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Samyutta Nikaya

# SN 22.7 Paṭhama Upādāparitassanā Sutta (Tenacious Grabbing Agitates the Heart - Part 1) SN 22.7

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- Saṁyutta Nikāya - The Connected Discourses (SN 22.1-22.11) Khandhavagga S/Khandha/Nakulapitu Vagga (Duration: 2:59:39)

## Text

    [page 1]
    SN 22.7
    Saṁyutta Nikāya
    The Connected Discourses

    Khandhavagga Saṁyutta
    Group of Discourses Connected to the Aggregates
    Khandha Saṁyutta
    Connected to the Theme of Aggregates
    Nakulapitu Vagga
    The Section on Nakula’s Father

    Paṭhama Upādāparitassanā Sutta
    “Tenacious Grabbing Agitates the Heart – Part 1”

    Translated by Bhikkhu Candana
    Copyright © Bhikkhu Candana 2025

    This is what I personally heard.

    At one time, while The Blessed One was residing at the monastery donated by Anāthapiṇḍika at
    Jeta’s Grove in Sāvatthī, He addressed the Bhikkhus by saying:

    “Bhikkhus!”

    “Yes, Blessed Lord!” those Bhikkhus replied.

    And The Blessed One continued by saying:

    “Bhikkhus, I will now instruct you on how the motivation to grab and hold on, leads to the
    confusing state of agitation, as well as teach you the ways to eliminate agitation altogether, by
    experiencing Total Release through no longer grabbing or hanging onto anything.

    “Therefore, Bhikkhus, now pay close attention as I speak, by carefully listening to every word I
    say.”

    “Yes, Bhante,” replied those Bhikkhus.

    And The Blessed One continued instructing:

    [page 2]
    “And how, Bhikkhus, does the motivation to grab and hold on, lead to the confusing state
    of agitation?

    “Here, the puthujjana chooses to remain unlearned and stubbornly dense in his ignorance;
    unwilling and not eager at all to go and see or hear the Noble Ones. One who is not trained nor
    taught properly in The Dhamma taught by the Noble Ones, is someone who is unable to
    recognize the Superior Person even if he were to see them up close, nor is he trained or taught
    the ways to develop the very qualities within himself, that would make him a Superior Person.

    “And why is this the case?

    1. “It is because he continues to regard form as inherent to being and having a ‘self,’ or identifies
    a ‘self’ to somehow possess some kind of a substantial form, or looks upon form as though
    inseparable from a ‘self,’ or that there is a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within form.

    “However, form itself is always undergoing change! Therefore, it is in a state of constant decay,
    always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the person.

    “Now, due to the identification that is already there with form, while the change of state
    continuously takes place with form, the consciousness related to it is then allowed to also be
    stirred, flung, and thus tossed around, given the changes that form keeps undergoing.

    “With the continuous latching on to somehow deter or prevent change from happening to form
    itself, the mind gets tossed into a state of agitation, whereby confusion sets in as it dominates the
    heart; all due to the unsettling state that form naturally undergoes, which is simply the result of
    its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.

    “For this reason, the person experiences ongoing fear in his heart, while being accompanied by
    worrisome thoughts and devastating dread, which he seemingly cannot get rid of nor shrug off;
    all taking place as a result of his desperate motivation to continuously grab and hold on.

    2. “Further, he continues to regard feeling as inherent to being and having a ‘self,’ or identifies a
    ‘self’ to somehow possess some kind of a substantial feeling, or looks upon feeling as though
    inseparable from a ‘self,’ or that there is a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within feeling.

    “However, feeling itself is always undergoing change! Therefore, it is in a state of constant
    decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the person.

    “Now, due to the identification that is already there with feeling, while the change of state
    continuously takes place with feeling, the consciousness related to it is then allowed to also be
    stirred, flung, and thus tossed around given the changes that feeling keeps undergoing.

    “With the continuous latching on to somehow deter or prevent change from happening to feeling
    itself, the mind gets tossed into a state of agitation, whereby confusion sets in as it dominates the
    heart; all due to the unsettling state that feeling naturally undergoes, which is simply the result of
    its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.

    [page 3]
    “For this reason, the person experiences ongoing fear in his heart, while being accompanied by
    worrisome thoughts and devastating dread, which he seemingly cannot get rid of nor shrug off;
    all taking place as a result of his desperate motivation to continuously grab and hold on.

    3. “Further, he continues to regard perception as inherent to being and having a ‘self,’ or
    identifies a ‘self’ to somehow possess some kind of a substantial perception, or looks upon
    perception as though inseparable from a ‘self,’ or that there is a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to
    be found within perception.

    “However, perception itself is always undergoing change! Therefore, it is in a state of constant
    decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the person.

    “Now, due to the identification that is already there with perception, while the change of state
    continuously takes place with perception, the consciousness related to it is then allowed to also
    be stirred, flung, and thus tossed around, given the changes that perception keeps undergoing.

