清淨道論 七隨順Visuddhimagga · The Seven Suitabilities
相生起了，要像守一株剛發的芽。論主給了七樣要調順的東西：住處、行處、言談、人、食、時節、威儀。工法很素——一寺多房就每處各住三天，心得定的才住下；乞食村在一俱盧舍半內；三十二種無益之論令相隱沒，依十論事的話也要適量；不說廢話、有戒德的人讓心更定，好說無益之論的人如泥水弄濁清水；甜酸涼熱因人而異，以安適而心得定為準；行住坐臥哪一種讓你得定，同樣各試三天。
七條合起來就一句話：凡令心得定者親近之，凡令相退失者避開之。定不是「夠虔誠就會來」——睡不好的住處、聊到散心的人、過飽的食，都會讓它立不住。這不是神秘學，是工程學。
Once the sign has arisen, guard it like a newly sprouted plant. The author gives seven things to bring into accord: dwelling, alms resort, speech, people, food, climate, and posture. The method is plain. If a monastery has many rooms, live in each for three days and remain only where the mind becomes concentrated. Keep the alms village within one and a half kosas. The thirty-two kinds of pointless talk make the sign disappear, and even talk based on the ten topics should be measured. People who avoid futile talk and possess virtue steady the mind; those fond of pointless talk are like muddy water clouding clear water. Sweet or sour, cool or hot, differ by person and are judged by comfort and whether the mind becomes concentrated. Test walking, standing, sitting, and lying down for three days as well.
Together the seven say one thing: cultivate whatever makes the mind concentrated; avoid whatever makes the sign disappear. Concentration does not come merely because “you are devout enough.” A dwelling where you sleep poorly, a person whose conversation scatters you, or food taken to excess can keep it from standing. This is engineering, not mysticism.
本單元白話為本編自巴利原典之譯疏（tr. mine）；底本事項詳本單元考據。
§8 七隨順 — 入定前先把條件調順 〔CSCD §59〕
這裡，守護之法如下：
住處、行處、言談，人、食、時節、
威儀——這七者，於其不隨順者應當避開。
於其隨順的七者應當親近；這樣行道的人，
不久之後，有些人就能得安止。
其中，住在某一住處時，未生的相不生起，已生的相退失，未現起的念不現起，未得定的心不得定——這住處是不隨順的。凡是相既生起又穩固、念得現起、心得安定之處——如龍山住精勤帝須長老（Nāgapabbatavāsī Padhāniyatissatthera）那樣——這住處是隨順的。所以，一所寺中若有許多住處，就在每一處各住三天，於心得一境之處住下來。正因住處之隨順，在銅鍱洲小龍窟中住的五百比丘就在那裡取業處¹而證得阿羅漢。至於證入流果等以後、在別處達到聖地而於那裡證阿羅漢的人，更是不可計數。其餘如支帝羅山寺等處也是這樣。
至於行乞的村落：在坐臥處的北面或南面，不太遠，在一俱盧舍半之內，容易得到充足的食物——這是隨順的；相反的則不隨順。
「言談」：攝在三十二種無益之論（tiracchānakathā）²中的，是不隨順的，因為它導致相的隱沒；依於十論事的，是隨順的，但也應當適量而說。
「人」也是這樣：不說無益之論、具足戒等德，依於他而未定的心得定、已定的心更堅固——這樣的人是隨順的。至於多修身力、好說無益之論的人，是不隨順的：他就像泥水把清水弄濁一樣〔弄濁其心〕。遇上這樣的人，如拘吒山住的那位年少比丘那樣，連等至³也會失去，何況是相。
「食」：對有些人，甜的隨順；對有些人，酸的隨順。「時節」也是：對有些人，涼的隨順；對有些人，熱的隨順。所以，受用哪一種食或哪一種時節而覺安適，未定的心得定、已定的心更堅固，那食與那時節就是隨順的；其餘的食與其餘的時節則不隨順。
「威儀」中也是：對有些人，經行隨順；對有些人，臥、立、坐之中的某一種隨順。所以，應當像考察住處那樣，各以三天考察，於哪一種威儀中未定的心得定、已定的心更堅固，那一種就是隨順的；其餘的應知是不隨順的。
這樣，應當避開這七種不隨順的，親近隨順的。這樣行道、多多習近其相的人，不久之後，有些人就能得安止。
註
¹ 業處（kammaṭṭhāna）：所修之所緣與其修法之總名；其受取之法與四十業處之開列在〈取業處〉一品，本品唯就地遍開演。
² 無益之論（tiracchānakathā）：三十二種世俗閒談之總名，傳統亦譯作「畜生論」。
³ 等至（samāpatti）：所證入之定境。
The vernacular of this unit is this edition’s own rendering-with-exposition from the Pāli original (tr. mine); see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars.
