The Noble Search

CHAPTER ONE

The Noble Search

The famous account of the bodhisatta’s original impulse in this lifetime to search for awakening—in which he had never seen an old person, a sick person, a dead person, or a wilderness mendicant until after becoming an adult—isn’t found in the Pāli Canon. Instead, the Canon’s accounts are simpler and psychologically much more realistic. It was not the case that he hadn’t seen these things when he was a child. It was just that their implications didn’t yet fully hit home. When they did, he decided that a life spent in pursuit of happiness in things that age, grow ill, and die was a life thrown to waste. Not only that, the need to compete for happiness in these things meant that he would have to engage in conflict and do harm—all for things that would eventually have to slip through his fingers. These were the realizations that inspired him to look for a noble happiness: one that would last and also be peaceful, in that it would require no harm or conflict in finding and maintaining it. In his words, this was a search for “what might be skillful.” He was searching not for his true self or even for truth in the abstract, but rather for a path of action that would yield a happiness meeting his high standards.

“Monks, I lived in refinement, utmost refinement, total refinement. My father even had lotus ponds made in our palace: one where red-lotuses bloomed, one where white lotuses bloomed, one where blue lotuses bloomed, all for my sake. I used no sandalwood that was not from Vārāṇasī. My turban was from Vārāṇasī, as were my tunic, my lower garments, & my outer cloak. A white sunshade was held over me day & night to protect me from cold, heat, dust, dirt, & dew.

“I had three palaces: one for the cold season, one for the hot season, one for the rainy season. During the four months of the rainy season, I was entertained in the rainy-season palace by minstrels without a single man among them, and I did not once come down from the palace. Whereas the servants, workers, & retainers in other people’s homes are fed meals of lentil soup & broken rice, in my father’s home the servants, workers, & retainers were fed wheat, rice, and meat.

“Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: ‘When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to aging, not beyond aging, sees another who is aged, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to aging, not beyond aging. If I—who am subject to aging, not beyond aging—were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is aged, that would not be fitting for me.’ As I noticed this, the (typical) young person’s intoxication with youth entirely dropped away.

“Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: ‘When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to illness, not beyond illness, sees another who is ill, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to illness, not beyond illness. And if I—who am subject to illness, not beyond illness—were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is ill, that would not be fitting for me.’ As I noticed this, the healthy person’s intoxication with health entirely dropped away.

“Even though I was endowed with such fortune, such total refinement, the thought occurred to me: ‘When an untaught, run-of-the-mill person, himself subject to death, not beyond death, sees another who is dead, he is horrified, humiliated, & disgusted, oblivious to himself that he too is subject to death, not beyond death. And if I—who am subject to death, not beyond death—were to be horrified, humiliated, & disgusted on seeing another person who is dead, that would not be fitting for me.’ As I noticed this, the living person’s intoxication with life entirely dropped away.” — AN 3:39

When embraced,

the rod of violence

breeds danger & fear:

Look at people quarreling.

I will tell of how

I experienced

terror:

Seeing people floundering

like fish in small puddles,

competing with one another—

as I saw this,

fear came into me.

The world was entirely

without substance.

All the directions

were knocked out of line.

Wanting a haven for myself,

I saw nothing that wasn’t laid claim to.

Seeing nothing in the end

but competition,

I felt discontent.

And then I saw

an arrow here,

so very hard to see,

embedded in the heart.

Overcome by this arrow

you run in all directions.

But simply on pulling it out

you don’t run,

you don’t sink. — Sn 4:15

“I, too, monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, being subject myself to birth, sought [happiness in] what was likewise subject to birth. Being subject myself to aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement, I sought what was likewise subject to aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement. The thought occurred to me, ‘Why do I, being subject myself to birth, seek what is likewise subject to birth? Being subject myself to aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement, why do I seek what is likewise subject to aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement? What if I, being subject myself to birth, seeing the drawbacks of birth, were to seek the unborn, unexcelled rest from the yoke: unbinding? What if I, being subject myself to aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement, seeing the drawbacks of aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement, were to seek the aging-less, illness-less, deathless, sorrow-less, unexcelled rest from the yoke: unbinding?’” — MN 26

One of the longest accounts of the bodhisatta’s quest for awakening is contained in MN 36. This passage—interspersed with passages from other parts of the Canon—provides the main framework for the following presentation. It’s an example of how the Buddha’s autobiographical narratives were sometimes sparked by a particular event—in this case, Saccaka Aggivessana’s insinuation that perhaps the bodhisatta’s ability to keep his mind from being invaded by pleasure and pain was due to the fact that he never experienced pleasures or pains that were especially intense. This remark provided the occasion for the Buddha to enumerate the extreme pleasures and pains he experienced in the course of his search for awakening but that, despite their intensity, did not invade his mind. Thus the frequent refrain through the following pages: “But the painful/pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.”

The Blessed One said, “And how is one undeveloped in body and undeveloped in mind? There is the case where a pleasant feeling arises in an uneducated run-of-the-mill person. On being touched by the pleasant feeling, he becomes impassioned with pleasure and is reduced to being impassioned with pleasure. His pleasant feeling ceases. With the cessation of the pleasant feeling there arises a painful feeling. On being touched with the painful feeling, he sorrows, grieves, & laments, beats his breast, becomes distraught. When that pleasant feeling had arisen in him, it invaded his mind and remained because of his lack of development of the body. When that painful feeling had arisen in him, it invaded his mind and remained because of his lack of development of the mind. This is how one is undeveloped in body and undeveloped in mind.

“And how is one developed in body and developed in mind? There is the case where a pleasant feeling arises in a well educated disciple of the noble ones. On being touched by the pleasant feeling, he doesn’t become impassioned with pleasure and is not reduced to being impassioned with pleasure. His pleasant feeling ceases. With the cessation of the pleasant feeling there arises a painful feeling. On being touched with the painful feeling, he doesn’t sorrow, grieve, or lament, beat his breast or become distraught. When that pleasant feeling had arisen in him, it didn’t invade his mind and remain because of his development of the body. When that painful feeling had arisen in him, it didn’t invade his mind and remain because of his development of the mind. This is how one is developed in body and developed in mind.”

[Saccaka Aggivessana:] “I have confidence in Master Gotama that Master Gotama is developed in body and developed in mind.”

“Well, Aggivessana, you are certainly being rude and presumptuously speaking your words, but nevertheless I will respond to you. Ever since I shaved my hair & beard, put on the ochre robe, and went forth from home into homelessness, it has not been possible for a pleasant feeling that has arisen to invade my mind and remain or for a painful feeling that has arisen to invade my mind and remain.”

“But perhaps there has never arisen in Master Gotama the sort of pleasant feeling that, having arisen, would invade the mind and remain. Perhaps there has never arisen in Master Gotama the sort of painful feeling that, having arisen, would invade the mind and remain.”

“Why wouldn’t it have, Aggivessana? Before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, the thought occurred to me: ‘Home life is confining, a dusty path. Life gone forth is the open air. It isn’t easy, living in a home, to live the holy life totally perfect, totally pure, a polished shell. What if I, having shaved off my hair & beard and putting on the ochre robe, were to go forth from home into homelessness?’

“So, at a later time, while still young, a black-haired young man endowed with the blessings of youth in the first stage of life—and while my parents, unwilling, were crying with tears streaming down their faces—I shaved off my hair & beard, put on the ochre robe, and went forth from home into homelessness.” — MN 36

As we will see in Chapter 6, when the bodhisatta left home, he left not only his parents but also a wife and young son. For some reason, they are not mentioned in the Canon’s accounts of events prior to his awakening. Later versions of the story, however, gave them a major role in showing how heart-rending a choice it was for the bodhisatta to go forth.

After leaving his home in Kapilavatthu, in the northwest, he made his way to the far south of the lands of the Ariyans: Rājagaha, the capital city of the kingdom of Magadha. He probably would have taken the road along the Gandak River, passing through Kusinārā, then the territories of the Mallans, Vajjis, and Licchavis, to the River Ganges, the northern frontier of Magadhan territory. It was on this same road, going in the opposite direction, that his final journey was to take place many years later.

I will celebrate the Going-forth,

how he, the One with Eyes, went forth,

how he reasoned and chose the Going-forth.

“Household life is confining,

a realm of dust,

while going forth

is the open air.”

Seeing this, he went forth.

A recurrent theme in the Buddha’s accounts of his search for awakening was his experimental approach. He would try a course of action and then evaluate the results. If they didn’t meet up with his standards, he would look for the cause in his own actions and ask himself what he might do differently. Coming up with a possible solution, he would then experiment with that. It was through this process of trial and error, carefully observed, that he eventually arrived at trial and success. He began his experiments under the direction of two teachers, but then—dissatisfied with the results—started to experiment on his own.

“Having thus gone forth in search of what might be skillful, seeking the unexcelled state of sublime peace, I went to Āḷāra Kālāma and, on arrival, said to him: ‘Friend Kālāma, I want to practice in this Dhamma & discipline.’

“When this was said, Aggivessana, he replied to me, ‘You may stay here, my friend. This Dhamma is such that a wise person can soon enter and remain in his own teacher’s knowledge, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge.’

