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- Majjhima Nikaya 4
- Bhaya-bherava Sutta
- Fear & Terror
- For free distribution only, as a gift of Dhamma
I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was staying near Savatthi
at Jeta's Grove, Anathapindika's monastery. Then Janussoni
the brahmin went to the Blessed One and, on arrival, exchanged courteous greetings with
him. After an exchange of friendly greetings & courtesies, he sat to one side. As he
was sitting there, he said to the Blessed One, "Master Gotama, the sons of good
families who have gone forth from the home life into homelessness out of conviction in
Master Gotama: is Master Gotama their leader? Is Master Gotama their helper? Is Master
Gotama their inspirer? Do they take Master Gotama as their example?"
"Yes, brahmin, so it is. The sons of good families who have gone forth from the
home life into homelessness out of conviction in me: I am their leader. I am their helper.
I am their inspirer. They take me as their example."
"But, Master Gotama, it's not easy to endure isolated forest or wilderness
dwellings. It's not easy to maintain seclusion, not easy to enjoy being alone. The
forests, as it were, plunder the mind of a monk who has not attained concentration."
"Yes, brahmin, so it is. It's not easy to endure isolated forest or wilderness
dwellings. It's not easy to maintain seclusion, not easy to enjoy being alone. The
forests, as it were, plunder the mind of a monk who has not attained concentration. Before
my awakening, when I was still an unawakened Bodhisatta, the thought occurred to me as
well: 'It's not easy to maintain seclusion, not easy to enjoy being alone. The forests, as
it were, plunder the mind of a monk who has not attained concentration.'
"The thought occurred to me: 'When priests or contemplatives who are unpurified in
their bodily activities resort to isolated forest or wilderness dwellings, it's the fault
of their unpurified bodily activities that they give rise to unskillful fear & terror.
But it's not the case that I am unpurified in my bodily activities when I resort to
isolated forest or wilderness dwellings. I am purified in my bodily activities. I am one
of those noble ones who are purified in their bodily activities when they resort to
isolated forest or wilderness dwellings.' Seeing in myself this purity of bodily
activities, I felt even more undaunted about staying in the wilderness.
"The thought occurred to me: 'When priests or contemplatives who are unpurified in
their verbal activities...unpurified in their mental activities...unpurified in their
livelihood resort to isolated forest or wilderness dwellings, it's the fault of their
unpurified livelihood that they give rise to unskillful fear & terror. But it's not
the case that I am unpurified in my livelihood when I resort to isolated forest or
wilderness dwellings. I am purified in my livelihood. I am one of those noble ones who are
purified in their livelihood when they resort to isolated forest or wilderness dwellings.'
Seeing in myself this purity of livelihood, I felt even more undaunted about staying in
the wilderness.
"The thought occurred to me: 'When priests or contemplatives who are covetous
& fiercely passionate for sensual pleasures...I am not covetous...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who have minds of ill will, with destructive
attitudes...I have a mind of good will...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are overcome by torpor & lethargy...I
am devoid of torpor & lethargy...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are restless & with an unstill
mind...I have a still mind...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are uncertain & doubting...I have gone
beyond uncertainty...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are given to praising themselves &
disparaging others...I do not praise myself or disparage others...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who tend toward panic & dread...I have
gone beyond horripilation...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are desirous of gains, offerings, &
fame...I have few wants...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are lazy & lacking in persistence...My
persistence is aroused...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are muddled in their mindfulness &
unalert...I have mindfulness established...'....
"...'When priests or contemplatives who are unconcentrated, with straying
minds...I am consummate in concentration...'....
"The thought occurred to me: 'When priests or contemplatives who are drooling
idiots, resort to isolated forest or wilderness dwellings, it's the fault of their
drooling idiocy that they give rise to unskillful fear & terror. But it's not the case
that I am a drooling idiot, when I resort to isolated forest or wilderness dwellings. I am
consummate in discernment. I am one of those noble ones who are consummate in discernment
when they resort to isolated forest or wilderness dwellings.' Seeing in myself this
consummate discernment, I felt even more undaunted about staying in the wilderness.
"The thought occurred to me: 'What if -- on recognized,
designated nights such as the eighth, fourteenth, & fifteenth of the lunar fortnight
-- I were to stay in the sort of places that are awe-inspiring and make your hair stand on
end, such as park-shrines, forest-shrines, & tree-shrines? Perhaps I would get to see
that fear & terror.' So at a later time -- on recognized, designated nights such as
the eighth, fourteenth, & fifteenth of the lunar fortnight -- I stayed in the sort of
places that are awe-inspiring and make your hair stand on end, such as park-shrines,
forest-shrines, & tree-shrines. And while I was staying there a wild animal would
come, or a bird would make a twig fall, or wind would rustle the fallen leaves. The
thought would occur to me: 'Is this that fear & terror coming?' Then the thought
occurred to me: 'Why do I just keep waiting for fear? What if I were to subdue fear &
terror in whatever state they come?' So when fear & terror came while I was walking
back & forth, I would not stand or sit or lie down. I would keep walking back &
forth until I had subdued that fear & terror. When fear & terror came while I was
standing, I would not walk or sit or lie down. I would keep standing until I had subdued
that fear & terror. When fear & terror came while I was sitting, I would not lie
down or stand up or walk. I would keep sitting until I had subdued that fear & terror.
