The Buddha expounds the noble right collectedness complete with its supporting conditions, clarifying how the factors of the noble eightfold path give rise to either mundane or supramundane fruits. He shows how right view leads to the sequential development of the path, culminating in right knowledge and right liberation.

The Buddha explains how even small attachments can be strong fetters if not relinquished, using similes of a quail and an elephant, and contrasts between the poor and wealthy. He describes four types of practitioners based on their response to attachment and mindfulness. The discourse also presents gradual refinement of meditative attainments from the first jhāna to the cessation of perception and what is felt.

When venerable Ānanda inquires about the Buddha’s frequent abiding in emptiness, the Blessed One describes a gradual progression of abidings in ever-stiller perceptions, each seen as empty of what is absent while discerning what still remains, culminating in the unsurpassed abiding in emptiness.

After Prince Jayasena expresses disbelief about the possibility of attaining unification of mind, the Buddha explains why a life of sensual pleasure blinds one to spiritual truths using two vivid similes. He then uses an analogy of taming a wild elephant, showing how training and renunciation lead to true mastery.

When the Buddha fails to achieve reconciliation among quarrelsome bhikkhus at Kosambi, he withdraws into solitude and later encounters an inspiring community of monks devoted to liberation. He teaches them the path of inner purification based on his own practice prior to full awakening—discerning and abandoning eleven subtle impurities of mind, developing collectedness in three ways, and realizing unshakable liberation.

Using the role of food as nutriment that sustains and endures the body, the Buddha describes the nutriments for the arising and growth of the five hindrances and the seven factors of awakening.

The Buddha explains which factors of awakening are suitable to cultivate when the mind is sluggish or restless, using a metaphor of tending a fire.

When Ānanda says that good friendship is half of the spiritual life, the Buddha corrects him, saying that it is the whole of the spiritual life. The Buddha explains that good friendship is the basis for the development of the Noble Eightfold Path.

Just as it is impossible to make the river Ganges flow against its natural course, so too is it impossible for a bhikkhu whose mind has long been inclined toward seclusion to abandon the Noble Eightfold Path and return to lay life.

Seven qualities that lead to wielding mastery over the mind.

When asked about the state of peace and the way of practice to reach it, the Buddha describes this state as being steady and unruffled, like the middle of the ocean where no wave arises. He then shares the way of practice to achieve it without delay: guarding the senses, letting go of indulgence, to be a meditator who cultivates wakefulness, and through investigation, abandoning a host of unwholesome qualities.

After the lay disciple Nandamātā is visited by the deity Vessavaṇa, she recounts the event to the venerable Sāriputta. She then lists her seven wonderful and marvelous qualities, including profound equanimity in the face of tragedy, her attainment of the four jhānas, and her attainment of non-returning.

The Buddha illustrates that his true inheritance is the Dhamma, not material possessions. Venerable Sāriputta clarifies the practice of seclusion by listing numerous harmful qualities to abandon and the Middle Way that leads to abandoning of them, to clear vision, wisdom, tranquility, to full awakening.

The Buddha explains to the brahmin Jāṇussoṇi how he overcame fright and dread while practicing seclusion in remote lodgings in the forests and woodlands, leading to the three true knowledges and full awakening.

Should one aspire for the higher spiritual attainments, one should practice fully in virtue, be devoted to tranquility of mind, not neglect meditation, be endowed with discernment, and practice in an empty dwelling.

The Buddha uses the simile of a defiled cloth to explain how the mind can be similarly defiled by various impurities, and how it can be purified by abandoning them. And it is through this very practice that one arrives at unshakeable faith in the Buddha, the Dhamma, and the Saṅgha. The Buddha also addresses a brahmin in verses who believes in purification by bathing in river.

The Buddha distinguishes pleasant abidings in the here and now from the way of effacement leading upwards to complete quenching. Effacement is shown as the gradual chipping away of defilements through restraint, cultivation of the noble eightfold path, and diligent training, culminating in the complete freedom of Nibbāna.

