Chapter 19 - Silabbatupadana

Some people believe that they can attain salvation through certain practices that have nothing to do with the Four Noble Truths. Such a belief is called silabbatupadana. It is silabbatupadana, too, to worship animals, to adopt the animal way of life, to perform certain rites and ceremonies in the hope of attaining salvation.

According to Visuddhimagga, some people rely on these practices as the way to salvation and do kammic deeds that lead to rebirth in the human world, the deva world and the material (rupa) and immaterial (arupa) worlds.

The Visuddhimagga refers only to kammas leading to the human and other higher worlds. It makes no mention of the kammas leading to the lower worlds. It does not follow, however, that silabbatupadana does not give rise to bad kammas. The commentary does not mention the evil kamma arising from silabbatupadana only because it is too obvious to need allusion. It is said in the Kukkuravatika and other suttas that a man is reborn as an ox or a dog if he lives to the letter like those animals in deed, word or thought or he is reborn in hell or animal world if he accepts the false belief but does not practise it fully. Needless to say, the killing of animals as a sacrifice to gods that arises from this upadana leads to the lower worlds, and so do other misdeeds resulting from the upadana that is bound up with certain forms of worship, rites and ceremonies.

In short, every belief in the efficacy of a practice as an antidote to evil is silabbatupadana. According to the commentaries on Visuddhimagga it is silabbatupadana even to rely entirely on conventional morality and mundane jhana as the way to liberation. The arupa jhanas attained by Alara and Udaka originated in this upadana and so do the deeds of many people that are based on faith in God. All these upadanas leads to rebirth and suffering.