Sacred Texts: Buddhism

Buddhism in Translations - § 57. The Way of Purity.

Henry Clarke WarrenPali Canon TranslationsTheravada Buddhism

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This is a translated excerpt from the *Visuddhi-Magga* (Path of Purification), a foundational 5th-century Theravāda Buddhist treatise, specifically its opening chapter. The passage expounds the "Way of Purity" through a tripartite framework: **conduct** (sīla), **concentration** (samādhi), and **wisdom** (paññā) — the three pillars of the Noble Eightfold Path organized as progressive disciplines. Each pillar is assigned a distinct role: conduct purifies the beginning of the path and guards against lower rebirths, concentration cultivates the middle and unlocks higher mental powers, and wisdom crowns the path by uprooting corruptions entirely and achieving liberation. The text makes a notably systematic argument, mapping this triad onto multiple parallel sets of three — the stages of sanctification (stream-entry, once-returning, non-returning, sainthood), the abandonment of corruptions, the avoidance of ascetic vs. sensual extremes, and the advent of specific knowledges — demonstrating that the same three-part structure governs virtually every dimension of Buddhist practice. A distinctive claim is that wisdom is superior to all else precisely because it produces unshakeable equanimity, illustrated by the simile of a rock unmoved by wind. The excerpt closes by noting the original teaching was given in "excessive conciseness" and promises a detailed exposition — framing this as a commentary designed to make the path accessible to practitioners who might otherwise miss its full implications.

Buddhism in Translations - § 57. The Way of Purity.

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