§8 The Seven Suitabilities—First Bring the Conditions into Accord before Entering Concentration 〔CSCD §59〕
Here the method of guarding is as follows:
Dwelling, alms resort, speech, person, food, climate,
and posture: the unsuitable among these seven should be avoided.
The suitable among the seven should be cultivated; for some practitioners
who follow this course, absorption will be gained before long.
When a practitioner lives in a particular dwelling and a sign that has not arisen fails to arise, a sign that has arisen disappears, mindfulness that has not manifested fails to manifest, and a mind that has not become concentrated fails to do so, that dwelling is unsuitable. Any place where the sign arises and becomes stable, mindfulness manifests, and the mind becomes concentrated—as happened with the Elder Padhāniyatissa, resident of Nāgapabbata (Nāgapabbatavāsī Padhāniyatissatthera)—is a suitable dwelling. Therefore, if a monastery has many dwellings, the practitioner should live in each for three days and then remain where the mind becomes one-pointed. Precisely because their dwelling was suitable, five hundred bhikkhus living in the Little Nāga Cave on Tambapaṇṇi Island took up a meditation subject¹ there and attained arahantship. Those who attained stream-entry and the other stages and then reached the noble plane elsewhere and attained arahantship there are beyond counting. The same was true at places such as the monastery on Cittalapabbata.
As for the alms village, one lying to the north or south of the lodging, neither too far away nor beyond one and a half kosas, where sufficient food is easily obtained, is suitable; its opposite is unsuitable.
“Speech”: talk included among the thirty-two kinds of pointless talk (tiracchānakathā)² is unsuitable because it causes the sign to disappear. Speech based on the ten topics of discourse is suitable, but even that should be spoken in moderation.
The same principle applies to a “person.” A person who does not engage in pointless talk, who possesses such qualities as virtue, and by relying on whom a mind not yet concentrated becomes concentrated and a mind already concentrated becomes firmer, is suitable. A person devoted to physical exertion and fond of pointless talk is unsuitable: like muddy water clouding clear water, such a person clouds the mind. Encountering a person of this kind, as did the young bhikkhu resident at Koṭapabbata, can make a practitioner lose even an attainment³, let alone the sign.
“Food”: for some, sweet food is suitable; for others, sour food. The same applies to “climate”: for some, coolness is suitable; for others, heat. Thus whichever food or climate makes the practitioner comfortable, makes a mind not yet concentrated become concentrated, and makes a concentrated mind firmer is suitable; other food and other climates are unsuitable.
The same applies among “postures”: for some, walking is suitable; for others, one among lying down, standing, and sitting is suitable. Therefore each should be tested for three days, just as dwellings are tested. Whichever posture makes the unconcentrated mind concentrated and the concentrated mind firmer is suitable; the others should be understood as unsuitable.
Thus the seven unsuitable conditions should be avoided and the suitable ones cultivated. For some practitioners who follow this course and become very familiar with the sign, absorption will be gained before long.
Notes
¹ Meditation subject (kammaṭṭhāna): a collective designation for the object practiced and the method of practice. The way it is received and the enumeration of the forty meditation subjects occur in the chapter “Taking a Meditation Subject”; the present chapter explains only the earth kasiṇa.
² Pointless talk (tiracchānakathā): a collective designation for thirty-two kinds of worldly chatter, traditionally also translated as “animal talk.”
³ Attainment (samāpatti): a state of concentration into which the practitioner has attained entry.
