AN 3.163-182 · ~
“Someone with three qualities is placed in hell as if delivered there. What three? They themselves kill living creatures. They encourage others to kill living creatures. And they approve of killing living creatures.
Someone with these three qualities is placed in hell as if delivered there.
Someone with three qualities is placed in heaven as if delivered there. What three? They don’t themselves kill living creatures. They encourage others to not kill living creatures. And they approve of not killing living creatures. …
They themselves steal. They encourage others to steal. And they approve of stealing. …
They don’t themselves steal. They encourage others to not steal. And they approve of not stealing. …
They themselves commit sexual misconduct. They encourage others to commit sexual misconduct. And they approve of sexual misconduct. …
They don’t themselves commit sexual misconduct. They encourage others to not commit sexual misconduct. And they approve of refraining from sexual misconduct. …
They themselves lie. They encourage others to lie. And they approve of lying. …
They don’t themselves lie. They encourage others to not lie. And they approve of not lying. …
They themselves backbite. They encourage others to backbite. And they approve of backbiting. …
They don’t themselves backbite. They encourage others to not backbite. And they approve of not backbiting. …
They themselves speak harshly. They encourage others to speak harshly. And they approve of speaking harshly. …
They don’t themselves speak harshly. They encourage others to not speak harshly. And they approve of not speaking harshly. …
They themselves talk nonsense. They encourage others to talk nonsense. And they approve of talking nonsense. …
They don’t themselves talk nonsense. They encourage others to not talk nonsense. And they approve of not talking nonsense. …
They themselves are covetous. They encourage others to be covetous. And they approve of covetousness. …
They themselves are content. They encourage others to be contented. And they approve of being contented. …
They themselves have ill will. They encourage others to have ill will. And they approve of having ill will. …
They themselves are kind-hearted. They encourage others to have good will. And they approve of good will. …
They themselves have wrong view. They encourage others to have wrong view. And they approve of wrong view. …
They themselves have right view. They encourage others to have right view. And they approve of right view.
Someone with these three qualities is placed in heaven as if delivered there.”
Translation by Bhikkhu Sujato · SuttaCentral · CC0
This translation is an expression of an ancient spiritual text that has been passed down by the Buddhist tradition for the benefit of all sentient beings. It is dedicated to the public domain via Creative Commons Zero (CC0). You are encouraged to copy, reproduce, adapt, alter, or otherwise make use of this translation. The translator respectfully requests that any use be in accordance with the values and principles of the Buddhist community. In particular, please do not use this work in AI training datasets, for the development of any AI model or algorithm, or in any AI-derived technologies.
Published source. Translation wording and order are preserved; source headings and notes are retained, with navigation and formatting adapted for this reader. This source combines a range of related numbered discourses.
The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork for Buddhist Atlas, an evocative companion rather than a historical depiction.