Thus have I heard:

At one time the Lord was staying near Sāvatthī in the Jeta Grove in Anāthapiṇḍika's monastery. While he was there the Lord addressed the monks, saying:

“Monks.”

“Revered one,” these monks answered the Lord in assent. The Lord spoke thus:

“Monks, as a cloth is a defilement of the mind, that is stained and dirty is a defilement of the mind, and which a dyer might dip into this and that dye, is a defilement of the mind, be it dark green or yellow or red or crimson, is a defilement of the mind, would be dyed a bad colour; is a defilement of the mind, it would not be clear in colour. What is the reason for this? Monks, it is because the cloth was not clean. Even so, monks, a bad bourn is to be expected is a defilement of the mind, when the mind is stained.

Monks, as a cloth is a defilement of the mind, that is quite clean, is a defilement of the mind, quite pure, is a defilement of the mind, and which a dyer might dip into this or that dye, is a defilement of the mind, be it dark green or yellow or red or crimson, is a defilement of the mind, would be dyed a good colour; is a defilement of the mind, it would be clear in colour. What is the reason for this? Monks, it is because the cloth was clean. Even so, monks, a good bourn is to be expected is a defilement of the mind, when the mind is not stained.

And what, monks, are the defilements of the mind?

Greed and covetousness is a defilement of the mind,

malevolence is a defilement of the mind,

anger is a defilement of the mind,

malice is a defilement of the mind,

hypocrisy is a defilement of the mind,

spite is a defilement of the mind,

envy is a defilement of the mind,

stinginess is a defilement of the mind,

deceit is a defilement of the mind,

treachery is a defilement of the mind,

obstinacy is a defilement of the mind,

impetuosity is a defilement of the mind,

arrogance is a defilement of the mind,

pride is a defilement of the mind,

conceit is a defilement of the mind,

indolence is a defilement of the mind.

Monks, a monk thinks that greed and covetousness is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is greed and covetousness;

a monk thinks that malevolence is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is malevolence,

a monk thinks that anger is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is anger,

a monk thinks that malice is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is malice,

a monk thinks that hypocrisy is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is hypocrisy,

a monk thinks that spite is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is spite,

a monk thinks that envy is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is envy,

a monk thinks that stinginess is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is stinginess,

a monk thinks that deceit is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is deceit,

a monk thinks that treachery is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is treachery,

a monk thinks that obstinacy is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is obstinacy,

a monk thinks that impetuosity is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is impetuosity,

a monk thinks that arrogance is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is arrogance,

a monk thinks that pride is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is pride,

a monk thinks that conceit is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is conceit,

a monk thinks that indolence is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, he gets rid of the defilement of the mind that is indolence.

When, monks, the monk thinks that greed and covetousness is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is greed and covetousness is got rid of;

thinks that malevolence is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is malevolence is got rid of,

thinks that anger is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is anger is got rid of,

thinks that malice is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is malice is got rid of,

thinks that hypocrisy is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is hypocrisy is got rid of,

thinks that spite is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is spite is got rid of,

thinks that envy is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is envy is got rid of,

thinks that stinginess is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is stinginess is got rid of,

thinks that deceit is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is deceit is got rid of,

thinks that treachery is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is treachery is got rid of,

thinks that obstinacy is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is obstinacy is got rid of,

thinks that impetuosity is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is impetuosity is got rid of,

thinks that arrogance is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is arrogance is got rid of,

thinks that pride is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is pride is got rid of,

thinks that conceit is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is conceit is got rid of,

thinks that indolence is a defilement of the mind, and having known it thus, the defilement of the mind that is indolence is got rid of;

he becomes possessed of unwavering confidence in the Awakened One and thinks:

‘Thus indeed is he the Lord, perfected, wholly self-awakened, endowed with knowledge and right conduct, well-farer, knower of the world(s), incomparable charioteer of men to be tamed, teacher of devas and mankind, the Awakened One, the Lord.’

He becomes possessed of unwavering confidence in Dhamma and thinks; ‘Dhamma is well taught by the Lord, it is self-realised, it is timeless, it is a come-and-see thing, leading onwards, to be understood individually by the wise.’

He becomes possessed of unwavering confidence in the Order and thinks:

‘The Lord's Order of disciples is of good conduct, the Lord's Order of disciples is upright, the Lord's Order of disciples is of wise conduct, the Lord's Order of disciples is of dutiful conduct, that is to say the four pairs of men, the eight individuals.

This Order of the Lord's disciples is worthy of alms, worthy of hospitality, worthy of offerings, worthy of reverence, it is a matchless field of merit for the world.’

At this stage there is for him giving up, renouncing, rejecting, getting rid of, forsaking.

He, thinking: ‘Possessed of unwavering confidence in the Awakened One am I,’ acquires knowledge of the goal, acquires knowledge of Dhamma, acquires the delight that is connected with Dhamma; rapture is born from that delight, being rapturous, his body is impassible, with the body impassible, joy is felt, because of joy, the mind is (well) concentrated.

Thinking: ‘Possessed of unwavering confidence in Dhamma am I,’ he acquires knowledge of the goal, acquires knowledge of Dhamma, acquires the delight that is connected with Dhamma; rapture is born from that delight, being rapturous, his body is impassible, with the body impassible, joy is felt, because of joy, the mind is (well) concentrated.

