21. The Four Factors of Stream Entry (ARV21)

Herein, monastics, what are the four factors of a stream enterer?

Here a [monastic,] noble disciple is endowed with perfect confidence in the Buddha (thus):

Such is he, the Gracious One, the Realised One, the Worthy One, the Perfect Sambuddha, the one endowed with understanding and good conduct, the Fortunate One, the one who understands the worlds, the unsurpassed guide for those people who need taming, the Teacher of gods and men, the Buddha, the Gracious One.

He is endowed with perfect confidence in the Dharma (thus):

The Dharma has been well-proclaimed by the Gracious One, it is visible, healthy, not subject to time, onward leading, inviting inspection, and can be understood by the wise for themselves, that is to say, (it is) the crushing of pride, dispelling of thirst, eradication of desire, cutting off of (material) things, the apprehension of emptiness, the end of craving, dispassion, cessation, Nirvāṇa.

He is endowed with perfect confidence in the Community (thus):

The Gracious One’s Community of disciples are good in their practice, systematic in their practice… hold straight views in their practice… are correct in their practice, practising in conformity with the Teaching, living in conformity with the Teaching. There are in the Community those practising for experiencing for themselves the fruit of stream-entry, there are in the Community those who are stream-enterers, there are in the Community those practising for experiencing for themselves the fruit of once-returning, there are in the Community those who are once-returners, there are in the Community those practising for experiencing for themselves the fruit of non-returning, there are in the Community those who are non-returners, there are in the Community those practising for experiencing for themselves the fruit of Worthiness, there are in the Community those who are Worthy, that is to say, the four pairs of persons, the eight individual persons, this is the Gracious One’s Community of disciples, endowed with virtue, endowed with concentration, endowed with wisdom, endowed with faith, endowed with learning, endowed with freedom, endowed with knowledge and insight into freedom, they are worthy of offerings, of hospitality, of gifts, and of correct behaviour, they are an unsurpassed field of merit that are visible in the world.

He is endowed with virtue that is agreeable to the noble ones (thus): Whatever virtue there is, it is unbroken, faultless, unspotted, unblemished, productive of freedom, not adhered to, well-obtained, well-undertaken, praised by the wise, uncensured by the wise.

These, monastics, are the four factors of a stream enterer.

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.