Dialogues of the Buddha, Part II — trans. T. W. and C. A. F. Rhys Davids (1910)

' By the fetters of envy and selfishness, ruler of gods, are they bound — gods, men, Asuras, Nagas, Gandhabbas and whatever other great classes of beings there be — in that they wishing thus : — " Would that, without hatred, injury, enmity, or malignity, we might live in amity ! " — do nevertheless live in enmity, hating, injuring, hostile, malign.'

Such was the fashion of the Exalted One's answer to Sakka's question. And Sakka, delighted with the Exalted One's utterance, expressed his pleasure and appreciation saying : — ' That is so, Exalted One, that is so, Welcome One ! I have got rid of doubt and am no longer puzzled, through hearing the answer of the Exalted One.'

2. [277] So Sakka, expressing pleasure and appreciation, asked a further question of the Exalted One : — ' But envy and selfishness, sir, — what is the source thereof, the cause thereof ? what gives birth to them ? how do they come to be ? What being present, are envy and selfishness also present ? What being absent, are they also absent ? '

' Things as dear and not dear to us, ruler of gods, — this is the source and cause of envy and selfishness, thisD. ii. 277. THE QUESTIONS OF SAKKA. 3II is what gives birth to them, this is how they come to be. In the presence of what is dear or not dear, envy and selfishness come about, and in the absence of such feelings, they do not come about'

' But what, sir, is the source, what the cause of things being dear and not dear, what gives birth to these feelings, how do they come to be ? What being present, do we so feel, and what being absent, do we not so feel ? '

' Desire \ ruler of gods, is the source and cause of things being dear or not dear, this is what gives birth to such feelings, this is how they come to be. If desire be present, things become dear and not dear to us ; if it be absent, things are no more felt as such.'

' But desire, sir, — what is the source and cause of that ? What gives birth to it, how does it come to be ? What being present, is desire present, and what being absent, is desire also absent ? '

' Mental pre-occupation 2, ruler of gods, — this is the source, this is the cause of desire, this is what gives birth to desire, this is how desire comes to be. Wherewith our mind is pre-occupied, for that desire arises ; if our mind is not so pre-occupied, desire is absent.'

1 But what, sir, is the source and what is the cause of our mind being pre-occupied ? What gives birth to such a state, how does it come to be ? What being present, does our mind become pre-occupied, and what being absent, does it not ? '

1 C hand a. The Cy. distinguishes exegetically five kinds of chanda: — desire to seek, to gain, to enjoy, to hoard, to spend, and includes all in the present connexion with the words : ' here it is used in a sense tantamount to craving (ta^ha).'

2 Vitakka. The Cy. does not give the Abhidhamma definition of this term (see Dh. S., § 7 ; ' Bud. Psy.,' p. 10 : 'the disposing, fixating, focusing, applying the mind.' Cf. also ' Compendium of Buddhist Philosophy,' Appendix: vitakka, P.T.S., 1910), but gives as a parallel term vinicchaya (see above, p. 55 ' labhaw pa/icca vinicchayo' — 'deciding respecting gain '). The word is used, according to Suttanta method, not with any fine shade of psychological meaning, but in its popular sense of ^epi/xvaw, ' taking thought for ' (Matt. vi. 25), ' being pre-occupied about.'

p. 312

' The source, ruler of gods, the cause of our becoming pre-occupied is what we may call obsession l. This is what gives birth to pre-occupation of mind, this is how that comes about. If that obsession is present, our mind is pre-occupied [by the idea by which we are obsessed] ; if it is absent, it is not.'

3. ' But how, sir, has that bhikkhu gone about who has reached the path suitable for and leading to the cessation of obsession ? '

'[278] Happiness, ruler of gods, I declare to be twofold, according as it is to be followed after, or avoided. Sorrow too I declare to be twofold, according as it is to be followed or avoided. Equanimity too I declare to be twofold, according as it is to be followed or avoided.