“It wasn’t long before I quickly learned the doctrine. As far as mere lip-reciting & repetition, I could speak the words of knowledge, the words of the elders, and I could affirm that I knew and saw—I, along with others.

“I thought: ‘It isn’t through mere conviction alone that Āḷāra Kālāma declares, “I have entered and remain in this Dhamma, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge.” Certainly he dwells knowing and seeing this Dhamma.’ So I went to him and said, ‘To what extent do you declare that you have entered and remain in this Dhamma?’ When this was said, he declared the dimension of nothingness.

“I thought: ‘Not only does Āḷāra Kālāma have conviction, persistence, mindfulness, concentration, & discernment. I, too, have conviction, persistence, mindfulness, concentration, & discernment. What if I were to endeavor to realize for myself the Dhamma that Āḷāra Kālāma declares he has entered and remains in, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge.’ So it wasn’t long before I quickly entered and remained in that Dhamma, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge. I went to him and said, ‘Friend Kālāma, is this the extent to which you have entered and remain in this Dhamma, having realized it for yourself through direct knowledge?’

“‘Yes, my friend.…’

“‘This, friend, is the extent to which I, too, have entered and remain in this Dhamma, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge.’

“‘It’s a gain for us, my friend, a great gain for us, that we have such a companion in the holy life. So the Dhamma I declare I have entered and remain in, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge, is the Dhamma you declare you have entered and remain in, having realized it for yourself through direct knowledge. And the Dhamma you declare you have entered and remain in, having realized it for yourself through direct knowledge, is the Dhamma I declare I have entered and remain in, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge. The Dhamma I know is the Dhamma you know; the Dhamma you know is the Dhamma I know. As I am, so are you; as you are, so am I. Come friend, let us now lead this community together.’

“In this way did Āḷāra Kālāma, my teacher, place me, his pupil, on the same level with himself and pay me great honor. But the thought occurred to me, ‘This Dhamma leads not to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to stilling, to direct knowledge, to awakening, nor to unbinding, but only to reappearance in the dimension of nothingness.’ So, dissatisfied with that Dhamma, I left.

“In search of what might be skillful, seeking the unexcelled state of sublime peace, I went to Uddaka Rāmaputta [literally, son of Rāma] and, on arrival, said to him: ‘Friend Uddaka, I want to practice in this Dhamma & discipline.’

“When this was said, he replied to me, ‘You may stay here, my friend. This Dhamma is such that a wise person can soon enter and remain in his own teacher’s knowledge, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge.’

“It wasn’t long before I quickly learned the doctrine. As far as mere lip-reciting & repetition, I could speak the words of knowledge, the words of the elders, and I could affirm that I knew & saw—I, along with others.

“I thought: ‘It wasn’t through mere conviction alone that Rāma declared, “I have entered and remain in this Dhamma, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge.” Certainly he dwelled knowing and seeing this Dhamma.’ So I went to Uddaka and said, ‘To what extent did Rāma declare that he had entered and remained in this Dhamma?’ When this was said, Uddaka declared the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.

“I thought: ‘Not only did Rāma have conviction, persistence, mindfulness, concentration, & discernment. I, too, have conviction, persistence, mindfulness, concentration, & discernment. What if I were to endeavor to realize for myself the Dhamma that Rāma declared he entered and remained in, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge.’ So it wasn’t long before I quickly entered and remained in that Dhamma, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge. I went to Uddaka and said, ‘Friend Uddaka, is this the extent to which Rāma entered and remained in this Dhamma, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge?’

“‘Yes, my friend.…’

“‘This, friend, is the extent to which I, too, have entered and remain in this Dhamma, having realized it for myself through direct knowledge.’

“‘It’s a gain for us, my friend, a great gain for us, that we have such a companion in the holy life. So the Dhamma Rāma declared he entered and remained in, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge, is the Dhamma you declare you have entered and remained in, having realized it for yourself through direct knowledge. And the Dhamma you declare you have entered and remain in, having realized it for yourself through direct knowledge, is the Dhamma Rāma declared he entered and remained in, having realized it for himself through direct knowledge. The Dhamma he knew is the Dhamma you know; the Dhamma you know is the Dhamma he knew. As he was, so are you; as you are, so was he. Come friend, lead this community.’

“In this way did Uddaka Rāmaputta, my companion in the holy life, place me in the position of teacher and pay me great honor. But the thought occurred to me, ‘This Dhamma leads not to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to stilling, to direct knowledge, to awakening, nor to unbinding, but only to reappearance in the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.’ So, dissatisfied with that Dhamma, I left.” — MN 36

“Monks, Uddaka Rāmaputta himself made this statement: ‘This one [myself] is surely an attainer of wisdom. This one is surely a conqueror of all. This one surely has uprooted the un-uprooted boil-root.’2

“But Uddaka Rāmaputta, not being an attainer of wisdom, said, ‘I am an attainer of wisdom,’ not being a conqueror of all, said, ‘I am a conqueror of all,’ not having uprooted the boil-root, said, ‘My boil-root is uprooted.’

“Here, a monk, speaking rightly would say, ‘This one [myself] is surely an attainer of wisdom. This one is surely a conqueror of all. This one surely has uprooted the unuprooted boil-root.’

“And how is one an attainer of wisdom? When a monk discerns, as they have come to be, the origination, passing away, allure, drawback, & escape from the six spheres of contact: In that way a monk is an attainer of wisdom.

“And how is a monk a conqueror of all? When a monk, having known, as they have come to be, the origination, passing away, allure, drawback, & escape from the six spheres of contact, is released through non-clinging: In that way a monk is a conqueror of all.

“And how is a monk’s unuprooted boil-root uprooted? ‘Boil,’ is a designation for this body, composed of the four primary elements, born from mother & father, nourished with rice & porridge, subject to inconstancy, rubbing, pressing, dissolution, & dispersion. ‘Boil-root,’ is a designation for craving. When a monk’s craving has been abandoned, its root destroyed, made like a palmyra stump—deprived of the conditions of development, not destined for future arising: In that way a monk’s unuprooted boil-root is uprooted.” — SN 35:86

Here it’s worth pausing to pose the question of how Āḷāra Kālāma and Uddaka Rāmaputta taught the bodhisatta to reach the dimensions of nothingness and neither perception nor non-perception. In the Canon’s standard descriptions of how these dimensions are attained, they follow on the four jhānas. But if these two teachers taught the four jhānas as preliminary steps to those dimensions, it raises the question: Why, when the bodhisatta was later looking for a new way to approach the deathless, did he have to cast all the way back to his childhood for a memory of the first jhāna? Couldn’t he have simply referred to his experience under them? And why couldn’t he simply have used the states he learned under his teachers as a basis for liberating insight? After all, several suttas, such as AN 9:36 and MN 52, list the dimensions of nothingness and neither perception nor non-perception as possible bases for liberating insight.

One possible answer is that Āḷāra and Uddaka taught alternative routes to those dimensions, rather than through the four jhānas. And the Canon itself lists a few such alternatives, which the bodhisatta may have learned from his two teachers. MN 106 is especially instructive on this question, listing three possible methods for attaining the dimension of nothingness, and a method for attaining the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.’

Among the three ways to attain the dimension of nothingness, the first describes the standard route, detailing the lessons that can be learned by approaching that dimension through the practice of the four jhānas and two imperturbable states: the dimension of the infinitude of space and the dimension of the infinitude of consciousness. These lessons—about sensuality, form, and perception—are precisely the lessons that are useful in developing insight into how the mind shapes its experience through the processes of the three types of fabrication (intentional action): bodily, verbal, and mental.3 That is why a person who has followed this path to the dimension of nothingness would be primed to use a contemplation of that attainment to gain liberating insight. The remaining two methods, however—and this is true also of the method given here for attaining the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception—do not provide these lessons, which is why a person who reaches these attainments through these alternative methods would not be primed in that way.

“Then again, the disciple of the noble ones considers this: ‘Sensuality here & now; sensuality in lives to come; sensual perceptions here & now; sensual perceptions in lives to come; forms here & now; forms in lives to come; form-perceptions here & now; form-perceptions in lives to come; perceptions of the imperturbable: All are perceptions. Where they cease without remainder: That is peaceful, that is exquisite, i.e., the dimension of nothingness.’ Practicing and frequently abiding in this way, his mind acquires confidence in that dimension. There being full confidence, he either attains the dimension of nothingness now or else is committed to discernment. With the breakup of the body, after death, it’s possible that this leading-on consciousness of his will go to the dimension of nothingness. This is declared to be the first practice conducive to the dimension of nothingness.

“Then again, the disciple of the noble ones, having gone into the wilderness, to the root of a tree, or into an empty dwelling, considers this: ‘This is empty of self or of anything pertaining to self.’ Practicing and frequently abiding in this way, his mind acquires confidence in that dimension. There being full confidence, he either attains the dimension of nothingness now or else is committed to discernment. With the breakup of the body, after death, it’s possible that this leading-on consciousness of his will go to the dimension of nothingness. This is declared to be the second practice conducive to the dimension of nothingness.

