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- Samyutta Nikaya XLVII.7
- Makkata Sutta
- The Monkey
- For free distribution only, as a gift of Dhamma
"There are in the Himalayas, the king of mountains,
difficult, uneven areas where neither monkeys nor human beings wander. There are
difficult, uneven areas where monkeys wander, but not human beings. There are level
stretches of land, delightful, where both monkeys and human beings wander. In such spots hunters set a tar trap in the monkeys' tracks, in order
to catch some monkeys. Those monkeys who are not foolish or careless by nature, when they
see the tar trap, will keep their distance. But any monkey who is foolish & careless
by nature comes up to the tar trap and grabs it with its paw, which then gets stuck there.
Thinking, 'I'll free my paw,' he grabs it with his other paw. That too gets stuck.
Thinking, 'I'll free both of my paws,' he grabs it with his foot. That too gets stuck.
Thinking, 'I'll free both of my paws and my foot,' he grabs it with his other foot. That
too gets stuck. Thinking, 'I'll free both of my paws and my feet as well,' he grabs it
with his mouth. That too gets stuck. So the monkey, snared in five ways, lies there
whimpering, having fallen on misfortune, fallen on ruin, a prey to whatever the hunter
wants to do with him. Then the hunter, without releasing the monkey, skewers him right
there, picks him up, and goes off as he likes.
"This is what happens to anyone who wanders into what is not his proper range and
is the territory of others.
"For this reason, you should not wander into what is not your proper range and is
the territory of others. In one who wanders into what is not his proper range and is the
territory of others, Mara gains an opening, Mara gains a foothold. And
what, for a monk, is not his proper range and is the territory of others? The five strands of sensuality. Which five? Forms cognizable by the eye --
agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering desire, enticing. Sounds cognizable by
the ear...Aromas cognizable by the nose...Flavors cognizable by the tongue...Tactile
sensations cognizable by the body -- agreeable, pleasing, charming, endearing, fostering
desire, enticing. These, for a monk, are not his proper range and are the territory of
others.
"Wander, monks, in what is your proper range, your own ancestral territory. In one
who wanders in what is his proper range, his own ancestral territory, Mara gains no
opening, Mara gains no foothold. And what, for a monk, is his proper range, his own
ancestral territory? The four frames of reference. Which four? There is
the case where a monk remains focused on the body in & of itself -- ardent, alert,
& mindful -- putting aside greed & distress with reference to the world. He
remains focused on feelings in & of themselves...mind in & of itself...mental
qualities in & of themselves -- ardent, alert, & mindful -- putting aside greed
& distress with reference to the world. This, for a monk, is his proper range, his own
ancestral territory."