AN 5.30

Nāgitasutta

Evaṁ me sutaṁ— ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā kosalesu cārikaṁ caramāno mahatā bhikkhusaṅghena saddhiṁ yena icchānaṅgalaṁ nāma kosalānaṁ brāhmaṇagāmo tadavasari. Tatra sudaṁ bhagavā icchānaṅgale viharati icchānaṅgalavanasaṇḍe. Assosuṁ kho icchānaṅgalakā brāhmaṇagahapatikā: “samaṇo khalu bho gotamo sakyaputto sakyakulā pabbajito icchānaṅgalaṁ anuppatto; icchānaṅgale viharati icchānaṅgalavanasaṇḍe. Taṁ kho pana bhavantaṁ gotamaṁ evaṁ kalyāṇo kittisaddo abbhuggato: ‘itipi so bhagavā arahaṁ sammāsambuddho vijjācaraṇasampanno sugato lokavidū anuttaro purisadammasārathi, satthā devamanussānaṁ buddho bhagavāti’. So imaṁ lokaṁ sadevakaṁ samārakaṁ sabrahmakaṁ sassamaṇabrāhmaṇiṁ pajaṁ sadevamanussaṁ sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā pavedeti. So dhammaṁ deseti ādikalyāṇaṁ majjhekalyāṇaṁ pariyosānakalyāṇaṁ sātthaṁ sabyañjanaṁ, kevalaparipuṇṇaṁ parisuddhaṁ brahmacariyaṁ pakāseti. Sādhu kho pana tathārūpānaṁ arahataṁ dassanaṁ hotī”ti. Atha kho icchānaṅgalakā brāhmaṇagahapatikā tassā rattiyā accayena pahūtaṁ khādanīyaṁ bhojanīyaṁ ādāya yena icchānaṅgalavanasaṇḍo tenupasaṅkamiṁsu; upasaṅkamitvā bahidvārakoṭṭhake aṭṭhaṁsu uccāsaddamahāsaddā.

With Nāgita

So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was wandering in the land of the Kosalans together with a large Saṅgha of mendicants when he arrived at a village of the Kosalan brahmins named Icchānaṅgala. He stayed in a forest near Icchānaṅgala. The brahmins and householders of Icchānaṅgala heard: “It seems the ascetic Gotama—a Sakyan, gone forth from a Sakyan family—has arrived at Icchānaṅgala. He is staying in a forest near Icchānaṅgala. He has this good reputation: ‘That Blessed One is perfected, a fully awakened Buddha, accomplished in knowledge and conduct, holy, knower of the world, supreme guide for those fit for training, teacher of gods and humans, awakened, blessed.’ He has realized with his own insight this world—with its gods, Māras, and divinities, this population with its ascetics and brahmins, gods and humans—and he makes it known to others. He teaches Dhamma that’s good in the beginning, good in the middle, and good in the end, meaningful and well-phrased. And he reveals a spiritual practice that’s entirely full and pure. It’s good to see such perfected ones.” Then, when the night had passed, they took abundant fresh and cooked foods and went to the forest near Icchānaṅgala, where they stood outside the gates making a colossal racket.

Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā nāgito bhagavato upaṭṭhāko hoti. Atha kho bhagavā āyasmantaṁ nāgitaṁ āmantesi: “ke pana kho, nāgita, uccāsaddamahāsaddā, kevaṭṭā maññe macchavilope”ti? “Ete, bhante, icchānaṅgalakā brāhmaṇagahapatikā pahūtaṁ khādanīyaṁ bhojanīyaṁ ādāya bahidvārakoṭṭhake ṭhitā bhagavantaññeva uddissa bhikkhusaṅghañcā”ti. “Māhaṁ, nāgita, yasena samāgamaṁ, mā ca mayā yaso. Yo kho, nāgita, nayimassa nekkhammasukhassa pavivekasukhassa upasamasukhassa sambodhasukhassa nikāmalābhī assa akicchalābhī akasiralābhī, yassāhaṁ nekkhammasukhassa pavivekasukhassa upasamasukhassa sambodhasukhassa nikāmalābhī akicchalābhī akasiralābhī. So taṁ mīḷhasukhaṁ middhasukhaṁ lābhasakkārasilokasukhaṁ sādiyeyyā”ti.

