Gītassarasutta — Kimilavagga — the twenty-first chapter of the Fives
Setting
None stated; the discourse continues from AN 5.1, whose setting at Sāvatthī in Jeta’s Grove is understood to hold
Speakers
The Buddha alone, addressing the mendicants
Form
single five-item list, no positive mirror
Length
~1 minute to read
Northern parallel
not identified in this collection
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — short, a practical warning
Why this discourse
A genuinely specific piece of practical guidance: five distinct problems with reciting the teaching in a drawn-out, musical singing voice, moving from personal vanity through public criticism to a lasting institutional consequence.
Reading guide
Five drawbacks, in escalating scope
Relishing the sound of one's own voice; others relishing it too; householders complaining that these ascetics ‘sing just like us’; concentration breaking apart while chasing the melody; and, closing the list, those who come after imitating the example.
Vanity, both ways
The first two drawbacks name a shared vanity: not just the reciter enjoying their own voice, but listeners enjoying it too — turning the teaching's recitation into something closer to a performance both parties are drawn to for its own sake.
A specific, quoted public complaint
The third drawback is unusually concrete: an actual line of criticism attributed to householders, comparing the Buddhist ascetics' singing recitation unfavorably to ordinary popular song — a real reputational cost, not an abstract concern.
Concentration lost to the melody
The fourth names something more internal: enjoying the tune itself breaks one's immersion (samādhi) — the very attention that recitation is meant to support gets displaced by attention to the performance.
Imitation, the final and most lasting cost
The fifth drawback closes with diṭṭhānugati — ‘those who come after follow the example’ — the same imitation-mechanism already flagged at AN 5.79, AN 5.88, and AN 5.156. A single reciter's self-indulgence, on this view, doesn't stay contained to one person; it becomes a precedent others simply copy.
Key terms
gītassara — “a singing voice” — specifically the drawn-out, musical recitation style this discourse warns against.
sārajjati — “relishes, delights in” — the shared vanity named in the first two drawbacks, on the part of both reciter and listener.
samaṇā sakyaputtiyā — “these ascetics who follow the Sakyan” — the householders' quoted complaint, comparing Buddhist reciters to ordinary singers.
samādhissa bhaṅgo — “a breakup of immersion” — the fourth drawback, concentration displaced by attention to the melody.
diṭṭhānugatiṁ āpajjati — “falls into imitation” — the same mechanism already named at AN 5.79, AN 5.88, and AN 5.156.
The text
The discourse in full: five drawbacks of reciting the teaching with a singing voice. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Five drawbacks of a singing voice
§1“Mendicants, there are these five drawbacks in reciting with a drawn-out singing voice. What five? You relish the sound of your own voice. Others relish the sound of your voice. Householders complain: ‘These ascetics who follow the Sakyan, sing just like us!’ When you’re enjoying the melody, your immersion breaks up. Those who come after follow your example. These are the five drawbacks in reciting with a drawn-out singing voice.”
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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 five drawbacks does this discourse name for reciting the teaching with a singing voice?
Correct: A. Five distinct problems, escalating in scope.
Question 2 of 10
What specific complaint does this discourse attribute to householders?
Correct: A. An unusually concrete, quoted public criticism.
Question 3 of 10
What does the fourth drawback describe?
Correct: A. Attention to performance displacing the attention recitation should support.
Question 4 of 10
What mechanism does the fifth drawback name, already seen elsewhere in this collection?
Correct: A. The same imitation-mechanism from AN 5.79, 5.88, and 5.156.
Question 5 of 10
What does this discourse suggest about a single reciter's self-indulgence?
Correct: A. The lasting, institutional cost named in the fifth drawback.
Question 6 of 10
What does 'sārajjati' mean in this context?
Correct: A. The shared vanity of both reciter and listener.
Question 7 of 10
What does 'samādhissa bhaṅgo' mean?
Correct: A. The fourth drawback of a drawn-out singing voice.
Question 8 of 10
Where else in this nipāta does 'diṭṭhānugati' appear?
Correct: A. A recurring concern with imitation across this nipāta.
Question 9 of 10
What structural form does this discourse take?
Correct: A. A bare warning, without a mirrored positive statement.
Question 10 of 10
What does 'samaṇā sakyaputtiyā' mean?
Correct: A. How householders refer to Buddhist mendicants in this discourse's quoted complaint.