定不是「夠虔誠就會來」｜住處、行處、言談、人、食、時節、威儀——把條件調到不扯後腿
大局 — 相得了之後，怎麼守
上一單元末尾論主叮嚀「如守轉輪王之胎般守護似相」；本單元（白話 §8）就是守相之法：七隨順——住處、行處、言談、人、食、時節、威儀，七者各以「令心得定者親近、令相退失者避開」為判準，各有三日一試之工法。它是全品最生活化的一段：定的成敗，很大一部分決定在坐墊之外。
§01 七隨順——守相的七個條件 → 白話 §8
〔讀法〕定不是「夠虔誠就會來」。白話 §8 的七隨順（住處、行處、言談、人、食、時節、威儀）說的很素：先把你的條件調到不扯後腿。 睡不好的住處、聊到散心的人、過飽的食——都會讓定立不住。這不是神秘學，是工程學。
論主給的工法也具體：住處，一寺多房就每處各住三天，心得定的才住下（龍山帝須長老之例；小龍窟五百比丘因住處相宜而全數證阿羅漢——至於先證入流等果、後在他處證阿羅漢的，更是不可計數）；行處，乞食村在一俱盧舍半內、食易得；言談，三十二種無益之論令相隱沒，依十論事的話也要適量；人，不說廢話、有戒德的人讓你的心更定，好說無益之論的人「如泥水弄濁清水」——拘吒山那位年少比丘，遇錯人連等至都失去了；食與時節，甜酸涼熱因人而異，以「安適而心得定」為準；威儀，行住坐臥哪一種讓你得定，同樣各試三天。七條合起來就一句話：凡令心得定者親近之，凡令相退失者避開之——把「相」當一株剛發的芽來養。
給一般讀者
若只帶走一件事：凡令心得定者親近之，凡令相退失者避開之（白話 §8）。七隨順不是清規，是一份自我觀察表：住處、日常動線、談話、往來的人、飲食、時節、姿勢——哪一項讓你的心更定，哪一項讓剛發的芽枯掉，各試三天就知道。這樣行道仍得不到安止的人，論主在 04-04 另有十條安止善巧。
想讀本單元全文：白話 §8 即七隨順一段之逐段全譯（tr. mine，譯自公版巴利原典；底本事項詳本單元考據）。
Concentration Does Not Come Merely because “You Are Devout Enough” | Dwelling, Alms Resort, Speech, People, Food, Climate, and Posture—Bring the Conditions into Accord So They Do Not Pull Backward
The Big Picture — How to Guard the Sign after Gaining It
At the end of the preceding unit, the author instructed the practitioner to “guard the counterpart sign as one guards the embryo of a wheel-turning monarch.” This unit (Vernacular §8) gives the method for guarding it: the seven suitabilities—dwelling, alms resort, speech, person, food, climate, and posture. For each, the criterion is to cultivate what makes the mind concentrated and avoid what makes the sign disappear; the practical method includes testing each condition for three days. This is the most everyday passage in the whole chapter: a large part of success or failure in concentration is decided away from the meditation cushion.
§01 The Seven Suitabilities—Seven Conditions for Guarding the Sign → Vernacular §8
〔Reading〕 Concentration does not come merely because “you are devout enough.” The seven suitabilities in Vernacular §8—dwelling, alms resort, speech, person, food, climate, and posture—say something very plain: first bring your conditions into accord so they do not pull backward. A dwelling where you sleep poorly, a person whose conversation scatters the mind, or food taken to excess can all keep concentration from standing. This is engineering, not mysticism.
The method the author gives is equally concrete. If a monastery has many dwellings, live in each for three days and remain only where the mind becomes concentrated. The example is the Elder Tissa of Nāgapabbata; at the Little Nāga Cave, five hundred bhikkhus, because the dwelling was suitable, all attained arahantship, while those who first reached stream-entry and other stages and later attained arahantship elsewhere were beyond counting. The alms resort should lie within one and a half kosas and make food easy to obtain. For speech, the thirty-two kinds of pointless talk make the sign disappear, and even talk based on the ten topics of discourse should be measured. A person who avoids futile talk and possesses virtue makes your mind firmer, while a person fond of pointless talk is “like muddy water clouding clear water”: the young bhikkhu of Koṭapabbata lost even his attainment after meeting the wrong person. Food and climate—sweet or sour, cool or hot—differ by person and are judged by comfort and whether the mind becomes concentrated. Among postures, test walking, standing, sitting, and lying down for three days each and retain whichever makes the mind concentrated. Together the seven say one thing: cultivate whatever concentrates the mind; avoid whatever makes the sign disappear. Raise the “sign” like a newly sprouted plant.
For the General Reader
If you retain only one thing, let it be this: cultivate whatever concentrates the mind; avoid whatever makes the sign disappear (Vernacular §8). The seven suitabilities are not a monastic rulebook but a form of self-observation: dwelling, daily routes, conversation, the people you spend time with, food, climate, and posture. Test each for three days and see which steadies the mind and which withers the new shoot. For a practitioner who still cannot reach absorption after following this course, the author gives ten further kinds of skill in absorption in 04-04.
