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Anguttara Nikaya

# AN 8.82 uṇṇiya Sutta (The Venerable Puṇṇiya) AN 8.82

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    [page 1]
    Anguttara Nikāya
    The Numerical Discourses

    Aṭṭhakanipāta
    (Book of the Eights)

    AN 8.82

    Puṇṇiya Sutta
    “The Venerable Puṇṇiya”

    Translated by Bhikkhu Candana

    Copyright © Bhikkhu Candana 2023,2024

    Once, the Venerable Puṇṇiya came and approached The Blessed One, and after paying
    his respects by worshipping The Teacher, he sat to one side and said:
    “Bhante, what might be the reason that sometimes The Tathāgata’s Dhamma Talks are so
    revealing and clear to me, but on other occasions, they are not so very clear, and I find myself
    not inspired at all, feeling as though I’m so far from ever realizing their Truth?”
    1. “Puṇṇiya, even though a Bhikkhu might possess faith, when he does not approach The
    Tathāgata to listen to His Dhamma Talks, then The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata
    neither becomes revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    2. “And, Puṇṇiya, while having faith in his heart, when the Bhikkhu does approach The
    Tathāgata to listen to His Dhamma Talks but does not do so with genuine humility and trust
    while attending to Him, then The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata neither becomes
    revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    3. “Furthermore, Puṇṇiya, while having faith when approaching The Tathāgata, the Bhikkhu
    goes on attending to Him with humility and trust, yet as he does so, although he notices that
    doubt or a sense of uncertainty arise in his heart, he does not ask The Teacher the necessary
    questions he must ask in order for The Tathāgata to clear up any confusion or issues he has on
    The Dhamma. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata neither becomes
    revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    4. “Also, Puṇṇiya, while approaching The Tathāgata with faith, humility, and trust, the Bhikkhu
    continues attending to Him, but even though he does ask his questions on The Dhamma, when
    The Tathāgata gives the explanation, the Bhikkhu does not pay heed by fully and attentively

    [page 2]
    listening to what is being said to him. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata
    neither becomes revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    5. “Further, Puṇṇiya, while the Bhikkhu might have faith as he approaches The Tathāgata,
    attending to Him with humility and trust, and after asking his questions, even though the
    Bhikkhu may listen attentively, yet he does not retain what was taught to him nor memorizes it,
    by recalling it again and again in his heart. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The
    Tathāgata neither becomes revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    6. “Also, Puṇṇiya, while the Bhikkhu might approach The Tathāgata with faith, as well as
    humility and trust, continuing to attend to Him and asking questions, but even though he listens
    to Him attentively and may retain The Teachings by memorizing what was taught, yet he does
    not investigate their depth of meaning. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata
    neither becomes revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    7. “Next, Puṇṇiya, when the Bhikkhu approaches The Tathāgata with faith, humility, and trust as
    he goes on attending to Him, and after asking questions and listening attentively, despite
    retaining the teachings by memorizing what was taught, and even though he may investigate the
    depth of meaning of The Dhamma that was taught to him, nevertheless, for the majority of his
    life, the Bhikkhu remains disinterested by not incorporating The Dhamma into his life in order to
    really know and see the truth. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata neither
    becomes revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    8. “And, Puṇṇiya, while having faith in his heart, when the Bhikkhu approaches The Tathāgata
    with humility and trust, as he continues attending to Him, asking questions while listening
    attentively, and although he retains The Teachings by memorizing what was taught, and
    investigates their depth of meaning and the truth in them, by probing from time-to-time what he
    has learned deeply, yet, he still does not want to dedicate himself fully to living a life according
    to The Dhamma. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata neither becomes
    revealed nor realized by that Bhikkhu.
    “On the other hand, Puṇṇiya:
    1. “When a Bhikkhu, while possessing faith in his heart, does approach The Tathāgata to listen to
    His Dhamma Talks, then The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata becomes fully revealed
    and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    2. “Also, Puṇṇiya, while having faith, when the Bhikkhu approaches The Tathāgata to listen to
    His Dhamma Talks with humility and trust, as he goes on attending to Him, then The Dhamma
    being taught by The Tathāgata becomes revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    3. “And, Puṇṇiya, although having faith while approaching The Tathāgata, with humility and
    trust, as he attends to Him, when the Bhikkhu does have doubt or uncertainty arise in his heart,
    he asks The Teacher the necessary questions, which he must ask in order to clear up any
    confusion or issues he may have on The Dhamma. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The
    Tathāgata becomes fully revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.

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    4. “Next, Puṇṇiya, having faith while approaching The Tathāgata, with humility and trust as he
    attends to Him, the Bhikkhu does not hesitate to ask his questions on The Dhamma, and when
    The Tathāgata gives the explanations, he does pay heed by fully and attentively listening to what
    is being said to him. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata becomes fully
    revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    5. “Further, Puṇṇiya, while having faith, the Bhikkhu approaches The Tathāgata with humility
    and trust as he continues attending to Him, and after asking his questions and listening
    attentively, he does retain what was taught to him and memorizes it, by recalling it again and
    again in his heart. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata becomes fully
    revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    6. “Also, Puṇṇiya, when the Bhikkhu approaches The Tathāgata with faith, along with humility
    and trust, as he goes on attending to Him and never misses an opportunity to ask his questions,
    and while listening to The Teacher attentively, he retains by memorizing what was taught to him,
    he thus goes on to investigate and probe their depth of meaning. As a result, The Dhamma being
    taught by The Tathāgata becomes fully revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    7. “Next, Puṇṇiya, when the Bhikkhu approaches The Tathāgata with faith, attending to Him
    with genuine humility and trust, and after asking his questions and listening attentively, and
    while retaining in his heart The Teachings by memorizing them, he proceeds to investigate and
    probe the depth of meaning found within The Dhamma taught to him. To this end, the Bhikkhu
    maintains his interest and drive to penetrate their meaning and thereby comes to personally know
    and see their truth. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata becomes fully
    revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    8. “And, Puṇṇiya, when the Bhikkhu has faith and approaches The Tathāgata with humility and
    trust while attending to Him, asking questions and listening attentively, and by retaining The
    Teachings and memorizing what was taught, he goes on to investigate their depth of meaning by
    probing and thus penetrating their truth, he then dedicates himself fully to living a life according
    to The Dhamma, making It his primary goal in life. As a result, The Dhamma being taught by
    The Tathāgata becomes fully revealed and realized by that Bhikkhu.
    “In this manner, Puṇṇiya, The Dhamma being taught by The Tathāgata becomes fully revealed
    and realized by that Bhikkhu.”

    Sādhu

    Sādhu

    Sādhu

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