SN 55.21

Paṭhamamahānāmasutta

Evaṁ me sutaṁ— ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā sakkesu viharati kapilavatthusmiṁ nigrodhārāme. Atha kho mahānāmo sakko yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinno kho mahānāmo sakko bhagavantaṁ etadavoca: “idaṁ, bhante, kapilavatthu iddhañceva phītañca bāhujaññaṁ ākiṇṇamanussaṁ sambādhabyūhaṁ. So khvāhaṁ, bhante, bhagavantaṁ vā payirupāsitvā manobhāvanīye vā bhikkhū sāyanhasamayaṁ kapilavatthuṁ pavisanto; bhantenapi hatthinā samāgacchāmi; bhantenapi assena samāgacchāmi; bhantenapi rathena samāgacchāmi; bhantenapi sakaṭena samāgacchāmi; bhantenapi purisena samāgacchāmi. Tassa mayhaṁ, bhante, tasmiṁ samaye mussateva bhagavantaṁ ārabbha sati, mussati dhammaṁ ārabbha sati, mussati saṅghaṁ ārabbha sati. Tassa mayhaṁ, bhante, evaṁ hoti: ‘imamhi cāhaṁ samaye kālaṁ kareyyaṁ, kā mayhaṁ gati, ko abhisamparāyo’”ti?

With Mahānāma (1st)

So I have heard. At one time the Buddha was staying in the land of the Sakyans, near Kapilavatthu in the Banyan Tree Monastery. Then Mahānāma the Sakyan went up to the Buddha, bowed, sat down to one side, and said to him: “Sir, this Kapilavatthu is successful and prosperous, populous and full of people, with cramped cul-de-sacs. In the late afternoon, after paying homage to the Buddha or an esteemed mendicant, I enter Kapilavatthu. I encounter a stray elephant, horse, chariot, cart, or person. At that time I lose mindfulness regarding the Buddha, the teaching, and the Saṅgha. I think: ‘If I were to die at this time, where would I be reborn in my next life?’”

“Mā bhāyi, mahānāma, mā bhāyi, mahānāma. Apāpakaṁ te maraṇaṁ bhavissati apāpikā kālaṅkiriyā. Yassa kassaci, mahānāma, dīgharattaṁ saddhāparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ sīlaparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ sutaparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ cāgaparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ paññāparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ, tassa yo hi khvāyaṁ kāyo rūpī cātumahābhūtiko mātāpettikasambhavo odanakummāsūpacayo aniccucchādanaparimaddanabhedanaviddhaṁsanadhammo. Taṁ idheva kākā vā khādanti gijjhā vā khādanti kulalā vā khādanti sunakhā vā khādanti siṅgālā vā khādanti vividhā vā pāṇakajātā khādanti; yañca khvassa cittaṁ dīgharattaṁ saddhāparibhāvitaṁ …pe… paññāparibhāvitaṁ taṁ uddhagāmi hoti visesagāmi.

“Do not fear, Mahānāma, do not fear! Your death will not be a bad one; your passing will not be a bad one. Take someone whose mind has for a long time been imbued with faith, ethics, learning, generosity, and wisdom. Their body is formed, made up of the four principal states, produced by mother and father, built up from rice and porridge, liable to impermanence, to wearing away and erosion, to breaking up and destruction. Right here the crows, vultures, hawks, hounds, jackals, and many kinds of little creatures devour it. But their mind rises up, headed for a higher place.

Seyyathāpi, mahānāma, puriso sappikumbhaṁ vā telakumbhaṁ vā gambhīraṁ udakarahadaṁ ogāhitvā bhindeyya. Tatra yā assa sakkharā vā kaṭhalā vā sā adhogāmī assa, yañca khvassa tatra sappi vā telaṁ vā taṁ uddhagāmi assa visesagāmi. Evameva kho, mahānāma, yassa kassaci dīgharattaṁ saddhāparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ …pe… paññāparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ tassa yo hi khvāyaṁ kāyo rūpī cātumahābhūtiko mātāpettikasambhavo odanakummāsūpacayo aniccucchādanaparimaddanabhedanaviddhaṁsanadhammo taṁ idheva kākā vā khādanti gijjhā vā khādanti kulalā vā khādanti sunakhā vā khādanti siṅgālā vā khādanti vividhā vā pāṇakajātā khādanti; yañca khvassa cittaṁ dīgharattaṁ saddhāparibhāvitaṁ …pe… paññāparibhāvitaṁ taṁ uddhagāmi hoti visesagāmi. Tuyhaṁ kho pana, mahānāma, dīgharattaṁ saddhāparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ …pe… paññāparibhāvitaṁ cittaṁ. Mā bhāyi, mahānāma, mā bhāyi, mahānāma. Apāpakaṁ te maraṇaṁ bhavissati, apāpikā kālaṅkiriyā”ti.

Suppose a person was to sink a pot of ghee or oil into a deep lake and break it open. Its shards and chips would sink down, while the ghee or oil in it would rise up, headed for a higher place. In the same way, take someone whose mind has for a long time been imbued with faith, ethics, learning, generosity, and wisdom. Their body is formed, made up of the four principal states, produced by mother and father, built up from rice and porridge, liable to impermanence, to wearing away and erosion, to breaking up and destruction. Right here the crows, vultures, hawks, hounds, jackals, and many kinds of little creatures devour it. But their mind rises up, headed for a higher place. Your mind, Mahānāma, has for a long time been imbued with faith, ethics, learning, generosity, and wisdom. Do not fear, Mahānāma, do not fear! Your death will not be a bad one; your passing will not be a bad one.”