To read this unit in full: Vernacular §8 is the complete passage-by-passage translation of the section on the seven suitabilities (tr. mine, from the public-domain Pāli original; see this unit’s apparatus for the base-text particulars).
考據Apparatus
一、科判定位
本單元之定位 本單元承本品譯底之第 3 段（全品十一段之第 3），譯底欄小節作 Sattasappāyā；段號自〔CSCD §59〕至〔CSCD §59〕，實落段號 1 個；白話 1 節（§8）——「七隨順 — 入定前先把條件調順」。前承第 2 單元〔修法——安立其器・取相似相・近行安止〕，後接第 4 單元〔十種安止善巧〕。本單元所承之校文 § 為 §D（其題與章§逐字見本品《總覽》）。本段之事實唯自切界與本篇《總覽》之對齊表字面取，餘皆下列品級之段所載。
（品級段——本品之科判定位，十一單元同載，一字不改）
譯底 本品之譯底＝CSCD（內用不上站）。本層一切巴利逐字取自本品原典欄之譯底，
定位二式並用：〔Vism IV.x〕式唯限本品《總覽》movement 表既載者，〔CSCD §NN〕式對
譯底欄逐字可核。二系不明對映，本欄不推估、不換算。本品無自家對頁之巴利，故頁域一概不記。
品名 第四品〈地遍〉，巴利作 Pathavīkasiṇaniddesa。譯底欄之品題行作
4. Pathavīkasiṇaniddeso〔CSCD §51〕。品末之自標作
Iti sādhujanapāmojjatthāya kate visuddhimagge／Samādhibhāvanādhikāre／Pathavīkasiṇaniddeso nāma／Catuttho paricchedo.（四行）〔CSCD §90〕——論自繫本品為《清淨道論》定修習一部之第四品。
章§域 本品《總覽》movement 表所載之章§，首列作〔Vism IV.21–31〕，末列作 〔Vism IV.139 起〕，止點未載；本欄不代補、不外推。
段號域 譯底欄之段號自〔CSCD §51〕至〔CSCD §90〕，實落段號 39 個。其中一號號無而
文在：〔CSCD §66〕末之偈頌一段，譯底欄於其處未落段號，下一號逕作 [§68]。本欄不補號、
不引未落之號；該偈頌之文一律繫〔CSCD §66〕引之。不默示號序連續。
小節 譯底欄自帶 ### 小節 18 個（含品題行一），末小節作 Pañcakajjhānakathā。
本品之分節地圖與其對譯底欄之跨度，見本品《總覽》。
前品接點 本品首段以 yaṃ vuttaṃ 標其所承，逐句取前已說之句而開演之：
samādhibhāvanāya ananurūpaṃ vihāraṃ pahāya anurūpe vihāre viharantenā〔CSCD §51〕、
Khuddakapalibodhupacchedaṃ katvā〔CSCD §54〕、
sabbaṃ bhāvanāvidhānaṃ aparihāpentena bhāvetabbo〔CSCD §55〕。三句皆論自標為前已說者，
其所在之品譯底欄未標，本欄不代考定；依本書品序，取業處之品在本品之前。
後品接點 〔CSCD §55〕自標
ayaṃ pathavīkasiṇaṃ ādiṃ katvā sabbakammaṭṭhānavasena vitthārakathā hoti——就一切業處之
詳論，自地遍始。本品唯開演地遍一遍；〔CSCD §63〕作 pathavīkasiṇādikassa，以「地遍等」
該其餘之遍，其開演不在本品。
二、詞義與譯語
本目只記本品用法與其定位；名相定讀以規範詞表為準，詞表所未定者，本目不代定。
本編詞表已定之詞引其定讀，不逐品重解——本品所涉之既立詞為 upacāra-samādhi（近行定）·
appanā-samādhi（安止定）·ārammaṇa（所緣）·guṇa（德）·Porāṇā（古師，見〔CSCD §76〕
之 Tenāhu porāṇā）·paricchedo（品，見〔CSCD §90〕之品末）。以下唯列本品新出者，
及本編既有校讀與規範詞表須併觀之處。
定與心路
| 巴利 | 本編用語 | 本篇用法之要 | 定位 |
|---|---|---|---|
| satta sappāyā | 七隨順 | Āvāso gocaro bhassaṃ, puggalo bhojanaṃ utu;／Iriyāpathoti sattete, asappāye vivajjaye.——住處・行處・言談・人・食・時節・威儀七，避其不順、習其隨順 | 〔CSCD §59〕 |
本編既有校讀與規範詞表須併觀之四處 ①sappāya 規範詞表定「相宜」，既有校讀作
「七隨順」；②ekaggatā 規範詞表定「心一境性」，既有校讀於禪支表作「一境性」；
③upekkhāsatipārisuddhi 既有校讀作「念清淨」，本目依論自釋作「捨念清淨」；
④cetaso ekodibhāva 既有校讀作「內淨一心」，本目依論自釋分作「內淨」與「心之一趣」。
四處皆依論自釋取讀。又，既有校讀之三相次第作「遍作相→取相→似相」，而
parikammanimitta（遍作相）一名於本品譯底欄零命中——譯底欄唯出 uggahanimitta 與
paṭibhāganimitta 二相之名，parikamma 一詞則唯作遍作之心與遍作之時二用〔CSCD §55〕·
〔CSCD §69〕。誌之不判。
三、異讀
材料之面 本品無自家對頁之巴利，故無校勘段可錄；可查之面唯譯底欄自身。誌錄不判。