“Then again, the disciple of the noble ones considers this: ‘I am not anyone’s anything anywhere; nor is anything of mine in anyone anywhere.’ Practicing and frequently abiding in this way, his mind acquires confidence in that dimension. There being full confidence, he either attains the dimension of nothingness now or else is committed to discernment. With the breakup of the body, after death, it’s possible that this leading-on consciousness of his will go to the dimension of nothingness. This is declared to be the third practice conducive to the dimension of nothingness.…

“There is the case, Ānanda, where a monk, having practiced in this way—(thinking) ‘It should not be, it should not occur to me; it will not be, it will not occur to me. What is, what has come to be, that I abandon’—obtains equanimity. He relishes that equanimity, welcomes it, remains fastened to it. As he relishes that equanimity, welcomes it, remains fastened to it, his consciousness is dependent on it, is sustained by it [clings to it]. With clinging/sustenance, Ānanda, a monk is not totally unbound.”

“Being sustained, lord, where is that monk sustained?”

“The dimension of neither perception nor non-perception.” — MN 106

To resume the story of the bodhisatta’s search:

“So, Aggivessana, in search of what might be skillful, seeking the unexcelled state of sublime peace, I wandered by stages in the Magadhan country and came to the military town of Uruvelā. There I saw some delightful countryside, with an inspiring forest grove, a clear-flowing river with fine, delightful banks, & villages for alms-going on all sides. The thought occurred to me: ‘How delightful is this countryside, with its inspiring forest grove, clear-flowing river with fine, delightful banks, & villages for alms-going on all sides. This is just right for the exertion of a clansman intent on exertion.’ So I sat down right there, thinking, ‘This is just right for exertion.’” — MN 36

“Monks, I have known two qualities through experience: discontent with regard to skillful qualities4 & unrelenting exertion. Relentlessly I exerted myself, (thinking,) ‘Gladly would I let the flesh & blood in my body dry up, leaving just the skin, tendons, & bones, but if I have not attained what can be reached through human firmness, human persistence, human striving, there will be no relaxing my persistence.’ From this heedfulness of mine was attained awakening. From this heedfulness of mine was attained the unexcelled freedom from bondage.” — AN 2:5

“Yes, brahman… before my self-awakening, when I was still just 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 plunder, as it were, the mind of a monk who has not attained concentration.’

“The thought occurred to me: ‘When contemplatives or brahmans 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 contemplatives or brahmans 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 contemplatives or brahmans who are covetous & fiercely passionate for sensual pleasures… I am not covetous.…’

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who have minds of ill will, with destructive attitudes… I have a mind of goodwill…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are overcome by sloth & drowsiness… I am devoid of sloth & drowsiness…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are restless & with an unstill mind… I have a still mind…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are uncertain & doubting… I have gone beyond uncertainty…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are given to praising themselves & disparaging others… I do not praise myself or disparage others…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who tend toward panic & dread… I have gone beyond horripilation…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are desirous of gains, offerings, & fame… I have few wants…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are lazy & lacking in persistence… My persistence is aroused…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are muddled in their mindfulness & unalert… I have mindfulness established…’…

“…‘When contemplatives or brahmans who are unconcentrated, with straying minds… I am consummate in concentration…’…

“The thought occurred to me: ‘When contemplatives or brahmans 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.” — MN 4

“Then, Aggivessana, these three similes—spontaneous, never before heard—appeared to me. Suppose there were a wet, sappy piece of timber lying in the water, and a man were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, ‘I’ll light a fire. I’ll produce heat.’ Now what do you think? Would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing the upper fire-stick in the wet, sappy timber lying in the water?”

“No, Master Gotama. Why is that? Because the timber is wet & sappy, and besides it is lying in the water. Eventually the man would reap only his share of weariness & disappointment.”

“So it is with any contemplative or brahman who does not live secluded from sensuality in body & mind, and whose desire, infatuation, urge, thirst, & fever for sensuality is not relinquished and stilled within him: Whether or not he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings due to his striving (for awakening), he is incapable of knowledge, vision, & unexcelled self-awakening. This was the first simile—spontaneous, never before heard—that appeared to me.

“Then a second simile—spontaneous, never before heard—appeared to me. Suppose there were a wet, sappy piece of timber lying on land far from water, and a man were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, ‘I’ll light a fire. I’ll produce heat.’ Now what do you think? Would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing the upper fire-stick in the wet, sappy timber lying on land far from water?”

“No, Master Gotama. Why is that? Because the timber is wet & sappy, even though it is lying on land far from water. Eventually the man would reap only his share of weariness & disappointment.”

“So it is with any contemplative or brahman who lives secluded from sensuality in body only, but whose desire, infatuation, urge, thirst, & fever for sensuality is not relinquished and stilled within him: Whether or not he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings due to his striving, he is incapable of knowledge, vision, & unexcelled self-awakening. This was the second simile—spontaneous, never before heard—that appeared to me.

“Then a third simile—spontaneous, never before heard—appeared to me. Suppose there were a dry, sapless piece of timber lying on land far from water, and a man were to come along with an upper fire-stick, thinking, ‘I’ll light a fire. I’ll produce heat.’ Now what do you think? Would he be able to light a fire and produce heat by rubbing the upper fire-stick in the dry, sapless timber lying on land?”

“Yes, Master Gotama. Why is that? Because the timber is dry & sapless, and besides it is lying on land far from water.”

“So it is with any contemplative or brahman who lives secluded from sensuality in body & mind, and whose desire, infatuation, urge, thirst, & fever for sensuality is relinquished and stilled within him: Whether or not he feels painful, racking, piercing feelings due to his striving, he is capable of knowledge, vision, & unexcelled self-awakening. This was the third simile—spontaneous, never before heard—that appeared to me.

“I thought: ‘What if I, clenching my teeth and pressing my tongue against the roof of my mouth, were to beat down, constrain, & crush my mind with my awareness?’ So, clenching my teeth and pressing my tongue against the roof of my mouth, I beat down, constrained, & crushed my mind with my awareness. Just as a strong man, seizing a weaker man by the head or the throat or the shoulders, would beat him down, constrain, & crush him, in the same way, I beat down, constrained, & crushed my mind with my awareness. As I did so, sweat poured from my armpits. And although tireless persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness established, my body was aroused & uncalm because of the painful exertion. But the painful feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.

“I thought: ‘What if I were to become absorbed in the jhāna of non-breathing?’ So I stopped the in-breaths & out-breaths in my nose & mouth. As I did so, there was a loud roaring of winds coming out my earholes, just like the loud roar of winds coming out of a smith’s bellows.… So I stopped the in-breaths & out-breaths in my nose & mouth & ears. As I did so, extreme forces sliced through my head, just as if a strong man were slicing my head open with a sharp sword.… Extreme pains arose in my head, just as if a strong man were tightening a turban made of tough leather straps around my head.… Extreme forces carved up my stomach cavity, just as if a butcher or his apprentice were to carve up the stomach cavity of an ox.… There was an extreme burning in my body, just as if two strong men, grabbing a weaker man by the arms, were to roast & broil him over a pit of hot embers. And although tireless persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness established, my body was aroused & uncalm because of the painful exertion. But the painful feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.

“Devas, on seeing me, said, ‘Gotama the contemplative is dead.’ Other devas said, ‘He isn’t dead, he’s dying.’ Others said, ‘He’s neither dead nor dying, he’s an arahant, for this is the way arahants live.’

“I thought: ‘What if I were to practice going altogether without food?’ Then devas came to me and said, ‘Please, dear sir, don’t practice going altogether without food. If you go altogether without food, we’ll infuse divine nourishment in through your pores, and you will survive on that.’ I thought, ‘If I were to claim to be completely fasting while these devas are infusing divine nourishment in through my pores, I would be lying.’ So I dismissed them, saying, ‘Enough.’

“I thought: ‘What if I were to take only a little food at a time, only a handful at a time of bean soup, lentil soup, vetch soup, or pea soup?’ So I took only a little food at a time, only a handful at a time of bean soup, lentil soup, vetch soup, or pea soup. My body became extremely emaciated. Simply from my eating so little, my limbs became like the jointed segments of vine stems or bamboo stems.… My backside became like a camel’s hoof.… My spine stood out like a string of beads.… My ribs jutted out like the jutting rafters of an old, run-down barn.… The gleam of my eyes appeared to be sunk deep in my eye sockets, like the gleam of water deep in a well.… My scalp shriveled & withered like a green bitter gourd, shriveled & withered in the heat & the wind.… The skin of my belly became so stuck to my spine that when I thought of touching my belly, I grabbed hold of my spine as well; and when I thought of touching my spine, I grabbed hold of the skin of my belly as well… If I urinated or defecated, I fell over on my face right there.… Simply from my eating so little, if I tried to ease my body by rubbing my limbs with my hands, the hair—rotted at its roots—fell from my body as I rubbed, simply from eating so little.

“People on seeing me would say, ‘Gotama the contemplative is black.’ Other people would say, ‘Gotama the contemplative isn’t black, he’s brown.’ Others would say, ‘Gotama the contemplative is neither black nor brown, he’s golden-skinned.’ So much had the clear, bright color of my skin deteriorated, simply from eating so little.

