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Saį¹yutta NikÄya 51.1 Linked Discourses 51.1
1. CÄpÄlavagga 1. At the CÄpÄla Shrine
ApÄrasutta From the Near Shore
āCattÄrome, bhikkhave, iddhipÄdÄ bhÄvitÄ bahulÄ«katÄ apÄrÄ pÄraį¹ gamanÄya saį¹vattanti. āMendicants, when these four bases of psychic power are developed and cultivated they lead to going from the near shore to the far shore. Iddhi (Sanskrit į¹ddhi or siddhi) conveys the root sense āthriving, increase, successā. In the Atharva Veda we find samį¹ddhi and vyį¹ddhi in the sense āprosperityā and āmisfortuneā (eg. 10.2.10). As āsuccess, completionā (of the sacrifice) we find į¹ddhi at Åatapatha BrÄhmaį¹a 4.6.9.11. As far as I know, the Buddhist texts are where we first find iddhi in the sense of āpsychic powerā (or āspiritual magnificationā, āheightened potencyā; SN 51.10:3.2, SN 51.11:5.1). This sense is not attested in Sanskrit texts until later. The YogasÅ«tra elaborates many such powers and the methods of achieving them (3.17ā3.37), but immediately warns that they are obstacles to samÄdhi (3.38). They are sometimes also numbered eight (BhÄgavata PurÄį¹a 3.20.53, 9.21.12), and we find this number also in Jain texts, which list various kinds of į¹ddhi (or labdhi; eg. į¹¬hÄį¹aį¹
ga 5.168, BhagavatisÅ«tra 8.139). All these religions, however, aim at liberation, and do not regard the attainment of psychic powers as an end in itself. Probably the interest in such abilities was drawn from the broader ascetic culture, where to this day they exert a fascination. In the Indian context, such powers do not arise from the intervention of God or any other metaphysical means, but rather from the amplification of abilities latent in all beings. This teaching framework, accordingly, focuses on those things that form the bases (pÄda) of psychic power. The powers themselves are mere adornments to the path, whose true purpose is to lead āfrom the near shore to the far shoreā.
Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu chandasamÄdhippadhÄnasaį¹
khÄrasamannÄgataį¹ iddhipÄdaį¹ bhÄveti, Itās when a mendicant develops the basis of psychic power that has immersion due to enthusiasm, and active effort. āEnthusiasmā (chanda) is skillful desire to accomplish the path. The word chanda itself is neutral, and sometimes means āsensual desireā (kÄmacchanda) or āconsentā (Kd 2:23.1.5, Pli Tv Bi Pm:9.1).
vÄ«riyasamÄdhippadhÄnasaį¹
khÄrasamannÄgataį¹ iddhipÄdaį¹ bhÄveti, They develop the basis of psychic power that has immersion due to energy, and active effort. The four factors map straightforwardly onto the final three factors of the noble eightfold path. āEnthusiasmā and āenergyā both fall under āright effortā, while citta is āright immersionā, and vÄ«maį¹sÄ is āright wisdomā.
cittasamÄdhippadhÄnasaį¹
khÄrasamannÄgataį¹ iddhipÄdaį¹ bhÄveti, They develop the basis of psychic power that has immersion due to mental development, and active effort. Here, citta (āmental developmentā) means the development of the mind in immersion. This sense is common for citta in the context of the path, for example cittasampadÄ = samÄdhisampadÄ (DN 8:15.2); cittabhÄvanÄ = samÄdhibhÄvanÄ (SN 1.23:2.2). The same sense is apparent in cittÄnupassanÄ (āobservation of the mindā) in satipaį¹į¹hÄna, although there we see that the sense is somewhat broader, encompassing the mind as it goes through the process of development leading to immersion.
vÄ«maį¹sÄsamÄdhippadhÄnasaį¹
khÄrasamannÄgataį¹ iddhipÄdaį¹ bhÄveti. They develop the basis of psychic power that has immersion due to inquiry, and active effort.
Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattÄro iddhipÄdÄ bhÄvitÄ bahulÄ«katÄ apÄrÄ pÄraį¹ gamanÄya saį¹vattantÄ«āti. When these four bases of psychic power are developed and cultivated they lead to going from the near shore to the far shore.ā
Paį¹hamaį¹.