Kuthūhalasālā Sutta: Discourse on the debating hall
Dr. Ari Ubeysekara
Introduction
All of the discourses delivered by the Lord Gautama Buddha, who lived and preached in India during the 6th and 5th century BC, were grouped into five collections at the first Buddhist council that was held three months after the passing away of the Buddha in 483 BC.
- Collection of long discourses (dīgha nikāya)
- Collection of middle length discourses (majjhima nikāya)
- Collection of connected discourses (samyutta nikāya)
- Collection of numerical discourses (anguttara nikāya)
- Collection of minor discourses (khuddaka nikāya)
The collection of the connected discourses (samyutta nikāya), consist of the Buddha’s discourses on related topics grouped into five sections called Vaggas. They are named Sagātā Vagga, Nidāna Vagga, Khanda Vagga, Salāyatana Vagga and Mahā Vagga. Each Vagga is further sub-divided into groups called samyuttas, containing a number of discourses on related topics. Each samyutta is again sub-divided into smaller units called vaggas, each containing around ten discourses. Kuthūhalasālā sutta is included in the Avyākatha samyutta of the Salāyatana Vagga. (1)
Content of Kuthūhalasālā sutta
Thus have I heard.
[All the discourses of the Buddha contained in the five collections were narrated by Venerable Arahant Ānanda from memory at the first Buddhist council that was held three months after the Buddha’s passing away. He was the chief attendant of the Buddha and was known as the “guardian of the Dhamma” due to his excellent skill in remembering the Buddha’s discourses. At the Buddhist council, each discourse was begun by him with the same phrase found at the beginning of this discourse too, “evaṁ me sutaṁ” meaning “Thus have I heard”.]
At one time the Buddha was staying at Sāvatti in the Jeta Grove, Anāthapindika’s monastery.
[At the time that this discourse was delivered, the Buddha was staying at the Jetavana monastery in Sāvatti. It was named Jetavana, as the land on which it was built was bought from a prince named Jeta. Sāvatti was a favourite residence of the Buddha and it is recorded that the Buddha spent twenty five rainy retreats at Sāvatti.]
Then, the wanderer named Vacchagotta went to the Buddha. Having arrived, he exchanged courteous greetings with the Buddha and sat to one side. As he was sitting to one side, he said to the Buddha:
“Master Gotama, a few days ago a large number of ascetics, brahmins and wanderers of various sects were sitting together in the debating hall when this conversation arose among them: This Pūrana Kassapa, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ Even when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he declares; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’.”
“This Makkhalī Gosāla, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ Even when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he declares; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’.”
“This Nigantha Nātaputta, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ Even when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he declares; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’.”
“This Sanjaya Bellatthaputta, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ Even when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he declares; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’.”
“This Pakudha Kaccāyana, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ Even when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he declares; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’.”
“This Ajita Kesakambala, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ Even when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he declares; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’.”
“This contemplative Gotama, the leader of an order, the leader of a group, well known and famous, regarded well as holy by the masses of people, declares the rebirth of a disciple who has died: ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there.’ But when a certain disciple who is a supreme and a perfect person, who has attained the highest attainment, has died and passed away, he does not declare; ‘That one is reborn there; that one is reborn there’. Instead, he declares: ‘He has cut off craving, cut off the fetter, and by rightly penetrating conceit, he has made a complete end of suffering’.”
[Vacchagotta was an ascetic (paribrājika) during the time of the Buddha. He was interested in the teaching of the Buddha and has had several conversations with the Buddha which are recorded in several discourses of the collection of the Buddha’s discourses (sutta pitaka). In the Aggi Vacchagotta sutta of the Majjhima Nikāya (collection of the Buddha’s middle length discourses), he asked the Buddha what are called the ten un-answerable questions, which the Buddha did not answer. At the end of that discourse, he became a disciple of the Buddha. (2)
It is recorded that at a later time, he went forth as a monk in the presence of the Buddha and attained enlightenment as an Arahant.
During the conversation with the Buddha, Vacchagotta has referred to the statements of the six sectarian teachers who were contemporaries of the Buddha with large groups of followers. They were: Pūrana Kassapa, Makkhalī Gosāla, Nigantha Nātaputta, Sanjaya Bellatthaputta, Pakudha Kaccāyana and Ajita Kesakambala.]
“So, Master Gotama, I was uncertain, I was doubtful: How should the teaching of the contemplative Gotama be understood?”
“It is right that you are uncertain, you are doubtful. When there is reason to be doubtful, doubt has arisen in you. Vaccha, I declare that there is rebirth for one with fuel, not for one without fuel. Vaccha, just as a fire burns with fuel and not without fuel, in the same way, Vaccha, I declare that there is rebirth for one with fuel, and not for one without fuel.”
[The Pali word “Upādāna” is translated here as “fuel”. In the discourses, Upādāna is generally translated as clinging, but here as it is used in the context of fire, it is translated as fuel. It is clinging that keeps sentient beings in the repetitive cycle of birth and death (samsara). In the Buddhist scriptures, four types of clinging have been described:
- Clinging to pleasurable sensual experiences (kāmupādāna)
- Clinging to wrong views (ditthupādāna)
- Clinging to rules and rituals believing that they will bring one’s liberation (sīlabbatupādāna)
- Clinging to the belief of a self (attavādupādāna)]
“But, Master Gotama, when a flame is swept away by the wind and goes a long way, what would you declare it’s fuel to be?”
“Vaccha, when a flame is swept away by the wind and goes a long way, I declare that it is fueled by the wind. For, Vaccha, at that time, wind is the fuel.”
“And, Master Gotama, when a being has laid down this body, and is not yet reborn in another body, what would you declare it’s fuel to be?”
“Vaccha, when a being has laid down this body, and is not yet reborn in another body, I declare that it is fueled by craving. For, Vaccha, at that time, craving is the fuel.”
In the Kuthūhalasālā sutta, the wanderer named Vacchagotta has approached the Buddha to question the Buddha regarding the Buddha’s prediction of the rebirth of the disciples who have passed away. He has first referred to the six sectarian teachers who were said to predict the rebirth of all of their disciples, while the Buddha made prediction of rebirth only with regard to the unenlightened disciples. When this disparity was brought to the Buddha’s attention, the Buddha has clarified the fact that those who are enlightened will not be reborn as they have eradicated all clinging and the possibility of rebirth. In response to Vacchagotta’s final question regarding the fuel of those who have passed away but are not reborn in another place yet, the Buddha has stated that their fuel is craving. This appears to imply that there is an intermediate state between death in one life and rebirth in another life (antarābhava), which is rejected within the Theravada tradition. The Theravada view is that rebirth happens instantaneously through the re-linking consciousness (patisandhi viññāna).
References
- Bhikkhu Bodhi 1999, Kuthūhalasālā sutta, The Connected Discourses of the Buddha, A Translation of the Samyutta Nikaāya, Wisdom Publications.
- Bhikkhu Nānamoli and Bhikkhu Bodhi 1995, Aggi Vacchagotta sutta, Translation of the Middle Length Discourses of the Buddha, Wisdom Publications.
End.
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