1.3. Vitakkasutta Thought (SN 56:7; V 417–18)

Question 1

mā

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 1

a prohibitive particle, “do not,” used with an imperative or aorist verb. Here the verb vitakketha is a second-person plural imperative of vitakketi, “thinks.”

Question 2

pāpake

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 2

“bad, evil”; an adjective qualifying vitakke.

Question 3

akusale

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 3

“unwholesome, unskillful”; another adjective qualifying vitakke.

Question 4

vitakke

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 4

“thoughts”; a masculine plural in the accusative case as the object of vitakketha.

Question 5

seyyathīdaṃ

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 5

an indeclinable meaning “that is, as follows, namely,” usually introducing a set of terms.

Question 6

kāmavitakkaṃ

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 6

“sensual thought”; a tappurisa compound of kāma, “desire, sensuality, sensual pleasure,” and vitakka, “thought”; as the object of vitakketha, it is in the accusative case singular.

Question 7

vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ

“Mā, bhikkhave, pāpake akusale vitakke vitakketha, seyyathīdaṃ: kāmavitakkaṃ, vyāpādavitakkaṃ, vihiṃsāvitakkaṃ.”

Answer 7

“thought of ill will, thought of harming”; also tappurisa compounds constructed like kāmavitakkaṃ.

Question 8

taṃ

”Taṃ kissa hetu?”

Answer 8

an impersonal pronoun, “that,” representing the matter being interrogated.

Question 9

kissa hetu

”Taṃ kissa hetu?”

Answer 9

an idiomatic expression used when asking about the reason for a statement. The commentaries gloss this with kiṃkāraṇā or kena kāraṇena, “For what reason?”

Question 10

n’ete

”N’ete, bhikkhave, vitakkā atthasaṃhitā nādibrahmacariyakā na nibbidāya na virāgāya na nirodhāya na upasamāya na abhiññāya na sambodhāya na nibbānāya saṃvattanti.”

Answer 10

a sandhi formation of na ete, “not these.”

Question 11

atthasaṃhitā

”N’ete, bhikkhave, vitakkā atthasaṃhitā nādibrahmacariyakā na nibbidāya na virāgāya na nirodhāya na upasamāya na abhiññāya na sambodhāya na nibbānāya saṃvattanti.”

Answer 11

“beneficial”; an instrumental tappurisa compound composed of attha, “good, benefit, meaning,” and saṃhitā, a past participle meaning “connected with, endowed with.” The compound, which functions as an adjective, is masculine plural nominative in agreement with vitakkā.

Question 12

ādibrahmacariyakā

”N’ete, bhikkhave, vitakkā atthasaṃhitā nādibrahmacariyakā na nibbidāya na virāgāya na nirodhāya na upasamāya na abhiññāya na sambodhāya na nibbānāya saṃvattanti.”

Answer 12

“pertaining to the basis for the spiritual life”; a bahubbīhi compound composed of ādi, “beginning, basis,” and brahmacariya, “the spiritual life, the holy life,”75 with the suffix -kā turning the compound into an adjective qualifying vitakkā.

Question 13

nibbidāya, virāgāya, nirodhāya, upasamāya, abhiññāya, sambodhāya, nibbānāya

”N’ete, bhikkhave, vitakkā atthasaṃhitā nādibrahmacariyakā na nibbidāya na virāgāya na nirodhāya na upasamāya na abhiññāya na sambodhāya na nibbānāya saṃvattanti.”

Answer 13

“to disenchantment, to dispassion, to cessation, to peace, to direct knowledge, to enlightenment, to nibbāna.” These are datives of purpose (Duroiselle §597,vi; Perniola §259a).

Question 14

saṃvattanti

”N’ete, bhikkhave, vitakkā atthasaṃhitā nādibrahmacariyakā na nibbidāya na virāgāya na nirodhāya na upasamāya na abhiññāya na sambodhāya na nibbānāya saṃvattanti.”

Answer 14

“lead to, conduce to”; a third-person plural verb in the present tense.

Question 15

vitakkentā

“Vitakkentā ca kho tumhe, bhikkhave, ‘idaṃ dukkhan’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhasamudayo’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodho’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā’ti vitakkeyyātha.”

Answer 15

“thinking”; a present participle of vitakketi, masculine plural nominative.

Question 16

ca

“Vitakkentā ca kho tumhe, bhikkhave, ‘idaṃ dukkhan’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhasamudayo’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodho’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā’ti vitakkeyyātha.”

Answer 16

here used in the disjunctive sense, as meaning “but” rather than “and.” See DOP ca2 2.

Question 17

kho

”Vitakkentā ca kho tumhe, bhikkhave, ‘idaṃ dukkhan’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhasamudayo’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodho’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā’ti vitakkeyyātha.”

Answer 17

According to DOP, this indeclinable “emphasizes the preceding word(s), but is often merely expletive.” Here, following ca, it reinforces the disjunctive sense of “but.” Elsewhere, especially in the expression atha kho, it “marks a change of subject or a further stage in a narrative” (DOP).

Question 18

vitakkeyyātha

“Vitakkentā ca kho tumhe, bhikkhave, ‘idaṃ dukkhan’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhasamudayo’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodho’ti vitakkeyyātha, ‘ayaṃ dukkhanirodhagāminī paṭipadā’ti vitakkeyyātha.”

Answer 18

“should think”; a second-person plural verb in the optative.