The Seven Factors of Enlightenment (sutra)

Ven. Piyadassi (trans.) Gilana Sutra: "Ill" (SN 46.16); Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

From "The Buddha - A Documentary Story of the Buddha's Life (thirdmonk.net)

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Thus have I heard: On one occasion the Blessed One [the Buddha] was living near Rajagaha in the Bamboo Grove in the Squirrels' Feeding Ground. At that time, he was afflicted with a disease, was suffering therefrom, and was gravely ill.

 

Then Venerable Maha Cunda [arising from his solitude at eventide] approached the Blessed One, respectfully saluted him, and sat down beside him.

 

To Ven. Maha Cunda thus seated, the Blessed One said:

 

"O, Cunda, let the Seven Factors of Enlightenment occur to your mind."

 

"These Seven Factors of Enlightenment, venerable sir (bhante), are well expounded and are cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. They conduce to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana. What are the seven?

 

1. "Mindfulness (sati), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One, and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.

 

2. "Investigation of the Dharma (dhamma*-vicaya), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.

• *NOTE: Dharma (Pali dhamma) is a broad term best translated as "things," and here is often confused with the Dharma, the Buddha's Doctrine. Here it means "mind-body phenomena" (nama-rupa) in line with the Buddha's Teaching about the nature of these things. The context, explained in the Satipathana Sutra, clearly shows that it is the phenomena of existence -- such as the Five Aggregates of Clinging (khanda) -- that one specifically investigates as a factor of enlightenment rather than the Doctrine, which one is being generally observant of throughout one's practice toward enlightenment.

3. "Persevering effort (viriya, padhāna), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.

 

4. "Rapture (pīti), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.

 

5. "Calm (passaddhi), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.

 

6. "Concentration (samādhi), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.

 

7. "Equanimity (upekkhā), the factor of enlightenment, venerable sir, is well expounded by the Blessed One, and is cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. It conduces to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana.
 

(salnath.deviantart.com)

These Seven Factors of Enlightenment, venerable sir, are well expounded and cultivated and fully developed by the Blessed One. They conduce to perfect understanding, to full realization, and to nirvana."

 

"Most assuredly Cunda, they are factors of enlightenment. Most assuredly, Cunda, they are factors of enlightenment."

 

Thus said Ven. Maha Cunda, and the Teacher approved of it. Then the Blessed One [immediately] recovered from his affliction, and thus disappeared his illness.

Life of Siddhartha before Buddhahood (Sims)

Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly; Eliroc, Sims Fiction (Chp. 4)

Charioteer Cunda and Prince Siddhartha see a pyre (simsfiction.wordpress.com)

Prince Siddhartha, 29, on the verge of quest

...Although Siddhartha's father ensured that the prince was provided with everything he could want or need, Siddhartha was always a little troubled and dissatisfied.
 
As much as he tried, the opulent life in the palace could not fulfill him. It was disappointing and so had to get bigger and bigger. Siddhartha was growing tired of his lavish lifestyle.

 

At night, he had dreams he could not explain. He sensed something was off, but he did not know what.

Yasodhara (Bimbadevi, Rahulamata...)

“What is the meaning of these dreams? Is there something beyond these walls?” he thinks aloud.

“What is it, My Lord? What’s going on?” asks (Bimbadevi who is known as) Yasodhara trying to comfort him.

 

“Nothing, a bad dream, don’t worry,” Siddhartha replies, while sitting up and covering his face with his hands.

 

“But you look so troubled, My Lord. Is it something I have done? Please, tell me what is bothering you. Let me help!” Yasodhara insists.

“Everything is all right. You’re the perfect wife, and I love you very much. I just need fresh air. Go back to sleep. I’ll go for a walk in the garden. The sun is almost up,” the prince answers gently, while getting up and walking toward the door.

 

But Yasodhara is too worried to fall asleep again. She changes and follows him to the garden.

She finds him mesmerized by the sound of a beautiful song. As she approaches, his gaze still resting upon the female musician, he asks, “Yasodhara, what is this song? I've never heard it before. It’s so melancholic and beautiful.”

 

“It is a song from a far away land, My Lord, evoking the beauty of a country she knew as a child. The mountains and the lake she can never forget.”

 

“How strangeDo such places exist? Places as beautiful as here?” Siddhartha asks.

 

“There is only suffering beyond these walls, My Lord.”

 

“You speak like my father. What do you mean suffering?”

 

“Your father loves you very much. He’s given us everything we could ever want. There’s no need to go anywhere else when there is such beauty around us.” Yasodhara insists, trying to bring his thoughts back to the beautiful life of the palace.

