The Great Discourse on the Wheel of Dhamma

ing the dhamma. Could it not be that the sotdpatti magga ndna was developed through appreciation of and delight in the discourse ? In that case, all the elaborations about how Kondanna engaged himself in the practice of vipassand meditation is really redundant. this is the point for argument.

The elaborations are not redundant at all. In the Dhammacakka Sutta itself, it is definitely stated that the eightfold path sould be developed. In addition, the commentary exposition of sammddithi states that dukkha saccd and samudaya saccd& should be understood by contemplating on them. There are also statements that ariya magga nana is developed only when pubbabhdga magga otherwise vipassand magga are fully accomplished. It is also definitely stated that without contemplating on any of the four subjects of meditation, namely, body, sensation, mind and dhamma, no vipassand panna nor magga pannd could be attained. (Refer back to Part Three of this discourse). Pali texts also clearly state that sammdsati magga could arise only by developing the fourfold mindfulness.

Because of these reasons, there can be no arising of ariya magga without developing the vipassand magga. These elaborations are given to facilitate understanding how vipassand could be developed while listening to the discourse. It must be taken therefore that by adopting one of the methods of meditating as explained above, the Venerable Kondanna had attained instantly the sofdpatti magga and phdala.

After describing how the Venerable Kondanna attained the sotapatti magga ndna, the Theras of the first council went on to describe the manner in which the Dhammacakka Sutta was acclaimed. ACCLAMATION BY THE DEVAS AND BRAHMAS

Pavatti te ca pana Bhagavata dhammacakke bhummd

deva saddamanussavesum, Etam bhagavata Baranasiyam

isipatane Migaddye anuttaram dhammacakkam pavattitam

appati vattivam samanena va brahmanena v& dcvena y@

marena va brahmund va kenaci va@ lokasaminti.

“What is worthy of special note is: When the Blessed One

had set in motion the Wheel of Dhamma, (The wheel of dhamma, according to the commentary, means pativeda ndna, penetrative insight and the knowledge of what and how to impart the dhamma, desand& ndna. By the teaching of the Dhammacakka sutta it amounts to setting in motion this wheel of Dhamma.) in other words, when the Blessed One had given the discourse on the Dhammacakka Sutta, the Bhuma devas, the earth bound devas, proclaimed m one voice:

"The incomparable wheel of Dhamma has been set in motion, (the incomparable discourse on the Dhammacakka has been given) by the Blessed One at Isipathana, the deer sanctuary in the township of Varanasi, a motion which no recluse nor brahmana nor any deva, nor mara nor Brahma nor any other being in the world can reverse or prevent."

Having heard this proclamation by the Bhumadevas, the Catumaharajika devas and the devas m the upper realms of Tavatimsa, Yama, Tusita, Nimméanarati, Paranimitavasavati and the Brahmas, all proclaimed in one voice:

"The incomparable wheel of Dhamma has been set in motion (the incomparable discourse on the Dhammacakka has been given) by the Blessed One at Isipathana, the deer sanctuary in the township of Varanasi, a motion which no recluse nor brahmana nor any deva nor mara nor Brahma nor any other being in the world can reverse or prevent."

Itiha tena khanena tena muhuttena yava brahmalokd saddo abbhuggacchi. Thus in an instant, m amoment, the voice or proclamation went forth up to the world of the Brahmas. | THE EARTHQUAKE AND APPEARANCE OF SHINING LIGHTS

Ayanca dasasahassi lokadhatu samkampi sampakampi

sampavedhi Appamdno ca uldro obhdso loke pdaturahosi

atikkamma devGnam devanubhadvam'ti.

The entire cosmos of.the thousand worlds shook in upward motion, quaked in upward and downward motion, and trembled in four directions An immeausrable sublime radiance, caused by the

mighty desand, teaching, surpassing even the majestic, divine radiance of the devas appeared on earth.

FERVENT UTTERANCE OF JOY BY THE BLESSED ONE

Atha kho Bhagavé imam udénam udanesi: AnnGsi vata bho Kondanno, anndsi vata bho Kondanno'ti. Iti hidam Gyasamato Kondannassa annasi Kondanno tveva naémam ahosi'ti.

Then, just after delivering the discourse, just. after appearance of the eye of dhamma or sotdpatti magga ndna to the Venerable Kondanna, the Blessed One made this joyous utterance; Oh, friends, indeed Kondanna has understood Indeed Kondanna has understood. Thus it was because-of this joyous utterance that the Venerable Kondanna had won the name of Annasi Kondanna, the one who has understood. Here ends the Discourse on the Dhammacakka Sutta.

