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Majjhima Nikāya 23 Middle Discourses 23
Vammikasutta The Termite Mound
Evaṁ me sutaṁ—So I have heard.
ekaṁ samayaṁ bhagavā sāvatthiyaṁ viharati jetavane anāthapiṇḍikassa ārāme. At one time the Buddha was staying near Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove, Anāthapiṇḍika’s monastery.
Tena kho pana samayena āyasmā kumārakassapo andhavane viharati. Now at that time Venerable Kassapa the Prince was staying in the Dark Forest. “Kassapa the Prince” (Kumārakassapa) was ordained at twenty (Kd 1:75.1.1). His verses are collected in the Theragāthā (Thag 2.41). His love of elaborate similes and playful similes is shown in the Pāyāsisutta (DN 23), and echoed here in the teachings given to him. He was declared the foremost of those with brilliant speech (AN 1.217). | The Dark Forest (andhavana) was a thick grove south of Sāvatthī often visited by monks and nuns for meditation. However, this is the only discourse where someone is said to be staying there. The commentary says the name means “Blind Man’s Forest”, giving an improbable origin story. But compare Sanskrit andhakūpa, “dark well” or “blind well”, a well covered over with a lid or overgrowth; also the name of a hell.We might translate “Mirkwood”.
Atha kho aññatarā devatā abhikkantāya rattiyā abhikkantavaṇṇā kevalakappaṁ andhavanaṁ obhāsetvā yenāyasmā kumārakassapo tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā ekamantaṁ aṭṭhāsi. Ekamantaṁ ṭhitā kho sā devatā āyasmantaṁ kumārakassapaṁ etadavoca: Then, late at night, a glorious deity, lighting up the entire Dark Forest, went up to Kassapa the Prince, stood to one side, and said: The deity offers a series of obscure riddles full of secret meaning, almost like a dream sequence. The deliberate use of obscurity is a hallmark of Brahmanical literature, for “the gods love hidden things” (parokṣakāmā hi devāḥ, Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 10.6.2.2 and throughout). The sequence is set out as a quest for buried treasure. This mytheme is implicit in the Vedic myth of Indra freeing the cattle and the sun from the Vala cave, an act that liberates the truth. Sometimes it is made explicit, as when Indra is said to bring up the treasures buried deep (Rig Veda 8.66.4). The Aśvins are also associated with unearthing buried gems (Rig Veda 1.117.5) or gold (Rig Veda 1.117.12), imagery ultimately based in mining for the wealth of minerals underground.
“Bhikkhu bhikkhu, ayaṁ vammiko rattiṁ dhūmāyati, divā pajjalati. “Monk, monk! This termite mound fumes by night and flames by day. Worship of termite mounds and the deadly snakes they harbor is still common in India today and is probably pre-Vedic. The Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa acknowledges a ritual significance to the anthill as a creative manifestation of the earth upon which offerings may be laid and whose ants were divine (2.6.2.17, 6.3.3.5, 14.1.2.10). In Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad 4.4.7, Yājñavalkya compares a dead body bereft of soul to the lifeless slough of a snake on an anthill. | While anthills don’t “fume” and “flame”, large termite mounds leverage the temperature differential of day and night to create convection flows that regulate temperature and flush carbon dioxide.
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. ‘Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’ The sword is taken up, a symbol whose roots lie in the discovery of metal smelting and the power this grants to the one who wields the sword. But the phrase has a double meaning, for sattha means both “sword” and “sacred treatise”, while abhikkhaṇa means both “dig” (abhi + √khaṇ) and “see” (abhi + √ikkh; this sense not in Pali, but cf. Vedic abhikhyā). Thus, having entered the Dark Wood, the “clever one” (sumedha) is urged to use the wisdom of scripture in order to see. This sense is reinforced by the fact that it is the “brahmin” who says this.
