Dhamma attributes (1): Svākkhātā

In Svātkkhāta, Dhamma refers to the Doctrine (pariyat), the four maggas, the four phalas and Nibbāna (the pariyat and the nine supramundane factors).

The pariyat is excellent in the beginning, excellent in the middle and excellent at the end because it is perfect in meaning and in words and because it proclaims the threefold training and the Ariya Path (Magga), as the pure and complete way of practice.

The pariyat is perfect because even within a single stanza, its first line is perfect, and therefore perfect in the beginning; its second and third lines are perfect and therefore perfect in the middle; its fourth line is perfect and therefore perfect at the end. In a discourse, it has an introduction that makes it perfect in the beginning. It has a conclusion that makes it perfect at the end. And the middle portion, with its logical connections between various points, makes it perfect in the middle. In a discourse consisting of a number of connected thoughts, the first connection of logical relationships is perfection in the beginning. The last connection of logical relationship is perfection at the end. The remaining logical relationships are perfection in the middle. (These remarks are for Suttanta Piṭaka.)

(In another way:) In the Suttanta and Vinaya Piṭakas, all of the discourses mention the place where the event took place (Savatthi, Rājagaha, etc.) which is perfection in the beginning. The compatibility of the discourse with the natural bent of the hearers on that particular occasion, the incontrovertible truth contained in the meaning of the discourse, the substance, and the illustrations make the middle perfect. The benefit gained by the audience through their faith and conviction, the proper conclusion of the theme, make the end perfect.

In brief, the whole of the Pariyatti Dhamma, comprising the Three Piṭakas, essentially proclaim Morality, Concentration, Insight-wisdom, Magga, Phala and Nibbāna. They pronounce the true Buddha, the true Dhamma, the true Sangha. They clearly prescribe the noble and correct practice that leads to Buddhahood, or Perfect Self-Enlightenment, Paccekabuddhahood and arahatship or enlightenment as a disciple. Thus, the three Piṭakas have the intrinsic excellence in the beginning in Morality; the intrinsic excellence of the middle in Concentration and Insight-wisdom; the intrinsic excellence at the end in Nibbāna. Or taken in another light, they are excellent in the beginning through Morality and Concentration; excellent in the middle through Insight wisdom, and magga;and excellent at the end through phala and Nibbāna.

Or, put it in another way, they are excellent in the beginning by declaring the true Buddha, excellent in the middle by declaring the true Dhamma, and excellent at the end by declaring the true Sangha. Again, anyone, who takes up the practice as shown in the Pariyatta Dhamma or the Three Piṭakas can attain any of the three classes of Enlightenment, and are therefore excellent in the beginning through Perfect Self-Enlightenment; excellent in the middle through Paccekabuddhahood, and excellent at the end through Enlightenment as a disciple.

The Buddha’s Doctrine requires His disciples two steps to take: the first step is for them to listen attentively with a certain faith, and the second is to take up the practice of the Dhamma. When the above steps are taken in their order and the proper practise is done, a disciple attains arahatta-phala. Therefore, in listening to the Doctrine, if you have the ultimate objective of arahatta-phala, you gain the knowledge of what has been heard, Sutamaya ñāṇa, the repeated arising of which can put away the hindrances of the mind. Hence paying good attention to the Doctrine is excellence in the beginning. If you take up the Practice of the Dhamma after repeatedly listening to it, you get the calm that comes with concentration, samatha-sukha, and then if pursued correctly, you gain insight into phenomena which gives you peace and satisfaction, vipassanā-sukha. Thus the practice of the Dhamma is excellence in the middle. Since proper practice leads to arahatta-phala, the result of the practice is the excellent at the end. In this way is the Pariyat Doctrine excellent in the beginning, in the middle and at the end, and therefore it is truly acclaimed as Svākkhāto. The Buddha’s Pariyat Doctrine clearly chalks out two modes of the practice, the practice conforming to the teaching, sāsana brahmā cariya, and the noble practice of the Path, magga brahmā cariya. (Of those two, the first refers ordinarily to the threefold training and kindred teachings while the second refers to the very essence of the threefold training and the successful measure of the threefold training, namely, the ariya-magga.) In teaching these two modes of the practice, the Buddha defined the Noble Practice in terms of the deepest significance in meaning. For instance, if a religious teacher were to give emphasis on such mundane words as gruel, rice, or men or women, these terms do not have any intrinsic value that can lead to the ending of the woefulness of the round of existences. So, such words do not carry any significant meaning from a truly religious point of view. The Buddha rejects giving emphasis on these mundane terms but expounds the Four

Foundations of Steadfast Mindfulness (Satipaṭṭhāna), the Four Earnest Endeavours (Sammappadhāna), etc. in detail which have the effect of gaining release from the round of existences. Thus, the Pariyat Doctrine defines the Noble Practice in these significant absolute terms, replete with profound meaning.