 

“It’s true. We have everything, and everything is perfect. So what is this feeling I have, Yasodhara? My dreams? If the world is so beautiful, why have I never seen it? I’ve not even really seen my own country. My father will not stop the chariot and allow us to walk in the villages, see the common life, talk to the people. I must see the world, Yasodhara, with my own eyes!”

 

With these words, Siddhartha goes off. Yasodhara lingers a while, lost in her thoughts. She is familiar with the prophecies and fears the day Siddhartha sees the real world, which may be closer than the king imagined.

Overcome by curiosity, Prince Siddhartha orders Channa, his faithful charioteer and friend, to show him the world beyond the palace walls. Unnoticed by his father, they set upon a series of rides through the countryside.

 

On this first journey, Siddhartha notices an old man painfully making his way. He had never ever seen old age of such decrepitude. And not understanding what is wrong with the man, he asks Channa, “What is the matter with this good man? Why is he walking like this? And why is his face all shriveled?”

Aging, the first sign/divine messenger

“That’s an old man, My Lord.”

 

“Old? What do you mean?” asks the prince as he approaches the man to study his features.

 

“Old age destroys strength, memory, beauty...”

 

“Why? What did he do to become old?”

 

“Do, My Lord? He was born. Everybody becomes old eventually. It is natural and belongs to life.”

 

“It happens to everybody? Even you?” Siddhartha asks alarmed, still resting his gaze upon the old man.

 

“Yes, My Lord. Even a prince cannot avoid it. It is a natural aspect of life. No one avoids it at all.” More

Life of the Buddha (video)

Mindah-Lee Kumar (EnthusiasticBuddhist.com); Dhr. Seven (ed.), Wisdom Quarterly

The Four Signs (smith.edu)

The Buddha (the "Enlightened or Awakened One") was born Prince Siddhartha Gautama, future king of the Shakyas. He is also known as Shakyamuni, the "Sage (muni) from the Shakya Clan."
 
He was born approximately 2,600 years ago into a royal family. Where is disputed, likely in what is now Afghanistan, on the northwest border of Gandhara, India. But earlier British archeological work determined it was Nepal, just north of India, and the controversy has been on ever since.  (See ranajitpal.com).

Prince Siddhartha lived a protected and carefree life of luxury, until one day he came face to face with the harsh realities of life he had always been protected from seeing: old age, sickness, and death. (The fourth sign was the sight of renunciation offering a possibility of escape from certain suffering). It is believed that the devas (fairies) contrived it all, ensuring that he would eventually see these four momentous signs.

 

The Buddha, wandering teacher (WQ)

The four sights or signs changed the course of Siddhartha's life. Rather than becoming king as he had been raised, he embarked on a spiritual QUEST on behalf of all beings to find liberation from the suffering of the world.

He would eventually discover the truth of suffering (disappointment) and how to bring about its end. He achieved enlightenment, a profound and irreversible awakening, under the Bodhi tree in Bodh Gaya, India.

And from that moment on he was known by the title "the Buddha." (See also the BBC documentary Life of the Buddha, which tells the story very well in less than 50 minutes. Here is a condensed collage version set to music that takes even less time).

Pork? Mushroom? How the Buddha Died

The Buddha's last illness: the result of eating sukara-maddava, pork or mushroom (LINK).

The Buddha is shown here leaving Cunda's the Blacksmith's house. He eventually walked a great distance to Kusinara (modern Kushinagar, India, site of an enormous Tibetan reliquary and monument), where he intended to pass into final nirvana at an out of the way site Ananda found very strange. The final passing took place between two Sala trees, and the Buddha explained to Ananda the very strategic reasons for the site.

HOW DID THE BUDDHA DIE?

Passing away into final nirvana (parinibbana): Instructing his last disciple, Subhadda the Wanderer, the Buddha entered nirvana for the final time on the full moon day in the month of Vesakha. This is part of the reason for annual Vesak celebrations throughout the world. It is the same day he attained he was born and attained enlightenment.

Cunda the Blacksmith offered the Buddha a meal. As an alms gatherer, the Buddha accepted his offer for lunch the following day. Together with the Sangha, the Buddha attended. But seeing the food -- sukara maddava ("pig's delight") -- being offered, he asked Cunda to only serve it to him and bury the rest.

What is a meal of "Pig's Delight"?

British Buddhist scholar Maurice Walshe

I have chosen this ambiguous expression to translate the controversial term sukara-maddava (sukara = "pig," maddava = "mild, gentle, soft," also "withered"). It could therefore mean either "the tender parts of a pig" or "what pigs enjoy" (cf. note 46 in The Last Days of the Buddha, Wheel Publication 67-69, BPS 1964, see note 363 [below]).

