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← Aṅguttara Nikāya

Thinking

AN 3.3 · Cintīsutta

A leaf and a soft ripple on still woodland water.

“There are these three characteristics, signs, and manifestations of a fool. What three? A fool thinks poorly, speaks poorly, and acts poorly. If a fool didn’t think poorly, speak poorly, and act poorly, then how would the astute know of them: ‘This worthy one is a fool, an untrue person’? But since a fool does think poorly, speak poorly, and act poorly, then the astute do know of them: ‘This worthy one is a fool, an untrue person’. These are the three characteristics, signs, and manifestations of a fool.

There are these three characteristics, signs, and manifestations of an astute person. What three? An astute person thinks well, speaks well, and acts well. If an astute person didn’t think well, speak well, and act well, then how would the astute know of them: ‘This worthy one is astute, a true person’? But since an astute person does think well, speak well, and act well, then the astute do know of them: ‘This worthy one is astute, a true person’. These are the three characteristics, signs, and manifestations of an astute person. So you should train …”

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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.

The opening image is AI-generated nature artwork for Buddhist Atlas, an evocative companion rather than a historical depiction.