Untitled in the source — Sāmaññavagga — the third chapter of the Elevens
Setting
None stated in the source
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
The identical cowherd simile and eight contemplations from AN 11.22–29, now applied to the remaining five sense faculties
Length
~1 minute to read; stands for forty discourses
First fully-compressed page
The first page in this chapter to use bare ellipsis rather than spell out its content in full
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — trivial once AN 11.22–29's pattern is understood
Why this discourse
The same eleven-factor cowherd simile and the same eight contemplations already given in full at AN 11.22–29 for the eye apply identically to the ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind — five more sense faculties times eight contemplations, forty further discourses (AN 11.30–69), compressed onto a single page.
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
Everything already established at AN 11.22–29 for the eye — the cowherd simile, the eight contemplations — applies without change to the remaining five sense faculties: ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind.
The first fully compressed page
Where AN 11.22–29 spelled out all eight contemplations across eight separate discourses, this page compresses the same content into a single short passage using bare ellipsis: ‘… ear … nose … tongue … body … mind’, trusting the reader to supply both the cowherd simile and all eight contemplations from the previous page.
The arithmetic
Five remaining sense faculties, each crossed against the same eight contemplations, gives forty discourses — matching the range AN 11.30 through AN 11.69 exactly, and completing the first of this chapter's ten categories: the six sense faculties in full (one eye page plus this one), fifty-six words of Pāli standing for forty-eight actual discourses across the two pages.
How to read a page this compressed
From here through AN 11.454–501, most pages in this chapter will follow this same extremely compressed form: a category list swapped in place of the eye, eight contemplations left entirely implicit. The reading guide for each such page will name the arithmetic and the category being crossed, rather than re-explain a structure already established here.
Key terms
sotasmiṁ, ghānasmiṁ, jivhāya, kāyasmiṁ, manasmiṁ — “in the ear, in the nose, in the tongue, in the body, in the mind” — the five remaining sense faculties this page substitutes for AN 11.22–29's eye, in the standard six-sense-faculty order.
pe — the Pāli ellipsis marker (peyyāla) — not itself part of the English translation, but the underlying convention this and most later pages in this chapter render as ‘…’.
cakkhusmiṁ, sotasmiṁ — “in the eye, in the ear” — the first two of the six sense faculties, together spanning this page and its immediate predecessor.
aniccānupassī...paṭinissaggānupassī — the same eight contemplations named in full at AN 11.22–29, here left entirely implicit.
chaḷāyatana — not named directly here, but the traditional term for the six sense faculties (āyatana) this page and its predecessor together complete.
The text
The compressed text in full: the same cowherd simile and eight contemplations, now applied to five more sense faculties. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Five more sense faculties, the same pattern
§1… “… ear … nose … tongue … body … mind …”
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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
What does this page apply to the remaining five sense faculties?
Correct: B. The same pattern, unchanged, applied to new content.
Question 2 of 6
How many discourses does this page stand for?
Correct: B. 5 × 8 = 40, matching AN 11.30 through AN 11.69.
Question 3 of 6
How does this page's own text differ from AN 11.22–29's?
Correct: B. The first fully compressed page in this chapter.
Question 4 of 6
What five sense faculties does this page name?
Correct: B. Completing the six sense faculties alongside AN 11.22–29's eye.
Question 5 of 6
According to the guide, what should a reader expect from most later pages in this chapter?
Correct: B. This page sets the pattern the rest of the chapter follows.
Question 6 of 6
Where is this compressed passage set?
Correct: B. No location is given for this compressed passage.
