AN 2.1

1. Kammakaraṇavagga 1. Vajjasutta

Evaṁ me sutaṁ— ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṁ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme. Tatra kho bhagavā bhikkhū āmantesi: “bhikkhavo”ti. “Bhadante”ti te bhikkhū bhagavato paccassosuṁ. Bhagavā etadavoca:

The Chapter on Punishments 1. Faults

So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery. There the Buddha addressed the mendicants, “Mendicants!” “Venerable sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this:

“Dvemāni, bhikkhave, vajjāni. Katamāni dve? Diṭṭhadhammikañca vajjaṁ samparāyikañca vajjaṁ. Katamañca, bhikkhave, diṭṭhadhammikaṁ vajjaṁ? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco passati coraṁ āgucāriṁ rājāno gahetvā vividhā kammakāraṇā kārente; kasāhipi tāḷente, vettehipi tāḷente, addhadaṇḍakehipi tāḷente, hatthampi chindante, pādampi chindante, hatthapādampi chindante, kaṇṇampi chindante, nāsampi chindante, kaṇṇanāsampi chindante, bilaṅgathālikampi karonte, saṅkhamuṇḍikampi karonte, rāhumukhampi karonte, jotimālikampi karonte, hatthapajjotikampi karonte, erakavattikampi karonte, cīrakavāsikampi karonte, eṇeyyakampi karonte, baḷisamaṁsikampi karonte, kahāpaṇikampi karonte, khārāpatacchikampi karonte, palighaparivattikampi karonte, palālapīṭhakampi karonte, tattenapi telena osiñcante, sunakhehipi khādāpente, jīvantampi sūle uttāsente, asināpi sīsaṁ chindante.

“There are, mendicants, these two faults. What two? The fault apparent in this life, and the fault to do with lives to come. What is the fault apparent in this life? It’s when someone sees that kings have arrested a bandit, a criminal, and subjected them to various punishments— whipping, caning, and clubbing; cutting off hands or feet, or both; cutting off ears or nose, or both; the ‘porridge pot’, the ‘shell-shave’, the ‘Rāhu’s mouth’, the ‘garland of fire’, the ‘burning hand’, the ‘bulrush twist’, the ‘bark dress’, the ‘antelope’, the ‘meat hook’, the ‘coins’, the ‘caustic pickle’, the ‘twisting bar’, the ‘straw mat’; being splashed with hot oil, being fed to the hounds, being impaled alive, and being beheaded.

Tassa evaṁ hoti: ‘yathārūpānaṁ kho pāpakānaṁ kammānaṁ hetu coraṁ āgucāriṁ rājāno gahetvā vividhā kammakāraṇā kārenti; kasāhipi tāḷenti, vettehipi tāḷenti, addhadaṇḍakehipi tāḷenti, hatthampi chindanti, pādampi chindanti, hatthapādampi chindanti, kaṇṇampi chindanti, nāsampi chindanti, kaṇṇanāsampi chindanti, bilaṅgathālikampi karonti, saṅkhamuṇḍikampi karonti, rāhumukhampi karonti, jotimālikampi karonti, hatthapajjotikampi karonti, erakavattikampi karonti, cīrakavāsikampi karonti, eṇeyyakampi karonti, baḷisamaṁsikampi karonti, kahāpaṇikampi karonti, khārāpatacchikampi karonti, palighaparivattikampi karonti, palālapīṭhakampi karonti, tattenapi telena osiñcanti, sunakhehipi khādāpenti, jīvantampi sūle uttāsenti, asināpi sīsaṁ chindanti. Ahañceva kho pana evarūpaṁ pāpakammaṁ kareyyaṁ, mampi rājāno gahetvā evarūpā vividhā kammakāraṇā kāreyyuṁ; kasāhipi tāḷeyyuṁ …pe… asināpi sīsaṁ chindeyyun’ti. So diṭṭhadhammikassa vajjassa bhīto na paresaṁ pābhataṁ vilumpanto carati. Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, diṭṭhadhammikaṁ vajjaṁ.

It occurs to them: ‘If I were to commit the kinds of bad deeds for which the kings arrested that bandit, that criminal, the rulers would arrest me and subject me to the same punishments.’ Afraid of the fault apparent in this life, they do not steal the belongings of others. This is called the fault apparent in this life.

Katamañca, bhikkhave, samparāyikaṁ vajjaṁ? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco iti paṭisañcikkhati: ‘kāyaduccaritassa kho pana pāpako dukkho vipāko abhisamparāyaṁ, vacīduccaritassa pāpako dukkho vipāko abhisamparāyaṁ, manoduccaritassa pāpako dukkho vipāko abhisamparāyaṁ. Ahañceva kho pana kāyena duccaritaṁ careyyaṁ, vācāya duccaritaṁ careyyaṁ, manasā duccaritaṁ careyyaṁ. Kiñca taṁ yāhaṁ na kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā apāyaṁ duggatiṁ vinipātaṁ nirayaṁ upapajjeyyan’ti. So samparāyikassa vajjassa bhīto kāyaduccaritaṁ pahāya kāyasucaritaṁ bhāveti, vacīduccaritaṁ pahāya vacīsucaritaṁ bhāveti, manoduccaritaṁ pahāya manosucaritaṁ bhāveti, suddhaṁ attānaṁ pariharati. Idaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, samparāyikaṁ vajjaṁ. Imāni kho, bhikkhave, dve vajjāni. Tasmātiha, bhikkhave, evaṁ sikkhitabbaṁ: ‘diṭṭhadhammikassa vajjassa bhāyissāma, samparāyikassa vajjassa bhāyissāma, vajjabhīruno bhavissāma vajjabhayadassāvino’ti. Evañhi vo, bhikkhave, sikkhitabbaṁ. Vajjabhīruno, bhikkhave, vajjabhayadassāvino etaṁ pāṭikaṅkhaṁ yaṁ parimuccissati sabbavajjehī”ti.

What is the fault to do with lives to come? It’s when someone reflects: ‘Bad conduct of body, speech, or mind has a bad, painful result in the next life. If I conduct myself badly, then, when my body breaks up, after death, won’t I be reborn in a place of loss, a bad place, the underworld, hell?’ Afraid of the fault to do with lives to come, they give up bad conduct by way of body, speech, and mind, and develop good conduct by way of body, speech, and mind, keeping themselves pure. This is called the fault to do with lives to come. These are the two faults. So you should train like this: ‘We will fear the fault apparent in this life, and we will fear the fault to do with lives to come. We will fear faults, seeing the danger in faults.’ That’s how you should train. If you fear faults, seeing the danger in faults, you can expect to be freed from all faults.”