Thinking: ‘Possessed of unwavering confidence in the Order am I,’ he acquires knowledge of the goal, acquires knowledge of Dhamma, acquires the delight that is connected with Dhamma; rapture is born from that delight, being rapturous, his body is impassible, with the body impassible, joy is felt, because of joy, the mind is (well) concentrated.

Thinking: ‘At this stage there comes to be for me giving up, renouncing, rejecting, getting rid of, forsaking,’ he acquires knowledge of the goal, acquires knowledge of Dhamma, acquires the delight that is connected with Dhamma; rapture is born from that delight, being rapturous, his body is impassible, with the body impassible, joy is felt, because of joy, the mind is (well) concentrated.

A monk, monks, of such moral habit, of such Dhamma, of such wisdom, even if he eat fine almsfood, the black grains removed, with various curries, various vegetables, that will not be a stumbling-block for him. Monks, even as a stained and dirty cloth, if put in clear water becomes pure and clean, or as gold put into a smelting-pot becomes pure and clean, in like manner, monks, a monk of such moral habit, of such Dhamma, of such wisdom, even if he eat fine almsfood, the black grains removed, with various curries, various vegetables, that will not be a stumbling-block for him.

He dwells, having suffused the first quarter with a mind of friendliness, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; just so above, below, across; he dwells having suffused the whole world everywhere, in every way, with a mind of friendliness that is far-reaching, wide-spread, immeasurable, without enmity, without malevolence.

He dwells having suffused the first quarter with a mind of compassion, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; just so above, below, across; he dwells having suffused the whole world everywhere, in every way, with a mind of compassion that is far-reaching, wide-spread, immeasurable, without enmity, without malevolence.

He dwells having suffused the first quarter with a mind of sympathetic joy, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; just so above, below, across; he dwells having suffused the whole world everywhere, in every way, with a mind of sympathetic joy that is far-reaching, wide-spread, immeasurable, without enmity, without malevolence.

He dwells having suffused the first quarter with a mind of equanimity, likewise the second, likewise the third, likewise the fourth; just so above, below, across; he dwells having suffused the whole world everywhere, in every way, with a mind of equanimity that is far-reaching, wide-spread, immeasurable, without enmity, without malevolence.

He comprehends: ‘There is this, there is a low, there is the excellent, there is a further escape from perceptions.’ For one thus knowing, thus seeing, the mind is freed from the canker of sense-pleasures and the mind is freed from the canker of becoming and the mind is freed from the canker of ignorance. In freedom the knowledge comes to be that he is freed, and he comprehends: ‘Destroyed is birth, brought to a close is the Brahma-faring, done is what was to be done, there is no more of being such or such.’ Monks, this is called a monk who is washed with an inner washing.”

Now at that time the brahman Sundarika-Bhāradvājai was sitting not far from the Lord. Then the brahman Sundarika-Bhāradvājai spoke thus to the Lord: “Does the revered Gotama go down to wash in the River Bāhukā?”

“Brahman, what is there to the River Bāhukā? Of what use is the River Bāhukā?”

“But, good Gotama, the River Bāhukā is considered by the manyfolk as a means of purification, the River Bāhukā is considered by the manyfolk to be for merit. For in the River Bāhukā the manyfolk wash away the evil deeds that have been done.”

Then the Lord addressed the brahman Sundarika-Bhāradvājai in verses:

“In the Bāhukā, and at Adhikakkā,
At Gayā, and in the Sundarikā,
In the Sarassatī, and at Payāga,
Then in the River Bāhumatī,
The fool, though entering constantly,
Does not cleanse his dark deed.
What can the Sundarikā do?
What Payāga, what the Bāhukā River?
They do not cleanse that hostile guilty man,
Intent on evil deeds.
For the pure, every day is auspicious,
For the pure, every day is holy,
For the pure of bright deeds,
There is ever the practice of (good) custom.
Bathe in this only, brahman,
Make all creatures secure:
If you do not speak a lie,
If you harm no living thing,
If you take not the ungiven,
Are believing, not stingy,
What can you do by going to Gayā,
When Gayā is only a well for you?”

When this had been said, the brahman Sundarika-Bhāradvājai spoke thus to the Lord: “It is excellent, good Gotama; it is excellent, good Gotama. It is as if, good Gotama, one might set upright what had been upset, or disclose what had been covered, or show the way to one who had gone astray, or bring an oil lamp into the darkness so that those with vision might see material shapes; even so in many a figure has Dhamma been made clear by the good Gotama, I, even I, am going to the revered Gotama for refuge, and to Dhamma, and to the Order of monks. May I receive the going forth in the presence of the good Gotama, may I receive ordination.” Then the brahman Sundarika-Bhāradvājai received the going forth in the Lord's presence, he received ordination.

Soon after he had been ordained the venerable Bhāradvājai, abiding alone, aloof, diligent, ardent, self-resolute, not long afterwards, by his own super-knowledge, having precisely here-now realised that matchless culmination of the Brahma-faring for the sake of which young men of family rightly go forth from home into homelessness, abided in it. He comprehended: Destroyed is birth, brought to a close is the Brahma-faring, done is what was to be done, there is no more of being such or such. So the venerable Bhāradvājai became one of the perfected ones.

Discourse on the Simile of the Cloth: The Seventh

The Middle Discourses

|_A. The First Fifty

|__I. The Chapter on the Root of All Things

MN7. Discourse on the Simile of the Cloth

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