So I have heard. At one time Venerable Ānanda was staying near Kosambī in Ghosita’s monastery. There Ānanda addressed the mendicants: “Reverends, mendicants!”
“Reverend,” they replied. Ānanda said this:
“Reverends, all of the monks and nuns who declare in my presence that they have attained perfection, did so by one or other of four paths.
What four?
Take a mendicant who develops serenity before discernment. As they do so, the path is born in them. They cultivate, develop, and make much of it. By doing so, they give up the fetters and eliminate the underlying tendencies.
Another mendicant develops discernment before serenity. As they do so, the path is born in them. They cultivate, develop, and make much of it. By doing so, they give up the fetters and eliminate the underlying tendencies.
Another mendicant develops serenity and discernment in conjunction. As they do so, the path is born in them. They cultivate, develop, and make much of it. By doing so, they give up the fetters and eliminate the underlying tendencies.
Another mendicant’s heart is seized by restlessness to realize the teaching. But there comes a time when their mind is stilled internally; it settles, unifies, and becomes immersed in samādhi. The path is born in them. They cultivate, develop, and make much of it. By doing so, they give up the fetters and eliminate the underlying tendencies.
All of the monks and nuns who declare in my presence that they have attained perfection, did so by one or other of these four paths.”