Reading guide
Anāthapiṇḍika, named directly
Unlike the previous three discourses' general address to the mendicants, this one is addressed to a specific, named lay follower: the householder Anāthapiṇḍika, the Buddha's most prominent lay patron in this collection.
Five fears and enmities, given up or not
The same five precepts are now called bhayāni verāni, ‘fears and enmities’ — unless given up, one is called unethical and reborn in hell; once given up, one is called ethical and reborn in heaven, echoing AN 5.173's framing but now naming the precepts themselves as sources of fear rather than simply rules.
Fear now, not only fear later
The discourse's real contribution is its explanation: anyone who kills living creatures ‘brims with fear and enmity both in this life and in lives to come’, and experiences mental pain and sadness — while anyone who refrains experiences none of this. The same explanation is given in full for killing and for intoxicants, and abbreviated for the middle three precepts.
A genuinely social argument
This isn't only a claim about karmic consequence after death: someone who kills, steals, or lies has genuine reason to fear retaliation, exposure, or revenge from those they've wronged, right now — while someone who doesn't has quelled that fear and enmity entirely, in the present.
Closing in verse
The discourse closes with two verses restating the same teaching poetically — one describing the person who kills, lies, steals, commits adultery, and drinks as witless and hell-bound, the other describing the person who abstains from all five as wise and bound for a good place, a rare case in this collection of a prose teaching closing with its own summarizing verse.
Key terms
The text
Unless given up: hell; once given up: heaven
§1“Householder, unless these five fears and enmities are given up, one is said to be unethical, and is reborn in hell. What five? Killing living creatures, stealing, committing sexual misconduct, lying, and consuming beer, wine, and liquor intoxicants. Unless these five fears and enmities are given up, one is said to be unethical, and is reborn in hell. Once these five fears and enmities are given up, one is said to be ethical, and is reborn in heaven. What five? Killing living creatures, stealing, committing sexual misconduct, lying, and consuming beer, wine, and liquor intoxicants. Once these five fears and enmities are given up, one is said to be ethical, and is reborn in heaven.
Why breaking precepts breeds fear, now and later
§2Anyone who kills living creatures brims with fear and enmity both in this life and in lives to come, and experiences mental pain and sadness. Anyone who refrains from killing living creatures does not brim with fear and enmity either in this life or in lives to come, and doesn’t experience mental pain and sadness. So that fear and enmity is quelled for anyone who refrains from killing living creatures. Anyone who steals … Anyone who commits sexual misconduct … Anyone who lies … Anyone who consumes beer, wine, and liquor intoxicants brims with fear and enmity both in this life and in lives to come, and experiences mental pain and sadness. Anyone who refrains from consuming beer, wine, and liquor intoxicants does not brim with fear and enmity either in this life or in lives to come, and doesn’t experience mental pain and sadness. So that fear and enmity is quelled for anyone who refrains from consuming beer, wine, and liquor intoxicants.
In verse
§3Take anyone in this world who kills living creatures, speaks falsely, steals, commits adultery, and indulges in drinking beer and wine. Unless they give up these five threats, they’re said to be unethical. When their body breaks up, that witless person is reborn in hell. A person in the world doesn’t kill living creatures, speak falsely, steal, commit adultery, or indulge in drinking beer and wine. Giving up these five threats, they’re said to be ethical. When their body breaks up, that wise person is reborn in a good place.”
Self-check quiz
Ten questions. Click an answer to see immediate feedback. No score is recorded — this is for your own checking.