Āsavakkhayasutta — Saññāvagga — the seventh 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
AN 5.69's five-part practice restated word for word, with a single-term outcome replacing the seven-term chain, closing the chapter's own colophon
Length
~1 minute to read
Northern parallel
The ending of defilements (āsavakkhaya) as the culmination of sustained contemplative practice is a standard formula across the Chinese Āgamas; this reading guide does not assert a specific matching sutra number
Difficulty
★★☆☆☆ — closes the chapter by compressing AN 5.69's seven-term chain into its single practical core
Why this discourse
This chapter's final discourse takes AN 5.69's five-part practice — word for word identical, down to the last phrase — and names a single outcome in place of the seven-term chain: āsavānaṁ khayāya, the ending of defilements. Where AN 5.69 traced the full arc from disillusionment to extinguishment, this discourse names only the arc's practical, functional endpoint.
Reading guide
The teaching in one sentence
A mendicant who observes the body's ugliness, perceives food's repulsiveness, perceives dissatisfaction with the whole world, observes the impermanence of all conditions, and has well established the perception of their own death, develops five things that lead to the ending of defilements.
One outcome standing in for seven
Āsavakkhaya, the ending of defilements, is not a different result from AN 5.69's seven-term chain; it is, in effect, that entire chain's practical shorthand — the state that disillusionment, dispassion, cessation, peace, insight, awakening, and extinguishment collectively describe, named here by its single most concrete, functional term.
Why give the same practice two different labels
Read together, AN 5.69 and 5.70 make the same point two ways: a rich, sevenfold description of what this practice culminates in, and a single, practical name for the same culmination. Neither discourse is more correct than the other; a reader who wants the full arc has AN 5.69, and a reader who wants the compressed, actionable term has this discourse.
Five discourses, five variations on repetition
This chapter closes having used the same underlying device five separate times: perceptions with two overlapping lists (61–62), growth for two genders (63–64), fitness for two social functions (65–66), the bases of psychic power for two speakers (67–68), and now a single practice with two named outcomes (69–70). No two pairs vary in quite the same way, which is worth appreciating as the chapter's real accomplishment: repetition used five different times to make five genuinely different points.
The chapter's own closing colophon
As at the close of every earlier chapter, the source appends Saññāvaggo dutiyo — the second chapter, on perceptions, within the restarting count — followed by the chapter's own untranslated uddāna verse. The next chapter, Yodhājīvavagga, turns to warriors.
Key terms
āsavakkhaya — “ending of defilements” — this discourse's title and single-term outcome, the practical shorthand for AN 5.69's seven-term chain.
āsava — “defilement, taint, corruption” — the underlying term, referring to the deep-seated impurities whose ending marks full liberation.
asubhānupassī — “observing ugliness” — the first of the five practices, identical to AN 5.69's wording.
maraṇasaññā sūpaṭṭhitā — “the perception of death, well established” — the fifth practice, worded identically to AN 5.69.
Saññāvaggo dutiyo — “the second chapter, on perceptions” — this vagga's closing colophon, matching the form already explained in full at AN 5.10.
The text
The discourse in full: the same five-part practice as AN 5.69, now leading to the ending of defilements. The chapter's closing colophon and Pāli mnemonic verse are part of the source but are not translated text, and are described rather than reproduced here. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
§1“Mendicants, these five things, when developed and cultivated, lead to the ending of defilements. What five? A mendicant meditates observing the ugliness of the body, perceives the repulsiveness of food, perceives dissatisfaction with the whole world, observes the impermanence of all conditions, and has well established the perception of their own death. These five things, when developed and cultivated, lead to the ending of defilements.”
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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
How does this discourse's five-part practice compare to AN 5.69's?
Correct: B. The identical practice, down to the last phrase.
Question 2 of 10
What single outcome does this discourse name in place of AN 5.69's seven-term chain?
Correct: B. A practical shorthand for the same culmination the seven-term chain describes.
Question 3 of 10
How does the guide characterize the relationship between AN 5.69's seven-term chain and this discourse's single term?
Correct: B. Neither discourse is more correct; they serve different purposes.
Question 4 of 10
How does the guide summarize this chapter's overall use of paired, near-duplicate discourses?
Correct: B. Five genuinely different points made through five differently structured pairs.
Question 5 of 10
What colophon closes this chapter?
Correct: B. Matching the structure already explained in full at AN 5.10.
Question 6 of 10
What chapter follows the Saññāvagga?
Correct: B. The next chapter in sequence, per this discourse's guide.
Question 7 of 10
What does 'āsava' refer to?
Correct: B. The underlying term behind this discourse's title, āsavakkhaya.
Question 8 of 10
How many discourses in this chapter used the same underlying pairing device, counting AN 5.69–70?
Correct: B. Perceptions, growth, discussion/shared-life, psychic power, and now practice/outcome.
Question 9 of 10
Are the five practices in this discourse newly defined, or inherited from AN 5.69?
Correct: B. Word for word identical to the previous discourse.
Question 10 of 10
Where is AN 5.70 set?
Correct: B. Consistent with the default setting used throughout this nipāta when nothing new is stated.