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa laṅgiṁ Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a sticking point: Laṅgi occurs only here, and is glossed by the commentary with paligha (“obstacle”). Such an obscure term must have been selected for a play on words. Sanskrit lagna has the primary sense “to stick, adhere”, while also having a sense of the beginning or coming into contact with something. In modern languages such as Hindi, Marathi, or Kannada it has taken on the sense of “marriage”, and perhaps here we see an anticipation of this. If we are on the right track, the laṅgi would be the initial challenge for a mendicant seeker, namely their attachment to family. This would explain why it is the first obstacle.
‘laṅgī, bhadante’ti. ‘A sticking point, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa laṅgiṁ; ‘Throw out the sticking point!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa uddhumāyikaṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a bullfrog: The male Indian bullfrog possesses a pair of prominent dark-blue vocal sacs that puff up and down as it croaks, hence the Pali name uddhumāyika (“puffer”). | Rig Veda 7.10 is addressed to frogs, who lie fallow in the dry but spring to life in the rains, filling the countryside with their amorous croaks, like the brahmin priests reciting their verses and passing them down to students. Vedic scholasticism is, it would seem, the second obstacle to be surmounted.
‘Uddhumāyikā, bhadante’ti. ‘A bullfrog, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa uddhumāyikaṁ; ‘Throw out the bullfrog!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa dvidhāpathaṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a forked path: Rig Veda 10.88.15 speaks of the two paths of gods and mortals (devānām uta martyānām), later formalized as the path of the forefathers (pitṛyāna) leading to rebirth and that of the gods (devayāna) leading to liberation. This corresponds to the twofold choice of the young Siddhattha: to stay at home or to go forth. It might also be the paths open to the Bodhisatta under his Brahmanical teachers: to seek eternal existence or an escape from rebirth.
‘Dvidhāpatho, bhadante’ti. ‘A forked path, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa dvidhāpathaṁ; ‘Throw out the forked path!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa caṅgavāraṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a filter of ash: Caṅgavāra is a filter through which, according to Ja 525:29.2, water drips away like the brief days of our lives. The commentaries say that such alkaline (khāra) filters were used by laundrymen. This refers to the traditional method of creating lye (a soap precursor) for washing, where a barrel is filled with wood ash through which water is passed. No matter how many pots of water are poured in, the commentary adds, it keeps dripping.
‘Caṅgavāro, bhadante’ti. ‘A filter of ash, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa caṅgavāraṁ; ‘Throw out the filter of ash!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa kummaṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a tortoise: As described in Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa 7.5.1, a tortoise was placed on the altar to represent the primordial powers of creation: the sap of life, the sun, the breath, and the act of creation itself. Its lower and upper shells and its body in-between correspond to the three worlds: the earth, the heavens, and the midspace. It therefore connotes the ancient, endless movement of life.
‘Kummo, bhadante’ti. ‘A tortoise, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa kummaṁ; ‘Throw out the tortoise!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having taken up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa asisūnaṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a butcher’s knife and chopping board: In this brutal simile, asi is a knife and sūna is a place where animals are slaughtered, either a slaughterhouse or, as here, an implement for the slaughter. Mnd 1:23.18 says this phrase has the meaning of “chopping” (adhikuṭṭanaṭṭhena). Compare with asiṁ sūnāṁ in the violent, sexually graphic hymn at Rig Veda 10.86.18c. Vedic sūna was a (sewn) “basket” for carrying the flesh of a slaughtered beast (see also Rig Veda 1.161.10), a sense that developed to “chopping block” and “slaughterhouse”. Jamison and Brereton read the Vedic passage as an analogy for the horse sacrifice, at the climax of which the queen has vulgar and very public sex with the dead horse. This cements in the most explicit way possible the oneness of sexual potency with the cycle of life and death.
