On one occasion the Blessed One was dwelling at Vesālī in the hall with the peaked roof in the Great Wood. Then, in the evening, the Blessed One emerged from seclusion and approached the infirmary, where he saw a certain bhikkhu who was frail and sick. He then sat down in the prepared seat and addressed the bhikkhus:
“Bhikkhus, if five things do not slip away from a frail and sick bhikkhu, it can be expected of him: ‘In no long time, with the destruction of the taints, he will realize for himself with direct knowledge, in this very life, the taintless liberation of mind, liberation by wisdom, and having entered upon it, he will dwell in it.’ What five? Here, a bhikkhu dwells contemplating the unattractiveness of the body, perceiving the repulsiveness of food, perceiving non-delight in the entire world, contemplating impermanence in all conditioned phenomena; and he has the perception of death well established internally. If these five things do not slip away from a frail and sick bhikkhu, it can be expected of him: ‘In no long time, with the destruction of the taints, he will realize for himself with direct knowledge, in this very life, the taintless liberation of mind, liberation by wisdom, and having entered upon it, he will dwell in it.’”
122 (2) Establishment of Mindfulness
“Bhikkhus, if any bhikkhu or bhikkhunī develops and cultivates five things, one of two fruits is to be expected: either final knowledge in this very life or, if there is a residue remaining, the state of non-returning. What are the five? Here, a bhikkhu has mindfulness well established internally for [gaining] the wisdom that discerns the arising and passing away of phenomena; he dwells contemplating the unattractiveness of the body, perceiving the repulsiveness of food, perceiving nondelight in the entire world, and contemplating impermanence in all conditioned phenomena. If any bhikkhu or bhikkhunī develops and cultivates these five things, one of two fruits is to be expected: either final knowledge in this very life or, if there is a residue remaining, the state of non-returning.”
“Bhikkhus, possessing five qualities, a patient is difficult to take care of. What five? (1) He does what is harmful. (2) He does not observe moderation in what is beneficial. (3) He does not take his medicine. (4) He does not accurately disclose his symptoms to his kindhearted attendant; he does not report, as fits the case, that his condition is getting worse, or getting better, or remaining the same. (5) He cannot patiently endure arisen bodily feelings that are painful, racking, sharp, piercing, harrowing, disagreeable, sapping one’s vitality. Possessing these five qualities, a patient is difficult to take care of.
“Bhikkhus, possessing five [other] qualities, a patient is easy to take care of. What five? (1) He does what is beneficial. (2) He observes moderation in what is beneficial. (3) He takes his medicine. (4) He accurately discloses his symptoms to his kindhearted attendant; he reports, as fits the case, that his condition is getting worse, or getting better, or remaining the same. (5) He can patiently endure arisen bodily feelings that are painful, racking, sharp, piercing, harrowing, disagreeable, sapping one’s vitality. Possessing these five qualities, a patient is easy to take care of.”
“Bhikkhus, possessing five qualities, an attendant is not qualified to take care of a patient. What five? (1) He is unable to prepare medicine. (2) He does not know what is beneficial and harmful, so he offers what is harmful and withholds what is beneficial. (3) He takes care of the patient for the sake of material rewards, not with a mind of loving-kindness. (4) He is disgusted at having to remove feces, urine, vomit, or spittle. (5) He is unable from time to time to instruct, encourage, inspire, and gladden the patient with a Dhamma talk. Possessing these five qualities, an attendant is not qualified to take care of a patient.
“Bhikkhus, possessing five [other] qualities, an attendant is qualified to take care of a patient. What five? (1) He is able to prepare medicine. (2) He knows what is beneficial and harmful, so that he withholds what is harmful and offers what is beneficial. (3) He takes care of the patient with a mind of lovingkindness, not for the sake of material rewards. (4) He is not disgusted at having to remove feces, urine, vomit, or spittle. (4) He is able from time to time to instruct, encourage, inspire, and gladden the patient with a Dhamma talk. Possessing these five qualities, an attendant is qualified to take care of a patient.”
