Aggisutta — Akkosakavagga — the twenty-second 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
under 1 minute to read
Northern parallel
not identified in this collection
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — short, an unusually literal topic
Why this discourse
A genuinely unusual discourse in this collection: five drawbacks of a literal, physical fire, mixing bodily harm with something more social — fire as a gathering point that draws crowds and encourages idle talk.
Reading guide
Five physical and social drawbacks
Fire is bad for the eyes, bad for the complexion, makes you weak, draws in groups of people, and encourages tiracchānakathā (literally ‘animal talk’, meaning idle, worldly gossip) — a list mixing plainly bodily effects with a social consequence.
Fire as a gathering point
The fourth and fifth items are the most distinctive: fire draws people together, and that gathering tends toward idle chatter rather than useful conversation — naming a genuinely social drawback of something ordinarily thought of only in physical terms.
A likely context: sitting around a fire
Read in context, this discourse most plausibly concerns communal fires kept for warmth, cooking, or light — a natural gathering point in a mendicant community's daily life, and therefore also a natural site for the kind of unproductive socializing this discourse warns against.
Tiracchānakathā, a recurring concern in a different key
‘Animal talk’, meaning worldly small talk rather than Dhamma discussion, is a recurring category of concern across the early texts — here it appears attached to an ordinary physical circumstance (a fire) rather than to any deliberate choice, worth noticing as a subtler kind of temptation than outright misconduct.
An unusually literal entry in this collection
Most of this nipāta's five-item lists concern virtues, obstacles, or spiritual states. This discourse's subject — an ordinary physical object — stands out as a reminder of how broad this collection's attention actually is.
Key terms
aggi — “fire” — this discourse's title concept and literal subject.
acakkhusso — “bad for the eyes” — the first drawback named.
dubbaṇṇakaraṇo, dubbalakaraṇo — “bad for the complexion, makes weak” — the second and third physical drawbacks.
saṅgaṇikāpavaḍḍhano — “draws in groups” — the fourth, social drawback.
tiracchānakathāpavattaniko — “encourages low, worldly talk” — literally ‘animal talk’, the fifth and final drawback.
The text
The discourse in full: five drawbacks of fire, physical and social. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Five drawbacks of fire
§1“Mendicants, there are these five drawbacks of a fire. What five? It’s bad for your eyes. It’s bad for your complexion. It makes you weak. It draws in groups. And it encourages low talk. These are the five drawbacks of a fire.”
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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 of fire does this discourse name?
Correct: A. A list mixing bodily effects with a social consequence.
Question 2 of 10
What does 'tiracchānakathāpavattaniko' mean?
Correct: A. The fifth and most distinctive drawback.
Question 3 of 10
What are the two most socially distinctive drawbacks in this list?
Correct: A. Naming a social consequence of something ordinarily thought of only physically.
Question 4 of 10
What context does this discourse most plausibly concern, according to this guide?
Correct: A. A natural gathering point, and therefore a site for idle talk.
Question 5 of 10
What is 'tiracchānakathā' a recurring category of concern for, across the early texts?
Correct: A. A subtler kind of temptation than outright misconduct.
Question 6 of 10
What makes this discourse's subject unusual within this collection?
Correct: A. A reminder of how broad this collection's attention actually is.
Question 7 of 10
What does 'dubbalakaraṇo' mean?
Correct: A. The third physical drawback of fire.
Question 8 of 10
What does 'acakkhusso' mean?
Correct: A. The first drawback named for fire.
Question 9 of 10
What structural form does this discourse take?
Correct: A. A bare list, without a mirrored positive statement.
Question 10 of 10
What discourse follows, closing this chapter?
Correct: A. Five drawbacks of a specific city, closing this chapter.