Now, at that time Venerable Nāgita was the Buddha’s attendant. Then the Buddha said to Nāgita, “Nāgita, who’s making that colossal racket? You’d think it was fishermen hauling in a catch!” “Sir, it’s these brahmins and householders of Icchānaṅgala. They’ve brought many fresh and cooked foods, and they’re standing outside the gates wanting to offer it specially to the Buddha and the mendicant Saṅgha.” “Nāgita, may I never become famous. May fame not come to me. There are those who can’t get the pleasure of renunciation, the pleasure of seclusion, the pleasure of peace, the pleasure of awakening when they want, without trouble or difficulty like I can. Let them enjoy the filthy, lazy pleasure of possessions, honor, and popularity.”

“Adhivāsetu dāni, bhante, bhagavā, adhivāsetu sugato; adhivāsanakālo dāni, bhante, bhagavato. Yena yeneva dāni bhagavā gamissati taṁninnāva gamissanti brāhmaṇagahapatikā negamā ceva jānapadā ca. Seyyathāpi, bhante, thullaphusitake deve vassante yathāninnaṁ udakāni pavattanti; evamevaṁ kho, bhante, yena yeneva dāni bhagavā gamissati, taṁninnāva gamissanti brāhmaṇagahapatikā negamā ceva jānapadā ca. Taṁ kissa hetu? Tathā hi, bhante, bhagavato sīlapaññāṇan”ti.

“Sir, may the Blessed One please relent now! May the Holy One relent! Now is the time for the Buddha to relent. Wherever the Buddha now goes, the brahmins and householders, and people of town and country will incline the same way. It’s like when the heavens rain heavily and the water flows downhill. In the same way, wherever the Buddha now goes, the brahmins and householders, and people of town and country will incline the same way. Why is that? Because of the Buddha’s ethics and wisdom.”

“Māhaṁ, nāgita, yasena samāgamaṁ, mā ca mayā yaso. Yo kho, nāgita, nayimassa nekkhammasukhassa pavivekasukhassa upasamasukhassa sambodhasukhassa nikāmalābhī assa akicchalābhī akasiralābhī, yassāhaṁ nekkhammasukhassa pavivekasukhassa upasamasukhassa sambodhasukhassa nikāmalābhī akicchalābhī akasiralābhī. So taṁ mīḷhasukhaṁ middhasukhaṁ lābhasakkārasilokasukhaṁ sādiyeyya. Asitapītakhāyitasāyitassa kho, nāgita, uccārapassāvo— eso tassa nissando. Piyānaṁ kho, nāgita, vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā uppajjanti sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā— eso tassa nissando. Asubhanimittānuyogaṁ anuyuttassa kho, nāgita, subhanimitte pāṭikulyatā saṇṭhāti— eso tassa nissando. Chasu kho, nāgita, phassāyatanesu aniccānupassino viharato phasse pāṭikulyatā saṇṭhāti— eso tassa nissando. Pañcasu kho, nāgita, upādānakkhandhesu udayabbayānupassino viharato upādāne pāṭikulyatā saṇṭhāti— eso tassa nissando”ti.

“Nāgita, may I never become famous. May fame not come to me. There are those who can’t get the pleasure of renunciation, the pleasure of seclusion, the pleasure of peace, the pleasure of awakening when they want, without trouble or difficulty like I can. Let them enjoy the filthy, lazy pleasure of possessions, honor, and popularity. What you eat, drink, chew, and taste ends up as excrement and urine. This is its outcome. When loved ones decay and perish, sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress arise. This is its outcome. When you pursue meditation on the feature of ugliness, revulsion at the feature of beauty becomes stabilized. This is its outcome. When you meditate observing impermanence in the six fields of contact, revulsion at contact becomes stabilized. This is its outcome. When you meditate observing rise and fall in the five grasping aggregates, revulsion at grasping becomes stabilized. This is its outcome.”