VIII. Discernment
Three types of discernment:
discernment that comes from listening (sutamaya-paññā),
discernment that comes from thinking (cintāmaya-paññā),
discernment that comes from developing (bhāvanāmaya-paññā). — DN 33
“This is the way leading to discernment: when visiting a contemplative or brahman, to ask, ‘What is skillful, venerable sir? What is unskillful? What is blameworthy? What is blameless? What should be cultivated? What should not be cultivated? What, having been done by me, will be for my long-term harm & suffering? Or what, having been done by me, will be for my long-term welfare & happiness?’” — MN 135
“And what is the food for the arising of unarisen analysis of qualities as a factor for awakening, or for the growth & increase of analysis of qualities… once it has arisen? There are mental qualities that are skillful & unskillful, blameworthy & blameless, gross & refined, siding with darkness & with light. To foster appropriate attention to them: This is the food for the arising of unarisen analysis of qualities as a factor for awakening, or for the growth & increase of analysis of qualities… once it has arisen.” — SN 46:51
“And what is the right view that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in acquisitions? ‘There is what is given, what is offered, what is sacrificed. There are fruits & results of good & bad actions. There is this world & the next world. There is mother & father. There are spontaneously reborn beings; there are contemplatives and brahmans who, faring rightly & practicing rightly, proclaim this world & the next after having directly known & realized it for themselves.’ This is the right view that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in acquisitions.
“And what is the right view that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path? The discernment, the faculty of discernment, the strength of discernment, analysis of qualities as a factor for Awakening, the path factor of right view in one developing the noble path whose mind is noble, whose mind is free from effluents, who is fully possessed of the noble path. This is the right view that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.…
“And what is the right resolve that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in acquisitions? Being resolved on renunciation, on freedom from ill will, on harmlessness. This is the right resolve that has effluents, sides with merit, & results in acquisitions.
“And what is the right resolve that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path? The thinking, directed thinking, resolve, mental absorption, mental fixity, focused awareness, & verbal fabrications in one developing the noble path whose mind is noble, whose mind is without effluents, who is fully possessed of the noble path. This is the right resolve that is without effluents, transcendent, a factor of the path.
“One tries to abandon wrong resolve & to enter into right resolve: This is one’s right effort. One is mindful to abandon wrong resolve & to enter & remain in right resolve: This is one’s right mindfulness. Thus these three qualities—right view, right effort, & right mindfulness—run & circle around right resolve.” —MN 117
“And what is the faculty of discernment? There is the case where a monk, a disciple of the noble ones, is discerning, endowed with discernment of arising & passing away—noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress. He discerns, as it has come to be: ‘This is stress…This is the origination of stress…This is the cessation of stress…This is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress.’ This is called the faculty of discernment.” — SN 48:10
When you see with discernment, ‘All fabrications are inconstant’…. ‘All fabrications are stressful’…. ‘All phenomena are not-self’— you grow disenchanted with stress. This is the path to purity. — Dhp 277–279
“‘Stress should be known. The cause by which stress comes into play should be known. The diversity in stress should be known. The result of stress should be known. The cessation of stress should be known. The path of practice for the cessation of stress should be known.’ Thus it has been said. Why was it said?
“Birth is stress, aging is stress, death is stress; sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair are stress; association with what is not loved is stress, separation from what is loved is stress, not getting what is wanted is stress. In short, the five aggregates for sustenance are stress.
“And what is the cause by which stress comes into play? Craving is the cause by which stress comes into play.
“And what is the diversity in stress? There is major stress & minor, slowly fading & quickly fading. This is called the diversity in stress.
“And what is the result of stress? There are some cases in which a person overcome with pain, his mind exhausted, grieves, mourns, laments, beats his breast, & becomes bewildered. Or one overcome with pain, his mind exhausted, comes to search outside, ‘Who knows a way or two to stop this pain?’ I tell you, monks, that stress results either in bewilderment or in search.
