6.
The Third Discourse on the Decline of the Good Teaching
156.
"Monks, these five things lead to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching.
Which five?
Here, monks, monks learn a discourse that has been misapprehended, with wrongly placed phrasing.
For wrongly placed phrasing, monks, the meaning too is wrongly inferred.
This, monks, is the first thing that leads to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, monks are difficult to admonish, endowed with qualities that make them difficult to admonish, impatient, not receiving instruction respectfully. This, monks, is the second thing that leads to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, those monks who are very learned, who have learnt the collections, who are bearers of the Teaching, bearers of the monastic discipline, bearers of the matrices, they do not carefully teach the discourse to others; with their passing away, the discourse becomes cut off at the root, without refuge. This, monks, is the third thing that leads to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, the elder monks are luxurious, lax, forerunners in falling away, having laid down the responsibility for solitude, they do not arouse energy for the attainment of the unattained, for the achievement of the unachieved, for the realisation of the unrealised. Their later generation follows the example of what they have seen. They too are luxurious, lax, forerunners in falling away, having laid down the responsibility for solitude, they do not arouse energy for the attainment of the unattained, for the achievement of the unachieved, for the realisation of the unrealised. This, monks, is the fourth thing that leads to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, the monastic community is split. But when the monastic community is split, monks, there is mutual reviling, there is mutual abuse, there is mutual exclusion, there is mutual abandonment. Therein those without faith do not gain faith, and for some of those with faith there is alteration. This, monks, is the fifth thing that leads to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching. These, monks, are the five things that lead to the decay and disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Monks, these five things lead to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching. Which five? Here, monks, monks learn a discourse that has been rightly taken, with rightly placed phrasing. For rightly placed phrasing, monks, the meaning too is rightly inferred. This, monks, is the first thing that leads to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, monks are easy to admonish, endowed with qualities that make for being easy to admonish, patient, receiving instruction respectfully. This, monks, is the second thing that leads to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, those monks who are very learned, who have learnt the collections, who are bearers of the Teaching, bearers of the monastic discipline, bearers of the matrices, they carefully teach the discourse to others; with their passing away, the discourse is not cut off at the root, it has a refuge. This, monks, is the third factor that leads to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, the elder monks are not luxurious, not lax, having laid down the responsibility for falling away, forerunners in solitude; they arouse energy for the attainment of the unattained, for the achievement of the unachieved, for the realisation of the unrealised. Their later generation follows the example of what they have seen. They too are not luxurious, not lax, having laid down the responsibility for falling away, forerunners in solitude, they arouse energy for the attainment of the unattained, for the achievement of the unachieved, for the realisation of the unrealised. This, monks, is the fourth factor that leads to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching.
"Furthermore, monks, the monastic community dwells in unity, being joyful, without contention, with common recitation, comfortably. But when the monastic community is united, monks, there is no mutual reviling, there is no mutual abuse, there is no mutual exclusion, there is no mutual abandonment. Therein those without faith gain faith, and for those with faith there is increase. This, monks, is the fifth thing that leads to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching. These, monks, are the five things that lead to the presence, non-decay, and non-disappearance of the Good Teaching." The sixth.