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Buddhism · Sutta Pitaka · Linked Discourses (Saṁyutta)

SN 55.41Overflowing Merit (1st) · Paṭhamaabhisandasutta

18

Buddhism · Sutta Pitaka · Linked Discourses (Saṁyutta)

SN 55.41

Overflowing Merit (1st) · Paṭhamaabhisandasutta

EnglishEnglish
PāliPali
“Mendicants, there are these four kinds of overflowing merit, overflowing goodness that nurture happiness. What four? It’s when a noble disciple has experiential confidence in the Buddha …
“Cattārome, bhikkhave, puññābhisandā, kusalābhisandā, sukhassāhārā. Katame cattāro? Idha, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako buddhe aveccappasādena samannāgato hoti— itipi so bhagavā …pe… satthā devamanussānaṁ buddho bhagavāti. Ayaṁ paṭhamo puññābhisando, kusalābhisando, sukhassāhāro.
the teaching … the Saṅgha …
Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako dhamme …pe… saṅghe …pe….
Furthermore, they have the ethical conduct loved by the noble ones … leading to immersion. … These are the four kinds of overflowing merit, overflowing goodness that nurture happiness.
Puna caparaṁ, bhikkhave, ariyasāvako ariyakantehi sīlehi samannāgato hoti akhaṇḍehi …pe… samādhisaṁvattanikehi. Ayaṁ catuttho puññābhisando, kusalābhisando, sukhassāhāro. Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro puññābhisandā, kusalābhisandā, sukhassāhārā.
When a noble disciple has these four kinds of overflowing merit and goodness, it’s not easy to count how much merit they have by saying that this is the extent of their overflowing merit, overflowing goodness that nurtures happiness. It’s simply reckoned as an incalculable, immeasurable, great mass of merit.
Imehi kho, bhikkhave, catūhi puññābhisandehi kusalābhisandehi samannāgatassa ariyasāvakassa na sukaraṁ puññassa pamāṇaṁ gaṇetuṁ: ‘ettako puññābhisando, kusalābhisando, sukhassāhāro’ti. Atha kho asaṅkhyeyyo appameyyo mahāpuññakkhandhotveva saṅkhyaṁ gacchati.
It’s like trying to count how much water is in the ocean. It’s not easy to say how many gallons, how many hundreds, thousands, hundreds of thousands of gallons there are. It’s simply reckoned as an incalculable, immeasurable, great mass of water. In the same way, when a noble disciple has these four kinds of overflowing merit and goodness, it’s not easy to count how much merit they have by saying that this is the extent of their overflowing merit, overflowing goodness that nurtures happiness. It’s simply reckoned as an incalculable, immeasurable, great mass of merit.”
Seyyathāpi, bhikkhave, mahāsamudde na sukaraṁ udakassa pamāṇaṁ gaṇetuṁ: ‘ettakāni udakāḷhakānī’ti vā ‘ettakāni udakāḷhakasatānī’ti vā ‘ettakāni udakāḷhakasahassānī’ti vā ‘ettakāni udakāḷhakasatasahassānī’ti vāti. Atha kho asaṅkhyeyyo appameyyo mahāudakakkhandhotveva saṅkhyaṁ gacchati. Evameva kho, bhikkhave, imehi catūhi puññābhisandehi kusalābhisandehi samannāgatassa ariyasāvakassa na sukaraṁ puññassa pamāṇaṁ gaṇetuṁ: ‘ettako puññābhisando, kusalābhisando, sukhassāhāro’ti. Atha kho asaṅkhyeyyo appameyyo mahāpuññakkhandhotveva saṅkhyaṁ gacchatī”ti.
That is what the Buddha said. Then the Holy One, the Teacher, went on to say:
Idamavoca bhagavā. Idaṁ vatvāna sugato athāparaṁ etadavoca satthā:
“Hosts of people use the rivers, and though the rivers are many, all reach the great deep, the boundless ocean, the cruel sea that’s home to precious gems.
“Mahodadhiṁ aparimitaṁ mahāsaraṁ, Bahubheravaṁ ratanagaṇānamālayaṁ; Najjo yathā naragaṇasaṅghasevitā, Puthū savantī upayanti sāgaraṁ.
So too, when a person gives food, drink, and clothes; and they’re a giver of beds, seats, and mats— the streams of merit reach that astute person, as the rivers bring their waters to the sea.”
Evaṁ naraṁ annapānavatthadadaṁ, Seyyāni paccattharaṇassa dāyakaṁ; Puññassa dhārā upayanti paṇḍitaṁ, Najjo yathā vārivahāva sāgaran”ti. Paṭhamaṁ.
SN 55.40SN 55.42

English — SuttaCentral English (Bhikkhu Sujato; Vinaya: Bhikkhu Brahmali) (2018). CC0 (public domain dedication). Translated by Bhikkhu Sujato and Bhikkhu Brahmali, dedicated to the public domain (CC0), SuttaCentral. Source

Pāli — Tipiṭaka (Pāli, Mahāsaṅgīti edition) (Pāli canon; Mahāsaṅgīti Tipiṭaka edition). CC0 (public domain dedication). Pāli text (Mahāsaṅgīti edition) via SuttaCentral, CC0. Source

Numbers in the margin count the paragraphs of each discourse; SuttaCentral’s own segment numbering is the same in every language, so the versions line up exactly.