22.64. In Conceiving (SN22.64)

At Savatthi. Then a certain bhikkhu approached the Blessed One … and said to him:

“Venerable sir, it would be good if the Blessed One would teach me the Dhamma in brief….”

“Bhikkhu, in conceiving one is bound by Mara; by not conceiving one is freed from the Evil One.”

“Understood, Blessed One! Understood, Fortunate One!”

“In what way, bhikkhu, do you understand in detail the meaning of what was stated by me in brief?”

“In conceiving form, venerable sir, one is bound by Mara; by not conceiving it one is freed from the Evil One. In conceiving feeling … perception … volitional formations … consciousness one is bound by Mara; by not conceiving it one is freed from the Evil One.

“It is in such a way, venerable sir, that I understand in detail the meaning of what was stated by the Blessed One in brief.”

“Good, good, bhikkhu! It is good that you understand in detail the meaning of what was stated by me in brief. In conceiving form, bhikkhu, one is bound by Mara … as above in full … by not conceiving it one is freed from the Evil One. It is in such a way that the meaning of what was stated by me in brief should be understood in detail.”

… And that bhikkhu became one of the arahants.

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

This excerpt from The Connected Discourses of the Buddha by Bhikkhu Bodhi is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License.

Based on the work Connected Discourses of the Buddha at Wisdom Publications.

Permissions beyond the scope of this license may be available at Wisdom Publications.

Prepared for SuttaCentral by Blake Walsh.