6.
The Discourse to Mahākaccāna
26.
There the Venerable Mahākaccāna addressed the monks -
"Friends, monks!"
"Friend," those monks assented to the Venerable Mahākaccāna.
The Venerable Mahākaccāna said this -
"It is wonderful, friend;
it is marvellous, friend!
How well the achievement of opportunity in confinement has been understood by that Blessed One, who knows and sees, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Enlightened One, for the purification of beings, for the transcendence of sorrow and lamentation, for the passing away of pain and displeasure, for the achievement of the true method, for the realisation of Nibbāna, that is to say, the six states of recollection.
"What are the six? Here, friend, a noble disciple recollects the Truth-finder - 'Thus indeed is the Blessed One, etc. Teacher of gods and humans, the Enlightened One, the Blessed One.' Friend, at the time when a noble disciple recollects the Truth-finder, at that time his mind is not pervaded by lust, his mind is not pervaded by hate, his mind is not pervaded by delusion; at that time his mind is upright, gone out, released, emerged from greed. 'Greed', friend, is a designation for these five kinds of sensual pleasure. That noble disciple, friend, dwells altogether with a mind like space, extensive, exalted, limitless, without enmity, without ill-will. This too, friend, having made this an object, thus some beings here become of purifying nature.
"Furthermore, friend, a noble disciple recollects the Teaching - 'Well proclaimed by the Blessed One is the Teaching, etc. to be individually experienced by the wise.' Friend, at the time when a noble disciple recollects the Teaching, at that time his mind is not pervaded by lust, his mind is not pervaded by hate, his mind is not pervaded by delusion; at that time his mind is upright, gone out, released, emerged from greed. 'Greed', friend, is a designation for these five kinds of sensual pleasure. That noble disciple, friend, dwells altogether with a mind like space, extensive, exalted, limitless, without enmity, without ill-will. This too, friend, having made this an object, thus some beings here become of purifying nature.
"Furthermore, friend, a noble disciple recollects the Community - 'The Community of the Blessed One's disciples is practicing well, etc. an unsurpassed field of merit for the world.' Friend, at the time when a noble disciple recollects the Community, at that time his mind is not pervaded by lust, his mind is not pervaded by hate, his mind is not pervaded by delusion; at that time his mind is upright, gone out, released, emerged from greed. 'Greed', friend, is a designation for these five kinds of sensual pleasure. That noble disciple, friend, dwells altogether with a mind like space, extensive, exalted, limitless, without enmity, without ill-will. This too, friend, having made this an object, thus some beings here become of purifying nature.
"Furthermore, friends, a noble disciple recollects one's own moral practices that are unbroken, etc. conducive to concentration. At the time, friends, when a noble disciple recollects one's own morality, at that time his mind is not pervaded by lust, his mind is not pervaded by hate, his mind is not pervaded by delusion; at that time his mind is upright, gone out, released, emerged from greed. 'Greed', friend, is a designation for these five kinds of sensual pleasure. That noble disciple, friend, dwells altogether with a mind like space, extensive, exalted, limitless, without enmity, without ill-will. This too, friend, having made this an object, thus some beings here become of purifying nature.
"Furthermore, friends, a noble disciple recollects one's own generosity - 'It is a gain for me indeed, it is well-gained for me indeed, etc. accessible to requests, delighting in giving and sharing.' At the time, friends, when a noble disciple recollects one's own generosity, at that time his mind is not pervaded by lust, his mind is not pervaded by hate, his mind is not pervaded by delusion; at that time his mind is upright, gone out, released, emerged from greed. 'Greed', friend, is a designation for these five kinds of sensual pleasure. That noble disciple, friend, dwells altogether with a mind like space, extensive, exalted, limitless, without enmity, without ill-will. This too, friend, having made this an object, thus some beings here become of purifying nature.
"Furthermore, friends, a noble disciple recollects the deities - 'There are the gods ruled by the four great kings, there are the gods, etc. beyond that. Endowed with such faith as those deities were endowed with, having passed away from here, they were reborn there; such faith is also found in me. Endowed with such morality, etc. is endowed with learning... is endowed with generosity... endowed with such wisdom, those deities, having passed away from here, were reborn there; such wisdom is also found in me.' At the time, friends, when a noble disciple recollects the faith and morality and learning and generosity and wisdom of oneself and of those deities, at that time his mind is not pervaded by lust, his mind is not pervaded by hate, his mind is not pervaded by delusion; at that time his mind is upright, gone out, released, emerged from greed. 'Greed', friend, is a designation for these five kinds of sensual pleasure. That noble disciple, friend, dwells altogether with a mind like space, extensive, exalted, limitless, without enmity, without ill-will. This too, friend, having made this an object, thus some beings here become of purifying nature.
"It is wonderful, friend; it is marvellous, friend! How well the achievement of opportunity in confinement has been understood by that Blessed One, who knows and sees, the Worthy One, the Perfectly Enlightened One, for the purification of beings, for the transcendence of sorrow and lamentation, for the passing away of pain and displeasure, for the achievement of the true method, for the realisation of Nibbāna, that is to say, the six states of recollection." The sixth.