‘Asisūnā, bhadante’ti. ‘A butcher’s knife and chopping board, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa asisūnaṁ; ‘Throw out the butcher’s knife and chopping board!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa maṁsapesiṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a scrap of meat: Another simile shared with MN 22:3.10. A maṁsapesi is small enough to be grabbed by a crow (MN 54:16.1), or to quickly disintegrate on a stove (AN 7.74:7.1), thus is a “scrap of meat” rather than a substantial piece. It emphasizes the meanness and poverty of mortal life, our desires and attachments bound up with this transient “scrap of meat” we call a body.
‘Maṁsapesi, bhadante’ti. ‘A scrap of meat, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘ukkhipa maṁsapesiṁ; ‘Throw out the scrap of meat!
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā’ti. Dig, clever one, having picked up the sword!’
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya addasa nāgaṁ. Picking up the sword and digging, the clever one saw a king cobra: Nāga here means both a cobra—the literal snake that lives underneath an anthill—and the serpent of mysterious power that is analogous to an arahant, the “spiritual giant”.
‘Nāgo, bhadante’ti. ‘A king cobra, sir!’
Brāhmaṇo evamāha: The brahmin said,
‘tiṭṭhatu nāgo, mā nāgaṁ ghaṭṭesi; namo karohi nāgassā’ti. ‘Leave the king cobra! Do not disturb the cobra! Worship the cobra!’
Ime kho tvaṁ, bhikkhu, pañhe bhagavantaṁ upasaṅkamitvā puccheyyāsi, yathā ca te bhagavā byākaroti tathā naṁ dhāreyyāsi. Mendicant, go to the Buddha and ask him about this riddle. You should remember it in line with his answer.
Nāhaṁ taṁ, bhikkhu, passāmi sadevake loke samārake sabrahmake sassamaṇabrāhmaṇiyā pajāya sadevamanussāya, yo imesaṁ pañhānaṁ veyyākaraṇena cittaṁ ārādheyya aññatra tathāgatena vā, tathāgatasāvakena vā, ito vā pana sutvā”ti—I don’t see anyone in this world—with its gods, Māras, and divinities, this population with its ascetics and brahmins, its gods and humans—who could provide a satisfying answer to this riddle except the Realized One or his disciple or someone who has heard it from them.” This is, of course, a direct slight on the brahmins who prided themselves on finding explanations for the most obscure and puzzling passages.
Idamavoca sā devatā. That is what that deity said
Idaṁ vatvā tatthevantaradhāyi. before vanishing right there.
Atha kho āyasmā kumārakassapo tassā rattiyā accayena yena bhagavā tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā bhagavantaṁ abhivādetvā ekamantaṁ nisīdi. Ekamantaṁ nisinno kho āyasmā kumārakassapo bhagavantaṁ etadavoca: Then, when the night had passed, Kassapa the Prince went to the Buddha, bowed, sat down to one side, and told him what had happened. Then he asked:
“imaṁ, bhante, rattiṁ aññatarā devatā abhikkantāya rattiyā abhikkantavaṇṇā kevalakappaṁ andhavanaṁ obhāsetvā yenāhaṁ tenupasaṅkami; upasaṅkamitvā ekamantaṁ aṭṭhāsi. Ekamantaṁ ṭhitā kho, bhante, sā devatā maṁ etadavoca:
‘bhikkhu bhikkhu, ayaṁ vammiko rattiṁ dhūmāyati, divā pajjalati.
Brāhmaṇo evamāha:
“abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyā”ti.
Abhikkhaṇanto sumedho satthaṁ ādāya …pe…
ito vā pana sutvā’ti.
Idamavoca, bhante, sā devatā.
Idaṁ vatvā tatthevantaradhāyi.
Ko nu kho, bhante, vammiko, kā rattiṁ dhūmāyanā, kā divā pajjalanā, ko brāhmaṇo, ko sumedho, kiṁ satthaṁ, kiṁ abhikkhaṇaṁ, kā laṅgī, kā uddhumāyikā, ko dvidhāpatho, kiṁ caṅgavāraṁ, ko kummo, kā asisūnā, kā maṁsapesi, ko nāgo”ti? “Sir, what is the termite mound? What is the fuming by night and flaming by day? Who is the brahmin, and who the clever one? What are the sword, the digging, the sticking point, the bullfrog, the forked path, the filter of ash, the tortoise, the butcher’s knife and chopping board, and the scrap of meat? And what is the king cobra?”
