Brahmajāla Sutta

[ I ]

I have heard that the Buddha was traveling on the highway between Rājagaha & Nālanda with approximately 500 monks.

Suppiya the wanderer was traveling on the highway between Rājagaha & Nālanda with his apprentice, Brahmadatta the young brahman.

Along the way, Suppiya the wanderer spoke in many ways in dispraise of the Buddha,the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha.

But Suppiya’s apprentice, Brahmadatta the young brahman, spoke in many ways in praise of the Buddha, the Dhamma, and of the Saṅgha.

Thus both of these, mentor & apprentice, speaking in direct contradiction to each other, followed right behind the Buddha and the Saṅgha of monks.

Then the Buddha with the monks entered the royal resthouse at Mango Stone to spend the night.

• Suppiya and Brahmadatta too entered the royal resthouse at Mango Stone to spend the night.

Then, among a large number of monks who had arisen in the last watch of the night and were sitting gathered together in a pavilion, this discussion arose:

Then the Buddha, knowing this discussion of the monks, went to the pavilion. On arrival, sat down on a seat laid out.

Seated, he addressed the monks:

The Lesser Section on Virtue

A run-of-the-mill person, praising the Tathāgata, would speak of the contemplative Gotama as:

• abandoning and abstaining from the taking of life, or
  • He dwels with his rod laid down, his knife laid down
  • He is scrupulous, merciful, compassionate for the welfare of all living beings
• abandoning and abstaining from the taking of what is not given
  • He takes only what is given, accepts only what is given, lives not by stealth but by means of a self that has become pure.
• abandoning uncelibacy, living a celibate life, aloof, refraining from the sexual act that is the villager’s way
• abandoning and abstaining from false speech
  • He speaks the truth, holds to the truth, is firm, reliable, no deceiver of the world
• abandoning and abstaining from divisive speech
  • What he has heard here he does not tell there to break those people apart from these people here.
  • What he has heard there he does not tell here to break these people apart from those people there.
  • Thus reconciling those who have broken apart or cementing those who are united, he loves concord, delights in concord, enjoys concord, speaks things that create concord.’
• abandoning and abstaining abusive speech
  • He speaks words that are soothing to the ear, that are affectionate, that go to the heart, that are polite, appealing, & pleasing to people at large.
• abandoning idle chatter, he abstains from idle chatter.
  • He speaks in season, speaks what is factual, what is in accordance with the goal [attha], the Dhamma, & the Vinaya.
  • He speaks words worth treasuring, seasonable, reasonable, circumscribed, connected with what is profitable [attha].’
• abstaining from damaging seed & plant life.
• eating only once a day, refraining from the evening meal and from food at the wrong time of day.’
• abstaining from dancing, singing, instrumental music, and from watching shows.’
• abstaining from wearing garlands and from beautifying himself with scents & cosmetics.’

“Or: ‘The contemplative Gotama abstains from high and luxurious beds & seats.’…

“Or: ‘The contemplative Gotama abstains from accepting gold & money.’…

“Or: ‘The contemplative Gotama abstains from accepting uncooked grain… raw meat… women & girls… male & female slaves… goats & sheep… fowl & pigs… elephants, cattle, steeds, & mares… fields & property.’…

“Or: ‘The contemplative Gotama abstains from running messages… from buying & selling… from dealing with false scales, false metals, & false measures… from bribery, deception, & fraud.’…

“Or: ‘The contemplative Gotama abstains from mutilating, executing, imprisoning, highway robbery, plunder, & violence.’

The Intermediate Section on Virtue

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to damaging seed & plant life such as these—plants propagated from roots, stems, joints, buddings, & seeds—the contemplative Gotama abstains from damaging seed and plant life such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to consuming stored-up goods such as these—stored-up food, stored-up drinks, stored-up clothing, stored-up vehicles, stored-up bedding, stored-up scents, & stored-up meat—the contemplative Gotama abstains from consuming stored-up goods such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to watching shows such as these—dancing, singing, instrumental music, plays, ballad recitations, hand-clapping, cymbals & drums, magic-lantern scenes, acrobatic and conjuring tricks, elephant fights, horse fights, buffalo fights, bull fights, goat fights, ram fights, cock fights, quail fights; fighting with staves, boxing, wrestling, war-games, roll calls, battle arrays, & regimental reviews—the contemplative Gotama abstains from watching shows such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to heedless & idle games such as these—eight-row chess, ten-row chess, chess in the air, hopscotch, spillikins, dice, stick games, hand-pictures, ball-games, blowing through toy pipes, playing with toy plows, turning somersaults, playing with toy windmills, toy measures, toy chariots, toy bows, guessing letters drawn in the air, guessing thoughts, mimicking deformities—the contemplative Gotama abstains from heedless & idle games such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to high & luxurious furnishings such as these—over-sized couches, couches adorned with carved animals, long-haired coverlets, multi-colored patchwork coverlets, white woolen coverlets, woolen coverlets embroidered with flowers or animal figures, stuffed quilts, coverlets with fringe, silk coverlets embroidered with gems; large woolen carpets; elephant, horse, and chariot rugs, antelope-hide rugs, deer-hide rugs; couches with canopies, couches with red cushions for the head & feet—the contemplative Gotama abstains from using high and luxurious furnishings such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to scents, cosmetics, and means of beautification such as these—rubbing powders into the body, massaging with oils, bathing in perfumed water, kneading the limbs, using mirrors, ointments, garlands, scents, creams, face-powders, mascara, bracelets, head-bands, decorated walking sticks, ornamented water-bottles, swords, fancy sunshades, decorated sandals, turbans, gems, yak-tail whisks, long-fringed white robes—the contemplative Gotama abstains from using scents, cosmetics, and means of beautification such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to talking about “animal” topics such as these—talking about kings, robbers, ministers of state; armies, alarms, and battles; food and drink; clothing, furniture, garlands, and scents; relatives; vehicles; villages, towns, cities, the countryside; women and heroes; the gossip of the street and the well; tales of the dead; tales of diversity [philosophical discussions of the past and future], the creation of the world & of the sea, and talk of whether things exist or not—the contemplative Gotama abstains from talking about “animal” topics such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to debates such as these—“You understand this doctrine & discipline? I’m the one who understands this doctrine & discipline. How could you understand this doctrine & discipline? You’re practicing wrongly. I’m practicing rightly. I’m being consistent. You’re not. What should be said first you said last. What should be said last you said first. What you took so long to think out has been refuted. Your doctrine has been overthrown. You’re defeated. Go and try to salvage your doctrine or extricate yourself if you can!”—the contemplative Gotama abstains from debates such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, remain addicted to running messages & errands for people such as these—kings, ministers of state, noble warriors, brahmans, householders, or youths (who say), “Go here. Go there. Take this there. Fetch that here”—the contemplative Gotama abstains from running messages & errands for people such as these.’ It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, engage in scheming, persuading, hinting, belittling, & pursuing gain with gain, the contemplative Gotama abstains from forms of scheming & persuading [improper ways of trying to gain material support from donors] such as these.’

