The Buddha contrasts the untrue person, who has wrong view through wrong immersion, with the true person, who has right view through right immersion, defining each by the eight factors of the path.

SN 45.26 An Untrue Person (2nd)

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

“Asappurisañca vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi, asappurisena asappurisatarañca. Sappurisañca vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi sappurisena sappurisatarañca. Taṁ suṇātha.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, asappuriso? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco micchādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… micchāsamādhi ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, asappuriso.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, asappurisena asappurisataro? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco micchādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… micchāsamādhi, micchāñāṇī, micchāvimutti ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, asappurisena asappurisataro.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, sappuriso? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco sammādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… sammāsamādhi ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sappuriso.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, sappurisena sappurisataro? Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco sammādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… sammāsamādhi, sammāñāṇī, sammāvimutti ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sappurisena sappurisataro”ti.

Chaṭṭhaṁ.

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

Sāvatthinidānaṁ.

At Sāvatthī.

“Asappurisañca vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi, asappurisena asappurisatarañca.

“Mendicants, I will teach you an untrue person and an even more untrue person,

Sappurisañca vo, bhikkhave, desessāmi sappurisena sappurisatarañca.

a true person and an even truer person.

Taṁ suṇātha.

Listen …

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, asappuriso?

And what is an untrue person?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco micchādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… micchāsamādhi

It’s someone who has wrong view, wrong purpose, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, and wrong immersion.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, asappuriso.

This is called an untrue person.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, asappurisena asappurisataro?

And what is an even more untrue person?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco micchādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… micchāsamādhi, micchāñāṇī, micchāvimutti

It’s someone who has wrong view, wrong purpose, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, wrong immersion, wrong knowledge, and wrong freedom.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, asappurisena asappurisataro.

This is called an even more untrue person.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, sappuriso?

And what is a true person?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco sammādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… sammāsamādhi

It’s someone who has right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, and right immersion.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sappuriso.

This is called a true person.

Katamo ca, bhikkhave, sappurisena sappurisataro?

And what is an even truer person?

Idha, bhikkhave, ekacco sammādiṭṭhiko hoti …pe… sammāsamādhi, sammāñāṇī, sammāvimutti

It’s someone who has right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right immersion, right knowledge, and right freedom.

ayaṁ vuccati, bhikkhave, sappurisena sappurisataro”ti.

This is called an even truer person.”

Chaṭṭhaṁ.

Qualities:

Mindfulness

Mindfulness

Active presence of mind and lucid retention; the faculty that remembers the Dhamma, anchors attention to the chosen object or present experience, and guards the mind against unwholesome states.

Also known as: recollecting, remembering, keeping in mind, presence, awareness
Pāli: sati, anussati
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Right effort

Right effort

Energy and resolve directed toward preventing unwholesome states from arising, abandoning arisen unwholesome states, cultivating wholesome states, and maintaining arisen wholesome states; persistent application of the mind aligned with the path.

Also known as: right endeavor, right striving
Pāli: sammāvāyāma, padhāna
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Right livelihood

Right livelihood

Means of living that does not cause harm to others or oneself; earning a living ethically without deceit, exploitation, or violence.

Also known as: correct livelihood, right mode of earning a living
Pāli: sammāājīva
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Right speech

Right speech

Speech that is purified by abstaining from falsehood, divisive talk, harsh words, and idle chatter.

Also known as: truthful speech, honest speech, kind speech, beneficial speech, harmonious speech, articulate words, eloquent communication
Pāli: sammāvācā
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Right view

Right view

View that is in line with the Dhamma — teachings of the Buddha that point to the nature of reality, the ultimate truth.

Also known as: right understanding, right belief, view that is inline with the Dhamma
Pāli: sammādiṭṭhi
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Vigour

Vigour

Energetic effort and resilience in practice. It is the refusal to shrink back, the 'uphill' force that initiates and sustains wholesome actions against the gravity of habit.

Also known as: energy, effort, enthusiasm, zeal, application of will, persistence
Pāli: vīriya
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Last updated on July 27, 2026