162. [Discourse on the View of Acting] (SA162)

Thus have I heard. At one time the Buddha was staying at Sāvatthī in Jeta's Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika's Park.

At that time the Blessed One said to the monks: “The existence of what is the cause, by clinging to what, by being fettered and attached to what, by seeing what as the self, do living beings have a view like this and speak like this: 'For one who acts, instructs [someone] to act, destroys, instructs [someone] to destroy, scorches, instructs [someone] to scorch, kills, instructs [someone] to kill, harms living beings, steals the wealth of others, engages in sexual misconduct, knowingly speaks falsehood, drinks liquor, breaks through a wall or destroys a [door] lock to steal, turns back on a road [to ambush someone], harms a village, harms a city, harms people by using a wheel with extremely sharp blades to cut, slash, chop, and slice them up, creating a great heap of flesh, for one who undertakes such practice there is no evil because of this, and also no incurring of evil. Going along the southern [bank] of the Ganges river killing and harming, or coming along the northern [bank] of the Ganges river performing a great sacrifice, because of that there is no merit or evil and there is no incurring of merit or evil. Making offerings, disciplining oneself, protecting [others], acting for the benefit [of others] or for mutual benefit, with these actions one does not create merit?'”

The monks said to the Buddha: “The Blessed One is the root of the Dharma, the eye of the Dharma, the foundation of the Dharma …” to be recited fully in the same way in the sequence of the above three discourses.

Translated by Bhikkhu Anālayo. Originally published in ‘On Views and Penetrative Knowledge – A Translation of Saṁyukta-āgama Discourses 139 to 187 (Fascicle 7)’, Dharma Drum Journal of Buddhist Studies, 2015, vol. 17 pp. 43–100.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Seniya Ariyakumara and Ayya Vimala.