“I thought: ‘Whatever contemplatives or brahmans in the past have felt painful, racking, piercing feelings due to their striving, this is the utmost. None have been greater than this. Whatever contemplatives or brahmans in the future will feel painful, racking, piercing feelings due to their striving, this is the utmost. None will be greater than this. Whatever contemplatives or brahmans in the present are feeling painful, racking, piercing feelings due to their striving, this is the utmost. None is greater than this. But with this racking practice of austerities I haven’t attained any superior human state, any distinction in knowledge or vision worthy of the noble ones. Could there be another path to awakening?’

“I thought: ‘I recall once, when my father the Sakyan was working, and I was sitting in the cool shade of a rose-apple tree, then—quite secluded from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities—I entered and remained in the first jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. Could that be the path to awakening?’ Then there was the consciousness following on that memory: ‘That is the path to awakening.’ I thought: ‘So why am I afraid of that pleasure that has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful qualities?’ I thought: ‘I am no longer afraid of that pleasure that has nothing to do with sensuality, nothing to do with unskillful qualities, but that pleasure is not easy to achieve with a body so extremely emaciated. What if I were to take some solid food: some rice & porridge?’ So I took some solid food: some rice & porridge.

“Now five monks had been attending to me, thinking, ‘If Gotama, our contemplative, achieves some higher state, he will tell us.’ But when they saw me taking some solid food—some rice & porridge—they were disgusted and left me, thinking, ‘Gotama the contemplative is living luxuriously. He has abandoned his exertion and is backsliding into abundance.’” — MN 36

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, five great dreams appeared to him. Which five?

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, this great earth was his great bed. The Himalayas, king of mountains, was his pillow. His left hand rested in the eastern sea, his right hand in the western sea, and both feet in the southern sea. When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, this was the first great dream that appeared to him.

“Furthermore, when the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, a woody vine growing out of his navel stood reaching to the sky. When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, this was the second great dream that appeared to him.

“Furthermore, when the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, white worms with black heads crawling up from his feet covered him as far as his knees. When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, this was the third great dream that appeared to him.

“Furthermore, when the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, four birds of different color coming from the four directions fell at his feet and turned entirely white. When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, this was the fourth great dream that appeared to him.

“Furthermore, when the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, he walked back & forth on top of a giant mountain of excrement but was not soiled by the excrement. When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, this was the fifth great dream that appeared to him.

“Now, when the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, and this great earth was his great bed, the Himalayas, king of mountains, was his pillow, his left hand rested in the eastern sea, his right hand in the western sea, and both feet in the southern sea: This first great dream appeared to let him know that he would awaken to the unexcelled right self-awakening.

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, and a woody vine growing out of his navel stood reaching to the sky: This second great dream appeared to let him know that when he had awakened to the noble eightfold path, he would proclaim it well as far as there are devas & human beings.

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, and white worms with black heads crawling up from his feet covered him as far as his knees: This third great dream appeared to let him know that many white-clothed householders would go for lifelong refuge to the Tathāgata.

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, and four different-colored birds coming from the four directions fell at his feet and turned entirely white: This fourth great dream appeared to let him know that people from the four castes—brahmans, noble warriors, merchants, and laborers—having gone forth from home into homelessness in the Dhamma & Vinaya taught by the Tathāgata, would realize unexcelled release.

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, and he walked back & forth on top of a giant mountain of excrement but was not soiled by the excrement: This fifth great dream appeared to let him know that the Tathāgata would receive gifts of robes, almsfood, lodgings, & medicinal requisites to cure the sick, but he would use them unattached to them, uninfatuated, guiltless, seeing the drawbacks [of attachment to them], and discerning the escape from them.

“When the Tathāgata—worthy & rightly self-awakened—was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, these five great dreams appeared to him.” — AN 5:196

To me—

resolute in exertion

near the river Nerañjarā,

making a great effort,

doing jhāna

to attain rest from the yoke—

Namuci5 came,

speaking words of compassion:

“You are ashen, thin.

Death is in

your presence.

Death

has one thousand parts of you.

Only one part

is your life.

Live, good sir!

Life is better.

Alive,

you can do

acts of merit.

Your living the holy life,

performing the fire sacrifice,

will heap up much merit.

What use is exertion to you?

Hard to follow

—the path of exertion—

hard to do, hard

to sustain.”

The Buddha related the events just prior to his awakening several times in the discourses, choosing to include different details in the different accounts, apparently in response to the audience and the situation. In the following account, he emphasizes the role of right resolve in leading to concentration. In other passages, he emphasizes his mastery of concentration, and in still others, the questioning that led to discernment.

The Blessed One said, “Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, the thought occurred to me: ‘Why don’t I keep dividing my thinking into two sorts?’ So I made thinking imbued with sensuality, thinking imbued with ill will, & thinking imbued with harmfulness one sort, and thinking imbued with renunciation, thinking imbued with non-ill will, & thinking imbued with harmlessness another sort.

“And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with sensuality arose in me. I discerned that ‘Thinking imbued with sensuality has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to unbinding.’

“As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others… to the affliction of both… it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with sensuality had arisen, I simply abandoned it, destroyed it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.

“And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with ill will… thinking imbued with harmfulness arose in me. I discerned that ‘Thinking imbued with harmfulness has arisen in me; and that leads to my own affliction or to the affliction of others or to the affliction of both. It obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to unbinding.’

“As I noticed that it leads to my own affliction, it subsided. As I noticed that it leads to the affliction of others… to the affliction of both… it obstructs discernment, promotes vexation, & does not lead to unbinding, it subsided. Whenever thinking imbued with harmfulness had arisen, I simply abandoned it, destroyed it, dispelled it, wiped it out of existence.

“Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with sensuality, abandoning thinking imbued with renunciation, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with sensuality. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with non-ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmfulness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmlessness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmfulness.

“Just as in the last month of the Rains, in the autumn season when the crops are ripening, a cowherd would look after his cows: He would tap & poke & check & curb them with a stick on this side & that. Why is that? Because he foresees flogging or imprisonment or a fine or public censure arising from that [if he let his cows wander into the crops]. In the same way, I foresaw in unskillful qualities drawbacks, degradation, & defilement, and I foresaw in skillful qualities rewards related to renunciation & promoting cleansing.

“And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with renunciation arose in me. I discerned that ‘Thinking imbued with renunciation has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night… even for a day… even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed, and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.’ So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.

“And as I remained thus heedful, ardent, & resolute, thinking imbued with non-ill will… thinking imbued with harmlessness arose in me. I discerned that ‘Thinking imbued with harmlessness has arisen in me; and that leads neither to my own affliction, nor to the affliction of others, nor to the affliction of both. It fosters discernment, promotes lack of vexation, & leads to unbinding. If I were to think & ponder in line with that even for a night… even for a day… even for a day & night, I do not envision any danger that would come from it, except that thinking & pondering a long time would tire the body. When the body is tired, the mind is disturbed, and a disturbed mind is far from concentration.’ So I steadied my mind right within, settled, unified, & concentrated it. Why is that? So that my mind would not be disturbed.

“Whatever a monk keeps pursuing with his thinking & pondering, that becomes the inclination of his awareness. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with renunciation, abandoning thinking imbued with sensuality, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with renunciation. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with non-ill will, abandoning thinking imbued with ill will, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with non-ill will. If a monk keeps pursuing thinking imbued with harmlessness, abandoning thinking imbued with harmfulness, his mind is bent by that thinking imbued with harmlessness.

“Just as in the last month of the hot season, when all the crops have been gathered into the village, a cowherd would look after his cows: While resting under the shade of a tree or out in the open, he simply keeps himself mindful of ‘those cows.’ In the same way, I simply kept myself mindful of ‘those mental qualities.’

“Unflagging persistence was aroused in me, and unmuddled mindfulness established. My body was calm & unaroused, my mind concentrated & gathered into one. Quite secluded from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities, I entered and remained in the first jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered and remained in the second jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of concentration, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation—internal assurance. With the fading of rapture I remained in equanimity, mindful & alert, and sensed pleasure with the body. I entered and remained in the third jhāna, of which the noble ones declare, ‘Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.’ With the abandoning of pleasure & pain—as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress—I entered and remained in the fourth jhāna: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain.” — MN 19

What was the theme the bodhisatta focused on to bring the mind into the jhānas? The following passage indicates that he was focused on the breath.

“Monks, concentration through mindfulness of in-&-out breathing, when developed & pursued, is of great fruit, great benefit. And how is concentration through mindfulness of in-&-out breathing developed & pursued so as to be of great fruit, great benefit?

“There is the case where a monk, having gone to the wilderness, to the shade of a tree, or to an empty building, sits down folding his legs crosswise, holding his body erect, and establishing mindfulness to the fore.8 Always mindful, he breathes in; mindful, he breathes out.

“[1] Breathing in long, he discerns, ‘I am breathing in long’; or breathing out long, he discerns, ‘I am breathing out long.’ [2] Or breathing in short, he discerns, ‘I am breathing in short’; or breathing out short, he discerns, ‘I am breathing out short.’ [3] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in sensitive to the entire body.’9 He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out sensitive to the entire body.’ [4] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in calming bodily fabrication.’10 He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out calming bodily fabrication.’