普查之實測 譯底欄全篇逐字普查：異讀括注式（(sī.)・(syā.)・(kaṃ.)・(pī.) 等）
零命中；異誦之標識詞 pāṭho 零命中；方括注唯 [§NN] 段號與版頁記二式，
無一為異讀之記。全篇之圓括注 48 處，逐一檢之，皆為所引之出處標記，無一載異讀。
查無即記無：譯底欄自身無異讀之記。
掃描面之界 本欄之查唯及譯底欄一面；他本之對勘不在本欄之面，本欄不代考定， 亦不以本欄之零命中推斷他本。
四、論主引據
引式之數〔本欄實測〕 Vuttañhetaṃ 7 處・Vuttampi cetaṃ 2 處・Yathāha 5 處・
Tenāha 2 處（其一作 Tenāha bhagavā）・Tenevāha 1 處・Tenāhu porāṇā 1 處・
Vibhaṅge pana 5 處・Vibhaṅgepi vuttaṃ 2 處・peṭake vuttaṃ 1 處・Tatrāyaṃ pāḷi 1 處・
aṭṭhakathāsu 2 處。本文自標之圓括注出處 48 處。此數唯就本品之域，不及全書。
所引之類〔本欄實測〕 48 處括注析為 62 個出處分項，就其標識分：vibha. 12・
saṃ. ni. 11・dī. ni. 11・dha. sa. 8・a. ni. 7・ma. ni. 6・paṭi. ma. 4・
mahāni. 2・paṭṭhā. 1（一括注載二出處以上者，逐項計入）。此外：未繫括注而以「諸義注」
「《藏釋》」「《二集義注》」「古師」自標其所從來者 5 處〔CSCD §52〕·〔CSCD §69〕·
〔CSCD §70〕·〔CSCD §71〕·〔CSCD §76〕；標書名而未繫號者 2 處〔CSCD §80〕；
引而全未標出處者 2 處〔CSCD §55〕·〔CSCD §62〕。
五、譬喻·修辭
本目只記本品譬喻之所在與其所配，不作文學評價。
乙・事例 本品所舉之人事，逐處繫段號，唯記其所證之義，不代考定其人其地。
| 位置 | 事例 | 所證之義 |
|---|---|---|
| 〔CSCD §59〕 | nāgapabbatavāsīpadhāniyatissattherassa viya・tambapaṇṇidīpamhi cūḷanāgaleṇe 之五百比丘・cittalapabbatavihārādīsu・koṭapabbatavāsīdaharasseva | 住處與人之相宜、不相宜 |
〔上表人地之名，本層唯逐字照錄譯底欄之巴利；漢語定讀不於本目立。〕
丙・修辭之可核觀察 ①四禪之生起段用同一句式：tattha dosaṃ disvā（見前禪之過）→
santato manasikatvā（作意後禪為寂）→ nikantiṃ pariyādāya（盡前禪之愛）→
tadeva pathavīkasiṇaṃ ārammaṇaṃ katvā 而繼以意門轉向之起。本欄實測：tattha dosaṃ disvā
5 見・nikantiṃ pariyādāya 5 見・oḷārikattā aṅgadubbalā 5 見（第五見皆在五分法之段）・
tadeva pathavīkasiṇaṃ ārammaṇaṃ katvā 4 見（其末之意門轉向，〔CSCD §69〕作連聲形，
餘三處作 manodvārāvajjanaṃ uppajjati，故此長式 3 見）；作意之動詞二形——
santato manasikatvā 2 見・santato manasikaritvā 3 見。
②四禪之收句一律作 tividhakalyāṇaṃ dasalakkhaṇasampannaṃ … adhigataṃ hoti pathavīkasiṇaṃ，
本欄實測 4 見。③後三禪之末皆以 Sesaṃ paṭhamajjhāne vuttanayameva 收，本欄實測 3 見；
五分法之段則作 Sesaṃ vuttappakārameva，2 見。④省略式 …pe… 全篇 18 見，皆在所引之
經文內。⑤viya 為本品譬喻之主要標識，全篇 63 見；Seyyathāpi 6 見，皆為所引經之喻起句。
⑥「地、地」之作意句全篇 7 見，貫遍作與四禪之生起——''pathavī pathavī''ti 形 5 見，
pathavī pathavīti 形 2 見。⑦本品之偈頌以縮排出之，
計 34 行。以上諸數唯就本品之域實測，不及全書。
七、傳本
作者、傳本與注疏源流諸問題，本編不於考據內立說。
I. Placement in the Outline
Location of this unit This unit takes the third segment of the chapter’s working base—the third of eleven segments in the chapter. The source column gives the subsection title Sattasappāyā; its paragraph numbers run from 〔CSCD §59〕 through 〔CSCD §59〕, with one actual numbered paragraph. The vernacular has one section (§8), “The Seven Suitabilities—First Bring the Conditions into Accord before Entering Concentration.” Unit 2, 〔The Method of Development—Preparing the Device, Acquiring the Learning and Counterpart Signs, Access and