Home | Dhamma | Teachings | Practice | Glossary | Tipiṭaka | Suttas

Anguttara Nikaya

# AN 3.116 Āneñja Sutta (Immovable States) AN 3.116

Download TXT Download PDF Browse this collection Home

Candana Bhikkhu audio

## Listen on YouTube

- The Numerical Discourses: Book III: Suttas 111-120, "The Section on the Miserable Realms." (Duration: 38:45)

## Text

    [page 1]
    AN 3.116
    Āneñja Sutta
    “Immovable States”
    Translated by Bhikkhu Candana

    Copyright © Bhikkhu Candana 2020

    “Bhikkhus, these three persons are known to exist in the world. What three?
    “Here Bhikkhus, a certain person having overcome all perceptions and memories pertaining to
    matter and going beyond those thoughts and memories that incite anger, not attending to the
    diversity of memories and mental conjuring, and no longer being instigated through sensory
    involvement, experiences the boundlessness of space, by attaining to that base. He becomes
    attached to it, craving for it to last, as he strives after it while finding satisfaction in it. Becoming
    infatuated with it and making much of it, without falling away from it, after his death, he is
    reborn in the company of Devas within the realm of boundless space. The Devas living within
    the realm of boundless space have a life span of twenty thousand world cycles or eons. An
    ordinary person having lived and completed that life span by using up the merits of his divine
    birth goes to hell, or to the animal realm, or is reborn with the afflicted spirits or ghosts. As for
    the disciples of the Blessed One, once having completed the life span in that divine realm, he
    attains final Nibbāna within that same existence. Bhikkhus, this is the difference and the
    distinction of the future rebirth destination between the instructed noble disciple and that of the
    ordinary person.
    “Again, Bhikkhus, by fully going beyond the sphere of the boundless space, by knowing that
    consciousness is infinite and without boundaries, one experiences the boundlessness of
    consciousness by attaining to that base. He becomes attached to it, craving for it to last, as he
    strives after it while finding satisfaction in it. Becoming infatuated with it and making much of it,
    without falling away from it, after his death, he is reborn in the company of Devas within the
    realm of boundlessness of consciousness. The Devas living within the realm of boundless
    consciousness have a life span of forty thousand world cycles or eons. An ordinary person
    having lived and completed that life span by using up the merits of his divine birth goes to hell,
    or to the animal realm, or is reborn with the afflicted spirits or ghosts. As for the disciples of the
    Blessed One, once having completed the life span in that divine realm, he attains final Nibbāna
    within that same existence. Bhikkhus, this is the difference and the distinction of the future
    rebirth destination between the instructed noble disciple and that of the ordinary person.
    “Again, Bhikkhus, by fully going beyond the sphere of boundlessness of consciousness, by
    knowing that there is nothing, one enters into and dwells in the base of nothingness. He becomes
    attached to it, craving for it to last, as he strives after it while finding satisfaction in it. Becoming
    infatuated with it and making much of it, without falling away from it, after his death, he is
    reborn in the company of Devas within the realm of nothingness. The Devas living within the
    realm of nothingness have a life span of sixty thousand world cycles or eons. An ordinary person
    having lived and completed that life span by using up the merits of his divine birth goes to hell,

    [page 2]
    or to the animal realm, or is reborn with the afflicted spirits or ghosts. As for the disciples of the
    Blessed One, once having completed that life span in that divine realm, he attains final Nibbāna
    within that same existence. Bhikkhus, this is the difference and the distinction of the future
    rebirth destination between the instructed noble disciple and that of the ordinary person.
    “Bhikkhus, these are the three persons known to exist in the world.”

    Sadhu
    Sadhu
    Sadhu

Contact: admin@opensourceeverything.net