11. The Four Ways of Practice (ARV11)

Herein, monastics, what are the four ways of practice?

There is, monastics, practice which is painful and slow in knowledge,

practice which is painful and quick in knowledge,

practice which is pleasant and slow in knowledge,

practice which is pleasant and quick in knowledge.

11.1 Painful and Slow in Knowledge

Herein, what is the practice which is painful and slow in knowledge?

Here, one person constitutionally has great passion, has great hatred, has great delusion, and because of his great passion, he continually experiences pain and sorrow which is born of passion, and because of his great hatred, he continually experiences pain and sorrow which is born of hatred, and because of his great delusion, he continually experiences pain and sorrow which is born of delusion.

And for him these five supermundane faculties are slow, feeble, not sharp, not speedy in bringing about the destruction of the pollutants.

What five?

They are as follows:

The faith faculty,

the energy faculty,

the mindfulness faculty,

the concentration faculty,

the wisdom faculty.

Thus these five supermundane faculties are feeble and not speedy and are slow in bringing about contact with the meditation that has immediate result, that is to say, the destruction of the pollutants.

This is the practice which is painful and slow in knowledge.

11.2 Painful and Quick in Knowledge

Herein, what is the practice which is painful and quick in knowledge?

Here, one person constitutionally has great passion, has great hatred, has great delusion, and because of his great passion, he continually experiences pain and sorrow which is born of passion, and because of his great hatred, he continually experiences pain and sorrow which is born of hatred, and because of his great delusion, he continually experiences pain and sorrow which is born of delusion.

(But) for him these five supermundane faculties are in high measure, (they are) sharp and speedy in bringing about the destruction of the pollutants.

What five?

They are as follows:

The faith faculty,

the energy faculty,

the mindfulness faculty,

the concentration faculty,

the wisdom faculty.

(Therefore) these five supermundane faculties being in high measure, they are (sharp) and speedy and quick in bringing about contact with the meditation that has immediate result, that is to say, the destruction of the pollutants.

This is the practice which is painful and quick in knowledge.

11.3 Pleasant and Slow in Knowledge

Herein, what is the practice which is pleasant and slow in knowledge?

Here, one person constitutionally has little passion, has little hatred, has little delusion, and because of his little passion, he does not continually experience pain and sorrow which is born of passion, and because of his little hatred, he does not continually experience pain and sorrow which is born of hatred, and because of his little delusion, he does not continually experience pain and sorrow which is born of delusion.

(But) for him these five supermundane faculties are slow, feeble, not sharp, not speedy in bringing about the destruction of the pollutants.

What five?

They are as follows:

The faith faculty,

the energy faculty,

the mindfulness faculty,

the concentration faculty,

the wisdom faculty.

(Therefore) these five supermundane faculties are slow, not sharp, feeble, not speedy and are slow in bringing about contact with the meditation that has immediate result, that is to say, the destruction of the pollutants.

This is the practice which is pleasant and slow in knowledge.

11.4 Pleasant and Quick in Knowledge

Herein, what is the practice which is pleasant and quick in knowledge?

Here, one person constitutionally has little passion, has little hatred, has little delusion, and because of his little passion, he does not continually experience pain and sorrow which is born of passion, and because of his little hatred, he does not continually experience pain and sorrow which is born of hatred, and because of his little delusion, he does not continually experience pain and sorrow which is born of delusion.

(But) for him these five supermundane faculties are in high measure, (they are) sharp and speedy in bringing about the destruction of the pollutants.

What five?

They are as follows:

The faith faculty,

the energy faculty,

the mindfulness faculty,

the concentration faculty,

the wisdom faculty.

(Therefore) these five supermundane faculties, being in high measure, they are (sharp) and speedy and quick in bringing about contact with the meditation that has immediate result, that is to say, the destruction of the pollutants.

This is said to be the practice which is pleasant and quick in knowledge.

These, monastics, are the four ways of practice.

Translated by Ānandajoti Bhikkhu, 2016

Based on the edition by Prof. N. H. Samtani in The Arthaviniścaya-sūtra & its commentary (Nibandhana) (Patna, 1971), updated to include the corrections he printed in that work on pp. 180–181, most of which were also printed in his translation of the same, Gathering the Meanings (Berkeley, 2002), on pp. 309–310.

Original translation with comments to be found at http://www.ancient-buddhist-texts.net/.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Ayya Vimala.