Absorption〕, precedes it; Unit 4, 〔Tenfold Skill in Absorption〕, follows. This unit takes construal section §D (its title and chapter section appear verbatim in this chapter’s Overview). The facts in this paragraph derive only from the literal cut boundaries and the alignment table in the chapter Overview; all other statements belong to the chapter-level paragraphs below.
(Chapter-level paragraphs—identically reproduced in all eleven units of this chapter)
Working base The working base for this chapter is CSCD (internal and never published). Every Pāli quotation in this layer is taken verbatim from the source column’s working base,
using two locator systems: the form 〔Vism IV.x〕 is restricted to items already listed in this chapter’s Overview movement table, while 〔CSCD §NN〕 checks
directly against the working-base column. Where the relation between the two systems is unknown, this column neither estimates nor converts it. This chapter has no internally collated Pāli pagination, so page ranges are not recorded.
Chapter title Chapter 4, “Earth Kasiṇa,” is Pathavīkasiṇaniddesa in Pāli. The title line in the working-base column reads
4. Pathavīkasiṇaniddeso 〔CSCD §51〕. The chapter’s closing self-designation reads
Iti sādhujanapāmojjatthāya kate visuddhimagge / Samādhibhāvanādhikāre / Pathavīkasiṇaniddeso nāma / Catuttho paricchedo. (four lines) 〔CSCD §90〕—the treatise itself places this as the fourth chapter in the concentration-development division of the Visuddhimagga.
Chapter-section range The first chapter section recorded in this chapter’s Overview movement table is 〔Vism IV.21–31〕; the last begins at 〔Vism IV.139 onward〕, with no endpoint recorded. This column does not supply or extrapolate an endpoint.
Paragraph-number range The paragraph numbers in the working-base column run from 〔CSCD §51〕 to 〔CSCD §90〕, with thirty-nine actual numbers. One number is absent although
its text is present: the verse paragraph at the end of 〔CSCD §66〕 carries no paragraph number in the working-base column, and the next number is [§68]. This column neither supplies a number
nor cites an unattested one; that verse is always attached to 〔CSCD §66〕. No continuous sequence of numbers is implied.
Subsections The working-base column contains eighteen ### subsection headings, including the chapter title line; the final subsection is Pañcakajjhānakathā.
For the chapter’s subdivision map and its spans in the working-base column, see the chapter Overview.