Using the simile of an elephant’s footprint, the Buddha illustrates how confidence in him develops gradually through practice. A noble disciple trains in conduct, sense restraint, contentment, and mindfulness, progressing through the jhānas. Unshakable confidence in the Buddha, Dhamma, and Saṅgha arises through direct knowledge and liberation.

After Devadatta’s departure, the Buddha taught that the spiritual life is not pursued for acquisitions, respect, popularity, ethical conduct, collectedness, or knowledge and vision. Through the simile of a man seeking heartwood, he cautioned that settling for these lesser attainments is like mistaking bark or branches for the heartwood—the true goal being the unshakeable liberation of mind.

The Buddha finds Anuruddha, Nandiya, and Kimbila living in exemplary harmony—goodwill in body, speech, and mind; shared duties; noble silence; and an all-night Dhamma discussion every fifth day. They can enter the four jhānas and the formless attainments at will, culminating in the exhaustion of the mental defilements from having seen with wisdom.

In the Gosiṅga Sal wood park, Sāriputta asks several elder disciples what kind of monk illuminates the place. Each answers based on their personal strength — learning, seclusion, divine eye, asceticism, Dhamma dialogue and mastery over mind. They present their answers to the Buddha, who affirms that all have spoken well and then shares his own answer.

The Buddha explains the difference between cultivation and lack of cultivation with regard to body and mind, and recounts his own journey to full awakening.

A series of questions and answers between the lay follower Visākha and bhikkhunī Dhammadinnā that clarify subtle yet important aspects of the teachings. Topics covered include personal existence, Noble Eightfold Path, intentional constructs, attainment of cessation of perception and what is felt, felt experience, underlying tendencies and various counterparts.

The Buddha teaches in detail how to develop mindfulness while breathing in and out through sixteen naturally unfolding steps, showing how their cultivation fulfills the four establishments of mindfulness, which in turn fulfill the seven factors of awakening, culminating in true knowledge and liberation.

True peace is found not through suppression or indulgence, but through understanding. The Buddha teaches how to discern a practice that is a source of conflict and that which is free from conflict, addressing the pursuit of sensual joy, self-mortification, evaluation of different modes of pleasure, and distinguishing between different kinds of speech.

The Buddha affirms the Four Noble Truths as the core of his teaching and praises venerable Sāriputta’s deep understanding of them, who then expounds the truths, detailing suffering in all its forms, the arising of suffering rooted in craving, the end of suffering, and the Noble Eightfold Path as the way of practice leading to the end suffering.

One of two results is to be expected for a bhikkhu who dwells wakeful, mindful, fully aware, collected, joyful, tranquil, and discerning with clarity at a suitable occasion in regard to the wholesome mental qualities - 1) full awakening here and now, or 2) the state of non-returning.

The Buddha describes the three felt experiences that are experienced on contact through the sense doors - pleasant, painful, and neither-painful-nor-pleasant.

The Buddha describes the three quests of sensual pleasure, renewed existence, and spiritual life.

The Buddha describes the three defilements - the taint of sensual desire, the taint of becoming, and the taint of ignorance, and the way of practice leading to their cessation.

The Buddha describes the three qualities that a bhikkhu should be endowed with to transcend Māra’s domain and shine like the sun.

The Blessed One describes how beings are affected by respect and disrespect, and how this affects their rebirth. The true person is one who is collected, detached, and delights in the ending of grasping.

The Buddha teaches that one could be far from him despite being physically close, and one could be near to him despite being physically far. When one sees the Dhamma, one sees the Buddha.

The Buddha instructs that one should examine experience in such a way that consciousness does not become scattered among external sense objects, fixated internally, or entangled through grasping.

The Buddha describes the benefits of associating with bhikkhus who are accomplished in virtue, collectedness, wisdom, liberation, and the knowledge and vision of liberation.

The Buddha describes the qualities of true disciples, and those who do not grow in the Dhamma.

The Buddha describes the subsequent training guideline to virtuous conduct - to practice being free of the unwholesome states craving, ill will, dullness and drowsiness, restlessness and worry, and doubt while walking, standing, sitting, and lying down.

The Buddha reflects on who he should honor and respect after his full awakening. Brahmā Sahampati encourages him to honor and respect the Dhamma.

