The Brahmins (SN55.12)

Linked Discourses 55.12

2. The Royal Monastery

The Brahmins

At Sāvatthī.

“Mendicants, the brahmins advocate a practice called ‘get up and go’.

They encourage their disciple:

‘Please, my man, rising early you should face east and walk.

Do not avoid a pit, a cliff, a stump, thorny ground, a swamp, or a sewer.

You should await death in the place that you fall.

And when your body breaks up, after death, you’ll be reborn in a good place, a heaven realm.’¹

But this practice of the brahmins is a foolish procedure, a stupid procedure. It doesn’t lead to disillusionment, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, awakening, or extinguishment.

But in the training of the Noble One I advocate a ‘get up and go’ practice

which does lead solely to disillusionment, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, awakening, and extinguishment.

And what is that ‘get up and go’ practice?

It’s when a noble disciple has experiential confidence in the Buddha …

the teaching …

the Saṅgha …

And they have the ethical conduct loved by the noble ones … leading to immersion.

This is that ‘get up and go’ practice

which does lead solely to disillusionment, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, awakening, and extinguishment.”