The concluding passage recited above marks the termination of the Dhammacakka sutta as recorded in the Pali Canon of Maha Vagga Samyutta. On reflection at the conclusion of the discourse, the Blessed One perceived that the Venerable Kondanna had attained the higher knowledge of sotdpatti magga phala. So joyously he made the uttrance, "Indeed, Kondanna has perceived, Kondanna has perceived." It was in reference to this utterance that the Venerable Kondanna became commonly known as Annasi Kondanna.

According to the Samyutta Pali text, the Dhammacakka sutta ends here. But the Vinaya Pali text continued on from there giving an account of how Bhikkhu Sangha came into existence. We shall relate this account now.

THE VENERABLE ANNASI KONDANNA'S REQUEST FOR ORDINATION

Atha kho Gyasama@ anndsi Kondanno ditthadhammo pattadhammo viditadhammo pariyo galhadhammo_tinnavicikicco vigatakatthamkattho vesGrajjappatto aparappaccayo satthusdsane bhagaventam etadavoca, “labheyyaham bhante bhagavato santike pabba jjam labheyyam upasampadanti.”

After the Blessed One has made the joyous utterance, the Venerable Kondanna made the following request in these words: "Lord, (Bhante), May I have leave to take up the ascetic life as a novice (pabbajjam), in the presence of the Buddha; may I receive (ordination) admission into the Buddha's Order, (upasampadam)"

NOT EASY TO GIVE UP ONE'S TRADITIONAL BELIEFS

The Venerable Kondanna must have previously embraced some kind of traditional religious belief. To give up this old belief and desire for admission into the Buddha's Order could not have come about with mere ordinary faith. In modem times, it is not easy matter for people of other faiths to join the Buddha's Order after accepting Buddhism. For some people not to say of putting on the yellow robes, to take refuge in the three gems and keep the precepts for the purpose of practising meditation is a difficult task.

Apart from the Venerable Kondanna, the remaining four of the group appeared to be undecisive to get admitted into the Buddha's Order. Why then did Kondanna seek permission to join the Buddha's Order? The answer is that Kondanna had become possessed of virtue and qualities which are described by such epithets as Ditthadhammo etc.

Fully vested with virtues such as Ditthadhammo etc. Kondanna made the request for having seen the dhamma; Ditthadhammo. He had seen nirodha saccd of the four truths, that is, he had realized Nibbana. Then having seen the peace of Nibbana, he saw the constant arising and vanishing of conditioned ndma rupa as awesome suffering. He perceived too that the craving which took delight in them was the true cause of suffering. He realized at the same time that magga saccd consisting of sammdditthi etc was the true path that would lead to the peace of Nibbana. Realizing thus the four truths himself, firm confidence arose that the Buddha had also realized the four truths. Such confidence is known as aveccappasada nana, knowledge bom of complete faith. It is like the confidence of a patient placed in the physician whose treatment

has effectively cured him of his disease. Thus for having seen the four truths exactly as expounded by the Buddha, Kondanna had made the request for monkhood.

Ditthadhammo - - having seen; to make sure it means seeing with the eye of knowledge and not by physical eye, it is qualified by pattadhayimo -- having arrived, attained, reached; to connote amiving through knowledge and. not by any other means it 1s qualified again by vidhitadhammo, having clearly known. To assure that such knowledge is not just. partial or fractional but complete, the qualifying word pariyogalhadhammo is mentioned which means dive into, penetrate into, conveying that he had penetrated fully into all aspects of the dhamma. All these words reflect the richness of Pali vocabulary of those days.

It is very important to see, to know by one's own knowl_ edge the four noble truths. Without nowing the real truth yet, mere profession of the Buddhist faith will not have removed all doubts about the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha. Misgivings on them may appear under certain circumstances. Doubts may: arise also with regard to the practice of sila samadhi and panna one is pursuing. By knowing what should be known by oneself, one may become free from scepticisms to a certain extent.

The yogi who practises noting every instance of seeing, hearing, meeting, knowing etc, knows, when the power-of concentration gets strengthened, the object observed, rupa separately from the knowing mind, nama. Then he knows through his own experience that seeing takes place because there are the object and the eye; there is the act of going because of the desire to go. Because he fails to note the object, he wrongly takes it to be pleasant, thinking it pleasant, he takes delight in it. Because of delight, he craves for it. To satisfy the demands of his craving, he has to exert himself to suitable actions. All these become his own knowledge through personal experience. He also knows he faces difficulties and bad situations because of bad kama; he enjoys good things because of good kammas. When his knowledge grows to this extent, he can

become free of doubts as to whether there is soul, living entity or a creator,

When he continues on with the practice, he perceives the objects of ndma rupa arising and vanishing even while he 1s observing them. He becomes convinced, while continuing with the noting, of their nature of impermanence, dreadful suffering and their being not self, not subject to control. This singular perception strengthens his confidence that "the Buddha who had given this discourse must have realized the truth himself, he must be a true Buddha, his teachings are true and Sangha who are practising his teachings are true Sanghas engaged in the right practice."

