Ariyapaccorohaṇīsutta — Jāṇussoṇivagga — the seventeenth chapter of the Tens, bookended by dialogues with the brahmin Jāṇussoṇi
Setting
None stated in the source
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
The same ten-factor reflection as AN 10.167, stripped of its brahmin narrative frame
Length
under 1 minute to read
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — a bare restatement of AN 10.167's content
Why this discourse
Following the vivid narrative of AN 10.167, this discourse delivers the identical noble descent directly to the mendicants, with no brahmin ritual, no Jāṇussoṇi, and no comparison — the bare version of a teaching just given in full narrative dress.
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
Reflecting that each of the ten unskillful acts has a bad result now and in future lives, a noble disciple gives each one up in turn — this is called the noble descent.
The narrative-then-bare pattern, again
This pairing follows a structure already familiar from this project — a vivid narrative discourse followed immediately by a bare restatement of the same content addressed directly to the mendicants, without the story that motivated it (compare AN 10.119 and 10.120's washing festival pair, or AN 10.65 and 10.66's near/far shore pair).
What the bare version loses, and keeps
Gone is Jāṇussoṇi himself, the ethnographic detail of the brahmin ritual, and the numerical comparison (“not worth a sixteenth part”); what remains is the ten-factor reflection formula itself, now given the simpler and more direct title ariya, “noble,” without needing to borrow and redefine a brahmin ritual's own name.
A quieter close than its narrative twin
Where AN 10.167 closed with Jāṇussoṇi's dramatic conversion, this discourse simply ends with the definition itself — “this is called the noble descent” — no audience response, no verdict, nothing beyond the teaching's own bare restatement.
Key terms
ariyapaccorohaṇī — “the noble descent” — this discourse's own title, the bare version of AN 10.167's brahmin-ritual-framed teaching.
micchādiṭṭhissa …pāpako vipāko hoti — “wrong view has a bad result” — the tenth and final item, unchanged from AN 10.167's own list.
suṇātha, sādhukaṁ manasi karotha, bhāsissāmi — “listen and apply your mind well, I will speak” — the Buddha's own formal preparatory address, unlike the narrative opening of AN 10.167.
pāṇātipātaṁ pahāya paccorohati — “giving up killing living creatures, they descend from killing living creatures” — the recurring closing formula for each of the ten items.
ayaṁ vuccati ariyapaccorohaṇī — “this is called the noble descent” — the discourse's own bare closing line, with no narrative response following it.
The text
The discourse in full: the noble descent, stated directly to the mendicants. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
The noble descent, stated plainly
§1“Mendicants, I will teach you the noble descent. Listen and apply your mind well, I will speak.” “Yes, sir,” they replied. The Buddha said this: “And what, mendicants, is the noble descent? It’s when a noble disciple reflects: ‘Killing living creatures has a bad result in the present life and in lives to come.’ Reflecting like this, they give up killing living creatures, they descend from killing living creatures. … ‘Stealing has a bad result in the present life and in lives to come.’ Reflecting like this, they give up stealing, they descend from stealing. … ‘Sexual misconduct has a bad result …’ … they descend from sexual misconduct. … ‘Lying has a bad result …’ … they descend from lying. … ‘Backbiting has a bad result …’ … they descend from backbiting. … ‘Harsh speech has a bad result …’ … they descend from harsh speech. … ‘Talking nonsense has a bad result …’ … they descend from talking nonsense. … ‘Covetousness has a bad result …’ … they descend from covetousness. … ‘Ill will has a bad result …’ … they descend from ill will. … ‘Wrong view has a bad result both in the present life and in lives to come.’ Reflecting like this, they give up wrong view, they descend from wrong view. This is called the noble descent.”
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Self-check quiz
6 questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 6
How does this discourse relate to AN 10.167 immediately preceding it?
Correct: B. The bare version of a teaching just delivered in full narrative dress.
Question 2 of 6
According to the guide, what earlier pairing in this project follows the same narrative-then-bare pattern?
Correct: B. A recurring structural device already met earlier in this nipāta.
Question 3 of 6
What does this discourse's version lose compared to AN 10.167's, according to the guide?
Correct: B. The narrative frame is stripped away, leaving only the formula itself.
Question 4 of 6
How does this discourse close, according to the guide?
Correct: B. No verdict, no response — just the teaching's own restatement.
Question 5 of 6
Where is this discourse set?
Correct: D. No location is given for this discourse.
Question 6 of 6
What chapter of AN10 does this discourse belong to?
Correct: B. The seventeenth chapter of the Tens, opened by AN 10.167.
