At one time the Buddha was staying at Ñātika in the brick house. There the Buddha addressed the mendicants, “Mendicants!”
“Venerable sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this:
“Mendicants, an element gives rise to a perception, a view, and a thought.”
When he said this, Venerable Kaccāna said to the Buddha, “Sir, regarding those who are not fully awakened Buddhas, there is a view that they are in fact fully awakened Buddhas. Due to what does this view appear?”
“It’s a mighty thing, Kaccāna, the element of ignorance. An inferior element gives rise to inferior perception, inferior view, inferior thought, inferior intention, inferior aim, inferior wish, an inferior person, and inferior speech. One explains, teaches, asserts, establishes, clarifies, analyzes, and discloses the inferior. I say that their rebirth is inferior.
A middling element gives rise to middling perception, middling view, middling thought, middling intention, middling aim, middling wish, a middling person, and middling speech. One explains, teaches, asserts, establishes, clarifies, analyzes, and discloses the middling. I say that their rebirth is middling.
A superior element gives rise to superior perception, superior view, superior thought, superior intention, superior aim, superior wish, a superior person, and superior speech. One explains, teaches, asserts, establishes, clarifies, analyzes, and discloses the superior. I say that their rebirth is superior.”