The Buddha explains how even for an arahant, acquisitions, respect, and popularity are an obstacle to the attainment of pleasant abidings in this very life.

The Buddha declares one who dwells negligently and one who dwells diligently through a sequence of arising mental states starting with non-restraint or restraint over the six sense bases.

The Buddha explains in detail each factor of the noble eightfold path—right view, right intention, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right collectedness.

The Buddha distinguishes the wrong way of practice and the right way of practice.

The Buddha distinguishes the wrong way of practice and the right way of practice and their outcomes.

The Buddha presents a simile of the nāgās, serpent beings, who rely on the Himalayas to nurture their bodies and acquire strength before entering the ocean, as a metaphor for the bhikkhu cultivating the seven factors of awakening to attain greatness and expansiveness of mental qualities.

Venerable Sāriputta explains how he can dwell in any of the seven factors of awakening at will, knowing their qualities and conditions. He likens this mastery to a king or royal minister freely choosing garments from a wardrobe for morning, midday, or evening wear.

When a bhikkhu asks the Buddha why the factors of awakening are called so, the Buddha gives a simple and direct answer, ‘since they lead to awakening.’

When the venerable Mahākassapa falls gravely ill, the Buddha visits him and teaches him about the seven factors of awakening. This inspired the venerable Mahākassapa to a swift recovery from his illness.

The Buddha explains how frequently paying attention to certain things can lead to the arising and expansion of hindrances and awakening factors.

The Buddha describes the nutriments for the sustenance of the five hindrances and the seven factors of awakening.

The Buddha explains that all bhikkhus should cultivate the four establishments of mindfulness, clarifying how the practice serves different purposes based on one's development - for new bhikkhus to know reality, and for trainees to gain full understanding. The perfectly awakened ones also abide in them, now disentangled.

After recovering from a severe illness, the Buddha tells Ānanda that he holds no "teacher's closed fist" with regard to the Dhamma and instructs the bhikkhus to be an island unto themselves, with themselves and the Dhamma as their only refuge.

An analysis of the four bases of psychic powers that are endowed with collectedness arising from aspiration, determination, purification of mind, and investigation.

Emerging from a three-month seclusion, the Buddha reveals his primary meditative dwelling: collectedness born from mindfulness of breathing. He elevates this practice as the “Tathāgata’s dwelling.” For a trainee, it leads to the wearing away of defilements, and for an Arahant, it offers a pleasant dwelling in this life.

The Buddha explains the importance of developing a radiant mind, a mind of loving-kindness and the consequences of negligence, diligence, and laziness.

The Buddha describes the foremost of his bhikkhunī disciples in various categories.

The Buddha describes the foremost of his female lay disciples in various categories.

The Buddha contrasts shallow and deep, factious and unified, worldly and Dhamma-centered assemblies. Communities bound by empty talk, indulgence, and discord decline, while those rooted in seclusion, concord, discipline, inquiry, and the true Dhamma flourish.

The Buddha explains the three kinds of persons found existing in the world and who should not be associated with, who should be associated with, and who should be attended to closely with honor and respect.

The Buddha describes three types of people - the blind, the one-eyed, and the two-eyed.

When a brahmin assumes that the Buddha’s serene faculties and radiant appearance must result from enjoying the finest worldly luxuries, the Buddha explains the true “luxurious and lofty beds” he attains—the heavenly bed, through abiding in the jhānas; the brahmic bed, through the boundless cultivation of loving-kindness, compassion, appreciative joy, and equanimity; and the noble bed, through the complete abandonment of passion, aversion, and delusion.

The Buddha explains how misunderstanding and not penetrating four principles - 1) ethical conduct, 2) collectedness, 3) wisdom, and 4) liberation - has led to wandering on in cyclic existence for a long time.

The Buddha outlines the four right strivings: striving for restraint, striving to abandon, striving to cultivate, and striving to protect.

The Buddha reflects on who he should honor and respect after his full awakening. Brahmā Sahampati encourages him to honor and respect the Dhamma.