When fear & terror came while I was lying down, I would not sit up or stand or walk. I
would keep lying down until I had subdued that fear & terror.
"There are some priests & contemplatives, brahmin, who have the perception of
'day' when it is night, and of 'night' when it is day. This, I tell you, is their being in
a dwelling of delusion. As for me, I have the perception of 'day' when it is day, and of
'night' when it is night. If anyone, when speaking rightly, were to say, 'A being not
subject to delusion has appeared in the world for the benefit & happiness of many, out
of sympathy for the world, for the welfare, benefit, & happiness of human & divine
beings,' he would rightly be speaking of me.
"Unflagging persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness established.
My body was calm & unaroused, my mind concentrated & single. Quite withdrawn from
sensuality, withdrawn from unskillful mental qualities, I entered & remained in the
first jhana: rapture & pleasure born from withdrawal, accompanied by directed thought
& evaluation. With the stilling of directed thought & evaluation, I entered &
remained in the second jhana: rapture & pleasure born of composure, unification of
awareness free from directed thought & evaluation -- internal assurance. With the
fading of rapture I remained in equanimity, mindful & alert, and physically sensitive
of pleasure. I entered & remained in the third jhana, of which the noble ones declare,
'Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasurable abiding.' With the abandoning of pleasure
& pain -- as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress -- I entered
& remained in the fourth jhana: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither
pleasure nor pain.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of
defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it
to the knowledge of recollecting my past lives. I recollected my manifold past
lives, i.e., one birth, two...five, ten...fifty, a hundred, a thousand, a hundred
thousand, many eons of cosmic contraction, many eons of cosmic expansion, many eons of
cosmic contraction & expansion: 'There I had such a name, belonged to such a clan, had
such an appearance. Such was my food, such my experience of pleasure & pain, such the
end of my life. Passing away from that state, I re-arose there. There too I had such a
name, belonged to such a clan, had such an appearance. Such was my food, such my
experience of pleasure & pain, such the end of my life. Passing away from that state,
I re-arose here.' Thus I remembered my manifold past lives in their modes & details.
"This was the first knowledge I attained in the first watch of the night.
Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose -- as
happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of
defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it
to the knowledge of the passing away & reappearance of beings. I saw -- by
means of the divine eye, purified & surpassing the human -- beings passing away &
re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly,
fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma: 'These beings -- who were
endowed with bad conduct of body, speech & mind, who reviled noble ones, held wrong
views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views -- with the break-up of the
body, after death, have re-appeared in the plane of deprivation, the bad destination, the
lower realms, in hell. But these beings -- who were endowed with good conduct of body,
speech, & mind, who did not revile noble ones, who held right views and undertook
actions under the influence of right views -- with the break-up of the body, after death,
have re-appeared in the good destinations, in the heavenly world.' Thus -- by means of the
divine eye, purified & surpassing the human -- I saw beings passing away &
re-appearing, and I discerned how they are inferior & superior, beautiful & ugly,
fortunate & unfortunate in accordance with their kamma.
"This was the second knowledge I attained in the second watch of the night.
Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose -- as
happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"When the mind was thus concentrated, purified, bright, unblemished, rid of
defilement, pliant, malleable, steady, & attained to imperturbability, I directed it
to the knowledge of the ending of the mental fermentations. I discerned, as it was
actually present, that 'This is stress...This is the origination of stress...This is the
cessation of stress...This is the way leading to the cessation of stress...These are
fermentations...This is the origination of fermentations...This is the cessation of
fermentations...This is the way leading to the cessation of fermentations.' My heart, thus
knowing, thus seeing, was released from the fermentation of sensuality, released from the
fermentation of becoming, released from the fermentation of ignorance. With release, there
was the knowledge, 'Released.' I discerned that 'Birth is ended, the holy life fulfilled,
the task done. There is nothing further for this world.'
"This was the third knowledge I attained in the third watch of the night.
Ignorance was destroyed; knowledge arose; darkness was destroyed; light arose -- as
happens in one who is heedful, ardent, & resolute.
"Now, brahmin, if the thought should occur to you, 'Perhaps Gotama the
contemplative is even today not free of passion, not free of aversion, not free of
delusion, which is why he resorts to isolated forest & wilderness dwellings,' it
should not be seen in that way. It's through seeing two compelling reasons that I resort
to isolated forest & wilderness dwellings: seeing a pleasant abiding for myself in the
present, and feeling sympathy for future generations."
"How truly future generations have been shown sympathy by Master Gotama in the
manner of one who is worthy & rightly self-awakened! Magnificent,
Master Gotama! Magnificent! Just as if he were to place upright what had been overturned,
were to reveal what was hidden, were to show the way to one who was lost, or were to hold
up a lamp in the dark so that those with eyes could see shapes, in the same way Master
Gotama has -- through many lines of reasoning -- made the Dhamma clear. I go to Master
Gotama for refuge, to the Dhamma, and to the Sangha of monks. May Master Gotama remember
me as a lay follower who has gone to him for refuge, from this day forward, for
life."