99. The Threefold Knowledge

Vuttañhetaṁ bhagavatā vuttamarahatāti me sutaṁ:

“Dhammenāhaṁ, bhikkhave, tevijjaṁ brāhmaṇaṁ paññāpemi, nāññaṁ lapitalāpanamattena.

Kathañcāhaṁ, bhikkhave, dhammena tevijjaṁ brāhmaṇaṁ paññāpemi, nāññaṁ lapitalāpanamattena?

Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu anekavihitaṁ pubbenivāsaṁ anussarati, seyyathidaṁ—ekampi jātiṁ dvepi jātiyo tissopi jātiyo catassopi jātiyo pañcapi jātiyo dasapi jātiyo vīsampi jātiyo tiṁsampi jātiyo cattālīsampi jātiyo paññāsampi jātiyo jātisatampi jātisahassampi jātisatasahassampi anekepi saṁvaṭṭakappe anekepi vivaṭṭakappe anekepi saṁvaṭṭavivaṭṭakappe: ‘amutrāsiṁ evaṁnāmo evaṅgotto evaṁvaṇṇo evamāhāro evaṁsukhadukkhappaṭisaṁvedī evamāyupariyanto. So tato cuto amutra udapādiṁ. Tatrāpāsiṁ evaṁnāmo evaṅgotto evaṁvaṇṇo evamāhāro evaṁsukhadukkhappaṭisaṁvedī evamāyupariyanto. So tato cuto idhūpapanno’ti. Iti sākāraṁ sauddesaṁ anekavihitaṁ pubbenivāsaṁ anussarati.

Ayamassa paṭhamā vijjā adhigatā hoti, avijjā vihatā, vijjā uppannā, tamo vihato, āloko uppanno, yathā taṁ appamattassa ātāpino pahitattassa viharato.

Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhave, bhikkhu dibbena cakkhunā visuddhena atikkantamānusakena satte passati cavamāne upapajjamāne hīne paṇīte suvaṇṇe dubbaṇṇe, sugate duggate yathākammūpage satte pajānāti: ‘ime vata bhonto sattā kāyaduccaritena samannāgatā vacīduccaritena samannāgatā manoduccaritena samannāgatā ariyānaṁ upavādakā micchādiṭṭhikā micchādiṭṭhikammasamādānā. Te kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā apāyaṁ duggatiṁ vinipātaṁ nirayaṁ upapannā. Ime vā pana bhonto sattā kāyasucaritena samannāgatā vacīsucaritena samannāgatā manosucaritena samannāgatā ariyānaṁ anupavādakā sammādiṭṭhikā sammādiṭṭhikammasamādānā. Te kāyassa bhedā paraṁ maraṇā sugatiṁ saggaṁ lokaṁ upapannā’ti. Iti dibbena cakkhunā visuddhena atikkantamānusakena satte passati cavamāne upapajjamāne hīne paṇīte suvaṇṇe dubbaṇṇe, sugate duggate yathākammūpage satte pajānāti.

Ayamassa dutiyā vijjā adhigatā hoti, avijjā vihatā, vijjā uppannā, tamo vihato, āloko uppanno, yathā taṁ appamattassa ātāpino pahitattassa viharato.

Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhave, bhikkhu āsavānaṁ khayā anāsavaṁ cetovimuttiṁ paññāvimuttiṁ diṭṭheva dhamme sayaṁ abhiññā sacchikatvā upasampajja viharati.

Ayamassa tatiyā vijjā adhigatā hoti, avijjā vihatā, vijjā uppannā, tamo vihato, āloko uppanno, yathā taṁ appamattassa ātāpino pahitattassa viharato.

Evaṁ kho ahaṁ, bhikkhave, dhammena tevijjaṁ brāhmaṇaṁ paññāpemi, nāññaṁ lapitalāpanamattenā”ti.

Etamatthaṁ bhagavā avoca.

Tatthetaṁ iti vuccati:

“Pubbenivāsaṁ yoveti,

saggāpāyañca passati;

Atho jātikkhayaṁ patto,

abhiññāvosito muni.

Etāhi tīhi vijjāhi,

tevijjo hoti brāhmaṇo;

Tamahaṁ vadāmi tevijjaṁ,

nāññaṁ lapitalāpanan”ti.

Ayampi attho vutto bhagavatā, iti me sutanti.

Dasamaṁ.

Pañcamo vaggo.

Tassuddānaṁ

Pasāda jīvita saṅghāṭi,

aggi upaparikkhayā;

Upapatti kāma kalyāṇaṁ,

dānaṁ dhammena te dasāti.

Tikanipāto niṭṭhito.

This was said by the Lord…

“Bhikkhus, I declare that it is through the Dhamma that one becomes a brahmin possessing the threefold knowledge: (I do not say this) of another merely because he can talk persuasively and recite. And how do I declare that it is through the Dhamma that one becomes a brahmin possessing the threefold knowledge?

“Here, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu recollects a variety of former lives, that is, one birth, two births, three births, four births, five births, ten births, twenty births, thirty births, forty births, fifty births, a hundred births, a thousand births, a hundred thousand births; many aeons of world-contraction, many aeons of world-expansion, many aeons of both world-contraction and expansion. He recollects in a particular life being such a one by name, of such a clan, of such an appearance, having this kind of nutriment, experiencing these kinds of pleasure and pain, having this lifespan; and deceasing from there he arose here. Thus with all their details and particulars he recollects a variety of former lives. This is the first knowledge attained by him. Ignorance is dispelled, knowledge has arisen; darkness is dispelled, light has arisen, as happens in one who lives diligent, ardent, and resolute.

“Then again, bhikkhus, with the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human, a bhikkhu sees beings passing away and reappearing, inferior and superior, fair and ugly, fortunate and unfortunate, and he understands how beings pass on according to their deeds thus: ‘Those worthy beings practising misconduct by body, speech, and mind, insulters of the noble ones, of wrong view and undertaking deeds in consequence of wrong view, when the body perishes have been reborn after death in a state of misery, a bad bourn, a state of ruin, hell. But those worthy beings practising good conduct by body, speech, and mind, not insulters of the noble ones, of right view and undertaking deeds in consequence of right view, when the body perishes, have been reborn after death in a good bourn, a heavenly world.’ Thus he sees this with the divine eye and he understands how beings pass on according to their deeds. This is the second knowledge attained by him. Ignorance is dispelled, knowledge has arisen; darkness is dispelled, light has arisen, as happens in one who lives diligent, ardent, and resolute.

“Then again, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu, through realization by his own direct knowledge, here and now enters and abides in the mind-release and wisdom-release that is taintless by the destruction of the taints. This is the third knowledge attained by him. Ignorance is dispelled, knowledge has arisen; darkness is dispelled, light has arisen, as happens in one who lives diligent, ardent, and resolute.

“Thus, bhikkhus, do I declare that it is through the Dhamma that one becomes a brahmin possessing the threefold knowledge; (I do not say this) of another merely because he can talk persuasively and recite.”

He who knows his former lives,
Who sees heaven and states of woe,
Who reaches the end of birth,
A sage and master of direct knowledge—

By these three ways of knowing one becomes
A brahmin having the threefold knowledge.
That is what I call the threefold knowledge,
Not another’s babbling and reciting.

This too is the meaning of what was said by the Lord, so I heard.