The Buddha teaches a repeated formula on floods, yokes, grasping, ties, underlying tendencies, hindrances, aggregates, and fetters, showing that the five powers should be developed for their direct knowledge, complete understanding, and giving up in this grouped discourse.

SN 50.45-54 Floods, Etc.

“Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, uddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni. Katamāni pañca? Rūparāgo, arūparāgo, māno, uddhaccaṁ, avijjā imāni kho, bhikkhave, pañcuddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya pañca balāni bhāvetabbāni. Katamāni pañca? Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu, saddhābalaṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ, vīriyabalaṁ …pe… satibalaṁsamādhibalaṁpaññābalaṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya imāni pañca balāni bhāvetabbānī”ti.

(Evaṁ vitthāretabbā.)

Reference Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0).

“Pañcimāni, bhikkhave, uddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni.

“Mendicants, there are five higher fetters.

Katamāni pañca?

What five?

Rūparāgo, arūparāgo, māno, uddhaccaṁ, avijjā

Desire for rebirth in the realm of luminous form, desire for rebirth in the formless realm, conceit, restlessness, and ignorance.

imāni kho, bhikkhave, pañcuddhambhāgiyāni saṁyojanāni.

These are the five higher fetters.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya pañca balāni bhāvetabbāni.

The five powers should be developed for the direct knowledge, complete understanding, finishing, and giving up of these five higher fetters.

Katamāni pañca?

What five?

Idha, bhikkhave, bhikkhu, saddhābalaṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ,

It’s when a mendicant develops the powers of faith,

vīriyabalaṁ …pe…

energy,

satibalaṁ

mindfulness,

samādhibalaṁ

immersion,

paññābalaṁ bhāveti vivekanissitaṁ virāganissitaṁ nirodhanissitaṁ vossaggapariṇāmiṁ.

and wisdom, which rely on seclusion, fading away, and cessation, and ripen as letting go.

Imesaṁ kho, bhikkhave, pañcannaṁ uddhambhāgiyānaṁ saṁyojanānaṁ abhiññāya pariññāya parikkhayāya pahānāya imāni pañca balāni bhāvetabbānī”ti.

These five powers should be developed for the direct knowledge, complete understanding, finishing, and giving up of these five higher fetters.”

(Evaṁ vitthāretabbā.)

(Tell in full as in SN 45.171–179, with the above as the final discourse.)

Topics & Qualities:

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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Direct knowledge

Direct knowledge

A deep, firsthand realization or knowing that arises from personal experience, not from study or conceptual understanding; it is an immediate, unmediated apprehension of truth.

Also known as: experiential understanding, direct experience
Pāli: abhiñña
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Faith

Faith

Confidence in the Buddha's awakening and the efficacy of the path. It brightens and steadies the mind, removing doubt and inspiring energy toward wholesome practice. True faith rests on clarity and direct experience rather than mere belief.

Also known as: confidence, trust, belief, conviction, self-assurance
Pāli: saddha, pasanna
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Formless

Formless

A meditative domain that transcends all perception of material form, progressing through the bases of infinite space, infinite consciousness, nothingness, and neither-perception-nor-non-perception. These states represent refined levels of collectedness beyond attachment to physical phenomena.

Also known as: immaterial, surpassing forms
Pāli: arūpa
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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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Giving up

Giving up

The mental quality of renunciation and release from attachment. It delights in simplicity and freedom rather than in sensual pleasure. Giving up is not loss but the joyful abandoning of burden, opening the way to peace and insight.

Also known as: renunciation, relinquishment, letting go, abandonment
Pāli: nekkhamma
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Last updated on July 27, 2026