“It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

The Great Section on Virtue

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as:

reading marks on the limbs [e.g., palmistry];

reading omens & signs;

interpreting celestial events [falling stars, comets];

interpreting dreams;

reading features of the body [e.g., phrenology];

reading marks on cloth gnawed by mice;

offering fire oblations, oblations from a ladle, oblations of husks, rice powder, rice grains, ghee, & oil;

offering oblations from the mouth;

offering blood-sacrifices;

making predictions based on the fingertips;

geomancy;

making predictions for state officials;

laying demons in a cemetery;

placing spells on spirits;

earth-skills [divining water and gems?];

snake-skills, poison-skills, scorpion-skills, rat-skills, bird-skills, crow-skills;

predicting life spans;

giving protective charms;

casting horoscopes—

the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as: determining lucky & unlucky gems, staffs, garments, swords, arrows, bows, & other weapons; women, men, boys, girls, male slaves, female slaves; elephants, horses, buffaloes, bulls, cows, goats, rams, fowl, quails, lizards, rabbits, tortoises, & other animals—the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as (forecasting):

the rulers will march forth;

the rulers will not march forth;

our rulers will attack, and their rulers will retreat;

their rulers will attack, and our rulers will retreat;

there will be triumph for our rulers and defeat for their rulers;

there will be triumph for their rulers and defeat for our rulers;

thus there will be triumph for this one, defeat for that one—

the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as (forecasting):

there will be a lunar eclipse;

there will be a solar eclipse;

there will be an occultation of [a conjunction of the moon or a planet with] an asterism;

the sun & moon will be favorable;

the sun & moon will be unfavorable;

the asterisms will be favorable;

the asterisms will be unfavorable;

there will be a meteor shower;

there will be a flickering light on the horizon [an aurora?];

there will be an earthquake;

there will be thunder coming from dry clouds;

there will be a rising, a setting, a darkening, a brightening of the sun, moon, & asterisms;

such will be the result of the lunar eclipse… the rising, setting, darkening, brightening of the sun, moon, & asterisms—

the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as (forecasting):

there will be abundant rain; there will be a drought;

there will be plenty; there will be famine;

there will be rest and security; there will be danger;

there will be disease; there will be freedom from disease;

or they earn their living by accounting, counting, calculation, composing poetry, or teaching hedonistic arts & doctrines [lokāyata]—

the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as:

calculating auspicious dates for marriages—both those in which the bride is brought home and those in which she is sent out; calculating auspicious dates for betrothals and divorces; for collecting debts or making investments and loans; reciting charms to make people attractive or unattractive; curing women who have undergone miscarriages or abortions;

reciting spells to bind a man’s tongue, to paralyze his jaws, to make him lose control over his hands, or to bring on deafness;

getting oracular answers to questions addressed to a spirit in a mirror, in a young girl, or to a spirit medium;

worshipping the sun, worshipping the Great Brahmā, bringing forth flames from the mouth, invoking the goddess of luck—

the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“Or: ‘Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such “animal” arts as:

promising gifts to deities in return for favors; fulfilling such promises;

demonology;

reciting spells in earth houses [see earth skills, above];

inducing virility and impotence;

preparing sites for construction;

consecrating sites for construction;

giving ceremonial mouthwashes & ceremonial baths;

offering sacrificial fires;

administering emetics, purges, purges from above, purges from below, head-purges; ear-oil, eye-drops, treatments through the nose, ointments, and counter-ointments; practicing eye-surgery [or: extractive surgery], general surgery, pediatrics; administering root-medicines and binding medicinal herbs—

the contemplative Gotama abstains from wrong livelihood, from “animal” arts such as these.’

“It’s of this, monks, that a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.

“These are the minor matters, lower matters, matters of virtue, of which a run-of-the-mill person, when praising the Tathāgata, would speak.