Sammādiṭṭhi Sutta
The is a Pali Canon discourse that provides an elaboration on the Buddhist notion of "right view" by the Buddha's chief disciple, Ven. Sariputta. The Chinese canon contains two corresponding translations, the Maha Kotthita Sutra and the Kotthita Sutra.
Right view is the first factor of the Buddhist Noble Eightfold Path, the path that leads to the cessation of suffering. Right view is considered the "forerunner" of all other path factors. Historically, this particular discourse has been used as a primer for monks in South and Southeast Asian monasteries and is read aloud monthly in some Mahayana monasteries.
In the Pali Canon, the Sammaditthi Sutta is the ninth discourse in the Majjhima Nikaya and is designated by either "MN 9" or "M.1.1.9" or "M i 46". In the Chinese canon, the Maha Kotthita Sutra is found in the Taisho Tripitaka Vol. 1, No. 26, page 461, sutra 29 and the Kotthita Sutra is found in the Taisho Tripitaka Vol. 2, No. 99, page 94, sutra 344.
Text
In this discourse, Ven. Sariputta addresses a congregation of monks about how :At the monks' repeated urging, Ven. Sariputta then identifies the following sixteen cases through which a noble disciple could achieve right view:
Right view is achieved for the last fifteen of these cases by understanding the four phases of each case:
Unwholesome and wholesome
Ven. Sariputta describes the "unwholesome" as entailing ten different actions of three different types:The "root of the unwholesome" is threefold:
The wholesome entails abstention from the aforementioned unwholesome physical and verbal acts as well as non-covetousness, non-ill will and right view. The wholesome's root is nongreed, nonhatred and nondelusion.
Understanding these twenty actions and six roots, the noble disciple abandons greed, aversion, conceit and ignorance, arouses wisdom, ends suffering and is one of right view.
Nutriments
Ven. Sariputta describes the "nutriments" as fourfold:The arising of nutriment is due to the arising of craving. The cessation of nutriment is the cessation of craving. The way leading to the cessation of nutriment is the Noble Eightfold Path. Understanding nutriment, its origin, cessation and the way leading to its cessation, the noble disciple abandons greed, aversion, conceit and ignorance, arouses wisdom, ends suffering and is one of right view.
Four noble truths
Ven. Sariputta describes the Four Noble Truths using traditional canonical phrases:Understanding suffering, its origin, cessation and the way leading to its cessation, the noble disciple abandons greed, aversion, conceit and ignorance, arouses wisdom, ends suffering and is one of right view.
Twelve causes
Ven. Sariputta then describes individually each of the twelve causes of Dependent Origination using traditional canonical phrases, starting with "aging and death" and regressing to "ignorance".In this formulation, the next further back cause is the "origin" of the current cause. Thus, for instance, the origin of "aging and death" is "birth", the origin of "birth" is "becoming", etc. Here, the origin of "ignorance" is the "taints". The cause's cessation is its temporal predecessor's cessation. The way leading to the cessation of any of these twelve causes is the Noble Eightfold Path.
Understanding any one of these twelve causes, its origin, cessation and the way leading to its cessation, the noble disciple abandons greed, aversion, conceit and ignorance, arouses wisdom, ends suffering and is one of right view.
Taints
Naturally following through on his assertion that ignorance arises from the taints, Ven. Sariputta next enumerates the three taints :The origin of the taints is in turn ignorance.
Understanding the taints, their origin, cessation and the way leading to their cessation, the noble disciple abandons greed, aversion, conceit and ignorance, arouses wisdom, ends suffering and is one of right view.
Upon hearing this last case described, the monks were satisfied.
Related canonical discourses
Throughout the Pali Canon, other discourses underline and amplify the topics discussed in this discourse. Below is a sample of such discourses regarding the definition of right view, wholesome and unwholesome actions, and the roots of greed, hate and delusion.''Magga-vibhanga Sutta'' (SN 45.8)
In the "An Analysis of the Path" discourse, the Buddha is recorded as uttering a brief formula for defining "right view":This pithy phrase reflects the core process of the Sammaditthi Sutta insomuch that each of the discourse's cases is analyzed in terms of its existence, its origin, its cessation and the way leading to its cessation.
This condensed formulaic definition of "right view" is found in other canonical discourses as well as in the Abhidhamma Pitaka. In addition, in the Pali literature, this same definition is provided for "wisdom", "non-delusion", and the "four knowledges of this world".
''Saleyyaka Sutta'' (MN 41)
In "The Brahmans of Sala" discourse, as elsewhere in the Canon, the Buddha elaborates in detail on the ten unwholesome and ten wholesome actions. For instance, regarding unwholesome mental actions, the Buddha is recorded as having stated:''Mula Sutta'' (AN 3.69)
In the "Roots" discourse, the Buddha describes the three roots of greed, hate and delusion in the following power-driven fashion:The same exact formula is used for "aversion" and "delusion" substituting these words for "greed."
Additionally, the Buddha describes how a person overcome with these roots has on-going problems:
In juxtaposition, the person whose unwholesome roots are abandoned experiences present moment ease:
Post-canonical commentary
The traditional Pali commentary to the Majjhima Nikaya is the Papañcasūdani. It includes a line-by-line analysis of this discourse. Portions of this commentary can also be found in the Visuddhimagga. Both of these texts are attributed to Buddhaghosa.Supramundane right view
The Papañcasūdani identifies different types of right view contingent on one's breadth and depth of understanding. According to this commentary, when Ven. Sariputta discusses one "who has perfect confidence in the Dhamma and has arrived at the true Dhamma," he is referring to one who has attained "supramundane right view," thus holding out this higher achievement as a milestone for his audience.Understanding unwholesome and wholesome
According to the Pali commentary, the unwholesome and the wholesome can be understood within the four-phase framework used to analyze this discourse's other fifteen cases. From one perspective, the unwholesome and the wholesome are a form of suffering. Likewise, their respective roots are thus "the origin of suffering" ; the non-arising of the roots is the cessation of this suffering ; and, the understanding of unwholesome and wholesome actions and their roots, abandoning the roots, and understanding their cessation is the noble path.In addition, the ten courses of unwholesome action and ten courses of wholesome action can be understood in terms of the following five aspects: mental state ; category ; object ; feeling ; and, root.
Further description of the nutriments
In elaborating upon the nutriments, the commentary states:- Physical food nourishes the materiality. Understanding this nutriment leads to understanding the lust for the five sense pleasures which fetter the noble disciple to rebirth.
- Contact nourishes the three types of feeling. Understanding this nutriment leads to understanding the three feelings.
- Mental volition nourishes the three kinds of being. Understanding this nutriment leads to understanding the three cravings.
- Consciousness nourishes the mentality-materiality of "rebirth-linking." Understanding this nutriment leads to understanding mentality-materiality.