The Buddha advises H on the five aggregates and how to practice amid aging, illness, and the limitations of the body.

SN 22.4 Hāliddikāni (2nd)

Evaṁ me sutaṁ ekaṁ samayaṁ āyasmā mahākaccāno avantīsu viharati kuraraghare papāte pabbate.

Atha kho hāliddikāni gahapati yenāyasmā mahākaccāno …pe… ekamantaṁ nisinno kho hāliddikāni gahapati āyasmantaṁ mahākaccānaṁ etadavoca: “vuttamidaṁ, bhante, bhagavatā sakkapañhe: ‘ye te samaṇabrāhmaṇā taṇhāsaṅkhayavimuttā, te accantaniṭṭhā accantayogakkhemino accantabrahmacārino accantapariyosānā seṭṭhā devamanussānan’ti.

Imassa nu kho, bhante, bhagavatā saṅkhittena bhāsitassa kathaṁ vitthārena attho daṭṭhabbo”ti?

“Rūpadhātuyā kho, gahapati, yo chando yo rāgo nandī taṇhā ye upayupādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā, tesaṁ khayā virāgā nirodhā cāgā paṭinissaggā ‘cittaṁ suvimuttanti’ vuccati.

Vedanādhātuyā kho, gahapatisaññādhātuyā kho, gahapatisaṅkhāradhātuyā kho, gahapativiññāṇadhātuyā kho, gahapati, yo chando yo rāgo nandī taṇhā ye upayupādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā, tesaṁ khayā virāgā nirodhā cāgā paṭinissaggā ‘cittaṁ suvimuttanti’ vuccati.

Iti kho, gahapati, yaṁ taṁ vuttaṁ bhagavatā sakkapañhe: ‘ye te samaṇabrāhmaṇā taṇhāsaṅkhayavimuttā te accantaniṭṭhā accantayogakkhemino accantabrahmacārino accantapariyosānā seṭṭhā devamanussānan’ti.

Imassa kho, gahapati, bhagavatā saṅkhittena bhāsitassa evaṁ vitthārena attho daṭṭhabbo”ti.

Catutthaṁ.

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

Evaṁ me sutaṁ

So I have heard.

ekaṁ samayaṁ āyasmā mahākaccāno avantīsu viharati kuraraghare papāte pabbate.

At one time Venerable Mahākaccāna was staying in the land of the Avantis near Kuraraghara on Steep Mountain.

Atha kho hāliddikāni gahapati yenāyasmā mahākaccāno …pe… ekamantaṁ nisinno kho hāliddikāni gahapati āyasmantaṁ mahākaccānaṁ etadavoca:

Then the householder Hāliddikāni went up to Venerable Mahākaccāna … and asked him,

“vuttamidaṁ, bhante, bhagavatā sakkapañhe:

“Sir, this was said by the Buddha in ‘The Questions of Sakka’:

‘ye te samaṇabrāhmaṇā taṇhāsaṅkhayavimuttā, te accantaniṭṭhā accantayogakkhemino accantabrahmacārino accantapariyosānā seṭṭhā devamanussānan’ti.

‘Those ascetics and brahmins who are freed due to the ending of craving have reached the ultimate goal, the ultimate sanctuary from the yoke, the ultimate spiritual life, the ultimate end, and are best among gods and humans.’

Imassa nu kho, bhante, bhagavatā saṅkhittena bhāsitassa kathaṁ vitthārena attho daṭṭhabbo”ti?

How should we see the detailed meaning of the Buddha’s brief statement?”

“Rūpadhātuyā kho, gahapati, yo chando yo rāgo nandī taṇhā ye upayupādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā, tesaṁ khayā virāgā nirodhā cāgā paṭinissaggā ‘cittaṁ suvimuttanti’ vuccati.

“Householder, consider any desire, greed, relishing, and craving for the form element; any attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendencies. With the ending, fading away, cessation, giving away, and letting go of that, the mind is said to be ‘well freed’.

Vedanādhātuyā kho, gahapati

Consider any desire, greed, relishing, and craving for the feeling element …

saññādhātuyā kho, gahapati

the perception element …

saṅkhāradhātuyā kho, gahapati

the choices element …

viññāṇadhātuyā kho, gahapati, yo chando yo rāgo nandī taṇhā ye upayupādānā cetaso adhiṭṭhānābhinivesānusayā, tesaṁ khayā virāgā nirodhā cāgā paṭinissaggā ‘cittaṁ suvimuttanti’ vuccati.

the consciousness element; any attraction, grasping, mental fixation, insistence, and underlying tendencies. With the ending, fading away, cessation, giving away, and letting go of that, the mind is said to be ‘well freed’.

Iti kho, gahapati, yaṁ taṁ vuttaṁ bhagavatā sakkapañhe:

So, householder, that’s how to understand the detailed meaning of what the Buddha said in brief in ‘The Questions of Sakka’:

‘ye te samaṇabrāhmaṇā taṇhāsaṅkhayavimuttā te accantaniṭṭhā accantayogakkhemino accantabrahmacārino accantapariyosānā seṭṭhā devamanussānan’ti.

‘Those ascetics and brahmins who are freed due to the ending of craving have reached the ultimate goal, the ultimate sanctuary from the yoke, the ultimate spiritual life, the ultimate end, and are best among gods and humans.’”

Imassa kho, gahapati, bhagavatā saṅkhittena bhāsitassa evaṁ vitthārena attho daṭṭhabbo”ti.

Catutthaṁ.

Topics & Qualities:

Craving

Craving

A driving ‘thirst’ that reaches out toward experiences, identities, or outcomes as the place to find satisfaction—“if only I had that.” It spins stories of lack, binds the mind to becoming, and invariably leads to suffering.

Also known as: wanting, yearning, longing, lit. thirst
Pāli: taṇha, abhijjhā
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Desire

Desire

A wholesome motivation, interest, or objective that acts as the starting point for effort and application of will.

Also known as: aspiration, interest, wish, having an objective, intention, impulse
Pāli: chanda
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Ending

Ending

The complete exhaustion and ending of craving, aversion, and delusion—the three roots of suffering. It refers to both the gradual wearing away of defilements through practice and the final cessation that constitutes Nibbāna.

Also known as: cessation, exhaustion, gradual ending, wearing away
Pāli: khaya, khīṇa, nirodha
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Giving

Giving

The act of generosity, sharing, or offering to others without expecting anything in return. Giving is considered a foundational virtue in Buddhist practice, fostering selflessness and compassion.

Also known as: generosity, charity, donation, almsgiving, donating, philanthropy, providing with, gift with
Pāli: dāna
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Greed

Greed

A grasping mental quality of craving, possessiveness, or lustful wanting that clings to objects or experiences; it fuels attachment and obstructs renunciation and contentment

Also known as: acquisitiveness, avarice, covetousness, rapacity, money grabbing, grabbiness
Pāli: lobha, gedha
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Spiritual life

Spiritual life

A life of celibacy, contemplation, and ethical discipline lived for the sake of liberation; oriented toward inner development rather than sensual pleasures

Also known as: abstinence, celibacy, chastity, holy life, sexual restraint
Pāli: brahmacariya
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Last updated on July 27, 2026