Further, the Noble Practice is expounded in words and phrases that are perfect. In this matter there are ten important rules of enunciation of words. They are:

i) Sithila akkharas, unstressed words (e.g.) ka, ca, ṭa.

ii) Dhanita akkharas, strongly stressed words (e.g.) kha, gha, In the five-letter groups of Pāli alphabet, the second five letters and the fourth five letters are strongly stressed words.

iii) Dīgha akkharas, letters associated with long vowels, (e.g.) kā kū, ke, ko. iv) Rassa akkharas, letters associated with short vowels, (e.g.) ka, ki, ku.

v) Gaur akkharas, 'weighty' words all the dīgha akkharas and short sounding words with conjunct-consonants trailing behind belong to this class. (e.g.) In santa (sa anta): the short-sounding word, sa becomes san here, which is a garu akkhara.

vi) Lahu akkhara, all other short-sounding words (rassa akkharas) with no conjunctconsonants.

vii) Niggahita akkharas: words uttered with a closed mouth (the sound produced by closing the mouth without letting the sound and the air caused by the respective organ of speech escape is called niggahita).

viii) Vinutta akkharas: words uttered with the mouth opened (e.g.) Kā.

ix) Sambandha akkharas: two successive words with a connected sound (e.g.) In upasampadā pekkho, no pause is to intervene between dā and pek, but the whole word is to be uttered without break in between.

x) Vavatthita akkharas: separately sounded words (e.g.) In suṇātu me, there must be a pause between suṇātu and me.

The above ten rules are called the Ten Vyañjana buddhis. Vyañjana means words uttered as vocal expressions of the mind. Vyañjanabhuddhi means the mind and mental concomitants that cause the utterance of words. The words thus uttered also are called Vyañjanabuddhi in a metaphorical sense.

It is not all the languages that conform to the above ten rules of enunciation. For instance, in Tamil only one or two of the rules are met with. In Kirāta there are no labial sounds. In Yun every word is pronounced heavily. In Pārasika (Pādasika) all words are pronounced as niggahīta. A discourse made by anyone in those tongues is therefore deficient in the linguistic aspect.

The Buddha expounds the Pariyat Doctrine in accordance with the ten rules of enunciation. Hence the Pariyat Doctrine the Noble Practice is perfect in words and phrases. (The perfection of the words and phrases is discussed along the grammatical rules, such as Netti, etc., in Visuddhi-magga and the great Sub-commentary, other Commentaries and Sub-commentaries. Here we are not going into these details.)

Furthermore, the Pariyat Doctrine expounded by the Buddha is perfect because it contains the five qualities, namely, Morality, Concentration, Wisdom, Emancipation and Insight leading to emancipation so that there is no essential thing or no other pure element to add to it.

Again, the Pariyat Doctrine expounded by the Buddha is perfect in the sense that there is nothing that is harmful and is to be discarded, for it has no trace of the defiling things such as wrong view or conceit, but is purely productive of liberation from the woeful round of existences. In another sense, there is no flaw whatever in this Pariyat Doctrine since it is not something that is delivered to anyone with an eye on material gain or for fame and applause. Therefore, it is pure in all aspects.

Thus the Pariyat Doctrine preached by the Buddha is truly well expounded (Svākkhāta) because of its perfection in meaning, in words and phrases, and is by its very nature perfectly pure, laying down the Practice of Purity in its two fold modes.

Taken in yet another light, the Pariyat Doctrine preached by the Buddha is wellexpounded because it does not deviate from the avowed claim. Consider this: Holders of doctrines, other than the Buddha’s, preach their gospel of impediments which are not truly impediments, and their gospels of emancipation which are not productive of emancipation. Hence, their doctrines deviate from the avowed claim, and are therefore not wellexpounded, but only ill-expounded.

The veracity of the Buddha’s Pariyat Doctrine is never called in question. What the Buddha declares as impediments to the attainment of jhāna, magga, phala, and Nibbāna are truly impediments. What the Buddha declares as factors conducive to emancipation are truly so. Nowhere does the Pariyat Doctrine deviate from its avowed claims. That is why the Pariyat Doctrine is truly well-expounded, Svākkhāto.

The above two interpretations of the attribute of svākkhāta is all the more remarkable when they are seen in association with the four kinds of Perfect Self-confidence of the Buddha (catuvesārajjañāṇa). The Commentaries usually relate svākkhāta with these four factors (Knowledges). The four are given below:

[The Four Kinds of Perfect Self-confidence (Vesārajja-ñāṇa)]

The Supramundane is well expounded in that it leads to Nibbāna through the practice of the four Paths declared by the Buddha thus: “This is the correct practice, the way to Nibbāna, and this is Nibbāna that is attainable by this practice.” (This is how magga and Nibbāna are well expounded)

Of the three aspects of the Supramundane, i.e., Magga, Phala and Nibbāna, the ariyamagga is well expounded, in that it avoids the two extremes and steers the middle course as the correct practice. The Fruition (phala) of the Path (magga) i.e. the ordinary Fruitions attained by an ariya, which are four in number, are the factors where no burning defilements exist. And the declaration of this truth that, “The four phalas are the factors where no burning defilements remain,” is the attribute of its being well-expounded. Nibbāna is permanent, deathless, the ultimate unconditioned element and this Nibbāna is declared by the Buddha in terms of permanence, deathlessness, etc. is the attribute of its being well-expounded. (This is how Magga, Phala and Nibbāna, the Supramundane factors, are well-expounded.)