Connection to the preceding chapter The chapter’s opening passage marks what it takes up with yaṃ vuttaṃ, then develops, phrase by phrase, the statements already made:
samādhibhāvanāya ananurūpaṃ vihāraṃ pahāya anurūpe vihāre viharantenā 〔CSCD §51〕,
Khuddakapalibodhupacchedaṃ katvā 〔CSCD §54〕,
sabbaṃ bhāvanāvidhānaṃ aparihāpentena bhāvetabbo 〔CSCD §55〕. The treatise itself marks all three as previously stated;
their location is not identified in this chapter’s working-base column, and this apparatus does not independently determine it. In the order of this treatise, the chapter on taking a meditation subject precedes the present chapter.
Connection to the following chapters At 〔CSCD §55〕 the treatise itself says,
ayaṃ pathavīkasiṇaṃ ādiṃ katvā sabbakammaṭṭhānavasena vitthārakathā hoti—the detailed treatment of all meditation subjects
begins with the earth kasiṇa. This chapter develops only the earth kasiṇa. At 〔CSCD §63〕, pathavīkasiṇādikassa embraces “the earth kasiṇa and the rest”
of the kasiṇas, but their development does not occur in this chapter.
II. Terms and Renderings
This heading records only how terms function and are located in this chapter; the normative glossary governs their established readings, and this heading does not decide terms that the glossary leaves unsettled.
Terms already settled in this edition’s glossary are cited as settled rather than re-explained chapter by chapter. The settled terms occurring here are upacāra-samādhi (access concentration),
appanā-samādhi (absorption concentration), ārammaṇa (object), guṇa (quality), and Porāṇā (the ancient teachers; see Tenāhu porāṇā at 〔CSCD §76〕
), together with paricchedo (chapter; see the chapter’s closing self-designation at 〔CSCD §90〕). What follows lists only terms new to this chapter
and places where this edition’s earlier construal and the normative glossary must be read together.
Concentration and the Cognitive Process
| Pāli | Rendering | Usage in this unit | Locus |
|---|---|---|---|
| satta sappāyā | seven suitabilities | Āvāso gocaro bhassaṃ, puggalo bhojanaṃ utu; / Iriyāpathoti sattete, asappāye vivajjaye.—dwelling, alms resort, speech, person, food, climate, and posture: avoid what is unsuitable and cultivate what is suitable | 〔CSCD §59〕 |
Four places where this edition’s earlier construal and the normative glossary must be read together (1) The normative glossary renders sappāya as “suitable,” while the earlier construal reads it as
“seven suitabilities.” (2) The normative glossary renders ekaggatā as “one-pointedness,” while the earlier construal’s table of absorption factors reads “singleness.”
(3) The earlier construal renders upekkhāsatipārisuddhi as “purification of mindfulness,” while this heading, following the treatise’s own explanation, reads “purity of mindfulness due to equanimity.”
(4) The earlier construal renders cetaso ekodibhāva as “inner purity and unified mind,” while this heading, following the treatise’s own explanation, distinguishes “inner purity” from “the mind’s unification.”
All four are read through the treatise’s own explanation. Further, the earlier construal orders three signs as “preliminary sign → learning sign → counterpart sign,” yet
the term parikammanimitta (“preliminary sign”) has zero occurrences in this chapter’s working-base column. The working-base column names only uggahanimitta and
paṭibhāganimitta; the word parikamma occurs solely for the preliminary-work mind and the time of preliminary work at 〔CSCD §55〕 and
〔CSCD §69〕. This is recorded without decision.
III. Variant Readings
Material available This chapter has no internally collated Pāli pagination and therefore no collation passages to record; the only searchable surface is the working-base column itself. The facts are recorded without decision.
Measured complete survey A verbatim survey of the entire working-base column found parenthetical variant markers such as (sī.), (syā.), (kaṃ.), and (pī.)
in zero occurrences; the variant-reading marker pāṭho in zero occurrences; and only the two square-bracket forms used for [§NN] paragraph numbers and edition page notations,
none of which marks a variant reading. The forty-eight parenthetical annotations in the chapter were each inspected and all are source references; none records a variant.
When none are found, none are recorded: the working-base column itself records no variant readings.
Limit of the surveyed surface This survey extends only to the working-base column. Comparison with other editions is outside its surface; this heading neither decides such comparison nor infers anything about other editions from the zero occurrences here.
