Is the soul distinct from the body? Pt. 5 (sutra)

Rhys Davids (trans.), Jāliya Sutra (DN 7), suttacentral.net; Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

SUTRA: "Discourse to Jāliya"

This sutra from the Long Discourses (DN) is mostly quoted verbatim by the Buddha from the previous sutra. Therefore, the next section in the Pali text is greatly abbreviated. The following is a fully expanded version, based on the text of the "Fruits of Recluseship Discourse" or Sāmaññaphala Sutra (DN 2) as translated by American scholar-monk Bhikkhu Bodhi. It should be noted that is not always possible to determine exactly how the expansion should be done.

• Part 4: Is the soul distinct from the body?

• What is meditative absorption or jhāna? (palikanon.com)

The First Absorption (Jhāna)

O, I get it. Now I can sit in peace and let them be.

“Quite secluded from sense pleasures, secluded from unwholesome states, one enters and dwells in the first jhāna.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

The Second Jhāna

“Further, sirs, with the subsiding of applied and sustained thought, the meditator enters and dwells in the second jhāna, which is accompanied by internal confidence and unification of mind, is without applied and sustained thought, and is filled with the rapture and happiness born of concentration.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other,’

The Third Jhāna

“Further, sirs, with the fading away of rapture, the meditator dwells in equanimity, mindful and clearly comprehending, and experiences happiness with the body. Thus one enters and dwells in the third jhāna, of which the noble ones declare: ‘One dwells happily with equanimity and mindfulness.’

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make him ready to take up the subject: “Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

The Fourth Jhāna

“Further, sirs, with the abandoning of pleasure and pain, and with the previous passing away of joy and grief, the meditator enters and dwells in the fourth jhāna, which is neither pleasant nor painful and contains mindfulness fully purified by equanimity.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Insight Knowledge

“When the mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to knowledge and vision.

“One understands thus: ‘This is my body, having material form, composed of the Four Primary Elements, originating from father and mother, built up out of rice and gruel, impermanent, subject to rubbing and pressing, to dissolution and dispersion. And this is my consciousness, supported by it and bound up with it.’”

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge of the Mind-Made Body

“When one’s mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to creating a mind-made body.

“From this body one creates another body having material form, mind-made, complete in all its parts, not lacking any faculties.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge of the Modes of Supernormal Power

“When the mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to the modes of supernormal power.

“One exercises the various modes of supernormal power: 

• having been one, one becomes many and having been many, one becomes one;
• one appears and vanishes;
• one goes unimpeded through walls, ramparts, and mountains as if through space;
• one dives in and out of the earth as if it were water;
• one walks on water without sinking as if it were earth;
• sitting cross-legged one travels through space like a winged bird;
• with one’s hand one touches and strokes the sun and the moon, so mighty and powerful;
• one exercises mastery over the body as far as the brahma-world.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge of the Divine Ear

“When one’s mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to the divine ear-element.

“With the divine ear-element, which is purified and surpasses the human, one hears both kinds of sound, the divine and the human, those which are distant and those which are near.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge Encompassing the Minds of Others

“When one’s mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to the knowledge of encompassing the minds (of others).

“One understands the minds of other beings and persons, having encompassed them with one’s own mind.

• One understands a mind with lust as a mind with lust and a mind without lust as a mind without lust;
• one understands a mind with hatred as a mind with hatred and a mind without hatred as a mind without hatred;
• one understands a mind with delusion as a mind with delusion and a mind without delusion as a mind without delusion;
• one understands a contracted mind as a contracted mind and a distracted mind as a distracted mind;
• one understands an exalted mind as an exalted mind and an unexalted mind as an unexalted mind;
• one understands a surpassable mind as a surpassable mind and an unsurpassable mind as an unsurpassable mind;
• one understands a [unified] concentrated mind as a concentrated mind and an unconcentrated mind as an unconcentrated mind;
• one understands a liberated mind as a liberated mind and an unliberated mind as an unliberated mind.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge of Recollecting Past Lives

"And he says to me, 'YOLO'!"

“When one’s mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to the knowledge of recollecting past lives.

“One recollects one’s numerous past lives, that is, one birth, two births, three, four, or five births; ten, 20, 30, 40, or 50 births; 100 births, 1,000 births, 100,000 births; many aeons (kalpas) of world contraction, many aeons of world expansion, many aeons of world contraction and expansion, (recollecting):

“‘There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance; such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such my span of life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose there. 

“‘There, too, I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance; such was my food, such my experience of pleasure and pain, such my span of life.

“‘Passing away from that state I re-arose here.’ Thus one recollects one’s numerous past lives in their modes and their details.”

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge of the Divine Eye

“When one’s mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to the knowledge of the passing away and reappearance of beings.

“With the divine eye, which is purified and surpasses the human, one sees beings passing away and reappearing — inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate — and one understands how beings fare according to their karma, thus:

“‘These beings — who were endowed with bad (unskillful) conduct of body, speech, and mind, who reviled the noble ones, held wrong views, and undertook actions governed by wrong views — with the breakup of the body, after death, have reappeared in the plane of misery, the bad (unfortunate) destinations, the lower realms, even in hell(s).

“‘But these beings — who were endowed with good (skillful) conduct of body, speech, and mind, who did not revile the noble ones, held right views, and undertook actions governed by right views — with the breakup of the body, after death, have reappeared in the good (fortunate) destinations, even in heavenly world(s).’

“Thus with the divine eye, which is purified and surpasses the human, one sees beings passing away and reappearing — inferior and superior, beautiful and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate — and one understands how beings fare in accordance with their karma.

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Knowledge of the Destruction of the Cankers

To a unified mind, add mindfulness.

“When one’s mind is thus concentrated, pure and bright, unblemished, free from defects, malleable, wieldy, steady, and attained to imperturbability, one directs and inclines it to the knowledge of the destruction of the cankers.

1. “One understands as it really is: ‘This is suffering.’
2. One understands as it really is: ‘This is the origin of suffering.’
3. One understands as it really is: ‘This is the cessation of suffering.’
4. One understands as it really is: ‘This is the way leading to the cessation of suffering.’

“One understands as it really is: ‘These are the cankers.’ One understands as it really is: ‘This is the origin of the cankers.’ One understands as it really is: ‘This is the cessation of the cankers.’ One understands as it really is: ‘This is the way leading to the cessation of the cankers.’

“Knowing and seeing thus, one’s mind is liberated from the canker of sensual desire, from the canker of craving for eternal existence, and from the canker of ignorance.

“When it is liberated, the knowledge arises: ‘It is liberated.’ One understands: ‘Destroyed is rebirth, the supreme life has been lived, what had to be done has been done, and now there is nothing further beyond this.’

“Now, sirs, when a meditator knows thus and sees thus, would that make one ready to take up the subject: ‘Is the soul the same thing as the body, or is the soul one thing and the body another?’”

“Yes, it would, sir.”

“But I, sirs, know thus and see thus; and nevertheless I do not say either the one or the other.”

Thus said the Blessed One. And those two wandering ascetics, pleased at heart, exalted the words of the Blessed One.