“‘Vammiko’ti kho, bhikkhu, imassetaṁ cātumahābhūtikassa kāyassa adhivacanaṁ, mātāpettikasambhavassa odanakummāsūpacayassa aniccucchādanaparimaddanabhedanaviddhaṁsanadhammassa. “Mendicant, ‘termite mound’ is a term for this body made up of the four principal states, produced by mother and father, built up from rice and porridge, liable to impermanence, to wearing away and erosion, to breaking up and destruction. Just as a termite mound is created by activity driven by eating and excreting, so this body is created from within by food. Also, the body, like a termite mound, is home to countless small creatures.
Yaṁ kho, bhikkhu, divā kammante ārabbha rattiṁ anuvitakketi anuvicāreti—Thinking and considering all night about what you did during the day—Apparently stressing oneself at night over work is not a modern phenomenon.
ayaṁ rattiṁ dhūmāyanā. this is the fuming at night.
Yaṁ kho, bhikkhu, rattiṁ anuvitakketvā anuvicāretvā divā kammante payojeti kāyena vācāya manasā—The work you apply yourself to during the day by body, speech, and mind after thinking about it all night—
ayaṁ divā pajjalanā. this is the flaming by day.
‘Brāhmaṇo’ti kho, bhikkhu, tathāgatassetaṁ adhivacanaṁ arahato sammāsambuddhassa. ‘Brahmin’ is a term for the Realized One, the perfected one, the fully awakened Buddha.
‘Sumedho’ti kho, bhikkhu, sekkhassetaṁ bhikkhuno adhivacanaṁ. ‘Clever one’ is a term for the trainee mendicant.
‘Satthan’ti kho, bhikkhu, ariyāyetaṁ paññāya adhivacanaṁ. ‘Sword’ is a term for noble wisdom.
‘Abhikkhaṇan’ti kho, bhikkhu, vīriyārambhassetaṁ adhivacanaṁ. ‘Digging’ is a term for rousing energy.
‘Laṅgī’ti kho, bhikkhu, avijjāyetaṁ adhivacanaṁ. ‘Sticking point’ is a term for ignorance.
Ukkhipa laṅgiṁ, pajaha avijjaṁ; ‘Throw out the sticking point’ means ‘give up ignorance,
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho. dig, clever one, having picked up the sword.’
‘Uddhumāyikā’ti kho, bhikkhu, kodhūpāyāsassetaṁ adhivacanaṁ. ‘Bullfrog’ is a term for anger and distress. The bullfrog (uddhumāyika) evokes those renunciates who become puffed up (uddhata) and argumentative over doctrines (eg. Thag 17.1:11.1).
Ukkhipa uddhumāyikaṁ, pajaha kodhūpāyāsaṁ; ‘Throw out the bullfrog’ means ‘give up anger and distress’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho.
‘Dvidhāpatho’ti kho, bhikkhu, vicikicchāyetaṁ adhivacanaṁ. ‘A forked path’ is a term for doubt.
Ukkhipa dvidhāpathaṁ, pajaha vicikicchaṁ; ‘Throw out the forked path’ means ‘give up doubt’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho.
‘Caṅgavāran’ti kho, bhikkhu, pañcannetaṁ nīvaraṇānaṁ adhivacanaṁ, seyyathidaṁ—‘A filter of ash’ is a term for the five hindrances, that is: The commentary says that, just as water continually drips through such a filter, the mind of someone beset by the five hindrances cannot stay fixed internally on what is wholesome. This contrasts with the mind in absorption, which is illustrated with similes of water that emphasize stillness and containment (DN 2:76.1, etc.).
kāmacchandanīvaraṇassa, byāpādanīvaraṇassa, thinamiddhanīvaraṇassa, uddhaccakukkuccanīvaraṇassa, vicikicchānīvaraṇassa. the hindrances of sensual desire, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and remorse, and doubt.
