Bad Character (4th)

AN 4.210 · Catutthapāpadhammasutta

The broad shade of an old rose-apple tree on sunlit earth.

“Mendicants, I will teach you bad character and worse character, good character and better character.

And who has bad character? It’s someone who has wrong view, wrong purpose, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, wrong immersion, wrong knowledge, and wrong freedom. This is called bad character.

And who has worse character? It’s someone who has wrong view, wrong purpose, wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, wrong effort, wrong mindfulness, wrong immersion, wrong knowledge, and wrong freedom. And they encourage others in these same qualities. This is called worse character.

And who has good character? It’s someone who has right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right immersion, right knowledge, and right freedom. This is called good character.

And who has better character? It’s someone who has right view, right purpose, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right immersion, right knowledge, and right freedom. And they encourage others in these same qualities. This is called better character.”

Connections

Collection & context

Aṅguttara NikāyaThe collection containing this text
The Pāli canonCanonical collection in which this edition is preserved
Theravāda traditionsTransmission and study context
The early Buddhist communityHistorical and traditional setting

Books

The Numerical Discourses of the Buddha: A Translation of the Aṅguttara NikāyaBhikkhu Bodhi; Bhikkhu Bodhi (translator) · Complete collection edition

About this edition

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.