12.28. Bhikkhu (SN12.28)

At Savatthī. “Herein, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu understands aging-and-death, its origin, its cessation, and the way leading to its cessation. He understands birth … existence … clinging … craving … feeling … contact … the six sense bases … name-and-form … consciousness … volitional formations, their origin, their cessation, and the way leading to their cessation.

“And what, bhikkhus, is aging-and-death?… as in preceding sutta … Just this Noble Eightfold Path is the way leading to the cessation of volitional formations; that is, right view … right concentration.

“When, bhikkhus, a bhikkhu thus understands aging-and-death, its origin, its cessation, and the way leading to its cessation; when he thus understands birth … existence … clinging … craving … feeling … contact … the six sense bases … name-and-form … consciousness … volitional formations, their origin, their cessation, and the way leading to their cessation, he is then called a bhikkhu who is accomplished in view, accomplished in vision, who has arrived at this true Dhamma, who sees this true Dhamma, who possesses a trainee’s knowledge, a trainee’s true knowledge, who has entered the stream of the Dhamma, a noble one with penetrative wisdom, one who stands squarely before the door to the Deathless.”

© Bhikkhu Bodhi, The Connected Discourses of the Buddha (Wisdom Publications, 2000)

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