The Buddha shares the four kinds of persons — those who cultivate the first jhāna, the second jhāna, the third jhāna, and the fourth jhāna while perceiving gratification — and the difference in their rebirths.

The Buddha shares the four kinds of persons — those who cultivate the first jhāna, the second jhāna, the third jhāna, and the fourth jhāna while perceiving drawbacks — and the difference in their rebirths.

The Buddha explains the benefits of walking meditation.

The Buddha rejects fame and the pleasure of gains, extolling seclusion and awakening. He disapproves of living near villages—even when collected—as it invites disturbance and attachment to acquisitions, honor, and praise. He approves forest dwelling—even if dozing or distracted—for it leads to unification, collectedness, and freeing an unliberated mind.

Six qualities to abandon to dwell in the first jhāna - 1) thoughts of sensual desire, 2) thoughts of ill will, 3) thoughts of harm, 4) perception of sensual desire, 5) perception of ill will, 6) perception of harm.

The Buddha describes the seven powers in brief, of 1) faith, 2) energy, 3) conscience, 4) fear of wrongdoing, 5) mindfulness, 6) collectedness, and 7) wisdom.

The Buddha describes the seven powers in detail, of 1) faith, 2) energy, 3) conscience, 4) fear of wrongdoing, 5) mindfulness, 6) collectedness, and 7) wisdom.

Endowed with seven qualities, Sāriputta wields mastery over the mind.

Venerable Anuruddha reflects on seven qualities conducive for practicing the Dhamma, but his thoughts are incomplete until the Buddha appears to add an eighth.

The Dhamma is directly visible in a provisional sense when one enters a jhāna or subsequent meditation attainments. It is directly visible in the definitive sense when one attains the cessation of perception and what is felt, and having seen with wisdom, completely exhausts mental defilements.

Nibbāna is directly visible in a provisional sense when one enters a jhāna or subsequent meditation attainments. It is directly visible in the definitive sense when one attains the cessation of perception and what is felt, and having seen with wisdom, completely exhausts mental defilements.

Approaching wrongness leads to failure, not success. Approaching rightness leads to success, not failure.

The Buddha explains the proximate causes of non-regret, joy, tranquility, and other qualities leading to liberation, contrasting how they are fulfilled in a virtuous person versus an unprincipled person.

When five hundred bhikkhus headed by the venerable Yasoja come to see the Buddha, they make a great commotion while preparing their lodgings. The Buddha dismisses them out of compassion, and later, they so dwell that the Buddha may be pleased with them. Living secluded, diligent, resolute, and with continuous effort, they all realize the three true knowledges during that very rainy season.

The venerable Upasena reflects on his fortunate spiritual life and his teacher, the Buddha. The Buddha, perceiving Upasena's thoughts, expresses an inspired utterance.

DhammaPada verses 1-20 share on the power of the mind in shaping one’s experiences, the importance of letting go of resentment and hostility, the consequences of living without restraint and moderation, the distinction between essence and non-essence, the sorrow and joy tied to one’s actions, the importance of acting according to the Dhamma, and who partakes in the true ascetic life.

Dhammapada verses 221-234 emphasize abandoning anger, conceit, and mental defilements while cultivating restraint in body, speech, and mind. The verses highlight overcoming harmful actions by giving and speaking truth, the inevitability of criticism, and the value of moral discipline. Those intent on Nibbāna, ever watchful, and well-restrained are beyond reproach and honored even by the gods.

Dhammapada verses 360–382 depict the ideal bhikkhu as one who restrains the senses, body, speech, and mind, leading to freedom from suffering. Emphasis is placed on mindfulness, inner joy, collectedness, and self-reliance. Through discipline and reflection, the bhikkhu advances towards the peace of Nibbāna, shining like the moon freed from clouds.

Dhammapada verses 383–423 redefine ‘Brāhmaṇa’ (sage) by inner attainment, not birth or appearance. Through effort, a true sage cuts craving, understands reality, and realizes Nibbāna. Fearless, detached, pure, and restrained, they embody non-violence and patience. Free from defilements and attachments, having overcome suffering and rebirth, the sage achieves the ultimate goal, radiating wisdom and peace.