IV. The Commentator’s Citations
Number of citation formulas 〔measured in this heading〕 Vuttañhetaṃ occurs 7 times; Vuttampi cetaṃ, 2; Yathāha, 5;
Tenāha, 2 (one is Tenāha bhagavā); Tenevāha, 1; Tenāhu porāṇā, 1;
Vibhaṅge pana, 5; Vibhaṅgepi vuttaṃ, 2; peṭake vuttaṃ, 1; Tatrāyaṃ pāḷi, 1;
and aṭṭhakathāsu, 2. The text itself marks forty-eight parenthetical source references. These counts apply only to this chapter, not to the whole work.
Kinds of cited sources 〔measured in this heading〕 The forty-eight parenthetical annotations divide into sixty-two source items. By the labels actually given, they comprise vibha. 12,
saṃ. ni. 11, dī. ni. 11, dha. sa. 8, a. ni. 7, ma. ni. 6, and paṭi. ma. 4,
with mahāni. 2 and paṭṭhā. 1 (when one parenthesis contains two or more sources, each is counted separately). In addition, there are sources identified as “the commentaries,”
“the Peṭaka,” “the commentary on the Duka,” or “the ancient teachers” at five places without a parenthetical reference 〔CSCD §52〕 and 〔CSCD §69〕,
〔CSCD §70〕, 〔CSCD §71〕, and 〔CSCD §76〕; two places give a title without a reference number 〔CSCD §80〕;
and two citations give no source at all 〔CSCD §55〕 and 〔CSCD §62〕.
V. Similes and Rhetoric
This heading records only where the chapter’s similes occur and which meanings they illustrate; it offers no literary evaluation.
B. Account Every person and event mentioned in this chapter is attached to a paragraph-number anchor. Only the point illustrated is recorded; this apparatus does not independently determine the person or place.
| Location | Account | Meaning Illustrated |
|---|---|---|
| 〔CSCD §59〕 | nāgapabbatavāsīpadhāniyatissattherassa viya; the five hundred bhikkhus at tambapaṇṇidīpamhi cūḷanāgaleṇe; cittalapabbatavihārādīsu; and koṭapabbatavāsīdaharasseva | suitable and unsuitable dwellings and persons |
〔The personal and place names in the table above are reproduced in Pāli verbatim from the working-base column; this heading does not establish Chinese readings for them.〕
C. Verifiable rhetorical observations (1) The passages on the arising of the four absorptions employ the same sequence: tattha dosaṃ disvā (seeing the defect in the preceding absorption) →
santato manasikatvā (attending to the following absorption as peaceful) → nikantiṃ pariyādāya (exhausting attachment to the preceding absorption) →
tadeva pathavīkasiṇaṃ ārammaṇaṃ katvā, followed by the arising of mind-door adverting. Measured here, tattha dosaṃ disvā
occurs 5 times; nikantiṃ pariyādāya, 5; and oḷārikattā aṅgadubbalā, 5 (the fifth instance in each case occurs in the passage on the fivefold system), while
tadeva pathavīkasiṇaṃ ārammaṇaṃ katvā occurs 4 times (for the final mind-door adverting, 〔CSCD §69〕 uses a sandhi form,
while the other three places use manodvārāvajjanaṃ uppajjati, so the longer form occurs 3 times). The verb for attending has two forms:
santato manasikatvā, 2 occurrences, and santato manasikaritvā, 3.
(2) The closing sentence for each of the four absorptions always contains tividhakalyāṇaṃ dasalakkhaṇasampannaṃ … adhigataṃ hoti pathavīkasiṇaṃ,
measured here at 4 occurrences. (3) The last three absorptions all close with Sesaṃ paṭhamajjhāne vuttanayameva, measured here at 3 occurrences;
the passage on the fivefold system instead uses Sesaṃ vuttappakārameva, 2 occurrences. (4) The abbreviation …pe… occurs 18 times throughout the chapter, all within quoted
canonical passages. (5) viya is the chapter’s principal simile marker and occurs 63 times; Seyyathāpi occurs 6 times, each opening a simile in a quoted discourse.
(6) The attention formula “earth, earth” occurs 7 times across preliminary work and the arising of the four absorptions—5 in the form ''pathavī pathavī''ti
and 2 in the form pathavī pathavīti. (7) Verses in this chapter are indented and
number thirty-four lines. All counts apply only to this chapter, not to the whole work.
VII. Transmission
This edition advances no position in its apparatus on questions concerning authorship, textual transmission, or the history of commentaries.