018I don\u2019t belong to anyone anywhere! And nothing belongs to me anywhere!\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the dimension of nothingness now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the dimension of nothingness. This is said to be the third way of practice suitable for attaining the dimension of nothingness. Furthermore, a noble disciple reflects: \u2018Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come, visions in this life and in lives to come, perceptions of visions in this life and in lives to come, perceptions of the imperturbable, and perceptions of the dimension of nothingness; all are perceptions. Where they cease without remainder, that is peaceful, that is sublime, namely the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.\u2019 Practicing in this way and meditating on it often their mind becomes confident in this dimension. Being confident, they either attain the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception now, or are freed by wisdom. When their body breaks up, after death, it\u2019s possible that that conducive consciousness will be reborn in the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception. This is said to be the way of practice suitable for attaining the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.\u201d When he said this, Venerable \u0100nanda said to the Buddha: \u201cSir, take a mendicant who practices like this: \u2018It might not be, and it might not be mine. It will not be, and it will not be mine. I am giving up what exists, what has come to be.\u2019 In this way they gain equanimity. Would that mendicant become extinguished or not?\u201d \u201cOne such mendicant might become extinguished, \u0100nanda, while another might not.\u201d \u201cWhat is the cause, sir, what is the reason for this?\u201d \u201c\u0100nanda, take a mendicant who practices like this: \u2018It might not be, and it might not be mine. It will not be, and it will not be mine. I am giving up what exists, what has come to be.\u2019 In this way they gain equanimity. They approve, welcome, and keep clinging to that equanimity. Their consciousness has that as support and fuel for grasping. A mendicant with fuel for grasping does not become extinguished.\u201d \u201cBut sir, what is that mendicant grasping?\u201d \u201cThe dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.\u201d \u201cSir, it seems that mendicant is grasping the best thing to grasp!\u201d \u201cIndeed, \u0100nanda. For the best thing to grasp is the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception. Take a mendicant who practices like this: \u2018It might not be, and it might not be mine. It will not be, and it will not be mine. I am giving up what exists, what has come to be.\u2019 In this way they gain equanimity. They don\u2019t approve, welcome, or keep clinging to that equanimity. So their consciousness doesn\u2019t have that as support and fuel for grasping. A mendicant free of grasping becomes extinguished.\u201d \u201cIt\u2019s incredible, sir, it\u2019s amazing! It seems the Buddha has explained to us how to cross over the flood by relying on one support or another. But sir, what is noble liberation?\u201d \u201c\u0100nanda, it\u2019s when a noble disciple reflects like this: \u2018Sensual pleasures in this life and in lives to come, sensual perceptions in this life and in lives to come, visions in this life and in lives to come, perceptions of visions in this life and in lives to come, perceptions of the imperturbable, perceptions of the dimension of nothingness, perceptions of the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception; that is substantial reality as far as substantial reality extends. But this is freedom from death, namely the liberation of the mind by not grasping.\u2019 So, \u0100nanda, I have taught the ways of practice suitable for attaining the imperturbable, the dimension of nothingness, and the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception. I have taught how to cross the flood by relying on one support or another, and I have taught noble liberation. Out of sympathy, I\u2019ve done what a teacher should do who wants what\u2019s best for their disciples. Here are these roots of trees, and here are these empty huts. Practice absorption, \u0100nanda! Don\u2019t be negligent! Don\u2019t regret it later! This is my instruction to you.\u201d That is what the Buddha said. Satisfied, Venerable \u0100nanda approved what the Buddha said.","title":"Conducive to the Imperturbable","tradition":"Majjhima Nikaya","translated_text":null,"word_count":1508}