    “With the continuous latching on to somehow deter or prevent change from happening to
    perception itself, the mind is then tossed into a state of agitation, whereby confusion sets in as it
    dominates the heart; all due to the unsettling state that perception naturally undergoes, which is
    simply the result of its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.

    “For this reason, the person experiences ongoing fear in his heart, while being accompanied by
    worrisome thoughts and devastating dread, which he seemingly cannot get rid of nor shrug off;
    all taking place as a result of his desperate motivation to continuously grab and hold on.

    4. “Further, he continues to regard habitual drives (saṅkhārā) as inherent to being and having a
    ‘self,’ or identifies a ‘self’ to somehow possess some kind of a substantial habitual drive to it, or
    looks upon habitual drives as though inseparable from a ‘self,’ or that there is a substantial
    ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within habitual drives.

    “However, habitual drives themselves are always undergoing change! Therefore, they are in a
    state of constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how they were first experienced by the
    person.

    “Now, due to the identification that is already there with habitual drives, while the change of
    state continuously takes place with habitual drives, the consciousness related to them is then
    allowed to also be stirred, flung, and thus tossed around, given the changes that habitual drives
    keep undergoing.

    “With the continuous latching on to somehow deter or prevent change from happening to
    habitual drives themselves, the mind gets tossed into a state of agitation, whereby confusion
    sets in as it dominates the heart; all due to the unsettling state that habitual drives naturally
    undergo, which is simply the result of its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.

    [page 4]
    “For this reason, the person experiences ongoing fear in his heart, while being accompanied by
    worrisome thoughts and devastating dread, which he seemingly cannot get rid of nor shrug off;
    all taking place as a result of his desperate motivation to continuously grab and hold on.

    5. “Further, he continues to regard sense-awareness as inherent to being and having a ‘self,’ or
    identifies a ‘self’ to somehow possess some kind of a substantial sense-awareness, or looks
    upon sense-awareness as though inseparable from a ‘self,’ or that there is a substantial ‘core’ as
    a ‘self’ to be found within sense-awareness.

    “However, sense-awareness itself is always undergoing change! Therefore, it is in a state of
    constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the person.

    “Now, due to the identification that is already there with sense-awareness, while the change of
    state continuously takes place with sense-awareness, the consciousness related to it is then
    allowed to also be stirred, flung, and thus tossed around, given the changes that sense-awareness
    keeps undergoing.

    “With the continuous latching on to somehow deter or prevent change from happening to sense-
    awareness itself, the mind gets tossed into a state of agitation, whereby confusion sets in as it
    dominates the heart; all due to the unsettling state that sense-awareness naturally undergoes,
    which is simply the result of its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.

    “For this reason, the person experiences ongoing fear in his heart, while being accompanied by
    worrisome thoughts and devastating dread, which he seemingly cannot get rid of nor shrug off;
    all taking place as a result of his desperate motivation to continuously grab and hold on.
    “In this manner, Bhikkhus, the motivation to grab and hold on leads to the confusing state of
    agitation.

    “And how, Bhikkhus, can one eliminate agitation altogether, by experiencing Total
    Release through no longer grabbing or holding onto anything?

    “Here, Bhikkhus, the learned and wise Noble Disciple is both able to see and recognize the
    Noble Ones, and as a consequence, is trained and disciplined in their Dhamma, for he is someone
    who, due to his tamed and refined personality, is able to recognize the Superior Person, and is
    skilled and educated in their Teachings, by developing the very qualities that will make him a
    Superior Person too.

    “And why is that?

    1. “It is because he neither regards form as inherent to being or having a ‘self,’ nor identifies a
    ‘self’ to be somehow possessing some kind of a substantial form, nor looks upon form as though
    it was something inseparable from a ‘self,’ nor that there is a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be
    found within form.

    [page 5]
    “Thus, on being fully aware that form itself is always undergoing change, and therefore is in a
    state of constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the
    person, no identification with form takes place in him.

    “Then, while the change of state continuously takes place with form, he does not allow the
    consciousness related to it to also get stirred, flung, or tossed around, at all, given the changes
    that form keeps undergoing.

    “Now, because there is no longer any latching or grabbing on to somehow deter or prevent
    change from happening to form itself, the mind then does not get thrown into a state of agitation,
    whereby the heart is also protected from any confusion that may have set in, to dominate it. This
    because, the changes which form naturally undergoes are truly seen as simply the result of its
    dependency upon specific causes and conditions.

    “For this reason, the person no longer experiences any fear in his heart, as he becomes freed
    from all worrisome thoughts and dread, which he has simply shrugged off and left behind, as a
    result of his relinquishing that underlying motivation which used to lead him to continuously
    grab and hold on.

    2. “Also, Bhikkhus, it is because he neither regards feeling as inherent to being or having a
    ‘self,’ nor identifies a ‘self’ to be somehow possessing some kind of a substantial feeling, nor
    looks upon feeling as though it was something inseparable from a ‘self,’ nor that there is a
    substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within feeling.

    “Thus, on being fully aware that feeling itself is always undergoing change, and therefore is in a
    state of constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the
    person, no identification with feeling takes place in him.