“And what is the cessation of stress? From the cessation of craving is the cessation of stress; and just this noble eightfold path is the path of practice leading to the cessation of stress: right view, right aspiration, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration.” — AN 6:63
Ven. Kaccāyana: “Lord, ‘right view, right view,’ it is said. To what extent is there right view?’
The Buddha: “By & large, Kaccāyana, this world is supported by [takes as its object] a polarity, that of existence & non-existence. But when one sees the origination of the world as it actually is with right discernment, ‘non-existence’ with reference to the world does not occur to one. When one sees the cessation of the world as it actually is with right discernment, ‘existence’ with reference to the world does not occur to one.
“By & large, Kaccāyana, this world is in bondage to attachments, clingings [sustenance’s], & biases. But one such as this does not get involved with or cling to these attachments, clingings, fixations of awareness, biases, or latent tendencies; nor is he resolved on “my self.” He has no uncertainty or doubt that mere stress, when arising, is arising; stress, when passing away, is passing away. In this, one’s knowledge is independent of others. It is to this extent, Kaccāyana, that there is right view.” — SN 12:15
Then Anāthapiṇḍika the householder went to where the wanderers of other persuasions were staying. On arrival he greeted them courteously. After an exchange of friendly greetings & courtesies, he sat down to one side. As he was sitting there, the wanderers said to him, ‘Tell us, householder, what views the contemplative Gotama has.’
‘Venerable sirs, I don’t know entirely what views the Blessed One has.’
‘Well, well. So you don’t know entirely what views the contemplative Gotama has. Then tell us what views the monks have.’
‘I don’t even know entirely what views the monks have.’
‘So you don’t know entirely what views the contemplative Gotama has or even that the monks have. Then tell us what views you have.’
‘It wouldn’t be difficult for me to expound to you what views I have. But please let the venerable ones expound each in line with his position, and then it won’t be difficult for me to expound to you what views I have.’
When this had been said, one of the wanderers said to Anāthapiṇḍika the householder, ‘The cosmos is eternal. Only this is true; anything otherwise is worthless. This is the sort of view I have.’
Another wanderer said to Anāthapiṇḍika, ‘The cosmos is not eternal. Only this is true; anything otherwise is worthless. This is the sort of view I have.’
Another wanderer said, ‘The cosmos is finite…’…‘The cosmos is infinite…’…‘The soul & the body are the same…’…‘The soul is one thing and the body another…’…‘After death a Tathāgata exists…’…‘After death a Tathāgata does not exist…’…‘After death a Tathāgata both does & does not exist…’…‘After death a Tathāgata neither does nor does not exist. Only this is true; anything otherwise is worthless. This is the sort of view I have.’
When this had been said, Anāthapiṇḍika the householder said to the wanderers, ‘As for the venerable one who says, “The cosmos is eternal. Only this is true; anything otherwise is worthless. This is the sort of view I have,” his view arises from his own inappropriate attention or in dependence on the words of another. Now this view has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently co-arisen. Whatever has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently co-arisen, that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress. This venerable one thus adheres to that very stress, submits himself to that very stress.’ (Similarly for the other positions.)
When this had been said, the wanderers said to Anāthapiṇḍika the householder, ‘We have each & every one expounded to you in line with our own positions. Now tell us what views you have.’
‘Whatever has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently co-arisen, that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress. Whatever is stress is not mine, is not what I am, is not my self. This is the sort of view I have.’
‘So, householder, whatever has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently co-arisen, that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress. You thus adhere to that very stress, submit yourself to that very stress.’
‘Venerable sirs, whatever has been brought into being, is fabricated, willed, dependently co-arisen, that is inconstant. Whatever is inconstant is stress. Whatever is stress is not mine, is not what I am, is not my self. Having seen this well with right discernment as it actually is present, I also discern the higher escape from it as it actually is present.’
When this had been said, the wanderers fell silent, abashed, sitting with their shoulders drooping, their heads down, brooding, at a loss for words. Anāthapiṇḍika the householder, perceiving that the wanderers were silent, abashed…at a loss for words, got up & left. — AN 9:93