Ukkhipa caṅgavāraṁ, pajaha pañca nīvaraṇe; ‘Throw out the filter of ash’ means ‘give up the five hindrances’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho.
‘Kummo’ti kho, bhikkhu, pañcannetaṁ upādānakkhandhānaṁ adhivacanaṁ, seyyathidaṁ—‘Tortoise’ is a term for the five grasping aggregates, that is: The five aggregates are the tortoise’s five limbs, with consciousness as the head. The aggregates represent the changing world of conditions driven by karma, just as the tortoise is the creative force and life of the three worlds. In samādhi, the senses are withdrawn like a tortoise’s limbs (SN 35.240:1.4).
rūpupādānakkhandhassa, vedanupādānakkhandhassa, saññupādānakkhandhassa, saṅkhārupādānakkhandhassa, viññāṇupādānakkhandhassa. form, feeling, perception, choices, and consciousness.
Ukkhipa kummaṁ, pajaha pañcupādānakkhandhe; ‘Throw out the tortoise’ means ‘give up the five grasping aggregates’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho.
‘Asisūnā’ti kho, bhikkhu, pañcannetaṁ kāmaguṇānaṁ adhivacanaṁ—‘Butcher’s knife and chopping board’ is a term for the five kinds of sensual stimulation. The senses work because the sense stimulus smashes into the sense organ, like a knife on a chopping block. We seek pleasurable sensations to mask the inherently turbulent nature of sense experience.
cakkhuviññeyyānaṁ rūpānaṁ iṭṭhānaṁ kantānaṁ manāpānaṁ piyarūpānaṁ kāmūpasaṁhitānaṁ rajanīyānaṁ, Sights known by the eye, which are likable, desirable, agreeable, pleasant, sensual, and arousing.
sotaviññeyyānaṁ saddānaṁ …pe… Sounds known by the ear …
ghānaviññeyyānaṁ gandhānaṁ …pe… Smells known by the nose …
jivhāviññeyyānaṁ rasānaṁ …pe… Tastes known by the tongue …
kāyaviññeyyānaṁ phoṭṭhabbānaṁ iṭṭhānaṁ kantānaṁ manāpānaṁ piyarūpānaṁ kāmūpasaṁhitānaṁ rajanīyānaṁ. Touches known by the body, which are likable, desirable, agreeable, pleasant, sensual, and arousing.
Ukkhipa asisūnaṁ, pajaha pañca kāmaguṇe; ‘Throw out the butcher’s knife and chopping board’ means ‘give up the five kinds of sensual stimulation’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho.
‘Maṁsapesī’ti kho, bhikkhu, nandīrāgassetaṁ adhivacanaṁ. ‘Scrap of meat’ is a term for greed and relishing.
Ukkhipa maṁsapesiṁ, pajaha nandīrāgaṁ; ‘Throw out the scrap of meat’ means ‘give up greed and relishing’ …
abhikkhaṇa, sumedha, satthaṁ ādāyāti ayametassa attho.
‘Nāgo’ti kho, bhikkhu, khīṇāsavassetaṁ bhikkhuno adhivacanaṁ. ‘King cobra’ is a term for a mendicant who has ended the defilements.
Tiṭṭhatu nāgo, mā nāgaṁ ghaṭṭesi; namo karohi nāgassāti ayametassa attho”ti. This is the meaning of: ‘Leave the king cobra! Do not disturb the cobra! Worship the cobra!’”
Idamavoca bhagavā. That is what the Buddha said.
Attamano āyasmā kumārakassapo bhagavato bhāsitaṁ abhinandīti. Satisfied, Venerable Kassapa the Prince approved what the Buddha said.
Vammikasuttaṁ niṭṭhitaṁ tatiyaṁ.