    “Then, while the change of state continuously takes place with feeling, he does not allow the
    consciousness related to it to also get stirred, flung, or tossed around, at all, given the changes
    that feeling keeps undergoing.

    “Now, because there is no longer any latching or grabbing on to somehow deter or prevent
    change from happening to feeling itself, the mind then does not get thrown into a state of
    agitation, whereby the heart is also protected from any confusion that may have set in, to
    dominate it. This because, the changes which feeling naturally undergoes, are truly seen as
    simply the result of its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.
    “For this reason, the person no longer experiences any fear in his heart, as he becomes freed
    from all worrisome thoughts and dread, which he has simply shrugged off and left behind, as a
    result of his relinquishing that underlying motivation, which used to lead him to continuously
    grab and hold on.

    3. “Also, Bhikkhus, it is because he neither regards perception as inherent to being or having a
    ‘self,’ nor identifies a ‘self’ to be somehow possessing some kind of a substantial perception,

    [page 6]
    nor looks upon perception as though it was something inseparable from a ‘self,’ nor that there is
    a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within perception.

    “Thus, on being fully aware that perception itself is always undergoing change, and therefore is
    in a state of constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first experienced by the
    person, no identification with perception takes place in him.

    “Then, while the change of state continuously takes place with perception, he does not allow the
    consciousness related to it to also get stirred, flung, or tossed around, at all, given the changes
    that perception keeps undergoing.

    “Now, because there is no longer any latching or grabbing on to somehow deter or prevent
    change from happening to perception itself, the mind then does not get thrown into a state of
    agitation, whereby the heart is also protected from any confusion that may have set in, to
    dominate it. This because, the changes which perception naturally undergoes, are truly seen as
    simply the result of its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.
    “For this reason, the person no longer experiences any fear in his heart, as he becomes freed
    from all worrisome thoughts and dread, which he has simply shrugged off and left behind, as a
    result of his relinquishing that underlying motivation, which used to lead him to continuously
    grab and hold on.

    4. “Also, Bhikkhus, it is because he neither regards habitual drives (saṅkhārās) as inherent to
    being or having a ‘self,’ nor identifies a ‘self’ to be somehow possessing some kind of a
    substantial habitual drive, nor looks upon habitual drives as though they were inseparable from
    a ‘self,’ nor that there is a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within habitual drives.

    “Thus, on being fully aware that habitual drives themselves are always undergoing change, and
    therefore are in a state of constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how they were first
    experienced by the person, no identification with habitual drives takes place in him.

    “Then, while the change of state continuously takes place with habitual drives, he does not
    allow the consciousness related to it to also get stirred, flung, or tossed around, at all, given the
    changes that habitual drives keep undergoing.

    “Now, because there is no longer any latching or grabbing on to somehow deter or prevent
    change from happening to habitual drives themselves, the mind then does not get thrown into a
    state of agitation, whereby the heart is also protected from any confusion that may have set in, to
    dominate it. This because, the changes which habitual drives naturally undergo, are truly seen
    as simply the result of their dependency upon specific causes and conditions.
    “For this reason, the person no longer experiences any fear in his heart, as he becomes freed
    from all worrisome thoughts and dread, which he has simply shrugged off and left behind, as a
    result of his relinquishing that underlying motivation, which used to lead him to continuously
    grab and hold on.

    [page 7]
    5. “Furthermore, Bhikkhus, it is because he neither regards sense-awareness as inherent to being
    or having a ‘self,’ nor identifies a ‘self’ to be somehow possessing some kind of a substantial
    sense-awareness, nor looks upon sense-awareness as though it was something inseparable from
    a ‘self,’ nor that there is a substantial ‘core’ as a ‘self’ to be found within sense-awareness.

    “Thus, on being fully aware that sense-awareness itself is always undergoing change, and
    therefore is in a state of constant decay, always becoming otherwise than how it was first
    experienced by the person, no identification with sense-awareness takes place in him.

    “Then, while the change of state continuously takes place with sense-awareness, he does not
    allow the consciousness related to it to also get stirred, flung, or tossed around, at all, given the
    changes that sense-awareness keeps undergoing.

    “Now, because there is no longer any latching or grabbing on to somehow deter or prevent
    change from happening to sense-awareness itself, the mind then does not get thrown into a state
    of agitation, whereby the heart is also protected from any confusion that may have set in, to
    dominate it. This because, the changes which sense-awareness naturally undergoes, are truly
    seen as simply the result of its dependency upon specific causes and conditions.
    “For this reason, the person no longer experiences any fear in his heart, as he becomes freed
    from all worrisome thoughts and dread, which he has simply shrugged off and left behind, as a
    result of his relinquishing that underlying motivation, which used to lead him to continuously
    grab and hold on.

    “Therefore, it is in this manner, Bhikkhus, that one can eliminate agitation altogether, by
    experiencing Total Release through no longer grabbing or holding onto anything.”

    Sādhu
    Sādhu
    Sādhu

    Copyright © Bhikkhu Candana 2025

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