5.
The Discourse on Rohitassa
45.
On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Sāvatthī in Jeta's Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika's park.
Then Rohitassa the young god, when the night was far advanced, with surpassing beauty, having illuminated almost the entire Jeta's Grove, approached the Blessed One;
having approached, he paid respect to the Blessed One and stood to one side.
Standing to one side, Rohitassa the young god said this to the Blessed One -
"Where, venerable sir, there is no being born, no ageing, no dying, no passing away, no being reborn, is it possible, venerable sir, by travelling to know or see or reach the end of the world?" "Where, friend, there is no being born, no ageing, no dying, no passing away, no being reborn, I do not say that by travelling one could know or see or reach the end of the world."
"Wonderful, venerable sir, marvellous, venerable sir! How well spoken is this, venerable sir, by the Blessed One - 'Where, friend, there is no being born, no ageing, no dying, no passing away, no being reborn, I do not say that by travelling one could know or see or reach the end of the world.'"
"Once in the past, venerable sir, I was a sage named Rohitassa, son of Bhoja, possessing supernormal power, able to travel through the sky. For me, venerable sir, such was my speed, just as a skilled archer, trained, practised, experienced, with a light arrow could with little difficulty shoot across the shadow of a palm tree. For me, venerable sir, such was my stride, just as from the eastern ocean to the western ocean. For me, venerable sir, endowed with such speed and with such a stride, such a wish arose - 'I shall reach the end of the world by travelling.' So I, venerable sir, except for eating, drinking, chewing and tasting, except for defecating and urinating, except for dispelling sleepiness and fatigue, with a lifespan of a hundred years, living for a hundred years, having travelled for a hundred years, without reaching the end of the world, I died along the way.
"Wonderful, venerable sir, marvellous, venerable sir! How well spoken is this, venerable sir, by the Blessed One - 'Where, friend, there is no being born, no ageing, no dying, no passing away, no being reborn, I do not say that by travelling one could know or see or reach the end of the world.'"
"Where, friend, there is no being born, no ageing, no dying, no passing away, no being reborn, I do not say that by travelling one could know or see or reach the end of the world. But I do not say, friend, that without reaching the end of the world there is making an end of suffering. Rather, friend, it is in this very fathom-long body with its perception and mind that I declare the world, the origin of the world, the cessation of the world, and the practice leading to the cessation of the world."
And without reaching the end of the world, there is no release from suffering.
Gone to the end of the world, the holy life fulfilled;
Having known the end of the world, the peaceful one,
Does not long for this world or the next." The fifth.