Then comes the stage when all conditioned ndma and rupa dissolve into a state of complete cessation. This is realizing personally the peace of Nibbana, in other words, nirodha sacca. Simultaneously, the three remaining truths are realized by virtue of having accomplished the tasks of fully and nghtly comprehending dukkha, abandoning samudaya, and developing magga in one's body. Knowing the four truths as it should be known, his confidence and faith in the Buddha, the Dhamma and the Sangha becomes firmly rooted, unshakable. His confidence in the practice of sila, samadhi and pannd also gets firmly established. With firmly rooted confidence and faith, vicikiccha, sceptical doubts are well overcome. The Venerable Kondanna had seen the four truths himself and thus had left all uncertainties behind, tinnavicikiccho. For this reason too he made the request to the Buddha for ordination. when he was free from doubt and scepticism, he became free from wavering, irresolution, indecision, vigatakatamkato which is synonymous with tinna, vicikiccho -- He had made the request for this reason too.

Furthermore he made the request to the Buddha because he had acquired courage of conviction in the teaching, vesdrajjapatto, courage bom of knowledge of the truth and also because he had become quite independent of the others, apardpaccayo in the matter of the doctrine of the teacher having acquired personal knowledge of

Most followers of various religious faiths in the world are dependent on others in the matter of their beliefs. being ignorant about them themselves. Some worship the deities of trees, forests and mountains because the practice has been handed down from generation to generation by ancestors of the family. No one has seen nor met those beings. Some worship the king of devas. brahmas or Gods of the heaven. No one has the personal knowledge of these objects of worship. People take on trust what was told them by the parents, teachers etc. Amongst the people of the Buddhist faith too, prior to attainment of what should be known, they are dependent on the elders; parents and teachers in the matter of their beliefs. When some knowledge has been gained by one's own effort, by means of practice of concentration meditation or vipassana meditation, selfconfidence may be gained to a certain extent. When the stage is reached for attainment of jhdnas, path and fruition, one has the personal knowledge of these attainments and the belief in them is no longer dependent on others.

CITTA, THE WEALTHY MAN AND NATAPUTTA

At thetime of the Buddha, there lived a certain wealthyman by the name of Citta, who had attained the stage of the andgdmi path. One day he happeded to arrive at the place of Nataputta, the leader of the Niganda sect. The sect leader Nataputta was worshipped as a supreme God by the followers of Jamism, and was also known as Mahavira. He was quite well-known since before the enlightenment of the Buddha. N&ataputta addressed the rich man Citta, "Well, your teacher Gotama is said to have taught that there is jhdna, and samadhi free from vitakka, and vicdra. Do you believe so ?"

Citta, the wealthy man replied, "I acknowledge there is jhéna samadhi free from vitakka and vicdra not because of my faith in the Buddha.” The great teacher Nataputta made a wrong interpretation of this reply. He thought that the nch man had replied that he had no faith in ‘the Buddha. So he told his followers. "Look,

Oh, disciple, the rich man Citta is very straightforward and honest. What he did not believe in, he said he did not believe. Well, this matter is really unbelieveable. It's impossible, just like trying to catch the air with a net; or to arrest the swift flowing waters of the Ganges with the fist or the palm of the hand. It's impossible to get free from vitakka and vicdra."

Upon which the rich man Citta asked the great Teacher Nataputta, "Which is nobler, knowing or beliving ?" He replied, "Knowing is of course nobler than believing." The rich man Citta retorted then, "I can attain anytime I wish the first jhdna with vitakka and vicGra; the second jhdna free of vitakka and vicdra; also the third jhdna free from piti and the fourth jhdna devoid of sukha. In this matter of saying 'there is jhdna samadhi unaccompanied by vitakka and vicdra,’ when I am experiencing personally the jhéna samdadhi not accompanied by vitakka and vicdra, is there any need for me to rely on other noble persons, samanas, for my belief ?"

In this story, the richman Citta who had experienced personally jhGna sam&dhi waccompanied by vitakka and vicdra had no need to rely on others for believing this fact. Likewise, Kondanna who had personal experience of the four truths was not dependent on others on the matter of Buddha's Teaching on the eightfold paths and sila, samadhi and pannds. For thus personally knowing them, without depending on others, he requested the Buddha for admission to his Order. This passage is so mspiring and stimulates so much devotion that we shall recite it once again in full complete with translation.

DEVELOPING DEVOTIONAL INSPIRATION

"When the Blessed One had made the joyous utterance, the Venerable Annasi Kondanna, having seen the dhamma, that is the four truths, having attained, reached the four truths, having clearly understood the four truths, having penetrated, through the four truths. leaving uncertainty behind, having overcome all doubts, being