“Bhikkhus, there are these five things that reduce vitality. What five? One does what is harmful; one does not observe moderation in what is beneficial; one has poor digestion; one walks [for alms] at an improper time; one is not celibate. These are the five things that reduce vitality.
“Bhikkhus, there are these five things that increase vitality. What five? One does what is beneficial; one observes moderation in what is beneficial; one has good digestion; one walks [for alms] at the proper time; one is celibate. These are the five things that increase vitality.”
“Bhikkhus, there are these five things that reduce vitality. What five? One does what is harmful; one does not observe moderation in what is beneficial; one has poor digestion; one is immoral; one has bad friends. These are the five things that reduce vitality.
“Bhikkhus, there are these five things that increase vitality. What five? One does what is beneficial; one observes moderation in what is beneficial; one has good digestion; one is virtuous; one has good friends. These are the five things that increase vitality.”
“Bhikkhus, possessing five qualities, a bhikkhu is not fit to live apart from the Saṅgha. What five? He is not content with any kind of robe; he is not content with any kind of almsfood; he is not content with any kind of lodging; he is not content with any kind of medicines and provisions for the sick; and he dwells engrossed in thoughts of sensuality. Possessing these five qualities, a bhikkhu is not fit to live apart from the Saṅgha.
“Bhikkhus, possessing five [other] qualities, a bhikkhu is fit to live apart from the Saṅgha. What five? He is content with any kind of robe; he is content with any kind of almsfood; he is content with any kind of lodging; he is content with any kind of medicines and provisions for the sick; and he dwells engrossed in thoughts of renunciation. Possessing these five qualities, a bhikkhu is fit to live apart from the Saṅgha.”
128 (8) An Ascetic’s Happiness
“Bhikkhus, there are these five kinds of suffering for an ascetic. What five? Here, a bhikkhu is not content with any kind of robe; he is not content with any kind of almsfood; he is not content with any kind of lodging; he is not content with any kind of medicines and provisions for the sick; and he lives the spiritual life dissatisfied. These are the five kinds of suffering for an ascetic.
“Bhikkhus, there are these five kinds of happiness for an ascetic. What five? Here, a bhikkhu is content with any kind of robe; he is content with any kind of almsfood; he is content with any kind of lodging; he is content with any kind of medicines and provisions for the sick; and he lives the spiritual life with satisfaction. These are the five kinds of happiness for an ascetic.”
“Bhikkhus, there are these five incurable lesions that lead to the plane of misery, that lead to hell. What five? One deprives one’s mother of life; one deprives one’s father of life; one deprives an arahant of life; with a mind of hatred one sheds the Tathāgata’s blood; one creates a schism in the Saṅgha. These are the five incurable lesions that lead to the plane of misery, that lead to hell.”
“Bhikkhus, there are these five disasters. What five? Disaster due to [loss of] relatives, disaster due to [loss of] wealth, disaster due to illness, disaster regarding virtuous behavior, and disaster regarding view. It is not because of a disaster due to [loss of] relatives, or a disaster due to [loss of] wealth, or a disaster due to illness that with the breakup of the body, after death, beings are reborn in the plane of misery, in a bad destination, in the lower world, in hell. It is because of a disaster regarding virtuous behavior and a disaster regarding view that with the breakup of the body, after death, beings are reborn in the plane of misery, in a bad destination, in the lower world, in hell. These are the five disasters.
“Bhikkhus, there are these five accomplishments. What five? Accomplishment in relatives, accomplishment in wealth, accomplishment in health, accomplishment in virtuous behavior, and accomplishment in view. It is not because of accomplishment in relatives, accomplishment in wealth, or accomplishment in health that with the breakup of the body, after death, beings are reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world. It is because of accomplishment in virtuous behavior and accomplishment in view that with the breakup of the body, after death, beings are reborn in a good destination, in a heavenly world. These are the five accomplishments.”