← English library

SN 48.54 — Pade Sutta: In the Foot

translated from the Pāli by Maurice O'Connell Walshe

"Just as monks, all the foot-characteristics of all jungle creatures[1] are combined in the elephant's and the elephant's foot is reckoned chief of them in size, so too, monks, of all the elements[2] that conduce to enlightenment the faculty of wisdom[3] is reckoned their chief as regards the attainment of enlightenment.

"And which, are those elements that conduce to enlightenment? The faculty of faith, monks, conduces to enlightenment, the faculties of energy, mindfulness, concentration and wisdom conduce to enlightenment.

"Just as, monks, all the foot-characteristics of all jungle creatures are combined in the elephant's foot and the elephant's foot is reckoned chief of them in size, so too, monks, of all the elements that conduce to enlightenment the faculty of wisdom is reckoned chief as regards the attainment of enlightenment."

Notes

1.
Reverting to jangalaana.m in Feer's text, as opposed to Woodward's "creatures as roam about" based on a dubious jangaman.am (for cankamana.m) of some MSS.
2.
Padaani lit. "feet" is an untranslatable pun. Pada.m "foot" has even more metaphorical meanings in Pali than the English word: see Pali-English Dictionary (PTS).
3.
Paññindriya. The fifth of the five "spiritual faculties": 1. Faith (saddhaa), 2. Energy (viriya), 3. Mindfulness (sati), 4. Concentration (samaadhi), 5. Wisdom (paññaa). See Buddhist Dictionary (2nd ed., by Ven. Nyaa.natiloka, Ven. Nyaa.naponika, ed., Colombo 1972) s.v. Indriya and also Indriya-samatta. It will be noticed that these five partly overlap with the seven bojjhangas (SN 46.53, n. 1).
Copyright © 1985 Buddhist Publication Society. The text of this page (“Pade Sutta: In the Foot”, by Maurice O'Connell Walshe) is licensed under a Buddhist Publication Society free-distribution licence. From Access to Insight (BCBS Edition), 30 November 2013. You may copy, reformat, reprint, republish, and redistribute this work in any medium whatsoever, provided that: (1) you only make such copies, etc. available free of charge and, in the case of reprinting, only in quantities of no more than 50 copies; (2) you clearly indicate that any derivatives of this work (including translations) are derived from this source document; and (3) you include the full text of this license in any copies or derivatives of this work. Otherwise, all rights reserved. This presentation is a derivative of that source document: it has been restyled and its links rewritten. The translation itself is unaltered.