What is quite clear is that the old commentators did not know for certain what it did mean. DA [Digha Nikaya (Lengthy Discourses) Commentary (Sumangalavilasini by Buddhaghosa, see p. 50)] gives three possibilities:

1. The flesh of a wild pig, neither too young nor too old, which had come to hand without being killed,
2. soft boiled rice cooked with "the five products of the cow," or
3. a kind of elixir of life (rasayana) (cf. next note).

MUSHROOMS?

Modern interpreters from Rhys Davids onwards have favored truffles [which pig's love and are obtained by having pigs root for them] as a plausible explanation, and some evidence for this has been adduced.

Trevor Ling , in Note 31 to his revision of the Rhys Davids translation of this Sutta [The Buddha's Philosophy of Man (Everyman's Library, London 1981, p. 218)], remarks: "This explanation seems intended to avoid offense to vegetarian readers or hearers. Rhys Davids's statement that Buddhists 'have been mostly vegetarians, and are increasingly so,' is difficult to accept."

Be that as it may (and in fact Eastern Theravada Buddhists have rarely been vegetarians, though some are now almost certainly under Western influence!), the question of vegetarianism has frequently been raised in the Buddhist field.

The standard Theravada position is set out in the Jivaka Sutta (MN 55), in which the Buddha tells Jivaka that monks must not eat the meat of any animal concerning which they have

• seen,
• heard, or
• suspect

that it was specially killed for them. The Buddha rejected Devadatta's proposal to forbid meat-eating altogether to the monks.

[Devadata is the Buddhist of a backbiting Judas or proud Lucifer figure, who repeatedly attempted to assassinate the Buddha. This was not a sincere request by Devadatta., Rather, it was part of a plot to discredit the Buddha as not being austere enough to run the Sangha; Devadatta used the Buddha's unwillingness to consent to it to cause a schism in the Sangha. He then formed his own short-lived splinter group, impersonating the fully enlightened Buddha in the process instituting this and other mandatory austerities. The Buddha left it to nuns, monks, and followers to be vegetarians if they chose without making it mandatory. He soon became very ill, urgently sought out the Buddha to apologize for his misguided views but, it is said, was swallowed by earth before he could do so because the earth was unable to bear the gravity of his misdeeds.]

Living on alms as they did in the conditions of rural India at the time, they would either have gravely embarrassed those who offered them food, or starved if they had refused all meat. At the same time, under modern conditions, especially in the West, the question does arise as to whether the Sangha might not educate the laity into offering only vegetarian food. Many Western Buddhists (and not only Mahayanists) are in fact vegetarians today.

In many schools of Mahayana Buddhism, vegetarianism is the rule, and some writers have indulged in polemics against the Theravada school on this score. This, whatever may be said, has not always been purely for reasons of compassion. Shinran Shonin, the founder o the Shin School in Japan, abolished compulsory vegetarianism along with celibacy because he construed it a penitential practice.

ELIXIR OF LIFE (Note 418)

The reference to an elixir noted above is interesting. E. Lamotte, The Teaching of Vimalakirti (English translation, PTS, London 1976), p. 313f., has an interesting and learned note in which he refers to deities mentioned in MN 36, who offered to insert a special divine essence into the Bodhisatta's pores to keep him alive, at the time of his extreme austerities.

He compares the Buddha's last meal with the wondrous food served to the Boddhisattvas by Vimalakriti, which takes seven days to digest, whereas the sukara-maddava eaten by the Buddha can only be digested by the Tathagata [another name for the Buddha] (or so we are told). The trouble was, of course, that in fact even the Tathagata failed to digest it! Cf. also SN 7.1.9.

THE LAST DAYS OF THE BUDDHA (Note 363)

With this Sutta [Sanskrit, sutra, "discourse"], Mrs. Bennett's volume of abridged translations comes to an end. Of greater value was The Last Days of the Buddha, translated by Sister Vajira and revised by Francis Story, with notes by the Ven. Nyanaponika Mahathera (Wheel Publication 67-69, BPS, Kandy 1964).

The Sutta is a composite one, many portions of which are found separately in other parts of the Canon, as listed by Rhys Davids. No doubt it contains the basic facts about the Buddha's last days, but various late and more than dubious elements have been incorporated in it -- a process which continued in the later Sanskrit versions (produced by the Sarvastivadins and other schools), which are known to us mainly from the Chinese and Tibetan translations (though some Sanskrit fragments have been found). For E. Waldschmidt's (German) study of these, see A.K. Warder, Indian Buddhism (2nd ed., London 1907), pp. 123-147.

It should perhaps be mentioned that the (expanded, Sanskrit-based) Mahaparinirvana Sutra is sometimes cited as evidence for the belief in a supreme self in Mahayana Buddhism. One Chinese version does indeed contain a passage to this effect, but this is a late interpolation, and is not representative of the general Mahayana position.