“Cattārome, bhikkhave, puggalā santo saṁvijjamānā lokasmiṁ. Katame cattāro?
“There are these four kinds of persons found existing in the world. Which four?
Appassuto sutena anupapanno,
appassuto sutena upapanno,
bahussuto sutena anupapanno,
bahussuto sutena upapanno.
One with little learning who is not accomplished by that learning,
One with little learning who is accomplished by that learning,
One with much learning who is not accomplished by that learning,
One with much learning who is accomplished by that learning.
Kathañca, bhikkhave, puggalo appassuto hoti sutena anupapanno? Idha, bhikkhave, ekaccassa puggalassa appakaṁ sutaṁ hoti—suttaṁ geyyaṁ veyyākaraṇaṁ gāthā udānaṁ itivuttakaṁ jātakaṁ abbhutadhammaṁ vedallaṁ. So tassa appakassa sutassa na atthamaññāya dhammamaññāya dhammānudhammappaṭipanno hoti. Evaṁ kho, bhikkhave, puggalo appassuto hoti sutena anupapanno.
And how, bhikkhus, is a person with little learning not accomplished by that learning? Here, bhikkhus, some person has little learning — of discourses, mixed prose and verse, expositions, verses, inspired utterances, sayings, birth stories, marvelous accounts, and questions-and-answers. He, not understanding the meaning of that little learning, not understanding the dhamma, does not practice according to the dhamma. Thus, bhikkhus, a person with little learning is not accomplished by that learning.
Kathañca, bhikkhave, puggalo appassuto hoti sutena upapanno? Idha, bhikkhave, ekaccassa puggalassa appakaṁ sutaṁ hoti—suttaṁ geyyaṁ veyyākaraṇaṁ gāthā udānaṁ itivuttakaṁ jātakaṁ abbhutadhammaṁ vedallaṁ. So tassa appakassa sutassa atthamaññāya dhammamaññāya dhammānudhammappaṭipanno hoti. Evaṁ kho, bhikkhave, puggalo appassuto hoti sutena upapanno.
And how, bhikkhus, is a person with little learning accomplished by that learning? Here, bhikkhus, some person has little learning — of discourses, mixed prose and verse, expositions, verses, inspired utterances, sayings, birth stories, marvelous accounts, and questions-and-answers. He, understanding the meaning of that little learning, understanding the dhamma, practices according to the dhamma. Thus, bhikkhus, a person with little learning is accomplished by that learning.
Kathañca, bhikkhave, puggalo bahussuto hoti sutena anupapanno? Idha, bhikkhave, ekaccassa puggalassa bahukaṁ sutaṁ hoti—suttaṁ geyyaṁ veyyākaraṇaṁ gāthā udānaṁ itivuttakaṁ jātakaṁ abbhutadhammaṁ vedallaṁ. So tassa bahukassa sutassa na atthamaññāya dhammamaññāya dhammānudhammappaṭipanno hoti. Evaṁ kho, bhikkhave, puggalo bahussuto hoti sutena anupapanno.
And how, bhikkhus, is a person with much learning not accomplished by that learning? Here, bhikkhus, some person has much learning — of discourses, mixed prose and verse, expositions, verses, inspired utterances, sayings, birth stories, marvelous accounts, and questions-and-answers. He, not understanding the meaning of that much learning, not understanding the dhamma, does not practice according to the dhamma. Thus, bhikkhus, a person with much learning is not accomplished by that learning.
Kathañca, bhikkhave, puggalo bahussuto hoti sutena upapanno? Idha, bhikkhave, ekaccassa puggalassa bahukaṁ sutaṁ hoti—suttaṁ geyyaṁ veyyākaraṇaṁ gāthā udānaṁ itivuttakaṁ jātakaṁ abbhutadhammaṁ vedallaṁ. So tassa bahukassa sutassa atthamaññāya dhammamaññāya dhammānudhammappaṭipanno hoti. Evaṁ kho, bhikkhave, puggalo bahussuto hoti sutena upapanno.
And how, bhikkhus, is a person with much learning accomplished by that learning? Here, bhikkhus, some person has much learning — of discourses, mixed prose and verse, expositions, verses, inspired utterances, sayings, birth stories, marvelous accounts, and questions-and-answers. He, understanding the meaning of that much learning, understanding the dhamma, practices according to the dhamma. Thus, bhikkhus, a person with much learning is accomplished by that learning.
Ime kho, bhikkhave, cattāro puggalā santo saṁvijjamānā lokasminti.
These, bhikkhus, are the four kinds of persons found existing in the world.
Verse
Appassutopi ce hoti,
sīlesu asamāhito;
Ubhayena naṁ garahanti,
sīlato ca sutena ca.
If one has little learning
and is not composed in moral conduct,
He is criticized for both —
his virtue and his learning.
Appassutopi ce hoti,
sīlesu susamāhito;
Sīlato naṁ pasaṁsanti,
tassa sampajjate sutaṁ.
If one has little learning
but is well-composed in moral conduct,
He is praised for his virtue,
and his learning flourishes.
Bahussutopi ce hoti,
sīlesu asamāhito;
Sīlato naṁ garahanti,
nāssa sampajjate sutaṁ.
If one has much learning
but is not composed in moral conduct,
He is criticized for his virtue,
and his learning does not flourish.
Bahussutopi ce hoti,
sīlesu susamāhito;
Ubhayena naṁ pasaṁsanti,
sīlato ca sutena ca.
If one has much learning
and is well-composed in moral conduct,
He is praised for both —
his virtue and his learning.
Bahussutaṁ dhammadharaṁ,
sappaññaṁ buddhasāvakaṁ;
Nekkhaṁ jambonadasseva,
ko taṁ ninditumarahati;
Devāpi naṁ pasaṁsanti,
brahmunāpi pasaṁsito”ti.
A well-learned one who knows the dhamma by heart,
A wise disciple of the Buddha,
Like a golden ornament,
who is worthy to criticize him?
Even the gods praise him,
and by |Brahmā::God, the first deity to be born at the beginning of a new cosmic cycle and whose lifespan lasts for the entire cycle [brahmā]| too, he is praised.”