Dutiyasampadāsutta — Kakudhavagga — the tenth 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
a single bare five-item list, with no elaboration
Length
under 1 minute to read
Northern parallel
not identified in this collection
Difficulty
★☆☆☆☆ — the shortest possible form
Why this discourse
A second bare list of accomplishments, sharing AN 5.91's format but naming an entirely different pentad: ethics, immersion, wisdom, freedom, and the knowledge and vision of freedom — the sequence of components traditionally understood to make up the complete path.
Reading guide
A second bare list, a different pentad
Sīla, samādhi, paññā, vimutti, vimuttiñāṇadassana — ethics, immersion, wisdom, freedom, and the knowledge and vision of freedom — not to be confused with AN 5.91's saddhā, sīla, suta, cāga, paññā.
The components of complete practice
This pentad describes a linear progression traditionally treated as the collection's own account of the path in miniature: an ethical foundation, meditative stability, wisdom, the freedom that wisdom yields, and finally the reflective knowledge that one is free.
Contrast with AN 5.91's pentad
Two five-item ‘accomplishment’ lists appear back to back, sharing only sīla and paññā. AN 5.91's list names ordinary virtues — faith, generosity — alongside ethics, learning, and wisdom; this list names only the stages of the path itself.
Where this pentad recurs
Elements of this same sequence return, partially, at AN 5.95's ‘unshakable’ formula later in this chapter, where wisdom's analytical side and a reviewing of one's own freedom are named together again.
What comes next
AN 5.93 turns to something different: five possible ways someone might come to declare their own enlightenment, only one of which is genuine.
Key terms
sīlasampadā — accomplishment in ethics — the first of this discourse's five.
samādhisampadā — accomplishment in immersion — the second.
vimuttisampadā — accomplishment in freedom — the fourth.
vimuttiñāṇadassanasampadā — accomplishment in the knowledge and vision of freedom — the fifth, closing the list.
sīla / samādhi / paññā / vimutti / vimuttiñāṇadassana — ethics, immersion, wisdom, freedom, and the knowledge and vision of freedom — traditionally understood as the five components of the complete path.
The text
The discourse in full: a second bare list of five accomplishments. Translation: Bhikkhu Sujato (CC0, SuttaCentral).
The five accomplishments
§1“Mendicants, there are five accomplishments. What five? Accomplishment in ethics, immersion, wisdom, freedom, and the knowledge and vision of freedom. These are the five accomplishments.”
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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 accomplishments are named in this discourse?
Correct: B. Sīla, samādhi, paññā, vimutti, vimuttiñāṇadassana.
Question 2 of 10
How does this pentad differ from AN 5.91's?
Correct: B. Ethics and wisdom are the two shared terms.
Question 3 of 10
Which two items do the two pentads share?
Correct: B. Ethics and wisdom appear in both lists.
Question 4 of 10
What does this five-item list traditionally describe, as a sequence?
Correct: B. A linear progression toward and through full liberation.
Question 5 of 10
Where might elements of this pentad recur, partially, later in this chapter?
Correct: B. Wisdom's analytical side and reviewing one's freedom, named together again.
Question 6 of 10
What is the first item in this discourse's list?
Correct: B. Sīla opens the list.
Question 7 of 10
What is the last item?
Correct: C. Vimuttiñāṇadassanasampadā closes the list.
Question 8 of 10
Is this discourse longer or shorter than a typical narrative discourse in this nipāta?
Correct: B. Matching AN 5.91's brevity.
Question 9 of 10
What framing word do both AN 5.91 and AN 5.92 share?
Correct: B. Both discourses name their five items as 'accomplishments'.
