Protectors (2)
Nātha Sutta (AN 10:18)
“Live with a protector, monks, and not without a protector. He suffers, one who lives without a protector. And these ten are qualities creating a protector. Which ten?
“There is the case where a monk is virtuous. He dwells restrained in accordance with the Pāṭimokkha, consummate in his behavior & sphere of activity. He trains himself, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults. [When they think,] ‘How virtuous is this monk! He dwells restrained in accordance with the Pāṭimokkha, consummate in his behavior & sphere of activity. He trains himself, having undertaken the training rules, seeing danger in the slightest faults,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk has heard much, has retained what he has heard, has stored what he has heard. Whatever teachings are admirable in the beginning, admirable in the middle, admirable in the end, that—in their meaning & expression—proclaim the holy life that is entirely perfect, surpassingly pure: Those he has listened to often, retained, discussed, accumulated, examined with his mind, & well-penetrated in terms of his views. [When they think,] ‘How much this monk has heard! Whatever teachings are admirable in the beginning, admirable in the middle, admirable in the end, that—in their meaning & expression—proclaim the holy life that is entirely perfect, surpassingly pure: Those he has listened to often, retained, discussed, accumulated, examined with his mind, & well-penetrated in terms of his views,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk has admirable friends, admirable comrades, admirable companions. [When they think,] ‘How this monk has admirable friends, admirable comrades, admirable companions!’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk is easy to speak to, endowed with qualities that make him easy to speak to, patient, respectful to instruction. [When they think,] ‘How easy this monk is to speak to! He is endowed with qualities that make him easy to speak to, patient, respectful to instruction,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk is adept at the various affairs involving his companions in the holy life; is vigorous, quick-witted in the techniques involved in them, is up to doing them or arranging to get them done. [When they think,] ‘How adept this monk is at the various affairs involving his companions in the holy life! He is vigorous, quick-witted in the techniques involved in them, is up to doing them or arranging to get them done,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk is one who desires the Dhamma, endearing in his conversation, greatly rejoicing in the higher Dhamma & higher Vinaya. [When they think,] ‘How this monk is one who desires the Dhamma! He is endearing in his conversation, greatly rejoicing in the higher Dhamma & higher Vinaya,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk keeps his persistence aroused for abandoning unskillful qualities & for taking on skillful qualities. He is steadfast, solid in his effort, not shirking his duties with regard to skillful qualities. [When they think,] ‘How this monk keeps his persistence aroused for abandoning unskillful qualities & for taking on skillful qualities! He is steadfast, solid in his effort, not shirking his duties with regard to skillful qualities,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk is content with any old robe cloth at all, any old alms food, any old lodging, any old medicinal requisites for curing sickness at all. [When they think,] ‘How this monk is content with any old robe cloth at all, any old alms food, any old lodging, any old medicinal requisites for curing sickness at all!’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk is mindful, endowed with excellent proficiency in mindfulness, remembering & recollecting what was done & said a long time ago. [When they think,] ‘How mindful is this monk! He is endowed with excellent proficiency in mindfulness, remembering & recollecting what was done & said a long time ago,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Then again, the monk is discerning, endowed with discernment of arising & passing away—noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress. [When they think,] ‘How this monk is discerning! He is endowed with discernment of arising & passing away—noble, penetrating, leading to the right ending of stress,’ elder monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. Even monks of middle standing & newcoming monks think that he should be corrected & instructed. For him—treated with sympathy by the elders, sympathy by those of middle standing, & sympathy by newcomers—growth in skillful qualities is to be expected, and not decline. This, too, is a quality creating a protector.
“Live with a protector, monks, and not without a protector. He suffers, one who lives without a protector. These are the ten qualities creating a protector.”
