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 same cowherd simile and eight contemplations, now crossed against the six kinds of craving
Length
~1 minute to read; stands for forty-eight discourses
Eighth of ten categories, closing the circle
Craving, the very link that AN 11.214–261's feeling was flagged as conditioning
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — the same established pattern, one category over
Why this discourse
The same eleven-factor cowherd simile and eight contemplations apply to the six kinds of craving for each sense object — sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, and ideas — forty-eight further discourses (AN 11.358–405).
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
The identical cowherd simile and eight contemplations now apply to the six kinds of craving — for sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, and ideas — the eighth of this chapter's ten categories.
The link this sequence has been building toward
AN 11.214–261's guide flagged feeling as the point where craving takes hold or does not. This page names that very consequence directly: craving (taṇhā), the link dependent origination identifies as arising from feeling and, left unchecked, driving the entire cycle of further becoming and rebirth.
Three kinds of craving, though compressed here
Elsewhere in the canon craving is analyzed into three kinds — for sensual pleasure, for continued existence, and for non-existence — a finer distinction this compressed page does not draw out, treating craving here simply by its six sense-object categories rather than by its underlying motivations.
The same forty-eight, two categories from the close
Six kinds of craving times eight contemplations gives forty-eight discourses, matching AN 11.358 through AN 11.405 exactly — the eighth of ten categories, with only thought and consideration remaining before this chapter's massive mirror page closes the whole structure.
Key terms
rūpataṇhāya, saddataṇhāya, gandhataṇhāya, rasataṇhāya, phoṭṭhabbataṇhāya, dhammataṇhāya — “craving for sights, sounds, smells, tastes, touches, and ideas” — the six kinds of craving, named for their sense objects.
taṇhā — “craving” — the eighth step in this chapter's sequence, and the link dependent origination identifies as arising directly from feeling.
rūpataṇhā — “craving for sights” — the first of the six, opening this page's list.
kāmataṇhā, bhavataṇhā, vibhavataṇhā — “craving for sensual pleasure, for continued existence, for non-existence” — the canon's own finer threefold analysis of craving, not drawn out in this compressed page's six-object treatment.
aniccānupassī...paṭinissaggānupassī — the same eight contemplations from AN 11.22–29, again left entirely implicit.
The text
The compressed text in full: the same pattern, now applied to the six kinds of craving. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Six kinds of craving, the same pattern
§1… “… Craving for sights … craving for sounds … craving for smells … craving for tastes … craving for touches … craving for ideas. …”
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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 category does this page address?
Correct: B. The eighth step in this chapter's analytical sequence.
Question 2 of 6
According to the guide, what earlier page flagged this category's own significance in advance?
Correct: B. Feeling was flagged as the point where craving takes hold or does not.
Question 3 of 6
What threefold analysis of craving does the canon offer elsewhere, not drawn out in this compressed page?
Correct: B. A finer distinction this page treats only by sense object instead.
Question 4 of 6
How many categories remain after this one, before the chapter's closing mirror page, according to the guide?
Correct: B. The eighth of ten categories.
Question 5 of 6
How many discourses does this page stand for?
Correct: C. 6 × 8 = 48, matching AN 11.358 through AN 11.405.
Question 6 of 6
Where is this compressed passage set?
Correct: B. No location is given for this compressed passage.
