Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
Benefiting oneself is removing one’s own greed, hate, and delusion; benefiting others is encouraging them to remove theirs.
The two definitions
Attahitāya paṭipanno is defined as practising for the removal of one’s own rāga, dosa, moha — greed, hate, delusion, the three unwholesome roots.
Parahitāya paṭipanno is defined as encouraging others to remove theirs. The verb is samādapeti, to encourage or instigate — one of the four verbs of good Dhamma teaching from AN 4.48.
Note the asymmetry built into the definitions. One’s own removal is something one does; another’s removal is something one encourages. Nobody removes anyone else’s greed, hate, or delusion for them, and the definitions are careful about it.
Why the ranking follows
AN 4.95 ranked practising for oneself alone above practising for others alone, and this discourse makes that intelligible.
The person in the third cell has removed greed, hate, and delusion in the only case where they can do it directly. The person in the second cell has encouraged others to do something they have not done, and encouragement is the whole of what they have contributed.
Put that way the ranking is not a claim that others matter less. It is a claim about what has actually been accomplished. The first person has changed something; the second has recommended a change.
It is also worth noticing what the ranking does not depend on: nothing here says the encouragement fails, or that people cannot be helped by someone who has not done the work. The claim is narrower — that of the two, the one who has done it has done more.
The asymmetry and its consequence
Because removal is first-person and encouragement is second, the top cell is not simply twice the work of the others. It is doing the thing and recommending it, which are different actions with different objects.
That structure recurs in the next three discourses. AN 4.97 will define the pair as being quick-witted about the teachings against being a good speaker; AN 4.99 as keeping the precepts against encouraging others to keep them.
In every version the self side is an accomplishment and the other side is a transmission. The collection is consistent about this: one cannot practise for another person, only tell them about it.
What this makes of teaching
The definitions have an uncomfortable implication for anyone whose role is instruction, and it is better to state it than to leave it implied.
A teacher who instructs others in removing greed, hate, and delusion, and does not remove their own, is in the second cell — ranked third of four. The collection does not exempt the professionally religious from the ranking, and AN 4.68 on Devadatta and AN 4.26 on the deceivers both make the same point in other registers.
The corresponding reassurance is in the fourth cell, and it is worth having. Doing the work oneself and encouraging others is the top position — not doing the work in seclusion and keeping quiet. The collection wants both, and says so.
The four discourses that follow
AN 4.96 through AN 4.99 give the same four individuals four sets of definitions, and AN 4.98 gives no definitions at all.
This one defines by the three roots. AN 4.97 defines by capacity — understanding quickly and speaking well. AN 4.98 is the bare statement. AN 4.99 defines by the five precepts.
The variation is the same exercise as AN 4.87–4.90 in the previous chapter, and it carries the same lesson: the framework is the durable thing, and it can be filled with attainment, capacity, or conduct as the occasion requires.
Key terms
The text
Four individuals
§1“Mendicants, these four individuals are found in the world. What four? One who practices to benefit themselves, but not others; one who practices to benefit others, but not themselves; one who practices to benefit neither themselves nor others; and one who practices to benefit both themselves and others.
For themselves, not others
§2And how does an individual practice to benefit themselves, but not others? It’s when an individual practices to remove their own greed, hate, and delusion, but doesn’t encourage others to do the same. That’s how an individual practices to benefit themselves, but not others.
For others, not themselves
§3And how does an individual practice to benefit others, but not themselves? It’s when an individual doesn’t practice to remove their own greed, hate, and delusion, but encourages others to remove theirs. That’s how an individual practices to benefit others, but not themselves.
For neither
§4And how does an individual practice to benefit neither themselves nor others? It’s when an individual doesn’t practice to remove their own greed, hate, and delusion, nor do they encourage others to remove theirs. That’s how an individual practices to benefit neither themselves nor others.
For both
§5And how does an individual practice to benefit both themselves and others? It’s when an individual practices to remove their own greed, hate, and delusion, and encourages others to remove theirs. That’s how an individual practices to benefit both themselves and others. These are the four individuals found in the world.”
Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.