“[5] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in sensitive to rapture.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out sensitive to rapture.’ [6] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in sensitive to pleasure.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out sensitive to pleasure.’ [7] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in sensitive to mental fabrication.’11 He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out sensitive to mental fabrication.’ [8] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in calming mental fabrication.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out calming mental fabrication.’

“[9] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in sensitive to the mind.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out sensitive to the mind.’ [10] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in gladdening the mind.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out gladdening the mind.’ [11] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in steadying the mind.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out steadying the mind. [12] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in releasing the mind.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out releasing the mind.’12

“[13] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in focusing on inconstancy.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out focusing on inconstancy.’ [14] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in focusing on dispassion [lit: fading].’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out focusing on dispassion.’ [15] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in focusing on cessation.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out focusing on cessation.’ [16] He trains himself, ‘I will breathe in focusing on relinquishment.’ He trains himself, ‘I will breathe out focusing on relinquishment.’

“This is how concentration through mindfulness of in-&-out breathing is developed & pursued so as to be of great fruit, great benefit.

“I myself, monks, before my awakening, when I was still an unawakened bodhisatta, often dwelt in this (meditative) dwelling. While I was dwelling in this (meditative) dwelling, neither my body nor my eyes were fatigued, and the mind—through lack of clinging/sustenance—was released from effluents [āsava].

“Thus, monks, if a monk should wish, ‘May neither my body nor my eyes be fatigued, and may my mind—through lack of clinging/sustenance—be released from effluents,’ then he should attend closely to this very same concentration through mindfulness of in-&-out breathing.” — SN 54:8

The jhāna attained through focusing on the breath provided the bodhisatta not only with a way to rest the mind from its harmless thoughts, but also with an alternative pleasure to sensuality that helped make him resistant to temptation by sensual thoughts.

“I myself, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, saw as it had come to be with right discernment that sensuality is of much stress, much despair, & greater drawbacks, but as long as I had not attained a rapture & pleasure apart from sensuality, apart from unskillful qualities, or something more peaceful than that, I did not claim that I could not be tempted by sensuality. But when I saw as it had come to be with right discernment that sensuality is of much stress, much despair, & greater drawbacks, and I had attained a rapture & pleasure apart from sensuality, apart from unskillful qualities, or something more peaceful than that, that was when I claimed that I could not be tempted by sensuality.” — MN 14

“So when I had taken solid food and regained strength, then—quite secluded from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities, I entered and remained in the first jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered and remained in the second jhāna.… I entered and remained in the third jhāna.… With the abandoning of pleasure & pain—as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress—I entered and remained in the fourth jhāna: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.

“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 recollected 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. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.

“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 the noble ones, held wrong views and undertook actions under the influence of wrong views—with the breakup of the body, after death, have re-appeared in a plane of deprivation, a bad destination, a lower realm, hell. But these beings—who were endowed with good conduct of body, speech & mind, who did not revile the noble ones, who held right views and undertook actions under the influence of right views—with the breakup of the body, after death, have re-appeared in a good destination, a 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. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.

“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 effluents. I discerned, as it had come to be, 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 effluents’ … ‘This is the origination of effluents’ … ‘This is the cessation of effluents’ … ‘This is the way leading to the cessation of effluents.’ My heart, thus knowing, thus seeing, was released from the effluent of sensuality, released from the effluent of becoming, released from the effluent 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. But the pleasant feeling that arose in this way did not invade my mind or remain.” — MN 36

The first four truths to which the Buddha awakened in this third knowledge—the truths of stress, its origination, its cessation, and the way leading to its cessation—became the central teaching in the Dhamma he taught. He called these truths “noble,” although he never explained why. Perhaps it was because they gave guidance to the noble search. What he did say was that they were the distinctive teaching of all Buddhas. As Ven. Sāriputta, one of his chief disciples later stated (MN 28), all skillful qualities are contained within these four noble truths, just as all the footprints of animals with feet can be contained in the footprint of an elephant.

As MN 36 shows, the Buddha’s awakening required that he develop both concentration and discernment. The following two passages go into more detail on his mastery of concentration.

“Even I myself, Anuruddha, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, perceived both light and a vision of forms. But not long afterward, the light and the vision of forms disappeared. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why the light and the vision of forms have disappeared?’ Then the thought occurred to me: ‘Doubt has arisen in me, and on account of the doubt my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms have disappeared. I will act in a way such that doubt doesn’t arise in me again.’

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and a vision of forms. But not long afterward, the light and the vision of forms disappeared.… Then the thought occurred to me: ‘Inattention has arisen in me…’… ‘Sloth-&-drowsiness has arisen in me…’… ‘Panic has arisen in me, and on account of the panic my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms have disappeared.’ Suppose, Anuruddha, that a man was traveling along a road, and murderers appeared on both sides. He would, for that reason, feel panic. In the same way, panic arose in me, and on account of the panic my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms disappeared. (I thought:) ‘I will act in a way such that doubt, inattention, sloth-&-drowsiness, and panic don’t arise in me again.’

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and a vision of forms. But not long afterward, the light and the vision of forms disappeared.… Then the thought occurred to me: ‘Exhilaration has arisen in me, and on account of the exhilaration my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms have disappeared.’ Suppose, Anuruddha, that a man searching for portals to hidden treasure suddenly came across five portals to hidden treasure. He would, for that reason, feel exhilaration. In the same way, exhilaration arose in me.… (I thought:) ‘I will act in a way such that doubt, inattention, sloth-&-drowsiness, panic, and exhilaration don’t arise in me again.’

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and a vision of forms. But not long afterward, the light and the vision of forms disappeared. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why the light and the vision of forms have disappeared?’ Then the thought occurred to me: ‘Malaise has arisen in me…’… ‘Excess persistence has arisen in me, and on account of the excess persistence my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms have disappeared.’ Suppose, Anuruddha, that a man was grasping a baby quail tightly with both hands. It would die right there. In the same way, excess persistence arose in me.… (I thought:) ‘I will act in a way such that doubt, inattention, sloth-&-drowsiness, panic, exhilaration, malaise, and excess persistence don’t arise in me again.’

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and a vision of forms. But not long afterward, the light and the vision of forms disappeared. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why the light and the vision of forms have disappeared?’ Then the thought occurred to me: ‘Slack persistence has arisen in me, and on account of the slack persistence my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and vision of forms have disappeared.’ Suppose, Anuruddha, that a man was holding a baby quail loosely. It would fly out of his hand. In the same way, slack persistence arose in me, and on account of the slack persistence my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms disappeared. (I thought:) ‘I will act in a way such that doubt, inattention, sloth-&-drowsiness, panic, exhilaration, malaise, excess persistence, and slack persistence do not arise in me again.’

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and a vision of forms. But not long afterward, the light and the vision of forms disappeared. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why the light and the vision of forms have disappeared?’ Then the thought occurred to me: ‘A perception of multiplicity has arisen in me…’… ‘Excess absorption in forms has arisen in me, and on account of the excess absorption in forms my concentration fell away. With the falling away of concentration, the light and the vision of forms have disappeared. I will act in a way such that doubt, inattention, sloth-&-drowsiness, panic, exhilaration, malaise, excess persistence, slack persistence, a perception of diversity, and excessive absorption in forms don’t arise in me again.’

“So, understanding that ‘doubt is a defilement of the mind,’ I abandoned the doubt defilement of the mind. Understanding that ‘inattention is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘sloth-&-drowsiness is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘panic is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘exhilaration is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘malaise is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘excess persistence is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘slack persistence is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘a perception of diversity is a defilement of the mind,’… ‘excessive absorption in forms is a defilement of the mind,’ I abandoned the excessive-absorption-in-forms defilement of the mind.

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light but I did not see forms, or I saw forms but did not perceive light for an entire night, for an entire day, and for an entire day and night. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why I perceive light but I do not see forms, or I see forms but do not perceive light for an entire night, for an entire day, and for an entire day and night?’ The thought occurred to me, ‘At the time when, not attending to the theme of forms, I attend to the theme of light, that is the time when I perceive light but do not see forms. But at the time when, not attending to the theme of light, I attend to the theme of forms, that is the time when I see forms but do not perceive light for an entire night, for an entire day, and for an entire day and night.

“So—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived limited light and limited forms, and immeasurable light and immeasurable forms for an entire night, for an entire day, and for an entire day and night. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why I perceive limited light and limited forms, and immeasurable light and immeasurable forms for an entire night, for an entire day, and for an entire day and night?’ The thought occurred to me, ‘At the time when my concentration is limited, my (inner) eye is limited. With a limited eye, I perceive limited light and see limited forms. But at the time when my concentration is immeasurable, my (inner) eye is immeasurable. With an immeasurable eye, I perceive immeasurable light and see immeasurable forms for an entire night, for an entire day, and for an entire day and night.

“When, having understood that ‘doubt is a defilement of the mind’ and having abandoned doubt, having understood that ‘inattention… sloth-&-drowsiness… panic… exhilaration… malaise… excess persistence… slack persistence… a perception of diversity… excessive absorption in forms is a defilement of the mind,’ and having abandoned excessive absorption in forms, the thought occurred to me, ‘Those defilements of the mind are abandoned in me. What if I were to develop concentration in three ways?’

