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Aṅguttara Nikāya · Discourse 5.54

Times Good for Meditation

Samayasutta — Nīvaraṇavagga — the sixth 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
Five unfavorable circumstances named in turn, then their five favorable mirrors, with no closing verse
Length
~3 minutes to read
Northern parallel
Naming external social and institutional conditions as relevant to meditation practice recurs across the Chinese Āgamas' monastic material; this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★★★☆☆ — an unusually candid admission that circumstance, not only willpower, shapes practice

Why this discourse

AN 5.53 named factors internal to a person as support for meditation. This discourse names something different: circumstances entirely outside a mendicant's control that make meditation more or less possible in the first place. Old age, sickness, famine, civil unrest, and a schism in the Saṅgha are named, without qualification, as times meditation does not go well — a admission this reading guide will not soften into a claim that sufficiently determined practice can simply override any circumstance.

Reading guide

The teaching in one sentence

Five times are not good for meditation — old age, sickness, famine, wilderness unrest, and a schism in the Saṅgha — and five mirror times are good for it: youth, health, abundance, social harmony, and harmony within the Saṅgha.

Circumstance, named without euphemism

Two of the five unfavorable conditions are bodily — old age and sickness, conditions any individual mendicant might simply have no choice about. The other three are social and institutional: famine making almsfood hard to get, aṭavisaṅkopo, turmoil in the wilds severe enough that country people flee with their vehicles, and a split Saṅgha where members abuse, insult, block, and forsake each other. None of these five is framed as something meditation itself can simply overcome; they are named as conditions under which meditation is, factually, harder.

A schism's specific damage

The fifth unfavorable time receives the most detailed description of any item on either list: a divided Saṅgha does not merely inconvenience its members but actively doesn't inspire confidence in those without it, and causes some with confidence to change their minds. Institutional conflict is treated here as having consequences beyond the immediate community — it damages the teaching's standing with outsiders and unsettles even committed supporters.

The mirror list, exact and complete

Every unfavorable condition has a named favorable counterpart: youth in place of old age, health in place of sickness, abundance in place of famine, social harmony in place of unrest, and a harmonious Saṅgha with one recitation in place of schism. The parallel structure makes the discourse's point almost visually: these are not separate concerns but the same five variables, each capable of running either direction.

What this discourse does not claim

Nothing here says a mendicant facing an unfavorable time should give up on meditation altogether, and nothing claims a favorable time guarantees success. The discourse's contribution is narrower and, arguably, more honest than either extreme: circumstance is a real variable in whether meditation goes well, worth naming plainly rather than folding into a purely individual account of practice and effort.

Key terms

asamaya samaya — “bad time, good time” — the paired terms structuring this discourse's two matching lists.
aṭavisaṅkopo — “turmoil in the wilds” — the fourth unfavorable condition, severe enough that country people flee with their vehicles.
saṅgho bhinno — “a split Saṅgha” — the fifth and most fully described unfavorable condition, with consequences reaching beyond the immediate community.
khīrodakībhūtā — “blending like milk and water” — the image for social harmony among the favorable conditions, a close, inseparable mixture.
ekuddesa — “with one recitation” — the mark of a harmonious Saṅgha, reciting the monastic code together rather than splitting into factions.

The text

The discourse in full: the five times unfavorable for meditation, and their five favorable mirrors. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).

Five times not good for meditation

§1“Mendicants, there are five times that are not good for meditation. What five?

§2Firstly, a mendicant is old, overcome with old age. This is the first time that’s not good for meditation.

§3Furthermore, a mendicant is sick, overcome by sickness. This is the second time that’s not good for meditation.

§4Furthermore, there’s a famine, a bad harvest, so it’s hard to get almsfood, and not easy to keep going by collecting alms. This is the third time that’s not good for meditation.

§5Furthermore, there’s peril due to turmoil in the wilds, so the countryfolk mount their vehicles and flee everywhere. This is the fourth time that’s not good for meditation.

§6Furthermore, there’s a schism in the Saṅgha. When the Saṅgha is split, they abuse, insult, block, and forsake each other. This doesn’t inspire confidence in those without it, and it causes some with confidence to change their minds. This is the fifth time that’s not good for meditation.

§7These are the five times that are not good for meditation.

Five times good for meditation

§8There are five times that are good for meditation. What five?

§9Firstly, a mendicant is a youth, young, with pristine black hair, blessed with youth, in the prime of life. This is the first time that’s good for meditation.

§10Furthermore, they are rarely ill or unwell. Their stomach digests well, being neither too hot nor too cold, but just right, and fit for meditation. This is the second time that’s good for meditation.

§11Furthermore, there’s plenty of food, a good harvest, so it’s easy to get almsfood, and easy to keep going by collecting alms. This is the third time that’s good for meditation.

§12Furthermore, people live in harmony, appreciating each other, without dispute, blending like milk and water, and regarding each other with kindly eyes. This is the fourth time that’s good for meditation.

§13Furthermore, the Saṅgha lives comfortably, in harmony, appreciating each other, without dispute, with one recitation. When the Saṅgha is in harmony, they don’t abuse, insult, block, or forsake each other. This inspires confidence in those without it, and increases confidence in those who have it. This is the fifth time that’s good for meditation.

§14These are the five times that are good for meditation.”

· · ·

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 times does this discourse name as unfavorable for meditation?
Correct: B. Two bodily conditions and three social/institutional ones.
Question 2 of 10
Does this discourse frame meditation as able to simply overcome any of these five unfavorable conditions?
Correct: B. A candid admission that circumstance is a real variable, not merely an excuse to be dismissed.
Question 3 of 10
What does the discourse say about the consequences of a Saṅgha schism?
Correct: B. The most detailed description on either list, extending beyond internal effects.
Question 4 of 10
What is the mirror condition for old age among the five favorable times?
Correct: B. An exact structural mirror to the first unfavorable condition.
Question 5 of 10
How does the guide describe the parallel structure between the two five-item lists?
Correct: B. An exact, one-to-one mirroring across both lists.
Question 6 of 10
What image describes social harmony among the favorable conditions?
Correct: B. Khīrodakībhūtā, a classic image of seamless combination.
Question 7 of 10
What does the guide say this discourse does NOT claim?
Correct: B. A narrower, more honest contribution than either extreme claim.
Question 8 of 10
How many of the five unfavorable conditions concern the individual body, versus social or institutional circumstances?
Correct: B. A mix spanning individual and communal levels.
Question 9 of 10
How does this discourse relate to AN 5.53's account of what supports meditation?
Correct: B. Two distinct kinds of factors bearing on whether meditation goes well.
Question 10 of 10
Where is AN 5.54 set?
Correct: B. Consistent with the default setting used throughout this nipāta when nothing new is stated.
Answered 0 of 10 · Correct 0

Further reading

← PreviousAN 5.53 · Factors That Support Meditation