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Anguttara Nikāya 
The Numerical Discourses  
 
Navakanipāta  
(Book of the Nines) 
 
AN 9.34 
 
Nibbānasukha Sutta  
“The Bliss that is Nibbāna” 
 
Translated by Bhikkhu Candana 
 
Copyright © Bhikkhu Candana 2023 
 
This is what I personally heard. 
Once, the Venerable Sāriputta was staying at the Squirrels’ Sanctuary, in the Bamboo Park 
within the Kingdom of Rājagaha.  
There, the Venerable Sāriputta, while being among his fellow Bhikkhus, declared:  
“Friends, this Nibbāna is bliss! This Nibbāna indeed is bliss!” 
And just at that moment, on hearing this, the Venerable Udāyi turned to the Venerable Sāriputta 
and retorted:  
“But Friend, where is the bliss, when there is nothing to be felt?” 
And the Venerable Sāriputta quickly replied: 
“That’s exactly it, friend! The very fact that there is nothing to be felt! 
And he continued by instructing the Bhikkhus: 
“Friends, there are these five strands of sensual stimulation. What five?  
“Pleasant forms picked up by the eyes that are enjoyable and lovely, driving one to want to look 
at again, and for longer, provoking passions to arise and agitate the heart.  
“Pleasant audible sounds picked up by the ears, that are enjoyable and lovely, driving one to 
want to listen to again, and for longer, provoking passions to arise and agitate the heart.

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“Pleasant odors picked up by the nose, that are enjoyable and lovely, driving one to want to 
smell again, and for longer, provoking passions to arise and agitate the heart. 
“Pleasant flavors picked up by the tongue, that are enjoyable and lovely, driving one to want to 
taste again, and for longer, provoking passions to arise and agitate the heart. 
“Pleasant touches picked up by the body, that are enjoyable and lovely, driving one to want to 
touch again, and for longer, provoking passions to arise and agitate the heart. 
“These, friends, are the five strands of sensual stimulation. Now, whatever happiness or pleasure 
that arises while being conditioned and caused by these five strands of sensual pleasure, is called 
‘sensual pleasure.’ 
1. “But, friends, when the Bhikkhu, by secluding his mind and thus no longer running after 
things having to do with sensuality, pulls his attention inwards and becomes quite secluded from 
sensual pleasures, secluded from unwholesome and bad merit-making states, he enters upon and 
remains in the first jhāna, which is accompanied by thinking and pondering, while experiencing 
a strong flood of spiritual joy and ecstasy, all resulting from such seclusion.  
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that jhāna, if by any chance perceptions or memories pertaining 
to sensual pleasures creep in, trying to shake his attention, he immediately experiences them as 
upsetting to his practice, seeing those sense pleasures as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression, which one has to then 
endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
2. “Again, friends, when the Bhikkhu, by stilling his thinking process and without fighting with 
himself, turns his attention away from his thoughts by not engaging with them any further, he 
comes to experience the disappearance of both thinking and pondering. In this way, he enters 
upon and remains in the second jhāna, which continues to be accompanied by a strong flood of 
spiritual joy and ecstasy, that are now the result of his growing and stable collectedness of heart, 
his samādhi. 
“And while the Bhikkhu is in that jhāna, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts pertaining to 
memories creep in, trying to shake his attention, he immediately experiences them as upsetting to 
his practice, seeing those thoughts and memories as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression, that one has to then 
endure.

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“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
3. “Again, friends, when the Bhikkhu goes deeper in his meditation and without holding on to 
anything, including the experience of spiritual joy, he witnesses it to begin to vanish and cease. 
Thus, he abides in a state of equanimity, while being mindful and fully aware, still feeling a 
subtle ecstasy throughout, as he enters upon and abides in the third jhāna, for which reason the 
Noble Ones declare:  
‘It is such a one indeed who is serenely mindful; abiding in happiness; with an ever-present 
sense of equanimity.’ 
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that jhāna, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts pertaining to 
joy creep in, trying to shake his attention, he immediately experiences them as upsetting to his 
practice, seeing those thoughts or perceptions about joy as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression that one has to then endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are in themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
4. “Again, friends, when the Bhikkhu gives up both pleasure and pain, and having already gone 
beyond joy and anguish, he remains in the continuous state of purifying mindfulness with an 
ever-present sense of equanimity, as he enters upon and abides in the fourth jhāna, while 
experiencing neither pleasure nor pain, having now gone beyond both. 
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that jhāna, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts pertaining to 
pleasure creep in, trying to shake his attention, he immediately experiences them as upsetting to 
his practice, seeing those thoughts about pleasure as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression, that one has to then 
endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are in themselves, none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
5. “Again, friends, by having completely transcended and gone beyond the confines of the 
physical world and of tangibility, along with the disappearance of perceptions dealing with

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sensory reflexive contact, and by no longer paying any attention to the multiplicity of unending 
perceptions, and instead, remaining fully aware of how ‘space is infinitely boundless,’ the 
Bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the dimension of ‘Boundless Infinity of Space.’ 
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that dimension, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts 
pertaining to forms creep in, trying to shake his attention, he immediately experiences them as 
upsetting to his practice, seeing those thoughts about forms as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression, that one has to then 
endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are in themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
6. “Again, friends, having completely transcended and gone beyond the perception of space 
being infinitely boundless, and by experiencing and being fully aware of how ‘consciousness is 
boundlessly infinite,’ the Bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the dimension of ‘boundless infinity 
of Consciousness.’ 
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that dimension, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts 
pertaining to space being infinitely boundless creep in, trying to shake his attention, he 
immediately experiences them as upsetting to his practice, seeing those thoughts about space 
being infinitely boundless as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression, that one has to then 
endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are in themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
7. “Again, friends, having completely transcended and gone beyond the perception of 
consciousness being infinitely boundless, and by experiencing and being fully aware of how 
‘there is only nothingness,’ the Bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the dimension of 
‘nothingness.’ 
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that dimension, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts 
pertaining to consciousness being infinitely boundless creep in, trying to shake his attention, he 
immediately experiences them as upsetting to his practice, seeing those thoughts about 
consciousness being infinitely boundless as no more than a cruel harassment.

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“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression, that one has to then 
endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are in themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
8. “Again, friends, by having completely transcended and gone beyond the perception of 
nothingness, the Bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the dimension of ‘neither perception nor 
non-perception.’ 
“Now, while the Bhikkhu is in that dimension, if by any chance perceptions or thoughts 
pertaining to the ‘dimension of nothingness’ creep in, trying to shake his attention, he 
immediately experiences them as upsetting to his practice, seeing those thoughts about 
nothingness as no more than a cruel harassment.  
“After all, friends, for anyone experiencing happiness or pleasure, when its opposite or pain 
arises, that itself becomes upsetting, a harassing and cruel oppression that one has to then endure.  
“It is for this reason, friends, that The Blessed One has declared, how all oppressions that come 
to harass one are in themselves none other than suffering.  
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss! 
9. “Again, friends, by having completely transcended and gone beyond the state of neither 
perception nor non-perception, the Bhikkhu enters upon and abides in the ‘cessation of 
perceptions and feelings.’ Thus, by having directly seen with wisdom, his heart’s contaminants 
(āsavas) all come apart and are fully destroyed. 
“So, looking at it this way too, it should be known and realized that Nibbāna is bliss!” 
 
 
Sādhu 
 
Sādhu 
 
Sādhu