“So, Anuruddha, I developed concentration with directed thought & evaluation. I developed concentration without directed thought but with a modicum of evaluation. I developed concentration without directed thought or evaluation. I developed concentration with rapture. I developed concentration without rapture. I developed concentration with enjoyment. I developed concentration with equanimity.13 When, in me, concentration with directed thought & evaluation was developed, concentration without directed thought but with a modicum of evaluation was developed, concentration without directed thought or evaluation was developed, concentration with rapture was developed, concentration without rapture was developed, concentration with enjoyment was developed, and concentration with equanimity was developed, knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — MN 128

As the following account shows, the Buddha attained more than three knowledges based on concentration in the course of his awakening. We don’t know why he reported only the three in his more famous accounts. Perhaps he omitted the other knowledges because they didn’t provide him with any insights helpful for the purpose of developing right view.

“Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, I developed & cultivated five things. Which five? I developed the base of power endowed with concentration founded on desire & the fabrications of exertion. I developed the base of power endowed with concentration founded on persistence & the fabrications of exertion. I developed the base of power endowed with concentration founded on intent & the fabrications of exertion. I developed the base of power endowed with concentration founded on discrimination & the fabrications of exertion. And great energy was the fifth. Having developed & cultivated these things with great energy as the fifth, then whichever of the higher knowledges I turned my mind to know and realize, I could witness them for myself whenever there was an opening.

“If I wished, I wielded manifold supranormal powers. Having been one I became many; having been many I became one. I appeared. I vanished. I went unimpeded through walls, ramparts, & mountains as if through space. I dove in and out of the earth as if it were water. I walked on water without sinking as if it were dry land. Sitting cross-legged I flew through the air like a winged bird. With my hand I touched and stroked even the sun & moon, so mighty & powerful. I exercised influence with my body even as far as the Brahmā worlds. I could witness this for myself whenever there was an opening.

“If I wished, I heard—by means of the divine ear-element, purified and surpassing the human—both kinds of sounds: divine & human, whether near or far. I could witness this for myself whenever there was an opening.

“If I wished, I knew the awareness of other beings, other individuals, having encompassed it with my own awareness. I discerned a mind with passion as ‘a mind with passion’ and a mind without passion as ‘a mind without passion.’ I discerned a mind with aversion as ‘a mind with aversion’ and a mind without aversion as ‘a mind without aversion.’ I discerned a mind with delusion as ‘a mind with delusion’ and a mind without delusion as ‘a mind without delusion.’ I discerned a restricted mind as ‘a restricted mind’ and a scattered mind as ‘a scattered mind.’ I discerned an enlarged mind14 as ‘an enlarged mind’ and an unenlarged mind as ‘an unenlarged mind.’ I discerned a surpassed mind [one that is not at the most excellent level] as ‘a surpassed mind’ and an unsurpassed mind as ‘an unsurpassed mind.’ I discerned a concentrated mind as ‘a concentrated mind’ and an unconcentrated mind as ‘an unconcentrated mind.’ I discerned a released mind as ‘a released mind’ and an unreleased mind as ‘an unreleased mind.’ I could witness this for myself whenever there was an opening.

“If I wished, I recollected my manifold past lives.…

“If I wished, I saw—by means of the divine eye, purified and surpassing the human—beings passing away and re-appearing.…

“If I wished, then through the ending of effluents, I entered and remained in the effluent-free awareness-release & discernment-release, having directly known & realized them for myself right in the here-&-now. I could witness this for myself whenever there was an opening.” — AN 5:68

The following passage focuses less on concentration and more on the discernment required for awakening. It’s one of the few passages showing how the contemplation of dependent co-arising—which was later to become one of the Buddha’s most distinctive, if complex, teachings—played a role in leading to his awakening. It can be read as an expanded discussion of the third and most decisive knowledge that led to his release.

“Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, the realization came to me: ‘How this world has fallen on difficulty! It is born, it ages, it dies, it falls away & rearises, but it does not discern the escape from this stress, from this aging & death. O when will it discern the escape from this stress, from this aging & death?’

“Then the thought occurred to me, ‘Aging & death exist when what exists? From what as a requisite condition is there aging & death?’ From my appropriate attention there came the breakthrough of discernment: ‘Aging & death exist when birth exists. From birth as a requisite condition comes aging & death.’ Then the thought occurred to me, ‘Birth exists when what exists? From what as a requisite condition comes birth?’ From my appropriate attention there came the breakthrough of discernment: ‘Birth exists when becoming15 exists. From becoming as a requisite condition comes birth…’… ‘Becoming exists when clinging/sustenance16 exists.…’… ‘Clinging/sustenance exists when craving exists…’… ‘Craving exists when feeling exists…’… ‘Feeling exists when contact exists…’… ‘Contact exists when the six sense media exist…’… ‘The six sense media exist when name-&form17 exists…’… ‘ ‘Name-&-form exists when consciousness exists. From consciousness as a requisite condition comes name-&-form.’ Then the thought occurred to me, ’Consciousness exists when what exists? From what as a requisite condition comes consciousness?’ From my appropriate attention there came the breakthrough of discernment: ‘Consciousness exists when name-&-form exists. From name-&-form as a requisite condition comes consciousness.’

“Then the thought occurred to me, ‘This consciousness turns back at name-&-form, and goes no farther. It is to this extent that there is birth, aging, death, falling away, & re-arising, i.e., from name-&-form as a requisite condition comes consciousness, from consciousness as a requisite condition comes name-&-form. From name-&-form as a requisite condition come the six sense media… Thus is the origination of this entire mass of stress. Origination, origination.’ Vision arose, clear knowing arose, discernment arose, knowledge arose, illumination arose within me with regard to things never heard before.

“Then the thought occurred to me, ‘Aging & death don’t exist when what doesn’t exist? From the cessation of what comes the cessation of aging & death?’ From my appropriate attention there came the breakthrough of discernment: ‘Aging & death don’t exist when birth doesn’t exist. From the cessation of birth comes the cessation of aging & death.’…

“Then the thought occurred to me, ‘Birth… Becoming… Clinging/sustenance… Craving… Feeling… Contact… The six sense media… Name-&-form doesn’t exist when what doesn’t exist? From the cessation of what comes the cessation of name-&-form?’ From my appropriate attention there came the breakthrough of discernment: ‘Name-&-form doesn’t exist when consciousness doesn’t exist. From the cessation of consciousness comes the cessation of name-&-form.’ Then the thought occurred to me, ‘Consciousness doesn’t exist when what doesn’t exist? From the cessation of what comes the cessation of consciousness?’ From my appropriate attention there came the breakthrough of discernment: ‘Consciousness doesn’t exist when name-&-form doesn’t exist. From the cessation of name-&-form comes the cessation of consciousness.’

“The thought occurred to me, ‘I have attained this path to awakening, i.e., from the cessation of name-&-form comes the cessation of consciousness, from the cessation of consciousness comes the cessation of name-&-form. From the cessation of name-&-form comes the cessation of the six sense media. From the cessation of the six sense media comes the cessation of contact. From the cessation of contact comes the cessation of feeling. From the cessation of feeling comes the cessation of craving. From the cessation of craving comes the cessation of clinging/sustenance. From the cessation of clinging/sustenance comes the cessation of becoming. From the cessation of becoming comes the cessation of birth. From the cessation of birth, then aging & death, sorrow, lamentation, pain, distress, & despair all cease. Thus is the cessation of this entire mass of stress. Cessation, cessation.’ Vision arose, clear knowing arose, discernment arose, knowledge arose, illumination arose within me with regard to things never heard before.

“It’s just as if a man, traveling along a wilderness track, were to see an ancient path, an ancient road, traveled by people of former times. He would follow it. Following it, he would see an ancient city, an ancient capital inhabited by people of former times, complete with parks, groves, & ponds, walled, delightful. He would go to address the king or the king’s minister, saying, ‘Sire, you should know that while traveling along a wilderness track I saw an ancient path… I followed it… I saw an ancient city, an ancient capital… complete with parks, groves, & ponds, walled, delightful. Sire, rebuild that city!’ The king or king’s minister would rebuild the city, so that at a later date the city would become powerful, rich, & well populated, fully grown & prosperous.

“In the same way, I saw an ancient path, an ancient road, traveled by the Rightly Self-awakened ones of former times. And what is that ancient path, that ancient road, traveled by the Rightly Self-awakened ones of former times? Just this noble eightfold path: right view, right resolve, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right concentration. That is the ancient path, the ancient road, traveled by the Rightly Self-awakened ones of former times. I followed that path. Following it, I came to direct knowledge of aging & death, direct knowledge of the origination of aging & death, direct knowledge of the cessation of aging & death, direct knowledge of the path leading to the cessation of aging & death. I followed that path. Following it, I came to direct knowledge of birth… becoming… clinging/sustenance… craving… feeling… contact… the six sense media… name-&-form… consciousness, direct knowledge of the origination of consciousness, direct knowledge of the cessation of consciousness, direct knowledge of the path leading to the cessation of consciousness. I followed that path.

