Dutiyadīghacārikasutta — Dīghacārikavagga — the twenty-third 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
two paired five-item lists, identical frame to AN 5.221
Length
~1 minute to read
Northern parallel
not identified in this collection
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — short, a variant restatement
Why this discourse
The second of this pair of wandering discourses, keeping AN 5.221's opening and closing items unchanged but replacing its concern with learning with a concern for spiritual achievement itself — the same instability, measured against practice rather than study.
Reading guide
The same frame, a different middle concern
As in AN 5.221, contracting severe illness and lacking friends close the list unchanged. What changes is the opening three items: rather than learning, this discourse names spiritual achievement (adhigama) as what constant wandering undermines.
Five drawbacks of instability for practice
Not achieving what's unachieved; what's achieved falling away; and losing confidence in some of what's achieved — echoing AN 5.212's language for a disruptive Saṅgha member, now applied to the disruption caused by one's own restless travel.
Five matching benefits
Achieving the unachieved; what's achieved not falling away; confidence in what's achieved; avoiding severe illness; and having friends — the exact mirror, closing the same way as AN 5.221.
Learning and achievement, two related costs of the same instability
Read together, AN 5.221 and AN 5.222 suggest constant wandering damages practice on two fronts: intellectually, by preventing sustained learning, and experientially, by preventing sustained meditative progress — the same root problem, shown from two angles.
A matched pair, in this nipāta's established style
This close pairing — identical frame, varied middle — follows the same pattern already seen at AN 5.215–216 and elsewhere: a single underlying concern given two complementary statements rather than one exhaustive list.
Key terms
anadhigataṁ nādhigacchati — “doesn't achieve the unachieved” — the first drawback, echoing AN 5.212's language for a disruptive Saṅgha member.
adhigatā parihāyati — “what's achieved falls away” — the second drawback, actual spiritual regression.
adhigatenekaccena avisārado — “lacking confidence in some of what's achieved” — the third drawback.
gāḷhaṁ rogātaṅkaṁ phusati, mittavā — “contracts severe illness, has friends” — the two items unchanged from AN 5.221.
samavatthacāra — “a reasonable, measured amount of wandering” — the shared positive counterpart across both discourses.
The text
The discourse in full: the same structure as AN 5.221, with spiritual achievement in place of learning. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
Five drawbacks of long, aimless wandering
§1“Mendicants, there are these five drawbacks for someone who likes long and aimless wandering. What five? You don’t achieve the unachieved. What you have achieved falls away. You lose confidence in some things you’ve achieved. You contract a severe illness. You don’t have any friends. These are the five drawbacks for someone who likes long and aimless wandering.
Five benefits of a reasonable amount of wandering
§2There are these five benefits of a reasonable amount of wandering. What five? You achieve the unachieved. What you have achieved doesn’t fall away. You’re confident in some things you’ve achieved. You don’t contract severe illness. You have friends. These are the five benefits of a reasonable amount of wandering.”
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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 stays unchanged between this discourse and AN 5.221?
Correct: A. The frame stays the same; only the opening three items vary.
Question 2 of 10
What does this discourse replace 'learning' with as its central concern?
Correct: A. Instability measured against practice rather than study.
Question 3 of 10
What does 'anadhigataṁ nādhigacchati' mean, and where else does similar language appear?
Correct: A. The same phrasing used for someone who starts fights and disputes.
Question 4 of 10
What does 'adhigatā parihāyati' mean?
Correct: A. Actual spiritual regression, the second drawback.
Question 5 of 10
Read together, what do AN 5.221 and AN 5.222 suggest about constant wandering?
Correct: A. The same root problem, shown from two angles.
Question 6 of 10
What earlier matched pair in this nipāta does this same structure resemble?
Correct: A. Identical frame, varied middle — a recurring structural choice.
Question 7 of 10
What does 'adhigatenekaccena avisārado' mean?
Correct: A. The third drawback in this discourse's version.
Question 8 of 10
What is the final benefit named for a reasonable amount of wandering?
Correct: A. Unchanged from AN 5.221's closing item.
Question 9 of 10
What discourse follows, shifting from wandering to a related concern about dwelling length?
Correct: A. Five drawbacks of staying too long in one place.
Question 10 of 10
What chapter does this discourse belong to?
Correct: A. 'Long Wandering', this session's twenty-third chapter.
