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- Anguttara Nikaya IV.113
- Patoda Sutta
- The Goad-stick
- For free distribution only, as a gift of Dhamma
"There are these four types of excellent thoroughbred horses to be found existing
in the world. Which four? There is the case where an excellent thoroughbred horse, on
seeing the shadow of the goad-stick, is stirred & agitated, [thinking,] 'I wonder what
task the trainer will have me do today? What should I do in response?' Some excellent
thoroughbred horses are like this. And this is the first type of excellent thoroughbred
horse to be found existing in the world.
"Then again there is the case where an excellent thoroughbred horse is not stirred
& agitated on seeing the shadow of the goad-stick, but when his coat is pricked [with
the goad stick] he is stirred & agitated, [thinking,] 'I wonder what task the trainer
will have me do today? What should I do in response?' Some excellent thoroughbred horses
are like this. And this is the second type of excellent thoroughbred horse to be found
existing in the world.
"Then again there is the case where an excellent thoroughbred horse is not stirred
& agitated on seeing the shadow of the goad-stick, or when his coat is pricked, but
when his hide is pricked [with the goad stick] he is stirred & agitated, [thinking,]
'I wonder what task the trainer will have me do today? What should I do in response?' Some
excellent thoroughbred horses are like this. And this is the third type of excellent
thoroughbred horse to be found existing in the world.
"Then again there is the case where an excellent thoroughbred horse is not stirred
& agitated on seeing the shadow of the goad-stick, or when his coat is pricked, or
when his hide is pricked, but when his bone is pricked [with the goad stick] he is stirred
& agitated, [thinking,] 'I wonder what task the trainer will have me do today? What
should I do in response?' Some excellent thoroughbred horses are like this. And this is
the fourth type of excellent thoroughbred horse to be found existing in the world.
"These are the four types of excellent thoroughbred horse to be found existing in
the world.
"Now, there are these four types of excellent thoroughbred persons to be found
existing in the world. Which four?
"There is the case where a certain excellent thoroughbred person hears, 'In that
town or village over there a man or woman is in pain or has died.' He is stirred &
agitated by that. Stirred, he becomes appropriately resolute. Resolute, he both realizes
with his body the highest truth and, having penetrated it with discernment, sees. This
type of excellent thoroughbred person, I tell you, is like the excellent thoroughbred
horse who, on seeing the shadow of the goad-stick, is stirred & agitated. Some
excellent thoroughbred people are like this. And this is the first type of excellent
thoroughbred person to be found existing in the world.
"Then again there is the case where a certain excellent thoroughbred person does
not hear, 'In that town or village over there a man or woman is in pain or has died.' But
he himself sees a man or woman in pain or dead. He is stirred & agitated by that.
Stirred, he becomes appropriately resolute. Resolute, he both realizes with his body the
highest truth and, having penetrated it with discernment, sees. This type of excellent
thoroughbred person, I tell you, is like the excellent thoroughbred horse who, when its
coat is pricked with the goad-stick, is stirred & agitated. Some excellent
thoroughbred people are like this. And this is the second type of excellent thoroughbred
person to be found existing in the world.
"Then again there is the case where a certain excellent thoroughbred person does
not hear, 'In that town or village over there a man or woman is in pain or has died.' And
he himself does not see a man or woman in pain or dead. But he sees one of his own blood
relatives in pain or dead. He is stirred & agitated by that. Stirred, he becomes
appropriately resolute. Resolute, he both realizes with his body the highest truth and,
having penetrated it with discernment, sees. This type of excellent thoroughbred person, I
tell you, is like the excellent thoroughbred horse who, when its hide is pricked with the
goad-stick, is stirred & agitated. Some excellent thoroughbred people are like this.
And this is the third type of excellent thoroughbred person to be found existing in the
world.
"Then again there is the case where a certain excellent thoroughbred person does
not hear, 'In that town or village over there a man or woman is in pain or has died.' And
he himself does not see a man or woman in pain or dead, nor does he see one of his own
blood relatives in pain or dead. But he himself is touched by bodily feelings that are
painful, fierce, sharp, wracking, repellent, disagreeable, life-threatening. He is stirred
& agitated by that. Stirred, he becomes appropriately resolute. Resolute, he both
realizes with his body the highest truth and, having penetrated it with discernment, sees.
This type of excellent thoroughbred person, I tell you, is like the excellent thoroughbred
horse who, when its bone is pricked with the goad-stick, is stirred & agitated. Some
excellent thoroughbred people are like this. And this is the fourth type of excellent
thoroughbred person to be found existing in the world.
"These are the four types of excellent thoroughbred persons to be found existing
in the world."