“Following it, I came to direct knowledge of fabrications, direct knowledge of the origination of fabrications, direct knowledge of the cessation of fabrications, direct knowledge of the path leading to the cessation of fabrications. Knowing that directly, I have revealed it to monks, nuns, male lay followers, & female lay followers, so that this holy life has become powerful, rich, detailed, well populated, wide-spread, proclaimed among devas & human beings.” — SN 12:65

Having attained knowledge and vision, the bodhisatta was now the Buddha, “Awakened”—or, to be more precise, the Sammā Sambuddha: the Rightly Self-Awakened One. However, before claiming this status to others, he evaluated his attainment, judging it from many angles against a wide variety of standards to make sure that it was genuine and that there was no further work for him to do. As he engaged in this evaluation, he continued to apply the high standards he had applied to every step in his quest for awakening, a sign of how sincere he was in his quest for the deathless. At the same time, he may have anticipated charges from others that his awakening was incomplete. This, as we will see, was a charge that Māra, for one, continued to make. Only when the Buddha was sure that his attainment had passed the test in every case did he claim that he truly had reached his goal.

It’s possible that he applied these tests reflectively during the weeks following his awakening, so it might be argued that they should be discussed in Chapter 3, which covers the events of those weeks. But because the Buddha’s descriptions of how the awakening experience passed those tests helps to fill in many of the details of what he actually learned during the awakening, there is good reason for discussing them here.

There is no telling the actual order in which he applied these tests, but there is a certain logical order among them. The first order of test was to check that he had truly overcome sensuality—in line with his threefold vision that had warned him that sensuality was antithetical to the awakened state. This test, in turn, required that he assure himself that he had mastered the levels of concentration needed to free the mind from sensual fetters.

“Even I myself, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, thought: ‘Renunciation is good. Seclusion is good.’ But my heart didn’t leap up at renunciation, didn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why my heart doesn’t leap up at renunciation, doesn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace?’ Then the thought occurred to me: ‘I haven’t seen the drawback of sensual pleasures; I haven’t pursued (that theme). I haven’t understood the reward of renunciation; I haven’t familiarized myself with it. That’s why my heart doesn’t leap up at renunciation, doesn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace.’

[1] “Then the thought occurred to me: ‘If, having seen the drawback of sensual pleasures, I were to pursue that theme; and if, having understood the reward of renunciation, I were to familiarize myself with it, there’s the possibility that my heart would leap up at renunciation, grow confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace.’

“So at a later time, having seen the drawback of sensual pleasures, I pursued that theme; having understood the reward of renunciation, I familiarized myself with it. My heart leaped up at renunciation, grew confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace. Then, quite secluded from sensuality, secluded from unskillful qualities, I entered and remained in the first jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of seclusion, accompanied by directed thought & evaluation.

“As I remained there, I was beset with attention to perceptions dealing with sensuality. That was an affliction for me. Just as pain arises as an affliction for a healthy person, even so the attention to perceptions dealing with sensuality that beset me was an affliction for me.

[2] “The thought occurred to me: ‘What if, with the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I were to enter and remain in the second jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of concentration, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation—internal assurance.’ But my heart didn’t leap up at being without directed thought, didn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace. The thought occurred to me: ‘What is the cause, what is the reason, why my heart doesn’t leap up at being without directed thought, doesn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace?’ Then the thought occurred to me: ‘I haven’t seen the drawback of directed thought; I haven’t pursued that theme. I haven’t understood the reward of being without directed thought; I haven’t familiarized myself with it. That’s why my heart doesn’t leap up at being without directed thought, doesn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace.’

“Then the thought occurred to me: ‘If, having seen the drawback of directed thought, I were to pursue that theme; and if, having understood the reward of being without directed thought, I were to familiarize myself with it, there’s the possibility that my heart would leap up at being without directed thought, grow confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace.’

“So at a later time, having seen the drawback of directed thought, I pursued that theme; having understood the reward of being without directed thought, I familiarized myself with it. My heart leaped up at being without directed thought, grew confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace. With the stilling of directed thoughts & evaluations, I entered and remained in the second jhāna: rapture & pleasure born of concentration, unification of awareness free from directed thought & evaluation—internal assurance.

“As I remained there, I was beset with attention to perceptions dealing with directed thought. That was an affliction for me. Just as pain arises as an affliction for a healthy person, even so the attention to perceptions dealing with directed thought that beset me was an affliction for me.

[3] “The thought occurred to me: ‘What if, with the fading of rapture, I were to remain equanimous, mindful, & alert, to sense pleasure with the body, and to enter and remain in the third jhāna, of which the noble ones declare, “Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding”?’ But my heart didn’t leap up at being without rapture, didn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace.… So at a later time, having seen the drawback of rapture, I pursued that theme; having understood the reward of being without rapture, I familiarized myself with it. My heart leaped up at being without rapture, grew confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace. With the fading of rapture, I remained equanimous, mindful, & alert, sensed pleasure with the body, and entered and remained in the third jhāna, of which the noble ones declare, ‘Equanimous & mindful, he has a pleasant abiding.’

“As I remained there, I was beset with attention to perceptions dealing with rapture. That was an affliction for me. Just as pain arises as an affliction for a healthy person, even so the attention to perceptions dealing with rapture that beset me was an affliction for me.

[4] “The thought occurred to me: ‘What if, with the abandoning of pleasure & pain—as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress—I were to enter and remain in the fourth jhāna: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain?’ But my heart didn’t leap up at neither-pleasure-nor-pain, didn’t grow confident, steadfast, or firm, seeing it as peace.… So at a later time, having seen the drawback of the pleasure of equanimity, I pursued that theme; having understood the reward of neither-pleasure-nor-pain, I familiarized myself with it. My heart leaped up at neither-pleasure-nor-pain, grew confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace. With the abandoning of pleasure & pain—as with the earlier disappearance of elation & distress—I entered and remained in the fourth jhāna: purity of equanimity & mindfulness, neither pleasure nor pain.”

[Similarly with the remaining concentration attainments—the dimension of the infinitude of space, the dimension of the infinitude of consciousness, the dimension of nothingness, up through the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception, concluding with these two paragraphs:]

“So at a later time, having seen the drawback of the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception, I pursued that theme; having understood the reward of the cessation of perception & feeling, I familiarized myself with it. My heart leaped up at the cessation of perception & feeling, grew confident, steadfast, & firm, seeing it as peace. With the complete transcending of the dimension of neither perception nor non-perception, I entered and remained in the cessation of perception & feeling. And as I saw (that) with discernment, effluents were completely ended.

“Ānanda, as long as I had not attained & emerged from these nine step-by-step dwelling-attainments in forward & backward order in this way, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But as soon as I had attained & emerged from these nine step-by-step dwelling-attainments in forward & backward order in this way, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.” — AN 9:41

“There is the case, brahman, where a certain contemplative or brahman, while claiming to be one who rightly follows the holy life, doesn’t actually engage in copulating with a woman but he does consent to being anointed, rubbed down, bathed, or massaged by a woman. He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that. This is a gap, a break, a spot, a blemish of the holy life. He is called one who lives the holy life in an impure way, one who is fettered by the fetter of sexuality. He is not freed from birth, aging, & death, from sorrows, lamentations, pains, griefs, and despairs. He is not freed, I tell you, from suffering & stress.

“Or… he jokes, plays, and amuses himself with a woman. He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that… “Or… he stares into a woman’s eyes. He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that…

“Or… he listens to the voices of women outside a wall as they laugh, speak, sing, or cry. He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that…

“Or… he recollects how he used to laugh, converse, and play with a woman. He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that…

“Or… he sees a householder or householder’s son enjoying himself endowed with the five strings of sensuality. He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that…

“Or… he practices the holy life intent on being born in one or another of the deva hosts, (thinking,) ‘By this virtue or practice or abstinence or holy life I will be a deva of one sort or another.’ He enjoys that, wants more of that, and luxuriates in that. This is a gap, a break, a spot, a blemish of the holy life. He is called one who lives the holy life in an impure way, one who is fettered by the fetter of sexuality. He is not freed from birth, aging, & death, from sorrows, lamentations, pains, griefs, and despairs. He is not freed, I tell you, from suffering & stress.

“And, brahman, as long as I saw that one or another of these seven fetters of sexuality was not abandoned in myself, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But when I did not see any one of these seven fetters of sexuality unabandoned in myself, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — AN 7:47

Because the bodhisatta had sought a happiness that was beyond birth, now that he was Buddha he also had to assure himself that his awakening surpassed all possible births, and that his knowledge surpassed that of beings born into the highest of all births. This was why the first and second knowledges, which helped to provide this assurance, were an integral part of his awakening. But as the following passage shows, his knowledge of the range of birth came not only from those two knowledges, but also from a mastery of the divine ear so that he could engage the highest level of devas in conversation to ascertain that, yes, his knowledge was unsurpassed by theirs.

“Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, I perceived light but didn’t see forms. The thought occurred to me, ‘If I perceived light and saw forms, this knowledge-&-vision of mine would be purer.’

