Venerable Sāriputta declares to the mendicants that nothing in the world whose decay and perishing would give rise to sorrow in him—even the Buddha's passing—and Ānanda explains that he has long eradicated I-making, mine-making, and the tendency to conceit.

SN 21.2 With Upatissa

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

Tatra kho āyasmā sāriputto bhikkhū āmantesi: “āvuso bhikkhave”ti.

“Āvuso”ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato sāriputtassa paccassosuṁ. Āyasmā sāriputto etadavoca:

“Idha mayhaṁ, āvuso, rahogatassa paṭisallīnassa evaṁ cetaso parivitakko udapādi: ‘atthi nu kho taṁ kiñci lokasmiṁ yassa me vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā’ti? Tassa mayhaṁ, āvuso, etadahosi: ‘natthi kho taṁ kiñci lokasmiṁ yassa me vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā’”ti.

Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā ānando āyasmantaṁ sāriputtaṁ etadavoca: “satthupi kho te, āvuso sāriputta, vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā”ti?

“Satthupi kho me, āvuso, vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā, api ca me evamassa: ‘mahesakkho vata bho satthā antarahito mahiddhiko mahānubhāvo. Sace hi bhagavā ciraṁ dīghamaddhānaṁ tiṭṭheyya tadassa bahujanahitāya bahujanasukhāya lokānukampāya atthāya hitāya sukhāya devamanussānan’ti.

Tathā hi panāyasmato sāriputtassa dīgharattaṁ ahaṅkāramamaṅkāramānānusayā susamūhatā. Tasmā āyasmato sāriputtassa satthupi vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā”ti.

Dutiyaṁ.

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

At Sāvatthī.

Tatra kho āyasmā sāriputto bhikkhū āmantesi:

There Sāriputta addressed the mendicants:

“āvuso bhikkhave”ti.

“Reverends, mendicants!”

“Āvuso”ti kho te bhikkhū āyasmato sāriputtassa paccassosuṁ.

“Reverend,” they replied.

Āyasmā sāriputto etadavoca:

Sāriputta said this:

“Idha mayhaṁ, āvuso, rahogatassa paṭisallīnassa evaṁ cetaso parivitakko udapādi:

“Just now, reverends, as I was in private retreat this thought came to mind:

‘atthi nu kho taṁ kiñci lokasmiṁ yassa me vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā’ti?

‘Is there anything in the world whose decay and perishing would give rise to sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress in me?’

Tassa mayhaṁ, āvuso, etadahosi:

It occurred to me:

‘natthi kho taṁ kiñci lokasmiṁ yassa me vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā uppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā’”ti.

‘There is nothing in the world whose decay and perishing would give rise to sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress in me.’”

Evaṁ vutte, āyasmā ānando āyasmantaṁ sāriputtaṁ etadavoca:

When he said this, Venerable Ānanda said to him,

“satthupi kho te, āvuso sāriputta, vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā”ti?

“Even if the Teacher were to decay and perish? Wouldn’t that give rise to sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress in you?”

“Satthupi kho me, āvuso, vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā, api ca me evamassa:

“Even if the Teacher were to decay and perish, that wouldn’t give rise to sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress in me. Still, I would think:

‘mahesakkho vata bho satthā antarahito mahiddhiko mahānubhāvo.

‘Oh lord, the illustrious Teacher, so mighty and powerful, has vanished!

Sace hi bhagavā ciraṁ dīghamaddhānaṁ tiṭṭheyya tadassa bahujanahitāya bahujanasukhāya lokānukampāya atthāya hitāya sukhāya devamanussānan’ti.

If the Buddha was to remain for a long time, that would be for the welfare and happiness of the people, out of sympathy for the world, for the benefit, welfare, and happiness of gods and humans.’”

Tathā hi panāyasmato sāriputtassa dīgharattaṁ ahaṅkāramamaṅkāramānānusayā susamūhatā.

“That must be because Venerable Sāriputta has long ago totally eradicated I-making, mine-making, and the underlying tendency to conceit.

Tasmā āyasmato sāriputtassa satthupi vipariṇāmaññathābhāvā nuppajjeyyuṁ sokaparidevadukkhadomanassupāyāsā”ti.

So even if the Teacher were to decay and perish, it wouldn’t give rise to sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and distress in him.”

Dutiyaṁ.

Qualities:

Anxiety

Anxiety

A fluttering, unsettled state of mind, worried about past or future and unsure what is right to do. It keeps the mind circling around concerns without resolution, weakening confidence and obscuring calm discernment.

Also known as: agitation, confusion about what is right and wrong, distress, fickleness, fidgetiness, edginess, restlessness, wavering, worry
Pāli: kukkucca, uddhacca, darathaja
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Displeasure

Displeasure

A feeling of mental pain or a disagreeable feeling or unease born of mental contact.

Also known as: mental pain, mental distress, melancholy, sadness
Pāli: domanassa
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Happiness

Happiness

Bodily ease and comfort; a pleasant feeling experienced with the body. In the third jhāna, one dwells experiencing this pleasure with the body. It is abandoned, along with bodily pain, for the fourth jhāna to arise.

Also known as: pleasant abiding, positive state of mind, sense of ease
Pāli: sukha
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Lamentation

Lamentation

The verbal and bodily expression of grief—crying, wailing, and mourning—that arises from loss or separation from what is held dear. It gives voice to sorrow and can deepen the mind's entanglement with pain.

Also known as: crying, wailing, mourning
Pāli: parideva
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Sorrow

Sorrow

Grief or sadness that follows loss or disappointment, dimming the mind’s natural brightness. It clouds clear perception.

Also known as: grief, sadness
Pāli: soka, socati
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Suffering

Suffering

Unpleasantness, discontentment, dissatisfaction, stress, pain, disease, i.e. mild or intense suffering that is inherent in conditioned existence.

Also known as: discomfort, unpleasantness, discontentedness, dissatisfaction, stress, pain, disease, distress, affliction
Pāli: dukkha
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Last updated on July 27, 2026