Tatiyavohārasutta — Āpattibhayavagga — the twenty-fifth chapter of the Fours
Setting
None stated; the Āpattibhayavagga gives no location for this discourse, and it is addressed to the mendicants directly
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
A single sentence naming a third of four ignoble or noble expressions
Length
under a minute to read
Northern parallel
This reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number for this discourse
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — the third of four, and the mirror image of AN 4.251
Why this discourse
Denying having seen, heard, thought, or known something one actually has — the false denial this series first read paired with its opposite at AN 4.218 and AN 4.228, now given its own discourse as an ignoble expression, third in this chapter's set of four.
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
Denying that one has seen, heard, thought, or known something one actually has is one of the four ignoble ways of speaking.
The mirror of AN 4.251, independently stated
Diṭṭhe adiṭṭhavāditā, sute asutavāditā, mute amutavāditā, viññāte aviññātavāditā — false denial of genuine experience, the content already read paired with truthful affirmation at AN 4.218 and AN 4.228. As at AN 4.250 and AN 4.251, this chapter separates what those two earlier pairings joined, giving false denial a discourse entirely its own.
A point already established, not reargued
This series noted at AN 4.218 that false denial is held to the same weight as false claim, neither treated as the lesser fault. That point does not need remaking here; it is a feature of the content, not of any particular formula wrapping it, and it carries over unchanged into this chapter’s noble/ignoble frame exactly as it carried over into the khata frame at AN 4.228.
Three of four, now separate
With this discourse, three of the vocabulary’s four combinations have been given independent standing in this chapter: false claim at AN 4.250, honest denial at AN 4.251, and false denial here. One combination remains — honest claim, saying one has experienced what one actually has — and the pattern established over the previous three discourses leaves little doubt about what the final discourse in this set will say.
Key terms
diṭṭhe adiṭṭhavāditā — “denying having seen what one has seen” — identical wording to AN 4.218 and AN 4.228.
anariyavohāra — “ignoble expression” — this discourse's frame, matching AN 4.250's for the false claim.
diṭṭha suta muta viññāta — the fourfold division of experience, unchanged across every appearance of this vocabulary in this series.
musāvāda — “false speech” — the general category this specific false denial narrows to testimony about one's own experience.
vohāra — “expression, way of speaking” — naming this discourse and its three companions in this chapter's atomized set.
The text
The discourse in full: one of the four ignoble expressions, named. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
An ignoble expression
§1“Mendicants, there are these four ignoble expressions. What four? Saying you haven’t seen, heard, thought, or known something, and you have. These are the four ignoble expressions.”
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Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.
Question 1 of 10
What does this discourse name as an ignoble expression?
Correct: B. The mirror of AN 4.251, given here its own independent discourse.
Question 2 of 10
Where was this same false-denial content previously given, paired with its opposite?
Correct: B. Now separated into its own discourse, as this chapter does with each combination.
Question 3 of 10
What point from AN 4.218 does the guide say carries over unchanged here?
Correct: B. A feature of the content itself, not of any particular formula wrapping it.
Question 4 of 10
How many of the four combinations have now received independent treatment in this chapter?
Correct: B. One combination, honest claim, remains for the next discourse.
Question 5 of 10
What frame does this discourse use?
Correct: B. Matching AN 4.250's frame for the false claim.
Question 6 of 10
What does the guide predict about the next discourse in this set?
Correct: B. The pattern established over the previous three discourses makes this predictable.
Question 7 of 10
What is viññāta, the fourth of the four terms?
Correct: B. Unchanged across every appearance of this vocabulary.
Question 8 of 10
How does this discourse's form compare to AN 4.250 and AN 4.251?
Correct: B. Matching the atomized pattern this chapter builds across all four discourses.
Question 9 of 10
What example illustrated the seriousness of false denial when this series first discussed it?
Correct: B. Established at AN 4.218 and carried forward unchanged through every later appearance.
Question 10 of 10
What discourse follows, completing this chapter's set of four?
Correct: B. The fourth and final combination, and the chapter's own closing discourse.