“So, at a later time—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and saw forms, but I didn’t associate with those devas, didn’t converse with them or engage them in discussion. The thought occurred to me, ‘If I perceived light and saw forms and associated with those devas, conversed with them, and engaged them in discussion, this knowledge-&-vision of mine would be purer.’

“So, at a later time—staying heedful, ardent, & resolute—I perceived light and saw forms; and I also associated with those devas, conversed with them, and engaged them in discussion…

“… I perceived light and saw forms; and associated with those devas, conversed with them, and engaged them in discussion; and I also knew of those devas that ‘These devas are from this or that deva host’…

“… I also knew of those devas that ‘As a result of this kamma, these devas fell away from here and reappeared there’…

“… I also knew of those devas that ‘As a result of this kamma, these devas are nourished on such food and experience such pleasure & pain’…

“… I also knew of those devas that ‘As a result of this kamma, these devas have such a lifespan and are of such long standing’…

“… I also knew of those devas whether I had previously lived together with them or not.

“And, monks, as long as this—my eight-round heightened deva-knowledge-&-vision—was not pure, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But as soon as this—my eight-round heightened deva-knowledge-&-vision—was truly pure, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — AN 8:71

To guarantee the results of his third knowledge, the Buddha had to ensure that he had truly escaped from suffering/stress, the first noble truth, and from its origination, the second. This required that he not only have thorough, direct knowledge of these two truths, but also of the third noble truth, the cessation of suffering, and of the fourth, the path to that cessation.

“Now, as long as I didn’t have direct knowledge of the fourfold round with regard to these five clinging-aggregates as they have come to be, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening in this cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But when I did have direct knowledge of the fourfold round with regard to these five clinging-aggregates as they have come to be, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening in this cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people.

“The fourfold round in what way? I had direct knowledge of form… of the origination of form… of the cessation of form… of the path of practice leading to the cessation of form.

“I had direct knowledge of feeling.…

“I had direct knowledge of perception.…

“I had direct knowledge of fabrications.…

“I had direct knowledge of consciousness… of the origination of consciousness… of the cessation of consciousness… of the path of practice leading to the cessation of consciousness.” — SN 22:56

However, the Buddha didn’t stop simply with knowledge of the four truths. He also had to ascertain that he had discerned and completed the duties appropriate to each.

“Vision arose, insight arose, discernment arose, knowledge arose, illumination arose within me with regard to things never heard before: ‘This is the noble truth of stress’ … ‘This noble truth of stress is to be comprehended’ … ‘This noble truth of stress has been comprehended.’

‘This is the noble truth of the origination of stress’ … ‘This noble truth of the origination of stress is to be abandoned’ … ‘This noble truth of the origination of stress has been abandoned.’

‘This is the noble truth of the cessation of stress’ … ‘This noble truth of the cessation of stress is to be realized’ … ‘This noble truth of the cessation of stress has been realized.’

“Vision arose, insight arose, discernment arose, knowledge arose, illumination arose within me with regard to things never heard before: ‘This is the noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress’ … ‘This noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress is to be developed’ … ‘This noble truth of the way of practice leading to the cessation of stress has been developed.’

“And, monks, as long as this—my three-round, twelve-permutation knowledge & vision concerning these four noble truths18 as they have come to be—was not pure, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But as soon as this—my three-round, twelve-permutation knowledge & vision concerning these four noble truths as they have come to be—was truly pure, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — SN 56:11

To guarantee that he had fully escaped from the first and second noble truths, the Buddha had to ascertain that he had seen through the allure of everything that could count as suffering/stress and its origination, and that he had gained his escape from those phenomena by seeing that their drawbacks far outweighed their allure.

“Monks, before my self-awakening, when I was still just an unawakened bodhisatta, the thought occurred to me: ‘What is the allure of form? What is its drawback? What is its escape?

“‘What is the allure of feeling? What is its drawback? What is its escape?

“‘What is the allure of perception? What is its drawback? What is its escape?

“‘What is the allure of fabrications? What is their drawback? What is their escape?

“‘What is the allure of consciousness? What is its drawback? What is its escape?’

“Then the thought occurred to me, ‘Whatever pleasure & joy arises dependent on form: That is the allure of form. The fact that form is inconstant, stressful, subject to change: That is the drawback of form. The subduing of desire & passion, the abandoning of desire & passion for form: That is the escape from form.

[Similarly with feeling, perception, fabrications, & consciousness.]

“Monks, as long as I did not have direct knowledge, as it had come to be, of the allure as allure, of the drawback as drawback, and of the escape as escape, with regard to these five clinging-aggregates, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people.

“But when I did have direct knowledge, as it had come to be, of the allure as allure, the drawback as drawback, and the escape as escape, with regard to these five clinging-aggregates, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the right self-awakening unexcelled in the cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people.

“Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — SN 22:26

“Now, as long as I did not have direct knowledge, as it has come to be, of the allure as the allure, of the drawback as the drawback, and of the escape as the escape with regard to these four properties [earth, water, wind, & fire]… these six internal sense-media… these six external sense media… the cosmos, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening in this cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But when I did have direct knowledge (of these things) as they have come to be, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening in this cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people.” — SN 14:31, SN 35:13–14; AN 3:104

The fact that the Buddha’s standards for awakening included the ability to find the escape from the first and second noble truths might be expected. But if his awakening had truly taken him to an unfabricated dimension, it had to be separate from the path of action that had led him there. This meant that he also had to have had acquired direct knowledge of the allure and drawbacks of—and escape from—the five faculties, which are equivalent to the fourth noble truth: the path of practice leading to the cessation of suffering/stress.

“Monks, there are these five faculties. Which five? The faculty of conviction, the faculty of persistence, the faculty of mindfulness, the faculty of concentration, the faculty of discernment.

“Now, as long as I did not have direct knowledge, as it has come to be, of the origination, the passing away, the allure, the drawbacks of—and the escape from—these five faculties, I did not claim to have directly awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening in this cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people. But when I did have direct knowledge, as it has come to be, of the origination, the passing away, the allure, the drawbacks of—and the escape from—these five faculties, then I did claim to have directly awakened to the unexcelled right self-awakening in this cosmos with its devas, Māras, & Brahmās, in this generation with its contemplatives & brahmans, its royalty & common people.

“Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — SN 48:21

In other words, all cases of awakening, to be genuine, have to escape even from the path of practice that leads there. This is why the Buddha later compared the path to a raft that is used to cross over a river but has to be abandoned on reaching the far shore.

Having guaranteed the completeness of his awakening, the Buddha could be assured that he had fulfilled the original desire that led to his quest: He had found total freedom—an unborn, undying dimension beyond the reach of aging, illness, death, and repeated birth.

“Then, monks, being subject myself to birth, seeing the drawbacks of birth, seeking the unborn, unexcelled rest from the yoke—unbinding—I reached the unborn, unexcelled rest from the yoke: unbinding. Being subject myself to aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement, seeing the drawbacks of aging… illness… death… sorrow… defilement, seeking the aging-less, illness-less, deathless, sorrow-less, unexcelled rest from the yoke—unbinding—I reached the aging-less, illness-less, deathless, sorrow-less, unexcelled rest from the yoke: unbinding. Knowledge & vision arose in me: ‘Unprovoked is my release. This is the last birth. There is now no further-becoming.’” — MN 26

“When the Tathāgata awakens to the unexcelled right self-awakening, the earth shakes & shivers, quivers & quakes.” — DN 16

Through the round of many births I roamed

without reward,

without rest,

seeking the house-builder.

Painful is birth again

& again.

I have heard that on one occasion the Blessed One was traveling along the road between Ukkaṭṭha and Setabya, and Doṇa the brahman was also traveling along the road between Ukkaṭṭha and Setabya. Doṇa the brahman saw, in the Blessed One’s footprints, wheels with one thousand spokes, together with rims and hubs, complete in all their features. On seeing them, the thought occurred to him, “How amazing! How astounding! These are not the footprints of a human being!”

Then the Blessed One, leaving the road, went to sit at the root of a certain tree—his legs crossed, his body erect, with mindfulness established to the fore. Then Doṇa, following the Blessed One’s footprints, saw him sitting at the root of the tree: confident, inspiring confidence, his senses calmed, his mind calmed, having attained the utmost control & tranquility, tamed, guarded, his senses restrained, a nāga. On seeing him, he went to him and said, “Master, are you a deva?”

“No, brahman, I am not a deva.”

“Are you a gandhabba?”

“No.…”

“… a yakkha?”

“No.…”

“… a human being?”

“No, brahman, I am not a human being.”

“… Then what sort of being are you?”

“Brahman, the effluents by which—if they were not abandoned—I would be a deva: Those are abandoned by me, their root destroyed, made like a palmyra stump—deprived of the conditions of development, not destined for future arising. The effluents by which—if they were not abandoned—I would be a gandhabba… a yakkha… a human being: Those are abandoned by me, their root destroyed, made like a palmyra stump—deprived of the conditions of development, not destined for future arising.

“Just like a red, blue, or white lotus—born in the water, grown in the water, rising up above the water—stands unsmeared by the water, in the same way, I—born in the world, grown in the world, having overcome the world—live unsmeared by the world. Remember me, brahman, as ‘awakened.’